007 | Clean Up Your Act

[godsoffortune]

Who: Everyone!
What: Spring cleaning
When: All day April 15
Where: All around the Heavens
Summary: The Heavens don't like things being cluttered, so it's time to clean up a little bit.







Main Hall

While the main hall of the Heavens seems spotlessly clean at all times, that's not the case at all. In fact, it's been at least a decade since the last time they actually cleaned everything out properly. There are a lot of hidden closets and back rooms that have layers of dust and dozens of boxes filled with nothing but junk. Who knows, though! You might find something interesting and useful in there along with all the garbage.

Suprises

Unfortunately, some of the older temples on the Far Shore seem to have some interesting surprises tucked away, ranging from cursed artifacts all the way to magical creatures locked up in long-forgotten rooms. You are free to be creative with this as a way to get your characters into trouble while cleaning.

Complimentary Dinner

After all of your hard work, you deserve to have some tasty food and refreshing beverages. So the Heavens have provided that for you, so that you can wind down after a long day. It's not as fancy as the banquets they often put on, but there is a nice array of food and drinks for everyone to enjoy.

Counselling

As usual, there is a white-robed shinki bearing the gold chrysanthemum of Amaterasu sitting at a table in the Main Hall. There is a small sign that denotes her as the counselling shinki. Anyone is welcome to approach her, and she will smile serenely at anyone passing by as well.



In Summary:

• Clean up your home
• Help clean others' homes
• Get the main hall clean too!
• Hope no hidden magic jumps out
• Seek counselling if you need it
• Enjoy your complimentary dinner
• Have fun~

Comments

[kendont]

[Strangely, it works. In a strange poof of smoke, Souma disappears and a katana takes his place. It's different from the one he holds, but it's a katana all the same, and it will drop to the ground if Keito can't manage to catch him by the handle fast enough.]

...I do not mean to be so blunt, but that calling of my name is a bit... [He trails off. He'd side eye Keito if he had any eyes right now.]

Ah— Hasumi-dono, it approaches! Hold tight and swing!

[lecturehall]

[Don't call him out on that, Kanzaki! They've got bigger problems right now! Besides. It's embarrassing. He panicked.

He's still panicking. At least he caught the sword. Good job, Keito.] Kanzaki, you're— you— Which side is your head?!

[He doesn't want to hurt him. If he can. The sword isn't impossible to hold but it's heavier than he thought and the blade drops to the ground when he tries to lift it. Which doesn't calm him down.] Are you alright? That didn't hurt, did it? I—

[He yelps as the ayakashi narrowly misses his ear. Right. That. Truth be told the last thing he wants to do is face it. He doesn't even like killing bugs! If it was only him in danger, maybe he could think of another way. Find a way to prepare some humane trap or—

The ayakashi whips by again. Right. Time to stop thinking about what-ifs. For Souma's sake he has to defeat this thing. He'll have to use him to protect him.

This is so fucked up.] H-Hold tight and swing. Hold tight and swing... [He closes his eyes as the ayakashi prepares to jump, repeating Souma's words over and over until—] H-Hold tight and swing!

[He slaps the ayakashi mid-air with the side of the blade. It goes down. Keito scrambles to his feet and watches it, trying to ascertain whether it was really dead.

A limb twitches. Keito slaps it again.

And then once more for good measure.] I... Did I get it?

[It's not moving? But it's not bleeding either. Well, he's kind of thankful for that.]

[kendont]

[THEY ARE GOING TO DIE LIKE THIS. Souma's heart rate is out of control, and it's not in a good way. The entire time Keito scrambles, Souma tries to reply. He doesn't have a head in this form, he has a blade and a handle, he's not hurting so don't worry—

But now, he's smacked in the wrong way at the side of this ayakashi. Somehow, being used wrong makes his head spin.]

Y-you must stab into it, Hasumi-dono, or it will rise and jump at us again! Free it!

[lecturehall]

[Tough luck, Souma. He's holding you like a bat.]

I already smacked it. Stabbing seems excessive.

[Plus, it's probably already— Oh. No. It's starting to move again.]

... Or not. Kanzaki, how do I stab?

