thenearshore | 007 | Clean Up Your Act

Entry tags:

007 | Clean Up Your Act

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~

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[ Sanae will do as told, cleaning herself-- and taking her sweet-ass time doing it, too. She's never seen such a bath and shower or heard of all of the scrubs and soaps and shampoo and conditioner. By the time she's done, the entire bathroom is covered in a lazy, thick haze, the mirrors completely fogged, and with a small cloud seeping out of the door cracks. Her skin is flushed from the steam, but having become softer than butter and cleaner than cream, almost glowing after trying out so many soaps. Her hair, too, seems as if it's been pampered in the most luxurious of spas, the long and thick strands actually manageable.

The pajamas she wears come as a lightweight, silver night kimono. It's seemingly waved from water, and the fabric shimmers in the light where it hangs loosely off her body. She wipes the fogged mirror with a small cloth, and when she catches a glimpse of her reflection, she can hardly recognize herself. Do all gods live this luxuriously?

Finally, Sanae emerges from the bathroom, braiding her hair. ] Lu Meng...?

[When she exits her bathroom she'll find that the sheets have been changed and her shinki nowhere in sight. The corridor is quiet too...but light peeks out underneath one of the doors near her bedroom. He could be in there.

Compared to the luxurious bedroom she has, this one is simple. There's only a plain bed tucked at the corner, and a cupboard and a dressing table learning against one wall. Like her room this one has a balcony as well, but that's the only outstanding feature here.

Or well, it should be the only outstanding feature here, except for the fact that the bathroom door is thrown open and she gets quite a view of Lu Meng from behind, cautiously poking at the sink. His clothes have been discarded but there's no show here today folks; there's a towel wrapped around his bottom half. But although it's somewhat obscured due to his hair getting in the way, she'll get treated to the sight of his back...and the scars. Two old arrow scars, one near the right shoulder blade, the other on his left arm. There's a line of discoloured skin that seems to stretch across his side from front to back slightly above the waist, possibly a sword wound that had sliced him there.

There's a thoughtful hum, and a hand carefully reaches forward to grab the tap and turn. But he may have turned it a bit too much though. He barely has time to yelp and jump back before the water's splashing up at him instead, bouncing against the sink and upwards from the force of the water gushing out of the tap.]

[ The last thing she expects to see today is some booty. Not that he's showing any, but there is an illusion that he's wearing nothing because of that wild hair of his draping low. ] ---Whaa--!

[ She yelps, staggering back, although she doesn't quite bolt out the door. If he turns, he'll get to see her face turn a strong shade of pink and then red, her eyes roaming downward on his body for two separate reasons. One, because she finally sees that he is wearing a towel. And two, she's noticing his body in general, specifically all the scars and old wounds.

His life's memories are now hers, but she hasn't sorted through all of them yet, and she certainly hasn't fished through to figure out when he had been wounded badly enough to produce such markings on his shoulder blades and around his waist. Frankly, she's a little scared to do so, not being one for violence. Still, seeing him without his clothes, noting how both his muscular physique and those scars reinforces the fact he was a warrior in his old life. ] ---Lu... Lu Meng, when you're in the bathroom, you leave the door closed!

Edited 2016-08-31 06:21 (UTC)

[Equally as startled as she is, he jumps and turns around. Unfortunately the floor's a little slippery from being splashed. He nearly loses his balance when he'd spun around, and just barely managed to grip the sink with both his hands.]

Do you just walk right into people's private quarters? Knock first! [If he wasn't so embarrassed he'd probably be more polite, but he'd just caught his god staring at his bottom half before her flustered eyes snap up, and oh look they're matching colours now, the both of them flushing like tomatoes.]

[ Still beet red-- and it's a miracle she's not actually steaming out of her ears-- she quickly covers her eyes with her hands. But it's too late, he caught her staring! Wait, no, checking, she was just checking that there was a towel where it should be that's all!!! ]

--The door was wide open! I didn't know where you were...! I'll leave right away---! [ She says, not daring to lower her hands. Only now she's trying to back away with her eyes covered. That's not a good idea, and she bumps into whatever other furnishing he has in the room. ] Ow. R....right away! [ And then the wall. ] Ouch.

Okay, now I'm leaving...! [ Nope nope that's her foot being snagged on a rug. Down she goes! ]

Lady Kochiya-- [Oops, there's the first bump. He speaks up louder.] Lady Kochiya, you can't-- [Ouch. That's the wall. And, and there's the rug!!!] My lady--

[And down she goes. Well, semi-nude or not he can't just leave her on the floor like that. And that was quite a fall too; worryingly enough, she'd nearly knocked her head against the dresser table, stumbling about like that.

