Chapter Seven
"Well, I told you it would be nice to do this. Quiet and peaceful and a beautiful view across the valley."
Ryoko kicked her legs idly against the trunk of the tree, turning to send her companion a playful smile as she settled back against the branches. "Don't you think so? It's something different, anyway - I like bringing you into my world and we never do things like this. Not really."
"If by 'like this' you mean sitting up in a tree at half nine at night eating fish and rice, then yes, I guess we don't." Tenchi cast an apprehensive glance down at the ground below. "Are you sure we're safe up here? I know that this branch is pretty sturdy...but I'm still not sure that this was the best idea you ever had."
It was later in the evening and, after having returned from Osaka, Ryoko had convinced her fiance that a night out would be good for the both of them. It was a clear spring night, and so Tenchi had agreed - although he had begun to have second thoughts as soon as he had realised exactly what was on the pirate's mind.
"Really?" Ryoko looked surprised now at his doubtful expression. "You're not looking in the right direction, Tenchi. Stop staring at the grass and look at where we are. There's nowhere in the whole of the mountains that has as good a view as this."
She cupped her hand around his cheek, lifting his head up and gesturing across the horizon towards the forests and settlements that panned out beneath them. "See? On top of the world. Tell me that isn't amazing, Tenchi?"
"I suppose it is." Despite himself, a smile touched Tenchi's lips. "I'm sorry. I'm just not used to tree climbing."
"Ironic, since you're a Prince of Jurai." Ryoko said playfully. "Are you trying to tell me you're not enjoying this even a little bit?"
"Well, I suppose...a bit." Tenchi grinned ruefully. "Sorry. I'll try and stop being a spoilsport. Just when you said we'd eat out tonight it wasn't quite what I thought you meant."
"I like surprises. Ordinary dates bore me, you know that." Ryoko's eyes twinkled. "I did tell you life with me wasn't dull, didn't I?"
"Yes, you did." Tenchi acknowledged. "And yet we're still getting married. Which one of us is the mad one, Ryoko?"
"Having spent a lot of time listening to Sakura this afternoon on the subject of clothing, I think it's me." Ryoko sighed, rolling her eyes skywards. "And I thought going back to her parents house was going to be a simple social occasion - apparently I was wrong. I'm not going to bore you with the details - actually, I tuned out half way through - but apparently it's not just a case of getting out of bed, pulling on something pretty and waltzing into the scene. Let's just say that if I understood one word in three of the things she told me I was doing well. And she did insist on showing me all those photos of her sister's wedding, too. The girl looked like norimaki - I'm amazed she didn't asphyxiate before the ceremony was done. If I dress like that for our wedding, Tenchi-kun, you're going to have to unwrap me before we can do anything fun - talk about ruining the mood!"
"I think it's funny, how much time you spend with Sakura." Tenchi laughed. "It's so unlike you really - going into girly huddles over things like clothing and make-up and all of those things."
"Well, I know." Ryoko looked pensive. "It's weird, but nice, too. I mean, you don't know anything about Earth girl things. Washu and Yume aren't much good for those things, either...and I hate to think what your father knows about women's undergarments. I like Sakura. She's helpful and she doesn't mind the fact I'm not from round here, not any more. So I guess I shouldn't moan about her being my wedding coach - or at least, that's what she called it. At least she has a vague clue what a Japanese wedding is supposed to be. I'm not quite sure myself."
"You could ask Dad about that." Tenchi pointed out.
"Yeah, if I wanted to know about weddings twenty years or more ago." Ryoko grimaced. "Besides, he's still hung up on your Ma a whole lot and I don't want to drag it out for him. Grown men crying isn't pretty unless you've been inflicting serious physical pain...and sometimes I'm not sure where he stands on that issue."
"Physical...pain?" Tenchi echoed teasingly, and Ryoko blushed.
"In a purely piratical sense." She said, dismissing it with a flick of her hand. "That's kind of different - then you get a kick out of them crying for their mummies."
"You..." Tenchi shook his head, amused. "Sometimes I forget you were a hardened space criminal in a past life. And then other times I really don't."
"I'm a girl with multiple facets." Ryoko said coquettishly. "Just think, you've got so many more of them to discover as time goes on."
"I don't know whether to be happy or scared." Tenchi laughed, slipping his hand into hers, squeezing it tightly. "But I've weathered them so far. I can keep going and hope for the best."
"Good choice." Ryoko winked. She pushed the basket that had held their evening snack onto a nearby branch, dusting stray specks of onigiri from her clothing as she did so. "Yume makes good food, doesn't she? I have to admit, for a robot, she doesn't do bad."
