The Riddle
A Fairy Tale by the Brothers Grimm
Chapter 6
Retold by
Nana
Queries
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Author's Notes: This chapter begins immediately after Miroku left Sango in the library (during the first night), and will encompass the goings-on during the second night. The happenings during the third night and thereafter will have to be reserved for the next chapter. Thanks, Hentai Neko, for your interest in asking for clarification regarding this aspect of the story.^^
Disclaimer: The story concept of "The Riddle" belongs rightfully to the Brothers Grimm, and MiroSan, as well as Hachi, Kirara and Kohaku belong to Rumiko Takahashi. Please do read and review!
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Miroku absently entered his suite of rooms, thinking that perhaps he had given too much away.
The Princess was astute. Too astute. Who knows how far she could go with his words alone. He had not offered much as a clue, but then she may not need a lot of help. She seemed desperate enough to try anything.
Although he gave himself no opportunity to actually think about it, he found her desperation a bit…disappointing. He had at first thought that she was merely being coy, that she actually wanted him to try out the Riddle even though she was saying the opposite thing out loud.
Now, though, he wasn't so sure anymore.
After being in her company for two days, he realized that the Princess was incapable of being coy. Perhaps he had pushed things too far by initiating the court session on a mere presumption that she was egging him on--or was this simply his mind's ploy to make up a valid excuse so he could engage in his battle of wills with Sango?
Even during the last minute, self-preservation had kicked in and he had not told her the entire truth as to why he had posed his riddle. He had left Sango to think that he was only after the challenge. Perhaps it was much safer that way. For now.
Overall, he had to concede that if it boiled down to the essentials, she was the greatest riddle of all--the fabled Sphinx that legends alluded to. Beautiful and terrible at the same time, how could one single girl hold so much complexity and allure? What was more, she seemed totally unaware of the stir she was causing within him.
She wasn't exactly his type, so why this fascination? Were they really doomed to misunderstand each other? Perhaps he should have been more direct, but was it really so difficult to see that all he wanted to do was to get to know her better? Would she give him a chance at all?
Apparently not, and that one careless little statement he had given away in the library may just prove to be too much. Doubtless she would try something, and he did not want things to end too soon.
What are you talking about? He asked himself. She won't be able to get it. Nobody can! Not if Hachi and I don't talk!
Still, to be sure…
His gaze landed on his manservant, who had just finished unrolling the blankets on the gigantic bed he was supposed to sleep in.
"Hachi," he said. "I think we may have to change bed assignments for tonight."
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Lady Kirara was, first and foremost, entirely devoted to her mistress. That was the only reason why she would agree to do this most unusual task without question.
It had worried her to see the Princess so distraught. When she had gone to answer her call in the library, the first thing Sango had told her was, "we mustn't let him win, Kirara."
That was quite true.
Lady Kirara was one of those who had stood within that crowded ballroom a few hours ago, and she had stared in disbelief as the Prince danced waltz after waltz away without so much as inquiring after the Princess.
As she looked into her mistress's determined gaze, she could not help but agree that perhaps this match was not meant to be.
"I think I've finally found a way toward solving the Prince's riddle," announced Sango as she gave the book over to her lady-in-waiting.
"A book on dreams?" asked Kirara as she turned the pages over, not sure she understood.
"He said he didn't lift his riddle from any book, so--"
"The Prince…said that?"
Sango turned away before Kirara could register the color on her cheeks. "He was here a while ago," she muttered.
Much to her relief, Kirara did not think to ask further along that line.
"So I was thinking, if he did not get the riddle from a book, he must have based it from personal experience. I'm sure consciously he would never part with the secret. Subconsciously though…"
Kirara stared at her mistress and back at the book, wondering if sleep was all Sango needed.
"He might be able to say something in his sleep. See here, we've got a whole chapter on that topic alone," Sango said excitedly, pointing at the volume. "Apparently, in one stage of sleep or another, the mind is susceptible to verbal suggestions and queries. It is known that some people divulge all sorts of information this way. What is more, they don't remember anything afterward."
"Your Highness…"
"Kirara…he's not the type for any decent girl. I think you know that," said Sango quietly.
And so, Kirara had done what her mistress had bidden.
