Disclaimer: TP's character belong to her etc…
The next time they meet, they are both a year older and slightly taller. This time, as their mothers exchange pleasantries, Joren grins broadly, waving to Keladry, who smiles back shyly, and ducks her head. Joren leans forward to whisper into her ear and she nods hesitantly and whispers back to him, before turning back to her mother. The two women, noticing that Joren and Keladry were waiting patiently for their attention, paused in their conversation to see two innocent pairs of eyes staring at them.
"Mama, may we be excused to the playroom?" Keladry soft request holds an undertone of her shy nature as an eager Joren nods his head vigourously adding a "Please, Lady Ilane" after Kel.
Ilane looks at her daughter in surprise and watches as the girl turned red. "Of course, sweetheart, do go ahead and show Joren your new toys" Ilane motions for the two children to go and while Keladry bowed to the two women, Joren thanks Ilane and they leave hand in hand. As they close the door behind them, Ilane gives a laugh and turns back to Meldrose."Well, I'd never thought I'd see the day where she would openly talk to me in front of a guest!"
Meldrose grins back "And I'd never thought I'd see the day Joren showed his manners to anyone other than his father and myself! Though you must tell me why you are surprised that your daughter politely asked to be excused to play in her playroom when my Joren and Jayce simply sneak off by themselves."
Her tall auburn- haired friend gestures for her to sit, and as she reclines back onto the soft satin sofas, Ilane pours out sweet smelling tea into a ceramic teacup and passes it to Meldrose. They both close their eyes as they inhale the tea, enjoying the bittersweet scent.
"The Yamani value their respect for guests and strangers who approach them," she explains, "which stemmed from a history where often, a stranger's visits meant warfare and turmoil, hence over time, when someone approached without the intention of attacking them, they were treated with gratitude that their visit was company and not trouble. At the same time, young Yamani girls are expected to stay silent in front of their elders except when expected to speak, so it is considered rude for young Yamani girls to speak in front of guests."
"However since I've been trying to also accustom her to the more outspoken Tortall lifestyle, I've tried encouraging her to speak up whenever we meet guests here, but to no avail," she looks at Meldrose, "until today".
As they catch up, Ilane recalls a conversation she had with her daughter a few months after Meldrose and Joren's visit and gives a laugh. "Mel! You have got to hear what Keladry said to me weeks after that Midsummer visit from you and Joren! She asked me—"
"-Mama if it was Tortallan custom to speak so rudely even with strangers and Mama laughed and said it wasn't like that. Mama said people in Tortall and Yaman just had different ways to go about showing how they thought and felt," Keladry's small hands can only grasp Joren's four fingers but she holds them tightly enough that Joren wonders how so much strength could come from such a small arm.
They stops outside the playroom doors and she twisted to look up at him, her dreamer's hazel eyes catching him off guard as he comes out of his thoughts. "Are they?"
Joren turns the handle and chivalrously lets her pass, as he did, his face screwed up in thought. "Well, for starters, I thought you were too quiet when I saw you, as if… as if the Trickster had played some joke on you and left you with no voice."
"What's the Tric… Trickster?"
Joren looks at the girl in surprise. "You don't know? He's one of the big gods who plays tricks on people and causes trouble for humans… and well, most people don't pray to him unless they're wishing bad luck on other people"
This time it is Keladry who pauses to think for a moment, then she nods her head. "Ah... like Sakuyo, here let me show you, but we must be quiet because I only asked Mama if we could go to the playroom."
Before he can respond, they are out of the room, his four fingers in her tight grip again and they are turning past corridors, up and down staircases, and while they all look the same to him, it seems that she knows where she is going and so he follows along, until they stop in front of a set of sliding doors.
The doors are made of small squares of paper-thin cloth, their wooden panels frame each square and the entire door. Two candles are attached to each side of the doors, lit by magic, which do not flicker and seem to give off a reddish glow.
From the number of stairs they have climbed, Joren can tell they are rather high up, and the place seems secluded from the lack of servants around. There is also a serendipity and silence that seemed to encapsulate him. She lets go of his hand.
"Here. You must follow what I do." And Joren copies as she removes her shoes and clasps her hands together before kneeling and bending from waist down. As they stand, she slowly slides the doors open to reveal a high ceilinged room ornately decorated with pastel silks hanging as draperies and ascending pillars forming a circular ring around the center of the room. Each pillar has its own lighted candle, giving off a faint waft of chrysanthemum. At the far end of the circular pillars, a larger altar meets between the two tallest pillars.
The alter has numerous stands, each holding small statuettes which on closer inspection, show different people with varied clothes and facial expressions. Keladry pulls Joren to the center of the altar and points to two figures, one male and one female.
The male statuette is a muscular figure holding a long sword with a curved handle and a dragon curled at his feet. "That's Fushaka."
Then he looks pas Fushaka at the female figure, a beautiful lady in a pink garment that is very unlike the ones he has seen his mother wear. The cloth hangs down from her slim frame and there is a sash of some sort wrapped around her waist. She stands there with a fan like the one Keladry has, her slanted eyes focused on the pale ball she holds in her other hand. "That's Yencha, she lives on the moon and comes down only once a year"
"These two are our two benefactor gods who created the Yamani and protect us when we deserve the protection." She then turns to one statue on the left. This one was rotund and jolly, a water gourd hangs from a strap at his waist, his cheeks are red, and his eyes closed in mirth. Behind, stood a conjoined pair, skinnier and taller, but his facial expression mirrored the man in front.
"That's Sakuyo and his two faces. Like the mean god you said just now, he plays tricks on people and makes them get into trouble. People only pray to him when they wish harm on their enemies."
