songerein | [Semi-Open] Oh, would you look at that. It's Joshua Day.

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[Semi-Open] Oh, would you look at that. It's Joshua Day.

Who: FF16s and anyone who has positive CR with Joshua is invited (friends of friends can also drop by!)
Which: Semi-Open Log
Where: Starflower Cafe!
When: Backdated to March 25th
What: Once upon a time, some people looked at a baby and said, "You are Joshua." Today, we celebrate the 29th anniversary of that occasion.
Warnings: None!

It's early evening, and the golden hour sun shines gently through the windows of the Starflower Cafe. There's a modest array of red, white, and black decorations strung from the roof and set upon the tables to catch the flickering flames of lantern centrepieces, but the overall ambience is simple and warm, reminiscent of Rosarian hospitality.

Clive and Jill extended invitations earlier in the week, emphasising that the celebration is a surprise for Joshua. Guests are encouraged to arrive early, whereupon Jill will guide them not into hiding, per se, but at least to places where they can't be spotted through the windows. Meanwhile, Clive will be escorting Joshua to the party under the pretence of treating him to a name day dinner.

As such, guests are also encouraged to surprise some JOY into Mister Phoenix Boy when the brothers arrive.

Once the excitement of the surprise subsides, all guests will receive a softly glowing phoenix feather imbued with healing dreamotion. Joshua is handing them out personally as tokens of gratitude, so come and get yours!

Early mingling will happen over the appetizer buffet, which features potato croquettes, charcuterie boards with a heavy emphasis on cheese, various veggie platters with dips, and small cups of ice cream. Or, guests can sit down and chat over dinner: a roast with all the fixings.

After dinner, everyone will be escorted outside to where a bonfire has been set up. There, guests can enjoy roasting marshmallows, s'mores, and other sweet treats over the fire while watching a fireworks show to end the night.

TL;DR it's a party. So, like, party y'all.

(Clive and Jill will be around, but they'll be busy ensuring everything goes off without a hitch, so they won't be interacting much. Please feel free to assume that introductions have happened & that everyone present has been invited to their wedding, where they will be much more present!)

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[He looks up at Yato again and nods.]

Um... birthday... my birthday is... complicated? I guess the date I appeared? It was the beginning of the summer months, I suppose. I think I remember it took us a few days to reach the first town I saw and that was... hm. The third or so of June?

[Don't ask why the calendar is the same Yato, we just don't know.]

[Yato nods eagerly, making a mental note of the date.]

In that case maybe the first of June, or perhaps May 31? You should choose a day to be your own, so we can celebrate it when it rolls around! That's what I did for my own birthday since my dad never mentioned it.

[The world works in mysterious ways; best just not to question it, truthfully.]

Ah, maybe. I don't know what I'd do for it. I... I'm still finding out things that I like.

[There's a lot of things to try, okay?]

Well, what are your hobbies? You could center a party around a theme based on one of those!

[Even more reason to start early!]

Um. Fishing, mostly? Though I like reading... reading isn't a great party activity though.

[It's kind of... a quiet thing, not a party thing. He shrugs a little bit. Hm...]

I had been hoping to maybe have a fishing tournament in the summer? I don't know what the prize could be, though...

Hmm, yeah, reading not so much. Fishing is a good idea, though!

[Humming to himself, he mulls over their options.]

How about some kind of trophy? We could have one made especially for the tournament. Or specially made lures for runners up? Making them is a pretty fun activity in itself!

That all sounds really fun! There's a lot of fish in the river... I'm sure some of them have to be really big.

And afterwards we could have a fish fry! No point in wasting the fish, after all.

[He might need some help cooking all of it, but fish is one food he knows what to do with.]

Hell yeah! Who knows - maybe somebody will catch a whopper and we can award them a special prize of some sort.

And cook 'em all up, like you say! It'll be the perfect way to finish off the day, with grand dinner everybody can participate in.

[He entertains the idea of having a fish fry competition briefly, but decides that might be a bit much. And who'd want to accidentally burn the fish??]

Exactly.

