Destiny's Sweet Redemption
By Kay-chan
The young man appeared at the inn door one snowy, frigid night. He was cloaked heavily in black but even as such, his artistic appearance was obvious. His shoulders were wide, and bright blue eyes shone graceful but full of weariness.
The innkeeper looked up from the desk, his eyes widening slightly. "May I help you?" The young man nodded.
"I will tell a story for room and board." His voice was deep and full of an odd inflection. "Maybe you can help me find what I'm looking for."
The innkeeper nodded. "Have a seat before the fire, sir."
With a nod, the man did, with his back to the innkeeper. People gathered; a storyteller out in these reaches, in this day, were rare and far between.
The young man cleared his throat with a small cough, then began his story.
Her eyes weren't as full of light or life as they had once been, nor was her step as quick. Now her step was uncertain, swaying slightly beneath the thick, heavy robes; her eyes, instead of emerald, were fading into the solitary gray of sightlessness. Her voice wasn't as strong, as seductively smooth as it used to be, now it was low, lifeless shadows.
However, the empress' successor was as young as the empress was old, as beautiful as the empress was haggard and pale, as full of life as the empress was lost to it. The empress smiled at her successor, who gazed out the window, smiling at the sight of the scarlet-and-gold sun rising gently above the horizon.
"Sai, must I continue to remind you that your presentation to your suitors later today is more important that watching the sun rise, koibito?"
The maiden turned her head to look at the elderly empress, then smiled. Her eyes were blue, as beautifully blue as the pottery in the grand reception hall. Her hair was past her thighs, long, silky, and unusual: instead of the onyx-black, it was as if the rich color of freshly-prepared tea had infused the strands; they were as brown as the liquid itself. Sai's face was exotic, certainly different; the girl's long dark lashes framed the blue eyes and set them off perfectly. Her lips were the perfect rosebud, and naturally shell-pink. Her figure was soft and curvaceous, and she looked like one of the revered temple-maidens, and each young man of the kingdom longed to have her and the title that came with her.
Her parents had already had two children, both healthy, strong males, and had been unwilling to give up their sons: Nuriden and Shinji. Young Sai had never known her brothers or her parents; only Kiyomori. It wasn't that Kiyomori had been unkind, no, quite the contrary, she had been anything but.
Before she had been given to the Searchers, her parents had named her Kirei, for even as an infant, Sai had been extraordinarily beautiful. Sai's father had been a soldier in another kingdom, and, as strange as it sounded, had long, carefully groomed blond hair. His eyes had been blue as the faded sky that, even when she had been a baby, he had managed to instill in her a passion for. He had been tall and calm, and when she was younger, Sai had dreamed about him often, had woken up crying for him.
It had stung Kiyomori to the quick when those nights had come, cold and dark and moonless for the empress, younger then, who had comforted the child as well as she could. For Kiyomori, who had begun the training upon Sai, couldn't very well return her to her original family, could she?
The old empress still had her doubts, when Sai gazed out the window like some restrained, winged phoenix who longed to fly out in the sky, to feel the breeze caress her like a lover. Kiyomori knew the same feeling.
Sai smiled. "Let's get started, mother Kiyomori." Her blue eyes shone softly, and the stirring breeze from the window moved her tea-shaded hair about her pale face, making her look like some sort of fairy-maiden.
Kiyomori agreed, picking up the brush. "Then have a seat, dear one." Sai nodded, sitting delicately upon the heavy cushion, her nightclothes spreading gracefully out on the silk as Kiyomori brushed her hair. She hummed as she memorized her speech for later, looking down at the thick black symbols brushed onto the parchment.
"Mother Kiyomori? Why must I do this, if not for love? Am I destined only to bear a son to continue the dynasty?" Sai's voice quivered with uncertainty as she continued to scan the pages with her eyes.
Kiyomori dropped the brush on the ground with a loud clatter. "You will marry the one you deem fit. And if he needs you in his empire, you will go there. And there will be a choosing of another maiden to take your place."
Sai nodded morosely, sighing. "Yes, Mother Kiyomori. I understand and will follow your direction."
"That's a good girl." Within, fear, then relief flared in Kiyomori. Sai had always been a good child, but her questions sometimes made Kiyomori uncomfortable. During the slightly rebellious thirteenth year of her life, Sai had been just filled with questions. Now she only had one or two in her arsenal.
Within hours, Sai was clean and scented and graceful as the fairy-changeling she seemed to be. Her long dark lashes framed her blue eyes perfectly, and her tea-brown hair shone lustrously. The shifting of her silken robes brushed softly against her ankles. She seemed to be a lady swallow, cloaked in beautiful peacocks' plumes.
"Finally, my flighty swallow-maiden appears as a tame peacock." Kiyomori's voice was calm and pleasant, full of a tangible pride.
Sai, gazing into her reflection, had to agree: she looked transformed. Her body was swaddled in silk, scented softly with lavender and valerian; sleepy, pleasant scents. The garments slid softly over one another, producing a sound like falling rain. She did enjoy those times when she was dressed up, but this was not exactly formal. This was exquisite, and accented her graceful curves like water slipping over them.
Lightly Kiyomori placed a correcting hand on an errant strand of deep, glistening tea brown. "You are beautiful, love. Every man that sees you tonight will adore you."
"Let us hope that you are correct."
The music played softly as Sai walked down the small aisle among the crowd of people, most of them men, royalty or near to it. Those notes Sai would remember for an eternity, playing sweetly gentle over the air like wind. There were many gasps as each eye met Sai, her beautiful, assured air of confidence seeming to surround her with a strangely beautiful light.
She lifted her lowered head for a moment to gaze about through eyes blue as delicate china's glaze. They seemed to catch on one pair that were cool and aloof, yet they stood out as blue as her own in the sea of gold, brown, and green.
