I can imagine as much. I've heard of that sort of thing happening a lot more over the past few decades, too-- of gods disappearing as the memories and rituals tying them here die out.
I don't know the term "far shore," but I can guess. As opposed to the human world, right?
it's definitely a problem, one I'm not sure how to address without some major campaigning on my part. I've tried a door-to-door approach, but that only gets you so far
that's right. where I'm from we consider the spiritual world the "Far Shore" and the mortal realm the "Near Shore."
Haha, have you really? I can't imagine that would be very successful. Can normal humans even perceive you well enough that you can interact with them consistently?
["Consistently" because there are always those small exceptions-- moments where everything lines up properly and a spirit becomes visible to a normal human. The right angle during a rainstorm, a dark path at 3 am, a chance encounter when two hearts are aligned on the right frequency. He's seen gods powerful enough to live among school children, but they're the exception by far.]
I see! That's straightforward. Certainly a more convenient term than "the human world" and trying to summarize an ayakashi realm.
therein lies the problem. I have to put a lot of effort into being noticeable, and even then, I'm quickly forgotten
[Which is why even with all his efforts, he still only has a single consistent follower. One lone human who cares deeply for him enough that she has only briefly forgotten him herself. ...but she still had. Only thanks to his servant Yukine did she remember, too.]
exactly! it helps people understand things a bit easier, I find, when I explain that the Far Shore exists in people's blind spots. just out of sight, like living in the corner of someone's eye
[He says "one sec," but there's a suspiciously long time before his reply-- closer to half an hour. When it does come, though, it's a much more posed and stylized picture than Yato was probably expecting, more like a magazine ad than a selfie (aside from the fairly subpar lighting). Natori's hair and makeup look professionally done, his shirt and tie artfully mussed, and all with the energy of familiarity. Also: he is really hot. Like, it's clear why he was cast in romance movies back home.
There's also a lizard-shaped shadow splayed across his face like a strangely placed tattoo. Normally Natori wouldn't address it up front, but:]
Before you ask, the lizard is an ayakashi. It doesn't seem to do anything besides move around my body, so don't worry about it.
[His curiosity becomes almost overwhelming during the wait, but Yato doesn't press the issue, instead being patient for once in his life. He certainly wasn't thinking that Natori would go to such lengths for the game, yet he can't help being appreciative of the effort all the same. The guy does look good, there's no getting around that fact. Even someone who is as generally uninterested in sex and sexuality as him is affected by the sight before him. Feeling his cheeks heat up, he initially plans on commenting on the other man's appeal, but--
That comment stops him cold. An ayakashi?? In his world, it's rare for ayakashi to latch onto humans to such a degree as to be almost parasitic. He can't help asking:]
How long has it been with you? It's never caused you any problems?
I can't remember a time when it wasn't there. I definitely had it by the time I was 3 or 4, so. There's no real way to know.
[And he obsessed over it for years-- what it meant, whether it was draining his life force, how to get rid of it. It's ultimately what sent him digging through the family storehouse for his ancestors' exorcist techniques, and yet... He's never encountered anyone who's seen something like it, and no one could exorcise it. So he simply had to stop wondering. But still: he's talking to a god. There's a chance that he might know something, or... well, it's worth being forthright.]
Not that I know of. It's never gone on my left leg. That's the only behavior I've really noticed. It'll go everywhere else. But honestly, even that could have just been leading up to this place: maybe it was just avoiding that leg because it knew something else would turn up there eventually.
["Something else" being his suit mark, which of course took up residence on his left leg. He assumed it was just another dig until just now.]
interesting... it's possible it's a symbiotic variety of ayakashi, one that needs a human to survive in this world. but so long as it hasn't caused you any harm by now, I think it's safe to say that it likely won't in the future
[In case he was worried about it. If the thing is draining his lifeforce, it's likely by such a small amount that it's no worse than a tapeworm or other similar creature. Although a hell of a lot more pleasant, that's for sure. Still, he can't imagine that it's a nice thing to have, knowing you've got something living on or in you. Yato himself finds it hard enough simply being bound to his shinki.]
very strange that it avoids the one leg. I would've imagined it would roam everywhere simply by virtue of being part of you. good guess on it have a premonition or sense for there eventually being something else there - ayakashi do have a slight ability to note magical artifacts and traces. it may have sensed the potential intrusion and steered clear for that reason
[Yato figures it to be the same mark they've all be graced with; his own had shown up on his neck.]
