Hijikata Toshirou (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
mayoninofukucho) wrote in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png)
isleofavalon2022-01-07 11:50 pm
mayoninofukucho) wrote in isleofavalon2022-01-07 11:50 pm
Entry tags:
January Adventures (Open/Closed)
WHO: Hijikata and some friends and maybe YOU?
WHAT: Gathering baking ingredients, escorting baby aurora bears, and questing all over the place!
WHEN: Throughout the first half of January
WHERE: Forest of the Felled, Edge of the Dusklight Woods, Township near the Lands of Rot, Camelot City
WARNINGS: Violence (partly with potential enemy NPC death, but we can avoid that if you prefer) for most of the quests!
1) Frosty Forest Camp - Ingredient Hunt for the The Great Avalon Bake-Off 2022
[After celebrating the winter solstice in Nicnevin Hijikata welcomed the new year in Camelot, watching the castle's fireworks at midnight with his ghostly subordinates. It seems like Elphame will remain open for travellers, and he's tentatively glad for it, after all they went through much trouble to politically court the fae queen. His muted enthusiasm picks up when he realises that a camp has been set up at the edge of the Forest of the Felled as a halfway station of sorts. Finally he and the ghosts won't be the only ones out here!
When a store of well-preserved ingredients is found and a baking contest announced he decides to join in. Sure, the judges of Celliwig's cooking competition were unimpressed with his cooking, but this is baking! So he can be found wandering around to gather ingredients. He meant to use his two hen-sized compsognathuses like truffle pigs, but the dinosaurs aren't enjoying the cold and screamed at him until he picked them up and started carrying them in his arms.]
You two are really useless, you know that? What do I even feed your greedy mouths for?
2) They Grow up so Fast
[Colourful eggs showed up all over the place in Camelot and Elphame, just as seemingly out of season as the fruits growing in the snow in the Forest of the Felled. But not enough with that: the eggs had little legs they ran around on, and anyone who got in contact with them was "imprinted" with a protective parental instinct.
Was Hijikata lucky enough to dodge that bullet, or did he end up as an egg parent (possibly even for the same egg as you)? Or is he accompanying the current expedition in his function as a knight? Well, either way, he's here, because after the eggs hatched into little glowing teddy bears it quickly became clear that they're not fit to live among people.]
I hope they'll be fine out here and not come back once they've grown huge... where are their real parents, anyway? What kind of lousy procreation method is this to just lay eggs and have random people do all the hard work of rearing them?
[To be fair, it worked out well enough for the bears! (OOC: Please press A for Camelot and B for Elphame!)]
3) Quests
A ⦿ Gravestone-Faced (foritsmypower)
[When Hijikata asked Shoto if he wanted to be his squire the boy stood so proudly, it filled his own chest with pride too. The ceremony later on was small and simple (and yes, there was some paperwork to be done), but all of that was just a formality to him. This is different from his relationship with his subordinates in the Shinsengumi or Yuureisengumi, and he still needs to find his footing as a mentor figure, but he trusts that they'll work together just as well now as they already did before Shoto's squiring.
The new year has only just begun, but already a serious threat appears to be haunting the edge of the Dusklight Woods: a strange creature seemingly made of leaves and mud and covered in a ragged cloak and wooden mask. The bodies that were sighted speak for themselves, and Elphame, where the monster escaped from the underground prison, provided further information: as soon as it reads a person's emotions on their face it's able to turn their greatest weaknesses against them and, once they're mentally broken, pull their soul out of their body.]
Well, Shoto, let's put on our best pokerfaces.
B ⦿ Knight Quest
[Hijikata takes his position as a knight pretty seriously. At the time of his knighting there were only a couple of other outworlders with the title (though more had come and gone before him), and while he's glad to see that the ranks have filled considerably since then it doesn't mean that he can slack off! Despite not being anybody's Vice-Commander here he can't help but feel like he needs to set an example. So he doesn't hesitate to accept the special task and set out towards the occupied township near the Lands of Rot.
