Well done to Arodwen for correctly guessing the identity of Mr Collins! Someone said Hojo though which I thought was very good idea; I wish I'd thought of that before. This chapter also introduces Inuyasha, for anyone wondering if he was going to be in the story at all.
Disclaimer: See any previous chapter.
A Priest and a Bookshop
Two days later, the Higurashi family were very surprised to see a carriage roll sedately up to the shrine. It was drawn by a single horse, a tired animal that looked like it had been hired from a run down inn, and driven by an old, dirty man who looked more tired than his horse. They plodded to a halt by the front doors, the doors opened and a young man climbed out. He was dressed in the traditional garb of a monk, in a gray koromo. He was rather good looking, with messy black hair pulled up and tied at the back of his head. He eyed the shrine speculatively for a moment, then made his way up to the entrance and knocked on the doors.
The girls and their grandfather, who had been watching surreptitiously from one of the upstairs windows, ran quickly down the stairs, where the girls gathered curiously behind Grandpa as he went to greet the stranger.
"Good morning, sensei. I presume that you are Higurashi-sama?"
"Yes, yes that is correct."
The young man bowed deeply. "What an honour to meet you, sensei! I am Koga Korinsu- I believe you were expecting me? I hope I have not arrived at an inconvenient time?"
"Not at all, not at all. We just weren't expecting you quite so soon," Grandpa frowned. "If you have come all the way from Hitachi - did you receive my letter?"
"Oh no, not from Hitachi! I happened to be in the area, and by some fortunate chance intercepted your letter at a town only a day's journey from here. I apologise, I hope I do not find you unprepared? I was just so eager to meet you..." He trailed off, looking a little shame-faced.
"Oh, naturally, it is no trouble." Grandpa always responded well to flattery. "I believe my daughter-in-law has a room made up for you. Please, come in. One of my servants will have your luggage brought in. Does the carriage belong to you?"
"No, I hired it from the inn I was staying at. The driver will be wanting to return."
"In that case... Buto-san!" The housekeeper came bustling into the hallway. "Have Korinsu-san's luggage brought in, would you?" She nodded.
"And let me introduce you to my granddaughters, Korinsu-san. This lovely young lady is Sango, the eldest. This is her sister Kagome, this is Yura, and this is my little Kikyo. Girls, this is Koga Korinsu."
He bowed respectfully. "It is a pleasure to make the acquaintance of four beautiful young ladies."
Kikyo and Yura giggled and fluttered their eyelashes at him. "Will you really be staying with us, Korinsu-san?"
"Indeed I shall," He replied, "For your grandfather has most kindly agreed to instruct me in the ways of a shrine master. This is a day I have long been dreaming of!"
Kagome gave him a dubious look. "You've been dreaming of being taught by Grandpa?"
"I have, for a long time. Isn't that what every young monk dreams of- being taught by a master?"
Grandpa, in full agreement with this sentiment and a little afraid that Kagome, considering the look on her face, was about to say something uncomplimentary, judged that it was time to introduce his new apprentice to Kaede and have her escort him to his new quarters. The girls were left in the hallway to discuss their new house guest.
"Isn't he cute?" cried Kikyo.
"Cute, maybe; intelligent, probably not." replied Kagome. Sango smiled but shook her head. "I fear he will be disillusioned in Grandpa before too long."
"Oh phooey! who cares if he's intelligent or not," Kikyo declared. "Just because you prefer a man who spends all day reading, Kagome, doesn't mean the rest of us do. I wonder if he will come to the Cherry Blossom festival?"
"But Kikyo, he's going to be living with us. Why do you care if he goes or not? You can spend all day flirting with him here."
"You heard him, Kagome. He's here to study with Grandpa. They'll probably spend every hour locked up in the study with moldy old books and sutras. That should please you, at least."
"I don't think that will happen," said Sango, "Korinsu-san looked to me as if he was accustomed to being outdoors. I'm sure he will get very tired of being stuck inside all day."
"And if you're going to go around chasing Korinsu-san, maybe it will take your mind off those samurai for a few minutes." Kagome added.
Kikyo tossed her hair. "Oh it's all in good fun, Kagome. But even Korinsu-san cannot possibly compare to a samurai. There's just something about a man in uniform..!" She turned to Yura, both of them giggling. Sango and Kagome exchanged exasperated looks, and left them to it.
Later that evening the family assembled for dinner. The cook had prepared a better than usual meal to welcome Korinsu-san, and so Yura and Kikyo were unusually silent as they made the most of their food. This was a welcome relief for Kaede, who took the opportunity to engage Korinsu-san in polite conversation.
