We left that afternoon. I left the inn in Lina's trustworthy hands, and although she cried when I left, I knew she'd be fine. Her husband would be home soon, and I promised that I'd be back as well. I wasn't able to pack much, as we had a long way to go to the capital, and the horses couldn't be burdened. Suzuno promised me that the Emperor would be more than happy to supply clothing and supplies once we got there, though.
"Heaven knows he's given enough to me," She told me as we started our journey. She shared a horse with Tatara, while Kokie and I each had our own horses. "Everyone's been so kind to me, giving me all sorts of presents."
Tatara laughed. "You are Byakko no Miko, Suzuno."
"Well, maybe, but I'm still just a girl. I don't deserve so much."
We rode in silence for a few more moments before I dredged up the courage to ask the question that had been bothering me. "…What's happened? I mean, what's the threat to Sairou-koku?"
Kokie surprised me by answering. "Kutou, what else. They want to expand their borders again. So, this time they've chosen us as the lucky conquer-ees."
Tatara glanced at Kokie, then at me. "It's a little more complicated than that. Hokkan and Kutou have been at war for years, as you probably know. Hokkan has finally realized that alone, it cannot defeat Kutou, so they've turned to Sairou for help. The Emperor agreed to help Hokkan, and suddenly Kutou has decided that it doesn't want Hokkan anymore, and is using our alliance with them as an excuse to declare war on us."
"But that's not all!" Kokie's voice was laced with sarcasm, which I would learn was a common thing for her. "Tatara forgot to mention that in East Sairou-koku, there's a group of rebels who would be more than happy to see Kutou conquer Sairou. And the thing is, we don't even know why they want Kutou to succeed."
"Nevertheless," Tatara continued, "They've made their presence known. We're fighting on two fronts."
I glanced at Suzuno, who looked rather ill. She leaned back against Tatara, her chin on her chest, her eyes half-closed. "Suzuno… Are you all right?"
She looked over at me. "I'm fine. I'm just a little worried."
"Don't worry," I smiled supportively. "You've got another seishi now."
"Actually," Tatara said, "We've got two others, as well. They're at the capital."
"We would've had three, but…" Kokie frowned. "One of them is in the rebel group."
"What?" I stared at her. "How can—"
"Trust me, we've racked our brains to figure it out. For whatever reasons, he's decided that that's the way to go." Kokie nudged her horses' side, and galloped on ahead of us.
"But the seishi are supposed to protect the Miko, not be against her."
Tatara smiled. "We've thought of that."
"Tatara…" Suzuno's voice sounded small. "Where will we go now?"
"Back to the capital, I suppose." He turned to me again. "We've been searching for you and the other seishi for weeks now. Even though we don't have them all, it'd be best to rest for awhile."
***
I'd never been to the capital before. It was a good three days ride from my hometown, and there was never any reason to go. My father had always done all the business, and he'd never taken Lina or me with him. My mother thought it best, as well - she thought there was too much in the capital to corrupt us. Ever since they'd died, Lina and I had been saving up for a trip to the big city. I had to admit that, despite the circumstances, I was excited to be there.
The city was huge. From the moment we went through the gates, there were people everywhere. The marketplace was massive - I made a mental note to return later to go shopping. We rode through the streets without drawing much attention, as Suzuno was dressed in the clothes from this world. When we got to the palace, the guards recognized her, thought, and ushered us right in.
Walking through the palace halls, I was dumbfounded. There was such richness everywhere. Marble floors, silk curtains, and priceless pieces of art everywhere. The servants wore better clothes than I had ever dreamed of owning. I must have been gawking, as Suzuno started giggling when she looked at me. I noticed the other two seishi staring at me, and blushed from embarrassment.
We met with the Emperor, and I know I didn't make a good impression there, either. I was in this state of shock from being in the palace and in the presence of royalty that I couldn't even speak without stuttering from nervousness. Still, the Emperor was a kind man, and was more than happy to hear that I was another seishi.
The two seishi that were already at the palace were Amefuri and Toroki. Amefuri was a woman a few years older than me. She had long, dark brown hair that was always twisted into a bun at the back of her head, and dark, gentle eyes. She'd had to leave her two young children behind in order to come to the capital and fulfill her duties as a seishi. She wrote home to them every day, always sending them something. Amefuri had been the first one that Suzuno had met, when she'd appeared in Amefuri's village. Amefuri had recognized who she was, and taken her to the capital.
Toroki was just a kid - a bratty one at that. He was only twelve, and Suzuno told me that he'd gotten into all sorts of trouble at the palace since coming there. Suzuno had found him when he'd tried to steal Tatara's money in the marketplace. He was short and scrawny, with light hair and blue eyes that always had a glint of mischief in them. He reminded me a lot of Lina, when she was younger. Annoying, but fun to be around.
