[D2 LE] Sweets, Cheese, and Song (Amaya's Yurt) [Closed]

[Ide Amaya]

Amaya laughs and clicks the chopsticks together, making nipping motions towards him. She picks up another square of burfi; despite what he had said, he had both arms around her and she didn't want him to let go for something as trivial as the almond-and-rosewater flavoured treat. She offered him the sweet, her nose wrinkling at the mention of his marrying into the Clan.

"Tell me about Kyuden Seppun," she decides.

[Seppun Hideo]

Hideo leans in to take a bite, chewing it and finishing his mouthful before speaking.

"Kyuden Seppun is at the high point of a hill. It's a huge complex of gardens, barracks, estates that samurai and heimin live in, and temples. The only buildings that are separated is the Imperial Libraries and the famous Four Temples that many daimyos retire to. The vast gardens can appear strange, with a number of statues in them. Each time a new damiyo of the Seppun is appointed, a new statue is created, so they will always have a piece in the palace once they pass onto meido. Oh...and the Sun Balcony is an incredible sight to behold. It's a large open-air room, but the Imperial City could be looked on the distant horizon."

He smiled.

"It is a beautiful place, very revered and sacred."

[Ide Amaya]

She finishes the other half of the burfi, still holding the chopsticks as he began to speak. Her eyes widened and her mouth dropped open slightly as he described the wonders of Kyuden Seppun. She doesn't say anything for a long time, letting his words sink in, "and your father would teach there?" she breathes.

[Seppun Hideo]

"My father does teach there. Usually the most important samurai children; daimyos children, governors. Amusingly, his own child is not of enough importance to be taught by him" Hideo chuckled "although my sensei was still someone my father knew well and had picked. Perhaps in time I would even teach there. And yet...Kyuden Seppun pales in comparison to Otosan Uchi."

[Ide Amaya]

"Is that what you would like to do, Hideo-San? To teach? It is a noble thing. My father has been known to say that a child needed only three things: fresh air, good food, and a sense of wonder; but an adult needed four. Fresh air, good food, someone to love, and a wise sensei."

"I was not schooled by my father either. He did not believe that he could adequately teach his own child, for fear of being too lenient or too harsh."

[Seppun Hideo]

"It is a very noble path, to guide the next generation. To teach them so they in turn can create a better future. Me however? I think perhaps I still have a little childish wonder. There is much left for me to learn, to see."

Hideo gave her a gentle squeeze as he added "and to experience."

"I'm sure I have much more to give before I become a sensei. Ah, but what of Amaya? What does she wish to do with her future?"

[Ide Amaya]

She flushed as probably her first impure thought rose in her mind, "yes," she agreed softly, "life still has many delicacies left untasted." She reddened further as her unfortunate choice of words made her think of Hideo's mouth against her own.

"I don't know what role Rokugan has for a girl whose only real talent is staying a-horse all day without suffering saddlesores. But if there is room to sing a little, to play the kugo a little, to practice calligraphy a little, to walk in a garden and have a moment to appreciate its wonders, then I could not truly say I was unhappy," if you were by my side that is, she added silently.

"And perhaps, if the Fortunes are kind, children."

[Seppun Hideo]

"Perhaps then, a diplomat role would suit you? The courtiers of the empire would go to many courts throughout empire, sharing arts and viewing many gardens. Of course this would mean facing the courts of the empire" Hideo frowned slightly "which is a risk in itself. There are of course samurai who dedicate themselves entirely to the arts; the Kakita Artisans of the Crane, the Shiba Artisans of the Phoenix, and the actors and actresses of the Scorpion. Perhaps a life of an artist suits you?"

He smiled as he added "or, a life in Ototasn Uchi, which has many gardens and much art. I do wonder if perhaps you have tired of long travels and would prefer not going round the empire to serve your new family, or if that never truly leaves a woman of the Unicorn?"

[Ide Amaya]

"Some days my hands itch for the feel of reins, and sometimes when I wake in the deep of the night, I can feel the motion beneath me as if I was still riding, but there is more to life than travel, there must be. If journeying is the fate in store for me, then I will ply what skills I possess to the best of my ability, but truth be told, I have never had a home, and I want to know what that feels like. To be safe."

"I'm not seeking a life of comfort or wealth, what is wealth to a Unicorn who has carried her life on her back? Might they call us the Snail Clan when our backs are turned." Then a smile crept across her face, "yet..." she laughs softly, "yesterday Doji Fukawa-Sama was lamenting the lack of 'bathhouses'. A whole building, just to wash in? I think there are some comforts I could become accustomed to."