It was a bold move, yes. If she got caught, the punishment would be drastic beyond measure, yes. But there was no other choice.
As she reached the Prince's suite, Kirara deftly got out the key she had drawn unnoticed from the Master Utility Room, and prepared for a night of queries.
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The sleeping quarters of the Prince was bathed in moonlight.
Kirara had no trouble finding the bed. The Prince's shape was nothing more than lumps under the thick blankets. As she approached, she could hear snores emanating from beneath the bed covers.
A faint frown creased her large, slanting eyes as the lady stooped to peer at a visible fraction of the sleeping occupant's head.
"Your Highness…" she began hesitantly.
The figure beneath the covers shifted. Kirara took a step back in alarm. She waited until the figure became still again.
Something's not quite right here…thought Kirara as she hesitantly put up a hand on the covers and attempted to pull them down a bit.
What happened next was so unexpected that it took all of the lady's self-possession, all her training in manners not to scream.
The figure, still swathed with the bedcovers from head to toe, suddenly sat up and, turning eerily to the stunned lady, uttered a single word.
"Boo."
Kirara turned and fled.
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Sango listened to what Kirara had to tell her in the early morning hours marking the second day of her private purgatory, her face betraying nothing. After she finished, Sango merely said, "go on and get some sleep, Kirara. I will see you later."
With that, she went ahead with her daily morning ride.
What was it about stubborn, arrogant suitors who could not be shaken off? thought Sango as she tried to shake off the feel of impending disaster from her tired mind.
Kirara's report had not only been disappointing, it had been downright frightening.
Apparently, the Prince had been quite aware of a plan to infiltrate his quarters--henceforth this bad excuse for a practical joke. How he could have thought about it was beyond her, but a more pressing problem now was: would he tell?
The mere thought that he might spill the beans to her father was enough to make Sango grow cold. Of course, the King would want nothing better than to give her off at the earliest possible opportunity.
But would her father really marry her off to anyone who would ask for her hand? Just anyone? Even somebody who had the reputation of the Northern Prince's? Sango had never told anyone, but the lack of criteria in picking a possible husband for her had hurt, and so she had gone ahead and erected some.
Right now, though, it seemed as though the very plan she had concocted to protect herself was backfiring. It seemed as though the Riddle could easily filter in men with enough wit and intelligence, but it was never a test of men's virtue.
But was she really looking for that? A man of virtue? Was there really such a creature? Perhaps it was sheer myth--the stuff found in books. At any rate, her criteria in selecting men were not hard. All she ever wanted was somebody who could see her for what she was, love her for who she was.
Was that really too much to ask for?
And is it too much to ask for a girl to carry on with her morning ride alone? she thought, feeling the familiar stab of annoyance and something else when she caught sight of a black-clad figure on horseback a few hundred yards in front of her.
It was too late for her to turn back. The figure had already spotted her, was now waving at her.
At the back of her mind, a thought bloomed: What does he think he's doing? How long has he been waiting here?
She frowned. That didn't come out right, did it? Of course he wasn't waiting for her. How could he possibly?
"Good morning," he called as soon as she was within hearing distance. "You're up pretty early. I trust you were able to sleep well?"
Sango looked up sharply at that. Apart from the slight flush brought on by a good ride, though, she saw nothing but bland politeness on his face.
Don't play into his hand…
"I slept well, thank you very much," she said with a civil tone. "You?"
"Like a log," he said with a grin. Before she could stop to put any meaning into that, he quickly added, "I'm glad you took my advice."
"What advice?" she asked suspiciously.
"My advice about your not losing any sleep over the Riddle," he said.
Sango could not help frowning. Was it just coincidence, or was the word "sleep" merely a favorite word of his? For some weird reason it was finding its way into almost every sentence in this conversation and she didn't like it.
"Why would you care if I lose sleep over it?" she asked, unable to stop herself from pursuing the matter.
He pulled his horse to a stop right beside her, and she found herself looking into his eyes-- a warm shade of lavender. "Is it so hard to believe that I would really care?" he answered enigmatically.
"Why?" she persisted.
"Would you really like to know?" he asked, smiling. "But then, you already do, don't you?"
"I'm afraid I don't understand you, sir," she said frigidly. All of a sudden she could not meet his gaze, and she dropped her eyes to the lower part of his face.
