Having spent the day with her prospective husband, Yoritomo Yukiko returned to the Mantis quarters to debrief with her superior, Yoritomo Akuto.

"Well, now, Yukiko-san," he says, after the pleasantries have passed, "what do you think of these Crane, eh?  Do you think they will survive the Lion?"

One of the great delights of being a Mantis is that the 'pleasantries' between Clan members are actually...

Well, just that; pleasant. A small pot of warm sake and two cups stand upon the low table at the edge of the room, and provides the room with a faint but pleasant aroma of vanilla. A thick and comfortable mat covers the floor around the table, making it an ideal and preferable place to sit or kneel.

But after a long day of kneeling and bowing in the formalised setting of the Daidoji Complex, even the limber legs of a young bushi might prefer to be arranged in a different position. And so Yukiko sits cross-legged with her side facing the table, a posture a mainland Rokugani Samurai might see as the equivalent of lounging back on a sofa.

A long day it may of been, but the young woman's composure is still entirely intact; her back is straight, the formal emerald-green-and-black kimono is straight and unruffled, her hair not one strand out-of-place in a tight formal top-knot, and her daisho and paired kama laid out beside her on the mat in a perfect arrangement of angles and spacing.

The only signs of the days' trials are about her eyes. It seems that even the full life of a Mantis Bushi doesn't provide the necessary stamina to be successful in a Crane court. Her cheeks, ruddied from years of life at sea, are most definitely paler than when she awoke this morning.

Yukiko reaches over to the table to grasp her cup and takes a small sip of the contents; hardly sake of the finest quality, but after a long day and with the beginnings of winter in the air, the warm liquid is really the perfect tonic. She ponders the question for a brief moment as she swallows, enjoying the sensation as it slides down her throat.

"Well, that's certainly question of the hour;" she replies, speaking in aristocratic but Island-accented high tongue the Bushi is most comfortable with "they all seem to think so. Although none of them have suggested to me exactly how they plan to hold them off."

That's an indirect answer though, and with a small amount of irritation she catches herself before she can talk at-length for another minute or so while still avoiding the question; no doubt this is the side-effect of spending so much time about the Crane, and her beleaguered servant/etiquette-coach. Straight-forwardness in speech is the norm amongst Mantis. But it would be (and is) a mistake to assume they can't also be cerebral.

"I think much is going to depend on the actions of the Lord of Toshi Ranbo over the next few days. The Daidoji have spirit and courage..." This, much to her surprise, she has seen much of from 'sensitive and arty' Crane over the last few days.

"If their Daimyo can inspire them, then I think this city might become a true Kanjo."

Kanjo; a word meaning 'shield', or wall. So the term might refer to a castle. But Kanjo can also mean 'respected warriors', and in this usage then the word takes on new meaning, referring to a very special type of castle. Any Lord can live in a fortified building, protected by stone, but only one who has earned the loyalty of their warriors will be shielded by a wall of devoted Samurai willing to give their lives, whose very bodies and spirits are the bricks of the fortification. That is Kanjo, a true castle.

"But, I don't know the man." And under the circumstances with the impending siege, she was lucky to of got even the brief introduction she did... "And I'm not getting much of a sense of unity in the streets of the Inner City."

"You've put your finger on it, I think," the oft underestimated Mantis courtier muses, "the Daidoji are the key to the defense of this city.  Oh, the Kakita and the Doji have their bushi, but it is the Daidoji who truly comprehend warfare.  There are some internal disputes, I'm sure, but when the enemy charges the gates, I think that those will disappear--much the way brothers may fight, but when the pirates raid, they act as one.

"Looking at the numbers arrayed against them, however, I must agree with your assessment.  The Crane cannot hold Toshi Ranbo without assistance," he says, taking a small sip of his sake, "but these Doji are no fools.  They know this as surely as we do, and they will not have entrusted the entirety of their fate to the Mantis.  Who else will be coming to their aid and will the Mantis be able to take their share of the credit when the city is saved?"

Yukiko takes another sip of her sake as Akuto talks, mulling over the political situation and attempting to merge that with her tactical understanding of the coming conflict. But ultimately everything boils down to simple geography, and time constraints; Yukiko made her assessment of the situation within hours of her arrival in Toshi Ranbo, and she's seen or heard nothing that significantly alters that decision since then.

"Who else is coming to their aid? Nobody, unless any of the other Clans have an army tucked away in a rice paddy." A small surge of satisfaction surges through the young woman as she speaks, enjoying being able to slip back into irreverence.

"Let's look at the facts; Toshi Ranbo is too isolated and too far north, and it's too late in the season. The Dragon or the Phoenix might of marched armies here as soon as the Lion's intentions became clear, but as far as we know there were no oaths of undying allegiance sworn; why would they risk open warfare with the Lion? At this stage the most the other Clans can do is take advantage of the Lion's distraction and infringe on some of their other borders."

As she talks Yukiko becomes more and more animated, her frustration at the subject showing though. She gestures with hand and sake-cup, stabbing and waving at the air to emphasise her points.

