Chapter Twenty Four: Clan Scars
So, after so many years in hiding, they had begun to show their faces.
Urahara Nagesu stepped over the uneven bumps in the grassland, following the invisible pathway almost by instinct towards the old wooden structure that stood at the furthermost reaches of his family's estate. It was more or less abandoned, now, and overgrown with sixteen different species of vine and moss that Nagesu knew the names of without having to resort to his family's huge and extensive library to identify, yet beneath the greenery were marks and scars that he knew even more clearly than anything he had studied as part of the Urahara-ke's rigorous scientific training.
He pushed back the low-hanging tendrils of the living curtain, bending his head to avoid catching spider webs in his hair as he entered the small, dilapidated structure for the first time in many, many years. He would not be disturbed, he knew, since he had told his manservant that he expected to be away from the estate until lunchtime, and he had not even confided his plans in his wife or his son and heir. Unlike them, who bore no connection to the past, Nagesu knew he would always remember. And no matter what other judgements he made – the Urahara traitors and rebels were also family he recalled quite vividly – family who, in one fell swoop, had been cut away by his Father's ruthless decisions.
Nagesu bore his predecessor Rikaya no ill will for those acts. They had been necessary – he knew that better than any, for he had been the one to inherit the Clan and therefore the only member of the Urahara who had seen all of his Father's letters and minutes from meetings. The old Lord had had no choice but to cast his brother from him, in the end. It had been a sacrifice made for the greater good of the Urahara, in order that they could keep District Three and not collapse into ignominy and regret. It was the same kind of sacrifice the Shihouin had recently made, he acknowledged, even as his thin fingers brushed away the stubborn moss and fern that grew over the stone ledges and notches of what had once been his childhood summerhouse. The only difference had been that while Shihouin Kamuki had recognised his duty and submitted to his fate willingly, Urahara Keitsune had not.
Nagesu had read his uncle's begging, pleading letters many times. For the most part they had dealt with provision for his wife and child, but once or twice, in short, cryptic paragraphs, Nagesu had detected the man's own fear of dying.
But then, he reflected with a sigh, Keitsune had not been a soldier. He had not been briefed, as Kamuki had, on the ways of life and death that warriors faced when they trained to hold a sword in their hands. He had exchanged weaponry for pen and ink, and therefore had not understood the things that Nagesu himself had come to know only too well.
He was an Urahara, and as such, a scientist. But he was also a swordsman and a member of the Gotei. And for his Clan, on those grounds, no sacrifice would ever be too high.
At last he stopped in his work, gazing down through the lenses of his glasses at the bared stone with pensive, near colourless eyes. There still, scratched in white against the grey surface were clumsy characters – first the kanji of his own name, written in the rounded scrawl of a young child. And then beneath it, barely legible, were three more kanji – the three kanji that Nagesu had taught his cousin to write only a month before the world had come crashing down around them both.
Even now he could read them as clearly as if they had been printed by an expert scribe. The three characters that had made up the young boy's name.
Kei. Ta. Rou.
Nagesu sat back on his heels, for once paying his fine robes no attention as he remembered his young cousin. He had only been four, he recalled, and Nagesu himself had been no more than eight in the days before his uncle's sudden and unexpected arrest. They had played here that day too – as they had played most of the summer. It had been as if they were the only two boys of their generation, for his other boy cousin – had his name been Daisuke? Nagesu could not quite recall, for he had surely perished with other kin in one of the Council raids - had been little more than a babe in arms then, and his own brother – an afterthought – had not yet drawn his first breath.
In those days, Keitarou and Nagesu – who had largely ignored his younger sisters since at that time he had not cared for girls - had been as close as brothers could have been. While their fathers had met and discussed science and politics, Nagesu and Keitarou had run through the grounds, Keitarou always wanting to explore something new, and Nagesu always cautiously following behind, warning his junior of the dangers and making sure the young boy stayed safe. Even now, he could not forget Keitarou's mud-slurried tail of wild, wavy hair and his dark eyes, full of curiosity and excitement. It was only when Keitarou came to stay that Nagesu was released from the tedium of his own intensive studies as heir to the Clan, and so he had looked forward to the visits quite as much as the eager, inquisitive four year old who delighted in visiting the library even though then he had not been able to read the books held there.
