Being Okashira

Chapter Three : Standing in a Shadow


She kept her distance a bit, or maybe she was merely distracted. Soujiro and Kamatari kept good hold of her attention. It surprised him she could handle Soujiro, whom she had declared herself in love with so easily.

He could not overlook the fact that there were many years between himself and Soujiro. Women were always more aware of older, more mature males, or that had been his general experience. He, Aoshi, was much more masculine than Kamatari who continued to parade around in a female kimono and Soujiro who was short and continuously smiling. Misao, being female, would undoubtedly notice such. He towered over the younger men. He did, to a degree, expect her to be uncomfortable with him.

He respected her wishes, however, giving her the space she wanted from him. He suspected she was discomfited, not so much with him, but with herself. Misao seemed to undervalue her appeal as a female in respect to a male - that was blatantly obvious in the way she'd spoke about Yumi. Misao was young and innocent.

She'd never left the Aoiya and the men thereof never would've dreamed of touching her, not in anyway to affect her innocence toward males. Nothing remotely sexual. Perhaps though she was not as innocent as he presumed. He'd overheard the women, Omasu and Okon speaking quite graphically in the kitchen the other night but he had not been able to determine if Misao was with them. He had caught her name, but the conversation quickly ended and he'd not been able to find out. He could've sworn he saw a black braid disappearing out the back kitchen door, but he hadn't been able to pursue as Okina had arrived to question him about something.

"Aoshi."

He turned to find her in the doorway. The tall, masked man Hannya was at her side again. She smiled at him brightly as though nothing had ever happened, and actually nothing really had. A mask of confidence hid her nervousness, if she was at all nervous. He couldn't tell exactly. He doubted it.

"Yes, Okashira?"

"I have a mission for you."

He immediately stood, approaching her slowly.

"Come with me."

She led him up a set of stairs to a private room off down the left corridor. Inside, the young man Soujiro was already seated and waiting with Okina. She sat down on the other side of the table; Hannya remained standing by the door.

"Six months before the death of the previous Okashira, my grandfather, there was a mission. It was assumed to be of the typical sort, a small local band of thugs, usually an easy job for the Oniwabanshuu. The information we received back however some how had been incorrect. The men, our best at the time, Beshimi, Hyottoko, and Shikijou were killed during the mission. Since then the thugs of the group left the area and so we backed off a little, but they've returned again to Kyoto. Specifically though their leader, Takeda Kanyruu is in town.

"What I'm asking you to do isn't easy. It's very dangerous and very difficult. Especially since Kanyruu likes to employ modern western style weapons instead of traditional weaponry."

Neither spoke.

"Okina will give you the rest of the information."

She silently nodded to them and rose, leaving the room.

What was that?

Why wasn't she staying?

Aoshi was baffled.

Okina briefed them, without explaining Misao's sudden absence and Aoshi found himself unable to ask. Okina's manner was crisp and authorative.

He and the others simply went.


Travel was a simple, straight forward affair. His companions, Soujiro and Hannya all seemed to enjoy silence, to his delight. Yet as they prepared a small camp for the evening the young man drew nearer to where Aoshi sat.

Aoshi glanced up at the smiling male that was his competition.

"I am quite happy to be able to meet you."

Aoshi didn't reply.

"Okina has spoken of you very highly for some time now. When he first told me of his plan to wed you to Misao I was very skeptical, with this whole deceptive competition matter. It was very disappointing to me that he would deceive her."

That got his attention.

Soujiro's eyes lit up. "Oh... you didn't know either?" He laughed scratching his head. "Me and my big mouth I suppose..."

"What is going on?" Aoshi asked, confused and bordering on irritated.

"I don't know too much about it only that Okina plans on Misao eliminating Kamatari and myself. He never intended either of us to be serious candidates; he's always wanted you for Misao."

The words were baffling, enlightening, disturbing, and exciting all at the same time. It had all been setup from the beginning? Was this Soujiro to actually be believed?

Soujiro just smiled and said something about collecting some firewood for their small dinner fire.

"His words disturb you, Shinomori?"

Aoshi turned to see the masked man, Hannya, approaching. He hadn't been surprised by his appearance having sensed him beforehand.

"Is it true?"

Hannya came closer, leaning his shoulder against an adjacent tree. "About Okina intending you for Misao?"

Aoshi turned his gaze ahead and didn't answer.

"Misao is the treasure of the Aoiya. Great pains are taken for protecting her. Okina has been watching you and others for months searching for someone to protect Misao. But Misao is a prideful woman, she would not accept an arranged marriage that she had no say in - so the consort phrase in the Oniwabanshuu code was manipulated to bring you to her."

"How do you know she will not choose Soujiro or Kamatari? She seems quite close to them."

"Very close. Kamatari and Soujiro are both from the Aoiya - the environment there has been quite hostile to males that were interested in Misao. Even if Soujiro had returned Misao's affections, it was strictly prohibited."

Aoshi remained quiet. He hadn't suspected all of that, but it now made a great deal more sense to him. His 'competition' was merely there to box in her choice. She would not be able to form intimate attachments, presumably, to Soujiro or Kamatari. Yet it nagged, she had said she was in love with Soujiro.

Hannya continued. "I wonder though, that sometimes she realizes she's being misled. She says things... but I cannot be certain. Do not be surprised if she confronts you about it at some point. Misao has realized her young appearance enables her to hide much of her more worldly knowledge under the mask of innocent obliviousness. Expect it."


