Mirage of Changes
by Karura
Second arc: the seventh bride
Chapter two
Despite their hostess' objections, they had insisted on sharing the same room. It was only elementary caution. Something had happened to Nagahide there, something that put his soul in danger, and as long as they didn't know what it was, they would keep alert. So they occupied a single room separated in two by only a screen. Nagahide's room was next, so they could watch over him and step in quickly if something occurred. Bishamonten's protection couldn't keep his body alive for very long, and this body was the only link left to Nagahide's soul. Needless to say that time was running out.
An old maidservant had just finished to lay their futons. Their travel bags were set in a corner of the room. Kagetora took the opportunity to question the old woman. "How long have you been serving Masayuki-san?" he asked.
"Oh, for many, many years," she answered, shaking her head. "I knew him from when he was a young boy."
"So you also knew his former wives..."
The woman averted her gaze. "What a pity," she whined. "It's as if a curse was cast on us! And my poor master, stricken by all those deaths..."
"Actually," Naoe intervened, "you could think that after a death or two, your master would have avoided to get married again..."
The servant gave him a dirty look. "My master is innocent. How could he give up on continuing his line? He's the last of his name, since his parents died when he was young!"
"He never had any child?" Kagetora was surprised.
"Never. The women all died before they could give birth."
"How did they precisely die?" he wanted to know. "Nastume-san only spoke of... natural deaths."
The servant dabbed her eyes with her kimono sleeve, saddened by all those memories. "Three of them felt badly ill: they coughed night and day, till exhaustion took them for good. One felt down the stairs and had her neck broken. Another spilled hot water over her body. As for the last, she simply didn't wake up one day. Even the doctor was unable to say what happened to her."
"They all died in this house," Kagetora noticed.
"Actually, they didn't go out very much," the woman retorted. "Anyway, my master is only a victim in this. He's stricken by misfortune, nothing more!"
"And what do you think of his current wife, Natsume-san?"
The old woman looked at him uncertainly. Servants weren't allowed to speak ill of their masters. "She's my lady," she merely replied, without expressing further her opinion. "She's the woman my lord has chosen."
"I thought she was the one choosing, rather than the chosen one," Kagetora rectified, remembering Natsume's telling of the tale.
"In the end, my master did express his will." The tone was definitive. Kagetora chose to end his questioning and the old servant took her leave, leaving them alone in the barely furnished room.
Kagetora turned to Naoe. "This whole story is a true can of worms," he commented.
Naoe smiled slightly. "I really can't understand this Masayuki's stubbornness," he said. "Six dead wives, but he still wants a son!"
"As he has no other family, it's understandable. But I agree with you: he would be a suspect... if no spirit was involved. Anyway, I think we must have a word with him tomorrow, even if we had to break through the door." Indeed, they still hadn't met the master of the house. He hadn't attended to dinner and Natsume had vaguely supplied an excuse for his absence. Kagetora had wondered then if Masayuki was this old to take his meal in his bedroom. "It's frustrating," he mused aloud. "We have to walk down the same paths as Nagahide, but we have to do it faster and solve the case before his body dies for good."
"It's true, but there are two of us," Naoe said. "Logically, we should be twice more efficient than him."
"Or more dissipated," Kagetora countered. "More people doesn't always mean we're stronger."
"Anyway, we can't do anything more tonight. I will stand guard this night, just in case."
Kagetora snorted. "How will you be of any help tomorrow, if you're ready to drop? Don't talk nonsense and just come to sleep." He stuck to his own advice and took off his kimono, keeping only a light yukata. He lied down in one of the futons then realised that Naoe had still not moved. He raised a quizzical look at his vassal and saw him spacing out. "What?" he asked dryly.
Naoe seemed to recollect himself and he blinked several times. "Nothing, my lord. Err... good night..."
Kagetora mumbled back a goodnight and turned his back to him, leaving the blowing out of the candle lighting the room to Naoe. The other man took off his kimono, his motions slow and unfocused. The way Kagetora had told him to go to bed... almost sounded like an invitation. Of course, Naoe doubted it was intentional from his lord but, along with his recent erotic dream, it was enough to fire up his imagination. He shook his head and extinguished the candle with his hand. All of this was ridiculous. He thought those wild ideas would have disappeared along with the disposal of the haunted kimono, but it seems he was mistaken. However, he would not fall into the same wanderings. So he strictly forbade himself to dream of his lord this night and he closed his eyes with determination. That dream was only a single dream and he would let the matter rest there. He wasn't even attracted to men, so it really was absurd. Despite his ruminations, he quickly fell asleep for what he hoped to be a peaceful and dreamless sleep.
He couldn't be more wrong.
XxX
He was back to the house of his lord, at Edo. Kagetora and he were in the living room, sitting in front of each other, a trail with tea cups between them. Kagetora scratched his cheek and looked away. "Well, I guess you want to know about Ukio, don't you?"