"In practical terms all we, and any of the others, can offer the Crane at this stage is to promise that the handful of Samurai already present in the city will fight for them. How many Mantis do we have in Toshi Ranbo, Bushi and Shugenja?"

There's an answer coming here, after all the reasoning.

"Only fifty or so in Toshi Ranbo itself," Akuto shrugs, "but we have a number of 'trade delegations' scattered throughout Lion, Dragon, and Phoenix lands--enough to make up two or three kaisha^*.  All it would take would be the right word and they could be here in time to give someone a rather unpleasant surprise.

"As for who else might be on their way," he says, taking two long sips of sake, "well, strange as it may seem, the Crane seem to have engaged in extensive negotiations with the Scorpion."

^* a kaisha is roughly 250 samurai, shugenja, and ashigaru (mostly ashigaru)

Up to 750 Samurai could certainly change the tide of a battle. Of course, the Crane probably believe that a single Samurai can win or loose a battle, but the Mantis have always been a more grounded Clan.

"The Scorpion?" Yukiko raises a narrow eyebrow at their mention (those etiquette lessons have been paying off), but then nods, not entirely surprised. "Well, that is rather like them. But let's not forget they're probably negotiating with the Lion too." Yukiko has always rather admired the Scorpion for their downright practical approach to the world. There is a certain uncomplicated directness to their machinations; a Clan who get things done in spite of Rokugan culture. But then, Yukiko has other reasons to be fond of the Scorpion, entirely unrelated to their place in Rokugan.

"I'd like to see them fight. It must be... interesting." She stares into space for a moment before snapping her vision back to the present.

"Three kaisha..." she picks up, sounding thoughtful. "That could make quite the difference. Do we have a General in mind?"

Of course they would likely be under the supreme command of a Crane General, but none-the-less a Mantis would still be needed to lead an micro-manage the troops.

"Yoritomo Arimi would command our forces here," Akuto replies, "she's ill tempered, but her strategic sense is good, and, if we win, she'll have earned some credit for Winter Court.

"As for the Scorpion, they seem to have some sort of vested interest in Toshi Ranbo.  There are far more of them here than seems normal--though they may simply be planning to steal a march on everyone once Winter Court begins.

"What is of greater concern is what we will receive in exchange for our military support.  We have asked for the right to represent the Minor Clans in the Imperial Court, but I think that the Crane are too canny to grant us that without further concessions on our part."

The young warrior snorts derisively at what she sees as the lack of common sense of the Crane. "Ask? Why did we even ask? Has everyone forgotten Yoritomo's Alliance?!"

Yukiko's experience of the mainland Samurai so far has been frustrating; they all appear so eminently unpractical, as if the Order of Heaven was somehow preventing them from observing or interacting with day-to-day reality. She had, of course, been told that the mainlanders had a peculiar view of the world, but she hadn't expected to find them so stubborn and obstinate in their upholding of it, to the point that nothing seems to get done for the sake of Form.

Or so it seems to her. How can Akuto-san stand dealing with these people day-in and day-out? she thinks to herself.

"The Crane are concerned with perception," Akuto replies as if reading Yukiko's mind, "but do not mistake that concern with failure to consider reality.  The Doji have ruled the courts for the entire history of the Empire--a feat that they could not have accomplished without a force to support their words--and the Daidoji have earned the approbation of the Crab--only the Mantis have accomplished as much.  If the Mantis wish to betaken seriously by the other Great Clans, we must learn what the Crane have mastered.

"We cannot simply claim what the Emperor has granted to the Crane.  To do so would earn the emnity of the Crane and force the Emperor to admonish our arrogance."

"So we need the Crane's permission before we receive what we have already earned? Hmrph." She of course refers to what "we", that is the Minor Clans, not just the Mantis, earned on the Second Day of Thunder.

Yukiko is still clearly having a little difficulty adjusting to mainland behaviour, so it's perhaps not entirely unexpected if one finds her a little irritable. It does truly seem to the young warrior that the the Crane are the ones with the arrogance problem; she has yet to learnt to compensate for the differences in acceptable behaviour here, much to the frustration of her suffering etiquette coach.

"Has anybody thought to ask how the Minor Clans feel about being used as a bargaining chip by the Crane?"

The combined Minor Clans have thrown in their lot together before, and as a result the Mantis are here today in Toshi Ranbo, on equal footing (in principle) with the Great seven. The Mantis got to take their great leap upwards only due to their combined efforts. And regrettably, on that glorious day, they were forced to leave the other Minor Clans behind. But everybody involved knew that, the great Clans weren't going to let them all up at once; what happened that day was the setting of a precedent, to show that it was possible, with enough force of will, to rise in Rokugan.

The Mantis are where they are today because of the other Minor Clans, who lent their strength and risked destruction so that the mightiest of their number might be elevated. It seems to Yukiko then, that the Mantis are honour-bound to aid their former brothers and sisters. The Minor Clans trusted the Mantis, and in return the Mantis must do what they can for them. And it frustrates her to no end that the Crane seek to prevent them from pursuing their responsibility. She might view the Order of Heaven differently from the mainlanders, but Yukiko takes duty and responsibility just as seriously as the rest of them.

