hotsteamynights | YEAR OF THE TIGERDRAGON

YEAR OF THE TIGERDRAGON

No matter what language you speak, no matter what country or universe you reside in, a mysterious letter has found its way to you. Those who can read it will recognize it as an ornately scripted Japanese new year's invitation; those who don't might not even know these elaborate squiggles mean anything at all. Either way, when you look up from the neatly folded paper, you're probably nowhere near home anymore.

Where is this?! When is this?! Welcome to Japan as it was ~~kinda, sorta,~~ just shy of the year 1600, esteemed guests! If it somehow feels like it isn't even the right month anymore, that's because local time and date is still on the lunar system. It's fine. New Year's parties are New Year's parties.

And those parties mean alcohol! Music! Dancing! Feasting! Don't be shy! There are a number of attendants in colourful livery nearby, eagerly expecting an influx of new guests. They're all friendly enough, but they don't seem to bear the crest of any particular clan and sharp-eyed visitors may catch the briefest glimpse of a striped fluffy tail or a foxy grin... or is it a trick of the light? If you want nothing to do with any of this, they might pout a little but will send you home without any problem. But if you choose to follow them beyond the gates, get ready for one hell of a night. The only kind of explanation you get for what's going on is that the Takeda and Date clans have set aside their rivalries for a night of PEACE AND PARTY and everyone's invited. What does that mean? Go find out for yourself.

Of course folks from all over have been invited to this thing, but outnumbering the other guests by far are a bunch of rowdy samurai types, some in their armour, many in more formal robes, several proudly bearing banners of red or blue. Nobody appears to have any weapons on them, but if any guest takes that as an opportunity to start some shit they're going to be swarmed in like two seconds, so... maybe don't do that. However! There is plenty of space outside to spar in, if that's your thing! Or you can stay inside and drink, eat, enjoy the music, exchange raunchy stories, be an awkward wallflower, drink some more, witness some weird and kind of horrific family bonding, watch the unique display of gun- and canonfire alongside the fireworks, explore the scenic countryside outside of the compound, listen to some smug asshole in an eyepatch and some kid in red scream really loud at eachother, get playfully bullied into taking part in a ceremony you know nothing about, drain a bottle or two, flirt with famous historical figures, or... whatever you want!

All fandoms, all mediums, AUs, doubles, OCs, etc are all fair play here! Invite your friends! Invite your dog! Go nuts! Just slap a warning up if any threads take a particularly violent or sexy turn. Or both. I ain't judging.

LET'S PARTY!

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[ Must be nice to have a fan following, even a slightly nutty one. Sasuke has no idea what that must be like.

He deflates a little at hearing he'd have to pay a price for the reading. Of course he wouldn't be lucky and get a free one again. White snake taking something precious... what a way to waste a freebie. ]

... How much is it going to cost, and will you take a rain check until we get back to our time?

[ Because his wallet's in the future. ]

[ Sasuke thinks he is cool but also a bit messed up. The older Sasuke thinks the younger one is a wimp and a loser. They have a love-hate relationship. ]

Yeah sure, but that doesn't mean I'm going to waste my time writing an article for the paper.

[ He might write it down in a journal for his own keeping, but nothing for the newspaper. And then he'll have to hide that journal really well, so his secrets don't get out. ]

So, how'd you end up here? You're not someone from school, are you?

No rain check necessary. It's a one-of-a-kind special promotion deal, in celebration of the starts aligning just right in this New Year's eve! You don't have to pay the usual fee.

[ The lie comes out quick and a little thin, but all the same she keeps her charismatic smile on. ]

All you have to do is just tell me something, it helps empower the reading on this special day.

Not tonight! It's a boy's night home, girl's night out.

[ Once upon a time, Chisa would have been incredibly insecure about leaving her loved ones, even for a night. Of course she'd known that both Kyousuke and Juzo had their moments hanging out without her, but with so many things implied and unsaid, that unease had followed her even when intellectually she might have approved.

