Kazuha

A steaming filet of white ocean fish was placed before Kaedehara Kazuha, and he smiled softly at the look of the fish. His amber eyes examined it: the flesh was vibrant white and juicy; the skin was crispy and lightly charred; the toppings… what toppings? Why would anyone ruin the purity of this fish with toppings? A sprinkle of salt crystals only.

Kazuha tucked some of his long, tan hair behind his ear. He sighed and inhaled deeply of the steam coming off the filet. This was the joy of wandering a city and hunting out the best places to eat. This moment of success. Kazuha might have spent a great deal of his recent time outside his homeland of Inazuma, but he knew this was an Inazuman native fish cooked by a native Inazuman master chef.

The last three months provided Kazuha with a welcome opportunity to reacquaint himself with his homeland. When he'd exiled himself to avoid the Vision Hunt Decree, he thought he would never come back. Things like this fried fish made him glad that he had been wrong. Thanks to the informal amnesty granted to himself and many other dissidents, Kazuha had decided to… limit his wanderings to Inazuma again. It felt right to be home.

"Thank you for the meal," said Kazuha quietly as he set his katana against the food stall between his legs before taking up his chopsticks. He split the wood and-

The stool underneath him suddenly vanished and Kazuha fell to the ground, immediately aware that the reason his stool had vanished was because a large Shogunate soldier had kicked it. Before Kazuha's hand could get to his sword, practically before he could even land on the ground, three more soldiers piled atop him, pinning his arms to his sides- and then tying them behind his back.

Kazuha grunted and tried to fight, but it was too much too fast. He was caught. Just like that.

"Kaedehara Kazuha," said a Shogunate samurai, leaning down and plucking off Kazuha's Vision gem while another man picked up Kazuha's sword. "Your presence is requested by the Shogun. Immediately."

"Can I just eat my fish?' said Kazuha with frustration. He didn't like being denied his freedom, nobody did. But he also really wanted to try that filet! He could escape from captivity later, but the fish was hot now! The dish was only in peak perfection for a mere handful of moments!

"No," said the samurai, and he made a hand motion to the soldiers under his command.

"Just one bite, then!" grunted Kazuha as more guards put hands on his restrained body.

Kazuha felt himself lifted up and carried off and there was very little he could do about it. He cursed inwardly. He'd doubted the validity of the Shogun's amnesty in the early days of the peace, but he'd grown complacent. Now he was a prisoner in Inazuma when he could have been in Liyue someplace. Or maybe even Fontaine. He still needed to go there.

Now, it was possible he might not go anywhere again. Ever.

The Shogunate guards were no rookies, much to Kazuha's frustration. Two guards kept tight fists in his clothing the entire long walk to Tenshukaku. Without ceremony, they pulled him though the castle's front gate, the posted guards not even raising an eyebrow at their passage. Kazuha entered the main castle courtyard as an empty palanquin was leaving it. The guards brought him to a stop near the entrance of the castle itself, the large wooden doors of the structure swung open wide in this time of peace.

After a few minutes, a samurai in elaborate armor emerged from the castle and approached Kazuha and his mandatory escort. The samurai conferred with the captain of the soldiers and the junior soldiers were dismissed and went on their way. The captain and the new samurai of the gate put their larger and higher-ranked fists into Kazuha's clothing and pulled him into the castle and up the grand stairway.

And another stairway.

And another.

And another.

And another.

Finally, they seemed to have run entirely out of stairs and turned down a short and elaborate hallway. Purple banners lined the passage, each with the gleaming golden eye of eternity. At the end of the hall, before a large baroque door, stood a rather voluptuous woman in the clothing of a shrine maiden- though she was displaying a lot more pretty leg than any shrine maiden Kazuha had ever seen.

"Good enough, gentlemen," said the shrine maiden, nodding a head of peach-colored hair at the soldiers. "I will take him the final distance. Oh, and do cut off those ropes."

"Yes, sir!" said the soldiers together and they let go of Kazuha, cut his bonds, and left.

Kazuha had no hope of escape, being this deep in the castle. Not to mention that would be a rather cowardly thing to attempt at this point. He simply put his arms to his sides, ignoring a compulsive desire to rub his freed wrists, and looked quietly at the shrine maiden.

