Nyx

*MERRY CHRISTMAS, MALL!

To celebrate this time of year, you are all now dressed in random Christmas outfits. Or, actually, any of the three main winter holidays, if you wish.

Ready, set, MINGLE! Just have fun!*

*Izumi has once again set up signs directing people to a sermon of hers:

Open-Air Velvet Mall Sermons:

Special Christmas Topic:
Messiahs and the roles they play.

Follow the arrows:

And the arrows, again, lead to the same place with all the chairs set up and the podium where Izumi stands, her old, note-filled Bible open and ready.*

((So, since the pure Q&A format felt like it fell a bit flat, I think I'm going back to the hybrid style. People come in, ask what they have on their minds, and after a few people join, Izumi starts the sermon proper on that topic, with plenty of breaks for questions and clarification.

And here's the main topic.))

 A door opens, and who should wander in but a Fred! ...a Fred who doesn't look so good. Okay, so not very healthy at all.

He stumbles into the Mall, leaning against the doorway long enough to take off his hat and wipe the sweat from his forehead before opening his eyes, trying to focus on his surroundings. His already ragged breathing picks up even more when he realizes that he is not where he thought he would be.

"You told me were--!"

...but his door is already gone.

And he's getting really, really hungry...

((ooc: Yes. It's an Atma'd Fred. You can all shoot me now. :| Quite recently Atma'd, too. Either bother or (preferably) avoid?))

[So there's a Protag-kun, sitting at a piano in a music store, thinking. And playing.]

[He's playing Canon in D, and he sounds pretty good at it, too. But he doesn't really look like he's thinking about what he's playing this morning.]

[Care to listen? Or to bother him?]

[So. It's Christmas, but Zephyr had noticed something was seriously lacking. So he went to a planter, near the middle of the mall, and planted a small pine tree sapling. Simple enough, right?


Wrong. He stands back after a moment, smiles...and the tree starts growing. And growing. And growing, until it towers above the Mall. He picks up the (first) box of ornaments he brought and summons...Kresnik and Garuda, handing each of them a box. He's not sure what he's gonna do about lights, but he'll get there.

Let's get decorating. c: Wanna help?]

This is not what Jun expected; this was a bright purple mall full of demons and strangers. Philemon had promised them something else entirely. Jun walks around the mall, managing to look only bewildered instead of worried. But there's only so much information one can get by observing. Help a new guy out?

Ryoji is sitting on a bench eating some takoyaki. He seems to be deep in thought.

"I wonder if the Hogfather would be able to come here."

[If you're near the karaoke place and have heard some kid in glasses ranting at you about justice...well, you'll recognize his voice coming from one of the booths. Okay, maybe you'll remember this one running after "Lady Yuzu", but that's not the point here!

...Is that J-pop he's singing?]

Did you join the gift sign-ups? As noted on the previous wishlist, the date 'assigned' for the gift exchange is today. It doesn't matter, though, at what time you want to give it...or what the gift is, for that matter - it's the thought that counts, right?

Right?

[ooc: refer to exchangee list and wishlist here. this post is not limited to the secret santa participants - if you see someone you want to give something to, this is a chance to give it to them o/

Happy Holidays, everyone~]

Somehow, the Mall is being an ass (again), and there's a very frustrated Takaya walking around with a damn halo over his head, and a very bright spotlight...somewhere...trained on him.

Like he's some kind of demented saint.

Or like he's a birthday celebrant, but that's neither here or there.

Now he's looking for Mall authorities. Looking to kill the hell out of them.

i_hope_that
For many of us, the holidays can be kind of rough. If you're searching for a network of understanding friends, this ultra-nurturing community encourages you to express your heartfelt wishes and offer other members encouragement and acceptance. Not for the terminally snarky or emotionally-challenged, this is a good-spirited place to lend comfort and support.

diygifts
Feeling crafty? If you've got a few last folks on your holiday gift list, this is a great place to seed your creativity and generosity. You'll also discover wonderful DIY tips to decorate your home and entertain guests. Offering a no-frills-no-skills attitude that welcomes the cash-challenged and arts-phobic, you're sure to get ideas and make friends in the process.

cooking_club
A fun and friendly community dedicated to those who love to cook, whether you're a meat-and-potatoes type, an aspiring gourmand, and/or a vegan. In search of a brilliant dish to use up those weekly leftovers? Post your ingredients and you'll be whipping up a feast by dinner. You can also share favorite recipes. For Type A chefs, you can spice up your culinary repertoire with exciting cooking challenges.

