Private Tales Forastero

A private roleplay only for those invited by the first writer
["My dear Lady,"] Master Kei returned in the early hours of the day. Having been sent a missive about the incident, he'd made his return back to the White Orchid with great haste. It was nearly midday when he called to speak with them both - bringing them into his office where it was quiet and secluded.

["How this terrible thing has happened to you, I cannot bear it. Your attacker will be charged and sentenced most accordingly."]

["We are leaving,"] Amore said, her voice low and quite hoarse, her throat was swollen and the bruise around her neck growing a deeper blue by the hour. Mameha had seen their bandages changed earlier before coming to see Kei, but the edges of deep red and blooming purple were still peeking out along her jaw and neckline.

["Leaving?"] Kei frowned, ["No but you must stay. Stay and recuperate...heal, I insist. All your medical needs and expenses will be covered. Please, I beg of you."]

Her silver gaze remained fixated, unfocused, on the ground directly before her and her lips were thin from pain and anxiety.
 
His fighting days are most certainly over, Kishou thought to himself. Not only that but as word would spread, he would be stripped of his honor as a rikishi. The assailant's life was effectively over. Served him right.

"She says we are leaving," Kishou met the proprietor with a steely gaze. "Because this happened in your establishment, you will surely see to it that our needs are accounted for and that we are appropriately compensated for our work done and prepared for the journey ahead of us, no? With the Lady's condition, walking long distances is certainly impossible. She would need a horse, don't you think? And her injury will need the proper ointments to be treated."

Kei was a shrewd businessman and in his business reputation was everything, so Kishou believed that he would cave into their demands to save face.

"The road is dangerous. If I am to protect us from potential harm, don't you think I would need swords?"
 
Kei's frown deepened as Kishou spoke. They had him figured right - he'd no sooner threaten the reputation of the White Orchid than he would allow such a terrible thing to happen under his roof again. He swore, jerking from his desk and rising to a stand. The sound of his fist hitting the desk made Amore visibly startle.

["I should not have left ... this would not have happened if I had stayed. I thought I had everything planned so perfectly."] Kei walked to the slatted doorway toward the back, looking out into the courtyard where the Yisha were strolling by, enjoying an impromptu day off. Matsu was with her harem of underlings and pointedly watched Kei in his doorway.

["Your finale, my Lady. How spectacular it was set to be! Even you were excited for it, or have you forgotten?"] he had learned to speak more plainly in front of Amore, and more slowly. A curious eye looked back over his shoulder at her and the pinching of her brow in thought, ["Of course I would take care that your departure is in the best way. You will have your pay, horse and supplies and ... swords are not my specialty, but the Chairman will know an appropriate man to speak to. It will take some time to get it all ready for you ... "]

["...how long?"] Amore asked.

["A few days ... four or five, perhaps."]

["Three days,"] she replied.

Kei raised his brow and smoothly swept back in from the doorway, moving to position himself in a kneel before Amore, ["Three days,"] he smiled and gave a nod, ["for you to rest and heal and then ... maybe, reconsider your finale?"]

["Kishou does not work,"] she said, ["he stays with me."]

Kei looked to Kishou and sighed, ["Well my patrons will be most displeased at the news, but - Kishou will stay with you. You will both be my guests here for the next three days - but I expect you both let the Doctor tend to you, and for you both to rest. I will have your room prepared once the repairs are finished this afternoon."]
 
Finale, finale, he would not shut up about it. Kishou found himself clenching his fists, but the sharp pain from his bandaged hand calmed him down.

"You're generous," Kishou politely bowed his head to Kei. He wasn't particularly thankful but still showed the teahouse master his due respect. What he was thankful for, however, was Amore's insistence that he stayed by her side. He loathed the idea of serving any more clients and doubly so leaving his companion alone.

As their meeting concluded, an attendant arrived to see them out, though Kishou lagged behind for a quick word to Kei.

"Did the rikishi have anything to say?" Kishou asked.

"I don't quite follow," the young Master cautiously responded.

"Please," he folded his arms, "I'm no stranger to the workings of these places. Those guards- the ones in black? They are not the city's police. They would have questioned him when he came to."

Kei narrowed his eyes at the swordsman, internally questioning who exactly Kishou was. What he has seen and done in his life. "The doctor said several of his teeth were broken. His jaw is dislocated, too. Perhaps you were too thorough. They didn't get a word out of him."

