Interwiew 3: Yamada Hoshiko

[Cearnach]

The door slides open to reveal Lady Doji, with Kakita Irie standing behind her and a number of servants waiting in the wings, seated in a chair. Another, empty chair sits across the low table from her. That one must be yours.

[Asahina Hoshiko]

Hoshiko leaves off contemplating a fairly standard painting of an unknown section of the Crane coastline. The attention to detail was great enough that she could probably identify the spot the painter had been standing, if she ever visited that part of the coast, but it didn't have much feeling to it. Hard to tell if it was evoking a particular season or moment, the light being rather general, and so on. Perhaps more promising as an illustrator of texts?

She hadn't felt particularly apprehensive about the idea of this interview, until walking in to see so many people arrayed opposite her, even if most *were* only servants. It only gave her mental pause, however; her greetings and bows flowing as smoothly as they had all through those constant etiquette lessons. The calculations for depth of bow relative to station differential along with the squiggly qualifier of her status as a priestesses mildly complicating that normally straightforward equation.

She murmured her greetings to Doji-ue and Kakita-sama, waited for permission to rise and to take a seat...assuming such was granted, with a gentle, "honored to be here," and appropriate pause to avoid stepping on her betters' choice of what topics to begin with and how efficient to be with their much more valuable time.

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Getting one roll out of the way early
Etiquette (Courtesy)/Awareness, tn 25. 7k4
EA Crane Interview: Etiquette (Courtesy)/Awareness | 7k4 ⇒ 44 (TN: 25)
Success

[Doji Minehime]

Minehime smiled beatifically.

"So am I. Rise, Yamada-san, and join me. Have you had rice?"

[Asahina Hoshiko]

Minehime smiled beatifically.

"So am I. Rise, Yamada-san, and join me. Have you had rice?"

Hoshiko nods slightly as she takes her seat. "Their reputation for simplicity hasn't kept the Lion from keeping their delegates well-fed. Though the fish are rather different so far from the coast." She assumes that the expense of lugging good quality ocean fish all the way here (or keeping them alive and lugging them) is such that those will be reserve for the highest tables. Hmm..which probably includes her Champion. Ah well, it's still probably better back home than after all that travel.

"The display out front is a charming welcome. Will it remain up through the court?"

[Doji Minehime]

Hoshiko nods slightly as she takes her seat. "Their reputation for simplicity hasn't kept the Lion from keeping their delegates well-fed. Though the fish are rather different so far from the coast." She assumes that the expense of lugging good quality ocean fish all the way here (or keeping them alive and lugging them) is such that those will be reserve for the highest tables. Hmm..which probably includes her Champion. Ah well, it's still probably better back home than after all that travel.

"The display out front is a charming welcome. Will it remain up through the court?"

"It will," she replied, "unless it is supplanted by something more suited. I hope the delegation will see to that, in time." She gestured easily toward the tea set, an invitation for Hoshiko to perform the ceremony.

[Asahina Hoshiko]

"It will," she replied, "unless it is supplanted by something more suited. I hope the delegation will see to that, in time." She gestured easily toward the tea set, an invitation for Hoshiko to perform the ceremony.

Hoshiko nods to the comment. "I'm sure the winter will provide a great deal of inspiration. Are the current pieces all your from your personal collection?" While every piece held by a Crane vassal was technically Minehime's to command, and most would happily offer them up at a Champion's request for such use, she was curious whether or not this was the case.

At the invitation, Hoshiko nodded once before moving to examine the teaware quickly. Assessing the conditions of the bowl--the curve and catch of its surface--and the scoop to see how the right amount of tea should look on this one. Ladles were relatively uniform. Three slow, centering breaths, and she began. Her style was spare, with an economy of movement that was not quite grace. But she was entirely present for the work and her...guests wasn't quite right, though that was their role for these few moments...partners in the ceremony, perhaps. Her attention to each thing held the wondering intensity of someone seeing or doing a thing for the last time in this life, so it needed to be cherished well enough to last her. Quiet until the tea was poured, and for long enough after to appreciate the cups, she waited an appropriate moment before speaking again.

