(D1, ME) Everyone wants to be a Sailor (Play)

[Seppun Yuzu]

Minae smiled.

"Not a bad thing in and of itself. A lord should wish for vassals who swiftly attend to their duties after all." she offered in return, enjoying the little game of wordplay before the actual play.

He nods, but then raises a finger. "Desire is a sin, mother wouldn't allow me to let go past. A lord must work the qualities needed in their followers."

[Bayushi Minae]

He nods, but then raises a finger. "Desire is a sin, mother wouldn't allow me to let go past. A lord must work the qualities needed in their followers."

Minae fanned herself slightly.

"Your mother is wise. I'm sure she also impressed upon you that Fear and Regret ar also sins. If one devotes their life to avoiding Desire, are they not showing Fear? Will they not Regret what might have been had they not been so strident?" she suggests.

[Seppun Yuzu]

Minae fanned herself slightly.

"Your mother is wise. I'm sure she also impressed upon you that Fear and Regret ar also sins. If one devotes their life to avoiding Desire, are they not showing Fear? Will they not Regret what might have been had they not been so strident?" she suggests.

"Indeed she is. She was Hantei once." He nods and taps his chin, recalling the teaching of his sensei, "Avoidance of sins such as desire are akin to avoiding a blade of an enemy. One shouldn't fear them, but respect they're there, and the damage they can cause. As for regret, it should be simply treated as a lesson learned. What is done is done: find enlightenment and move on."

[Kuni Yasu]

Ishioka sighs a little - not loudly, but the Kuni is close enough to see his shoulders move and faintly hear the exhale.

"Maybe I show no signs now. It is easier not to talk about it, and not to think about it when that's possible. But she was my parents' favorite, so every time they now check up on me..." He closes his eyes and his mouth forms a flat grimace. He's quiet for a time.

"Oh, you asked how it happened." He opens his eyes and there's a flicker of an angry fire in them. "Duel with a dishonorable Dragon," he says simply, then sighs again.

"A dishonorable duel? And who oversaw that?" About to say more, Yasu stops, glancing at the growing crowd. "Nevermind, we'll talk of it later, someplace quieter. Yes?"

Concern in her eyes she adds. "Grief does shift with time and we go on. I want to hear more of her when we talk, if that's ok?"

"For now though...How have you been otherwise? Are you going back to Kyuden Hida once married, or are you hoping for other ties?"

[Bayushi Minae]

Minae fanned herself slightly.

"Your mother is wise. I'm sure she also impressed upon you that Fear and Regret ar also sins. If one devotes their life to avoiding Desire, are they not showing Fear? Will they not Regret what might have been had they not been so strident?" she suggests.

"Indeed she is. She was Hantei once." He nods and taps his chin, recalling the teaching of his sensei, "Avoidance of sins such as desire are akin to avoiding a blade of an enemy. One shouldn't fear them, but respect they're there, and the damage they can cause. As for regret, it should be simply treated as a lesson learned. What is done is done: find enlightenment and move on."

Minae nodded, paying careful attention to the Seppun.

"Wise words inseed, Seppun-sama" she said agreeably. "Although my cousin would disagree with such a way of thinking. On his first day of lessons with his sensei, the very first think his sensei did was punch him hard in the mouth. As my cousin lay reeling from the shock of the unexpected blow, his sensei told him, ''That is your first lesson. Everything we teach is built upon this."

She laughed softly.

"He was bruised often throughout his years of training, but he grew stronger with each bruise, and he never forgot his first lesson."

[Seppun Yuzu]

-snip-

He listens attentively and remains silent as he digests the information. Then, Yuzu nods, with a serious expression, "Thank you for sharing. I'll try to find the wisdom behind that punchline."

[Shiba Raizo]

"Fair is fair," she echoed politely, keeping her eyes off to the side for the moment before she returns to meet his gaze lightly. "And what praytell are the qualities Shiba-san would have me look for, so I might direct like-minded samurai to his favour?" Who would you like to end up with? was always a telling question, and Narumi was a curious sort.

"Well, that is the question, isn't it? And not one I've given much thought prior to now, to my shame be it. So... perhaps a young woman of saintly patience, low aesthetic requirements of her spouse, and a thick skin?"

He seemed to be only... half-joking.

"I believe the Phoenix are intent on my remaining within the Clan, and I doubt I have much to offer anyone looking for... let us call it political gain in their match. And yourself? Anyone to whom you wish your praises sung?"

[Usogawa Narumi]

[...]

She found his self depreciating nature decidedly refreshing, and much like her own inner dialogue.
"I shall see what I can drum up, in accordance to Shiba-san's tall order. As for me? Oh you know. An honourable samurai would make this one a happy wife," she answers simply with another shrug.
"But you've already sussed out the most important asset: a traveller at heart. Someone who sets his eyes on the horizon and doesn't look back."

[Shiba Raizo]

"I shall see what I can drum up, in accordance to Shiba-san's tall order. As for me? Oh you know. An honourable samurai would make this one a happy wife," she answers simply with another shrug.
"But you've already sussed out the most important asset: a traveller at heart. Someone who sets his eyes on the horizon and doesn't look back."

"I'll have to see what I can do... and of course, one should keep the other apprised of developments, hm?"

[Matsu Ishioka]

"A dishonorable duel? And who oversaw that?" About to say more, Yasu stops, glancing at the growing crowd. "Nevermind, we'll talk of it later, someplace quieter. Yes?"

Concern in her eyes she adds. "Grief does shift with time and we go on. I want to hear more of her when we talk, if that's ok?"

"For now though...How have you been otherwise? Are you going back to Kyuden Hida once married, or are you hoping for other ties?"

Ishioka nods to Yasu's questions, fully preferring later and a different location. To the lighter questions, he begins to respond slowly.

"I am mostly well and... Trying to look forward to what comes after this. I have no particular expectations. I am... trying to organize my thoughts about what seems desirable in a match. I spoke to a samurai-ko yesterday who suggested sharing that with the nakodo could help ensure the most successful match." Ishioka shrugs like he doesn't know if he believes that, but his tone of voice is genuine that he is organizing his thoughts.