The Silent Mountain Festival

A silent figure watched the festivities unwind. He stood hunched in the flickering shadows given off by the burning torches and lanterns. This festival meant so much to him, much more then most who knew or, claimed to know, would think. To most, Jack assumed, he came off as the kind of person who would spend this day locked away in a dark room watching rerun after rerun of some Sentai or kids show, blocking out the real world and all it's hurtful glares and judgments and normally they'd be right. Jack hated festivals, the large crowds and the happy conversations just.... rub him the wrong way for some reason. Maybe it was the fact that he knew people could tell he had no idea what to say or do, or maybe it was the fact that each and every person could be an evil intergalactic bounty hunter in disguise...  And that right there was why Jack knew he didn't quite "fit in" in large crowds like this... Paranoia. This would be the perfect time to strike... Large group of people... no one suspects anything... perfect target...

Which begged the question of why Jack was here... Well... This particular festival meant something to him... It was here that Jack met the man who would change his life. A man who instilled hope and heroism in him. He never caught his name or why he was there...

And thus Jack waited... For the man to arrive again, as he did every year. Just to thank him for the gift he had given.... but wile he waited for "The Man in White" as Jack called him... Perhaps he should actually enjoy the festivities.... What's the harm...

And so Jack marched off to get an elephant ear... cus they'er tasty... Wondering if he would finaly meet his hero again this year. Ether way... He would try to enjoy himself... without getting to paranoid...

It all started with the Woman with One Thousand Kids that owned the always busy grocery store two blocks down from the antique shop. She had woken up earlier than usual and had begun making quite the racket as her voice steadily rose as she began rattling orders off to her kids. Needless to say, it wasn’t long before she had woken up Oki’s unusual guest and drew Oki from the back side of the shop where the being had been hiding out ever since the unexpected arrival of the girl in black.

Oki knew the young lady’s name and understood that they were siblings; however, that did not change the fact that Oki was not pleased to see its older sibling. Was not pleased to be reminded of the black figure in its nightmare that took on her form. Oki had been nice enough to allow the young lady to stay in its home, but that did not mean it didn’t take any chance it could get to keep its distance away from the woman. Needless to say, Oki was stressed in a way that it had never been stressed before and so to try and elevate some of the pressure, Oki had taken to staying outside near the shrine while its sister remained inside.

The being had planned to stay outside, but as the Grocery Store Owner continued to make her racket, the old being found itself unintentionally drifting across its shop and to the door where Sky stood. Not bothered they were invading each other’s personal space at the moment, the curious pair watched as the lady lined up her oddly dressed children and then began to lead that line towards the train station.

“Where are they going?” Oki wondered out loud.

“To the Silent Mountain Festival held on Malstu Island,” Sky's voice responded back gently and too close for comfort. Ruffled from the closeness, Oki backed away from the door and the young woman who simply turned to him with a light smile and a sadness locked in her eyes that the being did not quite understand. “Perhaps you should go and get some fresh air. I’ll take care of the shop for you.”

A bit shocked at such words from the young lady who had been on her head to get Oki to spend time with her since she had arrived, the being took a moment to consider her words. What was she trying to pull?

The being studied the other’s blue eyes for answers, but found only sincerity there. Could…she really be concerned about Oki? The being stayed quiet for a while longer before it gave the first small smile to the young woman.

“Mmm. Perhaps you are right,” Oki responded back as it reached up with one hand to scratch its unruly black hair. And that was that.

With the shop taking care of and an excuse to escape the tension that surrounded the shop currently, Oki got its things and headed out.

Some time later, Oki would arrive at Malstu Island and find itself first looking around in awe at all the things around it before it was breaking down with child-like excitement and running all over the place. It visited booths and played a few games before it was completely distracted by the various choices of food around it. Moving from one food booth to the other, one would think Oki was a food eating champion as it bought this or that to try as it moved about enjoying the festival.

Oki was working on its umpteenth chicken on a stick as it wandered about in a light daze as it looked about. The being had eaten quite a bit and was beginning to slow down from all the food; however, as sleepy eyes looked around the area for more food, green orbs would land on a familiar form that was watching the fireworks above.

Shaking its head to knock away the food daze, Oki would drift over to the familiar taller man, hopping into the very edge of the personal space bubble as it looked up at pretty golden eyes.

“I see you again, Mr. Shaku. How nice,” the being said as it settled comfortably in its spot and fell silent to listen for a response if any were to come. As the being fell into its silent wait, it would glance around the festival as it held the chicken on the stick loosely in hand. So much to distract and yet Oki was patient enough to say hello to an acquaintance.

