open post, cuts ribbon to musebox proudly

[kbcctv]

[The Citadel is huge, so it's a good thing they have all the time in the world to dick around.

--Well, no, they don't. But the point is, it's a free day. There will be absolutely no work done at all. Unless you want to or something. If you do, you're pretty weird.

The dojo is always open for sparring and practice. If there's any sparring errand you've slacked on, now's the chance to make up! The horse stables are also full of activity, whether the horses are being tended to or rode around-- be careful not to let them trample the fields, though, which is full of rice sprouts and budding cabbage. The lake in front of the saniwa(s)' room has tiny frogs jumping about, and you could catch them in the palm of your hand.

The kitchen is full of food, if you're volunteering to make lunch or have decided that meal time cannot possibly come any later and you simply must prepare something before you die from starvation. While there has been a considerable effort made to make the Citadel look as homely as possible to the swords which come from Japan's past, there's speckles of technology here and there.

The TV room is a good example, with a huge screen sitting on top of a few console systems. Don't break them, you'll only be getting this luxury once. Take turns and play nice. The swords may also find themselves tending the fields with water sprinklers and hoses instead of watering cans, for instance, or heating up some leftover pie in the fridge instead of making another one from scratch since there's technology to preserve food well over a week. The armory and smithy are definitely a little bit more modern than they'd be back in the past, though much is still made by hand-- nothing beats the fine work of a master. Perhaps you'll have a few new friends today, or you want to try creating a cute little soldier spirits to die for you accompany you in battle. Make sure they enter the orb completely, or else it'll turn brown and crack.

Or perhaps you're one of the unlucky swords still stuck in the repair room, sword body still being re-smelted and fixed. Hope the saniwa is good at making you all shiny. If you want to skip all that waiting, perhaps you can try to use a helper token... but they're all in the saniwa's room! Guess you've got to use that Camouflage stat...

But if you truly cannot bear with staying in the Citadel, the time device the saniwa(s) have isn't locked away. You can go on sorties or expeditions to fill your time with something productive.

Just a warning: don't change the past. You won't succeed.

...You could always try, though.]

Comments

[swordsitter]

[ somehow, eventually, haru is going to find a way to break this belief of his sword-spirits. this.. absolute certainty that their only worth is in their ability to fight. certainly, they may have started out as steel and wood and cord, but don't they have thoughts and emotions and personalities now? they're alive, well and truly, and it doesn't matter to him that they aren't actually human. it's impossible for haru to look at his blades and think of them as dispensable, and maybe that really does make him a bad sage. they do what they have to do, absolutely, but haru won't risk them unnecessarily. he hadn't been joking when he'd said he hoped never to have to grieve for another of them.

the mixed expression on yamato's face earns the quiet huff that serves as haru's laugh, expression warming with amusement. it's.. kind of cute on the blade, and haru's long resigned himself to finding many of the spirits cute. he's.. honestly not even self-conscious about such an un-masculine thought, not considering how attractive literally all of the spirits are or how they interact with him. it's just.. a part of how their relationship works. he's getting used to it. ]

It's okay. Any time you want to borrow a book, you can let me know. I keep them in my room. [ yamato's never shown an interest in reading much before, though, so he's not sure that it'll last this time. even so, he's kind of happy to be able to share his interest with at least one other person. ] .. I have a lot of kids' books, though. I used to read to my brother and sisters.

[ the offer makes him blink, then brighten, pale eyes widening with pleasure. ] Oh, um. Yes, please. That'd be nice.

[inamorati]

[ in the interest of continuing to be honest, yasusada has actually never read a book before. while he knows how to read, swords in general aren't really expected to do so, and he's always valued action over words. he is the sword arm, not the strategist, and his devotion to being the best at what he does leaves him at the mercy of his master, whom he expects and values direction and strategy from. part of the reason for him why he believes his ability to fight defines his worth is that quite literally this is the only thing he can do. the other part lies in his memories of kashuu being cast aside for his broken tip, the lonely days to follow living without kashuu by okita-kun's side. swords who can't fight are useless. why else were they called to this era in the first place?

but living with other swords in an encampment like this has taught yasusada that perhaps there are things that can be done to while away the time between sparring sessions. the fact that haru reads is enough to convince yasusada that reading is a worthwhile pursuit, eager as he is to follow his sage in all the ways. therefore, the offer of more books delights and touches him. pleased, he lowers his head in deference, and then gestures towards the main citadel. ]

This way. Please follow me.

[ as they begin walking, he thinks about the mention of haru's siblings. yasusada admittedly has a very tenuous understanding of family. the toushirou siblings, for example, are family-- but what makes them family is that they came from the same swordsmith, the same school of sword-making. he and kashuu-- they are what you would call 'friends', though he's heard some swords call him and the shinsengumi group to be a family under general terms. couple the various usage of the word and yasusada's very limited grasp on human reproduction, and what you get his a curious, half-baked understanding of what family really is. a part of him almost feels impudent just wondering what sort of family and siblings haru has. after all, it's really none of his business, and it isn't his place to know these things. but haru brought it up first, and he is curious. ]

What are their names? Your siblings. [ it's... an okay question to ask, right? ]

[swordsitter]

[ to be fair, haru can't say he would have reacted any differently if he'd been in any of their previous masters' places. after all, he wouldn't have understood that they retained memories, that they felt, that they would have been awakened one day taking those experiences and emotions and drawing such conclusions from them. it makes him glad that he's where he is right now, because at least like this.. he can do what he can to remove those learned behaviors and thoughts and show them that they have worth beyond what they can do on the battlefield. it's a challenging job, he's quickly learned. some of these blades have hundreds of years of issues to work through, and haru's just one completely inadequate teenager.

at least they have one another, too, and the run of the keep when they aren't out on the front lines. some of them are beginning to learn those things all on their own, and teaching them to one another.

moving to catch up to yamato, he's satisfied with the easy silence as they walk, but glances up at him in surprise at the question. well.. why wouldn't he be interested? haru never talks about his family or his life back home. of course it would be a matter of some question among the others.

he clears his throat, fingers tightening around his book. he.. actually really misses his siblings. maybe that's part of the reason he doesn't talk about them much. ]

Well.. I have three sisters and a brother, all younger than me. [ his ears are going a little red talking about them. ] The next oldest is Chika, and she's thirteen. Then there's Suzu, she's ten. The youngest are Kouta, who's five, and Natsumi. She's two. [ he ducks his gaze to the floor, blush deepening. ] .. Um. I think you'll like them. You know, once all of this is-- When we get to go back. They're good kids.