Chapter 3: The Queen's Council
Rin took a deep breath as she began her daily workout session. Every morning she got up at the crack of dawn and went to her private dojo situated near her rooms in the palace and worked out for 2 hours. The workouts were part of her late father's strict regimen for her. Rin had always been flexible and wiry, so this was no great challenge for her. But she had not been particularly fond of it either, until she began weapons training. That had not been in her father's schedule at all. He had been a stickler for tradition and tradition said that the monarch was always protected by a band of faithful bodyguards. Her father had been rather hopeless with his sword and the kingdom might have fallen to enemies a long time ago if it were not for Sesshomaru.
Rin sighed as she thought of the elegant and irritating demon. It was under his insistence that her father allowed her to train in weaponry even though she had a royal guard. Secretly Rin thought that her father might also have been a little afraid of Sesshomaru. He of course, was responsible for training her. If not for him, Rin would have never realized her own skill with the knife. Normally, Kings or Queens had a royal sword. But she had a royal dagger. Its blade was as long as her arm with both edges sharp and deadly. Wielding a knife took a lot of skill and bravery. She still remembered Sesshomaru telling her about the rare number of knife wielders. She often wondered if it was the subtle challenge in his voice that made her determined to become proficient at it herself.
Rin did a perfect flip in mid-air and landed gracefully on her feet. She rose slowly and walked over to the bench near the wall and picked up her dagger. She had named it Nightshade. That was the name of a flower she had come across in her history books. It was small and had a bright purple colour. It was also deadly poison. Sesshomaru had responded with his characteristic 'Hn' when she told him the name of her dagger. He had probably expected it, considering how obsessed Rin had been with flowers.
Rin gripped the hilt of the dagger and started parrying with an imaginary foe. She had been a child of 7 summers when she first came across Sesshomaru. She had sneaked away from her tutor and had been playing in a meadow below the kitchen courtyard. She had been making a flower crown when she looked up and saw an angel walking towards her. This angel had long silver hair that reached below his knees and was dressed in flowing white robes with a yellow and blue sash, the edge of the sleeves adorned with red markings. But what truly fascinated her was the angel's face. He had a purple crescent moon tattoo on his forehead and twin maroon streaks on both cheeks. Maroon colour also adorned the back of his eyelids. Rin found herself watching the angel with wonder. The angel apparently knew her name, for he called out to her as he neared and said, "Rin."
His voice had a husky quality. It was quiet and soothing, yet commanding at the same time. He came and sat down beside her. She thought that perhaps he would say something. Na-da. She continued to pick flowers and weave her crown and watched him from the corner of her eyes. He said nothing, but let her do as she pleased while he stared off into the distance. His face was always a blank, but his golden eyes spoke volumes, or so Rin felt. After sometime, the angel turned to her and said, "Let's go, Rin."
He got up and walked away. Rin blinked at his retreating figure, then she too jumped up and danced after him, the flower crown clutched tightly in her hand. The angel led her back to the palace and left her in front of her room. In one blink he was gone and Rin was back in the clutches of her tutor.
As the days passed, Rin wondered if the angel had been a figment of her imagination. But the next time she managed to slip away, he appeared again, much the same as last time. He let her play for some time before leading her back to the palace. This pattern continued and Rin might never have learned the identity of her angel if she had not been sneaking down to the kitchens well past her bedtime for a midnight snack. Hearing a noise in the throne room, she had tiptoed down the hall and hidden behind a tapestry to see who would come out of the throne room opposite. Soon she saw her father come out, talking to her angel. Her child's mind came to the conclusion that her father had appointed this angel as her guardian. It was nearly a year later that she learned that the angel was actually the General of her father's army.
Rin dropped down beside the bench and leaned back on the wall, Nightshade at her side on the floor. She closed her eyes and tried to bring her breathing back to normal. As the years passed, her feelings towards Sesshomaru had changed from awe to friendship to admiration to something else. She had always felt at peace with him, even as a child. Of late, the feelings she experienced if he was in her vicinity had her teeth on edge. It was a weird feeling to be sure…not bad, just weird. Rin sighed as she opened her eyes and stared unseeingly across the room. Since finding out that Sesshomaru was a demon, she had done a lot of research concentrating especially on dog demons and had come to some conclusions. She had a theory as to why she was behaving like this towards Sesshomaru. But the only person who could give satisfactory answers was the demon himself. But Sesshomaru was not very talkative.
