Disclaimer: This is a work of fanfiction, I do not claim any rights to any of the characters or concepts created or owned by Viz Video or Rumiko Takahashi. This is just the work of one fan to the others. The only characters or concepts that I claim are the ones I created or introduced. That said, I bring you:
For Love and Money, Chapter 17: An invitation to tea, Part 1.
Konatsu watched the people that she cared for as they suffered, and even as she remained as placid as a still pond on the outside, her heart and mind roiled with emotions. Xaph Ti was clearly in over her head. Yes, she had done horrible things, but how much of that was her mother's influence? How much was nature over nurture? And where did she come from?
Ranma was not the kind of man to sleep around randomly, much less with someone like Rai Zur. Plus, from what she had heard from those that were present, it was obvious that Ranma only knew of her by reputation. No, they had gotten Ranma's seed some other way, and Konatsu had her own suspicions. She hoped she was wrong, or Qiang Pu's problems were even worse.
She would need to speak to that snitch, Gosunkugi. He was the best way to track down Xaph Ti Pyn before others did. And she had best place a call to the facility that handled the in vitro fertilization process for Ranma and Xian Pu. She nodded to herself as she looked at the mother and daughter pair before her. And that is exactly how she thought of them.
"This One will invite the young lady to tea." Konatsu said as she rose gracefully.
Nabiki wiped her eyes and looked at Konatsu. "Why, Konatsu? This is our problem, not yours."
"They involved this One's family and house. They have made it our problem. And this One considers you and yours family, as well." Konatsu said with a gentle smile.
"What can I do? What can we do?" Nabiki asked as she held Qiang Pu close.
"Take care of you and yours. You will have a trying time ahead of you, and your daughter must prepare for what must be done." Konatsu said as gently as possible.
Nabiki nodded as she hugged Qiang Pu tighter. The young girl looked at Konatsu and wiped her eyes as she tried to be the warrior she had been raised to be. "Be careful, please. She's good… And ruthless."
Konatsu smiled at Qiang Pu. "This One appreciates your concern, but rest assured she will receive her invitation, and be compelled to attend. This One is sorry for the burden you must bear in this, but there always is a price to be paid when one chooses the more challenging path to an end."
Qiang Pu nodded, then looked down. "Am I doing the right thing? I… I will have to take everything, because I'm being selfish…"
"You have a good heart, little one. Think not of this as taking everything from her, instead you are going her a new chance." Konatsu said.
Qiang Pu bit her lip and nodded
, as she shuddered and buried her head back into Nabiki's shoulder. Konatsu gave the pair one last gentle, sad smile before she left the room. As much as Qiang Pu tried to be the ruthless warrior that no doubt they had tried to raise her to be, she was still very much a twelve year old girl, one who had been shown a much different life, and had started to adapt to it in the short time she had been here. Konatsu did not know what the future held, but she could imagine that unless her birth mother called her home, they would have Qiang Pu as their guest for many years to come. Perhaps she could convince Xian Pu of the wisdom of letting her heir remain, to learn of the outer world and this other family she had found. A concern for later, it would seem. For now, she had to speak to Gosunkugi, but she intended to do it on her own ground. Best to remind him that no matter how important and knowledgeable he may be, that she still held more sway than him. No need to play his little games.
As Konatsu walked the halls of her home, she looked to the side as Koda joined her. "Have Nabiki and her daughter receive the full hospitality of the House. They will need what strength we can give them. This One also wishes that Gusunkugi would be invited for tea, there is much that must be discussed with him, and it is best to deal with a snake outside of its hole."
Koda nodded as she bowed deeply to the Mother of the House. "As it is wished, so shall it be done, Mother. This One shall see to it immediately. Is there a time that would be proper for Mr. Gosunkugi to visit?"
"At his first opportunity. The matter is urgent, but do not overplay it. Best not to have him think that he has an advantage." Konatsu said as she opened her fan and placed it before her mouth as she thought.
"As you wish, Mother." Koda said with a graceful bow before she departed to see to it herself.
Konatsu watched her go and nodded. "Perhaps it is time to see about arranging for Koda to have her own House. As much as this One would miss her, it is a far greater loss to not see her potential allowed to grow." Konatsu laughed softly as she walked towards her own quarters to see about making arrangements on her end. "This One has spent too much time around Mrs. Tendo, she has found herself being overly practical."
