[ open ]

[finethanks]

Who: Eichi & Anyone!
Where: Various places around the temple or outside!
When: 9/29 and on!
Rating PG?
What: Eichi gets restless and gets up to things.

A. Miscommunication

[Eichi has been spending a lot of time inside the temple. It's not as if he can get out much. Everyone else was wandering off, exploring, getting sick and dealing with it— but Eichi was just left with his own usual illness, and the sad feeling of being left alone.

So, he's seen the servants around, doing helpful things like cooking and cleaning, and he's even asked them favors. But today? Today, it seems he's not being heard. He's been speaking in the hall with this mist man for some time now, and the poor thing is just sort of... facelessly staring back, making gestures with its hands to try and communicate that Eichi's requests just aren't possible, or make no sense.]

Is it that you don't understand? Ah, it's difficult to know if you can really all hear me, when I can't see your faces at all... But you see, this is a special type of tea that I've been missing. Is there nothing similar? There must be a variety of some sort, yet every time I request "tea" it's always the same thing...

[Who knows what he's asking for in specifics, but now he's going on to ask for elaborate tea cups too, and someone should just help free this mist servant.]

B. He shouldn't be here

[So. What to do when you're a sickly boy bored out of his mind, lonely, without a roommate and with no Proper variety of tea to enjoy? It's probably not the right answer to just wander out into the woods or by the lake, but that's exactly what Eichi is doing. He looks like someone who shouldn't be out here at all, wandering in his school uniform, pale and frail as he is, but he holds himself tall and proud, like he belongs.

There are a handful of things you can run into Eichi getting up to:

i. Surrounded by a small handful of nymphs, he has his softly glowing hand held up to a tree that's suffered a little from the growth spurt of those trees surrounding it. Competition for food is hard! The nymphs seem pleased with Eichi doing whatever it is he's doing, even if Eichi does look considerably more pale after a few seconds, sighing out as his glow fades.

ii. Facing off a single wyvern, Eichi is holding out his hand with great interest, trying to approach it. Eichi doesn't have a single shiny thing visible right now, so the thing doesn't look interested at all, and maybe even a little threatened. As he reaches further just as someone is approaching, the wyvern swipes out at him, clawing the back of his hand and taking off. Eichi is left rejected and with a sad little bleeding scratch on the back of his left hand.

iii. By the lake, Eichi is soaking wet and crouched near the water. There are at least two mermaids in the water, looking at him with pleased expressions as he sings them a soft little song. So, they certainly didn't yank him in. Maybe you saw what happened just moments earlier— how he slipped and fell right in and they helped him out. Or maybe his voice caused you to come over? Maybe these mermaids weren't ever as nice to you and you're jealous. Whatever it is, he's here, he's soaking wet, and if he doesn't get some help with that soon, he'll probably die or something. He's weak.

On the other hand, towards the tail end of all of these adventures, he's starting to look even worse for wear. A figure wobbling, stopping to support himself against a tree, muttering little pep talks to himself. He doesn't want to stop here. He's tired of this body of his. How long can he expect to be held back while everyone else looks around?]

C. It's like Goldilocks

[It turns out that wandering around in your boredom and loneliness can lead a sickly body to exhaustion. The same exhaustion that had kept him in his own room for so long. But now, he's been in the middle of exploring the temple, and he's not anywhere near his own room. What's the harm in entering a random room and crawling into the bed? It looked so nice and cozy, and if he had tried to take another step, he would have certainly passed out.

So, welcome back to your room! Eichi Tenshouin is in your bed, whether you know who he is or not. He kind of looks like a sleeping angel, even if how pale he is might be a little alarming. It's normal for him, really. He just needs to sleep it off, probably. He even helped himself under the covers... He looks terribly comfortable, like this. So, what are you going to do, now that you've found a stranger in your bed?]

Comments

[finethanks]

Oh, do you have bandages?

[Smiling, Eichi offers out his hand expectantly. Bandage him!!]

I'd prefer not to bleed on this uniform, as it's all that I have.

[p_mortem]

[ He doesn't have bandages but he has... his necktie? It's a pain to tie every morning and it's not like he has any reason to be fancy around here, so he undoes the ribbon at his throat and wraps it around Eichi's hand.

Sorry, this isn't very hygienic, but it's better than bleeding freely. ]

There's some clothes around here... probably. Nothing fancy, and washing machines don't exist either, but I wish they did.

[ Handwashing things!! it's a pain ]

[finethanks]

Ouch...

[How strange, to use his necktie. Eichi stares down at his hand like he's not sure if that's normal. It's like out of an anime or something, right? So it feels kind of cool... That's all that matters, and he doesn't correct anything. It does sting, though.]

I'm an idol, you see, so while I'm in the public like this, I should always look my best. If that means washing the same clothes each day and taking extra care to avoid damage to them, then that's fine by me.

[He won't wear rags!!] Thank you for this. I'm still quite disappointed that such a cute looking dragon [wyvern] got away, but I'm grateful to receive help in the middle of nowhere.

My name is Eichi Tenshouin. Who might you be?

[p_mortem]

[ It was either the ribbon, or he tears off his shirt sleeve like they do in the movies, but 1) he likes his shirt, and 2) he isn't sure he's strong enough to tear off the entire shirt sleeve.

