InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ A Shard in Kyoto ❯ Kagome meets Sesshu ( Chapter 6 )
[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]
By: jeffs 
Kagome meets Sesshu
Anime/Manga: InuYasha Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Samurai / Romance / Drama / Adventure / Action | Type: Other | Uploaded On: 10.07.2003 | Pages: 6 | Words: 6.8K | Visits: 795 | Status: Completed
Kagome meets Sesshu
Anime/Manga: InuYasha Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Samurai / Romance / Drama / Adventure / Action | Type: Other | Uploaded On: 10.07.2003 | Pages: 6 | Words: 6.8K | Visits: 795 | Status: Completed
Shard ch 7
I do own any of the characters in the story.
Hmmm. How to say this . . . I going to introduce Kagome to an imperial noble. (He’s rank 5 of 9. An important bureaucrat, with court privileges, but just barely.) There is two ways to do this. I can pull out the references and bury the story in details about exactly what clothes, the patterns on the clothes, his fan and other accessories. (This is how it would be done in a Japanese story. The clothing, how it was worn, the general body language, etc . . . all of this is because if you’re born into the culture, you’ll be able to read a person by the clothes.) But . . . I would spend up to 1000 words just describing his clothes. Or, give a small, very general, description, but keep the story flowing. Luckily I found a site that has good notes. So . . . I’ll direct people to this site for details about the clothes, that this noble and other nobles are wearing.
http://www.sengokudaimyo.com/garb/Garb.html
This is a very useful site. Explore it. You’ll be surprised.
I know I’m losing a lot of the subtly, but shakes head, but I’m going to go for readability. Burying the flow of the story. No, I don’t want to do that. (This story is already a lot larger than I thought when I started it.)
I will probably be getting some of the protocol wrong. I am trying to capture the culture of the times. I am not trying to get every minor detail right. (Besides which, most of the sources for court detail were of the Heian 1000ad period or the later post 1600 period. 1550 was still a period of change for Japan and things were changing, somewhat. Admittedly, Kyoto did its best to ignore everything after 1050ad, so things probably weren’t all that different then 1000ad . . . )
Japanese language & Japanese terms: I will limit the number of pure Japanese terms, suffixes, etc. Why? I know that there are readers that like and enjoy them. I am sorry, but this is a personal preference. When I read a story that requires a large glossary, I just do not like it. I think putting in those terms, which disrupts the flow of the story, as the reader has to stop and refer back to the glossary to get the full meaning of the terms. Yes, I do know that this means that I’m losing a lot of the subtlety in Japanese, but I think I gain enough in readability that I’m willing to accept that loss.
I will use sensei in this chapter. This is being used as a title of respect for a teacher. The noble in the chapter has to refer to the artist, but using personal names is not normal. (Even within the family, you would still refer to each other by title/occupation, not by name.) Since the artist does not have a court title or something similar, the noble has to call him something and a generic sensei works best. (In addition the artist is teaching his wife about painting, so . . . )
Sesshu . . . The character in this story is NOT historical. (More detailed info at the end of the chapter)
****************
“Yes, this is the house of great artist Sesshu.”
The door slides open and a small dwarf man is standing in the doorway. His very wrinkled bald head gleams in the early morning light as Kagome looks down on him. “What do you want, girl?” He is using a staff as a walking stick to aid him.
Kagome glances at the staff, but it’s just a plain, wooden stick. “Hmmm. My . . . My parents sent me to Kyoto with some of the art that they wanted me to show around.” She hesitantly says as she clutches the tube of art her mother gave her.
The dwarf snorts. “Peasant. Let’s see it.”
“I really wanted to show it to Sesshu.”
“The great artist Sesshu, girl.” The dwarf interrupts.
Kagome swallows and says, “I really wanted to show this artwork to the great artist Sesshu, myself.” She bows. ‘If I have to act polite. So be it.’ She thinks.
“I’m not going to interrupt my master, who is with an important guest, for some no account girl. Show it to me now, or leave.”
Kagome swallows and opens up the tube. She pulls out a rolled up landscape on silk. She unrolls it.
The dwarf’s eyes widen as he looks at the art. It is a beautiful landscape. It’s the sea crashing into a cliff.
The dwarf purses his lips and looks at the girl and then the painting. ‘The master . . . This art is up to his standards, but. To interrupt him. Still . . . He’s punished me before for not showing him some art. So . . . ’ he thinks.
The dwarf growls deep in his chest and says, “Very well. Peasant. You may come in. I will direct you to a room. You will stay in that room. In that room, you will touch nothing. You will only sit in the room.” He holds out his hand. “Give me the art and I will show it to the master.”
Kagome hesitates. “ Do it, now. Or leave.”
She bends down and looks the dwarf in the eye. “I will meet your master. My parents requested it and I will obey them.” She hands him the art. The dwarf walks in front of her. He looks back every few steps, obviously suspicious. Kagome walks behind him, her head bowed down, like a young woman should.
Her eyes, though, flick from side to side. The rice paper walls are painted in various landscapes. As she walks through the halls she can see that they must form so sort of pattern, but she’s only allowed to walk down one hall and cannot see the full pattern.
The dwarf slides open a door and says in a brusque manner. “Stay here.” Kagome enters the room and sits down in the middle of the room. The painting on the walls is of a mountain landscape. “I know I’ve seen this before. But where . . . ” she whispers.
She shakes her head. ‘I’m not going to be able to think about it. That dwarf. He reminds me of Jakken, but he’s human.’ She thinks. ‘Or is he?’ she concentrates on her mystic senses.
She grimaces in pain. ‘Whoever this Sesshu is, his house is covered in spells. It hurts my senses, like turning on my flashlight in the middle of dark night hurts my eyes. Maybe if I . . . ’ she thinks as she tries again.
“Argh.” She grimaces. ‘I’ll just have to try harder.’ She thinks, but as she tries again. Noises, voices, from the other side of the thin rice paper walls, however, reach her ears and she listens.
“Sensei, My second wife has informed me that she is with child. So, unfortunately, she extends her regrets, but she’ll be unable to be available for additional lessons.” A man’s voice says.
“Master. Please forgive me. I am sorry to interrupt, but.”
“Kanten.” A voice says. Kagome frowns, ‘It’s not his voice. Close, but not quite it.’ She thinks.
“Master. This was just introduced into the house and I felt you would like to see it.” The dwarf says in a rush.
A pause. “This is quite good.” The voice that said Kanten says.
“May I see it, Sensei?” the other voice asks.
‘The dwarf did say he had a guest.’ Kagome thinks.
Another pause. Kagome can hear light noises, but cannot make out what they are saying, or even if the noises are words.
“Sensei. Could you please ask your servant to describe the person that brought you this beautiful piece of art? It is signed by a Higurashi. And I know of no person in my family that could do this.” The voice of the guest says in a puzzled tone.
“My family . . . did he just say my family . . . ” Kagome whispers in shock. “Oh no. I didn’t . . . OK . . . I did want to meet my ancestors, but not like this. I wonder who he is?” she whispers.
“Kanten? Describe the man.”
“Sir. I am sorry, but it is not a man. It is a young woman.” The dwarf says. “I’ve never seen her before. She’s wearing a simple kimono and is alone. And I assumed.”
“Which is always a mistake.” The voice of the sensei interrupts.
“Forgive me. She said her parents sent her to show you this and meet with you, great Sesshu.” The dwarf says.
“Hmm. Bring her in. The art interests me and the name interests my guest.”
Kagome thinks, ‘If this is who I think it is . . . ’ she swallows. ‘I’m going to have to be very cautious about what I say. Mother allowed me to read the diaries of a couple of family members alive at this time. If it’s who I think it is . . . His second wife’s third son, I wonder if it’s this child, will in fifty or so years move to Edo and start the shrine where I grew up.’ she shakes herself.
