001 | The Welcoming Feast

[godsoffortune]

Who: Everyone!
What: A little bit of explanation, thank goodness.
When: Early morning. (February 15, 2016)
Where: The Heavens. Specifically in the Meeting Hall.
Warnings: Exposition is coming your way, sit back and enjoy the show!



The Heavens have summoned you. And there is no way to turn down a summons from the Heavens. Of course, some of you know where you are and what you are probably doing here, but most of you might be completely confused as to what is going on. All gods have been ushered into the meeting hall, where every person suddenly becomes anonymous and obscured, while every shinki has been gathered up outside in the hallway, both sets to listen to the same message sent by Amaterasu herself. And while you cannot see her properly or really figure out what her voice sounds like, you definitely know that it's her speaking:

'Welcome, one and all, to Takamagahara. There are many new gods and shinki here today, and I hope you all find your stay pleasant. I wish that I could explain to you exactly why you find yourselves here now, but I am unsure of the details myself. Please make use of the shinki dedicated to our services in order to make yourself more acquainted with your new position. You can find them by looking for my golden insignia.

As compensation for the trouble you are all being put through, I have had a wonderful feast prepared. I only hope that it is to your liking. Feel free to eat and drink as much as you would like, though please do not leave before the clock chimes midnight, for that is when your homes will be prepared.

I ask that all pre-existing gods please help those new to our ways. Let them know what is and is not acceptable and what duties will be expected of them. I am counting on your all to support the Heavens in this confusing time as we attempt to sort things out.

Thank you all for your time. And I am truly sorry that you have found yourselves in this situation.

With that, the figure that is Amaterasu bows deeply and disappears from their sights. The gods are released from their chamber and the shinki are allowed to roam. All exits are manned by a white-clad shinki, bearing a golden, embroidered Chrysanthemum on their chests. So, technically, there is no way out. You can't even seem to teleport out by any means.

All that's really left to do is enjoy the food and hope that you'll actually be able to leave after the clock chimes midnight. Though the clock doesn't seem to work on a minute-by-minute basis either...



Banquet Hall

There is food from literally every culture and walk of life here. Everything is prepared gorgeously and deliciously, no expenses spared. There are shinki bearing the Chrysanthemum carrying out new platters of everything as it's eaten up and nothing seems to go hot or cold as time passes - it always at the perfect temperature for eating and it never tastes anything but delicious. Maybe there's a little magic making it taste so good...

On top of the delectable dinner, there are plenty of desserts and every kind of alcohol available and constantly being refilled. The liquor is being offered to gods and shinki alike, no matter how old they are/look. Let's hope that you can hold your alcohol.

Counselling

In the main hallway, there is an innocuous door with a small, nicely written sign that reads "Gentle Counselling". Inside the door is a small room with a few sweetly smiling shinki inside who are willing to listen to your problems and answer any questions you might have. They are also here to help out any gods that are having a hard time dealing with knowing about how their shinki died and also any shinki that is having trouble coming to terms with the fact that they are dead.

Did Someone Say Games?

A large room connected to the back of the banquet hall has a wide variety of games set up for everyone to enjoy. There are old-fashioned board games (like chess and Othello) as well as newer ones (like Candy Land and Sorry!). On top of that, there is every kind of console available with every video game ever made - and plenty of handheld devices for everyone to be able to play. The devices don't seem to work outside of this room, though, so you'll have to stay there if you want to keep playing. Gaming is, after all, a great way to get to know new people!

After Midnight

Finally, the clock starts to chime. It seems like it's been days and yet only minutes at the same time. Time seems to work so strangely here in Takamagahara and it's hard to keep up with what's going on. But now that the shinki guarding the doors have left their posts, you are more than welcome to leave. In fact, the Heavens seem to want you to leave because all of the food has disappeared, none of the games work anymore (including the board games, which keep flipping over when you try to play...), and the friendly shinki are smiling as they usher you out the doors.

You are welcome to start wandering around Takamagahara, but it's an ambiguous sort of place and might just take you straight home anyway. Feel free to go home and start bonding with your partner. Or sneak home with someone else because your partner is a meanie-pants. It's up to you!