Meanwhile, the woman's light purple eyes were watching him and she had a small smirk on her face.

"Do you know who I am?" said the shrine maiden.

Kazuha did know who she was, by reputation and description. Though he had never seen her in person before.

"You are Head Shrine Maiden Yae Miko," said Kazuha evenly.

Yae Miko's smirk widened just enough to show a few teeth. "A bit of a mouthful, is it not?"

Kazuyha didn't have anything to say to that, and so decided to stay silent.

"I want to give you some advice before you enter the throne room," said Yae Miko, her smile fading until she looked simply calm and serious. "The Raiden Shogun is in an… unusual mood today. Family things, we might say."

Kazuha kept his face carefully neutral. Family issues? The Shogun had family? Did Yae Miko mean other gods? Or? He had no idea.

"So," continued Yae Miko, "Be careful in what you say and in how you say it. I cannot say that I know the Raiden Shogun's mind exactly, but I do not believe that she intends to kill you today."

Kazuha's heart skipped a beat. God did not intend to kill him today, but that seemed to leave the possibility that it might happen anyway. So- this might be it. Kazuha realized he might very well be dead in the next few moments. He found that news… surprisingly empty. If he died here. What would happen? He would… not go to Fontaine… and?

That was pretty much it.

Was not…? Was not that somewhat sad? He wasn't particularly worried about death because he wasn't particularly living for anything. Kazuha took a deep breath. Well, too late now, regardless.

"I understand," said Kazuha.

Yae Miko pursed her lips at him, staring into his eyes thoughtfully. Without further words, she turned and opened the door to the Raiden Shogun's throne room and Kazuha followed her inside. The grand room was wide and empty, taking up almost the entirety of this top floor of the castle. Gleaming dark hardwood stretched out, flanked by two rows of dark purple columns, all covered with the swirling eye of eternity symbol. The wall was gilded and decorated with the image of columns decorated in the same fashion, and in the viewing of the real columns moving against those painted upon the walls, it gave Kazuha the impression that the empty space of the throne room stretched on forever.

At the head of the room on raised dais, sat god.

She took the form of a beautiful, lithe woman. Vibrantly lilac eyes stared at Kazuha as he and Yae Miko approached. Dark purple hair, exquisitely braided, flowed over one bare shoulder and upon a divinely perfect bosom, half revealed by a low cut tunic. Kazuha was not overly surprised or enamored. He had seen god before.

"You," said Raiden Shogun, her voice throaty and powerful, but surprisingly humanlike. "You are the one who denied Us the Traveler's life."

Yae Miko bowed herself out of the conversation, retreating to the side of the room beyond the pillars.

Kazuha stood steadily, then bowed deeply to the Shogun. Whether he liked her or not, whether her defied her will or not, something deep within Kazuha made him give proper respect to the Raiden Shogun. She was Inazuma's god and thus deserved respect, no matter what.

"Yes," said Kazuha with a clear and steady voice.

"You do not have any comprehension," said the Raiden Shogun, slowly. "How long it has been since something has withstood Our Musou no Hitotachi?"

Kazuha thought it best to leave that rhetorical question pass unmet.

"Since never," said Raiden Shogun, her eyes widening to a somewhat disturbing degree. "It never happened. In all Eternity."

Kazuha could say nothing to that

"Eternity must be regained," said Raiden Shogun, looking down her nose at him. She made an imperious sort of hand gesture. "You must do it again."

Kazuha took a deep breath. He did not like where this was going. "I apologize, Raiden Shogun. I honestly do not know how I did it then, and I do not know how I might perform it again for you now.

"We know how: a duel. Now. Here," said god and she stood up from her dias, taking up her naginata which she immediately pointed at Kazuha's face. "Draw your sword. Your fight against Us will draw the ability out."

Raiden Shogun walked down her steps, her naginata low and casually menacing at her side. Kazuha felt there was nothing to be done but to draw his sword. Duel with the Shogun? He had never heard of such a thing. The Shogun watched duels and punished the loser. She did not fight them herself because… well, who could beat her? A duel with Raiden Shogun was no different than execution.

But Kazuha clearly had no choice and there was nowhere to go. He drew his sword and readied himself. Did he have his Vision? Yes, he did. But would it be any use? As Kazuha set his feet and put himself into his usual ready stance, Raiden Shogun stopped before him and raised her naginata blade at him again.

