Very few people would dare attempt to steal anything from the Aoiya.
But then again, much had changed since the old days of the Oniwaban. The image
of the Aoiya as the home to the Kyoto Oniwaban had begun to fade from the collective
memory of Kyoto and been replaced with that of a bustling inn and restaurant.
They – the six remaining Oniwaban – had willed that it should be
so. Aoshi, most of all, wished to put as much of their dark legacy behind them
and allow them to live the normal lives they desired.
Thieves in the Aoiya were one thing. But a robbery attempt that followed shortly
after other unpleasant events unsettled him. Enough so that he made a point
to take out the sheathed kodachi and wear them close to him.
Okina said nothing regarding them. After all, it was run-in with the yakuza
that had worried the younger man deeply. The death of Megumi Takani had further
jaded Aoshi as to the idea that weapons were not needed in this day and age.
But perhaps kodachi were a little too much for dealing with a simple thief,
who turned out to be a scruffy man-child perhaps not even fifteen years of age.
Even Aoshi could have pitied the boy but, as Okina had astutely noted, the
lad was not a novice. Before he was apprehended, the boy had helped himself
to a considerable number of things. He was seasoned enough to steal money and
only small things that could be easily traded or sold.
"The enemy is clear," Kuro spoke as both Okina and Aoshi entered
the room used normally by the Aoiya staff for dining. The meaning of the statement
was two fold – first that the boy was disarmed and unable to pose a threat
now that he had been bound hand and foot. Second – Kuro meant also that
no strange markings, jewelry or anything for that matter had been found on the
boy that would indicate an affiliation with any of their old enemies.
"You're lucky you don't have any real weapons on you." Okina's sharp eyes immediately picked up on the bruises on the thief's arms. "Otherwise I'm afraid Kuro might have finished you immediately."
Omasu coughed slightly. From her embarrassed expression, Aoshi suspected that she, not Kuro, was the one responsible for bruising the thief.
Okina sighed loudly, "We take thieves very seriously you know. But we really don't like dealing with police matters all that much either. So if you answer some of our questions, we'd be happy to think about skipping with the police entirely."
The boy stared back at Okina.
"Who do you work for?" Aoshi stepped forward then, deciding it was time to shift tactics. He gave Kuro a glance, and immediately Kuro forced the boy to look up at Aoshi. "Who sent you here?"
Aoshi was satisfied to see the boy hesitate slightly and blink. Very few people could maintain eye contact with him in general, but when he even appeared angry or irritated, only the bravest could look at him for more than a second.
"N-no one." The boy finally broke his silence. "I just heard that there were a lot of nice things here. Business is good at the Aoiya everyone says . . ."
"You're lying," Aoshi made sure to narrow his eyes and moved his hand towards the sheath of his kodachi. "I don't care for liars."
"I'm not lying," the boy stated again, his voice wavering slightly.
Okina and Aoshi exchanged a glance. The boy was frightened, but their trained ears still detected the lie in his voice.
Regardless, the boy would help them in the end.
Aoshi looked over at Omasu, who acknowledged his silent command and then quietly disappeared outside.
"Now, now, Aoshi-san. I've told you that you must maintain your temper. He's nothing more than an ignorant boy who heard incorrectly. Child --" Okina poured on his kindly grandfather voice. "--I'm sure you can tell now that what you heard was wrong. You've seen enough of the inside to see that we don't live in opulence. And we certainly aren't dumb enough to keep money and valuables around here. We have too many people coming in and out for that, you know."
The boy looked up at Okina, who appeared to be the only sympathetic figure in the room. "I promise I won't come back. Just don't turn me in to the police. He averted his eyes, "My mother -- well, she doesn't even know that I do this. Ever since father--"
"Your mother eh?" Okina said softly and gave a slight sigh. "Aoshi. I really don't want to turn this boy in. Let's just send him off."
Aoshi narrowed his eyes slightly and to himself, counted to ten before he gave the young man a cold glance and turned his back. "You're too soft, old man. Much too soft. But it'll be your fault if he comes back."
"Kuro, I want you to escort him out of here." Okina made a show of ignoring Aoshi.
"Th-thank you," the boy stammered out before he was somewhat unkindly dragged outside.
