Kyoto Yamimoto was performing his every day set of chores in the village. He was a local Samurai but the shogun in charge of their clan made it a rule in the village. Everyone works, then everyone eats. At this moment he was out of half his armor and bare chested caring a long strong bamboo pole which held two buckets on each side carrying fresh milk being delivered from farmer Chang to the baker. The baker was a man named Choi. The day was peaceful and everything was going well in fact. He loved days like this. "Hey Kyoto!,... Your turn bringing up the milk huh?" He looked over to see Mei Chen. A young woman who always had the hots for him. Or so she acted, for all he knew she could be after him because of him being a Samurai. Being the mistress to a samurai granted you many things such as wealth and popularity and of course honor for your family. He waved at her with a free hand. Sweat running down his body and the cool air brushing against it. Yup today was a fine day to live indeed.

"Hey Kyoto,.. you going to drink some of my fine sake with me again some time? My boys love having you over and listening to your war stories." He looked over and laughed. "Sure thing Kim,.. I will be over as soon as my work is all done." He said. He looked around the village eyeing his friends and neighbors. Some of them were fellow Samurai either chopping carrots, or cutting firewood. Whatever it was it was some chore that needed to be done. He even noticed old Jimmie pulling weeds out from his vegitable garden.

By the boats coming into view from the vast sea, they carried exported and imported goods both of which could be viewed as either material goods and shall we say personnel goods. Most of the elongated boats floated to port were manned by smart and witty crew members so that they could guarantee safe passage of merchants, diplomats and common folk who need to travel to far away places.
Shuanna on the other hand was an' outsider who had been granted permission to travel through the Asiatic countries as it is said that she bears a gift for the king of this land in order to establish trade and a business relationship with her country, so in a way she was also an ambassador. Her beauty was unusual. Sometimes too unusual. She stood out against the normally dark brown haired natives with rather stark white, fine hair that hung down to her thighs and was brought together at the end by its own knot. Her eyes were a mixture of saturated magenta pink and periwinkle blue to make a subtle lilac color. Her skin was frail as well as it wasn't quite porcelain white but it was the most difficult to pin down. Generally one could just lump it into the category of white, but the way that the light brought out subtle highlights of rose pink and tints of an almost bluish grey in shadows just made her seem almost opalescent. It was hard but sometimes mesmerizing to describe.

As Shuanna got off the boat she had to move with a cloak over her face as she was escorted off the docks and through the towns. The cloak was a vibrant red with gold embroidery which would bring out much of her face. In her hands she held a box tightly a long with her royal permission pass to enter this new world.

Kyoto finally reached Choi's bakery and he saw that the door was open and set down the bamboo poles which held the buckets of milk. He then carefully seperated the buckets from the poles and carried them inside. "Mr. Choi I have that milk for you!" He called out and he was soon greeted by a chubby man with short hair. The man wore a white short sleeve shirt with brown leather shorts. The shirt was stained a bit from his cooking. "Thank you Kyoto, with this I can cook that cake the Shogun always enjoyed." He said, the man then gestured over to a wine bottle. "Go ahead and help yourself while I get your payment." He said. Kyoto waved his hands at him. "You can pay me after I get all the milk in, Chang is milking his second cow, who knows maybe with the bread we sell we can help him get another cow." He said and Choi nodded.
"Sure thing Kyoto, I will see you then when you get back then." Choi responded and Kyoto raved and exited. He quickly looked over to where the dock was and saw Shuana, a odd looking woman to be of that. Pure white with white hair. He had seen certain Gieshas put on enough makeup to get white like that but that seemed natural on that woman. He was a bit curious but not curious enough of that to go and see. His chores were not done yet. Perhaps he would ask the dock officer later who the woman was. He turned away and brought up a japanese styled canteen that was made by bamboo so tightly wrapped together with thin rope that it could hold water. The top was covered with a single bamboo stick sticking out of the top which held the cap. This stick was hollow which made it so the owner could drink from it. He pulled the cork off and took a quick swig. He then proceeded to move off. He eventually made it back to the farm and out of luck Chang was finished with the second cow. He tipped his head to the man and grabbed the buckets by the bamboo rod that caused them to hang while he carried it. As he was raising them up Chang had already been counting out Kyoto's pay and handed it to him 500 yen. Kyoto swung the bamboo rod around slowly to not spill the milk so he could hold it with one arm and with his free hand took the coins. He nodded in thanks and put the coins in the pouch. "See you next time Chang.": He said and the old man simply nodded out of respect. Old man Chang,... he was a brilliant samurai in his younger days and he knew the old man could still handle a sword pretty well.