"We begin," said Raiden Shogun, and within a blink of Kazuha's eye, she was right in front of him.

Kazuha felt a wall of energy slam into his body and the room spun as he flew backwards. His back hit the hardwood floor and he tumbled to a rough stop. He blinked and gritted his teeth as pain signals from his entire body entered his mind at the same time. Kazuha bit back a groan and instead concentrated on getting to his knees, and then to his feet.

Raiden Shogun was looking at him with disappointment.

Kazuha hadn't even seen her move. She was that fast. How was he supposed to do anything against that? What good was even his Vision? And Tomo's Vision? He'd needed them both to stop Raiden Shogun before, but its not like Kazuha even understood how that had happened. Did the Shogun really think this was an effective educational technique?!

He raised his sword and gasped back the complaints of his universally bruised musculature.

"Again!" said Kazuha.

Raiden Shogun seemed to vanish again, though this time Kazuha thought he actually saw her move. But by then, she was already next to him. In a half instant, he saw the blade of Raiden Shogun's naginata stop a half-inch from his body, and then his world again was a tumbling chaos and-

Kazuha slammed into the wall, air and spittle exploded from his mouth as his chest compressed with the impact, his skull smacked the wood and Kazuha's vision flashed white a moment. He was semi-aware that his sword clattered away off the wall, the impact too much for his wrist to withstand.

Kazuha fell limply down to the floor, his body full of agony, his lungs empty of air and refusing to fill themselves. He could taste blood. He could feel something warm running past the corner of his eye. His hands and fingers were twitching and seemed to not exactly follow his commands.

And Raiden Shogun had not even actually hit him. As near as Kazuha could figure it, though his mind was besieged by pain signals from his entire body: Raiden Shogun had merely moved, and the air displaced by the passage of her physical form had literally blown him away.

"Pick up your sword. Get up," said Raiden Shogun with impatience. "You did not even react. Had We struck you, you would have died."

Kazuha rolled onto his back, breath finally gusting back into his lungs. The Raiden Shogun's image spun in his vision as she stood over him, the blade of her naginata swirling in his watering eyes. He gasped in air with relief, but all the aches of his body caught up with him and his second breath was a long gasping groan. Kazuha had been sliced with blades several times, a few times very deeply. But this was the hardest concussive blow he'd ever experienced, and it was spread over his entire body.

"Get. Up." commanded god.

What could one do? Kazuha got up. Slowly. Agonizingly. First to his knees, wherein he found his sword nearby. He reached for it, missed it, reached it again and gripped it. He staggered to his feet in a burst of speed, and then wavered there, dazed. The weight of the sword in his arm hurt his bicep. He teetered, his sword point dragging the ground, but he was up.

Raiden Shogun frowned at him as she walked back to her starting position, her gleaming lilac eyes glaring at him, her spear held strongly against her forearm.

"Ah," said god in sudden revelation. "We know. You are not properly motivated. It must be in the moment itself that you gain the ability to stop Musou no Hitotachi! Perhaps you must see it. You must face the real thing."

Teetering on his feet; struggling to raise his sword an inch off the ground; blood dripping from nose and mouth and forehead, Kazuha again witnessed a god reach into the core of her own being and withdraw a blade forged of her divinity. The ethereal blade seared into Kazuha's vision, forcing him to wince away from it, holding up a feeble hand in an attempt to shield his eyes.

Kazuha realized the next exchange would kill him. Tomo's Vision would not answer him again. Kazuha could feel it in the air. So, Kazuha watched the Raiden Shogun pull his death from between her breasts and he wondered how it had it come to this? Wasn't this what Tomo had wanted and he had not? What a strange fate that Kazuha should be here now, in this exact situation.

"So," said Raiden Shogun. "If you do not do as you did before, you will die. What do you say to that?"

Kazuha's eyes traveled the throne room. The eternal eye of the shogun seemed to stare at him from everywhere. Every royal purple banner. Every bit of carved wood. Every flag and banner. He had the full attention of god herself.

What to tell her? In this moment? At the end of his part of her Eternity?

