Chapter Three
Two more days.
Princess Ouba of Sairou rested her chin in her hands with a sigh, gazing out across the palace grounds as she tried to absorb every single shade and colour into her memory. In just two days she would be leaving her home, she knew - and not only that. It would be a long time before she would set foot in Sairou's land again, and for one who had never travelled beyond the country's capital, the prospect of such a long and tiring journey terrified her young soul. Kutou's Emperor was an unknown quantity, and enough rumours had penetrated the Western court of the events in the East to make her significantly uneasy about the duty her father had placed on her head.
Yet there was no helping it either, she knew that. As Princess of Sairou and one of Heiboutei's favoured offspring, this was the duty she had been raised to face sometime in her future. Whether he be an Emperor or a Lord, Ouba had known from childhood that she was a valuable political commodity and that one day she would be traded as such in the name of her family's pride and peace. Such was Sairou's philosophy - and she knew royals before her had borne similar burdens without flinching. Now it would be her turn, and no matter how afraid she was, she was resolved not to run away from it.
The previous night her brother had called for her, taking her for a walk in the gardens where rare flowers not sustainable in other parts of Sairou bloomed in abundance, and amid the mingled scents and colours he had taken her aside, facing her with sombre, regretful dark eyes as he had met her gaze.
"Make us proud, imouto-chan." He had said, touching her cheek softly as if somehow, in this gesture, he could keep a part of her close to him. "Be a brave emissary and as strong a one as any man going into the service of a King's court. For Sairou's trade and prosperity, Father has decided on this path for you. Even if it is many years before we meet again, promise me...do your best. And no matter what, do not let them see you falter."
"And I will not, Oniisama." Despite herself, Ouba clenched her fists. "I will never let them see me weak. I will be as you and Father expect me - the honour of Sairou presented to Kintsusei of Kutou."
She sighed, sinking back down against the glass of the window as she remembered her brother's expression. Although Heiboutei had had other concubines and other children, only she and Nefuru had been born of his favourite consort and Empress Rie. Consequently, although Ouba knew she had brothers and sisters outside of the palace confines, she and Nefuru had grown up together, developing a strong, unyielding bond as the years had passed. Even now, more than anyone Ouba adored her brother and looked up to him for advice and guidance. He was, she knew, the brave first Prince for whom her parents had often given thanks to Byakko. Nefuru never doubted in anything, and was never wrong - and for most of her life she had relied on that strength and confidence to drive her forward also. But now it was different. She had been given a task this time - one she must carry out without his guiding hand.
"Ouba-hime?"
A voice from the doorway made her start and she glanced up, a faint smile touching her lips as she recognised the intruder.
"Kinka." She said softly. "Come in - it's all right. I'm just dwelling on things I can't change, again."
Kinka's expression broke into an amused smile and she nodded, slipping properly into the room and closing the door behind her.
"Better you do that now, Hime, than when we reach the East." She said softly, and Ouba laughed ruefully.
"Yes." She agreed. "I need to get it all out of my system before then. No matter how I feel, Kinka, I won't let Father or Oniisama down. They're counting on me and so will Sairou be, considering the fact that trade with Kutou can only bolster our economy. I understand all the reasons and I'm not trying to fight it. It just frightens me a little, that's all. I don't know anything about Kutou's Emperor, not really. And I only know that until recently they had civil war raging through their provinces. I wonder what kind of a place it is we're going to."
"I wouldn't like to guess that." Kinka dropped down on the floor, spreading her skirts around her as she gazed up at her mistress. "But I'm just glad I'm coming with you. I didn't want to leave your service quite yet, Hime...when Rouhei-sama told me I had been included in the party I was happy. Whatever we face in the East, we'll face together, after all."
"That's the thing I'm most glad of." Ouba admitted, reaching across to squeeze her companion's hands. "You may be my servant in terms of the bigger picture, Kinka, but you know I don't see you as any different from a sister or a friend. And if I have to step into the Dragon's den, as it were, I would sooner do so with friends by my side."
"At your service, Hime." Kinka bowed her head playfully, and despite herself, Ouba laughed.