Pretty dancers and girls dressed up in dresses or kimonos this place was not good for Dani's health ,if a girl that pretty came up and talked to him he might die from embarrassment he was running his mothers stall which was  selling the masks she made of course one of his four sisters couldn't do and plus he wouldn't get much high school students since most of them were scared of him. A super beautiful dancer girl bought one his mask he was still blushing really bad from that a lot of guys his age bought most of his mask to try to impress the dancer ,it was actually quite funny how bad they were failing with her he only had about two masks left,"Only two Masks left before I close the stalls for the night la-ladies and gentlemen then I'll be closing the stall  for the night". Dani was happy and super embarrassed and since he made twice the money back then what they spent on the materials. "Okay that's it i'm locking up until we get restocked ladies and gentleman!". Dani locked up the stall and stood in front of it until his mother came and sisters came to watch the stall. He walked away and decided to do a game stall Dani decided it was time to show off his skills at games he decided do a ski ball stall, and he got all the balls into the highest scoring holes. He did it three times and got 3 big stuffed animals. "Hey what the hell am I supposed to do with three big stuffed animals this sucks does anybody want three big animal plushies I cant carry these things please!, man it's been quite a while I wasn't able to scrounge up any leads I don't have any friends I can trust either and most people my age are to scared of me damn this sucks Great plus I have to carry these things around and man I need to stop talking to myself". Dani then saw a student he saw on the streets a while back.  "Hey dude yeah you  want these thing please I want to enjoy the festival a little more before I go home tonight come on i'l pay you to take these off my hands" but the student Dani saw on the street just ran, so Dani sat on a bench looking depressed. Dani did a very over exaggerated sigh "Damn this sucks so freaking hard". Dani was about lug the animal plushies home until he saw some very interesting people on wich he saw before.

Normally Azami wasn't one for social events. They were... kind of not her thing. At all. She just really wasn't a people person -- let alone a crowd person. The girl preferred the quiet to the loud, calmness to excitement, etcetera. In that sense it would have made more sense for her to stay home while all the festivities were going on. Alas though, what made rational sense wasn't what always happened. She had to take into consideration the feelings of others in her households whom desired to partake in this event. It was blatantly clear that her grandmother wanted to come and thus Azami chose not to protest when she was dragged along alongside her. After all, she knew what kind of person Hisae was. If she had refused to come along it would have likely made her feel bad the entire festival -- thinking that her granddaughter was missing out on the experience. So Azami slipped her poker face on and made her way to Malstu.

After arriving they had agreed on a time and place to meet up, going their separate ways after that out of Azami's own request. She had dressed up her excuse as wanting to hang out with some friends but to be honest the girl had really just planned on laying low. Did she feel bad about lying to her grandmother? Maybe a bit. But it wasn't like she could change the past nor was she interested in the massive hordes of individuals around her. Perhaps if she ran across someone she actually knew she'd tolerate them but really she had no interest in discussing matters with complete strangers -- and they likely felt the same about meeting up with her. Everyone was here to hang out with friends or family after all. Why would they abandon them just to give some random kid the time of day?

After a while of sitting around and looking up at the fireworks things got boring. Sure, the stuff around her wasn't all that interesting and she wasn't even going to bother with the people but there had to be something better to do than sitting around. Eventually she came to the conclusion that, since she was stuck here in the first place, she might as well try to engage in some kind of activity. It was with that that Ms. Aihara would approach a shooting booth; tossing the man running it the required sum to play a round. Never having done this sort of task before, Azami suspected that she would be awful at it. Nonetheless though she would head on through the festival; making her way to the booth and hoping to at least entertain herself somewhat on this festival night.

Oki had given its greeting before becoming highly distracted by the events going on nearby; however, as the crowds moved forward and began to block its view, the being would eventually turn its eyes back to Sharaku just as the other had noticed it. Green eyes met golden ones as the taller individual spoke. To the other man’s words, Oki eyes would narrow with pleasure. It was glad the other had remembered it so well and just like last time seemed to be just as calm. While Oki had come here to explore rather than find someone it knew, the being was quite happy for the familiarity in the busy festival. It gave the being a sense of security for some reason, even if Oki and Sharaku did not know each other well.

In any case, Oki might’ve continued to speak to the familiar man; however, a female approached them and stopped that event from occurring. As green eyes turned to the girl, Oki would listen to the other speak before watching Sharaku’s response. Unlike Sharaku who easily took the girl’s hand, it took a second for Oki to mimic the action. It wasn’t rudeness or fear that caused this, but rather a split second debate to see if bowing was more appropriate in the situation.

The hesitation was so brief that unless one was in the business of counting time down to the last second, it would not be noticed as the being shook the girl’s hand with a smile on its face.

