[Time for clown lore- I mean. Luca is backing away a bit to try and keep the memories from being shared. It won't last for long though, they cannot escape the memshare.]
[For one, it seems unfinished. It takes place in a gorgeous imperial garden, but details here seem to buzz, as if by static. There is a good-sized crowd standing around, watching with rapt interest at two men, who stand opposite each other.]
[One is Ashiya Douman.]
[The other is.........the other is.......how odd, how strange, but his face is totally, completely obscured.]
[Douman bends down, picking up a handful of sand, concentrating...and then tosses it into the air. Instantly, the particles of sand blossom into countless swallows, flying around the garden. The other man simply makes a wave of his folding fan - and then the swallows disintegrate into the sand they were.]
[Douman's eyes darken, ever so slightly.]
[Next, the other man recites a spell. A huge dragon suddenly appears in the sky above, to the awe of the crowd, and rain starts to fall down around men. Douman, gritting his teeth, recites a spell...but the dragon persists. He recites it again, and again, until the water seems to be almost to his knees. But to no avail - the other man casts another spell, and just like that, the rain stops, and the dragon disappears.]
[The crowd claps. Douman's eyes grow even darker.]
[It seems the last challenge in this makeshift competition involves a wooden box, which two servants carry out. Douman steps forward, their voice harsh:]
["Whoever loses this round will become the other’s servant!”]
[(There's a strange undercurrent of emotion that seems to come from Douman. Hatred? Jealousy? Something else? It is as if something is overlying what is truly here, like a piece of tape covering something up.)]
[The other man just laughs, pleasantly.]
[Douman points to the box, their smile curving wickedly.]
["There are fifteen oranges inside of the box!"]
["Haha, no, no. Douman...there are fifteen rats in the box."]
[The crowd looks confused. The attendants who had prepared the box shake their heads at what the other man says - one steps forward, declaring that his guess is wrong. He has lost. There are fifteen oranges inside of the box.]
[The man - Abe no Seimei - even with his face obscured as in smoke, seems to smile at the outcome. The attendant nods, moves over to the box to open it -]
[And instantly, rats jump out of the box. The crowd screams a little in surprise as the rats scurry about. The true victor is Seimei.]
[And Douman collapses to his knees. Everyone goes to congratulate Seimei on his victory, and here lies Douman. A failure.]
[Again, the undercurrent of emotion. Again, its sorrow, its despair, its anger, its hatred, its jealousy, and...something else? It burns, like a raging fire.]
[Douman lifts his head, face contorted, ugly, and fixed on Seimei. His enemy. His rival. His..]
[The man in real life clutches their head, letting out a low, pained noise.]
[Luca is instantly by Douman's side as soon as the memory ends. Douman is still upright, but it looks like the person in front of Luca could use a helping hand.]
Douman!
[He's not strong but he can at least guide Douman to sitting down. That's the least he can do when facing someone else's questionable memories.]
[They don't even have an answer to that first part.]
Mmmm, what is there to know? I was a famous onmyouji...a figure who used the arts and magic of onmyouodo throughout my life. I helped many people, I harmed many people. That's all there is.
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
no subject
[Time for clown lore- I mean. Luca is backing away a bit to try and keep the memories from being shared. It won't last for long though, they cannot escape the memshare.]
no subject
[And of course, it begins.]
[The memory is...strange.
[For one, it seems unfinished. It takes place in a gorgeous imperial garden, but details here seem to buzz, as if by static. There is a good-sized crowd standing around, watching with rapt interest at two men, who stand opposite each other.]
[One is Ashiya Douman.]
[The other is.........the other is.......how odd, how strange, but his face is totally, completely obscured.]
[Douman bends down, picking up a handful of sand, concentrating...and then tosses it into the air. Instantly, the particles of sand blossom into countless swallows, flying around the garden. The other man simply makes a wave of his folding fan - and then the swallows disintegrate into the sand they were.]
[Douman's eyes darken, ever so slightly.]
[Next, the other man recites a spell. A huge dragon suddenly appears in the sky above, to the awe of the crowd, and rain starts to fall down around men. Douman, gritting his teeth, recites a spell...but the dragon persists. He recites it again, and again, until the water seems to be almost to his knees. But to no avail - the other man casts another spell, and just like that, the rain stops, and the dragon disappears.]
[The crowd claps. Douman's eyes grow even darker.]
[It seems the last challenge in this makeshift competition involves a wooden box, which two servants carry out. Douman steps forward, their voice harsh:]
["Whoever loses this round will become the other’s servant!”]
[(There's a strange undercurrent of emotion that seems to come from Douman. Hatred? Jealousy? Something else? It is as if something is overlying what is truly here, like a piece of tape covering something up.)]
[The other man just laughs, pleasantly.]
[Douman points to the box, their smile curving wickedly.]
["There are fifteen oranges inside of the box!"]
["Haha, no, no. Douman...there are fifteen rats in the box."]
[The crowd looks confused. The attendants who had prepared the box shake their heads at what the other man says - one steps forward, declaring that his guess is wrong. He has lost. There are fifteen oranges inside of the box.]
[The man - Abe no Seimei - even with his face obscured as in smoke, seems to smile at the outcome. The attendant nods, moves over to the box to open it -]
[And instantly, rats jump out of the box. The crowd screams a little in surprise as the rats scurry about. The true victor is Seimei.]
[And Douman collapses to his knees. Everyone goes to congratulate Seimei on his victory, and here lies Douman. A failure.]
[Again, the undercurrent of emotion. Again, its sorrow, its despair, its anger, its hatred, its jealousy, and...something else? It burns, like a raging fire.]
[Douman lifts his head, face contorted, ugly, and fixed on Seimei. His enemy. His rival. His..]
[The man in real life clutches their head, letting out a low, pained noise.]
no subject
Douman!
[He's not strong but he can at least guide Douman to sitting down. That's the least he can do when facing someone else's questionable memories.]
no subject
[Douman allows themselves to be taken to sit, though the look on their face is...well, incredibly difficult to read, actually.]
[They stare down at the floor for a moment.]
...I'm alright.
[ARE THEY??]
no subject
You sounded like you were in pain though. Here just sit down for a moment, I'll get you some water.
no subject
[Ah, but Luca is already gone to get water.]
[Douman buries his head in his hands and just sighs.]
no subject
Here you are, this might help.
no subject
[And just taking it and having a drink.]
Mmm. I am tired of these...endless visions.
no subject
It's understandable. Whatever that vision was, it seems to have hurt you deeply.
no subject
no subject
[Oh no that's really concerning!]
no subject
no subject
[Oh boy time for the clown lore.]
You look like a normal man to me, albeit one with creative tastes.
no subject
no subject
[He's assuming that a 'heroic spirit' is a hero, at least.]
no subject
...Its confusing, yes, but, we are more like tools than actual physical beings.
no subject
[JUST. GETTING THAT OUT THERE.]
But I am not familiar with your legend, can you tell me about it?
no subject
[They don't even have an answer to that first part.]
Mmmm, what is there to know? I was a famous onmyouji...a figure who used the arts and magic of onmyouodo throughout my life. I helped many people, I harmed many people. That's all there is.
[what's a Seimei]
no subject
no subject
no subject
no subject
[And they laugh loudly, delighted.]
No, no! Ahahaha! That would be funny, but no. I'm just a spirit, that's all. Usually Servants are summoned through specialized rituals.
no subject
no subject
It's....magic, yes! It's magic.
no subject
That's amazing! Your body looks as real as if you had been born.