[D5 EA] Firefly, second season

[Iuchi Dong-Ha]

"Well, it would be only proper if you called me by my chosen name as well, Hotaru-san." Dong-Ha voiced the syllables carefully. "Perhaps they come to see you, or perhaps they come to partake to your wisdom. Maybe one day I'll pay a visit... to see which way it is?" he grinned faintly. "See how widely your name is know. One village before yours? Two villages?" Now he was teasing her.

"You think so? I have to admit the only temples I have seen belong to Shilah the All Merciful... that's what the Dahabi call the Lady Sun." Dong-Ha hoped that mentioning alien gods would not dampen the mood. "I am sure there are opportunities. I am just afraid that people will be doubtful of us. We are... alien, in many ways. Who would trust someone they do not know?" He looked Hotaru markedly. "It will be a while... years.. even decades before we truly become part of the Empire, if ever. Some of the Moto gaze northward longingly. The idea of settling down is alien to them. Well, it's somewhat alien to me." Dong-Ha huffed.

"Do you want to rest still, or would you like to try your hand with Poppy?" he asked once he was certain she had managed to finish the rice ball she had picked up.

[Bayushi Hotaru]

Hotaru giggled abashedly at the prospect of her glory growing beyond one village, which is something she would like, "Not so much! Not yet! I would be far busier if it was two villages...but I think would welcome the extra company around the Shining Retreat. Perhaps, they might even entrust me with their fates. Maybe my name will even travel to Kyuden Bayushi, or Ryoko Owari Toshi."

She narrowed her eyes in consideration as she thought twice about the difficulties of settling down with a Unicorn husband in the Scorpion Clan. Waving it off, she spoke on an enthusiastic note. "Maybe not decades...I'm sure that I will be able to work something out with the wisdom I possess and the direction given by the oracle. I will find the direction that will make such an adjustment beneficial than one of hardship."

"Sure! Let's get back on the horse again..." She paused for a moment, unsure about the arrangement this time. "Hm, am I getting on by myself, this time?"

[Iuchi Dong-Ha]

Dong-Ha mused that while Hotaru might have lacked height, she did not lack ambition. "Does that ever happen, a village priest gets called to a big city and earns fame there? Are you not duty bound to your shrine?" People did drift to cities, as much as he had seen in the sands, but samurai had their obligations. Fame, he thought, was rather poor motive. What was fame but a soul trying to cling to the trappings of this world.

"Oh I am sure you will, but there's only one of you and so many of us." Dong-Ha chuckled, standing up as he did so. "Your husband will be a lucky man, regardless. But not everyone has your talents, Hotaru-san." He was still convinced that she was a true oracle. There was only one of her, and while some might shared her ambitions, not everyone was welcoming the Unicorn with open arms.

"So..." he walked to Poppu, pointing at the thing dangling from her saddle. "These are called stirrups, they let you stand in the saddle when you need to." He flung one of them, letting it slowly sway in the air. "They've been made for me, so they hang way too low for you. However, that's easy to fix." Dong-Ha made a tight know with the string that held stirrup, effectively shortening it. Moving to the other side, he continued. "You are supposed to step on the stirrup with your right foot, if you are on the right side of the horse, and with left foot if you are on the left side of the horse." That hadn't been obvious to eight year old Dong-Ha and so he repeated the instructions. "Then, you are to seize the horn..." the young man patted the highest point of the saddle. "And pull yourself up, swinging your leg over the saddle."

"Now, I'll hold the reins... and you try that. Or do you want me to help you?" Dong-Ha asked as he took hold of Poppy's reins.

[Bayushi Hotaru]

"Oh! It a possibility," she nodded, quite sure it was a thing. At least, it was sure in her thoughts that it became true to her. "I don't know if I'm looking to move to a big city, but it would wonderful to see people from the city make their way to my hometown and visit the Shinning Retreat. I would be more than happy to welcome them with blessings and my skills in divination. My mother started out in the same town when it came to her mercantile pursuits and she ended up owning several businesses in large cities."

"You make it sound you're commonplace, Dongu-Ha," She smiled, pausing after her sentence to test the waters when it came to pronouncing his name. "There hasn't a Unicorn so far who tried to tell me about the specifics, shown me consideration or taught me how to ride so far."

Hotaru looked up at Poppy with calculating eyes, wondering if she was going to drift off or walk away from her if she tried to get on her without her master. However, Poppy proved itself to be a passive and servile horse that she doubted there would be much horsing around, until she got on the saddle already. She knew she was short, but it was lousy to have that be thought as a handicap. It wasn't like she was a child, now. "No...I think I got the hang of it! Just make sure Poppy doesn't go anywhere until I'm ready and I'll get on!"