"Legitimacy is acknowledged through perception," Akuto shrugs, "the other Minor Clans understand that as well as anyone.  We could simply claim it as our right or persuade the Emperor to declare it so, but either would make an enemy of the Crane.  Doing it this way makes them our allies and increases our status in the eyes of the other Clans.  After all if the Crane treat with us as equals, so too will the Empire.  Sometimes you have to give the lines some slack in order to reel in your catch.

"Hopefully the other Minor Clans understand our position.  Some may indeed see it as an attempt to grasp at power--an unavoidable side effect.  But if they were to come to our aide in this matter, well," he smiles, "then both the Left and Right Hands of the Emperor must acknowledge their power, and the Crane will be in their debt."

The young warrior nods respectfully in reply, slightly chastened by the straight-forward reply. There is something for her to reflect on, that she is only just beginning to percieve thanks to Akuto-san. But there will be time for that later. For now, the conversation at hand.

"One might suppose," she continues, more thoughtfully than her earlier increasingly irate tirade, "that if our first act as representatives of the Minor Clans was to rally Yoritomo's Alliance in defence of the Crane... well, then the Crane will be in all our debt. Of course, such an alliance would be difficult to bring about with the Crane as the representatives of the Minor Clans... Only those with experience of such things could bring it about in time..."

In other words, the Mantis.

"I see a whole new world has opened up for you, Yukiko-san," Akuto grins, "politics is like a game of Go.  The merely skilled look a few stones ahead, but the masters see the entire game.  We'll make a politician of you yet.  Have you considered how to incorporate your engagement into our negotiations?"

Yukiko smirks at the complement, and turns the expression into an amused grimace. That is what she's afraid of.

"Yes..." she replies in answer to his question, uncharacteristically uncertain on how to proceed, "but I don't think I've much to add to the obvious." She unfolds one leg out of the crossed position and stretches it out across the mat in front of her, toes extended to get the full benefit.

"It's a good match, from the point of view of family status. Both immediate families have something to gain," her lips tighten as she makes brief reference to the regrettable losses of fortune, still a sore topic, "and it marks the beginning of a more permanent alliance between our Clans. We'll both have a vested interest in each other's holdings.

"I assume at some point I'll be instructed to apply pressure to gain some minor concession or advantage here and there. So that's the obvious. Beyond that..."

Pondering 'that', she picks up the small clay flask and pours Akuto-san another cup, then takes up her own cup with one hand, waiting for the favour to be returned.

"I haven't a clue. I'd assumed I was here to add an air of dignity to the negotiation." Perfectly capable of choosing her words carefully, she raises a cheeky eyebrow along with the haughtiness in her voice in that statement. "I'd assumed I was just the excuse."

"We don't just want one path to lead to victory, Yukiko-san," Akuto smiles, tossing back a cup of sake, "we want all paths to lead to victory.  The Crane may be able to afford to waste opportunities, such as your engagement, but we cannot, not yet anyway.  Daidoji Yukito may not be the governor of Toshi Ranbo, but he may provide key insights into what we have that the Emperor's Left Hand might want.  Not to mention the tactical information he could provide for the coordination of our forces--or the reverse, if our relationship with the Crane takes a turn for the worse in the future.

"In the meantime, think about what arguments you will use with our hosts--you'll be joining the negotiations on the morrow."

Yukiko's contemplative sip turns into a cough and splutter as she chokes momentarily on her sake, as Akuto drops that particular bomb-shell. She turns incredulous wide eyes upon him for a moment, but it is as she feared, Akuto-san was not telling a joke. Abandoning all etiquette she picks up the flask, pours herself a stiff measure and necks it back in one throw.

"The Clan wants me to join the negotiations?! Are we expecting bloodshed?"

"Well, yes, but not so much with the Crane," Akuto replies, taking a long draught of the sake, "the Crane are predisposed to agree and I'd rather someone who knows somewhat of war."

Wide eyes flutter for a moment, then her whole body rocks back slightly into a comfortable slump as relief hits her. Rare is it for Yukiko to display open panic, but the idea of taking part in Winter Court discussions with wily Crane courtiers is enough to elicit such a response.

"Well thank the Founder for that. I thought you wanted me to... well, talk with them and be, you know..." she struggles for the words, "articulate!."

She heaves the massive sigh of relief of one who just narrowly avoided been killed by a falling tree, thanking her lucky stars. Then with a shake of her head she starts to gather her thoughts again.

"Tactics. Right, tactics I can do. Troop positions, formations, manoeuvres, yes, I can manage that. You want me on-hand to advise the negotiators on military matters. I can do that. Who's leading the Mantis forces?"

"Tsuruchi Shikimoto," Akuto answers promptly, "he's a veteran officer of the Battle of Mitsu Otoko Rengo Heigen with experience in siege warfare.  He'll be here with the next trade caravan.  You will be one of his lieutenants--too few Mantis have enough experience with land battles, and this is a prime opportunity to get some--and you'll be his liaison with the Crane--so brush up on your speaking skills, you'll need them."