A Father's Embrace
Chapter Six
Nostalgia
"Thanks for taking me out shopping today, mama. I really needed it," Kagome replied to her mother as they strode down one of many crowded sidewalks in downtown Tokyo. It seemed that the pleasant mid-Spring weather had everyone coming out to enjoy the day. "I wish that Maiki had decided to come with us," she stated ruefully of the missing girl.
"Don't worry about it too much, Kagome. There will be plenty more sunny days to take Maiki shopping with us." The two women stopped behind a crowd of people who had gathered at the street corner, waiting for the light on the other side of the street to say "WALK". "Besides, I wanted to ask you something about her," Nana admitted.
"Oh? What about?"
"Well, I don't mean to pry or to remind you of any bad memories, but… I didn't fail to notice that she's been addressing Nanashi by his name. I'm assuming she knows about him."
The light finally changed to indicate that it was safe to cross. Kagome and her mother moved with the crowd across the four-lane street. "Yes, she does," the younger woman answered solemnly.
"How long ago did she find out?"
"A little over two years ago."
"I see…"
"She has refused to call him 'papa' or 'father' or anything like that ever since then. I didn't mean for her to find out about it. Not the way that she did. I just want her to be happy."
The women stepped onto the sidewalk. "The truth can be painful, Kagome. But often times, hiding it can cause even more pain."
"Yes. I suppose you're right," Kagome agreed, almost reluctantly. She had averted her gaze away from her mother as she spoke. Nana, perceptive as she was, didn't miss it. She didn't comment on it, but had the feeling that there was something that Kagome wasn't willing to admit.
They continued walking down the block, passing in front of a few stores, but didn't venture inside any of them. Nana held a large paper shopping back in each hand, while Kagome had only one small bag for herself. The girl who had loved to shop as a teenager had somehow lost her enthusiasm for the sport. Nana opened her mouth to say something to her daughter, but stopped when she noticed Kagome was no longer walking next to her. Nana turned around, and spotted Kagome about twenty paces back. Frozen in place, Kagome's gaze was fixated on something on the other side of a large glass window. Nana returned to her daughter's side, noting the defeated look on her face.
"Kagome, what's the matter?"
When the younger woman failed to answer, Nana followed Kagome's line of vision through the glass and into an elegant restaurant. Nana gasped slightly as she took in the sight of Nanashi dining with a young woman looking to be in her early twenties. Sitting in a booth, Nanashi had his left arm wrapped around the girl while his right arm poured wine into the woman's glass. He said something into her ear, causing the girl to giggle and blush.
"Oh, Kagome, I'm so sorry," Nana consoled.
"It's-- It's okay. He deserves to be happy," Kagome replied sadly as she turned and continued in the direction they had been headed. 'Even if I'm not.'
Back within the safety of the village, Kazuki and Sachiko had gone ahead on their own. Miroku stayed by Maiki's side. He grinned as the girl's inquisitive eyes took in the sights of the humble establishment. 'What is this? The Sengoku Reenactment Festival?' the teenager scoffed as she examined the primitive materials of the dwellings surrounding her.
As they walked through the village, Maiki easily noticed some of the looks the villagers threw her way. Children and teenagers gave her wary looks, but dismissed her otherwise. Adults, however, would stop and stare, usually with shocked expressions.
Maiki shrugged off the reactions to her presence. 'Heh. You'd think that they've never seen a girl with facial piercings before,' she reasoned an explanation. 'I don't get why they're acting so strangely. I've seen people of aboriginal tribes with facial piercings on the Discovery Channel. It's not that unusual...'
Occasionally, a curious villager would call out to Miroku, as if to ask the monk the question that seemed to be on all their minds. What that question could be, Maiki never discovered. Before they could voice their concerns, Miroku would always wave them off with his hand, nodding his head ever-so-slightly, a small grin etched on his face. Whatever the unspoken question was that he neither confirmed nor denied, the villagers, with wonder-filled eyes, continued to stare at her as she passed.
When Maiki felt she would break under the severe scrutiny of the villagers around her, Miroku finally stopped in front of a hut that seemed slightly larger than many of the huts they had passed. The teenager noticed that it was two huts down from the base of the shrine hill. Kazuki was standing at the side of the hut, placing his Akkiwareru next to another large boomerang-like weapon. He stared silently, but challengingly at Maiki as she and Miroku approached. Miroku pushed aside the bamboo door.
"Ladies first," he smoothly replied with a slight bow. Maiki entered the abode, eyes immediately falling on Sachiko. She sat next to a fire, across from a middle-aged woman. In the woman's lap, a girl, probably no more than three, lightly dozed. Sachiko chattered excitedly to the woman until she noticed Maiki's and Miroku's arrival.
