Closed ♔ Shikyoin Hibiki's Apollo Prayer Wall Special Medley feat. The Far Shore

[priforprince]

Who: Hibiki & various other parties
When: June (after the 7th)
Where: The Near Shore
What: A God of Fortune receives many prayers. While thoroughly satisfying her supplicants is her style, certain aspects of their queries are...beneath her. How fortunate she has all these ff. Frksff. Frr. Acquaintances.

[ I. For Ginia ]

Premiering a major entertainment juggernaut like PriPirates: Pirate Gang of the Puniverse requires some level of promotion. The Fujisaki corporation is sponsoring the production side of things, and is also in the process of forming a tie-in campaign where the characters promote its department stores ("The treasures of the puniverse....only at Fujisaki"). But a god never forgets it's themselves the people must worship, and that means occasionally making an appearance from on high so others may bask in their glory.

Yes. Even on....variety programming.

And thus it is that Hibiki, accompanied by her latest CelePara recruit, finds herself standing in a studio, cameras rolling, surrounded by -

"Surprise! We've switched up today's schedule from an interview to a candid feature! Everything in this room is edible but one object. Can you find it with just your mouth?!"

"....Of course." Hibiki sniffs, tossing her head. "Such a hidden treasure can be located by intuition alone."

"Ohh!" The hosts clap their hands. The audience leans forward.

But only Ginia might notice that Hibiki's neck is sweating.

[ II. For Waver & Iskandar ]

"How does one....read this?"

Hibiki is cross-legged on a worshipper's floor, the contents of a large flat box with the name of a certain Predish bargain furniture manufacturer spread out all around her. She's got the instructions out. And is looking at them upside down.

Truly, bringing along an accomplished mage and the King of Conquerors was a wise decision. Even a genius will require all the assistance they can receive!

[ III. For Chinatsu ]

After teleporting Chinatsu to her movie-theater shrine, Hibiki has vanished again with the promise of providing "suitable transportation herself this time", so that they both may patrol the neighborhood reporting loud noises at night keeping people from sleeping. The limousine is displeasing to this young lady, she has learned. So is the helicopter. And therefore probably also the carriage. (Why does no one like the carriage?! This puniverse requires revolution.)

But! They require something speedy, so they may locate the source of the noise as it occurs! There happens to be an extremely fitting vehicle for just such situations - and one which might appeal to Chinatsu's less-than-lofty transportation standards, as well!

Thus it is that a purple motorcycle rolls up to the curb just as Chinatsu might start wondering whether Hibiki forgot about the prayer, and a helmet is tossed her way.

"I've kept you waiting." Hibiki pushes up her helmet visor: she's kitted out in a full cycling bodysuit. "Now, hold me tightly."

[ IV. For Judar ]

Judar will discover a spygoat staa-lking him one day, bearing an envelope with an invitation to follow said goat back to her temple gates. It looks up at him with big pleading eyes as he reaches the part of the invitation about RSVP being required. Also, about fitting attire being provided by the host.

You'll come, right? The goat cannot speak, but it's trembling with maa-nticipation. Maa-ster has worked so hard to pick a very special surprise praa-yer for this person, so that her traa-ining may be a complete success!! It's this way, it's this way!

Won't you please follow??

Comments

[unlucky7]

This is truly the idol lifestyle, isn't it. Ginia hadn't imagined they'd go immediately into variety show appearances, but here they are. She has on her best smile as she claps her hands together and looks at the setup around them.

If Hibiki's neck is sweating, truly it's only because of the studio lights and the god's own radiant glow.

...Those studio lights are hot. Take long enough and they can look for the one item that isn't melting, hah. However, that's boring television. Ginia looks around the room, hands firmly in her pocket. Though they can only use their mouths to touch, they never said anything against using nanotech to study the items.

Ginia looks around the room, carefully toggling on the electricity-detecting tech with her eyes low. The lights above form a bit of a halo and she can see the wires running through the room powering the cameras set up around the room as well. The lamp, telephone, and television all have cabling running into them and the glow of latent circuitry.

