personavelvetroomdr | Cherry Blossom Evening Party

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Cherry Blossom Evening Party

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Throughout the week, Hamuko has messaged the vast majority of people she's met so far - and eagerly invited them to come meet at Inokashira Park starting at 5pm.

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You're invited to an evening sushi-party-turned-hanami-picnic-party! I've organized a bunch of cognitive chefs and performers to come to that park on the listed date/time. I've sent this to you because you were part of one of the three teams that helped with fighting Fatalis or rescuing Falcon and Wolf (or are Falcon and Wolf themselves!!) - we've all busted our butts a lot lately, so I think we deserve to have something nice together too! Of course, the party is open if you have any +1s or more. But before spring turns into summer, let's celebrate what we've all accomplished together!

.🌸˚𑁍.ೃ࿔*:･

The Venue...

Inokashira Park has a lovely river and trail and a phenomenal collection of cherry blossom trees. They're in the tail end of their season, filling the air with petals like snowfall.

In a large open area, Hamuko's arranged a ton of picnic blankets for people to claim and sit down on, though each blanket is HUGE to accommodate people sitting with as many people as they can handle! There are cozy pillows for sitting on too, stacked neatly to be borrowed.

There's a truly humongous row of tables laid out with an impressive amount of sushi presented. With a few trucks nearby, it seems there's a few sushi chefs making fresh platters of it to lay out through the night.

Similarly, there are food carts along the trails if you're not in the mood for sushi and would rather have some more traditional fare like dango, taiyaki, matcha, takoyaki... it's got the place lively and smelling fantastic! There's sake for the adults, and some cherry-blossomed themed mocktails for minors.

🌸𓏲 ๋࣭ ࣪ ˖🎐

Activities

There's a few set out activities besides just chowing down and socializing or walking along the lantern-lit trails under the cherry blossoms! Inoshikara Park has always had cute little swan pedal boats or regular rowboats for 'rental' (not that money matters here).

The area is SO pretty, perfect for taking pictures to have as keepsakes. There's even a booth to claim a yukata and privately change into it, if you want to go the extra mile!

Finally, in lieu of a traditional band or modern concert, Hamuko has picked out a large set of speakers connected to a small karaoke stage and screen - menace the party with your sing-along! Get a little boost to your Guts!!

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The barking laugh made Ichinose subtly flinch, but with a huff, she abjectly refused to let Zenkichi ruin her good time. She was talking to Maruki's friend, right now!! Even if that girl was clearly close with the Hasegawas...

"Do you wanna come up and sing?" Hamuko asked, glancing between Akane and Zenkichi - she saw that the two were communicating, at least. She gave Zenkichi a small nod to communicate that she has control of the situation, at least.

"Naww, naw, I'm too drunk, and Akane doesn't like me," Ichinose laughed, "you'll do great, Hamuko-chan! It's a catchy song, it'll get stuck in your head."

As she sat back on the picnic blanket, Ichinose poured herself more sake, already swaying to the starting notes once Hamuko turned on the song. And as Hamuko started singing, Ichinose sang from the picnic blanket too - hard to hear over the actual speakers, singing mostly to herself, but singing nonetheless.

♪♫"My earliest memory
Doesn't know who I used to be
I take a glance at the trail left behind
I trekked on and on
Living a world of influence~!"♫♪

Alas Akane didn't pretend that Ichinose was wrong by any chance but then again- that's just being polite, not nice isn't it?

Zenkichi’s gaze sharpens as his head follows her like a hawk stalking its prey. He turns his attention to Hamuko and Akane- standing tall in his all white yukata like a big bear (rather than a wolf), mouth twitched in a scowl still while Akane followed up behind Hamuko- clearing her synthesised audio and prepare to follow behind.

Faraway, Maruki was finally satisfied with the state of the green yukata's sleeve. He hasn't even drunk that much and yet he somehow spilled drink on himself- funny how that works.

He was especially fond of the gold details that Azathoth had added to its cloth. Warm colours suited him quite the bit.