"Nefuru-niisama also said that Sayo would be coming." She added. "Until we reach Kutou, it'll just be the three of us. Father wants it to be a low key procession...he doesn't want to give people the idea that I'm travelling so far, in case it attracts danger. So that's how it'll be."
She sighed.
"In some ways I'm glad." She added. "You and Sayo I can trust. So I know I'll be safe."
"Without doubt." Kinka smiled. "Rouhei-sama would probably disown me if I dared to let you down, Hime."
"Does it bother you, Kinka, going to Kutou?" Ouba asked quizzically, and Kinka frowned, eying her companion in confusion.
"Why would it?" She asked. "I don't understand...what difference does it make to me?"
"Well...wasn't Kutou where...your Father..."
"Oh. Him." Kinka snorted, shaking her head. "No. Your concern is misplaced, Ouba-sama. My father was my father in blood only. Nothing else. Besides, Kutou did nothing except give him back to the people who sought justice from him. It was Sairou's authorities who struck his head from his body and burned the parts until his bones were black. If I bore any grudges, surely the grudges should be towards your family, not the people in the East?"
"Do you feel that way?" Despite herself Ouba hesitated, seeing the flicker of something deep in Kinka's aquamarine eyes, and her friend sighed.
"Do I resent it?" She asked softly, and Ouba nodded.
"Why would I?" Kinka shook her head. "I am the daughter of a madman and a fool who used his position to try and harm Sairou and then made his crimes worse by escaping to Kutou and attempting to join in their civil war there. By rights I should have been blacklisted by your Lord Father and his associates, yet instead I was brought here to be your companion. I am grateful to Heiboutei-heika, not resentful. My father did nothing for me except die before he embarrassed me further. I owe the Emperor - and Rouhei-sama - everything. And you, Ouba-hime. I owe you the same debt for allowing me so close to you over the past few years."
She shrugged.
"I don't care if my father was handed back to Sairou by Kutou's government." She added. "My father is dead and Byakko have mercy on him. I have no interest in it...or in him."
"I think you mean that." Relief coursed Ouba's veins, and Kinka grinned.
"I do." She agreed. "I'm a good liar if I want to be, Ouba-hime - but you have my word I will never lie to you."
Ouba returned the grin, feeling comforted by the sparkle of sincerity in her companion's aquamarine eyes.
"Then it is well." She murmured, squeezing Kinka's hands tightly in her own. "We will go together, Kei Kinka-dono, to Kutou. I will meet the Emperor and, if conditions suit, I will become his Queen. And you will be by my side, just as you are here. Together, we will survive through this. Whatever Byakko asks of us."
"Without doubt." Kinka agreed. "To which end, it's getting late. Do you want a bath tonight, Hime? Or will you wait till the morning?"
"Morning, I think." Ouba stretched, stifling a yawn. "Worrying is tiring work...I think I'm ready to sleep. Do you mind?"
"Not at all." Kinka shook her head. "Do you want my help, or shall I leave?"
"I'd like your company." Ouba admitted, as she reached up to loosen the ribbons at her throat. "It's more lonely when the night falls, and I have to remember that in only a couple of days I won't be here any more. This has been my whole world, after all. If you're here, I'll dwell on it less."
"As you wish." Kinka shrugged, sitting back on her heels in a most unladylike way, and Ouba eyed her in amusement.
"You have perfect court manners when you're faced with my father." She scolded. "Yet you seem to forget them all too easily when in my company, Kinka-chan. Should I be offended or pleased?"
"If you want me to be formal, Hime, I will be as formal as you like." Kinka's eyes danced with amusement as she got to her feet, bowing respectfully towards her companion. "But I was under the impression you didn't like it when I acted that way."
Ouba laughed, shaking her head.
"No...I like Kinka how she really is." She said honestly. "The person who speaks to me plainly and doesn't bother to hide her views. That's the Kinka I want to take to Kutou with me when we leave."
"As my Princess wishes." Kinka responded, and Ouba shook her head slowly.
"If your father hadn't been a fool, you would have servants at court and a position of your own." She reflected, loosing her gown and stepping out of it as her companion automatically moved to scoop it up, folding it over her arm. "It's not uncommon for a Lady to be sent as companion to a Princess, but even so..."