Needless to say, there would likely be no formal sentencing. Perhaps some farmers would find the rikishi's body washed up on the river bank some ways away from the city. Kishou thanked Kei again before catching up to Amore, who waited outside.

"I'm sorry we can't leave right away, but I think it will be better like this."
 
Kei followed Kishou's progress out the door of his office, his brow furrowed over a muddled frown. He waited for the sounds of their footsteps to die down before exiting out into the courtyard with a heavy sigh. He had three days to heal the red-haired woman and convince her of her finale or he would find himself paying out much more than he bargained for. This incident was a terrible thing for her, but for him - more importantly - it was ruining the momentum of fresh patrons and rising interest.

He had to find a way to recoup that momentum before it fell completely from his grasp. But first ...

["Mameha,"] he called the Matron over from schooling the young girls, ["have Amore's room ready by this afternoon. Prepare a second bedroll and adjust the attendants accordingly, Kishou will be staying with her until the finale in three days."]

["Finale?"] Mameha asked, ["She will never be healed enough for that in three days. Did you see her neck?"]

["You will tend to her with extra dilligence. I am calling in Safi to work her magic."]

["Safi,"] Mameha gawped, ["and what do you mean Kishou will be staying with her? Men are not allo-"]

["She is not Yisha,"] Kei growled, ["or have you forgotten."]

Mameha looked surprised and then apologetic. She bowed and stepped off to make the arrangements.

Kei looked around, spying Matsu watching him, and checked his expression before he made his way over. The Yisha looked up from their conversation and greeted him with their smiles and giggles. Matsu smiled, looking somewhat hopeful, ["What a horrible thing to happen,"] Matsu began, glancing to the other Yisha, ["to such a kind and talented Rose. I saw her neck while Mameha and the Doctor tended to her ... can she even speak?"]

["Horrible indeed,"] Kei gave a strained smile and nod, ["she is in a great deal of pain. Speaking is difficult, but the Doctor says she will heal. Perhaps in time for her finale."]

["Finale?"] Matsu echoed Mameha, ["You can't possibly think that-"]

["I think we should all pray for her quick recovery so that this Tea House can move on from this terrible misfortune. ...would any of you happen to know how that man came to find his way to the back of the grounds? Did any of you speak with him ... see anything?"]