Sai almost paused in her steps to study the man. His hair was strangely blond, and it hung just-so about a slender face, aristocratically formed. He was tall, and he moved with a leonine grace, lazy, almost indecently calm.
Once the maiden had finished the display, the crowd converged upon her for long, precarious moments. Sai searched the throng for the man she had seen, and, finding his face in the crowd, her heart leapt in happiness.
Sai answered many questions and soon tired with the impersonality of them. Her sighs grew more frequent, and she wearied of the lascivious looks. Many of these blackguards, if given half a chance, would take and try to break her of all her dreams. There would be no such chance for these.
Still others' glances were truly admiring, more calm, and light, scholarly. The blond man's eyes were upon her as well, warm, admiring but still longing. Sai flushed with pleasure and renewed energy.
Finally Sai was left to breathe. She wandered about a moment, pausing to accept a small refreshment here, or a sip of some delightful, exotic berry tea there.
She was not waylaid long. The blond man approached her, his steps long and graceful, a ripple of muscles that Sai tried to dismiss in her maidenly mind.
"Good evening, Lady Sai." His voice was deep, warm, and pleasant. His blue eyes flashed lightly.
"Hello, sir. Might I inquire of your name?" Sai's voice, whisper-light, nearly faltered, much to her chagrin.
"I am Nakago, Lady. You are beautiful." The way he put it, with his shining eyes upon her, Sai could barely refute it.
"You are much too kind, sire." Sai blushed prettily, and it brought out a fresh light in her face. This Nakago was charming and very beautiful, just perfect.
Nakago rested one hand upon Sai's shoulder. "Perhaps we could go out onto the balcony for a bit of fresh air." Sai nodded, her tea-brown hair glistening softly as it fell over her blue eyes.
Lifting one hand to gently push them back, Nakago smiled. This girl was all that he had said, and he did wish to know her better.
Seated at the head of the room, the empress watched the happenings. She delighted as Nakago found Sai's side and, with his quiet grace escorted her out onto the balcony. No doubt the girl was all but giggling within. Of course, the empress had great faith in Sai. The future empress would do well by herself, that could be counted upon.
With one hand upon Nakago's strong, warm arm Sai felt herself to be flying somewhere in the hidden recesses of her heart, though she maintained her outer composure. Despite herself, she couldn't help blushing mildly at the venomous stares of the other suitors at Nakago, and she nearly ducked to avoid being impaled on one of them.
Nakago gazed down with warm blue eyes at the diminutive, graceful maiden at his side. There weren't many with this exotic sort of grace in the entire country, let alone in his small region.
Upon seeing her, he had almost drawn in his breath. His mind had automatically leapt ahead, seeing the girl in a beautiful wedding costume, made of so many floating materials of pastel that gently washed in foamy layers about her.
They had reached the balcony, and the stars gleaming luminously provided a perfect background for the heavy sickle moon that shimmered as though magical. Nakago was watching Sai, though, smiling dreamily. What was he thinking? This was seriously out of character, he thought ruefully.
Sai's heart beat as fast as a hummingbird's wings, feeling the warmth of Nakago's eyes upon her so that she felt compelled to speak softly, as though in a whisper. "Aren't the skies beautiful tonight?"
Nakago was almost startled by the angelic sweetness in her tone. Her voice was so small, so fragile, like the soaring of a mythical creature's trilling. It shimmered in the air around him like a silver bell. "Yes, Lady Sai, but they hardly compare to your own beauty." He knew he sounded like a shameless flatterer.
Sai's flush returned to her pale cheeks, and she gazed up at him with such blue eyes that Nakago wondered if he had fallen into the pristine azure sea of them.
Tentatively he slipped an arm about her slender little shoulders to find that she was shivering. "Lady Sai, are you cold?" His voice contained concern.
The girl, with a nod of her head, looked up at him apologetically. Nakago removed his cloak and slipped it about her shoulders.
As if by instinct, Sai stepped a bit closer to him, closer to his warmth. Nakago's arm tightened slightly about her, careful but quiet. The pair stood there gazing up at the stars, until, with a warm, gusty sigh, Nakago embraced Sai.
The maiden wasn't surprised, but secretly pleased as a warm happiness welled up in a secret corner of her spirit. She relaxed, slender and warm, in Nakago's arms with a small sigh. How she wished she could remain there for all time!
Nakago was astonished at how soft, how willowy her grace was, so close that he inhaled the perfume of her, sweet wisteria combined with roses.
Time passed, more than would have been deemed proper. Nakago sighed and opened his arms to release her. The young lady appeared sweetly dazed, the expression on her face dreamy. "Perhaps we should get you inside, Lady Sai." Nakago's voice was soft and gentle.
Sai looked up, a sigh escaping her. "Yes, sir. Dare I ask.. may I see you again?" She was shocked by her own audacity. A future empress would not ask such a question! she berated herself, blushing softly.
Nakago nodded. "If I have anything to say of the matter."
The old empress nodded, seeing Sai's glowing blue eyes with a great measure of her own happiness. "So who is the lucky royal you have accepted?" she gently said, carefully taking the pins and comb from Sai's glory of hair, allowing it to fall into its original grace.
Sai smiled, the dreamy expression on her face sweet. "Nakago." Folded in her lap was the dark blue cape Nakago had given her, and her hands ran along it idly.
The old empress smiled again. "Nakago is a lucky man." Of course, there were some odd things about him that she doubted. His lineage was shadowed, but there was no doubt of his honor, or his place in society. Were he to become emperor, he would no doubt adore Sai for as long as forever.
