Player character profiles

[Shika Nesshin]

Name: Shika Nesshin
Clan: Deer
Family: Shika
Age: 18 (b. 1 Hare 1105 IC)
Height: Average
Build: Wiry
Skin: Tanned
Hair: Short and Dark

Lithe and lean and with a ready smile and pleasant greetings, Shika Nesshin serves his Clan as a gamekeeper and warden. Young and ripe for marriage, he's happy to help the many guests at the current miai to navigate the local area--which is beautiful, really, if you take the time to look at it.

Hooks:
From a prominent lineage? Want to connect to one?
Do you know Daidoji Joufuko? How's she doing? She's an old friend.
Like hunting? Nesshin knows the best local spots?
Want to cause trouble? Please don't. Nesshin'd rather not have to take you in.
Do you do spears? Nesshin does spears!

[Shosuro Hikimasu]

Name: Shosuro Hikimasu
Clan: Scorpion
Family: Shosuro
Occupation: soldier of The Red Gale, 3rd Mounted Squadron, 4th company of the 1st Crimson Legion
Age: 20
Height: Average
Build: Average
Skin: Light
Hair: Black
Eyes: Dead (Brown)


It's easy to see what kind of person Hikimasu is. Incredibly average, eyes like a dead fish, a creepy laugh and nothing but complaints about having to do work.

A slight step above bottom feeder.

Not that any of that bothers him. Nothing really bothers him. Just leave him alone to get his work done and you don't have to hear the complaints. Don't be his friend and you won't have to look into his creepy eyes or hear his stupid laugh. Duty is duty, he'll get it done. Scouting, training, cleaning the dojo, dragging dead bodies because calling an undertaker would attract attention...whatever. Just leave it to him, don't bother him, micromanagement is interference.

Though, from time to time, some have been known to seek him out to take care of problems, even other Scorpion. One thing he seems to understand is others, those dead eyes see much more than they let on, and that has been helpful to many who discretely (reluctantly) sought his aid.


A Few Weeks Ago at Nihai Tower
Hikimasu was brushing down Yūdaina, having a chat with his only friend (said Yūdaina, a horse). It was normal to be alone, even the stable hands could find better things to do than be around him.

"Yūdaina-san, do you want to go get some ramen after this?"

The horse snorted.

"You're right, we've been four times this week, you'll get fat."

"Shosuro-san", the voice from behind him was stern. Bayushi Mitsuki was slice of heaven to behold and true relief to a wary soul in conversation...if you were not Hikimasu. He thought saving her life would have warmed her up a little, but good deeds need to be punished.

"Bayushi-taisa", he bowed after facing his superior. She was far too pretty to look in the eye anyway.

"Gather your things, you are being wed", the captain declared with knitted eyebrows.

"This is rather sudden, taisa. Are you sure it's the right decision?" Hikimasu started. Of course she didn't mean her and...he just realized she isn't going to-

"Don't be an idiot...", the look of disgust was enough to make Hikimasu sweat and laugh nervously. Mitsuki slapped a scroll against his chest. "You will journey to Kyuden Shika where you will find a proper wife. If you marry into another clan, I will bid you farewell here." Then she left. "...creep."

Hikimasu had caught the orders as Mitsuki walked away. They were official, indeed. He turned back to Yūdaina. "Maybe you should just go for me."

The resplendent horse seemed to chortle.

[Kitsuki Hajime]

Name: Kitsuki Hajime
Clan: Dragon
Family: Kitsuki
Occupation: Author and Propagandist
Age: 19
Height: 5'6
Build: Svelte
Hair: Black
Eyes: Blue

The eldest son of a Kitsuki bushi and his Doji wife, Kitsuki Hajime has rather taken after his mother in talent and looks. He has spent the last three years building a solid reputation as an author and poet. His works usually are firmly rooted in the (always superlative) natural and social features of the domain of Kitsuki Shunsuke, his lord, though this spring a pillowbook appeared detailing the experiences of a breathless ingenue at a winter court in the reign of Hantei Bosai. If the characters and situations struck a familiar chord with any of this year's winter courtiers, no one has yet spoken up.

