Hanzo had to blow out the candle when I regained consciousness, my eyes hurt so much. For the first five minutes he spoke in the dark, unsure of whether or not I'd fallen back asleep. He told me I had a broken arm, as well as a few minor cuts courtesy of my swords breaking. But the first thing he told me was that I was alive. The assurance might've made me giggle if it hadn't made me feel relieved. When his voice tailed off, obviously thinking I had fallen asleep, I gave my lips a quick lick, "What about Lady Oichi? I heard you talking about her."
He hesitated, "She's still alive. Magoichi wanted to kill her but-" Hanzo's voice cut when he heard my head thump back against the pillow. "A woman told us to stop. She said you knew her."
That last voice had sounded vaguely familiar. "That shouldn't have stopped it."
"I know. But after that, we were more concerned with you." My eyes finally adjusted to the darkness, picking out Hanzo's shape, but not his aura, no matter how hard I tried, "Yomi?"
"Can you take the incense away? I can't see properly." I briefly wondered why my nose hadn't picked up on it.
The answer slammed into me with Hanzo's quiet whisper, "We haven't lit any incense. Are you sure you're…" The words stopped when a stream of light fell on us, let in by the now open door. I instantly screwed my eyes tight, turning my head into the pillow, while Hanzo simply watched my uncle enter, exhaling heavily.
"I'll handle this, Hanzo. You go get some rest."
"But I-"
"It's family business, if I'm guessing right." The apology in his words did little to stop the displeased sound that left Hanzo's throat. Eventually, a hand patted mine, and he was getting to his feet, walking away with presumably a glare in his eyes. "I'll call if anything happens, promise."
"He is family." I weakly argued, but only once the door was closed again, and Satoshi had taken a seat near the bed. But at least the interruption let me know I was back at the castle, away from Kanegasaki.
Satoshi waited until I was squinting at him before speaking, making no move to ease the discomfort his light was giving, "I know Botan, but this is about blood. The stuff you were covered in, to be exact."
I blinked cautiously, taking a few seconds to understand. When I did, and showed in it my face, Satoshi gave a slow nod. "You knew." I gasped softly, unable to believe it. "The whole time?"
"Near enough. Some guessing was needed." He confirmed, fiddling with his pipe. It never went near his mouth though, his fingers just ran along it, following the grain, while he focused on me. "It was Hanbei who told me what had happened. You know he left a message in every tavern on Mino's border, just so I'd get his summons?" The laughter was false, but there was a hint of something real there. Something I couldn't see any more. "You were already at your grandmother's, and he was furious that I'd missed the funerals. But I can't say I wasn't expecting what he told me. In a way, I'd been waiting for it."
"I don't understand." I whispered.
Deciding this wasn't a conversation with someone lying down, Satoshi helped me to sit up, tensing when he brushed against my left arm and I hissed. The talking was halted while he checked it, but confident he hadn't jostled it too much, his hand went back to his pipe. "Your mom didn't hate you Botan. She just…Ah geez, we all thought she'd have more time, that was all."
"Satoshi, I still don't-"
"Kazuki confronted her about her behaviour towards you. Asked her why she brushed you off after you started talking. I was there at the time, and what she said was unlike anything I'd ever heard before. It was your dreams, she told us, your dreams that went further than Tadashi's, like that proved anything. That was when I learnt about your eyes, and what they could do."
"She told me. You'd have thought she'd know why he died so young."
"Well, she didn't." Satoshi said decisively, finally packing some tobacco into his pipe, and lighting it. "And that is why she tricked you into killing her."
Every single part of me just stopped on hearing those words. My heart skipped a beat, my throat dried up, and my breath went completely still. "What?"
"Hey, Botan, breathe first. Deep one in." I sucked in a lungful, acting on auto-pilot, "And let it out." Pulling back the hand he'd stretched out in premature alarm, Satoshi let his own breath escape. He avoided my eyes for a little while, and the loss of being able to know what he was thinking ran through me again.
In the end, it fell to me to break the silence, "She tricked me?"
"Yeah, at least, that's the way I always thought it happened." The bowl of the pipe glowed orange for a few seconds longer, stoked by his breath. "Whatever Oichi did sent you unconscious and into a dream. There you saw your mother…well, you know. The little you was also there, but she confused you for a yokai, and kept on doing so. Your mom, desperate and suddenly aware of what she had done, knew she was going to be the next to die. But she wanted her son avenged, and who better to do that, than his sister?"
