Kyuden Shika

Ishioka had slipped out of the dojo a little early so he had some headstart on Narumi. Which meant little when he'd spent most of his time this morning focused on being ready for their wrestling. I kept her safe in the dojo. Good. Now, safe in this talk...

His room takes no time to prepare, thankfully, and he's so quick with a servant requesting tea be brought that he doesn't even specify a flavor or anything.

He finally stops for a breath. I hate to say it but at least the stupid rain was a little refreshing after the dojo. With another breath, and a look around, he settles on an extra cushion for a time. Ok. We can do this.

It's not long before a scratch announcing Narumi and she waits for entrance. Having had a bit of time during the observation of the remainder of the event to calm down.

Ishioka silently curses himself for closing the door and making her wait. He moves quickly to the door to let her in and, in a bit of neither good nor bad luck, tea and cups arrive at the same time.

An excuse to avoid awkward words as she enters is a blessing. But drawing the silence longer as the servant pads into the room, sets things down, and politely asks if anything else can be provided takes moments that feel like hours, as anxiety builds in Ishioka's stomach. Finally, with the servant politely excused without any additional drama, the Lion gently closes the door. He remains facing the door, eyes closed, for one last calming breath before he turns to face Narumi.

She glances at him with kindness when the door is slid open and ducks inside, giving ample and polite distance to the servant as they set up the tea.
When Ishioka and her are alone, when he turns after his pause to face her, her expression is friendly and inviting, her smile tepid.
"Matsu-san... thank you for the invitation," she starts. "And this one can't begin to thank you enough for agreeing to be her partner in the event, and moreover, for not smearing the floor with her in an assertion of your prowess, which would've been no trouble at all for such a skilled fighter as yourself. This one only hopes that your delicacy with her does not hurt your standing."
Her words are warm and kind, but distanced. Her smile remains in place and she dips her head to him; but he's seen this mask before. Her Entertainer's Mask. Her friendly expression does not reach her eyes.

The Matsu steps closer to her to speak, but doesn't close in too far. They haven't resolved yesterday. Still he has to smile that she's pleased with their performance.

"Thank you..." He hesitates, because she started formal. He won't rush her.

"Thank you, Usogawa-san," he says, trying to hide that it sounds wrong to him to call her that. "I felt the effort very successful. And I would rather have no standing here than risk your safety. You trusted me and I could not fail you."

The smile grows a touch warmer at that, and she motions to the set up. "Should we sit?" She moves to the table and lowers, immediately setting to pour the tea, first his cup.
"I also wanted to issue an apology for my outburst yesterday. It wasn't becoming of me, and it wasn't fair to you. I should not have put you, nor Kitsu-san and Emiko-sama, into that unseemly position just because I let my emotions get the better of me."

Ishioka nods at the suggestion and joins her at the table. His face remains politely kind, leaning on his patience as they work toward what really needs attention.

"I am not sure to what you refer," he says, nodding in thanks for the tea. "I recall Kitsu-san saying some wise things, Usogawa-sama saying some sweet things, and then a Lion who can't lie making an embarrassing exit. I saw no reason to believe you were distressed at any time." He's still a terrible liar, but with a brief illustration of the Stone Matsu facade he signals he won't be accepting apologies for that event.

"Instead," he says softly, face turning to a sad smile. "I think I should apologize for any distress that I caused you. I hope you know how much it pains me to be the cause of... any such thing."

His tea poured, she then pours her own. Setting the teapot down, she places both hands around the cup and looks into it while he speaks.
She's tired. The sumai match had been a strain on her endurance. She could've napped. But this was important and she had to see it through. And so Narumi raises her eyes to meet Ishioka's and the passive smile returns.
He really was a terrible liar...
"As stated previously, Matsu-san has nothing to apologize for. Matters close to the heart are a tricky business, or so this one has gathered during her time here in Kyuden Shika, as beautiful as it is. It is also a place of indulgence, where one can so easily be swept up by listening to what their heart wants."
She pauses to take a breath, and there's the slightest quiver to it. Her gaze drops to her tea once more.

The Matsu takes her at her word, knowing now that there was more bothering Narumi the day before than one music performance. Still, his eyes narrow suspiciously at her comments.

"Perhaps for some," he says thoughtfully. "The heart is a powerful thing, breaking down walls that were thought impregnable." He looks at her intently, but lets his stony mask slip to show he's concerned.

She cracks, and her grip around the tea cup tightens.
"When one is told the flowery words they've waited their whole life to hear, one tends to believe them at face value. Going so far as to overlook who else might hear those same words uttered from the same lips."
She treads carefully, suddenly feeling sick to her stomach.
"Until that someone else does something about it. And one has to... reconsider, using their head and ignoring their heart."