In the meantime as he's retracing his steps- he needs to go check on Morning as well, hopefully he was getting along with others here otherwise he will have to drag him to a song with Hamuko. That said, if Hasegawa-san was around-

He meets eyes with the opaque visor just as he sees Ichinose settle away from the stage. The song changes. His eyes widen, deer in headlights as Zenkichi’s expression looks awfully twisted.

Right.

He bows lightly in acknowledgement with an easy smile as Hamuko sings along to a song he's never quite heard of before. With his phone in hand, he's just about to contact Morning and doesn't announce his presence to Ichinose yet.

His fingers pause as he hears her voice, at this proximity, harmonizing away with Hamuko’s.

His lips part, hearing her voice as a slow smile surfaces. He shifts apps, pulling up his camera.

The flush in her cheeks, the ease in her expression; with his hands free from any drinks- he aims his phone forward.

Click!

Cute..

He quietly settles next to her, not announcing his presence just yet as he lets her sing until she notices him. "Sorry, I just couldn't resist taking one...I can delete it if you want." The picture he's taken is quite unlike how she usually acts, formal and to the point.

Tipsy as ever, Ichinose was painfully off key even if she had every little inflection from the song utterly memorized. Hamuko was singing along and learning as she went - she at least had good improv skills, making it at least a half decent listen.

Ichinose didn't mind either way, not singing too loud for anyone but herself - and now that he was close enough, Maruki - to hear her. She swayed to the steady rhythm of the song, almost engulfed in her own little world.

"For what feels like eternityyyy... I let the answers riddle me-- oh!" Ichinose glanced up at the artificial shutter sound coming from Maruki's phone. She laughed in surprise.

"A picture? Let me see! Lemme see, lemme see..." Ichinose insisted, urgently waving for him to sit with her and show the picture he took. "Haha! You can see how drunk I am already!"

The laugh was encouraging and he quickly followed up next to her, settling right next to her- crawling before sitting cross legged with a grin. He tilts his phone screen to let her get a glimpse of his little capture. Ichinose's hair swept upto her nose nearly as she sung away the lyrics, cheeks cherry red as he looked up and saw its how different the reality looked. The picture couldn't possibly capture her obvious excitement as he leaned on his left wrist- the expanse of his neck obvious as it peaked past the yukata.

"I sure can- you're practically glowing," he answers honestly. "Don't pass out on me till I get drunk atleast, alright? I don't think it would be favourable for either of us if my spine cracked while I attempted to carry you." Those glory days of his were far behind after all and despite being somewhat of a fighter, he still wasn't as much in shape.

"As for your awfully low alcohol tolerance..."He had slipped a small water bottle in his sash along the way which he now held in his hand. "How long since you've hydrated, Ichinose-san?"

"I don't drink very much! Just at work parties, events, stuff like that," she hummed, pointedly not answering the hydration question and instead wordlessly taking the water bottle from him to drink from.

"Mm! This song," she said after a moment, gesturing to the stage where Hamuko was almost through to the end, "SUCH an earworm, it grabbed me when I first heard it. Do you know how many times I listened to this?"

She laughed, remembering the moment where she'd asked EMMA for the number. The exact number eluded her, but...

"It was over three thousand, five hundred times. Do you know how much that has to be on loop? It's about five minutes and forty seconds, so if you math it out... that's almost two weeks solid worth of listening time. It drove the other people in the lab crazy! Hah!"

She can still remember them begging for literally any other songs to be played. She never really got why people minded whether a song was being looped or not.

...I let their every word control me
But now I'm gonna embrace words of my own
This is where I will begin my life

It's time to recollect now
The dreams that shed a light on my path...♪♪

Maruki turned his attention to her completely, nodding to let her continue with her proposed question (something told him she would have told him anyway) as he leans in and hears her laugh again, over the music. The mention of her hearing that- "How many times?!" His lips parted in shock at the number. Three thousand five hundred? "How did you even keep count of that???"

Well shit two weeks of that straight..."-and here I thought I was going insane from the elevator music in my lab."

Edited 2025-04-14 23:31 (UTC)

"But-! I do see the appeal," he sways with the tune. "It's...heartful."

