D9LE, (Young) Women's Side: Soaking, and It Ain't Sake (Expecting, but theoretically open)

[Otomo Mariko]

"A general?" Mariko says. "Quite the catch for any spouse."

She leans forward. "Will he prefer a wife or a husband?" she asks, flatly, her mind clearly already reviewing possibilities.

[Agasha Yuna]

"A wife."

She had not been informed otherwise, and assumed she would have been. The dossiers had not hesitated to provide sensitive details about temperament and gender.

"Perhaps a gentle and patient one. Or one with great respect for decorum. They say he is so committed to decorum that the only warm-blooded creature he has touched since leaving the womb is his horse."

[Otomo Mariko]

"We can discuss those details another time," Mariko says, "but there is a Seppun that might serve such a man well. Seppun-ke no kashin Tanaka Mayumi."

She nods again.

"Though it must be a lonely life your general leads. One shudders to think of it."

[Agasha Yuna]

She looked intrigued.

"I'll look forward to the chance to discuss the idea further."

"A lonely life, yes. It seemed a terrible shame that we leave him a bachelor again after this winter, simply because his star has risen so high that it is hard to find a match."

"He is the last name on our slate of candidates for marriage, though I continue to find delegates who are unmarried (or have unmarried siblings and cousins) to meet all possible needs."

[Otomo Mariko]

"You'll be a good wife, Agasha-san," Mariko affirms. "I truly believe that."

She sighs.

"I wonder if any other young women will join us this evening," she opines.

[Agasha Yuna]

"Thank you, Otomo-sama."

She glanced at the entry.

"Oh, I hope so! I am eager to meet more young women among the delegates here."

It was true, on reflection, that her Dragon delegate friends were all male, her Phoenix friends she'd spoken to were all male, her closest contacts among the Crab and Scorpion were male.

Thank Heaven for Kuni-san, at least. And the Noh play and the art show. Chances to interact briefly with other women here.

But ... it did seem an obvious gap, on reflection.

[Otomo Mariko]

"Oh?"

Mariko raises an eyebrow.

"I can imagine that there are some who would be thrilled to meet Agasha-san, as well. Perhaps we young women might find an evening for ourselves."

[Agasha Yuna]

"A girl's night would be so lovely! Ah, you should suggest it in court. That would be such a nice opportunity to connect and get to know each other."

[Otomo Mariko]

"Court, Agasha-san?"

Mariko shakes her head.

"It's not the kind of thing to put before them. This would be recreational and informal. Just for us young women, you see."

[Agasha Yuna]

She smiled.

"That does seem better. Ah, I am so new to this. Of course you do not have to propose to court every social opportunity offered! It could be sent out via letter. One of those letters that everyone sees."

[Otomo Mariko]

"In the game, you mean?" Mariko asks.

"Did nobody tell you about the Game of Letters, Agasha-san?"

Mariko looks fairly scandalized at the idea.

[Agasha Yuna]

Yuna considered.

"I am sure my instructors referenced it, but I may have missed some context or nuance."

"I know about the colors of paper and ink, the origami folds, the meaning of flowers, the poetry of the text." That was straight forward enough. Lists to memorize. She'd been applying those principles while exchanging daily poems with Ryusei!

"But I hadn't thought much beyond letters with a very specific recipient in mind that have no reason to be delivered in a way that makes the content public, which I do understand is essential to the game."

[Otomo Mariko]

"It is an exercise in subtlety," Mariko explains. "The tension between crass directness and so much obfuscation that everything is lost. And more people tend more toward the latter than the former, unfortunately.

"I am told it has always been so," she continues. "I can only attest to a few years, myself. And I have not played since Husband-san, anyway."

[Agasha Yuna]

She nodded.

"I imagine there is no slight obfuscation that would make a message legible to young women moreso than young men. It is probably better to be clear and assume the young men will respect the concept of a girl's night, and give it little thought otherwise."

[Otomo Mariko]

"Oh, probably something about leaving roses behind, having no need to be pricked by thorns or somesuch," Mariko extemporizes. "Let the bundle of twigs keep its own company and grow warmer for the absence of the soft-petaled blooms."

As she speaks, an arm rises above the water, hand waving idly and dismissively.

[Agasha Yuna]

"How clever! I shall give it thought. Perhaps a gathering before the Floating Banquet. A chance to visit beforehand."

Her expression reflected that her mind had turned to imagery and poetry.

One finger, resting on the bath's edge, began tapping beats.

[Otomo Mariko]

"Planning your verses ahead, Agasha-san?" Mariko asks. "You do know you can quote the greats, as well."

[Agasha Yuna]

"True. But I do enjoy putting verses together when the opportunity presents. The satisfying feeling as the number of syllables fall into place."

"And it's good practice! I'm writing poems every day now."

A happy little smile.

[Otomo Mariko]

"Oh?"

Mariko's eyebrows rise.

"Feeling inspired by the pending nuptials, then?"

The eyebrows resume their normal positions, and Mariko smiles.

"Do me the honor of sharing some!"

[Agasha Yuna]

Yuna paused for a moment, blushing very red.

But the matchmaker had blessed their match and spoken up for it in court. She was a friend. And surely a woman of discretion.

And the poems were simply sweet.

She leaned a little closer. A quiet whisper.

"I wrote:
A flower can bloom
Even brighter, re-planted.
Finding joyful home.
There is a sea daffodil
That thrives when planted in sand."

"And he wrote back:
Waves on sandy shores
Whisper delighted welcome
Greeting mountain stream"

"Isn't that beautiful?"