Chapter 3 – Reflection
Standard disclaimer: I don't own YYH or its characters; they are the sole property of Yoshihiro Togashi, Shonen Jump Comics Weekly, Studio Pierrot and Fuji Television.)
As the notes of the melody faded away, the figure seated at the piano bowed her heard. She was in her late 20s; well, 28 to be exact. Her hair was dark brown, shot through with strands of silver the color of moonbeams, and cut in a fashionably short style that perfectly suited her elfin features. She was dressed simply, but elegantly, for this rehearsal in a pair of faded blue jeans and a tunic-length sweater in amethyst, the color a perfect complement to her sightless, smoky quartz-colored eyes.
Those eyes were closed now, in the ensuing silence of the concert hall. Had it been possible, one would have seen tears slip from beneath long lashes to slide silently down pale, ivory cheeks. But the accident that had taken her eyesight had also damaged her tear ducts, thus, tears were an impossibility.
Mitsunari Kyoshi, renowned concert pianist, remained seated thus a moment longer before she raised her head. Shifting slightly on the bench, she turned to 3 o'clock, sightless eyes seeming to fix on the members of the orchestra arrayed in an arc behind her.
"Arigatou, minna-san." She spoke softly, yet the acoustics of the hall were so nearly perfect that even those occupying the very back row could hear her words clearly.
A small, rather mischievous grin lit her elfin features. "If we play that well this evening," she continued, "mine are likely to be the only dry eyes in the house, ne?"
Quiet laughter rippled through the orchestra, stilling only when the conductor tapped his baton upon the pedestal, gaining everyone's attention once more.
"All right ladies and gentlemen," Tonami Hiroshi said, his eyes roaming over the assemblage, "I believe that's enough for today. I shall see you back here at 7:30 this evening."
A brief rustling throughout the hall was heard as the musicians gathered their sheet music and instruments together; then, as one, they stood. "Tonami-san" they intoned, bowing to the conductor. More rustling, along with the sound of soft voices, echoed as the musicians filed out, leaving the pianist alone with her conductor.
Tonami stepped down from the podium, slowly approaching the young woman seated at the piano. Coming to stand beside her, he reached out, gently laying his hand on her arm so as not to startle her with his approach. "Mitsunari-san," he addressed her, "if you are ready, I can escort you to Rutledge-san."
Tilting her head slightly toward the sound of his voice, Kyoshi responded. "I thank you, Tonami-san, but that isn't necessary." One slender, long-fingered hand reached over, expertly flipping the crystal of the watch adorning the wrist of the other to finger the Braille numbers on the face. "It's 2:45 now, and Jason's to meet me at 3. If it's all the same to you, I'll stay here and practice a little more."
Tonami, thoroughly charmed by not only the young lady herself, but also the slight British accent to her Japanese, could not help the smile that stole across his lips. She was an amazing young woman, even if part-gaijin – the slight rounding of her almond-shaped eyes belying her Occidental heritage. Still, there were few who could compare to her talent….
"Very well. I shall take my leave of you then, and see you again this evening," he replied with a small bow, even though he knew she could not see it.
Kyoshi bowed as well. "Until then."
Kyoshi's POVI am left alone, Tonami-san's hurried footsteps having faded just moments ago, leaving me with the piano before me, and my thoughts. It is not often that I reflect upon my life; yet it seems that, since my return to the land of my birth two days ago, I find myself doing so more and more.
Idly my fingers run over the keys; the notes to David Arkenstone's Legend of the Sea long since committed to memory. Just as idly, I listen as I play, my sharp hearing unable to detect a single 'dead' spot within the concert hall – the acoustics, near perfect – and my mind drifting into thoughts of this life I live and from there into the past.
What is it they see when the look at me? I wonder. To the world, I am Mitsunari Kyoshi, renowned concert pianist. A 28 eight year old female of average height and slender build – ordinary in ever sense of the word… human.
But I am not quite what they see. I am different… and yes, I know, that's what everyone says (or would like to think, anyway), but in my case it just happens to be true.
You see, I'm… well, I'm not strictly human… not entirely at any rate. I am, for lack of a better word, a hybrid… a hanyou – both human and demon. Yes, you heard correctly, I am part demon; though not what humans normally think of when they hear the word. Though my body is human, my soul is actually that of a centuries' old fox spirit – a youko… kitsune… whichever term you prefer.
My name, in that other life; that other form was Kasumi… Youko Kasumi to be exact.
I suppose, then, the next logical question one might ask is… how could this be? How does one, who is demon, become human?
A rather lengthy (and somewhat tedious) story to be sure.
I feel a soft, and rather wistful, smile steal across my lips as my thoughts turn to that other life; the life that included a brother – one I loved very much – and still do, though I know not what fate may have befallen him… and who I fear may be dead now, even as I live this new life.
We grew up together – he and I. Truth be told, I raised him from the age of seven (I was ten, three years older than he); our mother having taken off when he was but an infant, and our father… well, let's just say, the less said about that poor excuse for a life, the better.
Kurama… I can see him so clearly, and another smile graces my lips. Tall, elegant in form, with long silver hair that would have been the envy of any Ningen woman and eyes the color of burnished gold. He was my pride and joy – from the time he was no more than a kit in my arms until he grew into the handsome young man he was when circumstances forced us apart.
