#shrine etiquette

[pix4japan]

Temizuya Water Purification at Hiratsuka Hachimangu Shrine (Hiratsuka-shi, Kanagawa-ken, Japan)

When entering shrine grounds, you need to “purify” yourself before approaching the main worship hall (haiden) of the shrine complex that is open to the public.

As you approach the shrine, there is a small-roofed structure (temizuya) on the left that has a huge stone basin with running water and bamboo ladles (hishaku) resting right above the basin.

After dipping the ladle into the basin, you pour the water over each hand so that the “dirty” water drips down onto the stones placed around the base to catch such water, thus keeping the water in the basin fresh and clean. After this purification ritual, you can then approach the shrine’s haiden worship hall.

Pentax K-1 II + DFA 28-105mm F3.5-5.6 53 mm ISO 100 for 6 sec. at ƒ/10

[genshingorlsrevengeance]

How would someone like Miko, Ei, and other high ranking officers react to an S/O with a long list of titles like Settra the Imperishable, King of Kings,-

(Genshin Impact) Yae, Ei, Sara, Kokomi, Furina, Jean, and Xianyun's S/O with an absurdly long list of titles

I've been building and painting a lot of Bretonnians lately, so dear readers, you will now become aggressively French.

By the Archons above, nothing was worse to Yae than having to be so serious during a ceremony,

Of all the things she could be doing, literally anything would be better than having to listen to some stuffy noble read their title.

So it was by chance S/O had to be present. She recognized their title was of Fontaine descent.

'The Red Hand of Brionne', 'The Red Duke', Something something Red.

...Wait, their titles were still being read off?!

(Yae) "My goodness, just how many titles with the color red can one have?"

Yae internally sighed as the list kept going. And going. And going.

All the while S/O stood perfectly still and respectful, not even batting an eye at the list of titles that probably would stretch from the top of the shrine all the way to the bottom.

Yae's head looks up to the sky momentarily, wondering how of all the people in the world she could have as a lover, it was the one who had to bore her to tears.

No doubt there were interesting stories of how the titles came to be, but this is not the way she wanted to find out.

And here Yae thought Ei had a lot of names to go by...

(Yae) "...Why is it still going?!"

Ei doesn't react too much at the titles being read off for S/O's form of address at first.

She had to deal with similar situations of people reading off her own titles, so it was only proper etiquette.

"Water-Knight," "The Holder of Secrets", "Keeper of the Way"

(Ei) "...Hm."

It was only now she noticed that the list actually exceeded her own titles.

Which surprised her more than anything.

As far as she knew, S/O was just a mortal. How many feats did they achieve in Fontaine during their short life?

She made a note to ask later, but now the list was starting to become a bit absurd.

...Maybe she should implement a law where only the most notable of titles are read off, because they would actually be here for eternity if this continued.

Sara gets jealous fast.

Not because S/O has more titles than her, she couldn't care less about that.

What really irked her, was they had the gall to own more titles than Her Excellency, the Almighty Narukami Ogosho!

Sara masks her annoyance well as she keeps reading off the list.

Line after line, name after name.

...Okay, who the hell even gave her this list, this was way too many!

(Sara) Leader of battles...? What kind of title even is that?!

She made that comment in her head as she droned on with the names.

With every single title read off, Kokomi's energy drained.

She loved her S/O dearly, but by the Archons, how the heck did they get that many titles while living in Fontaine?!

(Gorou) "Lionheart, The Lionhearted, High Paladin of the Breton Court-!"

As far as she was aware, there wasn't even any Knight Houses like this in Fontaine!

...Then again, this was Fontaine she was talking about. They did have their theatres.

Kokomi doesn't mention anything about their stupidly long list of names until after the formal ceremony.

She drops her head onto their shoulders, sighing loudly.

(Kokomi) "S/O...why did we need to have all your names read out...?"

The AUDACITY S/O had!

To have more titles than HER, FURINA?!

This transgression would never be forgotten!

...But they were some pretty cool names, she did have to admit.

'The Golden Paladin',' 'Lord of the Lance', 'Roi Breton'

(Furina) "Hmph, and where exactly did you acquire such names, S/O? More importantly, how does it nearly rival my own?! Hmph! Perhaps I should read all of mine so that we are on equal footing!"

Honestly, some of those were starting to sound like stage names, which wasn't fair at all!

If they could do that, then so could she!

Needless to say, the ceremony the two were attending dragged on for way too long.

By Barbatos, those were some extra titles.

'The Green Knight', 'Knight of the Glade', 'Heart of the Lion'

Though, she only had a few titles under her own belt, the sheer number S/O had was honestly staggering.

But it was also admirable.

It made her want to keep up, and wondered if she could ever live up to Vanessa, and apparently S/O.

Because at this point she was wandering in her mind, the list was still going, and probably outnumbered Vanessa herself.

(Jean) Well...I suppose we did say we were to refer to all forms of address...Maybe we should revise that.

Xianyun was no stranger to titles.

She did indeed go by many, but S/O seemed to go by even more.

Which both impressed, and honestly annoyed Xianyun.

How did a mortal go by more names than Rex Lapis?!

'The Sacremor', 'The Soul-Killer', 'Duke of Couronne'-

(Xianyun) "One has to wonder why you must have all your names read aloud? We could be doing something much better right now..."

Granted, she did recognize a few of these titles, but that was no reason for dinner to get cold now!

Xinayun pouts, adjusting her glasses as she tries to get comfortable as the reading continued.

One found this situation inane...

[eetherealgoddess]

♡♡︎♡︎♡︎♡︎♡︎

ꨄWhy Talk to Others When You Have Meꨄ

Oneshot - Yandere Toxic Bf Au

❦You mess up when you’re greeted by an old friend from middle school❦

Sano Manjiro x Reader

Not fully proofread

MY TR FANDOM WORKS ARE ONLY ON TUMBLR, AO3, AND WATTPAD UNDER EETHEREALGODDESS! REPORT IF YOU SEE IT POSTED UNDER ANYONE ELSE BUT ME!!!

I apologize if I get any Japanese etiquette or culture wrong, I literally have to research the culture for some of my fandom stories so if anything is wrong, please excuse my ignorance.

Notice:

✩Y/n is 18+. I picture her as a black female but you can see her however.

✩Some parts of the story may not be realistic or factual. After all, this is a work of fiction.

✩Although it's a dark 'romance,' I do not condone any of the behavior displayed.

✩Dark content such as: gore, violence, triggering topics, graphic scenes, vulgar language, explicit sexual content, etc.

✩There may be scenes that involve non con and/ or dubcon so don’t read if that makes you uncomfortable

✩That being said, this story is for 18+ only.

Enjoy!

Why Talk to Others When You Have Me?

