(semi-closed) hanging by threads of palest silver

[osake]

Who ⬤ shuten-douji (SHUTEN CLAN) & various
What ⬤ catch-all for closed starters; august 2022 event
When ⬤ august
Where ⬤ various; sai no kawara
Content Warnings ⬤ shuten*, always drunk, flirting and talking about eating people. will update as necessary.

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feel free to pm me or hit me up over on advances if you'd like me to arrange a starter for you! alternatively, surprise me with a "come bother me" wildcard, whatever i'm game.


〉 tanabata; august 2022 event

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Comments

[osake]

[ the addling of drink isn't as strong as one might expect on someone who spends her existence teetering and off-balance in mannerisms and temperament alike — she's always worn the dress of inebriation with a flair of elegance, calculated instead of accidental.

no matter what number of drinks in she is, shuten picks up on the message left like crumb trails.

the sharp taste of bitterness on the tail end of totoko's words fires up something, and shuten leans in on her wrist. fully, this time, letting her fangs catch the glint of low, sparkling lights swimming about the bar. her voice drops a tone. ]

Oh, I think propriety lies more in sharing when you indulge so shamelessly, but ... Who am I to judge?

[socute]

[ Part of the stories always passed around was that oni couldn't get enough of booze, but she never thought until now as to whether or not they're affected at all by the drink itself. The concept of one on a drunken rampage made too much sense, and given the words of another she had met before, felt more likely than anything.

Taking the opportunity to ignore the demon, Totoko brings the glass to her lips and gives it a taste. Better than anticipated, certainly a thought that might've only been spurred on by the high price tag. ]

Someone that didn't pay for it, that's who.

[ Which, on her end, who is she to speak? ]

If you ask nicely, you may be able to try some. I'm not that mean.

[ Only mean enough to ask someone to check an attitude that may not have existed, if it weren't for her needling. ]

[osake]

[ the ghost of an oni whose reign came and went with its bygone age operates a little differently than their living, breathing counterparts; the scent of drink permeates her like she's composed of intoxicating fumes, like the essence of her spirit is alcohol — difficult to tell, then, whether she is drunk or merely existing as the conscious embodiment of sake and violence.

but the other thing about ghosts, especially ones who lived and died thousands of years ago, especially shuten-douji, one of a kind demon of an era, is that shame means nothing. ]

Oh?

[ she lights as though the girl'd stepped into a trap like snapping jaws. her claws slide along the counter until she's found the edge, leans in, and really leans in. the other patrons at the bar spare a quick glance at the closing distance between the two women, but nothing more, the whispers and the inebriation standard fare in the cast of club-red. ]

And how "nice" would you like me to ask...?

[ her voice curls like winding vapor, from her lips to the warm space of totoko's ear, fangs close enough to nick pink skin. ]

Because for an oni ... this is plenty nice already.

[socute]

[ Totoko may be a lot of things. Stuck up, vain, tactless... but she's not completely ignorant. While the air of inebriation was difficult to ignore, the overwhelming threat of danger was impossible. She'd been audacious enough to speak to oni any which way she wanted when they weren't face to face and when the banter remained light.

In this case, her mind swirled. She felt like prey, like she'd fallen directly into Shuten's hands. She attempts to lean back, but it's to no avail. She's caught.

In one way shape or form, she was going to be devoured. Her breathing strained, her eyes scan over to the bartender, and back to Shuten while her hands hovered over the oni's shoulders. Wanting to push her away, but feeling like initiating any kind of physical contact would be fatal-- ]

S-S'cuse me, one more bottle for the oni, here...

[ Self preservation. And, probably, passing over some of her dwindling supply of Stardust later to the clerk later. ]

[osake]

[ a looming threat or a sultry invitation — both simultaneously? from the stutter in the girl's breath, brushed against the silk of shuten's crimson ribbon, the fear and the shrinking, she can tell totoko knows now, the conundrum that she is.

