Disclaimer: We don't own Peacemaker, but we do own a gooseberry bush.
CHAPTER SEVEN
Silk curtains sway in and out of Yogotaya's most grandeous suite.
Men with empty pockets pause to look up at the balcony, wondering if the elusive woman within will ever venture out. They are not disheartened when they hear she casts her charms on only the elite and wealthy. They find it even more alluring that she is beyound their reach. Though rumour has it, that a little boy shares her quarters and only he holds the key to her heart. Now they see a child's face at the window and know that the rumour is true.
A gust of air enters and Kichi tightly clutches his paintings. He is tired of the wind, constantly coming up to steal his sheets. Certain that the wind has retreated he releases his tight grip on the parchments and sits down.
He brings the box of bottled inks up to his face.They are a gift from Chubei and Kaiyoumi for his sixth birthday. Blinking at the bright colours, he recalls that happy day two weeks ago. A while ago Shouki had been delighted to discover Kichi didn't know what a birthday was. He went to great lengths to explain it to him, even stealing Chubei's name books and thus upsetting the entire file cabinet. Chubei had entered to find the two covered in books and papers, blinking at each other in shock.
"Oh dear." Kaiyoumi had peered in from behind Chubei's round frame, looking flustered. "Kichi, I thought I told you to wait in my room!"
"Sorry," the boy had said, ashamed.
Chubei had cleared his throat and folded his arms, looking severely down at his page. "Shouki...I thought I told you to play in the gardens. What were you doing here?"
"Telling Kichi what a birthday is," the white haired boy had answered in a small voice. "He said he didn't have one."
They had both been surprised when Kaiyoumi and Chubei had burst out laughing. And then Kaiyoumi had bent over and told him of course he had a birthday.The very night she had found him, curled up beneath an antique wardrobe.
Kichi smiles as he finishes painting the portrait of a certain cherry tree for Shouki. Since it is his favourite thing. Kichi always sees him in that tree outside Chubei's window. Once Shouki almost convinced him to climb it, but then he remembered that Kaiyoumi would be cross, and he didn't. But that was okay. He still enjoys painting them.
Lying on the embroided carpet, Kichi practises writing his name. He pauses and looks up at Kaiyoumi, who is seated in front of the mirror, applying her cosmetics. He puts aside his half finished name, and reaches for a fresh piece of paper. He watches Kaiyoumi's reflection in the mirror. The orbs swirling with blue and green, he wishes he could paint them. He remembers an ink print he once saw...and he was sure the water was the exact colour of Kaiyoumi's eyes. What is it called?
Kichi concentrates, and then remembers. "Like the ocean," he murmurs to himself.
Kaiyoumi has heard. In the mirror, she smiles at him. "Did you say something, Kichi-chan?"
He shakes his head, no. He hadn't meant for her to hear.
"Oh come on...Won't you tell me?" she pouts. "Pretty please? With sugar on top?"
She places her hands on the top of her head, and waggles her fingers. A giggle escapes his lips. "I was thinking that Kaiyoumi's eyes look like the ocean," he mumbles shyly. It's been a year since he's come here, but this is the first time he has commented on her peculiar eye colour. Kaiyoumi looks surprised, then laughs as she adjusts an earring, sweeping her hair back and swivelling around to face him.
"My father used to say that to me," she says softly. "He told me the first time he said it was when I was born. But then," She smiles. "…I was much too young to hear it." She looks far away then, sad. Kichi puts down the brush, Kaiyoumi never talks about her past or how she came to be here. He briefly wonders if she had a mother but then he notices the tears brimming in her eyes.
He doesn't like it all. Sadness is not an emotion she should have to show. It seems almost frightening to him, that a girl so beautiful, so decked out in the brightest of colours, could wear such a mournful expression. "Is it okay for me to say it?" Kichi asks.
A new light seems to shine in her eyes. Now they look like gems, not much different from the ones she wears on her robes. But those are fake, he thinks to himself as he watches her brushing her hair. And her gems are real.
"Of course," she whispers, holding her arms out to him.
The gesture sparks something in him, a longing, for something he only feels in her presence. The love and trust in his eyes makes her own blur again. But they were already painted, so she can't allow herself to cry. Kichi climbs into her lap, rustling the fabric, careful not to disrupt the ornate jewels placed on her kimono, and she gently hugs him.The boy breathes in her perfume, and leans his cheek against the softness of her dress, fingering the intricate patterns and beads on the material.
Kaiyoumi smiles and parting rose coloured lips, begins to sing.
