Eitsu woke early that morning, unusually so.
Tsubaki was usually awake earlier than her, but the woman was still asleep beside her. Eitsu pecked her softly on the cheek and left through the window to climb onto the roof. Usually she would try being a bit more cheeky with Tsubaki, but for some reason, today she just wanted to sit on the the roof alone and enjoy the way that the inky sky of night faded to the blush pink of dawn.
Although, she couldn't help thinking that this pink was the colour of certain parts of Tsubaki's lovely form...
A movement caught her attention. It seemed she wasn't the only one awake early; looking out across the peaceful rooftops of the Yuan Wei Temple, she spotted a lanky young man in scholar's robes striding quietly but purposefully along the temple's paths.
“Hey, flower boy. What're you doing?”
The young man clutched his chest to stop his heart from physically leaping out. In the space of a breath, Eitsu had crossed the temple roofs and popped out in front of him, hanging upside down off a gate lintel.
“Lady Eitsu!” His voice came out as a hysterical whisper. “Are you a cat or a monkey?”
“What a silly question. You know what I am.” Eitsu dropped, transforming mid-fall into a small black cat. She landed in a heap of clothing that now no longer fit her. “Why are you sneaking around, Mr Strategist?”
“I've got work to do,” he replied, recovering his dignity as he tidied his clothes. “Unlike some.”
Eitsu grinned, showing sharp canines. The pupils of her golden eyes narrowed to stringlike slits. “Cheng Guk Lung.”
“Your pronunciation has improve-”
“Cheng. Guk. Lung.”
“... Yes, Lady Eitsu.”
“Are you sure you want to be so rude to me?”
“Probably not, Your Divine Majesty.”
“Oh, that's a new one.” Without a blush, she transformed back into human form. Cheng Guk Lung abruptly turned away as Eitsu nonchalantly put her clothes back on.
“I'm not sure it suits me.”
“What would you prefer, Lady Eitsu?”
She was about to respond as she tightened her waist sash when something about Cheng Guk Lung's demeanour distracted her. “What's wrong, scholar? In a hurry to get somewhere? Am I holding you up?”
“I did say I was busy, Lady Eitsu. But if you really wish to play, I suppose I can supervise you for a while.”
“You've got a really nasty tongue, you know?”
“Thank you.”
“A pity you don't put it to other uses.”
“Should I mention what you've just said to Lady Tsubaki?”
Eitsu laughed, truly amused. “Go on, get going.”
“Lady.” With a low bow, Cheng Guk Lung left, slipping into the darkness of early dawn.
Yawning, Eitsu hopped easily back onto the roof of the nearest building. The cold morning air was doing its best to wake her up, but really she just felt like finding a warm spot to curl up and go back to sleep.
She had been born in a much colder place than this, thousands of kilometres away, across the eastern sea in Yamato, but the thought of returning to the bed she shared with Tsubaki and curling up next to the woman's warm body (and hopefully eliciting a shriek out of her from the coldness of her hands or paws) was very seductive.
“Oh, it's you.”
A figure emerged along the path, a powerfully built, muscular form, pale as a ghost and covered in dark ink. Eitsu and this new arrival considered each other warily.
The first time they had ever met, they had not been able to communicate, ignorant of each others' languages. This person, some kind of witch or sorcerer, Eitsu had been able to decipher, had helped her, but they had a particular kind of aura that made Eitsu uneasy. It reminded her too much of someone else.
Still, Eitsu grinned and greeted them. “You're up early... Man or woman today?”
The witch wore thick dark robes to guard against the cold and snow. They pulled their fur collar forwards and peered downwards. “Looks like it's female, today.”
“Can you not tell without looking?” Eitsu asked, intrigued.
“Sometimes.” The witch shook snowflakes from her wild black hair and scowled upwards. “Ah Yuet told me to get going early.”
“Oh, your cute little partner? They really do led you around by the nose.” Eitsu smirked.