Hajime is a single Dragon male seeking (ideally) a man to marry into the Dragon clan. His ideal candidates are politically savvy and have connections that could help him transition out of the propaganda market and into fighting crime.

Hooks
Were you at winter court last year? Hajime was fairly popular, perhaps you are old acquaintances?
Are you an avid reader? Maybe you've read some of his work, which circulates widely in the big cities and diplomatic centers of the Empire.
Do you have connections with the Dragonfly clan? They're not too keen on Hajime.
Are you a traveler? Kitsuki Shunsuke's lands have become a must-see of the Northern Tour in part because of Hajime's work. Of course, reality seldom matches up to the emotions in a poem...

[Kaikoga Koi]

Name: Kagoya Koi
Clan: Moth
Age: 24 years old.
Gender: Female
Height: 5"3
Body type: Very beautiful, with a very toned and sylphlike. Soft, silken black hair with a shimmer of dark blue in direct sunlight.
Striking Feature: Vitiligo on the left eye which makes her pale green eyes stand out and gives this element of mysterious curiosity to her gaze.

Enjoys: Woodworking, fishing, writing poetry, long walks and grilled eel.
Dislikes: Pickled Cabbages, loud people and hey fever. Her mother.
Favourite Animal: Horned Owls.
Occupation: Actress, Painter and Woodworker.
Tools carried: Has a set of fine woodworking tools with her at times, wrapped in a purple and silver cloth and tied with a clasp. Sturdy, built for work but fine quality for a samurai.


Known Family

Father: Kagoya Rayshi, 54 years old. Formerly a Dragonfly Bushi. Deceased.
Mother: Kagoya Hanae, 53 years old. Shugenja. Alive. Socially unpopular in the clan.

Brother: Kagoya Gesshin, 12 years old.
Sister: Kagoya Eiko, 14 years old. Bushi. Assigned to assist as an aid to an Inn in Cranelands.
Sister Kagoya Innko, 10 years old.

Backstory

Kagoya Koi grew up as the eldest daughter to bring prosperity to a family that was riddled with tragedy after their Father's untimely death from sickness of the lung during a particularly bad winter. Her beauty, and her skill as an actress was meant to bring her Mother higher into the social ladder.

Her mother placed unfair weight upon Koi shoulders during her training, which at the time Koi obediently attempted to abide by her Mother's continue overbearing demands that increased and increased as she became further in tune with the realm of Yami-do. This gained her Mother unpopularity amongst the clan over time.

Aneixity and stress began to crack appear in her life, affecting her performance. During the week of her Gempukku the stress really begin to break her composure, and during a particular harsh anxiety attack deep within Yame-do she found herself trapped within the realm.

She returned with very little memory of how she was lead back except that an old, kind owl-like Boku spirit guided her back before leaving its mark on her left eye.

She spent the next few years continuing as an actress as the conflict with her Mother increased. Eventually Koi disappeared, and it took them four years to find her and return her home. Her Lord showed her mercy it is rumoured due to her Mother's actions but it is a very limited mercy.

Candidate Advertisement

Publically: Koi is looking to marry realistically anyone that would bring honour, glory and genuinely anything positive to her clan.

Internally: Her ideal candidate would be a female, someone who enjoys working with their hands to create and build something together with her. Someone that would respect her desires, and cherish them.

Plot Hooks
☆ Parental issues? So does she!
☆Long walks, or fishing? Sounds wonderful!
☆Have you ever been to the "The Playful Dragon" in Crane lands? She would love to hear news of how her sister is fairing as she si quite popular.
☆ Having bad dreams? Confused about things beyond the waking world? Perhaps Koi can assist?