Her eyes widen as she thinks, ‘the diary of his wife was one I read . . . the father of the son that moved to Edo, was from a love affair with an artist. She never names the artist directly, but . . . ’ She swallows and she whispers, “now I know why she was always interested in the artist Sesshu.”
“Be careful.” She whispers to herself.
The door slides open and the dwarf motions Kagome to follow him. “Do exactly what I say, woman. You will be entering the presence of my master, the great artist Sesshu, and the inspector of shrines for the department of worship.” He says as they go a short distance down the hall.
Kagome can see a woman enter the room she just left. The woman has some cleaning towels and brushes. ‘They think I’m polluted, so their cleaning up after me . . . ’ she realizes.
Kanten, the dwarf, stops in front of a sliding door. He whispers, “You will, when I open this, take one step into the room. You will drop to your knees and bow into the room. You will hold that position, looking at the floor, until my master gives you permission to move closer. You will, once he’s given that permission, crawl forward three steps. You will stop there. You will only raise your head when permission has been granted. Do not stare at the guest or the master.” He harshly whispers. “Failure to follow these instructions is not permissible.”
Kagome swallows and nods her head. Kanten, opens the door and announces, “the girl is here, master.”
“She may enter.”
“Now, fool” the dwarf whispers.
Kagome does as she was instructed.
Before she drops to the floor, she does glance in the room. In the room is two men. Directly in front of her is a man wearing a white silk robe with a red floral design. To his left is man in a red robe.
As she finishes crawling forward, her hair dangling in front of her, ‘this is embarrassing. How do you crawl in this kimono? It’s so long . . . ’ She thinks as she reaches down to adjust her clothes.
The man off to the left mutters under his breath, “peasant.” Obviously she inability to crawl properly has identified her as such.
Kagome swallows and thinks, ‘I’ll show him.’ She takes a deep breath and the nervousness she was feeling fades away.
“Your name.” The man in front of her speaks in a flat tone.
“Higurashi Kagome.” Kagome keeps her face on the floor.
“You are from?”
“The village of Keade in the province of Musashi.”
“Nearest castle?”
“Edo.”
“That’s one of the Hojo’s isn’t it.” The other man asks.
“I believe a Hojo started it, but it’s under new rulership now. Keeping track of the samurai in the east and all the changes they go through is difficult, however.” The man in front replies.
“Of course, Sensei, who’s going to pay attention to something so far from the city.” The man says in a dismissive tone. “I’m grateful for even the small amount of knowledge you possess.”
“You may look upon me, now, girl.”
Kagome sits up and looks at Sesshu.
He is sitting, cross-legged, on a small pillow. The red floral design of his clothes is not the same as Sesshoumaru’s, but it is very similar. His hair is long and flowing, but it is a flat black color. His eyes are also black. Kagome blinks a couple of times to stop herself from staring into them. His face is, again, similar to Sesshoumaru’s but slightly off. It’s little rougher looking, not quite the smooth feminine lines of Sesshoumaru. Neither hand is visible through the long sleeves of his robes. She starts to shift her eyes to the other man, but she sees Sesshu frown and stops herself.
The wall behind him is painted in a spring scene. Cherry trees in full bloom, with a wind blowing the petals. From the quick glance she took when entered, the other walls are similarly painted.
“Your father’s name?” the other man asks.
Kagome gives it.
“That name is not familiar.” He says in a harsh tone.
Sesshu, musingly, says, “Did not one of your uncles get exiled to Musashi?”
A pause. “Hmm. Yes, you are correct. I never heard of him marrying anybody there. But, then, again, there is no one in Musashi that is of sufficient rank and breeding for him to marry.”
“Look at me.” The other man orders Kagome.
Kagome looks at him.
He is a sitting down. The long flowing robes he’s wearing make it impossible to tell how he is sitting. He is wearing a large red robe, under it, she can see a purple robe. She’s not a great judge of age, but he appears to be in his mid-thirties. Since he’s sitting, she’s not sure how tall, he is, but he’s appears to be shorter than Sesshu. Unlike Sesshu’s long flowing hair, his hair is tightly bound and curled under a skull cap. His face looks similar to the pictures she’s seen of her grandfather when he was young.
“Twist your head sideways.” He orders. Kagome does. “Hmm. You could be correct, Sesshu. She does appear to have his face.” He pauses, “I suppose if he did take a peasant to be his bed warmer, “ Kagome bristles at the dismissive attitude, but doesn’t say anything. “He would have used a different name. But, why, then still use the Higurashi name?”
“Is he still alive?” Sesshu asks his guest
“No. He died a while back.” He replies. He looks at Kagome and says, “I will need to write a letter for you to deliver to your father.”
Kagome clears her throat. “Go on.”
“My father is dead, Noble sir.”
Kanten, who has remained in the doorway, interrupts saying, “You will address a noble of the fifth rank by saying Lord.”
“My father is dead, Noble lords.”
“Hmmm. Then who is the artist?” Sesshu asks.
“My mother, great artist Sesshu.”
“Girl. I will write a letter to your parent. This letter will demand an explanation for the use of my family’s name. Until I receive an acceptable answer, you are not to use the name Higurashi.” Kagome’s ancestor orders. “If you misuse the Higurashi family name, you will regret it.” He says harshly.
“Yes, noble Lord. I understand.”
“Sensei, I can see in your eyes a desire to ask more about the artist. And I have delivered the message from my wife. I need to be at the palace soon, so I can, as inspector of shrines, accept a gift from the Higurashi family. I, also, need to get that letter written, so, with your permission.” The man slightly bows to Sesshu and covers his face with his fan.
“Of course, lord Higurashi.” Sesshu rises, “Let me see you out.” He looks at Kagome. “Girl. Remain here until I return.”
“Sensei, if you could, please pass onto me anything she says about her family.” Higurashi says as he leaves the room.
“Of course, noble of the fifth rank.”
While waiting for Sesshu to return Kagome thinks, ‘Well . . . that fits in with what I know about my families history. We were part of the department of religion and ran a shrine in Kyoto. After Edo began to grow, part of the family moved to Edo and started the shrine where I grew up.’
She smiles softly, ‘He married into the shrine family already there, providing additional status to the shrine. Sigh . . . ’ her mouth twitches, ‘However, the records of the family he married into were lost in a fire about 200 years ago, so I don’t know what the connection is between Keade and my family.’
She nods to herself, “After that the family slowly declined in power and influence. Sigh. A couple of idiots that just had to gamble and disport with the geisha of Edo. But, still, the family was fine until the family chose to follow the Shogun instead of emperor Meiji. That’s what cost the family the most. Once the shogunate was destroyed, the family was reduced to just the shrine. All of the other privileges and property were removed as punishment. Which, of course, is why grandfather always longs for the days before the restoration.’
“I do wonder why he has to accept a gift from himself?” She asks herself in a low voice.
The door slides open and Sesshu enters the room. “It is customary for peasant girls, such as yourself, to bow when your superior enters.” He says dryly.
Kagome bows, placing her face on the floor.
“You can look up.” Sesshu says, “to answer your question. As Inspector of shrines, he accepts gifts from all the major shrines. If the Higurashi shrine does not make a gift, than other shrines will decide that they can stop giving gifts as well.” He sits down.
“The gifts are to see that the shrines are approved and that the rites each shrine performs are correctly done.” Sesshu sighs. “It is so hard to find a good scribe nowadays. And the paperwork must be without error, of any type, even the smallest of mis stokes, before it can be approved.” He pauses.