I ducked my gaze to my lap, feeling the tears again. "That's a heck of a leap."
"Not when Rin said that was what she wanted."
I'm glad you could avenge your brother. That was-That was all I-ngh!
And then she had thanked me. Spotting the realisation on what he could see of my face, Satoshi gave another nod, "Exactly. Tadashi was young and healthy. Murder was the only way he would die at that age. But as you said, Rin didn't know who would be holding the knife. The only thing missing is…how did she trick you?"
I explained the last part of the meeting, but kept my eyes down, waiting for a tear to finally fall. She had a daughter who loathed her standing right there. She could've just flung some insults until I snapped. Instead, she wasted time comforting me, and then attacked, knowing I'd defend myself. I just wanted to know why.
"She loved you too, you know." Glancing upwards in surprise, I met Satoshi's sad eyes. "She just wanted to give Tadashi as much love as she could before he died. Like I said, we all thought she'd have more time to make it up to you, that it'd just be some hazy memory in the end. As far as I see it, she just wanted to let you know that before she died."
I mulled the information over, letting it clash against what I had known, not unlike it had before. Which ultimately led to... "Why did you lie to me? You said she'd killed herself, let me believe the stories everyone told."
"Because I didn't want you like this." He confided, getting to his feet with a groan. Clicking his back a bit, he soon undid the work by bending down, pressing a kiss to my forehead. "Don't blame yourself Botan. These things were decided long before you were born."
Satoshi left to go get Hanzo, giving me no chance to tell him about hearing Oda's voice. By the time Hanzo came back in, I'd pushed it away, unwilling to give it any attention.
"Alright Lady Hiroto, can you just stretch your arm for me?" Wincing with a small hiss, I did as I was told, only managing a small amount of movement before I was shaking my head and pulling it back to my body. The doctor made a disapproving noise in the back of his throat, shaking his head before helping me along, fingers gently testing the swelling. My spare hand closed around Hanzo's, a whimper escaping my throat when he touched a particularly sore point.
The examination only took a few minutes after that, the doctor apparently getting the hint that his patient wanted to leave as soon as possible. With a frown on his face, he finally wound the bandage back around my arm, careful to keep it aligned, "I recommend avoiding anything too strenuous, though I hopefully shouldn't have to tell either of you that. Keep it in the sling, and I'll check again in a few days."
"Anything else?"
"Just the usual precautions and common sense." Bidding us a good day, the doctor went to see to his other patients, leaving us to figure out the sling. Once it was tied around my neck, and Hanzo had eased my arm through it, he took a step back, biting his lip.
I was willing to bet that he wasn't the only one wearing that expression in the castle. Oichi's presence here had everyone on edge, no-one willing to approach her to put her out of her misery, but not willing to let her go either. And for some reason, it was my name she hid behind. "Where are you going?" Hanzo asked, watching me rest a coat on my shoulders.
"I want to talk to this woman, and ask her who the hell she thinks she is." Tugging the right side back into position, I gave him a slight smirk, "And when I'm done, Lady Oichi will either be dead, or heading that way."
"Yeah right." Hearing the snort, I threw a pout over my shoulder. "You're a soft touch Yomi. If you think she deserves to live, she'll live."
"Well, perhaps you're right. But it'd have to be a very convincing argument." Gesturing for him to take the lead with my head, I took a step to the side when he did as told. "I don't suppose you happened to get the woman's name did you?" If she knew me, I did want to be able to face her properly.
But even my wildest speculations couldn't have predicted what came after a brief period of thinking, "Yeah actually. I think she said it was Miyo Nomura." Gasping quietly, I stopped dead in my tracks, staring at him in…I couldn't really describe it.
Is this about Nomura Yamato? His wife came to the temple to pray for his soul. I understand he was one of your men?
He mentioned his general often in his letters. You are Lady Sayomi?
I have a kid back in Owari, a wife too. Little Yoshi loved being held like this.
"At least, that's what it sounded like. She sort of babbled when she saw the guns. Could've been anything rea- Yomi?" Glancing over his shoulder, Hanzo turned properly when he saw my face. "Are you-"
"I know her." I gabbled, schooling my features back into a mask. "But I…was there a boy with them?" Yoshi would be thirteen. Who knows how the years would change him…
Hanzo's face gave me the answer simply by avoiding my eyes. Closing my own, I gave a deep exhale, nodding once it was done to indicate I was ready to continue down the hall.
