It’s a special time of year and the sword army is invited to come down from their citadels and celebrate. What? A summer festival, an offering to the gods, or perhaps a special ceremony of sorts. A normally quiet, rural village at the foot of the mountains will transform for the night with lanterns, fireworks, and music all around but first! Some preparations need to be done. Did you really think you would be invited down here without having to do some work? Prepare to dance, prepare to sing, prepare for a night of fun.
1. CEREMONY PRACTICE
At the citadel, a new chore has been added to the list: ceremonial practice! The swords selected to perform at the festival will have to practice their song and dance or else they'll risk embarrassment in front of the crowds. Or maybe this entire thing is embarrassing... either way, this is your duty! Saniwa's orders! Where and when is up to you but you better be ready.
2. SPECIAL CLOTHES
You can’t wear those same old clothes. They’re all torn and worn or just not appropriate at all for the type of festival you’re going to. The government has all of your measurements and has sent special robes for the spirits and saniwa to wear. It even comes complete with accessories! What’s taking you so long? We should have left twenty minutes ago. Do you need help? Or are you trying to perfect your appearances for your big debut?
3. PERFORMANCE
Everyone is dancing and everyone is singing. Are you one of the performers? Or are they dancing to you? What kind of songs are you hearing? What dances are you watching? Did you see the ceremonial sword dance? Or maybe you were invited to dance in a special performance with your saniwa! When the performance is over, make sure to congratulate the performers on a job well done… or tease your friend.
4. OFFERINGS AND PRAYER
After the festive ceremonies, there are more serious things to do. There is a sacred fire and you can take a moment to pray to the gods. Remember, we are fighting a war and it’s important to remember those that have fallen. The swords that were broken and damaged beyond repair are gathered up and taken to a sacred fire so that their spirits can be purified and reborn. Later, all of those offerings you have been saving are offered up to the gods for their blessings. It's also a chance to hopefully pray for a turn in luck. Maybe you'll pray for an old friend to return to the citadel. It's been a long time since you saw them, right? They'll come home eventually.
5. FESTIVITIES
The ceremonies are finally over! Wow, that sure took up a lot of time, huh? There are still a couple of more hours left in the night so enjoy the festivities. Try the food, play the shooting games, win a couple of prizes. How many goldfish can you catch? Or maybe the important question is: How are you going to take care of this goldfish? At the end of the night, you can catch the fireworks before the night ends.
6. SURPRISE ATTACK
With so many saniwa and sword spirits gathered in one place, it's the perfect time for the enemy to make a major blow against the Time Government. In what should have been the fireworks finale, there's a loud explosion and lightning strikes. The Time Retrograde Army strikes without warning. It's nothing the Touken Danshi haven't taken care of before but this time, they'll have to protect their saniwa too.
7. WILDCARD
Pick your own adventure. Maybe you have to help make offerings or tonight is a special night for a special summoning.
What if the saniwa had to perform other duties besides just summoning swords to fight? What if they had to take part in special ceremonies? What if they had to invite their swords to perform with them? Feel free to get as creative as you want with this prompt as far as things like: Why are they celebrating? How often do they get to leave the citadel? Etc
2. Special Clothes [ It's no secret that there's talk about Noa around the government. Whether it's about her lackadaisical behavior, or her sometimes worryingly casual relationship with history itself, many people in the government are wary of her. Not like they are of Satori...but maybe they should be just as wary of Noa. But y'know what, in the end it's kind of hard to be too wary of Noa, because when she shows up at these functions, it's always with a smile on her face and a flirty "oh you!" joke at just the right moment, and she's always, always dressed to perfection. ]
Isn't it lovely? Sacchan gave it to me!
[ Satsuki. And he's letting her borrow it. That's right. For the 8th year in a row, the government sent her a kimono as a "gift" and for the 8th year in a row she "accidentally" sent it back unopened. ]
4. Offerings and Prayer [ Like everyone else, Noa is respectful and quiet at the shrine. But unlike many of the others, there's no air of sadness about her. She consigns a few pieces of a sword she couldn't save to the fire with a smile. ]
Don't you worry. We'll see you again soon.