He took a deep breath and tried to fill his mind with his entire life up to this final moment. Visions of trees in the woods. Visions of the sea at night. The feel of his skin in the hot sun. The taste of wine and camaraderie. The sweet flesh of a fruit while the wind whistled past his ears.

"Well?" said god with impatience. "Kaedehara Kazuha?"

"Consider me," said Kazuha, the words surfacing from his mind like jewels from a pond, "As one who loved poetry and persimmons.*"

Raiden Shogun blinked at him, frowning. She seemed to hesitate. A long silence reigned in the room. But then an expression of placid determination returned to her divine face and she held up her sword in preparation to smite Kazuha from reality itself.

"You hear it, too, don't you, Ei?" said a new voice in the throne room, and Kazuha remembered that Yae Miko was also here. The gracefully voluptuous form of the shrine maiden strode out from the shadows of the room's columned supports. "That was a death poem. The man knows he is going to die. He will not be able to block your strike. "

"If he does not block it, then Eternity is broken," said Raiden Shogun with quiet exactitude. "He will block it. He must block it. He must always block it."

"Ei, dear, you of all," said Yae Miko in somewhat exasperated fashion, "Should realize that Eternity doesn't happen right away."

There was silence in the throne room as god, with devastation literally in her hand; paused- and looked thoughtfully at her priestess.

"...You are suggesting that he will be able to do it again in the future."

"I think it more possible than if you kill him now, silly," said Yae Miko, taking on an astonishingly casual tone with her own god.

"So you don't know, do you, Yae?" said Raiden Shogun, annoyed. "Not really."

"Let us focus on what I do know rather than what I don't," said Yae Miko. "I do know this young man used two Visions at once to block your strike on that previous occasion. And I know one of those Visions belonged to someone you executed, Ei. I know that gem. I saw it on a man who did not withstand Musou no Hitotachi. But later, when this new man Kazuha possessed it, the Vision activated along with his own- and you were foiled."

Yae Miko put a thoughtful finger on the tip of her chin. "I think, Ei, that it is the synchronization of two human spirits that enabled this to occur. An eternal joining of two human souls in a single moment. Eternity in a singular instant."

Raiden Shogun lowered her weapon, apparently interested. "...Eternity in a singular instant."

"Yes," said Yae Miko, grinning slyly. "And I think I can make it happen again."

"How?"

Yae Miko smiled. "Oh, why don't you let me worry about that, Ei. I'd rather not tell you in case it doesn't work. That would be embarrassing."

The lilac eyes of god stared balefully at Yae Miko for a long moment, but then god said: "Fine. Do it as you see fit, Yae. Make this man able to block Musou no Hitotachi. He has a year and a day."

The killing sword dematerialized from Raiden Shogun's hand and she walked out of the throne room without a second glance at Kazuha.

Yae Miko watched the exit of Raiden Shogun and sighed under her breath. "The chick is out of the nest for an hour and now look at her…" Then Yae Miko turned her soft, purple gaze upon Kazuha and grinned a toothy grin.

"I just saved your life," said Yae Miko.

Kazuha collapsed to his knees, his sword barely holding him up. He leaned on the support of his sword's hilt. His heart was beating in his chest. He wasn't going to die. Not yet. But he'd accepted it. Had been ready for it. So… what life was this now? Well, whatever it was, he should probably start it off politely. Kazuha let go the sword and attempted a very formal kneeled bow to Yae Miko.

"Thank you very much for your intercession."

Yae Miko stood there, smirking at him, her eyebrows raised significantly. "Well, now that reminds me of someone."

Then Yae Miko blinked a few times. Her finger tapping on her chin, her eyes dancing as if the mind behind them was working some complex feat of calculation. Then a slow smile spread over Yae Miko's face.

"Oh. That just might do it... Guards!"

Kazuha winced at Yae Miko's sudden shout. The rapid approach of booted feet never heralded something good for his fortunes. He began to idly wonder if maybe being destroyed by Raiden Shogun would have been preferable to whatever was about to happen to him now.

"Kaedahara Kazuha," said Yae Miko sweetly. She knelt down by him, tucking her long, bare legs under a flap of her white robe. "You were previously, and by virtue of no official pardon, still are guilty of opposing god's will. The witnesses are many. The punishment is death. Are you… aware of this?"