No matter how hard you tried to ignore it, you couldn’t help but notice your boyfriend’s piercing glare at the old friend who stood in front of you. You tried so hard to focus on the story he was cheerfully going on about, but you could feel Mikey’s nails penetrating the back of your hand as your fingers were locked. You bit your lip to refrain from yelping as you subtly tried to release yourself from his grip, to no avail. You kept your eyes straight as you smiled and responded to the person you hadn’t seen since middle school.

The two of you were never really close enough to hang out other than when you shared classes, but seeing a familiar face can be refreshing when the only people you can be around are your boyfriend’s family and friends. You couldn’t pass the opportunity, desperate for communication when he tapped your shoulder to get your attention. Honestly, if you would’ve known that Mikey could see you from where he stood at the Musashi Shrine, you would’ve tried to end the conversation faster.

“Alright, it was nice to see you! We should get together soon!” The friendly male states, dismissing himself after you both exchanged social media profiles before waving and walking away.

You didn’t want to meet your boyfriend’s gaze, though if you don’t, it will show that you feel guilty for something you shouldn’t have to feel guilty about. Swallowing your anxiety you turn your head to face Mikey, who stares at you with a cold expression.

“I know you’re an attention whore, Y/n, but that doesn’t mean you have to talk to everyone you pass by.”

Your eyebrows furrow as you glance around at his fellow gang member friends standing around you both. They had followed him there, you think so he could just humiliate you in front of them, as he always does when he’s angry with you.

“Mikey, you know I’m not an attention whore. Stop being an asshole.” You say as you snatch your hand out of his grip, crossing your arms before attempting to walk away, only to be snatched by your bicep and forced to look at him.

“So you flirt with a random guy in front of my face and then call me an asshole? Y/n, what’s wrong with you?”

“That’s not fair. Nobody was flirting with anyone and you know that! Don’t be insecure.” You state angrily.

“Hey Y/n, you should calm down. The way you’re acting towards Mikey isn’t cool.” Baji growls as he walks closer to you.

“This has nothing to do with you! Why are you always butting in?” You exclaim as you throw your hands in the air.

“Why are you being so defensive, Y/n? Flirting with someone else isn’t okay.” Draken states with his own arms crossed, scowling at you.

Your eyes widen in disbelief.

“I wasn’t flirting with anyone!” You hate feeling as though you have to explain yourself to a bunch of men you never get along with. They never seem to understand your side of things. You understand their loyalty to Mikey, but this is ridiculous.

“We all saw the display, come on. Just admit it and apologize.” Mitsuya adds on. You shake your head before turning to Mikey, who stood with a stoic expression. You turn away, missing the slight curl of his lips as you stomp away from them.

He dismisses himself from his friends as he follows you to the apartment you both live in which is a short distance away. When you make it to the door, you snatch it open before walking in, heading to the bedroom to lock yourself away from him.

“You’re acting like a brat, Y/n.”

Before you could shut him out, he blocked the door from closing, scoffing before walking in the opposite direction of him only to be stopped by him pulling you into his chest before he grips your neck. You gasp as he narrows his black eyes angrily.

“Delete him right now.” You gaze at him with wide eyes before grabbing your phone out of your pocket and removing the old friend. You threw the phone on the bed.

“This isn’t fair, Mikey. I don’t care about deleting him but it’s not right that you can have your friends but I can’t have my own.”

Especially when they’re so insufferable.

His grip squeezes your neck tighter until you begin to lose air, reflexively grabbing his wrist with both of your hands as you struggle to breathe.

“What’s not fair is you flirting with a guy in front of my face, then you disrespect me in front of my friends. That’s not being a good girlfriend, Y/n.” He says as he lifts her off the ground, using his other hand to wrap around your neck as well. Your eyes tear up as your throat closes, feet dangling as you pierce your nails into both of his wrists, drawing blood.

“You even added him on social media. Why? Why did you have to do that? You think he’s gonna come in and take you from me? You’re mistaken.” He releases your neck before dropping you to the ground. He walks to the bed and sits while you cough, hands on the ground in a kneeling position.

“You should be a good girl and apologize to me. You should be thanking me for not killing him on the spot.” He chuckles the last sentence, though serious with his statement. Little did you know he had already sent his delinquent friends to take care of the problem permanently, as he always does when you meet new or old friends. He can’t risk having you taken away from him. You already know what’s coming next, the scene repeating as it always plays out.

“I don’t want to do anything right now. I’m still angry.” He scoffs.

“Beg me for forgiveness.” He demands.

Although you didn’t want to, you know you’re already not going to win this fight by the past experiences you’ve had to endure. So you swallow your pride and count to five in your head before standing up and turning to him.

“I’m sorry Manjiro. Please forgive me.”

“Sorry for what?”

You paused as you refrained from giving him a glare. Sighing, you answered, “I’m sorry for flirting with that guy, adding his social media, and disrespecting you in front of your friends.”

“Hm.” He mockingly put a finger to his chin.

“Show me how sorry you are.”

You frowned before walking towards him and kneeling in between his legs. He leans back on his hands as he smiles slightly, eyeing you as he loved to see you this way. He loved to see you below him like the pretty little slut you are. His slut.

You reluctantly reach for his erection, pulling it out as you leaned forward. Before you began, you moved your head back and looked at him.

“Mikey, I don’t want to do this right now. You really hurt me.” You say. He sighs as he uses one hand to caress your head.

“Baby, you know I hate it when this happens. It wouldn’t have to be this way if you would just be my sweet girlfriend. This is the only way we can truly make up. It’s only fair since you really hurt my feelings.” He cooed with a concerned expression.

You sigh, yearning for more of this sweet moment considering he’s so detached normally. There have been a couple of times where you’ve tried to leave and he wasn’t having it, always going to far lengths to secure you in his grip. You ached for him to be nice to you, trapped in the cycle of temporary happiness and struggle.

“Come on baby, let's make up. I’m gonna take care of you after this. We can cuddle and watch movies together. How does that sound?” He leans over and pulls you in for a quick kiss.

“Fine.” You huff out. You wrap a hand around his erection and encircle your lips around his head, sucking and licking around the lining as his cock twitches in your hand. He holds the back of your neck as he massages your head with his thumb. He releases a soft moan as you take the full girth into your throat.

You pull your head back before continuously bobbing back and forth, closing your eyes as you use your hand to gently grip his balls, wanting him to orgasm fast so you could get to the affection, your heart corrupted with a heavy weight.

“Look at me.” You comply, his heated gaze boring into your orbs as you continue taking him in your mouth.

He grinds his hips against your mouth as the grip on the back of your neck tightens. He accelerates his speed as saliva and pre cum oozes out of your mouth.

“This feels so good. Just like that.” You bob your head against his hips, matching his speed before he grabs your head with both hands and ruts slowly against the walls of your mouth and throat.

“Yes, fuck.” He whispers as he sits up more, aiming himself as he slightly lifts off the bed, fucking your mouth deeply as he brings himself to releasing, the cum shooting down your throat as he holds you there to swallow it all.

