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synflux2024-01-01 11:03 am
the_fourteenth) wrote in synflux2024-01-01 11:03 am
[OPEN] Prompts & [CLOSED] Prompt
WHO: Raidou Kuzunoha XIV and YOU (prompts #1, 2, 3); Closed prompt for Lucy & Tsurumaru (#4)
WHAT: New Years shenanigans, fun (?) in the cold, TDM prompts
WHERE: Various
WHEN: January 1st and 2nd (prompts #1, 2, 3); January 4th (#4)
WARNINGS: None yet?
▶001. New Year’s Day morning
[It’s the new year, and Raidou is working. Surprise, surprise. He started an after-school job volunteering at the local shrine, and this is the busiest time of year. The place is packed with people, everyone out and about in their new year’s finest. While the definition of what that might be has shifted some since Raidou’s time, it’s still a pretty familiar sight to him. That familiarity is one of the reasons he decided to work here. He spent most of his time growing up training in the Nameless Shrine back home. He’s also been outfitted in some traditional wear thanks to his new style chip - in all black and dark purple, of course.
If you’re joining the festivities and making your new year’s pilgrimage, you might pass by some older shrine workers chuckling with each other about the new kid, and how now they get why there seems to be more high school students showing up lately. Not much further down the path is Raidou surrounded by a small gaggle of teenagers, who are coming up with more questions on the spot to keep talking to the pretty, soft-spoken new volunteer. Raidou’s clutching a broom, interrupted from cleaning duties to chat. Still fairly new, trying to learn about this shrine himself, he’s earnestly trying field questions or help interpret what their fortunes mean.
He really has no clue what's happening here.
Care to step in and help? Or maybe make things worse?]
▶002. January 02 early evening
[Out in a more touristy part of the city, there is an ice skating rink which Raidou overheard some of the other high schoolers talking about. Tonight, he decides to go check it out. The heat’s still on the fritz at the base, so why not go out and make the most of the cold instead of fighting it?
Most of the people on the rink are inexperienced, holding hands or the railing and slowly moving around, laughing as they wobble and slide over the ice, which is illuminated softly underneath by cool white light. Some others are a little more experienced and adventurous, skating smoothly through their turns, or even trying jumps. Some are more successful at it than others.
Raidou quietly watches everyone enjoying themselves for a while, arms folded on the railing. After some time, he decides to rent a pair of skates and join. Even 350 years later, ice skates haven’t changed too much since his time. It seems like ages since he’s done this, on frozen ponds as a child in the Shinoda mountains, but he doesn’t have too much trouble getting on the ice and getting moving. There’s only a minimal amount of wobbling from him until he remembers how it works. He’s pretty athletic, luckily.
This fact will be demonstrated after a little while, when he decides to be adventurous himself. He gets some good speed going around the oval, and tries for a toe loop. He’s been watching how other people do it, so why not? An untrained landing isn’t the most graceful, but Raidou gets pretty good air, and manages to stay upright. He looks as surprised as anyone else at this fact. There’s a smattering of applause from some of the other people on the rink. In true Raidou fashion, he responds to this with a shy smile, tip of the hat, and a slight bow.
Feel free to approach him while he watches to chat, or join him out on the ice.]
▶003. January 02 nighttime
[Back at base, things are still pretty chilly. Raidou has done his best to layer up, his quilt wrapped over him as wanders around the base to check on folks. A lot of people are bunked up together already, which is what he should be doing too. Instead, being the kind of person who would quite literally give you the shirt off his back if you were showing signs of being too cold. Luckily he has something else he can offer you instead for now. If you look like you could use some extra warmth, he hands you something, something soft and gray and warm. Thanks for the precinct Christmas gift, LILITH.]
Here. This should help.
[Later, deep into the night, Raidou can be found pacing up and down the hallways of Everlight, shivering, trying to keep moving in order to keep warm.]
▶4. January 4th; Locked to Tsurumaru & Lucy
[Now that it's warmed up, Raidou has some work to do. He is most often found in his room in the evenings, and tonight is no different. At the moment, however, he steps out to get some air. Maybe a drink. He just needs to walk away from his desk for a few minutes, which is why he doesn’t bother to lock the door on his way out. All that’s really in there are some clothes, and his sword, which he’s not expecting anyone to take. His room is still quite sparse.
