36 - Dragon Dance

[godsoffortune]

Who: Everyone!
What: Help the Heavens cover for a missing goddess at her temple festival.
When: March 18
Where: Near the Sensou-ji temple in Asakusa
Summary: After Kannon's disappearance last year, the Heavens are concerned that things might go wrong at her temple's March 18 omikoshi festival. They've asked new gods and shinki to attend the festival and keep an eye out for trouble. Meanwhile, trusted newcomers and older gods and shinki alike are watching over the cultists that have been identified.






The Festival

Shrine-carriers, musicians and dancers congregate early in the morning in their matching outfits to get organized into their parade. Luckily, all of the parade participants this time are alive and well. There aren't even any troublesome ayakashi hanging around... so why is everyone having such bad luck?! Laces are breaking, costumes tearing, small children are getting sick from nerves, and even the drums seem to have gone out of tune. It looks like this parade is going to need a whole lot of help to prevent disaster.

For those who aren't busy with the parade preparations, food and souvenir booths throng the area in front of the temple. There's traveling games, too, and plenty of people showing up early with their families to find a good spot to watch the parade. This is one of Tokyo's most popular temples, so it's quite a crowd!

The Stakeouts

Any gods or shinki who were told about the cult problem by Amaterasu -- or anyone who might have heard from friends and allies about the plans -- can help Amaterasu's shinki keep a tight watch on all of the known cult members. Her shinki are looking for any sign of the young gods who she believes are behind all of this trouble, but are there other clues that might be found by a keen observer? Join in on staking out a cult member, and see what you can see.

Current cult members that the shinki are watching include:

• Mitsui Ryou - lives alone in a medium-sized apartment, appears to work a 9 - 5 schedule with occasional late nights.
• Imai Takeru - lives in a small two-story house by himself, has an unpredictable schedule.
• Shimoda Tsuki - lives alone in a small apartment with a lot of plants, works retail with varying shifts.
• Oota Saburo- lives in a medium-sized apartment with his wife and two young children, works a 9 - 5 schedule with frequent work trips.
• Maeda Shinnosuke - lives alone in a small, messy apartment, works construction (early mornings, long days.)
If your character is taking part in the surveillance of any of these people, please feel free to comment to the Cult Clues thread below with the name of the character they're watching, and the times that they're watching that character, in order to learn what they might see. (Note: surveillance doesn't have to take place only on the 18th. Characters can take part in watching the cult members at any time after Amaterasu's announcement on March 8.)

The Parade

At noon, the parade begins. Misfortune is still dogging the participants and the crowds around them, but it looks as though everything will go all right up until the final turn as the heavy, gilded shrine turns back towards the main temple building, tips, and slowly falls over sideways, straight for the crowd.

What's worse, when the shrine hits the ground, it cracks open -- and a huge, jellyfish-like ayakashi wearing a giant white mask with a single black eye inscribed on it heaves its way out and begins lashing its tentacles in every direction. People stung by the tentacles are driven into a furious frenzy, and fights are breaking out everywhere. Stop the humans from fighting, take care of the injured, and destroy the ayakashi before the situation gets any worse.

The Pursuit

In the middle of the fighting crowd, two white-robed shinki are chasing after a very average-looking salaryman in a tan coat. He doesn't seem to know that the shinki are chasing him, but he is moving fast, and they're in danger of losing track of him. They're calling out to any Far Shore denizen close enough to hear, shinki or god:

"Don't let that guy get away! He knows what happened!"

Anyone who has met or spent time staking out Mitsui Ryou will recognize him as the escaping salaryman. If your character takes part in the pursuit, please comment to the Cult Clues thread with a link to your thread - the character who successfully catches Mitsui will be determined by RNG on January 6, 2019.

In Summary:

• Attend the Sensou-ji festival
• Enjoy food and games
• Help Amaterasu's shinki stake out the cult
• Fight a masked ayakashi
• Have fun~

Comments

Cult Clues

[godsoffortune]

Comment here if your character is staking out any of the cultists, and include the following information:

- Name of the cultist your character plans to stake out
- Date and time that the thread will be set (general time of day, such as "March 11, evening" is fine)

If your character is helping to chase down Mitsui Ryou, comment here with a link to the thread in which he's being pursued.

[subconmodo]

Snatcher and Aymeric will be staking out Oota Saburo on March 13, Afternoon-Evening.

Event Rewards

[godsoffortune]

Please comment here to a link to any thread of 10 or more comments in which your character is helping with preparations for the parade or helping deal with the disaster, including fighting the ayakashi.

Gods will receive 200 followers and shinki will receive 20 exp for each thread.

[timeforpink]

Does this count for both participants?

[yasei]

the festival i
[ Sure there's a lot to investigate regarding the reasons for why things keep happening (it's probably amulets again, if he were to hazard a guess), but Obi is more interested in fixing things for the time being. He's pretty decent with a needle and he can repair at least less intricate instruments.

He fixes a torn happi (at some point he's gotten his own, even) and holds it up to inspect his work together with the owner. He fixes a drum and bops it to test the sound before handing it to the owner for them to assess the sound.

This is actually fun, way more fun than investigating.

Need something fixed? Need to borrow a needle? Want to help out as well? Pay Obi a visit, he'll be happy to engage. ]

the festival ii
[ Come one come all! Obi has found a set of leather balls and other assorted things and because he enjoys entertaining people on occasion, he can at some point find him juggling first leather balls and then small paper balls with dexterity and a few acrobatic elements, happi sleeves flailing and scarf threatening to either slip off or strangle him. ]

the parade
[ So Obi may not be entirely interested in stopping the fights..Not very much, at least. So he sits perched on a high point, just watching like a little shit. What? They're not at the point of trying to kill each other..yet. So it's fine, it's fine.

So there he sits, in a tree or something with some food in a bag, casually just observing, like it's got nothing to do with him. ]

Festival I

[unlucky7]

[With no sewing skills of her own and unable to find anyone from her temple in all the chaos around, Ginia looks frantically for someone that looks like they can sew. She spots Obi as he's finishing up a happi and hurries over with one draped over her arm.

Waving and whistling to get his attention, Ginia pulls out her phone and speedily types up a message, holding up for him to read.]

Sorry, have a moment to help with more sewing?