You both breathe heavily when he releases you and you pull his milked cock out of your mouth. He pulls you on top of him as he holds you tightly.

“I love you so fucking much.” He whispers against your ear as he presses your head to his neck.

“I love you too.” You breathe out as you ignore the shame and attempt to embrace his love for you.

[thebibliosphere]

What are your thoughts on signed limited edition versions of books- should they be kept pristine and unread, or can people read and enjoy them? I just got one and was planning to read it, but it just looks so nice so now I'm wondering if there's etiquette that should encourage me to buy a normal copy instead for reading (recently printed book, not old and rare)

It's really up to you, but I'm of the opinion that books are meant to be appreciated and read. I'd maybe not throw it in my backpack or take it in the bath with me (I'm notorious for drowning paperbacks by accident), but I also don't keep books as shrines.

I've got some rare, signed Pratchetts, and while I try to be more careful with them, I still take them down from the shelves and read them. The marks and scuffs on books are a sign of love to me. But then maybe that's because I'm a little scuffed around the edges myself.

[sassuguru]

If a mention of sexual haras--meant/assault triggers you then don't read this request and delete it, because it mentions one, though it is NOT romanticized or justified.

could you please write Platonic Vox x male! Reader where reader is his semi-adoptive son that started working with him as his personal assistant. reader hides from him that Valentino keeps touching him in different ways while the reader clearly doesn't want it but is too afraid to say anything to anyone. Reader at some point have a whole meltdown ( if it's okay to write for autistic reader ) and breaks down.

You can write this however you like, I cope in the most messed up ways. If you got curious to read the request but it still triggered you, I am really sorry.

THE VEES FALLOUT? — DEAD DOVE : DO NOT EAT

brochure etiquette get notified! — ao3

SASSUGURU ( s. 2023 ) The Vee's Fallout, 2024 29. 2. 2024

kinda-son!reader — hurt/comfort, autistic-coded r!, valentino warning, described — sexual assault + fighting, panic attack, reference to — angel dust, slight ooc. com : "oh, its okie! truzt mi, i get da coping thing (side-eyes ma last fic), i hope i did dis justice! 'n i hope u r a-okie! letz 4get vox isn't as bad as val in dis 1." — riri, 2024

The way you found Vox—or rather, the way he found you, was similar to how the Vee's formed in the first place. Essentially, picking you up off of the street. Whether that "street" be classified as the club ( Val ), the actual street ( Vel ), or in VoxTech ( You ). The overlord had half the mind to kill you when you snuck into his office in a poor attempt to steal something, but there was something about your eyes. They didn't have a hint of fear when he caught you, rather they held annoyance, hate—if you will. In amusement, he dragged you home with him.

No parents, no siblings, no home, what else is there to do except go with the rich overlord?

Ever since then, you've been "stuck" with Vox. At first, it felt like hell ( literally or figuratively ), then it got better. You'd swear the man warmed up to you other something. You, along with Velvette were essentially spoiled by him.

He gave you a job as his assistant. At first to keep an eye on you, not he enjoys your presence ( he'd never tell you that ). You got what you wanted; of course, as long as you didn't give Vox or VoxTech a bad name.

Even outsiders could tell he was much more gracious towards you than anyone else.

"He your son or somethin'?" Velvette mindlessly asked him. The image on his TV screen had a red hue, his eyes got large as he hastily shouted, "NO!" Vel looked at him as if he was crazy before shrugging, "Whateva you say Vox. You treat tha guy like glass."

Well—he couldn't exactly deny it. He does treat you like glass, like your a new TV he's handing out to customers.

Then again, if he doesn't treat you like glass, you'll shatter at the drop of a hat.

He learned quickly not to bring you near the noise and flashing of the press, or hand you too many tasks at once, or touch the shrine of your favorite media in your room, or heaven forbid, you broke your headphones and he forgot to replace them. That was a moment he never wanted to relive in his afterlife.

Regardless, your life with the overlord was quite satisfactory, calm. Except for Valentino.

Vox is always near Valentino. Well, they are fucking, but still. You wish Valentino wasn't so...touchy. You didn't have a problem with pornstars, make your money, but you don't like this pornstar.

There was one time Vox brought you to Val's studio and it was then you decided you didn't like him.

You stood patiently and quietly behind Vox with a clipboard hugged to your chest, waiting for him to be done talking to Val. Your eyes look around the room, looking at all of the employees running around with the cameras, the actors, specifically Angel Dust. You've caught Vox talking about him, seeing the spider demon on his many TV's.

'He looks miserable,' You think to yourself, watching him reluctantly walking towards the set. "ANGEL!" Val shouted, causing you to jump, "On set. Now!"

You frown at the hostility in his voice, and especially at the way Angel flinched with fear before scurrying to the set.

"Hm," you hum, not realizing Vox left to do something until you heard his voice far away from you. "Be right back, stay right there!" You blink in surprise, "Vox?! Wait—!" You sigh as he walks away regardless. A huff leaves your lips as he leaves alone in the studio. "Asshole..." you mumble.

"So you're the kid Voxy picked up," Val speaks, prompting you to turn his way.

"Huh? Oh, yeah..." you respond weakily, not entirely wanting to be there. You hear the moth demon hum, you feel his gaze on your body, the feeling making you shiver. "Hm, Voxy should've brought you here sooner," he slyly says, "You look like money."

"Wha—?" You whisper, before you can get anymore words out, you feel a hand cupping your ass. Alarm fills your chest as you jump away from him. "Have you ever bottomed?" Val wonders.

"N-No! Why are you—back up, I don't—stop," you step back again, clipboard hugged tighter towards your chest. "C'mon muñeco, I know Voxy can be...boring sometimes. Why not put that sweet ass to use and have fun?" Val attempts to persuade you, his hands finding their way to your waist.

With as much force as you can muster, you push him back and create as much distance between him and you. "No thank you!"

Val opens his mouth to say something else, though Vox appears just as he was. "I'm back!" Vox announces, walking up to you, he frowns. "The fuck is wrong with you?"

You gulp, "N-Nothing. 'M fine."

Vox nods, not entirely convinced, but he sighs and starts walking towards the door. You hurriedly follow after him, not wanting to be in the same room as Valentino any longer.

You hate that Vox is so fond of that bitch, that makes you come with him everywhere. Sure, saying something about it would change that, but you didn't feel like navigating the aftermath of the Vee's falling out, especially because of you.

So you tolerate it, hoping you won't have to be near Valentino, and yet you always end up there.

Someone always pulls Vox away, and you always end up uncomfortably close to the moth demon. Whether it be his hand palming your crotch, his lips uncomfortably close to your ear, or his hand sneaking underneath your butt. You'd sniff and take it, for Vox and for you.

He's nice to you, "You got what you wanted; of course, as long as you didn't give Vox or VoxTech a bad name." That extends to Val and Vel, so you clench your teeth and power through excruciating circumstances.