[Seppun Yuzu]

Name: Seppun Yuzu 接吻柚
Faction: Imperial Families
Age: 15
Occupation: Chisei District Governor, Bushi
Marital Status: Single
Gender: Male
Height: 5'9" (1,75m) and still growing
Build: Wiry and slender
Hair: Black
Eyes: Caramel
Complexion: Fair

Background
Seppun Yuzu –– once known as Bo –– chose his name due the sour taste in his mouth after he completed his gempukku in record time, just a couple of weeks ago. Instead of being assigned a position into the Imperial Palace proper to defend the Hantei as a true Miharu, Yuzu got awarded a full district due to his blessed lineage, family shenanigans, and close relation to his most wise and blessed uncle: the Emperor himself.

Now a lord of, perhaps, the most blessed land in all Rokugan –– if not the very Throne Room –– the young Yuzu was sent out by his Family Daimyo to get betrothed during the Deer Clan miai, as proper lords ought to. After all, the Minor Clan Embassy is located in the very district he now commands.

Advertisement
Word from the Imperial Families have reached Kyuden Shika that the young Governor would be searching for a healthy maiden of good lineage and impeccable honor. They hope Kyuden Shika famous stories inspire the Fortunes to provide him with a good match.

Other tongues, knowing very well Yuzu is just a kid, are afraid the very location of the miai could misguide the young lord's honorable purity with... well... lewdness.

Hooks
- If you have ever been to Otosan Uchi: what is your favorite district?
- Do you have Imperial Blood, too –– Isn't that interesting?
- Care to spar and blow off some steam?
- What is your perception of fun?

[Kitsuki Kiyonobu]

Name: Kitsuki Kiyonobu
Gender: Male
Clan: Dragon
Profession: Clan Yoriki
Marital Status: Single
At a glance: He stares at people more than is polite. A bright green tassel with maedeup knotwork dangles from his sword pommel.
Age: 24
Height: 5’ 8”

A slim, quiet and rather bookish man, Kitsuki Kiyonobu (note: not the famous poet of the same name) serves as yoriki to Kitsuki Wataru, a Dragon clan magistrate based out of Shiro Mirumoto. His career has been rather successful thus far, with notable cases involving the exposing the corruption of Mirumoto Shusake (a court official, since executed), and the arrest of a ring of cutpurses that had been the terror of a nearby marketplace.

However, Kiyonobu is getting rather old to be unmarried, and thus he has come to Kyuden Shika in hopes of securing a proper match. Ideally, he hopes to find a literate, talented person that shares his interests; but more practically he reluctantly admits it would probably be better to seek someone with influential family who can further his career.

[Kakita Sakura]

Name: Kakita Sakura
Gender: Female
Marital Status: Single
Occupation: Duellist
Age: 18
Height: 5'2"
Complexion: Fair
Build: Slender
Hair: White (Natural: Brown)
Eyes: Olive, cloudy.
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The eldest daughter of a Kakita poet and his Scorpion wife, Sakura is a skilled duellist, quiet but confident conversationalist and by all accounts has the best of her mother's alluring Scorpion features while still retaining the graceful beauty of the Crane. She has worked hard to get to the position she is in right now- especially given that she is also blind. The amount of effort she has put into her skills and duties has left her unable to attend to the issues of marriage, however, and so her lord has sent her from Shiro Sano Kakita to Kyuden Shika this year... partially to find a partner, and partially as a form of enforced time off from her duties.

She is a single Crane female, ideally seeking a fellow woman to marry into the Crane. While she isn't so choosy as to reject a potential partner... she will admit to a certain particular attraction towards those built more solidly than she is. That being said... one of the largest potential qualifications from her point of view is someone who will not treat her like some sort of fragile doll.