No, not the lamp. Ginia turns the nanites off as she studies the lamp. The lamp is probably fake so it's not the real item they're looking for... but isn't the entertaining part letting the viewers see them bite into various objects? Ginia casually walks to the lamp, making a show of studying it before she kneels and gingerly bits the edge of the lamp shade.

There's a tiny crack and snap as the sugar glass breaks, leaving Ginia nibbling on the sugary piece.

1/2

[priforprince]

A miss, already? Hibiki sighs, preparing to assign “real objects” the properties of the number 1 in her mind so that her sensitivity to this numeral shall detect them - but, upon hearing the applause and laughter from the crowd at the sight of this grown woman eating a lampshade, pauses. Ginia had deliberated before selecting that piece. Could it be....?

“I see,” she murmurs. “So that’s what it is.”

How, or even whether, Ginia knew that would be a miss is immaterial. She was willing to sacrifice herself for the sake of entertainment! Hibiki’s judgment in who has the makings for stardom remains impeccable. She smirks.

“Diving right in is an admirable trait for a pirate,” she points out - sell the show, sell the show. “But the one who charts a course - is I!”

Focus. Focus. Hibiki’s own style requires dignity and grace. She won’t err. The number one....is...

She turns on a coffee table, advances. It gladdens the audience, so she has no choice but to participate.....yet she’ll entertain by impressing them! Yes, by kissing this—

...

2/2

[priforprince]

A teacup made of wafers falls, cracking to pieces.

Hibiki’s eyes widen. “Ch....chocolate....?!”

[unlucky7]

Ginia looks over her shoulder and gives the camera a saucy wink and smile as the last bit of candy disappears into her mouth. A few screams of delight ring from the audience - her character isn't even set yet and already Ginia is gaining fangirls. She smiles and turns smoothly to survey the scene.

Lamp, nope. Table, nope. (Shattered wafer teacup, nope.) The television and telephone are still questionable, but she would rather put them further on the list. The potted plant begs attention, its green leaves perhaps a little too green.

Does she dare nibble? The audience is here for entertainment. Ginia makes a calculated judgment as she makes an act out of surveying the end table the plant is resting on. The table looks too glossy in a way that feels more glazed than varnished. She leans in to nibble the corner... and then quickly moves to take a bite of the plant.

The rice candy dissolves in her mouth as she tugs, freeing a leaf to slowly nibble into her mouth. Oh, it's green apple flavored!

[priforprince]

They’re grazing like goats......No! Hibiki won’t let herself dwell on that! She is a Professional, she agreed to this job - and therefore, she shall triumph!

So, with an amused sniff, she puts two fingers to her lips. “Heh. It seems the chocolate’s sweetness drew me to it.”

Breaking off a piece of the chocolate, she wanders to the edge of the stage and holds it up for a girl in the front row. “But the sweetest thing attracting my heart - is you.”

The girl opens her mouth. Hibiki feeds her the chocolate. Everybody screams.

Hibiki, however, is screaming internally. Think....! What’s most likely to be real?! Has Ginia figured it out? She’ll risk a glance to see whether her companion seems to be deliberately avoiding certain objects.

[unlucky7]

And so Hibiki's follower count grew that day with a simple gesture. Ginia hides a smile as she studies the room. There are a few things she doesn't want to tackle right away: there are far too many books on the bookshelf to go through. It's probably not the furniture either, as it's far more impressive making large chocolate pieces (and funnier to see them nibble).

On the other hand, it can't be anything too ridiculous and unwieldy to make. Ginia studies the painting of an beach landscape in an ornate gold frame. It could be a giant chocolate frame with a painting with dyes on rice paper. It could also be real too.

Ginia slightly tilts her head toward the piece, wanting to see Hibiki's opinion. To nom or not to nom, that is the question.

