ERIA LOUIS
"...Stop! Whoa, girl! Please- listen to me!" she panicked, clearly trying to keep her voice level. But she accidentally yanked on the horse's mane, resulting in the horse rearing up in defense. She and the horse were atop a bridge, and down below was an array of sharp rocks. Rocks that would surely promise a quick death. Cold fear bubbled within Eria, causing her to shut her eyes in response. Yet the impact never came.
She felt someone's arms around her. Lithe, but strong. "It really wouldn't kill you to listen to me. Yet you remain so troublesome, little one. You do know that's why I tease you?" '...Mitsuhide?' She blinked, once, twice. Almost like she couldn't believe what she was seeing. Peeking over Mitsuhide's shoulder, she spotted another horse. A mare with the same white in its mane as Mitsuhide's hair. "...You came after me?" she muttered, confused. "I was worried about my horse." He told her, the usual grin on his face as he sat Eria down and approached the mare she'd been riding.
He lightly rested a hand on the horse, petting her softly as he glanced back at Eria, "You owe her an apology. She's not the kind to throw people off without good reason." Guilt welled up inside. Mitsuhide was right. Eria knew he was. After all, he'd specifically told her to not make the horse uncomfortable, and he'd also told her that the horse was much more sensible than she was. ...All while seeming to tease and insult Eria.
The chestnut mare let out an anxious snort. It can't be fun to have been stuck with a complete stranger. Especially one that was panicking the entire time. Eria slowly approached the horse, holding her hand out, "...Hey, girl... I'm sorry. I'm… not a good rider, and I ended up scaring us both." she muttered. Eria let the horse see and sniff her hand before she moved it to gently caress her as she'd seen Mitsuhide do. The horse's breathing relaxed, and she looked at Eria with those large, doe-like dark eyes.
"That was very well done." Mitsuhide commended. "...It's not anything special. All animals are the same. Show them a little kindness and eventually, they open up." Eria mumbled. She hadn't been enthusiastic about riding, but the mare seemed like a nice one. And it just wouldn't have sat well with Eria if she'd allowed things to end this way. "...Mitsuhide.. Would it be okay if I... perhaps gave it another shot?" Eria asked, meeting his gaze.
Mitsuhide smiled, "If you wish." With his further assistance, Eria was able to mount the mare once more. Perhaps her nerves had exhausted all their energy, but she didn't flinch after finding herself sitting so high again. Eria lightly petted the horse once more, "...Thank you. Are you ready to give this one more shot with me?" she asked, a soft smile playing at her lips.
Following Mitsuhide's instruction, Eria gave the mare a gentle squeeze with her knees. The mare began a slow trot.
A bright smile lit up Eria's face, "I... I'm doing it! I can't believe it..." "Yes, you are." Mitsuhide spoke calmly. He was smiling, but despite that, Eria quickly found herself feeling ashamed. All that panic before, and now she found herself acting like an excited child. "...I can tell you want to laugh at me. Go on, I won't get mad this time." she cast her gaze aside. "Hmm?" Mitsuhide stared at her. She chose to continue, "...This entire time, you were just trying to convince me how simple it would be. And it turned out that way."
"Was getting over your fear really that simple?" He questioned, then pointed out- "You honestly felt you couldn't do it. Now, you've succeeded." "...I'm not going very fast, am I?" she bit back. "That just means you have room for growth. You now have the foundation you need to practice getting faster at your leisure." Eria's eyes widened, "...You're right," she breathed. He may have teased her for her poor attempts, but he'd never once told her to quit. Nor did he ever react in exasperation and give up on teaching her.
Whenever Eria would stumble in her learning, he had stopped and gone back for her. Any number of times. For all that she'd been nervous to learn both martial arts and shooting- she had no reason to be. He had ensured she was never hurt. ...Mitsuhide was so much more patient and gentler than Eria had ever imagined him to be.
