thenearshore | Multicoloured kindnesses, met by chance, one by one

Who: Yuna and EVERYONE. No CR? No problem, drop on by to make new friends!
When: March 21st, all day
Where: Shinju's Temple
What: Hanami birthday party yayayay

[With a blanket invitation delivered, the only matter of business left is ensuring the temple is set up nicely for a gathering!

The main attraction of the day, of course, being flower-viewing in the temple's courtyard. With light snacks and refreshments lined up at tables inside the building itself and blankets and pillows available to pick up for lounging under the flowering branches, the 'viewing' part of the day should be set. As winds blow lazily through the area, blossoms in an array of colors are occasionally shaken free from the tree, falling in gentle showers to the ground below, creating a serene, relaxing atmosphere. A handful of paper lanterns have been strategically placed around the grounds as well, ensuring that anyone who happens to arrive or stay as the sun sets can still have a good view.

Elsewhere in the temple, the room Yuna uses largely for crafts appears to have spilled over somewhat. There are a few stands set up with origami paper, watercolors and brushes arranged at a table with a few chairs, card stock, glue, colored pencils, stickers, ribbons, and most importantly, there are flowers. There are flowers everywhere. Some arranged tastefully in vases, some dried and pressed and left alongside the other craft supplies, clearly for use in tandem with whatever you feel like making with the other things left out in such a tantalizing way. Go ahead. Make some stuff.

And, while the invitation had been extended to pretty much anyone wanting to drop by, should any of Yuna's friends decide to stay a little longer, she'll let them know of a cozy hot spring bath in one of the back rooms of the temple. Towels will be provided, of course, so why not stay and have a soak to wind the day down with?

The hostess herself will be roaming about the party in high spirits, ready and willing to top up beverages, share a snack, or just have a nice chat. So - kick back! Enjoy the sights!]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[ Her attention promptly snaps back to her surroundings upon hearing Yuna's voice. Mordred fakes an easygoing smile but Yuna would feel the echoes of her inner turmoil through their connection. ]

Hah! What makes you think this tame little garden party would be overwhelming for me?

[Surely something's going on that requires a more sensitive approach, so while her own smile dims just a little bit, she refrains from digging into any hard questioning right away.]

It is pretty peaceful, [No one causing a big fuss, no huge messes to be cleaning up just yet, it is a nice day, all things considered,] But sometimes it's nice to get away from the crowd for a little bit.

[Granted, she has her suspicions that this isn't wholly the reason for the retreat, but she'd rather toss her shinki that lifering than have her struggle to come up with a reasoning for scurrying off.]

Did you want to talk for a bit, or were you looking for some quiet time?

[ That would be an ideal excuse and for a moment she considers taking it. Ultimately she decides it won't do any good to keep it to herself. ]

Ah, why the hell not? Just letting this stew inside my head isn't gonna solve anything. Here.

[ Mordred pats a spot on the staircase for Yuna to sit beside her. A few moments pass in silence while she gathers her thoughts again. ]

Do you remember Kanade?

[Yuna's patient - Mordred's already relented to let her know what's going on, so however long it takes to come up with the right words, to approach the subject in a satisfying way.]

Kanade? [The name is familiar, definitely.] That was a friend of yours, right?

Yeah... She was.

[ Mordred's expression falters for a moment when she makes that acknowledgment. Even though she didn't fully grasp the concept of friendship at the time, Kanade had been her friend— her very first friend. ]

She disappeared a little while ago. I just thought it was just the way things are here but then we went to that stupid boat festival and...

[ There's a hesitant pause and then lets out a frustrated sigh. ]

And then I think I saw her ghost or something.

[Well that's... odd. Yuna, fortunately or otherwise, didn't encounter any of the stranger happenings from that day, so she can't really offer any personal insight on the matter. Even so, she takes the concern very seriously. If it's troubling Mordred, of all people, so much, then taking it lightly would be a huge misstep.]

Her... ghost? [Can. Can shinki even have ghosts, though? They're spirits of those who died, so that's kind of close already. What is the difference between a spirit and a ghost? All of these questions that she will probably definitely not find an answer to in this conversation.

Moving on;] You could tell for sure it was her? Did she say anything to you?

Nothing important. She just called out to me then disappeared.

[ That might sound secretive but the apparition really didn't say anything worthwhile. ]

I mean, I guess it could have been an illusion or something.

[ Which would just piss her off but at least that would be better than this other thing she's feeling... ]

But I keep thinking 'what if it was really her?'. No one really knows what happens when people disappear around here.

It could have been a trick.

[That's a definite possibility, and with the kinds of weird things that happen around here, she can't just dismiss it. Still, she isn't going to dismiss her shinki's concerns, either.]

But if it wasn't... then that's really troubling. If she had said something more, then maybe you could have been able to figure out if it was an illusion or not for sure. [Hmm...] Do you think she was trying to tell you something...?

If she was she did a pretty shitty job of it. All she did was make dumb remarks about me working that day.

[ There wasn't anything cryptic said nor was it uncharacteristic of Kanade to make such remarks. ]

But there were a couple of things that were off about the whole thing. For one, I never really saw her directly, she'd just sort of hover at the edge of my vision. I'd just catch a glimpse and she'd be gone when I turned to look.

[ Which was maddening at the time. Mordred's expression twists up into a snarl when she recalls the second detail. ]

And then there was the creepy-ass doll of her in one of the boats. If it wasn't for that I'd chalk the whole thing up to being struck in the head that day.

[ Come to think of it, she never told Yuna about how she was run over by a boat that day. Too embarrassing. ]

[Too embarrassing for sure.]

Eh? Struck in the head? [Even if it's in the past, that's still kind of alarming! Mordred seems fine, and she didn't seem like she had been hurt badly back then either, but! Yuna is gently concerned regardless!]

Still, that's super weird... [The kind of thing she wishes she could have an answer for right away, but something that's clearly out of her expertise without some real, first-hand experience. Unfortunately, she didn't run across the dolls or ghostly images, so she can only do her best to imagine what it must have been like.] But, if I had to guess... that still does sound like it was a trick, to me. A really spooky trick, so I get why you'd still be thinking about it even now.

Multicoloured kindnesses, met by chance, one by one

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