by India Millar
“Isn’t it?” She was glaring at me disapprovingly and I changed the subject quickly.
“Go to the temple house. Go for your lessons and stay out of the Floating World as much as you can. I shouldn’t be gone for more than ten days or so.”
She pouted sulkily. I was surprised and touched when she hugged me fiercely before I went.
“Listen, Niko,” I said impulsively. “If you have any trouble, anything at all, get word to Akira. He’ll help you, I promise.”
We stared at each other and she nodded finally.
“I will. But I hope I don’t have to.”
I smiled reassuringly. I was surprised by my own certainty. I barely knew the man, yet here I was assuring Niko that the most feared yakuza in the whole of Edo would take the time to solve her problems. At the same time, I knew I was right. I sighed. If only Akira weren’t a yakuza. If only the burden of my samurai tradition wasn’t so heavy on my shoulders. I had found him deeply attractive, and I felt instinctively that he in his turn had found me enticing. But there could be nothing between us. It was impossible.
He was a man of no caste at all. He was outside society, a gangster who made his living by preying on those who were weaker than he was. Everything he did was the exact opposite of what the code of bushido taught. Then I reminded myself sharply that I was no longer in a position to call any man my inferior. Just like Akira, I had no position in society. The knowledge was almost frightening. Trying to reassure myself, I spoke my thoughts out loud.
“I have no lord. No master. I am a ronin. I do what I like.”
A beggar glanced at me and I threw him a coin.
“Thank you, master. May the gods smile on you,” he whined.
His innocent response was reassuring. I was happy now that I had left Kamakiri the woman behind me. In her place strutted a perfumed and painted kagema youth.
I had chosen the quietest hour to make my escape. Truly, the Floating World never slept. But this time—just after the midday meal—was the moment when life was at its lowest ebb. I had pulled my hair up into what was almost a samurai topknot. It had grown longer since it had amused my brother to take me to the Floating World disguised as his young, male lover, but I found if I relaxed the knot, it still worked. I thought it looked slightly feminine, but as I was now Jun, the supplicant kagema, that was no bad thing. I wore only a little light makeup, but I had dabbed on enough heavy, spicy perfume to make me sneeze. I was satisfied that my kimono was plain enough to be worn by either a man or a woman. Tied tightly, it hid my breasts.
More importantly than anything else, as I walked, I became neither male nor female. I walked firmly, with long steps. But my head was held down almost timidly. By the time I arrived at the livery stables to rent a horse, I was not at all surprised when the stable hand gave me a salacious grin and demanded to know if my boyfriend knew where I was?
The journey to Kamakura was uneventful. I broke my journey overnight twice at simple ryokan. At both, the innkeeper looked at me suspiciously and demanded money in advance. When I arrived at my destination, I looked around the city with interest and decided I liked it. It was bustling, the streets thronged with people. Not as busy as the Floating World, but still lively. I knew my disguise was perfect when a couple of yujo looked at me briefly and then turned away, giggling to each other. Even better, a well-dressed man came up to my side and tried to grab my hand, rubbing his thigh against me lasciviously. I growled a few words in a rough Edo accent and he scurried off, throwing me an angry glance.
A few coins earned me directions to the governor’s residence. A few more bought me an audience with Sato’s father.
He kept me waiting.
He was writing when I was finally allowed to enter his presence, pausing to nod to himself as if he was gathering his thoughts. I waited patiently, my shoulders hunched, my whole body deeply humble. Finally satisfied that he had kept me waiting long enough, he raised his head and stared at me. I was sure I saw a flicker of worry cross his face quickly, and I exulted silently.
“Well? Who are you? What do you want? Hurry up. I’m a busy man. I haven’t got time to waste on the likes of you.” To emphasize his words, he glanced at his unfinished scroll as he spoke, as if he was eager to get back to his work.
“Lord, I am so sorry to trouble you,” I whined. “I would never have come here if it wasn’t terribly important. It’s about your son, lord. Sato-san.”
