( open ) 002

[harimaya]

Who ⬤ Hizen & you
What ⬤ Catchall for the underground and tdm (funeral) prompts
When ⬤ April
Where ⬤ See prompts.
Content Warnings ⬤ TBA

ABOVE GROUND

(The best way to stop people from getting in is to watch the entrance. He doesn't expect anyone to just waltz in through the obvious entrances and there are plenty of people keeping an eye out there. Instead, Hizen opts to watch a smaller, less obvious entrance that people can use to sneak in past whatever guards might be on duty.

He keeps his distance, preferring to watch from the shadows of an alley and enjoys how slow the job is for the time being… by enjoying a rice ball. It might be a job but he's still entitled to his snack breaks. Not even the government back home can take that away from him.

When he catches someone poking around, he finishes the last of his onigiri and begins to make his way towards his new target, )

It's closed.

(Some oni have thrown some boxes or something in front of to make it more difficult to get through but it's not impossible.)

Try somewhere else.

UNDERGROUND

(When it comes to closed, dark spaces, Hizen has always had an advantage. After all, wakizashi are convenient for assassinations and all wakizashi spirits seem to inherit a natural talent for sneaking around in dangerous places. Being the sword of an assassin only makes it easier for him.

He knows how to walk quietly, making sure he makes as little sound as possible in the tunnels. Let the sound of water below and the streets above drown out most of his sounds so he can sneak around. He keeps to the shadows and knows where to hide or how far back to stay to keep out of sight. There are no special abilities or powers at play here— it's all skill so anyone with a special talent or sharp senses will be able to sense him eventually but he's good at lying low in wait, stalking potential prey.

His eyes adjust to the darkness and he can make out who his allies and enemies easily. When he sees a fellow Shuten member, he makes a point to take a heavier step so he's heard but stays out of sight a moment longer before revealing himself. He's been shot once this month and he's not in the mood to get hurt again because of friendly fire fo all things,)

It's a dead end.

(The direction they're heading in right now.)

(If he sees someone who isn't a Shuten, he sticks to the shadows and just... keeps watching! Eventually, he might yawn and warn though,)

Keep going and you'll be in trouble.

UNDERGROUND: TAMAMO BULLYING EDITION

(You are a Tamamo and you have managed to make it underground. Somewhere along the way, you've called Hizen out for stalking you or just ran into him. Either way, with alliances established and so on, he doesn't look impressed when he realizes he's stumbled onto a Tamamo.

He tugs at the scarf over his face and let's out a short laugh,)

You guys really came? Thought you'd be worried about breaking a nail or something.

WILDCARD

❀ If you have another idea for a prompt or would like to plot anything out, let me know
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Comments

[aceslow]

Toraguma did? That's a surprise. I didn't realize he was quite so hands-on with his clan members. [ Kim has, of course, taken this the wrong way -- that Toraguma either sent medics belonging to their clan to Hizen, or dealt with the wound himself. Either way, Kim's glad to hear it. It's a poor leader that doesn't ensure the health of their own, but in his experience, that's also most leaders.

He nods approvingly. ]

In any case, I'm glad to see you've healed up.

[ He glances at the brawl behind them. He has no desire to get involved himself and, luckily, the clans seem largely concerned with fighting each other. If you don't jump in willingly, they've got plenty of combatants to wail at themselves. He lets out a quiet sigh. ]

I was lucky enough to avoid injury at the Parade. It wasn't too difficult to make my way out after the initial chaos.

[ He'd been with Aerith at one of the makeshift clinics, trying to help people who were in Hizen's position. It's not his preferred job during something like that - he'd much rather be in the thick of things, trying to do damage control - but when there are precious few people with first-aid skills in the crowd as it is, he knows where he's most useful. After the initial scuffle with no more than some cuts and bruises to show for it, he'd stayed well out of it. ]

[harimaya]

(He catches the confusion but well... it isn't his job to correct him, really? And honestly, as far as Hizen's assessment goes, Toraguma doesn't seem too bad... so far. It was a personal reward and that's close enough for Hizen.