He got slowly to his feet, dusting himself down.
In almost a century, nobody had mentioned the young boy's name. Yet even though the Council meeting had not revealed the identity of the Urahara rebels being pursued in District Seven, somehow Nagesu was certain that his young cousin was among them.
You disappeared, and for years, nobody even knew if you survived. You and my aunt, into the mist, to become nothing more than stories forgotten by most of those around you. Wiped from the records, erased from history. The son of a man who pushed the boundaries too far…an innocent cast down by his father's guilt.
Nagesu took off his glasses, wiping them absently against his sleeve before replacing them on his nose.
Yet even though your name was not spoken, Keitarou – somehow I know that Shouichi-sama meant you. Somehow I've always known it – that somewhere in this world, you lived. And that somehow…you would not forget as easily as others have forgotten you.
His eyes narrowed.
Even as a small boy, both Father and Uncle recognised your genius – even then they wanted you to learn to be as useful to me as Uncle was to Father throughout his life. Have you finally used that potential, after all?
He stepped back out into the sunlight, suddenly no longer wanting to be in a place so shrouded by memories. After Keitsune's death, he had never come here – it was not the same without Keitarou, and his own children had never played there, for he had commissioned a new place for them to play their childhood games. In an unspoken, unofficial way it had become both a shrine and a memorial in Nagesu's mind – to the innocence of that childhood that had ended when he had been eight years old.
I loved my Uncle too, in the end. Just as I loved my cousin and my Aunt. And I cried for them, just as I cried for you, Keitarou. You may not believe it – but even now, it's true.
His eyes narrowed.
But as head of the Urahara, I must stand firm. If you are behind it – even if it is you behind it – I will not be swayed. I will do what I must to uphold my family's law – and the law of the Council to whom my Clan's loyalty is sworn!
"We all seem to have been super-busy of late."
Thus Enishi as he dropped down onto his messy bunk with a sigh, gazing around him at the random piles of clothes and belongings that scattered the covers. Across the chamber, Shunsui was idly flicking through his own belongings, and at the chaos, Juushirou grinned, shrugging his shoulders in resignation.
It was ten days since his return to training, and in that time he had managed to keep much more within his limits, little by little feeling he was making the slowest of progressions towards full control. Shirogane had not stopped being demanding or strict, and Juushirou could not say that the Senior had been nice to him - yet somehow he felt they had a better working relationship now than they had had before, and consequently he felt far more confident that he would manage to reach his final goal.
Perhaps because of that, he reasoned now, settling himself down on his bedcovers to watch his friends, his health had been more settled of late, too. Exams had come and gone, and whilst he had scraped a mark of joint second this time with the elated Ryuu, he had not disgraced himself and could now look forward to the short summer break with a clear heart.
Not that, he knew, for him it would really be a break. District Six was too far and too expensive for him to travel back to his seaside family, and in any case he had already been instructed by his aloof shishou to remain within easy reach so that their training could continue even when classes did not.
The next day would see those students who were going home leaving by carriage - yet Juushirou would not be going with them.
Shunsui sighed, flopping back onto his blankets.
"Nii-sama is so inconvenient." He said now, breaking the silence. "Last year he didn't want me home for Summer break. Now he's summoned me there on one of his whims. I don't want to get up at the crack of dawn on a day without classes just to ride across the border...I wish he'd decided to let me alone."
"Don't you want to see your family, Kyouraku-kun?" Hirata put in from his corner, surprise in his pale blue eyes. "But you and your brother get along well - don't you?"
"Yes, we do." Shunsui nodded. "Only...well, I could've done without this trip, I suppose."
He cast Juushirou a rueful grin.
"I wanted to stay and make sure Nagoya-senpai didn't batter you to death over the break." He admitted. "But now I guess I won't be able to. I'm sorry about that."
"I'll be fine." Juushirou assured him. "And I'm not the only one not going home. None of the Kuchiki-ke seem to be, and Hirata's said he's staying too, even though Kai-kun is going home."