Okina followed, watching closely as the boy was dragged through the courtyard and out the front gate. When Kuro and the boy were gone, he turned back to address Aoshi. "He was a very good actor, wasn't he? But really, mentioning his mother and his dead father was just too much. That boy was no novice thief--"
"He will run to whatever he calls home, nonetheless." Aoshi responded. "Okon and Shiro will find out whether he tells the truth or not."
"Spoons, some small trinkets, and money." Okina said somewhat thoughtfully. "Kitchen items really. But Omasu and Kuro found him loitering elsewhere. Perhaps he was looking for something else then?"
Aoshi narrowed his eyes slightly. The thought had occurred to him, but what?
"Aoshi-san," Omasu stepped into the room. "The mouse has been disposed of and is proceeding north. Kuro is standing watch, making sure he doesn't come back."
"He won't come back. Tell Kuro to come back and wait for word from Okon or Shiro. You should rest as well Omasu."
"Of course," Omasu bowed. "I'll be in my quarters if you need me."
"Of course," Aoshi nodded as Omasu left quietly.
Okina had a slightly smug expression on his face. "It looks like the thief bought our little act, Aoshi."
"If he has a master, we will find him. However, I doubt he'll give up thieving anytime soon," Aoshi noted dryly
"Ever the cynic, aren't you Aoshi?"
Aoshi chose not to answer. After all, he knew that people did not change easily.
~
Okon was not gone more than an hour before she returned and found Aoshi and Okina in the office.
She bowed quickly. "We followed the thief back home. Northern part of the city."
"So did our little thief run to mother?" Okina grinned, already knowing the answer.
"He ran around for a while going in random directions before he doubled back and headed towards the mill. He disappeared into one of the newer storehouses located across from the mill."
"Shimada Takeji bought those recently didn't he?" Okina thought aloud. "Distributes millet and rice. Very actively buying up fields as well from folks anxious to leave the countryside for the city."
"Shall I go back and continue surveillance or call Kuro back?"
"Neither," Aoshi stood up suddenly from behind his desk. "I'd like to see Mr. Shimada's storehouse for myself. Okon you should stay here and wait for our next message." He located his coat in the corner of the room and put it on carefully. When he finished, Okina handed him the kodachi, which never had been all that far away to begin with. "Okina—"
"Don't worry, I'll take care of the rest."
Aoshi quickly disappeared into the dark streets of Kyoto, contemplating the information Okon and brought. He regretted that he did not know more about the merchant trader Shimada, who had come to Kyoto about a year ago. He had secured the mill from its previous owner for a handsome price. Shimada supplied Kyoto with much of its rice, including the Aoiya. But Aoshi paid little attention to the matter.
Perhaps if he hadn't been distracted so much, he would have made the effort to understand a little bit more about the man and his company. At least openly, there appeared to be nothing much to say about him. His employees were satisfied, loyal and generally happy with the man. His wife was reportedly beautiful and admired. Their estate was splendid.
As he neared the mill, a shadow detached itself from one of the walls. Aoshi relaxed when he recognized Shiro. "The boy has moved."
"Did you follow?"
Shiro nodded. "He went to the Shimada's estate. I thought perhaps that you or Kuro would come and doubled back. Do we go to the Shimadas?"
"Okina will deal with them. I would like to see the storehouse. Particularly the middle one. I want you to keep watch from a safe distance."
Shiro nodded before returning to the shadows.
Aoshi waited for a moment before silently continuing towards the storehouses. With little effort, he found himself blending and weaving in and out of the shadows, avoiding the steps of any sentries that walked around the area. With little additional effort, he found himself able to bypass the wooden doors of the storehouse and slipped inside.
He lingered in the shadows for a few moments more while his eyes and ears adjusted again to the dark silence inside.
He looked quickly around noting the open sacks of rice and then the barrels of dried grains, ready for shipping all over Japan and perhaps outside. But a faint smell, something slightly fragrant also caught his attention.
It was habit that made him immediately jump to conclusions, but he was disappointed when he located the source of the smell. It appeared that he had found nothing more than what appeared to be ordinary dried plants. Likely some sort of tea blend. Nevertheless, he carefully withdrew a cloth from his pocket and placed a sample of the leaves in it.