“Without the gift, locating a good scribe becomes harder.” She tentatively says. He nods.
“Thank you for explaining to my unworthy self.”
He picks up the artwork and moves to one side and opens a sliding door. This opens the room up to the interior courtyard and lets in the early morning sunlight.
Kagome can see the beautiful garden in the courtyard.
The large, massive, but moss-covered stone dominates it. Surrounding it is three stone lanterns which are also moss covered. In front of the stone is a small statue of the god Jizo, in his aspect of a protector of dogs. Surrounding this is a few trees and large bushes that seem to meld into one plant of many flowers. Between the stones and the trees is a white sanded strip. Even the smallest piece of dirt would show up against the white sands. The effect is that of a still stream of a white river in some lonesome, drowsy place. Kagome thinks, ‘I wonder how long the garden has been there. The stone, the lamps, the statue of Jizo, seem ancient. And if they are ancient in this time . . . how old is this garden’, she thinks.
He examines the art in the natural sunlight. He grunts. He returns to the sitting position he was in when Kagome entered the room. He puts the art down and says, “Your mother, you said.”
“Yes, sir. I have a letter from her as well that she wished me to you.” Kagome says.
“Let’s see the letter.” He orders.
“It’s in the tube with some additional artwork, sir.”
“Kanten! That tube!”
“Sir. Lord!” the dwarf enters the room in a rush. “I was unaware.” He offers the tube to his master.
“You are unaware of your head being attached.” He growls and takes the tube, opens it, and removes all the contents.
He glances at Kagome and seeing the curiosity in her eyes, deigns to say, “I found him, bloody and injured, during my travels. The village he was in threw him out because of his odd looks. He’s been with me ever since.” He sighs. “I suppose, it’s my kind and gentle nature that allows me to accept that such an inferior person can help me.” He waves his hand dismissing the dwarf, opens the letter and starts to read it, totally ignoring Kanten and Kagome.
“Hmmm . . . I see.” He puts down the letter and looks at Kagome. “She mentions that your travel plans could be very changeable.”
“Yes, sir.”
“So, I suppose you’ll be wanting my critique of this art soon.”
“Yes, sir.”
“How soon before you leave the city?”
“I, I don’t know. It could be tomorrow. It could be longer. I could have to leave Kyoto in a hurry.”
“The village of Keade, musashi province, near Edo . . . I suppose, they’ll be someone in the tax ministry that can give me a real location to that.” He pauses then he says, “return each morning that you are in Kyoto. If I am finished, I will hand you the tube and it’s contents. If you do not show up, after a week, I will inquire about that location and send the tube to it.”
“Thank you, sir. My mother will be forever in your debt.”
“No doubt.” A pause. “You may leave.”
Kagome starts to back away, but stops, and before she can stop herself, “Are you him . . . Sesshoumaru?”
Sesshu starts and looks at her, closely. To Kagome, this is the fist time, she thinks, he’s actually paid attention to her.
“You are aware of the lord of the western lands?”
“I’ve met him.” She pauses, her voice firms. “And lived.”
“Hmmm . . . ” he stares at her. She stares at him.
“I will answer that question in this way, girl. IF I am human, implying that I am the lord of the western lands, causes people to treat me with respect and caution. I am not an ordinary person or artist. And being so exceptional that allows me to do things others cannot. And this causes other ordinary people to treat me differently. For instance, the local samurai that charge a fee for,” a pause, “protection” Kagome can hear the quotes. “Do not bother me.”
He raises an eyebrow, “And after that problem with a demon cat, a local shrine to the god Jizo, as a protector of dogs, has been very helpful. They provided the various wards around this house.” A twinkle appears in his eyes, “I suppose they think that they are helping the lord of the western lands.”
A pause. “On the other hand, If I am the lord of the western lands living in a city full of humans? Why would the lord of the western lands, who’s hatred of humans is well known, even think about disguising himself as one?” a pause then, “You’re met the lord of the western lands?”
“Yes, sir.”
“I assume you’ve met other demons?”
“Yes, sir.”
“Good. Tell me. If you were to show this art.” He points to Kagome’s mother art. “Or any other object of beauty, what would they do? Would they praise and admire the beauty of the object, or would they, say, pick their nose, fart, and ignore it?”
Kagome barely suppresses a giggle. ‘Gods... that describes Inu-yasha totally. That time, early on, when I pointed out a beautiful sunset over the mountains and he did just what Sesshu described.’
She swallows, “Sir, I would have to say the second option.”
“And if the lord of the western lands did happen to enjoy painting, poetry and other similar arts, could he do so openly?”
She starts, surprised, and blurts out, “no.”
“No. Sir.” She bows her head. “But I will ignore that and continue. So perhaps I am the lord of the western lands, using this disguise as a way to express myself, but not in a way that would damage the reputation of the lord of the western lands.”
“...”
“Or perhaps, I am just a normal human. But the lord of the western lands has ordered me to assume the name and persona of Sesshu. I go on many trips, looking for places to paint. Perhaps, during those travels, I met with the lord of the western lands, and I tell him what is happening in the city, and he gives to me the paintings I show the city. Where he acquires the art, I may or may not know.”
“Sir.” A pause as she tries to catch his eyes. But Sesshu appears to looking off in the distance, not focusing on what’s happening now. “Which answer?”
“One of them is true, girl.” He smiles, “but which? That question I shall not answer.”
In a hard voice he says, “Leave.” He motions with his arm and points to the doorway.
Which draws Kagome’s attention to the fact that he has used both hands in holding the art and other actions. ‘He’s not Sess then. Or is he? Adding arms is something he’s done in the past and a human appearing arm is possible.’
As she leaves the room, Kagome hears Sesshu say, “Miko.”
She turns around to look at him. “The letter your mother wrote, mentions a quest. I do pay closer attention to what happens outside the city than Higurashi does. I am aware of various stories about a miko that bears your name.” He says with some dry humor in his voice.
A pause. Kagome straightens and looks him directly in the eye, “And If I am the person in those stories?”
“Some advice. For a girl to succeed in such a quest, she must be bold, be different, be willing to ignore the restraints that society places upon the female sex.”
He looks at her face, hard, his mouth twitches into an almost smile. “Don’t pretend to be a simple girl. If you do, all that will happen is you will be ignored. Do something and force people to acknowledge you. Since you do not have a family, nor any other normal method, use the powers I can feel in you.”
He pauses, “Force people to react to you. Do not react to others.”
A pause. “Oh, yes, if the stories I heard are correct. And they are wrong on occasion. There are many objects of art in this house. It would greatly pain me if they were to be destroyed. The lord of the western lands younger half-brother would, I’m sure, destroy such objects.”
“I understand, sir. If those stories are correct, and if I’m the girl in those stories, and if Inu-yasha is traveling with me, I will see, to the best of my ability, that this house is left undisturbed “ Kagome finishes with a twinkle in her eyes. A similar twinkle is in the eyes of Sesshu.
“You may leave now. I would wish you luck, but” he smiles, “You’ll make your own luck or you’ll fail.”
Kagome bows, “Thank you . . . Sess” she swallows at his very convincing growl, and finishes with “sir.”
As Kagome walks down the hall to the door, Kanten joins her to escort her out of the house. He is wearing a necklace of mismatched flowers. She can hear him grumbling, “stupid little girl. Trying to learn flower arraigning . . . ”
Kagome, grins, shakes her head and leaves the building.
************
“Gods, monk. I fucking hate this robe.” Inu-yasha complains as Miroku reminds him, again, about keeping his face covered so Inu-yasha’s disguise as an old man isn’t blown.
“It’s necessary, Inu-yasha.”