Konatsu settled in behind her desk to see about her daily correspondence and any requests that had been made directly to her. Requests for private performances and audiences were carefully weighed before a response was written, all according to how she judged best for the Tea House. Next came the new prospects, both those that she had scouted herself and those that were recommended.
She reviewed each one carefully, setting some aside, refusing others politely, but a few she sent a personal invite to, to speak to her before she decided if she would allow them to join the Tea House.
She had set the last letter down when there was a quiet, polite knock at her door. She took a moment to smooth her kimono before she said. "You may enter."
One of the young geisha's slid open the door and bowed. "This One has brought Hikaru Gosunkugi and one other to see you, Mother."
Konatsu arched an eyebrow at the fact that Gosunkugi had someone with him, especially since she was rather sure she knew who it was. "Bring them in, if that is their wish. Then you may return to your duties, This One shall take care of them."
The young woman bowed and ushered the odd pair into Konatsu's room. There was always the impression that Gosunkugi was skulking, someone that you didn't want to notice, that your mind tried to ignore. The fact that he was an unrepentant pervert certainly did not help.
The almost doll-like young woman at his side was dressed in deep purples and blacks, and had an abundance of lace that accentuated her Gothic Lolita look. It was certainly unusual to see her beyond the confines of the shop that they shared.
Konatsu rose gracefully and bowed to her guests. "You honor this One with your presence. Please, sit. This One will serve tea, then we may speak of what has brought us together today."
As the pair sat, Konatsu performed the time-honored ritual of tea. She prepared three cups, even though only two would be drunk. Regardless of a guests circumstances, it was important to include them if possible. And if anyone knew how important it was to keep up appearances, it was the unusual being that sat beside Gosunkugi.
Konatsu sat the tray on the table, and carefully placed each cup before she resumed her seat. As she lifted her cup, she regarded the pair from behind her placid mask. She decided to breach one of the touchier subjects first, always a good idea when dealing with the information broker. Payment.
"This One hopes that there will be no misunderstandings over payment. This One will not tender payment as Ranma has in the past, if that is acceptable?" Konatsu said as she watched the pair across from her.
Gosunkugi laughed nervously as he cast a furtive glance to the side. At that moment, Konatsu understood who she was negotiating with. That certainly made things more interesting, but it was important to keep up pretenses as long as the other party wished.
"If that is acceptable, then shall we proceed?" Konatsu asked as she looked at Gosunkugi, who nodded after another glance to the side "Very well. The Teahouse is prepared to pay well for the information we require. Name the amount, and we shall see if it is acceptable. The information we seek is the location of a certain young girl who has gone by the name Xaph Ti Pyn."
Gosunkugi nodded as he smiled that creepy smile of his. "I might know just the girl you are asking about. I am sure that I can get you what you need, as long as we agree on payment."
Konatsu nodded as she glanced at the young woman who had scowled at Gosunkugi, then sighed as she looked directly at Konatsu.
"Can we just stop pretending for a little while? Look, we have the information you need, or at least we can soon. You can help us out with something. Trading favors is always better than money, if you ask me." The gothic girl said as she looked at the other two, her surprisingly old eyes flashed with annoyance.
"That would depend on the favor asked, oh honored guest." Konatsu said as she eyed the other woman, while Gosunkugi just sort of looked back and forth between them helplessly.
The gothic looking woman nodded as she looked directly at Konatsu. "I wish to ask a favor of you in exchange information. I want you to act as an intermediary between myself and a young girl named Yaayaa."
"What is it that you would ask of her that you would need this One's intervention with?" Konatsu asked as she took a sip of her tea, her eyes peering over the rim into the unwavering eyes of the other.
"You are aware of just… What I am, right? What nature actually is?" The gothic girl asked.
Konatsu nodded slowly. "This One does, at least to an extent. You were cursed by the Kami, and turned into a doll."
The girl laughed and shrugged. "Pretty much. I was overly proud of my appearance, of my perfect, doll like appearance. I wished that I would stay that way forever. The Kami were cruel enough to grant my wish. There is a reason that immortality is considered the worst curse."
Konatsu nodded as she kept her impassive expression. "This One would say it's hard to imagine that you are a doll, with how you look."