"I don't mind. I don't think I'd make a good lady of the manor in any case." Kinka reflected. "Father's estate is still forfeit and under Heiboutei-heika's control - which suits me fine. Money and possessions make people greedy, and besides, my mother died in that house. I think it's cursed and so I've no desire to go back to it. I'm happy enough, you know, Hime - you shouldn't worry so much about unimportant things. I have Rouhei-sama, after all. He's more like an older brother than a distant blood cousin, and I have faith in him. It's not like I'm on my own or cast down into drudgery. I serve the Princess of Sairou, after all - I wouldn't want it any different."
"It's fortunate that you're not more materialistic." Ouba mused, releasing her long hair from its ribbons, and Kinka moved across towards her to tie it in its habitual braid for sleeping. As she did so, however, she faltered, and at her sudden hesitation, Ouba frowned, casting her a startled look.
"Kinka?"
At first there was no answer, and Ouba felt the trails of her hair fall loose against her back as she turned to face her companion. As she did so, consternation struck through her heart, for Kinka's complexion had turned the colour of snow and she was staring down at the hands that moments earlier had been deftly winding the thick dark hair together, the ribbon dropping unnoticed from her fingers to the floor below.
"Kinka-chan, what's the matter?" She pressed, and at this, Kinka seemed to stir from her daze, lowering her hands as she raised her gaze to her mistress's.
"Hime..?"
"Is something wrong?" Ouba looked concerned, and Kinka faltered, then, slowly, she shook her head.
"No." She said at length. "I just...your father plans on sending you into the wilderness with this many split ends in your hair? You'd have thought that, even as a man, an Emperor would have thought of such things. I'll see to it immediately, Hime-sama...you can't meet your future beau looking like a ragamuffin, after all."
With that she was gone, and Ouba frowned, her brows knitting together as she pondered on her friend's sudden odd behaviour.
"She went white." She murmured softly. "As if she'd seen a ghost. But...I've never seen Kinka so easily shaken before. What could she have seen that got her so worried? Was it all the talk about her father and his traitor's death? Maybe she felt she'd summoned his spirit by talking so casually...but then Kinka's not one to be scared of ghosts, even if they did come to haunt the palace. So what, then?"
She glanced down at herself, grasping a handful of dark hair in her hand as she examined the ends thoughtfully. As Kinka had said, they were split and in need of care, but somehow she knew that it had not been something so trivial and superficial that had caused that look to stir in her companion's vivid aquamarine eyes.
"She told me that she could lie, but never to me." She murmured. "So if that's the case...why did she lie to me just then? What happened to change her expression and her mood so much that she had to leave the chamber. Kinka-chan, it's only two days before we leave for Kutou. What can have worried you so much to make you act like that?!"
"Byakko no Miko's diary, huh."
Arina stretched out on her bed, kicking her legs idly against the headboard as she ran her fingers over the old book that lay in front of her on the covers. It was late now, the sun long since having set over the city, but despite the fact she knew the next day was a school day, she was loath to put her new prize aside and sleep. The faded fabric covers somehow seemed to be enticing her to open them, yet at the same time she was somewhat afraid to damage something which, so long ago had belonged to a girl caught between two worlds.
"Like Hi-chan." She whispered, running a finger over the bleached out kanji of Suzuno's name. "Only you came back. Even if Keisuke-san is right about this Shin…Shinzahou thing, I still can't believe that it means Hikari has to stay there forever. Yeah, till she got that magic under control – we couldn't have had her blowing up sinks and shit, after all. But I don't think I ever really believed that it would be permanent. Even though they said it – that guy with the one eye and Miaka-san and Sukunami-san…I don't think I totally absorbed that it really would be the rest of our lives. Hikari did say she'd try and visit, after all. But it's been a year and a bit and she hasn't. I wonder what's happened in that world since she went there…if she's a lot older than us now, or if it's not shifting so quickly. Miaka-san did say time moved differently…but it'd be odd to think of Hi-chan years and years older than I am. After all, my birthday is before hers. It'd just be too weird."
Gingerly she pulled the book towards her, peering at it more closely.
"Oosugi Suzuno." She murmured. "All right then, Byakko no Miko-sama. I'm going to go looking through your secrets now…please don't be mad, because I'm doing it for the sake of a friend."
