Isao stared into her eyes, then looked down, bowing his head in acknowledgement. “Very well then, wife. I’ll go.” Then he smiled, and reached out and took Aika’s hand in his own. “Thank you, brave wife of mine.”
*****
They were planning to leave that very evening. Isao and Hanako had traded in their beautiful silk kimono for simple cotton kosodes. Misaki had been passed into the care of her aunt, while Daisuke was instructed to listen very carefully to his Hanako-oba-sama. Isao had ordered for a ship to be ready for them at sunset, and had spent the last hours giving Enzou and Aika instructions.
It was then that another snake slipped in through a crack in the shoji doors. Hanako was the first to notice it--it was much larger than Bijin no Momoko had been, but it was the same, pure, iridescent white. She stood up from her zabuton and padded over to the door, kneeling down (how nice it was to have such freedom of movement again at last!) “Are you another messenger of the Celestial Guardians, hebi-san?”
The snake looked up at her and blinked deep, blue green eyes. “Yes, my lady Empress. I am Tadamichi no Momoro, and I bear a message from Izumi Miwa-sama of Yamazaki.”
“Well, then, I’d better take you to Akashi-dono and Isao-dono.” Hanako said. “Here,” and she stretched out her hand. Tadamichi gratefully to her arm and slithered up it, wrapping around her wrist and allowing her to carry him to where Isao, Aika, and Enzou were cloistered. Akashi Keiji was napping upon a zabuton in the corner, and besides him primly knelt a woman Hanako had never met before. She was exceptionally pale--almost snow-white of skin, but her hair which was gathered elegantly atop her head was as crimson as the rising sun, and she was clad in a white kimono decorated with black branches and flying cranes.
She smiled and bowed when Hanako looked her way. “We have not met yet, little Empress, but I am Chiharu Rie, the Crane of Nagisa.” She was ethereally beautiful and a pretty smile was upon her lips, but her deep brown eyes were stained with recent sorrow.
Hanako remembered the bone-chilling feeling as the Crane’s mourning cry swept over her, and felt her heart ache.
“I am very glad to have met you, Chiharu Rie-dono,” Hanako said with a regal bow of her head. It was strange, still… strange and wonderful, to speak to celestials descended from the Heavenly Court as if they were equals.
“Did you need something, Hanako-chan?” Isao asked.
Hanako raised her arm, allowing them to see the snake who had his head resting upon the back of her hand. “We were sent a message from Izumi Miwa-dono of Yamazaki.”
Chiharu Rie’s lips drew into a thin line, and Akashi Keiji’s ears flicked.
Tadamichi no Momoro slid forward, as if to slip off of Hanako’s hand, and in a sinuous flash of movement, there was a young man standing there. He looked very much like Bijin no Momoko, with pale skin and white hair, which he had caught in a topknot, but he took the appearance of a young man who had gained his majority. “I bring grave news, a plea for help from the Koi.”
The Fox lifted his head and the Crane’s eyes narrowed, and the messenger closed his sea-green eyes. “This morning, insurrectionists in Yamazaki, who Izumi Miwa-sama believes to have been supported by Princess Katsumi, managed to ambush Shogun Matsushita Yoshiro while he was traveling, and slew him and his entourage. However, the Koi managed to spirit the Princess and her son away to safety. The Princess Matsushita now reigns as the Lady Regent for her son Matsushita Taro, who is now the shogun. However, the Shogun is only a child of seven years, and the Princess begs that you uphold the promise you made to her honored husband and send aid to protect her.”
There was a little silence that Isao broke. “I see. I had hoped that any action by Katsumi would be delayed while Empress is safely in our guard, but it seems I was foolish. The only question is, what shall I do?”
“You can send Ichiro-san to her,” Aika said, her eyes wide with worry. “The poor woman--she has just lost her husband, and now she must rule a country all on her own and protect the rightful Shogun from the grasping nobility.” Isao hadn’t said anything, so the princess reached out and clasped his hands pleadingly. “I know you worry for me, my lord, but please, I’ll be just fine. You have plenty of other Shinobi in your service that are fully capable of protecting me, so honor your word and send the best to aid Princess Makoto.”