Seeing nothing else, he returned to the door and listened for the steps of the sentrybefore opening the door slightly. When he had determined that no one was there, he quickly closed the door and moved away along the side of the building.
A strange bird call from far away warned him of someone's approach. Aoshi realized that he did not have adequate cover to evade, so he simply stopped in his tracks and waited.
The man stepped loudly. But not with much confidence or strength. He would not be much of a threat if it came to that. But he stopped short when he suddenly noticed him standing between the buildings. "A bit late for rice, isn't it?"
"My men chased a thief into this area. I'm trying to find him."
"Well," the man looked somewhat annoyed. "My sentries would have seen someone. They certainly didn't notice you, Mr –"
"Shinomori, Shimada-san."
"Ah yes," the man narrowed his eyes slightly, clearly surprised that he had been recognized. "From the Aoiya. One of my best customers. I am pleased to meet you."
Aoshi was not in a mood for trivialities. "My men also noted that the thief apparently lives or works on your estate, Shimada-san."
"Really?" Shimada's voice became extremely bland and disinterested. "Well, that is unfortunate. I don't like thieves. I promise to look into the matter. Did you catch his name?"
"He's a fifteen year old boy."
"My, my. So young too." Shimada shrugged. "I don't know that I can help you all that much. There are so many of the younger men working the estate, coming in and out especially as we near the harvesting season. I can barely keep track of them and most certainly they don't tell me how they spend their recreational time."
"He's likely familiar with the Aoiya. Perhaps he has accompanied one of your regular deliverymen. But," Aoshi echoed Shimada's shrug, "-- if you don't think that is enough information, I'm sure the police will be able to figure it out from there."
"The police?" Shimada tensed slightly. "Well, no need to involve them. I'll make sure to have my chief of staff rout out the criminal and hand him over to you –"
"I'm afraid that won't be enough. He's working for someone. My thought was that perhaps you would know who."
Shimada's face turned ugly for a moment, clearly understanding the veiled accusation. "I don't like unfounded accusations, Shinomori."
Aoshi stared down the man. "And I don't like thieves who masquerade as businessmen. You know well enough the resources we have at our fingertips. We can turn our attention to your affairs in detail. "
"I see," Shimada's mind was quickly considering the possibilities. And Aoshi knew that if Shimada were truly the great corrupt businessman that he suspected him to be, that Shimada would comply.
"I don't know all the details of my men's affairs. As a rule, I don't pry into their business as long as they work hard for me. Some of my men have had connections to all sorts of enterprising businessmen in the past, which I overlooked –"
"By enterprising businessmen you mean criminals."
"Well," Shimada shrugged. "We can't help what we were in the past. I don't know the details, but I believe some of the men have connections to a Tokyo syndicate who are very interested in acquisition of rare texts. But as you know, all the historical records are well guarded, so I dismissed the rumors. "
By the way the man's eyes shifted, Aoshi knew the businessman was still withholding information. Shimada's appearance here this evening confirmed Shimada's complicity in some way with the robbery attempt at the Aoiya.
For a moment, he contemplated using his strength to coerce something more concrete out of him, but there were things worth going to prison for, and this man was not one of them. "I see. Well, with that little information, I'm going to be forced to look very thoroughly at the affairs of your men. And consider our account with your mill closed, Shimada. We have no desire to do business with those we can not trust."
"Very well." Shimada's eyes glittered. "You will understand if I don't wish you a good evening, Shinomori."
Both men left quickly, choosing to go in opposite directions.
Shiro fell quietly in line behind him, clearly relieved that nothing had happened.
Aoshi hadn't quite been up front with the businessman. Within a matter of hours, the police would be crawling all over the storehouses. While he would not yet reveal that the thief himself was in Shimada's employ, he and Okina had no qualms about indicating that the thief was last seen in this area.
His encounter with Shimada had seemed planned. And for that reason, he was concerned. He was anxious to relay some of his findings to Okina. Tokyo syndicate. Texts. Strange plants.
"Aoshi-san." Shiro broke his silence. "All the lights are on in the Aoiya."