“How are we going to find the girls?” Shippo asks. “Inu-yasha sometimes has trouble sorting smells in small villages. I don’t think he’ll be able to it in the city.”
Inu-yasha growls. “I can, kit.”
“I wish that you would not, Inu-yasha. The sight of you with your nose to the ground, sniffing, causes enough questions in small villages, I would hate to see the reaction in Kyoto.” Miroku quickly says.
“Then how, Miroku?” Shippo whines.
“Easily enough, we’ll pretend that we were part of a group that got separated on our way to Kyoto. By bandits, if anyone asks. And we’ll simply ask various inns and temples if a couple of unattached young women slept there last night.” Miroku grins. “Women, especially young women with non-Kyoto accents, do not wander around without being noticed. I can promise you that.”
“You’ll do the talking, I suppose.” Inu-yasha grumbles in a disgusted voice.
“Oh, course, Inu-yasha.” Miroku bows. “Although, the thought of you having to say please and beg for help, is a very tempting thing to see.”
“Fuck you.”
The boys, then, wander the city. They stop in various inns and temples and Miroku does most of the speaking. (Oh, Shippo pipes up with a comment or two. And Inu-yasha grumbles on occasion, but nothing serious.)
Miroku does ask about rumors of magical and demonic happenings, ‘wherever the shard is, they’ll be demons nearby, perhaps if I compare rumors about where the shard is and where the rumors about demons are . . . I’ll come up with something.’ He thinks.
Because of this, the boys hear a rumor that there was an attack on a compound by zombies this morning. The size of the attack, the damage caused by the attack, differs from story to story, but all the stories agree that the zombies were carrying a scroll and on the scroll, were instructions for the zombies. In the instructions, however, was the name of the family that sent the zombies. That families name is Yamakawa. What will happen next is not known in the rumors.
Their wanderings are interrupted by a parade of soldiers. They, along with the other people in the street, are forced to stand and watch as a parade of several thousand men, in armor and weapons march down the street. In front of them is a standard bearer of the house of Hosokawa.
Inu-yasha’s and Shippo’s ears, listening to the soldiers complain among themselves, pick up various rumors, which they share with Miroku. Among the rumors they heard, are that these were the soldiers the boys saw last afternoon. They are marching the streets of Kyoto as a show of force, to prevent the tensions from increasing.
The officers are talking about preparing an attack on the Yamakawa compound. They used magic this morning in the zombie attack. And since it was such an open attack, there must be a response. The Hosokawa family and other families are going to combine up and destroy the Yamakawa family. These soldiers, or at least some of them, think that they will be used in the attack.
The boys shrug their shoulders, ‘nothing to do with us.’ They think.
As they wander the city, they, like the girls, come across all sorts of merchants.
One of them, seeing Inu-yasha looking like an old man, comes up to him and thrusts a bamboo vial in his face. “Hey, I’ve got just what you need old man. If you use this, you’ll be able to marry a young woman and keep her happy in bed!”
“Grrr.” Inu-yasha growls and the hand, that’s not holding Shippo begins to raise. Miroku’s staff, by coincidence (he’ll swear) blocks his hand from raising.
“I am sorry, but my father does not need that type of help.” He says, trying to give the offensive man the brush off.
“Then, do you? If a young man like you uses it, you’ll be able to go at least seven times in one night!”
Miroku takes the vial from the man’s hand. He glances around, ‘like I hoped, people are watching. A local man trying to con an outsider, it’s always good for a joke.’ He thinks.
Miroku says, “I am sorry, but I will not be purchasing this.” He raises his eyebrow and he says, in a louder than normal voice, “Why would I want to drink something that would slow me down?”
The boys walk away. Shippo crawls up Inu-yasha’s arm and pulls down his right eyelid and gives the man the red-eye as he giggles.
“Good one, Miroku.” Inu-yasha pats the monk’s back.
The man’s jaw drops down. He glances around and can see most of the people on the street are either covering their mouths so they can grin and laugh anonymously or have turned their backs on him.
‘Shit! And I sell a lot of this crap to monks. Who’d have thought one of them would have refused . . . ’ he thinks?
End chapter 7
Sigh . . . I wanted to put some action in this chapter, but, the Kagome/Sesshu scene went overboard, so a joke to end the chapter.
Sesshu: a short biography:
Born in 1420 in present-day Okayama Prefecture, Sesshu lived as a Zen monk in Kyoto until his mid-30s. In Kyoto, he studied under Shubun, regarded as the greatest artist of his time. From 1466 to 1469, Sesshu traveled to China as part of a diplomatic envoy to the Ming court. There he studied and copied the techniques and styles of renowned Sung Dynasty painters like Xia Gui (ca. 1200-50) and Ma Yuan (ca. 1190-1224). This influence appears in Sesshu's hatsuboku (splashed ink), Chinese figures, and copious landscape paintings based on Chinese models. The artist died around 1506.
Once I started to write Inu-yasha fanfiction, I knew I had, somehow, use the name Sesshu. (Or perhaps his student Sesson). Hopefully, the story is interesting enough to allow me to change this biography.
Is the character (Sesshu) above Sesshoumaru? I’m not going to say. I’ve written this so the answer could be yes or could be no. Is Sesshu the father of the man how will give the Higurashi name to the shrine near Keade village? The answer, in this case, is yes.
For those interested. The Sir & Lord bit: Kagome would be using the -sama suffix. In this time frame, that is wrong. -dono is used. (For my purposes, the difference it’s the between sir and lord. It’s not that, but it’s close) Governors, which I suppose you could say that the lord of the western lands is, the proper suffix to use when addressing a person of that rank was -kami. So technically speaking . . . You would, properly, address him as Sesshoumaru-dono or Sesshoumaru-kami. (Oh, yes, I know the manga/anime doesn’t do it like that. I just going by the real history and how people of that sort of rank were addressed at this time, ok)
A note about the importance of clothing and families. I need to make a comparison with something modern to help . . . I’m going to use the military. In the military, you have uniforms, rank badges, unit patches, and medals, these allow people to know who’s who at a glance, ok. In Feudal Japan, clothing and families, worked the same way. By looking at a person’s clothing, you could tell what rank/social class a person was. Once you knew the family that the person belonged to, you would know, pretty much all you needed to know about the person. (This was the main reasons that clothing regulation were in place in Japan. If you were wearing the wrong clothes, it was like a private dressing up as captain . . . laws and punishments were there to keep people in their place.)
In case Kagome’s family history confused readers. In the late 1860's the rule by shogun was overthrown and modern japan under the emperor Meiji was started. The shrine, being in Tokyo, would have had to back the Shogun, it was that or be destroyed. After the fall of the shogun . . . well, the new government did rearrange things to suit themselves . . .
Some interesting links . . .
Japanese Dog Folklore . . . where I found the Jizo bits for this story.
http://www.swampfox.demon.co.uk/utlah/Articles/japdog.html
The tale of Genji online . . . the culture that Kyoto wants to pretend still existed. Written around 1000 ad. It is THE novel to read. If you want to know about the culture of Kyoto, this is the story to read. Ever noble in Kyoto tried to be a close to Genji as possible. He was the role model, everyone followed.
http://webworld.unesco.org/genji/en/index.shtml
Japanese poetry online. With sound.
http://www.japanpoem.com/
two online sources on Japanese culture . . .
http://www3.la.psu.edu/textbooks/172/contents.htm
http://www3.la.psu.edu/textbooks/480/contents.htm
Very useful info . . .
Hmmm . . . sighs. How to say this, I’ve tried to drum up readers for this story, but. Sigh. But . . . there are still only about 100 people following this story. And since you, the readers, have been more responsive than any other group of readers I’ve had, thank you.
