Beneath the Stars

Chapter 1: Solitude

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Tenchu characters, and I'm not getting any money from this. The song at the beginning is part of Reflections from Mulan, and I don't own that either.

Look at me. You may think you see who I really am,

but you'll never know me.

Everyday it's as if I play a part.

Now I see, if I wear a mask I can fool the world,

but I cannot fool my heart.

A silence fell over the inn as the door was swung open and a cloaked figure stepped into the dim light. Water dripped from the strangers dark cloak and formed a puddle on the mat. The door closed to the pouring rain outside. The few people who were sat cross-legged at the low tables turned back to their drinks and food, as a low murmur spread back across the room.

The innkeeper peered over at the dark stranger as it came up to the bar.

'What can I git ya?' He said, in a gruff peasants accent, trying to see who was in the shadow of the hood of the cloak.

A pair of pale, slender hands came up and pushed the hood back. The woman's dark brown hair was pulled away from her face, and then fell in loose spikes down one side of her head. Her face was beautifully pale, and bespoke of someone who rarely went out in the sunshine for any length of time. Usually this indicated a girl of high birth who did not have to work in the fields, but this woman did not seem like a harmless flower who had run away from her father, she radiated an aura of confidence and superiority.

'I need a room for the night.' She spoke in pleasant mid tones, her voice calm and deliberate, as if each word was carefully thought out so as to avoid offence.

'Certainly m'lady.' He leaned closer to her and lowered his voice, 'although I'd be careful if I wuz you, what with this rabble and you bein an unescorted lady.'

She smiled mirthlessly, 'I thank you for the warning. Could you please direct me to the room-' She was cut off by someone grabbing her around the waist and swinging her around roughly.

'Come on now darlin.' Guffawed the burly lout who'd grabbed her, 'Hows a' bout me an' youse go off aways and have some fun eh?'

'Please let go of me.' She spoke in the same calm tones she'd used when asking for a room, as if nothing out of the ordinary was happening.

The man leered, 'I don't think so my pretty, me an' my friends here, 'He indicated a couple of other rough looking men, who were grinning, 'want ta have some fun tonight.' He began to drag her towards the door.

The girl moved so fast she was a blur. The man doubled over as she elbowed him in the stomach, and there was an audible crack as she brought her knee up to his down travelling chin. Her cloak billowed backwards as she whipped it over her shoulders, and reached underneath it to the small of her back. She drew the two deadly looking kodachi's out in front of her and pressed them to the man's throat as he rose again.

'I told you to let go.' She said evenly, as if she'd just taken a stroll through the park, 'When a lady tells you to let go, she means it, and she doesn't want to go and have 'fun' with the likes of you.'

The drunk didn't reply and seemed concentrated on trying to breath without cutting himself on either of the knives. With one last glare at the rest of the clientele, who were staring again, she turned from the man and kicked him to his knees as she headed for the door to the rooms.

The drunk leapt from the floor with a roar, a small but evil dagger in his hand. He dived towards the girl's unprotected back, the dagger upraised. His roar was cut off suddenly as the girl spun around. Something silver, glinted in her hands. The drunk fell to the floor with a gurgle, his dagger clattering harmlessly into the corner.

The inn was silent again. The woman knelt and wiped her blades on the dead man's clothes, and re-sheathed them underneath her cloak. Glancing at the rest of the clientele disgustedly, she headed for the exit. The innkeeper grabbed her arm.

'Nay m'lady. You don't wanna be goin out in weather like that.' He nodded his head towards the corpse, 'Yoshi has bin causin trouble in ere since he first arrived in these parts. We all bear witness that he acted like he shouldna against a woman.' He handed her a key, and glanced at Yoshi's two sullen friends in the corner, 'I'm given ya the special room with the lock, although after that I'll doubt you'll have any trouble round here.'

The girl looked at the key as if puzzled, and then suddenly smiled at the innkeeper, 'My humble thanks.' She fumbled at her belt pouch.

'Don't you worry bout that till the mornin, I can see youse tired. The room is up the stairs first door on the left.' Said the innkeeper, 'Sleep well m'lady.'

The woman nodded, still smiling, 'Please, call me Ayame. Again, I thank you for your kindness.' Turning she headed for the door to the rooms, stepping daintily over the corpse of Yoshi, she pushed open the door and disappeared from view.

Eventually the quiet murmur of people talking spread across the room again, and everyone relaxed. Almost no-one noticed when the two louts who had been sat with Yoshi, got up and left the inn with vengeance in their eyes.

* * *

Ayame lay back on the sleeping mat, and stared at the ceiling. She could tell that sleep was a long way off. The fight had got her adrenaline pumping and there was no way she could sleep that way, besides, recent events had meant that sleep eluded her like a frightened animal.