I am cool with either a miss or a hit & then they have to set up a room or sth

[priforprince]

The painting has Ginia’s attention, hm? Hibiki narrows her eyes, considering it. Certainly, she’s drawn to that frame....but is she sensing its reality, linked to the number 1, or is she merely pleased by its extravagance.....?

No! Second-guessing does not befit her. Hibiki strides up to the painting, arms crossed, and chuckles.

“Well-spotted.” She points to the frame. “The real object - is here!”

Now, Ginia! Prove her hypothesis! Your sacrifice to the revolution shan’t be in vain!

[unlucky7]

A bold declaration made with such confident intent! A murmur rolls through the studio's audience as the hosts confer, checking their notes.

"You are..." the word drags into a pause for drama. On the broadcast, the word shakes in anticipation, a producer having fun with editing. "CORRECT! Truly such genius and cunning is befitting a great pirate captain!"

The audience screams and swoons, applauding wildly. Slightly forgotten and not minding at all, Ginia grins and gives Hibiki a thumbs up.

[priforprince]

“Heh.” Hibiki just sniffs in response to both the crowd’s elation and Ginia’s approval. “An obvious result.”

This doesn’t stop the tension from lifting from her posture now that she will no longer be called upon to bite furniture. The hosts let the audience have their fun, promise part 2 of the guest spot after these messages, and then cut to CM.

A spygoat rolls up with sparkling water bottles and towels for Ginia and Hibiki. Hibiki picks up a bottle to hand to Ginia - and smiles the smile of someone who is either pleased to be working with a talented colleague or saved from having to lick houseplants, take your pick. “Well done. As I’d expected, the spotlight suits you.”

[unlucky7]

The adventures and excitement continue on after a word from our sponsors. There's a bustle of orders as the crew moves to set up for their next bit. Ginia relaxes a little in their reprive, accepting the towel and water. Sparkling water isn't to her liking, but a drink is a drink. She dabs sweat off her face face and checks her makeup in a compact mirror.

Freeing her hands, she begins to sign. There's a woven bracelet around her wrist, the tail of the bracelet peeking out from under her sleeve. It's nice having a bracelet that makes sign language understood.

"Maybe, though I think I like being a supporting role more than the center of attention. It's fun though." She returns the smile.

[priforprince]

Oh...? A handy trinket. Hibiki smirks.

“Continue to support my lead and our ratings are guaranteed,” she promises, then helps herself to a bottle - poured first into a glass goblet, mind you. Aesthetic.

She holds up her glass, watching the bubbles burst. “We’ll excite their hearts like the rejuvenating effervescence of Palps spring water.”

The spygoat is pretty sure this is Maa-lps spring water, and grows nervous when Maa-ster sips. Did they get the wrong thing....? But she seems okay....

The set is being modified behind them, meanwhile. But this is probably fine.

[hypomeneo]

She's got it upside down. That's the first problem. The second...

"Ikea instructions are practically arcane sorcery in itself. Sometimes you just have to flip the bloody thing upside down to make any sense of it sometimes."

Hint, hint.

"Though really, I'm unsure if there's a idiot at the helm of writing these instructions given how thoroughly unclear they are always... or a sadist who delights in this kind of frustration. Given the sheer prevalence of Ikea horror stories out there."

The second is that they have the King of Not Reading The Instructions Iskandar (he loves you dear, but it's true), Hibiki (The God Apollo needs no explanation), and himself, a guy great at puzzles and figuring out what pieces to put together, and really not so great at all the next steps (Zhuge Liang, you better have passed on some of your engineering skills too!).

Eirene, his soulless, is with some of the goats as they go off on a quest to get Appropriate Refreshments for such a Divine Labor that is the modern equivalent to the fare handed out to Hercules. Waver, his hair swept up into a twist to keep it out of the way and pinned in place with a simple but elegant kanzashi, sighs as he arranges the pieces neatly into order.

"Just look at how these things are numbered."