"News will come here more quickly than it will to District Two, and I have to hope and wait for any information relating to my Clan." Hirata nodded. "Besides, if you're staying, Ukitake-kun, I don't mind being here to keep you company. And Kuchiki-kun will be here too, so it will be fine, Kyouraku-kun. He won't be on his own."
"Ryuu-kun and Mitsuki-chan." Shunsui rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "Hirata, I'm going to rely on you to be Mitsuki and Juu's chaperon if need be - understand? Since I won't be here to defend Mitsuki's honour, and Ryuu's probably too hot-tempered to do it properly."
"We don't need chaperoning!" Juushirou objected. "It's not like that and you know it. We'll do fine, whether you're here or not, Shunsui!"
"And none of the Kuchiki are going back because Guren-sama issued an order that none of them were to travel." Enishi added at this moment, glancing up from his pile of rumpled hakama. "I heard it from my cousin in the fourth year. Apparently he doesn't want any of his family travelling through District Seven."
"Is there trouble, then?" Juushirou looked anxious. "Enishi-kun, Hirata's family...?"
"No, not like that." Enishi shook his head. "I don't know all the details, but I think there are some outlaw individuals running amok in Seventh and the Endou are trying to track them down. Guren-sama is worried that Kuchiki in Seventh District might provide those rebels with an opportunity to take a hostage - and he doesn't want the headache of dealing with it."
"Rebels who are strong enough to take Kuchiki children prisoner?" Shunsui was startled. "Are you sure, Enishi-kun?"
"Positive." Enishi nodded, and Hirata sighed, shrugging his shoulders.
"Kai-kun's said the same to me, too." He admitted slowly. "Midori-sama mentioned it to him in passing in a letter - that none of the Clans want their children in District Seven whilst there may be dangerous outlaws on the loose. I don't know much more than that, since obviously Midori-sama didn't tell him everything, either. But I think...Guren-sama has probably done the right thing."
"They must be special outlaws, then." Juushirou frowned. "Because even though Ryuu-kun and the rest aren't fully trained, surely against ordinary criminals..."
"Well, I don't know anything for sure. I only know what my cousin said." Enishi shrugged. "But he thought they might be Urahara rebels. And so if they are...they'd probably be tough competition. Even, maybe, for Nagoya to deal with - even with his zanpakutou release."
"Urahara?" Juushirou frowned, fleeting memory of the campfire conversation flitting through his thoughts. "You mean...descendants of the people who were put to death for reidoku a century ago?"
"There are still supposedly a lot of them about, in the shadows." Shunsui looked grave. "A bunch of them did escape, after all, when everything kicked off. Probably most of them have disappeared and changed their names so they can live their lives without persecution among the various districts. But...not necessarily all of them. It's not impossible, Juu-kun. Even after so long, that some of them might still bear a grudge. Besides..."
"Urahara scientists are nothing new in District Seven." Hirata said bitterly. "And if Grandfather is hunting them down, it's because he knows where they are and what they might reveal. It's a personal vendetta, most likely, to protect the Endou-ke name. I doubt any other Clan would be in danger - it's between the Endou and the rebels."
"Hirata..." Juushirou took in his friend's expression, then he sighed. "But either way, I suppose it makes sense that Guren-sama doesn't want to take the risk. After all...he has the safety of his family to worry about."
"Maybe I'll find something out about it from Nii-sama, then, when I go home." Shunsui decided. "Bordering District Seven, he must know something about it. Especially with all the refugees flowing into our land. It more or less stopped for a while, but then after Yayoi-sama died it started up again, and I know it's something that concerns him. Perhaps he's heard something - and I might make use of my home-going after all."
"Maybe that's why he's called you home." Juushirou suggested, and Shunsui shook his head, a wry smile touching his lips.
"No. He has another motivation." He said ruefully. "He wants me to meet his potential fiancee...he wants my blessing, I think, since if he marries her, she'll be a part of our household for keeps."
"Tokutarou-sama is getting married?" Enishi blinked, and Shunsui nodded.