A rather peculiar expression spread across Isao’s face, so Hanako spoke up, hoping to help. “You don’t need to worry, Aika-dono. Isao-dono can just have the other Ichiro-san go to help Princess Makoto, and the first Ichiro-san can stay here with you. Both of you will be in good hands!”
It took her a moment to realize everyone in the room was staring at her. Aika and Enzou had looks of pure confusion on their faces, while the Crane and the Fox were gazing at her in amusement. Isao had a twisted look of shock and guilt on his face, and Ichiro, in a shocking lack of self-control, twitched in surprise.
“Ah, eh, perhaps I have erred…” Hanako said humbly, “But was not everyone aware that there are two Ichiro-sans?”
“No.” Enzou said dryly. “No, Hanako-hime-sama, I am afraid we were not.”
“Ah.” Hanako said. “I see.”
“Perhaps, my husband,” Aika said primly, “You would be so kind as to explain?”
“Oh, well…” Isao began. “I thought, perhaps, it would be an advantage… if people thought that my two bodyguards and the heads of my personal Shinobi clan were only one. Besides, Shoichi and Shuichi were far more comfortable with the idea of hiding the fact they were twain, for they’d been doing it all their life.”
“It is true, Aika-sama.” The Ichiro in the corner said softly.
“And which one are you?” Aika asked.
The Shinobi bowed deeply. “The name my lord gave to me is Ichiro Shoichi, Aiko-sama.”
“Are you the older one?” Hanako asked curiously. The Shinobi shrugged.
“I don’t know, Hanako-sama. We were never told which of us was the elder.”
There was an old pain hidden in the faint lines of the part of his face that she could see, and Hanako silently vowed to discover the tale behind her brother-in-law’s faithful shinobi.
“Who else knew that there were two?” Aika asked, and Isao thoughtfully scratched the back of his head.
“Besides me? Well… Ayaka and Sumiko, your ladies in waiting. They’re, uh, married to Shuichi and Shoichi.” Aika nodded, and Isao continued, “Well, Hanako-sama, apparently, which I had not expected, and probably Chiharu Rie-dono and Akashi Keiji-dono. Oh, and Daisuke. I think.”
The princess blinked and mouthed something that looked like “Daisuke?” to Hanako, but Isao had already moved on. “As Hanako-sama suggested, I’ll leave Shoichi here with you, wife, and I’ll send Shuichi in order to protect and guide Princess and Shogun Matsushita safely to Karigane. Is that acceptable?”
It apparently was, for late that night the four of them--Isao, Hanako, Daisuke, and Kenshin, all gathered to board their boat. Hanako held a slightly fussy Kenshin close and rocked him, hoping to soothe him and distract herself from staring morosely at her little daughter, safely cradled in Lady Ayaka’s arms.
Isao was standing with his wife, and they both had very solemn looks on their faces. But after a moment, a smile slipped across Isao’s face, and he lifted the knuckles of Aika’s fingers to his lips in swift salute. Then he turned and strode onto the deck, never once giving a backwards glance.
“Are you read, little sister?” He asked, and Hanako nodded. “WEll, in that case, sailors! Away we go!”
*****
They sailed down the river Ginshi and out into the bay of something or other, then skirted along the southern coast of Karigane. The captain of the ship had announced how absolutely wonderful the wind was, and how unusual the fact that the wind had stayed with them the whole trip.
Hanako had glanced at Akashi Keiji then, who didn’t say anything, but merely licked a paw in a smug manner.
After two and a half days they docked at Tsumura, much
to the dismay of Daisuke, who had greatly enjoyed the trip. The Sun was just beginning to draw towards the west when they disembarked, Isao leading an unhappy Daisuke by the hand and Hanako with Kenshin in a sling upon her back. They slipped through the crowded, noisy streets of the port city and to the other side.
When they had finally made it to the rice fields on the far side of the city, Hanako sighed in relief. “It was very crowded, far more crowded than I remember Konami being, Isao-san.”
“That’s because Tsumura is at the very southern end of the Great North-South Road that goes all the way to Chiyono in the North. It’s even bigger than Seitan in Nagisa. It’s not as big as Merina-no-Kosaten where the North-South and East-West roads collide, but it’s still very important.” Isao shaded his gaze with one hand and stared out towards the north. “More importantly at the moment, however, is the North-South road, because it goes right past Kyouka and the palace of Karigane’s Shogun. It’s nice and smooth and always kept maintained, so once we hire horses we’ll be able to get by sunset tomorrow.”