"Lord Mitsuhide, here you are!" A man spoke as he approached. One that Eria had never seen before. He had long black hair pulled to a low ponytail and warm blue eyes, dressed in a green and black jinbei. "What is it, Kyubei?" Mitsuhide asked, his expression losing its calm tone. One of his vassals, Eria assumed, the man named Kyubei kneeled before Mitsuhide and bowed. "Lord Nobunaga calls for you in the tenshu immediately." he informed his lord.
Mitsuhide nodded, "I understand." Then, he turned to Eria, "Eria, see the horse is returned to the stables and properly brushed down." He instructed. "Excuse me? On my own-?" she questioned. But all he did in response was nod. "Last I checked, you're my instructor. I need you to teach me. I can just wait here for you." Eria argued. "I applaud your discipline- But there is no telling when I will be done, and I cannot ask you to wait here for so long." Mitsuhide told her and looked to his vassal. "Kyubei, make sure that Eria rides her horse back to the stables." "As you command, my lord."
"Eria, depending upon how well you succeed, I may let you rest tomorrow." He smiled, that usual teasing tone returning to his deep voice as he said- "If you fall, simply ask Kyubei there to pat your head and tell you it will be all right." Eria's expression contorted to one of anger, 'Mitsuhide! You... You dick!' But he didn't even look at her before he left. '...So much for believing him to be gentle. That asshole...' "Lady Eria, if you'd like, I can assist you in the rest of your horseback training?" Kyubei suggested.
"Oh. Thank you, I would appreciate that uh... Kyubei." But he shook his head, "No thanks are necessary, my lady. I'm certain that's what my lord intended me to do." "...You think?" she asked. "Forgive me. I didn't mean to speak out of turn. Now, let's go ahead and practice riding faster." Kyubei spoke, smiling gently as he did. Then added- "Because at your current pace, we won't be able to stable your horse before sundown."
Eria stared at Kyubei, slightly astonished, but agreed, nonetheless. He was much softer on the ego than Mitsuhide, but no less severe.
By the time she was finished, Eria was sore. Sorer than she thought possible. Kyubei had taken his orders quite seriously and trained Eria until sunset. She had given it her all- quite literally. Despite riding until she could barely walk, Eria felt quite good about it. She did a few gentle stretches, hoping to alleviate the pain she'd feel the next day. But once she was done, she heard a voice beyond the door.
"Eria? Do you have a minute?" Hideyoshi called out. Eria gave him the okay, and he hadn't even taken one step inside before bowing apologetically. "I apologize for being too busy to see you." Eria merely shook her head and smiled, "It's quite all right, Hideyoshi. I got the tea you sent with Mitsunari, thank you." Hideyoshi stood up straight, "You're welcome. But I've been meaning to ask you- Has Mitsuhide been giving you any trouble? Saying anything to make you feel bad or playing any tricks that go too far?" he asked.
"No broken bones yet. May need to check again in the morning, but I'll survive." Eria answered, shrugging nonchalantly. Hideyoshi frowned, "That alone has given me a pretty good idea of how he's treating you." But Eria brushed him off, still smiling- "Really, it's okay! I like to believe I give as good as I get, and thanks to Mitsuhide's instruction, I'm improving all the time." Hideyoshi let out a sigh, a warm smile replacing his troubled frown, "...You're really special, Eria." He gave her a pat on the head, almost like an older brother would.
"Let me know if you even suspect he's pushing you too hard. I'll make sure he stays away from you." Hideyoshi told her, almost like he was trying to reassure her. Yet it didn't come across to Eria that way. Were those just his big brother instincts, or did he truly feel so strongly regarding Mitsuhide? Eria's smile fell, "...You don't seem to like, nor trust, Mitsuhide.. Do you?" she asked. Hideyoshi frowned, looking troubled, "I…want to trust him. I really do." He muttered. Had Eria guessed wrong about them? Hideyoshi sounded severely conflicted.
