LOG: The Wisdom of Mama-Jin
Niklas goes to seek wisdom from Bijin. Has tea and a sweet treat before they go out to talk to Jaeger.
With a deep breath Niklas steps up to the door nervously. After taking a moment to steel himself he lifts a hand to knock.
The house of Jaeger and Bijin is large and spacious, and well worthy of an Amber royal. At the knock, a servant opens the door, and smiles at Niklas. "Good morning! May I help you?" Presuming Niklas introduces himself, and requests seeing Bijin, he is led in and instructed to leave his shoes by the door.
Inside the house, the decor is an artful blend of Amber and Jade culture. It is open, and while there is the occasional large antique couch or chair, there are also lower tables and mats meant for kneeling. Calligraphic scrolls hang here and there from the walls. Niklas is led through several rooms, until finally he is brought into a large room that has an area sectioned off with paper screens. A large window opens to reveal the morning sun and a rock garden.
Bijin is kneeling, dressed in her usual kimono, with a tea kettle with carved dragon across the front, a plate of small confectionaries, and a bowl of tea. The servant bows, and retreats.
As Niklas is led through the house he takes careful note of his surroundings. Even in just a pair of socks his steps are heavy and thud against the floor. He mimics the servants bow and then turns toward Bijin. "Good morning, Bijin," he says softly, trying not to startle her. His voice is raspy. One might presume it's from the wound beneath the bandage adhered to his throat.
Bijin sets her tea bowl down, and rises. "Ohayo gozaimasu." She presses her hands together and bends into a bow, sending her kanzashi to chiming. She smiles pleasantly, "Good morning. Will you be sharing tea?"
Niklas smiles as he tries to mimic her bow. He's not as graceful as she is. "I would love to," he rasps. "And, if you would be so kind, I seek advice."
Bijin smiles, "There is being very little better to clear the head than tea." She steps out of view, gliding smoothly beyond the screens that section this area off, and returns a few moments later with another plate, tea-bowl, and larger bowl covered with a cloth. "Please to be joining me," she smiles again, and gestures to the table where she had been kneeling and drinking tea.
Niklas moves to the table and looks down to the spot where he'll be kneeling. "Please forgive me but... I don't know exactly how this works." He looks up at her. "I mean, I know how to kneel and all... but is it ladies first or guest first?"
"It is you who are honoring me with a visiting," Bijin smiles. She bends slightly, into the implication of a bow, rather than an actual one. And remains standing, clearly waiting.
Niklas lowers down onto his knees and places his hands in his lap. "Your house is beautiful," he compliments.
"You are being kind," Bijin smiles. Rather than seating herself where it might be expected, she kneels down to the side of the small table, on the edge adjacent to where Niklas sits. The tea-bowl and plate are set before him, she removes the cloth from the larger bowl, and uses a pair of tongs to place the confectionary treats it holds onto the larger plate in the center of the table. She fills his bowl with tea, refills hers, bows, then rises and moves back to where she had been sitting. "I am pleased that it is pleasing." The gestures to the tea (which is a blend of white and green as might be expected), smiling, "It is from my home. I am hoping you are enjoying it."
Niklas bows his head in thanks and reaches to take the bowl of tea gently by the sides. After a sip is taken he smiles. "It's very good," he compliments again before licking his lips.
Bijin lifts her bowl as well. "I am honored to be sharing tea." Bijin smiles, "The morning sun is made more lovely when one has good tea and company." She sips quietly for a few moments, "It is not burning you, I am hoping?" Her violet eyes rest upon the bandage at his neck briefly.
Niklas mms as he sets the bowl down and returns his hands to his lap. "No, it's perfect." Noticing the focus of her attention he explains. "I died last night while trying to prove a point to my Charge. I think she finally understands what it means to be an Argus."
Bijin rests her hands in her lap, folding them neatly. "What point were you teaching?"
"That her life is more valuable than my own," Niklas says, still rasping. "That as her Argus it is my duty to put her life before my own."
Bijin's voice is pleasant and smooth, her words punctuated with the occasional chiming from the ornaments in her hair. "It is being admirable, being devoted to one's duty. Did your dying, prevent hers?"
Niklas nods slightly. "It did, yes. It was by Kazimir's blade. I didn't know it at the time, though I had suspicion, that his intent was to teach a lesson, not actually bring her harm. He's been acting odd lately so I wasn't sure until after I woke up and he explained it to me."
"Kazimir-san is having great wisdom," Bijin says. She sips from her tea-bowl. "If he is teaching, there is being much to learn. But I am wondering, if he was not wishing to be harming your ward. How was your dying protecting?"
Niklas mms, "I threw her out of the way and told her to run then rushed Kazimir's blade myself. With his blade in me that gave her time to flee."
Bijin looks at Niklas and smiles. Her violet gaze is clear and direct, "What is troubling you?"
Niklas takes a breath. "I've come today to seek your wisdom, Bijin. If you'd be kind enough to share it."
"You are being kind," Bijin murmurs, "To come seeking wisdom from a humble wife such as me. But I will be listening, if you are speaking."