"So it seems. Probably." He agreed. "Though don't tell Sora, since I haven't discussed it with her yet."
"Why would Sora care?" Juushirou looked puzzled, and Shunsui sighed.
"Sometimes, Juu, I worry about your powers of observation." He said heavily. "But anyway, the Clan have been badgering Nii-sama over it for ages now. Finally he's letting them have their way - or so he said in his letter."
"Is she a Kyouraku?" Hirata asked softly, and Shunsui nodded.
"My cousin, actually, although she's someone I've not met for one reason or another." He agreed. "Mother is her aunt, so this was all done on her advice and manipulation, I think. Nii-sama respects Mother's judgement more than he lets on, so he probably let himself be talked into it. Still, I don't know any more about her yet than that. So I guess we'll see. I might need to escape into politics and stuff if she's really Clannish and annoying."
Juushirou grinned.
"You mean, if she's the kind of sister-in-law who'll nag you and try to keep you in order." He translated, amusement in his hazel eyes, and Shunsui laughed, nodding his head.
"Something like that." He agreed good-naturedly. "I'm already surrounded, with Nii-sama on one side and Okaasama on the other. Another one on their team would just be blatantly unfair. Besides, this girl is our age. She was born two months before I was, so she's only nineteen. That'd be pretty weird, if she tried to pull the sister-in-law thing on me...so I suppose we'll see what happens. If I come crawling back to school in a state, you'll know it didn't go well."
"She might be pretty." Enishi suggested, and Shunsui shrugged.
"That would make it worse." He owned. "Since as my cousin she's already borderline off limits, but as my brother's potential wife...no, Enishi. That's not making it seem any better. Besides..."
He sighed, shaking his head.
"The last thing I want is for Nii-sama to start thinking it's time I thought about marriage again." He said heavily. "I don't think Rae-hime has any sisters...and our relationship is closer by blood than our Clan usually like, thank goodness - but you never know...apparently heirs to Clans are quite desirable commodities, in some circles."
"It's all right, Shunsui. They'd soon change their mind once they'd met you." Juushirou said lightly, and Shunsui snorted, tossing a pair of white socks in his friend's direction.
"Thank you." He said wryly. "That makes me feel much better."
He sighed.
"I'm just going to have to resign myself to a week and a half of being a Kyouraku Clansman instead of just lounging around the place like I usually do." He said heavily. "Since Tokutarou-nii will want me to make a good impression on the girl…at least until she's agreed to marry him and can't back out of the arrangement. It's going to be a boring trip home – I wish I could smuggle a couple of you with me, but sadly even that's off limits, too. Nii-sama was very specific. No silliness, no delays, no guests. And Yasuhiro would be coming personally with a carriage to collect me tomorrow at dawn."
"Yasuhiro…?" Juushirou frowned. "Is he a kinsman too? I don't know that name."
"No." Shunsui shook his head. "He's a member of the Sasakibe clan – they're a lower level family with close ties to the Shiba, but he's been my brother's chief manservant for a long time. Possibly since Tokutarou-nii was a boy, actually – I'm not quite sure. But either way, Nii-sama trusts him over everyone else he employs and he's not the kind of person who you'd try and go up against if you knew what was good for you."
He grimaced.
"Nii-sama knows that Yasuhiro won't be afraid to man-handle me if necessary, so long as he's been given his orders." He added. "He's respectful enough to me at the main house, but it's really only Tokutarou-nii that he obeys, not anyone else. As I said, his links are originally with District Five – so if he wants to drag me home by force, he'll probably do so. That's why I intend to be up and ready tomorrow – otherwise I could quite see the guy coming into the dorm and hauling me out of bed himself."
"I can see why Tokutarou-sama keeps him around, then." Enishi was amused. "The Sasakibe are a quite well known lower level warrior family – and supposedly very loyal, too. Our Clan employ several of them as guardsmen for important duties and places. But they don't take any nonsense and they obey their masters to the letter, no matter what."
