Chapter Twenty-Seven: The Death of a Friend
The cycle continued well into the second year we were in Kodokuna, and only seemed to come to an end around midsummer, in typical earth shattering form. I had just been penning a reply to Master Katakura, thanking him for his last letter and the advice on what seeds to plant in the flowerbeds, when Ranmaru had charged in, face flushed from all his running, "Sayomi, you have to come quick!"
Getting to my feet from the table, I met his eyes, suddenly terrified. Breathing heavily, Ranmaru seemed reluctant to part with his last bit of news, "It's Dango."
Spurred on by those two words, I barely noticed my brush drop from my hand, splattering my perfectly formed kanji, too busy slipping my sandals on and running out of the door, hopping for a few steps to secure the other one properly. Even though he clearly needed rest, Ranmaru stayed at my side until the second we saw Dango and heard his pained whinnies as Asuka's father tried to lead him down the main street, Itsuki running ahead to clear the way. Quickly stepping into stride with him, I tapped the horse-master's shoulder, breathing heavily, "What happened?"
"He just collapsed in the fields. We managed to get him standing again, but if we can't get him inside…"
"He'll die?" I whispered, actually stopping with the shock of my own statement. Not halting his trail, Asuka's father nodded gravely, continuing to lead my horse onwards. Giving them a few seconds to go in front, I found myself hesitating to follow.
Any number of things could've made him collapse, and I knew that if he didn't want to, Dango wouldn't recover. My gravest fears were confirmed barely an hour later, when the heavens opened again, and Asuka's father finally left Dango's stall, shaking his head slightly, "I'm sorry, Sayomi. If he lasts the night, then we may have a chance, but he's very weak."
Squeezing my eyes closed, I nodded sharply, understanding all too well. Gently gripping my shoulder, the horse-master left us alone, telling Ranmaru and Itsuki to go home before it got dark. Waiting until their voices faded, I unlatched the stall, stepping into the hay filled room.
Dango acknowledged my presence with a snort, not bothering to move his head from where it had been propped up on a hay pile. "Hey boy," I croaked out, crouching next to him, patting his coat, "I guess it was all a bit much huh?" Blinking slowly at me, Dango finally moved his head, his breathing suddenly getting a lot worse, "No Dango, you have to rest."
Ignoring my pleading, he continued, until his nuzzle was tossing my hair about, an amused snort guiding him back onto his pillow. His head had barely touched it when his stomach gave an almighty churn, and he was braying loudly, thrashing his legs. Holding the affected area, I felt the vibrations as it rumbled, trying my hardest to comfort him. When he groaned softly, and his legs stopped trying to kick me away, the dam broke, and I was openly sobbing, pressing my face into his coat, begging him not to die.
Footsteps outside alerted me to another's presence, but my mind was set, unwilling to let my Dango leave me. "That manic beast that Oda had chosen tried to kick me off immediately, but you took a stand over me, messing up my hair like you love doing." My voice seemed to calm as he did, our eyes never leaving each other. "We have been though everything the world throws at us, you even found your own way home after Ieyasu's…and I know how you tethered yourself to Ran."
Blinking sadly, Dango tried to lift his head again, but flopped back weakly, just as his stomach rumbled again. Keeping my arms around his flank, I carried on talking, "Think about the forest path, Dango, and remember how the sun used to stream through the trees onto you. Remember," I choked again, realising that his breathing was getting shallower, "That I will never forget you."
Hanzo waited until Dango's breathing stilled before placing his hand on my shoulder, rubbing it slightly. "Are you going to be okay?"
"A good friend is hard to find," I whispered, giving Dango a final stroke on the neck, "It's the time you have with them that must be cherished." Leaning my head on his shoulder, I turned to look at Hanzo, smiling sadly. Understanding, he nodded, placing his head on top of mine. We remained like that until dawn, when Asuka's father found us asleep, and Dango lying prone. Tapping us awake so he and Nobu would have room to work, he covered Dango's body up, ready to be cremated.
Kissing the top of my head, Hanzo promised to make sure everything went well, kindly but firmly sending me back home to check on the kids. They were just starting breakfast when I got in, looking up when they heard the door close softly. Slipping my shoes off, I gave a great sigh, facing the pair of them, "Dango died last night." Ranmaru stared at me in shock, while Itsuki clapped her hand to her mouth. "Hanzo's helping them deal with him right now."
"Are they going to tan him?" Ranmaru suddenly asked fearfully, "Is his leg going to be our next meat package?" Ignoring our weird looks, he suddenly dropped his head, holding it while his shoulders shook hard. Swearing lightly, I grabbed onto him, letting him cry into my shoulder while Itsuki shifted about awkwardly.
Silently asking permission, she seemed pleased when I nodded, entering our shared bedroom and closing the door behind her. She never had moved out again, now that I thought about it. "Little saru," I murmured, rubbing the top of his head, "Sometimes horses die for no reason at any age," He hiccupped slightly, giving me time to remember if I ever had heard why. "But because we don't know what happened, then even if I hadn't cared, Asuka's father can't risk what killed Dango getting to one of us."
"So what'll happen?" Ranmaru finally asked, wiping his eyes on my clothing.
Letting him pull away, I looked him dead in the eyes, "Dango is getting cremated, okay? No tanning, no butchering, he's getting burnt. His spirit's being released into the wilds again."
Nodding a little, Ranmaru shuffled away, looking over at the table, "We didn't want to clean it up in case you needed to finish your letter." Laughing a little, I released him, calling Itsuki back in so she could eat breakfast. While they prepared something that couldn't fumigate the house, I looked over my splattered paper, reaching for another piece with a shake of my head.
In the wake of Dango's death, and the start of the hunting season, I was privy to one of Mizu's rare, reluctant requests. She and Ranmaru had been practising their bow strokes, hers as fluent from one to another, but his were jagged, unnaturally so.
Giving a lesson to Michi, Mariko and Tsukiko on the decking, I didn't have to watch long to see what the problem was. Having set up several practise targets in the garden, the pair of them were shooting for the centre, Mizu not perfect, but performing far better than the boy who could usually catch a fleeing foe without aiming.
Between strokes, he had to keep tossing his hair out of his eyes, sometimes releasing the string too early or late in his haste. Humming thoughtfully, I tugged one of Mariko's ribbons free, winking at her slightly. "Stay still Ran."
Without turning around, Ranmaru let me tie his hair back into his old topknot style, using the ends of the fabric to tie his bangs out of his face fully. Huffing a little, he nodded nonetheless, drawing his bowstring back fully and hitting the centre with ease.
Turning with an impressed look on her face, Mizu had to clap a hand over her mouth before she burst out laughing, spluttering all the same. Looking bemused, Ranmaru suddenly noticed Mariko's asymmetrical plaits, realising that one of her pink ribbons were missing. "Sayomi, I'm going to kill you!"
Quickly grabbing onto him, Mizu glanced at me, "When was the last time he had a bloody haircut?"
"Now we're going back a few years," I murmured, rubbing at the back of my neck, "He'll be getting a topknot on his birthday."
"That's a samurai's style." She reminded me, indicating my own very loose hair, "You pair stopped that remember?"
Looking between us, Ranmaru wriggled loose, pulling his hair free again, "If my hair's getting hacked, then Chiyome's doing it. I want it done properly." Gaping at his disregard for our knife skill, I met Mizu's eyes, grinning at her shrug.
"Alright, we'll nip round to hers tomorrow. In the meantime," She stooped to gather her quiver, shaking the loose arrows about. "I'm restocking for the hunt." Waiting for her to leave, I regarded Ranmaru carefully, leaping out of the way when he tried to bolt for my neck again.
