Growing up as the eldest daughter of the Kamisato Clan, Ayaka had always been expected to be perfect in every way. From the way she sat, the way she ate, and the way she spoke, everything had to be perfect. As long as she represented the clan, she had to uphold her family's respect and reputation among the common people. As long as people were watching her, she had to be the Kamisato Ayaka that everyone wanted her to be. And when the doors closed behind her, Ayaka had to be the Kamisato Ayaka her family wanted her to be.
(When then could she be the Kamisato Ayaka she herself wanted to be?)
"Sometimes I wonder what it's like to not hold the weight of the Kamisato name and to be free of the expectations people have of you."
Despite her personal desires and wishes, Ayaka loved her role and her people. It was because of her clan's power and position that allowed her to offer a helping hand to her people. And in turn, the people supported the clan and brought fame to them. It was a relationship that had existed since the founding of the Kamisato Clan and one that the clan seeks to continuously uphold.
However, between the common folk and the members of the clan, there exists a gorge of their differing status that neither side could cross. And no matter how hard Ayaka tried to cross over to the other side, it was an impossible task. In spite of that, she was content to watch the other side from her side.
(She was content to watch but she could not help but feel a tinge of jealousy.)
Ayaka's status in the Kamisato Clan also meant that there were very few people she could call friends, and even then, it was more acquaintances than friends. Thoma was one of those people she could call a friend. She trusted him with her life and secrets and he was willing to lend a listening ear to her troubles. However, their status meant that Ayaka could not openly call Thoma her friend. It also meant that their relationship can never progress beyond master and servant.
"Thoma is my dearest friend but as long as the people watch and their tongue speaks of gossip that would chip away at the foundations of our clan, I cannot openly confess to anyone of our relationship."
"You told me," Aether pointed out.
"True," Ayaka agreed, nodding her head as she continued, "But you are not one of those people."
Meeting the Traveller however, sparked a connection between both of them. Rather, Ayaka could feel a connection between her and the Traveller. It was something that was hard to describe. Was it admiration? Jealousy? Familiarity? Ayaka did not know.
"It felt like I could relate to you in a way but at the same time, I could not understand what makes us different. Both of us have statuses that carry a lot of weight and yet, you do not seem as burdened by it as I am."
The first time Ayaka heard of the Traveller, she had overheard the servants gossiping about news from beyond the borders. As she listened, she could not help but feel intrigued and slightly intimidated by the Traveller's prowess. Without a doubt, he would arrive on Inazuma's shores soon and his presence would soon make big waves in Inazuma's current unstable political climate. He may not have status in Inazuma but if the pattern follows, then that would not be the case for long.
"Thoma, have you heard of the Traveller? Can you tell me more about him?"
After the Traveller left to fulfil her requests, Ayaka was summoned by her brother for an important matter. Thoma had been there with her brother, his expression grave while her brother seemed intrigued, almost obsessed, as if he had found something interesting that day. After Thoma was dismissed, a servant laid out a cup of tea in front of Ayaka, a sign that this would not be idle chit chat.
"Ayaka, it seems that the Traveller is more interesting than I thought," her brother said, as he turned to face her.
"Oh? What makes you say that?"
"Are you aware of his disability?"
As Ayato explained the Traveller's disability, Ayaka could only sit there and listen in shock and surprise. She tried to recall if the Traveller had ever once shown any tell of his disability but their meeting had been fleeting and there had not been time to have a proper chat with the Traveller, not when the customs dictates how one must go to meet the lady of the house face-to-face.
(There would be time for questions later, so long as the Traveller completes the tasks set out for him, and yet, Ayaka could not help but worry for him.)
"It is admirable, the things that you have accomplished despite your disability," Ayaka said as she looked down at her hands. "I don't think that I could do the same if I were in your shoes."
"You're right, you're not me. If you were in my shoes, you would have accomplished things differently because you're not me. And that's not a bad thing, you know?"
By the time news came of Thoma's capture, everything related to the Traveller had fled Ayaka's mind as she rushed towards the city. She arrived at the Komore Teahouse where the clan informants quickly described Thoma's fate. The Tenryou Commission had taken matters into their own hands and used Thoma as a warning to the Kamisato Clan. Thoma was going to lose his Vision, his purpose, and his ambition. And for what? Because a few people were angry over how their authority and power were questioned? Because those who held the Raiden Shogun's ears only care for themselves? Ayaka could feel her anger rising at the injustice of it all.
"Lady Ayaka, what should we do? At this rate, Thoma will…" one of the informants asked, her body and voice trembling at the unspoken implication.
What can she do? If she stepped in, then it would implicate the Kamisato Clan. After all, the faults of the servant would lie with the master. If she did not step in, then the Kamisato Clan would be safe from further accusations but that would mean that Thoma, as she knew him, would perish.
"I will think of something. For now, return to my brother's side, he will need to be informed as well," Ayaka ordered. The informants left hurriedly, leaving their master alone with her thoughts.
Perhaps it would have been for the best if they cut off ties with Thoma, it would ensure the clan's survival, it would have been the choice many would have taken to save themselves. However, Ayaka was not one of those people. Thoma is her family, to cut off ties to save herself, how would she be able to call herself his friend after that? How could she wake up and face the man who used to be her friend? How could she live her life if she sacrificed her people for her own gain?
Before Ayaka could steel herself and affirm her resolve to walk out and take Thoma's place at the ceremony, her saviour came in the form of the Traveller. The Traveller had no reason to help her or Thoma, still, if there was a chance that the Traveller could save him then she must try for his sake.
"Traveller! Please help! Please save Thoma!"