"Jaeger's rule was broken," Niklas rasps softly. "But I'm torn on how to report it. Part of my assignment as Arianne's Argus is to instruct her on weir culture and how things work based on dominance. She's realized that disobeying an Alpha is a bad thing." He takes another breath. "Emrys trumped her and commanded her to come to him. To go through a card the three feet rule was broken by their clasping of hands. But... it was the command of an Alpha and while she knows the rule she was only doing as told. I'm sure, though, that she had no qualms about breaking the rule, given the chance to do so."
Bijin sets her tea bowl down onto the table. Her gaze remains direct upon Niklas. "Was she troubled by this?"
Niklas picks his tea up and takes a sip before answering. "I don't think so. I think she saw a chance and took it knowing that she was just doing as told."
"Then where is being the trouble, for you?" Bijin queries.
Niklas mms thoughtfully. "Jaeger will be upset that his rule was broken... but, logically, Arianne was doing as she was told. While I recognize that she had a choice to disobey and face lesser consequences I would not want to see her punished wholly for something that isn't entirely her fault."
Bijin smiles. "Please to be forgiving me, I am not understanding very well. This tongue, it is not so easy for me." She picks up her now empty tea bowl, sprinkles a powdery substance into it, fills it halfway with water, and begins to whisk briskly. "Was she being, or was she not being mindful of this commandment?"
"She knows the rule," Niklas says. "And she's been rather mindful of it. However, an Alpha told her to do break it. I've been struggling for the last month to teach her how our dominance hierarchy works. She's not Alpha... when an Alpha tells her to do something she's expected to do it. She doesn't have to like it... but she's expected to do it. Emrys is Alpha. More so because he's the Regent. While she knowingly broke the rule... she was doing as she was commanded by an Alpha."
Bijin does not pause in her whisking. She smiles again, "You are a wise teacher, to be instructing so well. She has learned the art of obeyment, then? And will in the future be behaving with proper decorum?"
Niklas nods, "I hope. She still has much to learn but she's made decent progress."
"You are hoping," Bijin murmurs. "This is not sounding certain."
"She's stubborn," Niklas admits. "Quite possibly even the most stubborn woman I've ever known."
Bijin seems satisfied with her stirring. The whisk is set down again, and she smiles, "Would you be wishing for more tea?"
Niklas takes his last sip and sets the bowl down. "Yes, please. It's very good."
Bijin reaches forward, and fills Niklas's bowl with the liquid she had just whisked. The sleeves of her kimono are long, but she manages to keep the silk from dipping into either food or drink with a skill that makes it seem as though it were an impossibility. "Tea is being a difficult thing," she says while the tea pours from one bowl to the next. "One must be mixing it with water, but if it is having too much, it is weak, and without taste. If there is being too little water, it is tasting bitter." Niklas's bowl filled, she rests hers back on the table in front of her, and smiles. "Each leaf, each bowl, each brew is tasting differently, and is requiring its own amount of water. Did you know, in my home, the water can be many things? It guides the mixing of tea. It guides the seeking of wisdom. It guides the art of combat. It guides the grasping of duty."
Niklas listens, his attention on nothing else but Bijin. There's a spark of understanding in his yellow eyes but it's not quite flared to life yet. "How so," he asks softly. "I mean, I get the tea part... but wisdom, combat and duty?"
Bijin inclines her head, sending forth small pleasant chimes. She curves her hand around her tea bowl, but does not lift it. "It fills," she smiles. She tilts her bowl, watching at the tea moves within it. "It can be hard like stone, yet it flows easily. If one is looking into a pool, the water can be clear, revealing the deepest depths. Or it can be murky, and conceal." Smiles brightly, "It can be reflecting as clearly as any mirror, or," she drops a few grains of the powder into her bowl, creating ripples, "It can distort. One must always be certain, when one is gazing upon water."
Niklas nods slightly, "So you're saying that my view of Arianne is distorted?"
Bijin looks over at Niklas, her violet eyes almost glowing. "One must be looking, not with one's own troubles, but with an eye for what lies within what is being gazed upon." She sips at her tea, "Would she be obeying any order given?"
Niklas mms thoughtfully. "Probably not. Not if the person giving the order hasn't proven dominance over her like I have. Though, last night, she did clean my blood off the floor when Kazimir told her too... and she didn't argue."
Bijin smiles. "I am wondering, why you are not being certain."
"She's unpredictable," Niklas says. "While one time she may zig... given the same stimuli on another occasion she may zag... if that makes sense."
Bijin lifts her tea bowl, "If there was being a fracture here, the water would be finding it. Even were I being unable to see the blemish, I would still be cleaning the tablecloth." She looks directly at Niklas again. "What are you wishing to be doing?"
Niklas takes a deep breath. "I have to tell Jaeger the rule was broken. And I have to tell him that both are responsible. I... I just don't know how to do it in such a way that he sees the blame is not all Arianne's. Emrys /told/ her to break the rule."