[Does he just poke it? He's thinking he might just have to poke it.]

[kendont]

I did not expect Hasumi-dono to be a person who would not understand something so basic. Please thrust the pointed end of me into that creature! Only with enough force can it truly be called a "stab!"

[lecturehall]

[Okay, so Keito pokes it.

Yay, it worked.]

[kendont]

Hasumi-dono is more gentle than I originally thought.

[lecturehall]

Don't phrase a compliment as an insult. Like I said, anything else would have been excessive.

Besides... That was a stab. In concept.

[kendont]

If I may be so bold, could we perhaps leave this room before more ayakashi appear? I feel that training will be necessary before any future battles, if possible.

[Waving him around like a bat... He's so offended.]

[lecturehall]

[With the threat gone, Keito can at least manage to hold Souma properly. Which is a weird sentence to type out.]

Oh. Right.

[Open door. Close door. Now they're free of the room and out in the hallway. Keito looks down at the katana.]

... How do I turn you back? It seems dangerous to carry you around without a saya.

[kendont]

As a shinki, I was not provided with this information. However, I believe it is fine to be carried like this, so long as Hasumi-dono is careful.

[Souma... it's not okay to be a sword forever.] Perhaps something can be custom made for your convenience.

[lecturehall]

You can say that but I still wouldn't be able to do it. This may not be your real body but it still feels that way to me. Sheathing you in something would feel like nothing more than stuffing a person into a locked box. I can't do it.

[But that still leaves him with how to get Souma back to normal. He spends a few minutes mulling over the possibilities before a similar impulse to the one before floats back in.]

Souma Kanzaki.

[No pokemon catchphrase this time. How lucky.]

[kendont]

[The reversal is just as startling as the appearance into the sword. This time, he appears holding Keito's hand. It's surprising enough that he doesn't yank it away immediately.]

So Hasumi-dono knew, deep in his heart? That is an admirable thing!

[lecturehall]

[Well, Keito sure isn't letting go. Honestly, he doesn't even notice that he's doing it, just as he doesn't realize how hard he's squeezing Souma's hand.]

It took a bit to come to me, but yes. That seems to be how this works. In the moment I need it a... voice or something gives me guidance. [He touches his forehead with his free hand.] I hope that doesn't sound too strange. It must be the previous goddess sharing her wisdom.

[Or something. Keito squints and rubs his forehead.] Anyway, we should return to our temple. There's someone else you have to meet.

[kendont]

Someone else? Is it a friend of yours, Hasumi-dono? I will gladly meet anyone who is waiting for us there, especially if they are approved by Hasumi-dono!

[He glances between them at their held hands, staying quiet for now but quietly noting how tightly Keito is holding his hand. It hasn't begun to hurt, just yet...]

I'm glad I was able to come to your aid, but your technique could use some work.

[lecturehall]

[Keito could appreciate a strong system of discipline but there was a difference between punishment and torture. Keito grits his teeth. The grip on Souma's hand tightens slightly. He doesn't look at him when he speaks.]

He's another shinki of mine. [He wonders if mentioning his name would be too much or if neglecting to mention it would be too little. Part of him hopes it's enough to spark something—a memory, a song, anything—but part of him knows better.]

... You'll like him. I'm sure of it.

[kendont]

[This is great news! Someone that Keito calls a shinki... Someone that he trusts. Souma can feel himself growing excited. At least, this feeling would last longer if not for how his hand was beginning to cramp. He stares down at it more nervously.]

...As eager as I am to meet my future partner, Hasumi-dono, you are hurting my hand from squeezing so tightly...

[lecturehall]

Oh. [Right. He lets go and takes a step back. It's more to collect himself than anything else.] Sorry. I guess it was leftover anxiety from the fight. I didn't realize.

[For Souma that should be enough, right?] We should go. Come on.

[kendont]

[It's somehow sad to feel Keito's hand leave his own, but Souma doesn't have any basis for that. He's left staring at his own cramping hand before his other hand tries to massage it better.]

Yes, let's go. [Why does he feel sad...? There's no reason for it, so he pushes it back as he takes a couple of rushed steps after Keito.] Please lead the way there, and I will do my best not to get in the way.