"That's her!" Sachiko chirped as she pointed at the entering teenager.
The older woman's eyes darted immediately to Maiki's face. Like many of the villagers beforehand, a look of shock, surprise, and disbelief crossed her face. Not moving her gaze from Maiki's face for more than a mere moment, she gently lifted the toddler from her lap and carefully set her down on a blanket. Slowly, she rose to her feet and walked towards Maiki.
The teenage girl watched nervously as the brunette woman in the soft-pink kimono and forest green skirt approached her. Maiki's trepidation greatly increased as the woman came right up to her, resting her hands on the younger woman's shoulders. The look of shock and surprise had been replaced with relief and joy. Maiki did not speak, nor did she move. She simply waited to see what the strange woman's next course of action would be. Maiki was thrown off-guard when the other woman gathered her in a tight embrace. Kunkun squirmed under the slight bit of pressure.
"It's really you," the woman mumbled into Maiki's shoulder.
The teenager blinked in confusion. "I- I'm sorry," she stuttered, feeling very uncomfortable. She was unused to open displays of affection, especially from someone she hadn't even been introduced to yet. "But, I think you've got me confused with someone else."
The older woman pulled back slowly. She no longer held Maiki in a bear-hug, but her hands remained on the girl's upper arms. The woman now wore a look of uncertainty. She stared deeply into the younger girl's face, studying the features and fine lines. Finally, with a look of resignation, she spoke.
"You're not her. But you look just like her. Who are you?"
"Maiki-san, this is my lovely wife Sango. Sango, I'd like you to meet Maiki-san."
Sango's eyes never left Maiki's during the introduction. "But why? Why does she look like Kagome-chan?"
Maiki's eyes widened at the spoken name. "How do you know my mother's name?" she demanded, her voice a mix of suspicion and curiosity.
Placing a hand on his wife's back, Miroku spoke. "My wife and I knew Kagome-sama many years ago, before you were born. Sango and your mother were very close, almost like sisters. Sango was heartbroken when she discovered that your mother had left us without saying goodbye." By now, the monk's wife had released her hold on Maiki, letting her hands fall to her sides.
"So… everyone outside… the adults… they knew my mother too?"
"Most all of them, yes," confirmed Miroku.
"No wonder they were looking at me like that…" Maiki mumbled.
"Father?" Sachiko requested the attention of the monk, tugging on the sleeve of his robes.
"What is it, Sachiko?" Miroku's eyes looked down upon his inquisitive daughter.
"Does this mean that Maiki-san is the daughter of that powerful miko who killed the evil hanyo Naraku?"
"Why, yes. It does," he confirmed with a smile, turning his attention back to Maiki to gage her reaction.
The teenager seemed to ponder the statement, her unfocused gaze resting on the orange glow of the fire beyond the adults before her. At mention of Naraku's name, Maiki still seemed unfazed. Miroku noticed this, a bit of surprise for the fact that the girl didn't even know of Naraku. However, he had experienced the lack of reaction from the guest already, so his surprise wasn't as evident as Sango's. Finally, Maiki's eyes returned to her hosts.
"My mother… was a miko?" she asked skeptically.
"A very powerful one," Sango spoke for the first time in several long minutes, having just overcome her initial shock. "I imagine that she now must have so much more power than what she had back when she was your age."
Maiki furrowed her brows in consternation as shook her head in the negative. "No. I've never seen her do anything out of the ordinary. She either has lost the abilities she once had, or she refuses to use them any longer." 'Either way, she's hidden all of this from me. Wouldn't be the first time she has hidden something from me either…'
A stirring movement from beside the fire caught everyone's attention. The little girl rose from her nap. She sat up, rubbing the sleep from her eyes with a big yawn. When she opened her eyes, Maiki saw that she had the biggest, brightest blue eyes she had ever seen. Miroku turned away from the group to tend to his youngest child.
"Did you sleep well, Takara?" he cooed to the toddler.
Takara nodded and stretched her arms out towards her father, a silent plea to be held. Miroku kneeled down and scooped the girl up in his arms. Maiki watched as an odd sense of nostalgic longing overcame her. The tender interaction between father and daughter caused the teenage girl to reminisce about a time when she had been that young. Though she didn't remember too many things from her earliest years, she did remember being happy. Long before her parents grew apart, long before Nanashi began to stray from the nest and turned to the bottle. A time long before Maiki had learned of the ugly truth, the ugly truth which had very nearly destroyed her trust and faith in everything she knew.
Takara - treasure