Private Tales Forastero

A private roleplay only for those invited by the first writer
"I admit to having become noseblind to our collective stench," Amore nodded with a sigh, carefully tendering bites of rice to her lips with practiced blind precision of her chopsticks, "I did not realize how bad it had become."

She also had not realized how hungry she'd become for a full meal. The scent of the dining hall had sent her stomach into a tailspin before she'd even sat down. Perhaps this would be worth it in the end, but she still wasn't entirely convinced.

"Master Kei said very little. He wishes to hear more tomorrow and decide which song for me to sing at the debut." How she had managed to understand all that out of the words gleaned from conversation around her at the time baffled even her. Perhaps she was getting better? "At least, I think that is what he wants. What did you learn from the workers?"
 
"The capital is preparing for the Dawning Festival as spring approaches. They say the Emperor's influence over the court grows every year."

Kishou tried to picture a meek child, the youngest Emperor to have ever been seated in Oboro, ruling the courts, but he couldn't form the image.

"I passed by a Yisha, and her perfume was so heavy it made my head spin. I think I prefer the scents on the road."

He glanced between their meals. Hers had more sides than just soup.
 
"What's the Dawning Festival?" Amore hushed as several men passed by behind them at the table.

["Mushrooms,"] said Una, taking the bowl of rice from Amore to give her the next side.

["Thank you, Una,"] Amore said again, then promptly passed the mushrooms to Kishou. He always ate her share of mushrooms - she didn't like them. ["Rice, please,"] again to Una, who blinked at her and then at Kishou, then shrugged and gave Amore back her rice.

"I smelled Jasmine flowers in the courtyard but I wasn't allowed to go look for them..." a sullen remark. She would have loved a break to go sit among the flowers in the gardens. It had made her strongly homesick for the Church courtyard in Cortos.
 
"The coming of spring is a good omen. The festival is to give thanks to the Kami Asashoryu as it returns to heaven." Kishou was happy to take the mushrooms.

Which one was jasmine? "The garden won't be going anywhere. I'm sure you will get a chance, but if they still don't allow it then we will sneak to it for a walk."

The mushrooms had been simmered in kelp stock and rich soy sauce. They were especially chewy.

"Say, girl, do you enjoy flowers?" He smiled at the stoic and taciturn Una.
 
"Do you think we will be here for it," Amore's silver eyes rested in an unfocused gaze downward as she listened, hearing Kishou's low tamber over the din of the dining hall and finding she'd been missing it all day. Having grown so accustomed to his constant presence, being without had rendered her feeling as though she were missing something. "The festival?"

["Say, girl, do you enjoy flowers?"]

The Priestess smiled as well at the question. She understood it, but she also truly appreciated how gently he spoke to the child. So very different from his spiteful tones from earlier in the day.

Una looked up, attempting to retain her decorum, and passed a secret dark gaze about the room before granting Kishou the tiniest of smiles and nod of her head. ["When Mameha naps, we go into the gardens and eat sweets from the kitchen. Do not tell her, it is a secret."]

Amore's smile broadened as she leaned to set down her rice in its place and take up her tea.

Una gasped, ["I thought you were blind!"]

["Some things I still see,"] Amore answered coyly before a sip.
 
"The Dawning Festival, I mean." By no means did he intend to make this place his new home. Their stay would depend on how quickly he could dig up any hints that pointed towards his family if they were even alive.

The swordsman raised a finger to his lips and winked at Una, "I will keep it a secret, but you will have to share some of those sweets with me. I like daifuku the best."

He enjoyed the rest of his dinner and chatting with their newfound friend. As they returned their dishes, Mameha spotted Una and Amore out from a distance and drug the two away, hardly sparing so much as a glance towards Kishou.

The swordsman on the other hand was approached by a gruff older man that the other veteran workers seemed to always gather around. The old man, Tenza, invited Kishou to join him and the others for drinks, as the day laborers were allowed free time during the evening. And so he joined them and had his fill of sake. He even learned that Tenza and a few others were once soldiers, though he had drunk so much that he forgot the next morning.

Kishou woke the next morning with a headache and forced himself up to begin the morning's work.
 
Amore was up with the sunrise at Mameha's command, taking a quick breakfast before being brought backstage again to the open area where the Yisha practiced their skills and their shows. There she performed for Master Kei and Mameha her various songs until her fingers and lungs ached. Finally, by early afternoon, they had chosen a performance for the evening's solo act. Just in time for her to be scrubbed yet again and prepared for the show.

Kishou found himself working hard labor again all morning, but just before lunch he was summoned inside to Kei's office.

["You are a very hard worker,"] Kei dignified the point by offering Kishou a drink as they sat down to lunch at a side area in the office, ["and good at what you do. The Yisha say the gardens are looking splendid."]