I found out from Amefuri that it had been a little more than a month since Suzuno had appeared in this world. That surprised me, as it meant that the news of Kutou's declaration of war had been kept secret that long. Tatara explained that it was to keep the people calm, so that they wouldn't have anything to worry about. It bothered me, though - how long could war be kept secret? Kutou hadn't attacked yet, for reasons unknown.
The night we arrived in the capital, I finally had a chance to be alone in my room. Ever since I'd left my home, people had surrounded me, and now, it felt nice to get some time to myself. I exhaled slowly - it felt like I had been holding my breath for a long time. Sitting on the edge of my bed, I held my hands out in front of me, and realized they were shaking.
All of a sudden, tears started streaming down my cheeks. I curled up on my side on the bed, clutching the blankets between my fingers. I couldn't stop sobbing. I was so scared. Everything had happened so suddenly. I'd been expecting this for years, ever since my mother had explained the legend of Byakko no Miko to me. I'd known that, as a seishi, it would be my duty to protect her so that she could summon Byakkoseikun. But now that she was here, now that I had to fulfill that duty, I was scared to death. Just seeing what had happened to Kokie in that cave had done it. What if that had been me? What if I were the one wounded, or even killed, in defence of the Miko? I didn't want to do this; I didn't want to be a seishi anymore. I just longed to go back home, to be safe again. But that wasn't going to happen.
I cried myself to sleep.
***
The next morning, Amefuri declared that it would be best if we all had a day or two to rest before heading out to find the remaining seishi. I took advantage of the opportunity by exploring the palace. I managed to get myself lost in no time short, and ended up in the gardens of the palace.
Just like everything indoors, the gardens were beautiful. All the flowers were in full bloom, and the morning dew glittered in the sun. I knelt down, inspecting some of the roses, when Suzuno's voice interrupted my reverie.
"Tatara… I'm so scared."
"Shh. Don't worry."
I looked up to see the two standing in the shade of a tree. I watched them, but didn't move for fear that they'd see me. I'd known that they'd had feelings for each other; from the way they'd looked at each other and acted. But now that I knew that Suzuno was Byakko no Miko, for some reason it seemed wrong for them to be together. She was the Miko, after all. She was something sacred.
When they kissed, I made my exit quietly. It bothered me, their romance. I wondered for a moment if I was using the excuse of her being Miko to cover up my own jealousy. She was so kind and gentle, it was no wonder that someone like Tatara would fall in love with her. The only reason any man had told me that they loved me was for the sole purpose of trying to get into bed with me.
Still, they had obviously been meeting in private so that no one would see them. I decided to respect their wishes of that and not talk to any of the other seishi about it, even if the others knew.
"Heaven knows he's given enough to me," She told me as we started our journey. She shared a horse with Tatara, while Kokie and I each had our own horses. "Everyone's been so kind to me, giving me all sorts of presents."
Tatara laughed. "You are Byakko no Miko, Suzuno."
"Well, maybe, but I'm still just a girl. I don't deserve so much."
We rode in silence for a few more moments before I dredged up the courage to ask the question that had been bothering me. "…What's happened? I mean, what's the threat to Sairou-koku?"
Kokie surprised me by answering. "Kutou, what else. They want to expand their borders again. So, this time they've chosen us as the lucky conquer-ees."
Tatara glanced at Kokie, then at me. "It's a little more complicated than that. Hokkan and Kutou have been at war for years, as you probably know. Hokkan has finally realized that alone, it cannot defeat Kutou, so they've turned to Sairou for help. The Emperor agreed to help Hokkan, and suddenly Kutou has decided that it doesn't want Hokkan anymore, and is using our alliance with them as an excuse to declare war on us."
"But that's not all!" Kokie's voice was laced with sarcasm, which I would learn was a common thing for her. "Tatara forgot to mention that in East Sairou-koku, there's a group of rebels who would be more than happy to see Kutou conquer Sairou. And the thing is, we don't even know why they want Kutou to succeed."
"Nevertheless," Tatara continued, "They've made their presence known. We're fighting on two fronts."
I glanced at Suzuno, who looked rather ill. She leaned back against Tatara, her chin on her chest, her eyes half-closed. "Suzuno… Are you all right?"
She looked over at me. "I'm fine. I'm just a little worried."
"Don't worry," I smiled supportively. "You've got another seishi now."
"Actually," Tatara said, "We've got two others, as well. They're at the capital."
"We would've had three, but…" Kokie frowned. "One of them is in the rebel group."
"What?" I stared at her. "How can—"
"Trust me, we've racked our brains to figure it out. For whatever reasons, he's decided that that's the way to go." Kokie nudged her horses' side, and galloped on ahead of us.
"But the seishi are supposed to protect the Miko, not be against her."
Tatara smiled. "We've thought of that."
"Tatara…" Suzuno's voice sounded small. "Where will we go now?"
