(D1 EE Open) Outside the Unicorn Rooms

[Ide Hazrat]

Ide Hazrat waited in the hallway by the connected rooms that had been assigned to the Unicorn delegation, hoping to catch sight of any of the other occupants. He enjoyed a late snack of barley tea and rice crackers as he did so. It was simple fare, but he had become accustomed to such things on the road to Tsuma. What he was unaccustomed to was the hustle and bustle he had seen in the city. Perhaps a friendly face would be able to give him some pointers about making his way thought such a large settlement.

(OOC: Non-Unicorn who are passing through the halls of the Laughing Carp are welcome to participate too! )

[Utaku Nesrin]

(ooc, now I'm imagining some of the large convention hotels I've been in, with occasional alcoves at the ends of hallways with some seating and a view. So my mental image of this scene suddenly has weird carpeting and fluorescent lighting.)

Returning after the long and busy day, Nesrin pauses. "Evening, Ide-san!" She offers a bow, then extends a hand to shake with a slightly questioning tilt of her head, testing which traditions he'd prefer. "Tea this late? Staying up to study for tomorrow?"

[Ide Hazrat]

Hazrat clasped her hand in his own and shook it twice before also giving her a bow. "Good evening to you as well. The tea is quite weak, I am afraid, but I have nothing to study tonight so it is just as well. You are welcome to share these delicious rice crackers if you wish, though."

"The truth is, I was hoping to meet some of the other Unicorn who were here for the tournament. I know hardly anyone, and this is the first time I have been this far east." He adjusted his turban slightly, tucking the ends behind his shoulder. "I am Hazrat, grandson of Ide Hoashio."


OOC: Now I'm picturing the hall outside a hotel convention room too. I hope the Laughing Carp has a decent breakfast nook.

[Utaku Nesrin]

"Utaku Nesrin, daughter of Utaku Kyo," she introduced herself, "Shiotome and, I guess graduate of the Ruby Champion's ah...project. There's a bunch of us...Unicorn that is, who were there, so you should have plenty to talk to." Looking over the spread, she plucks up a handful of crackers. "Thanks! Just the thing this late, same for weak tea. I figure if we don't know the things they'll be testing by now, it's a bit late, honestly."

"Can't get a lot farther east without hitting the ocean, but where's your family usually travel then?"

[Iuchi Prashant]

((Post deleted as I had double posted in the EE timeslot Really sorry about this, and really sorry to have to make Nes change her post...))

[Utaku Nesrin]

<since this was response to Prashant, I'm just going to snip it and move on. >

[Ide Hazrat]

OOC: Sorry for the long absence. I ate something that didn't agree with me and it put me completely out of commission.

Hazrat's eyes widen a bit upon hearing about the range of topics that will be tested and Nesrin's experiences with the Ruby Champion. "You must be well-prepared then. I am certain you will honor your family and clan."

He takes a bite of another cracker and washes it down with a gulp of tea. "Most of my youth was spent on the edge of the Empire or even further afield. My family often traveled the High Steppes or the Plains of Wind and Stone. My grandfather was a trader on the Sand Road, and he passed many stories of Rokugan on to me, even though there are many places I have yet to visit myself and would love to see in person."

Although Prashant was clearly in a hurry as he passed through the hallway on his way to somewhere else, Hazrat did give the Iuchi a handshake and exchange brief greetings before he left.

"I appear to be in the company of very skilled and illustrious peers," said Hazrat. "I will do my best to keep up!"

[Utaku Nesrin]

(No worries, my posting schedule is very limited during the week, so I'm slow. And the thread wobbled a bit with Prashant's double-booking. But we should try to arrange a Uni. meetup Maybe D4 or 5 to run around in some fashion. )

"I hope I'm prepared, though I don't expect to be the best duelist in the end, so I just want to be a good example of our clan and my school here with so many important people watching."

Nesrin notes, Prashant's passing through, seeming for a moment about to call out to him, but he does seem a bit too far off now. Shouting would be rude. "I hope to get a posting that lets me do some traveling as well. I hear so many stories."

[Ide Hazrat]

Hazrat nods. "A good example to everyone watching. Yes, that's exactly why I am here too. I do not know much about dueling either, but if my skills and prowess are recognized then I will be satisfied."

"But what do you mean about a posting where you can travel?" he continues. "Is it related to your experience with the Ruby Champion? I'm not sure I follow."


(OOC: The Unicorn Clan - Doing their best to maintain continuity since 750 IC. )

[Utaku Nesrin]

"Oh, just that I'm in training with the Shiotome, and most of us are part of cavalry units. So, while you travel to fight, you're not really going much beyond the borders of Unicorn lands. And...I'd like to travel more. Though I also want to stay with my sisters." She laughs. "I guess that's part of growing up. Really learning once and for all that you can't have everything you want. But still, I hope to figure out a posting that would include travel as part of my duties."

She sips at her tea, grinning at the sweetness of barley. It's such a homey drink, she hadn't even expected it here among the Crane. "You said you've been out beyond the edges of the Empire. Are you following your family's path as a merchant then?"

[Ide Hazrat]

Hazrat nods as he listens to Nesrin's explanation of her desires and duties. The wisdom and eloquence behind her words show that she has clearly given the matter a great deal of thought, so when it comes time for him to reply in kind he finds himself at a bit of a loss.

"My family's path?" He looks into his teacup, as if the amber liquid held some answers. "I don't really know. Trading with the Ujik was how my grandfather served the clan, my father was a warrior who went where he was needed to protect the alliances our family had with various peoples and tribes, and I trained with my mother and learned to interpret the will of the spirits. So I guess if my family has a path it must be to go travel and try new things." He laughed. "I'm certainly doing that here."