[He's told himself something along those lines for years. He grew up waiting for the other shoe to drop, and yet it kept not dropping. Granted, he also drew blank after blank when trying to investigate it, but with no progress either positive or negative, he had to tell himself that most likely, it wasn't actively draining his life force, or causing bad luck (any more than that brought on naturally for anyone who could see ayakashi, that is), or grow in size until it took up his entire body. It was that or let it drive him crazy, so he just accepted that it was probably harmless and moved on.
It's still different reading it from someone else-- not any random exorcist making their best guess at something completely unfamiliar, but a god who's beefing with Bishamon. Yato's an authoritative enough source that he can maybe trust his opinion. He feels a moment of-- relief, like Yato's guess lifts a small weight that he was still carrying around despite all the years of thinking he'd set it down.]
I have to say, I prefer that theory to the one that I'll lose my leg in the future! [Which was the going guess back home.] Though it would have been nice if it could have given me a heads up about ending up here, haha. (I'm kidding; it doesn't communicate at all.)
[But it's dangerous to be this emotionally vulnerable in a place like this, so he quickly tries to tamp down on his relief before it opens up a crack for the resort to take hold.]
But aside from that! How did I do? I'm sorry, I wasn't able to find a proper studio light, so it's not up to the usual quality of my photo shoots! ✨
[It's an unusual circumstance to be sure, one that even Yato himself for all his long years hasn't quite heard of. He wishes he could give more advice or comfort, but ayakashi possession tends to be a negative thing, while this case... doesn't seem to be in line with that at all. If an exorcist doesn't know anything about it, the only other option would be a more worldly god than him.
But he has been around enough to have heard plenty of stories and cases of supernatural happenings. Though they're not in the same vicinity right now, he gets the sensation that the lizard is generally harmless. It doesn't fill him with foreboding or unease like most ayakashi.]
hah, yeah I bet! that would not be a pleasant idea to have weighing on your mind. hehe... ayakashi are self-serving, so maybe it simply felt like going with the flow. or maybe it wanted a vacation itself! lol
[Clearly he's kidding on that front. But if his words offer any reassurances at all, he'll be glad.]
oh, don't worry about the lighting! you did just fine. I'm glad to have learned more about you~☆ I wanna make friends while I'm here, since it seems like this will be home for a while yet
[What Yato's saying is a relief, but Natori can't risk acknowledging it. Bad enough to have experienced such a strong and vulnerable emotion in a situation like this; he doesn't need to be drawing attention to it, lingering on it. So the way Natori shows his appreciation in this moment is: dropping the subject matter entirely.]
Haha, me too! [glad to have learned more about Yato, that is. And if he's glad for other things, that's something they can just breeze past.] I wish I could say I disagreed with you, but it does seem like we're going to be here for a while, huh? So for now, I'm in your care ✨
[yoroshiku, etc. He's not optimistic about their chances of resolving this place quickly; if the head of the Matoba clan has been here for nearly 18 months (subjective, anyway, but that's what matters from the problem-solving side) without much progress in resolving this, Natori isn't naive enough to think that he'd suddenly crack the case wide open.]
What would you like me to call you?
[which is not the same question as "what is your name," even if it's filling the same role for practical purposes. Natori would never want to give the impression that he'd be the sort of guy who would ask a god for his true name!!]
[It's a sentiment Yato understands well; there are things he never wishes to discuss, either, and pointedly avoids them at all cost. So he doesn't take offense to the subject change.]
Hehe in that case I look forward to guiding you during our stay~☆
[The politeness always makes him buoyant at having potentially made a friend here, as it's looking like they'll need to have strong bonds to get through their stay, seeing as how it's not a short trip... Doesn't mean Yato isn't going to try his damnedest to break free, though!]
You can call me Yatogami-sama~! Or just Yato is fine, hehe. I'm not big on the formalities unless you want to be really polite.
[It's a subtle difference but one that Yato appreciates all the same. Because unknown to all but his closest friends, he does have a true name that he keeps hidden away. For personal reasons.]
Well, if we're going to be friends, I'll go with Yato! Barring special circumstances. This doesn't seem like the sort of place to stand on formalities. As I said before, I'm Natori.
[True names are a big deal in The Hit Series About Ayakashi Contracts™! And Natori in particular has reason to be wary about the implications of trying getting a god to commit his name to writing, even if he's not sure how this strange digital form would apply.