Niklas adds, "What's more is that I'm torn. Jaeger is my sensei... Emrys my Regent. I've a certain level of duty to both and I feel no matter what I do I'm going to upset one of them."
Bijin continues gazing at him, "This is being a simple thing." She smiles. "You do not believe Jaeger-dono will be seeing the shared lapsing of honor?"
"I know he'll see it," Niklas says softly. "I just don't know how he might take my defense of Arianne. Would he see that as an insult, that his apprentice would defend her?" Clearly Nik isn't worried about what may happen to Arianne or Emrys. He's worried about insulting Jaeger.
Bijin reaches out with the tongs, and claims one of the sweets. She bites into it, enjoys its flavor, and swallows. "What are your duties, Niklas-kun?"
Niklas clears his throat lightly with only minor discomfort. "I am an Argus," he says. "My duties are to protect my Charge at all costs even if that means giving my life. I'm Niamh's Mate, bound to protect and comfort her the same way even though she's not my charge. I'm Jaeger's student. My sensei has my respect and my devotion. I'm his clay to mold." Niklas does not lie. He has no reason to.
Bijin takes another small bite. "Are your duties finite? Are they ending?"
"They can end," Niklas says. "When either I'm reassigned or, in a worst case scenario, my Charge dies or is destroyed."
"Do you wish to be trying one?" Bijin smiles, gesturing to the plate of sweets. Then, she says, "Are there being any other ways to end your duty?"
Niklas reaches for one of the sweets as he says. "If I die. Other than that no. Emrys has to reassign me or my Charge must be destroyed."
"Then let us be considering Jaeger-dono," Bijin smiles. "Is he having honor?"
Niklas nods, "He does, yes."
"Is he understanding honor?" Bijin smiles pleasantly. The dessert is a sweet bun; a sweet red bean paste covered with a soft, sweet rice paste. The bun is then dipped in powdered green tea.
Niklas samples the confection and smiles after swallowing. "Now that's good," he says. Then, returning to the conversation he says, "Jaeger understands honor, yes."
Bijin opens her hands, and rests them on the table. "Then Niklas-kun, why is there being worry?"
"I don't want to disappoint him," Niklas admits. "He's done so much for me and... and I feel like it might be stabbing him in the back. I know he'll understand. He has honor and he's far from stupid. But that doesn't mean he won't be disappointed."
"I am the wife of Jaeger-dono," Bijin says after a moment. "And I can not be speaking for my honored husband. But I am being certain that if you are holding fast to your honor, there will be no disappointment." She finishes off the sweet bun, "Are you holding fast to your honor? Are you obeying the spirit of your duties? I can not be saying. That is for you to be knowing."
Niklas nods, "I believe I am, yes. In defending Arianne I'm doing my duty as her Argus... even if that means I'm only decreasing her punishment."
Bijin looks to Niklas, gaze bright. "Is it your duty to be defending her against her own actions? Is there being anything to learn from doing so? This, perhaps, is a thing you may consider." She sips at her tea, murmurs, "There is little as calming as a good tea."
"I'm to protect her from any and all harm," Niklas says. "Self inflicted or not. But, with Arianne, I have additional orders to instruct her in the way of the Weir." He picks up his tea and sips before finishing off his little sweet.
Bijin murmurs, "For one to learn fire, one must be burned. It is being this dilemma that is troubling you?"
And there it is, that spark of understand flared out. "Yes!" Niklas tries to exclaim but is cut short by his damaged throat. "Arianne needs to learn lessons. She... she has to be burned. But I find my responsibility to keep her safe and unharmed gets in the way. I know she broke the rule. I know she needs punished... but I have to defend her."
"Then you must be deciding," Bijin drinks her tea. "Where the spirit of your duties lie. What is protect meaning? What is instruct meaning? Where are they coming together?"
Niklas nods slightly. "I have to tell him. I just don't know how to tell him. I know he won't hurt Arianne beyond what she deserves and kill her."
"Simple is always being the best," Bijin smiles and finishes her tea. "In all things."
Niklas sips at his tea again, "Then I'll be blunt and just tell him." He looks up at Bijin then and smiles. "Thank you, Bijin."
Bijin presses her hands together, and smiles, then dips into a bow. Her kanzashi jingle pleasantly, "You are being kind. Shall we see to finding if he is free?"
Niklas tries, again, to mimic her bow but it comes out far less graceful. "Please."
Bijin smiles pleasantly, and rises. She begins to glide her way out of the little room.
Niklas walks behind Bijin, his socked feet making dull thuds against the floor as he lumbers. A thick bandage is bound to the front of his neck, only a tiny little spot of red stained through it.
A large, familiar figure dominates the couch. Contrary to the norm he's wearing an Amber military uniform, the jacket opened in the front in a distinctly casual fashion. Jaeger's attention is buried in an open file, next to him sitting a pile of similar folders, and to complete his ease his boots are resting on the table in front of the couch.