She placed her hands on the stirrup at first and quickly released it, realizing they aren't meant to be handles for her hands but places where she would be putting up her feet. Gripping on the spare bits of leather that were on the saddle to get a handle, she leveraged herself to put her foot in the stirrup. One foot in...then I get up? She found herself flinging her hand up to catch the horn on her grasp and began to yank herself up with much effort. It wasn't like she pulled her up often, it was going to be a bit of a struggle.

[Iuchi Dong-Ha]

"I guess they could come, if they heard about your talents. Why haven't your parents told about to their lord? He.. or she ought to know what kind of treasure they have in you." he mused. "It shouldn't be hard for someone in high position to find use for your talents, yes?" Generals and diplomats would be well served by a gifted soothsayer. If one held the strings of fate, surely the opposition was doomed.

"Dong-Ha." the young man corrected her patiently. "Well... it's bit more complex than that, but you cannot run until you can walk, neh." He watched her attentively. "I just... try to explain things, as I hope people would explain me things. I don't think it makes me a great teacher." he shrugged.

"She's a good horse. Won't budge an inch." he assured the small Scorpion, hoping that she would manage. He hadn't managed the first time, though he had been eight at the time, and much shorter than the petite Hotaru. "Just like that. Push with your leg, pull with your hands and swing the other one over." Dong-Ha guided her patiently, holding the reins just in case Poppy decided to bolt.

[Bayushi Hotaru]

Hotaru was sure that her parents considered sending her to the big cities when they sent her off for training in the Soshi mountain. Then again, she found herself back at home when she returned. Perhaps they thought she was destined for great things in a small town, much like her mother's shrewd financial success, or maybe they thought it was best to shelter her. Was she also a 'baby' in their eyes?

"...And...uuuuup!" She said as she tried to pull herself up after a small hop from the ground. Her little hands yanked and tugged with all of her strength before she shakily pulled herself onto the horse. She landed sitting on the right side of the horse, taking a moment to catch her breath before she sat upright on the sandal.

She took a breath in and nodded confidently. "...and I'm up...whew! That's, something...I should have a bigger breakfast next time," she giggled. And a step.

[Iuchi Dong-Ha]

"Good. Now hold to the saddle. Tightly." he advised her with a chuckle. "Keep your balance in middle and your weight on your legs, if you can." However, that would mean that she'd have to balance herself on the stirrups, a somewhat challenging task. On the other hand, should she falter, as long as she maintained her balance she'd only slop back on the saddle. "I'll walk her a bit."

Dong-Ha took a few short steps, pulling the reins and Poppy followed, taking one wobbly step after another. Worried that she might fall, the young Iuchi turned to look at Hotaru.

[Bayushi Hotaru]

Hotaru did indeed feel the wobbling motion on the saddle and gripped on the horn of the saddle like it was her lifeline. She did her best to maintain her composure however and smile back at Dong-Ha as he led the horse. Is it galloping already? This feel pretty fast... "I do pretty tall from up here!" she said as the silver lining to her nervousness.

"How long did it take you to ride on your own?"

[Iuchi Dong-Ha]

Dong-Ha pondered for a few moments before he answered. "Uhh.. few days? I wasn't very good at it, though. But I spent hours after hours on horseback on those days. Nothing but riding with someone holding the reins... or the horse. Eventually they let me ride on my own." he grinned happily. "I rode everywhere. Every hill could hide a secret. Every cope of woods was an adventure." There was a glimmer of pure joy in his eyes.

"That's it, good..." Dong-Ha swallowed the word girl. Small and cute as Hotaru was, she was still a grown samurai. "if you feel like you are falling of, gently.. gently squeeze your legs together." Dong-Ha tightened his hold on the reins, just in case she didn't catch the 'gently' part. It would have been unfortunate if Poppy had bolted with Hotaru on her. "Like the views?" he asked innocently, referring to the plains opening around them.

[Bayushi Hotaru]

"A few days then..." She murmured to herself, thinking that it might give her some glimmer of hope to gather some proficiency with the horse. It was unlikely she was going to be riding as much as Dong-Ha did in those days, but if she could even confidently get on a horse and have it go forward on her command, it may be exactly what she needs to get some respect around the Unicorn. "..maybe I'll just have to consider doing this more often, somehow."

