(D3, LE, Murato's) Something Sweet

[Kitsu Murato]

As she tastes and enjoys the cherry he goes about prepping the next fruit, a slice of fresh apricot.

"Not, quite," he says, sounding agreeably playful. "I've got one more here for you to try. Cherries are pretty easy, everyone loves the trees so there's always an abundance after sakura season. This one is not quite as common."

When she seems to have finished, which likely did not take long, he offers the next piece. "And open once more," he says, before placing the apricot slice gently between her lips. Though this time a dirty line pops into his mind and he blushes at himself for it a little.

It's coming into your mouth... no, do not say that out loud. There's flirting and then there's crassness. Don't be that guy.

[Kuni Yasu]

Perhaps it's as well that her eyes are closed, so his blush goes unobserved as Yasu tastes the next fruit he offers, inhaling deeply of the ripe apricot fragrance. Her brows lift in surprise. Scent and taste and even touch as her tongue finds hints in the thin sliver of skin are all examined. But she doesn't speak until after she has swallowed...talking with your mouth full is rude, after all. Nor does she open her eyes, since it seems cheating to catch a glimpse of the rest of the fruit when this was obviously only a slice.

"The skin and flesh feel like a peach, but it doesn't taste like any that I've had." There is absolutely no sense that she's offering any innuendo on purpose. Which doesn't stop it from possibly being there.

[Kitsu Murato]

He had read enough pillow books in his time to hear the inadvertent innuendo, but it did not phase him in the same way as needing to admonish himself did.

"You are right that it's not a peach. You likely have had dried versions," he hints.

Other than that, he simply enjoys her expression of appreciating the fruit. This was quite fun for him, more than he would have expected. He can picture himself doing the same with her into the future if it worked out that way. It was a nice thing to imagine honestly.

[Kuni Yasu]

Yasu started running through a mental catalogue of dried fruit. Her Yasuki cousins could have filled in more, she was sure...but it wasn't plum or grape. Definitely not jujube, lychee, longan or loquat. "Persimmon? no...they're not fuzzy." And they'd already determined it wasn't peach. Not that she'd ever seen dried peaches. Candied ones though...

But those thoughts were off track. "Too large to be any of the berries. Oh! Is it apricot?" Her eyes almost flew open with the guess, then squinched shut in case she was wrong.

Aiko'd brought a bag of dried apricots, from her grandmother's tree. Sweet and chewy, they'd been welcome through the work of cleaning and purifying that wolf skull.

[Kitsu Murato]

"Correct," he says enthusiastically. "Apricot tends to be more popular as a dried fruit for some reason, but I enjoy them fresh."

When she eventually opened her eyes she'd see a pair of apricots, one with a slice cut off, and a one short of a dozen cherries.

"Congratulations on getting both correct. If you like you may choose a reasonable boon that I might grant," he says with a smile.

[Kuni Yasu]

Yasu reaches for the apricot to examine it. The dried ones didn't hint at how pretty they were when fresh. But Murato's offer catches her off guard and she lowers her hand back to the table. "That's a big offer for something so simple, Kitsu-san. And so enjoyable...I don't much feel I've earned..." She stops, nodding a bit to herself, gaze lowered. It was his to offer, and a samurai owned their words.

She lifts her gaze back to his. "I was supposed to tell you more of our shrines and the spirits of our lands. So that I'll do, gladly. But I'm going to ask that you try to understand our Duty, and why it's important. More people need to support it if we're going to be able to keep doing it."

[Kitsu Murato]

"That seems a perfectly reasonable request for a boon from someone who I may yet end up sharing a life with," he replies, not shying from the idea in the least.

"But I will certainly need your help with understanding it. Which means we'll need to spend much more time together," he leans a bit closer. "I must admit that the idea of spending more time with you would be welcome."

[Kuni Yasu]

There's no way to spot a blush beneath the paint, but the painted one across her cheeks seems to fit better for a moment as her gaze wavers, wanting to drop, but remaining fixed on his. "I'd like that. And not just because you've got access to fruit."

Impulsively, she leans closer as well, closing the distance between them to press her lips to his--gentle, quick. Just long enough to taste fruit and the wax of her lip paint, to smell the powdery, herbal scent of her makeup and the very very faint hint of jasmine.

She sits back, eyes a bit wide, surprising even herself, her fingers somehow laced together of their own accord.

[Kitsu Murato]

His own eyes widen in a bit of surprise at that. His mind races and stammers to itself at the same time, trying to find some way to respond.

Is... what... so I would... that was... I...

"Apricot," was his clever response, accompanied by a blush. Truly clever.

He then tries to come up with a better response after another pause. "Thank you," he says, his smile initially embarrassed, but when he starts to realize that she had chosen to do that it becomes warm and pleasant instead.

[Kuni Yasu]

At 'apricot' she starts to reach for the fruit; realizes that wasn't really an ask; pauses; then continues with a short laugh to pick up the sliced one to hand Murato with an abashed smile. "Since you asked..sort of."

"I...You're welcome." She half wants to apologize, but he'd gone and thanked her. Her hands felt strange without something to do and she finds herself wrapping them around the cooling bowl of soup.

"I don't usually do things like that." It's true, where usually is never. "Wanted that close look at your eyes, I guess." That part was blatantly false, there'd been no time at all to examine his eyes.