As he left he proceeded to make the last trip to the baker. This would be the end of a full days work for him. He had done a lot of chores from now mostly
plowing in the fields for a honest pay. When he returned to the baker he did as before setting the bamboo next to the last one he placed and brought the buckets in and accepted 200 yen from Chang. With that he decided to go pay the dock officer a visit, marching over to it and looking for Officer Dam. "Officer Dam!.." He called out, "Hey officer Dam!" Sure enough after enough yelling the dock officer came over. "What is it Master Kyoto?" Spoke Officer Dam. Kyoto gave him a look and the man laughed."Enough of the jokes, hey did you see that woman come by? The real white one?" He asked him. Officer Dam nodded and shrugged. "Seen her, but don't know what to tell you, she had a royal pass so we let her go." Kyoto leaned his head forward as he heard that and responded with "A royal pass?" Officer Dam nodded and Kyoto looked away crossing his arms. "Wonder who she was..." He looked about to see if she was still in the area.

(wip, see OOC)
The luxurious red cape that flowed behind her floating body was easy to spot from miles away. Shuanna wasn't sure if she should smile at the faces that stared at her where ever she went or if she should ignore them in fear of offending them. She was a little nervous, okay, very nervous. She was about to have an audience with the shogun which could get her head cut off if anything went wrong.

Before she could finish that thought, she was in front of the entrance of the royal palace. The architecture was remarkably colorful and the organic forms of the wood and stone were something she was not used to seeing. Shuanna had to stand there for a moment to prolong her first glance before the Guards that escorted her called her by name to get her attention back. "oh.." She dipped her head slightly to them and apologized softly.
In taking a few steps beyond the gate she couldn't help but turns slightly to get one last look at the peaceful town she strolled through before the gates closed behind her with a creaking boom.
Continuing through the palace, there was obviously more to see in fact, the best that this country had to offer which included pharamcy's , kitchens, and royal tailors. Even the staff was adorned with beautiful gowns and uniforms as they were well taken care of in turn for taking care of the royalty.
But in a way, the palace was no different in their staring than it was back at the peaceful town. Groups of passerby would hush themselves as they neared her and revive their conversation once they deemed it safe to speak. This, made Shu feel even more uneasy as she could only guess what they were saying about her and HER oddness as opposed to how she see's theirs.

When they had reached the Shogun's quarters the guards stopped her from entering right away and announced her appearance outside the building.
"The representative of the land of Meliathradyr is here!" They called, and a voice answered them from with in.
"Let her in!"
The Guards then looked to her and ushered her up the small steps and into the room. At this point, Shuanna didn't know what to feel if she was feeling anything at all. She just had to keep in mind, it was just business.
Inside was a slightly familiar ritual. Upon taking in the room it was very grandiose and likewise in it's foreign decorations. There was food on what seemed like small little tables close to the floor and before her feet was a sitting pillow across from the shogan and his Queen, however they were masked by an veil of beads hanging from somewhere on the ceiling.
She swallowed and bowed her head, correctly doing a kow-tow before them to show that she respected their honor.
"Your grace is immeasurable your majesty." She tried to say as clearly as possible, hoping that her speech in their native language was not muddled by her own.
"Please, sit." The shogun asked and Shuanna obeyed silently.
"You are indeed something different from us.." The Queen said in both compliment and curiosity. "Are you from the heavens?" She asked.
"No your majesty, I am far from divinity."

