Kayo leaned on the table as she watched the medicine seller bow to a very well-dressed man. The man looked out of place, dressed far too richly for the merchant district in the city. His presence had attracted the attention of the nearby merchants and artisans, and it made them uncomfortable. The medicine seller, however, looked absolutely unfazed. He conversed with the man respectfully, accepting some sort of scroll. He bowed deeply as the richly dressed man left.

The medicine seller turned, staring calmly back at the merchants watching him as he held the scroll in his hand. Merchants were terrible gossips, and often that was the best way to gather information about a location. However, he didn't need them gossipping about him and his business with a particular young lord who wanted his attention.

Lord Ii had kept the tatarimokke incident secret. Not a single rumor had emerged from the palace about it in the several years since it happened. His father's ritual suicide was marked as a means to attone for burning down an entire city, but never once was the supernatural element mentioned. A mononoke could potentially ruin a noble family. For a regional lord, it could be devastating.

The medicine seller found himself a bit fond of Lord Ii, but it wasn't just him. That entire familial line had him intrigued. They had a tendency to attract mononoke, and it often made them paranoid. "Come, let us attend to this summons."

Kayo wrapped the last of lunch up in a cloth, hefting the medicine chest onto her shoulders. She could make a few guesses what that exchange was about given the slight smirk tugging at the medicine seller's lips. He was amused.

She waited until they were a respectable distance from the restaurant and prying ears before she prodded him demandingly in the arm. "What was that about? And don't give me some vague answer. I saw that smile."

He pulled the scroll from his sleeve, unrolling it for her to read. "It seems Lord Ii requests our presence. He has been searching for us for some time."

Kayo frowned a bit, recalling the last time they had been summoned by Lord Ii. "Oh no. Are there more kittens under the balcony? Strange sounds in the middle of the night?"

"None," the medicine seller shook his head. "He wishes to discuss tea. He said it was very important." After encountering such a vicious mononoke, the medicine seller had expected more summons to investigate every bump in the night, but he and Kayo hadn't been in Lord Ii's domain for some time. The message was very calm and collected, so perhaps it really was just a talk about tea.

"Tea." Kayo took the scroll. Sure enough, it was an official missive requesting to speak of teas. He didn't go into any detail further, just noting that the missive was required to enter the castle grounds and to come as soon as possible. "Strange. Well at least we have all those teas from the southern regions still left. I wonder what kind of teas a regional lord would like."

"We shall see." He had a few ideas of what Lord Ii might want, but he'd like to hear it himself.

The journey to the castle only took a few days. They took a slightly longer route to avoid any boats and crossed the large bridge instead. Kayo had refused to board the river boat, not that the medicine seller could blame her. They weren't in the Seto Inland Sea and had no chance of being capsized and stranded on an island again, but Kayo didn't want to take any chances. Surely the young lord would understand the delay.

At the side gate, the medicine seller offered a deep bow along with the scroll serving as their invitation inside. The guard looked over the pair and then at the invitation, scrutinizing it a bit before letting them inside. A familiar red-clad samurai met them on the other side.

Akinobu looked much better than their last encounter. He walked normally as he led them through the gardens. The wounds along his stomach from the tatarimokke would've long-since healed. They likely left massive scars but that was better than being gutted on a balcony.

As they walked further into the complex, the samurai stopped for a moment. They were surrounded by the far reaches of the garden, most of the trees no longer flowering in the later summer months save for a few evergreens that blossomed much of the year. They were surrounded by beds of colorful flowers. "You know, it's been quiet since you took care of that mononoke. Even Lord Ii has been calmer than before."

"Oh~?" The medicine seller had honestly expected the opposite given how paranoid Lord Ii tended to be. "No more concerns about kittens underneath the balcony or strange noises in the night?"

The samurai shook his head. "Concerns about owls for a few months, then the worry just washed away. He's been focused on running the han completely."

Humans could be such a strange sort, sometimes, and Lord Ii certainly was among the stranger sort. The medicine seller found it intriguing that the young paranoid lord acted opposite what he expected. "So this is truly a summons about tea. I did have my concerns, all things considered."

"My lord is entertaining important guests," Akinobu said informatively. "He truly does wish to expand his selection of teas. He is quite set on this, saying it was something of a family tradition." He headed down one of the side pathways, past brilliant purple iris and white oleander. A lake sat calmly within the flowers. A red bridge spanned it, leading to mums and morning glories still in full bloom. "With all the formalities, we'll be heading to the side complex."

The medicine seller stared at the samurai's back as he led them down a path through the gardens. On his last visit, he'd seen the expansive flowering trees but gardens often focused on arrangement of trees, rocks, and water. This palace had always been different with its attention to color. "If it's not too improper of me, how is your midsection doing, Sir Akinobu?"

"All healed," the samurai replied, heading for a large building situated on the side of the large main complex. He still recalled the attempt to save his life. The medicine seller had no reason to do what he did, especially with how harshly the samurai had treated him. He had no reason to trust the medicine seller at all, but after seeing what he did, everything had changed. "I should thank you for what you did."

"Hardly a need for such," the medicine seller said politely. "Simply the work of an ordinary medicine seller."

Akinobu slid open the door, peering at the medicine seller for a moment. There wasn't a single thing ordinary about him, no matter how much he insisted on it being true. Everything from that taima sword to his understanding of the supernatural and how he always looked like he was seeing something no one else could. The samurai had noticed the last one before when the medicine seller looked at the garden several times before leaving. "I'll let Lord Ii know you're here."

Kayo and the medicine seller settled in the room, setting the medicine chests down. The entire atmosphere had changed since they were last here. Servants bustled back and forth along the walkway. Sounds of horses in the distance. A sweet scent of flowers wafted in from the nearby garden. It was much calmer without the tension of a mononoke stalking about the place.

