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Sakura decides her friend needs her "aid" in preparing her creations and takes a seat, at the kitchen counter.
"Why are we even bending over backward for this eight-legged fraud?" she mutters as she pokes at one of the carefully arranged platters with a chopstick. We should just toss a stick of butter at her and tell her to make her own dinner."
Sakura takes a sip of a tea and grunts "This one’s too bland."
She scowls and leans on the counter. I hate spiders. Hate their skittery little legs, their gross beady eyes, and the way they stare at you like you’re lunch. And now we’re supposed to bow and scrape for one? It’s insulting. I won't do it."
She takes a bite of something and makes a sour face "This one tastes like you waved a vegetable at some water and called it a day."
"This one’s not bad. But, is supposed to taste like garlic? I mean, I’d take it, but you’re cooking for a spider-princess, not me."
Sakura glances at Pagma and narrows her eyes "If this princess tries to eat anyone, I’m going for her legs first. Just saying."
"This is... fine. No, wait, wait. Yes, it’s boring. Add something more."
***
Pagma leans toward Sakura with a and whispers that if she wants to impress the princess, she should sing a song. Sakura shakes her head no quickly but unfortunately catches the attention of the princess.
She swallows hard and steps forward, clearing her throat. "Lady Ren Mei Li, as a gesture of our gratitude and respect for your visit, I would like to offer a performance of our people."
Sakura clears her throat and begins her song, her voice trembling slightly as she tries to find the first note. It comes out a little too high and shaky, like a bird caught in a storm.
"Ooooh... Lady Ren... uh... Me-ei Liiii..."
Her voice cracks painfully on the "Li". Determined, she powers through, but the melody quickly devolves into an uneven mess as she forgets half the lyrics she had made up on the spot.
"You’ve come to—uh—bless our town... And, um, you’re the prettiest a-around..."
"Your hair is as... long as the river, uh... flows... And your... uh... beauty, it... it..."
She freezes, unable to think of a rhyme. Desperate to continue the song, she blurts out:
"And your beauty it... shows!"
Realizing the performance is spiraling out of control, she speeds up the tempo, her voice beginning to wobble.
"So, uh, thank you for your visit today- Please-don’t-kill-us while you staaaaAAAAayyyyy!"
Kamo examines the woman closely as the others greet her.
"Welcome, Lady. Please, we have prepared a reception for your in our humble tea house."
Jing tries to hide his dismay at Sakura's performance and when the suffering ends, he starts clapping. The applause is equal parts a wake-up call to him and his companions as it is a distraction. Hopefully the Princess, in awe by Sakura's obvious trepidation of Her Resplendant Jorogumoness, will take the bait and shift her attention to him.
"Ah, a performance worthy of a small rural town, don't you agree? Willowshore welcomes you, Eight-Blessed Silversilk Princess, and to that end, we have prepared a tea ceremony in your honor. May I invite and accompany you to Willowshore's pride, our tea house? Other guests of great power and significance have graced this place before, but none of thine stature, grace, and influence. Your visit would truly be a beacon of class and grace, and set a new standard for all of us to chase after. Chase, because of course we could never catch up to your resplendance."
Why did he just use the word thine?! It must be all those 'olde' books he's been reading in his free time. Jing flinches away the shame and doubt when no one's looking and then puts back on his mask of impeccable decorum.
Lady Ren grimaces at Sakura's screechy serenade. It looks like she is about so say something, but fortunately Jing-De steps in to smooth things over. She inclines her head to him slightly. "Thank you for the polite welcome. You have a gift for me, yes?"
She examines the gift you give her and nods in satisfaction.
"Before we go to this teahouse of yours, I'd like you show me around your little town so that I can take in the sights." She settles back onto her palanquin, and her collared servants hoist her up.
"We would be happy to show you around town," Kamo tries to be polite to the noblewoman. "There are many unusual features for such a small village. For instance, there have been a series of unusual hauntings and visitations that you might find interesting..."
Not exactly a master of small talk, he ends up carrying on about the strange happenings in town.
Pagma's eyes widened at the epic... something... that Sakura provided for their pleasure. And oh, yes, there would plenty of mirth filled pleasure as the attempt to recount Sakura's stunning song, "Did we get that line correct, Sakura?" she'd ask later, if there was a later, as she tries to sing it.
Today though, she stuck to haikus. Over the life of the village, there have been plenty of budding artists that have created little poems about this place or that within the village. Pagma loved them, and memorized each new one she heard.
She tells the princess as many as she can.
Jing's warning about the princess disliking charming pretty women was discounted by the alchemist since she didn't consider herself charming or pretty.
The song will forever scar Sakura and all future discussions about it will be met with some variation of her either declining it ever happened or some form of doubt.
Sakura is glad Kamo blabbers on and puts her performance behind them. Even better, Pagma's haiku's land far favorably than her own performance.
She gladly shows the monstrosity princess around town.