Chapter Four: Gardens of Sakura
In her room the next evening, Konabe sat with a small light to illuminate her desk and a new notebook. She had spotted it in the window while out clothes shopping with Kima and a few others. It was the cover that had caught her eye as it seemed to be plain and pale blue in colour, but as the light landed on it in a certain way, a delicate pattern was noticable, shimmering in a different shade of blue, outlining a single Cedar tree in the bottom right corner. Straight away it reminded her of the envelope she had received the money in. Money that she was now spending. That made it seen all the more an appropriate thing to buy.
As soon as she had finished her lessons that day, Konabe had started writing, and now the first part of her book was filled with her thoughts. She always had so many dreams in her head and it was those thoughts that kept the constant glitter in her eyes. A couple of years before, she used to tell the others around her but stopped as the older girls gradually started to mock her ideas as false hope. Choosing the life of a geisha meant that they would never marry and also very unlikely to ever find 'true love' - the two things Konabe wished for most. Taking their comments to heart, she started doubting her own ideals and everything she ever believed in, thinking of them as fiction like the others. But sometimes they felt so real that she could never forget them. Her dreams were so persistent. Occassionally she had started to tell the younger girls her stories again but was once again warned of misleading them and passing on her ficticious hope. This left her with writing as her only form of release and now she finally had a place to keep her thoughts.
[Extract] The sweet scent of cherry blossoms awoke my senses, leading me to open my eyes and look out upon the vast landscape ahead of me. The garden somehow felt familiar. In one way I felt like I had never seen the array of flowers and trees before, that lead up to the arched Sakura tree entrance of a complex maze of gardens, but at the same time it seemed so memorable. Also friendly and inviting.
Closing my eyes once again I am once again greeted but the fresh wet smell of dew settling on an early spring morning. The breeze gldes over my clothes, softly brushing against my smooth bare legs. It seems like all my senses have been enhanced now that I had closed off my view.
My heart started to beat faster, the sound pounding in my ears, as I realised I was scared to reopen my eyes incase I found the whole scene to be gone and it had all just been in my imagination. I managed to work up the courage to and as my pupils adjusted to the sunlight, I looked again upon the gardens belows to reassure myself that it was real.
As much as I loved seeing the gardens, I knew it would all be over soon as this was the point in my dream where I usually woke up. Luckily, last night was different.
While my eyes focused on something in the distance, I started to shut them again, to picture myself over there. Caught up in this daydream, I felt warm sweet breathe across the base of my neck. At first I was too shocked to move, but before I could even think about what was happening, a smooth reassuring voice whispered softly in my ear, "come on".
Suddenly my hand was taken hold of in a firm but reassuring grip and I followed him as we ran together into the gardens.
The next thing I knew, we were near the back of the gardens, the place I had tried to picture mtself at before. I hadn't been able to see much of this part when I had the wider view of the landscape but seeing it now made up for it. A stream trickled along the base of a small raised platform that we sat on, shaded by one lonely tree that centered this section of the garden.
From behind, his arms were wrapped securely around me, providing me with both warmth and comfort.
"All this is for you."
As he told me this, I realised I still hadn't seen his face. Slowly turning, my eyes started refocusing and I found myself looking straight at a reflection of myself - hair slightly ruffled and a shocked expression while I lay in my bed where I had just woken up from my dream.
That was the first time the dream had ever continued and I wasn't sure if I was glad to know more or upset to now be feeling this sudden sense of loss to someone I had felt so attached to even though he was only a figment of my dream. All I could do was hope for the story to continue next time I was asleep so that I might actually have a chance to put a face to the beautiful, comforting voice that spoke to me.
[End of extract]
Kima's head appeared around the edge of the door just as Konabe closed the book and rested the pen by it's side.
"Are you nearly ready?"
Seeing Konabe only just start to reach for her hairbursh, Kima sighed and made her way into the room to help the younger girl prepare for the evening ahead.
"Remember you won't be performing tonight. The Li family have requested your company again and are arriving much earlier than usual."
Kima smiled as she saw Konabe looking down towards the book she had purchased earlier.
"With another tip like the last one, you'll be able to buy a lot more of those. I'd keep it safe though, you know how nosey the others can get."
Taking Kima's advice, Konabe placed the book into a small treasure chest that sat on her table, locked it, and placed the key on a small delicate chain around her neck. If people didn't like her sharing her stories, then she would happily keep them to herself.