Given the distance he used an archivist's totem for himself, his pedigree horse Black Star, and whoever is accompanying him (knight or non-knight), so it didn't take the group long to make it to their destination. Having left the horse(s?) behind some cover a good distance away he and his partner are currently observing the orc bandits from a secure location (or, perhaps, from under a dark magic cloak or a light magic glamour).]
Looks like there aren't all that many of them, at least not right now.
[He's confident in his battle skills and apparently plans to apply brute force... if his partner is on board with that, great! But if not they may want to curb his latent bloodlust a little.]
C ⦿ Beta Testing (fortroubadamsel)
[It sounded like such a nice and thoughtful Camelotian tradition: pass on the stone, and you and whoever you pass it on to will have good luck in this new year. The kindly woman clearly just wanted to cheer Hijikata up, having seen him struggle with a bunch of thorny cuttings for an elderly man with an overgrown garden. He doesn't even notice that the stone absorbs the traces of blood it gets in contact with as he's distracted by the sight of Maribelle.]
Maribelle! - Thanks again, Madam! - Maribelle, wait!
[He leaves the stranger and tries to flag the little noblewoman down. He wants to thank her for the warm gloves she gifted him for Christmas! That was completely unexpected, and while he already sent her his 'Mirror Mirror' in return he still feels like he owes her an expression of his gratitude in person. And what better way to do that than include her in the lucky stone custom? (Later on he'll file that under "thoughts moments before disaster".)]
D ⦿ Roast Pork (fortroubadamsel)
[Hijikata has been on the dark web's radar for a while now, and ever since last month's hunt for his ghostly subordinates tensions have been higher than before. The Yuureisengumi constantly finds itself missing at least one or two members, and the resources needed to find and rescue them are always sorely missed elsewhere. Hijikata thinks of running another recruitment campaign, but the new year starts off with such a bang on the dark web that that'll have to wait.
When he sees the ridiculously sadistic quest involving a giant hogweed potion that, sneaked into the private Jack Rabbit's club's champagne fountain, will cause everyone who ingested it to burn to a crisp in the sunlight, he simply can't abide it... despite his lasting predicament of still being trapped in Maribelle's body.
He contacts the quest-giver through his burner phone, and once arrangements are made he soon receives the fatal potion in a post box in Camelot City which he rented specifically for this undertaking. Before long the would-be murder weapon is safely in the hands of Camelot's native law enforcement (he conducted a covert collection with them, just in case), but he isn't satisfied with just that. He wants to get a hold of the madman who cooked up this entire horrible plot!
This is why he, after sneaking into the club and pretending to be a new server lost on the way to the dressing room, uses his phone to invite the mysterious quest-giver to come watch the "pork roast" show. He allows himself a narrow-eyed smirk as he sees the inappropriately cheerful text message response. So far, so good! Now if only he didn't feel so exposed in this goddamn bunny suit, and if only he could walk in these high heels... and if only he knew that the dalmation stone enchantment that made him and Maribelle swap bodies is about to run out in 3, 2, 1--]
[OOC: If you'd like any additional prompts (egg-raising adventures, body-swapped run-ins, etc.) please feel free to hit me up on my plotting post! Also here are Hijikata's permissions.]
WHAT: Gathering baking ingredients, escorting baby aurora bears, and questing all over the place!
WHEN: Throughout the first half of January
WHERE: Forest of the Felled, Edge of the Dusklight Woods, Township near the Lands of Rot, Camelot City
WARNINGS: Violence (partly with potential enemy NPC death, but we can avoid that if you prefer) for most of the quests!