Kishou had been under the very attentive gazes of the Yisha coming and going with patrons through the gardens all morning long. Matsu had made a point of accidentally knocking over a wheelbarrow of mulch along her way that Kishou had been forced to clean up.

["They also have not stopped gossiping about you since your arrival. So, I believe I have found a new job for you during your stay. Perhaps one that you will take greater enjoyment from, hm? Tell me, how experienced are you in the art of pleasure."]
 
  • Yay
Reactions: Kishou
Kishou had remained respectfully silent, only offering thanks for Kei's kind appraisal. His stoicism melted into confusion as the teahouse master posed his question.

"Art of pleasure?" Kishou echoed. He frowned at Kei. "I... Am quite familiar with it."

The swordsman sighed. He had drowned in pleasure as a young man. During a time when tomorrow wasn't guaranteed, he had taken any opportunity to lay with a woman between battlefields. And when the war had ended and he enjoyed a lavish life in the capital, Kishou had his fill for several lifetimes.

"Why do you ask?"
 
["My teahouse caters to many esteemed clients of various tastes. Not all of them men,"] Kei spoke candidly, calmly, giving Kishou a short look over from where he sat. The man was in need of a heavy scrub and fresh clothing, but his posture was correct and his silhouette striking, to say nothing of his sullen but wild charms.

["A man such as yourself would be most appealing to our very selective clients. They would pay very well for your time and attention. Payment I am willing to give you a commission from on top of your normal pay. Unless of course you are ... involved with your red Priestess?]
 
"I am not," he admitted, "but even so..."

Kishou sipped his drink. It was smooth and had a hint of sweetness. "I carry many scars, and I carry the ink of a cruel Kami on my back. You still believe me to be appealing?"
 
Kei raised his brows at the man seated across from him. Not just for the news of his scars and ink, but also for the idea that he'd been traveling with the red Priestess for an extended period of time, as Amore had revealed in her limited vocabulary to Mameha, and was not involved with her. Curious. Very curious.

He looked pensive for a few moments, his brow leveling in thought, and nodded finally, ["Yes, I do. If not more so. Among polite society we are constrained to appreciate and desire only that which our traditions tell us to. But here,"] Kei gestured around them, ["in my tea house the exotic and the forbidden are here to be adored, awed, admired..."] he smirked, ["and desired. Our discretion of our client's tastes is our honor to guard."]

So long as the payment was tendered, of course.

["Tell me, your red Priestess, she has a very ...strange accent. And her language ...it's not one I've ever heard before, and I have entertained plenty of foreign guests in my time. How is it you came to have her in your possession?"]
 
"I sold my sword- or perhaps it is more appropriate to say loaned it hoping that my reward would be great- to a fleet of soldiers that hailed from the nation of Cortos. Their country is a hot one, and they worship a single god. This fleet journeyed to an uncharted and untamed island in search of treasure but found only horror. Amore is a high Priestess within Cortos' religious organization. From what I understand, her words had the power to sway even the king of her country." Kishou swallowed and took another sip. "The journey was a complete failure and left her blind."

He couldn't keep his gaze locked with Kei's, and glanced towards a beautiful painting of mighty warriors on the wall behind him.

"We were searching for a way to remedy her blindness."
 
Kei blinked as the story began to unfold from Kishou's lips, allowing the tea in his hands to rest in his lap while he listened. The intrigue was apparent, in the same way that a business man would show intrigue in a promising venture. By the time Kishou was finished, Kei looked markedly ...entertained.

Then he laughed. It was a good-natured laugh, not a mocking one, but it echoed profoundly within the room.

["You weave a good fable, the clients will like you very much. Eat well, and then you are to meet Mameha in the bath house to be cleaned and prepared. You will be quite busy tonight. We expect to draw a very large crowd for our new star's debut."]
 
  • Stressed
Reactions: Kishou
Kishou blankly stared back and scooted back from the table. He bowed, touching his forehead to the floor. "Under no circumstances, no matter the price offered from even your most selective customer, is Amore to be touched. I will, without complaints, serve any customer you wish in her stead."

His head remained low as he awaited Kei's response.
 
The swordsman's head remained low for several breaths longer. He rose after some time and held Kei's gaze before leaving without a word. As he exited, he bowed once more.

Kishou did as he was bade and ate his fill. Then, Mameha thoroughly tended to him. From head to toe he was cleaned. From head to toe he was rid of body hair that the teahouse's Mother found unsightly. She did so with strictness and composure that only a woman with a lifetime of experience could display. She hadn't paused or commented once on his scars or even the ink on his back.

After what felt like countless hours, Mameha said she could do no more and that Kishou was as presentable as she could make him. His hair was neatly styled, with his bangs pulled back into a traditional topknot. He wore expensive black garbs, and nothing else. Scented oils had been rubbed onto his skin prior to being dressed.

