34 - Love is in the Air

[godsoffortune]

Who: Everyone!
What: An enterprising pair of shinki is trying to spread love throughout the Far Shore with exciting blind dates.
When: February 14
Where: Hot romantic spots throughout Tokyo
Summary: Blind dates on Valentine's Day? Sounds like fun (or possibly a disaster, but everyone needs some good disaster stories.) That's not all that's going on, though. Ayakashi are looking to chow down on the negative emotions that a romantic holiday can generate, and those who aren't busy with their own dates might be sucked into helping out followers who need help to make the day go well.






The Dates

Blind Date Matchups

Those who have signed up -- or whose friends and colleagues have signed them up -- for dates will get cards with specified times and meeting places inside for the big event. The cards don't list their dates' names, but instead have a matching symbol to allow everyone to find their proper partner. If anyone tries to stand up their date, they can expect a small and angry owl to harass them until they give in.


• Date One: The Romantic Brunch.
  Couples will find themselves with reservations (and pre-paid coupons for the prix fixe menu) at a swanky French restaurant with a wide balcony overlooking the lake in a central Tokyo park. They can dine on dainty pastries, sweet milk coffees, bowls of grapes and hothouse strawberries, and a selection of fancy chocolates and petit-fours-- plus, some of the trees in the park are blooming in holiday-appropriate red and white!



• Date Two: The Aquarium.
  Couples scheduled for this date have tickets to a rooftop aquarium in Ikebukuro: brightly colored fish, animals including penguins, seals and pelicans, a small petting zoo and plenty of shadowy, secluded nooks to cuddle in make for a fun lunchtime date. The tickets even include admission to the one o'clock penguin and seal show!



• Date Three: The Amusement Park.
  This date sends couples to spend the evening enjoying themselves at a seaside amusement park. Ride the roller coasters! Take selfies with the costumed attendants! Share an overpriced ice cream cone while you watch the fireworks after sunset, then wind up the night with a ride on the colorfully lit Ferris wheel with a romantic view of the Tokyo skyline.

Ayakashi Menace

There's more than just romantic couples out to enjoy themselves today. Romantic holidays can be tough for those whose love lives aren't so rosy, and as always, those negative feelings draw in ayakashi who are ready to ruin everybody's day.

All across the city, besides the usual ayakashi, characters might encounter the following:

Flocks of dove ayakashi whose mournful call induces self-doubt, suspicion and paranoia in everyone who hears it. Are your friends really your friends? Is your lover betraying you? Shouldn't you hurry up and stab them in the back before they can do it to you? These ayakashi are small and agile, difficult to catch but easy to destroy once they're caught... if you can overcome the urge to turn on your allies first.

Long-fingered shadow ayakashi, large and powerful, and capable of sneaking around by blending into genuine shadows. These ayakashi draw those who are alone into their clutches, filling them with resentment and despair. Anyone battling them needs to watch out for the humans they might already have influenced, who may become unpredictable and violent as the ayakashi influencing them grows more desperate.

Cute teddy bear ayakashi, that influence anyone they cling to into greedy obsession: they need attention, affection and gifts, and they can never have enough. When attacked, the teddy bears turn out to fight a little more like a grizzly bear than a stuffed toy, so gods and shinki beware!

Praying for Love

Those who aren't busy with their own dates might find themselves busy taking care of other people's instead. On a day like this one, everyone's praying that things turn out perfectly! Prayers gods might hear include:

"He's just got to ask me out! I made him the biggest box of chocolates... please, let senpai notice me!"

"Does she really like me? Please, give me a sign."

"I got concert tickets for our date, but it's supposed to rain. Please let me find a way to make this work out anyway!"

"The restaurant I wanted to take him to isn't taking any more reservations for tonight. What can I do? I can't cook!"

Wild Card -- players are free to make up their own romance-adjacent prayers for their characters to fulfill.

In Summary:

• Enjoy your dates
• Fight some ayakashi
• Make sure to answer prayers for a good Valentine's Day
• Have fun~

Comments

[sassywelshcatgirl]

[Bonk! Nia flails, then hisses just like a cat as she turns, fingers held up and curled like claws.] You daft addlepated idiot -- Oh.

[It's Ross.]

[Nia's face wipes from anger to mild irritation and indifference in a moment, all the tension leaving her body as she straightens up. Yeah, that's Ross for you.]

Should've known, really.

[But what's he d--]

[Oh no.]

...bloody hell, you're here for the dating thing, aren't you.

[shiitan]

[Hah. Despite the obvious ears, that was still more of a cat-like reaction than he'd been expecting. If an owl was going to bother him until he relented, he might as well get some fun out of it.

...The indifference did take something away from that.]

Yup. [He fished his invitation of sorts out of his pocket.] Fighting with the owl was too much effort.

[sassywelshcatgirl]

Well, way to get your date off to a great start. Big shock you're single. [Which is a pretty ineffective jab for someone also here for a blind date, never mind how voluntary that is.]

[shiitan]

You're disappointed by that? I didn't think you liked me that much.

[Nia, you still have time to take dealing with an annoying owl over him.]

[sassywelshcatgirl]

Oh yeah, I couldn't be more thrilled about this nonsense. [...Honestly, it could be worse than him.] Take it someone signed you up against your will too, huh?

[shiitan]

Yeah. Owls probably aren't that tasty either so doing something about it would be a waste.

[His gaze flicked to the fish she'd been staring at, and he crossed his arms. Oh no. He was pondering something.]

[sassywelshcatgirl]

[About to comment on his suggestion, Nia narrows her eyes instead.]

All right, out with it. What's running through your mind?

[She's sure it isn't good, but she wants it out front.]

[shiitan]

Well, cats eat birds. So maybe you'd think differently.

[Yup. There it was.]

[sassywelshcatgirl]

[Nia folds her arms, matching his look with flat, dry humor.]

But I like fish. Not that this is a buffet or a dinner date.

[shiitan]

Not with that attitude. [And well, it wasn't like this was going to be anything resembling a real date anyway.]

I'd rather you eat something than drool on the aquarium glass...

[sassywelshcatgirl]

You wait till I find out something you like, I'll get you there. [Which will probably involve sneaking up on him, so, wonderful.]

[shiitan]

[He very much deserved that anyway.]

Really? Should I take that as an offer or a threat?

[sassywelshcatgirl]

That's such a meaningless distinction here. Why split hairs?