He felt his stomach turn once as he looked ahead and up. Shiro's eyes had indeed seen correctly. The lights of the Aoiya were on. He increased his pace, forgoing stealth in favor of the necessary speed to get there sooner.
He cursed himself for his lack of foresight. While he and the others were out tracking a thief and chasing information . . . did their enemy take advantage of their decreased numbers to rob or attack the Aoiya?
As he and Shiro slammed open the front gate, they were relieved to see Okina unharmed.
"Aoshi!" Okina was crouched next to Okon, who was sitting down looking considerably worse for wear.
"What happened?"
"I was coming back from the station when I found Okon knocked out cold. Okon had encountered an intruder but she was only able to raise the alarm when she was overcome by some sort of ether. Kuro went after the intruder. Omasu was to help, but she stumbled across another one. She managed to wound him before he ran off. The other, we're not sure about."
Two more intruders who struck conveniently after he, Okina and Shiro had left. Perhaps they had been waiting for them to leave.
"Is anyone hurt?"
"I don't think so, but –"
"Shiro, go locate everyone. And Okon, I want you to gather everyone out here. There may be more about. I don't want any more of our staff attacked."
Shiro and Okon immediately complied and set off for different parts of the Aoiya.
Okina frowned. They both knew now that their enemy had anticipated their behavior. Their pursuit of one thief had been used against them. "Aoshi, they were definitely after something. Your office has been turned upside down. And the rooms upstairs are a disaster—"
"The rooms upstairs?" Aoshi placed his hand on Okina's shoulder."Okina, where is Megumi-chan?"
"Meg-chan?" Okina repeated dumbly, before his eyes widened in horror. "Do you think they were after her?"
Aoshi did not answer. Instead, he moved quickly towards the stairs that led to the upstairs quarters. The thought had crossed his mind that perhaps they were after her, but not for any reason other than what had happened to her aunt. It was illogical. For what reason would anyone want a four year old child who could not yet write or read or be of use in any way? But she also was new to the Aoiya. At least those who lived long enough there knew something of what to do when trouble came. But she wouldn't and would be easy prey.
All the doors were flung wide open, evidence that something in fact had happened up here. They went quickly through the rooms, finding no one.
In the dim light, they could see that things were scattered all over. The intruders had evidently been looking for something. Or someone.
"Aoshi-san! Okina!" Omasu ran up from behind them, clearly relieved. "You're back. It looks as if all the rooms are clear. "
"Omasu," Okina turned around, his face anxious. "Have you seen Meg-chan?"
"Meg-chan? Jiyu was with her."
"Where's Jiyu?" Aoshi snapped.
"She's in the courtyard with the others. She was injured."
"Injured? Goodness!" Okina frowned.
Injured? Aoshi swept by them quickly and made for the courtyard. He did not know what the expression on his face was when he approached Jiyu, but the other staff who were standing or sitting around her immediately cleared a path for him.
"Aoshi-san!" Jiyu winced as she attempted to stand on what appeared to be a sprained ankle.
"Did they take her?"
"Meg-chan?"
"Yes, you were watching Megumi-chan."
Jiyu swallowed. "I- I don't know. We heard all the activity downstairs and I thought I overheard them saying that they were coming for her, so I told her to hide well while I stood guard. I didn't see where she went."
Okina finally had caught up to him. "Aoshi. Omasu and several of the others are already looking for her. Why don't we try to look as well?"
Aoshi was never one to be hasty, but if the girl had been taken he wasn't going to waste any time. "I want to go to Shimada. I'm certain he has something to do with this."
"Aoshi." Okina frowned. "That would not be wise -- the police should already be on their way there and we don't know what the situation here is—"
"Jiyu!" Omasu scurried over. "You must come with me. I think I found our little girl."
As many pairs of eyes turned towards her, Omasu corrected herself. "I found her, but I need your help."
"Help? Did something happen?" Okina looked quickly at Aoshi as he tensed.
"No, no." Omasu gave all of them an apologetic look. "Just come and see."
As Okina and Aoshi helped Jiyu round the side of the building towards the back entrance, Omasu quietly opened the door and led them into the washing room.
