Despite the harsh rain that greeted the settlement in the morning, Asako Chiruha made it a point to brave the elements and visit the farmlands. She was dressed for the occasion, wearing a heavy cloak that was wrapped around her colonist jumpsuit and tall rubber boots. By the time she arrived inside one of the stables keeping the otori assigned to the guests, she was drenched and caked in mud.

Chiruha let out a relieved breath that she managed to make the trek, wiping the rain from her face. However, she didn't further waste time getting to work. The otori here were safe but very stressed by the loud rain and being trapped inside. She began to make her rounds to check on each bird.

In one of the stalls was a handsome black-and-white otori, being fed morsels of spongy fungus by a male Scorpion in a dark red ship's uniform. His boots were somewhat muddy from the ill-weather, and he was leaning over to pat the large bird affectionately between spongy fungus treats.

"Oh, hello," said the person next to the otori, straightening self-consciously and bowing to Chiruha once he realized she was there. "I, um, was just checking on Daitan," he said, tilting his head to indicate the otori. "My name is Bayushi Akagi. I hope I'm not in the way, I can move if you need me to."

"Good morning," she said with a smile and returned the bow in kind. "I'm Asako Chiruha, pleased to meet you. You're not in the way at all. Actually, I don't actually own or run the ranch here...but I'm just hoping to check up on some of the otori here. The rain isn't exactly great on their nerves sometimes."

She paused for a moment and checked her communicator when her connection caught up after a delay.


...So he is...strange, what is that about?

Putting her communicator away, she approached the Akagi. "So your otori is named Daitan?"

"Pleased to meet you," Akagi said, bowing again. "You must be Asako Ryo's sister, then? I met him earlier on."


"Yes, that's right," Akagi agreed, beaming proudly. "I picked him up during the otori riding event a couple days ago. He's only mine for the duration of my stay here, so I've been spending time with him when I can."

"Do you work with the otori a lot?" he asked. "I hadn't known that they didn't like the rain. Is it bad for their feathers?"

Chiruha chuckled and nodded at the question. "That's right, I'm his sister, his older sister. It might have hard to imagine considering how Beansprout can't seem to stop growing. I'm sure at some point I'll need a ladder to properly greet him."

"That's good that you're willing to give him some company. Otori surprising bond very well with humans and being around one helps familiarize them more to us. There have been some reports that they even take on some mannerism from us but I'm not entirely sure about that. Still, especially a time like this, it's better that they see us as friends than strangers," she nodded appreciatively at Akagi.

"No, it's not the rain...it's just how they're kind of stuck in close quarters. It's often best to have them out in the field and allowed to get exercise however they can. They don't often try to escape...but the rain seems to coax that sort of bold behaviours in them, especially when their instincts are to find shelter in the wild. When they're cramped together like this, they know they're safe but it's easy for one otori's anxiety to spread to another quickly."

Akagi nodded. "I could see how panic running through the flock could be a big problem," the Bayushi agreed, imagining their powerful frames battering the walls down. "Especially if there's thunder and lightning."

"Is there a trick to calming them during a storm, Asako-sama?" Akagi asked curiously. "I've just been trying to pet Daitan, and talk to him a little. But if there's something that works really well, I'd appreciate knowing."

"Maintaining a calm demeanour and giving them the occasional pets is pretty good, Bayushi-san. Not all of them get agitated but some of the younger otori do, which I suspect is the majority of the ones on loan here. You can tell that they are agitated if they are jittery and more vocal, especially aggressively so to their kin and riders. More extreme behaviour includes gnawing of their own limbs and even ripping out their feathers."

"Ripping out their own feathers?" Akagi repeated, sounding a little alarmed at the thought. "I should not like to see these noble birds driven to such an extreme! Daitan seems settled well enough. If you will permit it, perhaps I might assist you in calming the other otori?"

Chiruha smiled faintly, hoping to not make further cause for concern. "That's the most extreme case but it has been known to happen, especially when an otori has found themselves holed up in these pens for too long, for better or worse. You can help me check on them, more than one set of eyes on these birds would help. Petting them and giving them something else for attention might help but be careful. The trick is to remind them that you're not a threat."

She walked over to Daitan and offered and open a hand as if to present her intentions to the otori before approaching for a delicate pet. "Much like this."

"I shall watch the master at work," Akagi proclaimed with a joking smile. And in fact, he did watch Chiruha and how she calmly approached Daitan and seemed to immediately make the otori feel more at ease. "Wow, you are good at this."

The Bayushi attempted to imitate Chiruha's actions, carefully showing his open hand to the otori in the next stall.

"I wouldn't say good but I had some practice. To be honest, it started some bruised and cut fingers before I got the hang of it. Of course, it would help to wear a thick glove if you were doing this for the first time, but I thought I would get the hang of it on the first day..." she chuckled and gave a careful look to see that Akagi was doing it right.

"But...I think it helps that you were here already for some time with an otori who gets along with you. I think the rest of the flock here will treat you well enough," she chuckled.

"How marvelous," Akagi murmured, as one bird after another was reassured and settled down by Chiruha, with a little help from himself. Before long, the Scorpion seemed to be picking up the knack of it.

"You must work with otori quite a lot, Asako-sama?" he asked politely. "They clearly know you well. I must admit, I'm a little surprised that someone as important as you doesn't have lots of assistants to help with this sort of thing."

"Not as much as the ranchers and animal handlers here but I do know a bit about them. My father gifted me with an otori some time ago and I also do a lot of zoology work with their species too, both at home and in the wild. Admittedly, there are other samurai who do the same thing around here, as we do have several teams of who go out in the wild to catalogue and survey both fauna and flora. Everything we discover and record goes back to the shiro where data is stored and crossed referenced. In a way, I'm just one of many zoologists working with others at the same time."

After petting Daitan, she hovered neared Akagi as he looked after the other otori, just making sure there are no incidents with lost fingers.

The Scorpion seemed to be getting the hang of doing it right, and they managed to finish going through all the stalls without any ruffled feathers or lost fingers. From Akagi’s small smile and friendly body language, he seemed to sincerely enjoy interacting with the otori.

“Thanks for your guidance, Asako-sama,” Akagi said, bowing to her as they finished. “I’ve never seen birds like the otori before coming to Asakaze. It was very...educational.”

"Well done, Bayushi-san!" she complimented him with a bright smile. "As onery and impulsive the otori are sometimes, I feel that they are a very good judge of character in people and we must approach them in the same way. If you're only intending to comfort them, they'll know your intention and act as such. They are very keen birds and if you stick to one long enough, they might even show you a thing or two in return. They make pretty good guides in the wilderness."