Slowly she opened the cover, smoothing the discoloured pages down. Only a few lines were written there, and as she read them, Arina felt a bittersweet pang touch her heart.
"The ShijinTenchishou has the power to change lives one way or the other." She read softly. "It's a world which no amount of explaining can truly describe and which cannot be understood by any except those who have been there."
Beneath it were written two characters;
「婁宿」
Arina frowned, running her finger over them as she tried to work out how they should be read. As she did so, she felt a prickle run down her spine and she gasped, pulling back from the book as she glanced around her in surprise and alarm. For the briefest moment she had felt something twitch at the edge of her awareness, as if someone, somewhere was trying to speak to her.
"Suzuno-san, from the beyond?" She wondered, biting her lip. "Or something else? Maybe I shouldn't read books written by dead people when it's dark and I'm alone in the house. But that was weird. It was like...like something reached inside and touched my soul."
She glanced back at the book, eying the two characters pensively once more.
"Whatever it means, it makes no sense to me." She said aloud, even as she reached across for the worn kanji dictionary that lay on her bedside cabinet. "All right. That one...is 'rou'? Bond? What kind of a bond? Was that what I felt when I touched the page? The other one is 'yado'...inn? Is this the name of a place, then? Somewhere Suzuno-san stayed when she was in that world? Ah, that makes no sense. This is a diary, not a good food guide. What were you trying to say, Suzuno-sama? It makes no sense to me."
She dropped the dictionary back down onto her covers, reached across to pick up the diary once more. As she did so, something fluttered from between the pages, and, confused, Arina picked it up. It was a sheet of notepaper, roughly folded and coloured by age, but as she unfolded it, she realised that someone had drawn a rough diagram on it and even now, after so many years, the image was clear enough to make out.
As she gazed at it, Arina's heart skipped a beat.
"The stars." She whispered, pushing everything else aside as she hopped down from her bed, rummaging among the pile of library books she had borrowed for the one that she wanted. "This one - this is it, I'm sure...that picture I've seen before. At least, something like it. It's what Hikari talked about - what Keisuke-san told me about when I first started researching this whole ShijinTenchishou business. The stars - the twenty eight mansions of the sky. The four Gods, Suzaku, Byakko, Genbu and Seiryuu. All of that ancient Chinese heresy shit...that's the stuff this world of Hi-chan's is based on, isn't it? She was Seiryuu no Miko. Miaka-san was Suzaku no Miko. And Suzuno-san was Byakko no Miko. Byakko is the white tiger - the western sky. Right?"
She flipped over a couple more pages, letting out an exclamation of triumph as she found the right diagram.
"Aries...Pisces...ah! That's it! That's that kanji again!"
She dumped the text book down on the bed, pulling Suzuno's diary towards her as she compared the characters. Though one was written in an old fashioned hand and the other in more modern print, there was no doubt they were meant to be the same character, and a grin crossed Arina's features.
"Tataraboshi." She murmured. "That's what it says. Tataraboshi. And if I'm following this correctly...you weren't just writing about stars, were you, Suzuno-san? This refers to a person. After all, when that guy Chichiri came from the other world to get Hikari, I looked up the Suzaku thing and I found his name there - Chichiriboshi, Tasukiboshi, Tamahomeboshi...all of these star patterns that relate to people in the other world. So...if I'm right...this kanji doesn't mean "bond" or "inn". It means Tatara - one of Byakko's seven Seishi."
She sighed, shutting the text book with a snap.
"But why you wrote it there is beyond me." She murmured. "Obviously it meant something to you. And obviously whatever it meant was deep enough that even all these years later I picked up a vibe from it just by running my fingers over your words. Still, it was spooky. Words are still words, after all. They can't speak by themselves - they need someone to read them."
She fumbled in her bag for her cigarettes, putting one to her lips as she reached for her lighter.
"Enough for one night." She decided, exhaling a cloud of smoke and dropping the lighter back down onto the cabinet with a clatter. "It's too late and I'm getting spooked. Tomorrow night I'll look at it some more. Everything associated with that world is weird, and I should tackle it with a clear mind if I'm going to try and make any of it make sense at all."
She glanced at Suzuno's diary, then scooped it up with her free hand, placing it carefully on the top of her bookshelf.