[smilingbullet]

the festival
[ When are these sort of things going to stop happening? It would be better if the old gods just admitted the little kids as gods like proper adults ought to, but he can't say it to their face. They'll probably flip.

He doesn't want people to get sick but honestly? He's getting tired of it and maybe if enough people went on strike and didn't help out, then maybe, though it was unlikely, the Heavens might actually take notice of their faults.

So D2 is on strike from searching for a cause and instead is either helping people solve their bad luck problem, cheering sick children up, and trying games and checking out souvenirs.

You bet he's going to find every single one of the shooting games and win prizes. This is his forte we're talking about, after all.

They're going to run out of prizes if he doesn't get pulled away from there at some point. ]

the parade
[ 'Son of a bitch..' he mutters, though it's in Hawaiian and 'kanapapiki' may not be understood by anyone but him. This sure is chaos. D2 actually has absolutely zero interest in helping the Heavens. They're incompetent and in a serious need for a complete overhaul, but they refuse to see it.

But he can't very well let people get badly hurt, so he'll at least try to do something.. People under the influence of ayakashi wouldn't really just calm down just like that though, and he can't kill ayakashi on his own. ]

Tie 'em up until things blow over... Maybe...? Umm..

parade

[timeforpink]

[ Meanwhile, Jen has no opinion yet on the Heavens (she only just got here, you see) but she sure as heck has an opinion on innocent people getting hurt, and that opinion is they shouldn't. ]

They could hurt themselves. [ Struggling, with all that ayakashi-induced anger... ] Unless we put borderlines up to fence them in?

[ Jen you're a noob will your borderline really hold that long. She can cast lines but... this is way too many people for two shinki to handle. ]

Or maybe we can tire them out by making them chase us.

[ Slightly better plan, Jen. ]

[subconmodo]

A: The Festival -- If you want something done right...

[The music is terrible. Why is the music so terrible? Aren't people who perform at these big, important events supposed to actually be good at their jobs?]

[He's pretty sure he just saw a drumstick go flying past his head]

[Somehow, it's still tolerable. Barely, but he's managing. Until he catches ear of a familiar sound: someone's playing the cello. Badly. And he's not sure if it's because the instrument is out of tune or if the player is trying to squeak and squeal everyone's eardrums to death.]

[There's only one thing he can do.]

[Festival-going residents of the Far Shore may notice a man in all black, his head bowed and face hidden by a large, wide-brimmed hat playing the cello. The music, Toccata in D Minor, doesn't fit the atmosphere at all, but damn if it isn't being played well.]



B: The Parade -- Putting a stop to hilarity

[It is with the utmost reluctance that Snatcher has deigned to help this fine noon. If it were up to him, he'd start holding bets--10:1 on the angle biter there, 5:1 on the repressed housewife--but alas. Duty calls.]

[The things he does for a promotion]

Watch your feet!

[It's all the warning that your character gets before Snatcher zips past, spacing out circles of black thorns in his wake. One of the festival-goers steps into its center without knowing and is immediately trapped within a circle of magic, separated from the man he was fighting with, who looks around wildly in search of the quarantined partier.]

You get stuck in one, it's your own fault!



C: The Near Shore Five-O [Locked to Aymeric]

[From all the books he'd read, he would have thought stakeouts would be more interesting. A secret drug trade here, selling of government secrets there, that sort of thing. Instead he's just been watching a guy go through his daily life and perform charming acts of familial domesticity that made his non-existent stomach turn.]

You're absolutely sure this is the guy?

Festival

[holygrailed]

[The music is played very well, but it does seem strange compared to the rest of the festival. Is that a good instrument for a parade? Either way, Irisviel hears the music weaving over the noise of the crowd and decides to track down the source to better listen.

When he finishes playing, she applauds lightly.]

You play very well.

[chibisu]

A - Festival

This isn't a festival under Ebisu's jurisdiction- those were all done with back in January thank goodness. However, he's also a little bit worried about how this festival will fare. With recent events such as the shenanigans on New Years, the strange occurrence with the dolls not that long ago, and Amaterasu's own declaration of intent... Well. Best to be cautious.

So many of his shinki can be found running around doing all manners of things to help out: repairing costumes, tuning drums, all of the practical things which require some amount of skill.

Ebisu can't do any of that, for a couple of reasons. (One of them being that he's a child.) However, he does seem to be attending to some of the children, putting one tiny hand over their eyes as he speaks quietly to them. "It'll be alright. Nothing has happened yet, right? You shouldn't get worried over something that hasn't happened yet. You'll deal with it when it happens, and not a moment sooner. Just remember to breathe." He spots someone familiar from the Far Shore, and, perking up, waves one hand.

"Oh, excuse me! Could you go get me something?"

B - Parade

Well. Something has happened. Now,they have to deal with it.

The moment they see that something is happening to the shrine, Kunimi propels Ebisu's body upwards to a higher vantage point... Just in time to witness the masked ayakashi bubble out from the cracked shrine. Ebisu's eyes go wide- not from his own recognition, necessarily, but from the spike of feeling that he gets from those of his shinki who have seen what he's just seen.

That decides it.

With the simple call of a name, Ebisu summons Kiwami into his hands as a reliable fishing pole. None of the others are suited for battle right now, after all, so he'll do his best to keep his distance. As he bound over there, however, he calls to any familiar Far Shore faces.

"Please! Don't destroy it just yet- don't destroy the mask! We need to get it away from here!"

C - Pursuit

Combat, especially such delicate combat with a purpose, isn't something that a god of commerce or water is suited for. However, when he hears Amaterasu's shinki, Ebisu tears himself away from the fray to see what's going on. Once he spots their target, he immediately rears Kiwami back and sends his hook flying. Yet even when the hook snags into the man's clothing, Ebisu still has to pursues.

Kiwami's line has its limits, after all, and he has to keep up if he wants to keep tracking.

"Um, excuse me!" People are certainly welcome to help the tiny god bounding through the crowd and along buildings, if they want to. Or perhaps their paths are simply intersecting. It doesn't really matter. Ebisu is just looking around, letting Kunimi take the wheel on movement.

If he could find Takami and call him, then it would be so much easier to catch up...!

Festival - take one

[unlucky7]

Ginia has an odd assortment of fine skills under her belt, but as it turns out, none of them are really along the lines of repairing things. With the high stakes around the festival, it's no time for a crash course in drum repair or sewing. That doesn't mean she's useless though; Aomi and Unmi can handle the finer repairs, she's okay grabbing tools for them or running finished items back to their owners.