The room they were in could've belonged to anyone, it was so anonymous. There were no weapons or personal effects to indicate ownership, but it was still avoided at all costs. And the reason for that was kneeling in the centre of the room, having her hair brushed. "There Lady Oichi, doesn't that feel better?"
"Yes…thank you Tama."
A shot of ice ran through my heart, Hanzo looking at me in alarm. But the sigh the woman gave melted it slightly, even as she stood with the brush in hand. The way she reacted indicated it was an argument she'd long given up on. Spotting our shadows, Miyo turned to greet us, giving the same quiet smile she had given to a young girl and a ninja delivering harsh news. "Lady Sayomi, it was you I saw. I wasn't sure, but when they held off on shooting…" Another sigh, before the smile returned. "I had hoped I would get to see you."
"I'll admit, I was surprised to hear your name just now. I hope you have been well, Mrs Nomura?"
"Well enough. Until the last few weeks, at least." Our eyes met with an understanding passing between them, the haunted look of a woman who had lost everything meeting my own demons.
Lady Oichi sat through our conversation silently, eyes aimed at Hanzo like a curious child. At first the attention unsettled him, he certainly fidgeted enough, but as with anything, he got used to it. Only then did she turn her head. I ignored the new eyes on me, letting Miyo finish her story. "You defended her once. Your name just sprung into my mind." Looking at the spectre for herself, Miyo swapped to a softer tone, "She's just like a child you see, she doesn't mean any harm."
"She killed your entire town." Hanzo tried to argue. It had been that part that had stuck with him for obvious reasons, "Your child."
Miyo shook her head, "No, you don't understand. She didn't kill Yoshi, the soldiers around her did."
"It doesn't make any difference."
"Perhaps not to you." Hanzo gave a quiet growl and returned to silence, allowing me to take over again.
"If the dark magic means to protect her, then why attack us? We were not intending to harm her."
"But that is what the men told her, and she reacted to it. I cannot explain it properly, so much of it remains unknown even to me."
The look she was giving me was desperate, a plea not for her life but for another, who she felt duty bound to protect. When others huddled in fear of the dark witch, Miyo had run out to her, tried to make her see sense. She had been spared, where others had not. I already had my decision in mind when I asked my final question, "She calls you Tama, may I ask why?"
Miyo's shrug was honest, "I thought it was the name of her former maid. But going by your reaction, I was wrong to assume that?"
I gave a curt nod, "The ninja I was with the night we met. Before converting to Christianity, her name was Tama. Only Lady Oichi continued to address her as such."
Hanzo started next to me, interrupting before I could give my judgement, "While you were there, Mrs Nomura, you didn't hear word of Gracia, did you?"
"No, should I have?" Both of us deflated, mourning the loss of a possible lead on whatever had happened to her body. "Please though, what is to be done about Lady Oichi?" Hanzo shifted his eyes across to me, leaving the decision with me. And with a heavy heart, I made it.
Naturally, my decision was not popular. I even had to tell Ieyasu twice before he actually accepted it. But it was as we were walking down the hall and I was running my reasons by him that my head was suddenly whipped to the side, my good hand clutching my stinging cheek.
Hanzo was quick to grab the guy, grabbing the arm he'd slapped me with and using it to push him onto his knees, snarling the whole time, "How dare you."
"No, how dare you!" The Oda soldier snapped, fighting the ironclad hold, glaring at me with a deep hatred, "She has no right to decide Lady Oichi's fate!"
Ieyasu took a step forwards, tying to shield me a bit, "Lady Sayomi served as one of your generals, if anything-"
"She's nothing but a fucking traitor. Turned heel and ran when we needed her most. I'm the head of Lady Oichi's army, I take responsibility for her!"
"Let him go, Hanzo." I ordered, ignoring the disbelieving looks I got. "If he has a problem, he should feel free to tell me directly."
Only a few Oda remnants had survived the assault Magoichi had led at Kanegasaki. But the few left were seasoned soldiers, a commodity we could never second guess. Regardless of Lady Oichi's fate, we needed them.