[towards_okeanos]

Iskandar tries to make any sense of the assorted collection of wooden pieces of varying length, some with holes in them, some without. There are also several sealed plastic bags containing screws, nuts and bolts... as well as other objects which intended use Iskandar can't even imagine.

He didn't even bother reading the instructions. Hmpf. As if there was anything to read there. It was all pictures anyway! And what pictures ?!
Egyptian hieroglyphs made more sense to him even if didn't quite know the language. He at least knew what he looking at! The contraption arrived with exactly one page of black and white drawings of what probably meant to depict the finished product in different stages of completion. Yet to Iskandar they just looked like a lot of flying rectangles with no actual logic to why they were arranged on the page the way they were.

So he resigned himself to unpacking the actual pieces of furniture. Unfortunately, now that he finished doing it, they don't make any more sense arranged before him on the floor than they did on those pictures. Iskandar just groans with sheer irritation.

"I'd vote for sadist."

He can't possibly fathom how that mess can become a functioning object of any use!

[priforprince]

Rather than turn the instructions upside-down at Waver’s cue, Hibiki abandons the paper as useless, tossing it aside. “Ridiculous. No mere piece of furniture requires such fuss. I’ll intuit the process......”

....why. Does none of this. Look like the furniture she’s used to. And.....within this irritating little plastic pouch....

Hibiki holds up a small, hexagonal metal object bent at a right angle. This is the screwdriver? Absurd!

The object is held expectantly in a Waver-ish direction, not bothering to look at him. “Applying fasteners shall be left to you.”

Iskandar is stronger, but that tiny object doesn’t befit him. Thus, the non-celebrity is appointed. This is the infallible delegation logic of Shikyoin Hibiki!

[hypomeneo]

Waver's eyebrows rise as he snatches the paper out of mid air. Jesus take the wheel. At least he now has the instructions. SALVATION IS A FRACTION IN SIGHT.

Mother damn fuck, cuniform would be easier than this. Linear A and Linear B would be easier than this. Okay... he's just going to lay that there while he lets that marinate in his head and reach for the hex key. ... in which... okay place your bets, folks. Is he going to accidentally break something while screwing in bolts because of his own strength or will all go well?

She's not even looking at him. Waver mentally rolls his eyes. Oh well... perhaps this will be entertaining in its own way.

"Sure... I'll do that. What are we tackling first?"

[towards_okeanos]

Hibiki may not be looking at Waver but Iskandar is definitely looking at her.

“It would not kill you to say please.”

The sentence in itself is innocuous. It's the tone Iskandar uses that isn't. Watch it, Hibiki. It’s not a mere servant of yours that you're talking to. A little more respect could help you retain your current company. As well as prevent the imminent diplomatic incident.

Even a God of Fortune and fellow member of the Greek pantheon should not reasonably expect that Iskandar will tolerate anyone trying to talk down to Waver or order him around. That he won't feel personally offended by such behaviour.

So, he really hopes it's not what you were doing, Hibiki.

1/hibiki

[priforprince]

Wh...

Hibiki looks up, startled. This sudden....darkening of the atmosphere....!

2/hibiki

[priforprince]

....a personal offense was taken? But, why? She’d directed her instructions not to Iskandar, but to—

3/hibiki

[priforprince]

To Hibiki’s credit, there isn’t a physical lightbulb appearing over her head or anything (though don’t put it past her). Her expression does clear up, however, and she even suppresses a chuckle.

Ah. So it’s like that.

hibiki/4

[priforprince]

Managing to incline her head in a manner that defers without sacrificing pride, Hibiki nods to Waver. Failing to perceive the depth of his connection to Iskandar, elevating his worth, had been her miss. She’ll acknowledge and move on. “Then, pardon. The unpleasantness of our task overwhelmed me.”

He’s got the instructions now, too, she notices. And...had been reading them? If Waver can make sense of that drivel, he truly deserves his spot at his King’s right hand!