He grins as he looks at the lyrics on the board. "Then I may learn to love myself ~♪ A little more than before ~♪" His eyes practically shine like new hope blooming through.

Unbeknownst to what had occured earlier, he innocently follows up with. "Why aren't you singing the song then? Say- I can ask Hamuko-san to line that song for us in half an hour then-! Make use of the stage-"

"I asked EMMA," Ichinose said in a low voice, with a smile - hopefully it wasn't audible enough for Akane or Zenkichi. They probably could, or could read lips or something, ugh. Oh well!!

She snorted at the suggestion that she get up and sing instead.

"No, no, I think if I get any closer to Akane then Zenkichi will make a lunge for me. Besides, I'm tipsy enough I might trip over my sandals - I'm not used to walking in them or in a yukata."

Ah, so EMMA simply peers through all private aspects you do with your phone. He's not sure how he feels about that just yet...he isn't as thorough with technology and the advent of AI, while exciting hasn't caught up in the way Ichinose's work has.

Then again, it helps with decision-making, does it not? Without proper contexts like a person's behaviours, their tendency to gravitate towards topics that are especially relevant to them can make all the difference in making sure they prioritize their well-being and don't undergo the suffering they end up seeking by mistake.

"..! Huh- uh." A sound leaves his lips, awkward as he realizes that right the Hasegawas are very much present there. They purse in annoyance but...

He looks over his shoulder to inspect if Hasegawa-san is still watching them-

.
.
.

Edited 2025-04-15 10:51 (UTC)

Oh he's looking right at them-!

His shoulders hike up in instinct as he turns to look back at Ichinose. "He sure is fuming. And here I thought the party I invited him to would do him some favours."

He isn't dissuaded to pull back however. If it was just himself, he might have even conceded but he was the one who extended the invitation to Ichinose and he's also unbearably curious on how she would interact with others...he wants to help so sorry, Ichinose- he's already cooking up a plan.

With a neutral expression that doesn't betray away any important thought while he considers his line of action, he goes for the Kinchaku bag hooked over his shoulder and resting on his waist. "Well you're in luck-! I can alas, get a little too clumsy so I always carry around a spare for these occasions or for my friends. Not to mention the foot pain sometimes and the night is still young so I always tend to carry a hefty pair if me or anyone else needs it for comfort."

"That said."

He looks serious as he stretches open the bag and pulls out the sandals. "They might be too big for you but atleast they are flat."

"That doesn't really solve my Hasegawa problem, now does it?" Ichinose asked in amusement, watching Maruki pull out extra shoes. It was such a quirky, funny little thing - the same way he liked to have snacks handy, or blankets set aside, this man always seemed to have something for comfort.

"You want to hear my drunken crooning that bad?"

The Hasegawa Problem. Let's see...now he knows Zenkichi-san wouldn't actually try to actively ruin his need to celebrate. Maruki always suggested rests to his patients and it did come up with a lot of health benefits!

He rests his chin on the knuckles of his hand, brows raised like he was surprised by her question. "I mean why not? I liked hearing you sing."

"Then I'll sing for you at home~" Ichinose teased, setting the water bottle down to pick the sake back up and pour some more.

The girls on stage had moved on to a different song. Ah well! Fine by her. She wiggled the sake bottle.

"Want some? Or am I getting tipsy all by my lonesome?"

Maruki blushed at the teasing. Alas, this man didn't even seem to realize the weight of his own compliment as he pulled his legs to his chest, Yukata hanging off as his head dipped with a keen smile on his face. "Sure. I will hold you to it."

For him, huh? He pretended that those words didn't cut as deep as they should have or how Morning had said that he was touch-starved which felt less of a claim given how awkward he feels in moments such as these.

He's pulled out by his thoughts when he watches the sake bottle wiggle. His eyes widen, relaxing his legs on the picnic blanket as he nods- "Would be disappointing if it's the latter, wouldn't it?" With that, he goes for the rest of the choco piled next to the bottle and holds it out for her. "I need to find Morning too...see how he's doing but I can afford to be a little tipsy."

