People Who Are Like Other People

Eas is a land of variety.

In its recent history, it has seen so much coming and going: goblins being evicted, Adventurers breathing new life into the place, Spriggan refugees finding a new home, Palace landers visiting, Palace landers attempting to invade, battles, liberation, life returning again...

And now, now it is a single human in a top hat, white shirt, and black suit who shows up. He walks through the village, and makes his way towards the main entrance of Castle Eas. After making his presence known, while he waits for someone to come receive him, Shenmi begins reharsing his opening lines, "Good Morning. I, Shenmi Jinreng, need your help. It would appear that my bun-bun has escaped containment, and is now roaming free in your gardens. I would need some help retrieving... hm. No, no... I sound like that Lander who kept losing his Peko in the tower." He exhales, and rubs his eyes. "Good thing he's gone now." He looks at Castle Eas again. "And good thing these people have never heard of him..."

    The Baroness is known for many things. Timing, kindness, social skills, grace, patience, and of course, sneaking. Now certainly she could have just approached this in a more normal way and allowed Shenmi to see her coming, but that would have prevented this moment from being so very amusing.

    "Yes, I imagine you would not want to sound like Osamu. Even to this day he loses his peko every morning. Hm. In fact, I believe I saw a few New World Alliance adventurers bringing it back just a few hours ago. Most kind of them."

    She will wait for Shenmi to turn to see her before gliding into her curtsey. It is not quite as it was. Certainly it has an air of perfection, but it is simultaneously formal, welcoming, and warm. The way she smiles and the slight crinkles of amusement at the corner of her eyes soften it.

    "You are most welcome, Master Shenmi. And of course we will ensure that Mr. Bao is rooted out of hiding. No doubt he will have done quite a number of Tae's carrots by now."

"Oh, Baroness! You have startled me!" Shenmi exclaims, while looking completely unstartled. Maybe he's just being polite, as a way of praising Wake's Sneaking skillsm, or perhaps he's just startled on the inside. Hard to tell. He does, however, doff his hat and bow. "It is always a honor to be received by you in person," and as he stands up and replaces his hat on his head, he lets out a little sigh. "That bun-bun is too clever for its own good. The ultimate Enriched Environment, you could say. He's probably not only uprooting root vegetables as we speak, but making a little show about it for the moles."

That said, he quirks an eyebrow. "Oh, Osamu? The... farmer with... peko pen issues?" He makes a little circular gesture with his finger. "...Well, I'm glad he found a new home." A little silence. "A new home with... still... peko pen issues?" Is that what the Baroness meant? "Some things never change... I guess?"

    "I apologize for making you wait! I was attending to a small matter. Considering the situation, I believe we had best head right to the most likely spot."

    The fastest way there is a bit twisty, but not terribly far. In a couple minutes, the baroness has led Shenmi out an exit and into her garden. Now the vegetable garden is not so far off, but along the way the vibrant colors of her roses can be seen. The symbol of Eas is in full force and many bees are about their business, gathering nectar. Here and there they are joined by butterflies.

    Along the way, Elly gets back to the topic of the Lander.

    "Osamu's returned to his roots, let us say. He was only in Tolbana when the war threatened us here. He was most pleased to return, where he knows the people better. Every day someone helps him with his peko. Some are so good they can manage it all in just five minutes!"

    Eventually, they reach Tae's vegetable garden. As for what condition it is in, well... hopefully Mr. Bao has left something for others to enjoy!

On the way there, Shenmi slows down to admire the bees and the butterflies. He even extends one hand, and a couple of insects land on it. The moment of interaction doesn't last long, though: there's assistants to retrieve, and soon, he lets the insects fly away while he follows the Baroness. "You have good bees over here. No wonder your garden is so luxuriant." Even if he had not remarked it explicitly, it was clear from the way he was looking around that the richness of the vegetation was not lost on him.

As people reach the designated spot, Shenmi immediately kneels down, to looks for any indication of where his bun-bun may have gone. Paw pints. Tracks. Anything. "Glad the matter is settled quickly...", he comments, semi-distractedly, on the subject of Osamu. It's the bun-bun hunt which gets full attention. "I mean, I cannot call the kettle names. Here I am, looking for my own fugitive... hmm. Yes, yes. I think he must be around here... somewhere... wait." He snaps to look at Wake, terror barely restrained. "You don't have bun-buns of your own, do you?"

    The compliment is appreciated. "There are many hands who put their love into making it this way. Whether it is caring for our bees by giving them safe places to nest, or providing seed to keep our crows happy and comfortable, or even pruning all these plants, the Landers of Eas have their feet and fingers in the land itself. They are so true to their name and I love being among them."

    She watches Shenmi investigate. Certainly she can see there is some evidence of trouble in the garden, though she's not got a great eye for it. To her untrained eye, it could just be that Tae happened to harvest something on her own.

    "Bun-buns? No, we do not keep them. I am under the impression that they can cause issues when they couple and that they are remarkably prolific. While I certainly revere such fertility, I would prefer it be done away from my people."

"And I am positive you are aware how, when they join in large numbers, they combine into an avalanche of destruction." Shenmi, who has gotten down on his knees by now (hopefully that suit is easy enough to wash!), keeps observing the ground closely, his movements becomng slower and slower. He doesn't talk anymore, his eyes narrow, and-

Snap!

"A-HA!", he exclaims: with a sudden movement, he had reached into the foliage; he is now holding a bun-bun with a little top hat tied around his head. "There you go, you little rascal!"

He stands again, animal companion held up by one forearm while the opposite hand strokes its back fur. "I hope you are keeping a close eye on them," he resumes, on the subject of the Landers. "While your Landers here in Yamato don't seem to have gone down the deep end like ours in the Palace Lands, well..." He inhales. Hesitates. "...you know, they're both Landers. What happened over there with us might... happen anywhere."

    "And what happened among humans in the world before could happen now," replies Wake calmly. "I will judge my people as I always have. One terrible act among people in another land does not change my view of those I know here. Is that not exactly what caused all those issues to begin with? By judging the whole kind by the acts of a few?"

    She turns her attention to Mr. Bao. She laughs gently and offers a little wave at the trespasser. "I hope you enjoyed your stay in our gardens, Mr. Bao, and that you found our produce to be of the very highest quality."

    She is no handler of animals or monsters, but she finds Mr. Bao to be adorable. No doubt to Shenmi's chagrin. "I understand, of course, that what happened to you and your people was horrible. Perhaps I understand it more than anyone who wasn't there. It's a sadly familiar story, really. And we are going to continue helping as we can with their efforts to be free. We have not forgotten. But frankly, my Alliance does not yet have the reach to exert our will on a power like that in Rosenheim. Not yet. But... as you know, Adventurers are powerful. We are creative. Resilient. And stubborn. We will find our way through this together."

Shenmi nods. "Just like humans have done on the Outside, many times in history, yes." Shenmi confirms. "Which is why, in general, it's a good idea to keep an eye on humans, too." And doesn't elaborate further.

Bao twitches his nose at Wake's words, and Shenmi cannot do anything but sigh slightly and shake his head. "He seems to have had the time of his life, based on what I can see."

Shenmi bows again, and with a swift movement of his hands, one single circular sweep of his headgear, his hat is doffed, Bao gently coaxed into it at the bottom of the arc, and, presto, the hat is donned once again. "Thank you again for your services. I hope we'll meet soon." He gives the top of his hat a couple taps, and smirks. "We are creative, resilient, and most importantly, dang dang stubborn."