It's a teahouse, formally run by Obsidian... Who I guess, at the moment, hired some girls to take care of the place while she was on vacation. Yeah, let's go with that. And the girls all have knives and can stab people if fooled with.

*Well, his sake had run out from his earlier visit to the Sake Shoppe. He wasn't about to go there again after what he pulled. The thought of what he'd done did make him grin a bit maliciously. He liked being stronger than other people, it was a good feeling, and lording it over them was nice, too.*

*He stepped inside the tea house and took a seat towards the back, still grinning a bit to himself and orders sake.*

A shadowy figure with the contours of a slim hour glass stepped in front of the doorway. It moved to open the door. Paused... Tried again... Paused again... A gentle female voice stated clearly, "Is this place open? The door is stuck..." yet another pause. "Yes, it Is supposed to be open."

Kick. The door went back on it's hinges and it opened. It opened slowly with a load of noise, anyway.

See? This is what happens when people abuse Japanese doorways. A possible lack of business.

Once the way was clear, Lazuli entered the room. She was ludicrously beautiful, dressed in a black and red striped kimono. There was a coat of sweat on her from being out in the sun all day, but it just served to make her look that much more sexy. Let's leave it at that.

Lazuli stepped into the room and sat at a random table she found, leaving the door partially open. She waited for someone to serve her.

*Aki got his sake and decided that it would probably be a good idea to eat sometime and not live off of sake. He was about to order some food when the noise of the door caught his attention and a pretty young lady walked in.*

*He decided that perhaps it would be a good idea to go talk to this woman, so he slipped out of his seat and over to her table.* Hi. *He wasn't really the most articulate around women he liked.*

Being in the sun all day did little for her already poor vision. On her walk to the teahouse she put in some of the eyedrops that Doctor Takeno gave her, but the damage was done and she'd need time to recover. So when Aki came up she at first squinted at him, then thought he was the waiter. Though by the gods he was a smelly waiter. Did she enter the wrong teahouse? This place was said to have a pretty good reputation by the people she solicited earlier.

"Hello there. Could you get me some tea? Any tea would be fine." She smiled a smile that could make a valley of lillies bloom from the warmth and light of it.

*It was a fair amount darker in the tea house than it was outside, which would cause most people to squint while their eyes adjusted to the light, or lack there of. Aki, thinking nothing of it and certainly not thinking anyone would confuse him for a waiter, though that the girl meant that she wanted tea with him. He quickly hollered at one of the waitresses to come to come get the woman some tea... as well as a bowl of noodles and rice for himself.*

*Once the waitress walks away, looking rather irritated at being yelled at, Aki leans forward and grins at the girl.* So who are you? I don't think I've seen you here before. *He smelled of blood, sweat, and sake.*

Blood, sweat, and sake, if not cleaned off over a period of a few days, can easily smell like bad eggs, dirt, and feet. So Lazuli leaned away from Aki as he leaned close... She didn't show any real huge expressions suggesting that his smell put her off, since she was polite. After all, why diss the waiter and outright tell him to back off when it may ruin her attempted good reputation in town?

She still lacked tea, so waited for it.

At Aki's questions, Lazuli muttered unpleasant things to herself silently. ~oh brother~ but kept her smile and good disposition. "Isn't it customary for a man to introduce himself before asking personal questions from a woman?" Little did she know that she was getting into a conversation with one of the most wanted people in this rp, as well as one of the main characters.

*Akisu was not a gentleman nor did he ever attempt to be one without it going horribly wrong. So he answers her question with a shrug.* How am I supposed to know? But if you insist... I am Akisu Yoru Toushin. But most call me Lord Toushin. *Though it was true, he was techincially a lord, no one really called him that or really went to him for anything.*

*The waitress walked by and dropped off some tea for the lady and quickly walked away before Aki could demand where his noodles were. Aki glared at her back, then turned back to the lady on the other side of the table.* So tell me your name now.

"Maya. My name is Maya." The woman giggled for a moment, but it was of course all a fascade. She covered her mouth in the laugh to cover her disappointment.

This guy was not a waiter. And by the title, he was probably important to the area.

... Crap. Was he in league with the general in the area? Lazuli sighed. This would explain her blatant lie on her name. She would have called herself something like Emerald or Lavender, but didn't think it fit the situation and this guy before her. Maya, meaning mother in some languages and mother earth in others, may extend to explain that she could be taken already... Let's hope Aki gets the hidden message.

She took the tea with compliments to the real waitress, and would have given an expression for help, but the waitress was long gone before she could. So instead she sipped her tea and continued to cover her mouth to hide any unsightly expressions, this time with the tea cup.

Maya? That's a pretty name. *He smiles. If only she'd known him better, he didn't get subtile hints like that unless it came down to money. He still wasn't sure if she had any, which was his other concern when hitting on a pretty woman. Did she or her family have money? That way if things didn't work out, he'd still come out ahead.*

You're not from around here, are you? I don't think I've seen you before. *Though he was pretty sure he would have noticed her if she had been around these parts.*

A small vein popped up on her forehead. The guy didn't get the hint. At his questions, she quickly covered up her inner feelings and smiled, eyes closed in her apparent happiness.

"Oh? I came from Okinawa to visit my sister. I have been here the last few days, though. Do I really blend into the crowd that much?" She sipped her tea and looked towards him. While she didn't know it, she looked deeply into his eyes. At this open conversation, others in the room decided the moment was going to get intimate and went back to their conversations and food in their embarrassment at having eavesdropped.

Lazuli smiled again, that smile that made the sun raise in the morning. "So tell me, is the Toushin household very powerful?"

*Well, he couldn't let her have all of the fun of lying, not that he knew she was. Blushing from how she was staring into his eyes, he nods and looks back down at his sake.* Yes, it's a very powerful household. I'm surprised you haven't heard of it. We... well, that is to say I pretty much run things around here since my father died. *That wasn't really a lie, but it made things sound better than the full truth.*

This guy was lieing. She knew for a fact that Moristune Ubushingai ruled this area. That and she had, honestly, never heard of a toushin taking up residence from the reports she was given. To challange this guy, she grinned (still looked like her beautiful smile, though) and said the statement, "Is that so? I heard that the Moritsune household held residence here. Did the toushins take over his -"

She was paused as something made a peircing animal-like sound at the open entrance. Lazuli turned around suddenly at it. In the doorway stood a regal-looking hawk with a note tied to its leg.

Now Lazuli could see a little better now, but not well enough to see the bird. However the call from it was very easily recognizable (when did hawks randomly walk into teahouses and announce their entrance?).

"I'm sorry, I have to go." The woman stated, putting down the teacup and going for the door. Grabbing the hawk by the neck on the way out. The hawk made a gack sound at this.

*He was about to argue with her when he flinched from the screech. What the hell was a hawk doing here? It certainly didn't come for the tea... or sake. Did birds even drink sake? He thought about the question just briefly before 'Maya' left the table and grabbed the bird and left. That only made the appearance of the hawk even stranger. Aki sipped his sake thoughtfully. If this woman had a trained hawk... she might have a fair amount of wealth. He would have to find her again.*