Hm. Looking aside for a moment, his left eye glows a faint gold. He feels Zenkichi Hasegawa's presence near them.

Maybe he could...

"Regression or not, Morning can handle himself just fine. He'll have fun with people his own age," Ichinose hummed, pouring the sake for Maruki so they could both partake.

"Kanpai~♪"

And Ichinose herself took a sizeable swig of it. She wasn't going to drink by herself in the Palace, so she might as well get her entertainment's worth here at a proper party!

"I am sure he could...I just don't want to make it seem like we have ditched him." He says but he knows Ichinose wouldn't understand. She doesn't know about the night when Morning passed out in the hallway, reaching for him. To have someone else he spoke to would ultimately be worrisome given his attachment.

Also simply remembering those grey eyes looking up at him from their hug was still prevalent.

"Kanpai~!!!" He answers to Ichinose's calling with enthusiasm and clinks their sake together.

With that, he takes an easy swig, unsure if he will just end up going overboard again. He supposes he can spoil himself a little bit here and while Ichinose recovers, he has his cup out for a second round for the other to pour into.

A hint of goal still followed through in his expression.

"...Are you having fun?"

"I am! Despite others' best efforts," Ichinose guffawed, completely relaxed now that Maruki was here and she was safe.

"Good food, good drink - and maybe I'll try the funny little paddle boats later!"

His palette takes in the warmth of the liquor as he hums, a sympathetic glance thrown her way as she mentions said best efforts.

The paddle boats..."I remember when I first came around these areas back in my world- my legs were completely sore for the rest of the night that followed. And that time I used to regularly cycle- so I could only imagine that I will have to propel Azathoth to carry me around by the end of it now."

He holds out his hand- gently asking for the sake bottle.

"Who are you planning to go with? If at all?"

"You, maybe pulling Morning along - say, did you come here for a date? Did you know there's a superstition that going on the swan boats will destroy your relationship? I learned that because my father insisted that he not go on one with my mother, and took me instead - isn't that funny?"

Ahh, it's been so long since she thought of that. Ichinose laughed, remembering it - fuzzy, vague, she can't fully remember her parents' expressions or details... but that argument was so clear.

"My father worked in an office, so I remember him huffing and puffing because I wasn't strong enough to paddle well at all - he couldn't carry me after we got back to shore, either. Hahaha!"

Maruki's brows cinched at the mention of how Ichinose caught that little detail. I did. There's a sad glimmer in his eyes as he looks down at the hints of sake still left in his cup and brings it up to drink the last of it. To make himself look occupied. I researched it and Rumi challenged me, saying we could break the curse.

....

"Oh, I could only imagine peddling your way around while also making sure you make it to the shore- my legs were dancing to their own tune and not in an appealing way-!" he chuckles.

"Your father seems like a very thorough man- I didn't even learn about it until my friend pointed it out to me."

Edited 2025-04-17 15:20 (UTC)

Uh oh, that was a pained look, wasn't it? He did have a breakup, huh. Funny.

"Thorough... maybe he was. My grandmother didn't really say," Ichinose shrugged, taking a long sip of her sake and enjoying the warmth of it blooming in her chest.

If her father had other relatives, maybe she'd know a little more? Hmm...

"I was too young to really have any ability to assess my parents' character."

Lost her parents that early, huh? That with the isolation she had mentioned earlier, Maruki's current hypothesis of her seemed to have held some weight after all.

"Given your fond memories they must have been very loving," he grins softly. A sincere innocence aimed at the idea of Ichinose's loving family- stolen away by fate. His mood sinks a little as he remembers their first conversation. "Never underestimate the memories and experiences you go through as a child. Even if the mind forgets...it remembers. The only way through is to move forward."

"My thoughts exactly. I remember those funny little moments. But I never really struggled with my school or hobbies after they were gone."

She just lost both of her parents, and even then... she doesn't cry... her expression doesn't even change.

She just sits there on her computer all day. It's like... it's like she's totally heartless.

Ichinose poured herself a bit more sake, taking a thoughtful sip of it.

"No point in ruminating. There's plenty out there in the world - more to do, more to learn, more to live."

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