"Oh! Right, like before," she said with a small laugh and did place her legs closer to the horse, for reassurance. "I love it! It's great to be able to see all of the tall grass for once, almost like sort of a portable tower on legs. Sorry." She gave Poppy a small affectionate stroke on her mane, in case she found offense of being compared to an item. "Everything is so tan and vast...I could see what you meant by being almost able to go anywhere."

After a pause, she asked, "So, how do you go faster?"

[Iuchi Dong-Ha]

"Well, I have all the time until this thing's over." Dong-Ha shrugged, his distaste for the miai rather evident. "Not much to do here, and at least riding's fun." the young man waved his hand in the general direction of the camp. "I've read my books three hour times over the last few months," Then again, he did knew someone who might have been able to help him with that.

"Nah, it's ok." he grinned at Hotaru's flaring enthusiasm. "Told you. It's the best thing you can do..." Dong-Ha swallowed the rest of the sentence, biting his lip as he did so. "Anyway, I'll hand you the reins." he walked up to her, lifting the leather straps for her to grasp. "You use these to guide her. Now if you want to go a bit faster, gently tap your heels together."

"Uh, and if you want to stop, pull the reins. Hard." Dong-Ha added hastily, recalling how he had had to jump off the horse he couldn't bring to a stop.

[Bayushi Hotaru]

"Not much to do here?" She said curiously enough as she looked at the horizon. "I haven't found things to be boring around here. But! That's probably because it's my first time abroad and I'm only meeting so many samurai for the first time in my life. I've been keeping busy at the shrine too and making myself known to offer consultations of the oracle. Not that I'm flooded with things to do either. How are the places you usually venture? Are they usually more than just fields and plains?"

As the training hands came off, she shifted anxiously in her saddle and nodded a few times. "Oh...uhm, okay! I think I've got this." She said as she took the reins into her hands with a sure grasp. Anything she could hold on to was a plus, especially if she feared cracking her head open from falling off the saddle. "And she'll do these things on command?"

"Oookay, Poppy. Let's go faster, toward that horizon!" She gave her a gentle tap with her heels.

[Iuchi Dong-Ha]

"Well, I'd think samurai used to grand cities would be at loss here. Well, even those from decent sized villages. I mean, I guess there are all the people you'd ever want to meet, but besides that there are only plains." Dong-Ha shrugged. "I am glad to hear you've managed to keep yourself busy." At least she wouldn't be complaining how dull the Unicorn lands were.

"Well... anywhere and everywhere." Dong-Ha chuckled. "When you live on a horseback, you get to see all kinds of places. That might change now. I like tall cliffs and hills where I can see the world below me extending all the way to the horizon. I like places where I can see the trail of stars across the sky. I like to find cold mountain streams to bathe in. To feel more alive." he offered the small Scorpion a grin.

As Hotaru tapped her heels down, Poppy took few quick steps, eventually easing herself into a trot. Dong-Ha was forced to jog alongside the horse to keep up. "Now, if you want turn, pull the reins to the direction you want her to go."

Resting one's rear on the saddle while riding faster than walking pace tended to result into bruises and chafes in all kinds of awkward places. Knowing this, Dong-Ha advised Hotaru. "Oh, and you might want to try to stand in the saddle. Place your weight on the stirrups and push yourself up... and lean forwards." The position would be uncomfortable on her tights as she wasn't used to riding. "You'll be less sore that way."

"Be careful that you don't fall off..."

[Bayushi Hotaru]

Hotaru had only been here for less than a week. Perhaps if she had to stay here for a month, she would go stark crazy with boredom. She had the Shine to thank for keeping her plenty occupied.

It sounded like the Unicorn had been to some rather wonderous places. She had only begun to break the surface of her limited horizon and perhaps there was way more than just seeing a sunset on a different horizon.

"Uhm, oh!" she exclaimed out when she was told that she could steer Poppy, as she was probably more amazed that she could get the horse going forward on her command and she was riding a horse! It was a bit conflicting wanting to stay close to the horse, while needing to stand. She barely pushed herself off from the horse and stood on her stirups.

"Feels a little scary..." she murmured when she got into her new position, wobbling in her stancr slightly. "Can she go even faster?"

[Iuchi Dong-Ha]

"She can, but you probably don't want to, this time at least." Dong-Ha warned the Scorpion. "I mean, if you want to go faster you just need to tap your heels to her flanks time after time... she'll get a hint." He explained how his horse worked, jogging alongside her. "Just that... don't fall off."