It was okay, you were okay until Vox started noticing.

Instead of being relaxed around him, you were tense. You refused to look him too. After a while, Vox got irritated at how you were reacting. Once Val left his office he turns to you, yanking you towards him by your shirt. "Alright, I'm tired of this, what—the fuck—is wrong with you?"

Your lips tremble, your brain desperately attempting to form words and ultimately failing. "I—" your jaw stutters before your face contorts and tears swell in you eyes.

Vox stumbles back in surprise and let's go of your shirt. "Wha—" he watches you sink into the floor, cupping your face with your hands, sobs racking your frame. "I—Uh..." Vox looks around the room as if someone is there to help him. Even when he was human, he never was good at comforting people.

He leans down hesitantly and gives you a pathetic head pat.

"Um, what's wrong?" He slowly sits down on the floor next to you.

"I can't do it! I can't do it anymore," he hears you sob. He gulps, wondering what's going on. He doesn't say a word, waiting for you to finish on your own. He knows better than to interrupt you, even if it is a meltdown.

After a while, he hears your sniffling slow down. He puts a hand on your head, hoping to comfort you in some way. He has to admit, he has actually grown to care for you. Seeing you like this...it upsets him. He'll kill whoever make you upset!

"Val..." you whisper.

Vox blinks, not expecting that to be the first thing that comes out of your mouth. "I can't do it. I can't be near Val," you whisper, sniffing against your arms.

"W-Why?" Vox wears a shaky, nervous smile on his screen.

"He's been—touching me...he won't listen to me when I tell him to stop," you whimper, your bottom lip trembles, "I don't like it. I don't want it." Vox's smile face, there's a look of horror that you aren't able to see, "What?"

"When you leave us alone he does it."

Vox stands up, "WHAT?!" His left eye has the black rings around him, there's a crackle of electricity as he yells. "He—" you start to speak before Vox interrupts you, "Give me a second." There's another crackle of electricity as he goes into the computer on his desk. And soon enough he's on the monitor in Valentino's studio. He comes from the monitor, marching towards Val with an angry expression.

"Oh, Voxy~ I just lef—" Vox's hands grab onto Val's shirt, tugging him forward. He towers over the moth demon. "YOU'VE BEEN TOUCHING MY ASSISTANT?!"

Val neglects to take him seriously. "Oh come on amorcito, does it really matter? You don't like any of your employees anyway," Val shrugs, not seeing the issue. Vox grits his teeth, sure, you were—just an assistant. But now... "That doesn't fucking matter Val, he's been all gloomy and—and inefficient because of you. Can you not take a 'No' asshole?!" Vox shouts angrily, red drool spilling from his lips ( hypcrite ).

The whole studio pauses, looking at the interaction between the overlords. "What is your problem," Val attempts to laugh it off. A 'tch' leaves Vox as he throws Val away from him.

You run after Vox, sighing at the display. "Vox, what—"

"Oh! There you are muñeco," Val smiles, "C'mon, don't you want to clear this up for him?" You frown at Val. "I—"

"Listen Val, you go anywhere near him again, I will fuck. you. up," Vox points at Val before walking towards you, pulling your arm to drag you out of the studio. "Let's go," he says sternly. "Vox!" Valentino shouts angrily at him, "Vox!"

The TV demon walks away, ignoring whatever the hell Valentino is attempting to say. Angel dust watches the whole interaction, "Wish I had tha balls for that," the spider demon mumbles. "Vox, why'd you..." you mumble, walking after the angry ceo. Vox huffs, "What, you want him to touch you again?!" You shake your head 'no', confused as to where his anger is supposed to he directed.

You blink, following after him. "Well—thank you," you whisper, wiping your cheeks for stray tears. "Yea," he stiffly answers.

The both of you are silently standing in the elevator of VoxTech, waiting for it to reach the top floor. It's awkward, and it seems like there's nothing to say to stop it from being awkward.

"Hey—" his arm wraps around you, and he pulls you into him, his hand pressing your head into his shoulder. "He touches you again, I'll kill him. Alright?" You nod against him, surprised at the gesture. "And tell me next time. Don't keep that shit to yourself, you can tell me anything."

You nod, "Okay..."

He let's go of you and quickly walks off when the elevator dings, though you can't help bit feel just a little happy. You're employee of the month for a reason.

ext. comment tha end wuz kinda bad. swy if i didn do dis justice.

[transgenderer]

Utagaki (歌垣), also read kagai (嬥歌), was an ancient Japanese Shinto ritual gathering. Villagers would meet on a mountaintop, where singing, dancing, eating, having free sexual intercourse and the reciting of poetry would occur, in celebration of the beginning of spring or autumn. These events were closely associated with harvest rites, and therefore fertility.

On the Mountains of Tsukuba

where the eagles dwell

Near the Wells of Mohakitsu,

Seeking each other, in song of Kagai

I will seek the wives of other men

And let other men woo my own.

The gods dwelling in these mountains

Have allowed this

Since olden times;

Do not make an exception today

And do not reproach the lovers

And blame then not.

Mushimaro Takahashi, Man'yōshū (oldest collection of Japanese poetry)

The festival celebrated fertility and the cycle of crop and harvest, and it was hosted biannually on the seasonal transitions. Localized variations abounded, though most of them featured the offering of ritual sexual activity to the local gods, allowed on this occasion by the temporal abolishment of social norm about marriage and decorum. Utagaki was meant to increase both female fertility and male virility with the blessing of the deities, bringing prosperity to villages and their inhabitants. Though celebrated by peasants, utagaki was a prestigious ritual, to the point there are records of both Emperor Shomu and his daughter Empress Shotoku visiting gatherings to offer gifts.

Utakagi took the shape of feasts on mountaintops, where poetry and songs were exchanged between participants in a contest meant to seduce suitors. Mount Tsukuba in Ibaraki prefecture was an especially popular place of meeting, attracting people from all the Kanto region. Some Shinto shrines served as places for sexual encounters, which became a Oita prefecture. In other regions, like Ibaraki and Aichi, the feasts included a parade or ritual dance (kagura) after which it was given license to maintain sexual relationships.

Despite its breaking of social etiquette, utagaki contained its own rules. Women were allowed to reject or accept any suitor, though there was sometimes the only condition of accepting at least three of them. The festival granted unmarried people a chance to find partners outside their villages, and couples in love an excuse to have encounters. Conceiving illegitimate offspring during utagaki was not considered dishonorable, though it carried the same obligations.

I was abolished by the meiji restoration :(

[writingwithcolor]

Omamori Usage and Cultural Appropriation

@honeybutteraddict asked:

I have a fantasy setting that is partially based off of Japan, with some elements of the culture drawing from Shinto traditions. Would having a character carry an omamori be cultural appropriation?

