The ditty bag's packed. The gifts--wax tablet, primer, stylus, and the netsuki--are where they need to be. The room's as tidy as it can be before it's last night's use--and that'll be handled in the morning.

Gusai nods, drinks a bit from the baiju, grimaces. Doesn't do well when it's been opened, he thinks. I'll have to keep it in mind.

A scratch on the door frame. "Gusai san... are you busy?"

Recognizing the voice--he's missing an eye, not an ear--Gusai fairly leaps to his feet, opening the door.

"Sasori-san!" he says, happily, smiling. "Please, come in!"

Sasori took a step in closing the door behind her. "I hope I am not intruding?" She walked closer to the man. "I am wondering if... you could allow this cat in your ship?" She knows that the answer is yes but then again never hurt to ask.

"I'd be happy to have you--either way you want to be," Gusai replies. And his hand reaches out to touch her back as he does so.

"I am glad you haven't changed your mind." She enjoyed his touch. "I... never thought I would meet someone like you." She blushed. "not many will give their aid to someone like this one."

Gusai's fingertips trace up and down her back.

"Well," he says, "there's something about you I find...compelling."

He smiles. "And not many look me in my left eye and don't look away."

She place her hand on his face and caress his cheek. "It is... not bad. Besides I promised lessons to find things and something I have learned in this few days is that not only eyes can see what is there." She smiled. "Mmm... some say that I am too... eccentric to be of use."

Gusai turns his head, kisses her fingers, before he replies.

"Who thinks you're 'too eccentric to be of use,' Sori-chan?" he asks. And, yes, he uses a nickname. With them there together alone, why not?

"Some of my sensei." She shrugged. "Master knows better." She smiled. "Sori chan nya, I like it...Sai kun." She moved he head to his shoulder to rub against it.

Gusai's hand on her back wanders lower; Gusai's had cats aboard ship before, and he knows that if you scratch them just above the tail...

"Nya..." The girl enjoyed that. "Do you want to start the search training?"

Gusai takes a moment to recall--but does so. And he keeps scratching as close as he can get to the base of her spine.

"Where do we begin, Sori-chan?"

"Start by something simple..."She smiled deviously "Try to find my lips."

Gusai's answering smile is roguish, almost leering. "With what?" he asks. "Because there're several things..."

Sasori smiled. "With what would you want to find them?" She poked his nose.

"You minx, you," Gusai replies, and he kisses her full on the mouth.

His hand does not leave her back, though it presses, now, rather than scratching.

The kiss was well received. The girl moved closer as she placed her arms around the Otomo and smiled.

"Now," Gusai says, returning the smile, "I know there's gotta be more to the lesson than that."

"Of course there is." She moved her arms to go around his hips. "Do you know how to find a good booty?"