'It's a miracle he even manages to say hn!' Rin grumbled to herself. 'Oh well, if my hunch is right, he will probably tell me himself. Even the Ice Prince can't escape his own fate.'
"Your Majesty."
Rin looked up and saw her personal assistant in the doorway to the dojo.
"What is it, Koharu?"
"Your Majesty, Lord Miroku and Lady Kagura seeks an audience with you." Koharu said. "They are waiting in your private sitting room."
"Very well." Rin said as she got up and sheathed her dagger and hung it from her belt.
'I wonder what they want.' She thought as she went to prepare herself for the day ahead. 'Couldn't this business wait till the daily Council meeting?'
Kagura sat calmly in the deep window seat of the Queen's private sitting room. The window overlooked the palace orchards and the view was quite soothing. Even so, Kagura found no pleasure in it today. Her mind was full of the prophecy the librarian had unearthed, questions upon questions chasing one another around in her mind. She had also tried to 'See' if there was any danger. Either there was nothing to see or she was not able to see. The whole thing was giving her a massive headache. Miroku pacing about the room was also not helping.
"Will you just sit down, Miroku!" Kagura scowled at the librarian who had begun muttering under his breath as he paced. Miroku did not even hear her as he thought of the possibilities and continued to wear down the carpet.
"Good morning, Kagura, Miroku." Queen Rin said as she walked into the room dressed in a regal purple kimono. Her hair was done up in a fancy style, piled on top of her head exposing the back of her neck. She was accompanied by her personal assistant.
Seeing the Queen, Miroku stopped his pacing and bowed. Kagura also rose from her seat and did a curtsey. Rin inclined her head in acknowledgment and sat herself on the armchair before the fire. The air had a wintry bite to it despite it still being the beginning of fall.
"What could not wait until the Council, Kagura, Lord Miroku?" Rin asked wondering about the shabby, almost wild appearance of Miroku who was famous for his charming appearance.
Seeing their hesitation, Rin waved her assistant away. "Leave us, Koharu. We are not to be disturbed."
"Very well, your highness." Koharu said and bowed before she left the room, closing the door gently behind her.
"Now, speak." Rin commanded.
Kagura and Miroku looked at each other before he cleared his throat and began. "I found a scroll from among the ones I took from the palace library yesterday, your highness."
Rin glanced up and found Kagura with a fierce scowl on her face. From her expression, the Queen concluded that she was trying to 'See'. 'The matter must be quite serious.' She thought and leaned back in the chair as Miroku continued.
"I had not seen the scroll before today morning. It contained a strange prophecy which I managed to translate." He withdrew two parchments from inside his robes and handed them to the Queen.
"That" he said indicating the older of the two parchments "is the scroll I found. The other is its translation."
Rin unrolled the old parchment and found it written in a language similar to the one in use at court currently. Yet she was not able to understand anything written. It was written in an elegant script in red ink and appeared to have been written in some haste. She put it aside and opened the newer scroll. A neat translation was written in Miroku's hand. She read through the prophecy twice, but still failed to understand the need for urgency she detected in the other two people in the room.
"And why must we concern ourselves with this prophecy?" Rin asked. "Prophecies are made every day. Not all of them come to pass. Regardless, what can we do about this one?"
"My lady, if I may speak frankly" Lady Kagura said. "This prophecy speaks of your ancestor Midoriko and we fear it pertains to a second rising of the darkness which she vanquished long ago."
"And what makes you so sure that this prophecy is coming to pass during this age?" Rin asked. "That is why the both of you are so agitated, yes?"
"My Queen, the way I found this parchment was rather unique." Miroku said. "I had examined all the scrolls on my desk last night, yet this was not among them. But today morning, it was. I feel it as a warning, your highness."
Rin sighed and looked at the innocent looking parchment in her lap. Even though the matter was dire, she was not at all sure about its urgency. But she trusted Kagura and Miroku, so she could not dismiss their worries out of hand. After all, this was why she formed the Council in the first place, so that others could tell her about matters she was ignorant about.
"Very well. Let us put this prophecy to the Council. Mayhap they will have some insights."
