With a full stomach after eating like never before in her life, still feeling the food being digested in her belly, the almond-eyed young woman found herself scanning the teahouse courtyard for some time. She would have to stop at Inari-sama's first temple to light some incense, to say a prayer of gratitude. A smile of relief had taken her lips since Okama-san had given her permission to rest in the garden, looking at the starry night after a long storm. The smell of mud invaded her nostrils pleasantly, and some of the ornamental plants on the property were still dripping rain that had accumulated on the roof.
Izayoi-sama's moans of pleasure had stopped some time ago. Her thoughts were still on how perfect that woman really was, both in appearance and personality. "She can feel pleasure like a man!" reflected Rin, amazed at the discovery. She thought that only men had that privilege, but she was wrong... maybe. "She might be trying to please Oyakata-sama," she mused for the fifth time in the night, still in disbelief. It was impossible to think that the penetration of something so intimate, from her tiny little cave, was such a good thing.
It never was.
Footsteps came down the stairs from inside the teahouse. None of them had removed their shoes to enter there, which only indicated that, like Rin, they were looking for a hiding place. Their cheeks flushed at the thought that Izayoi-sama and Oyakata-sama were having a forbidden romance, because they were not sure if youkais could commit sexual acts with humans. That was one of the laws of the city brothels, at least... and he was the Shogun.
She wasn't sure about whether the Shogun followed laws... and had no idea what those people's world was like.
"He even seems to follow laws," she thought rolling her eyes impatiently. Since when did people with so much power follow rules and laws? Nothing happened to them when they broke them, right? Just look at the family of the Daimyo of that land, they were still unpunished for the amount of prostitutes they had killed during the nights of celebration for the agreement between the Fushizu clan and the Shogun.
At least that's what they were saying around town.
The shoji doors of the balcony opened gently, revealing the figure of Izayoi-sama in her perfectly dressed hikizuri. Her gentle smile made her even more beautiful, and even after her groans echoed throughout the teahouse, she didn't feel embarrassed. The last noticeable change in her appearance was her rosy cheeks, disguised with a light make-up. The kimono floated behind her elegantly as she walked atop her Okobo*, being one of the signs that she came from a family of the highest rank. The way of walking in a hikizuri said a lot about where the woman came from, it was so heavy that Rin could never walk without bending over with the weight of the obi hanging off her back.
"It is a very beautiful evening," Izayoi-sama began approaching the young woman, sitting on the edge of the wooden balconies that skirted the dark courtyard of the teahouse. Her Okobo was beating against the wood, echoing outside. Izayoi-sama sat elegantly on her ankles, unlike the girl, who swung her bony legs that didn't even reach the earthen floor of the garden, hanging over the balcony. "The rain from earlier cleared all the sky."
Nodding and not having much to say, Rin just smiled toward Hime-sama, admiring her in the moonlight. Her jewelry on her Kanzashi glowed madly in the darkness of the night, reflecting points of light all over the courtyard. She noticed her staring at the moon for a few moments before sighing, now gazing directly at Rin.
"Touga-sama has informed me that your scent is characteristic of a comfort woman, Rin-chan," she began unexpectedly, staring at her in a way the young woman didn't like when they did. Her dark eyes displayed a mixture of feelings that she preferred to ignore. "She's feeling sorry for me," she reflected annoyed. Everyone knew what a comfort woman did, and how dangerous it was "I look at you and I see a little girl, how can you be in this kind of life? What has life taught you to have to make this decision, Rin-chan? Doesn't your village take care of you?"
She felt her throat close up. It was the kind of subject she preferred to ignore.
Rin lowered her head in an attempt to bring the matter to a close, but Izayoi-sama's determined look soon indicated that she demanded answers to her questions. And who did Rin think she was to deny her anything?
"The villagers think I am a bad example to the women of the village," she began to explain the situation to her, her voice almost like a whisper amidst the night breeze. "So they try to drive me away by denying me food or shelter."
Izayoi-sama closed her eyes, dismayed.
"The consequences of this are exactly opposite to what they desire," she concluded, shooking her head. That simple act caught the almond-eyed girl's attention, noticing that this was the first time someone disagreed with the way the village treated her. It was something so absurd and wonderful that Rin didn't know how to react, she just stared at it unceremoniously as if she was seeing something out of this world. "Regardless of what your family has done, since you said you have no family, it is not acceptable for an entire village to unite against your presence...," Izayoi-sama sighed, "...and now I understand why such a sweet girl like you became a woman of comfort. I'll tell you something: certain men cannot accept that women have independence beyond the family, beyond a husband, and when they find a woman who survives without them, they do everything to use her as an example to punish their wife, their mistress, their daughters. We may be from different worlds, but I understand this situation very well. My punishment has been different, but it is still the same logic."