"My gut tells me his motives are good, but he's so evasive. I need something concrete. And he refuses to give me that. It's hard to trust a man with that many secrets. You be careful with him, Eria." Hideyoshi told her, both concern and care were clear in his tone. "I... I understand where you're coming from," Eria started, "I've noticed that he's hiding something too. Yet I can't even begin to decipher him. He's an enigma. Just in the few days he's been my instructor. My opinion keeps shifting."
Hideyoshi let out an annoyed groan, "Try knowing him for years." Hideyoshi breathed another sigh, "...I keep thinking how handy it would be if I could only peer into his mind," he admitted. Eria blinked. Hideyoshi and Mitsuhide have worked side by side for years, yet even Hideyoshi didn't understand him. Three months definitely wasn't enough time to find out, but even so, Eria found herself dying to know the truth about Mitsuhide. Perhaps she could try building off what others knew.
Recalling how he'd said she would have the next day off, Eria realized she could possibly ask the townspeople what they knew about him. She had a decent idea of what the castle thought of him. And who knew, maybe Mitsuhide was one of those people who behaved differently off the job?
The next day, Eria headed down to a local cafe and struck up conversation with some women around her age. "...You'd like to know about Lord Mitsuhide? Honey, do we have some stories for you!" One of them giggled. Eria smiled, "Yes, I would love to hear them. I've been working with him, but I'm curious about what he's like off duty. If you get what I mean?" But one of the women was quick to shake her head, "Oh, you are barking up the wrong tree, girl! Tempting as it is, do not get close to that one!"
The third woman nodded, "And if you get involved with him, you have to prepare for your life becoming a LIVING HELL." Eria's eyes widened, startled. Mitsuhide was that bad? The first one gave her a sympathetic smile, "We get you. He's got the power, the prestige! The sex appeal, well, you know! You're not the first one to go down this path. For one, he actually talks to people like us! No surprise girls swoon over him. 'He's my silver moonlight!' they'll all say." Her expression fell as she frowned, "But the moment you try saying that to his face? You stop existing to him. He's never once taken anyone seriously!"
Eria paused. 'Um... I don't recall asking about dating profile reviews.' The second woman's voice shook as she spoke- "...You can pretend there's something going on, but he'll never admit any feelings for you. It's not worth the run around! That said, no matter how hopeless it is, you just can't forget him. …Ahh, he's…just…too good!" Eria raised her hand slightly, "Wait. That's what you meant by 'living hell'?" The third woman nodded, "Some women go for him anyway, even knowing the horrible fate that awaits them. Well, we've warned you."
She and the other woman patted the still crying one on her shoulders as they left. Eria watched as they went, barely processing the new information. 'Okay. So, falling in love with Mitsuhide is a 'living hell.' Good to know.' It didn't sound like an overreaction either. Eria could definitely see it. Moths are attracted to flame, only to burn. Mitsuhide carried that inexplicable draw, like that of a phantom flame. '...Good thing falling in love with him is a problem I'm never going to have!'
"You there, girl. We heard you asking about Lord Mitsuhide?" Confused, Eria turned around to be faced with a group of Samurai. "Yes? I was." She answered. "You're that special maid they just hired, right? Listen, don't be taken in by his looks," the first Samurai warned. "...Why do women think he's so special anyway?" the second murmured. The third Samurai shrugged, "What can you say? He's good at tricking people. I guess that's why they call him a kitsune." That caught Eria's attention. Mitsuhide, a kitsune?
Kitsunes were trickster spirits that took the form of a silver fox with multiple tails. Well, Mitsuhide certainly had the look down. The second Samurai let out a laugh, "Ha! I prefer 'schemer' myself. What else do you call a guy who keeps in close contact with his own lord's enemies?" Eria startled, "Is that true?" she asked. Yet despite her asking, she wasn't all that surprised. Only a little. After all, in the history she'd known, Mitsuhide had betrayed Nobunaga to his death.
The third Samurai nodded with a look of disapproval in his eyes, "Yeah. He's got no honor. It's only a matter of time until he'll turn against Lord Nobunaga, sooner rather than later." '...Does he truly have no honor?' Eria couldn't help but wonder. Even she thought him suspicious. But holding no honor? It was a heavy insult for a warlord such as him, indeed. And from what she'd heard him say, it seemed that Mitsuhide thought more about right and wrong than most did.