[Kitsu Murato]

Name: Kitsu Murato
Gender: Male
Marital Status: Single
Occupation: Bureaucrat
Age: 19
Height: 5'10"
Build: Defined
Hair: Black
Eyes: Kitsu Orange

Murato is a generally amiable man. He keeps his hair cut short and trimmed, and shaves his face clean as often as necessary. His eyes are the rare striking orange that is a known sign of pure Kitsu blood, but he carries a veritable armory rather than a scroll case. But even his assortment of weapons is misleading as he carries a shamisen instead of armor. He has helix piercings in both of his ears, with large orange colored clamp shaped rings. They are highly reflective, and when illuminated at night or in shadows, it can appear as though there are 4 orange colored eyes staring out from the darkness.

As a child of a marriage between a pure blood Kitsu and an Otomo bureaucrat, he can trace both his maternal and paternal lines all the way back to the beginning of the empire. Living and working in Shiro sano Ken Hayai means that he has spent his life working near the remains of a legendary Kitsu ancestor that the castle was built on. His ability to sense and see spirits means he has spoken with quite a few ancestors that have spent time on Ningen-do. There are not quite so many young samurai that have been as inundated with the past as he has.

He takes honor and religions seriously, and is one of very few Lion that have true appreciation for the Tao of Shinsei. That isn't to say he doesn't show as much reverence for the fortunes or ancestors as other Lion, but he does not disdain the Tao as many in his clan do. He doesn't question the wisdom of Akodo in commanding the Lion's copy of the Tao remain unopened, but he does consider it a responsibility as a child of an Imperial to respect all aspects of Rokugani theology. Wherever he is, he loves to visit libraries to read and learn about the temples across the empire, dreaming of visiting as many of them as he can.

Hooks

* Are you being haunted or followed by an unpleasant spirit? I can try to talk to them for you.
* I need to practice my swordsmanship more. My invisible friend demands I be able to wield his sword properly. Would you like to spar/train with me?
* Please, tell me about the temples you've been to. It's not as good as being there, but it's better than reading about it!

[Aimi]

Name: Aimi
Gender: Female
Marital Status: Single
Occupation: Ronin Shugenja
Physical description: A young, hunger-thin woman with dark eyes and weather-beaten skin, Aimi could scarcely be more obviously a ronin if she tried. Only the presence of a beautifully inscribed omomori at her waist gives a hint as to her true profession, and why she drew enough attention from the Deer to be invited to this event.

Frequently smiling and seemingly possessed of something approaching true humility, Aimi is remarkably easy to talk to, and displays a surprisingly wide understanding of courtly etiquette and the artistic pursuits for a ronin. When asked, she simply says that she learned such things from her father before he passed, and most assume the man to have been a former Crane.

Aimi is in something of a strange position as a marriage candidate. As a shugenja and a reasonably cultured person she would be a fine addition to any Clan, but as a ronin with an entirely unknown ancestry she's the sort of catch any samurai of proper breeding would prefer someone else make instead. Ironically, her lowly status means she has almost nothing to lose from this event - if she walks away at the end of it unwed, it will be personally disappointing, but no great shame or disappointment for a family or feudal superior. Of course, that's not to say she's not interested - a handsome man willing to take her away to a life of comfort and affection would be just about ideal.

[Kaito Oubaihime]

Name: Kaito Oubaihime
Gender: Female
Marital Status: Single
Occupation: Healer Monk
Age: 17
Height: 5'6"
Build: Skinny
Hair: Black
Eyes: Brown

Kaito Oubaihime has live most of her life in the Water Dragon Temple of the Phoenix lands. Travelers come and go as she patched them to be fit to travel. Oubaihime made most of them her friends. The poor girl though tends to not be favored to make things quickly for she is prone to falling. The head of the Water Dragon temple has now sent this soul to Kyuden Shika in hopes that she finds someone to ground her and show her what the true world is about.

Hooks:
Are you sad? Let little Oubaihime make you smile
Are you into medicine? I know a remedy that you may not know
Want a partner in fitness? I know how to run, seriously
Want a sparing partner? Sure, why not...I don't know much about weapons but you can teach me.