A/N: Sorry. Forgot I was updating this week.

Fate's Shadow Part One

"This is all your fault," a hag hissed at a young girl, who was bent over her portion of the weaving frame. The girl struggled not to cry at the terrible mistake she had made in the fabric. A middle-aged woman, often the mediator between the two, knelt over to examine the mess, which had been woven decades before.

She whistled, wondering how the youngest of them managed to keep her mistake a secret for so long. "Oh dear. Well, since we can't undo what's been woven, we must find a new pattern to make this terrible mistake flow back into the fabric."

The crone looked up and scoffed. "How can we fix this, Sister? You can clearly see that this soul went into a human body, and nothing can change that."

The mother laughed merrily. "Things change and grow, do they not?" She sat next to the maiden, and rubbed one shoulder comfortingly. "All we have to do is create a pattern from here on that will shift the mess into what it's supposed to be, and put this soul where it was supposed to go."

"But we have already chosen a pattern," the youngest one protested. "How will we create a new pattern that coordinates with what has already happened?"

The crone rolled her eyes, and started looking through their vast collection of colored threads. "Easy, Sister. We'll create a new player; one that will have the power to change things."

The middle-aged woman smiled warmly, and looked over the blueprint of the pattern they were trying to execute. "Hmm… creating a new player will alter the design greatly, but I think it will be worth it, in the long run. Oh, but how to introduce this character in a way that he or she will have the maximum impact…"

The crone looked up. "It'll be a girl. Men are nothing but trouble."

The youngest one giggled. "How would you know? We never see any men here."

"No, but who's the one that steps out among the mortals when the tapestry tries to go astray from what we want?" the crone asked self-righteously. "It will be a girl."

The middle one sighed. "All right, it'll be a girl. Wait… I know exactly where to place her."

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

"Yeah, well I'm not the birdbrain here!"

"You already called me a birdbrain, you lard ball!"

"Lard ball?!"

Hasho sighed deeply, watching his two brothers start another brawl. Muta, his brother-in-law, had more of a sumo body, while his little brother had a lean build. But that didn't put Toto on the short side of the battle, since he was naturally faster than the fat man.

All the soldiers in the campground were pointedly ignoring the two as they wrestled around, pounding on each other. One even pushed his cart to the side, so that the two brawlers wouldn't roll into it.

Next to Hasho was a finely dressed man, who sighed while watching the two fight.

One hand held his mount steady, since the nobleman had just come off his horse. "You would think that they would have thought of new lines by now. Those got old a decade ago."

The general sighed in agreement, turning away from the makeshift battlefield. "But those two will never grow up, so why bother with new lines?"

The golden-haired noble chuckled softly, rubbing his cane with one finger. "I suppose that's true. Nevertheless, I wasn't about to miss the chance to drop by, as long as I and my son were in the area anyway."

General Yoshioka cast an eye to his old friend's little shadow, who was standing firmly on his father's other side. He had the same golden hair as his father, but his eyes were a rare green color. Although he was still a child, the boy was quickly adjusting to his status, in a nearly identical suit to his father's.

"And how have you been, Humbert? Keeping up with your studies, I hope?" the general asked softly. The ten-year-old lad straightened more, if such a thing was possible.

"Yes, sir," the boy said smartly, his eyes glowing with admiration for the legendary figure.

Hasho laughed, and patted the boy's shoulder. "Excellent. Learn as much as you can, before you start thinking that you know everything."

The boy laughed a little. "Only Mother knows everything."

Both of the elder man laughed at that comment.

"Be sure not to say that when she's in earshot," his father advised, helping the lad back onto the horse. "She might believe you."

"If she doesn't already," Hasho chuckled. "I wish you two could stay longer."

The baron shook his head sadly. "As do I, but when duty calls, one must answer. Humbert and I will drop by again soon."

The general waved one hand to the two, as they rode off down the road. Only the lad turned back, and waved. But Hasho understood. Harold had many duties. The general sighed, walking back to his personal tent, and started stripping off the practice armor.

'Humbert's becoming so tall. He'll make a fine young man one day.' A bit of old regret welled up in his heart. Despite the fact that he and his wife loved each other deeply, they had not been blessed with a child, in the twelve years of their marriage. They had tried to adopt a few times, but then something would always go wrong on the way. His heart heaved once more, remembering the feel of Humbert as a baby on his lap whenever his parents would visit. The von Gikkingens had been good friends of the Yoshiokas for years, a fact that Hasho was deeply grateful for. He sighed again.

"Excuse me."

The general shot out of his cot, looking around for the intruder. A crackly laughter assailed him from the outside of his tent.

"If your generalship would be so kind as to greet me, I have a gift for you."

Wary of the voice, Hasho slipped a dagger into the special pocket in his pants before coming out. A wizened old crone looked up at him, grinning with missing teeth.

"Yes?" he asked carefully.

The woman began sifting around in the basket. "Where did I put that thing? Ah, here it is!" Confidently, she handed him a slightly bulky package, wrapped up in brown paper.

Curious, Hasho began to untie the cord, and unwrap the item. His eyes widened. "What use could I possibly have for a rattle?" he asked, shaking it at her.

The woman laughed. "It'll be for your daughter, not you."

"I don't have a daughter." Much to his dismay.

The woman laughed, and began hobbling away. "Not yet, you don't. But if I were you, I'd hurry home to the Mrs. General, and make sure that the little darling shows up before the year is out."

Outraged, the general ran to her, and stood in front of the woman, his chest heaving with anger. "How dare you! My family's affairs are none of your business, woman!"

She smiled at him again. "But isn't that what you would like? A little girl to sit on your lap, and call you Papa?"

His iron exterior threatened to collapse. "It wouldn't be so bad-"

The woman patted his arm, her dark eyes twinkling. "Try to have a little faith, General. Do as I say and you will have a beautiful daughter that will bring honor to the family name." She winked once at him. "After all; what do you have to lose by following my words?"

He thought about it as the woman laughed again, and hobbled away into the trees.

Suddenly Toto grabbed his shoulder, the other hand holding a soaked rag to his eye to help with the swelling. "Are you feeling all right, Brother?"

Hasho pointed to the trees that the old woman had passed through. "Did you hear what she said?"

Toto blinked twice. "Eh? I thought you said no women on military ground."

"I did, but there was an old woman just now. Didn't you see her?"

The raven-haired man tilted his head to one side, confused. "Hasho, I only saw you. You looked like you were talking to yourself."

"I wasn't! I was talking to the crone!"

Toto shook his head again. "No, you came out of your tent, and walked around. I watched you. There was no crone."

The general looked down in his right hand, which was still holding a pastel-colored rattle.

The general's brother also looked down, and grinned mischievously. "Aren't you a little old for such a trinket?"

Hasho nodded, wondering what had just happened. The woman was real, there was no doubt of that. But Toto couldn't lie to save his life. The leader looked up and towards the soldiers, to see that they were also staring at him like he had lost his mind.

Slowly, the general smiled. "Yes, I'm a little old for this." He slipped the toy into his pocket, and started walking back to his tent. "Give the order to break camp and march. I'm feeling a little homesick."