Blinking her eyes repeatedly, it was absolutely unthinkable that she could have anything in common with Hime-sama. However, it was possible to see in her black orbs the attention that was directed at her. An embarrassed smile took over Rin's lips, landing her eyes on her dry muddy feet. Even her nails were muddy.
"Izayoi-sama knows what she's talking about," she spoke at last, swinging her legs dangling over the polished wooden balcony, damp from the rain of a few moments ago.
"Unfortunately, Rin-chan," agreed the elegant woman, looking once more at the waning moon above them, partially illuminating the forest in the middle of that early morning. Her gaze wandered a bit, slightly lost in the darkness, "I would like to talk more about this, but first I would like to make you a proposition. I know that you live precariously, and that's why you've learned several useful skills in the environment in which I live. Believe me, Rin-chan, behind imposing castle doors, life doesn't differ much from the real world... when you're a woman."
This caught her off guard, staring at her impulsively in pure perplexity.
"A... proposal?" she repeated in amazement. "Inari-sama deserves much more than incense in an unknown temple," she reflected in shock.
"Exactly," Izayoi-sama confirmed, certain of what she was saying. Rin couldn't locate a drop of hesitation and doubt in the elegant woman beside her, however unexpected it was. "When Okama-san told me that Starving-chan was in the kitchen cupboard, I was sure it was fate putting you in my path again. I've been lighting incense sticks in honor of Inari-sama in an attempt to light my paths, and now I see that he must have sent you to meet me."
Izayoi-sama did not know how true this statement of hers was.
The young woman blinked her eyes trying to understand what kind of situation Inari-sama had put her in.
"That trickster fox is killing two birds with one stone!" she reflected amusedly as her eyes wandered around the courtyard still dripping what was left of the rain.
"Inari-sama answers prayers like no one else," Rin commented smiling, being that only she knew the truth there. Not only had she answered prayers, but she had also given advice.
She would save that experience for the grave.
"Rin-chan, everything you will hear must be kept secret," Hime-sama warned seriously, rubbing one hand over the other in a clear sign of restrained nervousness. Rin nodded respectfully, accepting the condition, which caused her to continue. "I don't even know where to begin, forgive me. It's a long story that I can tell you later, but I need someone trustworthy who can work for me. I need a messenger who can take my letters to Touga-sama, and bring back his answers. I don't trust anyone in the castle anymore, but Okama-san has taken a great risk in making our secret meetings happen. No one would suspect Rin-chan."
If she had been slapped in the face, the impact would not have been as overwhelming.
"She is truly a Hime-sama," she thought wide-eyed, perplexed, "Inari-sama, where have you put me in?!".
She heard her laugh lightheartedly, so delicate and full of good manners. She was charming even as she laughed at the almond-eyed young woman, who watched the words go out of her throat as she understood the hole she had gotten herself into.
They were living a forbidden romance.
"Izayoi-sama...," Rin began, bewildered, "...I don't exactly have anywhere to go. The city guards now know that it was I who stole the Yakitori's little lord, have gone to my village, and are waiting for my return. I will accept Izayoi-sama's proposal, but I am not sure whether I am of much help. I can't even... read and write."
"Even better, Rin-chan!" she spoke unexpectedly, with a smile on her face like one who had found the lost lid to her pot. "The less you know, the better. In time I can find someone to teach you, what do you think? About being or not being able to help us, Rin-chan doesn't seem to know how difficult it is to be an invisible person to the watchful eyes of soldiers. Everyone who helps us are people who easily stand out, like samurai, youkais, and geisha. Having someone like Rin-chan will make our encounters much easier."
Rin nodded, even though she accepted what she had offered, she was uncertain that she could fulfill her role. Izayoi-sama flashed a satisfied smile, then sighed, her eyes roaming the night once again.