Omasu nodded at Jiyu, whose expression looked a bit silly as she cleared her throat. "Meg-chan, I found you. Come out please."
"Ohhh." The muffled voice of a young girl sighed her disappointment. "You found me."
Everyone's eyes turned immediately towards the corner of the room, where the voice had come from. Omasu quickly pulled off the wooden cover to one of the tubs. "She wouldn't come out until you came for her, Jiyu."
Meg-chan's eyes widened as she looked around. She clearly hadn't been expecting to see all of them standing there with serious expressions.
"Meg-chan!" Okina laughed as he noted her lip trembling and kindly scooped her up. "You're not in trouble. In fact, we're all here because you won!"
"Won?" She stared at Okina. "I was good right?"
"Of course," Okina murmured soothingly and patted her head. "But Meg-chan picks strange places to hide. How did you get from your room down here?"
Meg-chan grinned. "I went outside."
"Outside?" Jiyu blinked. "The only way outside is if she had crawled into the next room and down the balcony—"
Nearly everyone's eyes went round.
"Meg-chan!" Omasu and Jiyu's expressions suddenly turned furious. "You climbed down the balcony didn't you? After we told you not to!"
Meg-chan took one look at their faces and burst into tears. Unfortunately, her tears prompted laughter from Okina. His laughter, in turn, prompted angry scolding from the women for not taking the matter more seriously.
Aoshi quickly plucked the crying girl from Okina's arms and took her outside.
Not an affectionate person by nature, he did nothing more than hold the child in his arms and wait for her to quiet down. "Did I do bad?" the little girl hiccuped. "They're fighting now."
"Megumi-chan." He looked up at the balcony from which she had climbed down. It was a remarkable thing for a small child to do. "On a regular day, don't climb down that balcony. We'll teach you what to do on those other days when we need you to hide. Don't climb it unless you're told to, understood? "
She tilted her head and looked longingly at the balcony for a moment.
"Understood?"
"Okay." She smiled, in a manner which seemed oddly familiar.
He started as he recalled exactly where he had seen that smile before. He frowned slightly. This child would definitely need to be kept under stricter watch.
"I'll take her, Aoshi-san," Jiyu spoke up suddenly after Omasu's swipe at Okina had silenced his ridiculous laughter. "There is still much to do."
"Of course," Aoshi handed the girl back to the woman, albeit a bit reluctantly, before he turned to Okina. "I want to see what the intruders managed to find, starting with the office."
Okina nodded thoughtfully. He rubbed his head and continued to do so while following Aoshi back to the chaotic office.
Methodically and quietly the two began sorting everything and placing things back where they used to be. Once things had been reordered, they would be able to see what in fact was not where it supposed to be.
Okina suddenly cleared his throat. "Aoshi. We overheard what you were telling Meg-chan."
"Ah." Aoshi moved quickly through the contents of the drawers, reorganizing them and shutting them when he was satisfied that nothing was missing.
"Are you planning to train her, Aoshi? I thought you were set on giving up those ways."
Aoshi waited until he had shut another drawer before he answered. "I thought so as well, but it seems that the old ways still have their use."
"There are a lot of people who would not like to hear that." Okina's voice grew stern. "And in particular, to train a child— who her aunt specifically stated was to follow in her father's footsteps. The doctor won't rest peacefully on this issue, Aoshi."
"I am not afraid of her ghost, Okina. A child must be able to survive in order to live out whatever dreams she or her family have had."
"I see." Okina gave a sigh, one that always indicated that he did comprehend, but didn't understand. Aoshi didn't particularly care at the moment. He had other things on his mind. Before he dealt again with Shimada, he wanted to know what Shimada or his men were after.
A/N:
I was a bit hesitant to allow some things to develop here. Aoshi as mere innkeeper has always bothered me. So Aoshi taking up his kodachi so openly is significant but is troubling. This could create problems down the line for others close to him.
And the other reason why I'm really troubled by this part is that this section made me realize that "wrapping up the final arc" is a lot more difficult than I realized. Plus some of the slight changes here in Aoshi mean that other prewritten content for the end is also evolving and has to be chucked out the window (along with my sanity).
Given that I am having a bad bad few weeks, I am looking forward to your reviews.