In Summary:

• Amaterasu says you're stuck here and she doesn't know why. Sorry!
• There's lots of food to eat, though! Eat your fill.
• Oh, and there's booze too. Try not to get TOO drunk.
• Guidance/Grief counselling is available, if you need it.
• Use gaming to get close to others!
• Try to start bonding with your god/shinki. Or just form new friendships. Whatever you feel best doing!
• Have fun!

Comments

OTA

[faetedneutrality]

[Banquet Hall]

Bo was very much not okay with what was happening. Lauren wasn't here. Actually, no one she knew was here. And what the hell was up with this god thing? Oh Bo was more than aware of where she'd come from and who she was. And now, apparently, she was a goddess? A Norse goddess. Actually it was intensely ironic that she was the new embodiment of Freyja, considering she'd been close to Tamsin, who was a Vakyrie.

So the first order of business once the announcement was made, was going for food. And alcohol. Bo was not shy about taking a heaping plate of food. She even took a second plate that consisted of every dessert that had chocolate on it. She then got some alcohol. Normally she'd probably have wine with a meal like this, but with what was happening now? She was going to drink vodka straight. She may line up some shots later. Luckily, she could hold her liquor.

Taking a seat, she started to dig into her heaping pile of food. "Holy crap this is good," she said, her mouth half full of food.


[Game Room]

Taking her drink with her once she finished eating, Bo went into the game room. And there was a pool table. She wasn't that good of a pool player despite how long she'd spent around Kenzi and Dyson, but it was something she could play to break the ice with, right? She grabbed a cue, took a sip of her drink, then set it aside.

"So, who wants a game of pool? I promise I don't bite. Unless you want me to," she added with a chuckle.


[After Midnight]

Once it was obvious the party was over, Bo stepped outside. She glanced around, wondering where the hell to go. Though she had a feeling for what direction she should go in. Bo had to say, she really wanted to know where she'd be living. Though she definitely wasn't okay with being alone. Even though it had been several years since Kenzi had struck out on her own, and Tamsin was gone, there had still been Lauren. The woman she loved, and now Bo had been taken from her life and brought here.

She needed to be back home where she could help prepare Dagny for the day Hades would try to return. Bo needed to prepare everyone for that, most of all herself, and yet she was here instead. Maybe being a goddess would help in the fight against her father? Though what if her father was here?

Shaking her head, Bo took a breath and just started walking. There was too much on her mind, and the alcohol she'd consumed earlier hadn't been enough to make her drunk, but it was enough to make her brood if no one was around to distract her.

game!

[idkmybffgon]

That was seriously one of the creepiest things Killua could think of. He stared at the lady for a good few moments before making a face.

"You're like... old enough to be my mom, what the HELL??"

[faetedneutrality]

Bo looked at him and blinked. Maybe she should've chosen her words a bit more carefully. There did seem to be a lot of younger people around.

"Sorry, poorly chosen words." And then his words actually registered and she tilted her head a bit. "Are you saying I'm old?" She tried to pretend she was offended, but she also knew he wouldn't be able to guess how old she actually was. Bo was actually around fifty years old, but definitely didn't look it.

[idkmybffgon]

Killua threw his arms behind his head, elbows in the air, and looked away with a snort. She seriously screwed that up, huh? It was more amusing than gross, honestly. He wasn't actually weirded out at all.

But he didn't hesitate for even a moment before responding to her question.

"Yeah. Super old."

Killua please.

[faetedneutrality]

Once she adjusted to this place, she'd probably continue to be carefree with her comments and language. But for the time being? She'd rather be considerate of the younger people here. Bo wasn't an asshole, or at least she wasn't unless people gave her a good reason to be one.

"If I'm super old, wouldn't that make me, like, your grandma?" Bo teased in return, a bit of a smirk on her face. The sad thing was that Bo probably could actually be his grandmother from an age perspective. She just didn't look to be the age that she currently was.

[idkmybffgon]

That was quite a comment to consider. Killua looked thoughtful for a long moment before shaking his head and holding up a finger as he explained his reasoning.

"Nah. You're too pretty to be my grandma. More like my mom."

He made a face.

"Not like that's any better."