“Like you can talk,” the witch growled, accent amplified by annoyance. “The way ye follow that wife of yours around, anyone'd think ye were a dog, not a cat.”
“Oh my, so touchy.”
“Go find someone else to talk nonsense with.” Grumbling, the witch stomped away along the same path that Cheng Guk Lung had taken.
It really was too cold. Eitsu leaped lightly back the way she had come, slipping through the window to nuzzle under the blankets and latch onto the sleeping Tsubaki with cold skin. The woman woke with a hiss of annoyance, and sleepily lifted the covers to glare at Eitsu.
“You.”
“Yes, my flower?”
“... What time is it?”
“No idea. Early.”
“Hm. I suppose I should thank you for waking me.”
Tsubaki slipped elegantly from the bed, her movements light and graceful despite sleepily searching for clothing in a dark room. She had been a famous dancer, once. The skills still echoed in her every step.
“Tsu-bo, come back to bed.” Eitsu sat up, biting the tip of her finger suggestively. Tsubaki's beautiful face turned towards her.
“Hm.”
And that was it. The woman continued to get dressed.
“It's cold.”
“What's the problem? You were born somewhere cold.”
“Doesn't mean I like it.”
“Okay.”
“Why are you being mean?”
“If you want to lounge around all day, don't let me stop you.”
Eitsu fell quiet. She lay back down on the bed, watching Tsubaki's every move. She could smell the fragrance of camellia oil from where she lay.
“Are you staying here, then?” Tsubaki asked, at last, now fully dressed.
“It's too cold out there.”
“Suit yourself.”
Tsubaki opened the door of the room, paused, then turned back. She planted a light kiss on Eitsu's nose, dodging with clear experience as Eitsu tried to grab her.
“Tsu-bo...”
“Don't stay there all day.” With these words, Tsubaki left the room.
Eitsu rolled herself into the sheets like sushi and closed her eyes. She and Tsubaki had been invited to Yuan Wei by its Master for the Lunar New Year, arriving a week before. It was an odd group that gathered, with some attendees she knew better than others, from many different places. When they all gathered together, the meeting spaces hummed with a diverse mix of languages.
Eitsu was definitely enjoying herself. It wasn't often that she found a place where she felt comfortable for long stretches of time, preferring more the company of only Tsubaki, but the assortment of people here made things interesting.
In fact, she realised that right now, she was more bored than sleepy. Vigorously unrolling from the blankets and leaping from the bed, she stuck her head out through the window again.
The Temple was a tranquil collection of wood and earth buildings, with medicinal and water gardens laid out between them. She could see that the place had been purposefully designed. With the particular placement of features, the Yuan Wei Temple crackled with a formidable defensive power. In addition, many of the disciples here were young, but they had impressive skills for human children.
Speaking of Yuen Wei disciples... A person in the yellow and white robes of a disciple, their pale blond hair partially pinned back with a wooden hairpin, was cheerfully gliding along the distant path where Eitsu had earlier met Cheng Guk Lung and the witch. This was the witch's partner, Yuan Yi Feng, head disciple of Yuan Wei and the kind of person who could smile whilst drawing a blade. They were probably looking for the witch, Eitsu thought to herself, watching them slide effortlessly out of sight. It was something of a culture shock to see. In her country, only yokai could move like that. Here in the Five Kingdoms, it seemed that any person with enough spiritual power could do the same.
“Lady Eitsu!”
Her thoughts were interrupted by a call from the path below. She looked down to see a tall, lean woman waving to her.
“Lau Yan!” Eitsu flipped lightly out of the window to greet the other woman, who picked her up easily and happily nuzzled against Eitsu like a person would with a pet cat.
“How are you today?”
“Terrible,” Eitsu sobbed dramatically. “Tsubaki was so mean to me this morning.”