"Yeah. Tell me about it." Shunsui rubbed his chin ruefully. "The number of times Yasuhiro came and hauled me out of a tavern or some other place at just past dawn…well, lets just say that he doesn't stand on any ceremony with me, and has no qualms about doing whatever he has to in order to follow Nii-sama's instructions."
"Then we'd better help make sure you're up and around early tomorrow." Juushirou decided, his eyes twinkling with amusement. "So that you don't upset your brother's messenger and don't offend your future sister-in-law."
Shunsui groaned again, flopping down onto his bed face down, and Juushirou laughed.
"It won't be as bad as that." He scolded. "And you'll get to see your family – your Mother as well as Tokutarou-sama. Think of those of us whose families are far away, Shunsui-kun – you don't realise how lucky you are."
"I suppose that's true." Shunsui rolled onto his back, nodding his head slowly. "Only my family and your family are completely different, Juu…still, I take the point. Okay. I'll stop complaining."
He grinned.
"I suppose if I'm at home, too, nobody's going to make me do any kind of revision study over the break." He added more brightly. "Nii-sama doesn't expect me to touch any kind of book when I'm at home – so that's all right."
"Since you held on to your top of the class position in the exams, he probably thinks you bother to work when you're here, instead." Juushirou reflected, and Shunsui shrugged.
"He knows me pretty well by now, so I'm not sure he does." He admitted. "But so long as I keep getting those marks, he tends to leave my education alone. Maybe it will be something of a holiday, after all – perhaps he'll even let me sleep in once or twice."
"You haven't even left yet, and already you're talking about sleeping in?"
At that moment the door slid back to reveal Kai, hair damp from the baths, and at his words, Shunsui cast him a rueful grin.
"Something like it." He agreed good-naturedly. "What about you, Kai-kun? What treats await you on your trip East?"
"Treats?" Kai snorted. "I'm worked harder at home than I am at school, Kyouraku. Hirata'll tell you. I'm no token heir – besides, Nee-sama is a harder taskmistress even than Minabe if she wants to be. I'll be coming back here for a break, not going home for one. There's far too much to be done within the Shihouin – even now."
"Another good reason why I'm staying here this time." Hirata nodded. "The Shihouin-ke have been kinder to me already than I can repay – I don't need to get under their feet more than is necessary."
"You'd be fine to come, though. I told you already – neither Nee-sama nor I consider you an imposition." Kai sent him a concerned look, but Hirata shook his head.
"It's fine. This time I'll stay." He said in his soft voice. "If you don't have me to look after, you'll be able to help Midori-sama far more. And it isn't as though she'll have you for very long this time, so I think it's better this way."
"Where's Kuchiki?" Enishi asked at this moment. "Since he's not going home, I'm surprised he's not up here."
"The library, most probably." Kai rolled his eyes. "He didn't come to the bath-house with me – well, big surprise there – and that's usually where you can find him. He's a creature of habit, after all…he'll probably spend the whole summer locked up inside there with all the books he can get his hands on."
"Not if we can help it." Juushirou shook his head. "If Hirata's here to help make sure I don't overwork myself this break, he and I can also make sure Ryuu-kun doesn't spend all of the time with his head in a book. While the weather's nice, we can walk up into the town and the girls are staying, I think, so they can come too. I have to balance my training, in any case, so it'll be a good excuse to clear my head."
"And there are no illicit chemicals or shady characters lurking in that town these days." Kai said dryly. "So in that respect, you should be safe enough."
"Juu's already planning on taking Mitsuki on a summer walking date." Shunsui teased, and Juushirou snorted.
"I don't remember saying anything like that." He retorted neatly. "I suggested we could all go. I'm sorry to disappoint you, Shunsui – but I've no secret plans to do anything inappropriate with Mitsuki while you people are away. Like I told you before – a hundred times – we're just friends. That's all. Nothing else."
"Which was said so emphatically, it's obviously a lie." Kai chuckled, and Juushirou swung around, a look of dismay on his pale features.
"Kai-kun? You too?"
"Well, it's not as though it isn't obvious that you both like one another." Kai shrugged, sinking down onto his own bed. "And it'd probably be a lot better for the two of you if you stopped tiptoeing and got it out of your system. It isn't healthy, after all…bottling things up."