Sighing she rolled over onto one side.

She'd been travelling alone like this ever since she'd seen Lord Gohda and Kiku back to the castle safely. Lord Gohda must have sensed the deep pain inside her at the loss of Rikimaru, and so had granted her wish to leave her post as the Master Azuma ninja. Hah, what a joke, she was the only Azuma ninja, the only one left. Besides there was little need for her services at the moment. The wars were coming to an end, or at least, Ayame conceded, an impasse. She had sworn to her Lord that she would return.

It had been worse because Rikimaru's demise had only brought back memories of Tatsumaru. She was still the only one who knew that Tatsu had taken his own life in shame. Rikimaru had always believed that she had stabbed him on Izouyui, not realising how she felt about the older ninja.

Ayame stared impassively at the wall whilst thoughts of her beloved 'brothers' filtered through her mind.

She had changed since Tatsu's death she knew. Learning how to keep her face and voice calm whilst her thoughts screamed. Gone was the young impulsive Ayame who had loved life, and had said what she thought. The last remnants of her childhood had died with Tatsumaru.

And since that time she had become closer to Rikimaru. She and he had become so attuned to one another they worked perfectly as a team. Ayame thought that Rikimaru had been invincible. She smiled sardonically. Of course in reality she knew how frail life really was, even more so now he was gone.

She wondered why they had never taken any apprentices on, and then remembered that they'd meant to except what with the missions they'd had towards the end, it had been forgotten. Of course, it would have been Riki who would have taught them, Ayame, despite her abilities matching that of her older counterpart, still felt like she was an apprentice even now, as if she still hadn't learned everything, as if her older, more experienced brothers were looking over her shoulder.

She rolled back onto her back and stared at the ceiling. Ever since Riki's death she'd been travelling, she smiled slightly, and at almost every inn someone had tried to cause trouble like that idiot Yoshi. Most of them had got the point quicker than him though.

Dammit, sleep was still a long way off. Ayame sat up and tried to meditate to pass the time.

Her ninja senses suddenly alerted her to the immediate presence of someone unwanted. Realising she was close to the open window, Ayame rolled into the room and came to her feet just in time to see a black clad figure hit the floor with a bump, and a curse.

She stood over the figure angrily. 'What the hell d'you think you're doing?'

'I..I was sent here…' The voice was muffled through the black cloth it wore over it's face but Ayame could hear it was quite high pitched. Judging from the size of the intruder it was probably an adolescent.

'By whom?' Ayame asked crouching closer with her kodachi pressed against the cloth at the strangers throat.

The figure seemed to whimper slightly, but tried to draw itself up, 'I was sent by my Master. I am a ninja.'

Ayame laughed, 'If you're a ninja then I'm a geisha girl.' The black clad figure sank back a little and Ayame continued, 'So you came here to kill me?'

The intruder shook it's head slightly, 'No! No I was sent to…umm…get something…'

Ayame raised an eyebrow. 'Like what?' She said.

The pair of dark eyes flickered to Ayame's belt pouch which was resting beside her sleeping mat. Ayame suddenly felt very angry.

'How dare you call yourself a ninja!' She snapped, 'You're nothing but a common thief.'

'No, no you don't understand -' The intruder stuttered

Bringing her hand around Ayame pulled the cloth away from the strangers face, 'Let's see what you look like, cur.' She looked down into a pair of defiant eyes.

The girl's lower jaw was jutted out in a gesture of defiance, and her brows were knitted together as she glared at Ayame. Her white hair fluffed out where the cloth had been pulled off roughly.

'I am a ninja, well, an apprentice, but me and my Master are the only ones left.' She said defiantly in the brief seconds that Ayame stared at her.

'I think you'd better take me to see your Master.' Said Ayame firmly, 'He needs a lesson in the difference between ninja honour and the honour of thieves.' The girl looked about to refuse, but Ayame dragged her to her feet and, after grabbing her few belongings, shoved the girl out onto the roof through the window and followed her. After a few seconds, silence spread over the small village again except for the constant pattering of the rain.

Authors Notes: Ok for some explanations. Basically, this is set after Tenchu 1 and this is the beginnings of an idea I've had for awhile. If I get some nice reviews I'll continue it for you. The piece of the song at the top ties in with Ayame's feelings in the second half of the fic. I'm probably gonna put a piece of song at the beginning of each chapter, not necessarily that song, but other songs which fit in. Well, get writing those nice reviews, constructive criticism is welcome, but not if it's because I've put something like inns into Japan when they didn't exist at that time or sumthin, I'm doing my best with very little knowledge of Japanese history ok? LOL ^_^