If you have to ask this question, I’m afraid you don't yet know enough about Japan to be using Shinto coding in your fantasy setting. The frustrating thing is I can't give you a clear yes/ no, either. This is not because we don't have examples of egregious IRL omamori cultural appropriation. They exist aplenty, including a thriving online trade in used omamori and fake omamori (That is to say: omamori not from a legitimate shrine or temple).

Weirdly, the issue is also not a big deal because Japanese people have varying opinions as far as Shinto and Buddhist tradition on correct omamori usage. However, many perpetrators of this kind of cultural appropriation are not the kind of individuals who would patronize a Japanese religious establishment or comply with proper Japanese religious etiquette even if given the option. Perhaps because the legitimacy of omamori and the etiquette for their handling overall falls under a more intra-community issue, I would argue that poor omamori etiquette would be viewed as hurting the purchaser more than anyone else. 

I think my concern is more that I worry for your cultural competency when it comes to coding Japanese culture if your research hasn't helped you answer this question on your own. It's not as concerning as that one time someone asked us if a Japanese character could eat rice (linked), but it's close.

Marika.

[retrodreamgirl]

free love | steve harrington x fem!reader

social etiquette...

summary: you aren't sure when things got so horrible, but you can always count on steve's love being free of charge [1.3k]

warnings: fem!reader, fluff, angst, hurt/comfort, slight panic, pet names, established relationship

i wrote this for the social etiquette couple but ig you don't have to read it to understand (pls read it 🤍)

⤜♡→

“Oh, Stevie, you scared me.” You don’t sound scared and Steve made absolutely sure to sufficiently jostle the keyring on his backpack before he tapped your shoulder. You lay in your usual spot by the lake, probably thinking about something indiscernible to anyone but you. You shuffle so your head is resting in his lap when he lowers beside you, humming in kind when he leans over you for a quick kiss. 

“Sorry, I’ll be louder next time.” His knuckle coasts the edge of your jaw, skin cool and kissed by the wind. “Where’s your head?” 

“Screwed on extra tight today I think. I was just wondering, shouldn’t someone have rebuked Dr. Mabuse at the end of that movie?” Another reference that goes right over Steve’s head. He was there when you watched the film, but the fact that he doesn't speak a lick of German was entirely lost on him until the end of the movie when he resurfaced from his affections on your neck and down and down and down… “I mean, won’t he just do the same thing to the next person who walks through the door?” 

“That’s the guy with the cabinet, right?” 

“No, I’m talking about The Testament of Dr. Mabuse you’re thinking of The Cabinet of Dr Caligari.” 

“Baby, you should just write movies.” You scoff, something Steve doesn’t catch often unless you’re feeling especially put out. 

He’s constantly trying to impress you, flatter you with his endless arsenal of sweet nothings. You’re not so easily moved, often already onto your next thought or conjuring a swift response to avoid the reality of his words altogether. 

“I’m always writing movies. I don’t think anyone would like them.” 

“I would.” He’d gladly worship you at any altar, the sole collector of all your significance, a shrine to be created from his deepest affections. He’s still sheepish about admitting it, not always entirely sure you feel the same.

“You’re a puddle today. I’m getting all soggy.” You mean to tell him he’s pretty, but you don’t think he’d believe you and it’s better to lift your finger to the apple of his cheek so it sinks into the skin. 

“Well, I could take you inside and warm you up, but it’ll cost you.” It feels like a victory when you don’t think about it for more than a second. You stand, stretching your limbs in every direction until they pop. You hold out your hand, seriously curious that Steve is still sitting there staring up at you. 

“Sometimes I think you’ve forgotten your words just after you’ve said them.” You don’t blame him, your mind is too cluttered with every thought you’ve ever had. You constantly find it embarrassing to sift through the ones you’ve already shared so you just don’t say anything at all. 

“I haven’t told you the cost yet.” He falls onto his back, waiting for your inquisitiveness to get the better of you. 

“Oh. Well you know I was just thinking earlier today, why should there be a cost for anything? It’s awfully gross to be spending so much time worrying about the cost of things, it’ll make someone never wanna do anything at all.” 

“Baby, I just want a couple of kisses.” Steve says it in a way that doesn’t dismiss you. It’s never his intention to make you feel ignored or like he doesn’t value everything you say. If he were disciplined enough he’d carry a journal with every word you’ve ever uttered in his presence complete with his own personal touch of spelling mistakes and abbreviations for words he thinks he understands but still doesn’t quite catch and could never repeat. “But you’re right, we should just steal everything.” 

“Stevie-” You toe at his hip, not at all impressed with his addition to your small spiel. 

“How’s this, you can have my love for free. Yours forever.” He’s giving you a toothache, the heat of just a few words itching at your neck. He grabs at your ankle still pushing against his side, not too prudish to cuff your jeans enough to kiss your bare ankle. To Steve, nothing he gives you costs a thing and he’d do anything to get you to see it. 

You never know what to do with him, wondering how much of all this you actually deserve, so used to having things taken away the moment you learn to enjoy them. Steve doesn’t seem like one of those things, the taken away kind. 

It’s been months since you kissed in that theater and he’s made it his mission to show you just how much he wanted to stick around. It never made sense to you, but you’re too afraid to question it. Until now.

“Steve, you shouldn’t say things like that.” 

It breaks Steve’s heart when he hears how incredibly sad you are about it. He takes a second to decide how best to approach it because he’s not sure what you mean. Whether you don’t want his love or you think he doesn’t wanna give it to you. 

It feels silly to him that the latter could ever be true, suddenly scolded when all he wanted was cuddles and maybe a few kisses to warm you both up. You’ve done it now, hugging your torso and staring out at the lake so tortured with everything. Nothing either of you say could possibly be mild enough to ignore it.

“What’s going on?” Sue him, but Steve wants nothing more than to tackle you in the grass, smush kisses to every inch of your face until it’s all better, but he doesn’t think it would work. You’re too stuck in your own head and he loves it until he realizes he can’t crawl inside and get stuck there with you. 

“I’m just…well I don’t know. I think I must be being ridiculous, but I never know how to stop it and now I’ve taken it too far because you noticed!” You don’t know when it started to feel so dreadful that you started crying, but Steve is already there with his thumbs stealing the tears before they escape too far down your cheeks. 

“Baby, you’re not ridiculous! I’m your boyfriend, I’m supposed to notice everything. Especially when my best girl isn’t feeling too good.” He hushes you, lips soft where they rest prolonged on your forehead. He takes a moment to allow both of you the patience of steadying your breathing. 

“But I don’t even know what’s wrong.” You hiccup, sounding disappointed in yourself and it breaks Steve entirely. “I don’t think I’ve ever known what’s wrong and now I’m realizing how awful it is.” 

“It’s okay.”

“It’s not-”

“It is.” Steve is adamant, leaning back enough to see your eyes focused on the zipper of his hoodie, finger lifting enough to slip through the circled hole on the tiny metal contraption. “You don’t always have to know, but that doesn’t make the way you feel any less important.”

