Hiya! :P

New chap! :D

Fast eh?...kekeke!

.when the moon rises, the sun has to set.

A/N: more jap. words in this chap my lovelies.

dochu-parade

Shinsou-low level courtesan

koma geta-3 legged geta that's 15 cm tall! :P

Daimyo-territorial lords

Sa...Happy reading! :P


Four: Moonless Sky

†ˣ†•†ˣ†

The wind was starting to blow more hotly, though the evenings were still tinged with the cold. Soon she will have to lead the monthly Dochu again, when the maple has turned fiery and the streets are littered with its pointed leaves.

Since she was made Oiran every Dochu she had the streets would always be filled with people. Men would stop whatever they were doing to ogle her and shower her with lewd glances. Their lust-filled eyes could only stare at something they could not afford even if they worked for hundreds of years.

Clad in the finest and the latest fashion she would make her circuit around the streets of Yoshiwara. Thirty or so servants trailing behind her, the Kamuro diligently walking in the same pace she did, hypnotized by the movement of her feet encased in an extremely tall koma geta while she held her head high, her gaze directed only at the path before her, her dainty hands peeking from the sleeves of layers of kimono.

Every now and again she would flash the men a small smile or a glimpse of her narrow wrist just to tease them but she never looks back to watch the bedlam that would follow one of these playful displays. These common men were only allowed to glimpse the girls behind the bamboo screen during the evening display but not her. Because she was cloistered in a separate room from all the other girls and she would only be shown only to those with the highest social status, the privileged few.

She was a renowned beauty and the top of her rank in all of Yoshiwara. Even if her stature was small, she carried a regal aura that commanded people's attention. She radiated authority that few women of her rank and profession had managed to shroud themselves in so perfectly. She was an intelligent conversationalist, quick witted and well-mannered. That is also why she was a favorite among the court nobles and the many Daimyo.

But it was for her dancing that she was really most famous and most sought after. Just to see her perform a dance or play the koto one would have to pay an immense fortune, not to mention bring her rare and expensive gifts to appease her to favor them with a performance.

So the news that a single Danna was going to monopolize her attention single handedly had spread quickly among the other Okiya. It was unheard of that an Oiran was to be maintained singularly by one patron and to top it all off she was The Oiran and therefore the most expensive of all.

Rukia sat there paralyzed as the entire Yoshiwara celebrated this piece of news. She was the only one who was not in a festive mood and for good reason. She was afraid to face that Danna again after what happened the other night.

"Rukia, such happy, happy news! How come you are not smiling? You should be more enthusiastic about this…you've worked hard and maintained a good image…though people are still intrigued about your reputation when you were still a Shinsou….even now…but that does not matter! You have managed to elevate this Okiya even further! I knew from that—" Okami-san was prattling on but she had eventually stopped listening when she dared mention the time when she was still a young and newly introduced Shinsou. Some anonymous noble had paid for her entire ceremony and until now she did not know who it was that made everything possible for her when she thought she had ran out of stars to count in the night sky.

She was a smart mouth when she was younger and she was known for her smiles. It had been recognized to drive men wild when she smiled at them. Unlike most of the other girls she had not taken a lover, she had seen firsthand what it did to them and she swore not to let herself fall into its trap. She let men love her but she gave them nothing in return, only what they have paid for—to spend the night with her. When the morning bell tolls they would leave still trying to woo her with amorous words and promises she never had any intention to believe. But still she humours them, pretends she is flattered with their attention. She pretends she is already half falling for their charms.

They never come back and she was satisfied everytime she would see an unfamiliar face step inside her room. She would look at them, her practiced expression of innocence that made men think they were special even for just one night. It made them think that they were the first to have discovered her sweetness.

Now she would utterly belong to only one man. A man who already had a hold on her the first time they had set eyes on each other.

"Rukia! Are you listening to me?" a puff of smoke was floating before her eyes and behind it was the irate face of Okami-san.

"That Danna will be by today. He wanted to see you he says and hope you will be presentable today. The hairdresser is on her way and the new set of kimono has been laid out for you to take your pick from. After you finished your afternoon tea you must prepare for tonight's ceremony." Suddenly the woman's expression had turned serious as she regarded her with half lidded eyes. "You should make what you can out of this opportunity, Rukia. He might be able to grant you freedom you know…"

Rukia frowned at the woman's conspiratorial tone, "I don't care for that at all…you know I don't. Stop hanging it in my face cause you know I won't bite it."

"Such impudence! You never change do you…" the woman's tone had mellowed to the usual condescending voice she would always use when she was trying to make a point but did not want to press it further.

"I do not wish to become someone else." The words slipped out of her mouth in a rush as she looked past the horrid woman with her cigarette onto the square patch of blue sky visible, framed by the open window.

"You've always been someone else, little child. You were always different." Okami-san tapped her lightly on the cheek almost fondly with an uncertain smile before walking away to check up on the preparations for tonight.

Rukia clutched at her arms and winced slightly. She had been careful not to let anyone see the bruises scattered all over her body. When she had bathed, she bathed alone. She did not allow any of the Kamuro under her care to assist her in getting dressed. She had tried to keep up her smirk when her smile only made the others suspicious.

She let them think she was bathing in her accomplishment that she was by now a living legend in Yoshiwara.

There is only one other thing that she was curious about. The Danna still had not told her his name. She did not want to have to ask Okami-san because she knew the woman would only laugh at her or worse—think her in love. She did not want to take unnecessary risks at a time like this but she wanted to know.

