Himari

“Your father would be proud of you, you know,” Masashi’s voice grated in Himari’s ear. Since they had adjourned their strategy meeting, it seemed like he had been shadowing her ever since. She could feel Sakura cowering next to her in her fox form; the connection made by Inari had slowly made her more naturally aware of her lover’s emotional state. And the fear that poor Sakura felt saddened her.

But, she had to be polite, for the sake of the mission if nothing else. “He told me, one of the last times I saw him. Pride does not become a Sato. So please forgive me if I am not so swift to accept your words.” Her left hand casually came to rest on her saya as they walked towards the roads that would inevitably take Masashi back to Kyūsoku Toshi.

His infuriating chuckle caused a twitch to come to her eye. “You say that, but I knew Kosuke-san to be quite the prideful man in his youth. It is a credit to his training that he did try to keep you from the pitfalls he knew when he was your age. Though I think it is wiser to let the young make these mistakes on their own. Failure is the best lesson.”

“I’ve had plenty of that lately, trust me,” she groused. “But enough about that. You said you had something for me?”

“And just like your father, you cut through the chaff to get right to the point. Here.” He offered Himari a sealed scroll case from his sleeve. “I thought it might be kind to offer you an update on how your mother and youngest brother are doing. I regret to say that I have not located Souka-san to this point. But I am hoping to find him and ensure his safety. I had promised your father that much.”

Himari took the scroll hesitantly. “I take it that was a posthumous promise,” she said carefully.

“Oh, on the contrary, my Dear. I made that promise to him two years ago.”

Himari’s blade slipped from its saya in an instant and slashed at Masashi’s throat. She had anticipated that he was using his Aura again to hide himself, which proved true when the blade slipped through him without so much as a hint of resistance. “Lying about my father will not earn you points with me, Goro Masashi.” Her warning was terse, eyes staring to her left where he had faded back into view. “If you speak about him so casually again, you won’t be able to hide behind illusions.” She began to expand her Aura out, searching for the spot where he truly stood.

“Ah, blades coming out is my cue to make my way home,” he said quickly. “I will be watching, Sato Himari. Please be careful.” Briefly, she found a hint of Aura that flickered and died only a few hundred feet away. For a moment, she considered chasing after him, but the feel of a familiar hand on her arm kept her at bay. She looked over to her right, and Sakura had already swapped to her human form.

“You should be careful with him,” she warned. “He is… very concerning. Something about his Aura is corroded and wrong.” As Himari looked to her more carefully, she realized that the Kitsune was shivering. “Promise me,” Sakura muttered, “Promise me you will not try and fight him.”

Himari turned fully to face Sakura now. She could see in plain terms the fear in her eyes at just the thought of Masashi. And she couldn’t help but wonder what the Kitsune saw of him that made her so afraid. Her arms wrapped around Sakura, pulling her in for a tight hug. “Don’t worry. We’ll all be careful around him, and we won’t fight him. Are you ok?”

Sakura nodded quietly in her arms. Himari held her for as long as she could justify, then took her hand and gave her a reassuring smile. “Come on. We should get ready.”

Sakura stared at the ground for a moment, then muttered something impossibly quiet. “Sakura?” Himari tilted her head in concern.

“It is nothing,” Sakura looked up to her and smiled. “Let us find Maiko-san, ok? She’s getting ready to play a dangerous game, after all.” She started darting back towards the village, forcing Himari to run to keep pace.

As the two found their way to the little hut in which Maiko lived, Himari was just a bit relieved to see that the candles were still lit. She wasn’t sure why, but she’d had a sneaking suspicion all afternoon that she might up and run away. Fortunately, as they knocked on the door, the smaller girl was indeed standing there with a single pack set aside for the journey.

“Oh, Himari-sama, Sakura-san. Can I help you?” Maiko looked confused.

It didn’t surprise Himari that Sakura almost took Maiko off her feet as she leapt to give her a hug. She couldn’t help but giggle at the sight. “Sakura-chan is going to miss you,” Himari explained. “And thus wanted to see you off.”

“Sakura-san,” Maiko choked out as Himari watched Sakura squeeze on her harder. “Sakura-san you are crushing me. Please let go.”

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Sakura’s head lifted from Maiko’s shoulder for a brief moment, then she let go of Maiko and offered a sheepish “sorry.”

Maiko herself laughed gently at the response, responding with a cheerful smile. “Truly, Sakura-san, I am not upset. I am glad to know you are going to miss me. I’ll miss you and Himari-san as well. We only barely got to catch up and now we must separate from each other yet again.”

“It is not fair,” the Kitsune groused. “We spent the better part of a year basically inseparable, and now fate seems to want us to stay apart for even longer.” As she pouted, Maiko’s hand found its way onto her head, and the Kitsune paused.