Moments later Sai was dressed for bed, her hair carefully combed and slipping softly about her, framing her even better than the form-fitting robe she wore, made of a soft golden silk.
She slid into bed, and into sleep almost instantly, dreaming of Nakago.
It had been a few months since the grand introductions; Nakago and Sai were to be wed.
Sai remembered the routine well. It was still dark as she rose from her bed with a small yawn. Hanging in the wardrobe was her grand wedding costume. She didn't know it, but it was the identical costume as the one Nakago had dreamed, angelic almost.
She slipped into the fragrant, steaming water of her bath, relaxing into it. Sai was filled with joy more than any other emotion.
From high above, she could hear her own happiness in the wind. It sang to her, telling her that she had found love forever, that he would take care of her for the rest of a crystalline eternity.
She shivered, though, suddenly cold in the heat of the water. After the initial lethargy from sleep had left her, Sai could feel a deeper-running dullness within her. She didn't feel very well at all, but she would wed Nakago later, and then he would make her well again.
As the preparations continued, Sai's condition declined. She slipped into a feverish daze, as the handmaidens fussed over her. They took the flush in her cheeks as one of happiness and let it be, dressing her in the beautiful dress.
The end result was near perfection. Sai looked gracefully angelic, the pastel coloring of the gown matching almost exactly her pale, flushed face. Her breathing was slightly belabored, but she herself attributed it to nervousness and excitement.
Her tea-colored hair was brushed to a luster, and it lay free, a few natural spiral curls framing her exquisitely glowing face.
Nakago waited quietly at the end of the aisle, watching Sai walk toward him. Her face was pale as the moon, but with the high color that indicated fever. Still, she looked lovely, like a figurine of pure porcelain.
When he gathered her in his arms, she was fragile and hot, her breathing with a catch to it that worried Nakago no end.
"I, Nakago, take this maiden as my own. I will hold and protect her with my own life. I will, for as long as we may live, treat her with the greatest love that I have within my heart."
Sai smiled at this. Her blue eyes were misty with the effects of fever, but she still remembered her own words. "I, Sai, give myself into Nakago's keeping. I will stay close to and obey him at all costs to myself. I will, for as long as we may live, treat him with the deepest adoration and love within my spirit."
Then it was. Nakago and Sai were one, were together, and nothing could come between them. Sai swooned, though, her breathing disrupted by the fever.
With one touch of his hand upon her cheeks, Nakago cursed himself. The girl was sick, and he had still allowed her to go on with the ceremony? Blast it!
Nakago picked her up, cradling her close to him. "Someone get a healer!" was the general cry of the crowd, Nakago's voice rising dark and stentorian over even the loudest of them.
Sai's mind bobbed in a dark sea, surrounded by stars and the dark, reflective water. This was her wedding day. What a disaster! Why must it be today that she fall ill?
Subconsciously she knew that the was surrounded by Nakago's arms, but beyond that, she knew nothing, felt nothing, aside from the sea-like surroundings.
Somewhere not far away was a bright light. Through her she could feel the humming of the lines of time, seeming to reverberate through her as she sank on a slow, lazy spiral. Her senses were painfully acute, and she heard each tiny rustle as loud as the shattering of a bone china cup.
The only thing that didn't grate upon her senses was the sound of Nakago's worried voice. Sai immersed her pain-filled mind within that small comfort.
Nakago saw her stir beneath the efforts of the healers. They must have been good at their craft, because they had set straight to it without inquiring of payment.
One had gently dribbled some jade-colored liquid past Sai's lips, coaxing the girl to swallow with a rubbing hand on the porcelain throat. This elicited a moan from the girl, as soft as it was, Nakago perceived with no small measure of relief.
Pale and quiet she lay there, but her blue eyes were slowly unveiled from beneath long lashes. "I'm confused... Nakago. Help me, love."
She couldn't have known how much the blond man wanted to do just that. Seeing her in that state cut deeply into his heart, and caused his blue eyes to cloud with tears that he quickly blinked back. His heart felt hollow and fragile as an emptied eggshell, easily breakable. "Don't leave me, Sai. Don't you leave me here," he whispered, his blue eyes dark.
The healers' efforts were to no avail. The sickness would run its course in a few days. The only thing they could do was to treat the symptoms and hope that it left her alive at the end.
For now, Nakago sat, his long legs folded beneath him, on the dusty flagstones of the garden. He cradled Sai closely against his chest as the girl whispered apology after apology.
"Hush, now. Save your breath, precious angel." There wasn't anything he could do, and how bad he felt for it! If only..
And the symbol on his forehead shone there, quietly, damning him and yet saving him in the same bittersweet moment. Could this truly be love? The sorrow of the mind was blue as his own eyes, blue as deep, cold water. But yet the passion of the heart was scarlet as flames of desire, all-consuming; scarlet as love. What if he couldn't love those who were not of the same alliance as he? Would it be null? Or would his mark fade away into a state of fallen grace?
His heart was rent with a deep sadness, and a confusion such as no other has ever seen. Of course. Nakago's greatest fear was to love someone again, and then what? Lose them, as he lost so many times in his years numbering five and twenty?
With a final shiver, Sai seemed to relax. Nakago feared for a moment the worst, then was quickly relieved when she continued to breathe, falling into a more regular pattern than before. It was as though some great strain had been removed from her fragile form.
The destructive course continued for three days, and by the end of the third day Sai was nearly translucent and could barely find breath to utter a moan, but when she did, it sounded like a spirit's silken, restrained rustling through the room.
Nakago was bound to his own chambers. The healers would no longer allow him to remain at her bedside. He had not slept in those three days, afraid to wake and find her, as it inevitably would be, gone.