Kurama… He was kitsune through and through – viewing life as nothing more than some grand game to be played. And play it, he did; eventually becoming the most legendary (and feared) thief in the Makai (the Demon world).
As for me, I was content to remain behind; living in the small tree house we'd built together and using my skills and touch empathy to heal those in need.
During those years – the years of our adulthood – Kurama was very careful not to divulge my identity; visiting only sporadically and only when he felt it was completely safe to do so. Still, somehow, someone (perhaps seeking revenge for one of his thefts) found out the secret he so carefully guarded, and 28 years ago, our lives were irrevocably changed….
To put it quite simply, I was murdered… left for dead – at least, such was the case for my physical body. My spirit; my soul if you will, refused to give up. I was youko, after all, and not ready to abandon life so quickly.
Using what remained of my spirit energy, I left my physical body behind; escaping, but not into the Makai. Indeed, I felt it too dangerous for not only myself, but Kurama as well, to remain. And so I fled into the Ningenkai – the Human world.
Not having the strength to inhabit a human body, I did the next best thing… inhabiting the unborn child of a young woman; my soul merging with the soulless body of the child to become one.
My birth – and life from that point on – has been somewhat unusual.
You see, the young woman in whose unborn child I sought refuge, was the only child of a wealthy and well-known family in Japan. She also, it seems, disgraced said family by falling in love with an American – a young sailor stationed there. When her parents found out, they took the necessary steps to have the young man shipped home. The baby she carried – me – the product of her illicit liaison was, upon birth, immediately taken from the girl and placed in an orphanage. As for my 'parents', I have no idea whatever became of them, nor have I ever had any desire to discover their fate.
So, here we have 'me' – an orphan less than one day after my birth; unwanted and unloved and un-named.
The nuns, into whose care I was placed, were the ones to name me: gifting me with 'Kyoshi'. Ironic – the bastard half-breed being given a name, which means 'purity'. And the surname, you may wonder… nothing more than the name which graced the plate outside the place where I was to spend my formative years.
And there I did just that – growing up with the knowledge that I was different from the other children; knowing that once I'd reached the age of ten (in Ningen years), my youko powers would return, and I could leave – return to the Makai and search for the brother I still loved (and missed) with all my heart and soul.
Yet it seemed the Fates had other plans for this human/demon hybrid. At the age of ten, just as I was planning to leave the Ningenkai forever, I lost my eyesight.
It happened on one of those glorious summer days. You know the ones… the sky a perfect azure; the sun golden and warm upon your skin. Several of the children had been playing; trying to while away the hours until nightfall and the fireworks display to which we were all to be treated. I had been sitting under my favorite tree, as was my habit whenever we children had free time, reading. One of the group: a boy two years older than I at the time, happened to have a firecracker; though how he'd come by it, no one ever quite figured out. Anyway, attempting to show off to his younger friends, he lit the thing, only to discover that the fuse was shorter than it should have been. It sputtered and sparked, and in a panic, he threw it as far from the other children and himself as he could.
Unfortunately for me, it landed right in the book I held in my hands, exploding in a blinding white light at the exact moment it connected with my book. Several days later, I awoke in a hospital ward, several small burns on my hands and my eyes tightly bandaged. When those bandages were finally removed, I could no longer see the world around me.
And so, with the loss of my sight, came an end to my plans to return to the Makai and my brother. A demon without sight was at great enough risk in the Makai… what chance did a sightless hybrid have? However, the loss of my eyesight awakened something in me… a love for music, which in turn, led to my learning to play the piano. And that lead me to my surrogate family and a life I'd, heretofore, never dreamed possible for someone like me.
I was 14 the day I met Jason Yoshihiro Rutledge – the half-English, half-Japanese son of a prominent publishing family. Jason (or 'Yoshi' as only I call him) grew up in wealth and comfort in one of the more staid, yet fashionable, sections of London. We 'met' when his family visited his mother's homeland and consequently, the orphanage she and his father generously sponsored: his aunt being the Reverend Mother in charge of the place.
A performance by the children had been arranged in honor of our benefactors. At that time, I'd been playing for almost four years and had shown, at least according to the nun who was my teacher, an 'unusual aptitude' for the piano (her polite way, I suppose, of saying I had some talent). That night, I played Pachebel's Canticle as well as a piano concerto by Mozart.
I'm still not sure how it all happened, but the next thing I knew, I was being asked if I'd like to study in London, and in no time at all, I was whisked away to the city – now the 'ward' of Mr. and Mrs. Rutledge… the first real family I'd ever known.
After that, things began to happen far too quickly for me to really comprehend or make sense of them. I found myself, at the age of 18, a concert pianist, slowly earning a reputation worldwide. Yoshi became my manager… my trusted friend… my 'brother' and the only human with whom I have shared my secret.
And now I find myself, after 14 long years, back in Japan. I'm not sure why I'd avoided playing here for so long or even why I agreed to return. I only know that, once I'd heard of the new concert venue being built, and the name of the one who had designed it, I felt compelled to come back. It was as if, had I not, I would have missed something important… something…..
Shuuichi Minamino… what are you to me?