Time With Pup [Day 8, Late Afternoon]

[Shinjo Liu Fei]

While listening to Dong Ha, Yue was greeted with more a smile as soon as she was in sight, possibly waiting for a proper bow until she was ready. Before they continued of course, greeting were to be had.

"Yue," she bowed her head in quick greeting as her sister arrived and introduced herself immediately. Then, to the Scorpion, Fei got the urge to rise and offer a bow. "Good afternoon, Shoshuro-sama."

[Shosuro Yawarakai]

Yawarakai bowed to the second Shinjo politely in turn and repeated his name.

"Good afternoon to you as well Shinjo-san. Hopefully you've had more luck with your pups then I've had with this one," he said, nodding down to indicate the amber ball of fluff that was pawing at its ear idly, "I think mine's broken. Oh well, we'll see tonight, won't we?"

[Iuchi Dong-Ha]

"Uh, Shosuro-sama." Dong-Ha bowed to the enigmatic man. "An honor." Where did you come from... he mused to himself. "I am happy to hear you are doing better."

[Shosuro Yawarakai]

"Likewise Iuchi-san," he nodded in agreement, reciprocating the bow once more.

The masked man looked down at the pup, sighed softly, and bent down to the ground. He rocked the tired creature slightly until it crawled from his arms. It glanced about then circled once, twice, three times, and slumped over on its side sleepily.

"Yes," he mused, "I think this one is definitely broken..."

[Shinjo Liu Fei]

"Shinjo Liu Fei," she offered back, glancing to the exhausted puppy with an amused pile, "How have you managed that Shoshuro-sama? This one here," she glances to her own puppy that had ceased to be interested in the humans who paid him no mind and begun running about in circles like he had somewhere he needed to be. "I do not understand where this bottomless reserve of energy lies."

[Shosuro Yawarakai]

"Not well, I'm afraid. It.... it slipped away from me after we finished lunch. I'm not sure how far I had to chase it before it decided it was done. Then it hid because it finally perceived it had done something incorrect. So I had to get it out from under a particularly prickly bush. With little left to be done, I figured I'd at least let it rest and try to recover for this evening, neh? I can't run it ragged and then expect it to do well," he said with a sigh.

He ran his tapered nails through his fine black hair then turned a soft smile towards Fei with a shrug.

"But what can you do? I was never one for pets growing up, and I suppose that's come out."

[Iuchi Dong-Ha]

Dong-Ha was content on letting his betters talk. He had nothing particular to say on the matter and as he could not offer advice, he was more than happy to see if he could pick something useful from the two.

[Shinjo Liu Yue]

The younger sister had been busy chasing her puppy around instead of listening in on the conversation. "Ah yours is a tireless one as well, huh, sis?" Yue shook her head. "Gomennasai." She looked at the puppy in the Shosuro's arms and then back to the man. "You mentioned you were not active for the last week, Shosuro-sama?"

[Shosuro Yawarakai]

"I was not myself," he offered in empty explanation and apologetic tone, "But most of that is past and so I'm able to move about again and enjoy what remains of the miai. Hopefully it's not too late to make a good impression."

He flashed her a practiced smile, half obscured by his mask, and tilted his head.

"And yet it seems I've missed much."

[Shinjo Liu Fei]

Fei chuckled quietly at Yawarakai's little story while Yue took center stage with a question.

"Do you intend to make a good impression on the Clan or on the women?" she quipped.

[Shosuro Yawarakai]

"The clan, at the very least. The women, in as much as the clan. Any one particular woman? Perhaps, but since so much excitement and drama must have passed me by then I fully expect to view the remainder as a duty to do as well as I'm able and trust the result to be as positive as I can make it," he said with a slight shrug.

He shifted his stance and ran his hand over the very closely cut kimono he wore and shot her a pleasant smile.

"And of you? What sort of impression are you here to make? For your clan, for another's clan, or just on the men?" he asked in turn, allowing playfulness to weave into his voice.

[Shinjo Liu Fei]

Well well, this one likes a little bit of a fight than. Alright, two can play this game.

"Of myself, for my Clan," she answered, "With our return it is only natural that the men and women here will be held as representatives for what the rest of the Empire will think of when they see the Unicorn. Especially those who marry out. I intend to make sure that we are understood well."

"I would hope that Soshuro-sama intends to make an impression, or learn of, the woman he intends to marry at the culmination of this event at least," she said, biting a little in her tone.

[Shosuro Yawarakai]

"And what should someone understand who knows of the Unicorn by virtue of history alone? It would be impolite to pass up an opportunity to broaden my horizons," he asked, leaning forward with interest.

"I know something of Phoenix and Dragon and Crane and all who were raised up by the Kami that fell to the earth, but I know of the Unicorn the least. I know that you have been far and wide. I know that you have languages and tongues that denote shared experiences, ones which I could not hope to fully grasp, and I know that you have a palate for food many from the rest of the empire are unable to stomach. But all of these are mere facts, even when pieced together. I'd be foolish, taking them to say with those alone in hand I'd understand the Unicorn, the Shinjo, or even you...."

He exhaled slightly and focused his gaze intently yet softly upon Fei.

"So, what do I not understand and what should I understand?"

[Shinjo Liu Fei]

While Sidi Pups continued to run about the group, excitedly looking between the humans he tried to figure out what was going on. Unfortunately, the higher understanding of the current conversation was beyond him. One day, little pup.

Fei looked back, intent on matching the stance, "What you should understand, above all, is how we have kept the traditions from the Empire's founding alive throughout our generation. There is not a Unicorn alive," she didn't pause or even seem to care to make the distinction for the Moto," that has not wondered what it was like back here. Our original home. We have returned to a place that is unfamiliar, yet some have even dreamed of. Know that our attempts to find a place here are earnest and the rest will fall into place," she said. That he placed her in with her Clan and Family was all that she allowed to show that this statement was as much about her as it was Clan and Family.

[Shosuro Yawarakai]

Yawarakai let her words ring through the afternoon breeze, fading quickly into silence. He wet his lips and allowed the quiet to encircle them. At least as quiet as the rampaging pup would allow. Finally, he broke the silence.

"Do you think I view you as an 'other'? As gaijin, as lesser? It sounds to me like you're trying to insist like you belong at a table when your seat has been laid empty for so many years. No one else has sat in it, and - at least in my eyes... no one's tried to remove it from the room either. There is a difference between not knowing you, not understanding you, and not respecting you. I'm asking the former, whereas to me it sounded like you were trying to insist on the latter? Or perhaps I'm just overly sensitive."