Or right now, putting her height and muscles to work by holding up a new crossbeam on a stall so Aomi and Unmi can finish hammering it in. You're welcome, gentlemen.

[holygrailed]

Festival
[With as large and crowded as the festival is, it's inevitable a few children get separated from their parents or group. With a soft spot for children and a distinctive look, Irisviel finds herself helping out lost children. Sensing the weird sense of someone from the Far Shore nearby, Irisviel waves and calls out, a young child clinging to her hand.]

Excuse me! Do you have a moment?

Parade 1
Over here, I can help with healing! Hurry!

[To anyone injured or helping someone injured, Irisviel waves them down. She's set up just out of reach of the lashing tentacles, a borderline in front for additional safety. Fighting is not her specialty, but she can heal and defend and will do what she can as chaos rolls around her.]

Parade 2
[A fight breaks out near Irisviel's location, an ugly brawl that draws more and more people in. Despite her best efforts to shield herself, a stray blow catches her on the back of the head and knocks her to the ground. Dazed, Irisviel balls up to try to avoid getting trampled in the pressing crowd, looking around to try to find a safe spot to hide at.]

Festival

[beyondtheblade]

[So many issues to solve, so little time. Tsubasa is actually feeling run a bit ragged, even for as in shape as she is. When she hears the call out though, she spins on a dime. Seeing the child clinging to her, she smiles.]

Ah, certainly. Did you need some assistance...?

[unlucky7]

Festival I
[As bad luck begins spreading through the festival grounds, Ginia sets to work looking for curse charms and/or ayakashi. A flask in hand, she wets her fingers and sprinkles blessed water onto festival stands, the musical instruments, and even on people as they pass by. She also looks for any hard to reach corners or areas someone might have tucked a curse charm into.]

Festival II
[When sprinkling water fails to flush out any ayakashi and the problems persist, Ginia turns her focus on helping how she can. She may not have the knowledge to help with sewing or repairing drums, but she can run items between people and help with heavy lifting. Stand frames need to be held in place as someone connects posts in? Large banners to tie into place? Those she can help with.

And once in awhile, Ginia can be seen folding origami flowers or animals for children, creating little good luck charms for them.]

Festival III
[Cat or fox... Ginia stares intently at two different traditional masks at a stand, a small frown as she tries to decide. Cat... or fox... or maybe another mask?

Second opinion time. Looking around, Ginia spots someone she knows and waves them down, holding up the cat mask and the fox mask. Well?]

Parade
[The sensible thing is to find one of her gods and team up to help rend the ayakashi. Ginia does not often do the sensible thing, but mostly because Ginia isn't one to often run from a fight. She slams down a borderline to block a lashing limb as she stares at the mask.

First, if someone tries to pin this on Ebisu again, there's going to be hell to pay.

Second, looks like whoever was creating masked ayakashi months ago is still around.

Third, what are the chances she can get a hold of the mask?

Ginia slashes at the tentacles with borderline attacks, bracing her own barrier against herself so she can launch off it and attack from above. She has no delusions about rending it herself, but at least she can help keep it at bay until she can meet up with any of her gods or someone who can rend comes along.]

festival III

[dredefulchilde]

Fox, definitely.

[Somewhere along the line, Joscelin ended up with a festive hapi coat over his usual old-fashioned clothes. He’s spent most of the festival stuffing his face with (mostly stolen) sugary treats, trying to get as much energy as he can with Hakkai out of commission. He gestures to the fox mask with a custard-filled taiyaki.]

You don’t strike me as a cat. You’re cleverer than that.

[Looks like someone is a dog person.]

[beyondtheblade]

[A - The Festival]

[Tsubasa Kazanari makes an excellent performer and fantastic security. Getting things organized, though? Maybe with specific instructions, and proper supervision, sure. Anything that involves keeping an organized space of any sort? ... It's probably realized she should just monitor things. Or, you know. "Supervise."

Rather than embarrass herself too much however, she does keep a lookout for anything amiss while trying to take in the sights and mingle where possible. Or where capable, with how her personality tends to function. She definitely takes note that there seems to be an ... unusual amount of mishaps going on, but she can't detect a specific source. Maybe she's just paranoid.

She's sure been paranoid since her first day here. Still, one will find her looking mostly impassive at most things, trying not to really draw attention to herself. Which kind of just makes her look more conspicuous, honestly.]

[The Parade]

[Of course, things can't just be a little chaotic. A little bad luck here and there is ONE thing, this is something else altogether. As she sees the shrine falling towards the crowd, she finds her feet moving under her before she can think, a red jewel flashing in one hand.

Guess this answers the question about how "secret" she was planning on keeping her particular gifts.]

Imyuteus Ame no Habakiri tron~!

[The hauntingly quiet melody from her lips is quickly followed by a massive burst of light around her body and armor snapping onto her form. Propulsion bursts from her leg armor, careening her straight into the path of the people in harm's way, bodily shoving them out of the way. It happens so fast, she can't yet sing to raise her Phonic Gain, and perhaps dispose of the danger herself, so she just resorts to ... pushing. Not very elegant, but you do what you have to do.

That said she's not expecting the resulting thing to emerge from it. It's her first encounter with an ayakashi, and she's... reminded of Noise from her own world. Disturbingly so, but it's not enough to make her falter, as a song rises in her heart and begins to be sung aloud.

Of course, she can't even be sure her own Shinki is handy. If she can't spy Rita, she already knows she's going to have a lot of trouble even making any headway, but she also knows she's not the only one there. Should she be unable to harm the ayakashi itself, she'll resort to trying to break up the fighting humans, or get the more sane ones away from this mess.]

[C - The Pursuit]

[However that pans out, her ears catch the shouts of Mitsui Ryou escaping, the white-robed Shinki crying for him to be stopped.

She curses inwardly. Her trust of things is very thin, but if there's a chance of nailing down a cause to it, she can't very well let it escape, especially when chasing someone is something she's very well equipped for, regardless of whether or not she has a Shinki handy herself.

Jets ignite to give her a brief burst into the air, and she takes off in the direction of the fleeing man, clearing over the heads of whatever's left of the crowd and bounding across structures once she lands.]

