Despair and Wisdom: Imperial March

Edogawa prayed quietly at the shrine, paying respect and giving an offering with the intention of slipping away. He was not, however, to escape the offer of a fortune. Nervously he accepted it and soon learned that death was in his path. He took a deep breath, then released it and the tension in his body.

It wasn't a surprise, really. But, it still disturbed him.

There was always an ebb and flow to festivals. The shrine tended to be very popular early in the day, and the bars very popular in the night. So if you didn't want to be too crowded, taking a night to enjoy the fresh air and swing by the shrine to offer prayers.

Hana made her offerings and received her fortune.

Well of course it was Good Luck. The Heavens would never look down upon one of the Imperial families and if some monk thought giving her a bad fortune would teach her a lesson, they would've been the ones to learn instead.

As she left the shrine, she noticed a Kitsuki meditating upon some deep truth. But he didn't look too deep into meditation.

"Kitsuki-san?" she asked with a bow. "I am Otomo Hana of the sixth kaisha. Would you care to walk with me a bit this fine evening?"

Mari was not particularly fond of so directly calling upon a Fortune, seated within its shrine, on a festival day devoted to it. How could it fail to be paying a discomforting amount of attention to the proceedings?

And yet...the draw of seeing how this one directed its omens was too fascinating to pass up. So she dressed in her priest's robes for the festival, multicolored ribbons braided into her hair to fall loose around her for the entertainment of wandering breezes; more ribbons pinned to her sleeves and tied to flutter from the cords securing her obi. She waited to approach one of the shrine keepers to ask how the spirit of the shrine was best honored. It seemed there were more ways than one, not uncommon, but she felt quite drawn to one in particular.

After all the standard rituals of approach, she set a small cone of incense to burn and began constructing a small bridge before the shrine. Using hastily gathered straws and twigs, she concentrates on the tasks before her--the march, their mission, her own hopes to find word of her cousin. The bridge stood, stable until she bowed to the fortune and breathed the words of the prayer the keepers had told her on its fragile foundations. It stood for a breath...two...before a breeze finished the job and knocked it apart.

She could already see the hints of favorable kanji in the scatter, before one of the keepers nodded over her shoulder. "Oh! Isawa-sama has a bright future ahead, it seems! Hard to tell in what area of life though...maybe just general good fortune, neh?" If the young woman thought her return smile a bit less thrilled than she'd expected, she made no mention of it. Mari shivered a bit as she stepped back, leaving space for the constant flow of people coming to pay their respects. If such a spirit was going to have its eyes on her, surely a good fortune was better than a bad one, right?

Otomo Hana wrote: ↑

Sun Jun 23, 2024 5:40 am

"Kitsuki-san?" she asked with a bow. "I am Otomo Hana of the sixth kaisha. Would you care to walk with me a bit this fine evening?"

He bowed respectfully.

"I am Kitsuki Edogawa of the fourth kaisha. I would be pleased and honored to accompany you."

She smiled a bit at the Kitsuki's acceptance. She also noted the Phoenix in all her beribboned glory.

"Excellent, Kitsuki-san. Have you had the chance to make Isawa-san's acquaintence?" she asked. "I've seen her often busy around the medical area, but have not yet had the chance to speak with her either."

Mari notes her name, and shifts attention from inner thoughts to the people around her. She offers an appropriate bow to the pair, which means a bit deeper to acknowledge Hana's Imperialness. "Then I suppose it's well that we've this chance to meet outside of the healer's tents, Otomo-sama--and Kitsuki-sama as well. I've not had the pleasure of meeting either of you formally yet."

Hana can't help but smile a little bit.

"Then what better way to honor the fortune of a bridge than by making new connections?" she mused.

She offered a respectful bow to the healer.

"I am Otomo Hana of the sixth kaisha, though Isawa-san may find it interesting that my last posting was at Pale Oak Castle." she offers.

She made a motion with a fan towards the Dragon.