Inside, on his desk, are the only other objects: a notebook and pen. It took awhile for him to track these down, not exactly common items in 2277. But, it’s the only way for him to get his thoughts in order. On the open page on his desk is what looks like an unfinished letter. The handwriting is, unsurprisingly, precise. But the longer it goes on, the distress seems to seep in and it becomes rougher, ending unsigned.]
Narumi-san,
I don’t think this will reach you. Not just because I’m not sure if a letter can be sent back to where I came from, but because I’m not sure if there is still a Capital for it to go to.
The idea that it might not be has been keeping me up at night in this place. A lot of things are. It’s called Neo Tokyo, and our duty here is to exterminate kaiju that are threatening the city. Not much different than home. But it’s not me that I’m worried about, or why I’m writing this.
This will most likely feel empty by the time you might receive this, but I wanted to extend my deepest apologies for the failure of my duties. For years I had served the Kuzunoha clan, the Yatagarasu Organization, and even the Narumi Detective Agency with everything I had. Being the protector of the Capital was my absolute honor and greatest joy.
I may not be there for the fallout, but I understand the ramifications of my failure. The Lone Marebito will have gained a foothold withSeimei’s Abe’s command, and his true plans would have taken the Capital by surprise as they had me. I never, not for a moment, suspected him of being behind it. I played into his hands the entire time, trusting him as an ally, as a friend. As someone who understood what it was I was up against every day. My failure didn’t lie with my skills, training, or weapons. It was because someone reached out in a way no one else could, and became blind to what was really in front of me. For that, I am truly sorry. It has cost us everything.
I pray every day here that the other summoners of the Kuzunoha clan have been able to step in and correct my mistakes before the Lone Marebito could enact their plans. I have no doubt that Nagi and Ayame will continue to do excellent work as always. Please reassure Nagi when you can. I know I wasn’t very good at doing that. But, I know she will be a fine successor to her title.
I don’t know what my life will be like going forward, or why I was saved to be put amongst these ranks. I will fight, I will protect people just as I always have. It is the single thing in my life that hasn’t changed. Every time someone addresses me by my title, though, it feels like a mockery. It would have been stripped from me back home. The sword is here, but I do not feel worthy of wielding it. It would be taken away as well. Yet somehow I still have both despite being undeserving of holding them. Without them I am nothing, but as a punishment for my failure, nothing is what I have earned. I knew the risks and I knew the rules.
I’ve been given a second chance that should have been given to someone else. I also do not plan to squander it. I will still be a blade for the people here who need the help. But I will be doing it as something else, not as the fourteenth Raidou Kuzunoha. That Kuzunoha has died. Whatever I am now, it is something else. It is something that doesn’t fit in here, that is different from the others, but that doesn’t matter. My will is for the people of Neo Tokyo. Let them call me what they may. I will not make the same mistake again.
I do not have the words for how sorry I am for my failures. For the danger I have put everyone in with my mistake. I think about you all every day. Nagi will keep Kushinada safe. Gouto will move on. Be kind to Tae. You can finally go back to taking normal cases again. Please be well. Be safe.
WHAT: New Years shenanigans, fun (?) in the cold, TDM prompts
WHERE: Various
WHEN: January 1st and 2nd (prompts #1, 2, 3); January 4th (#4)
WARNINGS: None yet?
▶001. New Year’s Day morning
[It’s the new year, and Raidou is working. Surprise, surprise. He started an after-school job volunteering at the local shrine, and this is the busiest time of year. The place is packed with people, everyone out and about in their new year’s finest. While the definition of what that might be has shifted some since Raidou’s time, it’s still a pretty familiar sight to him. That familiarity is one of the reasons he decided to work here. He spent most of his time growing up training in the Nameless Shrine back home. He’s also been outfitted in some traditional wear thanks to his new style chip - in all black and dark purple, of course.