Bijin leads Niklas through the house, her delicate gliding steps finally bringing them to Jaeger. She smiles at him, and bends into an almost formal bow. "Jaeger-dono, we are having a guest. Will you be forgiving an interruption?"
Niklas bows his head to Jaeger in greeting, hands clasped behind his back. He remains behind Bijin and silent.
The delicate voice draws a conditioned reaction as Jaeger's boots are pulled from the table and slide onto the floor. His fingers flex, snapping closed the file and setting it aside even as he scans for the location to go with the voices. "Yeah. Got time while waiting for approval."
Bijin glides into the room and smiles at Jaeger again. She makes no comment regarding the boots. "Will you be wanting tea?" she queries, "Or sake?"
Niklas continues to follow Bijin in, remaining behind her. For the moment he remains quiet.
"Sake," Jaeger answers. He waves at the other available seats. "Feel free to sit down, Nik."
Niklas rasps, his voice box apparently having been damaged. "Thank you, sir." He moves away from Bijin then and finds a seat, settling into it. "I've a report to make, sir."
Bijin smiles, and bends her head, sending forth her kanzashi chimes to ringing. She glides toward the cabinet to retrieve a bottle of sake and some glasses.
Jaeger spares a glance for the stack of folders beside him at the word 'report'. His brow furrows lightly. "I do not recall giving you any assignments beyond exercise and study. Is it a report about one of those?"
Niklas shakes his head slightly. "No, sir. I've come to report that your three feet rule between Emrys and Arianne was violated by Emrys' own orders."
Bijin fills two glasses, and sets them in front of Jaeger and Niklas. She sinks down into her own seat, leaving the empty third glass in front of her. The bottle rests where it can easily be reached by everyone.
Jaeger says, "That so?" He considers the notion as he reaches for his glass. "Give me more specifics."
Niklas takes a raspy breath. "I have only Arianne's own admission as evidence. She said that Emrys trumped her and then told her to come through the card. As best I can tell she knew that it would violate the rule but the Regent is an Alpha. Then, once there, she said that Emrys was entranced by the song of a siren... if those are even real. She said that she was forced to restrain him for his own protection. There was also something about harpies I think she called them."
Bijin folds her hands in her lap and is quiet. She remains smiling to each of them.
Jaeger says half to himself. "Amber has no shortage of harpies." His cup rises to his lips and he takes a sip of sake. "That does warrant some investigation. Though I find anything Arianne says to be suspect."
Niklas nods slightly, reaching for his own glass. "In her defense, sir, she has been learning. And from the damage to her body when she returned I would be inclined to believe they were attacked by /something/.... or..." He takes a sip, letting that sentence trail off. "I don't mean to be a tattle-tale... but I have a deep respect for you and thought you deserved to know. I have no doubt that Emrys will be very upset with me when he hears that I've told you."
Bijin looks over at that, her head tilting as she queries, "Or?"
Jaeger takes another sip just after saying, "Or what?"
Niklas tries to clear his throat but it only causes him to wince. After swallowing he says. "Or they, um... mated in a..." He glances to Bijin apologetically. "They mated in a violent manner. She was covered in bruises and scratches."
Bijin simply smiles pleasantly at Niklas, seemingly unbothered by the commentary.
Jaeger's voice rumbles from his chest. "That, for example, /would/ be a very significant violation of the terms. Guess I'll have to interview the pair of them to find out what happened."
"I can't say that's what happened, sir," Niklas says. "But it is definitely a possibility.... unlikely, but possible. I can also tell you that Arianne is eager to face you to get the rule revoked."
Bijin folds her hands in her lap. "She is attending to that desire in a puzzling manner."
Jaeger's glass settles back onto the table. "So she thinks that that is all she has to do? Face me and it all goes away?"
"I told her it was a start," Niklas says. "That she still has a long way to go."
Jaeger says, "I guess I'll indulge her if she insists on a fight. It is a pity she has yet to learn that fighting isn't the only way to display proper behavior."
Jaeger says, "Still, it's a start."
"To be fighting is easy," Bijin smiles to both of them. She looks over the papers lying near Jaeger, "Will you be sending her an invitation to be visiting?"
Niklas nods, "She's been rather well behaved, sir, all things considered. She learns quickly... she just hasn't yet learned enough. She, at least, is learning to respect the role of the Alpha. I think that if Emrys had not told her to come through that she wouldn't have. I can imagine she was delighted at the chance to touch him when the order was given and didn't argue it though."
Jaeger nods to Bijin. "She can come here and I will take her out to the woodshed." Then, continuing to Niklas. "That is something that will become clear in time, how much she has learned. If she has actually learned I will be pleased. But I suspect it is more following the words of others rather than understanding."
Niklas nods to Jaeger. "Perhaps, sir. We'll have to wait and see."
Bijin rises smoothly, and moves toward a nearby desk. She returns a moment later carrying a blank sheet of stationary, and offers it to Jaeger. "I am thinking she will be coming quickly."
Jaeger looks from the paper to the flower of Jade holding it. "How about we just let Nik tell her that her challenge is accepted?"
Niklas glances between them. "I can do that, if you wish it."
