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[video | un: kurama]

It would seem that many of us are accustomed to certain holidays during this time of year. While I am not fully aware what's been done here in the past, it has come to my attention that several Chosen are interested in recognizing these holidays in some form or another now.

I would like to offer my assistance to those who might benefit. More specifically, should anyone be putting together a gathering for the winter festivities, I can certainly save some time and energy with decorations of the plant variety. Hanging garlands, putting up wreaths or Christmas trees where appropriate. Things of that nature.

[Yes, even mistletoe. No, he's not offering that unless requested directly. Kurama will also not be offering things like food for party dishes, but if someone thinks of it and asks for some vegetables or something directly, he won't say no to that either.

A beat, before he adds:]

I could also provide the plants, given sufficient advance notice to acquire them.

[ooc: backdated to last week some time. please note, I'm traveling this week so replies may be slow through the weekend! If you have to move quickly with things, feel free to handwave any involvement after initial contact to streamline your own needs. Also happy to tag into whatever logs people have going once I've settled in, just let me know if you'd like me to.]

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Not tired of holiday celebrations yet in your thousands of years of existence?

I am afraid that holiday celebration was not exactly at the top of my priority list with everything else going on.

I can't imagine what you were up to instead.

But now you get to make up for it! The least you could do is turn the apothecary into a festive wonderland.

Mostly hiding, the last thousand or so, actually.

[Maybe a bit anticlimactic.]

Naturally, I would be delighted to set things up at the apothecary.

Boo. I wanted salacious demon stories.

Maybe we could convince the boss to have an office party. I can't believe I'm saying this, but I think I actually like my coworkers.

Over the network? Surely, you know better than that.

[Absolutely delivered with the tone of someone who has gossip, but is being intentionally coy about it.]

Holiday cheer could certainly liven up the place. I believe we could all use something to look forward to after recent events.

[Recent Events really feels like the permanent state of Alrdip, call him an optimist or something.]

This better be your way of promising me stories at the Christmas party. Don't worry, I'll return the favor.

[ Root definitely has some stories of her own. ]

You're telling me. Did you run into your double at all? Whew, mine was a trip.

A trade, then.

[Your stories are probably way more interesting than his, Root. The next question gives him pause, for once not responding with the flippant ease of his usual tone, more cautious.]

I ... imagine mine was far more trouble for others than myself, actually.

You're on. I have plenty of stories.

[ She absolutely has many stories, at differing levels of callous violence and heart-warming endings, depending on when in her life she's pulling from. Stories for all occasions! ]

What's that supposed to mean? I'll show you mine if you show me yours.

Nothing too exciting, I'm afraid. You see, I was a thief for quite some time. Logically, any double of mine trying to "reveal my true nature" would likely spend some time stealing from others. I am honestly not entirely certain what it spent time doing, though.

[because he avoided it, but details.]

Lucky you. No avoiding mine, or Shaw's. She came right up to me on the street.

What kind of thief were you? Tell me more. [ Root just has this feeling demon thieves are maybe a little different, and she's intensely curious. ]

Yes, well. I had more than my share of facing my inner demons with the glitches, so I kept a rather low profile until it was over.

[Literally, in his case.]

Afraid I can't do that, I will need something to share at the party, after all.

[ Root knows enough to guess at something here; she's quick on the uptake. Slow realization dawns over her. ]

Don't tell me you were an actual fox at one point and I missed it! Seriously?

A shame that you were not around for very long before the reset, but perhaps another time.

[He's not about to tell her that he willingly still spends some time as a fox, even now. That is privileged information, after all, and has only happened in the presence of his housemates.]

[ Root immediately has a whole series of questions, and Kurama's reticence to answer up to this point doesn't deter her from asking them. ]

Is that something you can do all the time? The glitches weren't totally senseless, right? It's not like you turned into, say... a coyote.

[ Notorious enemy of foxes that they are. ]

[His response is possibly oddly direct and sincere, considering their usual evasive banter up until this point.]

They were not, at least in my case, senseless or without reason. Some were... more creative than others, but every transformation I experienced during that time was- a unique take on one form I have lived as, or another.

[ Oh, she's quietly delighted to get a real response, but too savvy to call attention to it. She just gives a little of her own back. ]

My double was if I'd never met my boss and ended up working for the evil opposing A.I. Not really news to me as a possible life path, but it took a while to work out I had to have a come to Jesus moment with her instead of just killing her repeatedly.

In that case I could use your services.

I am planning to decorate the church appropriately for Christmas.

Excellent, I would be more than happy to help.

Of course, you'll have to inform me what 'appropriately for Christmas' entails in this case. I do not imagine the holidays are quite the same across worlds and would hate to assume anything.

It is the time dedicated to celebrate the birth of Christ. However, seeing that the church lacks any significant religious symbols I believe in this case basic decorations such as the tree and wreaths will suffice.

Tree and wreaths it is, then.

You'll have to inform me when you're planning for decorations to go up.

I can accommodate my schedule according to yours. Sooner the better.

Would you be able to provide white roses as well?

[Kurama seems to visibly perk at the mention of roses.]

Certainly. I can be by this afternoon, in that case.

You're a flower monger now?

Kurama does not respond to Hiei's text message with more than an eye roll, and the fire demon is not going to see that through text. Which means he doesn't get an answer at all.

