Disclaimer: This story is based on "Inuyasha," copyrighted by Rumiko Takahashi. No infringement of copyright intended or implied.
Kimonos For Kaede
Kaede did not expect to be ordered to help Amaya with the injured, rather than accompanying Sayuri as she trekked around the village, replacing ward spells and purifying any traces of jyaki left from the attack. Angry and sullen, she changed out of Kikyo's old outfit that the women had cut down to fit her, donning the worn, now too-small yukata that had been her normal attire before Kikyo's death.
Sayuri said nothing about her change of clothes. Said nothing at all, really, as she wearily returned in the evening, to eat and fall asleep almost immediately, and then be up and away before dawn.
Then, the caravan arrived. It was headed for Edo, but it always stopped in the village. Amaya smiled and tossed her a small coin, telling her to get something for herself. Kaede took the coin, but found herself on the fringes of the crowd, a reluctant observer of the chattering, laughing throng. She didn't belong, she felt. Who would sell anything to her? She was only a maimed, orphan girl, ignored even by the one who had said she would teach her...
"There you are!" A hand grabbed hers, and dragged her along before she could react. She tried to resist Sayuri's pull, but the woman's calloused grip was unrelenting. In no time, Kaede found herself next to a ground cloth covered by lengths of gaily printed material. "Stay put!"
Bewildered, Kaede silently obeyed, watching as the miko worked her way from one end of the display to the other, unfolding this length or that, giving Kaede frequent, inscrutable glances. Coins appeared in Sayuri's hand and were handed over, and, abruptly, Kaede found herself burdened with two lengths of material, one noticeably thicker than the other. "What?"
Sharp, black eyes looked at her. "You need new clothes, Kaede—I'll not have you looking like a beggar child."
Kaede flushed. "I'm not—"
A finger closed her mouth for her. Sayuri glared a moment, and then, her face softened. "I didn't mean an insult, Kaede. You've worked hard, you've grown—you deserve new clothes. And, since you're not ready to be a miko, I tried to find something that would look nice on you—you do like the material, don't you?
Kaede looked down at the cloth in her arms. The lighter length was a crisp green, block-printed with butterfly shapes in yellow. The heavier length was a golden-brown, not dissimilar in color from what she was wearing, but a deeper, more intense hue, and decorated in a dark red motif of maple leaves. "I—guess—"
"Good!" Sayuri straightened. "Let's go see what else they have!"
And Kaede followed.
Author's Note: This piece was written for the iy_themes community on LiveJournal, for the prompt "Cloth". It was originally published (in a shorter version) on September 3, 2010. It tied for third. (This version published 9/12/2010.)