“Hey. I’ll be back soon enough, ok? And when I get back, we’ll go hunting again and even find some chickens. It won’t be near as long this time, I’m sure.” Maiko smiled, but her eyes seemed to carry just a hint of doubt to it.

Himari let out a sigh. “We will see you again. Please be careful. No matter what else happens, I know I don’t need to tell you that we can’t trust Masashi.”

Maiko snorted, ruffling Sakura’s hair before she let go and crossed her arms. “Himari-san. I have known Goro Masashi since as far back as I can remember, and let me assure you that those were not the most pleasant years of my life. I will remain cautious about him, of course. But if we can use him in any way to help you and yours depose the Usurper, then it is a risk I am glad to take on your behalf.”

“Maiko…”

“No, Himari-san, listen. I know that you’ve a lot of reasons not to trust me, but I truly want you to know that I am glad we met, no matter what else happens.” This time, it was Maiko’s turn to throw her arms around Himari, squeezing Sakura between the two of them. She held the two for several minutes, before finally she let go and sighed heavily. “You both are the only friends I’ve ever had. And I promise I will treasure you both until the day I die. So please, trust me a little bit?”

Himari stared at her for several moments, before nodding her head. “I’ll trust you. Make sure that door is open by the time I get there, ok? And don’t take any unnecessary risks. Sakura-san would be so upset if you died without her being able to hunt again.”

“Of course. Sayonara, Sakura-san. Himari-san.” The young assassin waved, and soon she was out the door.

Sakura clung quietly to Himari as the two watched her start down the road to the capital. She didn’t speak again until she was sure that Maiko was out of earshot. “Why does she have to go? Why could it not be Misao, he seems like the sort to be able to pretend to be a servant or something. Or Shizuku, nobody seems to like her.”

“Sakura-chan,” Himari hissed. “Shizuku-san is a colleague of mine. And you know as well as I do that Maiko is best suited for the task of infiltrating the capital.”

“I know,” she grumbled in annoyance. “I just do not like it. What if Masashi does something to her? What if she gets caught and something bad happens? It is not fair that it should be her to have to deal with it.”

“It’s not,” she agreed. “But alas, our lives are rarely determined by what’s fair. If I could have gone in her stead, I would have.”

“That would have been worse.” Sakura buried her head into Himari’s shoulder. “You both have already suffered enough, haven’t you? Why can this not be someone else’s problem?”

“This is an odd time to be having doubts,” Himari giggled gently. “Weren’t you training me specifically so that I could be ready for this exact moment?”

“That was before he showed up,” Sakura’s hatred for Masashi really did take Himari by surprise.

Before she could answer Maiko’s vitriol though, a voice from behind caught Himari by surprise. “Ah, Himari-san, Sakura-san. It is about time for us to go see our forces.” The voice of Ichiya Horobei brought Himari back from contemplation and into the reality of their situation. In only a few short days, they would be fighting for the fate of a nation.

Himari turned to face him, her hand locking fingers with Sakura’s. “Ah, Ichiya-sama. Apologies, I didn't mean to delay us. We just wanted to say goodbye to Maiko-san, and then we got caught up in conversation. I take it everyone else is ready?”

“Quite so!” Horobei grinned cheerfully. “In fact, they all seem quite energized to have something to directly fight for again. I dare say that this endeavor will, in the worst case, give us a chance to die quite honorably.”

Himari shook her head, giving a confident smile she didn’t feel. She knew what was at stake. She couldn’t show even a moment’s weakness anymore. “We are going to get through this, Ichiya-sama. I will kill the Usurper, and your Father’s throne will be yours.”

“Well, if the great Sato Himari claims it, I dare say we have nothing to worry about.” There was no hint of sarcasm. Almost as if he was trying to encourage her as much as she was trying to encourage him. The trio made their way down from the hut to the small stable area, where Misao, Shizuku, and Chikao already waited.

“Well, it took you all long enough,” Misao chuckled. “We may have to ride in the moonlight to get there in time.”

“Oh don’t pretend you aren’t looking forward to a moonlight ride,” Shizuku chuckled in response. “Just try not to flirt with Chikao-san the whole way.”

“Oh, please do,” Chikao laughed from his belly. “I’d love to hear your pick up lines before I throw ya into the fuckin’ trees.”

Sakura’s nose flared at the three’s banter, and while the others mounted she turned herself back into a Fox.

“Let’s be careful not to become complacent,” Horobei warned. “There’s no reason to believe we won’t see more dangers on the road.”

As the group made their way west towards the army, it was Himari who had the last words. “Let them come if they must. We’ll be ready.”

Four riders left a nameless village that night, accompanied by a single fox companion. For just a brief moment, Himari let herself feel confidence. Let herself believe that their victory was a certainty. The feeling of pride that she had suppressed at her Father’s orders was intoxicating. But just as she let herself feel it, she forced it back down again.

Somehow, she had a feeling that they would lose a lot more before they won.