“You probably think I’m horrible.” 

“I’d never think that. You know if I could climb into your cute little ears and get rid of all those annoying things that make you feel like this I would.” Another kiss, this time a peck to the button of your nose. He can tell you’re coming down a little, but he’s not sure if the slight tremor in your shoulders is from the cold. He pulls you a little closer.

“You know, they aren’t so bad once you get to know them. Sometimes they’re a little nice to me.” He has the foresight to laugh, your humor something that constantly catches him off guard when you let him in on it so easily.

“Well until they’re always nice to you, don’t make you cry, I don’t wanna meet ‘em.” 

“Okay…Stevie?” 

“Yeah, beautiful?” 

“I think I’d love it if you could take me inside now. I don’t mind paying.” 

Steve is feeling lucky today, the second joke consoling the side of him that isn’t sure how to feel about how he handled things. He takes it as a small win when your hand softly settles on the curve of his jaw, angling it down enough so you can reach his lips for a sweet kiss.

“Anything you want, baby.” 

[slavic-roots-western-mind]

Chinese chopstick etiquette

There are certain rules for using knives and forks, so why wouldn't there be rules for chopsticks? Now that I know how to use chopsticks properly and (hopefully) without offending anyone, here are some main rules.

No playing with chopsticks In other words, using them like drumsticks and swordfighting with your table neighbour is not permissible (at least not in public).

No sticking your chopsticks up vertically into your bowl Shrines to deceased people usually have a bowl of rice or sand with 2 incense sticks sticking upwards, which is why sticking your chopsticks into your bowl can have similar unpleasant associations.

No pointing your chopsticks at people Pointing your chopsticks at someone is also a no go, as it's seen as hostile.

No digging around You should take from the top layer and avoid digging around the plate in search of the food.

No eating directly from the main plates You should first place the piece of food that you took onto your own plate, and then eat it, instead of eating straight from the source.

No tapping against the bowl Tapping against your plate is considered to be impolite and should be avoided when possible.

[lansplaining]

JC is like my #1 blorbo but I've always wondered, are ancestral shrines actually restricted to family members? People make a huge deal of wwx and lwj being in the jiang shrine uninvited, but is it not open to the general residents of lotus pier? Did they in fact need permission to be there? It's been ages since i read the novel but maybe you got a better sense of the context on reread

so I really do not know enough to comment on the etiquette of ancestral shrines! I hope someone else can weigh in?

I think the fuller context in terms of the book is that Jiang Cheng has just been tailing Wei Wuxian and Lan Wangji across half of Yunmeng and seen them canoodling, so he is poised to be suspicious of what they've come to the shrine to do. I don't know how rude it is to do a "meet the parents" without permission culturally, but for Jiang Cheng specifically, it's a slap in the face-- especially as Wei Wuxian (as far as he believes) immediately lies about it! It's not really about the shrine, it's about Wei Wuxian sending such mixed signals about whether he considers himself a member of the Jiang clan or not.

[mistbow]

I want to talk more about right and left (if you’ve followed what I’ve been saying about it in the context of Zestiria, you should realize that they pay a lot of attention to this).

There’s actually a reason why the right-hand side represents the human, the physical, the body whereas the left-hand side represents the seraph, the spiritual, the heart, which surprisingly not many people know or realize, not even Japanese people from what I’ve seen around (which tells you just how disconnected a lot of people are from their spirituality).

In a lot of major religions in the world, like Christianity or Islam for example, the right is what is considered sacred, and this is so pervasive that even you can see it in the international language, English.

Do you know why it is called “right” meaning “the opposite of left”, even though the Old English word it comes from, riht, did not have this sense but meant “good, proper, fitting, straight”? It’s partly because the right hand is often the stronger, more dominant one, but also partly because of religion-related reasons.

In Christianity, after the resurrection, Jesus ascends to heaven and sits at the right hand of God the Father. The “right hand” in this case is seen as a place of honor, as seen throughout the biblical text. In a simplified manner we could say that in the biblical worldview the right side is good, noble, and heavenly, while the left is bad, low, and earthly.

Ecclesiastes 10:2

A wise man’s heart turns him toward the right [which is the way of blessing], but a fool’s heart turns him toward the left [which is the way of condemnation].

However, Shinto sees things differently from the majority of the English-speaking side of the world.

For example, and this is surprisingly a shrine etiquette that not many people know of, but when passing through the torii gate, you should step from your left foot. The reason for this is because in Shinto, the left means kami and the right means person (左は神、右は人). But why is this?

If you know about ancient Japanese mythology, as described in Kojiki, when Izanagi-no-Mikoto purified himself after visiting Yomi in a failed attempt to rescue Izanami-no-Mikoto, Amaterasu-Oomikami, the sun kami and supreme deity of Japan, was born when he washed his left eye. I hope you see why the left side is sacred now from the view of Shinto, and by the way, Maotelus is modeled after Amaterasu.

Even the sound of “左” (hidari), the word for “left” in Japanese, is similar to “日照り” (hideri), the word for “drought” in Japanese, a period where sun keeps shining without rain. Translated more literally, “日照り” can also mean “sun-shine”. The more the sun rises, the hotter it gets; to the ancient people, this meant that the Sun that looked as if it moved from the East, the right direction in the compass, to the West, the left direction in the compass, would be at its strongest when it was on the left. The more the Sun shines, the more the power of the Sun increases, which relates back to Amaterasu being the kami of Sun.

(Speaking of cardinal directions, I’ve also talked about this before, but despite the seraphim being partially based on Four Symbols [四象], their directions are actually inverted [Mikleo on the West/Left instead of Azure Dragon’s East, Lailah on the North/Up instead of Vermilion Bird’s South, Edna on the South/Down instead of Black Tortoise’s North, and Zaveid/Dezel on the East/Right instead of White Tiger’s West]. They’re actually this committed to associating Mikleo with the Left side [to Sorey’s Right side], even to the point of breaking this rule for him. EDIT: It appears I have been looking at this the wrong way, because I assume the cardinal directions used is the Japanese one, when I should’ve considered what the Chinese use too.)

(By the way, despite all this, the right side is not ‘discriminated’, so to speak, in Shinto, unlike what has been said about the left side in, for example, Christianity.)

Aside from myths and all that, there’s actually one more reason, though still based on spirituality. Heart (心臓), the organ, is located on the left side of the human body, and this organ is said to reflect the state of your mind (心). I’ve said before how kami also describes the mind, the heart; the Japanese word “精神”, containing the kanji for kami (神), represents mentality, will, ethos, and this concept isn’t even exclusive to the Japanese only, since the word “spirit” is used in a similar way in English anyway.