The silken, sad, tentative brushing of the violet curtains leading into his chambers at once brought Nakago to attention. The healer standing there looked wan and downcast. "Sir. It is time. Perhaps you should come and say your last farewells."
Everything in Nakago cried out in that instant, the little beasts called Fear and Loss that had been hidden away within him laughed mockingly, as the grand master Death congratulated his pets. "She was so vibrant only days ago," he mourned, "and now this! Where did it come from?"
Nakago allowed himself to be led into Sai's chambers where the girl lay in the center of the large bed, dwarfed within it. She was white, so white, Nakago thought. He sat on the edge of the bed, taking one of her tiny hands into both of his long, slender ones. "My beauty. You always thought yourself as strong as a village worker-wife, when in truth you were a delicate rose of frost. My love. I will never take another, I promise." Her tea-colored hair, once so lustrous and shining, was dulled, and the silk curtains of her lashes were lowered over her eyes. Nakago remembered that they were blue.
Her breath was slow, catching in her throat. She opened her eyes partially for one moment, and parted her lips to speak. "Nakago.. I love you.. See, angels are waiting..." Sai looked dazzled for a moment, her blue eyes open and sparkling with delight, and her hand chilled suddenly and fell from Nakago's own.
Nakago sat there a moment, gazing at her as her eyes fogged over. So beautiful, even in death. He leaned over and, with one tender hand, closed her eyes. "I love you too, Sai. Forever."
He looked down, at the tiled floor. His own breathing caught, and tears began to fall unbidden to the jade-colored tiles below. Forever?
A cold breeze swept through the room, carrying with it the sound of her laughter. Memories they had made in their oh-so-short life together played through his head, and he laid down there beside his beloved on the bed, twining his fingers through hers, which were growing cold in death.
Better to have loved and lost.. Her voice whispered in his ear, sultry and warm as it had been in life, when they had lain this close and she had possessed a power over him equal to any enchantress's. His blue eyes brightened at the sound of it.
I'm here. I won't let my spirit leave you, even if my body has, dear, dear Nakago! Sai's voice was sweetly emotional, gentle and caressing in Nakago's ear.
Nakago dropped the cold hand he had been clutching close. Of course, he was living, and he had always had some psychic power..
He looked behind him to see Sai as he had never before. The girl's slender form was even more slender and perfect in spirit, and her lustrous tea-brown hair fell softly to her knees, shining silkily. She was cloaked in a skirt of pale, pale linen, and above that she wore a waist-baring tunic.
Somehow, when Nakago held out a hand to draw the girl close, her hand was solid though slightly chilled. In his embrace, she warmed as cold flesh to a flame.
Here, after the death of Sai's physical form, she was free to love him the way that she chose: fully, with no restraints on propriety or the deep, warm laughter that he brayed in his joy. Could it be this way forever?
The young man paused with a rasping cough. "It won't be long now, Sai." His voice, which had been young and strong as he began his tale, now seemed breathless, a pale mockery of itself.
"What do you mean?" The innkeeper, who had been washing the floor, had long since sat back upon his heels, listening and falling into the skillfully-woven tale. His rag had dried and gone stiff in his hand, and the floor was only half-cleaned. The fire had begun to sputter and die, and none of the servants had tended it. They were too enraptured in the young man's story.
"That took place nearly a thousand years ago. I've come back now, and the thing I wish to find is my Sai. I am Nakago, the blue-eyed, blond-haired Nakago of my tale. And I won't be long in returning to spirit to find my beautiful Sai, sweet love that she is," the young man said, tugging back the thick black of his robes. His blond hair spilled out like a golden wave and his blue eyes beamed triumphantly out, despite the face that was somewhat pale and had an appearance of fleshly illness. Nakago coughed anew, covering his mouth with his hand.
Ever so slowly the fever crept up in him, first flushing him then turning Nakago loose into a deep, despairing pit of delirium. His dreams were of Sai, always of Sai. When he was lucid, he spoke to the innkeeper of a beautiful maiden with tea-colored hair and eyes as blue as his own.
Reports came to the innkeeper from guests who said that the maiden from the young man's story had come to them in the night, whispering Nakago's name until they thought it would drive them mad, and then departing with a heart-rending sigh, leaving behind her the occupants of the room in a shivering state of terror and a cold, cold wind.
Finally, as in his tale, the third day came, and Nakago lay upon his back. His face was drawn and his blue eyes were closed. His blond hair had been carefully brushed and his bangs shadowed his face slightly. The innkeeper was tending the man himself with a steady calm hand, reminding himself that despite the friendship the two had struck up, that the man would finally have his Sai again, after so many years.
Nakago's eyes opened, appearing pale blue. "Thank you for tending me for this long. I have been in no pain under your ministrations." He stopped, a dazzling, infantile smile crossing his face. "I'm coming, Sai!" Then Nakago was no more.
The innkeeper was engulfed in a cold, cold wind. He turned to look at the door, wondering if someone had opened it. Indeed, it stood open, and there in the doorway stood Nakago and the pretty maiden Sai he had spoken of.
Nakago appeared even more regal in his present way than he had before. The maiden stood docile as a fawn at his side, and the innkeeper smiled at this vision. "May the two of you fare well, Nakago, Sai. Do come and tell me more tales, if you will?"
Nakago simply inclined his head with a smile that seemed to brighten his entire face. We shall see, my friend.
And with that, the two spirits were gone without a trace, and the old innkeeper was left all alone in the drafty attic room. Tears spilled down his wrinkled cheeks, falling into the lines, deepened by his small smile, and following their paths until they fell from his face. The man's blond hair had lost its luster but there was a content little smile upon the face.
And outside the sun shone on a world blanketed in white. The old innkeeper thought he could hear the sweet, united singing of a man and a woman.
But perhaps that was just the dream of an old, sentimental fool.