In her room the next evening, Konabe sat with a small light to illuminate her desk and a new notebook. She had spotted it in the window while out clothes shopping with Kima and a few others. It was the cover that had caught her eye as it seemed to be plain and pale blue in colour, but as the light landed on it in a certain way, a delicate pattern was noticable, shimmering in a different shade of blue, outlining a single Cedar tree in the bottom right corner. Straight away it reminded her of the envelope she had received the money in. Money that she was now spending. That made it seen all the more an appropriate thing to buy.
As soon as she had finished her lessons that day, Konabe had started writing, and now the first part of her book was filled with her thoughts. She always had so many dreams in her head and it was those thoughts that kept the constant glitter in her eyes. A couple of years before, she used to tell the others around her but stopped as the older girls gradually started to mock her ideas as false hope. Choosing the life of a geisha meant that they would never marry and also very unlikely to ever find 'true love' - the two things Konabe wished for most. Taking their comments to heart, she started doubting her own ideals and everything she ever believed in, thinking of them as fiction like the others. But sometimes they felt so real that she could never forget them. Her dreams were so persistent. Occassionally she had started to tell the younger girls her stories again but was once again warned of misleading them and passing on her ficticious hope. This left her with writing as her only form of release and now she finally had a place to keep her thoughts.
[Extract] The sweet scent of cherry blossoms awoke my senses, leading me to open my eyes and look out upon the vast landscape ahead of me. The garden somehow felt familiar. In one way I felt like I had never seen the array of flowers and trees before, that lead up to the arched Sakura tree entrance of a complex maze of gardens, but at the same time it seemed so memorable. Also friendly and inviting.
Closing my eyes once again I am once again greeted but the fresh wet smell of dew settling on an early spring morning. The breeze gldes over my clothes, softly brushing against my smooth bare legs. It seems like all my senses have been enhanced now that I had closed off my view.
My heart started to beat faster, the sound pounding in my ears, as I realised I was scared to reopen my eyes incase I found the whole scene to be gone and it had all just been in my imagination. I managed to work up the courage to and as my pupils adjusted to the sunlight, I looked again upon the gardens belows to reassure myself that it was real.
As much as I loved seeing the gardens, I knew it would all be over soon as this was the point in my dream where I usually woke up. Luckily, last night was different.
While my eyes focused on something in the distance, I started to shut them again, to picture myself over there. Caught up in this daydream, I felt warm sweet breathe across the base of my neck. At first I was too shocked to move, but before I could even think about what was happening, a smooth reassuring voice whispered softly in my ear, "come on".
Suddenly my hand was taken hold of in a firm but reassuring grip and I followed him as we ran together into the gardens.
The next thing I knew, we were near the back of the gardens, the place I had tried to picture mtself at before. I hadn't been able to see much of this part when I had the wider view of the landscape but seeing it now made up for it. A stream trickled along the base of a small raised platform that we sat on, shaded by one lonely tree that centered this section of the garden.
From behind, his arms were wrapped securely around me, providing me with both warmth and comfort.
"All this is for you."
As he told me this, I realised I still hadn't seen his face. Slowly turning, my eyes started refocusing and I found myself looking straight at a reflection of myself - hair slightly ruffled and a shocked expression while I lay in my bed where I had just woken up from my dream.
That was the first time the dream had ever continued and I wasn't sure if I was glad to know more or upset to now be feeling this sudden sense of loss to someone I had felt so attached to even though he was only a figment of my dream. All I could do was hope for the story to continue next time I was asleep so that I might actually have a chance to put a face to the beautiful, comforting voice that spoke to me.
[End of extract]
Kima's head appeared around the edge of the door just as Konabe closed the book and rested the pen by it's side.
"Are you nearly ready?"
Seeing Konabe only just start to reach for her hairbursh, Kima sighed and made her way into the room to help the younger girl prepare for the evening ahead.
"Remember you won't be performing tonight. The Li family have requested your company again and are arriving much earlier than usual."
Kima smiled as she saw Konabe looking down towards the book she had purchased earlier.
"With another tip like the last one, you'll be able to buy a lot more of those. I'd keep it safe though, you know how nosey the others can get."
Taking Kima's advice, Konabe placed the book into a small treasure chest that sat on her table, locked it, and placed the key on a small delicate chain around her neck. If people didn't like her sharing her stories, then she would happily keep them to herself.