[Festival, closed to Chris Yukine]

[beyondtheblade]

[The string of bad luck around this place is palpable. It sticks out. Even to Tsubasa. She just saw someone trip face first over their own feet into the dirt, and upon helping the poor man up, another person came around the corner and tripped over both of them. The woman would have went flying if Tsubasa wasn't fast enough to catch her, which she was, but this was already beginning to seem like a lot of plates to be spinning all at once.

Getting her head together, she begins to move towards the musical performances. That should at least be calming, and it's worth it to observe. In the days since she's been here, she's not really had the time or place to think much on her own music, besides her discussion with Hibiki.

Or at least, she goes to where it's supposed to be, as she hears a shout from nearby.]

What do you mean she's SICK?! [Tsubasa looks up. It's a man, clearly an organizer of some sort.] That girl was supposed to go up in twenty minutes! How am I supposed to replace a singer on such short notice?! [He grouses and stomps off back behind a curtain, and Tsubasa just stares for a long few moments.

She purses her lips then, a (probably off-center) lightbulb flashing over her head. She turns away from the performance area and scans the crowds, phone slipping into her hand. Now where had Chris gone off to...]

[revolutionfalcon]

[A: The Stakeouts]

[Given his very public argument with Amaterasu about her lack of decisive handling of the humans involved here, Shun will be staking out the cultists in the lead-up to the festival. Options here are:

i. Oota Saburo, March 9th, Evening-Night
ii. Maeda Shinnosuke, March 10th, Late Afternoon-Evening
iii. Mitsui Ryou, March 11th, Afternoon
iv. Shimoda Tsuki, March 12th, Morning-Early Afternoon
v. Imai Takeru, 13th-18th, Evening-Night for the 13th/14th, Afternoon for 15th/16th, Morning for 17th/18th

He'll likely be somewhere somewhat nearby but out of sight, as he's been caught staking out by humans dabbling in magic before, and may approach other people on stakeout to ask how much they know about the situation or how long/frequently they've been staking out.]

--

[B: The Parade]

[While Shun does stake out the morning of the festival, he gets back to it just before the afternoon. He has a sneaking suspicion that the proceedings aren't going to go off without a hitch considering how things have been recently, and sure enough, not long after he gets back is when the festival breaks into disaster.

He recognises the mask - he's defeated one of these ayakashi before, but it wasn't nearly as large as this one - but he doubts Kotori is going to be able to do much to it in her cracked state, even though he has her vessel form with him. So for the moment, he's moving between searching for his one remaining other shinki, and dealing with the violent humans by...swiftly knocking them out with single hits to pressure points that leave them crumpling to the ground in his wake. Where the tentacles lash out towards more humans, he summons a few of his red, blade-covered robotic birds to slash at and deter the strikes from affecting more people.]

It's been a long time since I've seen one of these things... [His eyes are on the mask. He got rid of the previous one he got hold of as soon as he'd managed to get a little information out of it, but it's not a hard design to recognise.]

--

[C: The Pursuit | Open to first two tag-ins only]

[As soon as Shun catches sight of someone moving fast in his peripheral vision, he turns his head towards the motion. It only takes him a moment to recognise Mitsui Ryou, and he leaps from whatever else he's doing at the time to pursue the man, speed impressive and focus intent on the target.]

Maybe if we drag this bastard back, Amaterasu might actually figure out that she's prioritising the wrong targets.

[There's something bitter about his tone, but Shun's default state of being in combat is operating on anger and bitterness, so it's probably a good thing.]

--

[D: Wildcard]

[[Feel free to hit me up at reviseleviathan for other ideas!]]

C

[unlucky7]

[Ginia's breaking up a fight when she spots two people rush by; it takes a moment to recognize Mitsui Ryou - oh hell - but Shun is much quicker to recognize. With the fight largely deescalated, Ginia breaks away and joins in the pursuit, nodding at Shun.]

I'll Bind his ass once I get into range.

[mithrarin]

The Festival

["Agh!" comes the cry of an aggrieved vendor, as the front of his booth abruptly sags. He flings his arm up reflexively to cover his face, but nothing crashes to the ground, and after a moment he peeks over his sleeve to see the wooden slats teetering at a precarious angle.]

[Grumbling about needing to fix it all, he stomps off, never noticing the shinki who's holding up the booth so it doesn't smash and crack. This -- hadn't been what Dust had expected.]

...I hope he comes back sooner rather than later...

The Parade

[Ayakashi.]

[Is it wrong for him to be happy, here?]

[Well, leave such questions and guilt for a later time. Well aware that he really can do very little against an ayakashi alone, Dust leaps into battle nonetheless, the Blade of Ahrah cutting arcs through the air with phenomenal force. As ever, he is a tornado of destruction, whirling around the monster on the ground and through the air, light and agile.]

[But far from perfect. A tentacle slips past his guard, knocking him back with a powerful slap that sends him skidding across the ground before he rolls to his feet. When he gets back up, his left arm quivers slightly when he uses it for support, and a hint of blight crawls up his jaw from beneath his collar on that side.]

[Never mind. Back into the fray.]

the festival

[smilingbullet]

[ D2 was just passing by. On his way to do..whatever he might end up doing, really. He didn't have a clear goal in mind.

But now he stops, maybe seven, eight feet away, right in front of Dust and he looks at him with a bewildered expression. ]

Uh. You alright there, buddy?

[welcome_home]

The Festival
[ Nanako is wandering around the festival with wide eyes and a bright smile. While she does occasionally stop to enjoy one of the festival booths or entertainments, today she is working as a goddess and helping right the misfortunes that seem to be persistently befalling those preparing for the parade. Parades are supposed to be fun, after all! And she wants this one to go well, even though bad luck seems to be everywhere.

So the little goddess is flitting here and there, helping fix torn costumes or damaged equipment or occasionally trying to soothe sick children or make them feel better. Her goddess power is manifested today, since most of the humans can't see her, and there are tiny wings on her back and a glowing halo floating over her head as she carefully uses her power to try and help everyone who needs it...

She could use a hand. Or maybe someone to remind her to take a break now and then before she uses too much of her holy powers. ]

The Parade
[ After all the work she'd done trying to get the parade moving successfully, Nanako finally takes up a spot to watch the progression with a satisfied smile. At least, until the gilded shrine tips and crashes towards the crowd and Nanako gives a cry of dismay as the shrine cracks and spills out a massive ayakashi that threatens the crowd with its tentacles, sending all the humans around it into a frenzy of fighting. ]

Oh no! That wasn't supposed to happen! We have to stop it!

the festival

[yasei]

Little Miss Fa~iry.