His face was stone. I glanced at him once and then lowered my eyes. I felt the fear spreading out from him.
“My son? What about him?” Sato senior grated. “What is he to you that brings you here?”
“I know him well, my lord. In fact, I love him!” I threw myself to my knees as I spoke, kowtowing deeply. “And he loves me. I know he does. He told me he did!”
I waited for three heartbeats, knowing that this was the critical moment. If I were going to be thrown out, then it would be now. But Sato was silent. When he finally spoke, I heard the horror beneath his curt words.
“What nonsense is this? My son isn’t even here. He’s in Edo.”
“That’s where I come from, lord. Edo. The Floating World. I’ve been…very good friends with your son for a long time.” I spoke archly, allowing myself a small, satisfied smile. “We love each other, lord. He promised me that we would always be together. He said that he would arrange for me to be adopted into your family so we would never be parted. He told me he would bring me here and introduce me to you. But he keeps putting it off, the naughty boy. That’s why I’ve come here today, to ask you if the arrangements have been made yet.”
The silence that fell when I stopped talking was terrible. Sato’s face had turned the color of a ripe plum. His eyes bulged so far from their sockets that I thought they were going to pop out. I could hear his breath rasp in his throat. I admired him when he kept his composure and spoke with barely a tremor in his voice.
“You are mistaken. Whatever your name is, this all nonsense. Or is it your idea of a joke? If it is, you’ll be very sorry you came here.”
“Jun, lord. My name is Jun. How could I joke about something as serious as this? Surely, your son must have spoken of me.”
“Certainly not,” Sato snapped. “He’s never mentioned you. Besides, if you really knew him well you would know that he’s betrothed. He is to be married in the new year.”
“To me, lord! He’s to be married to me!” I wailed. “Not officially, of course. But once you’ve adopted me into your family, we’ll be together for always. He promised me that, and I believe him. After all, we live together as husband and wife in the Floating World. You can ask anybody. Everybody knows about us.”
Sato put his hand to his chest as though he was suppressing pain. I watched him carefully, worried his heart might be failing him. After all, I had no quarrel with him. His voice was strong when he spoke, and I sighed softly with relief.
“Does my son know you are here?” I knew then that I had won. I shook my head vigorously.
“No, lord. I wanted it to be a surprise for him when I go back and give him the good news that all is arranged.”
“It will undoubtedly be a surprise,” Sato said dryly. “You are a kagema, I suppose.” I pretended to be hurt and widened my eyes piteously.
“I have to earn a living somehow, master,” I whimpered. “But I assure you, once I am adopted into your illustrious family, there will be no man in my life other than your son. We will be together forever.” I clutched my hands in front of me in supplication and smiled fawningly. “Sato-chan told me that you are a rich man. That being the case, I will never have any need to work for a living again. I will belong solely to dear Sato-chan and we will be endlessly happy together.”
Sato’s lips were pressed so tightly together that they had almost disappeared.
“You will leave me now, Jun.” He spoke my name as if it left a nasty taste in his mouth. I pursed my lips in a pout, as if I was deeply hurt. “When you get back to the Floating World, y
ou will give Sato a message. You will tell him that I no longer have a son. He is not welcome here. If he tries to see me, he will be turned away. He is dead to me. Do you understand that?”
“But what will he—we—do for money if you don’t give him an allowance?” I wailed. I paused as if something had occurred to me and added craftily, “Sato-chan is a gentleman. He has no trade, no way of earning his living. If you cut him off, he’ll have to become a kagema just like me. Surely you don’t want that to happen to your only son?”
“I have no son,” Sato repeated stonily. “You may tell your lover that I intend to adopt his cousin, Abe-san. From this moment on, Abe will be the only son I have.”
“Lord, I cannot tell him that! He will be furious with me.” I clawed at my face, dragging my skin upward. It was a gesture I remembered Emiko, my sister, using many times. It had never failed to soften my father, even when he had been very angry with her. As I expected, the femininity of my action infuriated Sato still further.