Sesshomaru walked through the palace halls with his customary blank face, his two swords at his side. At first glance people often mistook him to be vain about his appearance what with his long hair and ethereal face. Some have also thought him vain to be carrying two swords. One was his heirloom from his father and rather useless, called Tenseiga. The sword was recovered from his father's body found deep in the mountain realms of the dragon demons beyond the western border of the kingdom. At first, he had been ecstatic to have gotten the Tenseiga, a sword his father, the great dog demon Inutaisho, always carried with him. But he found that it could not even cut through paper. And the failure to locate his father's other sword, the mighty Tetsusaiga, merely added fuel to Sesshomaru's ire.
Nevertheless, he could not bring himself to cast aside the Tenseiga. Instead, he kept it by his side always although he could never understand why he became restless if it was ever out of his reach. After all, he was not a very sentimental being. His desire to be a powerful and feared demon lead him to have another blade forged, the Bakusaiga. This was an exceptionally powerful demon sword which had led him on great adventures in the land of his forefathers before leading him to the Crystal Kingdom and the palace in the Fountain City. It wasn't until he saw a little girl playing in the meadows that he realized why his beast had led him here.
'Rin!' His beast was always hyper around the young queen. Sesshomaru cursed under his breath and tightened his grip on his inner demon.
'I will not claim her!' he decreed in his most icy voice to his demon.
'Bah! She is ours!' His beast yelled back. 'She is not a child any longer. Why are you so stubborn? She is our destiny! Can't you see that, o wise dog?'
Sesshomaru snarled and caused a minor havoc in the servants he passed along the way, not that he noticed. He understood that his beast wanted Rin as his mate. He just was not ready to accept it. For every demon, a person is born into this world as their predestined mate. The beast or inner demon often led them towards their mates. Sesshomaru was no exception. When he first clapped eyes on little Rin, he recognized her for what she was, his destined mate. The only problem was she was human.
Inutaisho was betrayed and dead at the hands of his worst enemy all because he had mated with a human woman. And Sesshomaru found that he could not stomach the idea of mating with a human himself. He was not afraid of being betrayed and killed. Rather, he resented the fact that he, who had condemned the entire human race for his father's death, was now stuck with a human for a mate. He had tried many times in the past to leave the palace. But he could not do it. His beast would not let him be too far from Rin. It was his demon nature to always protect and watch over his mate. And to complicate matters further, as of late he found that he was becoming attracted to her as a man would to a woman. It was becoming harder and harder to keep her at arm's length and to not see the beautiful woman she had grown into.
Sesshomaru walked into the Council's meeting room with a fierce scowl on his face. Lord Hiten who had been chatting with the Prime Minister Lady Kaede abruptly stopped. Lady Kagura was sitting in her seat with an even fiercer scowl on her face and Miroku was pacing about the room. The queen was yet to arrive but Sesshomaru knew that she was on her way and very close to the room. His demon was doing the mental equivalent of bouncing around in his head.
The door behind opened silently and Sesshomaru found his heart skipping a beat as the scent of wildflowers and honeysuckle entered his sensitive nostrils. He took a deep breath discreetly, his face betraying no emotion to the outside world. He turned around and bowed and said "My Queen."
Rin looked at the handsome General and smiled gently. His voice may have been cold while greeting her, but his eyes spoke another story.
"Sesshomaru." She acknowledged and turned to greet the other Council members.
He looked up and found himself face to face with the last Council member, Lady Kikyo, the royal priestess. Her demeanour was even colder than his, if that was possible. She was breathtakingly beautiful to behold with her alabaster skin and long raven hair and coal black eyes. But Sesshomaru had always found her to be rather lifeless despite her beauty, like a statue made out of clay with no real warmth or substance. She was dressed in a simple robe of white and red, but it only added to her almost other worldly beauty.
"Lady Kikyo." Sesshomaru inclined his head in greeting which she returned with a slight nod of her head. He allowed her to pass him before he turned and took the chair on the right of the queen who was sitting at the head of the long oval table. On her left sat the Prime Minister followed by Lord Hiten. On Sesshomaru's right sat Kagura, followed by Miroku. Lady Kikyo occupied the chair at the other end of the table directly opposite to the queen.
"Let us begin." Rin intoned in her clear and strong voice.