[Seppun Hideo]

"You have lived a life on saddleback Amaya-chan; racing through the lands, riding until both woman and horse are tired and exhausted, only to keep going. I wouldn't ever expect the feeling, the urge to ride, to ever leave you, and no man should ever expect to keep you away from horses. I know I certainly wouldn't, even if Rokugani horses are smaller than your clans there always are horses available to the Imperial Families" he smiled at her "perhaps the role of a housewife, to marry into anothers family and tend to the home. It would allow you to do all you wish for, and have a place to call home."

He chuckled at her comments about the bathhouse.

"The bathhouses are bigger than two yurts combined, at least in the Imperial City. An area to undress and wash, before entering the baths themselves. Large tubs, filled with warm water. Usually they are gender devided, although some have a third to allow both genders to bathe together - usually for families. They are quite a sight for those who have never experienced them. Same for sake houses and tea houses."

[Ide Amaya]

Her eyes glowed as she was transformed by the child-like sense of wonder, "warm water..." she murmured, half to herself. Looking at the Imperial, she pointed towards the door flap, "when the Unicorn wishes warm water to bathe, we boil it over the fire pit first." One of the duties the Ide retainers had undertaken for the mi-ai was to preheat the bathing water for guests who requested such, though the requests had dropped off sharply as the heat of the second day soared. It was not a service extended to the Unicorns themselves.

"Tea houses? Sake houses? I've visited places something like that, when I was a child. Desert nomads often settle in a favourable place for a season, they set up great tents, taller and wider than any yurt, and many many yurts deep. I saw a smoking den once. The inside of the tent was draped in velvet and there was no floor but furs. Men and women lounged on great mounds of pillows and smoked from hookahs."

She was wistful a moment, "but the best place for tea is under Lady Amaterasu's gaze, with no roof or walls to separate you from the sun and wind and sky."

And so, with growing solemnity, the conversation turned full circle. "Any place you are would be home to me, for I feel safe with you, Hideo-San. If I were your wife, there would be no duty, nothing you could ask of me, that I would shy from."

[Seppun Hideo]

"I believe the same process happens at bath houses, except we do not need to heat the water ourselves, the hot water is topped up throughout the day. Some bath houses also serve refreshments while you bathe; sake or tea. Rarely anything stronger than that" Hideo smiled more as she wistfully talked about the past. She really was quite adorable, and he stroked her back idly while she spoke.

"You are quite right that the best place to enjoy tea, or really any drink, is while bathed in Lady Amaterasu's gaze, with enjoyable company" he motioned with his head towards Amaya "so perhaps you would honour this one by joining him for tea in the future? I have a tea set and some Ten Thousand Temples blend tea, a quite wonderful Imperial blend that i'm sure you would enjoy."

Her last comment had caught him by surprise though. She had been very forward in her comment, and his smile grew a little more.

Anything you say? Perhaps i shall test that in the future...

He leans in and gave her a gentle kiss again, barely moving away as he said quietly "I shall continue to keep you safe, my dear Amaya. I would be blissfully happy to have you as my wife."

[Ide Amaya]

She could feel his breath on her lips; soft, warm, and scented with the peach sake they had been drinking. Her eyes slipped closed and she kept very, very still, fearing that is she so much as spoke that he would draw away. Eventually she whispered, "tell me of Otosan Uchi."

[Seppun Hideo]

Hideo remained close, speaking quietly.

"Otosan Uchi is built around the Imperial Palace, which is atop Seppun Hill, the holy site where the Kami landed when they fell from the heavens."

He paused to let her consider that before he continued.

"The city itself is divided up into an inner and outer city by walls, and then divided again into districts each with their own governor. Sixteen districts, all with their own focuses and designs. I could talk about them for hours, such is the vast size of the city."

[Ide Amaya]

If he could speak for hours, she could listen for just as long. In fact, if it meant they could stay like this, she would listen to him recite the dullest, longest, and most repetitive commerce records he could lay hands on, and still have her rapt attention. When he stopped speaking, she let the silence draw out, soaking in his closeness. She wanted to remember this, every detail. One small hand moved against his back as she experimentally caressed the fabric of his kimono, exploring the way it felt beneath her fingers.

She lay her head once more on his shoulder, but this time her face was not turned into his neck. Her hair fell against his chest and exposed the pale length of her neck from ear to the collar of her kimono.