"Good night, Suzuno-sama." She said softly. "Tomorrow I guess we'll talk again. If it was you...trying to talk to me. Well, whatever it was...it can wait till tomorrow. And I can ask Keisuke-san about the diagram, too."
A faint smile touched her lips.
"Maybe I am a step closer to Hi-chan after all." She murmured, flicking ash into the tray that sat on her windowsill. "If it was something connected to that world that brushed against my senses. Maybe there is still a way to bring her back - and if there is, I'm going to find it!"
"Rouhei-sama! Rouhei-sama!"
Kinka ran through the halls of the palace, her breath coming in heavy gasps as she pushed open the door of her guardian's workroom. "Rouhei-sama, please tell me you're here!"
"Kinka-chan?" From behind a tall wooden bookshelf, a man emerged, peering at her in surprise as he took in her uncharacteristically unsettled appearance. "What's the matter? This isn't like you - has something happened to Princess Ouba? Or...what's troubling you? I've not seen that look in your eyes since the day I told you what had happened to your father...what's wrong?"
"Father's nothing to do with it." Kinka shook her head, grasping her guardian by the wrists as she gazed up at him urgently. "Please, Rouhei-sama, I need...I need to talk to you. I think...maybe...this whole trip to Kutou is a mistake. A big mistake! I think...Ouba-hime and I...I think we shouldn't go."
"Now, why the change of mind all of a sudden?" Rouhei's eyes narrowed thoughtfully and he set aside the book he had been reading, reaching up to touch the girl's cheek with dusty fingers. "You weren't so reluctant when we spoke earlier. What's happened between then and now to make you feel like that?"
"I..." Kinka flushed red, biting her lip. "I don't...know how to...explain. I haven't even...to Ouba-hime. But...Rouhei-sama, I don't know what to do. Whether to go to the Emperor and tell him everything, or...but then so far we've kept so much from him, and if he knew I'd been...that I was...that I'd somehow..."
She trailed off, and Rouhei rested his hands on her shoulders, giving her a little shake.
"Report to me, Kei Kinka." He said quietly. "Calm down and report to me. I want to know everything before I decide whether or not this is a matter to go before Heiboutei-sama. You understand?"
Kinka nodded slowly, taking a deep breath into her lungs as she fought to calm her rising panic.
"I...saw...it." She said softly, and Rouhei's eyes widened.
"It?" He echoed, and Kinka nodded.
"The thing...that...you said...might be there." She said falteringly. Rouhei's eyes narrowed, and he nodded his head.
"I see." He said softly. "And you're sure? There's no mistake?"
"I'm sure, Rouhei-sama. It's just as you said." Kinka nodded. "Everything you told me...and now..."
Rouhei sighed, shaking his head.
"And now you don't want to accompany her Highness to Kutou, because of this?" He asked quietly. "You knew before, Kinka, that sooner or later it might come to this. Everything that I've studied has pointed to it. Changes in the stars, constellations altering their patterns - atmospheric shifts and climatic uncertainties. Sairou's hot summer and dry winter. All of these things are just as I anticipated them...you shouldn't have been so surprised that this part of my prediction would also pan out."
Kinka's eyes narrowed, and she sighed.
"But Rouhei-sama..."
"Why are you here, Kinka-chan?" Rouhei raised an eyebrow, and Kinka sighed again.
"To protect people from harm and serve Ouba-hime and her family with my life." She said simply. Rouhei nodded.
"I brought you to the court because I knew you had the instinct to protect." He said quietly. "You remember that, don't you? It wasn't so very long ago that we had that conversation about things. When I asked you if you intended to fight for your father's title and inheritance, or whether you'd sacrifice all of the Kei burdens to come to the palace and learn the best way to protect the things dear to you."
He touched her cheek again.
"I remember a little girl standing defiantly before me, telling me that she would never let anyone she loved be taken from her again." He added. "And that whatever she could do to ensure that, she'd do."
"I remember." Kinka admitted. "I was only eleven or twelve when Father first fled into hiding and abandoned the manor completely. I didn't know why he'd gone, then - why he'd left me like Mother did. When I understood...I didn't want any part of that world any more. When I knew what he'd done..."