1) Frosty Forest Camp - Ingredient Hunt for the The Great Avalon Bake-Off 2022
[After celebrating the winter solstice in Nicnevin Hijikata welcomed the new year in Camelot, watching the castle's fireworks at midnight with his ghostly subordinates. It seems like Elphame will remain open for travellers, and he's tentatively glad for it, after all they went through much trouble to politically court the fae queen. His muted enthusiasm picks up when he realises that a camp has been set up at the edge of the Forest of the Felled as a halfway station of sorts. Finally he and the ghosts won't be the only ones out here!
When a store of well-preserved ingredients is found and a baking contest announced he decides to join in. Sure, the judges of Celliwig's cooking competition were unimpressed with his cooking, but this is baking! So he can be found wandering around to gather ingredients. He meant to use his two hen-sized compsognathuses like truffle pigs, but the dinosaurs aren't enjoying the cold and screamed at him until he picked them up and started carrying them in his arms.]
You two are really useless, you know that? What do I even feed your greedy mouths for?
2) They Grow up so Fast
[Colourful eggs showed up all over the place in Camelot and Elphame, just as seemingly out of season as the fruits growing in the snow in the Forest of the Felled. But not enough with that: the eggs had little legs they ran around on, and anyone who got in contact with them was "imprinted" with a protective parental instinct.
Was Hijikata lucky enough to dodge that bullet, or did he end up as an egg parent (possibly even for the same egg as you)? Or is he accompanying the current expedition in his function as a knight? Well, either way, he's here, because after the eggs hatched into little glowing teddy bears it quickly became clear that they're not fit to live among people.]
I hope they'll be fine out here and not come back once they've grown huge... where are their real parents, anyway? What kind of lousy procreation method is this to just lay eggs and have random people do all the hard work of rearing them?
[To be fair, it worked out well enough for the bears! (OOC: Please press A for Camelot and B for Elphame!)]
3) Quests
A ⦿ Gravestone-Faced (for
itsmypower) [When Hijikata asked Shoto if he wanted to be his squire the boy stood so proudly, it filled his own chest with pride too. The ceremony later on was small and simple (and yes, there was some paperwork to be done), but all of that was just a formality to him. This is different from his relationship with his subordinates in the Shinsengumi or Yuureisengumi, and he still needs to find his footing as a mentor figure, but he trusts that they'll work together just as well now as they already did before Shoto's squiring.
The new year has only just begun, but already a serious threat appears to be haunting the edge of the Dusklight Woods: a strange creature seemingly made of leaves and mud and covered in a ragged cloak and wooden mask. The bodies that were sighted speak for themselves, and Elphame, where the monster escaped from the underground prison, provided further information: as soon as it reads a person's emotions on their face it's able to turn their greatest weaknesses against them and, once they're mentally broken, pull their soul out of their body.]
Well, Shoto, let's put on our best pokerfaces.
B ⦿ Knight Quest
[Hijikata takes his position as a knight pretty seriously. At the time of his knighting there were only a couple of other outworlders with the title (though more had come and gone before him), and while he's glad to see that the ranks have filled considerably since then it doesn't mean that he can slack off! Despite not being anybody's Vice-Commander here he can't help but feel like he needs to set an example. So he doesn't hesitate to accept the special task and set out towards the occupied township near the Lands of Rot.
Given the distance he used an archivist's totem for himself, his pedigree horse Black Star, and whoever is accompanying him (knight or non-knight), so it didn't take the group long to make it to their destination. Having left the horse(s?) behind some cover a good distance away he and his partner are currently observing the orc bandits from a secure location (or, perhaps, from under a dark magic cloak or a light magic glamour).]
Looks like there aren't all that many of them, at least not right now.
[He's confident in his battle skills and apparently plans to apply brute force... if his partner is on board with that, great! But if not they may want to curb his latent bloodlust a little.]
C ⦿ Beta Testing (for
troubadamsel) [It sounded like such a nice and thoughtful Camelotian tradition: pass on the stone, and you and whoever you pass it on to will have good luck in this new year. The kindly woman clearly just wanted to cheer Hijikata up, having seen him struggle with a bunch of thorny cuttings for an elderly man with an overgrown garden. He doesn't even notice that the stone absorbs the traces of blood it gets in contact with as he's distracted by the sight of Maribelle.]