But hey, the magic of communication can be a powerful thing! So when she tells Kojuro this, her smile doesn't change; if anything, she's more pleased than before. The attendants can make of that what they will. ]

Ah, between the three of us, I'm usually the one who likes parties the most... Sakakura-kun doesn't like big gatherings much at all, and Munakata-kun only really tolerates them if he needs to. But I like people! So I'm here to have some fun, and they can relax. I'll tell them about this later.

[ Though she does hum briefly at the question, tapping her cheek with her free hand. ]

Mm, and I had a similar problem... once. It was kind of weird, even as these things-- [ and here she gestures outwards as if to indicate the party, the random guests, everything ] --go! But what happened was like... ending up in a place like this, and thinking you'd found the "right" people, only to find out that they weren't. They were still Munakata-kun and Sakakura-kun! We recognized each other, we were happy to be reunited... but they were different from ones who'd been through the same experiences with me as before, the exact same.

And then the four of them met. That was probably the weirdest part.

Tcheah, I think you've had pleeenty for one night. [But he's raising his cup to the bottle anyway, which he's been carrying around solely because he keeps forgetting to put it down.] I saw you bowing and scraping to some brat who barely even looks like me.

[But then, Masamune was cooing over a cat who resembled Kojuro, so it all evens out. His free hand toys idly with Kojuro's fingers and he turns his head to murmur into the crook of his neck.]

Come with me to my quarters and remind yourself what I really look like.

[Speaking of hitting the hooch too hard. Masamune usually has the (surprising) subtlety to save this kind of flirtation for when they're completely alone. And in his own home. Masamune please you don't even have a room here.]

Edited 2018-12-31 04:53 (UTC)

[ So he doesn't need to go "Damn it! Fortunes cost money, you know!"? On his meager ~~salary>~~ allowance, that is good news. Maybe his luck is finally going to change.

Distracted so, Sasuke doesn't realize that maybe he's setting himself up for something. ]

Huh, okay. I guess I can do that.

[ See Benmaru. See Benmaru walk and wander around banquet, in search for a certain someone despite being told to stay put in one place and one place only by that someone. W E L P.

[ a ] Normally, he would have been a good boy and obeyed, but he could only ignore his stomach grumbling for so long, and after seeing someone walk by with dango in hand? Sorry, Sasuke. This tiger cub's gotta eat and the more he sees people walking around with his favorite sweets, the more he worries they'll be gone before he has the chance to ~~devour them all~~ eat one! Soooo... he does the rational thing all seven-year-olds do and just... straight up steals a whole plate of hanami dango and absconders off to a vacant clearing and eats them all one by one. Plate on lap and all. ~~Gluttonous little puppy.~~

[ b ] Somewhere not so far off in the main crowd, Benmaru can be found in one of the common rooms by now. Belly-down, sprawled over sheets of paper filled with drawings and colored doodles of people from the party that caught his interest from his early wandering. It's clear he's been at this for a while now and shows no sign of stopping until his stash of "magic wands" were used up and near obsolete. Honestly, outside of a plate of scavenged dango and an accompanying cup of tea next to him, this kid is set for the next 3-4 hours and far too immersed into his ~~artist skillz~~ drawings to notice your very existence. ]

Edited 2018-12-31 07:31 (UTC)

[ Sasuke is aware that he's caught Tsuruhime's gaze more than once tonight, but he can't figure out why the Oracle of Iyokono keeps looking at him. And she never approaches or gives him a clue as to why. Hm.

When he finally gets a break from his other duties and distractions, he'll appear quite suddenly from the shadows near her. He's all smiles and charm. ]

Lady Oracle, can I help you with something?

[It always is?! What does that mean?! Except that's pretty true in Chaldea at least, isn't it . . . humans are always on the brink of disaster, it's so annoying . . .

Ibaraki hops easily up onto one of the counters, a side one that Chisa isn't likely to need the space of, to swing her legs off the edge and watch from a front row seat. Depending on how interesting this is, she may end up encroaching on the cooking space after all.]

The Sengoku period is okay, but what I really want is a mille crepe cake! That shouldn't be a problem for you, big-mouthed human!

