open 🌙 july catchall

[nerine]

Who ⬤ Monts and Various
What ⬤ July Sub-stories and Catchall
When ⬤ Throughout July.
Where ⬤ Here and there in Jigokucho, mostly in Tamamo Territory.
Content Warnings ⬤ The Amazing Mr. Libido and perhaps some sauciness because of Stardust. Will be added as needed.

Notes ⬤ Prompts in the comments!



"Meet me like I'm midnight."

Comments

[tonguecutter]

[ Monts... Well, Beni has to give her credit for dodging the lunge, at least. She looks into the eyes of the yokai, catching sight of what she knows is greed, and she knows that the two of them seem like easy prey.

The yokai misses, and Beni quickly tightens her grip on the hilt of her sword, watching the movement of the group. Another one, seemingly undeterred by his companion's attempt, lunges at Beni's own bag of stardust, meticulously gathered and packed, to which the sparrow nimbly dodges and smacks his arm, hard, sword still sheathed.

First blood...of sorts. She's still clinging onto the vain hope that this can be resolved somewhat peacefully. ]

You heard the young lady.

[ Or rather, no touching at all, if anyone asked Beni; her top priority is getting the both of them out of this sticky situation. ]

[nerine]

[Monts... Shouts out a cheer! Her little bird oni companion has yet again proven to be a tough little nugget and it's really exciting to see her in action.]

Whooo! Go Beni! Beni is the best!!

[The thugs themselves have no weapons to speak of. Once Beni-enma delivers her blow, they back off to reassess. When they notice her sword, there's scowling and muttering, but they back off. Success!

Monts applauds.]

My tiny hero! Thanks for the show!

[tonguecutter]

[ The sparrow watches the yokai thugs scurry off, her expression flattening at the sight of their retreating backs. ]

...That was quick. I didn't even have to use Enjaku Battoujutsu, chirp.

[ Her abilities as a Heroic Spirit of some renown might have been dampened for the time being, but they can't take away her skills, forged in the fires of training. ]

Are you all right, Monts?

[ Praise for her so-called heroism aside... Judging from Monts' enthusiasm, she's no worse for wear, but it never hurts to double-check. ]

[nerine]

I'm 110% here!

[Monts gives a thumbs up to Beni-enma, her smile never faltering.]

You know this is the second time you helped me out using your skills... Enjaku Battoujutsu you called it? Maybe you should be my bodyguard! Hmm. Although I suppose even if anything happened to me, I'd make it out alright too!

[tonguecutter]

[ Well, she looks alright enough to her. ]

I can't be your bodyguard, but I'm more than happy to look after you.

[ Sparrows never forget a good deed, and all. The latter part, however... ]

...It's not a bad thing to have confidence in yourself, but you should be more serious about your own well-being, chirp.

[ It's like...a 90% chance that it's mostly the stardust doing the talking, right? Right? ]

[nerine]

Well, if it makes you feel better, by the time I notice something's wrong, it's usually gone!

[As cheerfully as she says it, it is eerily cryptic (or rather because she's saying it so cheerfully, it makes it even more unnerving).]

[tonguecutter]

[ Okay, that steps into more concerning territory for her. ]

That doesn't make me feel much better, chirp!

[ If anything, it makes her wonder why it would take so long for her to notice that something is wrong. When she met Monts in the blood rain, she seemed to have her wits about her, enough to smack off the hand that was restraining her, so it wouldn't have been a case of her being too airheaded to notice. ]

...Are you missing your sense of touch?

[ Because, if she doesn't, as someone who's also missing one of her senses (taste, for her), she can understand how that feels, to some extent. ]

[nerine]

Hm?

[There is a noticeably long pause before Monts shakes her head.]

No, my senses are all there for the most part.

[For the most part?]

It's fine Beni, I'm fine.

[tonguecutter]

[ She may not have the lie-detecting abilities of Kiyohime, or the perceptiveness of Fionn or Tamamo, but even Beni can tell that the woman is skirting around the issue in a way. ("For the most part?")

Another kind liar, she supposes. ]

I...I see. [ They're not close enough where she can be more aggressive in making her spit things out if she's insisting she's fine, but Monts can be sure that she's tucking this away for later. ] Well, I asked because...I don't have my sense of taste myself, so I thought...

[ That they were in a similar boat, so to speak. It's not something she usually brings up often and so openly, but she did so in hopes that it would encourage Monts to come forward a bit more. ]

...Cheep, if you're having trouble with any of your senses, I'd be happy to help out.