Maribelle! - Thanks again, Madam! - Maribelle, wait!
[He leaves the stranger and tries to flag the little noblewoman down. He wants to thank her for the warm gloves she gifted him for Christmas! That was completely unexpected, and while he already sent her his 'Mirror Mirror' in return he still feels like he owes her an expression of his gratitude in person. And what better way to do that than include her in the lucky stone custom? (Later on he'll file that under "thoughts moments before disaster".)]
D ⦿ Roast Pork (for
troubadamsel) [Hijikata has been on the dark web's radar for a while now, and ever since last month's hunt for his ghostly subordinates tensions have been higher than before. The Yuureisengumi constantly finds itself missing at least one or two members, and the resources needed to find and rescue them are always sorely missed elsewhere. Hijikata thinks of running another recruitment campaign, but the new year starts off with such a bang on the dark web that that'll have to wait.
When he sees the ridiculously sadistic quest involving a giant hogweed potion that, sneaked into the private Jack Rabbit's club's champagne fountain, will cause everyone who ingested it to burn to a crisp in the sunlight, he simply can't abide it... despite his lasting predicament of still being trapped in Maribelle's body.
He contacts the quest-giver through his burner phone, and once arrangements are made he soon receives the fatal potion in a post box in Camelot City which he rented specifically for this undertaking. Before long the would-be murder weapon is safely in the hands of Camelot's native law enforcement (he conducted a covert collection with them, just in case), but he isn't satisfied with just that. He wants to get a hold of the madman who cooked up this entire horrible plot!
This is why he, after sneaking into the club and pretending to be a new server lost on the way to the dressing room, uses his phone to invite the mysterious quest-giver to come watch the "pork roast" show. He allows himself a narrow-eyed smirk as he sees the inappropriately cheerful text message response. So far, so good! Now if only he didn't feel so exposed in this goddamn bunny suit, and if only he could walk in these high heels... and if only he knew that the dalmation stone enchantment that made him and Maribelle swap bodies is about to run out in 3, 2, 1--]
[OOC: If you'd like any additional prompts (egg-raising adventures, body-swapped run-ins, etc.) please feel free to hit me up on my plotting post! Also here are Hijikata's permissions.]
no subject
... If I gave you the truth of what happened in the last five minutes, you wouldn't believe me. Whatever happened, just forget it! I had no part in any of this! As far as we both should be concerned, this day never happened! Now, if you'll excuse me...
[ As she tries to move around this man, she feels the jostling weight in her cleavage, realizing he left something in there... which means, in a sense, Hijikata definitely touched her boobs.
Her anger takes another spike uphill. IT'S A GOOD THING HE HAS AN ARMY OF GHOSTS, CAUSE HE'S ABOUT TO FUCKIN' JOIN THEM - ]
no subject
[His voice is still friendly, but there's the slightest glint in his eyes. Was he looking forward to being served by her that much, or is it something else..? In any case he turns her around - gently but very firmly - and starts to guide her to his seat by the champagne fountain...
Perhaps it would have been nice if Hijikata had heroically barged in at that momen, sword drawn, hoarse voice loudly announcing the arrival and authority of the king's knights, but for better or worse he decided to be more subtle. (Perhaps because he didn't hear any hysterical screaming from the club on arrival - maybe things aren't going all that badly!! No need to bring attention to himself and Maribelle; he can just quietly bring her out... right?) He makes his way through the establishment slowly, circumnavigating chatting groups of patrons and hard-working bunny-suited servers, and stops when he suddenly sees a very unimpressed Maribelle being cajoled and coaxed by a man he vaguely thinks he's seen before.