5. Festivities
Ei!
[ IS THAT HER FIFTH GOLDFISH? NOA, WHY. ALSO: HOW. ]
[It was hard to get close to Noa in the ceremony hall and then there were too many people everywhere, but it's a safe bet Noa will be near the goldfish at any celebration anyway. And of course....]
Kikai-chan, don't take all the poor man's goldfish. leave some for other people.
[ Noa looks up from attempting to catch her sixth goldfish and waves enthusiastically when she sees Satori. ]
Sacchan!!
[ Oh no. Waving broke the damp tissue paper that was her "net." How sad! The stall manager looks relieved, though, so maybe she should call it a night after all. ]
I didn't them all. Besides, setting up a tank big enough for this many goldfish will keep Hasebe busy for hours.
Oh, I'm gonna buy him a mask. All these years, and I still can't get him to ask me for things. Poor Osayo. He doesn't want to be a burden but I wanna spoil him soooo bad.
[ Yes, Satori, takoyaki! Takoyaki and yakitori and dango and....Noa doesn't know what this thing she grabbed is but it smells divine. Tastes divine, too. She offers the second stick of probably chicken? to Satori to eat on the way to takoyaki. ]
Their faces? Try my face. I still can't believe you got Tsuru to dance for you. And Kara-chan? Magic.
[ That's so cute. Satori has worked hard to get each one of her swords and worked hard for their benefit, too, Noa knows it. ]
They wanted to show you how much they love you. And in Tsuru's case, maybe there was a little spiteful surprising the higher ups going on, but mostly love. Probably.
Right in the middle, right at the end... The biggest surprise is that he didn't do anything and he's probably gonna be preening smugly about that for weeks, y'know.
[ He deserves to be smug. Satori deserves to be smug, too.
Noa pauses at another stall to grab them each a beer and hands one to Satori. ]
It's been a good year, hasn't it? Both our citadels have grown, Hana-chan is doing really well, Tsurucchi and Kara-chan danced for you, and our bureaucratic overlords still haven't found a good reason to get rid of either of us! Cheers!
Don't tell me about it. I'm gonna have to deal with him.
[But you bet she is going to be smug about it. All these people here sucking on their teeth, they won't get over it for weeks either. She grabs the beer and gives a cheer.]
Cheers!
... Do you know they tried giving me grief over the fact that I decided not to go and do bead collection earlier this year? Like, did you see how much they expected to get Bizen? I don't have time for that.
[And then, she went to collect keys and just unlocked Nansen Ichimonji in record time, so now they can't berate her anymore.]
[She stops herself short of saying 'a problem', because that's not true. He is not a problem. But he has been the causes of quite a few headaches.]
He's just having a hard time. He came in swinging calling Manba a fake, and no one has really forgotten that, see what I mean?
[Satori hasn't, even though she has calmed down. But she gets tired of the attitude sometimes and they're both too strong-headed. She can't be a quiet, soothing presence like Noa.]
I want him to feel at home, but he's just awkward. It helps now that Manba has been back from his trip for a while, but sometimes, I just wish Chougi wouldn't try so hard? Like, he's sort of sabotaging himself by doing that, but I don't know how to make him understand.
... And it wouldn't hurt if he stopped insulting the others and he realized they have been cutting him a whole lot of slack.
[ Poor Satori. They've talked about that particular headache before, and it's a shame to see things are still pretty much the same as they have been. ]
He'll get there, Sacchan, he'll get there. Hana-chan had trouble with hers at first, too, didn't she? Maybe it's something in their nature?
[ She pauses and puts a finger to her lips, smiling mischievously at her friend. ]
But you knoooooow...if you get too annoyed you could always just send him to me!
