ROLEPLAY HQ - moonlit-fantasy

Calloused hands grabbed the sword from bench. He had spent all day smithing it. It was one thing to make a sword, but it was another to use it. Hinote reasoned that the most effective blacksmiths were the ones who knew how to use their blades. The weight, the glide, the cut— the samurai he made them for all expected the best. While they had nothing but praise for the young blacksmith, he wanted to be better. That, and he wanted to be a samurai; to use the swords he made with his hand to help people. Despite it supposedly being an era of prosperity and peace, not all villages and roads were equal. The surrounding villages were always speaking of trouble with bandits; he wanted to do something about that. He tossed on his gear and opened the door of the shed. The cool evening air beat against his bare chest and face. His red hair—an anomaly to most, but a supposed blessing to others—was tossed back and forth, barely touching down below his hairline. Hinote carefully closed the door behind him and snuck off into the night like he did every night. He would enter the bamboo forest on the outskirts of their town and practice his swordsmanship. Despite being self-taught, his kenjutsu was passable. His goal was a clean cut through a bamboo stalk. While he could cut through it on one swing, it was jagged; messy. It wasn't the sword's fault, though. There seemed to be some hidden force that always stayed his hand. Was it fear? If so, fear of what? "Hya!" He called out into the night as he swung the sharp katana. It connected with a bamboo stalk before lodging itself in half-way. "Dammit! How could I—" Suddenly, a small noise pricked his ears and caught his attention. He pulled his sword free and turned around. In the distance, a woman was running from several men. They appeared to have weapons. He was outmatched; there was not way he could... No. He had to. That's what samurai did: they fought for the people regardless of the odds. He brought his sword to his side

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and went to intercept them. His geta tapped against the dry forest floor as he ran. He noticed the woman look at him, but he ran past her, stopping a little ways behind her and bringing his sword to bear. There seemed to be about six men. Farmers, from the looks of it. They carried weapons like sickles or hoes. "Stand aside, boy! We're hunting that witch!" One of the men said. Hinote shook his head; he would get the woman's story later. "She's entered into my jurisdiction, so I will take care of her. If she is what you say she is, then I will find out for myself. But, as of right now, she is an innocent woman who is being chased through the night by several men with weapons." The redhead pointed his sword at the crowd and tilted it slightly, "I would recommend turning back now." Please. I don't feel like dying today. He hoped he sounded threatening, even as the last part played in his head. The men seemed to pause and look at each other before turning back to Hinote. "Fine. You want her? She's your problem now." They let their weapons down and turned to leave. He waited until they were a good distance away before running over to the supposed-witch. "Are you alright?"

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@enummi

It was that time of month again, the new moon that Mitsu always dreaded but also always looked forward to. It was the only time she had a break from lighting up the moon for once and being able to take a break to see what the mortal realm had in store for her. There was always something new, something interesting. Although she didn't make any new connections, she did her best to make sure she didn't stand out so no one would remember her. It was difficult due to her pure white hair not to stand out but she managed to paint it black while she was amongst mortals. So before she left her home in the heavens, she smudged in the dye to make her hair black and awaited for it to dry a bit more before heading off for the night. Last month wasn't much of a field trip as many mortals had been sickly, staying indoors the entire time she visited. This month there was a small firefly festival where the vendors released fireflies into the village to light up the path while also keeping some in jars to sell to passing villagers. Cheers and laughter rang out through the marketplace, cute little decorations being displayed to lighten up the atmosphere. It was definitely a sight to see for Mitsu while she walked amongst the villagers to enjoy the festival. It was until one of the vendors emptied their pale of water by accident onto the lady of the moon. Mitsu flinched in astonishment as the cold water splashed onto her, her eyes wide in shock as the black dye started to wash away. The vendor who was at fault started to apologize until he realized her hair was turning a white he's never seen before. Anger filled the vendor's gaze as he yelled "Witch!" The other vendors nearby all turned their gazes towards the woman and picked up the nearest weapons they could find. Mitsu looked around nervously before realizing there were just too many for her to face alone. Without realizing it, she was stabbed by the vendor in front of her, his eyes blazing in hatred. Mitsu gasped in pain ..

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... before prying herself away to escape. Clasping the wound in her side as she ran into a nearby forest. The mob chasing after her with sickles and hoes or whatever was sharp enough to dismember and harm. It wasn't until she came across a man with fiery hair that she stopped feeling trapped. Was this how she was going to meet her end? But instead of the fiery man charging at her, he stood up to the mob chasing after her. She found herself astonished that someone would do that for someone as unusual as she was. When the man came to a conclusion with the mob, the group left. Mitsu clutched her hand to her chest as the man turned to her. Somewhat frightened but she put up a brave face. "I'm.. fine.." as she said these words, she slumped back into a nearby tree and lost the strength in her legs. More blood only seeped out of her wound as she put pressure on it. "I need to go back-" Mitsu tried to stand but her vision blurred and ended up passing out from both shock and the amount of blood she had lost. This would be her final time going to this village if she ever made it out of this... But if she didn't, this would have been the last time she'd ever visit the mortal realm. @Two Prayers for the Lost

Hinote had stepped out of one problem and into another. He was a blacksmith, not a doctor. Still, he had little choice at the moment. Whoever this woman was, she had been injured by the chaotic mob. From his own time injuring himself at the anvil, he knew that the only thing he could do right now was stem the bleeding. He tore off a his cloak, rolled it, and wrapped it rightly around her wound. He noted the blood slowing, but not enough. He gritted his teeth as he sheathed his sword. He'd have to carry her. Based on her appearance - namely, the white hair - he'd have a difficul time getting her a doctor or even getting her into his own house. His workshed it was. He lifted her onto his back and sped off as quickly as he could. For now, he was less concerned with stealth as most of his energy was going into speed. For the moment, he did not care if he was seen. He dashed into the shed, his forge still hot from his earlier work. Good. He set her down and took the tongs from the forge and turned to her. This was going to hurt, but he needed to cauterize the wound. Hinote opened her mouth and filled it with some spare leather, hoping that when she woke up from the pain, she wouldn't hurt herself. "Here we go," he sighed, moved the fabric out of the way, and pressed the red-hot metal against the wound. @enummi