Shunsui let out an appreciative chuckle, and Juushirou sighed.
"I don't know whether Shunsui's been a bad influence on you or if this is ingrained Shihouin coming out." He said resignedly. "For the last time, though, let it go. Okay? Mitsuki's a Kuchiki. I'm District. Whatever either of us might or might not think about it – there's no changing those two things."
"Sounds like you've given it some thought." Enishi finally got to the bottom of his pile of clothes, dumping them down on the floor with a satisfied grin. "Maybe Shihouin's right, in the end. Perhaps bottling it up is a bad thing."
"Enishi-kun!" Juushirou looked scandalised, and Shunsui got to his feet, coming to rest a reassuring hand down on his friend's shoulder.
"The thing is, Juu, we all see you as one of us. We don't see Clan or District and we don't make those kinds of divisions." He said seriously. "And I do know the complications of it – but the thing is, Saku and I were different in one way at least. Saku was never…reaching for the sky. And I…never knew a way to encourage her to. But Mitsuki is going to be her own kind of Shinigami – she's going to make her own choices as a healer, not as a Kuchiki hime. And you're going to be a Gotei Shinigami, with a zanpakutou and, quite probably, a rank of note in Genryuusai-sensei's new vision of Seireitei. Things are changing. You're the one who keeps advocating that change. So stop falling into the traps of the past, okay? You don't have to obey rules set down by Clansfolk if you're not Clansfolk. Didn't you tell those upperclassmen something like that just the other day? You'll only help make those divisions stronger if you help to support them."
"Kyouraku makes it sound like it's your duty to pursue Edogawa." Kai was amused, and Juushirou sighed, rubbing his temples.
"I know." He admitted unwillingly. "But it doesn't help – you encouraging me is as bad as if you were telling me it's wrong. It's not about right or wrong. It just makes me uncomfortable if everyone is looking and pointing and adding their opinion to the mix."
"Ukitake-kun is right. You should stop teasing him." Hirata said softly, and Juushirou shot his young friend a grateful look. "It's up to Ukitake-kun and Edogawa-san if they like each other or if they just want to be friends. Everyone else is just going to make it awkward and that's not fair. Stop talking about it now…let's talk about something else."
"You really have come on since last year, you know, kid." Enishi cast Hirata a warm smile. "And you're right, so we'll lay off. All right, Kyouraku? Shihouin? No more teasing Ukitake about Edogawa. It's not our business to interfere…end of subject."
"Spoilsport." Shunsui pulled a face, but Juushirou nodded.
"Thank you Hirata. Enishi-kun." He said, relief in his hazel eyes. "Instead, maybe Hirata and I can help you three to pack your belongings for tomorrow – since they're not going to pack themselves."
"Seems like he's eager to get rid of us, now." Kai observed dryly. "All right, Ukitake. You win. And someone ought to help Houjou with that mountain of stuff, else he'll pack all hakama and nothing else."
"I'm no good at domestic things." Enishi shrugged good-naturedly. "But help would be appreciated, Ukitake – thank you. My mother's given up on expecting me to understand anything about it, but my sister will probably have plenty to say if I turn up with half the wrong clothes. Not to mention I'm taller than her husband, so I'll have nothing to wear if I don't pack the right belongings from the start."
"You're not going home, then?" Kai looked surprised, and Enishi shook his head.
"It's only a short break, and my older sister claimed me this time." He said with a grin. "I haven't seen her since the winter, so she insisted I came to stop with her this break. She and I have always been quite close – and my brother in law is one of the few Clansmen who doesn't look on me as a clumsy nuisance about the house – so when she wrote and asked me, I was all for it. She lives only twenty ri from the school – so it's a shorter journey, too."
"I guess in-laws aren't always bad, then." Shunsui said pensively. "I hope I have as much luck with my potential ones as you have with yours."
He stretched, letting out a heavy sigh.
"And I suppose I ought to pack, too." He added resignedly. "Or Yasuhiro's going to be taking me home without any clothes, either!"