[ As if Satori ever would. Noa knows her too well to ever think she'd just give away any of her swords, especially one she worked so hard to get. ]
[ Oh. With that kind of reaction, whatever Satori has to say is nothing good. But fortunately, even though Noa hasn't played the TG's game as long as Satori, she's still well versed in politics (damn you, university bureaucracies) and she picks up on Satori's meaning quickly, changing topics with ease. ]
Of course, of course, I wanna hear all the gossip, but before that, I want to see how bad I am at that shooting game. Join me?
[It's a bit weird at times, the fact that Noa is older than her but has been a Saniwa for a shorter times. Satori has had more time to navigate TG politics and come to hate them, but Noa has more real life experience than she does.
( How many goldfish does a saniwa need? The answer is never too many when you're Urashima Kotetsu. It's not surprising that he's taken to the game himself, scooping up a few fish and winning them for some of the tantou. Heh heh heh, he's a bit of an expert at this game. Of course, when you're named after Urashima Taro, it's only natural that you'd have an affinity for fishing.
He claps for Noa, )
Aruji-san, aruji-san! That was amazing!
( He really thought the fish was going to get away. )
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[ It's no secret that there's talk about Noa around the government. Whether it's about her lackadaisical behavior, or her sometimes worryingly casual relationship with history itself, many people in the government are wary of her. Not like they are of Satori...but maybe they should be just as wary of Noa. But y'know what, in the end it's kind of hard to be too wary of Noa, because when she shows up at these functions, it's always with a smile on her face and a flirty "oh you!" joke at just the right moment, and she's always, always dressed to perfection. ]
Isn't it lovely? Sacchan gave it to me!
[ Satsuki. And he's letting her borrow it. That's right. For the 8th year in a row, the government sent her a kimono as a "gift" and for the 8th year in a row she "accidentally" sent it back unopened. ]
4. Offerings and Prayer
[ Like everyone else, Noa is respectful and quiet at the shrine. But unlike many of the others, there's no air of sadness about her. She consigns a few pieces of a sword she couldn't save to the fire with a smile. ]
Don't you worry. We'll see you again soon.
5. Festivities
Ei!
[ IS THAT HER FIFTH GOLDFISH? NOA, WHY. ALSO: HOW. ]
no subject
[It was hard to get close to Noa in the ceremony hall and then there were too many people everywhere, but it's a safe bet Noa will be near the goldfish at any celebration anyway. And of course....]
Kikai-chan, don't take all the poor man's goldfish. leave some for other people.
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Sacchan!!
[ Oh no. Waving broke the damp tissue paper that was her "net." How sad! The stall manager looks relieved, though, so maybe she should call it a night after all. ]
I didn't them all. Besides, setting up a tank big enough for this many goldfish will keep Hasebe busy for hours.
[ Heehee :> ]
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[And now the manager looks vaguely sick again.]
Have you eaten anything yet?
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Or! Maybe not! Saved by Satori's question! ]
Oh! I totally haven't!
[ Hang on, she's going to gather up her goldfish and wave Osayo over from where he was looking at some masks. ]
Take these to Kou for me, will you? He'll take good care of them until I can meet up with him later.
Yes, Ma'am.
[ And he's off. Noa watches him go for a minute with a doting gaze. ]
He's so sweet and so cute. It's really unfair. But food! There's a takoyaki stand around here somewhere, let's get some!
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[But then Noa says the magic word.]
Takoyakiiiii! Let's get takoyaki and beer and sit down somewhere! It's been too long.
[She wanted to wait until they were somewhere quiet, but given who she got to dance this year, she's too excited.]
Did you see their faces?
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[ Yes, Satori, takoyaki! Takoyaki and yakitori and dango and....Noa doesn't know what this thing she grabbed is but it smells divine. Tastes divine, too. She offers the second stick of probably chicken? to Satori to eat on the way to takoyaki. ]
Their faces? Try my face. I still can't believe you got Tsuru to dance for you. And Kara-chan? Magic.
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I don't know what happened... They volunteered, Kikai-chan. Both of them. I seriously thought Kara-chan was sick... I was worried, really!