The door soon slid open, Lord Ii entering and dismissing the servants and shutting the door behind him. He was dressed in layers upon layers of formal kimono, decorated in the proper makeup and accented by formal headwear. He pulled the hat off, setting it on the table near the door. He sighed as he saw the medicine seller and Kayo bow respectfully. "Please, sit up, my friends." He walked over, grabbing the stool and toting it over to the pair. "I've had more than enough formalities for today even though the day is just starting."

The medicine seller sat up, placing his hands in his lap. "Sir Akinobu did say you've kept quite busy since our last visit."

Lord Ii nodded. "Well he is right. It's been busy taking over my father's responsibilities, and a lot of rebuilding the damaged towns thanks to my father's greed. And now that's done, well…" He rubbed at his face, flushing a bit. He had a habit of looking older than he was given his station, but at the moment, he truly looked like his age, barely brushing 20. "I need help with courting some noble ladies."

A slight grin tugged at the medicine seller's lips. "There are charms that could help with a variety of-"

"-no no no, that's not what I mean!" Lord Ii clasped his hands over his face, embarrassed like a child. "Teas. I mean teas!"

"The summons did mention such," the medicine seller said, still grinning just a bit.

"Y-yes!" Lord Ii rubbed at his face, taking a deep breath. "The ladies from neighboring han and some from the regions within this one. I want to impress them with this region's traditions, and this one was once known for its teas." He fumbled with his robes just a bit, trying to get them to a comfortable position. This was far too many layers. "You see, my grandfather enjoyed tea, but my father obsessed about fruit and discarded all the teas after my grandfather's death. The ladies are expecting teas and I know nothing about them. When you were last here, you mentioned talking about teas. You're the only knowledgeable person I know to handle this request since you knew my grandfather."

"That does explain the lack of variety in your green teas." He turned just slightly to pull out one of the drawers of the medicine chest. Not the one with all the bedroom charms. "Your grandfather was rather fond of the teas I would bring from regions across Japan. Even after the bakeneko incident, he summoned me several times for tea suggestions."

Lord Ii watched the medicine seller pull several tins from the chest. "I had no idea. He never mentioned you with teas, just with the bakeneko incident. He told that tale several times over when I was really young."

"Teas do not tell exciting stories children wish to hear," he set some more tins on the ground.

"That's true. I probably wouldn't have listened to them," Lord Ii shook his head. It was too late to hear the tales from his grandfather now. His grandfather had died while Lord Ii was still young, leaving him with only a few memories. "What were his favorite teas?"

"Flower teas," the medicine seller replied. "Local flowers, exotic ones I picked up on travels, anything that smelled like a garden poured out of a pot."

"Noble ladies do enjoy flowers," Kayo added. "Especially the fragrant ones." While the Sakai house did like the traditional bitter green teas, they did enjoy the flower teas as well. They had also sold flower teas to noble houses in their travels along the way. Ginseng too, but this was to impress the ladies, not help them in bed.

"As Miss Kayo suggests, they are quite popular with nobility." The medicine seller opened the tin, offering it to the young lord. "Orange blossom was one of your grandfather's favorites."

Lord Ii took the tin, sniffing it. He had to admit the tea was rather fragrant and appealing.

"He was also quite fond of rose tea," he offered another tin. "This particular blend he enjoyed was mixed with southern flowers not found in this region. I always kept some I would not sell to anyone else. It has been favored by your family for some time."

Kayo peered at him for a moment. She'd seen the tin before in the chest, unmarked and always sitting in the back. After being stranded on the island in the Seto Inland Sea, he had been very specific about which blend of ingredients went into it. Just how long had he been making this specific tea for the Ii family?

The lord took the other tin and sniffed it. He stared at the tin for a moment, focused on the rose tea. "This smell. It's the tea that my grandfather demanded right before he died. He wanted the last of the tin, saying it was the last of his favorite teas."

Lord Ii curled his hand around the tin. Admittedly he didn't know much about his grandfather as he would've liked. Right now, he had an opportunity. He had someone sitting before him who knew him and knew him well. Somehow the medicine seller hadn't aged at all, but after seeing him fight the tatarimokke, he was certain that the medicine seller wasn't exactly human. "I have a favor to ask. Could you tell me-"

"My lord." The servant's voice interrupted through the closed door. "Please pardon the interruption. Your presence is requested for the upcoming meal."

Lord Ii rubbed at his face. He wasn't ready for this formal lunch just yet. There were too many preparations. Perhaps this diversion in thinking about his grandfather was at the wrong time. He had to focus on the here and now. "Alright, I'll be there in a moment." He turned back to the medicine seller. "I'll take as much rose and orange blossom teas as you can offer. Anything that might be local as well. Do you have any local teas?"

"Very little," the medicine seller replied. "I would need time to make them."

"Use whatever you need from the gardens and the kitchens," Lord Ii offered. "I'll summon you tomorrow to hear all about them. For now, it's all formalities and food." The young lord stood up, straightening the numerous layers of formal kimono before shoving the stool back over to its proper location.

"Before you go." The medicine seller pulled something out of the chest, holding his hand out. "Pumpkin seeds. They help with nerves."

"Perfect." He held out his hand, the medicine seller dropping the seeds into it. Anything to help. Unlike rebuilding the han, trying to impress other lords and ladies was much more difficult. "I let the staff and Akinobu know the task. I look forward to learning more about the teas my grandfather enjoyed."

…..

Author's musings

Guess who's back? It's Lord Ii of course! Certainly couldn't have a story without our favorite over-stressed regional lord, now could we? Hopefully he'll be able to enjoy some teas this time around. Maybe.