"And this is Kitsuki Edogawa of the fourth kaisha. Having just met him as well, I can offer little insight as to where he has been, instead only where he is going. That is on a short walk in this pleasant night air. Perhaps Isawa-san would care to join us for such a journey as well?" she invited.

Nearby, Daikumo offers his prayers and respects to the kami honored at the shrine and the festival. He is solemn throughout and offers a bit of his dinner at the shrine when he makes his prayers and offerings. He is quiet and doesn't respond outwardly when he sees his "Great Luck" fortune. Simply tucking away the stick that was a good omen and giving thanks to the kami here.

---

D5 ME, Festival, Paying Your Respects at the Shrine | TN: 2 | Success: 4 / Opportunity: 0 / Strife: 1


Success w/ 2 bonus, Once this game you may reroll 2 dice AFTER already rolling on a single skill check, +1 strife

"Before reporting to the fourth kaisha, I was at Kyuden Kitsuki." he explained to the Imperial and the Phoenix.

Otomo Hana wrote: ↑

Sun Jun 23, 2024 7:20 pm

Hana can't help but smile a little bit.

"Then what better way to honor the fortune of a bridge than by making new connections?" she mused.

She offered a respectful bow to the healer.

"I am Otomo Hana of the sixth kaisha, though Isawa-san may find it interesting that my last posting was at Pale Oak Castle." she offers.

She made a motion with a fan towards the Dragon.

"And this is Kitsuki Edogawa of the fourth kaisha. Having just met him as well, I can offer little insight as to where he has been, instead only where he is going. That is on a short walk in this pleasant night air. Perhaps Isawa-san would care to join us for such a journey as well?" she invited.

It takes very little smile to dimple plump cheeks, even if it was a somewhat nervous one. The fortune was quite busy today, surely the offered fortunes were the extent of its scrutiny. "More formally then, Isawa Mari of the fifth kaisha, medic and priest. A walk" away from the shrine "would be welcome."

She listens to previous postings attentively. "I've been with the 42nd for four years and was assigned to the Shiba's 21st in a similar capacity for several years before that, mostly chasing western province bandits and the like. Never made it to Pale Oak Castle," she added for Hana's benefit. "Were you there attached to a different legion or under completely different assignment?"

"And Kitsuki-sama, are you here straight from training then? Or positioned at the kyuden in an official capacity?"

As they converse, moving away from the shrine and those they might disturb with their conversation, she does notice the other Dragon as someone she'd spoken to previously and offers an acknowledging nod in his direction, but leaves the decision of adding more to the conversation to him or the Imperial conversationalist.

Hana certainly seemed unbothered by the walk taking a direction away from the shrine. Then again, most directions WERE away from the shrine...going back in specifically to converse would have been strange. She also had spoken with Agasha Daikumo. She found him more amusing when he was swearing vengence upon the very concept of wood, but a pleasant enough person otherwise. There was a look and a fan gesture of 'Join the conversation if you wish, decline if you wish.'

"Ah, is that so Isawa-san? That IS a pity, I found Pale Oak Castle to be a wonderful posting filled with interesting people. I was assigned there before my legion posting. But the lands of the Phoenix are large, not all Scorpion are from Ryoko Owari, not every Phoenix has been to Pale Oak, I suppose. You MAY have even married into the Phoenix from any number of clans. You might have been Kaiu Mari a few years ago, for all I know." she muses.

She offers a playful tilt of the head to the Kitsuki.

"Perhaps we should consult with Kitsuki-san and see if he can unravel the mystery of the origin of Isawa Mari? It's not often this far south one encounters a Kitsuki, let alone get a chance to witness their talents in a completely pleasant setting." she suggested.

Her eyebrows lift slightly, but Mari doesn't immediately offer her background, allowing Hana's puzzle to rest between them for Edogawa to pick up or refuse.

"I had a minor position at Last Step Castle." he nodded. "As for unraveling this mystery, I may need more than a first glance to find the correct answer."

A man of few words it seemed. How mysterious...or annoying...or mysteriously annoying.

Hana allowed herself a small pout of disappointment to show through.

