video; un: sangria

[breweries]

[ the video opens with a smiling shylock sitting cross-legged on a plush couch in what appears to be a dimly-lit bar. the way he holds himself and the pipe that he puts between his lips for a drag is almost reminiscent of tenkohime, but that's just the tamamo way, babey.

also for people with sharp eyes, there's a little haniwa shrouded in a white tablecloth peeking out from the corner of a screen, with a little shotglass full of wine beside it? huh. must be thorsty. ]

Greetings. I trust that everyone is doing well today? [ aside from the haniwa invasion, but he'll get to that in a bit. ] First of all, let me introduce myself. My name is Shylock Bennett, a wizard from the West, and I would just like to announce that my bar, Hemlock, shall be opening its doors to the public very soon.

[ the camera then pans around, showing off the ornately-designed main bar. ah, another haniwa near the doorstep for those with sharp eyes. shylock will give it something to drink later. ]

My bar shall be serving not only the standard high-quality fair that all Tamamo establishments are well-known for, but I'll also be showcasing some of my more magical creations in the near future. Please do look forward to it. It'll be an experience you won't forget -- or in some cases, you'd rather like to forget. I can provide a drink just for that as well.

[ he pauses here to take a long drag from his pipe, the smoke creating all sorts of hazy lines in the air. ]

I must mention, however, that my establishment has a no-tolerance policy towards technology. I'm afraid that you'll have to turn off your phones upon coming into Hemlock, as you are encouraged to talk to the people around you. You must understand.

[ even though he's been doing so well with this video call? yes, absolutely. it's a pain for someone who doesn't like tech in general, you know? but alas, he has to "get with the times", as they say.

he blinks at the nearby haniwa as if he noticed it just now, and smiles. ]

Oh, and in case anyone is concerned, I know about the debilitating effects the haniwa has on people. Luckily, my specialty magic can help neutralize its effects, so if you know someone who is currently suffering from endless nightmares and hallucinations, bring them to me. I'll do my best to smoke them out of their system.

It's such a shame that they're so cursed. Aren't they just adorable?

[ fufu. with one last chuckle and a wave of his pipe, the video then shuts itself off. ]


( ooc: bar prompts over here! no opening parties or whatever -- he wants to make it appear like it's been around for a while. )

Comments

text; un: tengennohana

[ryototsukai]

fighting the urge to get myself into debt all over again with those drinks.

[ Shut up, Musashi, you just got promoted. Speaking of... ]

and no kidding, right? you can treat the curses from the haniwa figurines?

[breweries]

One drink wouldn't hurt.

[ he can be such an enabler... ]

I can't entirely treat the curses but rather make them more... tolerable, I would say. You see, I can manipulate dreams and nightmares with my pipe, and it seems to have an effect on the affected ones. Though they have to be exposed to my magic for a long amount of time before it kicks it.

Would you like to try?

[ryototsukai]

i've been extra careful, myself, but i'm still relieved to know there's someone i can trust to bring in bad cases if i come across them. especially someone within the clan.

[breweries]

Now that makes me wonder if other clans would have their own respective solution. Of course, the only thing we can do now is deliver them all to the Department, but where exactly will they be storing them? Not to mention how unimaginably cursed the Kaigo no Bou will become over time.

[ryototsukai]

the boss lady mostly just wants them out of any Tamamo buildings. i don't get the impression she trusts the Enma to actually take care of the problem.

[ And honestly, neither did Musashi. ]

[breweries]

Oh, those poor Enma people. It's an unenviable job, I won't deny that. I'm positive that they were just as disgruntled about it.

If you don't mind me asking, Musashi, what do the haniwa symbolize?

[ryototsukai]

well it's

hard to say. more is known about them in modern times than there was back in the early Edo peirod, where i'm originally from.

but the basic gist is they're funerary objects and effigies used in rituals where sacrifices might have been done prior. they were often found as boundary markers on burial mounds.

oh god i just realized that she's a servant, just forget i put in her true name orz

[breweries]

Funerary objects...

Do you think it has something to do with the Daitengu supposed death?

no worries, she's been giving her name out like an idiot

[ryototsukai]

if they were only showing up in Sutoku Alliance territory, i'd think so, but they seem to just be everywhere.

kind of like someone treating the whole city as a graveyard.

Text; un: bbhood

[appleforyou]

…Can your magic really do that? Neutralize the effects.

[breweries]

It can do only that -- neutralize. I cannot prevent the nightmares and hallucinations from happening while the haniwa are still aorund. But it's better than nothing, wouldn't you say?

[appleforyou]

Yeah. Hey you aren’t some monster or youkai or whatever, are you?

[This was very important if this conversation was to go on any further.]

[breweries]

I have been called an ayakashi by certain exorcists, but I figured that it's their term for anyone nonhuman.

And they're right for the most part. I am a wizard of the West.

[appleforyou]

[Ah. Like that weirdo Matoba, huh?]

So you're not a human, you're a wizard?
Haa? Since when is 'wizard' a race? What kind of weird world are you from?!

[breweries]

[ yes, it's that weirdo matoba. and his silly not-boyfriend too. ]

The world where humans and wizards coexist. Or at least try to.

[appleforyou]

Hmm. So you're on good terms with humans? Don't try any funny stuff?

[breweries]

It varies in each country. In the West, we do love playing pranks with them, though they're rarely if ever ill-intentioned. But the jokes often fly over the humans' heads...

[ also the humans in the west are also kinda coconuts so their relationship has been a weird push and pull. ]

text; un: didnot.

[bratherine]

how's turning off phones help

( she's just saying. if she wants to avoid talking to people, she'd just drink more. ... which, now Kate thinks about it, is probably the point of this. )

[breweries]

It helps you bond with other people, of course. Wouldn't you consider it rude if somewhere were to bury their face onto their phone screens the entire time?

[ he's a boomer and he's well aware of it. maybe. ]

[bratherine]

can't make people talk
they'll do smth else if they don't want to

( she's just saying. )

[breweries]

Regardless, there are other bars that allow modern technology. They can simply congregate there instead of breaking the simplest of rules in my own establishment.

[bratherine]

( This is such a stupid point to argue about but she's here now so... )

what if they all go there & you have to close then

[breweries]

Do you think it's possible?

[bratherine]

¯\_(ツ)_/¯ maybe
lots of people think it's boomer shit

( that's because you were born in 2000, Kitkat.

but she has to change the subject briefly )

you're the guy Musashi said was good at making cocktails, right?

[breweries]

Boomer...

[ he's going to think about that term for a while, thanks kat. ]

She said that, didn't she? I'm flattered. But yes, I suppose I am that guy. Shylock Bennett, at your service.