"Once, when I was your age," she began, as if telling an old but quite fresh story in her memory. "I saw a youkai with long silver hair in a high ponytail. An honorable youkai, determined, but above all, kind. He entered the lands of the East, displaying his power as a youkai general, conquering lands and unifying Japan. Touga-sama had decided that it was time to take power from the hands of the main human Daimyo, my honorable Chichiue*. My family had no choice, and so a new period began in our history, the Shogunate. My family became what humans should look up to, while the Taishou clan fulfilled the same role for the youkais. This balances our worlds... but do you know what also unbalances it? A Daimyo's youngest daughter betraying her own race and becoming the Shogun's secret concubine. It would be dishonorable to my Chichiue to maintain her power in front of the other proud Daimyo and their purely human families. My fate would be death."
The solution seemed obvious in Rin's mind, as she listened to the story with all remaining color dissolving in her bony cheeks. She just wanted a good meal in her stomach and a roof to sleep under that night, although she was given a story of forbidden love that would surely end her life.
She didn't feel able to help them.
What was Inari-sama thinking?!
"And why don't you two get married?" She asked innocently, hanging the head sideways without really understanding the conflict that was coming from their relationship. "That would solve the problem of being, um, concubine... I guess..."
A sad smile occupied Izayoi-sama's lips, avoiding looking at the almond-eyed young woman, resting her melancholy black eyes on her hands, elegantly resting on her lap. The Fuji flower trees dripped the last remnant of moisture coming from the roof, wetting the ornamental stones of the courtyard.
A late summer breeze swayed the plants around them, making the young woman's long black hair dance subtly around her body.
"Just as it is dishonorable for a Daimyo to have his daughter enter into a relationship with a youkai, it is shameful for a youkai clan to have its leader involved with a human," she informed her softly, almost in a whisper. "Touga-sama would lose power among youkais and humans, the Taishou clan would suffer betrayal attempts and weaken. I would be an easy target for those who wish to affect him and my fate would again be death."
It sounded like a nightmare to Rin, who nodded respectfully to all the patience Izayoi-sama showed in explaining how that unknown world worked.
"So no matter what Izayoi-sama does, her life will be threatened anyway," she thought, understanding the reason for all the secrecy surrounding their relationship.
"For now, yes," agreed a firm but gentle male voice, which Rin soon located behind her, standing behind Izayoi-sama. She rested her hazel-colored eyes on the Shogun for milliseconds, admiring all the mystical and powerful figure he displayed. By the time she realized it, her eyes were lowered again in a clear show of respect. They were being extremely friendly to her, who wanted to show her gratitude in the form of respect. "We need a few months before I consolidate my position as Shogun before all the Daimyo, be they human or youkais. As soon as this occurs, I will study their weaknesses so that they don't use mine. You won't have to risk this for long, girl. Just long enough. "
The elegant, delicate woman nodded in agreement with her lover, being watched by him in a way she had never in her life witnessed a man looking at a woman. The amber orbs sparkled with affection, respect, and devotion. It was perhaps the most romantic scene Rin had seen in her entire life, Oyakata-sama offering his hand to Izayoi-sama to calmly stand up. His touch was as gentle as his voice, but offered the security of a true promise.
A late summer breeze, not even as hot as it should be, passed by them again. Shogun's ponytail danced to its rhythm quietly, his gaze still fixed on Izayoi-sama, flickering intensely. A smile played on the almond-eyed young woman's lips, trying to divert her attention away from the couple.
She had never thought much about love or considered its influence. It seemed strong and delicate at the same time, almost like a crystal durability crafted in the city workshop at the end of each dawn. If cared for, it would last for generations of the same family. If it fell to the ground, it would break into a thousand pieces.
"I'm glad you accepted, Rin-chan," Izayoi-sama spoke at last, already standing on the outside balconies of the teahouse as Touga-sama kissed his hand, lingering there as if he were smelling it. His nose ran along Izayoi-sama's now naked wrist erotically, closing his eyes at last. A scarlet shade took over the girl's cheeks, looking away embarrassed by the clear display of affection in front of her. Perhaps she had never had the opportunity to see such a romantic scene in her entire short life. "I have faith that Inari-sama sent her to help us, this being the second time Rin-chan has appeared in my path. I feel in my heart that my prayers have been answered, and when this is over, she will be properly rewarded..."
A hiss of something fired at high speed erupted in her ears. Before she could understand what was happening, something sticky splashed across her face, blinding her momentarily. A faint groan of pain reached her ears, recognizing her tone of voice immediately. Izayoi-sama. Before she could wipe away whatever it was that had splattered on her face, another noise of something firing at high speed echoed in the darkness and unbearable pain erupted through her thigh. Rin grimaced, blinded by the pain and what had entered her eyes, falling onto the muddy ground of the teahouse courtyard, hidden amidst the still-wet bushes growing under the outside balcony. He didn't know whether he had been pushed or had simply plummeted off the balcony. Something had penetrated her thigh, but at the same time she could not let out any moans. Her voice seemed to be stuck in the throat, useless.
