[open-ish] smoke on the water

[herbalsupplements]

Who: Kurama (herbalsupplements) and the spiritually sensitive
What: Someone has to be a drama queen about losing his shinki.
When: April 22nd, 10:00 AM-ish
Where: Xochipilli's Garden and a little bit all over the Far Shore
Warnings: Probably nothing.

[She was just here. They'd had their morning training session as usual, they'd gone their separate ways for the day, and then all at once, just a moment ago, Kurama's awareness of Mai went silent. He texted her, then tried to call, but no answer either time, and he couldn't find her presence to teleport to her side, so he went back to the temple to find only a letter from Mai, praising their time together and that his plants never actually ate anyone.

After all the talk of people going missing the last couple of days and the picture of his mother more than a week ago, it's just a little too much. He lets all his power run free for the first time since his arrival, an immense demonic energy that explodes outward, encompassing the entire pyramid briefly before drawing back in to seethe around him. It persists for several minutes before shrinking away to nothing, strong enough in that time to be felt throughout the Far Shore by anyone with even the faintest ability to detect spiritual presences, if only as a sudden bad feeling. (If anyone can see it clearly, uh, it's magenta.)

Feel free to investigate or stay the hell away. Kurama just really needed to vent.]

Comments

[onerous]

[Holy shit that was a wake-up.

Granted, she'd already been awake for a little while, but still. The power rends itself through her, making her shudder and snap to attention. She really should just leave it alone, but-- Well. Yuri's curiosity will always be her greatest flaw, probably.

She traces the feeling to Kurama's temple, eyeing the 'No Smoking' sign with some trepidation (not that she smokes, but man-eating plants?? Worrying.) She doesn't even know who's temple this is in the first place, and probably she should've also checked that out before arriving unannounced.

Oops.

Oh well. She'll just keep an eye out for weird plants and hopefully everything'll be fine.]

[herbalsupplements]

[It would be a stretch to say Kurama's calmed down by the time he senses someone coming, but he is calmer, and now he realizes that he's unwittingly turned the top of the pyramid into something of a monstrous meadow. He forces the grasses and flowers and so on back into their usual states, but a few patches of flowers still look ready to poison or eat somebody with no preference as to which when the girl he met at the high school a few weeks ago appears at the top of the stairs.

He's standing in the doorway of the shrine, shoulders and jaw tight but otherwise devoid of visible emotion.]

[onerous]

Oh.

[She recognizes him--it's hard not to with that hair and all--and she realizes she has no game plan here. She doesn't know Kurama enough to consider herself someone he'd actually confide in, but the energy had been intriguing and turning around to leave now would be even more awkward.

Instead she side-steps a couple of suspicious flowers and walks a bit closer.]

Kurama-san, right? Was that energy you...? [No use beating around the bush.]

[herbalsupplements]

[He could make up some lie about a terrible monster appearing only to run off just as quickly, but really, that feels like too much effort right now. Instead Kurama pushes everything down further, just enough out of the way that he can remember his manners.]

I'm sorry, I must have gotten carried away. I didn't [he can't find the right words for Yuri's ability at the moment, so he gestures at his head instead] did I?

[onerous]

[Yuri crosses her arms over her chest, watching him carefully. She doesn't need her abilities to read his emotions and figure out there's something wrong--especially not after an outburst like that.

At his question she shakes her head] I'm fine. [That didn't really answer the question though.] It didn't do any damage, it just surprised me. I didn't know you had that much... [What word does she use here?] ...Power, I guess.

[diehardreaper]

[ And it just so happens that ghostie goos and spiritual presences are right up this guy's alley. It actually so happened that he was wandering about, not quite wanting to stay in that bigass house all on his own.

He does notice the sudden explosion though and comes wandering about, appearing out of the darker shadows of a nearby tree and stumbling clumsily out. He's still got to get used to that shadow teleportation shit. ]

H'lo? Everything alright?

[herbalsupplements]

[The good Baron was not someone Kurama was expecting to see again anytime soon, least of all stumbling out of a shadow (appearing from the shadows is supposed to be his trick) when Kurama's been throwing a hissy fit, and so rather than answer, he simply blinks.]

Dorothy?

[Give him a minute. He'll get there eventually.]

[diehardreaper]

'Fraid not.

[ Dusting himself off now. Gosh but that didn't look too dignified. For a death god, he's certainly not giving off an air of one who should be feared.

But then he's never been good at being a grim grim reaper, after all. ]

Just sort of felt compelled to come 'round. Didn't think it'd be you I was seeing!