After Midnight

[peoples_keeper]

Izaya left on his own accord, it would be nice to get some fresh air and see the city if there even was one here. He saw a woman just ahead who seemed lost in thought. "Looks like we're headed the same way, mind if I join you?"

[faetedneutrality]

Hearing the voice, Bo turned to see a young man heading her way. She gave him a smile and shook her head. "Not at all. Gotta say it's nice to have some company." She glanced around them again. "Are you new here?" It was helpful to know who was new and who wasn't here.

[peoples_keeper]

Izaya matched his steps to hers as he came up beside her. It was much quieter out here as the crowd had mostly dispersed at different times and in different directions. "Yes, I take it you are as well?" He asked while enjoying the cool breeze.

[faetedneutrality]

The quiet was both welcome and slightly unsettling. Bo was used to the Fae always making some sort of noise, standing on the brink of war. But she had other issues to deal with first and foremost here, the Fae weren't her problem right now. "Yeah, I am. This experience is a little overwhelming."

[peoples_keeper]

"I'll say. I wish they had asked first, I was kind of in the middle of things. God or Shinki?" He asked preparing to update the tally in his mental filing cabinet.

after midnight

[jyajyaaan]

Vector had left as neither the first nor the last, making sure to slip out when nobody paid too much attention to it. ...especially two certain nobodies. He didn't care at all for companions: not when they were forced upon him, not when they were supposed to stay together all the time and especially not when they were supposed to share a home. Having gone through that once was more than enough.

Companions only meant people who would sell you out and stab you in the back, after all, if they weren't just an useless soon-to-die burden anyway.

Ditching his shinki didn't mean that he wasn't curious to see what motivated others, though. Once he was sure that the woman he had spotted was alone he walked up to her, waving a hand in a gesture that was meant to show that he meant no harm.

"Looks like I'm not the only one who's feeling reluctant to go home already. A penny for your thoughts?"

[faetedneutrality]

It had been too long since Bo had last been on her own. She'd gotten used to Lauren, Dyson and Mark being around. So this would be an adjustment. The last time she'd been alone, truly alone, had been when she'd been running away from her past, from herself, as much as possible. But this time, she wasn't alone because she'd chosen to be. She'd been brought here, the new reincarnation of Freyja, or however they had chosen to phrase it to her.

Either way, this whole god business was new to her and she wasn't certain how to really deal with it.

Seeing the young man approaching, she waited. She didn't mind the company. It was distraction from trying to find where she fit in here.

"No, you certainly aren't the only one. I'm not really certain how to feel about all of this."

[jyajyaaan]

"Hmm~ There seems to be a couple of possibilities by now: you can be angry that nobody thought to ask you first, confused over what the hell is going on with all those new concepts and rules, worried for yourself and about those you left behind, scared about what they might not be telling us, miffed about having no say, elated for a new chance or an adventure,..."

Trailing off, he shrugged his shoulders and chuckled.

"-or ranting, like I am. Usually I'm more of the silent sort, but saying things out loud helps me sort out my head. I'm Vector, or the goddess Ma'at, although I'd like to note that I'm not female nor have I ever been."

[faetedneutrality]

"If I'm honest, I'm a mix of all of those feelings. Though possibly leaning a bit more towards the being angry side of things. I don't like being jerked around by others." And she also hated rules that seemingly had no reason to exist. Or if the rules seemed to be more divisive and segregating rules, like what the Fae adhered to.

There was always more than one way to accomplish something.

"Hey I don't mind ranting at all. I'm kind of prone to rant myself now and then." And sometimes Bo didn't have a filter between her mouth and her brain. "I'm Bo, now apparently the goddess Freyja. So it seems we're both new to this whole being a god thing." Even if the Fae in her world had at one time been worshipped as gods. And she was the daughter of one of the Greek gods, as it were. So her new-found station was more than strange to her.

[jyajyaaan]

"That's understandable." He nodded, cocking his head a little. "Nobody wants to be somebody else's game piece."

It's what they had all been back in his world and the ability to see those badly hidden little traces of it everywhere had been what had driven him to act out as badly as he had in the end. If everything was just a game, then how could anything still matter? Could pain and suffering and the desperate struggle to remove them as much as possible even be taken seriously in such a premise where all of their calls ultimately meant nothing? His decisions hadn't been wrong.