If you’re joining the festivities and making your new year’s pilgrimage, you might pass by some older shrine workers chuckling with each other about the new kid, and how now they get why there seems to be more high school students showing up lately. Not much further down the path is Raidou surrounded by a small gaggle of teenagers, who are coming up with more questions on the spot to keep talking to the pretty, soft-spoken new volunteer. Raidou’s clutching a broom, interrupted from cleaning duties to chat. Still fairly new, trying to learn about this shrine himself, he’s earnestly trying field questions or help interpret what their fortunes mean.
He really has no clue what's happening here.
Care to step in and help? Or maybe make things worse?]
▶002. January 02 early evening
[Out in a more touristy part of the city, there is an ice skating rink which Raidou overheard some of the other high schoolers talking about. Tonight, he decides to go check it out. The heat’s still on the fritz at the base, so why not go out and make the most of the cold instead of fighting it?
Most of the people on the rink are inexperienced, holding hands or the railing and slowly moving around, laughing as they wobble and slide over the ice, which is illuminated softly underneath by cool white light. Some others are a little more experienced and adventurous, skating smoothly through their turns, or even trying jumps. Some are more successful at it than others.
Raidou quietly watches everyone enjoying themselves for a while, arms folded on the railing. After some time, he decides to rent a pair of skates and join. Even 350 years later, ice skates haven’t changed too much since his time. It seems like ages since he’s done this, on frozen ponds as a child in the Shinoda mountains, but he doesn’t have too much trouble getting on the ice and getting moving. There’s only a minimal amount of wobbling from him until he remembers how it works. He’s pretty athletic, luckily.
This fact will be demonstrated after a little while, when he decides to be adventurous himself. He gets some good speed going around the oval, and tries for a toe loop. He’s been watching how other people do it, so why not? An untrained landing isn’t the most graceful, but Raidou gets pretty good air, and manages to stay upright. He looks as surprised as anyone else at this fact. There’s a smattering of applause from some of the other people on the rink. In true Raidou fashion, he responds to this with a shy smile, tip of the hat, and a slight bow.
Feel free to approach him while he watches to chat, or join him out on the ice.]
▶003. January 02 nighttime
[Back at base, things are still pretty chilly. Raidou has done his best to layer up, his quilt wrapped over him as wanders around the base to check on folks. A lot of people are bunked up together already, which is what he should be doing too. Instead, being the kind of person who would quite literally give you the shirt off his back if you were showing signs of being too cold. Luckily he has something else he can offer you instead for now. If you look like you could use some extra warmth, he hands you something, something soft and gray and warm. Thanks for the precinct Christmas gift, LILITH.]
Here. This should help.
[Later, deep into the night, Raidou can be found pacing up and down the hallways of Everlight, shivering, trying to keep moving in order to keep warm.]
▶4. January 4th; Locked to Tsurumaru & Lucy
[Now that it's warmed up, Raidou has some work to do. He is most often found in his room in the evenings, and tonight is no different. At the moment, however, he steps out to get some air. Maybe a drink. He just needs to walk away from his desk for a few minutes, which is why he doesn’t bother to lock the door on his way out. All that’s really in there are some clothes, and his sword, which he’s not expecting anyone to take. His room is still quite sparse.
Inside, on his desk, are the only other objects: a notebook and pen. It took awhile for him to track these down, not exactly common items in 2277. But, it’s the only way for him to get his thoughts in order. On the open page on his desk is what looks like an unfinished letter. The handwriting is, unsurprisingly, precise. But the longer it goes on, the distress seems to seep in and it becomes rougher, ending unsigned.]
Narumi-san,
I don’t think this will reach you. Not just because I’m not sure if a letter can be sent back to where I came from, but because I’m not sure if there is still a Capital for it to go to.
The idea that it might not be has been keeping me up at night in this place. A lot of things are. It’s called Neo Tokyo, and our duty here is to exterminate kaiju that are threatening the city. Not much different than home. But it’s not me that I’m worried about, or why I’m writing this.
This will most likely feel empty by the time you might receive this, but I wanted to extend my deepest apologies for the failure of my duties. For years I had served the Kuzunoha clan, the Yatagarasu Organization, and even the Narumi Detective Agency with everything I had. Being the protector of the Capital was my absolute honor and greatest joy.
