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

brunch!

[wingsofaid]

[Her first date of the day is certainly leaving an impression. In contrast, Petra's actually dressed up nicely in a a forest green dress, warm tights, boots, and cream-colored knit cap and scarf set. Between the man's darkened mood, the visible scratches on his skin, and the way he's holding that card like it's something poisonous, it's not hard to draw the conclusion that he's probably not here because he wants to be.

Well, she'll just strive to make this as painless for the both of them as she can.

Petra approaches the man, pausing a respectful distance away, and holds up her card.]

Hello. Are you Hakkai Cho? I'm Petra Ral.

[reformedsinner]

[Hakkai looks up, startled and wary, and Jeep's nose appears from his scarf with a tiny chirp. She's clearly trying to be polite. That's nice, he supposes, and dredges up a polite smile in return, accompanied by a small bow.]

Yes, I am. Please forgive my appearance.

[A flick of his hand indicating the talon-marks on his face, and he adds:]

My shinki set these up, you see. It's a surprise to me that he signed me up.

[wingsofaid]

It's nice to meet you. And It's fine. I don't mind. I chose to sign up myself but maybe not for the reasons I was meant to.

[She smiles kindly, noting his apparent wariness, hoping to put him a little more at ease. And well, it's best to be up front about her own intentions, isn't it? That way there aren't any misconceptions that could lead to hurt feelings later on. It's not that she's against the notion of romance; it's just not something she's actively seeking for herself either.]

I just thought it might be a fun way to meet new people. That's all.

[Another smile as she takes notice of the little dragon peeking out of his scarf.]

Who's your friend there? They look pretty cozy.

[reformedsinner]

Ha ha, well, then, as long as we both understand one another... it's a pleasure to meet you, Miss Ral.

[He raises a hand to stroke Jeep's mane gently.]

This is Jeep, a companion of mine for some years now.

[wingsofaid]

It's nice to meet you, too, Jeep.

[She's developed a fondness for dragons in the short time she's been on the Far Shore, thanks to her god.]

And please call me Petra. There's no need for formalities around me.

[Though if he's more comfortable with keeping that polite distance between them, she won't argue.]

[reformedsinner]

Petra it is, then. [He sketches a quick bow of his head, tiny enough to avoid disturbing Jeep, and gestures to the tables.] Shall we find our table?

Ah, and I don't believe I've seen you around so far. How long have you been here?

[wingsofaid]

[Do they just sit down? Do they wait to be seated? Petra's still learning her way around this strange new world. She starts toward the tables, anyway.]

Not very long. I only arrived a few weeks ago.

[It hasn't even been a full month. Just long enough to settle in at her god's home, familiarize herself some past events in Heaven's history, and start considering her future as a shinki.]

When I heard about this event, it seemed like a good chance to meet someone outside of training or a disaster.

[There's a time and place for conversation and engaging with others in the middle of work-related activities or a crisis tend not to be opportune for her.]

[reformedsinner]

[They're from the Far Shore. Hakkai has learned, over his months here, that it doesn't matter whether they're supposed to wait to be seated or not; if they wait they'll never actually be seated. Better to find a table and then flag down a server.]

Ha ha, indeed. I hope you haven't been caught up in too many disasters? If it's only been a few weeks...

[It could have been worse, he supposes, and settles at an unoccupied table, looking around for a server. The last few weeks have been quieter than some. Of course, there had been that giant ape.]