2026-01-11: No Home For The Gods
- Cutscene: No Home For The Gods
- Cast: Yua Ijuuin and her husband, Kimitake Ijuuin
- Where: Kimitake's Home, Konan Ward
- OOC Date: 2026-01-11
- IC Date: Sat, Sep 08 2012
- Summary: Yua is called to attend a fancy lunch with Kimitake on the weekend... but when she tries to make his home more welcoming to her and her Gods, she comes home to find the Hinukan gone. The maids cleaned it up... and Kimitake seems quite apologetic. He doesn't go so far as to help her carve out space for herself, though -- only so far as to validate her concern for his own Gods.
- Content warning: Abuse of minority religion, coercive control, emotional abuse.
Yua... had to attend Kimitake's residence, on Saturday, to accompany him to a fundraising lunch. She wasn't expecting him to have picked out a dress for her -- but it wasn't such a burden to wear it, particularly when she had time to set up the shrines she needed to devote in his home before they were set to leave.
It's just... when they get home, and of course he wants her to prepare dinner before he takes her home...
"Kimi-san," Yua calls, an edge of distress to her voice, "what happened to the Hinukan?" Those three smooth stones she'd set up with her offering to welcome him to the home -- they ought to be right here in the kitchen.
They're gone.
"Oh?" Kimitake asks, as he comes up behind her; his kitchen and dining room is combined, so it's not so hard for him to approach. "What's the matter, Yua-san?"
"The Hinukan -- my shrine -- it was right here," Yua says, turning to him, clear distress in her one visible eye.
"Here in the kitchen? I see..." Kimitake frowns, troubled. "The maids must have took it for clutter and cleaned it up," he explains, apologetically, with a sympathetic expression as he sees the way she looks so stricken. "We can set your... devotionals up in the family shrine? That's the place for these things."
"No!" Yua exclaims, shaking her her fiercely. "No, no, no! The Hinukan needs to be in the kitchen! At the hearth! That's where he lives when he's staying with us!"
"Yua-san," Kimitake's voice is gentle, but it is firm; and he waits, for a moment, for her to vent her energy waving her hands and shaking her head and protesting. "Yua-san." At his second call, she looks to him; he spreads a hand, patiently. "Please, just think clearly for a moment. Is it really sensible to invite that to stay here when this isn't truly your home? Won't they be confused when you're missing..?"
Yua frowns, shaking her head. "But, the Hinukan's..." She wants to say that her hearth god can hear prayers from any kitchen, and so it is right for her to make a home for him where she's called to stay; except, as she speaks, she finds she doesn't want to say it at all. 'That', he said, with a hint of something like discomfort or distaste...
"... okay," she says, instead, her voice a touch meek.
"I'm sorry," he apologises, and certainly he sounds genuine. "Don't be too upset at the maids... they don't realise how important these things are to you."
(He specifically told them not to put up with any strangeness like this.)
"It's -- it's okay," Yua shakes her head, though it surely isn't. He can see that, and at his concerned hum, she glances aside. "Mm... I mean, it makes me sad, but... I guess they couldn't have known, right? But -- but I could teach them!" She adds, looking back to Kimitake again. "Then they'd know, right?"
"You could teach some of them," Kimitake agrees, "I'm just not sure if it might not be too taxing on you...? These are agency maids, Yua-san... you'd be explaining yourself over and over. If you'd like to, you're quite welcome, but... I'm already asking quite a lot from you, aren't I?"
"I guess that's true," Yua sighs.
"But you were very good at lunch," he tries to move onto something positive -- trying to cheer her up, as far as Yua can tell. He smiles, as he adds: "I think they were all quite charmed by you!"
"I did my best," Yua says, quietly. But he's trying, isn't he? So... she feels safe enough, at least, to look up to him again. "Kimi-san, can you take me home after dinner? I want to stop by Alaya Shrine with you... we lied to your Gods, when we were there. We have to tell them it's not for real! I don't want Mimi's Gods to think I'm not with Mimi... it's really important to me," she adds, her speech a touch pressured, in just the same way as he phrased it.
"I'd be happy to," Kimitake smiles. "It's the least I can do for all your help today."
All that help, and dinner, too.