"Back to the capital, I suppose." He turned to me again. "We've been searching for you and the other seishi for weeks now. Even though we don't have them all, it'd be best to rest for awhile."
***
I'd never been to the capital before. It was a good three days ride from my hometown, and there was never any reason to go. My father had always done all the business, and he'd never taken Lina or me with him. My mother thought it best, as well - she thought there was too much in the capital to corrupt us. Ever since they'd died, Lina and I had been saving up for a trip to the big city. I had to admit that, despite the circumstances, I was excited to be there.
The city was huge. From the moment we went through the gates, there were people everywhere. The marketplace was massive - I made a mental note to return later to go shopping. We rode through the streets without drawing much attention, as Suzuno was dressed in the clothes from this world. When we got to the palace, the guards recognized her, thought, and ushered us right in.
Walking through the palace halls, I was dumbfounded. There was such richness everywhere. Marble floors, silk curtains, and priceless pieces of art everywhere. The servants wore better clothes than I had ever dreamed of owning. I must have been gawking, as Suzuno started giggling when she looked at me. I noticed the other two seishi staring at me, and blushed from embarrassment.
We met with the Emperor, and I know I didn't make a good impression there, either. I was in this state of shock from being in the palace and in the presence of royalty that I couldn't even speak without stuttering from nervousness. Still, the Emperor was a kind man, and was more than happy to hear that I was another seishi.
The two seishi that were already at the palace were Amefuri and Toroki. Amefuri was a woman a few years older than me. She had long, dark brown hair that was always twisted into a bun at the back of her head, and dark, gentle eyes. She'd had to leave her two young children behind in order to come to the capital and fulfill her duties as a seishi. She wrote home to them every day, always sending them something. Amefuri had been the first one that Suzuno had met, when she'd appeared in Amefuri's village. Amefuri had recognized who she was, and taken her to the capital.
Toroki was just a kid - a bratty one at that. He was only twelve, and Suzuno told me that he'd gotten into all sorts of trouble at the palace since coming there. Suzuno had found him when he'd tried to steal Tatara's money in the marketplace. He was short and scrawny, with light hair and blue eyes that always had a glint of mischief in them. He reminded me a lot of Lina, when she was younger. Annoying, but fun to be around.
I found out from Amefuri that it had been a little more than a month since Suzuno had appeared in this world. That surprised me, as it meant that the news of Kutou's declaration of war had been kept secret that long. Tatara explained that it was to keep the people calm, so that they wouldn't have anything to worry about. It bothered me, though - how long could war be kept secret? Kutou hadn't attacked yet, for reasons unknown.
The night we arrived in the capital, I finally had a chance to be alone in my room. Ever since I'd left my home, people had surrounded me, and now, it felt nice to get some time to myself. I exhaled slowly - it felt like I had been holding my breath for a long time. Sitting on the edge of my bed, I held my hands out in front of me, and realized they were shaking.
All of a sudden, tears started streaming down my cheeks. I curled up on my side on the bed, clutching the blankets between my fingers. I couldn't stop sobbing. I was so scared. Everything had happened so suddenly. I'd been expecting this for years, ever since my mother had explained the legend of Byakko no Miko to me. I'd known that, as a seishi, it would be my duty to protect her so that she could summon Byakkoseikun. But now that she was here, now that I had to fulfill that duty, I was scared to death. Just seeing what had happened to Kokie in that cave had done it. What if that had been me? What if I were the one wounded, or even killed, in defence of the Miko? I didn't want to do this; I didn't want to be a seishi anymore. I just longed to go back home, to be safe again. But that wasn't going to happen.
I cried myself to sleep.
***
The next morning, Amefuri declared that it would be best if we all had a day or two to rest before heading out to find the remaining seishi. I took advantage of the opportunity by exploring the palace. I managed to get myself lost in no time short, and ended up in the gardens of the palace.
Just like everything indoors, the gardens were beautiful. All the flowers were in full bloom, and the morning dew glittered in the sun. I knelt down, inspecting some of the roses, when Suzuno's voice interrupted my reverie.
"Tatara… I'm so scared."
"Shh. Don't worry."
I looked up to see the two standing in the shade of a tree. I watched them, but didn't move for fear that they'd see me. I'd known that they'd had feelings for each other; from the way they'd looked at each other and acted. But now that I knew that Suzuno was Byakko no Miko, for some reason it seemed wrong for them to be together. She was the Miko, after all. She was something sacred.
When they kissed, I made my exit quietly. It bothered me, their romance. I wondered for a moment if I was using the excuse of her being Miko to cover up my own jealousy. She was so kind and gentle, it was no wonder that someone like Tatara would fall in love with her. The only reason any man had told me that they loved me was for the sole purpose of trying to get into bed with me.
Still, they had obviously been meeting in private so that no one would see them. I decided to respect their wishes of that and not talk to any of the other seishi about it, even if the others knew.