This is already getting too long but I hope you get the idea! I wish to talk more about other Shinto influences in Zestiria in more detail next, like how Armatus (as the main focus/gimmick of Zestiria battle system; it’s even in the name, FC-LMBS, which stands for Fusionic Chain Linear Motion Battle System) might be related to the concept of shinjin-gouitsu (神人合一, “kami and human become one”), etc.

[pix4japan]

Sacred Spaces and Cultural Grace: Navigating Japanese Shrine Etiquette

Location: Shirahama, Shimoda, Shizuoka, Japan Timestamp: 07:40 on January 3, 2024

Fujifilm X100V with 5% diffusion filter ISO 3200 for 1/90 sec. at ƒ/8.0 Film simulation: Velvia/Vivid

Ancient documents dating over 2,400 years reference this shrine, suggesting an age surpassing 2,400 years. Like many Japanese temples and shrines, some structures are reconstructed due to earthquakes, fire, or periodic disassembly for inspection and improvement, ensuring both longevity and the preservation of traditional Japanese building techniques.

The worship hall seen in my photo was last rebuilt in 1860, and the sanctuary on the hill behind the worship hall and housing the deity was reconstructed in 1922.

Visitors during New Year's adhere to traditional steps followed at any time of the year. Regional customs may vary, but general worship practices and etiquettes apply to every shrine.

It is appropriate to dress in a way that is slightly conservative. Just avoid wearing revealing or tight-fitting clothes (such as tank tops, sweats, or workout clothes) out of respect for the cultural setting. Remember, these are sacred sites—not a shopping mall or an amusement park.

When you pass under the torii gate, which marks where the realm of Shinto kami (deity) begins and separates it from the secular world, prepare your mind and your heart, calm yourself, and appreciate everything around you, be it visible or not.

At the torii gate, show your respect by taking your hat off if you wear one and bowing once before passing through.

Be mindful to walk on the left side of the way, as the center of the approach is said to be the “place where the kami pass.”

At the water basin (temizuya or chozuya), purify yourself by scooping water to wash your free hand and then switch the ladle to wash your other hand. Pour some water in your empty hand and rinse out your mouth. Follow the actions of the Japanese around you and will be fine.

Proceed to the main hall for worship. The customary routine involves bowing twice, clapping twice, and bowing once. Make a monetary offering, often a 5-yen coin is used as it symbolizes luck.

Shinto shrines cater to common needs, managing centuries-old traditions and festivals. Japanese embrace diverse traditions without strict religious adherence, enjoying aesthetics like Christian weddings and festivities, and follow Buddhism for matters of the afterlife. These cultural adoptions allow appreciation without religious affiliation.

For those with a keen interest in Japanese approach to religious traditions, I have provided links to useful sources at my latest pix4japan blog post: https://www.pix4japan.com/blog/20240103-shirahama

[chromaji]

Character building ask game 10, 21, and 32?

thank youuu!

10) What fact do they excitedly tell everyone about at every opportunity?

Mythology! Specifically mythological creatures and monsters. If someone says they’re interested in a mythical creature that Zandiel already knows about, he turns into an unskippable cutscene. He read a lot of books about them growing up, so it’s also nostalgic. He likes myths and legends about locations and objects too, but lil fuckin creatures is where its at.

(basically zandiel will explode once he sees a roly poly tanuki in the southern shrine. And will go “AGH... IT SHOULD’VE BEEN ME! NOT HER! ITS NOT FAIR!!” when the guild does the sidequest that leads to Napier getting a pet roly poly tanuki.)

21) What common etiquette do they disagree with? Do they still follow it?

Well… Zandiel was raised to be courteous and polite. To always have proper etiquette as a future king… So there’s not many that he doesn’t follow, but he was also taught to scrutinize others for his & his kingdom’s safety. Because of that, he can be a nosy mf who pries too much, especially when he feels someone could be dangerous to him, others, or even themself.

32) If they committed one petty crime / misdemeanor, what would it be? Why?

Trespassing for sure. Its like an extension of his nosiness. He’d be willing to sneak around places he’s not allowed in to get answers.

[shirolian]

HC: Kanetsugu Naoe - After Epilogue

It’s been three months since Kicho’s escape

MC (Aizhu) lives with Kanetsugu in Kasugayama Castle

They expanded his chambers a bit so she could pick some new furniture and feel more comfortable

Aizhu is generally accepted as the Lady of the House despite her not really being one

Kenshin graciously bestowed an empty and unused room for Aizhu to turn it into her fashion studio - she stuffs all the huge equipment like ikou there (stand for kimono & haori)

Raizo (the cute lil hamster) now lives in the studio and is another reason as to why Kantsugu visits Aizhu there frequently

Aizhu gave away Kanetsugu’s whole wardrobe (not that he had much clothes to begin with) and sew all his new clothes by herself

There was almost a fight among women when she did so in the town of Echigo

Seriously thinking about organizing auction for charity

Scraped that idea when Kanetsugu gave her death glare upon hearing it

Aizhu created her own fashion brand and thanks to Nobunaga her wares were imported to Azuchi too (Nobunaga of course demanded payment - a handmade haori for him - Kanetsugu ofc found out and Aizhu had issues with walking for a week ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

When winter arrived once again, Aizhu started thinking about wedding but realized that she knows almost nothing about traditional ceremony or duties of samurai wife

She goes to Shingen and Yoshimoto for help (reference to canon wedding story in game)

They teach her basics and etiquette etc in secrecy since Aizhu wishes to surprise Kanetsugu

“Aizhu, today you will practice the ceremony, we gained permission of a shinto shrine nearby for you to try out, Yoshimoto will act as groom.”

Aizhu lies to Kanetsugu about where she is going and arrives to shrine with Shingen

She is dressed in white kimono and given watabōshi

Aizhu goes to inner chamber of shrine where Yoshimoto is supposed to wait for her

Cue to pikachu face when she realizes that her fake groom is Kanetsugu instead

EMBARRASSMENT 100

“Did you think that you could keep secrets from me? Really?” He smirks wolfishly

The ceremony goes on and Aizhu tries her best to remember everything

Kanetsugu drinks his first cup of sake, now it’s Aizhu turn

She takes the cup and sips only to realize that there is nothing and Kanetsugu stares at her with subtle grin

What a cute idiot

Aizhu quickly returns the cup and allows the priest to pour the sake

Rest of ceremony goes on flawlessly

Shingen & Yoshimoto retreat from the chamber, priest vanishes after giving them blessing

Kanetsugu lifts her watabōshi, his expression soft

Aizhu is blushing furiously and looking down as he lifts her chin with finger up, to look at him

“Will you allow me to love you for the rest of our lives, Aizhu?”

“Yes.”

[bansenshukai]

a little drabble -- izuna&tobirama fake engagement (907 words)

--

“Senju!” Izuna yells as he slams open the door.