By Kay-chan
The young man appeared at the inn door one snowy, frigid night. He was cloaked heavily in black but even as such, his artistic appearance was obvious. His shoulders were wide, and bright blue eyes shone graceful but full of weariness.
The innkeeper looked up from the desk, his eyes widening slightly. "May I help you?" The young man nodded.
"I will tell a story for room and board." His voice was deep and full of an odd inflection. "Maybe you can help me find what I'm looking for."
The innkeeper nodded. "Have a seat before the fire, sir."
With a nod, the man did, with his back to the innkeeper. People gathered; a storyteller out in these reaches, in this day, were rare and far between.
The young man cleared his throat with a small cough, then began his story.
Her eyes weren't as full of light or life as they had once been, nor was her step as quick. Now her step was uncertain, swaying slightly beneath the thick, heavy robes; her eyes, instead of emerald, were fading into the solitary gray of sightlessness. Her voice wasn't as strong, as seductively smooth as it used to be, now it was low, lifeless shadows.
However, the empress' successor was as young as the empress was old, as beautiful as the empress was haggard and pale, as full of life as the empress was lost to it. The empress smiled at her successor, who gazed out the window, smiling at the sight of the scarlet-and-gold sun rising gently above the horizon.
"Sai, must I continue to remind you that your presentation to your suitors later today is more important that watching the sun rise, koibito?"
The maiden turned her head to look at the elderly empress, then smiled. Her eyes were blue, as beautifully blue as the pottery in the grand reception hall. Her hair was past her thighs, long, silky, and unusual: instead of the onyx-black, it was as if the rich color of freshly-prepared tea had infused the strands; they were as brown as the liquid itself. Sai's face was exotic, certainly different; the girl's long dark lashes framed the blue eyes and set them off perfectly. Her lips were the perfect rosebud, and naturally shell-pink. Her figure was soft and curvaceous, and she looked like one of the revered temple-maidens, and each young man of the kingdom longed to have her and the title that came with her.
Her parents had already had two children, both healthy, strong males, and had been unwilling to give up their sons: Nuriden and Shinji. Young Sai had never known her brothers or her parents; only Kiyomori. It wasn't that Kiyomori had been unkind, no, quite the contrary, she had been anything but.
Before she had been given to the Searchers, her parents had named her Kirei, for even as an infant, Sai had been extraordinarily beautiful. Sai's father had been a soldier in another kingdom, and, as strange as it sounded, had long, carefully groomed blond hair. His eyes had been blue as the faded sky that, even when she had been a baby, he had managed to instill in her a passion for. He had been tall and calm, and when she was younger, Sai had dreamed about him often, had woken up crying for him.
It had stung Kiyomori to the quick when those nights had come, cold and dark and moonless for the empress, younger then, who had comforted the child as well as she could. For Kiyomori, who had begun the training upon Sai, couldn't very well return her to her original family, could she?
The old empress still had her doubts, when Sai gazed out the window like some restrained, winged phoenix who longed to fly out in the sky, to feel the breeze caress her like a lover. Kiyomori knew the same feeling.
Sai smiled. "Let's get started, mother Kiyomori." Her blue eyes shone softly, and the stirring breeze from the window moved her tea-shaded hair about her pale face, making her look like some sort of fairy-maiden.
Kiyomori agreed, picking up the brush. "Then have a seat, dear one." Sai nodded, sitting delicately upon the heavy cushion, her nightclothes spreading gracefully out on the silk as Kiyomori brushed her hair. She hummed as she memorized her speech for later, looking down at the thick black symbols brushed onto the parchment.
"Mother Kiyomori? Why must I do this, if not for love? Am I destined only to bear a son to continue the dynasty?" Sai's voice quivered with uncertainty as she continued to scan the pages with her eyes.
Kiyomori dropped the brush on the ground with a loud clatter. "You will marry the one you deem fit. And if he needs you in his empire, you will go there. And there will be a choosing of another maiden to take your place."
Sai nodded morosely, sighing. "Yes, Mother Kiyomori. I understand and will follow your direction."
"That's a good girl." Within, fear, then relief flared in Kiyomori. Sai had always been a good child, but her questions sometimes made Kiyomori uncomfortable. During the slightly rebellious thirteenth year of her life, Sai had been just filled with questions. Now she only had one or two in her arsenal.
Within hours, Sai was clean and scented and graceful as the fairy-changeling she seemed to be. Her long dark lashes framed her blue eyes perfectly, and her tea-brown hair shone lustrously. The shifting of her silken robes brushed softly against her ankles. She seemed to be a lady swallow, cloaked in beautiful peacocks' plumes.
"Finally, my flighty swallow-maiden appears as a tame peacock." Kiyomori's voice was calm and pleasant, full of a tangible pride.
Sai, gazing into her reflection, had to agree: she looked transformed. Her body was swaddled in silk, scented softly with lavender and valerian; sleepy, pleasant scents. The garments slid softly over one another, producing a sound like falling rain. She did enjoy those times when she was dressed up, but this was not exactly formal. This was exquisite, and accented her graceful curves like water slipping over them.
Lightly Kiyomori placed a correcting hand on an errant strand of deep, glistening tea brown. "You are beautiful, love. Every man that sees you tonight will adore you."
"Let us hope that you are correct."
The music played softly as Sai walked down the small aisle among the crowd of people, most of them men, royalty or near to it. Those notes Sai would remember for an eternity, playing sweetly gentle over the air like wind. There were many gasps as each eye met Sai, her beautiful, assured air of confidence seeming to surround her with a strangely beautiful light.
She lifted her lowered head for a moment to gaze about through eyes blue as delicate china's glaze. They seemed to catch on one pair that were cool and aloof, yet they stood out as blue as her own in the sea of gold, brown, and green.
