2.11 - Poetry assisted interrogation
- Location
- London, England
Clear your mind, exist in the moment, and act.
It is an interesting piece of advice, and rather contrary to how you've been going about things so far. Your finest weapon, your most useful tool is your mind and its capacity to store and process information. Your sensei noticed this at an early stage in your training, and made sure to educate you in a broad array of topics, far more than most normal samurai could ever hope to retain information on. Ever since then, that broad base of knowledge has formed the foundation for the overwhelming majority of your plans and courses of action. It feels wrong to give that up now, to simply let go and surrender to instinct... but what is the point in taking lessons from an expert if you will not listen to their advice?
It takes a moment of concentration, but you are fairly sure you can do this. Closing your eyes for an instant, you deliberately push away all of your current concerns and lingering questions, seeking to exist only in the moment. Then you open your mouth and say...
"A fascinating approach, Doji-sama, although one that I suspect might prove somewhat difficult for me. Still, that is no reason not to try, and your company does provide a wonderful source of inspiration."
Doji Mariko blinks once, suddenly thrown off guard, and two spots of pale pink appear on her cheeks.
"You should be careful, Soshi-san." She admonishes you, though there is a curve to her lips and a sparkle in her eyes that removes any actual sting. "You would not want to sound improper."
"It is, unfortunately, an unavoidable problem." You reply, hiding your own smile behind your mask. "When one is presented with a vision of beauty, one's instinct is to comment on it, at length and with enthusiasm. I shall restrain myself, but there are entire renga unfolding behind these eyes."
Mariko laughs, the sound reminding you obscurely of the delicate silver bells rung by monks as part of their religious ceremonies. "You are a shameless flatterer, Soshi-san, but it will not persuade me to reduce your workload. Now, let us see if you can compose some of those poems on another topic..."
Thus do you spend a highly enjoyable afternoon in the company of Doji Mariko. The Crane Courtier is an excellent teacher, illustrating many of her points with short stories from her own training and poetic examples invented on the spot to help you remember her advice, and you cannot help but find the time spent in her company to be highly enjoyable.
This, you realize, is what makes the Crane so infamously skilled in the courts. Mariko is well trained and doubtless applying techniques she has been taught specifically to court your aid and a closer bond between her delegation and yours, but despite that she is genuinely good company - she laughs often, returns your banter with her own and seems genuinely interested in everything you say. Is it a mask? Possibly, but if so it is one of the most well developed ones you have ever encountered, and even after several hours you cannot find any sign of duplicity behind it.
You flirt shamelessly as the lessons progress, finding a never ending stream of excuses to compliment your host's appearance and demeanor, often in poetic form. Judging by her reactions Mariko is well aware of what you are doing and does not mind in the slightest - indeed, before too long she starts returning the compliments with some of her own, always couched in ways that present a veneer of deniability (a haiku about your eyes is merely a useful example!) but are none the less quite apparent. You find yourself quite grateful that your sensei saw fit to educate you on how to handle such a thing - a Crab might sneer at a Bushi school which contains lessons on how to give and receive compliments, but a Crab would be reduced to a stammering and blushing wreck in this sort of situation, so on balance you think you got the better deal.
Aside from poetry, the topic of conversation meanders back and forth like a river, revealing all manner of interesting information as you go. Doji Mariko was apparently born and raised in a small town by the coast, and has fond memories of the sea and the shoreline around her family estate. Her courtly experience has largely been limited to visiting provincial Daimyos and traveling in the entourage of more senior diplomats, learning as she went. Her assignment to Shiro Matsu is apparently her most important duty so far, though during the Clan Wars she helped to coordinate the supplies for many of her Clan's military forces and was part of the team that arranged the pact with Yoritomo's Alliance.
She did not meet Daidoji Chen before they were first assigned to this delegation, and knows little about him. He is much more experienced than she is, and apparently actually served in some of the key battles during the Clan Wars, though he has never willingly revealed which ones or in what capacity.