The Traveller and his companion left quickly for the ceremony location while Ayaka left to seek a healer allied with the Kamisato Clan. She knew of one, an eldery lady who lived in the outskirts of the city, Visionless but her skills were unmatched. In the best case scenario, the healer would complain about having to travel on foot to the city of Inazuma for nothing. In the worst case scenario…Ayaka dare not to think of what it might be.
(In her mind, she knew what the worst case scenario could be. In her heart, she prayed that it would not come to pass.)
By the time Ayaka returned to the city with the healer, the entire city was in an uproar. The gates were sealed off and none may enter or leave. They had to enter the city from the shore where a hidden door leading to an underground passage beneath the Komore Teahouse lay. As the two made their way to their destination, Ayaka's mind was in turmoil as she could not help but imagine what could possibly have happened at the ceremony. Her mind kept bringing up imagery of the worst case scenario and try as she might, she could not calm herself.
"I just kept thinking of the worst possible scene that could have happened. I kept thinking 'what if I was too late to save Thoma', 'what if the healer could do nothing to save him', 'what if there was nothing I could do'. I could not free myself of these thoughts. But also…" Ayaka said, her voice trailing off as she looked away from the Traveller.
"Also?" the Traveller asked, his voice tired as his body called for rest.
"Also, I was ashamed. Not one of those chaotic thoughts was that of your wellbeing. I am ashamed that I begged for your help but I cared more for my friend than you."
"That's normal, isn't it? You don't know me as much as you know Thoma. People are more likely to care for those close to them than a complete stranger. I am no different."
When Ayaka arrived at the Komore Teahouse, the building was eerily quiet. Her heavy breathing was thunderous in her ears as she silently gestured to the healer to stay hidden. Had the soldiers dared to enter the grounds on which this building stood? Had they trampled upon the Raiden Shogun's wish to fulfil the orders from the very same person?
What she found however, was a pile of blankets haphazardly thrown at a corner of a room with Thoma and the Traveller's companion guarding the pile. Thoma had stabbed his makeshift polearm forward, a sharpened bamboo pole, nearly piercing Ayaka's torso had he not pulled back at the last minute.
"Milady!" Thoma exclaimed as he threw away the weapon like it had burnt him. He fell to his knees, his posture shifting immediately into a kowtow position. "Please forgive me! I thought you were one of the soldiers. I didn't mean to point my blade at you."
Ayaka did not care that her best friend almost stabbed her, she did not care for the apologies that tumbled out of his mouth. She lunged forward to hug Thoma, falling to her knees and almost making him fall backwards as she cried in relief. She cared that her best friend still lived, she cared for the words he put out to assure her of his well being.
However, the moment was not meant to last as the Traveller's companion interrupted them with news that sent cold shivers down her spine.
"Ayaka! Please help! It's Aether! He's hurt! Please help him!" the tiny fairy pleaded as she flew in between Ayaka and Thoma, forcing the two apart.
"Milady, please help! He saved my life! Please save him!" Thoma begged as he lowered his head to the floor once more.
Ayaka pushed herself off the ground and turned to whistle at the empty corridor outside the room. "Where is he? I brought a healer with me."
The last place Ayaka had expected to find the Traveller was beneath the innocuous pile of cloth at the corner in the room. In hindsight, it had made sense, Thoma and Aether's companion had been guarding the pile before she entered the room.
Aether…did not look well. His complexion was pale and his breathing was laboured. His face was scrunched up in pain as beads of sweat formed on his temple. His chest was covered in messy bandages, a far cry from the neat way Thoma would tie them, and his broken armour and tattered scarf were discarded beside him.
Ayaka gasped, her hands flying to her mouth. "No…What happened to you?" she whispered to herself as she continued to stare at the fallen hero.
As soon as the healer entered the room, she immediately rushed over to where Aether lay, even pushing aside Ayaka and Thoma to get to him. She quickly untied the bandages to assess the wound and Thoma took it as his cue to escort Ayaka and the Traveller's companion out. He shut the door behind him to allow the healer to work in peace (but also to hide the Traveller's injury from Ayaka's eyes). The three of them waited outside in silence, none of them wanting to start a conversation when the ailing condition of their comrade and friend remained unknown.
The door opened slightly, drawing the attention of everyone sitting outside. The healer poked her head out and the three of them scrambled to approach the healer.
"How is Aether? Is he going to be okay?" the Traveller's companion asked, her voice breaking as she forced herself not to cry again.
"There is nothing more I can do, he needs a healer with a Vision. His wound was inflicted upon him by a god's power and his body cannot heal a wound like that by itself. You are lucky, the burn stopped the bleeding so he would not die. However, he would suffer in pain every day. Lady Ayaka, you should hurry if only to stop his suffering."
The healer left from the same way she arrived, this time with Thoma escorting her back to her home. The Traveller's companion had already placed herself beside Aether, embracing his hand as her companion continued to sleep. Ayaka shut the door to leave the two alone in peace before walking away to the front of the teahouse where she knew the writing materials were stored. After all, she had an important letter to write.
To Divine Priestess of Watatsumi Island, Sangonomiya Kokomi
I am writing to you to ask for your assistance. In exchange, I will offer you the full backing of the Kamisato Clan.
All I ask is for you to heal a dear friend of mine who risked his life to protect someone dear to me. The injuries he sustained are something that can only be healed by a Vision holder. We are unable to move him, so for this reason, I seek your presence at the Komore Teahouse.
I am aware that what I offer you is not enough and that I might never be able to repay this debt, but I implore you to please consider this request.
Sincerely, Daughter of the Yashiro Commission's Kamisato Clan, Kamisato Ayaka