So if she's still got her eyes closed, she'll hear him calling her name out, his hands helping to sit her up. When she opens her eyes she'll see concern in his eyes as he begins to scolds her lightly, looking over her to check for bruises. Especially her head; he's checking the back of it carefully for any damage.]

[ The fall isn't that bad, all things considering. Maybe it's because she's had worse falls in her life, being a veteran of many battles herself. But no fall before involved being later sat up by a grown man in nothing but a towel.

She's looking up at him, dazed through the light scolding, when this last thought finally snaps her back to reality. Her eyes widen, and her cheeks flush another shade of pink as he checks over her for any signs of damage. ] Th--that's not necessary, I'm fine!

[ Sanae squeaks, waving a hand. She breaks eye contact, flustered and suddenly shy as she's sitting right next to him. And being held sitting upright by him. ] Y...you're right, I'll knock next time!

Edited 2016-08-31 06:57 (UTC)

You could have injured yourself badly just now. You came close to knocking your head against the furniture.

[But he's satisfied that there's not even a bruise on her. He'll try to gently help her up and guide her to his bed to sit on.]

I apologise for...for all this. And for raising my voice; I thought keeping my bedroom door shut was sufficient.

It's fine-- really. [ She repeats, this time a little exasperated from all of this embarrassment. Sitting on bed rather than the floor does help, though. Even if it's a simpler design, it still is comfortable. ] I'm sorry.

[ She wonders if he's heard that "the gods can do no wrong" mantra Amaterasu's shinki had spoken about. Does that mean she was right to walk into his room? Does this mean she shouldn't apologize for her action? Of course she doesn't believe that! It's nonsense, and thus she believes her apology is justly offered. ] T...to be honest, I didn't think your room was as close as it was to mine. [ Is that normal? She doesn't know. It almost seems inefficient. They could have shared a room together!! ]

[As a note, his bed is unfortunately not as fluffy as hers. Still comfortable, but not bounce-on-the-bed-and-roll-all-over-it fluffy.

Now he had heard that, but he's not too sure he wants to buy that thought. Weren't there stories of the gods making mistakes, with quite dire consequences? That kind of arrogance, that a god can do no wrong...well, he thinks the stories have proven otherwise. A god could grow in wisdom and knowledge, but they could definitely err along the way.

So he gives an apology and accepts one from her this time.] That's alright. We just need to establish some house rules and sort out our living arrangements.

[Which reminds him!! Bathtime. He casts a look back at the bathroom, the tap still running water. In fact, there's water on the floor now as the water had overrun the sink, and he makes watery footsteps across the bathroom floor, fumbling a little while he tries to figure out how to switch off the tap. When that's done he glances down at the mess on the floor and lets out a sigh.]

More cleaning. It looks like I'll need to drain the water out. [He looks back up to her.] My lady, please head back to your room. I'm sorry to have disturbed you after you've had a long day of work.

[ Hgggggg she still feels bad. "Sorry to have disturbed you"?? Nonsense! ] Oh, no, please-- let me help! [ She stands, carefully walking over. ] After cleaning temples all day, this will be a piece of cake!

Besides, you looked like you could use a little help with the faucets...? [ She adds delicately, not wanting to insult his obvious lack of knowledge of modern day technology. ] You might need help with the shower, too.

These little water pumps are called faucets? [The question is out of his mouth before he stops to realise how stupid that makes him sound. His cheeks turn a light red, and he clears his throat and busies himself with looking for something to clear the water towards the drain.]

[ She opens a closet door to find some towels. They'll have to be used! Carefully, she drops to her knees and begins to wipe up the floor. ] Mm, that's right.

[ She says, her tone non-judgmental. Although... she can't help but find it endearing in the man that he's embarrassed of not knowing these things. It's such a silly thing, really. No one should expect him to know what the 21st century is like, coming from the 2nd! ] Here... This one is for hot water, and this one is for cold water. You can adjust them to the desired temperature, and how much you turn them determines the force of the spout.

[ Now with part of the floor dried, she stands to demonstrate the use of the sink. ] ...See? It's not magic or anything like that.

[He watches the water flow turn on and off, his embarrassment turning to awe.] A well in your own home. [He remarks, amazed. Forgetting his quest for a mop he walks over and begins to twist and turn the faucet, completely transfixed. He experiments with the hot and cold taps in wonder.]

