It's symbolic, so we want to figure out what to symbolize... and as a message from the Scorpion, the more levels it can function on, the better.
- Availability requirements: this is but one year, and a *relatively* minor court. Thus, nothing of particular *historical* value, unless it's one of many. (example: a gift crafted from a suit of armor of one of the many dead of the Day of Thunder might be doable. If that one was a named character, though, not so much. )
- To the Matsu: We're not inclined to like them, and they're not inclined to like us, but we're really *very* interested in getting along with them, as well as we can. We may or may not want to layer in a mild insult somewhere, but if we do, we need to make it at a level that the Matsu themselves won't notice.
...As an example, the Scorpion are known for their gardens. If we wanted to insult her, we would bring her some pretty flowers that the Matsu would never know the true uses of - it is a practical gift, and thus an insult, but they *think* it a symbolic gift, and thus to be valued. Perhaps we could instead bring such a thing as a box of potpourri, as such things keep better. Even better if it were more useful as antidote than as poison. It is a symbolic gesture - suggesting that we wish them health and long life and so forth... but it could also be seen as a practical gesture, with the implication that they are hated enough that someone might well try to poison them some time during the Winter Court, and we wish them to be prepared.
- To the Matsu, sub 2: the part that they see should symbolize... something. Some olive branch, some vague offer, some understated and deniable apology, or some acknowledgement of their own abilities.
- In general: We're kind of hated. The Matsu are *also* kind of hated. We can potentially gain points for cleverness with this, but only if it's the sort of thing that the Matsu would never suspect and, preferably, would not believe or could not be told. We really don't want to inflame their opinions of us, though.
- Otomo-sama is here, as is the Crane delegation. Both can be reliably expected to determine every meaning in our gift that is not purely Scorpion-specific. We don't want to include anything that would make us look bad to *them*.
- To the Matsu, sub 3: the Lion are quite war-oriented, but they *do* have some Akodo among their ranks, and the Akodo were known for the study of war. You can pretty much guarantee, for example, that any Akodo general who was worth anything will have read Lies - so that they might know the minds of their enemies, if for no other reason. They also do have their own courtiers, and they're not dumb. If we want to slip something past....
So... my proposal (and I'd welcome others)
[x] An artisan-crafted potpourri box, made of valuable materials from Scorpion lands - preferentially those we'd wish to export (so, iron and jade wherever we can fit them in, using the more valuable woods where wood is called for, and so forth). On the top is carved out the climactic final scene from the Second Day of Thunder. Toturi (marked with Lion clan symbolism to a degree chosen to be flattering for the Lion but not insulting to the Emperor) is the focus of the piece, dramatically striking the head off of Fu Leng. The shards of Ambition protruding from the Dark Lord's eyes are prominent. Doji Hoturi's sword, thrust into his chest, is less emphasized but still quite clearly visible. The box contains a combination of dried herbs picked out both for being pleasant-smelling (perhaps soothing) in combination, and for each being individually useful in medicine, particularly antidotes (for those who know enough to know such things).
The messages are... many.
- It is a moment of triumph for the Lion Clan. It was their Thunder who slew Fu Leng, after all, and he has top billing.
- At a deeper level, though, it is a triumph not so much for the Lion as for the Emperor himself. The Lion had cast him aside, and he led his own army then. When that time was done, he ascended to the imperial throne rather than returning to the Lion... and until he showed up on that day, the armies of the Lion clan had descended into civil war, following the death of the then-Lion Champion Matsu Tsuko. Further, Matsu Tsuko had *hated* Toturi. The fact that the person who took the Lion Clan slot among the Seven Thunders wasn't even Lion Clan at the time is something of a mark of shame for them.
- At another level, it was a triumph for Rokugan. Toturi's blow was the one that officially felled the Dark Lord, but it would not have been enough by itself, had he not also been blinded and impaled (and that's not including all of the work that so many did leading up to it). There is a definite theme of "All of Rokugan working together to allow great heroes to achieve great things" - a message that works equally well whether you are taking Toturi-as-Lion or Toturi-as-Emperor. Again, following this implication out is ever-so-subtly insulting to the Matsu because, again, they weren't exactly pulling their own weight on supporting everyone else. Mostly, the non-Toturi Lion spent this time ravaging other people's lands and then falling into civil war.
- As a refinement of the above, it's in particular picking out the advantages of having a friend in the shadows who's willing to do the ugly-but-useful work to set you up for success. This *again* works on both the Toturi-as-Lion and Toturi-as-Emperor levels, and is being picked out clearly enough that the Lion should be able to see it. It essentially says "We Scorpion may not be the most honorable, and you may not like what we do, but we are useful allies to have, and we're willing to at least open the door about being that sort of allies for you... in a way that you can't reject outright without offering insult to the Emperor."
- There's the pretty clear message of "All right-thinking Rokugani hate the Shadowlands, and we're right there with you." It's not all that subtle, but it's a good message to have in there, just on general principles.
- To the uninitiated, the contents are highlighting that we can produce things of beauty and aesthetic appeal. They really do smell nice, and there's a suggestion of the really *high quality* dried herbs as potpurri as a trade good. To those who know enough to know what these herbs are, there's all *sorts* of suggestions. We're implying (deniably) that others might hate her enough to try to poison her, but asserting that it would not be the Scorpion clan, and that we actually wish to assist her in surviving such attacks. There's the aforementioned "actually, this is a practical gift... kind of" which means that it *could* be seen as an insult... but we can easily laugh that one off because of *course* no one's going to poison the Matsu Family Diamyo. Who would think such a thing? It points out that, again, the Scorpion are useful friends to have in a number of ways (much better as friends than as enemies), and that we have a number of useful medicinal herbs for trade (...and also iron and jade and so forth).
That's most of them, anyway. I *think* that's subtle and multi-layered enough for a Scorpion gift, and it sends mostly the right messages, while offering no insults that the Matsu could prove or would be willing to acknowledge, and possibly none that they'll see. After all, on the surface, it's one of the greatest heroes of the Lion in one of his moments of greatest triumph.