"Grandpa tells me you come from Hitachi?"
"That's right, ma'am. My family owns a farm there. My uncle runs the shrine, but he doesn't have a child of his own, and he's looking to retire soon. I'm the eldest of my father's sons, and so my uncle chose me as his heir."
"Oh I see. And have you been working with your uncle on the shrine?"
"Indeed I have. Even when I was still at school he would take me around the shrine, tell me what everything was and show me how to do things."
Grandpa's professional curiosity was aroused. "What kind of sutras does your uncle specialise in, Korinsu-san?"
Koga suddenly looked a little uncomfortable. "Ah... well... Van Jikku." He flushed self consciously. "He practices Van Jikku."
"Oh yes." Grandpa nodded wisely. "A very good choice. I myself practise Ti-Sarana, but it is very easy to go from one to another. You need not worry about that in the slightest."
Koga smiled, looking relieved. "That's good to hear. I admit, I was a little concerned... but if you think it will not be a problem.."
"No problem at all, I assure you," Grandpa was in his element. "I even know a few things about Van Jikku myself, which I will be happy to pass on to you."
"Thank you sensei."
The novelty of her food wearing off, Kikyo chose this moment to pipe up. "Mother, may Yura and I walk into town tomorrow morning? We have so many tasks to do there." She glanced at Yura, who giggled.
Kaede frowned. "Walk into town alone, when there is a whole sonae of ashigaru wandering around? I don't think so, Kikyo."
"Well, perhaps Sango and Kagome would like to come too." Kikyo said hastily, sending imploring looks at her elder sisters.
Kagome didn't feel very inclined to gratify her little sister, but she had to admit, she was curious to see the new samurai. Such things were a rarity in their little village, and had to be savoured while they were there. "I suppose I wouldn't mind a trip to town."
Sango, from kinder motives, added that she would take good care of the younger girls. Kaede still looked doubtful, but Grandpa overruled her. "They'll be fine, Kaede. But if you are concerned for them, why not have Korinsu-san escort them?"
Kaede was rather startled. "But Grandpa, Korinsu-san is a guest here. You can't just send him out to babysit the girls!"
Koga cried out in protest. "Oh no ma'am, anything I can do for you in return for your hospitality! I would be honoured to escort your daughters into town."
"But aren't you supposed to learning about sutras and stuff?" Kikyo was a little dismayed at the thought of have a priest-in-training following her around the town on her search for the samurai.
"Nonsense!" cried her grandfather. "There will be plenty of time for that. Show Korinsu-san around the neighbourhood, girls. Make sure to introduce him to the Toutousais."
Thus, the next morning, the four girls and Koga Korinsu set off on the three hour walk into the village. They arrived about midday, and Kikyo and Yura were immediately beset by a problem they hadn't foreseen: what to do first. "There's shopping... and then there's samurai."
Kagome suggested that it didn't really matter, as they would both still be there by the end of the day. She was informed of her mistake.
"Darin-san might have got something new in, like that new kimono she was talking about last week, and they get snapped up so quickly! " That settled it, and the group started towards Darin-san's dress shop, although there were several side trips to places like "That shop over there, where they sell those gorgeous ribbons!". Kagome could not help but be impressed by Korinsu-san's patience with her younger sisters. No matter how many times they demanded his opinion, attention or went through dress after ribbon after obi, he answered them with unfailing gallantry. At the same time he maintained a conversation with her and Sango, as he told them about his father's farm in Hitachi, and the village nearby.
"We have a games festival every Spring," he told them, "All the young men and women compete. There are many kinds of competitions- archery, running, sumo, jujitsu, swordsmanship... People come from all over Hitachi, either as competitors or just to watch."
"You must live in a very large village," exclaimed Sango, "To hold such a festival every year."
He laughed. "Not so much large as wealthy, I think. The festival is hosted by Lord Naraku Deburugu, who owns all the lands around the village. He is a friend of mine, and a regular visitor to my uncle's shrine."
"You have good taste in friends." Kagome commented dryly.
At that moment the younger girls ran up to them, eager to point out what they had seen through the shop window. A group of soldiers was walking past, dressed in armour and wearing jingasa hats. They carried no obvious weapons, and wore no apparent uniform either- the armour they were wearing was about as mismatched as it could possibly be; different colours, different styles and even different makes. Kagome wondered if they were deserters, or even criminals.