Kishou was ushered out after the Yisha. He entered the foyer to the sound of Amore's soft voice and the distinctive plucking of a shamisen. As he was inexperienced with approaching customers, he was ordered to sit and wait to be called. As he sat, his gaze remained trained on the Priestess. A faint smile drew over his features.
 
The evening wore on more quickly than Amore had ever imagined it would. Though she knew her song by heart and her fingers had grown numb to the plucking of the shamisen chords from the abundance of practicing all afternoon, she could not shake the feeling of nervousness that plagued her. Set backstage of the main dining hall, she listened to the Yisha sing with their oddly lilting voices. A pitch that, to her ears, was far too high and tight.

Cortos was a country of every note, from the dulcet tones of the gypsies to the high sonorous sounds of the opera. She, perhaps, more akin to the gypsies herself - Amore's range was only so good due to the training received as a girl. Only recently had she put that particular skill back to practice out of need, rather than out of enjoyment of the hobby.

Finally when the staccato music had drowned to a soft quiet and the murmur of the dining hall died down, she heard the cue of gently tapping symbols and moved into place with the help of Una and the other young girls behind the curtain.

The gentle plucking of the shamisen began, but it was unlike any others of the evening or, even, that this land had really heard before. Some people at the long tables exchanged glances of curiosity. They knew they were here tonight to witness a truly rare exotic from a foreign land, but no one knew quite what to expect.

And then she began to sing, gentle Cortosi words buffered by the curtains as they slowly drew apart. Amore was revealed to be sitting on a dais surrounded by flowers of vibrant red, orange, and yellow - contrasting along with her hair against the blue layers of her fine kimono.
 
  • Cthuulove
Reactions: Kishou
As if the nonstandard techniques with the shamisen wasn't enough to earn the attention of every patron in the room, the Red Priestess' unveiling certainly was. Perhaps in another, more traditional and conservative, teahouse, her presence would have been an insult. Her being able to play on such a stage, perhaps, was only possible in the White Orchid where Kei had created a place for exotic acts.

Kei was probably badmouthed by his peers, the swordsman mused. He didn't think the teahouse master was one to let gossip shackle him.

Kishou only enjoyed Amore's singing for a short time, as Mameha herself pulled him away to serve his first customer. He pleasured a woman of high status- the widow of a merchant that had taken the business of her late husband to great heights. She simply wished to lay with a charming young man.

Afterwards, Mameha had Kishou quickly wash himself before returning to the floor, only to be picked once more. This carried on all night. As the eve grew older, each customer was more eccentric than the last. The swordsman possessed great stamina, even despite his relative inactivity in he and Amore's journey. Yet, he grew exceptionally weary.

As he concluded his time with the last customer of the night, he was thoroughly washed by Mameha and two other attendants. Kishou absentmindedly sat as they treated him carefully. He barely felt the stings as they lathered over new bruises, welts, and wax burns.

Dressed in his favorite blue, Kishou went to eat a late supper. Each step made him ache, but he did not show his discomfort. As they saw him, his fellow workers whispered foul things. The Yisha exchanged hushed words amongst themselves as Kishou sat with his meal. He had a generous portion of sides.

He tasted none of it.
 
For the first night, Amore performed only one song - but to exceptional applause and great interest. After the curtain closed she was lead downstage and into the dining hall where a second round of applause greeted her. A seat at the head of the table, to the left of Master Kei, granted her an evening meal with the patrons who made great efforts to greet her.

Many tried to strike up a conversation at once, shooting questions of her origins and her song. Where did she learn to play like that? What did the song mean? What language was she singing? How did she come to be here? How long would she be staying? Where would she go next?

["Please, please!"] Kei raised his hands with a broad smile, ["You will frighten my new star away."]

["You'll have to rename the house to the Red Rose, Kei,"] Kei's friend, a Chairman of a very powerful merchant company, smiled kindly from his seat across from Amore.

Matsu scoffed from the Chairman's side, drawing his attention back with a graceful pour of sake.

["Thank you all,"] Amore bowed her head to the patrons, ["you are very kind."]

But when will they get to hear more songs? asked another.

["A different song each night,"] Kei explained as he carefully helped Amore into her seat, ["for the duration of her stay. Incentive for you to come back, aah?"]

["Just take my money now won't you and save me the trips?"] replied the Chairman with a laugh.

The night went on like that for hours. As polite as Amore wished to be, she was ever so grateful for Mameha's intervention to take her away to bed. She needs her beauty sleep to perform tomorrow.

Amore did not see Kishou again that night. Nor the next day or evening. Nor the next. The pair of them were kept so busy between their separate parts of the Tea House that she began to wonder if he was even still there. On the fourth day the Tea House was closed for its weekly day of rest. A day that even most of the workers enjoyed their respite.