"She seems to get a kick out of it, so I guess we're all set in the domestic stakes." Tenchi agreed. "It's nice for Dad not to have to worry about it, and you and I are no good. So thank goodness Dr Clay had other uses for her than just to impersonate people. Otherwise we'd spend a whole lot of time at the local take-away."
"I hate to think what those other uses were." Ryoko shuddered. "Working our kitchen almost seems a respite, in comparison."
"She's happy enough." Tenchi reproached her.
"Well, that's because she's doing things for you, Tenchi-kun." Ryoko teased, looping her arms around his neck and taking him off-guard. "It's some knack you have, I guess - women dropping at your feet, willing to do anything you ask..."
"Ryoko, be careful!" Tenchi wobbled on the branch, reaching out to steady himself as he sent his fiancee a look of alarm. "You'll have us both out of here. And stop teasing me. Women do not drop at my feet...that's crazy!"
"You know that they do." Ryoko objected. "Me included, I suppose. Otherwise how do you suppose a wicked, butt-kicking space-pirate would wind up spending her afternoon discussing wedding plans with a romance-mad earthling? That's your fault, you know. You did that to me."
"I love you too." Tenchi retorted, and Ryoko grinned.
"Good." She said complacently. "Because there's something I want to do for you right now, you know. And well, you wouldn't want to hurt my feelings, now would you?"
"What are you talking about?" Tenchi eyed her cautiously. "What game are you playing now, Ryoko? Because I'm not very secure on this branch, and I don't think it'll take too much messing around."
"Oh, it's fine. I've sat up here a million times before and it's strong as anything." Ryoko assured him carelessly. "You worry way too much, Tenchi. Way, way too much."
She kissed him gently, meeting his startled gaze with a mischievous one of her own.
"Let's test it." She whispered. "After the day that I've had, I need to relax and you're so tense, Tenchi. You need to chill out, too."
"Ryoko..." Tenchi began, but Ryoko pressed a finger to his lips, shaking her head.
"Don't argue with me." She murmured. "We're all alone and it would be a kick, don't you think so? We're up in the wilds of this beautiful planet, high above it all. Would it be so very bad? After all, we are going to get married. It's not like it's wrong."
"Ryoko, we're up a tree!" Tenchi managed to wriggle out of her grasp, but she just laughed, rifling her fingers through his thick dark hair.
"You need to be less conservative. More open-minded." She reproached. "Come on, Tenchi. At least kiss me, will you? It's too nice a night to waste it by just sitting and talking."
"Ryoko..."
"You're still chatting." Ryoko warned him. "You're not listening to me."
"But I..."
"But nothing." Ryoko kissed him once more, sliding her hands across his shoulders as she resumed her grasp on him, pressing closer to his body as she did so. Tenchi's resistance began to wane as the kiss became deeper, and he was only distantly aware that she was now more than half sitting on top of him, pushing him up against the trunk of the sturdy tree. He felt the tie of his jacket loosen and slip from around his waist, but somehow the reasons he had given before for refusing seemed to have faded from his mind as his emotions overwhelmed him. He ran his fingers through her hair and then down across Ryoko's back, running over the smooth fabric of her gown.
"And this is a short cut through to the top of the main path. It's really very useful, to get to the shrine easily."
A voice from the ground below startled him back to alertness and he jumped, overbalancing on the branch with a wild yell as he slid across the wood and over the edge. Ryoko made a desperate grab to stop his descent, missing by mere inches a she steadied herself in the tree, preventing her own body from falling headlong. Tenchi tumbled into a heap on the soft grass below, falling right into the path of two elderly women who stared at him with a mixture of uncertainty and alarm.
Tenchi scrambled to his feet, his jacket catching on the trunk of the tree as he did so and pulling clean off as he struggled to regain his composure. His cheeks flushed red as he grabbed wildly for the garment, meeting the gaze of the two women with an awkward grin. A snort from overhead alerted him to the fact his fiancee was thoroughly enjoying the entire spectacle and somehow it didn't make him feel any better. Suddenly he realised how stupid the whole situation was - and he struggled to find words to explain what had happened to the startled walkers.
"There's a really beautiful view from the top of the tree." He said finally, scratching his head in embarassment as he did so. A fresh outbreak of noise from overhead told him Ryoko had appreciated his explanation, and he gritted his teeth, determined not to look upwards and give away the fact he had not been alone. Hastily he pulled his jacket back on, tying it firmly and wishing that he had been wearing more underneath it before Ryoko had dragged him out for their mountainside rendezvous.
For a moment there was silence, then one of the women smiled at him, a little doubtfully.
"Well, and if it isn't the good priest's grandson." She said lightly. "Hello, Tenchi-san. Mountain walking and tree climbing have become hobbies now, have they?"
"Oh yes. Yes. I...I got into it at college." Tenchi thought quickly. "You know how it is, all that studying...well, it's nice to just get away and appreciate the countryside."
