Long black hair that flowed long and straight, sharp yet soft features that would bide well with aristocrats. Just from her appearance alone, it could be said that she perfectly suited what one would call a 'Japanese Beauty', or rather, her image would not be out of place if she was the daughter of the Japanese emperor.
In sharp contrast to her looks, her demeanor and mannerisms is downright terrible. It wouldn't be justifiable to refer to it as 'tomboy' as she leans closer to 'sloppy'. Even a person who does not care for aesthetics would clearly find her as a careless and lackadaisical person.
A shame is it that her otherwise flawless looks are also mired with injuries. Large bruises and small cuts so numerous that not even her bandages could completely cover them all even as someone as covered as she is.
I do not know the story behind the blemishes that riddled her form or the reasons as to why she kept them covered and not healed through means that are no doubt available to someone of her standing, such questions can be answered in due time.
What baffles me at the current moment is the dissonance between her image and my perceived conduct, to what is transpired in reality before my eyes. The truth of the matter was as subtle as a raging bull in a china shop and there is little need for thought on who is largely responsible for the state of shamelessness that plagued the majority of the older believers.
I retract my earlier statement.
This person isn't sloppy, she's a downright slob! Even a pigsty isn't as disgusting as this!
Wrappers, plastic bottles, styrofoam containers, rotting food scraps, decaying wood, rusting metal- piles upon piles of trash littered the floor that some part reached the height of my waist. I resisted the urge to gag at the rancid scent alone as my feet hovered inches about the mystery liquid soaking the ground.
How Fujiwara was able to calmly wade through... Everything... Is beyond me.
She continued leading me away from the room no different from a trash heap --thank the gods-- and into a large decorated door, one that looks like it tried hard to be authoritative and came out as demanding.
The door opened- not for us, but rather, for another pair of believers that were carrying out a trash bag and a body. Dead or inebriated, I wasn't too sure which as they weren't humanoid enough for me to take an educated guess.
The pair sidestepped, making way for me and the Kami to enter as we passed by them. I turned a glance back to see the two casually toss out both body and trash in equal measure of apathy.
A common occurrence here, then.
My attention back to the front and was immediately assaulted by the glaring pink lights. The luminance did not come from neon or fixtures, it came from fires. A torch here, a brazier there- flames fed with other materials as fuel or magic for sustenance to keep the colour.
No loud music threatening to rupture mine own ears, much to my suprise. Instead, scandalous sounds reverberated across the enclosed space, dampened only by distance and not by walls. Those voices coming from the other believers so deeply into their own world that they failed to notice their very Kami pass by them.
Only a handful of the faithful --likely her most trusted-- scrambled to deign in basic courtesy towards their god.
Pungent scent of liquor stains the air so thick enough to drive the mundanes drunk. Scattered haphazardly are pills and tablets of unknown make as a few partook in the ecstasy they beheld along alcohol, uncaring of the barest sliver of foresight.
Fujiwara lead me to a more private room, one enchanted to bar out the volumes of revelry happening outside.
The room was quaint, simple and reeked of disinfectant. A meeting room that was hurriedly prepared beforehand. I rejected her offer to take a seat on one of the pillows on the floor and choose to sit on thin air- in fact, I'd prefer to remain on floating for the duration of my entire visit here.
'Now then, should I poke and prod or should I just get to the point?.' My thoughts drift through the rooms we passed. 'Straight to the point it is!'
"So, why exactly have you brought me here?"
"Consider it my way of showing appreciation." Fujiwara laid relaxed on her side by the floor, her head propped up by her hand. "If you're up for it, I can have a few women entertain you- even men if you'd prefer that."
"I decline." 'I'm already taken.' was left unsaid. "Either or, not everyone is into that sort of thing."
"I figured as much." She smirked. "You were the first to willingly do the actual work. Someone as straightlaced as that would have rejected my offer so I didn't bother actually preparing anything."
"The first? What, did you all just say twindling your thumbs?"
"HA! No." She said flatly. "But you're right to assume we don't. Us Kami prefer to do our own thing according to our natures, that much is certain. It's undeniable that a conflict of interest would align when it comes to doing something we don't want to do."
