/jp/ - Otaku Culture

For a split second, I saw thunderbolts roll between her fingers, but they stopped a moment later as she got closer. "Seems I owe you another apology." She said, presenting a hand toward me. I groaned and forced out something about it being my fault for not properly considering youkai strength. I'd been so focused on Kisami not being as heavy as Miss Narumi, but not so much on the fact that she was still very strong.

"Here, let me help you up." I reached out and took her hand, and Raiko pulled me up to my feet with only a small grunt of exertion. She was taller than I'd thought. Standing somewhere comparable to Iizunamaru, if I had to guess. Maybe half a head shorter than me. "I just can't seem to win with you, can I?" She shook her head, shoulder-length hair bouncing with the motion. Sighing, she stepped around me and crouched down. "Miss Kurodani, am I right? We spoke before, once." She asked, an easy-going smile on her face.
"U-Um, yes - I mean, Kisami. Um, Kisami Kurodani." Kisami mumbled, looking about as star-struck as it was possible for a person to be.

"Right. Kisami Kurodani, I'm sorry for startling you like that." Raiko reached a hand out toward Kisami, who stared like it was...Honestly, I wasn't sure what a good comparison was. "Let me help you up." Raiko said, flexing her hand slightly. Kisami didn't seem mentally prepared to take it, so I was forced to nudge her shoe with my foot, and then give her a significant look. Finally, she reached out a shaking hand, which Raiko took hold of and pulled her up by. Ki, being lighter than me, stumbled forward a little after she was upright, and Raiko was forced to steady her with her free hand. This made Ki squeak, and I had to resist rolling my eyes. I'd known that she was...To put it charitably, obsessed with the Horismriver Ensemble, but even so, she was practically non-functioning. Raiko looked back at me over her shoulder and mouthed a question. "Is she alright?" I looked over at Ki, then back at Raiko, and mouthed back that she was probably star-struck. Raiko blinked, nodded, and turned back. "Miss Kurodani - May I call you Kisami?" Kisami had yet to let go of her hand.

"Um, I - Er, yes. Um, Ki for short, if - If you'd like." Kisami stammered. Clearly, the plan of having her act like herself was not panning out.

"Well then, Ki. You look like you could do with somewhere to sit down. Would you like to come up to our studio?" Raiko turned back to me, "You too, of course. Sounds like there's something you want to talk to us about." She raised her hand, which still gripped Kisami's hand tightly. "Plus, I've gotta apologise for scaring the pair of you." There was a slight noise I could hear, and I blinked when I caught it. Raiko's middle finger was tapping against Ki's hand, keeping to a perfect rhythm. Raiko didn't even seem aware of it, but Ki definitely was. "Well, Ki, might I trouble you for my hand back?" Ki released her like she'd been burnt, then stammered some sort of apology. "Alright, come on. That's enough scares for one day." She paused, then shouted. "Merlin! Lunasa! Lyrica! Studio!"

"You're no fun, Raiko!" A voice yelled back, coming from somewhere in the distance. I felt Merlin's name hit me, and I turned, sighing in relief as I found Yamame's commission box on the floor, slightly crumpled, but not damaged. I scooped it up, then turned to follow Raiko, who was escorting Kisami. The poor spider youkai looked like she was about to pass out, either from fright, or from the fact that Raiko was escorting her.

Up the stairs, through some doors, jump over the hole in the floor, nearly fall in the trick hole in the floor, get saved by Kisami, save Kisami when her brain stops working because Raiko had complimented her for saving me, and finally through a door that looked significantly less abandoned. The studio of the Horismriver ensemble was a clean space and looked plenty comfortable. A few wide couches...And that was about all I recognised. The walls were lined with...Something, and when I experimentally pushed my hand against it, it felt soft and gave slightly to my touch before springing back. "Insulation." Raiko explained as she pushed Ki over to a seat on the couch. "Keeps the sound in a little better. New addition, actually. Got the idea from my guy in the Outside World." She seemed to have just dropped a lot of things on me at once. "Yeah, sorry about that. It's not that important. Hey, what's that package you've got?"