The Shogun watched the woman known as Shuanna. The Emperor told him to expect her visit from across the ocean in a matter of trade and diplomacy. The crimson light from the lanterns gave her a pink glow almost like cherry blossoms. He smiled and very much agreed with his mistress. "Please sit you are very welcome on my estate, I only pray that my servants were respectful to you." He said, he then waved the servants out of the room and pulled back the curtains. "Apologies miss, I am Shogun Yatsumaru."

****

Back outside Kyoto had been told to put on his armor in full to prepare for a meeting with the shogun. Him and four others were to be tasked with a mission. He was not told completely and that the Shogun would debrief him when he had arrived. So sudden and that woman,... is it just a coincidence that she arrive and a couple minutes later he is told to meet with him. He soon meet with the four others at the entrence to the shogun's estate. "Greetings Kohaku, Mitsurugi, Tajiri, and Jokatsu." He said to them. They all had the same colored armor as he, red with a black trim. The nodded to him tilting their kabutsus and he returned the action with one of his own. When the guards opened the gate and allowed them to move through they did so. Kyoto and Mitsurugi both wielded katana's at their sides while Kohaku wielded a bow and Jokatsu weilded a odd katana with a longer hilt then most. (Forget its name. Nagi something)

*****

Yastumaru then decided to get down to business once Shuanna had sat down. "You were instructed to stop here before proceeding because of one thing, inside this villiage you are safe, on the road not so much." He then gestured to her and what she wore. "That is enough to tempt bandits on attacking you. As ordered by the Emperor I am to assign five of my best to escort you to the capital. Do not argue, I am being ordered to and if I want to remain shogun of this here village and clan then I am to obey." He explained.

X

She gave a shy smile and bowed her head again in thanks. "Yes they were wonderful to me." She got comfortable sitting on her legs and looked in the shoguns direction from a bowed head. "Thank you sir, I am shuanna Möruwhingd. I can bring new medicines, materials, ores, and silks from my country and vice versa. I will be glad to bring our cultures together." Patiently she waited to hear the shoguns words but instead the clopping of feet came into the room and she looked to her side to see a bunch of rather intimidating armored men standing near the entrance. She gulped and became nervous as she locked eyes with a particular one. Then she slowly turned her head back to the shogun hoping that he would give her information.

The shogun made a quick point regarding her lavish dress and she nodded in agreement. It was a good point and now he was basically saying that he was going to offer her his best warriors to escort her to the emperor. She nodded, of course the emperor would want to protect his assets. "Your are very wise indeed sir.." Again she looked to the armored men. "Do you wish me to leave immediately..?"

Yatsumaru nodded, "You may eat first if you like ,but then you will be on your way. I will introduce the men to you, Kyoto Watashi, Kohaku Mori, Mitsurugi Taganaki, Tajiri Soryu, and Jokatsu Kirro." He gave their names his hand pointing to each one of the as he gave out their name. "Miss Shuanna, I only ask that you prepare yourself for the journey to our capital. There will be many stops on the way there, Kyoto knows where it is and the best route to take." He explained. Suddenly a woman entered the room, nothing more than a courtesan. She moved to the table and sat down holding a pitcher. The shogun lifted his saucer up and the woman poured out some of the contents. It was rice wine or sake. He then before drinking the contents in the saucer gestured with his free hand to the pitcher. "Would you like to try some rice wine?" He asked.

Kyoto nodded towards the woman and smiled a bit. She was the one at the dock, so she was important to the emperor. He couldn't help but notice how the colors of the room seemed to reflect off of her because of her white color. It was very beautiful. He had meet many woman in his time and shared his bed with a few as well but all of them seemed to be dwarfed by this one woman. Shuanna was her name and she offered a good deal of stuff in trades to the emperor. Goods that they would likely not see in their own country. They had some popular items that would be worth trading as well, rice, herbal tea, their silk, and the finest weapons crafted in the world. Nothing was as sharp as their blades nor as light. He was very curious to what the Emperor would trade in return. That's how the world works these days, the equivalent exchange of merchandise. One country does not simply trade for free, they always want something in return.

