Where the Fox and the Serval meet

[yasha]

To the Holy Island of Kingdom of Greater and Lesser Foxtrove, regarding an unusual, but important relationship.

To His Majesty King Graham of Foxtrove,

I doubt this message comes as a surprise to you, as my political platform was largely based around the building, and rebuilding of ties with the members of the international community. Regardless, Himeyama's relationship with Foxtrove is a rather unique one, brought on by a horrific conflict in our recent history; and while this relationship has thankfully never been a cold one, the effort to improve it has been quite lacking. And as the newly-elected premier of the Syndicated Confederacy, it is my duty to take the necessary steps to create a prosperous and strong bond between the Foxtrovian and Himeyan people.

To this end, I wish to invite you, or delegates of your choosing to visit our fair city of Aofumiya, in the Suiseikawa province. Here we can hopefully sit down and create a lasting friendship.

Signed,

武蔵椎名
Shiina Musashi
Premier Executive Administrator of Himeyama

[Holy King]

To: Shiina Musashi
Premier Executive Administrator of Himeyama

It shall seem an honor to be able to visit Himeyama. As you have stated, the Foxtrovian-Himeyan relationship is an awkward one as the civil war that had consumed your country was once backed by the king, although hopefully now we can warm things up so to speak.

I myself, shall head to Aofumiya as a delegate, as I believe this will help bring our nations closer together. Although I do hope the weather isn't to hot for a man such as myself.

Signed, Graham the First of his Name, King of Greater and Lesser Foxtrove, and the Ironclad Isles

[/color]
 

[yasha]

Aofumiya was something the Himeyans liked showing off. A bit of masterful urban design and planning, some highly innovative architecture and a nice view of the Himeyan coast made it a city they felt like bragging about. Plus, tourism to the city was a major source of income, but far from the primary. It was almost no surprise at all that Shiina wanted King Graham to visit there of all places, especially when they were expected to hold talks in the penthouse of the Ginteien-to, the tallest building in Aofumiya.

Shiina had fond memories of Foxtrove, after all, it's where she acquired her favourite accessory, an enormous orange gemstone that dangled from her ceremonial sash, gifted to her by King Graham the last time they met during his coronation. This time it was Himeyama's turn to show off. The Premier had parked her red sports car off to the side of the runway that King Graham's aircraft was due to touch down at soon. Watching the skies, Shiina subtly pulled a slim metal flask from her jacket, taking a swig with her body turned away from the journalists sectioned off in the distance. "Drinking already Shiina? Thought you and the king were gonna be having cocktails over there pretty soon." It was Secretary of State Farrah Kafuka, pointing up to the one skyscraper that stood above the rest, the Ginteien-to.

"Helps me be more decisive, in moderation of course." Shiina replied, taking another sip before capping the flask and sliding it back into her jacket. "Some people consider moderation to be not drinking enough to pass out." Farrah sighed. "If I were keen on making a fool of myself, I doubt I'd be Premier." Shiina snapped back, as the low rumbling of jet engines slowly became audible in the distance.

"Tsukunda..." Farrah muttered under the sound of the Foxtrovian aircraft closing in on the Aofumiya Air Hub. Shiina preferred not to make a scene, no red carpets or army bands playing national anthems, no gunlines of photographers with their flashing cameras, as spoiled as she was, Shiina wasn't one to be treated like a celebrity, she found it intrusive. Instead, she liked letting the location speak for itself, in the case of Aofumiya, the modern and sophisticated skyline had combined simple shapes like cubes into incredibly intricate and complex structures, and the air hub was hardly different; unlike the dark and gritty sci-fi feel of Shidarekawa, Aofumiya was quite warm and welcoming in appearance.

As the Foxtrovian jet came to a halt on the executive airstrip, Shiina and Farrah stepped forward, prepared to bow and then greet their Foxtrovian counterparts.

[Holy King]

As the Foxtrovian jet landed with a screech that pierced the ears, and coming to a stop on the asphalt. The personal plane of the king, The Eagle, had made it into Himeyan city of Aofumiya. After a short while, the stairs came to the doors of the jet, and soon after that, the doors opened. The first people to step out were two of the royal guards, the white armor standing out here. Following them, was King Graham who him self lead two more royal guards. The two in front went both right and left, and gave a salute to their king. The king returned the salute, and the four guards returned back into the jet.

The king himself was surprised at the skyline of Aofumiya, the skyscrapers that towered above the ground like mountains of steel, but even these mountains were shadowed by another.  "That's a helluva a site.", the king said to no one. He began his walk to the premier, and when he reached her he said, "Hello Ms. Premier, I wish you good graces on this day." He looked around and stared at the journalists before a gave them a wave and a smile. "Anyhow we are into that large tower, are we not?, he looked at her " Or is it just for a display?"

[yasha]

The premier flashed a smirk at the king before turning her head back, a quick chuckle escaping her lips before she spoke. "Huhu, you live up the the Tusdorholm bloodline's reputation for being clever. A good host wouldn't present their guests with wine, only to serve them tea." she said, looking up at the tower. "They call it Ginteien-to-- the Silver Garden Tower, you'll see why soon enough, Your Majesty." Shiina finished, gesturing the king to look forward.