More smothered giggles from above, and Tenchi kicked the tree surrepticiously, inwardly urging his companion to at least keep silent. After all, he realised with some horror, he did indeed recognise one of the women as a shrine regular, and he knew exactly what his grandfather would say if he knew what the lady had almost interrupted.
"I thought you went to college in Osaka." The woman looked confused.
"Uh...yes." Tenchi admitted unwillingly. "But it was...extra-curricular. We did, you know, field trips."
"Ah, well, colleges offer everything these days." The woman's friend observed with a warm smile. "And I believe you can see some wonderful wildlife at this time of night, up here in the mountains."
"Yes, you can definitely see some rare species all right." Tenchi said darkly. "Some interesting birds live in these trees."
"I must walk here more often, then." The woman's eyes twinkled. "It was nice to meet you, Tenchi-san. Come on, Yasuko...we mustn't dawdle or your husband will be wondering where we are."
"Yes, sister...you're right, and we must." Yasuko nodded her widened head. She bowed solemnly in Tenchi's direction, then, "Send my best regards to your grandfather, Tenchi-san...and I shall no doubt see him in the next few days."
"Yes, ma'am. Of course." Tenchi bowed hastily. "I'll do that."
The women moved on, and once they were out of earshot, Tenchi sank back against the tree with a heavy sigh.
"Ryoko, get down here, now!" He called. "You might find this funny, but I really don't!"
"Oh, Tenchi, you are such a stick in the mud." Ryoko materialised in front of him, touching down daintily on the grass as she put a finger to his cheek. "I was mad at those biddies for interrupting our alone time, but you know, it was the funniest thing I've seen in a long time. You dropping in front of them like that - I'm amazed you didn't give either of them a heart attack."
"Ryoko!" Tenchi glowered at her, and Ryoko laughed, kissing him playfully on the forehead.
"They didn't know I was there, so Ojii-san will never know." She said softly. "They do say old women make the best chaperones and I always thought they were talking about Washu, but I guess I need to re-think my ideas, don't I?"
"You're enjoying this way too much, you know."
"Well, I needed a good laugh." Ryoko said playfully.
"I told you a tree wasn't a good place to, well, do stuff!"
"Maybe you're right, but it was worth a shot." Ryoko linked her hand in his. "Oh, Tenchi, don't be mad. I'm sorry you fell out of the tree but you're not hurt and those women didn't know why you were really up there. So it's all fine, really."
Tenchi sighed, pursing his lips. Then he met her gaze, and despite himself a smile touched his lips.
"I guess it was kind of funny." He admitted. Ryoko laughed.
"It seems the fates want me to be a chaste and innocent bride after all." She said flippantly. "I'll go up and get the basket - the mood is ruined, so we should probably get back to the house."
"Chaste and...innocent?" Tenchi stared. "Shouldn't you have thought about that before you took advantage of me in Osaka? And here? And anywhere else you've managed to pin me down?"
"You make me sound completely insatiable." Ryoko objected. "Now you're a graduate, we don't have a place in Osaka to flit around so much, and we don't get as much chance to be alone. Can you blame me for taking advantage? Forgive me for not wanting to seduce you when my mother and your father are downstairs."
"No, I know." Tenchi pursed his lips. "Although you do want to keep living here, right?"
"Yes." Ryoko nodded. "I love the mountains and that house is home - it has good memories and well, I spent my first night on Earth in that place. I just think we need somewhere where we can have alone time too, that's all. So maybe up a tree isn't your thing - but it's cool. We've time to try something else."
"Sometimes you amaze me." Tenchi chuckled. "Get the basket down, huh? And next time you have a bright idea, if it involves a tree, then don't bother asking me, all right? I don't want to get a reputation!"
Ryoko laughed appreciatively, nodding her head.
"All right, Tenchi-kun." She said softly. "It's a deal."
As she hovered upwards into the branches to retrieve the basket, Tenchi was aware of a bleeping from his pocket and he frowned, sliding his fingers into his jeans as he pulled out his cellphone, glancing at it in surprise.
"And I thought I'd turned that off for the night. Who's calling me this late?" He wondered, peering at the display. His brows knitted further as he recognised the number, and for a moment, he debated not answering. Then, with a sigh, he pressed the 'receive' button, taking a few steps away from the tree as he moved out of his fiancee's earshot.
"Masaki." He said levelly. "Kyoda-san, is that you?"
"Masaki-san." A pause, then a sigh, and Tenchi frowned at the hesitation in his former classmate's voice. "It's late - I was about to give up on you answering."