[Utaku Nesrin]

"The Topaz Championship is definitely new for all of us. Though I wonder if there are some here with a family tradition of getting to compete here. It sounds like your family's done pretty much everything. I guess most have if you look far enough along the branches," she says thoughfully. "I've got a cousin training with the Iuchi priests and another married into the Ide and so he's learning to handle the battles of court. My father was a warrior among the Moto, but his father was a merchant." She sits a little straighter then. "But my mother's line have been Shiotome for generations, so it was always my most likely path."

"But I know other Battle Maidens who've been assigned as yojimbo for a time, or even advisors. Though I think I'd need a lot more experience before I'm advising anyone," she adds with a laugh. "If you win, what assignment would you like to ask for?"

[Ide Hazrat]

"I don't think I've given it as much thought as you have," admits Hazrat. "I guess if I could choose anything then I'd also like to travel see the lands of all the Great Clans. Maybe as a messenger or part of some delegation to a different family. My elder sister is kind of a traveling poet of sorts, but my poetry is terrible, so I feel like that's the kind of assignment people would ask me not to request. Stories are more of my skill area, so perhaps I could be some sort of traveling historian."

He looks wistful for a moment. "But I think I would need to win over a number of people before that could happen, so for now I'm just happy to see as much of the Empire as I can. Like you say, I feel like I need more experiences."

[Utaku Nesrin]

"Oh! Does your sister primarily do travel poetry? Or is she entertaining with all types of poetry?" Nesrin seems uncommonly interested. "I mean. If she's had any collections printed, I'd love to find them."

Reaching for another handful of crackers, she adds, "anyway, I don't think you have to worry too much about not planning much. Priests move around where they're needed regardless, and you're too young to get stuck in charge of a temple where you'd have to stay in one place for the next 40 years." A small shudder runs across her shoulders, like a horse shivering flies from its coat.

[Ide Hazrat]

"True. I highly doubt I would be sent to keep a temple," said Hazrat, thinking of the training he had received from his mother on the road. "Being sent where I can be of service would be great, so long as it wasn't somewhere too quiet or remote, or I wasn't kept there for long." He munched on a rice cracker, letting his teeth grind it to mere crumbs.

Then, he took a gulp of tea to wash it down and the momentary worry passed. "Anyway, I don't know if you would call my sister's style 'travel poetry' exactly. Some elements are historical, while others are personal, and some just serve as a life lessons. She doesn't know I memorized this one - and you if you meet her you can never tell - but since you requested..."

4d10o10k4, assuming an Average difficulty to recall something: 18
He begins to recite.

"My brother's gone away and not returned.
It is indeed an easy thing to leave
But coming back's the more demanding task.
Though horses kick each other, men should not.

'Tis true that strife twixt humans can flare up
As it is plain that even horses fight.
My brother to Mount Bailang you have gone
A thousand miles of distance far away.

Mount Lung how very far from me your heights!
Mount Ing how very cold to me your peaks!
There's no sign nowhere of my brother still
My heart is desolate and grows full sore."

"Oh, and that 'brother' isn't me," he quickly clarifies once he's done. "I mean, I've left home since that time, but it's not about me. It's one of the ones she based on an old story."


OOC: With proper credit where it is due. Also, enjoy it while you can, because if it turns out that TN15 was too low then I'm going to replace it with a "less accurately remembered version."

[Utaku Nesrin]

"That's good--that it's not about you, I mean. I was about to ask if your sister was always so dramatic when you're just traveling to Tsuma!" She laughs, setting her cup down while she settles more comfortably, legs curled to the side rather than kneeling now. "The poem is really beautiful, and I hope we get to be in the same place someday to talk poetry. Don't worry, I won't tell her I know that one already! Does she travel around a lot too?"

[Ide Hazrat]

Hazrat also laughs at the idea of his older sister overreacting to his journeys. "I'm not sure how I'd react if she ever wrote a poem about me. It would be a shock, that's for sure!"

"Aisholpan-onesan mostly travels on the edge of the steppes, staying with the riders who watch the horses as they graze and going from camp to camp until winter comes. She's the type who can stay in one area and enjoy getting to know every last detail about every person, animal, and tree there. But I know she'd be happy to meet a fellow lover of poetry. Next time I send her a message I'll tell her about you, Nesrin-san."

"You wouldn't happen to be a poet yourself, would you?" asked Hazrat, refilling their cups with more weak barley tea.

[Utaku Nesrin]

"Only a poor one," she laughs and nods a thank you for the refill. "I've studied travel poetry a bit, though I'd like to improve in other forms. It's a nice way to keep occupied on a long watch, or staying up with a foaling mare all night." Though she hadn't done that since pairing with Tabudai.

Picking up the cup, she adds, 'I'd be happy to share letters with her, even if we never end up traveling to the same place. How much older is she?"

[Ide Hazrat]

"Aisholpan-onesan is almost twenty; old enough to have helped raise me, but not so old that we were not playmates from time to time. She is most certainly at a camp on the steppes this time of year, but I will send her a letter and let her know that you would be interested in starting a correspondence. I am sure she would also enjoy that, and maybe circumstances will allow you to cross paths one day and exchange poems in person."

"You said you had sisters as well, though, didn't you? Older or younger? Are they also training as Shiotome?"

[Utaku Nesrin]

"Both! And some," she grins and elaborates. "Two elder, one younger, and twin brothers knee high. Tamiko and Bayanerdene are Battle Maidens, and Chimeg shows some signs that maybe she hears the spirits, but it's not so obvious as some, so we're not entirely sure where her training will be, but it should start next year, so I expect a trip to one of the major shrines this summer to look for guidance."

"Is Ide Aisholpan-san your only sibling? Sounds like we have tales to share of helping with younger brothers, though mine are two young for us to be playmates, though Chimeg and I had a bit of that before this past year saw my training take up almost all my time."