[D1 ME] This Beach is Fire

[Miya Akari]

Akari lay down in the sand, looking at the dusk sky, with a small campfire burning next to her. The crackling fire, the rolling waves, and the island birds created a mixture of sounds, sights and scents that just couldn't be found anywhere else. Unlike the new arrivals, this was something known to her. More than once she had fallen asleep like this.

[Shiba Yukari]

Speaking of new arrivals...

Yukari had found it a... challenging day. Not a bad one, she generally didn't have those, but...

But Fortunes, this place is a far cry from what I've been trained to handle.

So she walked along the beach- idly sketching, in her mind, good places for rock gardens or maybe just a nice patio for a civilized lunch facing the sea- heading for the campfire.

She'd never actually sat next to one.

Of course, what with the sand, she wasn't sure how one would do that. Wouldn't your clothes get dirty?

Oh, it's the Miya who handed me a basin aboard the boat...

"Good evening, Miya-sama. How does the night find you?"

[Miya Akari]

Akari turns her head lazily to Yukari. "Night finds me wonderful. Join me, Shiba-san?" she asks with a welcoming smile.

"I imagine today's been a little jarring for you. And I'll let you in on a little secret."

[Shiba Yukari]

Yukari smiled back, glad that she wasn't aboard some boat the refused to stay still.

"It's been... an adjustment, to be sure. But a secret, Miya-sama?"

So we sit on the sand. Huh. Well. This outer kimono's probably a write-off from the salt spray anyhow...

She sat down by the fire, fully attentive.

"That sounds interesting."

[Miya Akari]

"Look at the sky." The Miya says holding an open hand up towards the darkening dusk.

"The stars just now starting to show, with Lady Sun's retreat, they're the same ones that you see back home. That the people you know and care about are seeing right now. We're far away from there, but when we look up at them we are seeing the same thing that they would see even if they stood right next to us. We're not so far from home, Shiba-san," Akari explains.

[Shiba Yukari]

Yukari looked up. Smiled a bit.

"It's a good point. And who knows, given a few years, this place might even start to look more like home..."

[Miya Akari]

"I'm fine with making it my home as is. I miss some things like music and an abundance of tea and sake to choose from, but it's got more fresh fish than I've ever had access to and I enjoy the music that nature provides," she says, pointing out the sounds of the beach and the nearby forest.

[Shiba Yukari]

"Oh, Miya-sama appreciates music?"

Yukari lit up a bit.

"This one might have to try a tune, when she wouldn't be upstaging the local talent."

It seemed to be a joke, but nor did she simply burst into song- as the Miya had said, the natural sounds around them were quite pleasant.

[Miya Akari]

"I would be pleased to hear a song, Shiba-san," Akari replied, maintaining a small smile as she rolled to her side and propped her head up on her hand. "If you wouldn't mind sharing."

[Shiba Yukari]

"Well, ah, let us see..."

Yukari closed her eyes, thinking of an appropriate song.

And came up with something pretty decent, all things being equal.


[Barely into this rules-lite game and already using Orokos, creature of habit, that's me!

Figure a La Mer vibe]

[Miya Akari]

"Shiba-san's voice is as lovely as everything else about her it seems," the Miya says with a playful smirk, lightly slapping her hip in a 'clap' for the performance, since the other hand was busy supporting her head.

"That was a beautiful song. Thank you. I think the birds loved it as well."

[Shiba Yukari]

"Oh, I hope so...I could ask, but I hate to bother them needlessly..."

She looked up, as if looking for a specific avian, then shrugged.

"But you are most kind. I'm not sure I'll be much help in, well... exploring, but I like a chance to use my skills."

[Miya Akari]

"We don't have a great many options for entertainment out here, so it will be nice to have you. One can only take so much music from those that are untrained. They try to entertain, but soldiers and scouts talents definitely lie elsewhere."

The Miya looks into the fire for a few moments before taking a small piece of wood from nearby ad setting it on the fire, causing things to shift.

[Shiba Yukari]

"Might why I was sent, then. Besides music, I do a little bit of everything- plus, as a Tejina, I can call upon the air kami for recreational purposes."

[Miya Akari]

"Oh? I've heard of the tejina. An interesting order.". She doesn't seem to hold a strong opinion one way or another apparently.

"Well, I am glad to have you here. One of the things any place needs to truly grow is culture. I look forward to spending more time with you to that end Shiba-san. I suspect that I will truly enjoy your company. I suspect that you may not have been made aware of the true lack of amenities, so I will offer my assistance in fulfilling some of what I can in return for you sharing your talents. I have a trunk half filled with tea that will likely take months to get through if I try to enjoy it alone."

[Shiba Yukari]

"Oh, I was told very little about the supply situation, so I expect I'll be calling on you with some frequency."

She paused.

"I'll try not to be a bother, though."

[Miya Akari]

"Perhaps I've been on this island too long. When di that change? Last i checked, being called on by a beautiful woman was a pleasure, not a bother." Akari smiled at her conversation companion.

"A pleasure I am happy to receive as often as you wish to share it."

[Shiba Yukari]

"Well, then I will strive to remain beautiful, so as not to impose..."

No false modesty here, but a bit of shy deflection instead. Presumably, Yukari had access to both mirrors and sufficient people skills to not lord it over her peers.

[Miya Akari]

"I get the feeling that it doesn't take any striving at all for you," Akari says. "And even if you do put in significant effort, im sure its not strictly necessary."

[Shiba Yukari]

Yukari blushed a bit at that, grateful that the firelight could hide the more intense aspects of it.

"Yes, well... there's nothing that a little effort can't improve, and that goes the moreso for one's appearance."