The sounds around him turned into chaos. Izayoi-sama's voice lost in moans of pain blended with the intensity of what had hurt her. Rin, with her face against the mud of the courtyard and her long black hair dirty again, tried to open her eyes, rubbing away the sticky liquid that had blinded her seconds before. Tears slid down her cheeks unconsciously, noticing a large dark stain taking over her kimono at the height of her thigh.
The smell of something burning flooded her nostrils, and she had trouble opening her watery eyes, but when she did, large flames in various shades of orange engulfed the building above her.
Flames took over the once dark and serene night sky, consuming everything around them quickly. Unaware of what was happening even as she heard hurried footsteps across the balconies, she crawled through the mud and under the wooden balconies at the foundation of the teahouse, understanding that her entire body was covered in blood as the flames illuminated above her. Rin didn't even know how to discern what was happening around her, dragging herself to the back gates of the estate, crackling amidst the flames. The Fuji flower trees turned to ash as the rest of the garden was consumed in the fire.
Excruciating pain spread through her thigh even though she could not see what had hit her and made her entire kimono stained with blood, mixed now with mud. The latter being the almond-eyed girl's only protection against the flames that consumed everything around her. Her vision gradually blurred as she struggled to crawl into the forest, and even when she looked back and saw the fire consuming the property and the smoke now taking over the starry night sky, she couldn't discern anything.
Perhaps she had lost too much blood.
As soon as she found herself hidden in the exposed roots of an old pine tree, the almond-eyed young woman lay on her stomach, trying to breathe deeply to deal with the pain. Tears pooled on her eyelids, hot as they reached the mixture of mud and soot that had turned her black hair.
Smoke pervaded the entire forest, rising up through the trees. The flames of the fire that consumed the teahouse made ghostly shadows, frightening her. She closed her eyes tightly after a strong wave of pain shot through her leg, and when she opened her eyes she sat up, partially opening her kimono and nagajuban, raising them to the height of her skinny hips. She leaned her body against one of the raised roots, having trouble breathing.
Rin removed her obi with difficulty, male voices bellowing behind her as if fire were consuming them. Her bony, trembling fingers could barely grasp the knot of her obi. With the help of the fire she could see one the rounded end of a Kunai* sticking out of her swollen and bloody skin. She touched it lightly, closing her eyes tightly as she felt the blade moving inside her muscle, releasing even more blood. She She attempted to remove the Kunai again, but the slightest movement made her entire body echo in pain, giving up after the second attempt. He took several deep breaths, his chest rising and falling unsteadily, leaning against the trunk of the pine tree. Sweat dripped down between her breasts.
She sighed painfully, hearing the cry of an unknown man echoing through the forest in utter desperation. She raised her hazel eyes, staring up at the stars that night being covered in smoke and soot. The tops of the pine trees moved slightly in accordance with the unexpectedly strong wind that now blew. She turned her attention to the kunai stuck in her leg, throwing her obi over it to suck out all the blood that escaped the wound.
Rin didn't know what else to do. There was no way she could run from there with her wounded feather, much less know what had happened. An hour later she was watching the most romantic scene of her entire life, until an impact threw her under the outside balcony. She couldn't remember if the impact had been because of the Kunai or if someone had pushed her as the fire took over the structure of the house.
"It doesn't matter now," she thought melancholically staring at the bright starry sky once again. The shadows of flames through the forest diminished, indicating that the fire was finished consuming all that it could, and when Rin blinked her eyes, she was immersed in darkness once again.
Silence.
Everything became a blur, losing consciousness slightly in the face of pain. She closed her eyes, defeated. If this was how she had to leave that life, so be it. "I am ready to make my passage," thought the hazel-eyed young woman, at peace with all her actions in that cruel and short life.
She didn't know how long she spent in that position, trying to relax her muscles so that the pain wouldn't get stronger. Hours, days, years. It seemed like an eternity to her. Lost in her senses, Rin couldn't tell if she was dreaming when her body lost contact with the trunk of the pine tree she had leaned against.
A male voice spoke, indiscernible to her ears.
She tried to open her eyes, feeling her eyelids heavy, realizing that the ground had moved away from her body. She struggled to stay awake, finally realizing that someone was carrying her into the forest. A glint of silver threads flickered in front of her, and so she understood.