“Well, you know what to do.” Lau Yan – Gong Lau Yan, to give her full name – grinned, her grey-brown eyes dancing with mischief. “Treat her so well that she feels guilty.”
“Is that what you do with Zeyi?” Eitsu asked slyly.
“Not at all. Zeyi is always lovely to me.” Gong Lau Yan's eyes softened. She put Eitsu back down. “She decided to sleep in today. She's tired of running around all her life, I think. What about you, kitty? What will you do today?”
“Sleep. Eat. Bother Tsubaki. I mean, be nice to Tsubaki.”
“Business as usual?” Gong Lau Yan laughed a lot. When she did, her luscious chestnut brown hair, bound in a high ponytail, shook like a flowing stream. “That's very much like you. Have you seen anyone else today?”
“Hm... The scholar, the witch, Tsubaki, and the monk.”
“Huh? Already? They're up early. I think I'll have to go and catch them. I'll see you later!”
With a friendly scratch behind Eitsu's ears, Gong Lau Yan's human form rippled and changed. In her place was a huge dragon, a grey-brown loong, barely able to fit in the narrow street. She flicked her long whiskers and leapt upwards, twisting and flowing away in the direction that Cheng Guk Lung, the witch, and Yuan Yi Feng had gone.
Eitsu cocked her head to one side, suddenly. Hm, how had she known to go in that direction?
Suddenly, it occurred to her that things seemed a little odd. As far as she knew, there was little else beyond the temple in that direction, except for a river, and yet she had now seen four people headed that way. And where was Tsubaki?
She began to look, peering into the common areas of the Temple. Tsubaki was not in the food hall, or in the bathhouse. Trotting into the medicinal gardens to check there, she was almost run over by someone running full speed towards her.
“Ah! Sorry!”
Eitsu leapt out of the way, alarmed. She didn't know this lady too well, a woman who looked young and fresh with a sprinkling of freckles across her snub nose like a galaxy of stars, and dark hair partially pulled in loops. In truth, she was much older than she appeared. If it weren't for the frantic expression in her deep red eyes, she would look very refined in her crimson dress, a shawl of transparent fabric floating around her. The young woman bowed.
“I apologise, Lady Eitsu. I'm afraid I slept in and am now in a great hurry. I have to go!”
So saying, she fled across the garden and was gone in the blink of an eye, faster than Eitsu thought it was possible for anyone, mortal or immortal, to move. The Master of Yuan Wei had said that this young woman... What was her name? Chan Bikku? was the direct disciple of some fire divinity or other. Eitsu hadn't really paid attention.
It was clear that Tsubaki was definitely nowhere around Yuan Wei. Eitsu turned to face the direction that the others had all headed in, following them out of the Temple grounds and into the grassy hills beyond. She had barely taken a few steps from the walls when another voice hailed her.
“K- Konnichiwa! Eitsu... O-Eitsu? O-Eitsubyou... Feck, how do ye say it again...?”
“Shut up,” Eitsu said to the man following behind her. “Your Yamato-go sucks.”
He bowed apologetically, slipping into the Xiang tongue that was commonly spoken across the Five Kingdoms. “I beg your pardon, divine one.”
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“Don't,” Eitsu recommended. She eyed the man, a pale Westerner from the same part of the world as the witch, with disdain. Where the witch was pale, dark-haired and green-eyed, this man was pink with sunburn, which clashed horribly with his dark orange hair and moustache. His only saving grace seemed to be his eyes, blue as chips of sky, although they frequently had a look in them that made Eitsu feel like she needed a bath. She suppressed the urge to wipe herself and instead turned away.
“W-wait!”
Wait? Was this greasy human, whose name she didn't even remember, trying to order her around?
She turned back suddenly, before he could even take another breath, and squarely flicked him in the centre of his forehead, leaving a raised red welt. He shrieked and clapped his hands to his head.
“My ears! What... Where have my ears gone? What's this on the top of my head? Mule ears?”