At least, not on the network. Later though, when the fox has returned to the house some time after doing other errands around town, only to find him there. It's becoming harder to discern whether Hiei is at the house simply looking for him or actually starting to accept it as also a space of his own.

Not that he's very worried about whichever it is, at the moment.

Kurama appears out of nowhere as he likes to do when the smaller demon's back is turned. Concealing his energy does still tend to be the default, even in Aldrip, after all.

“Getting quite comfortable with communicating on the network, I see.” Comfortable enough to be a brat for literally no reason, it would seem.

Look, he thought it was at least passably funny. Kurama insists on having any number of jobs in this place doing whatever the hell he's doing, adding on selling flowers is probably smart but also inescapable so far as Hiei and his ability to make something A Thing.

"Don't sneak up on me." Hiei says for possibly the two millionth time since he's come to know Kurama and the fox persists in covering up his demon energy. Here the fire apparition doesn't quite bother to fully suppress his demon energy, but he's careful enough that he isn't projecting too much for the more spiritually aware around them, if there are any.

He's procured a snack from somewhere, mouth still full as he finally turns to look at the redhead, casual as ever. He'll even offer him a meat stick as casually as ever.

"It's clunky to carry around and inefficient but.. entertaining from time to time."

Kurama is in no position to judge anyone else's attempt at humor, considering how he gets by amusing himself. Still, there's no sense in him selling flowers when there's a literal flower shop for that, he was just offering to help with decorations for the holiday. Not that he's going to bother explaining as much, for one: the fire apparition likely doesn't care.

Speaking of ways he amuses himself, the redhead smiles innocently when Hiei tells him off for sneaking up on him, but he doesn't respond, never seeming to take that complaint very seriously no matter how many times he hears it. Kurama reaches for the offered stick with the question, head tilting curiously, as if considering those words before speaking, sounding performatively doubtful.

“Is that what that was? Entertainment?”

The fox is just giving him shit at this point, how their relationship evolved to this constant bickering he does not understand, but when it's in no way serious like this it practically comes naturally. Like something familiar to fall back on when everything else on this world seems to constantly pull the rug out from under them.

As for how clunky the tablets are, they're certainly nowhere near the two-way pager he'd had back home or even the communication mirrors that Botan used. On the plus side it wasn't the size of a briefcase like Yusuke had, either. It could be more inconvenient, he supposes.

“They are rather large compared to what we're used to, but there are worse options, considering we have no choice if we wish to stay in touch at all.”

"Yes. I certainly don't need you all to have the ability to call me at any time you want." Or to call him back to their home in the woods for that matter. The fire demon looks properly annoyed at even the thought of everyone having access to call him at any point, much less the constant ability to text and attempt to get ahold of him.

How dare anyone want to know his whereabouts, right?

Of course the fire demon takes the opportunity to point up toward his forehead as Kurama talks about 'staying in touch' - no, he did not need the Jagan to keep in contact with any of them in their minds, but it made the point more efficiently.

"In case you've forgotten, we don't need tablets to communicate."

If he's being honest, the fox would assume Hiei has left the device behind or simply kept it off for most of the day. Finding him on the network at all - outside of their regularly scheduled (seemingly mandatory) dating app - always struck him as surprising. It is also why he set up the ability to contact everyone at once in private, they could easily choose to interact with those messages and no others, if they (read: Hiei) really wanted to.

Kurama's smile only widens as Hiei points to his own forehead, certain he knows exactly what the fire apparition is about to suggest even without the words that follow. “I have not, but in case you've forgotten, not everyone here can communicate in that way and some do find it rather off putting.”

They're surrounded by humans, Hiei. Humans with powers, yes, but not everyone is conveniently a telepath. Including some of their own.

As much as Hiei hated the little devices, and the fact that it meant anyone could reach out to him at any time (who were not the people he was most concerned about, here) - he did like the ability to stalk a little, here and there. One of his favorite pass-times when he had been kept in the human world was listening to the often foolish conversations of those around where he was napping for the day. Here, he can do that as well as see what is written in plain sight on the network as well.

Would be retain a lot of that information? No, not really. But he wasn't being anything other than nosey in this endeavor.

"That doesn't strike me as my problem." Except where it involves their own people, but even then, with the Jagan he can so conveniently communicate it makes the tablet basically redundant.

Oh, oh! There's a place where I'd love to set up a Christmas party at, and I'm sure the owner would also appreciate the holiday cheer! (─‿‿─)

[It sounds like he hasn't even asked permission to used the place. Don't worry about it.]

I'd like to know though - which plants are considered to be Christmas-y? I'm not exactly well-learned on the subject.

[Don't worry, Kurama is not in the least bit concerned about permission. It's not like he's any better with that sort of thing.]

a wreath and tree to decorate seem most universal, many places hang garlands as well. There is also mistletoe, although I must caution not everyone will appreciate that gesture. Christmas berry and Christmas cactus are not uncommon, but I am not sure those - or many others - are so readily available here in Aldrip.

Then I would love to have...pretty much everything you said! It's a big place to decorate. And I'd like to experience everything Christmas has to offer. <(￣︶￣)>

I never knew Christmas berries or cacti exist, though! How are they different from the regular ones?

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[video | un: kurama]

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