The sweetness of her voice, together with the gentleness of the lullaby makes him drift off, and she continues her song until she is sure he is asleep. She hears a faint knock at the shoji, it was time for her to leave again. Gliding off her wooden stool, she tenderly carries him towards her futon.
As she places him down, smiling at his rosy cheeks, she draws the covers up to his chin and peers in closer. She giggles. The boy had been hugging her so hard, the beaded patterns had been imprinted into his cheek.
Drifting in between dreams of rushing water and golden sand, he can hear her infectious laughter as she gently slides the door shut behind her.
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as far as you take me, that's where I believe
the realm of soft delusions, floating on the leaves
on a distant shoreline, she waves her arms to me...
without a care in this world
without a care in this life..
porcelina of the oceans blue...
you make it right
it's all alright
you make it right
porcelina of the oceans blue
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The morning light slants into the room, and when Kichisaburo opens his eyes he finds himself directly staring at a golden beam. He watches the dust particles floating in the light, and realises that he is not at the shore of an ocean, but in the hut of a dead woman.
With a jolt, he gets up and pushing back the bedcovers, he pads over to the window and squints. Her corpse is still there, the naked scarecrow standing vigil over her. He sighs.
"She needs to be buried," he mutters.
For a split second, when he wonders what will happen to her home, he thinks about staying here. Kichisaburo looks around, as if realising this for the first time. Could I really? he asks himself. Could I really make a new begining for myself here? He shuddered.
There was no way. He had no idea where he was heading, but the thought of settling down somewhere here was suffocating. Especially in the house of someone he'd killed. He couldn't stop...he had to keep moving. First, he would take a bath and eat. Then he would approach the village. As for what would happen from then on, he had no idea. He preferred it that way.
A predictable life was no longer what he wanted.
"What do I want?" he asked aloud as he grabbed his clothes and headed towards the small bath house.
For some reason, the question was accompanied by an unbearable feeling of emptiness. "I know what I wanted," he whispered to himself as he threw his clothes inside, and went back for wood to light the fire. "I wanted to find him and kill him."
There was already clean water in the tub, which saved him the hassle of walking to the well.
But I didn't.
Angrily, he shoved the wood into it's place.
Life never worked out the way you planned. It was always full of surprises, more nasty than good, he had come to learn. Just when you are confident and assured, just when you think you have it under control, just when you think things are looking up... it all comes crashing down. Like a loose boulder on an unsuspecting passerby.
He had experienced enough of these moments to know that nothing, anymore, held the power to shock him.
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All across Japan, families and friends unite to celebrate the New Year festival. Behind the wall of a magnificent compound however,Yogotoya's occupants remain changeless. The passing of time does not affect them. Life is all the same.
But amongst the bustle of women and men preparing themselves for the hours ahead, a young boy pauses to reflect on how fast the year has ended. Kichi is dressed in the rich garb of a child attendant. Brushing his bangs to the side, he quickens his pace towards Kaiyoumi's quarters. It would be his fault if Kaiyoumi arrives late to her banquet, as he has not yet delivered her new robes and ornaments.
He frowns as he wonders why she needs a new set of kimonos every week, her wardrobe is already overflowing with so many silks. Kichi had asked Hayami the dress maker this question but Hayami had just laughed saying, "Well, if she wore the same clothes every night, the men would find it boring."
Kichi disagrees, even if Kaiyoumi was dressed in an old yukata, he doubts she'd look boring. Hayami must have seen his confused look for he then patted his head and gave him a bag of sweets. Kichi smiles as he puts one in his mouth and thinks of sharing the rest with Shouki.
Sucking on the sweet he thinks of how Kaiyoumi often likens Hayami to that of a spider always weaving his web. He does look like a spider, but he is a nice spider. Kichi giggles.
As he walks along, he also remembers how Kaiyoumi had asked him to think about all the things he had learned the previous year, telling him to keep in mind that he's no longer a boy of six but seven.
Seven...
The same number of parties she will go to tonight, Kichi thinks sadly. He has become used to spending the long nights alone but he wishes she could celebrate the festivities with him. Sighing, Kichi pushes that thought away and tries to recall everything he has been given lessons on. Apart from the reading and writing lessons, Kaiyoumi has also taught him the correct method in serving drinks and meals, playing certain instruments and his most favourite, the basic steps of dance.
He often watches her rehearse in their room and is entranced by her graceful body movements, almost like the limbs of a willow tree in a gentle breeze. And when she sings, Kichi truly forgets where he is. He stops his remembering when a colourful buttefly flutters before him. For some reason it reminds him of Kaiyoumi.