She closed her eyes, shaking her head as if to clear it of the memories.
"You brought me here to protect me as much as you brought me here to protect Ouba-hime." She whispered. "You wanted me to live, you told me that. That if I stayed loyal to the Kei-ke, I might lose my life in my father's downfall. But if I renounced it, I would be allowed to live. And so I have, Rouhei-sama. All because you knew we were coming to this point, and that one day everything you taught me would somehow become useful. But even so..."
"Even so?"
"I truly love Ouba-hime." Kinka admitted. "Like the sister I didn't have. And I wanted to always be by her side to protect her from anything, no matter what."
"And has that changed now, because of this?" He pressed. Kinka slowly shook her head.
"No, but...Rouhei-sama, what you're asking of me is...that if we leave Sairou, I can't be..."
"Try to finish a sentence or two, there's a good girl." Rouhei's lips twitched into an amused smile. "I know how you feel, but this isn't one of those things where personal affection can get in the way. Ouba-hime's fate is set in Kutou, and you must go with her. Even if now you don't want to - you must. Even if my predictions are correct. Now you know, your role as protector has been stepped up a gear, hasn't it? You know what that mark means, after all. Don't you? What it requires you to do?"
Kinka closed her eyes, then, slowly, she nodded her head.
"I know." She said softly. "But Ouba-hime is more important to me than Byakko, Rouhei-sama. Should I really be put in the middle of that choice? I want to protect my Princess in every way I can. If Byakko interferes, can I really keep doing that?"
"If you can't, you're not the girl I trained." Rouhei told her affectionately. "Take this as advance warning, all right? You know before you leave what the nature of things are. Of course, Kutou is a long way from Sairou. But for now we must all just play the parts assigned us - you realise that, don't you? Things are too vague to understand them any more deeply than we currently do."
"Yes, I suppose so." Kinka rubbed her temples. "All right. All right, I'll think over everything you've said and I'll do as you advise. I'll keep my word to Heiboutei-heika and stay by Ouba-hime's side so long as I'm able. And Byakko...Byakko will just have to wait for the time being. After all..."
"After all, it's still speculative." Rouhei reached across to tap the cover of his book absently. "Whatever it does or doesn't mean, there is no disaster in Sairou and no sign, yet, of anyone come to prevent it. For now, try not to worry too much about it, all right? Things will go how they are meant to go, so just be prepared for whatever comes."
"Yes, Rouhei-sama." Kinka agreed softly. "I'll do that."
She eyed him quizzically.
"Will you tell...anyone else?"
"No." Rouhei shook his head. "Not yet. And you mustn't, either. Not even the Princess you want to protect - especially not her. For now, as I said, there's nothing to tell. Go about your usual duties, Kinka, and leave the worrying to me. I'll keep a close eye on the stars and I'll contact you in Kutou if I need to pass on any further data. Put your faith in that - I won't leave you unprepared."
He smiled, and Kinka saw genuine affection in his gaze.
"You're a good girl. Your father should have realised that instead of taking the law into his own hands and thinking only of himself." He murmured. "How much he lost by not bothering to know you."
"I guess Father really didn't see a point in only having a daughter." Kinka said frankly. "Girls are useless, right?"
"Not this one." Rouhei's eyes twinkled. "As well I know. Well, he was fool enough to die for his ignorance, after all. You won't be so easy to take down, I don't think. I believe you were born to be Ouba's protector, you know that. When I first took responsibility for teaching you, it was for that reason - because I'd seen your stars and I knew what kind of a person you would grow to be. I knew you were your mother's daughter, not your father's - and I put my hopes in that when I taught you the things our people know."
"Mother's people." Kinka said softly. "I have my father's features, Rouhei-sama, yet you still look at me and liken me to mother's people."
"My people. Our people. Yes." Rouhei agreed. "Your spirit flows with a particular energy, Kinka-chan, and I hope that when the time comes you'll find a way to harness that. The news you've brought to me tonight is indication that you might yet be Sairou's protector too, in the things you do now. I have high hopes of you - expectations I know you'll be able to meet, no matter what the asking price."
He touched her gently on the cheek.
"Do well by your Princess and by me, Kinka-chan - time will tell whether or not Byakko has further things in mind for us to face!"