[Grysar] You step into the room and the screen is sharply closed behind you. There is a small shrine at the far end of the room whose lit candles provide some illumination. It is smaller and less gilded than you expected, but the tatami mat approach to the shrine is flanked by two large folding screens. The left is a minimalistic, elegant landscape; the right is contemporary, with a glamorous street scene from some foreign city, though you wouldn’t swear that the artist had ever actually been there. More flickering lamplight is cast from behind the screens. The shrine itself is a pastiche: you recognize symbols of Shinto and Pure Land Buddhism but you lack the knowledge, or the interest, to classify all the elements and analyze how they fit together. Your hostess kneels, facing in your direction, with her back to the shrine. She holds a dual- headed rod whose like you once carried in your training vigil, and she is adorning it with bells, making you wonder what student she has in mind. She appears to be inattentive to your presence. Her face is hidden behind a fox mask that matches her shaman’s robes. Given what you have already pieced together it’s hard not to take that as an affront, though her showmanship is wasted on you. But still, a bit of doubt lingers. After a minute of fine-tuning her bell placement, your patience gives out. “I understand you will not be joining us abroad?” The hint of castigation in your voice has the desired effect, and your hostess raises her head. “The circular shape of the Wheel reminds us to think not just of this, but also the next cycle.” By which she means prophecies give her an excuse to meddle in the politics of this new era. She continues, “The Council, with your help, has adequate resources for the task.” She flicks the baton with her wrist and is apparently satisfied with its tinkling chimes. “The cards predict your victory, with all the glory that entails.” It’s never as easy as the cards say. “I am honored by the trust I have received, but still there are tensions in the ranks of Arcana. Our nation represents but a small contingent. For us, one discordant voice echoes.” “Excellence must be pursued for its own sake, but power is a different matter.” Quite the claim for a teacher who spends so much effort cultivating loyalty. “Your diligence in your task is admirable, but you have made too many vague commitments and picked too few fights.” She gestures for you to sit. Apparently “no” is not yet her final word. Minazuki, what do you do? --- [Capfox] Not sitting is an appealing option, but picking that sort of fight in the face of that statement just seems petulant. Creaking into a sitting position on an available cushion is better. "I would say not too few. Merely the ones that look necessary to meet our goals. Which one might call strategy, or diplomacy. Each their own study of power, as you say." --- [Grysar] Slightly discordantly for Kyon, Minazuki sat quite smoothly and without any aches or pains, gracefully even if she must say so herself. The World gave the reply several moments of contemplation before continuing, "Of course, you are a young prodigy, a veritable Hideyoshi, incandescent in power, but smooth of speech." Minazuki waited for the inevitable next descriptor but to her surprise it never came. Her tone loses some of its dryness, "It is no wonder everyone likes you. But once you are victorious, is there not someone in your 'us' that needs you to take up their fight?" --- [Capfox] Minazuki purses her lips and sits on the cushion, thinking for a few beats, before replying, "You do flatter me to say everyone likes me. But as you know, there are many people to consider. When you request everyone pull together for a cause, then you must ask them to subsume their individual goals to the main one, for however long that takes. Only once we come closer to our goal, when we better know the shape of things to come, can I gauge who most needs my attention afterwards. To decide now would be folly." --- [Grysar] The World laughs. "Principles are such nettlesome things." She stands up and removes a scroll from her sleeve, stepping backing and never taking her eyes off of you. "Always restricting future options." She allows it to unfurl, it seems to be an agreement of some sort, there's room for two to stamp or sign, but you only can read it for a moment before she reaches back with it holding it over a candle and allowing it to catch fire. She lays it down on a metal dish where it is swiftly consumed. Such melodrama, you both knew this transactions were all that was possible. "Your favor for me will come in advance, but rest assured, it will ensure your ultimate legacy is extends beyond this." She present Minazuki with the platter of ashes. Kyon wakes up. [End]