Tears and Rain
Chapter Six -- Brotherly love: If wishes were horses
By Gabi
Soujiro straightened a little on his foot and shifted into a slightly more comfortable position. They were eating at a sake house tonight, and Kuri wouldn't stop squealing about how happy she was to have meat, and not just rice and vegetables. Her idle prattle relaxed him, and it was a refuge of sorts. He could always distract himself from heavier issues by getting embroiled in the trials and tribulations of her life, which always seemed very singular, despite the fact that they often involved him. He had discovered that removing himself from a problem for a while and instead throwing himself headlong into Kuri's conversations helped him focus more closely on it later.
The first few days after the incident with the assassins had been rather tense, and as she readjusted herself to him. He didn't act any differently toward her, and after a while, she accepted him again as closely, or perhaps more closely than before. Some time on the second day after the attack she had decided that there were certain situations that could only be resolved by the sword. Soujiro had killed the two men to protect her. She knew he was a good boy -- no, she couldn't really think of him that way anymore, no matter how hard she tried. Soujiro wasn't a boy, he was a man. Yet he still wasn't even that. It was as if he were some strange creature, deprived of his childhood and thrown into adulthood full force and with no forewarning of what it would cost or gift him with. In some ways he was a man, and in others, he was yet a boy.
Kuri had been able to piece this character assessment out in three days because she was really a rather empathetic person, when she bothered to be quiet long enough to listen to other people speak. But really, Soujiro seemed to tell her more when he refrained from speaking and simply smiled and nodded. He was a good man, she reassured herself, nodding almost imperceptibly. He was a good man and now they were having dinner together in a nice sake house and there was meat on the table and she was attempting to tell him what she thought about Kyoto.
She was only attempting to tell him her opinion on Kyoto, not because she had never been there and thus didn't think herself qualified to have an opinion on the subject. Rather she was only attempting because there was a man at the table next to them who kept shouting out boasts for every third word she said. She found it extremely tiring especially since she couldn't even hear herself think. The man kept going on about how he was the best swordsman in the prefecture and about how many men he'd bested.
Kuri had the great urge to tell him to shut up, and after several more minutes of this boasting, she did, despite the slightly uncomfortable look on Soujiro's face when he realized what she was planning on doing . She turned around squarely and shouted a decibel above the man's boast, a feat she was capable of because she exercised her voice box so frequently.
"Shut up you big lummox! Other people are trying to talk too!"
The large man turned incensed at the interruption, but when he saw who had interrupted him, he began to laugh. His face was red and splotchy and he appeared to be at least a little drunk.
"Little chick is pretty far from the nest!" his laugh was loud and raucous and his joke was not particularly funny, "Little pup ought to mind his manners and watch who he sasses."
She gripped the edges of the table with her fingers until they turned white and smiled politely, "I know exactly who I'm talking to."
Soujiro sweatdropped and was rather disturbed by the turn the confrontation was taking. He especially did not like the sugary sweet tone in Kuri's voice.
The boasting drunk apparently missed the note of warning in the sweetness of her tone, "Is'at so? And who am I, little pup?"
Kuri let go of the table at once and banged her fist down on it, shouting at the same time, "A stupid, unmannered lout!"
The drunk was apparently not as drunk as he seemed, because at this new outburst, he reached out and collared Kuri, dragging her across the straw mat of the restaurant a few feet. He grabbed her left arm and straightened it, twisting it backward until he reached a tension. His breath on her neck was acrid with the smell of cheap alcohol.
"Now young pup, you say one more thing and I'll give you a new elbow, you understand?"
Kuri was stubbornly silent, although she had to be uncomfortable.
"I said, do you understand?!" the man snapped, twisting her arm harder. She made a little hurt sound and the man laughed, "Some tough little pup. He squeals like a girl."
Suddenly a softly polite voice sounded from the table beside him and the drunk turned to look, even as he still held Kuri in painful traction.
"Let him loose. I'll make sure he doesn't bother you any more."
The man laughed again, hot and still angry, "I haven't got this pup's answer yet. I'm not letting him go until he answers me real respectful like."
Soujiro's face was calm and benign as he placed his katana flat on the table in front of him.
"You don't understand," he said, clicking the blade out a fraction of an inch, yet bowing his head respectfully, "I said let him go, Drunkard-san."
Kuri's eyes widened and she struggled a bit at the end of his arm. His grip only tightened, but she still attempted to warn him, "Do what he says! Do what he says! He'll hurt you if you don't."
This warning had the exact opposite effect that Kuri had intended it to. The man sneered, "Is that a challenge, pup?"
Soujiro ignored the man's question and instead spoke again, "I'm counting to three."
Kuri wriggled and squealed out, "Iie, Soujiro-kun! Not here, not now!"
He held up a hand to reassure her, "Daijoubu , Kuri-san. Daijoubu. "
The drunk sneered back at him, "How 'bout I count for you? One, two, three! There, now come at me," the man put his hand down under the table, where his katana was presumably.
Soujiro smiled cleanly and nodded, "Hai."
He moved in a blink, certainly faster than the drunk could follow. He sprang smoothly, and if the drunk's eyes could have tracked the boy's movements, he would have been amazed at the fluidity and grace of his attack. Before the other man could move he brought his still sheathed katana perpendicular to his body and using one hand as a pivot and the sword as a lever, he dealt a sharp blow to the base of the man's skull. The drunk's eyes bulged slightly, but then unfocused as he slumped forward, right on top of Kuri.
