What is something your OC wants to be better at? (from @wandererxiv)
From the onset of her initial promotion to chief priest of her jingū-ji, the doubt lingered in Hinako that she wasn’t fit for it. That she was too young and felt such a status needed something closer to a lifetime of experience. So she's ever been one to better her art and understanding, to be someone who can be rightfully considered a shugendo master. Although it's less that active striving now and more letting it happen, the journey over the destination. But it does follow that she would like a further read on related arts that have become more elusive in recent times, like (true) geomancy and onmyojutsu.
Hinako opened her eyes, and for a minute she laid still in bed, just taking in the ambience around her. The soothing sound of water lapping the shore just beyond the cabin was within earshot. The scent of salt and spray drifted so subtly.
Gently, she pushed away her sheet and sat up, letting out a soft yawn and brushing the wayward hair from her face. Just over her shoulder, she could tell it was still dark out - ever the early bird she was. Her partner remained fast asleep, nestled close by in bed. Hinako couldn't help but gaze upon her countenance with a most enchanted, sweet smile, every time.
Mozu slept oh so soundly, these days.
The two Au Ra had weathered much. Imperial contingents, secret societies, horrors beyond reckoning... and Mozu's long-standing contention with her brother had come to a decisive end. She had asked for Hinako's hand in marriage not long after that.
For once in a long time, the priestess - the shugenja - had a blank ticket, the chance to work merely in her element. Upon establishing a new shrine in the Twelveswood, she returned to her work of quelling mononoke and other spiritual wonders and dangers, this time with her beloved fiancée by her side. The best days of her life.
They had managed to remain quite busy in their travels - purging the mononoke at Mount Rokkon and even aiding an emissary of the heavenly kami. When the opportunity presented itself, the pair began their visit to the far-flung Tural, where Hinako quickly took interest in local traditions and the mysterious tural vidraal.
They had made multiple excursions in pursuit of these entities and other beasts, often passing back through Tuliyollal... including when the city was attacked. After that crisis was resolved and the dust settled, the girls opted to more or less make the most of their environs and actually take a break, for a while.
And so it goes, but even while at rest, Hinako wasn't one to forgo the morning routine. She leaned over and nuzzled the nape of Mozu's neck, tickling it softly and eliciting a stir in the purple-haired princess, as she continued to sleep. Hinako stifled a giggle and got out of bed.
The patio and the idyllic beach from afar offered a lovely place for the priestess to do her exercise. The only downside was that it faced the west; if she wished to greet the morning sun, then she'd have to step outside to the boardwalk. And so she threw on some clothes and did just that.
It didn't take much self-persuasion on the matter; the pristine sea was enticing and the Tuliyollal skyline was nothing short of awe-inspiring. She took her stride down the boardwalk, and as she reached the end of it... something caught her eye.
"Um..."
A flyer of some sort, fixed onto the nearest wooden post. At a glance it seemed like one of the posters off the hunt board, oddly situated low enough to meet at eye level with a lalafell.
Or perhaps someone was supposed to see it, even sitting down...? Considering that was what Hinako was about to do, herself. She reached over and took the flyer in hand, by which she then observed an additional note attached - she took care not to lose it in the water.
The handwriting was a bit too familiar: I've been looking into this. I expect to have more information soon. I'll keep you posted. - AMR.
"...When did...?" Hinako blinked then returned to the greater flyer in her hand.
Travelers beware! An unknown individual has stolen a powerful sample of refined electrope from Yuweyawata Field Station. This individual was last sighted in Shaaloani and is believed to be a young Shetona, but visual descriptions have yet to be confirmed.
The stolen electrope has been classified as high risk: records from Yuweyawata indicate that its aetheric conductivity is at least ten times greater than unrefined electrope. If you notice suspicious activity in the region, stay calm, DO NOT ENGAGE, and speak to a member of the Landsguard at once.
Hinako let out a sharp sigh as her eyes finished scanning the text. Her gaze turned pensive back out toward the ocean.
The Riskbreakers had faced something of a crisis of motive.
