Sunset fell upon the Ayakashi estate and began to bathe it in its red hue. Or at least it would have done so if a storm wasn't raging outside. But such a thing didn't matter to Kiku as he spent a lot of his time cooped up in a hidden portion of the winery where few knew of its existence let alone Kiku's. However the hollow was prone to letting his imagination run wild in order to deal with the boredom that such a dreary location produced so in his minds eye there was a sunset that made it look as if the sky was bleeding (Though there was the occasional flash of lightning and roar of thunder that seemed to emanate from nowhere).

Realizing that it would soon be dinner time, Kiku decided to get in a quick workout before dinner. Approaching a punching bag that was hanging off to the side of the room, Kiku put some wraps on top of his hands. Grinning as he brought his hands up in front of him, Kiku began to unload on the bag. Twisting his upper body with each punch, Kiku began to weave left and right with his strikes. Mixing things up with the occasional elbow or knee, Kiku's imagination soon spun a new tale.

"Here we are folks. It's the match we've all been waiting for. Kiku vs...some shinigami...person." Kiku said in a very convincing announcer's voice. Soon ignoring the hiccup in his story, Kiku soon continued the narration of his drill. "And it seems like Kiku is just laying into the guy. There's a jab followed by a right hook. It seems like the shinigami is stumbling and Kiku just won't let up on the guy. It seems like the shinigami is trying to ram himself into Kiku, a desperate maneuver that is sure to cost him AND IT IS. Kiku has him in a control position and is just laying the knees and elbows into him. The guy is down and it looks like the injuries have killed the shinigami. AND THE CROWD GOES WILD." Stepping back from the bag as it swinging soon began to lessen, Kiku panted from exhaustion.

Forcing himself to look straight up to make his breathing easier, Kiku began a mental count of his break. "I'll give myself a minute and a half at most." Kiku thought to himself as he panted for breath. Reflecting to himself how useful it would be to get some sort of timer so his drills and breaks would be more consistent in their length, Kiku made a mental note to ask Shiranui about that later on.

During Kiku's violent assault on the very innocent punching bag he kept in his room, a familiar figure with long, pink hair stepped into the scene. Standing by the door was Amaterasu, her eyes observing the movements of their hollow-in-hiding. With her arms crossed, the eyes focused in and watched the ways Kiku would move his body, every twist and turn, every punch he'd throw, even down to the movement of his feet. And while most of it was impressive and interesting to watch, his commentary was the thing that caused the lady of the manor to scoff, as Kiku sat down for his minute rest.

"I fail to see this crowd of yours, Kiku."

Ammy would follow her scoff up with a sentence, as she stepped further into the room. With her right hand extended towards the tortured bag, her head turned and gazed down towards him. "Or maybe they all left as soon as I opened the door." — her tone trying to convey a bit of humor into her condescending choice of words. But don't take it the wrong way, at least Amaterasu was making an effort to approach Kiku.

Kiku was interesting in some ways.

His hollow nature combined with his childish enthusiasm always made Amaterasu wonder about the intelligence these creatures had. He was less of an animal, compare it with a stray cat or an eagle up high, but he was not a human either. She accepted him though. She felt nothing ill towards him. But the only positive aspect was his interesting nature, and the only reason why Amaterasu had gone down to Kiku's cellar on this day.

The tall female slightly slid her gauntlet against the bag in a sweep away from it, as her figure turned and face Kiku with the arms crossing up again. She was wearing her normal outfit, with the pink mixing with her white and clear colors, the legs exposed with a pair of silver boots adorned on her feet, and the protective gauntlets on each of her arms. With a slight yawn, she continued to address Kiku's training in her normal tone of voice.

"I can understand that you enjoy working out, Kiku, but I think you need to do it without the use of excessive shouting. Perhaps that will get you more focused on your task at hand." — her hand moved up as she placed her index finger on her chin — "Although, I have to admit, you were making some progress."

As he began to regain his breath, Kiku heard a familiar voice. Perking up, Kiku looked at Ameratsu and gave a joyful smile. It always made his day when either Shiranui or Ameratsu decided to grace him with their presences. Not only was it a welcome distraction from the monotony that his room was a constant source of, but they were some of the few people that Kiku had left in his life which made Kiku just a bit clingy. "Hello. As always it is an honor to be in your presence" Kiku excitedly said to Ameratsu. Hearing Ameratsu's joke, Kiku's smile grew a bit wider. "On the contrary I have an amazing audience right here."

Smiling even more when Ameratsu had deemed him worth of a compliment, it was obvious that Kiku was ecstatic. "Thank you very much. Though it is only because I have a great teacher. Just to be sure, the yelling wasn't too irksome to you was it? It's just a good way to pass the time." Kiku said suddenly worried that his entertainment had bothered Ameratsu.

Realizing that he had neglected to offer Ameratsu a seat, Kiku's expression soon became worried. "Please forgive me. I forgot to offer you a seat. Would you like me to get you a seat or anything else?" Kiku asked, mournful of his failure to immediately offer Ameratsu any sort of hospitality at all.

"On second thought, I realized there was something that needed my attention. Forgive me, Kiku, but I promise another time." She swiftly turned and went up the steps, leaving him to his wild imagination.

[Ameratsu exited as per activity rules, points 'halved', and as Kiku is the only one in the thread it is now closed, graded below and profiles soon to be updated]

Kiku - 2 RP
Ameratsu - 1 RP