The little girl stood in front of the mirror, brushing her bangs out of her face so she could stare at her forehead. It was pale, unmarked, and slightly warm.
'Tomorrow, I'll have a mark just like okaa-san's.' Her mother served as a personal attendant for Hikari-sama: wife of the clan head. Even in her black, conservative clothing, very little could be done to hide her mother's beauty. She wore her hair tied back in a bun, typically with a tiny dogwood flower or two tucked in for good measure.
Although Amaya's brow was covered by bandages the majority of the time, Natsu saw her mother in the privacy of their quarters so many times that she knew what the mark of the caged bird looked like. Amaya slept without the bandages and took them off in the bath. She recognized the emerald color, the intricacy of the manji, and how most kept it hidden from sight.
Natsu was five: far too young to understand what the mark represented or what it could do. She'd watched in secret as her mother dabbed a cold wash rag to it at night, along with a cocktail of rubbing alcohol and rose oil. Her bandages were perfumed; carrying that same rich, floral aroma.
Natsu always thought the design was pretty: like a permanent decoration. And it had to be special, considering her father kissed her mother's forehead more than he kissed her lips.
"Looking at yourself, Natsu?" Amaya asked as she made her way inside. Her arms were loaded down with groceries, which she dropped onto the counter as a quick sigh of relief left her lips. She winced, rubbing her back with her hands, and gave her littlest girl her warmest smile.
She squatted down to wrap her arms gently around her third and final child: a little surprise neither she nor her husband anticipated having. "You'll be fulfilling your destiny tomorrow."
"Why do people cover it?" Natsu asked, touching Amaya's bandages. Just like her father, she chose to give her mother a kiss on the brow. "It's so pretty."
But perhaps she said the wrong thing, considering Amaya's eyes turned sad and she returned her attention to unpacking groceries. She pulled a candy bar out of the bag for Natsu to enjoy, but it did little to distract the child.
She'd already noticed her mother was crying.
…
"The mark proves you're loyal to the Hyūga Clan."
That's all she managed to squeeze out of her father when he came home. Hyūga Fuyu only murmured it in passing rather than having a full conversation with his youngest. The only thing he wished to do, now that he was home, was relax and be pampered by the one person in the entire compound who still agreed to do this for him. He didn't sit with his family at dinner and Amaya didn't force him to do so. He sat outside, staring at the fireflies as he poured his fourth cup of saké and spilled half the bottle during his feeble attempt. By his fifth, he flopped over like a rag doll and stayed put.
Once again, the five-year-old touched her brow with her cold fingertips. The skin felt hot. Her middle sister, Harumi, ruffled her hair playfully. "Don't be nervous, Natsu. The seal only takes about an hour to complete. And if you're a good girl and don't fight, it won't hurt." Clearly her elder sister didn't agree, considering Kōsai got up from the table. "Where are you going?"
"Why are you lying?" Kōsai hissed. "When I was marked, it hurt so bad that I fainted halfway through it. Hizashi-kun said he screamed so loud that they had to gag him! It's–"
Kōsai stopped when she realized her littlest sister was shivering. "I won't lie to you, Natsu. Getting the mark hurts, but you still have to do it. I'm not trying to scare you, but you need to know what to expect."
Harumi got up to help their mother with the dishes. Kōsai ventured off to practice her shamisen. Natsu remained at the table for a while, not even sure if she could finish the meal. What if she threw up tomorrow morning? Maybe if she didn't eat the whole thing, not as much would come out of her mouth.
Normally, Amaya urged her to finish the whole plate. She let it pass that night.
…
Sleep was pointless. Every time the little girl closed her eyes, she saw nothing but tall shadows with glowing white eyes pushing her down onto a table. Once they had her good and strapped down, they took the same type of branding iron they used on cattle and applied it to her forehead. As her skin sizzled and hissed from getting cooked, she'd hear Taiyō-sama's hoarse voice tell her that only crybabies felt the pain.
She wrapped all four of her limbs around a giant plush panda Kōsai bought her on one of her genin missions to Tanzaku Town. Her team was paid to act as security for a festival to make sure the carnival games weren't rigged and nobody tried to cheat. When Kōsai caught a carnie gluing bottles together so none of his players could knock them over, the festival's manager offered to give her whatever prize she wanted in exchange for her silence. She'd demanded the biggest, fluffiest bear they had and promptly gave it to her baby sister.
Natsu knew her sisters loved her. They weren't trying to be mean with what they said earlier. Harumi wanted to tell her everything would be okay so she wouldn't panic. Kōsai wanted her to face reality and be prepared for anything. Who was right, though? Which one?
Both of her sisters were sound asleep in their adjacent futons. A part of Natsu wanted to wake one of them up and ask for some reassurance that it couldn't be as bad as Kōsai said…but what if it was?
She heard the door slide open and caught a sliver of light with her eyes. Knowing she'd probably be in big trouble if her parents realized she was awake, she faked sleep.
…
She must have dozed off at some point in the night because she woke to her father shaking her shoulder, telling her it was time to get up. "Brush your teeth and your hair, Natsu. There's no point in getting dressed for this."
But it was a big day, wasn't it? The day that marked her destiny in this clan? It wasn't lost on her that her father hadn't bothered to wake up her sisters. They were still asleep: oblivious to the fact it was five in the morning and their little sister was nudged out of bed.