They had this conversation when Naoe had arrived to Edo and discovered the existence of his lord's family. Naoe opened his mouth to say the same things as in real life, but something else came out from his mouth: "How can you esteem these strangers more than our mission, the Yasha-shuu or even me?"
His own words threw Naoe into a panic, yet he had to confess they reflected what he was feeling deep inside. Kagetora didn't react that much to his words and still kept his gaze averted. Despite himself, Naoe went on: "You trust them although you still refuse to trust me in the slightest!"
Kagetora's eyes caught his, sharp tiger eyes. "I trust whoever I want to," he hissed. "I don't have to account to you for, Naoe Nobutsuna. If you really want my trust, know that you won't get it by begging or complaining to me!"
Naoe stood up and grabbed Kagetora's left wrist. He moved closer to him, knocking over teacups in passing. Kagetora's eyes never left his, angry and outraged eyes. "Let go of me," he ordered in a deadly serious tone.
Naoe ignored him. "I have been serving you for two hundred years," he pointed out. "I think I deserve some kind of reward! If you make me wait that long for just a bit of trust, then how long will I have to wait for the rest?"
"What rest?" Kagetora replied while trying to break free from the iron hold.
Naoe grabbed the right wrist and pinned his lord to the ground. He experienced a feeling of eeriness when he saw his lord from above and nearly let him go. But it was short-lived and the vassal strengthened his hold. He slowly approached his face to Kagetora's, feeling each puff from the other man's breathing. "The rest," he said just before crushing his lips against Kagetora's.
XxX
Naoe woke up with a start. His cheeks red, he waited for the frantic beating of his heart to calm down. In the confusion, he thought he heard a voice echoing in his mind: You and I are just the same. It was only a whisper so it was easy to believe he had made it up. His breath finally quietened down and he glanced uneasily at the screen that separated him from his lord. He prayed to the gods that Kagetora wouldn't wake up at this very moment. If he would, Naoe would surely have to explain his state and it would be very difficult. The gods must have been hearing him because Kagetora didn't even move. Relieved, Naoe lied back down but the dream still haunted him, making sleep impossible. It was ridiculous, he thought. Why had he dreamed again of Kagetora like that? The cursed play case had been settled. He hadn't seen nor thought about Hisako since then. In his mind, there had been clearly two Kagetoras: the one who was his lord and master, and the over one he had dreamed of and who had tried to seduce him. So, why another dream?
The most disturbing thing about this dream had been that he hadn't seen Kagetora in his first appearance, but he had seen him in his current body. So he couldn't dismiss the dream as an after-effect of the haunted kimono case. "This is ridiculous," he thought, looking up at the ceiling, hands folded behind his neck. "I'm not even attracted to him." He had come to respect Kagetora's leadership, and his initial distrust and resentment towards the daimyo had disappeared over the years. Kenshin had given his adoptive son a very tough task, not only because they hadn't knew a single thing about the spiritual world, but also because this task would take them several lives. Kagetora had been handling this situation very well, doing his best to let them feel less restrained. So Kenshin had really chosen well his representative, but it had taken some time for Naoe to realise it. In any case, the admiration he was feeling towards Kagetora had nothing to do with a mere sexual attraction. He was sure of it. Therefore those dreams were nothing more than snippets from his crazy mind. So he shouldn't give some importance to them since in no way they reflected his true feelings. With a smile of self-derision, he closed his eyes and, this time, no dream went to disturb his sleep.
Naoe woke up because of some noise in the room. It wasn't someone sneaking in, but only someone finishing his wash and getting dressed. "Kagetora-sama," he thought before sitting up straight in his futon. He rubbed his eyes. He felt like he had no sleep at all. The room was still dark and Naoe wondered if the day had already dawned.
Kagetora realised Naoe was awake. "Good morning," he said. "Did you feel anything strange last night?"
Naoe blanked out then froze when he remembered his dream. Could Kagetora have somehow felt it? But he had seemed to be sleeping when Naoe had woken up from his dream... Just in case, he shook his head. "No", he lied. "The night was eventless... Is it still night?"
Kagetora sighed. "I didn't feel anything either. The spirit must be on its guard. We have to get it to show itself very soon, by any means."
"We could still use Natsume-san as bait. Otherwise, I don't see another way."
Seeing Kagetora's quizzical look, Naoe explained: "It's obvious the spirit only attacks Masayuki-san's wives. It reacts solely to them."
"But how long before it attacks her? We don't have much time left!"
Naoe lifted a hand to pacify him. "In any case, we need to talk with the master of the house today, as we agreed on yesterday. Surely he'll give us more details and then we would be able to work something out."