But, the readership of this story is not increasing . . .
So . . . I am going to ask if any readers have any suggestions. (I would like to keep the rating at PG-13. And there will be more interaction between the two groups, one of the goals of this was to explore the group dynamics when you split them into pairs you normally don’t read.)
Thank you for reading.
Jeff shelton
I do own any of the characters in the story.
Hmmm. How to say this . . . I going to introduce Kagome to an imperial noble. (He’s rank 5 of 9. An important bureaucrat, with court privileges, but just barely.) There is two ways to do this. I can pull out the references and bury the story in details about exactly what clothes, the patterns on the clothes, his fan and other accessories. (This is how it would be done in a Japanese story. The clothing, how it was worn, the general body language, etc . . . all of this is because if you’re born into the culture, you’ll be able to read a person by the clothes.) But . . . I would spend up to 1000 words just describing his clothes. Or, give a small, very general, description, but keep the story flowing. Luckily I found a site that has good notes. So . . . I’ll direct people to this site for details about the clothes, that this noble and other nobles are wearing.
http://www.sengokudaimyo.com/garb/Garb.html
This is a very useful site. Explore it. You’ll be surprised.
I know I’m losing a lot of the subtly, but shakes head, but I’m going to go for readability. Burying the flow of the story. No, I don’t want to do that. (This story is already a lot larger than I thought when I started it.)
I will probably be getting some of the protocol wrong. I am trying to capture the culture of the times. I am not trying to get every minor detail right. (Besides which, most of the sources for court detail were of the Heian 1000ad period or the later post 1600 period. 1550 was still a period of change for Japan and things were changing, somewhat. Admittedly, Kyoto did its best to ignore everything after 1050ad, so things probably weren’t all that different then 1000ad . . . )
Japanese language & Japanese terms: I will limit the number of pure Japanese terms, suffixes, etc. Why? I know that there are readers that like and enjoy them. I am sorry, but this is a personal preference. When I read a story that requires a large glossary, I just do not like it. I think putting in those terms, which disrupts the flow of the story, as the reader has to stop and refer back to the glossary to get the full meaning of the terms. Yes, I do know that this means that I’m losing a lot of the subtlety in Japanese, but I think I gain enough in readability that I’m willing to accept that loss.
I will use sensei in this chapter. This is being used as a title of respect for a teacher. The noble in the chapter has to refer to the artist, but using personal names is not normal. (Even within the family, you would still refer to each other by title/occupation, not by name.) Since the artist does not have a court title or something similar, the noble has to call him something and a generic sensei works best. (In addition the artist is teaching his wife about painting, so . . . )
Sesshu . . . The character in this story is NOT historical. (More detailed info at the end of the chapter)
****************
“Yes, this is the house of great artist Sesshu.”
The door slides open and a small dwarf man is standing in the doorway. His very wrinkled bald head gleams in the early morning light as Kagome looks down on him. “What do you want, girl?” He is using a staff as a walking stick to aid him.
Kagome glances at the staff, but it’s just a plain, wooden stick. “Hmmm. My . . . My parents sent me to Kyoto with some of the art that they wanted me to show around.” She hesitantly says as she clutches the tube of art her mother gave her.
The dwarf snorts. “Peasant. Let’s see it.”
“I really wanted to show it to Sesshu.”
“The great artist Sesshu, girl.” The dwarf interrupts.
Kagome swallows and says, “I really wanted to show this artwork to the great artist Sesshu, myself.” She bows. ‘If I have to act polite. So be it.’ She thinks.
“I’m not going to interrupt my master, who is with an important guest, for some no account girl. Show it to me now, or leave.”
Kagome swallows and opens up the tube. She pulls out a rolled up landscape on silk. She unrolls it.
The dwarf’s eyes widen as he looks at the art. It is a beautiful landscape. It’s the sea crashing into a cliff.
The dwarf purses his lips and looks at the girl and then the painting. ‘The master . . . This art is up to his standards, but. To interrupt him. Still . . . He’s punished me before for not showing him some art. So . . . ’ he thinks.
The dwarf growls deep in his chest and says, “Very well. Peasant. You may come in. I will direct you to a room. You will stay in that room. In that room, you will touch nothing. You will only sit in the room.” He holds out his hand. “Give me the art and I will show it to the master.”
Kagome hesitates. “ Do it, now. Or leave.”
She bends down and looks the dwarf in the eye. “I will meet your master. My parents requested it and I will obey them.” She hands him the art. The dwarf walks in front of her. He looks back every few steps, obviously suspicious. Kagome walks behind him, her head bowed down, like a young woman should.
Her eyes, though, flick from side to side. The rice paper walls are painted in various landscapes. As she walks through the halls she can see that they must form so sort of pattern, but she’s only allowed to walk down one hall and cannot see the full pattern.
The dwarf slides open a door and says in a brusque manner. “Stay here.” Kagome enters the room and sits down in the middle of the room. The painting on the walls is of a mountain landscape. “I know I’ve seen this before. But where . . . ” she whispers.
She shakes her head. ‘I’m not going to be able to think about it. That dwarf. He reminds me of Jakken, but he’s human.’ She thinks. ‘Or is he?’ she concentrates on her mystic senses.
She grimaces in pain. ‘Whoever this Sesshu is, his house is covered in spells. It hurts my senses, like turning on my flashlight in the middle of dark night hurts my eyes. Maybe if I . . . ’ she thinks as she tries again.
“Argh.” She grimaces. ‘I’ll just have to try harder.’ She thinks, but as she tries again. Noises, voices, from the other side of the thin rice paper walls, however, reach her ears and she listens.
“Sensei, My second wife has informed me that she is with child. So, unfortunately, she extends her regrets, but she’ll be unable to be available for additional lessons.” A man’s voice says.
“Master. Please forgive me. I am sorry to interrupt, but.”
“Kanten.” A voice says. Kagome frowns, ‘It’s not his voice. Close, but not quite it.’ She thinks.
“Master. This was just introduced into the house and I felt you would like to see it.” The dwarf says in a rush.
A pause. “This is quite good.” The voice that said Kanten says.
“May I see it, Sensei?” the other voice asks.
‘The dwarf did say he had a guest.’ Kagome thinks.
Another pause. Kagome can hear light noises, but cannot make out what they are saying, or even if the noises are words.
“Sensei. Could you please ask your servant to describe the person that brought you this beautiful piece of art? It is signed by a Higurashi. And I know of no person in my family that could do this.” The voice of the guest says in a puzzled tone.
“My family . . . did he just say my family . . . ” Kagome whispers in shock. “Oh no. I didn’t . . . OK . . . I did want to meet my ancestors, but not like this. I wonder who he is?” she whispers.
“Kanten? Describe the man.”
“Sir. I am sorry, but it is not a man. It is a young woman.” The dwarf says. “I’ve never seen her before. She’s wearing a simple kimono and is alone. And I assumed.”
“Which is always a mistake.” The voice of the sensei interrupts.
“Forgive me. She said her parents sent her to show you this and meet with you, great Sesshu.” The dwarf says.
“Hmm. Bring her in. The art interests me and the name interests my guest.”
Kagome thinks, ‘If this is who I think it is . . . ’ she swallows. ‘I’m going to have to be very cautious about what I say. Mother allowed me to read the diaries of a couple of family members alive at this time. If it’s who I think it is . . . His second wife’s third son, I wonder if it’s this child, will in fifty or so years move to Edo and start the shrine where I grew up.’ she shakes herself.
Her eyes widen as she thinks, ‘the diary of his wife was one I read . . . the father of the son that moved to Edo, was from a love affair with an artist. She never names the artist directly, but . . . ’ She swallows and she whispers, “now I know why she was always interested in the artist Sesshu.”