Tobirama looks unfazed– he doesn’t even look up as his brush glides against the inkstone before returning to make a row of barely-legible characters. Izuna doesn’t bother to check what he’s writing; he’s seen enough to know that it’s fuuinjutsu, and he has no interest in ever touching sealing theory or the minutiae of minor tenketsu control.

“Uchiha,” Tobirama replies. “Is there a reason you’ve come to bother me outside of my working hours?”  His voice is as cold and unreadable as always, and even though Izuna knows he needs Tobirama’s cooperation, he can’t help the little flare of rage that spikes at the complete indifference Tobirama displays. 

Izuna pulls the fan from his sleeve and tosses it on the desk, where it barely avoids smearing the scroll Tobirama’s working on. Tobirama’s brows furrow just the slightest, and he reaches for the fan.

“We’re getting engaged,” Izuna tells him haughtily, injecting every last drop of Uchiha pride into the steel of his spine, willing Tobirama to agree easily. “That’s the courting fan my father gave my mother to commemorate the start of their relationship.”

Tobirama stares at the fan in his hand without blinking. It’s an old thing now– Izuna had to dig it out of storage, since Father had hidden it deep away after Mother had left. Still; it’s richly patterned and printed on the finest Ame silk, and the gold beads dangling from the teak frame are worth over two months of civilian wages, even if the rest of it is hideously old fashioned.

“Why would you give me this?”

“To get engaged, Senju, did you not hear me the first time? I thought you were supposed to be a genius,” Izuna retorts. It’s a petty and stupid thing to say– he knows firsthand how much of a genius Tobirama is. 

That goddamn Hiraishin. No shinobi should be capable of creating an entirely new branch of fuuinjutsu– he’s heard Tobirama claim it’s ninjutsu, not fuuinjutsu, but the base of the technique is rooted in seals. If you need Uzumaki Ryo’s Compendium of Fifth Order Seals and Runes to decipher it, it’s fuuinjutsu, no matter what semantics some stuck-up Senju wants to claim otherwise.

Tobirama just looks at him. “Why?”

Izuna narrows his eyes. “Why are you asking questions– so ungrateful, after everything the Uchiha have done for Konoha, don’t you think you owe it to us to just say yes to a simple request? And you owe me personally. The humiliation I had to endure, after my mortal enemy forced his way into our clinic and shoved his chakra through my stomach with all the manners of some lowborn farmer who’s never seen an etiquette book in his life–” 

“Should I have not saved your life,” Tobirama says flatly. It’s barely a question, so Izuna doesn’t deign to treat it as such.

“What good does saving do anyway,” Izuna mutters bitterly. “Saving. Hah. Do you see yourself as the Uchiha’s righteous savior, come to save our clan from its barbarous leader and archaic traditions? It feels good doesn’t it– having our clan fall over themselves to grovel at your feet– woe is me, I’m Senju Tobirama and I receive too much praise from my former sworn enemy!”

Tobirama continues to give him that even, lidless gaze; devoid of blinks. It’s rather like a snake– he thinks snakes would have suited Tobirama as a summons, low-bellied and conniving little creatures they are, but of course he has tiger summons instead. It’s things like this that make Izuna skip the evening prayers at Ameratsu’s shrine. If Senju Tobirama gets to have the greatest of all cats at his beck and call, there is no higher power in this universe.

Izuna glares. “It’s a cover. A distraction. A ruse. With the rumors about your older brother and mine, we need to give them a bigger fish to fry. Metaphorically.”

“I can catch any size fish you’d like to eat,” Tobirama tells him absently, and picks up the fan, tucking it into his desk. He turns to the side to pick up a kunai, evidently done with the conversation.

Izuna gapes, unable to believe the sheer gall of it all– is Senju ignoring him– how dare he– and he hadn’t even bothered to return the fan–

And now there is blood, beading up in shiny droplets where Tobirama has used the kunai on the back of his hand.

“If you’re performing a blood sacrifice to get me to leave your office, you could just ask instead.”

Tobirama doesn’t respond. He dips his thumb in the blood, presses it on a blank sheet of paper and flares his chakra through it, then picks it up and hands it to Izuna.

Izuna stares at it. “Senju, why did you just hand me your trash? I’m not your personal maid, surely you can afford to hire someone.”

Tobirama has returned to writing his fuuinjutsu scroll. “Engagements run both ways, Uchiha. The fan is your token, that paper is mine. A blood seal is the Senju tradition. Announce it as you wish, that seal cannot be forged and will do away with any who doubt your word.”

Izuna tucks the piece of paper away in his pouch. “What a barbaric tradition,” he mutters, and makes sure to leave the door slightly open on the way out.

[risingshine]

💕-“Huh, I don’t see her…” Harmony looks around the shrine. Her body turns in a complete circle, her silver eyes taking in all the details of the serenity that surrounds her. There is still no sign of her.

Slowly, Harmony’s heart sinks. Her head lowers ever so slightly with her gaze on the single rose in her hands.

I was hoping that shrine maiden would be here. It was the very least she could do for the other for helping her with shrine etiquette. There was something about her presence and Harmony wanted to find her again. A soft sigh escapes her and she approaches the shrine itself.

Would this be okay if I- The woman can’t be sure if it’s appropriate. Then again, it’s a gift. There can be nothing wrong with that, right?

Harmony takes a step closer. She drops some yen into the offering box. The bell high above rings with a single pull on the rope. She sets the rose along the side of the box before clapping her hands twice. Eyes close as she begins her prayer.

Hello. It’s me again. Well, I don’t know if you remember me. A ton of people come over to talk so it would be easy to forget names. Not that I think you would forget or anything. I don’t mean any offense. I’m sorry.

Another deep breath to calm herself before continuing.

Anyway, I’m Halcyon Harmony. I came over because I wanted to see the shrine maiden who I met a little while ago. I don’t think she’s here today, though. I wanted to give her this rose I brought. I wasn’t sure what to do, really. But… I was thinking and I don’t know why, but I thought that I should give it to you. I hope that’s okay. I really do. That’s all I have to say now. I’ll go ahead and go now. I’ll come back later. Have a good day!

With that, Harmony opens her eyes. Her hands lower from the prayer while she glances the rose. She really hopes it’s okay. She turns away, taking those few steps before pausing once more to look back. I can get another rose when I come back again. Maybe she will be here by then.

Chiasa's ears perked up as the bell rung - she was busy soaking in the hotspring on the property, which was not the best place to meet the somewhat anxious guest.

Oh, she got a gift for her??? That's adorable! The kami was quick to jump out of the hot spring, grabbing a towel to dry off as fast as she could while trotting towards the gate between the hot springs and the shrine itself.

Passing through, her form shifted in an instant, a puff of smoke cloaking her change into the familiar shrine maiden, the clack of wooden geta on the dirt flooring.

"Excuse me!" She called out, hand waved in the air - hopefully the voice would be recognaised - if not, the massive silhouette certainly wood.

"I heard ya got something for me?"