The Yisha shook their heads. Matsu followed suite, but she looked soured.


~~~


"The money from the finale should set us very well for a while," Amore replied to Kishou, her voice just barely above a raspy whisper, "and you are right. It is better this way. I do not feel well enough to travel."

But she had managed to secure them safe and guarded housing, free of cost, for a few more days. Now they could truly relax a bit, without having to worry about working.

"Mameha spoke of a bathhouse in this district and that the steam might help soothe my throat."
 
He wanted to object towards her performing her finale, but couldn't muster the courage. "Yes, it would. Granted it is not all lost in a forest." Kishou said through a wry smile.

"Would you like to go? As it so happens, my evening just freed up."
 
She nodded, "I just ... want to leave this place ... for a little while."

Get away from the Tea House and the whispers and the gossip and the smell of incense. Maybe, just maybe, the steam might calm her nerves, too.

Mameha had a rickshaw prepared for them and sent a guard along with them for good measure. Amore had taken Kishou's arm and, out of a curious sense of anxiety for going out into the public where she would be easily recognized, did not let it go. A cloak covered her hair and veiled her face. When they arrived the Guard stepped inside first to deliver the message and money from Mameha that would grant them a private VIP room within the bath house.
 
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They didn't wait long for the bathhouse to make short-notice preparations for the pair. Unlike many other bathhouses, this one was large. They were taken past the communal bath spaces to their accommodation. Between the hallway and bath was a curtained-off space to change.

"Would you, erm," he cleared his throat, "Would you like to go in first, then?"
 
Their Guard had already requested a female attendant to help Amore at Mameha's orders, and the woman arrived with a stack of fresh towels and a tray of tea, sake, and light snacks. She greeted them warmly and moved ahead to set the tray on the flattened stone rim of the bath before moving to place the towels in the changing area.

"As long as you don't mind waiting..." Amore smiled - since living at the Tea House her wardrobe had become consistently more complicated. Though even today she was dressed more casually, there were several more layers than when they had been living at the temple with Toji.

["I am Sana, welcome to the Okina Bath House - we are very honored to host the White Orchid's Dragon and Rose,"] the attendant bowed before looking to Amore, ["this way Miss."]

Behind the curtains Sana helped Amore change, layer by layer, and neatly hung each piece in the order they would later be re-applied. Next lead out into their private bath, Sana guided her around to the steps with the wooden hand railing and down into the steaming waters. She tried to ask after Amore's herbal preferences, but Amore couldn't understand enough to get an answer out.

She did manage to get the answer from Kishou, however, and set off straight away for the necessary ingredients.

"Dragon," Amore remarked quietly from where she perched at the edge of the bath, arms folded over the rim, "not just silly Yisha gossip then..."
 
"No, take your time." He watched as she disappeared behind the curtain.

Kishou hung his own clothes with less organization. As he stepped from the changing area into the bath, his gaze lingered over Amore's bare shoulders for a moment before focusing elsewhere. He toed the water before entering completely.

"Well, no," he blushed, "but still gossip all the same."
 
She felt a frown slowly fold across her lips at his answer. In their days apart over the last week she had heard more and more about the Dragon ... and not just from the lips of Yisha. Patrons perhaps had a way of exaggerating truths, but she was lead to believe them more readily than the Yisha who seemed charged with the purpose of ostracizing her from their numbers.

"I had the pleasure of meeting Lady Koa one evening," Amore let those words linger, "Master Kei introduced me. She spent half the night trying to buy you for herself."
 
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"Oh, did you," Kishou leaned back, spreading his arms across the edge of the bath. The swordsman quietly clicked his tongue at Kei's needless meddling. "And, so what? I cannot be purchased."

He hadn't intended on sounding so annoyed, but the topic was, well, annoying.

"Can't we talk about something that's... not about that place?"
 
Kei had introduced them because Lady Koa had crafted several of the kimonos Amore had worn over the last two weeks. The most beautiful kimonos in all the city, Kei had called them, it is an honor for my Yisha to wear them. If only I could buy her exclusivity to this Tea House, they would be the envy of all the lands beyond.

I might consider it, Koa had replied, if I could buy the Dragon's exclusivity to me.

"Very well," Amore answered, the hush of her rasp voice taking on a wilted tone, "tell me about your tattoo."
 
The swordsman stared at Amore's back for a moment before letting out a deep sigh. He sunk deeper into the bath to let his head rest against the stone edge.

"Legends tell of a warrior that knew no equal. He waged war with unrivaled cruelty. He was depicted as a man with many faces and arms and wore a crown of smoke and mantle of ashes, and his tread was shod with flame. He goes by many names, but none of them are real." Kishou eyed the tray of snacks and picked up a daifuku with red bean filling. "He waged war against the heavens and was smote down, but not even the combined efforts of the Gods could destroy him, so he was sealed."

The daifuku was chewy, and its filling was sweet.

"I was young and dumb, and the story had touched me at the time."
 
The story made sense considering the gossip she'd heard about it. How some feared it, others respected it, some found it in deeply poor taste. It was an unfortunate thing to wear your poor decisions for the remainder of your life.

Sana arrived with the herbal additives for the bath and walked a circuit around the rim, sprinkling the ground ingredients into the waters from a basket and then taking a glass jar of a pale purple liquid and tipping drops on a second pass. The steamy air filled with the heady aroma of lavendar, lemongrass, and medicinal herbs and spices. Amore breathed in deeply, feeling a faint wave of soothing and calming settle in.

"I wish I could see it," she admitted quietly, "I bet it is as beautiful as it is fierce."
 