[ Obi calls out to and waves at her to attract her attention. He was working on repairing a long curtain that got ripped into shreds, but he can do that much at the same time. There is so much fabric in his lap and around him. ]

You look a little fuzzy around the edges, how about you sit down for a little while?

[letteropener]

The Festival

[Inti is not a provider of luck and fortune, not really -- but Celestia is, when she can be. Today that seems very needed indeed.]

[Golden light flickers around broken laces and ripped seams, stitching them back together, as Celestia takes on costume duty. Somehow there always seems to be another catastrophe as soon as she fixes one, leaving the pony cantering around at top speed to try to catch up with them. She's being careful as she can, but you might get brushed by that massive mane or tail nonetheless -- or maybe you want to help her, since she looks like she's getting in over her head.]

Closed to Saber

[Maybe this festival isn't the best time to meet up with Saber for a date, she thinks by the time their meeting comes around. But -- well, how bad can it be? Even if things aren't perfect, they can still have a good time together, right? Positive attitude!]

[So when she spots her fellow monarch coming through the crowd, she smiles brightly, then shifts to her human shape in a whirl of golden light. If that, or her immense mane, aren't clues enough for him, she lifts one hand as she takes a step thataway to call out.]

Saber--

[Her foot catches on a dropped tangle of ribbon, and she goes from a picture of beauty and grace to a stumbling, windmilling disaster hurtling towards him.]

The Parade

[Oh no.]

[Lacking options for subtlety and grace as fights erupt around her, Celestia quickly weighs her very few options. She isn't certain she ought to be doing any dramatic interventions, but surely that's better than people getting hurt badly!]

[Making her choice, Celestia swoops into the air, a brilliant radiance surrounding her as she takes a breath -- then lets out a voice like a hurricane, with enough thunderous force to shake the ground and send debris scattering.]

CEASE THY BICKERING! GATHER THY WITS ABOUT THEE! NOW 'TIS A TIME FOR ORDER AND CARE!

[In that moment, everything falls silent. The fighting stops, motions fail, and for one second, every eye is turned to the floating pony above them. In that moment, Celestia may very well have succeeded.]

[The first thrown bottle thunks heavily into her flank, making her shy to one side out of pure reflex. The next misses her, the third she ducks, and then she can only try to get out of the way of the hurled objects coming her way. She's stopped the fights around her, true, but only by directing hostility and ayakashi-fueled rage to herself instead.]

Festival

[hattersgonnahat]

[The problem with the broken needles might've been resolved now, but as the kid returned back to the rest of the costumes, she was not expecting to see all the torn materials lit up in a golden light.]

[And a white pony doing all the work.]

Coooooool....

[Sorry, did Celestia wanted any help, or just to be gawked over?]

[abgrund]

festival prep

[ For the most part, Ain prefers to stay out of the limelight. However, with the amount of humans around, it'll be difficult for him to remain alone, or to use his eyes to monitor. He's forced to be there in person, which is beneficial as there seem to be too many things going wrong at once.

If anything, his calming presence has a beneficial effect on the humans' nerves. While his placid countenance hasn't changed, he seems to move with a cutting focus different from his usual cautiousness.

The reason? He doesn't give it, though the firmness of his voice probably gives it away. ]

Do you feel something?

when disaster strikes

[ That must explain it. The holy aura of the shrine conceals the feeling of ill fortune from the ayakashi. Perhaps a perfect trap, even. Such disorder cannot be tolerated. Four lines of thought easily resolve into a single-minded intent to make things right.

Ain counts himself lucky to be within the immediate vicinity of the crumpled shrine and the ayakashi spilling out from it. A prick of annoyance conjures a frown on his expression (how dare something basal seek to copy his perfect form?) as he pushes firmly through the crowd, shouting to any Far Shore resident nearby who can hear him. ]

Please guide the humans away from this spot to avoid collateral damage.

[ He cannot use the bulk of his power without hurting the humans, so he will have to make compromises - letting his illusion dissipate but not completely, instead appearing as an inky black orb. An eye opens on the surface of the orb as it rises from the ground and flies straight towards the ayakashi. The eyeball proceeds to sprout a good dozen spears around it vaguely assembled into a halo, the spikes smashing into the jellyfish in a bid to pin it down.

Of course, the ayakashi retaliates by slamming its tentacles in the direction of Ain's floating form. He brings up the remainder of his spears to form a shield - to a casual observer, it appears that not one but two ayakashi are currently fighting each other. People who know Ain well might be able to identify him, but he's easily mistaken for the enemy at this point. It won't be the first time if someone attacked him thinking he was an ayakashi ]

after

[ The jellyfish was brought down with the combined effort of everyone in attendance at the festival. While Ain had stubbornly clung to the ayakashi in his efforts to weaken it, the backlash ended up fracturing his vessel further. The ayakashi flings his eyeball form away with its dying breath - unable to continue levitating, the orb hits the ground with a dull (and shockingly flesh-like) smack before rolling away.

Blink, blink. Time to reform, which means the eyeball melts into a puddle of goo before rising up and reconstituting into Ain's (now not exactly) human form. There are patches of dark blight across his body, preventing him from reapplying his illusion. His true form shines in - bone-white and naked, radiating a chilling aura.

Maybe it'd be better to recycle this vessel. Ain doesn't sound winded, but his everything else is indicative of a beating. ]

Can you help me get back to the Far Shore?

[ The small occult shop he had been using is too far away to reach on foot. If he stays here any longer, then the miasma leaking in from his void essence would have bad consequences. ]

wildcard

[ hit me with something and I'll roll with it! ]

when disaster strikes

[timeforpink]

[ Jen is there to hear his instructions, and good thing too because there's very little she can do to help right now. Through sheer force of will (and maybe the effects of the bright pink jacket she's wearing - what, it's springlike!) she gets the humans closest to Ain to move away. ]

Go, go, go, get out of here! Now!

[ Or maybe it's the firmness of her voice, confident and authoritative that gets them tl keep moving away as Ain fights.