Well, that’s for the best. This time, she directs her instructions to the both of them. “Let’s begin with the base.”

[hypomeneo]

Well that's a diplomatic incident in the making. Not unexpected there and actually counted on to make a point. Kings don't like other people ordering around or disrespecting any of their people. Any king.

"Ikea is a horror that would stress anyone. I'm sure no offense was meant. I accept your apology."

Waver props his left hand under his chin for a moment to show off the ring on his finger, as he smoothly responds with the diplomatic grace of the Lord he is. Though the tone, while dignified and conciliatory, suggests while that things are forgiven, they are not forgotten. He's a god and he was just treated as a servant; had he been still shinki...

It's a reminder not to be too tolerant of that kind of behavior. It'll get him eaten alive and his people in trouble or worse. He saw enough of that happen at the Clock Tower.

"These pieces look like they go together." And things continue on as normal, Waver pointing out the pieces from the first step of the instructions. As long as they take it slow, they'll figure it out. Right? "Iskandar, would you please grab me the bolts?"

[towards_okeanos]

"There you go, love."

Iskandar locates the appropriate package and tears it open before handing it to Waver with a smile. He points to the pieces ready to be assembled.

"Should I hold those in place for you? That would probably make connecting them easier."

That's actually a reasonable suggestion. Things shouldn't move around while you're trying to put them together. Ten points for King of Conquerors for not being completely useless.

And no further comments on Hibiki's blunder. If Waver is fine with the apology there's no need to drag the subject further. We all have are better and worse days.

[priforprince]

Hibiki observes as Waver and Iskandar work together, apparently having decided that even among the company of those she respects, supervision still suits her best. “I see.....Furniture assembly is like assembling a three-dimensional puzzle. Harmony between the pieces must be sought.”

And, where it can’t be found, one forces one’s will until the disparate parts obey. That should be a simple matter! The peg goes into the hole. But then, while they attend to step one.....What comes next?? What could possibly attach there?

Hibiki sweeps her gaze across the pieces Waver has laid out on the floor. “I’ll select the ideal next part,” she announces. Their teamwork combined with her guidance should open the path to victory! But...

Now that she’s said that....

How do these all fit together?!?!

[hypomeneo]

"I would love that. Thank you."

No, no further comments; Waver has decided to amp up the dere towards Iskandar instead, smiling back. If he's at all any level of miffed still, he sure is hiding it. He picks up the bolts and dives in with the hex key. He might be screwing them in too tight - anyone human who wants to take this apart will be having a struggle later... but that's later! At least it's sturdy!

And getting done faster thanks to Iskandar picking up and holding them in place. The Caster hums as he fiddles with another bolt from the torn open bag.

"That's not a bad analogy. Do you enjoy putting them together too?"

As he eyes the pieces she's looking at. Those... don't look like they go with these.

[kuroi_taiyo]

Was it anticipation, or fear? Honestly, part of Judar would rather it was fear, because then it meant that Hibiki was someone that'd make more sense to him. Someone he could understand, instead of constant sparkles and goats. Why goats? Well, he'd wonder more about that, but some things were better left as they were.

Especially when Amaterasu's security team were getting irate for a goat being in the grounds.

As the invitation was clear about providing fitting attire, whatever that's supposed to mean, Judar didn't bother to get out of his 'study' clothes. No shirt, no shoes, but just a pair of billowy black pants made of a light and airy silk. Opaque enough to keep appropriate, but light enough for the warming season. It wasn't to purposefully show off the sculpted muscles, but that kind of exposure turned out to have never bothered the mage. See, if he worried about someone like Chikusa being around, he'd toss something on, but this was one of those cases where he didn't mind his new Name being seen on his left shoulderblade.

"Okay, go on to Sparkles," he said, nudging the goat more after following it to the truly ostentatious temple. It's so loud in some ways. It was giving him a headache... Actually, it might be a combination of that and the glasses he was wearing, which was meant to cut down on eye strain from reading and stuff.