“That shan’t be necessary.” Akashi Keiji said from where he reclined majestically upon a rock. “I will carry you along the road, and far swifter than anything a mortal horse could manage.”
Isao looked at him and raised an eyebrow. “That’s very kind of you, Fox-dono, but I am afraid that I must break to you the fact you are a fox. The only one who could ride you is Kenshin-chama, and he can’t even sit up yet.”
The Fox shot Nagisa’s Shogun a rather unimpressed look. “I am a Celestial, boy. Do you think such puny restrictions as size have any hold upon me?” He hopped down from the rock and shook himself once, and as Hanako and Isao watched, the Fox was suddenly the size of a bear. Daisuke grinned excitedly and rushed forward to hug Akashi Keiji’s rather large leg.
Isao turned slowly to face Hanako. “Did you know he could do that?” He asked quietly.
Hanako smiled back at him, and he wrinkled his nose at her. “So cruel you are, Empress-sama.”
With that, he turned back to the Fox and, determined to smooth his dignity, picked up Daisuke and swung both himself and his son up onto the Celestial’s back, then reached down to assist Hanako as well.
The future Empress took a moment to settle herself, then nodded to Isao. The Shogun turned to make sure Daisuke was firmly in his lap, then said, “Fox-dono? We’re all ready.”
“Go, Foxy-san!” Daisuke cheered, “Go fast, fast, fast!”
The Fox flicked his ears and grinned widely, his teeth flashing in the sun. “As you wish, little prince.”
And with that, the Fox blurred into motion, carrying his precious cargo up the road to Kyouka.
*****
The sun had been set for merely an hour when the drew to a stop before the gates of Kyouka, where the Shogun of Karigane dwelt in splendour.
Isao looked up at the palace and remembered the first time he had stood here--facing a young, scrawny new Shogun that was flanked by Isao’s own brother, with a hand on his sword.
How things had changed, since then. But soon, if all turned out as Isao hoped they would, Isao and Shichiro and Tatsuya would be reunited once again.
“They won’t let a random family into the castle, now that the sun’s set,” Isao mused aloud. “So obviously we’ll have to figure out some other way to sneak into the castle and see Tatsuya.”
Hanako looked rather dismayed at the idea of sneaking into a Shogun’s palace, though Daisuke looked excited. “Are we gonna be sneaky-sneaky, Papa?”
Isao grinned and ruffled Daisuke’s hair. “Indeed we are. Extremely sneaky-sneaky indeed.”
“Or, alternatively,” A voice said from behind them, “I could grant you my assistance.”
Isao and Hanako spun around to see a tall form of a Man, clad in a sea-green kimono decorated with ocean waves and a spiraling dragon. His vermillion eyes gleamed in the twilight, and the blue and green iridescence of his black hair glimmered strangely. Hanako saw him, and beamed, in her delight forgetting to politely cover her smile. “Tamotsu Eiji-dono! It has been a long time.”
“To my great regret indeed,” The Dragon said in his deep voice, bowing deeply. “I have wished for little else than to be reunited with you, Empress-sama, but my duties of unification have prevented it.”
“No matter,” Hanako said. “How do you plan to assist us?”
Tamotsu Eiji smiled and reached out a hand, his crimson eyes twinkling, “Why, by being sneaky-sneaky of course.”
The Empress smiled back at him, and took his hand, as the Dragon reached out towards Isao. “You, as well. It would not do to leave you behind, so hold on tight.”
Isao obligingly scooped up Daisuke and cradled his excited son against his chest before grabbing ahold of Tamotsu Eiji’s forearm. “What are you planning to do, fly us over?” He asked flippantly.
“Yes.”
Isao blinked. “Hey, wait--”
Tamotsu Eiji smiled slyly at Hanako as his son jumped up and curled himself around his neck. “I am a Dragon, after all, mortal boy.”
And with that, the Dragon lifted off into the air, carrying a Celestial Fox, a wide-eyed future Empress, a stiffened Shogun, a sleepy baby and an excited prince with him.
They sailed right over the wall, slipping unnoticed through the fitful light the crescent moon shed, and touched down in the garden on the far side.