"Sorry. I was..." Tenchi faltered, gazing up at the tree branches as he wondered how to explain what exactly he had been doing. "I was eating." He managed finally, biting his lip. "Though to be honest, I thought I'd turned this off. And I didn't expect...to hear...from you. After the other night..."
"Yes. I know. Which is why I'm calling you." Kane admitted, and Tenchi's eyes widened as he registered a note of contrition in the other man's voice. "Listen, Masaki. Both of us - we went a little nuts, and for my part, I'm sorry. I mean, I don't get what you see in that girl, and to be honest, I'm still bothered by what happened in Osaka. But it ain't really...my business. And we were friends, before all that kicked off. I guess...since we're graduated now...I wanted to bury the hatchet. And you know, leave things on a clean slate. I'll get it, if you don't want to - but I didn't want to leave things the way they were. When I cooled down, I realised that neither of us really acted like adults back there."
"Kyoda..." Tenchi faltered, then a smile touched his lips. "No, you're right. And actually, I appreciate you calling me. I'm sorry for what happened the other night, too - it wasn't like me to react that way and I feel bad about it as well. In a way, I feel a bit ashamed that I didn't call you first, but..."
"I said some crappy things about your woman...I guess I'd have understood if you'd thrown the phone off a cliff at the sight of my number." Kane's voice echoed with faint irony, and despite himself, Tenchi laughed.
"Maybe." He agreed. "Look, I know that Ryoko...well, I realise that...well, I've known her a lot longer than most people have, and that she's...from somewhere else. It's just normal to me now...I guess I need to understand that other folk are still adjusting to the whole deal. We both lost our minds a little, like you said. But...I appreciate the olive branch. I didn't like leaving things that way, either. Especially now school is done."
"Are you busy tomorrow?" Kane hazarded. "Because if not, do you think we could meet for lunch? Seal the deal with a proper truce? It's late now and I'm sure I don't have enough power on my phone to make this a long, detailed chat. But...I'd like it - if you could. We haven't talked in a long time, and I realised that that sucks. Just you and me - if you're free?"
"I'm sure I can be." Tenchi's gaze strayed to where Ryoko was carefully trying to disentangle the basket from it's resting place. "All right. I'm back in the mountains tonight, so I'll have to get a train - can you meet me at the station at one o' clock? I can be there for then."
"One o' clock it is." Kane sounded relieved. "Thanks, Masaki. I'm glad you were willing to hear me out."
"I'm glad you called." Tenchi responded. "Tomorrow, then. Bye, Kyoda. I'll see you then."
He terminated the call, pursing his lips as he slipped his phone back into his pocket, just as Ryoko gave up on her task, phasing the basket through the branch and dropping down in front of him.
"Who was that?" She asked curiously. "Did I hear you say "Kyoda"? Tenchi, I thought you were done messing with that idiot...he's never going to get the message, you know."
"Actually, he called me to apologise for the other night." Tenchi shrugged, offering her a smile. "So maybe you've misjudged him."
"Hah." Ryoko snorted. "Well. We'll see. I'm sure his apology doesn't extend as far as me."
"Probably not, at the moment, but he did ask to meet tomorrow, and I've said I'll go." Tenchi reflected.
"You did what?" Ryoko stared at him. "Tenchi, the last time you met, you had a free for all fight in a public place. Are you sure that's a good plan?"
"Yes." Tenchi nodded. "I promise, no fists this time. No matter what's said. Besides, he did sound sorry. And now we're graduated, it'd be nice to clear the air. Even if that is all it is."
He sighed, shrugging his shoulders.
"Before you escaped from prison, you know, Kyoda and Kamikura were good friends of mine." He added. "And I don't regret anything I've done regarding you or those choices. But it sucks, to lose friends over a girl. And especially over a girl I'm serious about, like I am you."
"Well, just so you remember that it wasn't me who asked you to stop seeing them." Ryoko said pointedly. "Go, speak to him, by all means. Just don't embarrass me by blooding his nose, all right? I'm already considered to have bewitched you in some quarters. We don't need to make it worse."
"I swear." Tenchi held up his hands. "Thanks, Ryoko. I'm glad you aren't going to be funny about it."
"Well, I think it's a waste of time, but hell, it's your time, not mine." Ryoko shrugged, offering him an impish smile. "I'm a big girl. I can amuse myself for a few hours while you negotiate a peace treaty with Kane Kyoda."
"Yeah, I'm sure." Tenchi said ruefully, slipping his hand into hers as they headed back towards the house. "But if I can leave things on a better note with Kane, then so much to the good. I hate being at odds with anyone, Ryoko-chan...you know that. If I can make peace with at least one of the friends I've estranged, well, it'll be something. And you never know. Maybe I will bring him round, yet."
"I wouldn't hold my breath." Ryoko said reflectively. "But like I said, it's up to you. This is one little boy's feud in which I am not getting involved!"