Shunsui would arrive soon.
Tokutarou set down his brush, glancing briefly over the document he had just signed, then nodded, getting to his feet and moving to the door to summon one of his messengers. It was more convenient, he knew, when Yasuhiro was on duty, for the broad warrior was also adept at carrying out other instructions, still Tokutarou had decided that for the time being it was better to send his most trusted advisor to collect his young brother and hope to manage in his absence.
I don't think Shunsui is in danger, particularly not coming from District One home. But you can never be too careful – and at least this way I know he won't dally on the way.
Once the document was safely in the hands of his swift-footed messenger boy, Tokutarou sighed, shutting the study door and leaning up against the wood with a pensive expression on his face. He was looking forward to seeing his brother, yet he was also apprehensive, since there were so many things to discuss – many things and yet, so little time.
"Tokutarou-sama?"
A soft voice from the landing above made him start and he glanced up, offering the speaker a rueful smile.
Time, or opportunity.
"I'm sorry, am I disturbing your work?" The young woman looked concerned, faltering at the rail, and Tokutarou shook his head.
"Not at all." He assured her. "I've finished the documentation I needed to have signed this morning – I was simply thinking about Shunsui's trip home, and that he'd be arriving quite soon."
"Ah." The young woman's pretty face cleared and she nodded, moving gracefully down the steps to join him. "I am anxious to meet Shunsui-sama, of course…since he and I will be brother and sister as well as cousins if our arrangement goes to plan."
"Yes." Tokutarou was silent for a long while, then he sighed, shrugging his shoulders.
"Shunsui is…a very clever boy." He added eventually. "I hope…you will understand that, Rae-hime. Or that he…will let you understand that."
"Why would I not?" Rae was genuinely confused. "Yoshiko-basama has said the same, and I know she adores her son. Why would I find him anything other? Is he not the Clan's favourite to wear the haori of District Eight when he has completed his training?"
"Ye-e-es…" Tokutarou faltered, then he offered her a wry smile. "Ah, well. You'll see, I think, when you meet. To understand…is to meet him in full, not listen to me attempt to explain or excuse him. I only hope he will make a good first impression – truthfully, with my brother, it's often hard to know what he will say or do next."
Rae stared for a moment, then she laughed, an amused peal of tinkling laughter as she slowly nodded her head.
"Yoshiko-basama has also told me that he likes mischief." She said lightly. "Although I confess she did not give me any real detail. I am curious, however. I have heard so much about Shunsui-sama from many many sources – and I am eager to meet him at long last. It seems wrong that we are first cousins, yet have had no chance to even exchange greetings."
"Well, Shunsui's childhood was complicated." Tokutarou said quietly, and Rae frowned, her features becoming serious as she nodded her head.
"Yes." She said gravely. "This too I have heard from my lady Aunt."
She sighed, shrugging her shoulders.
"You needn't have any fear of me being frightened away by anything my cousin has to say, Tokutarou-sama." She said at length. "I am quite resolved, you see, to make a good impression on him and on all of those who surround you. I intend to fulfil the Clan's wishes, after all. If you will accept me, I intend to become your wife – and undertake willingly all that that entails."
Tokutarou gazed at her for a moment, taking in the resolution that glittered now in her mahogany dark eyes.
She was both petite and delicate in appearance, her pale complexion and deep coloured eyes in direct enough contrast to give her the striking, distinctive appearance often associated with the northern Kyouraku nobles. Her thick chestnutty brown waves of hair were wisped back from her face in a neat yet elegant braid, and some maidservant had obviously spent a good deal of time with her that morning, for it was threaded with delicate, tiny beads of silver and rose. Her kimono was of the most expensive fabric in soft, pastel green, patterned faintly with a floral design that wove its way across the cloth as though each stitch had been placed there with purpose, one thread at a time. The silk had been imported and most likely styled with all the intention of enhancing her simple beauty.