Jaeger interjects quickly. "Yes. That's best."
With a deep breath Niklas steps up to the door nervously. After taking a moment to steel himself he lifts a hand to knock.
The house of Jaeger and Bijin is large and spacious, and well worthy of an Amber royal. At the knock, a servant opens the door, and smiles at Niklas. "Good morning! May I help you?" Presuming Niklas introduces himself, and requests seeing Bijin, he is led in and instructed to leave his shoes by the door.
Inside the house, the decor is an artful blend of Amber and Jade culture. It is open, and while there is the occasional large antique couch or chair, there are also lower tables and mats meant for kneeling. Calligraphic scrolls hang here and there from the walls. Niklas is led through several rooms, until finally he is brought into a large room that has an area sectioned off with paper screens. A large window opens to reveal the morning sun and a rock garden.
Bijin is kneeling, dressed in her usual kimono, with a tea kettle with carved dragon across the front, a plate of small confectionaries, and a bowl of tea. The servant bows, and retreats.
As Niklas is led through the house he takes careful note of his surroundings. Even in just a pair of socks his steps are heavy and thud against the floor. He mimics the servants bow and then turns toward Bijin. "Good morning, Bijin," he says softly, trying not to startle her. His voice is raspy. One might presume it's from the wound beneath the bandage adhered to his throat.
Bijin sets her tea bowl down, and rises. "Ohayo gozaimasu." She presses her hands together and bends into a bow, sending her kanzashi to chiming. She smiles pleasantly, "Good morning. Will you be sharing tea?"
Niklas smiles as he tries to mimic her bow. He's not as graceful as she is. "I would love to," he rasps. "And, if you would be so kind, I seek advice."
Bijin smiles, "There is being very little better to clear the head than tea." She steps out of view, gliding smoothly beyond the screens that section this area off, and returns a few moments later with another plate, tea-bowl, and larger bowl covered with a cloth. "Please to be joining me," she smiles again, and gestures to the table where she had been kneeling and drinking tea.
Niklas moves to the table and looks down to the spot where he'll be kneeling. "Please forgive me but... I don't know exactly how this works." He looks up at her. "I mean, I know how to kneel and all... but is it ladies first or guest first?"
"It is you who are honoring me with a visiting," Bijin smiles. She bends slightly, into the implication of a bow, rather than an actual one. And remains standing, clearly waiting.
Niklas lowers down onto his knees and places his hands in his lap. "Your house is beautiful," he compliments.
"You are being kind," Bijin smiles. Rather than seating herself where it might be expected, she kneels down to the side of the small table, on the edge adjacent to where Niklas sits. The tea-bowl and plate are set before him, she removes the cloth from the larger bowl, and uses a pair of tongs to place the confectionary treats it holds onto the larger plate in the center of the table. She fills his bowl with tea, refills hers, bows, then rises and moves back to where she had been sitting. "I am pleased that it is pleasing." The gestures to the tea (which is a blend of white and green as might be expected), smiling, "It is from my home. I am hoping you are enjoying it."
Niklas bows his head in thanks and reaches to take the bowl of tea gently by the sides. After a sip is taken he smiles. "It's very good," he compliments again before licking his lips.
Bijin lifts her bowl as well. "I am honored to be sharing tea." Bijin smiles, "The morning sun is made more lovely when one has good tea and company." She sips quietly for a few moments, "It is not burning you, I am hoping?" Her violet eyes rest upon the bandage at his neck briefly.
Niklas mms as he sets the bowl down and returns his hands to his lap. "No, it's perfect." Noticing the focus of her attention he explains. "I died last night while trying to prove a point to my Charge. I think she finally understands what it means to be an Argus."
Bijin rests her hands in her lap, folding them neatly. "What point were you teaching?"
"That her life is more valuable than my own," Niklas says, still rasping. "That as her Argus it is my duty to put her life before my own."
Bijin's voice is pleasant and smooth, her words punctuated with the occasional chiming from the ornaments in her hair. "It is being admirable, being devoted to one's duty. Did your dying, prevent hers?"
Niklas nods slightly. "It did, yes. It was by Kazimir's blade. I didn't know it at the time, though I had suspicion, that his intent was to teach a lesson, not actually bring her harm. He's been acting odd lately so I wasn't sure until after I woke up and he explained it to me."
"Kazimir-san is having great wisdom," Bijin says. She sips from her tea-bowl. "If he is teaching, there is being much to learn. But I am wondering, if he was not wishing to be harming your ward. How was your dying protecting?"
Niklas mms, "I threw her out of the way and told her to run then rushed Kazimir's blade myself. With his blade in me that gave her time to flee."
Bijin looks at Niklas and smiles. Her violet gaze is clear and direct, "What is troubling you?"
Niklas takes a breath. "I've come today to seek your wisdom, Bijin. If you'd be kind enough to share it."
"You are being kind," Bijin murmurs, "To come seeking wisdom from a humble wife such as me. But I will be listening, if you are speaking."