Kagetora sighed again. He seemed restless, eager to close the case. Naoe wondered if it was because of Nagahide's critical state, the fact that a woman was threatened, or simply because he was longing to get back to his family, at Edo. Naoe reprimanded himself. Rushing their mission for personal reasons wasn't Kagetora's style at all. He was far too altruistic for that. No, Naoe thought, pursing his lips, acting irresponsibly and selfishly was rather more his own style. Hadn't he lied to his lord in order to make him leave his family, just because Naoe didn't like the situation? He sighed. Every time he tried to be a tad introspective, what he discovered in himself didn't please him. Nagahide could still mock him with speeches of holy man and salvation, but Naoe was far, far from there. He could see Kagetora and the others stepping closer to the holy light while he stayed bogged down in his desires and whims. Moreover, instead of doing his best to rise to their level and to break free from the chains holding him down, he would rather grab hold of them with all his might and prevent them from drifting too far. It was selfish and cruel... but also perfectly human.
Banishing those negative thoughts, Naoe stood up and started dressing… When he was ready, he followed Kagetora to Nagahide's room. The possessor's condition seemed to be stable but it would be only for a limited time. After that, they left the room and walked down the long corridors. It was silent all around them and the dark atmosphere only added more eeriness, in Naoe's opinion. He was really convinced this place wasn't normal. "It's as if we were all alone here," he said to Kagetora.
"Don't talk nonsense," replied the latter.
But Naoe would let it drop. "And see, it's still dark. Something strange is going on, here."
Kagetora paused to turn to him. "What do you mean, exactly?"
"What if this place was nothing but an illusion?"
Kagetora frowned. "Why do you think this?"
"We feel some spirit's presence but we're unable to locate it. It's already happened once."
"True, but it's also happened when the spirit was too weak to materialize and condense his presence. Moreover, may I remind you that the last illusion we fell into was the work of an ancient deity? A mere spirit doesn't have the power to trick us."
"Not sure," Naoe muttered, remembering the tsukumogami. That mere spirit had been able to hypnotize him into making him believe it was Kagetora. Naoe could never forget this humiliation.
"In addition," Kagetora went on, "we can still use our powers, unlike the last time. That's why I don't think this is an illusion." His tone was final. However, Naoe could not get rid of this bad feeling. Something was wrong with this place and he would do anything to find out what it was.
They suddenly heard some footsteps. The atmosphere got less dark and the servant who had welcomed them the day before arrived. She bowed to them. "Breakfast is ready," she said. "I was on my way to wake you up."
"It won't be necessary, as you see," Kagetora said. "Are Makayuki-san and Natsume-san going to be here?"
"My mistress will keep you company, but my poor master is still bedridden. He sends his apologies for not being able to greet you."
Kagetora nodded. It seemed as if Masayuki-san wanted to avoid them. This behavior was rather suspicious.
The servant led them to the dining room where the table was already laid. She bowed and took her leave. "My mistress will be coming very soon," she explained. "I'm going to bring breakfast to my master."
The two men sat down at the table but didn't start eating, waiting for their hostess.
"When are we going to talk to Masayuki-san?" Naoe asked. "He's in bed all the time."
"We'll have to force things," Kagetora decided. "We can't afford to waste time in useless niceties!"
Natsume arrived at this moment. Kagetora and Naoe greeted her, and then they all ate in silence.
"Has Nagahide-san gotten better?" Nastume asked at the end of the diner.
"No, he's still the same," Kagetora informed her. "And I don't think it'll improve as long as we wouldn't get to the bottom of this story."
Natsume shook her head. "I'm sorry, but I haven't made any other strange dream since the last time."
"You have not, but maybe your husband has," Kagetora insinuated.
The beautiful woman's face looked slightly troubled. "I'm sure he hasn't," she replied. "My husband has nothing to do with this."
"Six of his wives have died," Kagetora reminded. "And despite what you said, I do not think their deaths were natural. It seems the spirit wants to hurt Masayuki-san's wives, so how could he not be involved in this case?"
"He has done nothing!" She cried out, her cheeks reddened and her breath short. "My poor husband, stricken by all those deaths... It's as if a curse was cast on us, nothing more!"
Kagetora looked unperturbed by her distress. Naoe was only a spectator, fascinated as always to see his master exerting his will and determination. Natsume had no chance of standing up to him.
"I'm not meaning he's done anything," Kagetora made clear. "I'm just saying that maybe he knows something about this spirit which seems to plague this house."
"And I'm telling you he knows nothing!" Natsume repeated.
Naoe raised an eyebrow. Until now, Natsume had been the perfect hostess and she had seemed eager to help them solving this mystery. So it was surprising to see her being opposed to them. It almost seemed as if she would rather see them away than letting them meet with her husband. As if she knew that Masayuki possessed major information. But why would she stand in their way? After all, she may be in mortal danger! This whole story was getting stranger and stranger, and if not for Nagahide, Naoe would surely have urged his lord to leave this place for good. But there's not telling if he would have succeeded in convincing him...