Eichi does look like somebody to be idolized, but Minato's more familiar with girl bands that his dormmates follow, and he himself listens to Engrish rap (that if Eichi could sing, he would win Minato over just like that, fyi) ]

Minato Arisato. This guy's name is Koromaru. [ The dog barks his hello, tail wagging as he presses himself against the side of Minato's leg. ]

If you really want to see the dragon again... perhaps we could search for it? Koromaru and I haven't really gotten to explore much of the forest yet.

[finethanks]

Hello, hello. [He gives Koromaru a little wave, and then smiles to Minato, next. (For the record, it's not Eichi's style but he could definitely rap.)]

Would you really accompany me, Minato-kun? That's an exciting thing to say. I thought that if someone were to wander along and come across me, they might scold me and tell me to head back. The truth is, I've been cooped up in a room for the entire time since I've arrived.

I want to see the sky, the trees, and everything else, you know? Shall we partner up and search together?

[p_mortem]

[ petition for Eichi to hold a rap concert ]

Yeah, let's go. [ Minato had also been cooped up for much of the weeks prior, but it was by choice and a well needed rest— though he still looks tired and run down, he's feeling much better and Koromaru in particular has been itching to run around the forest for so long. ]

It's a shame to be kept inside when it's nice out. If somebody finds us and scolds us, we can just say we got lost.

[ It wouldn't be a lie... for Minato... who is very lost because he's always had a navigator to help him with this stuff. ]

[finethanks]

[Going into the forest with a stranger and his dog? Sounds great! Exciting!]

Okay. [Just like that. He moves to Minato's side, and then peers through the trees, pointing.] Well, it flew in that direction, before. Can Koromaru track animals like that? I've already been injured, so I'll follow your lead, okay?

[p_mortem]

[ What if Minato were an ax murderer?? Eichi???

He's glad, though, that Eichi is amenable to following- Koromaru, more than Minato, as the dog barks his confirmation that he'll be able to track the dragon down and takes off into the bramble, with occasional looks over his shoulder to see whether the other two are following. ]

Seems like he's confident in it. [ And Minato runs too, fully expecting Eichi to keep the pace since he looks fine. He's fine. ]

[finethanks]

Ah—

[Wait, running? They have to run? Eichi takes a few steps into the jog, stretching his hand out after them.]

Hold on, please—! [It's maybe ten seconds before he completely hunches over and starts coughing up a lung, though his feet continue moving slowly to try and catch up. Dear god, his lungs, his heart, it's too much...]

[p_mortem]

[ TEN SECONDS...... it turns out, Minato really is a murderer, but he murders through neglect. ]

Uh. [ He doesn't want to comment about it being just TEN SECONDS, but he skids to a stop and calls for Koromaru to come back too. ]

Sorry, I forgot you've been out here for so long already...

[ Running, presumably, having used up all of his energy hiking everywhere and is on his last reserves of stamina. How thoughtless of Minato to not consider this. ]

Actually, it might be easier if Koromaru finds it first, and then comes back for us. Instead of leading us all around.

[finethanks]

N-no, it's not that.

[He sounds extremely out of breath for a boy who just ran for ten seconds. He places a hand over his chest, because it hurts to breathe now, and his heart feels like it might stutter and fail if he doesn't hold onto it. Ahh.]

I have a rather weak body, so things like physical activity can be difficult for me to keep up with. [He coughs.] I suppose being out here... for so long didn't help my stamina, either, but it's just that my lungs won't cooperate.

[p_mortem]

[ Lungs get stronger the more you use them, is what Minato learned after hour-long sessions of climbing stairs and being chased by Death night after night, but that's not something he needs to tell Eichi. ]

How unfair of your lungs... Let's walk, then? We're in no rush, after all, so we can spend as much time.

[ Until nightfall? And even then, he supposes, as the nights aren't extremely cold, and the most dangerous thing (that he knows of) that can come across them is a deer-bird, which Eichi might find cool anyways if he likes small dragons. ]

[finethanks]

I'd appreciate that. There may be some days that I can jog, in small amounts, but this doesn't seem to be one of them.

[He's embarrassed. He's out here trying to make friends and it's already ruined. But... he hasn't left? There's not the overwhelming feeling of being stared at with pity? He'll take this.]

Please, let's keep moving. I'm fine.

[p_mortem]

[ One of Minato's dearest friends is somebody who was already at death's door, doing his best to live day by day with what time he has left, so it's been imparted on Minato that there's no need or want for pity; if anything, he hates people looking at him with those same eyes, so all Minato ever thinks to do is to go on as if everything is fine, silence and a nod and slow strides through the forest. ]

...I've never been in a forest, so... let's just keep going straight as long as we can. Are you familiar with these sorts of places? Stuff like dragons?

[finethanks]

Not at all. I'd think I was hallucinating on some sort of new drug, if I didn't feel my own pain so clearly. So, it must be reality... but it's playing out like some sort of fantasy. A story.

[He's caught his breath enough to ramble, at least, while they walk.]

I wonder what it means... Ah, I'm just a normal high school boy, you see? An idol. That's all.

[p_mortem]

[ Normal high school boy. Idol. Yeah. Minato also thinks himself as a normal high school boy, just one that summons soul monsters by shooting himself in the head, so it's not like he's in any position to talk. ]

Pain can be felt in dreams, can't they? The subconscious takes what it wants, and makes that reality... or something. But it doesn't really matter, huh? Like Zhuang Zi, and the butterfly.