Sunday
With four people to clean up, the breakfast dishes had been washed and tray tables stowed away quickly. Eiri and Tatsuha sat on the back porch, legs hanging off the ledge, smoking in companionable silence. Ryuichi was chasing a couple of butterflies and laughing. Earlier, he had scared the carp in the pool, by splashing through it. Shuichi was sitting by the pond, frowning and scribbling in a notebook. Occasionally, he would stop and tap his pencil in rhythm, sometimes closing his eyes in concentration. Eiri understood the lightning strike of inspiration. Watching Shu write made him itch for his laptop.
"You should go talk to Mika," Tatsuha told Eiri again. It was like a children's game of 'you do it', 'no, you do it'. They had each been trying to convince the other to confront or comfort their elder sister. They had already agreed that Ryu and Shu wouldn't be acceptable as brother-substitutes or diplomats.
"Fine!" Eiri exhaled smoke and stood up, tired of quibbling. He paused by the open entrance into the house. "You think she's had enough time to herself?" He asked Tatsuha. Shuichi must have been keeping an eye on him, or he caught Eiri's movement in his peripheral vision because he looked up, as if clouds had obscured the sunlight from him. Shu noticed Eiri's gaze and waved, watching him for a moment. Eiri prevented himself from smiling. Shu went back to scribbling.
"Just get it over with. She might need someone to scream at," Tatsuha added quietly.
"Right," Eiri agreed. "You get to pick up the cigarette butts, then." He walked in and went to his sister's room. It was quiet inside, but the door was shut. "Mika?"
"I wondered who would come." She sniffled. "Come in," she said with resignation. Eiri wondered if her reaction was because she didn't want to be bothered, or because it was him. He pulled the door open and shut it behind him. Mika was sitting on her rumpled sleeping mat and there were still wet tear-traces on her pillow. Her eyes were red and puffy. Eiri sat on the floor next to her. He pulled out what was left of his pack of cigarettes, silently offering her one. "No, thanks," she said. She hugged her pillow across her stomach. Eiri figured his sister would crack first if he didn't say anything. He located an ashtray on her desk, rose to snag it and she spoke again. "I suppose you want to know where he's gone."
"Nope. I don't care," he said honestly.
Mika sighed heavily with the hint of a sob. She tried to make light of herself, saying, "Did you draw the short straw?" Eiri shook his head. They both knew he wasn't about to say something mushy about caring for his sister. "It hurts," she confessed. "Father..." tears trickled from her eyes and she held her chin up. She looked at him, bleakly. "My marriage with Tohma was always treated as a business deal. I accepted that, because I do love him." She grabbed a tissue and blew her nose. She tossed the tissue toward the trash, missing the basket. She slumped. "I was holding on to the fact that I had done my proper duties; as a daughter to contract a beneficial marriage and as a wife. . . " Her voice broke.
Mika sagged forward and Eiri moved slightly, to hold her head on his lap. Her face was hot and he could feel her tears soaking into his kimono. He hesitated to comfort her. He didn't remember ever doing this for her before. He wondered if Tatsuha had? Mika had always taken care of herself while watching out for her brothers. Cautiously, he reached out and smoothed her hair back from her face. It wasn't the same sort of gesture he made for Shuichi, but there was some similarity. His sister cried brokenly while he pet her.
Eiri tended to think of Shuichi as his weakness, but Shu had given Eiri the strength to do this for Mika. In an odd way, it felt . . . satisfying to help Mika. With her pushy ways, she intruded into Eiri's life, again and again; attempting to 'help' him by bullying him into doing what she thought was best. Most of the time, she had been wrong. Now, Eiri was just here for her and that may be just what was needed. It certainly didn't solve any problems, but it comforted her against adversity. He wasn't sure how long he sat with her.