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"I confess that I feel a little guilty, with you coming all this way."
As they walked across the grounds towards the Tennan mausoleum, Seiryo shot Kiyone a pensive look. "When I contacted you, I'm not sure what I expected you to do...certainly not fly across the universe."
"Well, you looked...shell-shocked, although that's an understatement." Kiyone sighed, kicking absently at the ground. "I was worried about you. You've this habit of trying to pretend you can handle everything, and I knew you couldn't handle this on your own. So I came."
"Ah, I see." A faint smile flickered at the edges of Seiryo's lips, but it did not reach his eyes, and Kiyone eyed him in concern. "Well, I can relieve you on one account. I can handle a fair amount - but I'm not wholly sure that this is one of those times. I am glad to see you, although it feels selfish to say so. Suki...is dealing with this much more than I. I am being useless, and dragging friends from their posts to come flutter around me. But I...I am glad you are here."
"Then it was right for me to come." Kiyone said evenly. "It's all right. Really. Don't feel bad about it. You're my friend, right?"
"Yes, of course."
"Then that's what friends do. Isn't it?"
"I confess, I've never spent much time dwelling on that." Seiryo admitted. "You must be aware that my...my peers on Jurai are not the kind of men or women I seek to spend much social time around if it can be avoided."
"I meant real friends." Kiyone scolded. "Not political ones."
"On Jurai, it can be difficult to see a difference. Another reason why it is good to have someone genuine come to offer condolences." Seiryo said ruefully. "Enough messages have come from the Council and the court - but most of them do not genuinely care. I would rather they'd kept out of the matter entirely, rather than spread their hypocrisy my way. It means I must reciprocate and thank them, and right now I do not wish to make that kind of contact."
"I'm sure they'll understand, if you leave it a while."
"No...I think not." Seiryo shook his head. "Just another thing I have to handle, being a peer of Jurai."
"So tell them to go to hell. I would. It's not up to them to be offended or otherwise, and you don't usually care about that." Kiyone said frankly.
"True." Seiryo admitted. "But at the moment I am neither thinking nor acting as concisely as usual."
"That's understandable. Stop expecting too much of yourself so soon, you idiot...you need time to deal with it too, you know, whatever your noble neighbours think or otherwise."
"I know. It's just hard to absorb. That's all."
As they reached their destination, Seiryo gazed up at the smooth marble-brick walls, and Kiyone could tell that he was apprehensive about even being here. "Saying goodbye is so hard, when it's someone you really didn't get to spend enough time with anyway. Father sent me away from her for so long, Kiyone - time when I should have been here defending her from his vices and protecting her from his dishonour. And now she's gone, and those years are lost...I don't know what I feel about it, to be honest. So many things at once - it's hard to know for sure."
"I suppose that's understandable." Kiyone pursed her lips, eying the ornately carved building with a thoughtful look. "So all of your family rest here? Going back generations?"
"Yes, or going back several generations. Perhaps not all of them back to infinity." Seiryo nodded, a faint, humourless smile touching his face. "Cold black marble - seems fitting, doesn't it, for one of the most heartless families on Jurai."
"I don't think you're a heartless family, Seiryo. Look at all you and Suki have done for Tokimi!"
"Perhaps not all Tennans." Seiryo acknowledged. "Mother certainly wasn't. In a way, I don't want her to be here, with Father and all of them. And yet, in another..."
He faltered, then shrugged his shoulders.
"This was where she wanted to be." He murmured. "She told me so, more than once. She was a Tennan, and this was where she would rest. So it was her will. And that's what we'll do."
"Your mother was a Tennan as well, then? She and your father were related before they married?" Kiyone asked. Seiryo nodded.
"Upper class Juraians are pretty well inbred." He said ironically. "But they were only distant cousins. Both could trace ancestry back to Senichi Tennan, but the line divided many times in-between. Suki and I are Tennans to the bone...and now, we're the only ones left to carry on that line."
"I see." Kiyone fell silent for a moment, absorbing this. "Someone took a lot of time and care in carving this, you know. To honour a family that meant something."
"Yes. Their pay cheque, I don't doubt." Seiryo agreed flatly. "You might think that someone put blood, sweat and tears into this, but the truth is that some anonymous mason and his apprentices were probably commissioned to do it. That's how things work, when you have more money than sense. You build grandiose memorial chambers in which your family members get to rot in perpetuity."
"Hey." Kiyone sent him a reproachful look, gripping his hand. "Your mother wanted to be here, remember? It's not like that to all your family. It meant something to her."