I may not be there for the fallout, but I understand the ramifications of my failure. The Lone Marebito will have gained a foothold with
I pray every day here that the other summoners of the Kuzunoha clan have been able to step in and correct my mistakes before the Lone Marebito could enact their plans. I have no doubt that Nagi and Ayame will continue to do excellent work as always. Please reassure Nagi when you can. I know I wasn’t very good at doing that. But, I know she will be a fine successor to her title.
I don’t know what my life will be like going forward, or why I was saved to be put amongst these ranks. I will fight, I will protect people just as I always have. It is the single thing in my life that hasn’t changed. Every time someone addresses me by my title, though, it feels like a mockery. It would have been stripped from me back home. The sword is here, but I do not feel worthy of wielding it. It would be taken away as well. Yet somehow I still have both despite being undeserving of holding them. Without them I am nothing, but as a punishment for my failure, nothing is what I have earned. I knew the risks and I knew the rules.
I’ve been given a second chance that should have been given to someone else. I also do not plan to squander it. I will still be a blade for the people here who need the help. But I will be doing it as something else, not as the fourteenth Raidou Kuzunoha. That Kuzunoha has died. Whatever I am now, it is something else. It is something that doesn’t fit in here, that is different from the others, but that doesn’t matter. My will is for the people of Neo Tokyo. Let them call me what they may. I will not make the same mistake again.
I do not have the words for how sorry I am for my failures. For the danger I have put everyone in with my mistake. I think about you all every day. Nagi will keep Kushinada safe. Gouto will move on. Be kind to Tae. You can finally go back to taking normal cases again. Please be well. Be safe.
4
She's tempted to just leave the press and head back out. Small talk is never her strong suit, and it's less awkward to follow up later with "left it there while you were gone" than have to find something to talk about for...god, who knows how many minutes.
That is, until she spots the letter in the opened notebook on his desk. Curiosity gets the better of her and she steps closer to look over the letter. Or, more accurately, skim it from a close enough distance. With the precise, neat penmanship, it looks almost like poetry. That's what she likens it to in any case. Her kanji skills are only slowly growing, no thanks to the translator in the implant, so much of the proper nouns escape her. Yet even without proper education, the writing makes her stomach twist up strangely. Pity, she thinks, is that what it is?
"I’ve been given a second chance that should have been given to someone else."
That. That she understands perfectly well. Her shoulders droop some as she glances away, all of a sudden painfully aware of how intimate this writing is. She should've stopped a while ago.
Lucy finally tears her gaze away from the notebook in favor of glancing about for...honestly, any place to put the press that is nowhere near the desk. ]
no subject
... How much did you read.
no subject
Aw, damn. How long has he been there? Her face feels unbearably hot all of a sudden, almost like she's been caught doing something she shouldn't have. Technically she wasn't supposed to go snooping, she knows that much, but even so...
Lucy clears her throat and pointedly looks away, her voice small. ]
I couldn't understand a lot of it.
no subject
He's not sure what that means, and isn't sure he wants to press.]
I see. Then I suppose there's nothing to discuss.
[He looks at the press in her hands, and there's a faint look of sadness on his face. She'd only come by to drop him off a gift.]
... I'm sorry. Thank you for bringing that.
no subject
I thought it was poetry. The writing is beautiful. [ Her voice stays soft and is almost drowned out by the light tapping of her fingernail against the press in her hands.
Ah, right. She's still holding it. She should fix...that.
By holding it out straight in front of her and refusing to meet his gaze. ]
Anyway, this's what I got. Manager said it's old but it looks new. I don't get it.
no subject
In this moment, he doesn't feel much lighter. If she couldn't read it, however, then all he has to do is act normal.
So. Start acting normal, he tells himself.]
Thank you. For this as well.
[Raidou gently takes the coffee press from Lucy, and turns it over in his hands.]
It'll be good. Just needs some better cleaning. I can take care of it.
no subject
It's not the heaviest apology she's ever had to make either, but actually getting the words out feels like her tongue is swollen in her mouth. Probably best to just blurt it out. ]
Sorry. I should've just waited outside.
no subject
[Raidou steps over to the desk, avoiding eye contact, and sets the press down next to the notebook. He takes brief glance at the page before quietly closing the cover.]