“You will tell him! Tell him that his bride will marry Abe. Tell him I want nothing more to do with him, ever. Get back to that place, and I hope you are both very happy together. I don’t care what either of you have to do to earn a living. Sato’s going to get not so much as a copper coin from me.”
I hurled myself forward and wrapped my arms around his legs, wailing loudly.
“Lord, no! You cannot do this to your only son!” I knew I was taking a risk, but I had to be certain he wouldn’t change his mind. “Please, forgive him. Only say that you will take him back and I will disappear from his life forever. Once I am gone, I know he will be happy to marry the girl you have chosen for him. I will be happy to do this in my turn, as long as I know that he will be secure.”
“Sato is a lucky man to have such a devoted…friend,” the lord said drily. “I hope he remembers that when you give him my message. Nothing you—or he—can say will make me change my mind. He is no longer my son. He can do what he likes with his life, but I will not allow him to stain my family’s name. Now get out of here and go back to Edo as fast as you can. Tell Sato that he has no father and no family. Tell him that if he comes here, the servants have orders to beat him from my door. Get away from me.”
I let go of his robes and sat back. So convincing had been my act that I felt tears flowing down my face.
“He is mine, then?” I gulped. “You will not try and force him to marry this woman?”
Sato stared at me, his lips curling with disgust. “I have no idea who you are talking about. Get out. And if I see you anywhere near here again, I will set the dogs on to you.”
I scrambled to my feet, sobbing loudly. Sato picked up his brush and returned to his scroll as if he couldn’t see me. I hiccupped for breath as I backed out of his presence.
The tears turned to smiles as soon as I was outside Sato’s compound. I had no doubt that he had meant every word. He had forgiven his errant son once, when the unfortunate kagema Sato had hurt so badly had come to see him. My visit must have been the final insult; Sato had taken his father’s love for granted once too often. He had made a fool of the old man for the last time. His fate was sealed.
I smiled with pleasure.
“Oh, there you are, my pretty one.” I had thought myself alone, and I had been deep in the pleasure of knowing that my revenge on Sato was complete. It had been so very easy! The voice startled me. I glanced around and saw the man who had accosted me earlier. Only now, he was not alone. Two burly men accompanied him. One had a staff in his hand, although I doubted he needed it for support. The other was wearing a sword, and his hand flirted with the hilt. I had seen men like this in the Floating World. Men who were not quite tough enough to be taken on by the yakuza, so instead hired themselves out to anybody who wanted their services. For protection. Or—brave men that they were!—to wait in dark alleyways and ambush men who were to be taught a lesson.
And now these two big, brutal men were being used to frighten the life out of a poor, helpless kagema.
My hands flew to my mouth and I gasped with fear. “Oh, sir. I hardly expected to meet with you again. And I see you have brought some friends with you!” I fluttered my eyelashes shamelessly. The two hired thugs turned and grinned at each other.
“This is the man you were looking for, sir?” one of them asked. “Want us to teach him a lesson for being rude to you?”
“I don’t think that will be necessary,” their employer said loftily. “And if he needs a lesson, I’m sure I can administer it myself perfectly well. But he seems to be a feisty little thing. I would be obliged if you could just escort him back to my home for me. One does so dislike the thought of making a scene in the street.”
I smiled. There must have been something unexpected in my expression, as the thug who was closest to me glanced at his companion warily.
“I’m afraid I really can’t spare the time,” I said sweetly. The man who thought he was obtaining the services of a delectable new kagema raised his eyes to the heavens. He lifted a languid hand and flicked it at the two thugs.
“Enough of this nonsense. Just get hold of him and bring him along.”
They were fools, these brutes. Instead of coming at me together, the man with the staff closed in on his own. I tripped him before he could touch me. His staff flew out of his hand and I caught it swiftly, bringing the butt around and smacking it hard just below his chest. Not hard enough to break any ribs—after all, he was only following orders—but enough to knock the breath out of his body. He lay wheezing on the cobbles, his face a bewildered mask of shock and pain.
