CHAPTER 7- STICK SWORD
"Hotaru-chan, it's going to be a lovely day!" Okami-san declared to Hotaru a few days later. "Why not go outside today?"
Hotaru jolted, shocked at the suggestion. "You mean, to the country?"
"Sure! Take old Sora with you! She must want to get out on some good grass!"
In her excitement, Hotaru practically jumped into her arms. "YAY! Arigato! Arigato gozaimasu!" Now was her chance!
A twenty minute ride found Sora grazing under the sakura trees and Hotaru looking for a good stick.
"AH! Perfect!" She found an ideal tree limb and picked it up. "It looks like the right size and shape! I have my sword!"
Okay, so it was a start.
Holding the branch in both hands, she closed her eyes. "Now, if I could only remember how Kazuki did this!"
Kazuki was one of the slaves she had lived with back in her childhood. Sold because he was an orphan with no other place to go, he still had a lot to show off. One of his many talents was swordsmanship. And he was very good at it. Hotaru recalled how during their brief times off, he would practice his forms. At one point, he even cut down a massive tree with just one stroke.
Slowly, images of his forms came back to her. Carefully, studiously, she began to mimic them, bending her legs and holding the stick directly in front of her. It felt awkward at first, but she kept at it. Soon, she was taking her stances and striking as if it were natural.
All day long she practiced while Sora grazed. Then, by the time dinner came to everyone's mind, she was back home to help.
She repeated this procedure for days. She was having dreams of sword forms! She rehearsed them in her mind while at the inn. She took the spare time in between to learn how to sew. She borrowed some blue and gray fabric and made her first gi and hakama. Now, when she left for the country, she'd carry it in a package to hide it from Okami-san and the others.
Hour after hour, in the seclusion of the sakura grove, she would practice. She swung, stabbed, stroked, stumbled, and fell, but picked herself back up and repeated the process.
Then one day, her secret was discovered.
"Hotaru-chan, it's going to be a lovely day!" Okami-san declared to Hotaru a few days later. "Why not go outside today?"
Hotaru jolted, shocked at the suggestion. "You mean, to the country?"
"Sure! Take old Sora with you! She must want to get out on some good grass!"
In her excitement, Hotaru practically jumped into her arms. "YAY! Arigato! Arigato gozaimasu!" Now was her chance!
A twenty minute ride found Sora grazing under the sakura trees and Hotaru looking for a good stick.
"AH! Perfect!" She found an ideal tree limb and picked it up. "It looks like the right size and shape! I have my sword!"
Okay, so it was a start.
Holding the branch in both hands, she closed her eyes. "Now, if I could only remember how Kazuki did this!"
Kazuki was one of the slaves she had lived with back in her childhood. Sold because he was an orphan with no other place to go, he still had a lot to show off. One of his many talents was swordsmanship. And he was very good at it. Hotaru recalled how during their brief times off, he would practice his forms. At one point, he even cut down a massive tree with just one stroke.
Slowly, images of his forms came back to her. Carefully, studiously, she began to mimic them, bending her legs and holding the stick directly in front of her. It felt awkward at first, but she kept at it. Soon, she was taking her stances and striking as if it were natural.
All day long she practiced while Sora grazed. Then, by the time dinner came to everyone's mind, she was back home to help.
She repeated this procedure for days. She was having dreams of sword forms! She rehearsed them in her mind while at the inn. She took the spare time in between to learn how to sew. She borrowed some blue and gray fabric and made her first gi and hakama. Now, when she left for the country, she'd carry it in a package to hide it from Okami-san and the others.
Hour after hour, in the seclusion of the sakura grove, she would practice. She swung, stabbed, stroked, stumbled, and fell, but picked herself back up and repeated the process.
Then one day, her secret was discovered.