“Hey there! My name is Oki. A pleasure to meet you,” Oki would respond to the girl after Sharaku had finished. To her question, the being would tilt its head slightly to the left.

“There are many things to do, so I will more than likely simply drift to whatever catches my interest. How about you?” Oki asked keeping the chat friendly and open to both. When the subject came to the subject of costumes, Oki blinked once as it thought how to respond to this. This was the second time someone had called its outfit a costume. Did it really stick out that much? Or was Oki simply not understanding what was normal dress wear anymore?

Whatever the case was, the old being was not offended as it shook its head lightly with an amused chuckle.

“Thank you. You look very nice too,” Oki said not bothering to correct her about the outfit being a costume or not. People were free to think as they pleased and Oki wouldn’t bother correcting something unless it was crucial. Life was just more amusing that way.

Oki was quiet as it watched the girl’s reactions to the words spoken. She seemed to like Sharaku or hinted at such a thing as she gave him a wink that the other seemingly caught. Whether that amused raise of the eyebrow from the older male was due to getting the message sent or something else was beyond Oki as green eyes saw the girl rubbing her face to hide what appeared to be a hint of red that came to her face. Heh. She was kind of like Hyde in that regard. While Oki still didn’t get why people became so embarrassed or fluster about stating or showing exactly how they felt, the being didn’t say anything about what it observed. It simply remained relaxed as it turned its eyes back to the chicken it had yet to finish.

Deciding to get rid of the food, Oki would quietly eat the chicken as it listened to the girl’s words of thanks and watched her actions as she twirled her hair with one hand and then pulled a lollipop out and began to eat it. As she did this, she spoke about the festival and why it was such a big deal. In response to her words Sharaku had made a comment that got a light snort of amusement from Oki as it finished its food.

“Too warm indeed. I think it’s quite impressive and fortunate that the volcano has stayed so quiet. Let’s hope it stays that way for many more years,” Oki said with a light smile as it looked back at the stick for a moment to see if it had missed any food. When it found it clean, it would move over to a nearby trashcan to get rid of the item. As the being returned to the group, it heard the girl apologizing about the mistake she had made about calling their clothing costumes.

All Oki could do was nod lightly as Sharaku pretty much took the words right out of its mouth.

“Mhmm. You are quite fine,” the being would say as gave her smile that showed no harm was done by her words as it took the compliment easily enough. When she mentioned not seeing them before, the being tilted its head lightly at what it heard from both parties.

“Mmm. New faces are all around at these sort of events, so it is always nice to meet a face that is easy to remember and friendly to boot,” Oki said in casual tones as it listened to the crunch of the candy under the girl’s teeth.

Oki had tossed its stick in the trash and returned to the conversation listening despite the occasional distractions that drew its eyes here or there as it stayed near Sharaku and their new companion. When the girl began to speak of work, Oki couldn’t help, but nod in agreement there. Work, while pleasant for it, was no good when it was constant with no rest. Even Oki had to walk away from its work to keep its sanity….even if this time around it was to get space between itself and another back home.

Despite that little thought, the being would remain more or less quiet until the issue of meeting others and ties came up. As it listened to Sharaku’s words, the being’s friendly smile never faded as it looked at Maya.

“You and I are in the same boat, so can understand why you’d seek out new faces, especially at events such as this. Makes it easier than trying to get to know someone from behind a counter,” the being responded easily enough as gave a light chuckle before it tilted its head at the tie issue. It heard Sharaku’s response and shook its head lightly.

“Considering, I hardly ever lack accessories,” Oki began gesturing to its own outfit and even the small stud earrings its hair hid. “Ties are something, I simply cannot handle. They take to much time to work with and certainly do not match my style,” Oki said as it made a light face of distaste for the tie before it was coming back to being friendly once more. It took notice of the green lollipop the girl had now and wondered just how many she had on her; however, not being rude the being would instead focus on her questions as it scratched its head in thought.

“Eh. Just wandering without a plan to be honest. I had just planned on drifting to wherever the wind took me until I was distracted a bit from that path. As for what I do normally do outside of work, studying is really the only hobby I have outside of occasional walks,” the being admitted with a light shrug. “Not fun to most, but it works for me.”

The words were a small truth, but not the full thing, but then again, sharing its life with someone it just met was a no go in the being’s book. It would have to get a bit more comfortable to go any further than the general with Maya.

“What about you? What do you do in your spare time and what would you choose to do here?” Oki asked casually enough as its eyes lingered on the girl for a moment before drifting to some performers nearby. Hmmm…so much to do, but without direction who knew where one would end up?