“Ready?” I raised my eyebrows at the man with the sword. He goggled at me and I became impatient. I flicked the staff at him, hitting him a stinging blow on the side of his neck. It obviously infuriated him. He drew the sword and lunged at me clumsily. I feinted and then darted back within reach and smashed the staff on his wrist. I heard the bone snap. The sword fell from his hand and he stood back, howling in pain. I flipped the sword up and into my hand with the tip of the staff. The man backed away, quickly followed by his panting colleague. Both of them ran away without a backward look.
Everything had happened so very quickly that their employer was still standing, gaping. He backed away as I walked toward him until he hit a wall and could go no further. I put the sword point against the base of his throat and leaned gently until I saw a bead of blood on his skin.
“Please don’t hurt me!” he yelped. “Take my purse. Just let me go!”
“What? Just like you were going to let me go?” I said coldly. I heard an odd noise. When I looked down, I saw with revulsion that he was so terrified he had wet himself. His urine puddled around his feet.
“Please,” he whispered.
I was suddenly disgusted. I curled my lip and lowered the sword. “Get away from me. And in the future, take care who you try and bully.”
“Thank you. Thank you,” he babbled. He was so relieved he actually bowed before he scuttled off down the street after his henchmen. I hoped they would be annoyed with him when they finally met.
The staff felt familiar in my hand. It wasn’t as comfortable as the staff Kamakiri the anma had used, but still, I enjoyed the feel of it. I would keep it. I left the sword where it was. It was a crudely made weapon and had no place in my hand.
I turned and sauntered toward the livery stable. This was a pleasant enough town, but the enchantment of the Floating World was beckoning me back.
Twenty-Nine
A bright moon casts a
Shadow like the noon sun. Day
And night become one
Niko wasn’t in the temple house. Neither was Matsuo. I was immediately anxious. I called out, and when there was no answer, I searched to see if she had left me a message. I was annoyed with myself as I remembered that her writing skills would hardly have gotten to the stage where she could have done that.
I tried to reassure myself that she had simply gotten bored and decided to ignore my instructions and
go back to Kamakiri’s house. But something felt wrong here. I stood very still, looking around the house.
It had the indefinable air of emptiness that comes when a house has been uninhabited for days rather than hours. There was no smell of cooking. I went into the kitchen and touched the kettle. It was cold, and the fire ashes were white and powdery. Fear began to prickle my skin.
I shook it off. No need to be apprehensive. Obviously, my first thought had been correct. Niko had become bored with the relative quiet of the temple house. She had missed the excitement of the center of the Floating World. I was about to leave when I paused, wondering if I should change. I was still dressed as Jun the kagema. I hesitated for a moment and then shrugged to myself. I would change when I got home. Jun could stay for the present.
Kamakiri’s home was as empty of life as the temple house. The blood pounded in my temples, drowning out rational thought as I walked through, calling as if I truly thought Niko was here, hiding to play tricks on me. The only voice that answered me was Matsuo’s howl, coming from the small walled-in garden to the rear of the house. For a moment, I was relieved. Surely, if Matsuo was here, Niko couldn’t be far away. I walked through quickly and slid the shoji back. Matsuo trailed in with his head down. His tail was wagging, but his whole body was low, as if he expected me to scold him. I rubbed his ears gently.
“Matsuo, what happened? Where’s Niko?” I asked pointlessly. He whined at me and walked out to the garden, returning to stare at me pleadingly when I didn’t follow immediately.
At first, I thought there was nothing amiss. Then Matsuo ran over to the wall and scraped frantically at the base of it. I followed. When I looked carefully, I saw that a particularly beautiful rhododendron shrub had some of its twigs broken off on both sides. The sap had stopped bleeding, and I guessed the damage had been done at least a day ago. A red flower had been trodden beneath somebody’s foot. It looked like a smear of blood on the earth. I bent down and fingered the gravel.