In any case, it looks like Chirpy is satisfied enough with their participation to let them go, so.]
I'll look out for you around the resort ✨ You can recognize me from my dazzling face and/or the ayakashi!
Sounds good to me, Natori~! It'd definitely be weird to use too much formality, unless it's a kink thing you're into~
[He's teasing, of course. Kind of like how he'd probably joke about giving his true name, but he'd have to kill you after. It'd be the sort of jest that'd make you wonder how serious he actually is. Because digital or not, his name isn't something he wants anyone privvy to.]
Same here! I'm not so easily recognizable, but my dazzling blue eyes and luscious dark hair are a start~☆
Oh, don't worry. I'm typecasted as the stunningly handsome boy next door! Even in period dramas I'm not cast as a nobleman, but rather an everyday person (who is extremely handsome) who makes his way through the world like everyone else. Formality isn't my style!
[As if his character roles have anything to do with kink stuff in his personal life?? But it's much easier to keep joking about it instead of having to acknowledge the reality they're currently in.]
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paperpusher) wrote2025-06-08 09:26 am
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I don't know the term "far shore," but I can guess. As opposed to the human world, right?
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that's right. where I'm from we consider the spiritual world the "Far Shore" and the mortal realm the "Near Shore."
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["Consistently" because there are always those small exceptions-- moments where everything lines up properly and a spirit becomes visible to a normal human. The right angle during a rainstorm, a dark path at 3 am, a chance encounter when two hearts are aligned on the right frequency. He's seen gods powerful enough to live among school children, but they're the exception by far.]
I see! That's straightforward. Certainly a more convenient term than "the human world" and trying to summarize an ayakashi realm.
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[Which is why even with all his efforts, he still only has a single consistent follower. One lone human who cares deeply for him enough that she has only briefly forgotten him herself. ...but she still had. Only thanks to his servant Yukine did she remember, too.]
exactly! it helps people understand things a bit easier, I find, when I explain that the Far Shore exists in people's blind spots. just out of sight, like living in the corner of someone's eye
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Well, anyway... Whose turn was it? I think I'm up, so... I'll go with a dare this time.
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alright then! let's see... I dare you to... send me a sexy selfie, just for fun, hehe~
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[He says "one sec," but there's a suspiciously long time before his reply-- closer to half an hour. When it does come, though, it's a much more posed and stylized picture than Yato was probably expecting, more like a magazine ad than a selfie (aside from the fairly subpar lighting). Natori's hair and makeup look professionally done, his shirt and tie artfully mussed, and all with the energy of familiarity. Also: he is really hot. Like, it's clear why he was cast in romance movies back home.
There's also a lizard-shaped shadow splayed across his face like a strangely placed tattoo. Normally Natori wouldn't address it up front, but:]
Before you ask, the lizard is an ayakashi. It doesn't seem to do anything besides move around my body, so don't worry about it.
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[His curiosity becomes almost overwhelming during the wait, but Yato doesn't press the issue, instead being patient for once in his life. He certainly wasn't thinking that Natori would go to such lengths for the game, yet he can't help being appreciative of the effort all the same. The guy does look good, there's no getting around that fact. Even someone who is as generally uninterested in sex and sexuality as him is affected by the sight before him. Feeling his cheeks heat up, he initially plans on commenting on the other man's appeal, but--
That comment stops him cold. An ayakashi?? In his world, it's rare for ayakashi to latch onto humans to such a degree as to be almost parasitic. He can't help asking:]
How long has it been with you? It's never caused you any problems?
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[And he obsessed over it for years-- what it meant, whether it was draining his life force, how to get rid of it. It's ultimately what sent him digging through the family storehouse for his ancestors' exorcist techniques, and yet... He's never encountered anyone who's seen something like it, and no one could exorcise it. So he simply had to stop wondering. But still: he's talking to a god. There's a chance that he might know something, or... well, it's worth being forthright.]
Not that I know of. It's never gone on my left leg. That's the only behavior I've really noticed. It'll go everywhere else. But honestly, even that could have just been leading up to this place: maybe it was just avoiding that leg because it knew something else would turn up there eventually.
["Something else" being his suit mark, which of course took up residence on his left leg. He assumed it was just another dig until just now.]