"Ah it is so disappointing that life is so rarely like a play, is it not? That Kitsuki-san can not merely know the whole of Isawa-san's life story merely by looking at her wonderful ribbons, hearing the way she prounces the word 'four', and with a cry of 'There is always only one truth!' revealing all to an astonished gathering."

She gestured back to Mari with her fan.

"After all, simply asking Isawa-san about her hometown and her parents is a revelation anyone can pull off...if I have not too deeply offended Isawa-san with my musings."

Hana's tone was light and airy, words spoken to fellow legionnaires meant to entertain....with perhaps one or two sly little digs at the vaunted Kitsuki Method.

"The game wouldn't be much fun, if one could reach the goal with a single step." he grinned. "A keen eye for detail may lead to a prevailing truth, but one must eliminate the possibilities to be certain."

"The ribbons compliment Isawa-san nicely, but I doubt they are simply aesthetic. They are not a form of commendation that I am aware of, either. They could be charms, but I suspect they have a more personal meaning."

He withdrew a wooden toy from his sleeve, letting it fall towards the ground as they walked. It spun downward on a string until he made a slight gesture and it spun back up into his hand. This continued as he considered the ribbons further.

"Were they a gift?"

Kitsuki Edogawa wrote: ↑

Mon Jun 24, 2024 4:46 pm

"The game wouldn't be much fun, if one could reach the goal with a single step." he grinned. "A keen eye for detail may lead to a prevailing truth, but one must eliminate the possibilities to be certain."

"The ribbons compliment Isawa-san nicely, but I doubt they are simply aesthetic. They are not a form of commendation that I am aware of, either. They could be charms, but I suspect they have a more personal meaning."

He withdrew a wooden toy from his sleeve, letting it fall towards the ground as they walked. It spun downward on a string until he made a slight gesture and it spun back up into his hand. This continued as he considered the ribbons further.

"Were they a gift?"

Mari shakes her head with a slight smile as the Otomo wonders is she's offended. "I did wonder what details," she gestures downward indicating her clothing and self, "would figure into that sort of dramatic deduction."

She lets the ribbons pinned to her left sleeve trail through her right hand. "Some have been gifts over the years, most of these are not." Retaining her hold on a pale blue ribbon, she adds, "this one was a gift, binding a book of poetry a few years back." She pauses, not sure how much she ought to say within the unstated rules of the game, finally settling on, "It's a charm, both because it was intended as such and because of the personal meaning attached."

Her thumb strokes gently along the smooth silk, her eyes tracing it with a thoughtful, somewhat sorrowful, expression. The ribbon itself is a shade more typically Crane than Phoenix, with symbols and kanji embroidered in a striking orange. The easily visible section contains a protective blessing that holds overtones of family responsibility.

He nodded appreciatively. "Mementos."

The toy returned to his hand and he held it there, rubbing his thumb along the side.

"They really are quite beautiful."

Kitsuki Edogawa wrote: ↑

Tue Jun 25, 2024 2:35 pm

He nodded appreciatively. "Mementos."

The toy returned to his hand and he held it there, rubbing his thumb along the side.

"They really are quite beautiful."

Mari dropped her gaze, hiding a bit of a grin. "Thank you Kitsuki-sama. I'd use them if they weren't pretty, but it's a nice perk." She lets the ribbon fall from her fingers. "But they're definitely not all mementos. I simply can't rely on finding _significant_ ribbons regularly enough for that to be the case."

She watches the little toy roll back up to his hand, wondering at its use. "I'm curious if they bring you closer to an answer?"

The toy dropped and rose again and the Kitsuki returned to the previous pattern. This seemed routine for him as he considered the ribbons further.

"My understanding of the kami is limited at best. They can often complicate investigations. But, I know that their blessings can be infused into objects. And, I would think the air kami would appreciate the ribbons."

Mari nods, setting those ribbons woven through her hair to fluttering. "All correct, Kitsuki-sama. The spirits of the air are particularly pleased by the ribbons, and they can easily serve as a surface for any blessing that would work on a paper charm, with the right preparation."