Part 5

The Okiya in Gion was a rustic affair that eyed Omi and Ken with a sort of naked hunger. The Okiya in Gion were prized for their Maiko and so as soon as they announced that that was what Omi was pretending to be the Obasan and Kaasan of the Okiya adopted him as their favourite daughter and took to dressing him themselves. Ken was lusted after not as a handsome man, but as a strong man that would be perfect for some of the chores that their aged retainer had let slip over the years. As Manx had said Yohji was put to work in a neighbouring tea house and as such was lodged in a low rent hotel where the others were put up in the Okiya. Aya and Omi shared a room with each other, both of which had soft white futons and heavy blankets, Ken, on the other hand, shared a room with the other servants and his futon was uncomfortable and lumpy. Where Aya and Omi were encouraged to sleep until at the very earliest ten Ken was woken at dawn.

They had arrived in the Okiya amidst a flurry of white roses and dark purple lilies all addressed to Murasakiiro from Crawford. Ken looked at him funny as he carried the heavy boxes up the stairs. Omi helped Aya put the flowers in vases before he raised a single blonde eyebrow. "You have to tell me." Omi said, "I can keep a secret." He said.

"There's no secret to tell." Aya said arranging the flowers in the vases. "He was at a party."

"Murasakiiro," the Okasan of the Okiya said entering the Okiya's small kitchen. "Aoi, I was not told that ikebana was part of your gei."

Omi turned to her with a large and beaming grin, "we work in a florists." He said, "we can arrange flowers."

The Okasan, a small withered woman with a strict expression, frowned. "When a geisha performs ikebana she sits at a counter, she does not stand over the sink. Now sit, I will have Reiichi make you tea." Both Aya and Omi paled, Reiichi was the name that Kritiker had given Ken.

"That's fine," Omi said, "I could do with practising the art of tea making."

"It's poisonous." Aya confessed, "Reiichi couldn't make tea if you stood over him, it seems perfect and then you taste it and you're lucky if you don't go blind."

"Then we shall teach him," she said, "the okasan of the Tokyo Okiya has sent word of your triumph, but the men of Gion are not the men of Tokyo, though judging by the display that preceded your arrival you were well received. Now talk to me about this Mr Crawford that sent you such flowers and has already called three times to request your presence waiting upon him."

Aya swore.

Then he swore again as the Okasan cracked him across the head with her fan.

"I asked you to tell me about this Mr Crawford, not to blaspheme and curse. It is not fitting for a lady to swear and less so for a geisha, I will introduce you both to the other geisha, but start talking."

"He's gaijin." Aya answered brusquely. "he works for Takatori." He managed to make the word grate out and nearly spat it out with vitriol, "he's rich, and sophisticated for an American, but he is the enemy. Leave me alone with him and I will kill him." She cracked him around the back of the head with the fan again.

"Gaijin or no any man that sends that many flowers and offers that much money for your time is worth visiting. Kill him and you will blow your cover here in Gion. I will arrange a lunch date with you for tomorrow. You will not work tonight. You are going to spend the evening showing me that you can dress yourself and Chiisai Aoi and I are going to have a little talk."

Aya murmured off muttering "must not kill Crawford, must not kill Kaasan."

Crawford stood up when the geisha entered the small private dining room of the Hiiragiya hotel. She wore a pale silver grey kimono decorated with a dragon fly motif in a shimmering clear thread and her obi was a dark rich purple diamond design with scarlet inlays. He had half convinced himself that he had imagined her beauty. Her feet were bare, which shocked him. Behind her was the maiko he had been told that she had been sent to train, she wore a stiff kimono with her hair coiled into the split fashion that maiko wore, and her face painted like a japanese doll, her eyes were blue, and the kimono she wore dragged on the floor. "Crawford-san." Murasakiiro said bowing her head and arranging herself gracefully on the floor, "it is my pleasure to attend you this afternoon, this is my imouto Aoi, this is her time of learning by imitation, if she makes you feel uncomfortable I can return her to the Okiya."

"It is fine, Murasakiiro-sama." Crawford said, bowing to the girl, and noticing her huge blue eyes. She was a pretty girl, pleasantly rounded with soft coltish limbs, but she lacked the amazing and quite striking features of the lovely Murasakiiro. "Aoi-sama, I am pleased to make your acquaintance. My name is Bradley Crawford." Aoi bowed her head, not as gracefully as Murasakiiro but there was promise in the gesture.

"I am honoured, Crawford-san." Aoi said, sitting behind Murasakiiro. There was a hint of steel in the girlish voice, Crawford noticed, which would suit Murasakiiro's maiko.

"Tell me, Aoi-sama, of your art." Aoi lowered her head and would not match his gaze.