The first Samurai met Eria's gaze head on, smiling boldly as he said- "Did you know, girl, Mitsuhide came from the lower classes? That is, he came from nothing. I heard it was through some dirty trick he got this high position at all. He didn't earn it, that's for sure." Eria's gaze hardened, "I find that difficult to believe." "Oh, yeah?!" the Samurai challenged. Judging by their reactions, they weren't accustomed to anyone telling them anything besides 'Yes, sir.'
Well, Eria had tried being polite. And while she didn't know Mitsuhide all that well either, she probably knew him better than they did. Eria stood from her table, crossing her arms as she stared the Samurai down, "In my experience working with Mitsuhide Akechi, I've found him incredibly intelligent, if a bit of the teasing type. Why should the class he was born into even matter when Lord Nobunaga clearly values him for his skill?"
Anger flared in the second Samurai's gaze, "Who taught you to share your opinion?! Don't you know how gracious we're being by talking to you in the first place, woman?!" '...Way to remind me I'm in a time period where women are nothing but possessions. But I refuse to be talked down to like this!' Eria grinned, a challenge still shone in her eyes as she stood her ground, "If I'm just some lowly woman to you… and it's only my opinion... Why are you so offended by it? Surely you could just ignore it as the ramblings of some girl, since you've already called me that more than once as if it's something derogatory?"
"That's enough mewling out of you, maid!" The third enraged Samurai reared his hand back to throw a punch. It was really no surprise that the warring states were like this, if all it took was a simple opinion to cause men to turn violent. Eria prepared to block his attack when- "It's a sign of weakness to resort to violence because you can't win an argument with wit." Eria's mouth went agape as her eyes widened. Surprised by the person who now stood in front of her- '...Mitsuhide?!'
He had caught the man's fist mid-swing with such a nonchalant smile on his face. "What… What are you doing here?" Eria muttered, disbelief lacing every ounce of her. "I said you could have the day off from your lessons- not from being observed." Mitsuhide told her. Eria's face flushed with embarrassment, '...Has he been watching me this entire time?! Oh no. Did he hear me asking those questions?!' The Samurai's anger was quick to turn to panic. One of them tried- "...Lord Mitsuhide, what you heard was…!"
But he gave them an unreadable and impassive look, "I heard nothing. And this argument never happened. Is that understood?" The men nodded. "Good. If anyone asks what you were doing, you can say… why, say that you encountered a kitsune." His tone was low and carried an air of danger. He released the man's fist, who was quick to fall backwards. The others carried an equal look of cowardice. The fight having been beaten out of them, they excused themselves and ran away.
"For all that you claim to be frightened, you certainly throw yourself into danger." Mitsuhide teased. Eria frowned, crossing her arms and tossing her gaze aside. "...I couldn't just stand there and listen to them speak like that. ...Thanks for stepping in." "One good turn…" Mitsuhide spoke, softly. "Huh?" "Nothing." He told her, turning to completely face Eria. "Now then..." He started, and realization struck. Mitsuhide had been watching her. He'd seen her go behind his back to talk about him. Eria smiled sheepishly at him, "...Please, hear me out before you get mad…"
Yet he didn't appear angry. Mitsuhide only smiled, "Would you like to share a drink?" He asked. "...What?"
"Two teas and whichever dessert is your most popular for the lady." "I'll have those right out!" the owner declared, then rushed off. Eria sat awkwardly across from Mitsuhide. She needed to apologize. But what could she say? "Now, I must say, Eria, you found a very interesting way to spend your day off." He commented. Eria bit her lip, blurting out- "I... I sincerely apologize. It was... It was rude of me to do that." Mitsuhide's eyes widened, "You're sorry?" He repeated, sounding confused.