Yet there was nothing superficial or weak in this girl's demeanour or her attitude, and even though at first glance she might be mistaken for fragile, in the five days since they had met, Tokutarou had already realised that his potential fiancée bore a brain as sharp as Yoshiko's own. At first he had feared discussing politics with her, not sure whether her sheltered life in the North would have precluded her from taking part in such debates. He had soon discovered that fear to be groundless, however, for Rae was as acquainted with the Clans and their rivalries as any man of the Kyouraku he had ever had the fortune to meet.
She was like Yoshiko in many ways, he reflected, even vaguely bearing her aunt's likeness in her face. Yet she was also different from Yoshiko, too – and on one or two occasions Tokutarou had got the impression that she would never let her son be taken from her in the way Shunsui had been forcibly taken from Yoshiko, so many years ago.
In truth, even in such a short space of time, Tokutarou liked her. For a Clan leader to like his or her arranged partner was a rare luxury indeed, he knew – yet he would not commit until he had consulted his brother and heir, and elicited his acceptance for the match as well.
"Then the sooner you two meet the better." He said now, offering her his arm as he heard the sound of the main doors from the floor immediately below. "I think that Yasuhiro may have returned, and that means Shunsui will be here, too. You are of an age, so may have things in common, after all."
"It matters a good deal to you, doesn't it, that I should form a good opinion of your brother?" Rae asked softly, and Tokutarou nodded his head.
"It does." He agreed. "I will not have my heir and my future wife creating rivalries and misunderstandings…this family has had enough bloodshed and misery in the past without building more for its future. Besides, Shunsui is important to me – beyond the politics of this family, he's my blood brother, and that matters above all things. So yes, I want things to go smoothly."
"Well, if he's going to drag me up so early, he could at least bother to come meet me."
As they reached the end of the main hallway, Tokutarou could clearly hear his brother's voice, followed by the calm tones of his own servant.
"Tokutarou-sama has much work to do, Shunsui-sama. I will go and announce to him your arrival – if you wish to take a moment's ease, I will return forthwith."
"No need for that, Yasuhiro." Before Shunsui had an opportunity to answer, Tokutarou strode forward into the entrance hall proper, casting the tall Sasakibe a rueful smile. "Thank you for the quick carrying out of your duty. You may go now and catch up to your own affairs – I will send for you when I need you again."
"Yes, sir." Yasuhiro bowed his head slightly, withdrawing from the chamber without even the slightest hesitation, and the two brothers were left facing each other in the hall. Rae had waited behind in the corridor beyond, Tokutarou realised, and a faint smile touched his lips as he realised she had allowed him that moment to greet his brother properly before she complicated the equation.
Yes, Yoshiko-dono. She really is a smart girl, your niece.
"So you are here, then." Shunsui cast Tokutarou a lazy grin. "I was beginning to wonder."
"Cheeky brat." Tokutarou told him good-naturedly. "You rode quickly, however – so obviously someone managed to get you up on time this morning."
"A joint effort by Ryuu-kun and Juu." Shunsui agreed. "Since I knew Yasuhiro wouldn't delay any, I decided it was better to get dressed and come quietly rather than be dragged across the school and the District in my nightclothes."
"Yes, thank you for that." Tokutarou said wryly. "I'm glad you do occasionally consider the reputation of this family when making decisions."
"Sometimes." Shunsui said casually. "Besides, I didn't think that'd be the right way to greet your lady friend. Is she here too, by the way? Yasuhiro's such a pain – all he said was that Rae-hime arrived at the main house five days ago and that it was not his place to comment any further."
"She's waiting to meet you." Tokutarou nodded his head. "Though that isn't the only reason I called you home this summer break."
Shunsui's expression became thoughtful.
"I wondered if it might not be." He admitted. "Since you have a nasty habit of cloaking one motive with another that seems more innocent."
"Yes. But we'll talk on it later." Tokutarou agreed. "Because I won't keep Rae-hime waiting any longer than I have to."
He turned towards the entrance, where his female guest was hovering in the doorway, hesitant and uncertain as she glanced between her potential fiancé and the young Lord's heir.
"I'm sorry to have taken so long, Rae-hime." He said now. "Please, I'd like you to meet my younger brother Shunsui – your cousin and the heir to the Kyouraku haori and Clan."