“Be careful.” She whispers to herself.
The door slides open and the dwarf motions Kagome to follow him. “Do exactly what I say, woman. You will be entering the presence of my master, the great artist Sesshu, and the inspector of shrines for the department of worship.” He says as they go a short distance down the hall.
Kagome can see a woman enter the room she just left. The woman has some cleaning towels and brushes. ‘They think I’m polluted, so their cleaning up after me . . . ’ she realizes.
Kanten, the dwarf, stops in front of a sliding door. He whispers, “You will, when I open this, take one step into the room. You will drop to your knees and bow into the room. You will hold that position, looking at the floor, until my master gives you permission to move closer. You will, once he’s given that permission, crawl forward three steps. You will stop there. You will only raise your head when permission has been granted. Do not stare at the guest or the master.” He harshly whispers. “Failure to follow these instructions is not permissible.”
Kagome swallows and nods her head. Kanten, opens the door and announces, “the girl is here, master.”
“She may enter.”
“Now, fool” the dwarf whispers.
Kagome does as she was instructed.
Before she drops to the floor, she does glance in the room. In the room is two men. Directly in front of her is a man wearing a white silk robe with a red floral design. To his left is man in a red robe.
As she finishes crawling forward, her hair dangling in front of her, ‘this is embarrassing. How do you crawl in this kimono? It’s so long . . . ’ She thinks as she reaches down to adjust her clothes.
The man off to the left mutters under his breath, “peasant.” Obviously she inability to crawl properly has identified her as such.
Kagome swallows and thinks, ‘I’ll show him.’ She takes a deep breath and the nervousness she was feeling fades away.
“Your name.” The man in front of her speaks in a flat tone.
“Higurashi Kagome.” Kagome keeps her face on the floor.
“You are from?”
“The village of Keade in the province of Musashi.”
“Nearest castle?”
“Edo.”
“That’s one of the Hojo’s isn’t it.” The other man asks.
“I believe a Hojo started it, but it’s under new rulership now. Keeping track of the samurai in the east and all the changes they go through is difficult, however.” The man in front replies.
“Of course, Sensei, who’s going to pay attention to something so far from the city.” The man says in a dismissive tone. “I’m grateful for even the small amount of knowledge you possess.”
“You may look upon me, now, girl.”
Kagome sits up and looks at Sesshu.
He is sitting, cross-legged, on a small pillow. The red floral design of his clothes is not the same as Sesshoumaru’s, but it is very similar. His hair is long and flowing, but it is a flat black color. His eyes are also black. Kagome blinks a couple of times to stop herself from staring into them. His face is, again, similar to Sesshoumaru’s but slightly off. It’s little rougher looking, not quite the smooth feminine lines of Sesshoumaru. Neither hand is visible through the long sleeves of his robes. She starts to shift her eyes to the other man, but she sees Sesshu frown and stops herself.
The wall behind him is painted in a spring scene. Cherry trees in full bloom, with a wind blowing the petals. From the quick glance she took when entered, the other walls are similarly painted.
“Your father’s name?” the other man asks.
Kagome gives it.
“That name is not familiar.” He says in a harsh tone.
Sesshu, musingly, says, “Did not one of your uncles get exiled to Musashi?”
A pause. “Hmm. Yes, you are correct. I never heard of him marrying anybody there. But, then, again, there is no one in Musashi that is of sufficient rank and breeding for him to marry.”
“Look at me.” The other man orders Kagome.
Kagome looks at him.
He is a sitting down. The long flowing robes he’s wearing make it impossible to tell how he is sitting. He is wearing a large red robe, under it, she can see a purple robe. She’s not a great judge of age, but he appears to be in his mid-thirties. Since he’s sitting, she’s not sure how tall, he is, but he’s appears to be shorter than Sesshu. Unlike Sesshu’s long flowing hair, his hair is tightly bound and curled under a skull cap. His face looks similar to the pictures she’s seen of her grandfather when he was young.
“Twist your head sideways.” He orders. Kagome does. “Hmm. You could be correct, Sesshu. She does appear to have his face.” He pauses, “I suppose if he did take a peasant to be his bed warmer, “ Kagome bristles at the dismissive attitude, but doesn’t say anything. “He would have used a different name. But, why, then still use the Higurashi name?”
“Is he still alive?” Sesshu asks his guest
“No. He died a while back.” He replies. He looks at Kagome and says, “I will need to write a letter for you to deliver to your father.”
Kagome clears her throat. “Go on.”
“My father is dead, Noble sir.”
Kanten, who has remained in the doorway, interrupts saying, “You will address a noble of the fifth rank by saying Lord.”
“My father is dead, Noble lords.”
“Hmmm. Then who is the artist?” Sesshu asks.
“My mother, great artist Sesshu.”
“Girl. I will write a letter to your parent. This letter will demand an explanation for the use of my family’s name. Until I receive an acceptable answer, you are not to use the name Higurashi.” Kagome’s ancestor orders. “If you misuse the Higurashi family name, you will regret it.” He says harshly.
“Yes, noble Lord. I understand.”
“Sensei, I can see in your eyes a desire to ask more about the artist. And I have delivered the message from my wife. I need to be at the palace soon, so I can, as inspector of shrines, accept a gift from the Higurashi family. I, also, need to get that letter written, so, with your permission.” The man slightly bows to Sesshu and covers his face with his fan.
“Of course, lord Higurashi.” Sesshu rises, “Let me see you out.” He looks at Kagome. “Girl. Remain here until I return.”
“Sensei, if you could, please pass onto me anything she says about her family.” Higurashi says as he leaves the room.
“Of course, noble of the fifth rank.”
While waiting for Sesshu to return Kagome thinks, ‘Well . . . that fits in with what I know about my families history. We were part of the department of religion and ran a shrine in Kyoto. After Edo began to grow, part of the family moved to Edo and started the shrine where I grew up.’
She smiles softly, ‘He married into the shrine family already there, providing additional status to the shrine. Sigh . . . ’ her mouth twitches, ‘However, the records of the family he married into were lost in a fire about 200 years ago, so I don’t know what the connection is between Keade and my family.’
She nods to herself, “After that the family slowly declined in power and influence. Sigh. A couple of idiots that just had to gamble and disport with the geisha of Edo. But, still, the family was fine until the family chose to follow the Shogun instead of emperor Meiji. That’s what cost the family the most. Once the shogunate was destroyed, the family was reduced to just the shrine. All of the other privileges and property were removed as punishment. Which, of course, is why grandfather always longs for the days before the restoration.’
“I do wonder why he has to accept a gift from himself?” She asks herself in a low voice.
The door slides open and Sesshu enters the room. “It is customary for peasant girls, such as yourself, to bow when your superior enters.” He says dryly.
Kagome bows, placing her face on the floor.
“You can look up.” Sesshu says, “to answer your question. As Inspector of shrines, he accepts gifts from all the major shrines. If the Higurashi shrine does not make a gift, than other shrines will decide that they can stop giving gifts as well.” He sits down.
“The gifts are to see that the shrines are approved and that the rites each shrine performs are correctly done.” Sesshu sighs. “It is so hard to find a good scribe nowadays. And the paperwork must be without error, of any type, even the smallest of mis stokes, before it can be approved.” He pauses.
“Without the gift, locating a good scribe becomes harder.” She tentatively says. He nods.
“Thank you for explaining to my unworthy self.”
He picks up the artwork and moves to one side and opens a sliding door. This opens the room up to the interior courtyard and lets in the early morning sunlight.
Kagome can see the beautiful garden in the courtyard.
