Scene #8843: Shinmyoumaru's Invitation

Owner	Pose
Shinmyoumaru Sukuna	Finding Shinmyoumaru, when she doesn't want to be found, is pretty hard. But Shinmyoumaru usually doesn't want to be hard to find, which makes life a lot easier for those looking for her! Visiting her at home - as in, inside the Shining Needle Castle - is hard for a number of reasons. One, it flies, which is at best a minor setback. A more serious and harder-to-handle issue is that most of the inchlings live somewhere where humans can't go; not because they're not allowed in, or because of some kind of intense security, but because they simply do not fit. In the parts that are big enough, there are youkai and ghosts and who knows what else, so they don't go there, except for Shinmyoumaru sometimes - but that's not reliable. Fortunately, Shinmyoumaru is intensely bored by staying inside all the time and so spends more time out than in. And today... Today she is fishing. Shinmyoumaru can be found at her 'large' size, about four feet tall, at the side of a river in Gensokyo that runs down from an enormous mountain and then across hilly plains. She's wearing a slightly less complex version of her robes-and-dress and with an enormous bowl sitting next to her. She isn't using a fishing rod but what looks like a giant sewing needle, point-first; the fishing line (or thread?) is tied through the eye, wraps around the needle as it works its way up and eventually is loosed near the point toward the water. There are caught fish in the bowl, so apparently this technique works. Right now she has nothing on the line, though fish are nosing at it occasionally.
Desire Stars	The gentle ambience of the river isn't much disturbed by the arrival of a seemingly human woman. Her black hair bound neatly in a sidetail, she strides briskly through the Land of Fantasy with a black-and-yellow box in her hands. Her outfit, a study in black and white, consisting of a short jacket, a blouse, and an asymmetric skirt over leggings and boots, is a stark contrast to all the colors of nature around her. Tsumuri doesn't pay much mind to the bowl, when she arrives. She seems to be very task oriented, very professional. To wit, there's no comment about Shinmyoumaru's choice of fishing method. In fact, the first thing out of her mouth, as she approaches, is not even making sure that she has the right person. It's-- "Congratulations!" Shinmyoumaru might have a bit of warning, if the river is calm enough today to show reflections. Mercifully, even if she doesn't have that grace, Tsumuri isn't especially loud or boisterous in her manner. "After careful consideration, you've been invited to become a Kamen Rider." The box is proferred to the inchling without a shadow of doubt.
Shinmyoumaru Sukuna	The thing about fishing is that it leaves you with a lot of time for your thoughts, at least the way Shinmyoumaru does it. She does it to clear her mind and make decisions about things, though admittedly she usually doesn't second-guess herself, so it doesn't always take a lot of time for her to do that. This place really is... natural. It looks more or less untouched by human hand, and indeed that's probably true, but there also aren't any youkai or supernatural beings around here; a lot of them tend to stick further up the mountain. So it's pretty quiet... ...and Shinmyoumaru hears someone coming up behind her. She shifts her grip on her needle-rod, spins just as the woman approaches, and looks directly forward into a box held at close to face-height for the still-diminuitive inchling. "Eeh?" Shinmyoumaru is taken aback. It wasn't at all what she was expecting to happen today? "Me? Shinmyoumaru Sukuna? ...wait, how did you find me here? How did you GET here?" Neither was that hard for a determined individual. Jabbing the eye end of the needle into the slightly water-softened ground to hold it there, Shinmyoumaru accepts the box with both hands, before Tsumuri possibly changes her mind about offering it to her.
Desire Stars	Me? Shinmyoumaru Sukuna? ...wait, how did you find me here? How did you GET here? Tsumuri's only initial response is a faint, polite smile, not withdrawing the strange box as Shinmyoumaru takes it. "Each invitation is given only after careful consideration. The Game Master was impressed by your creativity in fighting the Jyamato. Think of me as a master of ceremonies." Inside, there are a few things of note, each resting in a cut-out spot upon a protective foam insert: A rectangular Desire Driver, like the ones the Riders fighting the Jyamato had used. It's black, with a grey circle in the center. In the center of -that- circle is a small, circular recession, evidently meant to contain... A small authenticator token. Shinmyoumaru's is blue, with a stylized depiction of a koi's face (sans the lower lip) and eyes outlined in orange relief. There's also a cell phone that looks like it'd survive an explosion, with how bulky its protective plating is. "Shinmyoumaru Sukuna," says Tsumuri, maintaining her professional placidity and slight smile. "Do you accept the invitation to fight the Jyamato as Kamen Rider Ochiba?"