Since its formation, the task force had operated foremost to combat the threat of the Garlean Empire and the retaliation of primals, their ethos having motivated Hinako to offer her expertise and an easterly view.
The primals are less of a problem, at this point: their corruptive "tempering" can now be cured and countered, meaning less emphasis on bearers of the Echo to fight them, and relations with spoken societies are on the mend.
Meanwhile, Garlemald has been dealt a succession of crippling blows - its reach reduced with once-annexed lands reclaimed, culminating in its heart being torn apart from within. While a handful of more self-sufficient legions yet hold ground on their innermost territories, such as Corvos, the Imperial war machine has been effectively neutralized for the foreseeable future.
All of this has granted RISK's individual members the freedom to pursue their own respective, smaller endeavors for some time. Such has been the crux of Hinako's recent movements, leaning well into her nature as a shugenja. However, the ensuing battle of Tuliyollal was perhaps portentous, a sign of inevitable danger to fill the void Garlemald left behind.
It beggared belief. The once-vaunted blood heir of the Dawnservant had merged an advanced society from another world with a region of Xak Tural, in a brazen bid to subjugate the entire realm and beyond. But even the imposing new militia that emerged couldn't measure up to an allied counterattack, with the Resilient Son himself being summarily cut down in the end.
In the wake of these events and more, the star has been exposed to a level of technology not seen since the Allagans, along with the apparent miracle material that made it possible - this so-called "electrope." It is a resource that, by Hinako's understanding, once ignited the fires of conflict from whence it came. It could very well do so again.
If she had to guess, this has all likely not escaped one Ashelia Marco Riot. It may have even reinvigorated her, and RISK's, mission. Especially where it concerns an electrope thief.
"It was only a matter of time, I suppose," Hinako murmured, a somewhat sad smile on her face. She folded the poster with the note and put it away for the moment, before returning to her own personal business.
By the time she returned to the cabin, the golden pall of dawn's light had been cast well over the city. Past the threshold, she could see that Mozu had awoken, sitting upright and running her hand through messy hair.
"Ahh, there's my morning sparrow," Hinako chimed. "I'll ready some tea, okay?"
"Mm…" Mozu smiled and nodded in agreement, a little too groggy yet for words, and Hinako began to sift through a cupboard for the teapot and yunomi.
"I feel like getting tamales from Xbalyav T'ye today. Maybe some tacos from Auntie Tii's. How does that sound?"
"Again?" Mozu chuckled. "Well, you won't see me complaining,"
She paused, expecting Hina to gush about the food further, only to be met with a disconcerting silence that hung in the air for a moment.
"…Everything all right, flower? You seem as if you have something on your mind."
Who was your OC’s biggest influence in their childhood? (from @tsukinoxiv it took me too long to find the damn ask button omg)
If you asked any child of Doma or the broader Yanxia who they looked up to or what they wanted to be when they grew up, the answer of "samurai" was pretty ubiquitous, and little Hinako Daigo wasn't much different. An energetic youth with a rebellious streak, despite her nascent spiritual potential she wanted nothing to do with shrine priests twofold: finding them to be boring, and mistakenly blaming her grandfather - himself a kannushi - for the exit of her parents from her life.
Thus, she instead idolized the samurai and enjoyed pretending to be one in play fights. So when an actual swordsman of reputable caliber came around to Iwa, a Lupin named Takezo, she latched on to him quite readily. To his credit, he imparted wisdom that Hina would take to heart and ultimately carry with her into the future.
Does your OC ever think of immortality? Would they ever seek it? (from @tsukinoxiv)
Hinako associates immortality with the kami. Physical death is natural and often inevitable, but the immortal spirit can persist in the otherworld, and through a culmination of years well lived can they ascend. Of course, an exemplary few have become kami in life, too - circumstances she also connects to the auspices.
Such is not for Hinako to willingly seek out or force; only to do her best with the time she has. And if nothing else, perhaps her deeds may be held in such regard that she'd live on through memory.
I think I've returned a bit of width to Hina's mouth + a hint of that frown in the Face 2 Au Ra resting expression that helps make her smiles so endearing.
Your honor, I love her 😩
