Dark Edge Village

Fukawa had done a mighty battle to try and arrange the yurt assigned her into at least a semblence of a proper living quarters. It had truly been an uphill battle. No sliding paper screens to wall off areas? No chests of drawers to store things in? No shelves? No tatami mats?

The daisho stand had got down first. Fukawa's wakizashi rested upon it, in a place of honor, as the first thing you saw when you came in through the...flap. It was a symbol of her family's honor, after all, so it deserved the best. The various corners had been organized into what would have been rooms, had there been screens. The 'library' held her pillow books, paper, and calligraphy set. The 'kitchen' held five bottles of sake, a tea set, and a decent number of dry rations. The 'bedroom' held the pillows and blankets for sleeping. The 'changing room' held her kimonos, jewelry, and makeup.

In the center of the yurt, a rokugani blanket (from the 'bedroom') had been laid down, Here Fukawa awaited, in yet another kimono, this one where the Crane blue was closer in hue to sky blue, and the white upon it resembled gentle clouds, and read one of the pillowbooks (from the 'library'). Whether or not anyone would show up...well, that remained to be seen.

"Doji-san?" came a voice from the entrance. Moto Baatar peered through the flap curiously. The plain tent, barren on the first day, had seemed miraculously transformed. "Are you here? Wow, what happened here? Where did all these things come from...?"

Fukawa looked up in surprise at the arrival of Moto Baatar. It certainly wasn't who she was expecting. She rose, closed her book, and bowed to him.

"Moto-san....an unexpected surprise to see you here." she offers.

She looks about the tent.

"Ah, I organized my possessions as best I could. It could use a few paper screens to separate the spaces, a few chests for storage, and a shelf or two....but I am happy enough with what I was able to make do with. I take it you find the arrangement in good taste?" she asks.

"Y-yes, it is nice. Your tent is a lot more fancy than the other ones now," Baatar replied, sounding somewhat awestruck.

"I'm just surprised you have so much stuff. Did all this come from the Crane lands?" He gestured at the extensive furnishings.

Fukawa nods.

"It does, indeed. Fortunately, I had some help bringing it here." she says.

Fukawa looks puzzled for a moment, before realizing something.

"Ah, I suppose while your clan rode outside the Empire, your possessions were pretty much limited to what your horses could carry?" she asks.

"Of course," Baatar nodded. "But how is it that you could bring more than a horse could carry? You must have had a whole string of pack animals?"

Fukawa shrugs.

"I had a few friends who had room to spare in their possessions, and they had a few servants who could carry as well. A few items were bought on the way." she says.


She shrugs.

"Besides, they're all necessary things. I can't attend a miai wearing the same kimono every day, now can I?" she says.

"Oh? Why wouldn't you wear your best kimono every day?" Baatar asked, honestly puzzled.

"Unless it was muddy," he amended.

Fukawa nods.

"There's a matter of cleanliness. There's also the matter of style. After all, my best kimono depends on the weather, my mood, and who I expect to meet. And if one cares about such things, it shows that my family is not so bad off that it can't support me having multiple kimonos." she lists.

"Your family must be very wealthy, then," Baatar said honestly. "You have a ton of kimono."

"Is all this stuff really 'necessary', though?" he wondered, gesturing toward the library area. "Paper? Books? Are you some kind of scholar?"

"Paper is always important, Moto-san." she replies. "With it, I can send invitations, letters, write poetry, or make origami as needed."

She gestures towards the books.

"As for the books, Akodo-no-kami himself wrote in Leadership the importance of a samurai always having a book to read." she explains. "Besides reading them for my own entertainment and pleasure, I can loan them to others, and then we have yet another thing to talk about."

"Oh, okay. We don't read so much in my family."

"I mean, I can read," Bataar clarified, not wanting to seem ignorant. "But there's not as much call for it. I guess the Iuchi and Ide probably read more."

"What are you reading about?" he asked curiously. "Akodo's Leadership?"

Fukawa shakes her head.

"Not at the moment, but I did bring a copy. When I was getting ready to come, I thought I should bring the five books I thought were most important to Rokugan, in case any of the Unicorn wanted a chance to read them. I brought Leadership, The Sword, The Subtlety of Court, The Tale of Genji, and the Tao of Shinsei. I'm currently reading 'The Tale of Genji.'" she explains.

"That's about a really old Emperor, right?" Baatar asked. "From a long time ago? What use is it to know about stuff that happened a hundred million years ago?"

Fukawa nodded.

"The second Emperor, son of Hantei-no-kami, the shining prince." she offers, as a subsitute for 'really old emperor dude'.

"Well, he was a magnificent statesman, and an accomplished painter and poet." she says. "Also, it seemed fitting, since there is an entire chapter devoted to the cherry blossom viewing party where he met his eternal love, Doji Oborozukiyo."