Stepping around Ieyasu again, I told Hanzo again, forcing myself to stand tall when the commander straightened, his fist bunching like he wanted to hit me again. But he was smart enough not to try it. While he stared at me, I tried matching his face to any others in my memory, frowning a little when I couldn't. Well, my plan of getting to know the army had gone downhill before I'd even started it so I shouldn't have been surprised. "I take it you and your men will agree with nothing I decide for Lady Oichi, even if it is in her best interest?"
"You guess right."
"Very well." I replied, turning around to face Ieyasu, "Can you tell Magoichi that she has gotten her wish? I'm going for a lie down."
Guessing at my game, Hanzo moved to wrap an arm around me, the pair of us only just starting to walk when the commander realised what had just happened, catching up to us with a growl, "You bitch. She should've killed you when she had the chance."
"It's no good blaming me, commander." I told him, a cruel smile pricking on my lips, "I'm only doing as you wished." The bemused look on his face made laughing easier, "You said you wouldn't agree with my decision. Therefore, I changed my mind to please you."
The commander took a step back, giving the two of us a chance to keep moving, Hanzo glancing at me with concern. But only a second passed before our path was blocked again, "You mean you were…"
"I was going to give her a chance. Just one, but it's more than you apparently wanted." The act I was trying to pull off dropped with my next breath, my anger going with it,
"I have no quarrel with her regardless of how I feel about her family and powers. If Miyo proves to be correct, then Lady Oichi staying here should be no problem, is that correct, Ieyasu?"
"I was just agreeing to that, yes."
"Remember, although I stand by it, my betrayal was not completely voluntary."
"But you would do it again, if given the choice?" The commander snarled, careful to keep his own temper reined now.
"That is not a fair question. The Sayomi you were acquainted with knew very little of what was occurring around her. Now that I have grown, I make it my business to know everything."
"Got that right." Hanzo chuckled, injecting some much needed humour into the mix.
"Now commander, I'm afraid I really do need some sleep. Can you direct any future questions to Lord Tokugawa?"
"I…" The commander looked between us before giving a reluctant nod, "I will."
It wasn't quite the thanks or apology that we would've liked, but even I was aware that that was an optimistic prospect at best. For now, it was better to take what little we could, and snatch at more when given the opportunity.
Resting my head on Hanzo's shoulder as he saw me back to my room, I indulged in a wide yawn. These latest incidents had taken more out of me than any battle ever had, and I wanted to be able to lose the fatigue before I was pushed into service again. But before letting me go inside, Hanzo turned me to face him, hands cupping both my cheeks.
For a moment, I expected him to kiss or hug me. Instead, he held my gaze for a long time, as if he was looking for something. "Hanzo?"
"Back there I thought- No, it's nothing."
"It's obviously not if you feel the need to stare at me like that." He didn't answer right away, just turned his face from mine, burning a hole into my shoulder instead. "Hanzo, please."
"Yomi, it's nothing, I was probably just imagining things. You're not the only one in need of a good nap." Pressing a quick kiss to my lips, he pulled away just as fast, trying so hard to smile. Once upon a time he wouldn't have done that. I would've caught him and demanded honesty.
But now, I couldn't even be sure if the smile was as fake as it seemed. Before that moment, I hadn't realised how my eyes had aided me.
I lingered in the hallway long after Hanzo left, thinking I would go into my room. And after a few rough swallows, I did, but my nest went ignored, all my attention on the mirror. Pulling my hair out of my face, I turned this way and that, hoping to see something different. My fingers even went to my cheeks, running across the surface and looking for anything similar to my marks, wondering if they had somehow been recreated.
Sasuke had never really explained how they had trapped Gracia's jutsu, continuing the effect. Nor had I thought to ask what was in the paste he used, or kept an eye on his fingers, so I would be able to recreate their movements.
"Mimi?" My head snapped up, looking towards the door I hadn't thought to close. Kotone was standing there, staring at Yori. Her armful had his head to one side, and after a moment, his legs began to kick, insisting to be put down. Sparing her legs as much of the onslaught as she could, Kotone set him on the floor, wisely taking a step back when he began his charge towards me. On instinct, I turned my body when he approached, hoping to spare my arm any over-excited love. "Mimi?" He said again, tugging on my skirt.
My laugh came out more like a breath, but the tears that followed were more certain in their nature.
I'm so sorry that I missed last week guys. I hope you and yours have a very Merry Christmas and that you're all staying safe out there.