Sai almost paused in her steps to study the man. His hair was strangely blond, and it hung just-so about a slender face, aristocratically formed. He was tall, and he moved with a leonine grace, lazy, almost indecently calm.
Once the maiden had finished the display, the crowd converged upon her for long, precarious moments. Sai searched the throng for the man she had seen, and, finding his face in the crowd, her heart leapt in happiness.
Sai answered many questions and soon tired with the impersonality of them. Her sighs grew more frequent, and she wearied of the lascivious looks. Many of these blackguards, if given half a chance, would take and try to break her of all her dreams. There would be no such chance for these.
Still others' glances were truly admiring, more calm, and light, scholarly. The blond man's eyes were upon her as well, warm, admiring but still longing. Sai flushed with pleasure and renewed energy.
Finally Sai was left to breathe. She wandered about a moment, pausing to accept a small refreshment here, or a sip of some delightful, exotic berry tea there.
She was not waylaid long. The blond man approached her, his steps long and graceful, a ripple of muscles that Sai tried to dismiss in her maidenly mind.
"Good evening, Lady Sai." His voice was deep, warm, and pleasant. His blue eyes flashed lightly.
"Hello, sir. Might I inquire of your name?" Sai's voice, whisper-light, nearly faltered, much to her chagrin.
"I am Nakago, Lady. You are beautiful." The way he put it, with his shining eyes upon her, Sai could barely refute it.
"You are much too kind, sire." Sai blushed prettily, and it brought out a fresh light in her face. This Nakago was charming and very beautiful, just perfect.
Nakago rested one hand upon Sai's shoulder. "Perhaps we could go out onto the balcony for a bit of fresh air." Sai nodded, her tea-brown hair glistening softly as it fell over her blue eyes.
Lifting one hand to gently push them back, Nakago smiled. This girl was all that he had said, and he did wish to know her better.
Seated at the head of the room, the empress watched the happenings. She delighted as Nakago found Sai's side and, with his quiet grace escorted her out onto the balcony. No doubt the girl was all but giggling within. Of course, the empress had great faith in Sai. The future empress would do well by herself, that could be counted upon.
With one hand upon Nakago's strong, warm arm Sai felt herself to be flying somewhere in the hidden recesses of her heart, though she maintained her outer composure. Despite herself, she couldn't help blushing mildly at the venomous stares of the other suitors at Nakago, and she nearly ducked to avoid being impaled on one of them.
Nakago gazed down with warm blue eyes at the diminutive, graceful maiden at his side. There weren't many with this exotic sort of grace in the entire country, let alone in his small region.
Upon seeing her, he had almost drawn in his breath. His mind had automatically leapt ahead, seeing the girl in a beautiful wedding costume, made of so many floating materials of pastel that gently washed in foamy layers about her.
They had reached the balcony, and the stars gleaming luminously provided a perfect background for the heavy sickle moon that shimmered as though magical. Nakago was watching Sai, though, smiling dreamily. What was he thinking? This was seriously out of character, he thought ruefully.
Sai's heart beat as fast as a hummingbird's wings, feeling the warmth of Nakago's eyes upon her so that she felt compelled to speak softly, as though in a whisper. "Aren't the skies beautiful tonight?"
Nakago was almost startled by the angelic sweetness in her tone. Her voice was so small, so fragile, like the soaring of a mythical creature's trilling. It shimmered in the air around him like a silver bell. "Yes, Lady Sai, but they hardly compare to your own beauty." He knew he sounded like a shameless flatterer.
Sai's flush returned to her pale cheeks, and she gazed up at him with such blue eyes that Nakago wondered if he had fallen into the pristine azure sea of them.
Tentatively he slipped an arm about her slender little shoulders to find that she was shivering. "Lady Sai, are you cold?" His voice contained concern.
The girl, with a nod of her head, looked up at him apologetically. Nakago removed his cloak and slipped it about her shoulders.
As if by instinct, Sai stepped a bit closer to him, closer to his warmth. Nakago's arm tightened slightly about her, careful but quiet. The pair stood there gazing up at the stars, until, with a warm, gusty sigh, Nakago embraced Sai.
The maiden wasn't surprised, but secretly pleased as a warm happiness welled up in a secret corner of her spirit. She relaxed, slender and warm, in Nakago's arms with a small sigh. How she wished she could remain there for all time!
Nakago was astonished at how soft, how willowy her grace was, so close that he inhaled the perfume of her, sweet wisteria combined with roses.
Time passed, more than would have been deemed proper. Nakago sighed and opened his arms to release her. The young lady appeared sweetly dazed, the expression on her face dreamy. "Perhaps we should get you inside, Lady Sai." Nakago's voice was soft and gentle.
Sai looked up, a sigh escaping her. "Yes, sir. Dare I ask.. may I see you again?" She was shocked by her own audacity. A future empress would not ask such a question! she berated herself, blushing softly.
Nakago nodded. "If I have anything to say of the matter."
The old empress nodded, seeing Sai's glowing blue eyes with a great measure of her own happiness. "So who is the lucky royal you have accepted?" she gently said, carefully taking the pins and comb from Sai's glory of hair, allowing it to fall into its original grace.
Sai smiled, the dreamy expression on her face sweet. "Nakago." Folded in her lap was the dark blue cape Nakago had given her, and her hands ran along it idly.
The old empress smiled again. "Nakago is a lucky man." Of course, there were some odd things about him that she doubted. His lineage was shadowed, but there was no doubt of his honor, or his place in society. Were he to become emperor, he would no doubt adore Sai for as long as forever.
Moments later Sai was dressed for bed, her hair carefully combed and slipping softly about her, framing her even better than the form-fitting robe she wore, made of a soft golden silk.