He was unmistakable in his majesty.
His ponytail moved as he walked, moving rhythmically from side to side. Izayoi-sama's scent still attached to his body, smelling like some exotic flowers that Rin had never had a chance to learn their names. She blinked her hazel-colored eyes several times, fighting fatigue and exhaustion, seeing scarlet spots all over the Shogun's clothing. The color caught her attention, and in a start, she opened her eyes as if she had slept for hours on end. Her leg was magically numb, as if the pain and her sensitivity to touch had disappeared overnight.
"O...Oyakata-sama...," she stammered in shock, but still weak. The forest thickened around her, hearing some voices conversing in the distance. The feel of Touga-sama's garments was softer than anything else she had laid the hands on in her entire life. "Where... where... is... Izayoi-sama?"
The image of something hitting Hime-sama's chest came back into her mind, making her eyes widen in shock. It had been milliseconds before everything turned into widespread chaos.
He took a moment to respond, taking a deep breath. His body was carried gently over his broad muscular shoulders. Because it was still late summer, her clothing was thinner and lighter, and she could feel the stiff touch of his arm that held her still over his shoulder.
"At peace," he replied in a deep, low voice buried deep in his throat. She could not see his countenance, and nor should she. "So is Okama-san."
It sounded like a farewell, a mourning. Rin swallowed dryly, widening her delicate almond eyes as she gazed vacantly at the approaching camp at the foot of the mountains, near an extremely familiar lake. Her heart beat fast for several reasons, one of them being the presence of cracked, mud-covered Buddhist tombs and bushes on the shores of a thermal lake. The steam from the water rose into the air as the dawn cooled, creating a mysterious atmosphere around the place.
It was back to the lake at the foot of the mountains.
The same lake that Ikejiri-san, Nabushima-san and the ronin had gone in search of earlier that day. The same place that Inari-sama had appeared over the youkai tombs along with the foxes. She was back even after she had left.
She took a quick look around, noticing that several of the soldiers at their posts had youkai features although they looked like humans. They all had waning moon emblems sewn or stamped on their haori, many of them with different types of weapons, but for the most part they had at least two katana hitched to their waist. Many of them were walking quickly around the camp, handing over boxes and baskets with unknown contents from one to the next, puzzling her. She couldn't remember seeing such movement when she was in that area.
Touga-sama quickly led her to one of the white tents with the waning moon emblem, entering it after one of the samurai youkais opened the heavy cloth that separated the inside from the outside, just like his crooked little house, and the comparisons stop there, for the inside of the tent was the most elaborate place she had ever entered. As white as it was on the outside, the same fabric on the inside was blood red.
A large purple carpet depicting huge white dogs was displayed hanging at the bottom, hanging from a black lacquered wooden easel. The Shogun stepped onto the Tatame* inside the tent, carefully placing it on a rectangular center table that was clearly for meetings or meals. The pony-tailed youkai not only had his robes soiled with blood, but also his face and claws. Part of the hem of his hakama was covered in soot, eaten away by the flames of the fire, showing off his shins freely, soiled in mud and blood.
But it was his eyes that caught his attention the most.
The fondness of hours ago in his eyes, flickering brightly as he laid them on Izayoi-sama, was gone. The amber-colored glow showed exhausted, like when you live too long and have your expectations and hopes dashed. The shattering of a dream.
The end of a life.
" It is better to never know a love than to lose it in front of you," she reflected troubled, looking away to her completely swollen thigh, covered by part of the fabric belonging to the Shogun's sooty haori, staunching the bleeding. Rin noticed that the sharp weapon had been removed, although she had no recollection of this. Her kimono and nagajuban were partially open as she lay next to the pine tree, but now her obi, previously on her thigh, tied her garments tightly together once more.
There was no pain, even with an injury as ugly as that.
"Oyakata-sama... did you take care of me...?" she wondered internally, in shock.
Touga-sama crouched down to stand at the same height as Rin, sitting on the small table in the center of the tent. Before he shifted his eyes to the ground as a sign of respect, he noticed that his eyelids were slightly swollen and reddened. The Shogun was also mourning the death of his own.
"I want you to rest until the sun rises outside, Rin-chan," Touga-sama began, still in a choked voice, placing his hand on the young woman's blood, soot and mud stained hair, resembling when she played with the foxes every time she found them near the lake. "Izayoi made you a promise, though she was prevented from keeping it. It was not an empty promise. I will honor the name of the love of my life, now in another world."