[D1 LM, A Tiny Shrine] Blowin' in the Wind

Asahime · **Joined:** Sun Apr 05, 2020 2:55 am **Posts:** 27

Bayushi Setsuna wrote:

Setsuna crouched down, offering their hand to the cat. Certainly not a dangerous prospect.

The cat moves slightly as you reach toward it. It's a shifting of its weight that reminds you of things you've seen in a dojo.

Bayushi Setsuna · **Joined:** Sat Apr 04, 2020 12:17 am **Posts:** 201

Setsuna stared at the cat. Perhaps it was another odd animal, like the crow. Alternatively, the Scorpion may have been a paranoid mess.

"What is the extent of a sage's generosity?" Setsuna left the question at that for now.

Togashi Myo-en · **Joined:** Mon Apr 06, 2020 4:27 am **Posts:** 418

"'Sages accumulate nothing, but the more they do for others, the greater their existence. The more they give to others, the greater their abundance.' That is what the Tao says, at least."

Some action seems to be impending. Myo-en carries on watching patiently.

Asahime · **Joined:** Sun Apr 05, 2020 2:55 am **Posts:** 27

Suddenly, the cat lunges to the side and begins an ascent toward the crow.

Bayushi Setsuna · **Joined:** Sat Apr 04, 2020 12:17 am **Posts:** 201

"Would it be better to tend the garden, so to speak? To foster wealth, to let it sustain itself, and then distribute more? Surely it is better to hand out a tree's worth of fruit consistently than to hand out a seed."

The Bayushi looked up to the animal battle. The androgynous fellow seemed intent on seeing the outcome...

Togashi Myo-en · **Joined:** Mon Apr 06, 2020 4:27 am **Posts:** 418

Several more fragments of dried fruit pelt down at the cat as the crow lets out a nonchalant warning caaw!.

"Better for whom? A seed could also grow where it's planted by the person who's given it." Myo-en watches the bits of apricot fall to the ground and shakes her shaven head slightly at the waste. Thought a mouse might still make a meal out of them, she supposes.

Asahime · **Joined:** Sun Apr 05, 2020 2:55 am **Posts:** 27

The cat makes a flying leap that ostensibly was toward the crow, but it ended up landing on Setsuna's shoulder, hissing, digging in its claws a bit, and leaping off... only to run down the streets out of sight.

Bayushi Setsuna · **Joined:** Sat Apr 04, 2020 12:17 am **Posts:** 201

"But what if said person cannot afford to tend it? Surely the owner of..."

There was a cat on their shoulder. "Hello." That was the only word Setsuna got in before the Tragic Assault on this First Day of Refugee Arrival. The bushi bit down on their lip as to not let out a sound, at least out of reaction.

But as the cat ran down, Setsuna simply said, "Ow." It was probably the most genuine the Scorpion had been all conversation.

Togashi Myo-en · **Joined:** Mon Apr 06, 2020 4:27 am **Posts:** 418

The crow rattles its tail feathers and squawks in a way Myo-en can't help interpreting as a bird-ish version of "... and stay out!" It glides out of the eaves and flaps back up to the peak of the shrine roof to keep an eye on the cat's last known trajectory.

"Are you hurt, Bayushi-san?" Myo-en straightens up and shifts her weight fractionally toward Setsuna. "It seems you were in the wrong place at the wrong time."

Bayushi Setsuna · **Joined:** Sat Apr 04, 2020 12:17 am **Posts:** 201

"Hurt, yes, but the extent is up to interpretation." Setsuna stood upright, chin high. It was impossible to tell if the attempt on their life had left them scarred and deformed.

"Perhaps it will turn out to be the right place at the right time. Perhaps this injury will serve me later. Perhaps that is wishful thinking."

Togashi Myo-en · **Joined:** Mon Apr 06, 2020 4:27 am **Posts:** 418

"You'll know when it happens. Or doesn't." Myo-en looks bemusedly at the scrabbling trail of pawprints in the alley where the cat had dashed away, shaking her head a little. "As long as you don't need a healer's salve. I think those may be in short supply here soon,."

Bayushi Setsuna · **Joined:** Sat Apr 04, 2020 12:17 am **Posts:** 201

"No, certainly not. Let it not be said that Bayushi Setsuna was felled by a cat." Something nagged her in the back of her mind that that was going to happen now...

Togashi Myo-en · **Joined:** Mon Apr 06, 2020 4:27 am **Posts:** 418

"There are worse fates. Probably." Myo-en's lips twitch. Some of them coming to this city, I think.

"Do you live in this city, Bayushi-san?" With the cat out of sight, she changes tracks, doubling back to her earlier curiosity. "My eyes tell me you did not arrive with the crowd this morning."

Bayushi Setsuna · **Joined:** Sat Apr 04, 2020 12:17 am **Posts:** 201

"Certainly, at least, I figure based on what the Crab keep touting on about," Setsuna remarked.

"Is that so? Do I carry myself with too much familiarity?" The Bayushi shrugged. "We all live in it now. But no, I arrived shortly before the rest of this lot came to this fair city."

Togashi Myo-en · **Joined:** Mon Apr 06, 2020 4:27 am **Posts:** 418

"I can't tell whether you know this place," Myo-en raises an eyebrow as if to say--though give me more time to observe and I might--"but I could see you didn't march through frozen roads this morning,"

She shakes her head ruefully. "I have been here for the winter, which means I planned to leave soon. So much for the plans of mankind."

Bayushi Setsuna · **Joined:** Sat Apr 04, 2020 12:17 am **Posts:** 201

"I see. I'll have to roll about in the ground if I wanted to give that impression." How seriously Setsuna had meant it was up to debate.

"The plans of mankind are fragile compared to those of a crow then?" The Bayushi laughed once and looked up to the bird.

Togashi Myo-en · **Joined:** Mon Apr 06, 2020 4:27 am **Posts:** 418

Myo-en follows Setsuna's gaze. "As far as I have been able to learn, crows don't plan very much at all. One can't be troubled by the fragility of plans never made in the first place."

The crow, perhaps aware it's being watched, struts along the roof edge and fluffs its feathers proudly.

Bayushi Setsuna · **Joined:** Sat Apr 04, 2020 12:17 am **Posts:** 201

"Day by day. A simple life, and yet one not destined for grandiose ventures." Setsuna looked back to the Togashi. "Unless guided by some other power. But I imagine that the heavens do not always see their plans go accordingly."

Togashi Myo-en · **Joined:** Mon Apr 06, 2020 4:27 am **Posts:** 418

"Can Heaven's plan ever really go awry?" The monk shoots the masked Scorpion a curious look. "The great pattern has many branches, but surely Heaven sees them all if anyone can."

Bayushi Setsuna · **Joined:** Sat Apr 04, 2020 12:17 am **Posts:** 201

"I would be surprised if the most recent events were part of Heaven's plan for us," Setsuna remarked. They then shrugged. "Predicting outcomes is part of planning but it is not always intentional."

[D1 LM, A Tiny Shrine] Blowin' in the Wind

Who is online