The large, massive, but moss-covered stone dominates it. Surrounding it is three stone lanterns which are also moss covered. In front of the stone is a small statue of the god Jizo, in his aspect of a protector of dogs. Surrounding this is a few trees and large bushes that seem to meld into one plant of many flowers. Between the stones and the trees is a white sanded strip. Even the smallest piece of dirt would show up against the white sands. The effect is that of a still stream of a white river in some lonesome, drowsy place. Kagome thinks, ‘I wonder how long the garden has been there. The stone, the lamps, the statue of Jizo, seem ancient. And if they are ancient in this time . . . how old is this garden’, she thinks.
He examines the art in the natural sunlight. He grunts. He returns to the sitting position he was in when Kagome entered the room. He puts the art down and says, “Your mother, you said.”
“Yes, sir. I have a letter from her as well that she wished me to you.” Kagome says.
“Let’s see the letter.” He orders.
“It’s in the tube with some additional artwork, sir.”
“Kanten! That tube!”
“Sir. Lord!” the dwarf enters the room in a rush. “I was unaware.” He offers the tube to his master.
“You are unaware of your head being attached.” He growls and takes the tube, opens it, and removes all the contents.
He glances at Kagome and seeing the curiosity in her eyes, deigns to say, “I found him, bloody and injured, during my travels. The village he was in threw him out because of his odd looks. He’s been with me ever since.” He sighs. “I suppose, it’s my kind and gentle nature that allows me to accept that such an inferior person can help me.” He waves his hand dismissing the dwarf, opens the letter and starts to read it, totally ignoring Kanten and Kagome.
“Hmmm . . . I see.” He puts down the letter and looks at Kagome. “She mentions that your travel plans could be very changeable.”
“Yes, sir.”
“So, I suppose you’ll be wanting my critique of this art soon.”
“Yes, sir.”
“How soon before you leave the city?”
“I, I don’t know. It could be tomorrow. It could be longer. I could have to leave Kyoto in a hurry.”
“The village of Keade, musashi province, near Edo . . . I suppose, they’ll be someone in the tax ministry that can give me a real location to that.” He pauses then he says, “return each morning that you are in Kyoto. If I am finished, I will hand you the tube and it’s contents. If you do not show up, after a week, I will inquire about that location and send the tube to it.”
“Thank you, sir. My mother will be forever in your debt.”
“No doubt.” A pause. “You may leave.”
Kagome starts to back away, but stops, and before she can stop herself, “Are you him . . . Sesshoumaru?”
Sesshu starts and looks at her, closely. To Kagome, this is the fist time, she thinks, he’s actually paid attention to her.
“You are aware of the lord of the western lands?”
“I’ve met him.” She pauses, her voice firms. “And lived.”
“Hmmm . . . ” he stares at her. She stares at him.
“I will answer that question in this way, girl. IF I am human, implying that I am the lord of the western lands, causes people to treat me with respect and caution. I am not an ordinary person or artist. And being so exceptional that allows me to do things others cannot. And this causes other ordinary people to treat me differently. For instance, the local samurai that charge a fee for,” a pause, “protection” Kagome can hear the quotes. “Do not bother me.”
He raises an eyebrow, “And after that problem with a demon cat, a local shrine to the god Jizo, as a protector of dogs, has been very helpful. They provided the various wards around this house.” A twinkle appears in his eyes, “I suppose they think that they are helping the lord of the western lands.”
A pause. “On the other hand, If I am the lord of the western lands living in a city full of humans? Why would the lord of the western lands, who’s hatred of humans is well known, even think about disguising himself as one?” a pause then, “You’re met the lord of the western lands?”
“Yes, sir.”
“I assume you’ve met other demons?”
“Yes, sir.”
“Good. Tell me. If you were to show this art.” He points to Kagome’s mother art. “Or any other object of beauty, what would they do? Would they praise and admire the beauty of the object, or would they, say, pick their nose, fart, and ignore it?”
Kagome barely suppresses a giggle. ‘Gods... that describes Inu-yasha totally. That time, early on, when I pointed out a beautiful sunset over the mountains and he did just what Sesshu described.’
She swallows, “Sir, I would have to say the second option.”
“And if the lord of the western lands did happen to enjoy painting, poetry and other similar arts, could he do so openly?”
She starts, surprised, and blurts out, “no.”
“No. Sir.” She bows her head. “But I will ignore that and continue. So perhaps I am the lord of the western lands, using this disguise as a way to express myself, but not in a way that would damage the reputation of the lord of the western lands.”
“...”
“Or perhaps, I am just a normal human. But the lord of the western lands has ordered me to assume the name and persona of Sesshu. I go on many trips, looking for places to paint. Perhaps, during those travels, I met with the lord of the western lands, and I tell him what is happening in the city, and he gives to me the paintings I show the city. Where he acquires the art, I may or may not know.”
“Sir.” A pause as she tries to catch his eyes. But Sesshu appears to looking off in the distance, not focusing on what’s happening now. “Which answer?”
“One of them is true, girl.” He smiles, “but which? That question I shall not answer.”
In a hard voice he says, “Leave.” He motions with his arm and points to the doorway.
Which draws Kagome’s attention to the fact that he has used both hands in holding the art and other actions. ‘He’s not Sess then. Or is he? Adding arms is something he’s done in the past and a human appearing arm is possible.’
As she leaves the room, Kagome hears Sesshu say, “Miko.”
She turns around to look at him. “The letter your mother wrote, mentions a quest. I do pay closer attention to what happens outside the city than Higurashi does. I am aware of various stories about a miko that bears your name.” He says with some dry humor in his voice.
A pause. Kagome straightens and looks him directly in the eye, “And If I am the person in those stories?”
“Some advice. For a girl to succeed in such a quest, she must be bold, be different, be willing to ignore the restraints that society places upon the female sex.”
He looks at her face, hard, his mouth twitches into an almost smile. “Don’t pretend to be a simple girl. If you do, all that will happen is you will be ignored. Do something and force people to acknowledge you. Since you do not have a family, nor any other normal method, use the powers I can feel in you.”
He pauses, “Force people to react to you. Do not react to others.”
A pause. “Oh, yes, if the stories I heard are correct. And they are wrong on occasion. There are many objects of art in this house. It would greatly pain me if they were to be destroyed. The lord of the western lands younger half-brother would, I’m sure, destroy such objects.”
“I understand, sir. If those stories are correct, and if I’m the girl in those stories, and if Inu-yasha is traveling with me, I will see, to the best of my ability, that this house is left undisturbed “ Kagome finishes with a twinkle in her eyes. A similar twinkle is in the eyes of Sesshu.
“You may leave now. I would wish you luck, but” he smiles, “You’ll make your own luck or you’ll fail.”
Kagome bows, “Thank you . . . Sess” she swallows at his very convincing growl, and finishes with “sir.”
As Kagome walks down the hall to the door, Kanten joins her to escort her out of the house. He is wearing a necklace of mismatched flowers. She can hear him grumbling, “stupid little girl. Trying to learn flower arraigning . . . ”
Kagome, grins, shakes her head and leaves the building.
************
“Gods, monk. I fucking hate this robe.” Inu-yasha complains as Miroku reminds him, again, about keeping his face covered so Inu-yasha’s disguise as an old man isn’t blown.
“It’s necessary, Inu-yasha.”
“How are we going to find the girls?” Shippo asks. “Inu-yasha sometimes has trouble sorting smells in small villages. I don’t think he’ll be able to it in the city.”
Inu-yasha growls. “I can, kit.”
“I wish that you would not, Inu-yasha. The sight of you with your nose to the ground, sniffing, causes enough questions in small villages, I would hate to see the reaction in Kyoto.” Miroku quickly says.