"Jaeger's rule was broken," Niklas rasps softly. "But I'm torn on how to report it. Part of my assignment as Arianne's Argus is to instruct her on weir culture and how things work based on dominance. She's realized that disobeying an Alpha is a bad thing." He takes another breath. "Emrys trumped her and commanded her to come to him. To go through a card the three feet rule was broken by their clasping of hands. But... it was the command of an Alpha and while she knows the rule she was only doing as told. I'm sure, though, that she had no qualms about breaking the rule, given the chance to do so."
Bijin sets her tea bowl down onto the table. Her gaze remains direct upon Niklas. "Was she troubled by this?"
Niklas picks his tea up and takes a sip before answering. "I don't think so. I think she saw a chance and took it knowing that she was just doing as told."
"Then where is being the trouble, for you?" Bijin queries.
Niklas mms thoughtfully. "Jaeger will be upset that his rule was broken... but, logically, Arianne was doing as she was told. While I recognize that she had a choice to disobey and face lesser consequences I would not want to see her punished wholly for something that isn't entirely her fault."
Bijin smiles. "Please to be forgiving me, I am not understanding very well. This tongue, it is not so easy for me." She picks up her now empty tea bowl, sprinkles a powdery substance into it, fills it halfway with water, and begins to whisk briskly. "Was she being, or was she not being mindful of this commandment?"
"She knows the rule," Niklas says. "And she's been rather mindful of it. However, an Alpha told her to do break it. I've been struggling for the last month to teach her how our dominance hierarchy works. She's not Alpha... when an Alpha tells her to do something she's expected to do it. She doesn't have to like it... but she's expected to do it. Emrys is Alpha. More so because he's the Regent. While she knowingly broke the rule... she was doing as she was commanded by an Alpha."
Bijin does not pause in her whisking. She smiles again, "You are a wise teacher, to be instructing so well. She has learned the art of obeyment, then? And will in the future be behaving with proper decorum?"
Niklas nods, "I hope. She still has much to learn but she's made decent progress."
"You are hoping," Bijin murmurs. "This is not sounding certain."
"She's stubborn," Niklas admits. "Quite possibly even the most stubborn woman I've ever known."
Bijin seems satisfied with her stirring. The whisk is set down again, and she smiles, "Would you be wishing for more tea?"
Niklas takes his last sip and sets the bowl down. "Yes, please. It's very good."
Bijin reaches forward, and fills Niklas's bowl with the liquid she had just whisked. The sleeves of her kimono are long, but she manages to keep the silk from dipping into either food or drink with a skill that makes it seem as though it were an impossibility. "Tea is being a difficult thing," she says while the tea pours from one bowl to the next. "One must be mixing it with water, but if it is having too much, it is weak, and without taste. If there is being too little water, it is tasting bitter." Niklas's bowl filled, she rests hers back on the table in front of her, and smiles. "Each leaf, each bowl, each brew is tasting differently, and is requiring its own amount of water. Did you know, in my home, the water can be many things? It guides the mixing of tea. It guides the seeking of wisdom. It guides the art of combat. It guides the grasping of duty."
Niklas listens, his attention on nothing else but Bijin. There's a spark of understanding in his yellow eyes but it's not quite flared to life yet. "How so," he asks softly. "I mean, I get the tea part... but wisdom, combat and duty?"
Bijin inclines her head, sending forth small pleasant chimes. She curves her hand around her tea bowl, but does not lift it. "It fills," she smiles. She tilts her bowl, watching at the tea moves within it. "It can be hard like stone, yet it flows easily. If one is looking into a pool, the water can be clear, revealing the deepest depths. Or it can be murky, and conceal." Smiles brightly, "It can be reflecting as clearly as any mirror, or," she drops a few grains of the powder into her bowl, creating ripples, "It can distort. One must always be certain, when one is gazing upon water."
Niklas nods slightly, "So you're saying that my view of Arianne is distorted?"
Bijin looks over at Niklas, her violet eyes almost glowing. "One must be looking, not with one's own troubles, but with an eye for what lies within what is being gazed upon." She sips at her tea, "Would she be obeying any order given?"
Niklas mms thoughtfully. "Probably not. Not if the person giving the order hasn't proven dominance over her like I have. Though, last night, she did clean my blood off the floor when Kazimir told her too... and she didn't argue."
Bijin smiles. "I am wondering, why you are not being certain."
"She's unpredictable," Niklas says. "While one time she may zig... given the same stimuli on another occasion she may zag... if that makes sense."
Bijin lifts her tea bowl, "If there was being a fracture here, the water would be finding it. Even were I being unable to see the blemish, I would still be cleaning the tablecloth." She looks directly at Niklas again. "What are you wishing to be doing?"
Niklas takes a deep breath. "I have to tell Jaeger the rule was broken. And I have to tell him that both are responsible. I... I just don't know how to do it in such a way that he sees the blame is not all Arianne's. Emrys /told/ her to break the rule."