[A door opens, and out walks a young boy. Or so it seems, anyway.]

[He looks around, hands in his pockets. He seems surprised, but not concerned.]

[If one has some sort of ability to sense gods, they might notice one inside this 'Ken'.]

[... They might also notice that the 'god' is actually a goddess, and one that doesn't seem too pleased at her situation right now.]

[Bother?]

[[ooc; ... Yeah have a Nemesis. idek.]]

...Ryoji doesn't know, but the presence of no less than four Avatars in the Mall, including himself, is beginning to take its toll. ...Not to mention the energy from them and the proximity to the darkest day of the year is starting to seriously recharge his own supernatural batteries.

Because while he's not coughing up black shadow goo, he does look...considerably out of it. He's seated on a bench, slumped forward, leaning on the armrest. His skin is pale and a fine sheen of sweat has broken out onto his forehead from his increasing struggle to retain his human form.

And yes. Those are his Avatar form's wings poking out of the bottom of the back of his shirt, even if they are small ones. Their solidity is testament to just how much he's losing his fight.

...this could be bad.

Today's door is... unusually rusty. Or perhaps the disturbingly filthy color of the door could also be dried blood. It's so hard to tell these days. Whatever it is, a sense of death and despair does emanate from the other side of this door. It slowly opens and stays slightly ajar for a few moments, before fully swinging to reveal a familiar looking redheaded girl. Except... this girl is more of a woman in her early thirties, and she's wearing glasses and a suit. Also, the handgun she's holding and stuffing back into her jacket is conclusively not an Evoker. She shuts off the small flashlight in her breastpocket, seeing as there's no use for it now.

"What's this...? The building looked smaller from the outside, and everything's unusually well-lit."

Leave it to Survival Horror protagonists to state the obvious.

((ooc: A P3P female protagonist from a Silent Hill crossover-verse... thing. idk what my brain's been doing. Using the name given to her by Famitsu due to male-self existing in her world.))

[ This Yosuke is wandering about as usual, his headphones settled into place on his ears and a half-smile on his face.

However, today he's holding a brown-paper package.

Getting packages is always exciting. Never mind that this wasn't technically sent to him... a package sitting in the middle of the mall is the property of whoever finds it, right? Finders-keepers.

...well. He'll find someone official-looking and return it if it's anything valuable, but. The joy of the package-opening is all Yosuke's. Hell. Today might actually turn out to be a good day.

He settles down in a corner, behind a convenient potted mini palm tree. No one is going to interrupt his package-opening.

Slowly, he undoes the string. Tears off the brown paper. And then he stares.

It's... ticking. ]

Holy shit, holy shit, holy shit --

[ He lobs it across the room. Desperately.

Then, he moves to crouch behind the potted plant. Just barely in time, too, because the explosion sends everything in the near vicinity flying. ]

There's just your very friendly neighborhood Loki, evident by the trail of bemistletoed (and beribboned) humans, demons and deities. Some are tugging on collars with mistletoe, others are struggling to get mistletoe hairties out of their hair (including a couple of very giggly Parvatis), and some finding themselves tangled up in mistletoe and ribbon.

And then he high-fives with a certain grey-haired schoolgirl, ducking into the cafe with her and getting a peppermint mocha. Awwyeah Yule is probably one of the most enjoyable seasons ever.

[ooc: Trickster+Goddess+boredom == bad, bad things. Aside from making you look like the worst fashion victim ever, some of the mistletoe is enchanted with the irrepressible desire to give the gift that keeps on giving: love. As in, declare/show your affection to a person you truly like.

Or you could just like. Mow Loki down. Or chase Izanami.]

Is there anything more selfish than Christmas?

[The door that opens is nondescript, and the boy who walks through--wearing a cloak so battered and dirty it's impossible to tell what color it used to be. The boy himself looks like a standard-issue MC-tan--perhaps a bit older, it's hard to say.

What anyone with any sense would notice is that they can't sense this boy.

He looks around the mall, seeming momentarily confused, and then just smiles.]

Guess I get a vacation.

[ooc: Yes, yes, I know. Another one. :|b this one's AU, check his journal for info.]