Misao stared out the window restlessly. Something was going on, something other than the mission she'd just assigned to Aoshi and Soujiro. Aoshi. The newest member of the Aoiya family, he was utterly disturbing to her state of mind. He was ... something else.

The man's gaze sent ripples through her in a way she'd never experienced before. It was nothing like what she'd thought she felt for Soujiro. Nothing at all and she didn't even love this new man, this Shinomori Aoshi. She was merely attracted to him. Somehow it all seemed very illicit and dangerous.

She jumped when the door slid open and Okina bumbled inside.

"Ohayo, Misao."

She frowned and turned away. "Ohayo," she murmured.

"Worried are you?"

"Of course I'm worried. Kanyruu is a dangerous man. How can I not be worried? Besides I have yet to actually see this Shinomori man in action, and watching him train isn't the same. What if he gets killed or something? I'm sure the others will be just fine." Then, upon consideration, added. "Hopefully."

"You have my promise Misao, Shinomori is perfectly suited for this task. He will be fine, along with the others."

She turned back leaning against the wall. "Why do you have so much confidence? He doesn't seem all that great to me."

She was lying through her teeth and praying Okina couldn't tell, but with the way he was grinning at her she imagined she failed.

"Oh... I see that blush on your face. Having naughty thoughts about Shinomori... Wooo... little Misao-chan is growing up!" He almost started to launch into something even more embarrassing when the door slid open again.

Misao blinked. Since when didn't people knock? Soujiro immediately apologized for Kamatari's boldness, but Misao merely waved it off. They were back, who cared about knocking?

"You're back!" she declared ushering them in. "Come in, details, details!"

Kamatari and Soujiro stepped in but she paused not seeing Hannya and Shinomori.

"Where are the others?" Her voice took a sedate turn.

"Ah, I'm sorry to inform you, Okashira that both Hannya and Shinomori have been injured. They are being treated."

Everyone could see her squirming, physically holding herself back from rushing to see how they were. She scolded herself and reminded herself here was where she needed to be. She couldn't play mother hen and Okashira at the same time.

"So... How did it go?"

"Kanyruu is dead but it did not go well," Soujiro replied solemnly. Kamatari, who did not go on the mission, seemed only interested in the report. Misao didn't bother dismissing him.

"Why not?"

"We developed a plan on how to go about it," he trailed off into the schematics of it all and his words became a dull buzz in her ears.

She never could concentrate on tactics. She blinked when she realized everyone was staring at her expectantly.

"Um... Right, so..." she paused gauging their reactions. Was she supposed to be answering something? Were they just staring because she hadn't been paying attention? What?

She tried to think of something to say so she could escape. "If you'll excuse me then..."

She quickly left heading down the hall straight for the sick room. The door was partially open and in the doorway, his back to her, stood Shinomori.

She approached slowly, silently, trying not to draw attention to herself just yet. Despite her caution, however, he turned, as though expecting her, and pinned that cold blue gaze upon her frame.

She repressed a shiver and forced her eyes away, past him into the room.

Hannya.

Where was Hannya?

She moved, but he stepped into her path blocking her. She looked up to glare, ready to snap at him but the intensity of his gaze caused her to falter.

"Perhaps you should wait," he warned.

She let her frown slide back into place and quickly exchanged it for a glare. "Move!"

He hesitated momentarily but complied, stepping aside, his gaze now beyond her. He didn't glance down at her again as she breezed past and into the room.

She stomped inside, anger and worry boiling over.

Where was Hannya?

How was Hannya?

Before she had barely gotten to the threshold of the side doorway inside the room she stopped as something caught her eye. A crimson pool on the floor gave her cold chills.

The room was empty save for her and the red stain.

Hannya!

She felt her knees give out from beneath her. Could... Could she go to him? Was this his blood? What... What should she do?

Tears welled in her eyes and spilled over, dripping wordlessly down her cheeks.

Hannya was... What would she do without Hannya?

She didn't hear the soft padding of feet behind her. She didn't realize her solitude had been disturbed until she felt broad hands on her shoulders.

"He's not dead, is he?" she knew she sounded weak and hopeless but she didn't care. "He can't be dead," she said, more to herself than to her companion.

A companion she didn't dare turn to face.

"He isn't."

Shinomori, she realized. Aoshi was the one holding onto her shoulders then. Of course, always the last person one wanted to see always showed up.

She had to get out of here. Standing abruptly, she spun away and swept past him never uttering a word.

He watched her go in silence not letting his gaze wander until the sight of her disappeared around a sharp corner. Hannya, like he, had been injured. Interestingly enough, Hannya had been injured trying to protect him.

The words of his comrades returned to him. Words he hadn't been able to forget since he'd heard them. That Okina had planned him all along for Misao - and that the tender hearted girl who'd just walked out moments ago had no idea what was going on around her.

The girl then, was in reality, his intended.

Should he go after her?

Misao did, after all, have the power to deny him the position of Okashira, didn't she?

It was all very convoluted and he wasn't quite sure just how things were working anymore.

Yet there was the matter of Misao herself. Should he go after her? Should he attempt to console or reassure her? Should he go just to see how she was?

Or should he hang back and simply do as she bid? After several more strained moments of silence, he headed off in the direction he'd seen her take.


End chapter three

Minor editing: 02/19/05