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[In case he was worried about it. If the thing is draining his lifeforce, it's likely by such a small amount that it's no worse than a tapeworm or other similar creature. Although a hell of a lot more pleasant, that's for sure. Still, he can't imagine that it's a nice thing to have, knowing you've got something living on or in you. Yato himself finds it hard enough simply being bound to his shinki.]
very strange that it avoids the one leg. I would've imagined it would roam everywhere simply by virtue of being part of you. good guess on it have a premonition or sense for there eventually being something else there - ayakashi do have a slight ability to note magical artifacts and traces. it may have sensed the potential intrusion and steered clear for that reason
[Yato figures it to be the same mark they've all be graced with; his own had shown up on his neck.]
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It's still different reading it from someone else-- not any random exorcist making their best guess at something completely unfamiliar, but a god who's beefing with Bishamon. Yato's an authoritative enough source that he can maybe trust his opinion. He feels a moment of-- relief, like Yato's guess lifts a small weight that he was still carrying around despite all the years of thinking he'd set it down.]
I have to say, I prefer that theory to the one that I'll lose my leg in the future! [Which was the going guess back home.] Though it would have been nice if it could have given me a heads up about ending up here, haha. (I'm kidding; it doesn't communicate at all.)
[But it's dangerous to be this emotionally vulnerable in a place like this, so he quickly tries to tamp down on his relief before it opens up a crack for the resort to take hold.]
But aside from that! How did I do? I'm sorry, I wasn't able to find a proper studio light, so it's not up to the usual quality of my photo shoots! ✨
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But he has been around enough to have heard plenty of stories and cases of supernatural happenings. Though they're not in the same vicinity right now, he gets the sensation that the lizard is generally harmless. It doesn't fill him with foreboding or unease like most ayakashi.]
hah, yeah I bet! that would not be a pleasant idea to have weighing on your mind. hehe... ayakashi are self-serving, so maybe it simply felt like going with the flow. or maybe it wanted a vacation itself! lol
[Clearly he's kidding on that front. But if his words offer any reassurances at all, he'll be glad.]
oh, don't worry about the lighting! you did just fine. I'm glad to have learned more about you~☆ I wanna make friends while I'm here, since it seems like this will be home for a while yet
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Haha, me too! [glad to have learned more about Yato, that is. And if he's glad for other things, that's something they can just breeze past.] I wish I could say I disagreed with you, but it does seem like we're going to be here for a while, huh? So for now, I'm in your care ✨
[yoroshiku, etc. He's not optimistic about their chances of resolving this place quickly; if the head of the Matoba clan has been here for nearly 18 months (subjective, anyway, but that's what matters from the problem-solving side) without much progress in resolving this, Natori isn't naive enough to think that he'd suddenly crack the case wide open.]
What would you like me to call you?
[which is not the same question as "what is your name," even if it's filling the same role for practical purposes. Natori would never want to give the impression that he'd be the sort of guy who would ask a god for his true name!!]
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Hehe in that case I look forward to guiding you during our stay~☆
[The politeness always makes him buoyant at having potentially made a friend here, as it's looking like they'll need to have strong bonds to get through their stay, seeing as how it's not a short trip... Doesn't mean Yato isn't going to try his damnedest to break free, though!]
You can call me Yatogami-sama~! Or just Yato is fine, hehe. I'm not big on the formalities unless you want to be really polite.
[It's a subtle difference but one that Yato appreciates all the same. Because unknown to all but his closest friends, he does have a true name that he keeps hidden away. For personal reasons.]
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[True names are a big deal in The Hit Series About Ayakashi Contracts™! And Natori in particular has reason to be wary about the implications of trying getting a god to commit his name to writing, even if he's not sure how this strange digital form would apply.
In any case, it looks like Chirpy is satisfied enough with their participation to let them go, so.]
I'll look out for you around the resort ✨ You can recognize me from my dazzling face and/or the ayakashi!
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[He's teasing, of course. Kind of like how he'd probably joke about giving his true name, but he'd have to kill you after. It'd be the sort of jest that'd make you wonder how serious he actually is. Because digital or not, his name isn't something he wants anyone privvy to.]
Same here! I'm not so easily recognizable, but my dazzling blue eyes and luscious dark hair are a start~☆
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[As if his character roles have anything to do with kink stuff in his personal life?? But it's much easier to keep joking about it instead of having to acknowledge the reality they're currently in.]
I'll keep an eye out ✨