"I should not have gone behind your back all because I was curious about you. I also apologize that you had to hear such gossip. I... I will never behave in such a way again." Eria, feeling ashamed, bowed her head down towards the table with hands folded in her lap. She couldn't look at him. "...You are far too contrite for your imagined sin, little mouse." Mitsuhide started to laugh. '...He's not upset?' Eria raised her head, staring at him confused as the tea and dessert plate were brought out.
"Stop looking like a scolded pup and eat that rather colorful fruit dessert, Eria." Mitsuhide told her. She narrowed her gaze, hesitant, "...Are you being serious? I thought you brought me here to scold me." "Do I look like Hideyoshi? I gain no pleasure from scolding people. As for why I've brought you here, this is a treat for putting up with my lessons." He said. "...That's the reason for treating me to tea?" He nodded, still smiling, "Yes. That and for before." "Before… what?" Eria questioned. "Do not let it bother you."
Mitsuhide sipped his tea, pleasure evident on his face. But Eria couldn't help but be confused. What could he mean? Well, at least he wasn't angry. But it was a weird thought. Sharing a meal with him was pretty weird, too. Eria took a sip of tea, repressing the displeasure that it brought her and awkwardly muttering- "...The... The tea is... good." "It is certainly tea." Mitsuhide said in response. He was just full of puzzling responses on this specific day, wasn't he. "...Would you like some of the fruit slices?" Eria asked.
"I don't feel hungry." He told her. "Okay... But you don't have to only eat sweets when you're hungry. It can also be eaten for pleasure." She muttered, though it was a philosophy Eria disagreed with. "So I have heard." Mitsuhide smiled. Growing tired of the awkward conversation, Eria picked up one of the sticks of peach slices, just barely nibbling at it. They were sweet, sickeningly so. She hated it, but it would be rude if she showed that.
"Are you sure you don't want any...? There's no harm in tasting it." She pushed. "Nor will there be any benefit in my doing so. My only concern is whether I am hungry or not." Mitsuhide informed her. "You don't think there's a benefit to it?" she questioned, "...Eating something that tastes good, that makes you happy... You've never had that experience?" "Of tasting something good? No." Mitsuhide shook his head. "These fruits are… good... though. Are you sure?" Eria tried to hide her grimace as she referred to the fruits as being 'good,' but was unsure if she was successful.
"They would be wasted on me; however sweet they taste to you." That was when the realization hit Eria. '...Does Mitsuhide not have a sense of taste?' she wondered. If that was his case, she chose to leave it alone and slowly worked on cleaning the plate herself. Regardless of how much she hated the taste of sweet foods.
Hearing Mitsuhide set his teacup down, Eria looked up. He sat relaxed with a single arm resting on the table. In such a state of attractive recline, he easily monopolized the gazes of each woman inside the place. Aside from Eria's, of course. The problem was that she could see HIS gaze solely taken up by her. '...He's just... He's just watching me.' A sense of unease built inside. She brushed her bangs out of her face and glared at him, "Keep staring like that and I'll think you're expecting a show."
"You are a sight enough just as you are." Mitsuhide said, a calm smile playing at his lips. Was he making fun of Eria again? Eria gave a mock smile, "Hm... Well, there's still plenty more peaches if you'd like to join the 'fun.'" She told him, doing air-quotes when speaking the word 'fun' with a hint of sarcasm. "There's no need for that." Mitsuhide spoke, "I am having a pleasurable enough time watching you enjoy yourself." Eria bit back a rude retort yet she still said- "...I believe you're mistaken. I can't recall if I've ever said before... But I'm not a fan of sweets so this is quite miserable for me, in fact."
"Oh? Most women are. Mind telling me why?" He inquired, tilting his head. "Hm... I suppose you could say that my sense of taste, ironically, is the complete opposite of yours. I have a sensory condition, so many sensations are overwhelming for me." Hoping to just leave it at that, Eria fell silent. Instead, she felt her face heating up, being the object of Mitsuhide's intense gaze. She expected his expression to turn to mockery, yet his smile remained gentle.
'..It's only getting harder to tell what he's thinking...'