"I used to be one of the Barian Emperors before. Before the war with the human and the astral worlds broke out. Taking responsibly is something that I'm used to, albeit being worshiped isn't." He paused for a moment. "I think I'm a bit scared." His voice sounded honest and a tad bit sheepish, as if he felt sorry for being intimidated by their new task.

Food (sorry for the double post /o\)

[returnedfromtheline]

"Enjoy it while you can. We don't get to eat like this every day."

Such is Yukine's sage advice as he approaches with his own plate piled high. Even though he could never feel full, he could still enjoy eating.

And he cuts straight to the chase: "Are you a shinki?"

[faetedneutrality]

"No? That's kind of disappointing." After all, if they were in a place where gods lived, Bo thought that there should be feasts like this pretty much every day. So if it wasn't that way, it was kind of disappointing to her.

"No, I'm a goddess. Freyja, to be precise." It was really weird to her to introduce herself using a name that wasn't exactly hers. Or at least not the one she was used to being called. "What about you?" She gestured to the open seat next to her, offering the seat to him.

[returnedfromtheline]

He hadn't really been expecting to be invited to sit, but he hesitates only a moment before taking the seat.

"I'm a shinki. Call me Yukine." Setting his plate down he can pull down his collar a bit to fully reveal the red 'yuki' mark on his left collarbone.

"Have you found your shinki yet?"

[faetedneutrality]

No matter what other gods may do in regards to interacting with shinki, Bo was going to be friendly. She didn't believe in being the uptight, having a stick up her ass kind of person, let alone being one as a god.

"It's nice to meet you, Yukine," she responded with a friendly smile. She noted the mark on his collarbone. It was an odd way to bear one's name and such, but she supposed it wasn't all that different from some of the things the Fae did.

"No I haven't. But the night is young, I'm certain I'll find them sooner or later. Have you found your god?"

[returnedfromtheline]

He's glad that she seems at least interested in finding her shinki, but hopefully 'sooner'.

"Mm-?" That question takes him by surprise. He's not been asked that yet. "Oh, yes. I've been with him for a while now. I'm not one of the new shinki. But because I am experienced, I'm helping out a bit."

Banquet Hall

[sweetdeath]

Tsuzuki grinned, leaning back against the wall nearby. The food was amazing, and he'd had enough of the cocktails to be filled with a warm, friendly glow towards all mankind. They'd be missing him and Hisoka back home, but as far as he was concerned, this looked like a nicer place to work already.

For one thing, if Tatsumi'd even thought about the bill for a party as fancy as this, his head would have actually exploded.

He snickered, and leaned forward, waving at the woman who'd just sat down across from him.

"Hi! Isn't this a great party? Try those little fried things with the raspberry sauce, they're amazing. I think they're cheese."

[faetedneutrality]

Looking up, Bo gave a wave in return. She couldn't help but to think Kenzi would probably die of happiness if she was at this banquet. Seriously, all this food in one place? Bo had never seen an offering of food that came anywhere near close to this sheer volume of food.

"It's definitely amazing. Good food, good drinks, can't complain!" She responded with a smile. "Really? Oh man, I'll definitely have to try those. I totally love fried anything." Basically the more grease the better, right? Right. Bo would definitely go for the comfort, fattening type foods now. Especially when she had no idea what was in store for her in this place.

[sweetdeath]

"The best thing about being dead is we get to keep our figure." Tsuzuki winked cheerfully at her. Maybe it wasn't strictly true, but fried cheese with raspberry sauce and plenty of top-shelf booze made food into one of the greatest things about the afterlife tonight.

He set his plate down and hiked the chair across from her out. "Mind if I steal this spot?"

[faetedneutrality]

"You know, you definitely have a point there!" Bo said with a laugh. Though it wasn't all that different from her normal Fae state. She still needed to watch her figure, of course, but as a succubus she had plenty of advantages that normal humans never got. Such as longevity and the ability to heal herself.

"Go right ahead. I do like cheerful conversations." While she needed to learn more about this place and why she was here, it didn't hurt to be social while she did it.