Joren stretches out an arm in an attempt to touch the figurine, but is stopped by Keladry's firm grip on his wrist. She shakes her head, "The gods are sacred and we cannot touch them, unless our hands have been purified by the priests."
As Joren opens his mouth to argue, she interrupts him and asks if he wants to go back to the playroom. He glances at the figurines, who look as if they are about to come alive any moment, and decides that he does not like the place. "Let's go," he tells her and lets Keladry lead him out.
As the doors slide shut, they repeat the same ritual as they did coming in, before putting on their shoes and go back down the stairs and back to the playroom.
As they enter the room, Joren sees something new hanging from one of the walls. It is as tall as he was, a stick with a large curved blade at the end. Curious, he goes over to lift the thing and was surprised at its light weight. Pressing his palm on the large flat of the blade he realizes it is a flexible metal that bends under slight pressure and wobbles back into place.
"What's this thing?"
Keladry went over and runs her fingers over the stick part, and draws Joren's attention to the intricate detailing he failed to notice the first time. "My practice Naginita, the weapon that nobles and warriors of the Emperor use. I brought it over to practice my pattern dance just like my Odoruno Cho".
"Oh! Can I see your o-odrou-thing dance? Have you learnt it all yet? " Joren grins excitedly, reminded of the enchanting dance he saw, momentarily forgetting her awkwardness the previous time he saw it.
"O-do-ru-no Cho, you must say it properly before I can dance for you," Keladry looks expectantly at him and Joren realises he would not be entertained until he does as requested. He venturs a guess at the pronunciation and she patiently corrects him until he can say the words correctly. Satisfied, carefully takes out her fan from its box and she walks to the mat. Facing him, she says, "It's not perfect yet, my dance is very ugly still."
The first fall startles him again, but Joren remembers that it is part of the dance and settles back down. As she continues, her feet crossing as she twirls, her arms rising and falling to the beat of her chants. The fan snapps open and close, a compliment to the dance, drawing attention and yet hiding at the same time. Although Keladry is wearing the latest Tortallian fashion, and not Yamani garments, Joren is just as entranced by the graceful movements, that is, until she suddenly slowed. Her movements becomes slightly choppier and a small frown etches her face as she concentrates harder. The chanting softens and her Western dress now looks slightly out of place in the dance. As she draws to a close, the skirts billow around her, forming a cloud of fabric as she sinks to her knees, the fan held high.
Joren claps and approaches to help her stand. She takes his hand and gives him a shy smile. As they settle down on a soft rug, Keladry pulls open the lid of a nearby chest and draws out a smaller box. As she does so, Joren thinks back on his friend's performance.
"I thought it was wonderful, though the last part… Why must you always make sure you finish your dance? You could always stop and go back again later…?"
Keladry pries open the cover of her ornate box and looks up. "I heard the Emperor once say that great warriors will always accomplish the task they have been given, no matter how hard or how tired they are. I want to be as good as one of the warriors next time, so I must do the same. Here." She draws out a small porcelain cat and presses it into Joren's palm.
"This is zai-neko, a lucky charm, Mama said I could give one to you when I asked. Do you want it?" Keladry's hopeful eyes makes Joren nod his head even before he has processed her question. As he examines the gift, the cat has one paw raised up while the other remained on its stomach, though he can't see how it will help his luck.
"How is a small cat like this lucky?"
Keladry looks worried for a moment. "I… I'm not sure... I think Mama said a waving cat drew the first Yamani Emperor to itself and helped him to avoid bad men… I only know that cats are very precious to the Yamani, so I get angry when boys here hurt cats! Do you hurt cats?"
Joren feels a red flush creep up his neck. "Well… sometimes I do, when I'm bored or angry, 'cause they won't get angry and scold me back, like adults do…" Joren trails off at the sight of his angry friend, unsure of what to do as her eyes well up with tears. He jumped as a small hand encircled his wrists.
"Cannot! You're hurting them! You can't do that anymore! Promise me!"
Joren nods his head as her hazel brown eyes gaze at him for a second time, "I promise!" as he thinks about that for a moment longer he realises another dilemma. "If I can't hurt cats what do I do when I'm bored and angry?"
Keladry wipes her eyes on her sleeve. "Well, when I'm bored, I always go out to train, because I know that there will always be one person better than me at that. So I must keep improving. But when I'm angry, I can't show it because its rude to do so, mama says its only okay in Tortall, but I don't anyway."
"Huh? Then how-?" Joren is cut short as they are interrupted by the sound of the door opening. A maid steps inside and informs them that their mothers are requesting for them.
As they return to the drawing room, Keladry becomes shy yet again, in the presence of the Lady of Stone Mountain. They bid their farewells and Lady Meldrose settles into the carriage after her son.
"Well, how was the afternoon with Keladry?" Meldrose raises a perfectly plucked eyebrow at her son.
Joren thinks for a moment. "Well I promised Keladry that I wouldn't hurt anymore cats and I must stick to my promise because she says the Emperor says that great warriors always complete their tasks no matter how hard it is." He smiles at his mother. "I had fun today!"
Meldrose gives her son a squeeze around the shoulders. "I'm glad you did."
TBC
Yay! I'm done! Though please comment if you do think there's something off, I'm still a little confused myself and I rewrote the tenses like three times cause I was so muddled. A levels were hell and like some friggin emotional rollercoaster. I came out an entirely different person… but anyways not important! Do review because I interact very sparingly with children so I have very little idea on how they talk and etc… yeah so K/J's convo might seem a little out of it…
And again go watch the dance from the Korean drama Hwang Jin Yi if you wanna picture how Kel's dance looks like. Yep that's all!
Laters! ;)
Update: I've edited the chapter, so hopefully its not as horrible to read as before... and you're wondering what Kel's special practice naginata looks like I took inspiration from the Pu Dao practiced in Wushu.