"What role is the display hoped to play in this court season?" After all, that would help inform those things to be added.

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Tea Ceremony/Void: tn 20. 5k3 (void and hope to earn it back) - 6k4
EA Crane Interview: Tea Ceremony/Void. VP for +1k1 | 6k4 ⇒ 39 (TN: 20)
Success

[Doji Minehime]

"I suppose that they are. In truth, I tend to commission pieces from recent graduates as a sort of place-holder. It is well that they receive some exposure before more tailored art comes to the fore. And that, really, is what I am looking for. Art that is aligned to our work, whether that be in creating an atmosphere suited to a negotiation, or in constructing a narrative for others to follow."

[Asahina Hoshiko]

snip

Hoshiko nods. "My own work is not of the same level, but I will certainly tailor and offer it to suit our aims as much as possible." Or as explicitly requested goes unsaid, of course.

Sipping her tea slowly, she considers her own goals and the staggeringly larger ones of the Clan this winter. "As above so below. I cannot claim to know the will of the Heavens, but surely trying to shut out the children of Doji, Hantei's beloved sister, does not seem to have found favor. That makes it both a political and spiritual duty to see that things change. If art may aid in that goal, we're surely well-equipped."

Sincerity (Honesty or Deceit as applies)/Awareness, tn 20. 4k4 (unskilled...oops.) Void for skill - 5k4
EA Crane Interview: Sincerity/Awareness VP for skill | 5k4 ⇒ 58 (TN: 20)
Success

[Doji Minehime]

Lady Doji allowed a little warmth to reach her eyes. "A spiritual duty? Why, I suppose it is. That is a very interesting, but delicate position to take, Yamada-san. To whom would you make of a spiritual argument for the lifting of our woes?"

[Asahina Hoshiko]

Lady Doji allowed a little warmth to reach her eyes. "A spiritual duty? Why, I suppose it is. That is a very interesting, but delicate position to take, Yamada-san. To whom would you make of a spiritual argument for the lifting of our woes?"

She takes a long moment to think around the political part of the question. The spiritual answers were more obvious. At length, she settle back a bit straighter as she answers. "Ultimately, the Empress, who is making the choice in this succession, and could, if she chose, override the other bans. But I'm aware that it's dangerous at best to hint that previous actions were a mistake." The Empress was never wrong. Believing that others might know better was the entire root of the Gozoku times, wasn't it?

"While I'd be unsure how to present it in a politically palatable fashion, I believe the Gozoku era was out of balance and stood against the order laid out in the heavens. The swing against those who took the greatest part was initially righteous, but extended and grew rather pointedly toward the left hand and it seems the balance is unsettled in the other direction now, doesn't it?" There's the hint of a troubled frown. "Would I be wrong to think there's a feel of other hands in that than the Empress's?"

Another breath to launch in "To that end, a perhaps more feasible target would be found among her spiritual advisors among the Seppun. With one as a potential heir...?"

[Doji Minehime]

"I do not believe that you are at all mistaken. Occasionally, the paws run far away from the cat. And, I imagine, if one paw is running well ahead of the others, certainly the whole animal finds it quite difficult to manage. Yes, I quite like your idea."

She hesitated. "I know Sadako--that's Lady Seppun--quite well. Seppun Tomaru less so, but I am given to understand that he is quite charming. Not in a romantic sense, of course, but in the way that old men can be. If you go through with your idea, I think it would be wise to be careful how deep your commitment goes. It can sometimes be easy to forget who is convincing whom, and there is little more dangerous than being in the orbit of one who does not become the heir."

[Asahina Hoshiko]

"I do not believe that you are at all mistaken. Occasionally, the paws run far away from the cat. And, I imagine, if one paw is running well ahead of the others, certainly the whole animal finds it quite difficult to manage. Yes, I quite like your idea."

