[D10LM] Meeting the (otter) nakodo (Expecting)

[Moto Mitsuki]

It was well time for Mitsuki to meet the nakodo.

In the past days, she had talked to one too many people starting to lose it at the fear of getting a bad match. Heard several conspiracy theories about what the Deer was doing here. Seen other participants improvising themselves matchmakers. Folly was starting to take over the miai, and she needed answers to not succumb to it herself.

Answers that Pei Pei might be the only one to know... But Mitsuki wasn't ready to face head-on someone holding so much power over her future. So instead she was looking for the novice nakodo that she heard was among the participants, hoping the girl would be able to shed some light on the current events.

She had sent an invitation for the Otter to join her for tea after the day's event. Now, she was waiting with tea and cake, unsure if she would respond favorably to it.

[Usogawa Narumi]

After going back to her room at the inn to change into something less, well, muddy, Narumi stepped into the tea house and looked around briefly. She shook off her umbrella and set it beside the door, and made her way over.
Bowing politely to the Unicorn, "Ohayo, Moto-san; thank you for reaching out to me! I'm sorry we didn't get a real chance to talk at the... meeting... the other day, beyond discussion of the river, which I'm always happy to oblige. May I?" she motions to sit, sussing up the Unicorn woman.

[Moto Mitsuki]

"Hello Otter-sama.

Of course, please take place. Tea? Cake?"

Mitsuki will serve a large slice for herself in all cases, hungry after the hunt.

"While I would say it had interesting consequences, the seer meeting... did not turn as expected at all. Which is quite ironic, but if fortune-telling was a perfect science, life would be way more boring, wouldn't it?

From my more mundane understanding, if this was a play and the three members of the Otter delegation were the protagonists, Emiko would be the princess, Tanabe the knight and you would be the... Sage? Diplomat? The one who solves problems with words."

[Usogawa Narumi]

A smirk crossed her lips as Narumi joined at the table, and shook her head. She didn't solve anything. Not really.
"Interesting consequences is one way of putting it, hai." After all, the hidden meeting had led Narumi right into the path of Inoshishi, and spurred their next meeting at the temple, which barreled completely out of control, only amplified at Ishioka's mixer... which led them to this morning, and everything she was trying to get away from, here.

"Being an impartial third party is part and parcel of Otter business," she nodded with a small shrug, and retrieved a cup of tea. "We come, we go, we don't make it our business to get involved as a rule." she smiled ruefully. "I generally don't like to get more invested than I have to. This miai has of course turned that stance upside down."
She took a breath and sighed, before offering a well-practiced smile instead. "What can I do for you, Moto-san?"

[Moto Mitsuki]

"A simple yet very complex thing: Explain the logic of this miai to me.

Why all these trials? Why the lack of formal interviews so far? Why the mostly empty daily schedule?

Everyone seems to have their own theory on the matter, which only adds to the confusion.

Some say the trials are meaningless and that's everything we do in-between them, when we're not officially watched, that the Deer looks at, and will judge us on.

Some say each trial symbolically represent one aspect of marriage, and they're part of a complex ritual undergone by the Deer shugenja to have the spirits match us harmoniously.

Some even say the Deer is currently plagued with an invasion of mischievous spirits, and that they're just too busy taking care of it to proceed with the miai normally.

In all cases, participants in this miai do not lack imagination. What would be your expert input on the matter?"

[Usogawa Narumi]

She laughed lightly to stop herself from crying then and there.
The Unicorn was about to be sorely disappointed.
"I have no idea."
She took a sip of tea.
"That is to say, every one of those theories sound plausible. I have ideas about what most of the events have been sussing out, but not all. I'm also sure they're watching what we do on our off-hours as well. I have had meetings with Shika Pei Pei-sama but I'm careful not to make it seem I'm seeking an advantage of information withheld from the rest of the candidates."
She drummed short nails on the table briefly in thought. "I don't have real insider information, I'm afraid, and you're not the first to ask me. Deer and Otter have very different approaches."

[Moto Mitsuki]

"One of the rumors is that Shika Pei Pei-sama is a shugenja herself even if she doesn't advertise it. No idea if that's true, false, or simply irrelevant."

Mitsuki sighed:

"How do you do the whole matchmaking thing when you're in charge? To have another frame of reference.

In the Sands... It's very much like haggling at the market. The matchmakers talk with the prospective spouses and their families, and everyone inflates their own worth and, politely, critics the worth of the other side to try to get the best deal."

[Usogawa Narumi]

"You're not far off, to be honest. There's no magic to it, beyond what happens behind the proverbial curtain. It's bookkeeping, is what it boils down to. There's talent and flair, of course, and a skilled touch needed. But nothing divine to it, unlike here." one could think the tone Narumi spoke was tinged with bitterness, and they wouldn't be wrong.
"it's... I'm not going to say it's simpler, because it's not. I've been training since I was a girl and I still don't know everything I need to know. I gather all the information my aunt requires to make the matches. I put it all together. I match who I think is right for one another based on that analysis and our conducted interviews, and she revises to what she thinks is right instead." She shook her head before having another sip of tea.

[Moto Mitsuki]

The wording of the explanation left Mitsuki perplexed:

"I'm not sure I understand what's so special about the Deer from your explanation. For all I know, they could just be doing bookkeeping too. They had ample time to both gather information about us before our coming here, and to observe us as we strolled their town.

Where's the... divine there?"

[Usogawa Narumi]

Narumi's brow furrowed and she set down her cup.
"It's my understanding the Deer utilize a spiritual guide of sorts, rather than an earthly one."