Shinmyoumaru Sukuna	Tsumuri doesn't pull the box away, and so Shinmyoumaru accepts it. She's the sort of person who will open anything given to her, and so she does, wiggling it open - those lids always stick a little bit. She's impulsive, certainly; prone to just doing. But she doesn't recognize most of the things inside. The Desire Driver she's seen before, but only on someone; the token she hasn't seen at all, and that's what she reaches for first, so she can hold it up to the light. A fish... "Kamen Rider Ochiba...?" Shinmyoumaru doesn't get the reference, immediately; the ochiba breed of koi doesn't exist here, being far too new, and she reads it as fallen leaves - but fallen leaves are pretty, and her tendency to wear red and orange (and black, but skip that for now) means it meets with her approval anyway. Honestly, she's excited. You can see it in her eyes, which don't literally sparkle but may as well, and the fact that she's nearly bouncing on her feet. Someone wants her for something! They chose her over everyone else to compete! (Well, presumably along with some other people. You can't have this kind of game with just one, can you?) "This is - I remember this from people talking! It's the wishing game, right? I can already make some wishes, but it takes a lot of energy and it's hard..." And they don't last forever, unless she really pushes. And that has its own drawbacks, which she doesn't want to go into, clearly. The Miracle Mallet can do anything, as far as she knows, but not for free, and some things are just hard to explain to it. It's made by onis. Onis are not subtle. But Shinmyoumaru remembers her formality, and she bows, a complex and formal-looking thing marred by the fact that she is not letting go of the box. "I would be honoured to accept!" Ha ha, she thinks, Seija is going to love this! (She won't.)
Desire Stars	I would be honoured to accept! "Very good." With the box taken, Tsumuri's hands are clasped politely before her. She inclines her head, ever so slightly, a gesture of polite acknowledgment. "The Spider Phone," she says, momentarily moving one hand to point the device out in the box with an index, "Is the Desire Grand Prix's means of contacting you, to advise of Jyamato mobilizations. Please keep it close at hand, so as not to miss any summons. Additionally," she continues, "Tapping the icons on the screen will allow you to access some additional functions--viewing leaderboards, mission objectives, and contacting fellow Riders, to name a few." "Your Driver will allow you to transform, and your ID Core is a personalized access key to both the Driver and DGP facilities," she continues, pointing both of those out. "The Desire Temple, as it's called, has numerous amenities available: refreshments, training facilities, and social spaces, for the interstitial time between missions." Her hand returns to meet its opposite, both clasped just above her black belt and just below the hem of her stylish black-and-white high-waisted jacket. "Finally," she says, "Beneath the foam insert, you'll find a Desire Card. Simply write your wish on it any time before the first round, and have it with you upon the first summons to the Desire Temple." The whole thing is given like a spiel recited many times--how many of these Grand Prix things have there been? Tsumuri tilts her head inquisitively. "Do you have any additional questions at this time?"
Shinmyoumaru Sukuna	It is unclear whether Shinmyoumaru has ever used a smartphone before. Surely she must have...? But looking around this place, you'd be forgiven for assuming there's never been a cell phone here before. She picks it up like she isn't quite sure what it does, though, or how to use it; a little carefully, if not hesitantly. Fortunately, she's a quick learner and predisposed to push buttons; she does not start poking around it now, but she'll probably log on pretty soon. She seems more taken by the ID token. Unfortunately now Shinmyoumaru is completely out of hands and cannot pick anything else up. She already feels like she's juggling everything just to keep it all in place while trying to look at it, which isn't helped by the fact that everything is just a little too big to be comfortable for her; she's closer to child-sized than adult even now, so the bulky, shielded phone is just that much more bulky and the Desire Driver a little thick (not that she's holding that one, it's still in the box). She can't fish out the Desire Card, though she does kind of want to see it. Shinmyoumaru tries to jostle the box to make things slide, but given the protective padding, it doesn't move much. "Just write on it?" she asks. "Before the first time I go to the Temple?" If the ID Core gives her access to it, Shinmyoumaru thinks, she'd better bring it with her. Which means she'll have to write soon! She wants to see all the amenities. Training facilities! Social spaces to meet people! Refreshments! Does she have any questions? "How many people did you ask? You didn't ask all the Outsiders who were there!" At least, Shinmyoumaru assumes she didn't, because that would be a very big game indeed. What Shinmyoumaru really wants to know is 'why me', but she's a little afraid that the answer will be 'I don't know, I should take it back' and that's the last thing she wants. "Oh, and how many games were there before? And how many rounds is this game...?" She pauses. "Maybe I should just read the rules."