Kakita Sekawa, on the other hand, seems to be an old friend of hers from her youth. He is a relatively recent graduate from the Kakita School, taking his gempukku only four years ago. She has heard that his sensei have praised him as one of their finest students, but has never seen him duel, and is instead more knowledgeable about his deep interest in the theater (apparently he prefers kabuki to noh, though you have only a general understanding of the distinctions between the two).
When you attempt to subtly shift the conversation around to the matter of the Crane's actions in the court so far, however, you find yourself skillfully deflected. At first you think this is because your teacher has some secret motivation she is hiding... but no, you are a Scorpion. You know secrets and the signs that they leave when samurai try to protect them. Doji Mariko is not avoiding the topic because she is being secretive, but because she seems genuinely uncomfortable talking about it. She glances aside whenever it comes up and holds her fan still instead of moving it, small signs which many would miss but which tell you that she is not as certain of her actions as she would like to be.
Interestingly, that same reticence comes up whenever you mention her superiors, though she is careful not to reveal anything that might be thought of as criticism or doubt in their judgement - had you not made the connection with her own behaviour, you likely would not have noticed it at all.
Still, there are few ways to directly pursue the topic against her wishes and all would sour her opinion of you significantly, so you listen to the subtle signals and drop the subject. And then, all too soon, it grows dark outside and you find that your time together is coming to an end. Retrieving your supplies, you conclude your conversation and express the desire to speak again in the future, a request which Mariko returns with a warm smile and a meaningful look over the top of her fan.
All in all, an enjoyable and productive day. Alas, now you must prepare yourself for tomorrow's tournament, where you will most likely get stabbed several times for the good of your Clan.
-/-
Doji Mariko is a fine teacher and you have proven yourself a willing student. You have gained one rank in the Artisan (Poetry) and Calligraphy skills.
An extended period of flirtatious banter has allowed you to refine the lessons your sensei imparted, seeing what works on a true subject and what does not. You have gained a rank in the Temptation skill.
The next event is the Kenjutsu tournament. Please detail any preparations you wish to make, and anything you wish to say to important NPCs before the tournament begins (these will largely be summarized rather than consisting of an entire scene).
- [ ] Write in
It is an interesting piece of advice, and rather contrary to how you've been going about things so far. Your finest weapon, your most useful tool is your mind and its capacity to store and process information. Your sensei noticed this at an early stage in your training, and made sure to educate you in a broad array of topics, far more than most normal samurai could ever hope to retain information on. Ever since then, that broad base of knowledge has formed the foundation for the overwhelming majority of your plans and courses of action. It feels wrong to give that up now, to simply let go and surrender to instinct... but what is the point in taking lessons from an expert if you will not listen to their advice?
It takes a moment of concentration, but you are fairly sure you can do this. Closing your eyes for an instant, you deliberately push away all of your current concerns and lingering questions, seeking to exist only in the moment. Then you open your mouth and say...
"A fascinating approach, Doji-sama, although one that I suspect might prove somewhat difficult for me. Still, that is no reason not to try, and your company does provide a wonderful source of inspiration."
Doji Mariko blinks once, suddenly thrown off guard, and two spots of pale pink appear on her cheeks.
"You should be careful, Soshi-san." She admonishes you, though there is a curve to her lips and a sparkle in her eyes that removes any actual sting. "You would not want to sound improper."
"It is, unfortunately, an unavoidable problem." You reply, hiding your own smile behind your mask. "When one is presented with a vision of beauty, one's instinct is to comment on it, at length and with enthusiasm. I shall restrain myself, but there are entire renga unfolding behind these eyes."
Mariko laughs, the sound reminding you obscurely of the delicate silver bells rung by monks as part of their religious ceremonies. "You are a shameless flatterer, Soshi-san, but it will not persuade me to reduce your workload. Now, let us see if you can compose some of those poems on another topic..."
Thus do you spend a highly enjoyable afternoon in the company of Doji Mariko. The Crane Courtier is an excellent teacher, illustrating many of her points with short stories from her own training and poetic examples invented on the spot to help you remember her advice, and you cannot help but find the time spent in her company to be highly enjoyable.