Shuanna nodded and then looked to the individual men who were going to accompany her. "Hello .." She said half timidly to them before looking back to Yatsumaru and begun to eat. Her technique of chopsticks was a little wobbly, but she managed to maneuver them in her hand moderately well. " um- yes! of course... I know it might not seem like I am ill prepared because I .. just have clothes on, but not to worry. " Just then a woman came into the room holding a pitcher, first she served the Shogun and then stood by her. Yatsumaru offered rice wine. Shuanna echoed him, " ...rice wine..? You can make wine from rice?" Now that she thought of it and held her cup to the woman, she had never really partook in...social drinking. "thank you.." She said to the lady and held the cup in her hand. Before taking a drink she gave a curious look and turned to the armored men, her pinkish eyes becoming big with anxiousness. "I hope that.. im not over stepping any boundaries but would it be possible for you gentlemen to eat with me? I thought that maybe it would be good to become acquainted before we leave." Then she gave a slightly worried glance to the shogun, "Would that be alright?"

Kyoto coughed a bit at the request but suddenly Jokatsu moved to the table and sat down crossing his legs like the shogun and began helping himself to a bowl of rice, placing a bit of beef into the bowl and stuffing his face with it. When he looked back he saw Kyoto staring at him. "What?... she asked that we eat with them." He responded to the glare and the other three simply face palmed. The Shogun smirked and then laughed, "It's alright, you may join in as well. This food will all go wasted if you did not help us eat it anyways. Besides you five were working hard all day today so it will be best that you eat your fill before you leave." He said and he noted to the question Shuanna made before about the rice wine and he nodded.

"You can make wine out of anything really, just takes the right now-how. You being a foreigner though I would like to warn you that it is a bit strong and the taste will be rather different." He responded. "I find it quite wonderful , just never drink wild wine." He said. Kyoto and the three others quickly joined the table. Kyoto picked the spot closest to the Shogun mostly so he could keep a good eye on Shuanna. She was something of a interest to him. "Wild wine isn't what I would say,.. good for you." Kyoto had to clap the Shogun on the shoulder and look to him.

"Look mi lord, I think its best that you go scarying her now." He said and the Shogun gave him a little smile. He then looked back to Shuanna. "So how long have you been a ambassador?" He asked.

Shuanna watched as Jokatsu began to suddenly wolf his plate unexpectedly and the face he made when the other warriors gave him the stink eye made her burst out laughing. She could relax a little now.
"I like you!" She said smiling with teeth. It was relaxing to know that the shogun was laughing himself and he encouraged her request. The rest of the Men trying to be as respectful as possible quietly sat down at the table in front of her. The shogun continued on with the interest of sake and shuanna remembered that she still had the cup with no handles in her hand. "oh... hmm.. we make our alcohol out of honey and fruits. It is very sweet." After the Shogun said it would be 'rather different' she could stand her curiosity no longer and put the rim of the cup to her nose before putting it to her lips. As the slip melted onto her tongue she had to wince, " oh! .. its.. dry!" As she took another sip to ensure the taste, she blinked at the mention of 'wild wine' "why..? what's wild wine? is it a term for laced drinks..?" She was more appreciative of the fact that they mentioned such a possible dangerous thing to her so that she may avoid it.

Then the formalities game began. Of course they would ask her questions. "well.. " she swallowed as the taste of sake was over taking her throat a little. " In a way im sort of an' ambassador.. but really im just a merchant looking to expand our exports. I've been doing this for.. i'd say 5 years so not very long at all yet. " Her eyes began to trail downwards as she began to think and remember. " I suppose you could say I love discovering new things and adventure really... I've traveled to many places and i've had to learn other languages, even translate on a few occasions. " Shuanna put her cup down and began to eat more of the food laid out for them. "I guess I just like being no-where but still somewhere in this world."

Kyoto nodded, "You like seeing different things, that's good it enlightens you about the world. You should visit during our winters. The cherry blossom trees are really something." He did notice her interest in the wild wine topic and that she was more comfortable with that. "As to what Yatsumaru said about wild wine, lets just say its a good way to kill someone in this country, it looks similar to sake but it tends to eat at your insides or so I was told." He looked to the Shogun. "Officer Yang up in the north east was it?" He asked him and the shogun nodded. "Came across several cases in his sector. I only heard that it is pretty gruesome. So many better ways to go out then poison." He commented. He then with his chopsticks took up one of the peppers from one of the dishes as popped it in his mouth. It was a smokey kind of spicy and he ended up taking a drink of water afterwards. "Wow those defiantly had a good season this year." He said. When he was offered some sake he waved it off though. "Just some herbal tea for now, I had some of Choi's sake earlier." He said.

