The Japanese Politician's Woman

Monday 3:22pm

He sat on the other side of the car, he couldn't help but notice that Rei-chan had sat at the edge of the seat, leaning close to the door; politeness dictated that he would also remain on the other side. So far she had not said a word to him, they used to be able to talk to each other incessantly, but now, only the silence was incessant. He still remembered each conversation they had had clearly, his heart ached with the thought that he had pained her in anyway, but he knew that he was the reason for this silent treatment from the fair lady sitting beside him.

As the sunlight shone through the tinted windows of the car, it touched Rei-chan's hair, her dark hair shining with radiance, just like her youthful, beautiful face. He could not shake from his mind, the image of her as the happy child that had long disappeared ever since the death of her mother, and the other image, when she had called him a comrade. Most frighteningly, was last year, when she had seen him with Seira-chan; her face darkened immediately and she had turned her back to him.

He had disappointed her, he knew, he had told her that he would not date, and now, he was engaged. Not that he really wanted to get married, but what could you do when your boss was breathing down your neck to marry his daughter? Kyoru-san had arranged for him to appear with his daughter, and arranged for the media to catch a glimpse of them together. He had arranged for the little leaks, he had even arranged for the ring that would be given to his daughter. But, despite the constant pressure from him, Inouye-san's heart was somewhere else, fixated on a person that he could not imagine being able to gain the love of. He knew that her father would oppose, and he was afraid that he was too old for her.

Rei-chan… he longed to touch her inky hair like the sunlight was touching it now, reflecting the brilliant colours of ebony and dark purple. Never, had he loved the colour black as he loved it now, and he would love any colour that Rei-chan wore. Deep inside, he knew that he was too old for her, but he had hoped to retain at least some friendship, alas, it was not to be. He could not help noticing her form of address when she was in the principle's office, "Inouye-san", the soft voice that had whispered his name replayed in his mind, but it told him that they were no longer friends, he was no longer Kenta-kun. He wanted her to call him Kenta-kun once again, but it could not be forced. He could only hope that it was because she was in front of her father that she was so formal towards him, but the cynical side of him rebuked him for being silly.

Her father had told him off for fretting and acting like he was meeting the Empress, little did Hino-san know how much he thought Rei was like an Empress. So royal, elegant yet entirely untouchable.

He saw her suddenly start, like she had seen something that frightened her. Her hands immediately held each other tightly, clenched together, the beautiful brows that adorned her porcelain face, knit in concentration. He reached out but his fingers stopped short of touching her, "Rei-chan, is something wrong?"

"I only wish to return to Hikawa Shrine as soon as possible, there is something which I must do immediately."

"Can I help in anyway? Rei-chan?"

"You can help by addressing me with the same formality that I bestow upon your name," she hesitated slightly, "Inouye-san."

"Yes, of course… Hino-san." He bit his lip, she had now given him explicit instructions to address her formally, and he could not ignore it. She would no longer tell him her secrets, want his help, opinions; as far as he was concerned, he was no more than her father was to her. He didn't want it to be that way, but there was nothing that he could do about it, he could only sit, and silently watch, hoping…

She was aware of the effect of what she had said had done to him, she would have to be blind to not know. His feelings had hit her senses like a rock, and she felt immediately guilty of what she had done. There was a part of her that wanted to reach out and apologise to him for the exchange that had passed between them, but she knew that she couldn't take back what she had said. She was headstrong, she knew that, but it didn't stop her from acting that way. Previously, she sensed that he was having many complicated feelings, but before she had had the time to read and understand them, she had been suddenly hit with another, more drastic vibe.

An evil presence that had completely taken over a person, she didn't know who it was, the sensation had been so sudden, she had not been quite prepared for it, and when she got her senses together, it was too late. She needed to go back to the sacred fire and pull her concentration together; meanwhile, she would not waste her concentration on what Inouye-san felt for her. She longed to call him Kenta-kun once again, but her pride and anger towards him did not allow her so. Another shiver down her back reminded her that her mind was to focus on senshi-business. She stared out the window again, as the car began to approach Sendai Hill.

