WEEK 5: IF YOU'VE GOT IT HAUNT IT

[fullthottle]

[Hizamaru awakens in an unfamiliar place...but to a familiar face.]

Comments

[uncleanse]

[ when hiza's emotions start to run high, there's a split second where nikkari almost cracks himself. but he holds it together, because he of course knows better than most that the dead don't want the ones they've left behind to only grieve.

so it's with a smile and a nod that he acknowledges hizamaru's words. ]

Of course. Haha... if only there was some way to properly convey the look on your face to him now, Hizamaru-san. But, ah, don't worry—I won't embarrass you in front of your own brother.

Is there anything else you wish to share with anyone on this side, or am I all right to start asking you questions now? I understand if you aren't able to answer, by the way, and I thank you regardless for your help... not as a comrade, but as a friend.

[leggymaru]

[Embarrassed, he ducks his head down some as if that will hide the expressions he's trying not to make. It takes a moment before he looks back up again, this time more professional.]

Please tell Junpei-san... I hope he has found someone to spend time with after the meetings. And that... he is doing a good job.

[A nod.]

I am ready for your questions, Nikkari-san.

[uncleanse]

[ his eyes seem to light up at the mention of junpei... ]

Ha ha ha... and what exactly do you mean by that, Hizamaru-san...? For some reason I feel as though he wouldn't tell me the full extent of whatever you're talking about...

[ but then he blinks, the teasing note from his tone fading as he remembers they're on a time limit here... even though he's aware of approximately how much time they have, it still wouldn't do either of them any good to spend too long getting sidetracked. ]

—Ah, that wasn't one of the questions I originally meant to ask you, by the way. Izuminokami-san was able to give us information regarding the items needed to perform the final ritual due to things he'd learned on your side... would you be able to shed some light on how exactly we're supposed to perform it?

[leggymaru]

[NIKKARI, IT WAS WHOLESOME. DON'T BE DIRTY.]

We... I'm sorry, Nikkari-san. [He frowns apologetically and hangs his head, though different than the way he had before.] We haven't found out anything about the ritual yet. Next week... Please ask for one of us again, and perhaps we will know more.

Please take care of the items. You will need all seven of them for it.

[uncleanse]

[ are you really asking nikkari, of all people, not to be dirty ]

Mm, I'm aware. All we are missing are the demon heart and blood... the rest, we have kept safe. Have faith in that much, at least.

[ he pauses, counting something out on his fingers. ]

... We have eleven days left from today. Hopefully I survive this week in order to successfully complete this mission... please keep supporting us, Hizamaru-san, and good luck on that side, as well.

[leggymaru]

I will. You all will be alright. I know you will. Even elder brother.

[A pause.]

What I read... on the board, it said, "a still beating heart," so perhaps... it is the last you will need to retrieve on that day. [Actually.] Perhaps I should go over it in case. [He had been his brother's memory... Now it is time to shine:]

The royal family's jewels, the shoes of a sea long gone, the blade of a siren scorned, the tears of a saint, the bum javelin of an heiress, the blood of a goddess, and the still beating heart of one of those wretched creatures.

That is what it said.

1/2

[uncleanse]

Eh? Board?

[ that relatively small detail aside, though... he nods. ]

But yes, I see... that indeed lines up with the with the drawings Izuminokami-san showed me, and their real world counterparts. I possess the phallus and shoes, Junpei the anal plug and knife, and Katy-san the pendant.

[uncleanse]

"Bum javelin," though... was that the exact wording...?

[leggymaru]

Mm.

[listen,,, #justgraveyardthings]

Ah. Yes, that was the wording. It looked like what Shiraishi-san had. There was a blue gem on one side.

[uncleanse]

Mm, it was the same in Izuminokami's images as well as when Junpei showed it to me.

Is this information that you all have access to as soon as you reach the island? Hm... that would certainly explain why each subsequent summoning has granted us more knowledge.

[leggymaru]

Yes. I believe it was information found through hard work.

Nikkari-san... please be careful. All of you. It feels as if we are still missing information. So do not act rashly alone. Formations can break if you do not communicate. Even back home... that was true.

[uncleanse]

. . . Of course. Thank you, Hizamaru-san. We'll see each other again soon.

[ he says it with conviction, rather than only a fleeting hope. before hiza disappears, nikkari raises a closed fist again to bump against his in spirit (haha) and leaves him with a smile. ]

[leggymaru]

Mm. I shall see you again, Nikkari-san.

[Raising his hand, he fists it so they can spirit fist bump as bros do. He returns Nikkari's smile before reluctantly returning from whence he came.]