“Why don't you run over to the river and take a look?” Eitsu suggested with a satisfied purr. She watched the man run away down the path. His ears were fine. Well, as far as anyone else could see.
“Eitsu-sama?”
A familiar voice. Three people had rounded the corner, in the full morning sun. They made perhaps the strangest collection of people that could be formed out of those gathered at the temple. The one who had called and was now waving was Ayame, who had been a servant girl with Tsubaki's former dance troupe.
She was walking next to a man wearing white and grey cultivator's robes, and an impassive look on his face. Although fairly plain to behold, on the rare chance that he raised his eyes, they flashed silver, cutting through whatever they looked at like twin swords. Even Eitsu, with all her power, felt a little jolt the first time she had been subjected to that look, as if the man could see right through her.
Well, as with many of the people gathered here, he was much older than he looked. The only ones who actually looked their age would be Ayame, the witch, and the greasy Spideog.
Following up behind them was a beautiful woman with long, black hair that fell to the ground. She rivalled Tsubaki in appearance, but her eyes, blue as the deep ocean, were impersonally cold.
Eitsu didn't like her. Actually, no one seemed to really like her. What the heck were she and that greasy westerner doing here?
“Divine Lady Eitsu.” The woman bowed formally.
“Yeah, hi. Who were you again?” Eitsu scratched her ear. She had to clench her jaw tightly to not burst out laughing when she saw a muscle twitch in the woman's jaw.
“Maan Dzi King, Commander of the Third Head of the Palace of Tin Yeung Wong.”
The words trickled in through one of Eitsu's ears and out the other. “Uh-huh... Sek Gon! Aya-chan!
Ah.
Eitsu turned from one face with an expression like a bitter melon to find herself looking at two faces with equally problematic expressions. The man's was completely disinterested, his silvery eyes half-shuttered by his eyelids and fixed on some imaginary point in the distance. Ayame's was as uncomfortable as a bed of thistles.
All in all, Eitsu didn't really feel like hanging around with this unsociable group. She gave Ayame a bright grin and slipped quickly away off the path.
As she sat on the low branch of a larch, doing her best to ignore the tree's needles sticking into her, she put Ayame's awkward expression from her mind.
Everyone's headed towards the river. Is there something going on?
She thought for a moment, then almost immediately shrugged and made herself more comfortable. Who cared? It's better just to sleep at times like this!
At least, that's what she was planning on doing, but another set of voices made her ears twitch. At first, she was going to keep her eyes closed and go to sleep anyway, but a sudden thought made her sit up.
Twelve guests had been invited to Yuan Wei by the temple Master. Including herself, eleven had already passed down the path to the river. That meant that these two voices...
“Is that Lady Eitsu?”
“I was wondering when you would turn up,” Eitsu remarked, yawning and stretching as she emerged onto the path once more. The faces that greeted her this time were much more inviting than the last group; the tall, well-built man gave her a cheerful grin, while the short, round-faced woman whose skin was covered in tiny, silvery scars gave her a gentle smile.
“Hello, Lady Eitsu.” The woman gave a small bow. The irises of her eyes swirled white and black, the light and the dark holding each other in perfect balance.
“Napping again?” The man, on the other hand, gold eyes like a hawk, a more orange tone than Eitsu's own. He nudged her playfully. “If you keep sleeping, you'll be late!”
Huh, so there is something going on.
“I don't really care,” Eitsu replied, yawning again.
“Right? What's the rush? Let's just take our time.” The woman... what was her name again?
Too many people, Eitsu grumbled to herself. It's such a hassle trying to remember all their names.
“You've forgotten my name, haven't you?” A sharp smirk, completely at odds with the woman's modest appearance, flashed across her face. “It's Zeyi.”
“And just call me Gou Dzing, rather than anything else,” the man added, giving Eitsu a cheerful pat on the shoulder that felt as though she would be knocked into the earth.