“Then how, Miroku?” Shippo whines.
“Easily enough, we’ll pretend that we were part of a group that got separated on our way to Kyoto. By bandits, if anyone asks. And we’ll simply ask various inns and temples if a couple of unattached young women slept there last night.” Miroku grins. “Women, especially young women with non-Kyoto accents, do not wander around without being noticed. I can promise you that.”
“You’ll do the talking, I suppose.” Inu-yasha grumbles in a disgusted voice.
“Oh, course, Inu-yasha.” Miroku bows. “Although, the thought of you having to say please and beg for help, is a very tempting thing to see.”
“Fuck you.”
The boys, then, wander the city. They stop in various inns and temples and Miroku does most of the speaking. (Oh, Shippo pipes up with a comment or two. And Inu-yasha grumbles on occasion, but nothing serious.)
Miroku does ask about rumors of magical and demonic happenings, ‘wherever the shard is, they’ll be demons nearby, perhaps if I compare rumors about where the shard is and where the rumors about demons are . . . I’ll come up with something.’ He thinks.
Because of this, the boys hear a rumor that there was an attack on a compound by zombies this morning. The size of the attack, the damage caused by the attack, differs from story to story, but all the stories agree that the zombies were carrying a scroll and on the scroll, were instructions for the zombies. In the instructions, however, was the name of the family that sent the zombies. That families name is Yamakawa. What will happen next is not known in the rumors.
Their wanderings are interrupted by a parade of soldiers. They, along with the other people in the street, are forced to stand and watch as a parade of several thousand men, in armor and weapons march down the street. In front of them is a standard bearer of the house of Hosokawa.
Inu-yasha’s and Shippo’s ears, listening to the soldiers complain among themselves, pick up various rumors, which they share with Miroku. Among the rumors they heard, are that these were the soldiers the boys saw last afternoon. They are marching the streets of Kyoto as a show of force, to prevent the tensions from increasing.
The officers are talking about preparing an attack on the Yamakawa compound. They used magic this morning in the zombie attack. And since it was such an open attack, there must be a response. The Hosokawa family and other families are going to combine up and destroy the Yamakawa family. These soldiers, or at least some of them, think that they will be used in the attack.
The boys shrug their shoulders, ‘nothing to do with us.’ They think.
As they wander the city, they, like the girls, come across all sorts of merchants.
One of them, seeing Inu-yasha looking like an old man, comes up to him and thrusts a bamboo vial in his face. “Hey, I’ve got just what you need old man. If you use this, you’ll be able to marry a young woman and keep her happy in bed!”
“Grrr.” Inu-yasha growls and the hand, that’s not holding Shippo begins to raise. Miroku’s staff, by coincidence (he’ll swear) blocks his hand from raising.
“I am sorry, but my father does not need that type of help.” He says, trying to give the offensive man the brush off.
“Then, do you? If a young man like you uses it, you’ll be able to go at least seven times in one night!”
Miroku takes the vial from the man’s hand. He glances around, ‘like I hoped, people are watching. A local man trying to con an outsider, it’s always good for a joke.’ He thinks.
Miroku says, “I am sorry, but I will not be purchasing this.” He raises his eyebrow and he says, in a louder than normal voice, “Why would I want to drink something that would slow me down?”
The boys walk away. Shippo crawls up Inu-yasha’s arm and pulls down his right eyelid and gives the man the red-eye as he giggles.
“Good one, Miroku.” Inu-yasha pats the monk’s back.
The man’s jaw drops down. He glances around and can see most of the people on the street are either covering their mouths so they can grin and laugh anonymously or have turned their backs on him.
‘Shit! And I sell a lot of this crap to monks. Who’d have thought one of them would have refused . . . ’ he thinks?
End chapter 7
Sigh . . . I wanted to put some action in this chapter, but, the Kagome/Sesshu scene went overboard, so a joke to end the chapter.
Sesshu: a short biography:
Born in 1420 in present-day Okayama Prefecture, Sesshu lived as a Zen monk in Kyoto until his mid-30s. In Kyoto, he studied under Shubun, regarded as the greatest artist of his time. From 1466 to 1469, Sesshu traveled to China as part of a diplomatic envoy to the Ming court. There he studied and copied the techniques and styles of renowned Sung Dynasty painters like Xia Gui (ca. 1200-50) and Ma Yuan (ca. 1190-1224). This influence appears in Sesshu's hatsuboku (splashed ink), Chinese figures, and copious landscape paintings based on Chinese models. The artist died around 1506.
Once I started to write Inu-yasha fanfiction, I knew I had, somehow, use the name Sesshu. (Or perhaps his student Sesson). Hopefully, the story is interesting enough to allow me to change this biography.
Is the character (Sesshu) above Sesshoumaru? I’m not going to say. I’ve written this so the answer could be yes or could be no. Is Sesshu the father of the man how will give the Higurashi name to the shrine near Keade village? The answer, in this case, is yes.
For those interested. The Sir & Lord bit: Kagome would be using the -sama suffix. In this time frame, that is wrong. -dono is used. (For my purposes, the difference it’s the between sir and lord. It’s not that, but it’s close) Governors, which I suppose you could say that the lord of the western lands is, the proper suffix to use when addressing a person of that rank was -kami. So technically speaking . . . You would, properly, address him as Sesshoumaru-dono or Sesshoumaru-kami. (Oh, yes, I know the manga/anime doesn’t do it like that. I just going by the real history and how people of that sort of rank were addressed at this time, ok)
A note about the importance of clothing and families. I need to make a comparison with something modern to help . . . I’m going to use the military. In the military, you have uniforms, rank badges, unit patches, and medals, these allow people to know who’s who at a glance, ok. In Feudal Japan, clothing and families, worked the same way. By looking at a person’s clothing, you could tell what rank/social class a person was. Once you knew the family that the person belonged to, you would know, pretty much all you needed to know about the person. (This was the main reasons that clothing regulation were in place in Japan. If you were wearing the wrong clothes, it was like a private dressing up as captain . . . laws and punishments were there to keep people in their place.)
In case Kagome’s family history confused readers. In the late 1860's the rule by shogun was overthrown and modern japan under the emperor Meiji was started. The shrine, being in Tokyo, would have had to back the Shogun, it was that or be destroyed. After the fall of the shogun . . . well, the new government did rearrange things to suit themselves . . .
Some interesting links . . .
Japanese Dog Folklore . . . where I found the Jizo bits for this story.
http://www.swampfox.demon.co.uk/utlah/Articles/japdog.html
The tale of Genji online . . . the culture that Kyoto wants to pretend still existed. Written around 1000 ad. It is THE novel to read. If you want to know about the culture of Kyoto, this is the story to read. Ever noble in Kyoto tried to be a close to Genji as possible. He was the role model, everyone followed.
http://webworld.unesco.org/genji/en/index.shtml
Japanese poetry online. With sound.
http://www.japanpoem.com/
two online sources on Japanese culture . . .
http://www3.la.psu.edu/textbooks/172/contents.htm
http://www3.la.psu.edu/textbooks/480/contents.htm
Very useful info . . .
Hmmm . . . sighs. How to say this, I’ve tried to drum up readers for this story, but. Sigh. But . . . there are still only about 100 people following this story. And since you, the readers, have been more responsive than any other group of readers I’ve had, thank you.
But, the readership of this story is not increasing . . .
So . . . I am going to ask if any readers have any suggestions. (I would like to keep the rating at PG-13. And there will be more interaction between the two groups, one of the goals of this was to explore the group dynamics when you split them into pairs you normally don’t read.)
Thank you for reading.
Jeff shelton