that's not what we usually mean by 'dance with death'

[cherryblooded]

[That certainly did happen. Cherryblod's not the type of person who will judge one person's value as being more than another's, so he can't say whether it was better or worse than the first week. It came as less of a shock, maybe, but even so...

It's not the kind of thing people usually want to go through alone.

So, after he spends some time in the kitchen preparing (with assistance from Bruce), he'll slip some personalized notes under everyone's doors.]

[Name],
If you'd prefer to spend this time alone, that's fine.
If you'd prefer not to, I've made some food and set it out in the dining hall.
Even if you're just hungry and would rather not talk, feel free to come take some.
But if you'd like the company, we're here for you.
-Cherryblod

[Those arriving in the dining hall will find an assortment of food - a fair number of sandwiches and other, actual meal-like options since most people missed a meal or two, but also a goodly number of desserts. There's tea, as well as coffee for those who favor it.]

Comments

[capyper]

It is definitely a compliment! [ So he says. More importantly... ] Y'want some help with them?

[ He gets it if not; people cope in different ways. But Yato wouldn't mind having something to keep him a little busy tonight. ]

[penduli]

[ So he says. ]

I... yes, I would. [ Yato's either gonna be better than him at this or he's gonna be on the same level as him, there's no possible way he could be worse. ] I'd like them to look acceptable, at least, especially since I was thinking of, er... giving them out or setting them up somewhere.

[capyper]

Don't worry, I'll put in my all. The great delivery god Yato has many talents, you know! [ He doesn't remember it yet, but he even made his fancy ass clothes... ] How about I stuff 'em and stitch them up, and you can take care of the personal effects?

[penduli]

[ ...look he still doesn't know how much of the god thing he believes, but okay. ]

Sounds good to me. [ At least some of these bears will look nice... ] Have you sewn a lot?

[capyper]

I'm, like, a thousand or something years old! I've probably accumulated more random skills than any normal human ever could.

[ ... That's a "yes", by the way. He picks up one of the teddy bears and begins putting its fluff inside. ]

[penduli]

[ ...SURE... ]

Like what? [ give him a list, Yato, let's see how useful you are. ]

[capyper]

Well... not to brag, but I can clean a toilet like nobody's business, including that stain that's been in between the tiles for years now! And I'm not bad at other kinds of cleaning either, and taking care of personal problems you can't tell your parents or teachers about, like how bullies won't leave you alone and whatnot. I've also cooked in a few restaurants, but nothing that fancy? Ohhh, and I've sold artwork before. Plus, slaying any Phantom spirits that might be bothering people, watching over kids... I guess among gods, I'm kinda well-known for my ability to cut through all sorts of things. I'm pretty good at finding lost pets and making clothes too!

[ There were a few weird ones in there, huh. ]

[penduli]

[ s l o w l y picking up his fabrics to make some clothes, Uh. ]

You really are multi-talented? [ that sounds more like a question than a statement but he's sort of reeling from-- ] Er--you are, I mean. What's a Phantom spirit?

[capyper]

It'll take some explaining, but I'll try and give the easy version. Basically, you've got the world that you humans know — we call it the Near Shore. And then there's the Far Shore, where gods and spirits and Phantoms live. We can interact with you guys, but for the most part, humans don't have a spiritual sense, so you can't see it. Phantoms... I guess it's like they feed off of negative emotions? So bad energy tends to attract 'em, and then they make it worse, and then... well, you can imagine.

[ It's bad news and people do shitty things. ]

So gods like me slay 'em.

[penduli]

[ this is

incredible to hear about, but otoh, he still doesn't fully believe in ghosts. ...he should probably know better. ]

I see. If we count every mythology or religion, that means there's a ton of gods out there... I'm surprised that Phantoms aren't extinct or anything.

[capyper]

I dunno about other countries, but there's like eight million of us in Japan. Although plenty of 'em don't fight.

[ ... it would be hilarious to watch some of them try, though... ]

... Anyway, lemme put it this way. Even if I killed hundreds of Phantoms each day, I can't really get rid of all the sadness or anger or hate that makes them, yeah?

[penduli]

[ eight million.............. ]

...right, so they'd just keep popping up, no matter how much you or any of the other gods that do fight worked. You'd probably work yourself to death if you tried--wait, can you do that?

[capyper]

Mm... well, kind of? Gods are born of human wishes, so as long as humans remember a god... even if they die, they'll be reborn. Still, you could kind of say it's death. The god might have the same name and purpose, but they'll lose all their memories. I guess it's a matter of opinion.

[penduli]

[ ...hum... ]

Memories are important--they're what make you who you are. [ That's why it's distressing to think they're missing ones here. ] I think I'd count it--it's a death of who you were before, unless you can regain those memories. That's more of a revival.

[capyper]

Yeah... I think I'd agree with you, mostly. Although reincarnated gods tend to be really similar to how they were before they died... it's not the same thing. That's why I'd really prefer not to die either way!

[penduli]

Even if you did, you'd have all of us believing in you. [ ...maybe. He'd hope so? Everyone here seems nice enough for that. ] Or do you need a bigger congregation of people?

[capyper]

... That's a good question, actually! I don't really know when you can say you've crossed the threshold of being known enough to reincarnate. I think you guys should count for a lot, though, since you guys can remember me better than under normal circumstances.

[penduli]

[ Ooh, they're special circumstances-- ]

Eight million is a lot of gods, so I'm going to guess that it's not as easy to be remembered in Japan as it is here, right? [ There's only twenty-fi... twenty-three of them left here. ]

[capyper]

Yeah, I have to compete with a buncha bigshots! Even Tama the cat! I mean, who can resist a cute cat acting as a train stationmaster?!

[ It is literally canon that Yato is less popular as a god than that stationmaster cat of Neko Atsume fame. RIP Yato's respect. ]

[penduli]

[ lmfao POOR YATO... ]

No one could. [ Even if he's not entirely sure how a cat could hold a job. ...weirder things happen, weirder things happen... ] How many people know your name? Outside of us.

[capyper]

Hmm, well... you wouldn't be able to find me in any mythology books or anything like that, so maybe... a couple dozen at any given point in time?

[penduli]

[ That's so sad??? ]

You're pretty much a nobody, huh.

( one/two )

[capyper]

[capyper]

.... I think I need a moment to recover from that savage blow.

[penduli]

[ OH.... OH NO.............. ]

I'm sorry. [ He really means it, too. ] You could try thinking of it in a positive way, like... it just means there's a lot of people waiting to meet you and learn all about you.