She hesitated. "I know Sadako--that's Lady Seppun--quite well. Seppun Tomaru less so, but I am given to understand that he is quite charming. Not in a romantic sense, of course, but in the way that old men can be. If you go through with your idea, I think it would be wise to be careful how deep your commitment goes. It can sometimes be easy to forget who is convincing whom, and there is little more dangerous than being in the orbit of one who does not become the heir."

The mental image of little cat paws running along minus the cat brings a twitch of a smile to the young priestess's lips. Perhaps Chikushudo had some yokai like that, equivalent to the bakezōri of this realm.

She brings her thoughts back to the moment with an acknowledging nod. "A risk, certainly. All of those things. But that speaks to much of court, I think." After a considering pause, she continues. "If this has your approval, I will undertake to pursue it. To that end...is there anything you feel I should know of Lady Seppun?"

Frankly, the thought of reaching quite that high for a conversation took a bit of her breath away, only the lingering patterns of the ceremony pulling it steadily on. "Assuming I should even find myself in conversation with her over the course of this court."

[Doji Minehime]

Lady Doji considered for a moment, then nodded. "It has my approval. Lady Seppun...may be the best of the three Imperial Daimyo. Not that Lord Miya is not an absolute dear, because he is, but she has a degree of backbone and clarity of thought that the others lack. She likes to play the socialite in the evenings, but it is as much a tool as a pastime, a shield and snare she uses to deflect the unwelcome and entrap the unwary. What's underneath is a slightly conservative, but thoroughly honorable, woman."

[Asahina Hoshiko]

Lady Doji considered for a moment, then nodded. "It has my approval. Lady Seppun...may be the best of the three Imperial Daimyo. Not that Lord Miya is not an absolute dear, because he is, but she has a degree of backbone and clarity of thought that the others lack. She likes to play the socialite in the evenings, but it is as much a tool as a pastime, a shield and snare she uses to deflect the unwelcome and entrap the unwary. What's underneath is a slightly conservative, but thoroughly honorable, woman."

Hoshiko listens attentively. "All good to hear." particularly the honorable part. "I deeply appreciate the information, Doji-sama." She considers a moment. "If I can gather some support on that front for only one lifting of impediments, I feel that of marriages is the more spiritually stifling. And that on formal alliances, while politically difficult does leave some room for us to gather the support found in informal ones."

She sets her emptied teacup down as she finds herself turning it round and round in her hands, chasing the same circles her mind was running in. Ah well, the serenity of the ceremony was always meant to be transient.

[Doji Minehime]

"I would tend to agree. But I do not think a formal alliance is at all impossible. These things simply must be taken step by step. Once we get a marriage through, challenging as that may be, the rest will follow."

[Asahina Hoshiko]

"I would tend to agree. But I do not think a formal alliance is at all impossible. These things simply must be taken step by step. Once we get a marriage through, challenging as that may be, the rest will follow."

"Of course. Aim for everything...but plan for hurdles." Hoshiko nods once. "I will do my best to meet the challenges we face here." It would be rather insulting to say that her Champion could call on any of her talents whenever she needed them. That was entirely a given.

[Doji Minehime]

"Excellent. And when you require my support, I hope that you will not hesitate to ask." She rose. "In the mean-time, I hope that you will be well as you go. Please send in Tani Minase when you see her."

[Asahina Hoshiko]

"Excellent. And when you require my support, I hope that you will not hesitate to ask." She rose. "In the mean-time, I hope that you will be well as you go. Please send in Tani Minase when you see her."

Hoshiko offers a grateful and appropriate bow. "Of course, Doji-sama."

The door opens to the murmurs of delegates among the artwork, cut off as it's closed until the next interviewee arrives.

/scene
(And thanks! These have been very flavorful and fun to read/participate in.)