The girl laughed. "Gosunkugi created this body for me, just like another had created the body I had used for the last century or so. I started out trapped in the form of a kokeshi in the Edo period. I think you would have put it around… Let's see… Sixteen-forty-five or so? After a couple hundred years you forget a lot of things. You can call me Hina. It's not my real name, of course. But, it works."
Konatsu nodded as she carefully placed her tea cup down and folded her hands in her lap. "Very well, Hina. Now, why do you wish to have me act as an intermediary with young Yaayaa? What is it you hope to get from dealing with a young girl who has lost so much?"
Hina paused as she worked out what she wanted to say, then pressed onward. "I want to make an exchange with her. She is paralyzed from the mid back down, and will never walk again. There are a lot of things that she will never be able to do. For me, such injuries are nothing. I can exchange places with people, whether they are willing or not. It's how I got around over the years. The only thing is, unwilling people tend to kick you out after a while. They force me to swap back to the current doll I inhabit. Now, there is one way to prevent that, according to what I have figured out over the years."
Konatsu nodded as she looked at Hina critically, as she knew that Hina wanted her to ask. "And that would be?"
"If she willingly gives up her body to me. She has to want to be free of it, to take my place in the doll. Now, the odds are good that when her body dies, I will be trapped back in the doll again, and she will go to whatever afterlife awaits her. But, we both get something we want out of it. I get to live as a living, breathing person again with all its faults and failings, and she gets an ageless body that will never know sickness, or lasting injury. I will teach her how to function in the doll, and to move from doll to doll. I will not teach her how to take over another person's body, though. That is my bad karma, and mine alone." Hina stared wistfully at the tea for a moment before looking at Konatsu and kowtowing to her. "Please help me with this. I'm a horrible person, and I know that there is no way I can convince her by myself. Hikaui is perhaps an even worse person than me, and there is no way he can help me with this. Please, this is my best chance to have something regarding a normal life. And…. I want to help her. What happened to her, it's wrong."
Konatsu didn't answer right away as she took another sip of her tea and regarded Hina intently. "And this One wonders, why her? Surely there have been others over the years that you could have made this proposition to?"
Hina nodded and bit her lip before she pressed on. "It's because it wouldn't have worked with them. Not as well, at least. Yaayaa Fujimaki is from my own family. She is descended from my sister, who was a good person and didn't anger the Kami out of stupid pride."
Konatsu nodded and looked at them. "And what would you tell her parents? How will you convince them? Have you thought of where Yaayaa would reside while she dwelled in your body? What of the actions that you, yourself, have taken that might reflect on her?"
Hina stopped and bowed her head. "I was honestly just going to talk to her. I figured that we could figure out some way to keep her parents out of this discussion. The fewer people that know, the better for both of us. And, I know that he is… Questionable… But Hikaru is utterly loyal, and he would take good care of Yaayaa for as long as she stayed with him. And… For the most part, there are only a few that my actions might have caused problems for her, and most of them are people that are close to you, to be honest. I know it's stupid and selfish… Just another stupid, selfish act from someone who should know better, but… It's a chance for all of us. Yaayaa can have the freedom of movement again, her parents can have a healthy daughter…. And I can feel again. I can taste again." Hina bowed her shoulders as she shook softly, and she clenched her fists tightly. "I can cry again…." She said in a broken voice, then jerked as she felt the surprisingly strong arms of Konatsu embrace her.
Konatsu looked at Gosunkugi and smiled softly. "One of the girls will take you home, if you didn't drive. If it's possible, this One would like to speak with Hina for a bit alone. There is much to discuss before this One will talk to Ms. Fujimaki on Hina's behalf, but this One will do what she can."
Hina gave Konatsu a hopeful smile, then turned to look at Gosunkugi and nodded. "I will be home later. Thank you so much, Hikaru."
Gosunkugi rose and smiled that creepy smile. "Anything for you, Hina. I… Will see you at home." He said before he walked out, and was met by one of the geisha outside.
"Now, we have much to discuss, Lady Hina." Konatsu said as she returned to her seat and pulled pen and paper from her low desk.
"Okay… Where do we begin?" Hina asked.
"From the beginning." Konatsu answered, and that is what they did.