This, you realize, is what makes the Crane so infamously skilled in the courts. Mariko is well trained and doubtless applying techniques she has been taught specifically to court your aid and a closer bond between her delegation and yours, but despite that she is genuinely good company - she laughs often, returns your banter with her own and seems genuinely interested in everything you say. Is it a mask? Possibly, but if so it is one of the most well developed ones you have ever encountered, and even after several hours you cannot find any sign of duplicity behind it.
You flirt shamelessly as the lessons progress, finding a never ending stream of excuses to compliment your host's appearance and demeanor, often in poetic form. Judging by her reactions Mariko is well aware of what you are doing and does not mind in the slightest - indeed, before too long she starts returning the compliments with some of her own, always couched in ways that present a veneer of deniability (a haiku about your eyes is merely a useful example!) but are none the less quite apparent. You find yourself quite grateful that your sensei saw fit to educate you on how to handle such a thing - a Crab might sneer at a Bushi school which contains lessons on how to give and receive compliments, but a Crab would be reduced to a stammering and blushing wreck in this sort of situation, so on balance you think you got the better deal.
Aside from poetry, the topic of conversation meanders back and forth like a river, revealing all manner of interesting information as you go. Doji Mariko was apparently born and raised in a small town by the coast, and has fond memories of the sea and the shoreline around her family estate. Her courtly experience has largely been limited to visiting provincial Daimyos and traveling in the entourage of more senior diplomats, learning as she went. Her assignment to Shiro Matsu is apparently her most important duty so far, though during the Clan Wars she helped to coordinate the supplies for many of her Clan's military forces and was part of the team that arranged the pact with Yoritomo's Alliance.
She did not meet Daidoji Chen before they were first assigned to this delegation, and knows little about him. He is much more experienced than she is, and apparently actually served in some of the key battles during the Clan Wars, though he has never willingly revealed which ones or in what capacity.
Kakita Sekawa, on the other hand, seems to be an old friend of hers from her youth. He is a relatively recent graduate from the Kakita School, taking his gempukku only four years ago. She has heard that his sensei have praised him as one of their finest students, but has never seen him duel, and is instead more knowledgeable about his deep interest in the theater (apparently he prefers kabuki to noh, though you have only a general understanding of the distinctions between the two).
When you attempt to subtly shift the conversation around to the matter of the Crane's actions in the court so far, however, you find yourself skillfully deflected. At first you think this is because your teacher has some secret motivation she is hiding... but no, you are a Scorpion. You know secrets and the signs that they leave when samurai try to protect them. Doji Mariko is not avoiding the topic because she is being secretive, but because she seems genuinely uncomfortable talking about it. She glances aside whenever it comes up and holds her fan still instead of moving it, small signs which many would miss but which tell you that she is not as certain of her actions as she would like to be.
Interestingly, that same reticence comes up whenever you mention her superiors, though she is careful not to reveal anything that might be thought of as criticism or doubt in their judgement - had you not made the connection with her own behaviour, you likely would not have noticed it at all.
Still, there are few ways to directly pursue the topic against her wishes and all would sour her opinion of you significantly, so you listen to the subtle signals and drop the subject. And then, all too soon, it grows dark outside and you find that your time together is coming to an end. Retrieving your supplies, you conclude your conversation and express the desire to speak again in the future, a request which Mariko returns with a warm smile and a meaningful look over the top of her fan.
All in all, an enjoyable and productive day. Alas, now you must prepare yourself for tomorrow's tournament, where you will most likely get stabbed several times for the good of your Clan.
-/-
Doji Mariko is a fine teacher and you have proven yourself a willing student. You have gained one rank in the Artisan (Poetry) and Calligraphy skills.
An extended period of flirtatious banter has allowed you to refine the lessons your sensei imparted, seeing what works on a true subject and what does not. You have gained a rank in the Temptation skill.
The next event is the Kenjutsu tournament. Please detail any preparations you wish to make, and anything you wish to say to important NPCs before the tournament begins (these will largely be summarized rather than consisting of an entire scene).
- [ ] Write in