He stops and watches - if she shows clear resistance that'll give him cause to step in and lead her away under some pretense!]
no subject
GET YOUR HAND OFF ME RIGHT THIS INSTANT, IF YOU STILL WANT TO KEEP IT ATTACHED TO THE REST OF YOUR FILTHY BODY!
[ She grabs him by the wrist, and not only yanks it back, but tries to yank it BACKWARDS. Granted, she's a scrawny white mage so it's probably not a huge powerhouse move, but it's clear she's not going anywhere she doesn't wanna go. ]
no subject
Mister, you aren't giving the lady trouble, are you?
[The guy blanches when he sees him, quickly taking a few steps away from Maribelle. Hijikata is still sifting through his memory, but he already remembers how he was possessed and walked to the police station by one of those creepy, cold ghosts, and all for just a little shanking he didn't even get to finish!! He felt miserable for days after that!]
No, Sir Knight, absolutely not! In fact I was just on my way out!
[Quick as a weasel he scurries away, grabbing his hat from the wardrobe rack and speedwalking off into the night. Hijikata puts a hand on Maribelle's shoulder as he steers her to a quiet corner - he's unwilling to leave the scene quite yet, first he needs to find out if that guy was the quest-giver!]
What'd he say to you?
[Not "What'd he do to you". He's not concerned, he wants information! Sorry, Maribelle, his cops instincts too over once again...]
no subject
Slowly.
Turns to look at him.
What is Hijikata hearing right now? The Jaws theme? Kill Bill sirens? One-Winged Angel? Or maybe the kind of silence that horror movies employ before a jump scare? Because Maribelle's expression is not exactly one of kindness and serenity. With a shaking hand, she reaches up to pull him closer to her by the collar of his uniform. ]
Toshirou. Hijikata.
WHY. AM. I. WEARING. THIS. OUTFIT.
no subject
I can explain - let's-- let's just get you your clothes back first, yeah?
[That's in her interest, right? He steers her into the dressing room, where they are luckily alone, and hurriedly tells her his story while he unlocks the drawer and quickly gathers his various weapons and items.]
Someone was planning a really heinous mass murder in this club; I infiltrated it to catch them. Pretending to be a member of the staff was part of the deal.
[He almost continues with "And since I was in your body already...", but decides against that, instead stepping towards the door, clearly in flight mode. Perhaps it wasn't in his best interest to put himself in a room with her alone. The atmosphere is really oppressive and ominous!]
I'll wait outside and make sure no one comes in while you change!
[While she changes back into her wrinkled clothes that he first carelessly stuffed into the locker and now carelessly pulled out of it.]
no subject
However. She is wearing a bunny-girl outfit and also convinced he definitely touched her boobs.
She will allow him to momentarily leave so she can get dressed, but as he waits outside, she speaks up again. ]
You know, the magic in this realm and of my own is quite different. It took some time to adjust to it. But of course, if I'm to survive and be of use here, I made sure to study as much as I could about the magic my body now possesses. I'm quite sure I've told you I have Light Magic - and if, by some chance, I didn't, you surely would have found out during your stay within my body.
[ For the moment, her voice sounds calm as she goes into this explanation while she changes her outfit. But with each new sentence, she gets a little louder... her words more tense... ]
Light Magic is very versatile, as it turns out. Not only can it be used for offensive and defensive purposes in combat, it does wonders with illusions. Which means, for this heroic and noble escapade of yours...
[ With this, she SLAMS THE DOOR OPEN, changed into her normal outfit - and FISTS BALLED UP - ]
... YOU COULD HAVE DISGUSED MY FACE, YOU PEA-BRAINED PERVERTED BASTARD!
no subject
As her words sink in sentence by sentence he realises that he, who was so determined to go crime-fighting even in his disadvantaged position, completely failed to evaluate what new possibilities and, indeed, advantages might have come with the body swap-- and then Maribelle bursts out of the dressing room and is all in his face, scarier in her fury than any ghost he's encountered recently. His defence comes out sounding kind of jumbled, given that he only had a few seconds to come up with it.]