It was raining and warm. Amore found herself sitting out beneath the overhang leading to the courtyard, her hands soaking in a bowl of herbal medicines to help with the healing of her bleeding fingers. When Kishou approached she did not even recognize him for the scent of oil and the new clothing he wore. Wasn't until he spoke that she even paid him mind - having expected it to be a worker. Most of them did not wish to speak with her and Amore believed that to be due to Matsu's ire toward her presence. Matsu was top Yisha here and her sway was strong.

"Kishou," she breathed a sigh of relief over a weary smile, "I thought you were Kei coming to ask me to rehearse another song."
 
  • Cthuulove
Reactions: Kishou
Kishou had deemed the weather suitable for a drink and carried a ceramic bottle by the string tied around its neck. He was one that believed it was never too early to imbibe, and thus stopped by the storeroom earlier that morning.

"Hm," he drowsily hummed, "fortunately for you, I'll ask for no such thing." The swordsman plopped down next to her. "So, could you do it? Live a life of stardom?" He brought a knee to his chest and rested his cheek on it as his gaze settled on Amore.
 
Last edited:
  • Yay
Reactions: Amorea Delarosa
Smiling fondly to herself, Amore chuckled under her breath, "Praise the Sun..." that she would not be required to rehearse this day. Both her hands and her vocal chords needed a rest after so many years of unpractice.

"Some would argue that I already was," though she glanced his way it was merely to acknowledge his question and presence. The smile persisted, a side effect of having him near. "There was nowhere I could go in Cortos where I was not recognized or did not draw a large crowd. Not that I kept a schedule to perform and entertain ... but the rounds of a Solar Choir Priestess when not on mission were celebrated and anticipated."

"But this," her eyes drifted upwards, gesturing to their current place of home, "this is no life for me. I respect the man or woman who live it but I look forward to the evening of my final performance here." To mark the point, her fingers flexed in the soaking bowl, the sting and ache bringing a faint wince to her expression. She pushed past it to lean into Kishou's shoulder, "Have you heard any word of your family? Many of the clients here travel in from far and wide around the city. Surely someone would know something..."
 
The swordsman didn't take his eyes off of Amore as she spoke, watching her unfocused gaze and the way her lips moved as she told her tale.

"Master Kei speaks of you like a prize. I also wish for a short stay."

Kishou warmly smiled as she leaned into him and switched from resting his cheek on his knee to against the Priestess' head.

"Not of my family in particular. A client-" one he laid with, of course. She had been stern and quiet but was quick to open up after some time shared with him. "-had said that several years ago, several refugees, victims of war displaced from their homes because of the battles, arrived here at Kozai. The city couldn't handle having them in the city, but the Lord welcomed them regardless. Apparently, in the following years, Kozai flourished." Kishou uncorked the bottle. It quietly popped. "I also learned from Tenza that many of the refugees that came from farming villages, like mine, moved to the surrounding villages. At that time, he worked for Master Kei's father, who had just opened this teahouse, and Tenza recalled making dealings with a tall, strongly built young man that delivered rice from outside of the city. He said that watching me make deliveries around Kozai had reminded him of this young man."

He was quiet as he gauged Amore's reaction.

"The village is to the east."
 
It was like being back in the carriage in Elbion. Amore closed her eyes while he spoke, enjoying the sensation of his low voice reverberating through his figure and into her own. It soothed in the same way that heavy rain on a wooden roof did, or the echo of the ocean waves, or the rolling rumble of thunder during a storm. Mixed with the gentle pop of the bottle opening and the scent of drink coiling upwards to mingle with the scent of oils and perfumes - she could have drifted off if she weren't so keen on hearing what he had to say.

Especially since it seemed to be a fair amount of useful information. Smiling at the prospect that they might finally have a lead, Amore let it give her some sense of excitement, "Then," she began, drawing her hands out of the bowl and gingerly placing them on the linen cloth in her lap to dry, "we should go to the village in the east once we have enough money for a time. Shouldn't take long I think, another week perhaps? If I stay too long the people will grow bored of my act anyway..."

Then she leaned up a bit, tilting her head upward slightly as if to share a secret, "What are you drinking and did you bring enough to share?"
 
"Another week," Kishou quietly echoed.

The swordsman smirked, "My, my, Lady Delarosa..." He swirled the bottle between them. "I have more than enough for both of us, but should a Priestess be drinking sake so early in the day?"
 
Amore wasn't sure how she felt about Kishou referring to her as Lady Delarosa, but certainly she wasn't so sure she agreed with the sentiment.

"I haven't felt like a Priestess in quite a while," she admitted, unsmiling but relatively at peace with the statement, "besides, it's afternoon somewhere," the smile returned, twisting askew into a smirk of her own, "and it's my day off."
 
  • Cthuulove
Reactions: Kishou
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top Bottom