...and what a fight, jeez. Jen knows the ayakashi from the good guy simply because of the ayakashi's form, but it's still unsettling to watch. So, she points her fingers like a halberd and swings her hand down, aiming between the two figures. ]

Line!

[ It's a pretty solid borderline, slicing outward like a blade. Hopefully Ain heard her and can pull away, or maybe the ayakashi will go for a shive and end up with a nasty gash on a few of its appendages. ]

[hattersgonnahat]

A - Festival

[Monitoring a festival was the same as attending one, right? Seemed as good as any reason to go, though the kid is starting to see a pattern with gods and parties like this.]

[Needless to say, this festival wasn't going too great. Not long after she arrived a string of lanterns snapped and had to be retied. If there was someone capable of getting all the way up there.]

[Luckily, there was. Though why bother looking for a series of obstacles to climb on when there was a faster way to do it?] Can you give me a boost?


B - Parade

[Had settled on watching the parade from on top of one of the stalls and got a very good point of view of when shit got real fast. How long was that ayakashi nestled in there?]

[The tentacles were everywhere and there was no way the kid wanted to get stung by one, even before seeing she saw the effect it was having. A couple skillful dodges later and she made it back to the ground and into a crowd of infighting, and not at all better than her situation before. Now she had to avoid the ayakashi and try not to get stepped on.]

A

[priforprince]

Why should I assist with such triviality?

[ Hibiki is looking at something on her tablet. She is also twitchy. Today is not a good day. Indeed, short of outright chaos breaking out, she cannot see how it can get any worse.

But surely even this puniverse would not have such abysmal timing. ]

[onedrinkwithme]

Festival

[Of course there had to be yet another festival but unlike the last, Aymeric is in a better mood considering a good friend had just vanished. The good thing about these celebrations is that he's gotten used to wearing yukata and can move better in them. Honestly, for once, he's not thinking so much on the cultists or the recent meeting with Amaterasu. He needs the respite, no matter how small before going back to work on this realm's many mysteries.

Who knows, if he knows you, he may have won a prize at several of the games around. It's a good day so far.]


Stakeouts (Pre Festival or During): Closed to Planned Parties

[Ever since Amaterasu's meeting, Aymeric has made sure to keep balance between his duties in Heligoland, watching the named cultists (no thanks to several people) and as of March 15th Double Cross. One can bet he's keeping eyes on the named people carefully...and within a group of course. It can be boring just watching someone by oneself.]


Ayakashi

[You know, he should have saw this coming. Of course SOMETHING was going to happen! Well, thankfully he had Sukomi come along and carry his sword but he really didn't think he would have use for it. Ah well, no rest for the righteous as he calls her into her vessel form and heads toward the creature.]

We need to bind it and keep it from reaching the Near Shore residents! With me!


After That Cultist! (Closed to Whoever Responds First)

[He hears the shinki call out. "Don't let that guy get away! He knows what happened!" And he turns to see Mitsui Ryou being pursued, feeling a dark anger within his soul. The next thing he knows, Aymeric's legs are carrying him away and towards the route the cultist is taking.]

Halone, guide my hand for your servant will see justice done.

[It's only a tiny prayer but he feels like it's needed. And the one who is nearby him will hear it as well.]

Festival

[brynwieldr]

[Leo is holding Aymeric's hand as they wander, admiring the stalls.]

See anything interesting yet? That isn't related to work?

[Because he will sit on you if he has to.]

[cleansingstrike]

[The Festival]

[She provides assistance wherever she can. Picking up and carrying sick children piggy-back style to the nearest medic. Taking nail and hammer to fix any broken stalls. Fetching and retrieving replacement instruments. The knight works tirelessly and without complaint. Perhaps you'd like to help her out, or say what a great job she's doing?

Or maybe just offer her a drink because boy is she working up a sweat.]


[The Parade]

[It all happens so quickly, chaos erupting before she has a chance to react. Her first instinct is to help the wounded to their feet and make sure that they're able to make it to safety.]

Make haste! I shall slow their advance.

[At one point, she's approached by a group of festival goers. The look on their faces and their overall posture tells her all she needs to know.]

Forgive me. Know that I take no pleasure in this.

[She adopts a fighting stance, though does not yet draw her sword. Agrias is a seasoned veteran, though there's a clear numbers disadvantage for her.]

The Parade

[replicatedform]

Need help?

[A cloaked swordsman speak up, approaching her with his hand on his sword's hilt. He does seem like a practiced warrior.

Yamanbagiri can guess she's a good fighter, but he still want to help anyway, especially with how many festival goers there are looking at her. They're just humans, so it shouldn't be too bad.]

[shiitan]

[The Festival]

[He had never been particularly lucky to begin with. While he had been spared from broken laces, that was more because his shoes didn’t have laces to begin with. The real tragedy was how many times the food he was partaking in was cruelly snatched away from him thanks to tripping and people who didn’t see him bumping into him. His clothes getting caught on rough corners also did not help.

The kicker though, was a water yoyo coming free from its hook and hitting him square on the back of the head.

Why.]

[The Parade]

[When the parade started, he was still enduring the aftermath of the yoyo mishap. So, when the ayakashi made its entrance, he was understandably not in the best of moods. It would have been tiresome if he hadn’t been fully expecting something to go wrong like they always seemed to at these festivals and get-togethers. He let out a put-upon sigh and ran a hand through his hair. Fine, whatever. What else could he do but get involved?

Of course, that line of thinking said a lot more about him than he realized.

Ross sprinted into the fray, but instead of fighting he was more interested in getting people out of it. Some required a fireman’s carry, which despite his slim appearance, he had no trouble with.]

Quit squirming. Did you want to spend time with the jellyfish that badly?

[Was he helping an unlucky human? Or you? You decide!]

the festival

[smilingbullet]

[ Things you see just because you are looking around for any shooting games to try out. ]

Would you like a couple napkins?

[priforprince]

[ Festival ]

Hrk!

[ "...mascot character contest for your local shrine, yuru! In honor of Kannon-sama and support of her shrine, help us design a character to put on charms, yuru! Come one, come all, yuru!"

It seems one of the local shrine maidens is enterprising enough to realize that to keep her shrine prosperous in the modern times, participatory merchandising may be necessary. And she's choosing to speak in a way that furthers her objective.