Wh-what, our magic changed along with our bodies? Are you sure? Isn't it tied to our souls?
[He actually didn't smoke any cigarettes while he was in her body - remarkably enough withdrawal didn't kick in, be it due to the lack of physical addiction or because he subconsciously wanted to avoid the fall-out from leaving tobacco smell in her hair and clothes -, so he didn't try to use his fire magic, but... wait, wait--!!]
I could still see my subordinates in your body!! That means I still had my death magic! So-- so I couldn't have disguised your face!
[Still, now he realises what's her main concern - not that he brought her body here in that skimpy outfit (bad as that is in and on itself), but that he may have recognised as her.]
no subject
YOU COULDN'T DISGUISE ME IN ANY OTHER WAY?! DYING MY HAIR, USING MAKE-UP, DID YOU EVEN CHANGE THE TONE OF MY VOICE?!
[ She doesn't care that other people are staring if they sure weren't before. She can't be tamed, can't be quelled, someone has to pay. ]
DO YOU HAVE ANY IDEA HOW MANY PEOPLE ARE IN THIS BUILDING?! IN AN OUTFIT THAT IS SPECIFICALLY DESIGNED TO DRAW THE EYE IN?! AND! THAT! PEOPLE! WILL! TALK!
[ She then raises her hands, like Goku wielding a spirit bomb - which may very well be what the light in her hands is. ]
I'LL NEVER FORGIVE YOU FOR AS LONG AS YOU LIVE!
no subject
If I had dyed your hair you'd have freaked out on me later!! Don't tell me otherwise! Anyway, you said it yourself: do you have any idea how many people are in this building?! All of them could have been killed without intervention!! That's more important than some gossip!!
[He resolutely grabs her wrists and pulls them down from the attack position - for better or worse. Will she blast whatever spell that is at him even from the lower angle? Or will she spontaneously see reason after his convincing arguments?]
no subject
[ My man, you were doomed no matter what. The good news is that Maribelle hasn't really mastered her light-attack-magic, so the big ball of light looks worse than it really is - when it lands, it's really more like a hot frying pain sizzling his scalp. ]
no subject
What did she say? He should have told her..? Told her what? He's trying to focus, but it's a struggle. If no one intervenes - and honestly, all onlookers are either too intimidated or only interested in gawking - he's going to just fall flat on his face.]
no subject
... Hm. If he was telling the truth, she might as well help out a little. She tosses her hair over her shoulders, loudly addressing everyone in the room. ]
... And if I EVER have to come back here, to investigate a crime or take down anyone trying something on that dark net, rest assured, YOU ALL WILL SUFFER THIRTEEN TIMES WORSE THAN WHAT I PLAN TO DO TO HIM.
[ Worse than already kicking his ass? She isn't even sure what she'll do. But let them stew about it. With one more indignant huff, she finally begins to walk away, hopefully towards the actual exit this time. ]
no subject
If the mastermind of what would have been an outstandingly nasty crime is in fact still at the scene they may be quite intimidated by Maribelle's threat - sure, she's just a small young woman, but she just took out a guy who looked like he could kick some ass!! Of course no one can tell how an actual fight between them would have gone, as opposed to Hijikata's piss-poor attempt at handling things verbally, but even so, he sure is out cold!
The crowd parts like the Red Sea as she marches through; nobody wants to stand in her way. Perhaps the greatest tragedy here is that far fewer people would ever have taken notice of her presence if only she had made a quiet exit... but then again who can really blame her after she was thrust into this scenario with no warning whatsoever?
Some staff members lug Hijikata off somewhere he won't be in the way, and the club guests go back to their chattering, now with an exciting new hot topic to discuss. His last thought before he temporarily blacks out is I guess this could've gone worse... but little does he know that this is far from the end of the story.]