A quiet alarm and some flashing red lights on the ground signaled the pair to hold still for a moment. "Watch this." Shiina said, smiling ear to ear with pride. A helicopter slowly rotated as it rose from the ground. "Executive helicopter hangar located right below us." Shiina explained while walking with the king towards the helicopter. "I like to travel in style, something I hope we have in common, otherwise my little gift I gave you during your coronation might've been for nothing." she said, helping King Graham aboard.

"Care for a bit of brandy?" Shiina asked after getting comfortable in her seat.

[Holy King]

"Brandy? No thanks.", the king said beginning to relax in his chair. "Not much of fan, sorry to say." Graham paused for a moment while staring out of the window of the helicopter taking them to their destination, "Oh, the gift during the coronation, yes, quite enjoyable around the mountain roads."

Graham watched the city below with some amount of joy that a child would have receiving a new gift. "You know, we don't have cities of these size in Foxtrove. Impressive that these cities were even built, and even more impressive that the people managed to live here." The king turned to face Musashi, "If you took that as an insult, I apologize." Graham paused again. "Oh, if may we start the diplomacy now or shall we save that once we land at our location?"

[yasha]

Shiina tilted her head to the side. "Feel like getting straight into it?" she asked with a smirk. "I like your style, but we have plenty of time. After a flight that long I wouldn't expect anyone would want to act with haste." Sitting back against the corner of the cabin, she opened a cabinet just beside her head, pulling a bottle of brandy lodged between the seat cushions and placing it back inside. "Foxtrove is definitely a different sort of place, if you're used to the peace and quiet of those little islands, it must be a bit dizzying setting foot in a place like this. You won't have to worry about the noise where we're headed though." she said, kicking her feet out to stretch a little. There was enough room in the helicopter that you could lie down comfortably on the floor.

The helicopter eased itself down on a landing pad near the penthouse of the Ginteien-to, and hardly moving a muscle, the Premier flicked a switch near her feet and pressed a button on the door, causing it to open in a swift and smooth motion. Lazily rolling out onto (almost) solid ground, Shiina helped Graham down onto the landing pad. "This isn't something a whole lot of people get to see." the Premier boasted while leading King Graham up a flight of stairs.

Just over the ledge was a lush, stunning garden. Exotic flowers and bamboo plants were elaborately placed on either side of traditional wood arches to create a dreamlike, almost surreal scene. "This way." She said to King Graham, trying hard not to get distracted by the scenery herself. A bit further inwards was a small glass room surrounded by a decorative moat, inside was a low table with a staircase leading down, the door was left open in anticipation of the two leaders. "Fire exit is through those bamboo trees and down the stairs, take the helicopter." Shiina said jokingly, taking a seat on one of the cushions. "Now, if there's anything you'd like to discuss first, feel free to bring it up. If you'd like any refreshments, we have quite the cellar here."

[Holy King]

"Quite the impressive area you have here, if I do say so myself." the King said, "But I have to wonder do you only show this place for meetings such as this?" The king sat down in his chair and began to make himself comfortable. "Topics to discuss huh?" The king began to pour himself a glass of whiskey before he spoke up again. "If you wouldn't mind a discussion about...let's see here...", the king paused and scratched his chin, "I was wondering if our nations could have a economic deal? One of our exports for one of yours?" The king took a sip of his drink. "What ever it may be I'm sure we can find a common ground, no? Or should you be the one to decide the deal or whatever it may be?"

[yasha]

"Always interested in making money go back and forth. Frankly, I have reason to believe Foxtrove has quite an abundance of precious stones and metals; of course you can correct me if I'm wrong." Shiina said, holding up her favourite gemstone for them both to see. While the king sat and enjoyed the scenery-- and his vodka, the premier had opened a bottle of beer and emptied the deep red liquid into a goblet glass. "As for this particular location, we like to reserve it for diplomatic events; though that doesn't stop the occasional millionaire from booking it for a wedding or whatnot when we aren't using it. Anything that's booked for the Ginteien-to penthouse is probably something worth going to." Shiina said with a chuckle, for a top level politician, even in Himeyama, Shiina was incredibly young; and she owed much of that success to social media, which she'd frequently be featured in when she crashed some nightclub during the elections. Before the voting even started, it was obvious to everyone that Shiina Musashi had a chokehold on the nation's younger voters.

"Back on the topic of business deals, I just remembered something. Our largest sportswear company, KASUYA has shown an extensive interest in the winter sports that take place in Foxtrove.
In fact, they've been wanting to not only sponsor these events, but work alongside their organizers and athletes to develop products more suitable for wintertime athletics. Of course they haven't proposed this themselves yet, but since we're talking business here, I figured I'd bring it up anyways."

She took a sip of her beer, hoping King Graham was as passionate about sports as she was. After all, Foxtrove had a rugby team, and all things considered, it was a fairly decent one.

[Holy King]

The king thought about this offer for some time. "So a Himeyen company wishes to sponsor events in Foxtrove then?" The king took another sip of his drink. "Very well why not? Can't see this hurting anyone really." The king quickly pulled out a flask and refilled his cup before putting the flask away back into his coat pockets. "Although I do have a proposition for you, however. One of our companies by the name of I.C.F.A wishes to test a new model of assault rifles in different environments and one of these environments just so happens to be in a climate similar to one found in the horn. So here is the question; can we test in Himeyama?" The king took a deep breath, "We only ask this as you are the only country we have a good standing with on the horn."