The familiar road that the bus traveled swept past her, until they reached a fork in the road ahead. She noticed that the chauffeur had signaled left, he planned on taking the shortcut, driving directly up to the Shrine. She would not take such an easy route, in her mind, the only way to go home was by the flight of stairs in the front. The back was for deliveries only. "Stop!"

The car screeched to an immediate halt on her command. "Ma'am, is anything wrong?" The chauffeur turned to ask.

"I will get off here and walk home, you may continue using the back road by yourselves." She quickly hopped off the car, grabbing her school satchel, she banged the door shut. With quick steps she strode towards the right of the fork.

A loud click followed, as another set of doors opened after her. "Wait Rei-chan, I mean, Hino-san! What's wrong?"

She could hear the rapid footsteps of Inouye-san behind her, but she did not stop. Only until he caught up did she bother to explain herself. "It is disrespectful to go to the shrine using a shortcut. Only with perseverance will the shrine bestow you with its blessing if you are to climb the 399 steps, and I will most certainly not be disrespectful to what I believe in."

"Well what about telling me that before you go jumping out of a car? Don't you know it is dangerous?"

"You have no right to use that tone of voice with me Inouye-san."

"I'm responsible for your safety, you heard your father say that!"

"You don't have to baby sit me, I can manage perfectly well on my own thank you very much. If you wish, you can leave right now, I promise that I will not tell my father if that is what you are worried about."

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean it quite that way. I mean that I want to make sure that you are safe, for my own peace of mind as well. If you don't mind, I'd prefer to go with you." He gave the chauffeur an impatient wave for him to continue with the shortcut, and grudgingly followed after Rei.

Rei hastened her speed, "do as you wish, I have no control over you, but don't expect me to wait for you at the steps."

Monday 4:00pm

The man in the purple and red robes sat at his large desk, studiously reading the political science book that he had found in an alleyway two days ago. Himaga took mental note of everything he needed to know about the political arena of Japan, it would be important if he wanted to take control of the country. Now that he had a body to operate in, it was all the more simple. He had a choice of who he wanted to take over of course, Kyoni-san, Kyoru-san, or Imaruru-san. Imaruru-san he had struck off the list immediately, he had felt that this person's character was too strong, the man had too kind a heart and had a guardian angel hovering around him. Who the angel was, Himaga did not know, but when he had had his fun, this angel would be no more.

And then there was Kyoni-san, he was too weak, while this man wanted power, he would have no chance against Imaruru-san in an election to run the country. The only way that he would win was by using dirty tricks, and even with that, he was not sure of his chances.

Last but not least, Kyoru-san. He was the middle character, soon to be cast off from the top of the political hierarchy, having connections with Kyoni-san, and enough knowledge to throw dirt at Imaruru-san without it being linked to him as a deliberate, ungracious act. Using Kyoru-san's position, they could destroy Imaruru-san's chances, and give Kyoni-san the winning throne. But in the end, he, Himaga, would be the sole winner of this little game. He had already won over the soul of Kyoru-san, the moment that Kyoru-san woke up, he would have little difficulty taking the souls of his wife and daughter. His daughter, what was her name? Seira, was a beautiful young lady, no doubt he could charm the soul away from Kyoni-san as well, and destroy the opposition along the way. There was a saying, some Asian proverb, that even the greatest hero could not pass the trap of a beautiful woman.

He was not worried that all of that would not go as planned, humans were easily manipulated. What he was afraid of was those meddling senshi. They who claimed themselves to be protectors of the people, he did not know as yet how he would get rid of them when necessary. He had dismissed the idea that the guardian angel of the opposition, Imaruru-san and his assistant, Inouye-san, would be one of the senshi, but the young lady that they had picked up had the same strong character that he had sensed in the two men, only much stronger. He knew that he would have to keep an eye out for that orient beauty, she obviously had a soft spot for the two men, and if worse came to worse, killing the two would destroy that character in her, guardian angel or not, no one would come close to disrupting his plans. Anyone who tried would have to pay the price.