“Why don't you walk with us?” Zeyi suggested. “We're going slowly anyway, and it's nice to have company.”
“That's a great idea. Come with us!”
“Oh? Are you not going to rush off to catch up with Gaam Shi xiong?” Zeyi asked teasingly.
“No need. We've got plenty of time.”
“Maybe if you didn't blush when saying that...” Zeyi caught sight of the blank look on Eitsu's face. “Lady Tsubaki was right, you really are terrible with remembering people, aren't you?”
“It's just annoying,” Eitsu remarked, stalking away up the path with Gou Dzing and Zeyi following her with matching understanding smiles. “I can remember if I bother.”
“Of course. Of course. Anyway, you know who I meant. You call Gaam Shi xiong 'Sek Gon'. You thought it was funny, right?”
Eitsu snorted involuntarily. “How can I not find someone who calls themselves 'Big Tree' funny?”
“He hasn't used that name in a while,” Gou Dzing said, looking a little embarrassed.
“So does he have a big tree, or...”
“That's none of your business, Lady Eitsu.”
“Don't worry, it's not like I'll do anything to him. He's not my type.”
“I'm sure Lady Tsubaki will be glad to hear that, Lady Eitsu,” Zeyi remarked cheerfully.
Eitsu pouted. “I was only joking.”
“But you sounded so serious!” Gou Dzing whimpered, pressing his hands to his face with eyes that seemed about to overflow with tears. Zeyi gritted her teeth to contain her laughter.
“Wow, kind of disgusting to see a grown man acting so coy.” Eitsu grinned. “But I like a guy who cries. Maybe I should switch targets.”
“I'm going to tell Lady Tsubaki!” Zeyi laughed, sprinting ahead of them.
“You wouldn't!”
“I will!”
Gou Dzing and Eitsu raced after her, laughing. Cutting suddenly off the path, Eitsu raced between the larch, following a shortcut down to the river. Up and down, loose rocks skittering away below her feet, she raced across the rocky landscape, sliding easily down one steep slope and flowing effortlessly up the next, feeling wild and alive. A flock of azure-winged magpies scattered frantically as she raced through the middle of them.
She finally came to a halt at the edge of a canyon, the river curling below her like a slow dragon. She could see where the path crossed the river, and could see the figures of Cheng Guk Lung and the witch. The former was lying in a heap, shouting wildly, apparently thrown across the water by the witch, who was sturdily wading through the deep water. Cheng Guk Lung paused long enough to make a rude gesture at the witch before running quickly away. Eitsu listened cheerfully to the distant echoes of the witch cursing in her native tongue before she gained the opposite bank of the river and disappeared along the path after Cheng Guk Lung.
Not long after, the elegant form of Tsubaki appeared by the riverbank. Eitsu hopped quickly down the sides of the canyon, her deft feet finding almost invisible holds on the rock, until she was at Tsubaki's side.
“Why hello, beautiful lady. Would you require some assistance?” Eitsu almost yowled in alarm and leapt back with a hiss when Tsubaki tossed a handful of water at her.
“From you? You hate water.”
“But I love you.”
Tsubaki looked unimpressed. “What have you done now?”
“What do you mean?”
“You've done something, haven't you? Why are you being like this?”
“I haven't! I'm always like this.”
“You're like this when you've done something. Or when you're trying to get me into bed.”
“Well maybe it's the second opt- Stop splashing water on me!”
Without a second glance, Tsubaki dived into the water. She was a surprisingly competent swimmer, reaching the opposite bank easily, and emerging drenched but otherwise fine on the other side.
“You'll catch a cold,” Eitsu grumbled, annoyed. She sneaked several good looks at how Tsuabki's wet robes clung to her body.
“It's a warm day. I'll dry.” With that, Tsubaki turned and headed up the path too.
“Hey! Are you just going to leave? You heartless woman! This is why you should never trust beauties!”