It's just a letter. It probably can't be sent, so... I suppose I'm done with it anyway.
no subject
She'll have to say something. She'll have to be honest, but that honesty might only make things worse.
Might as well. ]
Names are all nonsense. They're put on you without your will and you have to live up to them or make a new one yourself. [ Lucy huffs out a sigh. ] My opinion means jack all, I'm sure, but...what good is a name anyway if they'd take it from you for failing? Isn't a family supposed to care about more important things than that? Like you? A person should matter more...than a name that can be changed.
no subject
[And there's a difference, here. Raidou keeps his back to her, toying with the pen next to the notebook on the desk.]
But they still took me in and raised me, and trained day and night to get where I was. I knew the risks. I took the oath. I earned the title. And if a summoner cannot uphold the duties of his title, then that title has to go to someone more deserving.
[He sets the pen down, and turns to her, but his eyes cast downward.]
I was to be the protector of the Capital. I failed to protect it. It's that simple.
no subject
[ Yet now, she somewhat wishes she did know. It all just seems so...pointless, putting all this weight on a single person and making it so catastrophic to fail, especially when that person was clearly trying so hard to begin with. That's the part that rankles her most. Is belonging to any group really enviable if that's all it takes to be tossed aside?
The more she tries to put these words out onto her tongue, the harder it seems to actually do it. ]
Well, you, this supposed "failure," was still good enough for them to bring you here to defend this Capital. [ She folds her arms and chews her lip a moment. ] The longer you look back behind you, the more likely you'll just trip and fall on your face once you do finally turn forward.
no subject
I still can't figure that out. Why they would choose me. Perhaps they thought I'd be more compliant than others.
[He's finally able to look at her, from just under the brim of his hat.]
I'm trying. I can't go back, so whatever I am now, it's here in this strange place. I'll be a good teammate. I'll... I'll make sure the others succeed.
[Right now that feels like the best he can ask for. Watch their backs. Take their hits. Keep them fighting. A shield, instead of a sword.]
no subject
Try worrying about yourself first. [ A short "tch" noise in the back of her throat. ] If you worry too much about other people, you'll just get in the way. Or you'll wind up dead. What're they supposed to do if something happens to you?
no subject
[This implication of would they care? comes out more brusquely than even Raidou was intending, and it's clear he immediately regrets it from his expression.]
... I'm sorry. That's not fair of me to say. [But the people here don't know him. There is, however, one standing in front of him that obviously cares to some degree.]
I'm not sure I know how to do that. Worry about myself, I mean. Strange as it sounds.
no subject
Except, she could never live with herself if she repaid someone's kindness with something callous, and he's only ever been kind to her. ]
Tch, c'mon. Even babies know how to do that. You really saying you're less capable than a baby?
no subject
I don't know. I feel like I'm restarting from zero on life. Maybe I am.
no subject
Good. If you keep moping, I'm taking that hat and you're not getting it back until morale improves. [ A smile keeps trying to tug at her lips, but she keeps fighting it. It leaves her with an uneven kind of smirk. ] So that's your warning, I guess.
no subject
Alright. Warning read loud and clear.
[And, after an awkward beat:]
... Thank you, Lucy.
no subject
The thanks gets under her skin for another reason, and she grunts as all her irritation shifts to focus on that instead.
It's probably a stupid decision, but her mouth moves faster than her regret. ]
Kaede.
no subject
Though, that comes as a surprise. He blinks, but nods after a moment with a small smile.]
Alright. Kaede. Once I have the pressed cleaned up and ready to use, I'll let you know.
no subject
But she stops at the door regardless. ]
I'm expecting that coffee to be gourmet after all that. Shouldn't be a problem for you, right?
no subject
Wouldn't waste my time with anything else.
no subject
Her head hurts... ]
Thanks, Raidou.
[ She steps out of the door and lets it close behind her. Only then does she finally seem to get herself back together mentally.
Time for a nap. ]