Niklas adds, "What's more is that I'm torn. Jaeger is my sensei... Emrys my Regent. I've a certain level of duty to both and I feel no matter what I do I'm going to upset one of them."
Bijin continues gazing at him, "This is being a simple thing." She smiles. "You do not believe Jaeger-dono will be seeing the shared lapsing of honor?"
"I know he'll see it," Niklas says softly. "I just don't know how he might take my defense of Arianne. Would he see that as an insult, that his apprentice would defend her?" Clearly Nik isn't worried about what may happen to Arianne or Emrys. He's worried about insulting Jaeger.
Bijin reaches out with the tongs, and claims one of the sweets. She bites into it, enjoys its flavor, and swallows. "What are your duties, Niklas-kun?"
Niklas clears his throat lightly with only minor discomfort. "I am an Argus," he says. "My duties are to protect my Charge at all costs even if that means giving my life. I'm Niamh's Mate, bound to protect and comfort her the same way even though she's not my charge. I'm Jaeger's student. My sensei has my respect and my devotion. I'm his clay to mold." Niklas does not lie. He has no reason to.
Bijin takes another small bite. "Are your duties finite? Are they ending?"
"They can end," Niklas says. "When either I'm reassigned or, in a worst case scenario, my Charge dies or is destroyed."
"Do you wish to be trying one?" Bijin smiles, gesturing to the plate of sweets. Then, she says, "Are there being any other ways to end your duty?"
Niklas reaches for one of the sweets as he says. "If I die. Other than that no. Emrys has to reassign me or my Charge must be destroyed."
"Then let us be considering Jaeger-dono," Bijin smiles. "Is he having honor?"
Niklas nods, "He does, yes."
"Is he understanding honor?" Bijin smiles pleasantly. The dessert is a sweet bun; a sweet red bean paste covered with a soft, sweet rice paste. The bun is then dipped in powdered green tea.
Niklas samples the confection and smiles after swallowing. "Now that's good," he says. Then, returning to the conversation he says, "Jaeger understands honor, yes."
Bijin opens her hands, and rests them on the table. "Then Niklas-kun, why is there being worry?"
"I don't want to disappoint him," Niklas admits. "He's done so much for me and... and I feel like it might be stabbing him in the back. I know he'll understand. He has honor and he's far from stupid. But that doesn't mean he won't be disappointed."
"I am the wife of Jaeger-dono," Bijin says after a moment. "And I can not be speaking for my honored husband. But I am being certain that if you are holding fast to your honor, there will be no disappointment." She finishes off the sweet bun, "Are you holding fast to your honor? Are you obeying the spirit of your duties? I can not be saying. That is for you to be knowing."
Niklas nods, "I believe I am, yes. In defending Arianne I'm doing my duty as her Argus... even if that means I'm only decreasing her punishment."
Bijin looks to Niklas, gaze bright. "Is it your duty to be defending her against her own actions? Is there being anything to learn from doing so? This, perhaps, is a thing you may consider." She sips at her tea, murmurs, "There is little as calming as a good tea."
"I'm to protect her from any and all harm," Niklas says. "Self inflicted or not. But, with Arianne, I have additional orders to instruct her in the way of the Weir." He picks up his tea and sips before finishing off his little sweet.
Bijin murmurs, "For one to learn fire, one must be burned. It is being this dilemma that is troubling you?"
And there it is, that spark of understand flared out. "Yes!" Niklas tries to exclaim but is cut short by his damaged throat. "Arianne needs to learn lessons. She... she has to be burned. But I find my responsibility to keep her safe and unharmed gets in the way. I know she broke the rule. I know she needs punished... but I have to defend her."
"Then you must be deciding," Bijin drinks her tea. "Where the spirit of your duties lie. What is protect meaning? What is instruct meaning? Where are they coming together?"
Niklas nods slightly. "I have to tell him. I just don't know how to tell him. I know he won't hurt Arianne beyond what she deserves and kill her."
"Simple is always being the best," Bijin smiles and finishes her tea. "In all things."
Niklas sips at his tea again, "Then I'll be blunt and just tell him." He looks up at Bijin then and smiles. "Thank you, Bijin."
Bijin presses her hands together, and smiles, then dips into a bow. Her kanzashi jingle pleasantly, "You are being kind. Shall we see to finding if he is free?"
Niklas tries, again, to mimic her bow but it comes out far less graceful. "Please."
Bijin smiles pleasantly, and rises. She begins to glide her way out of the little room.
Niklas walks behind Bijin, his socked feet making dull thuds against the floor as he lumbers. A thick bandage is bound to the front of his neck, only a tiny little spot of red stained through it.
A large, familiar figure dominates the couch. Contrary to the norm he's wearing an Amber military uniform, the jacket opened in the front in a distinctly casual fashion. Jaeger's attention is buried in an open file, next to him sitting a pile of similar folders, and to complete his ease his boots are resting on the table in front of the couch.
Bijin leads Niklas through the house, her delicate gliding steps finally bringing them to Jaeger. She smiles at him, and bends into an almost formal bow. "Jaeger-dono, we are having a guest. Will you be forgiving an interruption?"