She took a careful sip of her tea, cradling the tiny cup in both hands as she kept staring blankly at the flowing clouds.

"What exactly is that man…" she whispered to herself as she continued to watch the sky.

She had been completely ignoring the commotion that had been going around her since she came out of her room late this morning. She had wondered in amazement that Okami-san had not broken down her door when she did not get up in time for breakfast like she usually does, just to annoy her of course. She tried looking for her and found the woman in the garden entertaining the kimono merchants the Okiya had had a long business deal with.

For a moment as she saw the silk and brocade fabrics, she had forgotten why she was even looking for the woman anyway. She stood there in awe as did the other girls, who were peeking from inside the Okiya, craning their necks to better see the new delivery. The colors, the patterns, the textures made a feast for her eyes. Since she was the one mainly shouldering a large part of the payment for the kimono used in the Okiya she was always given the privilege to take the first pick.

She smiled automatically as the merchants turned and approached to greet her. She bowed to them slightly in return, just a mere inclination of her head. They were honored, they said, to be in her presence.

She just kept on smiling.

"Ah, now the wonderful kimonos are waiting for me in my room…" she took one last sip from her cup and stood. She could hear the hairdresser all the way from the veranda practically shouting her excitement at having to be the one to do her hair today as she walked towards the direction of her room.

"Oiran." The woman finally managed to catch up with her, her cheeks flushed, her eyes bright as she beheld the silent petite figure before her. Her voice trembled slightly in reverence. Even this woman had a reason to be excited by her good fortune.

But Rukia did not feel blessed at all. She did not share their enthusiasm. She…she just wanted to see him again.

When evening finally came, the lamps were lit, the girls lined up behind the bamboo screen, smiling, smoking, teasing the passersby. The Okiya was utterly alive while she, Rukia knelt on the cushion rather stiffly, her hands hidden beneath the folds of her obi tied in a hanging style to the front. She looked resplendent in a silvery kimono with clusters of violets at the hem and at the graceful sleeves, a wreath twirling across the neckline that was hanging extremely low on her back. Over it she wore a simple white kimono with clover and bamboo prints and a black obi with bronze swirl and tear drop prints.

The Danna sat across her, one knee propped up carelessly as he stared openly at her behind wisps of his unruly hair while she tried her best to avoid his gaze. In the light she had seen how handsome he really was and how much more desirable as he had walked in the room with a warlord's gait and a prince's face.

There was only silence now between them. He had not said a word to her since he arrived and she did not know what to say. Her throat was getting dryer with every second that passed. But there was nothing for her to drink. He had barely touched the sake that had been set before them to honor the occasion. She itched to reach for the bottle and…

"How long have you been here?" the sound of his voice made her snap out of her daze and finally meet his eyes.

"Since I was a young girl." She replied in a matter of fact tone.

"Which must've been?..." she watched him start to reach for the bottle prompting her to finally move. She stood and knelt to his side in order to pour the sake for him.

"Hmm…might have been twelve years ago." She set down the bottle and he took the cup as they stared at each other steadily. She held his gaze even as he quickly downed the cup's content in one jerky movement.

"Drink with me." His tone was commanding but Rukia had never needed to be told to drink sake. She was known to hold her alcohol very well and she enjoyed it immensely.

"If it is what Danna-sama wishes." She replied with a shallow bow. "But unfortunately there is only one cup."

He smirked at her before holding out the cup and pouring the sake himself and offered it to her making her blink in surprise. "Or would you rather take the bottle?"

She took the cup from him, letting her fingers brush his as she did and poured the drink into her mouth. Her skin tingled with the slight contact, immediately making her want more. She swallowed, feeling the hot trail burn down her throat as she felt his large hand cup her cheek. He was looking at her through half lidded eyes. "Do you feel that?" his voice was so quiet she almost missed his words.

She felt herself frown at the familiar empty words, an instantaneous reaction which she was unable to wipe from her face at once.

"Ah…You must hear that a lot, huh…" there was amusement in his voice as he leaned in closer to her, stopping close to pressing his lips to hers. She had parted them in anticipation, her tongue darting out quickly to lick them.

His thumb caressed the crease between her brows as he sighed, his breath smelling lightly of alcohol.

Her heart was beating so loudly, it was all she could hear. It was pure torture what he was doing to her by just being so near, his skin against hers. She wanted to press herself against his chest; she wanted to hear if his heart was beating as hard as hers or if his skin burned just feeling her touch.

"Danna-sama I…" her words were silenced as he gripped her hand and slipped it through his kimono placing it above his heart that was beating wildly.

"Ichigo." His voice was low, husky as he whispered to her lips, his own brushing against them lightly. "Call my name…" his hand snaked at the back of her neck as he tilted his head slightly without moving away from her.

"Ichi…go…-sama." She breathed out his name before his lips crushed against hers in a searing, passionate kiss. She had opened her mouth as she gasped and felt his tongue lick hers, urging her with languid caresses. He was kissing her sweetly, softly making her whimper as her arm went around his neck. She gripped his hair as he started to kiss her more forcefully, almost bruising her lips.

At the back of her mind, she could hear the voices again.

Remember!


A/N:

Now then this is starting to sound more like the historical fic that it is! Gah~! I love japanese culture...kekeke! :)

-kimchi-