(it was both, simultaneously.)

characters moving against an eye-straining screen fly in and out of her mind regardless of the conversation. this, though — the brush of mouse-brown hair, delicate hands lifted like a flimsy barrier, the perfume of product and exertion from the girl's earlier performance — this, she'll remember.

shuten drags herself back, and allows herself a reveling sort of giggle, tapering off at the end when she's finally back in her seat. ]

Oh!

[ her thin hands, as though they weren't flesh-rending claws, suddenly curl under her chin, cute excitement animating her wide, sharp smile as the bartender neutrally serves the bottle and a chilled glass. ]

How generous! You really shouldn't have.

[ she sings a little pleased hum as she takes the poured drink in hand. ]

Remind me again, sweetie, who I have to thank for her hospitality?

[ her name, she means. shuten lays a hand against the pattern of her own white kimono. ]

Oh, but my manners ... you can call me Assassin.

[socute]

[ Totoko's survival instincts had to kick in, and in both cases, she sure as hell felt every bit as human as she was. An oni would rip her to shreds, and Shuten didn't seem like the type to play nicely with any toy she came across. Depending on what she considered nice, maybe.

The adrenaline very slowly dies down, color returning to Totoko's face in a pink hue as she folded her arms, turning back to the bar. Taking her eye off the demon would be bad for her health, even as she seems satiated for the time being. "She shouldn't have" indeed. ]

Don't get used to it... ugh, I thought I was going to pass out.

[ Her habit of speaking her thoughts out loud may get her in trouble at some point, but she was determined for it to not be tonight. It was only lucky that she did maintain enough social awareness to not bring up that title.

Assassin. In one word, sliding the gauge on Shuten's intentions per Totoko's thoughts from somewhere between pleasure and pain, strictly to pain. A shaky hand reaches out to her own glass, resting while she mumbles her response carefully. ]

Totoko. Just the one is fine... any more, and the hosts'll probably kill me first.

[ She knew full well she was taking advantage of the generous offer based on her performance earlier, but she wasn't going to lose out on that privilege by offering drinks to everyone who threatens or propositions her. ]

[osake]

[ her giggle is like clinking chimes in the wind following the visible relief and honest admission on totoko's end, delighting in the aftereffects of that spike of fear. shuten resists the urge to pop her bubble again, invade that newly allowed gap of space and breathing air with the sharp end of her claw.

instead, she drinks in her reward, literally, the alcohol passing that much more sweetly between her lips as one of her demonic spoils. she pulls away with an exaggerated, satisfied breath, setting the glass down as the tip of her tongue chases its lingering taste. ]

—Ahhh, how refreshing! Mmm, the quality is certainly there.

[ the high tones of her delight settle down eventually, and she also grants totoko the favor of redirecting her sharp, animalistic eyes elsewhere. ]

In my opinion, decadence like this is meant to be taken for all its worth. If they're willing to serve you like a queen, let them.

[ and literally taken, more often than not; like glittering treasures bagged from royal storehouses, pretty faces stolen to pour her sake.

where she humbly obscured the truth of her name, her greed hints at the make of the once-oni king of an era, the power and pleasure she was accustomed to. ]

And you ... fufu. You're so much cuter like this, you know. I'm sure they don't mind one bit.

[socute]

[ Any more and she may have fallen out of her stool, making a scene to rival her performance on stage earlier. Potentially doing more to steal her own spotlight away, leaving the bartender and the other patrons with a much more memorable shot of Totoko to end the night.

How undignified that would've been. ]

Hope you like it. [ Spoken with a light sarcastic tone, as bitter as a grapefruit cocktail. ]

You're right, but it means a lot less if I have to share it with anyone else. A queen wouldn't give a commoner anything that fancy.

[ Also, she was a princess. That was cuter, in her head. ]

You make it sound like I'd be awful to be around if I wasn't buzzed. I'm always this cute.