He then looked to Shuanna. "Choi is our village's baker. He also brews his own sake which is very strong." He then realized how comfortable he felt talking with the woman and it made him feel weird. He was probably acting out of character too. Kohaku ended raising a finger as he swallowed some noodles. "The capital has the best sake. They add something to it to make it a bit sweet. Which makes me interested in this fruit honey wine you talk of." Kohaku commented. Kyoto figured its best they all unwind. Formalities can wait when they meet the emperor.

Shuanna smiled at Kyoto with a hint of bashfulness. " sure.. Perhaps I could petition to stay for a year." The giddy feeling was short lived as kyoto explained what the term wild wine was and again shuanna's eyes went big with surprise. " oh... oh.." She was rendered speechless for a small time, not expecting the gruesomeness of the explanation and she put a hand over her stomach thoughtfully. "I'll.. keep that in mind, thank you sir." The top turned ghastly for a moment as the group ate untill Kyoto started the conversation again, albeit a much more welcomed lighter topic.
"your Bakers also brew wine?" She said with some much needed new intrigue. With more and more of this immersive conversation she felt as though this place was like heaven.... almost that is. Another gentlemen warrior decided to add to that and hinted about the way her culture makes their alcoholic confectioneries.
"oh.. well our sole fruit to making wine is the grape berry.. It ranges in size but they should get no.. bigger than a coin and the grow on a vine. There are white , red, green and purple grapes each color makes a different sort of wine." She held up her sake cup, " even what you drink it with affects the taste so it's a very delicate process. You must drink it from crystal cups to get the full taste." By then most of the foods on her plate had disappeared and she felt slightly tipsy.

Kyoto sighed as the time seemed to fly. He felt that he really couldn't eat much more as he sipped his tea. He then smirked as he noticed that the amount of food on the table had simple vanished. "Well not all our bakers, just special cases. Like Choi, his stuff is pretty popular around here." He added. He then looked down at the bay leaves floating in his cup. He lifted one up, placing it in his mouth and began to chew on it. He then looked to the shogun and nodded. The gaze then turned to Shuanna. "Well, unless you have anything further to share with us. We probably should get going." He said as he stood up. He then looked to a servant and gestured to him. When the man neared he whispered in the man's ear."Prepare a wagon, nothing too fancy. Also make sure it is rather comfortable." He told the man. The servant nodded as each word was spoken and when he had finished, the servant moved off to do as he said. He then waited for her to say anything or do anything for that matter.

Shuanna smiled as the commotion around the table began to get content and quiet. The warrior men were looking ready to get going and the warrior kyoto suggested that it was time to leave.
"oh- uhm.. yes I do actually." Shuanna got up a little wobbly but was still able to steer herself about the room. "Actually.. Im going to need your help for this." She stood a little was back from the table and pulled her red cloak from her shoulders revealing her lavish attire. "You were right, shogun, that i seemed fairly ill prepared for this kind of trip and it probably made me look something of a naive girl... But I assure you there is a reason for it.."
Once Kyoto brought himself to her, she positioned him right in front of her and manipulated his arms to extend them out as if he was to receive something.
"What i'll need you to do is catch my trunk with me because.. it's very heavy." The two were nearly toe- to toe and Shuanna held up her arms above her head and she closed her eyes. There was no elegant dance, no prayer of a beautiful language or a song to the gods, just an' odd experience.

The moment passed by for 2 seconds and suddenly Shuanna's eyes shot open and a chest simply appeared above her, completely from no-where defying all the natural laws of physics. It was just suddenly there faster than a blink of an' eye. The chest landed on her hands first and then Shuanna began to falter under it's weight as it was made with wooden planks and iron straps to keep the planks together. As carefully as her frame could stand it she lowered it towards kyoto for him to help support the weight. Shuanna's cheeks were puffed with air as she was obviously exerting herself.