"Aoi's talent is for dance." Murasakiiro said sweeping in gracefully to save the girl, "but she has come late to it and it would be cruel to ask her to perform. She is young yet with a bright future at Ichirogo ahead of her." She poured Crawford a bowl of the hot green tea that he had had prepared for her. She did not attempt the tea ceremony, Crawford noticed, most geisha did.

"Surely your own okiya miss you, Murasakiiro-sama." Crawford said, "and if not you then surely the revenue such a famous geisha can bring in."

"It is impolite to speak of such things in front of a geisha." Murasakiiro said firmly, then sipped her tea smoothing out the gesture. "My own okiya is small and the opportunities in Hokkaido were lacking, so they sent me to Tokyo where I received the request to be the aneki for Aoi-chan." She turned and smiled fondly at the girl, "and I was honoured. I find myself greatly in love with Gion."

Crawford laughed. "Would you like some tea, Aoi-sama?" He asked. He didn't know the etiquette of these meetings.

"No, thank you, Crawford-san." Aoi said lowering her head. "But thank you very much for thinking of me."

"She lacks your tart wit," Crawford mused looking at Murasakiiro.

"Certainly, what is prized in a geisha is frowned upon in a maiko." Murasakiiro answered sharply. "Where I am flattered for my sharp tongue and droll humour she would overstep her manners, this is called minarai, she is learning by observation."

"And what if I gave her something to observe?" Crawford asked with a smile.

Murasakiiro's eyes widened and she blushed clear to the roots of her hair. Crawford decided he enjoyed making her blush. "I would be forced to slap you with my fan," Murasakiiro said recovering some of her composure. "Aoi is only fourteen years old and even if I welcomed such attentions, Crawford-san, then it would not be fitting in front of my maiko. She is a long time from her mizuage." She tilted her head to show a length of smooth white neck, not explaining the word but trusting that he would understand it. Sitting patiently Aoi blushed as deeply as Murasakiiro had. "And besides, this is only our second meeting, and it's considered very forward for a girl to put out on the second date."

Crawford looked at Murasakiiro for a moment and then he burst out laughing. His entire face softened as he laughed, the lines vanished from the corners of his eyes and his glasses slipped along his nose. Murasakiiro covered her confusion at this reaction by filling his teacup. "Then the kiss we shared, was that very forward of you?"

"You stole that kiss, Crawford-san." Murasakiiro answered, "I had no preparation for it." she tilted her head as she sipped her tea as Aoi made a little gasp sound behind them.

"Then how many dates must we have before you will kiss me?" Crawford asked, his glasses flashed almost ominously.

"How very forward of you to ask, Crawford-san." Murasakiiro answered with a smile. "And it's traditional to wait for the third date."

Aoi smothered a giggle as Crawford laughed. "Then I will just have to arrange a third date with you, Murasakiiro-sama." He paused for a moment. "Isn't there an abbreviation of your name that I could use, after all Murasakiiro-sama is just a little of a mouthful."

Murasakiiro blushed again at the thinly veiled euphemism. "Saki-chan." She muttered almost under her breath.

"I am honoured that you would let me call you that."

"Saki-chan?" Omi asked as they sat in the car.

"Shut up." Aya growled.

"Saki-chan?" Omi asked again. "Isn't that what that twit at the flower shop wanted you to call her?" He was rocking back and forth in laughter.

"I had to come up with it on the spot." Aya protested.

"And you kissed him, okay you kissed him on the last meeting, but you kissed Crawford."

"Shut up." Aya shouted. "He kissed me."

"But you kissed the cold oracle of Schwarz." Omi was pointing now. "Nagi said that he was so asexual that he was built like action man with trademark underwear, and you kissed him."

"I kept your little romance with prodigy secret from the rest of Weiss." Aya said sharply crossing his legs as much as the tightly bound kimono would allow him. "I believe I can ask the same of you."

"That's blackmail, Aya." Omi said sobering.

"Why I believe you're right. Say a word to Yohji and all of Tokyo, especially Ouka, will know of your little romance."

The colour drained from Omi's face under the paint. "You wouldn't."

"Wouldn't I?"

"You're right." Omi said soberly, "it is sexual harassment and you shouldn't have to stand for it. And you didn't give him a pet name or agree to meet him at his hotel for drinks tomorrow afternoon."

Aya lowered his head in his hands. "Don't remind me. Yohji's going to kill me."

"That's if we tell him." Omi said in a low voice.

"Blackmail, Omi?" Aya asked, a little shocked that sweet little Omi would consider such a thing.

"More of an insurance policy." Omi replied with a winning smile. "I won't say a word to Yohji and you don't say a word about Nagi and me to Crawford ever."

Aya offered his hand, Omi took it and they shook on the deal.

"You do know I am going to tease you about this, probably forever." Omi added. "Did you get frostbite when he kissed you?"

"Shi-ne."