Desire Stars	Just write on it? Before the first time I go to the Temple? Tsumuri's head bobs down once, in a curt, matter-of-fact nod. That's correct! How many people did you ask? You didn't ask all the Outsiders who were there! "Correct," Tsumuri notes, with another little bob of her head, that sets her sidetail to waving. "Because not all of them met the Game Master's standards for selection. However, the DGP's aim is as much to find dependable talent capable of battling Jyamato as it is to battle them in the first place. To that end, a wide net is cast, even if it isn't 'the widest.' For your part," says Tsumuri, procuring a tablet from inside her jacket... She turns the tablet towards Shinmyoumaru. Footage plays of the Inchling's evasion of a Jyamato patrol, her subsequent inventive use of a dumpster as a vehicle-slash-battering-ram, and then of her escape in the lid with Leith, the Concord talent agent. "The Game Master felt that your creativity, calm under pressure, and decisive action recommended you well to the position." She flips the tablet back around and stows it again. Oh, and how many games were there before? And how many rounds is this game...? Tsumuri frowns, although it doesn't seem like she's disappointed in Shinmyoumaru for asking. "Unfortunately," she says, "The Jyamato tend to determine both. The DGP has run for a very long time, because the Jyamato have menaced Earth for longer. The people of our Earth don't remember all that's been lost to the Jyamato, but there are places which have been wiped from history because of them. A game is complete only once the 'Last Boss Jyamato' has been defeated--these tend to be Jyamato with very specialized evolutions and dangerous abilities, even compared to the 'commander' types." Maybe I should just read the rules. "There are many," says Tsumuri. "Some of them governing behavior of production staff, rather than players. There is a primer of relevant player-facing rules available on your Spider Phone," she says. "With that being said, there are other contestants awaiting their invitations. Please warmly await the first summons," adds Tsumuri with a pleasant smile and a polite bow at the waist. She turns and leaves, at the same briskly professional pace with which she'd arrived. If Shinmyoumaru bothers snooping or following, she'll see that when Tsumuri crosses over a hill, at the first 'plausibly out of sight' part of the countryside, she simply disappears in a rising pillar of blue pixellated light. That must be how she'd got here!
Shinmyoumaru Sukuna	Shinmyoumaru stands up on tiptoes to look at the tablet, balancing easily - she's used to it. She's never seen a video of herself from the outside, certainly not driving something like the Dumpster. She grins to see it. "That was pretty fun," she agrees, which is probably also that gets counted; anyone who is having fun is going to be more creative and certainly not worry about the pressure. "Who's the Game Master exactly?" Shinmyoumaru asks, not really expecting a response - she can always try to find him, her, or them later, if she's got access to the Desire Temple. "But they made a good decision." She nods, more to herself than Tsumuri, before sliding her hat/bowl lid back into place. "Last Boss Jyamato..." Well at least it makes sense to Shinmyoumaru. She's glad she doesn't live anywhere that's likely to be erased by attackers like that! "Well, visiting Earth was exciting too, I've never been past the boundary for very long before... but I hope it doesn't last TOO long." And not just because she's bad at waiting. When Tsumuri prepares to go, Shinmyoumaru nods along. "I'd better look at the rest of this!" she agrees. Not that she's likely to memorize the rules, but she should at least take a look at the player-facing ones. "Thank you for coming here!" Shinmyoumaru can't really stop herself from sneaking after Tsumuri, at least for a bit; box in her hands, bowl obediently following her and bobbing along gently (normally she'd ride the bowl, but it has her caught fish in it and she'd rather not stand on them). She ends up falling behind, though, and only sees the flash of the pillar as she pokes her head over the hilltop. Huh, she thinks to herself. Magic! Probably! They'd need magic to pull something like this off, so it's not surprising, Shinmyoumaru thinks, but why did she bother wandering off first? This is Gensokyo. There are lots of weird people here. But it doesn't really matter. She's just so excited she could burst...!