"I suppose so." Seiryo sighed, shaking his head as if to clear it. "You're right. I know I keep repeating myself, but I really am glad you're here, Kiyone. I don't know why, but I am. It seems easier to talk to you about this than it is to talk to anyone else at the moment. Even my sister...she's managing so well, with her emotions and the preparations for Mother's funeral and I'm useless to her - a weight around her neck, to be truthful. I'm lost...for the first time, I have no idea how to act or think or behave. I've never lost anyone I loved before. Never. And I don't know how to react to it."
"I guess there's no firm rule." Kiyone looked thoughtful. "But perhaps you can tell me because we still have a bond, thanks to Tokimi's magic. And maybe because I do understand. I have been in your shoes before."
"You have?" Seiryo looked surprised. "I thought your parents still lived?"
"They do." Kiyone agreed. "But I've never been so very close to either of them. No, I didn't mean that."
"Then what?" Seiryo leant up against the wall of the chamber, casting her a curious look. "That is, if it's something you want to discuss."
"It was a long time ago, it's all right." Kiyone nodded. "I lost a brother I was very close to...it takes time to adjust, when things change."
"I didn't realise you had brothers." Seiryo looked startled. "In truth, I didn't think about you having family at all...aside from your parents. You've mentioned them from time to time."
"Well, where to start with my family." Kiyone looked rueful. "Mother wants her daughter to marry a nice man and become a good little housewife, and father wants to hear about all the wonderful Galaxy Police things I'm doing so he can boast about them to his friends. Then there were five of us - I'm the fourth of five. My older brother and sister are both married with families and homes of their own. Then there was Keitaro, who is the one that I lost. And myself and Mashisu, my younger sister. Also known as a completely shameless hussy of a girl - she's been trying to convince Mihoshi's poor brother to marry her for as long as I can remember. All in all, they're a family I keep my distance from. I don't hate them, but I'm not really like them. So the Galaxy Police became my home and family. Especially when Kei-niichan died. He and I, we rubbed along pretty well...rogue that he was."
"I'm realising there is a lot I don't know about you still, isn't there?" Seiryo observed, and Kiyone shook her head.
"And right now probably isn't the time for any of it." She reminded him gently. "It'll keep."
"Actually, it's nice to know that I'm not the first person to lose someone and feel it so harshly." Seiryo admitted, gazing up towards the sky. "And a distraction of any kind from my empty thoughts is most welcome, so don't worry on that account."
He eyed her keenly.
"You and your brother must have been very close?"
"We were." A slightly nostalgic smile touched Kiyone's face. "He was four years older than me, and wrapped up in every mischief he could be, in truth. In the end, it got him killed. He trusted in the wrong people and paid for it with his life."
She pursed her lips.
"It was the same year that I graduated from the Police Academy. It was also the first case I solved. I suppose that's how I put my ghosts to rest - bringing justice to my brother allowed me to move on. Even though we were effectively working on different sides of the fence, he always encouraged me to shoot for the moon. He'd joke that one day I'd be reeling him in...well, instead I reeled in the guys that killed him. Seeing them sentenced - that was a good feeling. It was like he was with me, and I know he'd have approved."
"I see." Seiryo fell silent for a moment, digesting this, and Kiyone sent him a sidelong glance.
"I'm babbling at you and you probably don't need it." She realised. "I'm sorry."
"You have nothing to be sorry for." Seiryo dismissed her concern with a faint smile. "Believe me - the diversion is a welcome one."
Kiyone turned her attention back to the mausoleum, biting her lip.
"It's nice to have a monument to remember people by." She mused softly. "I can see why this meant something to Lady Kaede - to be here, with her kin."
"Well, if I have a say in it, this won't be where I wind up." Seiryo said frankly. "But I have to face this, sooner or later. So well, here I am."
"Do you want me to wait outside?" Kiyone asked gently, but Seiryo shook his head.
"No. It's not sacrosanct...and I'd rather not face this alone." He admitted, and Kiyone was struck by the unusually vulnerable tone in her companion's normally composed tones. "If you don't mind being around a dead person, then I don't mind you accompanying me."
"I'm not bothered by it at all." Kiyone assured him as he stepped into the black walled construction, and she followed on behind, finding herself in a short passageway that had three doors leading off from it - one to the left, one to the right, and one straight ahead. She gazed around her, awe touching her expression as she realised how much work and time had truly gone into building the Tennan family crypt.
"Don't look so impressed. It's not that special." Seiryo's voice brought her back to earth with a bump. "We go this way. The memorial chamber is straight ahead. Mother believed in Tsunami wholeheartedly, so Priests have already been and embalmed and blessed her body ready for...for when Suki finally has everything straight. But I...I think I might ask Lady Sasami to say words for her, too. After all, she is...closer to the Goddess than any of the rest of us. And in light of that, well, even if the spiritual side of things is beyond me - I know Mother would have liked to know that the Goddess blessed her spirit."