I wish one day that you will.

"It's regretful, but the lashings I received on our little expedition ruined it." Thirteen would do that, it would seem. Amore had once said it was an unlucky number to carry on his skin.

He smiled and let out a happy sigh.

"This, now this is nice. I'm going to miss this as we resume our travels."
 
"A pity," she admitted, "that I did not heal those scars when I was able to."

Amore reached a hand up to her neck and carefully began to unwind the gauze bandage around it. The dark and angry bruise filtered out into the open. She took up a cloth and soaked it in the waters, then used it as a warm compress around her throat.

"We will have to take our luxuries where and while we can," a small smile appeared as she turned and sank down into the water a little deeper, until it crested her shoulders and she could lean back against the wall of the pool, "but I will not miss it."
 
"I wear my scars without shame," Kishou said as he looked up at the ceiling. "But, thank you."

He glanced to Amore as her motions disturbed the water, and frowned as he saw her bruises just as she covered them with the compress. The frown lifted as she smiled.

"We will see how long that lasts," he teased, "If I were to venture a guess, I'll say you will miss these baths when I begin to smell again."
 
"If I must endure our collective stench to sleep soundly by your side at night," the teasing was not overlooked but her smile persisted, "that is a cost I willingly accept."

Despite having all the luxuries one of her present status as a celebrity might expect, she'd not slept particularly well at the Tea House. Amore had grown so used to sleeping next to Kishou, listening to his breathing and heartbeat, suffused in his warmth, that she struggled to find the same peace at night. What was it they said? You don't know what you have until it's gone?

The color appearing in her cheeks could have been from the warmth of the waters, but it might have also been something else entirely.
 
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A comforting warmth rose from within the swordsman. He sunk deeper into the bath, submerging himself up to his nose. It was easier to blame the deep flush of red across his features on the water if he was almost completely submerged in it, right? Of course.

Kishou closely watched Amore. He was quite fond of the way her lips curved as she smiled, and of her gentle voice and Cortosi lilts. Thinking hard on it, there wasn't a thing about her he wasn't fond of.

He forced his attention onto the bottle of sake nearby and moved across the bath to help himself to it.

"There's tea and sweets," he said as he poured the sake into one of the small cups, "Do you want any?"
 
His silence was noted and it caused her own smile to falter slightly. Without seeing his expression or how he watched her, she could only effect his response through verbal cues. The silence could have meant many things - including that perhaps he slept perfectly fine without her by his side. Or that he rather preferred the luxury. Amore did not like living in what ifs or bringing further negativity into her life than necessary.

Things were difficult enough. She told herself it didn't matter, that the ultimate goal was to find the Healers of his land and hope that perhaps this end of the world had an answer to her blindness or her severance from Magic. Finding his family was, of course, another greater cause. Needing emotional validation from the man was so far from any priority.

At least, it should have been.

The offer of tea was a welcome distraction from those thoughts. She gently cleared her throat, wincing at the sting of the action, and nodded, "Tea would be lovely."
 
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The teapot was small and felt as if it could shatter in his hands as he poured her cup. He gently placed it on the tray and held the cup out.

"Here," he said, "It's hot. Careful."

As she reached for it, she overshot the cup and instead found Kishou's wrist. Her fingers trailed over his hand and fingers to find the cup. This was rather troublesome for the swordsman as his face took on a shade of fiery crimson. If she'd said any word of thanks, it fell on deaf ears. He retreated back across the bath and quickly downed two cups of sake.
 
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Finding his wrist and not the tea cup was of no consequence to Amore. She had become accustomed to finding her way through her world using her hands and other senses, enough so that contact with other people had become a normal thing. Strange to think just over a year ago it had been considered taboo to touch the Priestess if you were not of the Faith or the Radiant Church. Even such a simple gesture might've been construed as something offensible - by others, primarily, but Amore had always taken care to keep her appearances up.

"Asante," she murmured, bringing the cup to her face to smell the tea and give it a small taste. It was hot, for certain, but to her it did not seem particularly lethal in temperature. It should have, but it didn't. Not that she would realize the difference, she was simply glad for the distraction from her previous train of thought.

"Are there any other locations you feel we should visit in our efforts toward my healing?"
 
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Kishou poured a third cup for himself and slowly sipped at it.

"Well," he paused to ponder, "I knew a doctor back in my soldiering days. He was unreliable, and sloppy, and often swindled more than actually helped others, but he knew his stuff. He would probably be in the capital still, granted somebody hasn't... stabbed him to death yet. He always wanted to live the high life."

For reasons he hadn't even begun to share with Amore, he'd prefer to stay as far away from the capital as possible.

"I can think of a few others, but none would be so easy to find."
 
She mused over her tea, listening, feeling somewhat lost of hope for any true results. What made these lands any different from the ones she already knew? What could possibly be so special here that an answer could be found where none presented before?

"There was a guest at the Tea House several nights ago..." Amore began, remembering only after the fact that he didn't want to talk about the Tea House, but this wasn't about him, "a Captain of the Emperor's army. He spoke of a warrior among the royal retinue. A woman. He called her a Water Dancer. Do you know of this name?"
 
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