Sake houses always led to the ruin of a man. Almost all the time.

"Let's drink and be merry! For tomorrow we might find ourselves going far away from all these lovely ladies!" Shinjo Yasamura finished his sake and the geisha poured more into his cup. She smiled at the generous and charming Unicorn, a regular costumer of their geisha houses. He promptly downed it.

"You'll still be here tomorrow, Yasamura! I haven't heard anything about your father sending you off soon." Shinjo Sanetama, Master of the Hunt, lifted the sake cup to his lips without spilling. That was a feat, since they've been drinking for quite some time. The geisha beside him didn't stop playing the biwa for even a moment, even when another Unicorn samurai fell down snoring at her feet. "While I-I will be going back to my post."

"A pity! You're more fun than Goshi."

"Is that all you think of, Yasamura?"

"What else should I think of? Women? Of course I think of women!" He smiled at the geisha beside him, who giggled behind her wide sleeve. "Women consist half of Rokugan's population! It'll be a pity if I don't think about them, right, right?!" He nudged his friend, and Sanetama almost dropped his cup at the jab. He recovered immediately.

"I meant you keep having fun. You have to be serious one of these days, Yasamura. You are the son of the daimyo, you have duties to perform, even more duties than the rest of us. And yet you keep spending your nights like you were as free as a bird."

"Hah, you sound exactly like-" His bleary eyes narrowed. "Ah, father sent for you to drum some sense into me, didn't he?"

"No, he did not. I wanted some free time. I came here, because I heard the women of Otosan-Uchi are the most beautiful in the whole of Rokugan. Even more than our battle-maidens." He smiled appreciatively at the geisha giggling beside him. "I agree."

"Speaking of battle-maidens-how are they?"

Sanetama laughed. Yasamura's reputation as a playboy was well earned. "Anyone in particular you want to ask about?"

"No, let's start in general, then I'll ask about them one by one."

Sanetama raised an eyebrow. He couldn't resist the jab to his friend's amorous adventures. "Don't tell me you flirt with them as a group these days, Yasamura-san."

"No, just that well, it's easier this way, ne?"

"Crazy, you've always been the crazy one, Yasamura-san."

"And you'd always been so serious, Sanetama-san. You need to loosen up a bit. The women like casual men, men who can make them laugh. Just like me."

"Hah. I believe you when you have all the women at your feet. I seem to be getting my fair share of attention."

"Is that a challenge of my abilities, my friend?" Yasamura asked, a drunken glint in his eyes. Sanetama took his time to drink his sake and have his cup refilled.

"If you take it that way, my friend."

"Hah, very well. Find me a woman who will not end head over ears in love with me when I court her and you will get the pick of next year's foaling, and be hanged what the battle-maidens will say."

"How about a Crane?" Sanetama asked. "They're pretty enough."

"Hah! Sanetama, you must be slipping. Sure I'll take on a Crane, any Crane you name! But why are we talking about something so serious in the middle of merriment? Let's drink some more!"

---

"Hung over," Sanetama pronounced succinctly as Yasamura nearly crawled to sneak past the loud hall and find a quiet corner to eat breakfast. His friend lowered himself on the bench and a heimin brought him food.

"Yes. It's awful. Ouch..." Yasamura rubbed his head. "Why did I drink so much anyway?"

"I think you were trying to match me drink for drink."

"Remind me to NEVER do that again! Why, you were drinking enough shochu for twelve men!"

"Maybe eight, but not twelve." Sanetama grinned. "I hope you remember what we agreed to bet on last night. I haven't."

"Bet? Oh, yes, the Crane. Well, you didn't name anyone last night, but did you find one for me?"

"I found a perfect one earlier today, Yasamura-san. I'm sure you'll agree." Sanetama had such a grin of evil mischief Yasamura ought to have known better. But Yasamura was suffering such a headache he didn't notice.

"So name her...I do hope it's a her, by the way. Knowing your bad sight you might have mistaken one of their men for women…"

"Oh, no, she's a she all right. Just the perfect little Iron Crane..."

Yasamura's eyes widened when he heard the words Iron Crane. "Oh, no-not one of those..."

"Yes, Yasamura-san. I've no doubt even Daidoji Rekai would fall for you."

Yasamura groaned at the name. "Smite me now, Shinjo-sama!"

~to be continued, because comedies are hard to write~