Grinning, he places the packages carefully in the corner and skips after the insect.
Kichi takes out a clay jar to capture the butterfly, he wants to let it free in Kaiyoumi's room, he wants to see her smile and laugh. He starts following the butterfly through corridors that are painted with lush scenery, making him feel as though he is really outside, in real fields of flowers.
In his state of childish delight, he is unaware that he is heading in the direction of another corridor Kaiyoumi has gravely forbidden him from entering. Giggling he closes his eyes and spins around, he stops only when he starts to feel dizzy, but when he opens them he realises the butterfly has left him.
Glancing at his surroundings, Kichi feels nervous and begins to slowly wander, wishing he hadn't come here. Unsure of where to go, his stomach twists and turns as he thinks of Kaiyoumi waiting for him.
"Hello boy...are you lost?"
A man comes out of the shadows, smelling of alcohol.
Kichi jumps, startled. He clasps his clay jar, shakes his head and turns to run. But the man blocks his path. "Whoa, calm down! I'll help you. I know where you're meant to be…." He smiles, and Kichi doesn't like his smile.
"Yeah, I know where you're meant to be…"
He grabs him roughly by the wrist, causing the jar to fall, and starts to drag him away. Kichi's eyes blur as the clay shatters, it was a gift from Shouki. He tries to untangle himself but to no avail. The green fields filled with such pretty flowers move farther away as he is being dragged. He sees the butterfly flit back into focus and outstretches his fingers, maybe if he is able to grab it, the butterfly will take him back to where he was.
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Nine years later...
It is a rainy night, and through the open window, Kichisaburo can see the blurred outlines of houses. Most of their windows are dark, as dark as his soul, he thinks. A dog is barking somewhere, and he sits there, listening, and letting the water spray him. Watching it mix with the blood in his hair, and drip down his clothes. Then he hears a step outside, and the shoji slides open.
"God, Kichi!"
He smirks, leaning back, tossing his sword into his corner of the room. "What about God?"
Kasai stands in the doorway with a disgusted expression on his face. His hair looks very tangled, and there are rouge marks on his face. "You're bleeding all over the damned floor!" Reluctantly, he approaches and kneels beside him. "You look seriously hurt. What the hell happened?" When there is no reply, Kasai shakes him. "Hey, speak up!"
He gasps as Kichisaburo fell forward limply, into his lap.
Kasai's eyes widen. "Kichi!"
"I'm dying," his friend whispers faintly. "I can see a bright light...very bright..."
"What?" Kasai says nervously, looking down at him. It is too late to take him to a hospital that's for sure. Outside, it's pelting. His eyes water.
"Damn it!" He hugs his friend close. "I'm so sorry I can't help you!"
To his surprise, Kichisaburo bursts into laughter.
Kasai yelps, and scrambles backwards. He stares in shock as his friend stood up, looking perfectly alive. "You're such a gullible idiot," crows Kichisaburo. "You'll believe anything, won't you? He he, you should see the look on your face!"
Kasai's eyes narrow, but his cheeks are red. "Very funny," he mutters, glaring at him. "Well, what was I supposed to think, with all that blood on you?"
"I killed a few men tonight," replies Kichisaburo with a smirk. "The blood is theirs."
Kasai shivers. "Close the damned window, it's cold."
"Nope. I'm having a shower." Kichisaburo answers, settling himself under it again.
His friend stares. "You're insane, you know that? Just my luck that I have to share a room with you."
"So sad, isn't it? You'd much rather share a room with Ikue. But then, we both know that's not possible." Kichisaburo snickers. "You misguided lovesick fool."
"For your information, I just came from her room," retorts Kasai, with a smug look on his face. He leans back against his futon and stretches. "Ah, we had a wonderful night together," he says dreamily. "I'm going to marry her someday, you know that? We're going to move to Edo."
Kichisaburo snorts. "They'll find out sooner or later. One of you will get killed. This place has no room for love."
"You're just jealous," said Kasai, turning over on his side. "Good night, Kichi."
"You know what you are? You're naive. One of these days, you're going to really understand the ugliness here."
There was no reply.
"Unlike you, I was seven when I understood. I was eleven when I really understood. But you know, kids aren't all that complicated and they can deal with things. They can go on, as long as they've got something to believe in, something to fight for. But you, you've made the mistake of falling in love. And it'll kill you."
This time, he hasn't expected a reply. Kichisaburo looks down at his hands, at the bloody water staining them. And laughs.
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