[herbalsupplements]

[Ah, right. Kurama decides to drop it rather than explain himself, focusing instead on the fact that the flirty British guy from a month ago just walked out of a shadow and onto his pyramid.]

I could say the same. Everything's fine, though.

[Such a lie, but the surprise has made it easy for Kurama to switch to an unbothered mask. It'll take more than one neat trick to get him to open up after their last encounter, whatever progress they'd begun to make toward the end of it.]

[diehardreaper]

[ There's a pause as he rubs his head. Whatever he stepped into, it hurt his pan like the buggery. But there's no use whining about what he bumped into. As he does glance over at the other god with the smallest frown. ]

Are you sure? That bit of energy ent seem like everything's peaches...

[ But he decides it's for the best not to pry. Though, idea! ]

Hey, while I'm here, you haven't seen my shinki come by have you? Pair of lads barely out of 16, one of them's got glasses?

[sweetdeath]

[Tsuzuki would've had to have been dead drunk to miss the shock wave of energy exploding across the Far Shore. After what happened with Susano'o, he's not about to ignore that kind of thing, either. He stuffs a handful of warding ofuda into the pocket of his coat, heads outside, and vanishes.

A few minutes later, he's trotting down the road toward the riot of wild greenery that is Kurama's temple. He's pretty sure that's the center of the aura.

He's not just barging straight in, though. Kurama's got man-eating plants in there, and even as a nonsmoker, if somebody in there's as pissed as the energy suggested, Tsuzuki's taking it easy. He stops outside the front and clears his throat to call in as loud a voice as he can.]

Hey! Shuichi? Are you okay?

[herbalsupplements]

[...Oh, of course, he should've realized (and maybe a part of him had) that Tsuzuki would notice. Kurama reins himself in as quickly as he can, eager to avoid hurting one of the friends he still has here, and calls back down.]

It's alright! I'm just--[his voice cracks a little, and rather than test it further Kurama digs out his phone and sends a text to finish his sentence.] I'm just having a bad day. It's safe.

[sweetdeath]

OK good [Tsuzuki texts back, punching quickly at the little on-screen keyboard. He's still kind of clumsy with it, and it takes a little longer to send the next text.] I was worried because I felt that energy. What happened? Want me to come in? We can talk.

[He leans back against the entryway, craning his neck to look at the slender redheaded figure barely visible inside. If Shuichi doesn't want company, that's fine. Tsuzuki just wants to be sure. A bad day, huh.

Did something happen?]

[herbalsupplements]

Mai's gone. Like Jae-Ha's Yona and the others. [He doesn't bother addressing the energy, not particularly caring at the moment whether Tsuzuki figures him out or remains ignorant, but he at least needs to be made aware of why.

As for company... it's probably a good idea at the moment, less for Kurama's sake than for everyone else's. He starts the next message, fingers flying like he's been texting for years rather than a month.] You can come in if you want.

[sweetdeath]

OK

[Tsuzuki slips his phone back into his pocket next to the wad of ofuda and starts into the temple grounds. The greenery here is even more lush and gorgeous, more like a jungle than a garden. He can't help admiring it as he approaches Shuichi and offers him a wry smile.

With power like that, he probably isn't just human. Tsuzuki's already kind of suspected as much, though. It's not the time to bring something like that up.]

Hey. I'm sorry to hear about Mai.

[mybadhabit]

[At ten in the morning, Sonic was doing his training as usual. His heart wasn't really in it, but he was determined to not let circumstances slow him down. When Kurama explodes, he doesn't sense it - he wasn't from that kind of ninja village. But the waves of energy does disrupt the local wildlife, and Sonic's head snaps up as a flock of birds takes flight, loudly voicing their displeasure.]

[He watches dispassionately for a moment or two, then drops down from the uneven bars and heads inside to change out of his tracksuit into something more comfortable. He picked up some rose hip and hibiscus tea he thought Kurama might appreciate while he was out training, might as well deliver it now. Whatever was going on over at Xochipilli's temple that caused the ruckus, it was probably fine. Kurama was perfectly capable of taking care of himself.]

[He wasn't checking in on him. He wasn't looking for comfort. He was just delivering a small gift for someone whose presence he found calming.]

[He picked Ino up and tucked him under his arm before heading out toward's Kurama's place, only pausing when he was half-way up the stairs to call out]

Kurama? Are you accepting visitors?

[herbalsupplements]

[The time it takes Sonic to get ready to come over is largely sufficient for Kurama to calm down, but there's a difference between being calm and not needing comfort.

