D5EE Dinner date (Narumi's, closed)

[Usogawa Narumi]

Her room had been tidied meticulously. Her aunt after all had incredibly high standards on how she wanted her riverboat kept, and moreover how she wanted her niece kept, and so Narumi was accustomed to keeping everything perfect.
Her appearance was just as tightly put together. As opposed to the state she'd been in after the kemari event when she'd last sat down with Yasu.
A light spread for dinner was set out, nothing too heavy and nothing particularly filling, but all easy to talk around, involving few quick bites. A teapot is kept warm off to one side of a small table, a few cushions on the floor. Next to her bed, a cricket in its cage is chirping.
Narumi takes one last look around the room, wanting everything to be in place before her guest arrived.

[Kuni Yasu]

Yasu arrives with fresh clothes and fresh paint on her face. The scroll satchel that always rides at her hip has a new cord fastening it-- simply braided in brown and blue, with a small stone from some fruit tied into it. She has two small bags in her hands.

She waits at the door until allowed in, bowing a proper greeting. The sound of the cricket has her looking around to spot the source, and then grinning widely. "you know, I'm surprised I haven't seen them hawking crickets in the market to all the participants. Everyone wants a little extra luck here."

[Usogawa Narumi]

At the scratch, the door is slid open, the bow is returned, and Narumi smile is wide and genuine before stepping aside to allow Yasu in properly.
"Oh! Hai... it was a gift! I mean.. if we're being honest, a bribe, but they sort of start to look like the same thing to me after a while... Please, sit, get comfortable. Would you like some tea?"
A notice of the bags Yasu carries, and her lips tilt again into a smile. "Care to share what you've brought?"

[Kuni Yasu]

"Tea would be great," she says, approaching the table and setting out the first bag. "Sesame dango, from the kitchen, so not exactly special, but a treat after showing off my lack of tactical genius."

Curious, she asks, "But who offers a cricket as a bribe?"

[Usogawa Narumi]

Narumi nods at the confirmation for tea, sets out two cups, and pours.
"Oh! That's so thoughtful! Thank you... Oh, did Kuni-san fare poorly at Go?" she asks gently, her expression kind.
About the cricket, Narumi giggles and gives a slight shrug, "The courtier knew I have a liking to them, I suppose. He wanted to make sure I remembered him well, when setting up his match. And it worked out for him, in the end." her manicured eyebrows uptick at that.

[Kuni Yasu]

"A good match then?," she asks, smoothing out the fabric across her knees. "Certainly worth a cricket. One of your clan then?"

Yasu's smile is rueful. "Go is...not a great fit for Kuni tactics. Can't ask the earth to strike your opponent with jade, for a start. Maybe I should have sat that one out," she grins. "But...I was curious to at least try it." She shrugs. "It was very frustrating in the moment, but a reminder that expertise in one sort of fighting doesn't always translate to other sorts."

[Usogawa Narumi]

Narumi laughed. "A Mantis, actually! But his soon-to-be betrothed was one of my clan, hai."
When she spots Yasu's expression change though, she matches it. "No, I suppose not! You're not wrong, very insightful, and very much in line with what you reminded me of the other day, as well. Everything here is a learning opportunity, both about our future spouses as much as about ourselves."

[Kuni Yasu]

"A Mantis? What was he like?" she asks as she rolls back the edges of the bag of sweets so they can grab them. "Don't see them come through the wastes much, though there were a few through Kyuden Hida last summer when I was there."

The other little bag is just set on the table. "Less awful tea. This one's just good for elemental balance and also for sleep. It's actually pretty nice."

"I hope the past few days have treated you kindly. And that you've had some luck finding future spouses you'd find yourself happy to be paired with."

[Usogawa Narumi]

"The Otter have a yearly trade with the Mantis and the Tortoise, we meet at the same place every year on the same date- mostly as reassurance that the Otter arent trying to poach what's theirs. We trade, and take those wares upriver.
This particular Mantis, I met him at our last yearly meet. He was like an oncoming storm... Dark and emotional. But he'd fallen in love with one of our trader's daughters. Madly, hopelessly in love. He could've gifted my aunt and I with anything to make it known how much his heart belonged to the girl.
He gave me that lucky cricket," Narumi tilted her head to one side and smiled at the memory. "It was the most romantic proclamation I'd ever seen. But maybe I'm just a silly girl as well."

Hm. "I look forward to trying the tea, thank you. Please, help yourself to whatever you'd like to nibble on...
Oh! I- well- hm!" Narumi flustered, and put a hand over her mouth in thought.
"They have. I've spent more time with Asahina-san," a smile crossed her lips again.
"But there's another I've spent increasing time with who has caught me off guard in a very different fashion."

[Kuni Yasu]

Yasu listens attentively, fascinated to learn the the Otter also have a yearly gathering. Though she suspects Tanabe will find the Kuni one rather odd in comparison. "He literally gave you his luck for the match of his dreams. That's sweet more than silly. I hope they were happy?" She's maybe thinking, again, of her own, too-good-to-be-true, circumstances.

Yasu samples bits from the dishes on the table as she listens, a pleased smile as she listens. Though there is something a bit sad to her tone as she nods and notes, "quite a bit of that going around, it seems. Divided hearts can be hard to manage. Who's swooped in and caught you so off guard like this?"