“I’ll leave you now, but I will be by again soon enough, as I suspect that you may require my assistance again.” Tamotsu Eiji said, bowing deeply. “Until we meet again.” Then, with one smooth movement, he turned and walked away, melting into the darkness, and was gone.
Hanako turned to ask isao what their next course of action was, but never managed to. For it so happened that Tamotsu Eiji had brought them into the part of the gardens that bordered the area where the Sacred Geese were kept.
Long ago, it is said, Momoe Chiyo, the Immortal Goose herself, gave the First Shogun Miyamoto Ichigo a goose and a gander that she had blessed, and from them the Miyamoto shoguns had bred the sacred geese, to act as devoted guards.
Being guards, the geese immediately sensed the intruders into their domain and surged forwards. Isao noticed the oncoming onslaught, grimaced, and grabbed Hanako’s arm in order to run. Before he could do so, however, the geese swarmed around them, completely encasing them on each side.
Isao was expecting the geese to attack, their bills jabbing and nipping at clothes and tender flesh, and he glared at the complacent-looking Fox celestial that was sitting calmly on the ground.
Akashi Keiji looked entirely unconcerned, but his unearthly eyes twinkled with amusement. If there was anything that Isao had learned in his extended acquaintance with the Fox, is that if he was amused, it was generally because Isao was missing something that was apparently ‘obvious’ to a Celestial. Apparently, there was far more here than meets the eye.
And just as this thought had crossed his mind, the geese began to make noise. It wasn’t the noise Isao had heard once before, the shrieks of warning and aggression and danger, when he had been visiting the brat and there had been an assassination attempt.
No, these calls seemed to be almost… triumphant.
People heard the noise, of course, and Isao could see the bobbing of torches and the denizens of the palace rushed to see the source of the disturbance. They all stopped, equally as confused as Isao was, to stare at the woman surrounded by the exulting, cheering geeze.
“Well, now,” A voice suddenly spoke, carrying through the crowd, causing everything (even the geese) to fall silent. “It seems that the old prophecy has been proven true at last.”
Hanako turned to see a man, clad in a formal kimono, looking down imperiously at her from the stairs on the wall.
“Prophecy?” Hanako inquired politely
The man began to descend the stairs regally, his head held high and his eyes narrowed thoughtfully. “The First Emperor, Nagaharu, was a son of the Miyamoto clan, and when he ascended the Imperial Throne, he
was gifted with two of the Sacred Geese to be by his side. When the Last Emperor Hanshin died, his geese were returned to the mother flock, but the Sacred Geese of Karigane never forget those whom they protect. They old ones say that when the Emperor arises again and returns to their ancestral home, the geese will welcome them with songs of joy.”
The man reached the ground and paused, meeting Hanako’s eyes solemnly
“Never did I think that I would live to see the day when the Emperor returned, however. Or, perhaps, should I say Empress?”
Hanako took a deep breath, steeling her nerves, then bowed her head slightly. Clearly this man was the Shogun of Karigane, there was no one else he could possibly be.
“I am Princess Nishimura Hanako of the Dragons, Heir of Miyamoto Hansuke-sama, Empress-to-be of Azuna-no-Kuni.”
The man nodded once, slowly. “I see. And who’s that with you?”
Isao snorted. “Ah, I see how fickle you are, Shogun-sama! You can’t even be bothered to remember old friends, even when they were the ones to guide you on the path to glory.”
The Shogun blinked, and then a wide grin spread across his face. “Isao-san! I wasn’t expecting you! What are you doing here?”
“What, you think I’d send my little brother’s wife to another country all by herself?” Isao scoffed. “What kind of man do you take me for?”
The Shogun grinned. “I see, that makes sense.”
“Hi, Unca Tas-ya!” Daisuke chirped from where he clung to Isao’s leg.
“Dai-chan!” The Shogun explained. “You came on this adventure, too? Was it to keep your father from doing something silly?”
Isao frowned
Daisuke frowned at him. “No, Papa never silly, Unca Tas-ya! Mama tol’ me to p’tect Ken-chan and Hanako-ba-sama!”
Isao smirked at the Shogun, who shrugged. “Well, perhaps it would be better to take this conversation more comfortable?” He directed this last suggestion towards Hanako, who blinked in surprise at being deferred to.
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