After a while, Mika pulled back. Eiri thought she had cried herself dry. She blew her nose again, this time getting the used tissue into the basket. She looked at him, smiling bitterly. "Tohma's on vacation. Nittle Grasper was taking a break. Bad Luck doesn't go on tour for another ...well, Thursday, right?" Eiri nodded. "He plans to be back Thursday. Work wasn't too busy." That didn't seem right, Eiri thought. Setting aside the fact that he didn't take his wife with him on vacation; why would Tohma not tell any of his family, friends, or band-mates where he would be? It didn't make much sense, until Mika spoke again. "He's found someone who makes him happy."
Now what? Eiri wondered. His father had been right. Mika had followed the rules and she was miserable. Eiri and Tatsuha fought conformity and gained happiness. It was completely against what tradition taught them all. A part of him said, 'Mika knew what she was getting into'. He didn't feel any need to avenge her, nor any reason to punish Tohma. Eiri couldn't think of anything he could do for his sister. 'At least he's discreet' would not be a helpful thing to say...
"Eiri? Mika? Are you in there?" Shuichi called from the hallway.
"Idiot. What is it?" Shu's soft footsteps came closer.
"Want to open presents? Ryuichi-kun . . . um, he's kind of anxious," Shu said from the other side of the door.
Eiri knew there was a world of understatement in that. He looked at Mika. She shrugged and made a slight, sideways nod of her head. He took it for 'yes'. "Okay, we'll come in a minute."
"Okay!" Eiri heard the hollow patter across the floor as Shuichi ran off.
"You go. I'll clean up and be there shortly," Mika told him. He nodded and stood up, putting the ashtray back on the desk. She stood, too. "Thanks," she said quietly. She ran one hand across his upper arm and turned away. He left.
In the hall, he realized that his right foot had fallen asleep and his kimono was wet from Mika's tears, so he changed into black pants and a loose, white shirt. He transferred his lighter and cigarettes into the shirt, too. The clothes made him feel more like himself. What would it take to restore Mika to herself? He feared it would take something that only Tohma could give her. As generous as he was with his wife, Eiri wasn't sure if Tohma was capable of giving her more love than a friendship.
With both energetic singers bouncing around the room, unwrapping presents became an interesting show to watch. It seemed that Ryuichi had done his shopping at two stores: an antique dealer and a professional costume shop.
Mika was given a beautiful rhinestone tiara that picked up and refracted light, nearly making her glow. It made her happy, even though it was completely impractical. Ryuichi called her 'Queen Seguchi' and Tatsuha played along, waiting on Mika and asking if her highness would like anything else? She hit him.
The Uesugi patriarch had been very pleasantly surprised by the presentation of the shrine and a set of jade prayer beads. When the present-opening degenerated into Tatsuha and Ryuichi dressing each other up from a trunk of costumes, the old monk departed, claiming temple duties.
Shuichi was given several boxes of strawberry pocky. He was ecstatic— but it was only a slight elevation from his usual level of hyper activity. Most of the time, Shu was incredibly easy to please.
Ryuichi gave Eiri a katana and wakizashi, complete with display stand. In his childlike voice, wearing a hairy grey wolf's mask, Ryuichi explained that the swords were used by samurai who protected their clan and family. Tipping the mask back, he winked at Eiri. Then he put the mask back into place and bounced away, singing to his stuffed rabbit, gruffly. Like a wolf, Eiri guessed. Shuichi joined in the singing and pretty soon, the room filled with the sounds of a campground-like sing-a-long.
Eiri did not sing. Instead, he considered the swords, pulling the katana from its sheath and inspecting the blade. The hilt alone was about a foot long, wrapped in black cloth, pattern-twisted. The blade was a little longer than two feet, curving slightly and finishing in a diagonally-edged blade tip. 1 The blade was really beautiful; finely polished steel with a raised hamon temper line down its center. The sheath was unadorned; smooth, black, lacquered wood. The tsuba was a plain metal disc separating hilt and blade. The weapon was breath-taking in its simplicity and violent purpose.
Living in a temple and training as a monk didn't encourage sword study or weapons' training. Buddhists were schooled to strict non-violence. Eiri smirked. He knew what his balance of karma looked like. He had a long way to fall in his next life. Eiri had studied Japanese swords and armor once for a book he'd written, set in the Sengoku o-Togi Zoushi 2. He liked this katana. It was a very nice example of its kind. He sheathed it, considering the role of family protector. He supposed it was true. It brought his mind back to Mika's problem.