The wind must have been particularly cold that morning. His cheeks were quite flushed. She heard him say, "I think you do. You just don't want to accept it. Yet."
Her breath caught in her throat.
"Has anyone ever told you you're amazingly disgusting?" she found herself telling him.
"Am I?" he returned, amused.
"Yes, you are," she said briskly. "Secondly, are you managing to imply that the Riddle is not worth losing sleep over? Meaning it's not that important to you?"
"Are you saying it's important to you after all?" he threw back at her.
"I didn't say it wasn't," she said. "I'm fighting for my freedom here."
There was a pause as Miroku's smile wavered a little.
"I see," he finally said. "It's admirable to see a woman going for what she wants with everything she's got. But you have to see, Sango, that in this case I'm going for what I want, too."
"Which is?"
His grin returned. "You really don't get it, do you?" He said softly before turning away.
Damn and blast! What the hell just happened back there? He thought as soon as he was able to put some distance between them. What had made him do it?
In all his nineteen years, this had never happened to him before. He had been thinking of staging a little game with her, make her spin around a bit for sending her lady-in-waiting into his suite to hear him talk in his sleep. Lady Kirara had mistaken Hachi for him, and he had wanted to taunt her mistress with it. Only, things didn't go the way he had wanted them to.
To make matters worse, he had finally come across a girl who could make him blush. Imagine that.
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It seemed that the Prince was not going to spill the beans after all.
He was at his best behavior throughout the whole morning, well into lunch and afterward.
His friendliness grated on her nerves. The King and Kohaku, on the other hand, were already considering him as part of the family. Shy as he was, Kohaku seemed remarkably open and at ease with him, and was continually asking him about his adventures.
Despite her animosity, Sango found herself leaning in and listening to his stories, partly in the hopes that he might just drop a clue to his Riddle. Of course, she took enough trouble to sit a great distance away and pretend that she was not interested.
He had been careful to edit his words, of course.
"Wow," said Kohaku when Miroku finished with his tale. "I'm pretty sure my sister will be quite safe with you around."
Sango abruptly snapped shut the book in her hand, but before she could reprimand her younger brother, she heard Miroku say, "your sister…can see to herself well enough. I have complete confidence in her ability to see through people's characters. Only…"
"What?" prompted Kohaku after a while, his eyes involuntarily straying to Sango's from across the room. Sango found herself staring at Miroku, but for once, he was not looking at her.
"Only she protects herself so well that she cannot allow anybody else in--undesirables or otherwise," he finished. "And despite what she has to say about it, I can understand more than she knows…and sympathize."
Sango glanced away and said nothing.
This guy was really formidable, she thought. But then, when was she ever swayed by gentle words anyway?
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The second night found Lady Kirara again treading softly across the vast, carpeted floor of the Prince's suite. The only difference was, she was not as unquestioning of her mistress as the night before.
This was so ill-advised, but the Princess would not hear any arguments. Something had happened during the afternoon that had doubled her determination in finding out the riddle's answer.
By this time, Kirara was already a jangle of nerves. She could not wait to have the stealthy interview over and done with. They were playing with fire, and she was afraid that this time…this time they might get caught.
This time, though, the figure on the bed appeared to be sound asleep.
"Your Highness…" Kirara began. "Tell me about the riddle…"
Gentle snores.
Kirara frowned. Again, a curious feeling that something was not right crept into her senses. Slowly, she reached out and pulled down the bed covers over the sleeping figure's head…and realized that they'd been had from the very beginning.
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"So his servant Hachi has been sleeping on his bed all this time," said Sango thoughtfully.
"Yes, Your Highness," said Kirara.
Sango paced the length of her bedroom. "Did he discover you tonight?" she wanted to know.
Kirara shook her head. "He was still sound asleep when I left him," she said. "At least, I think so."
"Did you try asking him what the riddle meant?"
"He…he wasn't answering."
Sango resisted the urge to grip and twist at her nightgown.
"Your Highness…do you think--do you think we have to try a second time tonight?"
"No," the Princess answered. "Leave them be for now. Let's make him think we've given up, and tomorrow night…"
Kirara stared at her mistress as she reached a decision.
"Tomorrow night, I will ask him myself," said Sango.
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