thefarshore | HEAVEN'S BBS

Kija! Yeah, sorry. [Tsuzuki rubs a hand over the back of his neck, grinning sheepishly.]

It could be nice to take some time, just get to know us all... everybody needs friends, right?

That's what I'm looking to do! Is there a faster way than this "internet" I used?

[He's tried wandering around, as usual... He jumps pretty far quickly, so speed isn't a problem, but there are so many who don't see him.]

That's probably the best way to find gods and shinki. Otherwise, you can hang out at any of the Heavens' parties.

[He trails off thoughtfully. Those are sometimes more dangerous than the Near Shore. Should he warn Jae-Ha? Well -- they're not necessarily bad...]

Or go visit them! There's temples all over the Far Shore you can visit.

The Heavens' parties? This is the first time I've heard of anything like that.

[Jae-Ha tends to find danger on his own, anyway, so this is fine! Probably.]

I wasn't sure if it would be socially acceptable to go temple to temple.

Yeah, they have them every two or three weeks! They're pretty nice. Great buffets. Just, uh... be careful, don't eat anything they tell you not to, okay?

[Not that he did this himself. Definitely not, at all. He clears his throat and reaches for his drink.]

I never mind! I mean, don't just walk in, people live there. You could knock though.

Why set out food that shouldn't be eaten? Do they poison it?

[This warning probably won't actually stop Jae-Ha from when it happens, but it's a nice effort.]

But worry not! I always knock like a gentleman. I'll take a stroll sometime.

Well... sort of. They gave us chocolates to give out to humans around White Day, and told us not to eat any. Turns out they were somehow full of ayakashi that escaped when they were eaten.

[That comment needs a drink to go with it.]

Ah. Someone did mention that, back at the school...

[He doesn't feel very good about things when he hears about stuff like this!! He takes another drink himself.] I hope that's not a common thing.

Uh uh, just once. I think... [He scowled at his glass, the level of which is rapidly sinking.] I think somebody was trying to turn us against Amaterasu.

It's the only thing that makes sense.

Rather than Amaterasu actually being at fault, you mean?

[A different side of the story! He'll listen to both, of course.]

Yeah. If she was doing it on purpose, why use chocolates that she obviously gave to us? Why put her name on it? It was just gonna tick everybody off.

[He shakes his head.]

Besides, from what she said, it was her advisers and shinki that did all the handling of the chocolate. She wouldn't tell anybody exactly who, but ... I think she's got a traitor somewhere in there. Someone trying to cause her problems with us.

So in other words, you think that's more likely than her elaborately trying to make it look like a setup?

[That makes more sense logically, but he also doesn't know a thing about Amaterasu. Other than a brief counselor chat.]

Yeah. I don't see how she gets anything out of a setup like that one.

... Hey, whose turn was it to ask a question? I forgot.

[Are they even still playing? Tsuzuki's not sure, but if they are, he's gonna have to order another round for himself at least.]

I completely forgot, myself.

[Woops. He'll take another drink anyway.] It seems you're open enough to speaking that we don't have to use drinks for it.

It's fun talking, sure. I only wouldn't talk about stuff if it were embarrassing.

[He grins cheerfully, and finishes off the last bit of his drink, waving at the bartender again.]

Hahaha! So I should have asked things like "what's your biggest secret?"

[He finishes up his sake just in time to push it forward as Tsuzuki waves down the bartender. More, more.]

If you did, I'd have drunk that glass a lot faster.

[The bartender eventually notices, and refills their cups. Tsuzuki snatches his fresh glass back immediately, protecting it from being cleared away when the memory of his customers fades again, and winks at Jae-Ha to cover the slightly flustered look on his face.

That's not embarrassing. That kind of stuff's just awful.]

[Jae-Ha has learned enough to scoop up his drink the same, grinning at his drinking partner.]

That begs the question, are you the type to share more the more you drink?

Wow, that sounds kind of like you're trying to pump me for information, Jae-Ha.

[You're not, right? Right? That's no good in a drinking buddy.]

Seriously, though, are there people who aren't that type? Everybody talks more drunk than they would sober, right?

No, no! I'd be much more subtle if I was trying for that.

[He waves his free hand and says this so casually, like it's not a mildly worrying thing to say.] They say you can tell what a person is like from how they act when they're drunk, right? That's all I wondered.

Besides that, you're the first I recall drinking with, so it's hard for me to answer that question.

[Tsuzuki winces and glances away. Oh yeah: shinki. He gets so used to talking casually with people that he says things like that, forgetting that they can't remember anything -- that their memories have been walled somehow away....

It's terrible. Losing some things might not matter, but there are other things that he would never, ever want to lose, and shinki don't get any kind of choice.]

Sorry.

Yeah, I talk more when I get drunk, anyway!

[Sometimes about things he really shouldn't.] But my tolerance's pretty good.

Now, now, that sad look isn't pretty on anyone. I'm something of a free spirit, so this doesn't feel too different for me. Disorienting at first, but I've adjusted. I promise! I'm an honest man.

[So honest... He takes a long sip of his sake.] I feel like my tolerance is good, as well. Call it a hunch.

If you missed drinking that much, I bet it is.

[Tsuzuki brightens into a smile again, deliberately: it's not like Jae-Ha wants to drink with a guy who keeps giving him pitying looks. Who would? Not Tsuzuki, for sure.]

I'm glad you're adjusting, anyway.

So much thanks to you, Tsuzuki! I've learned a lot. And with your company, how could I stay worried?

You're big on flattery, huh?

[Tsuzuki's smile suggests he's not objecting too much, though. He shrugs.]

Glad I helped, if I did.

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