She slid into bed, and into sleep almost instantly, dreaming of Nakago.
It had been a few months since the grand introductions; Nakago and Sai were to be wed.
Sai remembered the routine well. It was still dark as she rose from her bed with a small yawn. Hanging in the wardrobe was her grand wedding costume. She didn't know it, but it was the identical costume as the one Nakago had dreamed, angelic almost.
She slipped into the fragrant, steaming water of her bath, relaxing into it. Sai was filled with joy more than any other emotion.
From high above, she could hear her own happiness in the wind. It sang to her, telling her that she had found love forever, that he would take care of her for the rest of a crystalline eternity.
She shivered, though, suddenly cold in the heat of the water. After the initial lethargy from sleep had left her, Sai could feel a deeper-running dullness within her. She didn't feel very well at all, but she would wed Nakago later, and then he would make her well again.
As the preparations continued, Sai's condition declined. She slipped into a feverish daze, as the handmaidens fussed over her. They took the flush in her cheeks as one of happiness and let it be, dressing her in the beautiful dress.
The end result was near perfection. Sai looked gracefully angelic, the pastel coloring of the gown matching almost exactly her pale, flushed face. Her breathing was slightly belabored, but she herself attributed it to nervousness and excitement.
Her tea-colored hair was brushed to a luster, and it lay free, a few natural spiral curls framing her exquisitely glowing face.
Nakago waited quietly at the end of the aisle, watching Sai walk toward him. Her face was pale as the moon, but with the high color that indicated fever. Still, she looked lovely, like a figurine of pure porcelain.
When he gathered her in his arms, she was fragile and hot, her breathing with a catch to it that worried Nakago no end.
"I, Nakago, take this maiden as my own. I will hold and protect her with my own life. I will, for as long as we may live, treat her with the greatest love that I have within my heart."
Sai smiled at this. Her blue eyes were misty with the effects of fever, but she still remembered her own words. "I, Sai, give myself into Nakago's keeping. I will stay close to and obey him at all costs to myself. I will, for as long as we may live, treat him with the deepest adoration and love within my spirit."
Then it was. Nakago and Sai were one, were together, and nothing could come between them. Sai swooned, though, her breathing disrupted by the fever.
With one touch of his hand upon her cheeks, Nakago cursed himself. The girl was sick, and he had still allowed her to go on with the ceremony? Blast it!
Nakago picked her up, cradling her close to him. "Someone get a healer!" was the general cry of the crowd, Nakago's voice rising dark and stentorian over even the loudest of them.
Sai's mind bobbed in a dark sea, surrounded by stars and the dark, reflective water. This was her wedding day. What a disaster! Why must it be today that she fall ill?
Subconsciously she knew that the was surrounded by Nakago's arms, but beyond that, she knew nothing, felt nothing, aside from the sea-like surroundings.
Somewhere not far away was a bright light. Through her she could feel the humming of the lines of time, seeming to reverberate through her as she sank on a slow, lazy spiral. Her senses were painfully acute, and she heard each tiny rustle as loud as the shattering of a bone china cup.
The only thing that didn't grate upon her senses was the sound of Nakago's worried voice. Sai immersed her pain-filled mind within that small comfort.
Nakago saw her stir beneath the efforts of the healers. They must have been good at their craft, because they had set straight to it without inquiring of payment.
One had gently dribbled some jade-colored liquid past Sai's lips, coaxing the girl to swallow with a rubbing hand on the porcelain throat. This elicited a moan from the girl, as soft as it was, Nakago perceived with no small measure of relief.
Pale and quiet she lay there, but her blue eyes were slowly unveiled from beneath long lashes. "I'm confused... Nakago. Help me, love."
She couldn't have known how much the blond man wanted to do just that. Seeing her in that state cut deeply into his heart, and caused his blue eyes to cloud with tears that he quickly blinked back. His heart felt hollow and fragile as an emptied eggshell, easily breakable. "Don't leave me, Sai. Don't you leave me here," he whispered, his blue eyes dark.
The healers' efforts were to no avail. The sickness would run its course in a few days. The only thing they could do was to treat the symptoms and hope that it left her alive at the end.
For now, Nakago sat, his long legs folded beneath him, on the dusty flagstones of the garden. He cradled Sai closely against his chest as the girl whispered apology after apology.
"Hush, now. Save your breath, precious angel." There wasn't anything he could do, and how bad he felt for it! If only..
And the symbol on his forehead shone there, quietly, damning him and yet saving him in the same bittersweet moment. Could this truly be love? The sorrow of the mind was blue as his own eyes, blue as deep, cold water. But yet the passion of the heart was scarlet as flames of desire, all-consuming; scarlet as love. What if he couldn't love those who were not of the same alliance as he? Would it be null? Or would his mark fade away into a state of fallen grace?
His heart was rent with a deep sadness, and a confusion such as no other has ever seen. Of course. Nakago's greatest fear was to love someone again, and then what? Lose them, as he lost so many times in his years numbering five and twenty?
With a final shiver, Sai seemed to relax. Nakago feared for a moment the worst, then was quickly relieved when she continued to breathe, falling into a more regular pattern than before. It was as though some great strain had been removed from her fragile form.
The destructive course continued for three days, and by the end of the third day Sai was nearly translucent and could barely find breath to utter a moan, but when she did, it sounded like a spirit's silken, restrained rustling through the room.
Nakago was bound to his own chambers. The healers would no longer allow him to remain at her bedside. He had not slept in those three days, afraid to wake and find her, as it inevitably would be, gone.
The silken, sad, tentative brushing of the violet curtains leading into his chambers at once brought Nakago to attention. The healer standing there looked wan and downcast. "Sir. It is time. Perhaps you should come and say your last farewells."