He does appreciate that Sonic asked, though, as it gives him a moment to steel himself and pull a tasty root out of his hair for Ino before answering.]

You can come up!

[mybadhabit]

[Sonic jogs the rest of the way up and once he reaches the top, he sets Ino down, the piglet scooting eagerly towards Kurama, only to stop short and plant his butt down on the ground. Sonic watches with an arched eyebrow, then shakes his head, shrugging it off.] Someday I'll figure out why he does that. I know he knows you have food, but why does he stop so abruptly?

I brought you tea. I saw it while I was out, and I thought you might like it, since it's made with roses.

[herbalsupplements]

Maybe I remind him to have good manners.

[He bends over to give Ino his treat, then straightens, inhaling deeply to scent the air. Rose hips, that's what the tea's made of, and at the moment there are far worse things Kurama could think of, so he musters up a grateful smile.] Bring it downstairs, we'll have it in the kitchen.

[The trapdoor is still open, so all Kurama has to do is turn around and lead Sonic down the stairs and into the kitchen, where the electric kettle is still on the counter from being used all the time. There's an island with bar stools on one side and a table with chairs as well, but Kurama goes straight to filling the kettle with water and flipping it on.]

[mybadhabit]

With just your appearance? [Sonic tilts his head, skeptical, but what other explanation does he have? He shrugs and leans down to pat Ino on the head as the piglet scarfs up his treat, then follows Kurama into the temple.]

[He places a tin of loose leaf tea on the counter near where the kettle sat before pulling out stool and sitting at the island, shoulders slumped and eyes downcast]

I hope you can forgive my rudeness at coming over unannounced. It was... too quiet back home. Not that Ekko ever had much of a presence, but it felt uncomfortable none-the-less.

[skyleopardess]

[ On occasion, Yoruichi will wander around the Far Shore, staying in her cat form to avoid as much notice. Even after her weeks here, it's still fascinating to see the way the landscape switches so dramatically from temple to temple.

But her leisurely trip is interrupted by a massive wave of spiritual energy. Her ears lie back in surprise at the display, and she quickly pinpoints the direction. Curious, she heads that way, hoping it's not another attack so soon after the last.

When she arrives at the pyramid, she recognizes it from Kurama's video post. She also remembers his guard plants, so she approaches the front cautiously. Her spiritual energy is banked to where most people wouldn't see her as anything more than a normal cat. But her scent--while more heavily feline in this form--is still similar enough for Kuarama to easily identify her.]

(ooc: Assuming they met in person once since we handwaved that meeting in her garden! Also, her sense of smell is stronger as a cat--would he smell like fox at all?)

[herbalsupplements]

[ooc: He would smell a whole lot like fox and a very little like human!]

[It takes Kurama longer than he cares to admit to realize he has company, and even then it's only because he's downwind of the stairs. When a cat appears at the head of the stairs instead of the woman he expects to see, however, he understands: animal forms work best when you can pass yourself off as only having an animal's strength.

He doesn't bother faking a pleasant tone when he speaks, but neither does he sound remotely hostile.]

I see I'm not the only one with an interesting trick up my sleeve.

[skyleopardess]

[Kurama's not in the best mood, but she'd figured that out from his earlier display. What she hadn't expected was for him to identify her so easily--he's not explicit, but it's not hard to tell what he's referring to.

After a moment's hesitation and an inner shrug, she speaks. Her voice is much lower in this form, gruff and scratchy like that of an old man..]

Where's the fun in laying them all out at once?

[The wind is carrying his scent away from her, but this close it's hard to miss the fact that he smells more like a fox than anything else. And given that his energy doesn't feel like anything in her world--neither human, shinigami, Hollow or anything in between--it only further piques her interest about him.]

[herbalsupplements]

[Well. In other circumstances, Kurama might be shocked into laughing at the discrepancy between Yoruichi's human voice and her cat voice, which is considerably greater than when he changes forms. In these circumstances, the most he can manage is a slight smile.]

Indeed. Are you here for a light show, or did you just happen to be in the area?

[He rather suspects the former, because a shapeshifting grim reaper is not someone he'd peg as being unaware of temper tantrums like the one he just pulled.]

[skyleopardess]

[ She relaxes slightly at the smile; his momentary lapse seems to be just that. He's clearly not happy, but he looks to be under control. ]

It was quite a show. I thought we might have another fight on our hands. [ She sits back on her haunches, her voice going dry. ] I'm not exactly dressed for a fight, but I figured I'd at least see what was going on.