"Are they samurai?" Kikyo demanded eagerly. They all looked at Koga. He shook his head, smiling. "No, Kikyo-san, I'm afraid those are ashigaru - common foot soldiers."
"Why do they look like they've picked up whatever random bit of armour they could find?" Kagome asked.
"Probably because they have." Koga replied. "Ashigaru are required to supply their own weapons and armour, and most of them can't afford much. Daimyos don't want to waste money on outfitting their foot soldiers, when they already have to pay them."
"Oh..." Kagome turned back to the window. Kikyo and Yura, disappointed, returned to examining whatever they had found in a corner of the shop. Two minutes later, they called out for Koga to "Come and look at this, what do you think?". Sango followed him, leaving Kagome alone. She stared out the window for a few minutes, but since the ashigaru had gone there was really nothing to see. Bored with clothes shopping she decided that she needed some air, and stepped outside the shop into the street.
Kagome wandered around the corner down the sidewalk, glancing at the occasional shop window. She had crossed a few streets before she found herself just across the road from the village's one bookshop. Figuring that the others would probably be a while, she crossed the street and went in.
The owner greeted her as she walked through the door; she'd been there many times before. She exchanged a few words with him before drifting into the back of the shop.
There were only a couple of other people in there - this particular village was not known for its literacy. Kagome was looking for a specific book; a copy of the Kokin Wakushu. She had read about it in one of her father's old history books, and again in one of the books she had found in Miroku's library, and was very eager to find the manuscript itself. Miroku's collection contained a few of the later Nijuichidaishu, but the first and most influential was rare and hard to come by. Kagome didn't really expect to find it in the old bookstore, but she figured it was worth a try. The trouble was that finding anything in Goda's shop was a mission and a half. Luckily few people touched the poetry section, so it was, mostly, in order. She found the Senzai Wakashu - that was a surprise in itself. But she'd already read the Senzai Wakashu, and so she passed it by, straining on her tiptoes to see up onto the top shelf. There was an old book just out of her reach, the letters on its spine faded and almost unreadable, but she managed to make out "..k.. Wa..sh.".
Kagome fumbled at it with her fingers, but was unable to get a grip on it. Checking to make sure that Goda wasn't watching her, she clambered up onto the lowest shelf, struggling a little in her skirts, and balanced herself carefully by clinging to another shelf with one hand. With the other she reached slowly for the book. It was stuck between two others, and it took some effort to wriggle it free. When it finally did slip out, it came too suddenly and she lost her balance. Kagome snatched at the shelves but could not stop herself from falling backwards. She squeezed her eyes shut and waited for the impact with the floor. It never came.
Strong arms caught and steadied her fall and long hair brushed across her face. A young, attractive voice spoke by her ear.
"Miss? Are you ok?"
Kagome opened her eyes and looked up into two golden suns. They stared down at her in concern, intense and almost hypnotising. Kagome blinked and looked again. This time she saw the face of a young man, handsome in a rugged fashion. Apart from his eyes, his most striking feature was long silver hair, which was curling over her shoulder and tickling her chin. Her rescuer attempted again to get a response out of her.
"Miss! Are you alright?"
Kagome shook herself slightly and nodded. "Yes.. yes I'm fine. Thank you."
"Oh good," the young man chuckled, setting her on her feet. "I had a feeling that little escapade of yours was going to end in disaster."
She blushed. "You were watching me?"
"Covertly I admit," he smiled, "but it's lucky for you I was. What were you looking for so dangerously, anyway?"
"Oh!" Kagome remembered the book in her hand. "The Kokin Wakushu." She opened the cover. Inside was written "Shika Wakushu". She sighed. Never mind. The book of flower poems would be interesting to read.
Her new friend looked at the book curiously. "You expected to find the Kokin Wakushu here?" Then realising his words could be taken badly, he rephrased: "I mean... no disrespect to your village, of course, but the Kokin Wakushu is very rare. Even the best shops of Edo cannot find copies readily."
"I know," Kagome sighed, "But I thought it was worth a try." Then she remembered her manners.
"Oh how can I be so rude? You must forgive me. Thank you for breaking my undignified fall in such a timely manner! I am eternally grateful. Allow me to introduce myself. I am Kagome Higurashi, from the Higurashi shrine."
He swept off his hat and bowed gracefully to her, and for the first time she noticed the ears on top of his head. They were soft and furry, like a puppy's, and hid among the silver strands of his hair.
"A pleasure to make your acquaintance, miss. I am Inuyasha Wakuhamu"
Thank you for reading this far. Please feel free to leave a review :)