It has not! I just drank a little too much sake. But don't think I'm going to stop just because I've had too much!

[By now, she's at least situated back at the table and looks passingly normal. Mostly. Kind of. Okay, she's real drunk.]

Unless you have the power to make sake stronger! If you do, you're coming home with me. Shuten would never let me hear the end of it if I let a treasure like that get away.

Master Zack? You're here too? The gods are really pulling out all the stops with bringing people here.

[ Sasuke's pretty sure he didn't deliver one of his master's invitations to Zack; he didn't even have a way to drop one off even if there had been one written to him.

He's not complaining though. It's nice to see the guy. ]

If throwing a party was the secret to leave Pelican Town, then we should have done this sooner.

[ Yeah see, this kid has been walking around the compound all day and after getting lost like twice, (seriously why did this place have to be so big?) he's finally found the familiar face he was looking for!

Well... kinda. At least he thought he did from a distance since the hair looked identical to his timeline's Sasuke, but since he was running low on ideas on how to find him, what could be the harm in going over and asking? He did have very convincing identification for him too! ]

Excuse me sir, but have you seen my friend? His hair looks very similar to yours!

[ Cue the little munchkin holding up a ~~crudely~~ drawn picture of his ~~nanny~~ guardian. ]

Your school got destroyed? I thought your timeline was a relatively peaceful one.

[ Aw, damn. He sounds more concerned than he probably should. But really, he thought that time was safe. What could bring down a school so badly that they can't attend?

Wait... no. He knows exactly what might destroy a building. (Sasuke is also thinking the school is much smaller than it actually is.) ]

... Did you and Master Sanada destroy the school in your fight over the field? Or was it Lord Takeda and Master Sanada fighting that destroyed the school.

[ He pauses. ]

They still fight and yell at each other in your time, right?

[ If they don't, Masamune comes from a completely foreign time that Sasuke can never hope to comprehend. ]

[Daria was about to offer an array of rejections to this. A whole ton of them to just signify just how much she didn't want to do this. She bit her cheek, prepping the paragraph. Only then to hear the chunk of the local crowd throw their arms up and cheer for her to play. GO, GO, GO!

She stood for a moment, hating the attention...at first. Being in the public wasn't her strong suit, doing an act in front of public was even less of one. But then, she got a fever. Or so it felt. Her face became pink, and she found herself reaching for the drumsticks. She sighed, knowing she signed her death match.]

Fine, what do I do?

[Never show fear. Never show reaction. Never bargain. Never give a reason for attack.

Daria tried her best to be as non-reactive as possible. She didn't even hardly move. All she did was gesture to her steamed buns.]

Relax, just enjoying a snack. The pork bao is good.

Well, thank god for that. At least our space travel makes us decent.

[She did the same, crossing her arms and letting off a huff. This was more like it, she thought. This was what she liked.]

Yep. Bit of a familiar face for me, considering my capitalist island job before hitting corporate capitalist park.

Yet they walk away, completely bloodless. On the outside.

[She's completely kidding, of course. But her brand of dryness was like a mastered craft. It was just reflex. Daria appreciated the sentiment she heard from the stranger, so this was just her reacting in kind.]

DAAAAAAATEEEEE!!

[ While he may not have Sasuke beat when it comes to speed, it's the last thing in his mind that deters him from barreling his way over to close the gap between him and his fated rival. Between his heart pumping wildly inside his rib cage and his arms trembling from erratic anticipation, both for the loss of his preferred spears and at the visual of seeing Date across the horizon, the insurmountable urge to connect his fist to his rival's face was palpable. As was anchoring his right arm back to build up momentum before striking his rival in the face once he reached close enough distance. ]

MAAASSAMUNEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!

[ And it's that kind of thinking that sets two things into motion: Benmmaru taking it upon himself to search for food on his own and getting lost within the crowd in a matter of minutes in the process.