"Of course," said Kazuha, starting to feel exhausted again. What did this woman want with him? To deny the amnesty of the Vision Hunt Decree? Well… that amnesty had not been overtly offered and apparently god was a fickle bitch. Kazuha should have left Inazuma long ago, fool that he was.

Yae Miko's voice took on a purring quality. "Would you be willing to do a… little favor for the Shogunate?"

".. a favor?" said Kazuha, wiping blood from his mouth. Quid pro quo, was it?

"What favor?"

Yae Miko grinned at him toothily. "Get yourself cleaned up first. Rest. We will talk about the favor tomorrow morning. Guards, take this man to a fine suite. Tell the maids to treat him as an honored guest."

Kazuha frowned. That sure sounded like Yae Miko was assuming he was going to say yes. Now he was tempted to say no. To deny… whatever it might be, just to spite Yae Miko's apparent machinations. Or maybe, he could just enjoy a free bath and a free meal and then skip out of the castle and get off the island and out of Inazuma altogether. For good.

Yae Miko gave one final order to the guards: "And make sure to post guards at the door and below all the windows. I want to be absolutely sure our guest has breakfast with me tomorrow. I hate it when men try to skip out in the wee hours of the morning."

Kazuha sighed softly. Damn.

Ayaka

I'm going to do it, Kamisato Ayaka thought to herself. I'm going to do it. Three nights from tonight.

Three months ago, the Vision Hunt Decree had ended. The Traveler, the key person who helped end it, had taught Ayaka two valuable lessons:

1. Worrying too much about the expectations of others was a prison of one's own making.

2. Diplomacy was ineffective against an obstinate foe. Sometimes, only action could accomplish a goal.

And after thinking about it and second-guessing herself over the the last three months, Ayaka was now ready to change her life based on these lessons. She wasn't going to let foolish notions of bloodlines and clan honor determine who she would love. She was pretty sure she loved Thoma. And she was sure Thoma loved her.

So! Well! Ayaka would give herself to him, just like the women in the books did to their loves, and she had it all arranged.

She would go to a hot spring resort and Thoma would be her steward, as he often was. Ayaka's loyal maids would attend her as servants and chaperones. But Ayaka had the loyalty of her own maids, and they would leave the room at night, and then it would be just Thoma and her. And then… and then…

Well! Something would happen! And it would be wonderful! Ayaka was sure of it. In three days. Just three days more.

There was a knock on the door.

"Come in," said Ayaka.

The door opened and her older brother was standing there, Kamisato Ayato. His somewhat tired and haggard face looked even more so as he gazed upon her from the doorway. Ayaka felt a flutter in her chest, a premonition of some dire portent.

"Ayaka," said Ayato, his eyes full of regret. "May I come in?"

Ayaka's heart was thudding in her chest, making her feel like a sparrow. She hated that feeling.

"Oh, just tell me, Ayato. What is it?!"

"This was just delivered by the Shogun's courier a moment ago." Ayato held up a scroll, gilded on the sides with purple cloth and the gleaming golden eternal eye of the Shogunate. "B- by order of the Shogun Herself, you are to be married. She has already chosen your husband."

Ayaka clutched her chest. "Who?"

Ayato looked entirely beside himself. He offered a helpless shrug. "It doesn't say."

"I- I see…" murmured Ayaka.

She'd always known this day would come. It was inevitable, given her status as the daughter of a prominent clan. She took a steadying breath.

Well, it was a good thing she would have her moment with Thoma soon. Perhaps he could think of a way to avoid this wedding from happening. Maybe they could… elope entirely? Return to the places across the ocean that Thoma always told stories about. Yes, in three days, she and Thoma would be together and then plan her escape.

However, Ayato could know nothing of this plan. No one could. Not even her maids. She would have to keep her ambition entirely secret and plan it out meticulously. How long did she have?

"And when is this wedding to be?" asked Ayaka, proper and demure, like she was always supposed to be.

She predicted the wedding would likely be in two or three months. That was usually the time frame to prepare such things properly. Two months would be more than enough time to figure out a plan with Thoma.

"It's tomorrow afternoon," said Ayato, with a wincing grimace.

Ayaka blinked up at him.

"WHAT?!"

*Kazuha's haiku in this line is by Masaoaka Shiki