Every day the Council met for a one-hour session in the morning before each member left to go about his or her own duties. They discussed everything that needed to be done on that day and also any major issues that might be affecting the kingdom like any natural calamities or bandit raids. The members also discussed those matters which needed to be addressed in the court and any direct petitions to the queen.
When the day's business was concluded, Rin once more raised her voice and said, "My lords and ladies, our esteemed librarian has discovered something fantastic. I wish all of you to hear him and give your opinions on the matter."
She sat back and nodded to Miroku. Everyone turned to him curiously wondering what he had to say, except Kagura who was still fiercely concentrating her Sight trying to examine the immediate future for any danger.
Miroku took a deep breath and began his tale. He repeated what he had said to the queen after consulting with Kagura. The translated scroll was passed around so that everyone could read the prophecy. And as had become practice, they all turned to the wind demon for any insights she might have got.
Kagura felt their gazes and sighed. "I am not Seeing anything, my lords and ladies."
"Well, there you have it." Lord Hiten said throwing down the scroll which he had just finished reading. "The seer is seeing nothing. So, nothing to worry about. This prophecy" he indicated the scroll "is for someone else to worry about. Not us."
Miroku said nothing but his brow was clouded. Sesshomaru was watching Kagura and noticed her scowl as she tried to See.
"Lady Kagura." He turned his head slightly to look at the seer. He felt rather than saw Rin watching him as Hiten continued to mutter about the need to discuss something that would never affect them. Kagura turned to him with a distracted look.
"When you said you cannot See anything, did you mean nothing pertaining to this prophecy or nothing in general?" Sesshomaru questioned.
He watched as Kagura's eyes widened slightly before she began to scowl with a deep look of concentration. The room fell silent and watched and waited.
Maybe ten minutes had passed before Kagura turned panicked eyes towards the queen and said in a breathless voice "I can't See!" she clutched the arms of her chair in such a violent grip that her knuckles turned white. "I-I can't See anything!" she almost wailed.
Sesshomaru's lips set in a grim line. He did not much care for the prophecy. But Kagura's statement did not sit well with him. Seers were not very common and their magic was obscure at best to the ordinary people. Yet he did not believe that a seer would just lose his ability overnight. Perhaps if they were undergoing emotional stress, but Kagura did not fall in that category. That left only one explanation. Someone was intentionally tampering with her abilities. He wondered if that could be done and turned his eyes to the one person in the room who could explain magic.
Lady Kikyo sat calmly, her expression betraying nothing as the Council members began muttering and arguing among themselves after Kagura's announcement. She felt herself being watched and found the cold eyes of the general trained on her. She inclined her head in mute acknowledgement of his unvoiced question.
"My queen." She began in her quiet authoritative voice. "I think we should all just calm down and examine the facts." She looked around the table and caught everyone's eye. Rin and Sesshomaru had almost identical blank expressions. The others were listening raptly. Miroku was finally getting the advice that he had original wanted and Kagura was looking at her hopefully. Hiten had a scowl on his face, his long dark braid twitching in agitation as his demon became restless. Lady Kaede, the oldest member on the council, her erstwhile teacher and the only one older than herself besides Sesshomaru, was also listening keenly.
"Lord Miroku came across an ancient prophecy." Kikyo continued, addressing the queen. "It prophecies dark times, but gives no indication as to the timeline. So as Lord Hiten so eloquently pointed out, let us not concern ourselves with that for now. It should not be forgotten, but our concern right now should be about why Lady Kagura's Sight is failing her."
Kikyo turned to look at Kagura and said "Since you are an orphan, we do not know anything about your origins. Perhaps this gift was a part of your heritage. I know only a little about Sight. Mayhap, you are seeing nothing because there is, in fact, nothing to see. Or maybe because of your agitation you yourself are blocking your vision."
Kagura frowned as Kikyo continued. "The gift of Sight is a strange gift. Sometimes a person possesses it from birth. Sometimes, it is triggered later in life. There have also been instances where seers lost their Sight after a few years for no discernible reason." She looked kindly at Kagura and said softly, "mayhap, you have lost your gift, Kagura."