... It's nice to have people excited about that kind of thing. And not worried or... or scared about what's happening. This place is peaceful and I hope it always stays that way.

Indeed. We'll have to work hard to ensure that remains the case so everyone can continue enjoying themselves. For some it's the only reprieve they have from their troubles back home.

[For him, too, really.]

Yes. ... I guess I might be one of them, now. There's some fun to be had at home but... I'm pretty sure I'm close to having to face my other half.

[He's not sure if he's ready. And even if he is, who is he going to end up being - himself? Fou-Lu? Both?]

[... Neither?]

[Picking up another marshmallow, he plonks it on his stick and thrusts it into the fire.]

And you'll come out on top, I'm sure. You're strong and resilient enough to. Just keep believing in yourself that you're enough - that people want you here.

[He watches carefully, not sure how to actually do the marshmallow thing correctly.]

... I don't want him to have to disappear, either. We should both get to live.

[Not like his first attempt, that's for sure. This time he merely sets it close enough to the flame to begin caramelizing the sugar on the outside, turning it a nice, toasty brown.]

...no, I imagine not. Then maybe you'll both have the will to resist whatever force is pulling you two together. But if it comes down to it, I hope you'll fight for your life. There's people who want you to remain, both here and back home.

[Once he's finished toasting the marshmallow all around, he plucks it off the stick and offers it to Ryu.]

I for one would definitely miss you.

[Oh. ... You can't say such nice things to him and then just play it off, Yato.]

I... I'll try. Everyone deserves a chance to be happy... unless they're hurting other people. But other than that... gods, mortals... it doesn't matter. We're all just people trying to make the most of what we've been given.

[He bites into the marshmallow experimentally, tilting his head. The texture is... weird. Not unpleasant, but weird.]

[Sorry, Ryu, that's just how he rolls. Calm and as casual as you please.]

Atta boy. You're really too damn kind for this world, which is why you need to hang around and keep ensuring it continues to become a better place fit for everyone striving to live out their lives.

[Placing another one on his stick, Yato thrusts this one well into the fire, waiting until it catches alight and the outer layer chars. Burn, baby, burn!]

I'm just trying to do my best... Nina would say 'that's all anyone can ask of you'.

[He watches Yato char the marshmallow. ... Uh.]

Why are you burning it?

Heh... She's right, of course. Nobody is capable of more than their best. Even if you can't obtain your goals, there's no shame in that.

[Taking it from the fire, he blows it out and waits a few moments.] Watch this! [A bit of tugging on the burnt part aaaaand it slides right off like an outer skin, revealing a perfectly melty but clean marshmallow.]

Ta-daaaah! How cool is that?! [Yato, you're impressing no one.]

[He nods and - well, someone is impressed!]

That's really really neat!

[Is it... is it supposed to melt like that?]

[You know what they say about birds of a feather.]

Isn't it though? Gets the inside all nice and gooey without having a toasted exterior!

[Apparently so, although it's not supposed to be sliding down the stick towards his hand, however. Ah well. No trick is perfect.]

Oh - you might want to do something about that -

[He points to the marshmallow sliding down.]

But um... how do you eat it, if it's so gooey? It looks kind of like a slime...

Ah-- Right, right. Here we go...!

[Bringing it up to his mouth, he starts chewing it from one side, following it as it slides closer and closer towards the stick's end. It's a race versus god and marshmallow...! Who will win?!

Yato, it appears, thanks to his big mouth. With the marshmallow fully stuffed in his face, he grins at Ryu.]

Mmm! Like that! Can't argue about it being slime-like, but it's a tasty slime~

[Something about that... huh. It's very weird, but it looks fun! He puts a hand on Yato's shoulder and grins.]

I'm glad I have you to teach me about all sorts of things. You're a really good mentor.

[Even if he's kind of silly... Ryu's seen much weirder.]

[Patting the hand on him, he returns the grin with a smile of his own, bright and childlike.]

Heh, always glad to help, especially a fellow god! Oh-- I know! Has anyone taught you how to approach girls yet? That's important!

[This surely won't end well.]

Can't you just talk to them like anyone else?

[That's how he treats the women in his team, at least?]

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