How does the water heat up on its own? Are there hot coals inside the wall?

Think of it like a furnace, but inside the house. Somewhere-- probably the basement of this place-- [ Or. Actually. With everything being on top of water, is there a basement? ] --or just some room, there is a machine that heats up the water. That water is pumped through pipes that go throughout the house, and right to this faucet!

[ She looks to the side, and then points towards the shower. ] It'll heat up the water for the shower and that bath, too. You'll always be able to treat yourself with nice, warm water! Steaming, too, if that's how you like your baths!

This is a lot more convenient than transporting water from a well.

[And how do the showers work? He heads over and is relieved to see the similar faucets installed; no need for more puzzling out of modern amenities. Still to be on the safe side he turns one on slowly. When the water turns from a trickle to a spray, he immediately turns the water power back down. Then...how about turning the shower head upright? Would that impact the water's flow?

To his continued amazement, the water still flows upright. He looks back to see Sanae watching him, and suddenly the self-consciousness hits him in full force and he quickly puts the shower head back in place. He is still in a towel, after all.]

Here, I'll clean the rest of the water up. You should rest, my lady. And thank you for teaching me how the water works here.

[ He's caught her staring again. Only this time, she's watching his expression, watching him work through the puzzle that is modern plumbing. She can't help but smile at him, a light giggle bubbling forth when he turns the shower head upward.

She's all but forgot about the towel, really. Instead, she's making mental notes to show him everything she can of the modern world and teach him all that she knows. ] Alright, alright... [ She brings her hands behind her, stepping back. ] ...And you should get a good sleep, too. Your room is actually very nice! It's the perfect size for a pillow fort.

If I could have a word before you leave, my lady.

[He speaks up right before she's left. All traces of awkwardness has disappeared, replaced again with that serious mask of his.]

There is much we need to sort out between us, and it's not just living arrangements.

The night is still young. If my lady is not too tired, we should discuss our current situation after I have finished here. I would also like to get to know the god that I will be serving.

Edited 2016-08-31 08:15 (UTC)

[ She looks over her shoulder at him, tilting her head to the side.

He wants to talk? And to get to know her more--? He may make it sound reasonable and useful. But to Sanae, well, doesn't this just sound like-- ]

Edited 2016-08-31 08:23 (UTC)

--A sleepover! [ She beams, her expression contrasting nicely with his stoic mask, and then steps back to him, only to reach for both of his hands excitedly. ] We'll have a sleepover, because that's the best way to get to know each other!

[ She's already planning for it. Should they have it in her room? His? Or maybe on those couches downstairs, with all of those extra blankets. ]

[That's definitely one of the things they'll have to clear up with each other: personal space and boundaries. This time he lets her take his hands, but his grip is light and barely responsive, and he's quick to withdraw from her grasp.]

A...sleepover? [Coming from her it sounds like an innocent concept...but who really knows?What if they're sleeping on the same bed? The thought causes him no small amount of discomfort, and he tentatively poses a question to her.]

I trust there is...nothing improper about a sleepover?

[ Anything improper about a sleepover goes right over her head because obviously there wouldn't be anything improper! ] A sleepover is when you sleep over at someone's place! And there are snacks and movies and pow-wows where we sit down and talk to each other and talk, and maybe there's a little gossip-- it's a perfect setting for getting to know someone!

[ Pocky. She hopes this house has pocky in it. She needs to show him the joys of pocky. ]

Ah, but even though we are in the same house-- maybe we should have it downstairs on the couches! It'll technically be a sleep-in this way, but that's okay, we'll just make up for it by staying up until four!

...so a sleepover is simply staying the night at a friend's house, only instead of sleeping you stay up and chat with them.

[That's basically what he could infer from her excited chatter. At the rate he's going he's going to need to carry a dictionary around him, he didn't get half of what she said.]

Add in some hair-braiding and popcorn, and you have the right idea! [ He's getting it, he's getting it!

She hums happily to herself. Ah, she hasn't had a sleep over in over seven years! ] ....I'll start get everything ready, okay? And you can take a shower in the meantime-- just call me if you need me. Any other questions?

[He would prefer no hair-braiding, actually. But he's still stuck in a towel and it's starting to get a bit chilly, so he'd better get to that shower.]

No further questions. I'll see you shortly, my lady.

[Thankfully there are no further bathroom shenanigans, and she'll hear his footsteps coming down the staircase soon enough. Dressed in a pair of white pyjamas, he looks and feels completely out of place without the armour.]

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