There was a silence around the table as everyone digested what Kikyo had said. Kagura looked shocked and pale. Miroku was flabbergasted and Lady Kaede frowned as she looked Lady Kikyo and wondered for the umpteenth time what had happened to her model pupil and how had she come across such obscure branches of magic. The Queen was troubled and Sesshomaru was as cold as ever. Hiten alone looked pleased by this news, though he tried to hide it behind a contrite expression. But the general did not miss the strange gleam in his eyes and his internal agitation increased. Hiten had always been envious of Kagura's ability to See. He had made no secret of the fact that he thought it was a form of cheating. He was a superb fighter, though not in the league of Sesshomaru and was second-in-command of the army. But he was often narrow minded and set in his ways. The general knew all this, but there was something in the strange gleam in his eyes that brought him a nameless disquiet.
Rin felt the beginnings of a massive headache, and her day had not even begun. She took a deep breath and addressed the priestess. "Are you certain, Lady Kikyo?"
"Your highness, nothing is certain in these matters." Returned she, with a sympathetic shake to her head. "Perhaps a couple of days of rest will put matters right?" she looked at Kagura who was still pale. If she didn't know better, she would have said that Kagura was on the verge of tears.
Rin sighed and turned to the Prime Minister. Rin saw her as a surrogate mother and her wisdom could always be counted on. "What do you think Lady Kaede?"
The old lady in question said nothing for a few minutes, her wrinkled face clouded in thought. 50 years ago, she had been proud to have trained the youngest and most powerful priestess in the land. If asked then, she would have said that she trusted the 15-year-old Kikyo implicitly. But the young woman who had left her side to gain more knowledge was not the powerful priestess who returned. For one thing, she looked only half her age. Unlike the ordinary people, Kaede knew there were several enchantments and potions that gave the appearance of youth. However, she was hard-pressed to completely trust her erstwhile protégé. If Kaede had once rejoiced at Kikyo's return, thinking that here was a successor at last, today she stayed on at the palace despite her age, to assuage a nameless disquiet. Thinking over the matter of Kagura – another of her pupils – Kaede found that she did not entirely believe Kikyo. For some reason, instinct kept telling her – warning her – not to trust that beautiful façade. However, she had no other idea on what could be wrong with Kagura. She sighed and looked at the wind demon who was sitting with downcast eyes and said. "A vacation might do ye good child."
Kagura looked up and made to protest but Kaede talked over her and said, "Even without your Sight, we are all completely capable of protecting the queen. But it is imminent that we find out the time when the prophecy will come to pass. For that we need you and your powers. A rest might be what you need. The Lord knows, your job doesn't provide it."
Kagura looked beseechingly at the queen. Rin was heartbroken to see the pain reflected in her adopted sister's eyes. She knew Kagura very well. It was not in her nature to rest. And yet, this is what she must do. She sighed and wondered what to do.
"Your Majesty, if I may?"
The queen looked up and found Miroku looking at her with determined eyes. She inclined her head allowing him to continue.
"I was going to request your permission to visit Bodhidera, the monastery where I was trained in my youth, in order to complete the task you had set me. They have an impressive collection of scrolls and the head monk, Mushin, is highly learned in ancient lore and myths. With your permission, perhaps Lady Kagura can accompany me. The monastery is quite peaceful and is situated deep in the mountains of the east. Lady Kagura could have a soothing break while I did my research. We would be back before the Kibonosaiten."
Rin looked at Kagura to see how she had taken this. Kagura found a glimmer of hope in Miroku's words and looked at her queen for permission. Rin's heart was glad to see the fighting spirit back in the wind demon's eyes.
"Very well" she said, "Miroku and Kagura shall leave for this monastery as soon as maybe. Let us all hope that both accomplish what they set out to do."
Hiten scowled, but said nothing.
"That was a wise suggestion, Miroku." Lady Kaede praised. "But we must not forget the prophecy."
"I shall have the original and translated versions transcribed and made a part of the royal treasury" Kikyo said. "That way it should be available for all future monarchs at all times."
"Very well. See that it is done today itself, Lady Kikyo." The queen commanded. She then turned to the demon on her right with inquiring eyes.
Sesshomaru understood the unspoken question in her chocolate brown orbs. "Hn." It was his characteristic response. The others except the queen took it to mean that he approved of everything so far and had nothing further to add. He had already made up his mind to send out a few trusted spies to learn the meaning of the glimmer in Hiten's eyes. Rin narrowed her eyes at him, but allowed him to continue his deception of the others.
"The Council is adjourned." The queen rose and swept out of the room. The others followed more leisurely each lost in his or her own thoughts.