"Natsume-san," Kagetora went on, his tone sharp. "May I remind you that you have been living in this house for only a few months? So you can't possibly know everything that happened here. Moreover, you only met your husband recently, so you're not able to tell what he knows."
"I have known Masayuki for longer than you think!" She blurted out. "Stop talking like you know him better than me!"
"For how long have you known him, exactly?"
Natsume bit her lips, realising she had said too much. She looked away, uneasy. "I met him several years ago," she admitted. "We didn't talk and I just caught a glimpse of him, but I fell in love with him at that moment."
Kagetora shook his head. "It's not because you love him that you know everything about him." Natsume was going to reply but he lifted his hand to hush her. "Anyway, forgive me my insistence but we have to see your husband. It's not only about your safety; it's also for Nagahide's sake. If you still deny us, I'm afraid we'll have to bypass all the rules of civility."
A heavy silence followed that statement. Naoe could only admire Kagetora's efficient way of putting things: he had reminded Natsume she wasn't the only one affected and that they would do anything to save their friend. It was a subtle declaration of war, and Natsume had no choice but to yield. The woman's eyes shot him angry looks but she bowed to him. "All right," she said. "But I must warn you: all those tragic events have brought him down a lot, and sometimes he goes off..."
"We'll be gentle with him," Kagetora promised. "If you want, you can witness our discussion."
Natsume smiled ironically: Kagetora was offering her a very small compensation after having imposed his will. "No," she declined. "I wouldn't want to disturb your investigation, since you seem so eager..."
Kagetora nodded. "Could we see him right now?"
"No time to waste, isn't it?"
"Nagahide doesn't have so much time left."
"All right. But first, let my servant finish serving him breakfast. I'm telling her to prepare him for visitors." She left the room without excusing herself. Naoe thought that, from now on, she would not be on their side any longer. Her change of mind was very intriguing.
Kagetora turned to Naoe. "What do you think of her behaviour?" He asked.
Naoe tilted his head, tapping his chin with one finger. "She sure doesn't want us to see her husband," he analysed. "I would almost say she's afraid he'll be telling us something crucial."
"That's what I think, too," Kagetora nodded. "And she would have never told us she has known Masayuki-san for years. Do you think she had already met him before his first wedding?"
"It depends on Masayuki's age, but it's not impossible." He suddenly met his lord's gaze. "You think she has killed the first wives?"
Kagetora shrugged. "Not herself, but she may have used a spirit. She seems to be deep in love with that man, so why not?"
"But she's threatened too!" Naoe reminded him.
"Are you sure?"
Naoe stayed speechless for a moment. "She has made that dream about the other wives, seen the blood soaked key, and asked for Nagahide's help..."
"The dream may be a tugging of remorse. And also, are you sure she did ask Nagahide for help? Of course, we can't be certain, but I think she didn't ask anything. I think Nagahide came around, felt the spiritual presence then offered his services. Natsume-san doesn't act like she's threatened and surely it's because she's the one who somehow controls the spirit."
Naoe frowned. What his lord was saying seemed logical but still, he refused to believe it. He couldn't fathom why, but he couldn't help but considering Natsume-san as a victim, despite her recent suspicious behaviour. "When we arrived yesterday," he recalled, "she didn't look good. She seemed worried and anxious..."
"Maybe it wasn't because of this case. Anyway, we shouldn't remove her from our list of suspects."
Naoe let escape a weak laugh. "Our list isn't that long. For the moment, we are only suspecting Masayuki-san and Natsume-san."
"You want more suspects? You think this case isn't complicated enough like this?"
Naoe bowed his head down. "No, my lord. I didn't think before speaking." Kagetora didn't reply.
The two possessors waited for nearly twenty minutes before the young maidservant briskly came in. "I'm taking you to my master," she said a little coldly.
Naoe noticed she hadn't bowed to them when entering the room. He glanced at his lord to see if he should point out this disrespect, but Kagetora didn't seem offended in the slightest. Naoe smiled bitterly. It seemed that, because of Natsume-san's wrath, they have both fallen into disfavour with the whole household. Whatever, the most important thing was to settle this case quickly before it became stranger than it already was. Naoe had hopes that talking with Masayuki would help things to advance. It had to. He didn't like this place and wished to leave it as quickly as possible. But Kagetora wouldn't leave without Nagahide or solving the case, so Naoe could only hope to get information from the man who was in the center of all those deaths.
To be continued...
It has been a while since the last chapter. I will try to keep on translating, even if it takes me time.
The investigation is going very sloooowwwly and it's difficult to tell the culprit. I have hidden some clues in the text, but not enough for you to find the answer!
As for Naoe, I love to torture him with dreams of Kagetora. And it's only the beginning!