Niklas bows his head to Jaeger in greeting, hands clasped behind his back. He remains behind Bijin and silent.
The delicate voice draws a conditioned reaction as Jaeger's boots are pulled from the table and slide onto the floor. His fingers flex, snapping closed the file and setting it aside even as he scans for the location to go with the voices. "Yeah. Got time while waiting for approval."
Bijin glides into the room and smiles at Jaeger again. She makes no comment regarding the boots. "Will you be wanting tea?" she queries, "Or sake?"
Niklas continues to follow Bijin in, remaining behind her. For the moment he remains quiet.
"Sake," Jaeger answers. He waves at the other available seats. "Feel free to sit down, Nik."
Niklas rasps, his voice box apparently having been damaged. "Thank you, sir." He moves away from Bijin then and finds a seat, settling into it. "I've a report to make, sir."
Bijin smiles, and bends her head, sending forth her kanzashi chimes to ringing. She glides toward the cabinet to retrieve a bottle of sake and some glasses.
Jaeger spares a glance for the stack of folders beside him at the word 'report'. His brow furrows lightly. "I do not recall giving you any assignments beyond exercise and study. Is it a report about one of those?"
Niklas shakes his head slightly. "No, sir. I've come to report that your three feet rule between Emrys and Arianne was violated by Emrys' own orders."
Bijin fills two glasses, and sets them in front of Jaeger and Niklas. She sinks down into her own seat, leaving the empty third glass in front of her. The bottle rests where it can easily be reached by everyone.
Jaeger says, "That so?" He considers the notion as he reaches for his glass. "Give me more specifics."
Niklas takes a raspy breath. "I have only Arianne's own admission as evidence. She said that Emrys trumped her and then told her to come through the card. As best I can tell she knew that it would violate the rule but the Regent is an Alpha. Then, once there, she said that Emrys was entranced by the song of a siren... if those are even real. She said that she was forced to restrain him for his own protection. There was also something about harpies I think she called them."
Bijin folds her hands in her lap and is quiet. She remains smiling to each of them.
Jaeger says half to himself. "Amber has no shortage of harpies." His cup rises to his lips and he takes a sip of sake. "That does warrant some investigation. Though I find anything Arianne says to be suspect."
Niklas nods slightly, reaching for his own glass. "In her defense, sir, she has been learning. And from the damage to her body when she returned I would be inclined to believe they were attacked by /something/.... or..." He takes a sip, letting that sentence trail off. "I don't mean to be a tattle-tale... but I have a deep respect for you and thought you deserved to know. I have no doubt that Emrys will be very upset with me when he hears that I've told you."
Bijin looks over at that, her head tilting as she queries, "Or?"
Jaeger takes another sip just after saying, "Or what?"
Niklas tries to clear his throat but it only causes him to wince. After swallowing he says. "Or they, um... mated in a..." He glances to Bijin apologetically. "They mated in a violent manner. She was covered in bruises and scratches."
Bijin simply smiles pleasantly at Niklas, seemingly unbothered by the commentary.
Jaeger's voice rumbles from his chest. "That, for example, /would/ be a very significant violation of the terms. Guess I'll have to interview the pair of them to find out what happened."
"I can't say that's what happened, sir," Niklas says. "But it is definitely a possibility.... unlikely, but possible. I can also tell you that Arianne is eager to face you to get the rule revoked."
Bijin folds her hands in her lap. "She is attending to that desire in a puzzling manner."
Jaeger's glass settles back onto the table. "So she thinks that that is all she has to do? Face me and it all goes away?"
"I told her it was a start," Niklas says. "That she still has a long way to go."
Jaeger says, "I guess I'll indulge her if she insists on a fight. It is a pity she has yet to learn that fighting isn't the only way to display proper behavior."
Jaeger says, "Still, it's a start."
"To be fighting is easy," Bijin smiles to both of them. She looks over the papers lying near Jaeger, "Will you be sending her an invitation to be visiting?"
Niklas nods, "She's been rather well behaved, sir, all things considered. She learns quickly... she just hasn't yet learned enough. She, at least, is learning to respect the role of the Alpha. I think that if Emrys had not told her to come through that she wouldn't have. I can imagine she was delighted at the chance to touch him when the order was given and didn't argue it though."
Jaeger nods to Bijin. "She can come here and I will take her out to the woodshed." Then, continuing to Niklas. "That is something that will become clear in time, how much she has learned. If she has actually learned I will be pleased. But I suspect it is more following the words of others rather than understanding."
Niklas nods to Jaeger. "Perhaps, sir. We'll have to wait and see."
Bijin rises smoothly, and moves toward a nearby desk. She returns a moment later carrying a blank sheet of stationary, and offers it to Jaeger. "I am thinking she will be coming quickly."
Jaeger looks from the paper to the flower of Jade holding it. "How about we just let Nik tell her that her challenge is accepted?"
Niklas glances between them. "I can do that, if you wish it."
Jaeger interjects quickly. "Yes. That's best."