Kyoto watched as she began to perform her little trick and what he saw was something a bit amazing. This woman was gifted with something they called magic. The chest though was a bit heavy for her, he could see it in her eyes and face. He used his own strength to help her balance it. "Okay so where do you want it?" He asked as he heard claps from the others in the room. This magic was of the conjuration variety. He was a bit curious as to what was inside the chest as well. "So what do you have in here?" He asked. The others were ready to join in and help her as well but it seemed liked between her and Kyoto they had everything ready.

Shuanna grunted a little as she was lowering the chest, but then she turned red as the audience began to clap. Frankly she didn't expect an applause. She was too bashful to say thank you before Kyoto asked where they could put it. "Oh..! Just right here on the floor is okay.." She lowered it for before her feet and she knelt in front of it. He asked what was in the chest which was probably what was on all of their minds. She opened the lid quickly and inside was actually ordinary clothes and custom made armor for her to wear. It was a little dated but the armor was made to fit the culture so that she could blend in.
"I figured...if I dressed like a warrior we would be less of a target and look like a small platoon of soliders.. What do you think?" She said looking around the room.

"Clever, that should fool the bandits and the marauders." He said as he looked inside. "Might not ward of this countries other inhabitants though." He said. The Shogun scoffed at his words though waving his hand at him. "Oh nonsense, they would never attack a armed convoy either. They may not be able to fly like their winged cousins but they still are smart." He said. The servant that had been instructed to take the wagon had returned bowing as he did so.
"The wagon is ready, it has been loaded with all the necessary equipment for traveling." He said and Kyoto looked to him and nodded. Kyoto of course nodded to the Shogun not meaning to frighten anybody but he had seen his fair share of them to know that they are quite unpredictable. A creature would attack anything if it was hungry enough especially those things. He then looked back to Shuanna and nodded. "Well lets get going then while we got some daylight left." He gestured to his four men and headed outside. He was to lead this escort service and one couldn't be too careful. Little to the shogun's knowledge but attacks from the land dragons had been getting rather frequent lately. He was just being nice to the young lady.

Each of the men rose up gave a bow to the young woman and followed after Kyoto. When they exited the building they came upon the wagon. It had simple roofing of leather and within it was camping gear from tents, tinderboxes for getting a fire going, rice and pots to cook it in. Kyoto nodded and pointed to Kohaku and Jokatsu. "You two will be the first ones up to ride, we will all take turns as so as no limbs fall asleep." He said. The looked to each other nodding. "What about Shuanna?" one asked.
"Her too, if she wants to put up a disguise like a warrior she will have to act like one." He said and they shrugged.

Shuanna smiled, feeling sly and excited in being incognito. The men handed her a bow and before she knew it, it was time to go. She bowed in respect to the shogun and set off to the prepared wagon. Shuanna sighed and got inside the wagon immediately and began to change into her armor which made it rock and creek a little. She could still hear the talk of the men pretty clearly outside and she agreed, " yes yes! treat me like one of you! I don't mind." After a few minutes she came back out, her long hair tied up and tucked under her helmet and the armor she wore hid all of her feminine features. The only thing that could give her away was attitude and if someone happened to get a good look at her face. So she would most likely have to wear the helmet at all times.

"I appreciate the weapon but... I don't really know how to fight.."

Kyoto looked to her as she spoke about not being a fighter and he shrugged. "Giving you a bow isn't the brightest thing to do sense it does require a lot of skill to use. Luckily and hopefully you won't have to use it. We are samurai after all, we can handle anything that comes our way." He sighed a bit about her wearing a helmet ,mostly because it hid her face from view. However, it was something that he would just have to put up with. He did wish they had given her a sword though instead of a bow. Any idiot could wield a sword and she only would have to use it if the moment called for it. A bow was different though. It was something that required good training if you wanted the arrow to hit the target you were aiming at. "They should have given you a sword,.... " he said. Oh well for now perhaps he would get her one and then teach her the basics. Again she might not have to use it though. This trip could go uneventful for them but it wouldn't hurt to be prepared for anything.