“Why is that, Lady Eitsu?” Yuan Yi Feng asked, appeared from the woods behind her.
“Listen, my friend,” Eitsu explained with a fierce tone. “A beautiful woman is cruel and harsh. They'll hurt you if they can.”
“So are you saying you're a masochist, Lady Eitsu?”
“... How are you able to say things like that with such an innocent face...?”
Yuan Yi Feng simply returned her a cheerful, blank look, as if the disciple had no thoughts in their head, then examined the river. “That's quite wide. How about I...”
They made a hand gesture, and a large dead branch fell from a nearby tree, rolling down to the water. “Would you like to join me?”
“Better than swimming,” Eitsu grumbled. Still, the log wasn't long enough to reach the other bank.
“I'll help.” With a gentle gust of air, Gong Lau Yan landed in loong form by the river side. “Get on. I'll push you across.”
Eitsu was already on the log. Yuan Yi Feng bowed appreciatively. “Thank you, Lady Gong.”
It was the work of only a few nudges with her snout, and the pair on the log were safely across. Eitsu shook herself as if she had gotten wet.
“Lady Eitsu?”
“I'm fine. I just want to sit here for a bit.”
“We'll be off then. Don''t take too long, Lady Eitsu!” Yuan Yi Feng and Gong Lau Yan waved and headed up the path.
It was midday by now, the sun at its highest point, and Eitsu usually would be having a nap by now. The trees here were a little stunted. Shedding her clothing, she shifted back into her cat form, the little black shape finding a comfortable bed in the crook of a tree limb, curling up and closing her eyes. She had barely settled when an unfortunately familiar voice reached her ears.
“GET OFF! GET... ARGH!”
“Shut up, you jerk.”
It seemed that the western fool that Eitsu had messed with earlier was now on the receiving end of more punishment from another woman.
Eitsu watched comfortably from her secret vantage point with one eye open as he was dragged down the path by his ear by the woman in red that she had seen earlier. He looked as though her had been partially burnt, the ends of his hair singed.
“Stop struggling!”
“Ma'am? Lady? I can't understand what you're saying!”
With one speaking in the Zhu language and the other in a panicked mixture of Common Tongue and Xiang, it was a scene of absolute chaos. Eitsu was just sorry she didn't have anything to snack on while she watched.
The woman kicked the man into the water, and while he thrashed about, she took a running leap, using his back as a halfway springboard. She landed on the other side and turned to give him a burning look.
“Stay in there a bit longer, you greasy man. Maybe the water will clean you a bit.”
Eitsu nearly fell out of the tree with silent laughter. The woman turned on her heel and glided away up the path, leaving the man damp and confused behind her. He eventually pulled himself to shore, rubbing his sore back as he trudged along the same road.
It was a refreshing sight before sleeping. Eitsu happily curled up again, closing her eyes.
It was stomach that woke her, eventually. Thinking on it, she hadn't eaten anything today. There was supposed to be a big feat later, but none of the guests seemed to be coming back the way they had come, so Eitsu assumed that the food must be ahead. Even if it wasn't she'd find something.
More voices. It had to be the odd trio – Sek Gon, Ayame, and that miserable woman.
Eitsu stayed hidden in the tree. She didn't really want to appear and see Ayame's awkward expression again.
What she did see was Sek Gon zipping rapidly through the air, balanced easily on a jade-hilted sword, with Ayame clinging on behind. They flashed over the river and were gone.
The water in the river began to swell.
The current suddenly sped up, water spilling over the banks as someone, or something, came rampaging down the path.
Another dragon, this time a deep blue loong, rushed angrily across the river as if it wasn't there and was gone in the blink of an eye. Eitsu wondered with mild interest what Sek Gon and Ayame had done to make her so angry. Whatever it was, she approved.
The sun was well on its way to the horizon now. She could hear Gou Dzing and Zeyi as they made their way slowly at the rear, talking amicably, but she didn't really feel like seeing them.