Except a God of Fortune with an elite celebrity constitution happened to be hanging out just behind her booth, making judgmental faces! Now that face is contorted, and Hibiki is propping herself up on the back of the booth, but every time the girl says "yuru", she slides a little further downward.

Will you find her before she's a stepping stone in the pavement, or has bad luck infected even the impeccable God Apollo!? ]

[ Stakeouts - backdated to March 12 ]

[ If you are watching Mitsui Ryou OR Oota Saburo's residences on March 12, or just passing them by, you may encounter a stuffed purple goat toy, sitting at a good vantage point to look up at the door.

Sitting. And waiting. And whirring.



Hibiki has had it, you see, with this metaplot activity interfering with her revolution. She is keeping an eye on a few people to ensure nothing further happens. ]

[ Parade ]

[ THIS IS NOT NOTHING FURTHER HAPPENING

Hibiki has taken wing - literally - to handle the ayakashi situation, soaring above the crowds on her Platinum Airy God of Fortune wings. And, just as a tentacle lashes out, on its way to you -

It's blown back and away by a sudden blast of rippling purple energy, and Hibiki pulls up in midair, an unconscious person beneath each arm. ]

Don't let your guard down. Today is troublesome enough.

[ And then she moves to....keep on going. Purple sparkles trail in her wake, because Hibiki, but her expression actually looks....serious?

Serious, or maybe just pissy. This situation is awful, but this timing is worse! Nothing further must be allowed to occur! ]

[ Pursuit ]

[ There happens to be a purple butterfly in the area when the white-robed shinki call to another denizen of the Far Shore about the fleeing cultist. Hibiki, who had been checking something on her phone while still in midair, frowns. And pivots, jaw clenching. ]

Now it's this?!

[ A hand touches one ear. ] Barricade him. Don't let him escape!

[ Hibiki is on her way to spot and snatch the man in question, now. But there's also, underfoot in the crowd, a bunch of toy purple goats with little shields. Who are all trying to cut off Mitsui's escape route by getting there first, and then, somehow, jumping so they're on top of each other and forming a wall. Goat pyramid gymnastics! It is a thing.

Apologies to anybody who was also running in pursuit at the same time a goat decided to cut across, though. They aren't looking where they're going, and are good at accidentally tripping people. ]

festival

[smilingbullet]

[ Of course D2 comes across her when she's already laying prone on the ground. He's been keeping busy, he can't babysit her and her sentence ender allergy.

He nibbles on a taiyaki and crouches beside her, the plastic bag of prizes crinkling. ]

You look like you're dying of drama.

[ Which is to say, not really dying, but being excessively dramatic. ]

[trustheart]

[Festival]

[So much going wrong could only be the work of something nefarious, Chris tells herself. For once, that exists in the gray area between legitimate concern and her having a convenient excuse for her misfortune rather than just being one or the other.

She's had sake spilled on her, had to deal with torn kimonos, help mend said kimonos, helped replace broken taiko drums, and comforted crying kids. And... at the moment, she's still wrapped up in all of that. At some point, after them recognizing someone else who's come to help, she'll turn to them with a cross look on her face.]

Hey you! Get over here! I could use some help!



[Festival 2]

[Later, however, Chris is taking a very different role in the festival. One of the performers had gotten sick, and Tsubasa had opted to recruit Chris to take her place.

To say Chris was nervous was an understatement. But... she had resolved to make this change, and so there was no walking out of it this time. And so, she strode out onto the outdoor stage, and faced the crowd, wearing a red, floral print yukata.]

U-uhm, hello. ["No, you need to be more confident," she told herself. She straightened her back, and stood more resolutely.] This was kind of unplanned, and I'm filling in, but I'm prepared to give it my all for everyone. This may not be exactly what people expect from this festival, but... this is a song that I think everyone can appreciate.

It's called Happiness.

[As she sings, Chris definitely gives it her all, and by the time she finishes, her cheeks are red and she looks somewhat overwhelmed. Despite it all, there's a wide smile on her face, and she gives a quick bow and a "thank you" before leaving the stage.

She did it. She really did it. She sang in front of everyone outside of her school.

It was an incredible feeling.]



[The Parade]

[And there's the other shoe dropping. Chris figured it was too good to be true.]

Killter ichaival tron!

[In a flash of light, Chris transformed into her armored form, and instantly used her armed gear as launchers to shoot speakers out over the area. With it, her voice would carry as she announced:]

The parade area is an active crisis area! Vacate the area immediately!

[She set the warning to repeat, and with that, it was time to launch herself into battle. She transformed her armed gear into a pair of pistols, and began opening fire on the monstrous ayakashi. Dammit, she had to find Ginia or Luger, or someone she could jump into battle alongside...!]

Festival 2

[holygrailed]

[When Irisviel sees Chris on the stage, of course she has to stop to listen to her friend sing. It's a very cute, sweet song. On a day like today, it's a nice pick-me-up and reminder of all the good things. Chris's voice is so lovely too; she applauds enthusiastically when her friend finishes, working through the crowd to catch up.]

Chris! Chris!

[Once she's close enough, she throws herself at Chris and gives her a big hug.]

You were wonderful!

[kokuyoyo]

A - Festival

Helping out with all these bouts of misfortune sounds a whole lot like work to Chikusa, and he's already been working a whole damn lot if he's honest. Him and Ken have been tracking down another one of those cultists, since Chikusa supposes he would have to mix it up eventually. There's also been the problem of Hakkai having fallen unconscious, which has been worrying all on it's own...

So, frankly, he's exhausted with all of this bullshit, and he's not going to help out with trivial things such as this. Rather, he's slouching around the festival, looking in all sorts of strange little nooks and crannies. The last time this sort of widespread misfortune happened, after all, it was during New Years with those charms, and during the Department Store mess...

So people can find him in all sorts of odd places: squeezing inbetween stalls, peering over the edges of roofs, hopping out from the back of some truck or another...

Whenever he spots another member of the Far Shore, whether he's in the middle of his poking around, he asks bluntly, "Have you seen any charms or focused areas of bad luck?"

B - Parade

So it wasn't the charms. It was an actual ayakashi hidden inside the shrine.

Chikusa would have thought that would be one of the first things Amaterasu's shinki would have checked out if they were so worried about the missing god, but, hey. This is what he gets for being optimistic.