Natsu rolled out of her futon, making sure the blankets were nice and neat, and then proceeded to take her father's hand. Fuyu didn't look at her. He merely kept walking, dragging his child to the bathroom so she could freshen up.
"Is okaa-san coming, too?" Natsu asked as she reached for her toothbrush. Her father didn't respond. "Are you gonna be there with me?" Again, no response. There was a gone expression in Fuyu's tired eyes. Did he get any sleep last night? "I'm scared, 'tou-san." But even that got her no reassurance. "Do I really have to–"
"Yes, Natsu. You have to." Fuyu hurried her along, brushing her hair as she brushed her teeth. Natsu wasn't happy over that, thinking that she could postpone the inevitable for even a few more minutes if she took her time in the bathroom, but her father saw right through her.
…
Taiyō could hear that little brat scream and cry all the way down the hall: pleading for Fuyu to let go of her hand and let her run away. With every scream, Taiyō's son and heir apparent winced.
"Heavens…" Taiyō murmured, shaking his head in disapproval. "Her sisters must have riled her up. They normally don't cry this much." He placed his hand on his son's back, giving him a reassuring pat. "Don't let it get to you, Hiashi."
But it was too late. Taiyō could see the furrows building on his teenage son's brow. This was a five-year-old girl he'd be marking: the youngest daughter of his mother's favorite servant. If Hiashi messed this up, he could cause permanent brain damage or worse: kill an innocent child.
"Don't worry. I'll be here to walk you through every step of the process. You're fourteen now. You need to know how to do this. And if you end up killing the girl, well…" Taiyō sighed. "It won't be the end of the world if you do. Fuyu and Amaya have two other daughters."
Fuyu was about as loyal as a branch member could be. Taiyō had his hesitations at first, considering how long Amaya tried to push out Natsu's branding by pleading to his wife. All that selfish woman succeeded in doing was upsetting the Hyūga Clan's first lady, and Hikari was fragile enough already.
Fuyu made up for his wife's insolence by agreeing to this. Only a truly devoted branch member would have willingly offered one of his own children as a practice dummy for the heir apparent.
"Straighten up," Taiyō whispered to Hiashi, noting the way his son was starting to take faster breaths. "And calm down. If that girl sees how nervous you are, you'll only frighten her further."
The screams were so loud that Hiashi could feel the child's fear inside himself. The door opened and there stood Fuyu with his terrified daughter. Natsu kicked and squirmed, trying to do all she could to free herself from her father's grasp. She even refused to walk, dragging her heels as best she could into the slick hardwood floor. It was no use. Fuyu had enough body strength to pull her along.
"Your child is acting shamefully, Fuyu," Taiyō growled, arms folded. "Calm her."
"IT'S NOT FAIR!" Natsu shrieked, clinging to her father's yukata until she threatened to open it with her frantic, grabby hands. "They don't have to do this! 'tou-san…daddy–"
Fuyu got away. Like a cat, he managed to slip out of the child's grasp and made a mad dash for the door. As soon as Fuyu had his freedom, he shut it and forced it to stay shut, even when Natsu pounded on it: begging him to open up and let her go with him.
"This nonsense has gone on long enough. Natsu!" Taiyō gestured for the girl to move closer to him. "Come here, child." When all she did was stay in place, all because her legs had locked, he reached for her. The child flailed an arm at him, not that it helped her much. Taiyō caught it with his rapid reflexes and twisted it into a painful position.
It wouldn't have been as scary for Natsu if her parents sat in there to hold her hand or let her sit on their lap. She wanted her mother and didn't mind reminding Taiyō-sama and Hiashi-sama of that fact.
"This is getting us nowhere. I'll strap her down so she'll stay in place. There's no point in–"
"May I handle this?" Hiashi asked his father. He squatted down, touching the little girl's red, puffy face. Very meekly, the girl started to quiet down. Hiashi reached to pick her up and felt her entire body turn tense. Natsu wasn't a baby. She was much too old to be rocked, but he tried his best to calm her with some soothing words. "There's nothing to be afraid of. I'm going to do all I can to make it as quick as possible."
He winced when the girl's tiny fingernails dug into his back and drew blood. "I'm not going to start until you calm down. I promise." Even if it took hours for her fit to stop, he'd wait. "Father…?"
"Hn?"
"Did Hizashi cry this much?" Judging from the look on Taiyō's face, he already knew the answer.
He had.
…
Six hours later, Amaya arrived with a plate of orange-flavored mochi: one of her daughter's favorite snacks. In each one, she had crushed up half a chalky white pill to help with the pain and to make sure Natsu slept more than she wept. Very gently, she tapped on the door. "Taiyō-sama? Is it over?"
But Taiyō was long gone. The only two people left in that room were Hiashi and the catatonic child sitting on his lap. He stroked her cheek in an attempt to dab at some of the tears before he bandaged up the scorching green mark marring Natsu's doll-like face.
"Was my daughter a good girl, Hiashi-sama?"
"Yes," Hiashi lied, reaching for the mochi plate. He took one of the sugary blobs into his hand and placed it to Natsu's lips, watching as she absentmindedly nibbled at it.
No mother had to be told her child screamed until she was hoarse or that she wet herself halfway through the procedure. Amaya would see that for herself when she lifted her daughter from the heir's damp lap.