Ah, but he's quiet for a moment and now its his turn to be confused,)

Why do you care? (That he's better? Especially after--) I was a real pain in the ass, you know...

(He! Is! Self! Aware! So why would Kim care after Hizen was so rude and difficult to him.)

[aceslow]

Mm, well. As a general rule, I prefer for people to remain healthy regardless of my personal feelings about them.

[ There are some people he wouldn't mind suffering from a dire infection, true; he's not so good a person that he can't think of some people he wouldn't trouble himself to help. But someone being rude to him hardly qualifies. By Revacholian standards, Hizen may as well have tipped his hat to him and said how do you do?

It's surprising that Hizen is even lingering on the fact. He didn't feel that the boy was particularly aware of his own acerbic nature. Rare is the person who demonstrates enough self-awareness to reflect after the fact, and Kim's expression softens a little as a result. ]

But really, I wouldn't worry about it. You were in a great deal of pain, and it's perfectly natural for tempers to run short at a time like that. I didn't take it personally -- I've certainly had worse patients than you.

[ Macho bullshit, mainly. In comparison, Hizen had been downright cooperative. ]

[harimaya]

(He should have figured Kim was one of those nice guys. Who else goes around digging bullets out of random people from rival factions... He's quiet for a moment, as if trying to pick his words a little more carefully for when he speaks again--)

Nah. That's not it.

(It wasn't just the pain or the frustration. He's naturally an unpleasant person to be around. He knows it. The only difference is that now, without the high of a fight and blood in the water, he's more tired than short tempered.)

... Are you gonna help out here, too?

(That sure is someone getting thrown down the temple steps right now.)

[aceslow]

Here?

[ Kim turns his head to look at the scuffle. This time, it seems to be violence of their own making, everyone caught in the fight with the strong desire to be in the fight. For those who don't care to get involved like Kim, it's simple enough to extricate themselves from the situation. Kim placidly watches a Tamamo yokai scratch at a Shuten goon with sharp claws, screeching with bloodlust-fueled delight. The person getting tossed down the stairs is someone he's keeping a closer eye on, eyes tracking their expression to see if they look petrified or simply more determined to knock a few heads together. ]

Mm. I'll intervene if I think someone's in mortal peril, or if they're trying to get out of the fight, of course. Otherwise, this is their battle. If they feel the need to make a scene, then they'll get it out of their system whether I try to stop them or not. And you?

[harimaya]

...

(Interesting, Hizen thinks. He would have thought Kim was a more righteous sort of person after how he'd insisted on treating him at the parade. Maybe Kim's heart doesn't bleed as much as he thought. Still, it's a reasonable answer. A very reasonable one, even! Points for being a normal person with a good head on their shoulders instead of some of the reckless people Hizen has come to know.)

Hm.

(A small hum in approval as he considers his own answer. His hand rests on the hilt of his sword, finger tapping at the very end,)

I got my strength back and the boss told me to use it to help the community. (Whatever that means but looking around...) Not everyone's a fighter.

(Like he is. So he'll stick around and fight so he can help those less capable.)

[aceslow]

No, not everyone is.

[ Like Kim. Even if he wanted to help, what could he do? Oh, he can hold his own in a fight, he knows that much. He knows how to deal with a crisis, how to hold his own in a brawl springing up around him, how to make sure he can make it through to the other side without getting too bad of a beating. But something like this is well beyond him; police officers are supposed to be able to stop things before they get this bad, and here, he has no authority to his name to be able to divert it by demanding cooperation, or by making a few well-placed arrests. If he just had a badge...

Well, it's not possible now. There's no point in dwelling on it. Instead he regards Hizen, frank curiosity written across his face. ]

And how will you do that, without encouraging more of the other side to jump into the fray? Do you have a plan of deescalation?

[ If he does, Kim may well help. ]