Eiri had emerged from his past, thanks to Shuichi. In many ways, he had grown up since then. He had become . . . more human and less like the cold snow of his self-imposed namesake. It was one of the reasons that he had asked Shuichi not to call him Yuki anymore. It was no longer who he was. Eiri had thought that Mika had grown up a long time ago, but maybe she had just chosen a different way to hide in childhood.
Shuichi's face was suddenly two inches from his own; large, merry, blue-violet eyes filling his vision. Eiri jerked back, instinctively. Shuichi kneeled in front of him, grinning. He probably would have jumped into Eiri's lap, if Eiri hadn't been holding a sword. The writer set it aside and his lover took that for an invitation, sitting on him and wrapping legs around his waist. "Yes?" Eiri said coolly.
Shuichi laid his head against Eiri's shoulder, wrapping arms around his neck. "I'm having so much fun," he said, "but I want to go home and be with you."
"Idiot. You are with me," he teased warmly, putting one arm around Shuichi's back. He knew what Shu meant.
"Mmmm," Shu answered, nuzzling Eiri's neck. "Just you . . . and me." Shu's breath brushed his skin.
"Stop that," Eiri scolded. He looked around the room, self-consciously. Mika was laughing over Ryuichi's and Tatsuha's antics with the costume trunk. Shuichi nibbled Eiri's neck, causing nerves to fire and those fires spread. Eiri dumped the singer onto the floor. With a glance, Shuichi knew he wasn't truly angry and the kid laughed. Eiri growled, causing Shuichi to laugh more. The others were oblivious. "Get your stuff. I'll say my good-byes," he instructed.
Shuichi bounced up. "Goody," he said. "Shall I put our stuff in your car?"
"Okay. The keys are—"
"—in your left-hand coat pocket, I know." Shuichi gathered up the swords and pocky and took them away. Warning Shu to be careful was probably a waste of his breath, so he didn't bother.
Eiri approached his sister. She was still wearing the shining crown. "We're leaving. If . . . if you need me . . . " he started, awkwardly.
She looked surprised. "Thank you. I'll see you on Thursday, for the kick-off concert, right?"
Eiri nodded. "Shu wouldn't let me miss it."
She smiled a little. "I'll be okay," she lied, giving him a reassurance he neither needed nor believed. "See ya."
"Bye, Tatsuha, Ryuichi," Eiri said. Ryuichi waved Kumagorou in the air at him, not breaking his song.
"I'll see you Thursday, Aniki. I can stay over, right?" Eiri nodded. Tatsuha and he could be lonely together . . . if Eiri decided to stay home for the first part of Bad Luck's tour.
Eiri went to the temple to tell his father good bye. The old man was lighting incense. "I'm going home, Father," he announced.
Old Uesugi nodded. He stood and turned toward his eldest son, setting a hand on Eiri's shoulder. He frowned. "I pray for you all, but look after your sister, Eiri." It was possibly the most practical request the old man had made of him since he'd moved out. Well, besides the old saw, 'quit smoking'. That was practical, but there wasn't any chance the old man would ever see it happen. "And quit smoking!" Hypocrite.
1 Okay, so I'm American. I work in feet and inches even though I know metrics are used every where else in the world. One foot 30.48 cm; and the length of the whole blade: 91.44 cm. Incidentally, the katana information is true and tsuba hilt guard.
2 This is alternately called the 'feudal period' or 'warring states era'.
Author's Note: It was kind of a 'downer' chapter, so I tried to liven it up a little at the end. I hope I succeeded. I wanted to show how Eiri's become more accessible to others— not just for Shuichi. Shu still gets the biggest benefits of Eiri's good-side, though. I was also able to put in my reason behind using 'Eiri' rather than 'Yuki'.
About Tohma: apparently, there are some Tohma-haters out there, but I think he has his place. I don't like him, but I feel like he is a deeply neutral, gray-area; neither good nor evil.