The mask is certainly interesting, however, and Chikusa calmly clambers out of the way of the crowd which is quickly growing rowdy. While he digs into his pocket for a peculiar metal cube, he calls across to whoever else looks like they're going right for the ayakashi.

"How much damage do you think you can do to it?"

C - Wildcard

[I'm game for any other prompts you might want to throw my way!]

B

[reloves]

Of course Minako is running at the ayakashi. Even though she admits there's probably people much more suited to fight it, or at the very least better at it than her since she's still relatively new to it, there's no way she can just let that thing run around and hurt people without trying to do anything about it.

Chikusa suddenly calling out to her seems to surprise her though - she stops in her tracks, staring at him with wide eyes as she slowly processes what he's saying.

"Um, I'm not sure.." It's kind of embarrassing to admit, but Minako knows that if she'd lie and say she could do more than she thinks she can do, it'd be no good in this sort of situation. "Why?"

[nopixiedust]

A - Festival

Somewhere, Hibiki is slowly dying because an entrepreneurizing shrine maiden is using the great sin of the spoken word: sentence enders.

...But Wendy isn't concerning herself about that. Hibiki is a big girl. Besides, maybe when she's become exposed to them enough, they'll finally have lost their touch on her. It can be like a stepping stone to becoming a proper human in regular people society, where ten thousand different tea cups aren't needed and aren't randomly broken.

Wendy, as usual, is focusing on more practical matters. There's not a lot she can do when it comes to such a mess as this one, but she has found she's full of surprising talents. Today, she's learned that she's not half bad when it comes to sewing. So torn costumes? She's on it.

However, there are still some things which are difficult to do at her size... So, when she sees someone rushing past, she stops from where she's taken a seat and points the needle in her hand accusingly. "Hey, you! Hold it right there!"

B - Wildcard

[I'm good for any other prompts you might have!]

A

[onehandsomeslickninja]

"What -- " Edge turned to see who exactly was calling him out... only to find it slightly worse than expected. He turned faintly red, most of it hidden behind his mask, fortunately. "Oh, heeeeeey."

Last time he'd seen Wendy, he'd been aggressively hitting on an adult version of her, and since he remembered his dreams.... well. Awkward.

[vaporlike]

Festival

Hmmm...

[There's a small whirlwind of chaos around Lin Xue Ya. Children are crying, all the merchandise of one souvenir stall is sliding off the counter onto the ground, a small hole in the pavement is tripping just about everyone who walks over it, and in the center of it all is one overdressed god looking at the colorful cords on his shoulder with a severe frown.

And then the umpteenth person stumbles past the hole and bumps into him, somehow pulling yet another cord loose.]

Hey! You clumsy oaf! Must you?!

[It's a far cry from his usual cheerful detachment. He sounds almost petulant.]

Parade

[At this point he's just sulking. His hair is in disarray, none of his clothes are hanging right, he has no pity for anyone else affected by any of this, but for some reason he hasn't gone home. Instead, he's found himself a seat on the roof of a building overlooking the chaos, smoking up a storm and refusing to help.]

Hmph. So it's an ayakashi...

[Not his problem.]

Pursuit

[He has no idea what's going on or why anyone is chasing anyone else. He's not particularly inclined to help, either. However, he's irritable enough that it makes him feel better to fill the entire immediate area with a huge cloud of smoke. It's just regular smoke, though it twists and weaves unnaturally and it's almost too thick to see through.]

That should have an effect~

[An effect. Not necessarily a helpful one...]

Festival

[sassywelshcatgirl]

Hey, cool it!

[A cat-eared head pokes out from behind a large box.]

It's not like I could bloody well see where I was going! Why are you just standing around looking frippery anyway? D'you have any idea where the 'booth' is?

[ittenbari]

Festival

No no no! Don't cry!

[Sakon has somehow found himself surrounded by half a kindergarten class, all total nervous wrecks about their upcoming parade performance. They tug on his clothes, sniffling and whining and clinging to “big brother for reassurance.]

You can't cry! If you cry, I'm gonna cry!

[He may already be crying. This is ridiculous.]

Parade

[Sakon has always been quick on his feet, so when fights break out all around him, it's easy to dodge the flying punches and duck under irate parade-goers. It's just that there's no clear line to safety in sight and everything keeps escalating around him. And he's not exactly proficient in de-escalating...

Which is why he's just punched someone in the head, knocking them out light a light.]

Uh.. Oops! Sorry! I'm so sorry!

[He's never going to get out of here. This is a disaster.]

[festival]

[trustheart]

... That's not how you reassure kids.

[Chris stomps over, wearing her yukata from earlier. Maybe the kids will recognize her from her performance earlier. Chris smiles reassuringly and leans down.]

Hey, little squirts. It's gonna be alright, okay? You've already done so much getting so far in your preparations today. Big brother and big sister believe in you!

[fauxcalibur]

[Festival]

[Such a lively festival seems like the perfect place to set himself up with his guitar, so Saber has found himself a nice open space near all the festivities to play his endless repertoire of anime theme songs and original compositions about the exploits of King Arthur. He seems to be enjoying himself quite a bit, regardless of how much attention he's getting from passers-by, but then one of his guitar strings snaps.]

Ah – Oh, I'm sure I have a replacement...

[He starts fishing through his guitar case for another string, but then another snaps without even needed to be touched. He looks at the guitar, a bit more distraught now.]

But why...?

Parade

This is more like it!

[As usual when ayakashi are involved, Saber looks a bit too excited about it. While the reasonable thing would be to find one of his shinki or get his sword, he's instead bobbing and weaving to dodge the tentacles, then punching them as hard as he can when he has a clear shot. Why is he fist-fighting tentacles? Why not? He certainly seems to be enjoying himself, laughing delightedly as he weaves from side to side, avoiding enraged parade-goers and ayakashi bit alike. He's not doing a great deal to actually defeat the thing, but it doesn't seem like he cares a whole lot.]

[festival]

[trustheart]

[Chris has been helping out with the formal music matters for most of the day, including singing herself. When she hears the sound of a guitar string snapping - and then another! - she blinks, and heads over in that direction.

When she sees who it is... she blanches a bit. It's the drunk singing guy. She recovers quickly... hopefully he's in a better state of mind right now. With a sigh, she heads over, and waves.]

Your guitar strings broke? We have a few replacements over by the performance stage.

[Is he going to remember her...?]