Sure, the giant red bow might be the only thing that sets him apart from most others, but this wasn't just any kind of normal banquet filled with usual guests, after all. As much Yukimura would have liked to lend the young boy some semblance of compassion and come to some sort of compromise... he refused to do so with an empty stomach. Especially when there was his favorite kind of dango in jeopardy. ]

Then perhaps your young master should have been the one to accompany you!

[ Just a little closer... ]

Perhaps so, but still!

[ Just like the man before him, Yukimura is also quick to drop the subject. They had already decked out most of their aggression earlier that day and there was still more than enough time ~~and stupid incentives~~ to instigate more fights between the two as the party raged on. But swiping right from his plate? That's cutting it pretty close to breaking his resolve... ]

If you do not mind my asking, is there any reason in particular you wish for me to try the zundamochi?

[ Because he HAS to know he was going to ask him... ]

[Three-for-one? 4? 5? Give him the Juzos, he could always use more Kojurolikes in his life. ~~it's bullshit is what it is. delete masamune from history itself~~

He doesn't offer even the slightest incline of his head in return - if anything, he tilts his head back in a casual show of his usual brand of arrogance. In that same vein, he knows that even being too bare-chested to presently bear the Date crest, the One-Eyed Dragon surely needs no introduction.]

You hid well, then.

[She's a ninja. Noted.]

I hope the party isn't too wild for you. It'd be a shame to send you back into hiding.

[A normal girl acting that demure probably wouldn't appreciate some of the more... uh. Indelicate personalities that make up either of the hosting armies.]

[AND THEN THEY SWITCHED BODIES

wait, no, wrong timeline. Right. This is the timeline where despite the two of being equally fierce in armed combat, trading blows with their fists is another story entirely. Bontenmaru getting into moody preteen dragon tantrums with Kojuro is nothing compared to Yukimura and Shingen's daily whatever-the-FUCK. Masamune knows this - he's witnessed their bizarre manly ritual in action, both when the Takeda gave his half-dead ass refuge and again earlier today, but he's still jumping right into this game with full force.

A MISTAKE.

His fist may meet Yukimura's face with all the strength of an average man, but the force behind the blow he's dealt in turn sends him flying

right

through

THE

WALL

...and the one behind it, too. Dragons are built for speed, they don't weigh nearly as much as bara tiger dads. He is fucking DOWN.]

That's the spirit.

[HAH. No, he can feel that reluctance hanging thick in the air. That just makes him even more eager to goad her into this, honestly. He laughs and waves a hand at the audience to get them to chill with the chanting for a second so Daria can actually hear him.

He takes two more from his little hoard to demonstrate as he speaks:]

Here, hold them like this. You're going to want a more relaxed grip than with a sword, but tight enough so they don't go flying when you swing your arms. [Might as well take the opportunity to mime the movements while he's on the subject.] Shoulders nice and loose, feet apart, like this. Don't try to strike through the drum... you want it to bounce back nice and quick so you don't mess up your tempo. Watch. Ha!

[He drums out a very quick little beat before tossing the sticks into the air and catching them a few times. Nah, it's not part of the lesson, he's just showing off. For her, for the audience, for himself, whatever.]

Even a song from your homeland should be simple enough on these babies. So.

Are you ready?

Oh. You again.

[Ha ha... ha... Okay, so maybe the circumstances they last met under were a little awkward, but that's still no reason for such disdain! As far as Masamune's concerned, anyway. It's definitely a pride thing, and not because it's Kojuro's face looking at him in a way that makes his heart sink and childhood anxieties stir where they've been so deeply buried.

He crosses his arms and glances to watch some passing group of revelers instead.]

"Making me look decent..." Hah. Is that what you're used to? Having to pick up your Masamune's slack?

[you may spank it

once]

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YEAR OF THE TIGERDRAGON

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He's not old! Kojuro's old!

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He's not old, damn it!

came for the food, stayed for tenko kamen

Gods! Fine then. Be a brat and not accept positive reinforcement for not drinking

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୧(๑•̀ᗝ•́)૭ >))))))))) ┻━━━┻ ｡ﾟ･（>﹏<）･ﾟ｡

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