"So you push your work on the new guy? How many other Kami are there?"
"How many do you know?"
"You, me, that guy in the cloak, Ishimaru... And I'm guessing there are more?"
"Just two more." She said. It's good to know that kind of information. It was less than I feared and more than I hoped. "And we don't push the work on the new guy. We decide via a lottery." I gave her a deadpan. "Alright so we do push the work unto the new guy. Don't be so harsh about it. t's only a few decades at most, no need for any animosity."
"Oh sure, cause you all have such important matters that just couldn't put aside for even a moment." I exaggerated an eye roll.
"Exactly." She nodded.
Fujiwara was much more shameless than I thought. I should push a bit more. "Oh? Like what?"
"I manage my own people, obviously." She yawned for a second. "The others have their own businesses to handle. What they are, well, I don't particularly care for what they do for themselves so long as they don't go for me and mine."
"Me thinks that you folk are procrastinators." So that's another deadend for info? Ugh.
"Hn." Fujiwara then laid sprawling across the floor from me, eyes fluttering from drowsiness. "More importantly, how do you feel?"
"A bit of disbelief, a bit of betrayal, Why'd you ask?"
"Not that-" The Kami audibly yawned, longer this time. "I meant how do you feel, Not in an emotional sense."
Hm? What is she- what?!
"So you've finally noticed." She said sluggishly. "I did mention a gift of appreciation. And since you don't seem like the type for sex, this is the next boon I could offer; Vitality."
The door abruptly opened and entered a boy slightly older-looking than me and his age seemed to be evident as he wore some school's uniform. None of us spoke a word as the boy calmly settled a bottle of tea before me and another beverage for the Kami.
Fujiwara appears to be the boys main focus of attention as he opened a sport's drink and lodged an elongated curved straw that settled on the Kami's lips. She drew a long sip and released a content sigh which the boy took a some sort of signal to quietly vacate himself of the room.
"Who-"
"My boytoy. Don't worry about." She replied quickly. "Nevermind that, how do you feel?"
A weak point? Guess she isn't as heartless as I assumed. "Hm, I feel.... Energetic?... Also, I feel somewhat warm and motivated."
"Is that so? Good." She hummed. "That means that the array setup was done right."
"Being automatically given something I don't understand induces unease within me." I clarified with a frown at the half-cognizant Kami. "Elaborate."
"Nothing serious." She drowsily chuckled. "Just the lifeforce of someone who couldn't pay their debt." She yawned loudly. "Do be on you're way. As you can see, I need my sleep." She half-heartedly waved a hand. "You know where the door is."
I wanted to ask more questions to my temporary colleague but my subsequent inquiries were left ignored. She wasn't asleep as of yet, but she paid no mind to my words.
Somewhat frustrated, I stood from my seat --Still hovering a few inches above the air-- and left for the door.
It was only then that she said one final piece: "Be careful of the folly of youth." She said before loud snores came from her vocal chords.
Her parting words made me pause a foot from the door but I understood when my presence was no longer welcome. It was time to make myself scarce.
Well, at the very least, I managed to get another nugget of information today so it still counts as progress.
...although, why does it feel like I'm forgetting something?
~~~
Earlier, Tatsu would have thanked the gods for letting him escape the rampage with his life intact, however, because it was the Kami themselves that was the source of the problem, he held his tongue and thanked his own luck instead.
Truly, what a close call it was to be put in that situation as it was both a boon and a loss.
A boom because the half-blood saw things that he most likely shouldn't have seen which meant he now has a direction to investigate towards. And it was also a loss because the half-blood, or at least his car form, has now been seen by the other Kami.
He wanted to stay and unknown for longer but things changed too fast for him to keep up with at the time. Regardless of whether or not they would act, it is now undeniable that he has to be more mindful of when 'Tatsu' disappears and when the 'cat' appears.
He made the mistake of being careless once, and it cost him the back of his hide- literally.
For now however, he suppose that he could take the rest of the night off to let his stomach settle. The Kami that carried him and the Kami that attacked were going too fast for the poor cat's stomach to withstand.