D14 ME - The War is Over

[Kitsu Moshumaru]

The Lion nodded.

"You are almost entirely correct, Doji-sama. There is a wisdom to your words which are years ahead of what I could even comprehend. I cannot speak to the will of my Champion, but the conflict between Lion and Crane begun well before us and will likely end well after us."

He paused.

"But... if I truly intended to do nothing, to simply walk away and bask in the moment, I would not be here. I would be, as you say, dreaming of my upcoming marriage. But here I sit, attempting to parlay with two opposite sides who have been forced to ask an impossible question - to demand that one group lives or dies for the sake of the other."

He let the words hang.

"I am unsure if you know of my organization, Doji-sama, but I am a writer for the Records of the Fallen. I have spoken to many people across the Empire, but almost all of them during grief for the loss of a loved one. I have come to know that beneath the samurai there is the person, one who will do anything to protect the ones they love. Usogawa-san's involvement in all this attests to that."

He had no solid proof, but he did have a Lion's sense of right and Usogawa's reaction when he asked at hand.

"By the marriage's end, I will be an Imperial. A servant of the Seppun themselves - no longer simply hanging on the right arm, but responsible for all arms - the right, the left, even the underhand, to an extent. Perhaps I am hasty, Doji-sama, Shika-sama, but let us suppose we could advise this 'one man'. That we find him on the street one day, eating soba noodles in a teahouse or drinking tea with friends in a port town."

He fingered the coin on the empty chair next to him, even if he didn't present it yet.

"What would he have to do, do you think?"

[Doji Oharu]

Probably help him decide on a blend of tea. Oharu thought, given the generally indecisive nature of Akodo Torturi, or at least the perception there of. Ah, was Oharu ever truly as young as this Kitsu was?

He smiled a bit.

"I think you lend too much credence to the Crane's vaunted power of persuasion, Kitsu-san. There are no magic words one might utter over a cup of tea that could so radically redefine the path of the Empire. One must nurture a relationship over many such cups of tea to reach the point where they could be a trusted enough ally to significantly alter one's path. The process takes a great deal of time, time many simply will no longer have. I think your intentions are good, and will offer you what advice I can, but there are simply some things that cannot be changed." Oharu offers.

[Kitsu Moshumaru]

If the Kitsu had been played, he had no true idea. But on the surface, it seemed like a good idea to begin making contact with the other side, and someone within the Emerald Magistratum could be a good idea.

He smiled.

"I believe I would like that, Doji-sama. It is clear that I have a lot to learn - not just about serving the Emperor himself, but the Crane as a whole. Understanding is the first step towards empathy, and empathy is one the first steps towards compassion."

He decided to show it - the coin, of sorts, gifted by Asahina Soyokaze.

"This coin, for example, was gifted to my family by Asahina Soyokaze-san. We first began despising each other over a drunken argument, to the point where my arrival the next day to reconcile he assumed was my attempt to kill him. Yet just this morning I was cradling him as he wept as if he was my own son. It was that bond that makes me believe what you suggest is a possibility."

[Shika Katsuteru]

Katsuteru nodded.

"The Deer believe in the possibility and the power of such connections, Kitsu-san. I think it speaks well of you to be able to come to such an understanding. Unsurprisingly when you have been matched into the Imperial families, but still praiseworthy." he offered.

[Kitsu Moshumaru]

The Kitsu nodded at the Shika's input.

"Indeed, Shika-sama. It did take me a long time at this miai to understand that lesson, I admit."

[Shika Katsuteru]

A small shrug from the Shika.

"Better a lesson slowly learned, than one not heeded at all. It's something everyone should keep in mind." he said, with a glance at the Crane.

There was no hatred in the glance, but it was understood between the two that there were to be no immediate repercussions by the Crane against the Deer.

[Kitsu Moshumaru]

There was no hatred in the glance, but it was understood between the two that there were to be no immediate repercussions by the Crane against the Deer.

While his face didn't move, in his head he smiled - perhaps this was the best that he could hope for.