"I'm sure Sasami will do just that." Kiyone agreed, following him into the futhermost chamber and stopping dead as she realised it was no small memorial room but almost a shrine or chapel in its own right, bright sunlight gleaming through paned glass windows and pictures and engravings marking each surface. The faint scent of flowers dusted the room, and Kiyone remembered what Seiryo had said about Tokimi. She glanced at him, and he nodded.
"Tokimi has left her mark." He agreed soberly. "She insisted on decking the entire place out with what she called special flowers - Suki and I let her do as she wanted, because Mother always loved the flowers in the gardens at the Estate. It at least makes this place more cheerful, somehow. Less cold and imposing."
"And all these pictures mean something." Kiyone gazed around her, picking out the image of Tsunami that stood out above the rest, her kindly hands outstretched as if greeting the spirits of the departed souls. "I think you're wrong about this place, Seiryo. It might be made of stone and marble, but I think there's more to it than just, well, walls. I think people did care about it - and that's why your mother wanted to be here now."
"Perhaps." Seiryo shrugged. "But if you'd been down the steps to the vaults themselves, you might think differently. No, with all my experiences over the past few years, this isn't the place I want to be when I die. Even if it means turning my back on my family's traditions - I am not going to be another marble box Tennan corpse."
There was a faintly bitter note in his voice at these words, and Kiyone eyed him thoughtfully. She made no demur, however, merely watching as he strode up to the oaken casket that lay carefully on the stone plinth, images and characters that she did not recognise engraved along the sides. Hesitantly she moved to join him, unsure as to what she should do, but when she reached his side, she found he was just standing there, staring down at the silent face of his mother.
Kaede looked like she was sleeping, her pale, thin cheeks peaceful and relaxed, and now that the lines of pain had been smoothed out across her brow, Kiyone realised that her friend's mother had once been very pretty. Someone had styled the rich waves of hair into a neat, elegant fashion, and she was clothed in some of her finest robes - clothes that Kiyone suspected hadn't seen the light of day for many years, but which somehow spoke of the status and internal strength of this physically frail woman. Flowers decked the casket from head to foot, and despite herself, Kiyone smiled. Tokimi had really gone to town, she realised, but the overall effect was one of beauty, not of clutter, and she decided that the late Lady of the Manor would have little to find fault with.
"On Jurai, you really know how to make people's lives memorable." She murmured. "She looks so pretty, Seiryo. So tranquil. I never realised how much Suki looked like her mother, but she really does, doesn't she? The resemblance is very strong."
A strange sound came from her companion and Kiyone glanced up sharply, consternation flooding her features as she registered his expression. Despite his earlier words, tears glistened on his lashes, and he turned away, clearly trying his best to compose himself. Kiyone sighed.
"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to upset you."
"You haven't." Seiryo spoke in low, tentative tones, as he battled his emotions. "It's not you. It's this...it's seeing her...like this. Like she's asleep...but she isn't. I really know she isn't, now. Seeing her in this chapel, in the same way that they laid out Father after he died... it makes it real. Mother truly is...is gone. And there was nothing I could do to prevent it...nothing I could do to help her."
He closed his eyes, struggling to prevent the tears from falling and without a word Kiyone took him gently by the hand, leading him slowly away from the casket.
"You don't have to fight it." She said quietly. "Men are allowed to cry, you know. Especially considering the circumstances. I won't think you weak, if you do."
"I don't cry." Seiryo said fiercely, clenching his fists. "It's not something I do...it's a helpless, feeble reaction and it solves nothing! It changes nothing!"
"But sometimes it helps." Kiyone said reasonably. "Stop battling, Seiryo. You loved her. What's feeble about that?"
Seiryo eyed his companion in stricken silence, biting his lip, but it was no good. He sank down on the smooth stone bench opposite the altar, burying his head in his hands as his emotions won through. For a moment, Kiyone did not interfere, but then, very carefully, she sat down beside him, sliding a tentative arm around his shoulders.
"I'm not the world's best person at comforting." She said honestly. "But I'll try, if you'll let me."
Seiryo pulled back from her touch, drawing a shaky breath of air into his lungs.
"You can help me best by never telling a soul about this." He said softly, his words muffled behind his hands. "Not ever, do you understand? It might not seem weak to you, but you don't understand...how much I...it's important that..."
"I can keep a secret. I've been keeping the fact we've been having covert training sessions a secret from the Commander for almost a year." Kiyone said frankly. "You don't have to get all defensive on me. I know what you're going through and crying about it isn't the end of the world. All it does is tell your mother that you loved her. That's all. Nothing else."
Seiryo did not reply, and Kiyone got to her feet, moving slowly back towards the casket.