She was less than pleased with his bulk on top of her and she fretted and squirmed and made an awful racket until Soujiro helped roll him off her. This accomplished, he turned to the rest of the table and bowed formally.
"Sumimasen, I didn't wish to disturb your dinner. Drunk-san is out cold and probably will be for a few hours. I hope this doesn't inconvenience you."
One of the men at the table was an elderly and pleasant looking man. He had his hands folded over a bound leather book on the table, but when Soujiro spoke, he bowed in turn and responded, "Not at all, young man, not at all. In fact I think you have just done us a great service. I take it by the sword you carry that you were a samurai."
Soujiro benignly corrected, "I'm a ronin."
"On a journey?"
Soujiro nodded politely, "Hai."
The man looked excited, "Are you going to Kyoto perhaps?"
Soujiro nodded again and wondered what the man wanted.
"Splendid!" the old man rubbed his hands together, "Then I have an offer that will suit us both I think. Will you sit down?"
Curious, Soujiro nodded and sat at the table, even as Kuri dragged the drunk's carcass a few feet away unceremoniously. One of the waitresses saw her as she did this and offered to help drag the guy out and dump him in the street. This plan delighted her, so soon the two girls were busy lugging the lout's carcass out. Soujiro concentrated him attention on the old man fairly confident in the fact that Kuri would not get herself into more trouble.
"I am a horse merchant by trade. I have bred and sold horses for most of my life, and I have developed a fondness for the animals, aside from monetary gain. Recently, when I was in Yokohama, I met a Dutch horse trader on a boat. He told me he traded European horses to enterprising Japanese traders, and he exhibited a fine specimen. The stallion was big, a great deal bigger than our native horses, and it was strong, with slender legs and fine hooves, a real beautiful animal. Well, naturally I was sold the moment I saw him. I told the trader at once that I'd have the pick of the next shipment that came in. Well, they came in just recently. Twenty-two of the loveliest horses you've ever seen," he smiled pleasantly and Soujiro noted that he squinted almost all of the time.
After a moment, he continued, "I have several good horse hands to help me transport the beasts, but I don't have any protection at all. There are bandits rumored to be working the road ahead. That gentleman you dispatched was supposed to be our guard. I hired him just a town back after we saw some suspicious people sneaking around our camp one night. As you can see he was really in no condition to guard anyone," he shrugged, but then smiled, "You on the other hand, young man, are a superb fighter. I would be willing to pay you a nice sum, and give you room and board and horses to ride to Kyoto, if you'd only ride with us and scare off any horse thieves."
Soujiro was about to politely decline when a voice and his shoulder cried out, "Sugoi!"
He turned to see Kuri bouncing up and down behind him, "Riding beats walking after all, and we'll be paid! And have free food!"
The old man smiled kindly, "And of course your brother can come along too. I'm sure you're both from a good samurai line. It would be a honor to travel with you."
Soujiro sweatdropped and Kuri blinked. Soujiro thought over Kuri's points and then added the extra incentive of the faster speed they'd get to Kyoto. This was a positive because something was calling him back to Kyoto urgently, and he wanted to get to the bottom of their recent attack. Thoughts of the attack suddenly put another idea into his mind.
He bowed again politely "Hai, we are honored by your offer and accept it."
He could sense Kuri fidgeting uncomfortably behind him, but even when she poked him in the ribs, he pretended as if every thing was perfectly normal. She was mystified.
The elderly man rubbed at his left eye absently and then added, "Splendid. It's a contract then. I'm sure you have a few bits of business to finish up before joining us. Our camp is right outside of town. When you're ready, just come by and we'll get you situated for the night."
Soujiro nodded politely and bowed as he rose from his sitting position. Taking his leave of the old business man, he gently ushered the protesting Kuri along until they were well away from the restaurant. Finally, she could stand it no longer and burst out.
"Why didn't you correct him? We're not brothers, baka!"
"I know Kuri-san, but I thought that it would be wise to cultivate such a mistake," he smiled neutrally.
"Why? How does it help us at all?"
"Well, since we're now travelling with other people, I now have to consider them as well as you, and perhaps whoever is looking for me will not think to look for two young samurai brothers."
"Looking for you? Who's looking for you?" her eyes widened, "You mean you think more bad people are going to attack us?"
His smile didn't waver, "Hopefully not, that's why we're brothers, Otouto-chan."
She blushed for a moment at the bizarrity of the thought but then pushed herself on into more normal subjects, "What a great deal! We get a free ride to Kyoto, with a place to sleep every night! Best of all we get paid for it! I wonder what kind of food we'll have. I hope we have lots and lots of meat every night . . . "
She suddenly stopped dead in her tracks. Worried by her sudden stop Soujiro shot a scrutinizing look over at her, clothes by a bland smile. She looked absolutely and totally horrified.
"Kuri-san?" he asked concernedly, gently gripping her shoulder.
"I left my entire dinner back at that sake house! I didn't get to eat a bite of it!" she wailed, clutching at the hem of her gi fitfully.
Soujiro almost fell over but regained control of himself. He laughed comfortably and the said, "Daijoubu, we'll get you something else to eat tonight."
Kuri sniffled, "You promise?"
He patted her back, "I promise."
She smiled brightly as she bounced on ahead of him, "I'm going to order chicken! A whole chicken! And we'll eat it all because we're going to be rich soon!"
He grinned at her antics even as he sped up to keep in step with her. Amused at her concept of wealth, he laughed and agreed, "Hai, a whole chicken."
Pumped by the entire situation, she jumped up and then landed on her toes.
"Nii-san wa kakkoi!"
*