Everything in Nakago cried out in that instant, the little beasts called Fear and Loss that had been hidden away within him laughed mockingly, as the grand master Death congratulated his pets. "She was so vibrant only days ago," he mourned, "and now this! Where did it come from?"
Nakago allowed himself to be led into Sai's chambers where the girl lay in the center of the large bed, dwarfed within it. She was white, so white, Nakago thought. He sat on the edge of the bed, taking one of her tiny hands into both of his long, slender ones. "My beauty. You always thought yourself as strong as a village worker-wife, when in truth you were a delicate rose of frost. My love. I will never take another, I promise." Her tea-colored hair, once so lustrous and shining, was dulled, and the silk curtains of her lashes were lowered over her eyes. Nakago remembered that they were blue.
Her breath was slow, catching in her throat. She opened her eyes partially for one moment, and parted her lips to speak. "Nakago.. I love you.. See, angels are waiting..." Sai looked dazzled for a moment, her blue eyes open and sparkling with delight, and her hand chilled suddenly and fell from Nakago's own.
Nakago sat there a moment, gazing at her as her eyes fogged over. So beautiful, even in death. He leaned over and, with one tender hand, closed her eyes. "I love you too, Sai. Forever."
He looked down, at the tiled floor. His own breathing caught, and tears began to fall unbidden to the jade-colored tiles below. Forever?
A cold breeze swept through the room, carrying with it the sound of her laughter. Memories they had made in their oh-so-short life together played through his head, and he laid down there beside his beloved on the bed, twining his fingers through hers, which were growing cold in death.
Better to have loved and lost.. Her voice whispered in his ear, sultry and warm as it had been in life, when they had lain this close and she had possessed a power over him equal to any enchantress's. His blue eyes brightened at the sound of it.
I'm here. I won't let my spirit leave you, even if my body has, dear, dear Nakago! Sai's voice was sweetly emotional, gentle and caressing in Nakago's ear.
Nakago dropped the cold hand he had been clutching close. Of course, he was living, and he had always had some psychic power..
He looked behind him to see Sai as he had never before. The girl's slender form was even more slender and perfect in spirit, and her lustrous tea-brown hair fell softly to her knees, shining silkily. She was cloaked in a skirt of pale, pale linen, and above that she wore a waist-baring tunic.
Somehow, when Nakago held out a hand to draw the girl close, her hand was solid though slightly chilled. In his embrace, she warmed as cold flesh to a flame.
Here, after the death of Sai's physical form, she was free to love him the way that she chose: fully, with no restraints on propriety or the deep, warm laughter that he brayed in his joy. Could it be this way forever?
The young man paused with a rasping cough. "It won't be long now, Sai." His voice, which had been young and strong as he began his tale, now seemed breathless, a pale mockery of itself.
"What do you mean?" The innkeeper, who had been washing the floor, had long since sat back upon his heels, listening and falling into the skillfully-woven tale. His rag had dried and gone stiff in his hand, and the floor was only half-cleaned. The fire had begun to sputter and die, and none of the servants had tended it. They were too enraptured in the young man's story.
"That took place nearly a thousand years ago. I've come back now, and the thing I wish to find is my Sai. I am Nakago, the blue-eyed, blond-haired Nakago of my tale. And I won't be long in returning to spirit to find my beautiful Sai, sweet love that she is," the young man said, tugging back the thick black of his robes. His blond hair spilled out like a golden wave and his blue eyes beamed triumphantly out, despite the face that was somewhat pale and had an appearance of fleshly illness. Nakago coughed anew, covering his mouth with his hand.
Ever so slowly the fever crept up in him, first flushing him then turning Nakago loose into a deep, despairing pit of delirium. His dreams were of Sai, always of Sai. When he was lucid, he spoke to the innkeeper of a beautiful maiden with tea-colored hair and eyes as blue as his own.
Reports came to the innkeeper from guests who said that the maiden from the young man's story had come to them in the night, whispering Nakago's name until they thought it would drive them mad, and then departing with a heart-rending sigh, leaving behind her the occupants of the room in a shivering state of terror and a cold, cold wind.
Finally, as in his tale, the third day came, and Nakago lay upon his back. His face was drawn and his blue eyes were closed. His blond hair had been carefully brushed and his bangs shadowed his face slightly. The innkeeper was tending the man himself with a steady calm hand, reminding himself that despite the friendship the two had struck up, that the man would finally have his Sai again, after so many years.
Nakago's eyes opened, appearing pale blue. "Thank you for tending me for this long. I have been in no pain under your ministrations." He stopped, a dazzling, infantile smile crossing his face. "I'm coming, Sai!" Then Nakago was no more.
The innkeeper was engulfed in a cold, cold wind. He turned to look at the door, wondering if someone had opened it. Indeed, it stood open, and there in the doorway stood Nakago and the pretty maiden Sai he had spoken of.
Nakago appeared even more regal in his present way than he had before. The maiden stood docile as a fawn at his side, and the innkeeper smiled at this vision. "May the two of you fare well, Nakago, Sai. Do come and tell me more tales, if you will?"
Nakago simply inclined his head with a smile that seemed to brighten his entire face. We shall see, my friend.
And with that, the two spirits were gone without a trace, and the old innkeeper was left all alone in the drafty attic room. Tears spilled down his wrinkled cheeks, falling into the lines, deepened by his small smile, and following their paths until they fell from his face. The man's blond hair had lost its luster but there was a content little smile upon the face.
And outside the sun shone on a world blanketed in white. The old innkeeper thought he could hear the sweet, united singing of a man and a woman.
But perhaps that was just the dream of an old, sentimental fool.