Rinko's geta clacked against the small stone path as she made her way to the forest shrine. Behind her, a rambunctious child tugged at his parents' hands to urge them to move faster. Normally the young teen would have been annoyed by the shrill interjections coming from the little boy, but it was the new year. Now was the time to leave the negative behind and look to a bright future. With that thought in mind, Rinko began sweeping away the snow packed on the sando using her tail. It was cold, but a good deed now might give her the positive karma she needed to overcome a future obstacle.
After cleansing herself at the temizuya, the trees opened to a large clearing where the shrine stood. The normally empty space was filled with people. To the left of the shrine were a few specialty vendors selling ema, lucky charms, and premade nengajo. To the far right were the tools needed to make traditional mochi. Due to Rinko's unfortunate curse, she was ordered by her father to help with the mochi instead of selling wares. The girl exhaled, pushing the frustration out with her breath. Be positive.
Soon Rinko was standing before the shrine. She gave the large rope a tug, causing the bell connected to it to jangle. When she approached the offering box, she pulled the lone five yen piece from her sleeve that she'd been careful not to lose. As she placed the coin gently into the box, she looked up to see the silhouette of the shrine's kami seated behind the screen door. The common folk beside her were unaware of the spirit's presence, and she wondered how they could pray to a being they couldn't see. She followed the proper protocol, making sure to bow twice, clap twice, and bow once more. She gave her quick introduction and offered the prayer she'd been trained to give since childhood. "Please bring fortune to the village." Rinko could sense the eye-roll coming from the kami, but it was to be expected. It wouldn't be surprising if a good chunk of prayers were the exact same.
With her wish finished, Rinko moved on to get an omikuji. Her father had already paid for her fortune so the tanuki girl wouldn't have to worry about losing the money. She shook the small box and pulled the paper from the bottom. She moved away to give others their turn as she looked over her fortune.
Rinko frowned at the slip of paper and sighed. "Yeah, I was expecting that." She walked over to the rows of chicken wire and tied her fortune there. Her next stop was back near the shrine. A wooden structure was to the left of the shrine which was filled with the ema that people had written their prayers and wishes on. While Rinko had to ask for the village's well-being to the kami directly, she was allowed to write what she really wanted on her ema. She produced a blank one from her sleeve, as well as a thick ink pen. She hadn't written out her desire as she had no idea what she wanted. She had made some new friends in the Magdalene Order that she wanted to wish well. Looking to her personal problems, Rinko had just the other day learned of a curse she'd inherited from her mother. Selfishly, she wanted to wish to get it removed, or maybe just weakened. She eyed the kami's shadow and wondered if it could even help her with such a problem. Rinko returned her contemplative gaze to the bare ema and remained unsure of what to do. Perhaps someone could give her some friendly advice.
After cleansing herself at the temizuya, the trees opened to a large clearing where the shrine stood. The normally empty space was filled with people. To the left of the shrine were a few specialty vendors selling ema, lucky charms, and premade nengajo. To the far right were the tools needed to make traditional mochi. Due to Rinko's unfortunate curse, she was ordered by her father to help with the mochi instead of selling wares. The girl exhaled, pushing the frustration out with her breath. Be positive.
Soon Rinko was standing before the shrine. She gave the large rope a tug, causing the bell connected to it to jangle. When she approached the offering box, she pulled the lone five yen piece from her sleeve that she'd been careful not to lose. As she placed the coin gently into the box, she looked up to see the silhouette of the shrine's kami seated behind the screen door. The common folk beside her were unaware of the spirit's presence, and she wondered how they could pray to a being they couldn't see. She followed the proper protocol, making sure to bow twice, clap twice, and bow once more. She gave her quick introduction and offered the prayer she'd been trained to give since childhood. "Please bring fortune to the village." Rinko could sense the eye-roll coming from the kami, but it was to be expected. It wouldn't be surprising if a good chunk of prayers were the exact same.
With her wish finished, Rinko moved on to get an omikuji. Her father had already paid for her fortune so the tanuki girl wouldn't have to worry about losing the money. She shook the small box and pulled the paper from the bottom. She moved away to give others their turn as she looked over her fortune.
Omikuji said:小凶 - Syokyou - A little misfortune
Rinko frowned at the slip of paper and sighed. "Yeah, I was expecting that." She walked over to the rows of chicken wire and tied her fortune there. Her next stop was back near the shrine. A wooden structure was to the left of the shrine which was filled with the ema that people had written their prayers and wishes on. While Rinko had to ask for the village's well-being to the kami directly, she was allowed to write what she really wanted on her ema. She produced a blank one from her sleeve, as well as a thick ink pen. She hadn't written out her desire as she had no idea what she wanted. She had made some new friends in the Magdalene Order that she wanted to wish well. Looking to her personal problems, Rinko had just the other day learned of a curse she'd inherited from her mother. Selfishly, she wanted to wish to get it removed, or maybe just weakened. She eyed the kami's shadow and wondered if it could even help her with such a problem. Rinko returned her contemplative gaze to the bare ema and remained unsure of what to do. Perhaps someone could give her some friendly advice.
OoC said:If you'd like to join the omikuji fun, roll a 12-sided die and see what your luck is in the new year for your character! Remember, if you get bad luck, tie it up in order to exorcise the bad luck. If you pull a good fortune, there's no need to tie it. Also, if you tie it to a tree on the grounds, it hurts the tree, so please refrain from doing that. There are usually places specifically to tie them, so only use that for your fortunes.
12) 大吉 - Daikichi - Excellent luck (Immediately go gamble and buy lottery tickets)
11) 吉 - Kichi - Good luck
10) 中吉 - Cyukichi - Fair luck
9) 小吉 - Syokichi - A little luck
8) 半吉 - Hankichi - Semi-good luck
7) 末吉 - Suekichi - Uncertain luck
6) 末小吉 - Suekokichi - Uncertain but a little luck
5) 凶 - Kyou - Bad luck (Misfortune)
4) 小凶 - Syokyou - A little misfortune
3) 半凶 - Hankyou - semi-misfortunate
2) 末凶 - Suekyou - Uncertain misfortune
1) 大凶 - Daikyou - Certain disaster (consider buying a karmic life insurance policy)