"My elder sister told me that, when Kei-niichan died." She added softly. "I didn't want to cry, then. It seemed weak and I knew nothing could bring him back. But she said that people didn't cry over lost souls just because they had to. It wasn't like that. You only cry proper tears for the people who mean the most. There's no better tribute, when you think about it. That's what my sister told me. So every time I felt sad about Kei-nii's death, I remembered that and tried to believe it."
She turned, looking rueful.
"I'm not one who cries often either. I don't have time for it, it gets in my way." She added. "But there are times, Seiryo, when even the best of us do. So if you don't want me to tell anyone, you know that I won't. But don't be ashamed of it. Kaede-sama knows more than ever now that you loved her. Do you think that, as your mother, she'd ever ask more of you than that?"
Seiryo raised his gaze to hers, staring at her in speechless silence, and Kiyone nodded.
"Yep, I talk a lot of rubbish sometimes." She acknowledged sheepishly. "But you know, some of it makes sense occasionally."
"You make a lot of sense." Seiryo said quietly. "I didn't know how I'd react when I...I saw her this way. But I'm glad I didn't come alone...I'm glad you came too."
He took a deep breath, then,
"I'm all right now. And I would prefer that noone did get to hear of this." He added. "But thank you, for what you said. I'll try and remember that, from now on."
"Sure." Kiyone grinned, taking him by the hands and pulling him to his feet. "That's why I came, isn't it? To help?"
"Your Commander won't wonder where you are?"
"Mihoshi's going to tell him I had an urgent call away." Kiyone said simply. Seiryo frowned.
"Did you tell her where you really were going?"
"Of course not. I love Mihoshi like a sister, but I don't always trust her tongue." Kiyone shook her head. "I told her I was going to see a friend who needed me, that's all. And that if I wasn't back this evening, well, I'd be back as soon as possible and she wasn't to worry. That I'd be fine."
"You will get into trouble, if you don't go back."
"My Commander owes me so many favours of late that I doubt it." Kiyone pursed her lips, looking amused. "Since you started working with me, Mihoshi and I have solved more cases than we ever did before. And that's setting a mean precedent, because I wasn't a bad detective before, either. Just some of the things you learnt as an Elite we never got to study, as regular division detectives. And since going through the training channels the official way would mean leaving her behind..."
"Your loyalty does you credit." Seiryo managed a faint smile. "But I'm glad, in a way, that you chose to do things in the manner that you have. Even after our less than auspicious first encounters, it's given me a chance to get to know you. I really don't make many friends - I'm a solitary person as a rule and I don't really need them, most of the time. But I'm glad we're friends, Kiyone. Strange as our acquaintance has been, I'm glad of it all the same."
"Me too, though Mihoshi and everyone at Headquarters would think me nuts." Kiyone said frankly. "Perhaps I am, who knows? But sometimes I think we're a lot alike."
"For your sake I sincerely hope not." Seiryo said ruefully. "We should head back to the manor. I've paid my respects to my mother, and humiliated myself for all time in front of you...I think that's enough for one day. You are welcome to stay with us overnight, if you like - otherwise at least remain to eat with us. You must be hungry, after your journey and everything else."
"If it's not a bother, then thank you." Kiyone nodded her head. "I'd appreciate that."
"Then let's go." Seiryo hesitated, then held out his arm to her and with a rueful smile Kiyone accepted it, allowing him to lead her back out into the bright spring sunshine. As they made their way back to the estate, Kiyone stole a sidelong glance at her companion, absorbing the uncharacteristic emotion in his teal eyes and the strained, troubled expression that still haunted his features. There were no signs of his earlier breakdown on his cheeks, and he controlled himself well, yet somehow Kiyone felt that the tears were not far beneath the surface and her friend's composure was such that it would take very little to pierce through the veneer of calm once more.
This realisation unnerved her for some reason, and she frowned.
"Seiryo." She murmured, and her companion started, staring at her.
"Kiyone? Something wrong?"
"No." Kiyone shook her head, looking sheepish as she realised she'd spoken aloud. "I'm just glad I came. That's all. After all, it's what friends are for. And maybe you need more of those, for times like this."
"Perhaps." Seiryo said thoughtfully. "But I'm sure none of them would be able to say such pertinent things. I truly appreciate what you said inside there, Kiyone. And I will give it much thought...perhaps in time it will bring me comfort, also. Right now, it's too soon...but even so..."
He shrugged, offering her a faint smile, and this time Kiyone was relieved to see a faint, echoing flicker of the expression in his gaze.
"But for now, I will be a good host and ensure you're fed." He said pragmatically. "If you are determined to be here, then I am determined to do that."
"Fair enough." Kiyone nodded, returning the smile. "I'm right behind you."