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[ That's so cute. Satori has worked hard to get each one of her swords and worked hard for their benefit, too, Noa knows it. ]
They wanted to show you how much they love you. And in Tsuru's case, maybe there was a little spiteful surprising the higher ups going on, but mostly love. Probably.
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[let her tug on your sleeve because look! Takoyaki!]
I half-expected Tsuru to pull some kind of weird prank right in the middle, to be honest.
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[ He deserves to be smug. Satori deserves to be smug, too.
Noa pauses at another stall to grab them each a beer and hands one to Satori. ]
It's been a good year, hasn't it? Both our citadels have grown, Hana-chan is doing really well, Tsurucchi and Kara-chan danced for you, and our bureaucratic overlords still haven't found a good reason to get rid of either of us! Cheers!
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[But you bet she is going to be smug about it. All these people here sucking on their teeth, they won't get over it for weeks either. She grabs the beer and gives a cheer.]
Cheers!
... Do you know they tried giving me grief over the fact that I decided not to go and do bead collection earlier this year? Like, did you see how much they expected to get Bizen? I don't have time for that.
[And then, she went to collect keys and just unlocked Nansen Ichimonji in record time, so now they can't berate her anymore.]
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[ Noa: forever sad she ignored her orders to investigate Jyurakutei. ]
Oh, but I heard you have a new "cat" at your citadel! How's he fitting in?
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[She stops herself short of saying 'a problem', because that's not true. He is not a problem. But he has been the causes of quite a few headaches.]
He's just having a hard time. He came in swinging calling Manba a fake, and no one has really forgotten that, see what I mean?
[Satori hasn't, even though she has calmed down. But she gets tired of the attitude sometimes and they're both too strong-headed. She can't be a quiet, soothing presence like Noa.]
I want him to feel at home, but he's just awkward. It helps now that Manba has been back from his trip for a while, but sometimes, I just wish Chougi wouldn't try so hard? Like, he's sort of sabotaging himself by doing that, but I don't know how to make him understand.
... And it wouldn't hurt if he stopped insulting the others and he realized they have been cutting him a whole lot of slack.
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He'll get there, Sacchan, he'll get there. Hana-chan had trouble with hers at first, too, didn't she? Maybe it's something in their nature?
[ She pauses and puts a finger to her lips, smiling mischievously at her friend. ]
But you knoooooow...if you get too annoyed you could always just send him to me!
[ As if Satori ever would. Noa knows her too well to ever think she'd just give away any of her swords, especially one she worked so hard to get. ]
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I'm not annoyed!... well, no, yes, I am, but it's fine. It's just...
[Suddenly, she looks around. Here is not the best place to talk about this.]
Something happened, I know it. But I'll tell you later.
[Not here while surround by TG officials.]
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Of course, of course, I wanna hear all the gossip, but before that, I want to see how bad I am at that shooting game. Join me?
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She quickly smiles at the suggestion.]
Sure. It can't be worse than last year, right?
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You know what? Mucchan missed.
[ Just once, but it still counts. ]
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[That's clearly the only logical explanation.
Satori rarely brings Mutsu here unless she has to. She'd rather take him to an arcade in present day Kyoto if she has to.]
5!
( How many goldfish does a saniwa need? The answer is never too many when you're Urashima Kotetsu. It's not surprising that he's taken to the game himself, scooping up a few fish and winning them for some of the tantou. Heh heh heh, he's a bit of an expert at this game. Of course, when you're named after Urashima Taro, it's only natural that you'd have an affinity for fishing.
He claps for Noa, )
Aruji-san, aruji-san! That was amazing!
( He really thought the fish was going to get away. )
no subject
[ Well, the fish Urashima thought would get away didn't, but her tissue paper "net" promptly falls apart after. ]
Damn it.
[ Oh well. She did get a bunch. And Urashima's gotten a bunch. ]
Well, you brought me plenty of luck since I got five already, thanks, Tatchan!
[ Does Noa give all her swords nicknames? Yes. Yes, she does. ]