backyardbbq | tiger fun! (closed)

tiger fun! (closed)

[The funny thing about Yokohama is that there are so, so many nooks and crannies that contain evidence of its wild past. It's not uncommon to see a small patch of earth full of trees and nature, but for it to be framed on all sides by apartment buildings or shops. It's a strange amalgamation of 'nature' and 'infrastructure' that is only possible in cities like this, which have existed for centuries and have gradually encroached on the surrounding forests.

Deep within Yokohama exists one such patch of nature, a 'park' about the size of three city blocks. To the north, a train station. The east contains some shops. To the south is a river. And finally, to the west, a school. But interestingly enough, this 'park' has remained undeveloped. No paths run through it, other than the dirt paths made by teenagers cutting through it to get to the stores on the other side. The road that had once existed there had been paved over some time ago, and the stone path from the road to the shrine remains half-hidden under plant growth and dirt.

But should anyone try to follow that stone path, eventually they will reach a small shrine. It's probably about 40 square meters at most, and with much of the interior taken up by the necessities for running a shrine, it's obviously not meant to be a home. But something has made its home there. Something has managed to crawl through the broken rice paper and nestle in to what little space inside is available.

The shrine's exterior is in really bad shape, too. It looks like nobody has tended to it in a hundred years, if not longer. The roof tiles are in dire need of repair, much of the exterior is covered in vines and fallen leaves, and the wood is showing signs of weathering and rot. Even the collection box out front has a busted top, revealing the small cache of coins still located inside.

Yes, this shrine is in a terrible state. Hopefully someone can find it and notice this.]

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. . .

[ She's quiet for a moment before clapping her hands together. ]

Let's not talk about all that sort of depressing stuff right now. Valentine's Day is coming up and we should be talking about cheerier things! Like. Did you ever have romantic feelings with anyone?

[ Inaba Himeko: here for the gossip. ]

[He's suspicious of you, Inaba. But she just gets a raised eyebrow before he answers.]

It depends on what you mean. Do you mean for humans? Because for other gods and spirits, it's a bit more complicated than 'romantic feelings'.

I mean just in general. But I guess I can jump off of that - what do you mean by "it's more complicated"...?

Well, we all live a lot longer than you'd expect, so relationships have to keep that in mind. spirits and gods fall in and out of love all the time, and it can get awkward if you don't follow certain rules about it. Rules about who can date whom, if you can have sex or not, what to do about children made from specific unions, stuff like that. I usually avoid it, for the most part.

['For the most part'.]

"For the most part"...?

[ Although she is definitely listening to all of this carefully and keeping it in the back of her mind for future reference. ]

[Oh boy, someone looks a bit embarrassed now.]

I-It's not important. We're fighting right now, and our fights can last for a century or more. You probably won't see him.

Oh, so there is somebody.

[ She sounds pretty interested, a smirk sliding onto her features a little bit. ]

Must be nice...

I already said it's complicated!

[Oh look, he gets up on his heckles like a cat too.

Also, he's jumping up onto the roof of his shrine to pout a bit.]

[ Oh my god is actually really accurate at this moment and she can't help but snicker a little bit. ]

I'm sorry! I just wanted to tease you a bit!

[ Just going to yell that out for him to hear. Besides, teasing someone about their love life is better than thinking about her own nonexistent one. ]

[Atsushi is still grumpy.]

Well, you've teased me! I've been with more humans than spirits anyway, so it's pointless teasing.

It's still more than I have been with, so you're better than I am.

[ Just going to admit that by sheer accident, oops. ]

It's fine, you're still young.

[He's waving her off as he says that. Surely someone as cute as her will have lovers in the future!]

Even if I'm going, it doesn't mean that I'm going to have anybody in the future.

You sound a bit sad about that thought. Are you struggling in your love life? Love isn't something I influence, but I know a couple spirits that might be able to help.

Huh?

[ And Inaba immediately raises her hands defensively. ]

No, no, it's fine, you don't have to, I'd rather not. Besides, nobody would ever have those sorts of feelings about me, anyway. So it's fine.

There's no need to be so defeatist! If you just weren't interested that would be one thing, but if you want to find love you will. There's what, 2 and a half billion people in the world? So there's someone out there for you.

Why are you even so optimistic... besides, my problem isn't so simple.

[ She smiles but there's something about it that seems a little bittersweet as she just.

Takes a seat on the floor and pulls her legs close to her chest. ]

Nobody would love a person who can't trust anybody.

[Yep, he's still on his perch on the roof, but he's peering down at Inaba curiously now.]

I mean, that really wouldn't stop some guys. But they're probably not the kind of guys you would want to be with anyway.

If they're not the kind of guys I'd want to be with, then there's no point, right? I can't get anyone to like the real 'me'.

[...]

Sorry, I really shouldn't be complaining about all of this to you.

That's what we're here for, you know. To listen to the worries and prayers of humans, and to help. Though admittedly, my method of dealing with problems is punching them. And sometimes eating them. So if you did attract the wrong kind of guy, I could take care of that problem for you.

I'm normally not a believer normally, and yet here you are anyway. But I doubt you can help me out, though. No god has helped me with my problems or issues before and it certainly isn't going to change now.

And you wouldn't help me if I didn't help clean this place up, right?

It's more that I couldn't have helped, if you hadn't cleaned up. I was stuck as a cat until you did something about it.

[And he's not really going to answer the rest there, because wow those insecurities. He'll have to warm her up gradually to accepting that she's wrong about all of that.]

Even so. Anyone else would do, right? If someone else cleaned up and it wasn't me who did something about it.

[ The insecurities are extremely strong with this one and it shows in how her voice sounds a little... sad, actually. ]

You saw how messed up this place was. Do you think anybody else stopped here, in all those years?

Of course not.

[ She's very much aware of that fact. ]

But even so, someone else could have stumbled upon this place eventually... even without me coming here, right?

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