The frozen expression on Ayame's face rose up in her mind, and she remained crouched on her tree branch as Gou Dzing and Zeyi crossed the river (Zeyi waved her hand and the water temporarily turned solid, allowing them to cross), and even as their voices faded.
It wasn't as if she didn't understand. Ayame had been a child when she had followed Tsubaki out into the wide world, and been caught up in the unresolved personal problems that Eitsu had accrued over eight reincarnated lifetimes. She was sure the young woman felt she was at least partially to blame for the bad things that had happened to Tsubaki.
Heck, Eitsu blamed herself for them.
Slowly, she dropped down from the tree, returned to humanoid form and dressed. Slowly, she walked up the path after the others. It was almost dark now, the sun dipped behind the rocks and the world swimming in a cool twilight.
She could hear voices up ahead, and smell food. Emerging around the rocky landscape, a pretty scene greeted her eyes. Lanterns hung in the trees, casting a warm glow over a small lake. At the shore, the guests were gathered with plates of food, chattering happily in small groups. Eitsu's stomach rumbled.
“Eitsu.” Tsubaki was by her side, holding out a plate with a piece of steamed fish on it. “You must be hungry.”
“Ah, yeah. Thanks, Tsu-bo.”
She took the plate, but Tsubaki slipped her hand into Eitsu's free one. “How am I supposed to eat now?”
“I'll feed you.”
They sat together under a tree, still holding hands. Tsubaki ferried portions of fish into Eitsu's mouth with chopsticks.
Laughter and conversation flowed over and around them.
“Why are you so quiet tonight?” Tsubaki asked, once the fish was finished. “That's unusual.” Her eyes were full of lantern lights, like stars in the night sky,
“Just thinking.”
“You?”
“Hey...”
“Is it Ayame-chan?”
Eitsu fiddled with Tsubaki's fingers.
“She's still so uncomfortable around me. And I don't know... I don't know what to do. What to say.”
“Neither do I,” said Tsubaki bluntly. “It's not like either of us is well-equipped for this kind of thing.”
They reflected for a moment in their mutual lack of ability to navigate complex emotional situations.
“So now what?”
“No idea.”
Gou Dzing dropped down beside them, a wine flagon in one hand and three cups skilfully held in the other. “Drink?”
“Hey, Gou Dzing, you know how to deal with people, right?”
“In what way?” He poured out wine and passed them each a cup.
“In a... 'what do you say to someone who had to witness some traumatic things because she just happened to get caught up in your personal problems' kind of way.”
“Hm.” He emptied the cup and stroked the light beard on his chin thoughtfully. “Have you asked her how she feels about the whole thing?”
“No?”
“Start there. Oh, Lady Tsubaki, here you go. You didn't pick up your prize.”
“Prize?” Eitsu looked curiously at the small jade pendant that Gou Dzing placed into Tsubaki's hand as he stood and left. It was a round little tiger, intricately carved into the pale green stone. “What's this for?”
“Eitsu, were you really not paying attention? Today was the zodiac race.”
“Oh, that thing.”
“You really don't care, do you?”
“Not really. Let's eat some more.”
She and Tsubaki wandered over to the food, sampling a little of everything. The party-goers' conversations were a comforting murmur, occasionally rising to bright laughter in the night. Sek Gon juggled knives with a completely blank look on his face, to the amusement of Gou Dzing and Zeyi. Yuan Yi Feng was admiring the lanterns, the witch following behind and pulling the lights down whenever the monk wanted to look at them closer. The westerner was emptying rice wine bottles alone, while somehow the cold Maan Dzi King was in deep discussion with Cheng Guk Lung. The woman in the red robes was nowhere to be seen. Neither was Ayame.
Eitsu's ears flicked. She could hear, below the voices nearby, two others, further away around the lake. Abandoning the food, she followed the sounds, Tsubaki following silently behind.
Ayame and the woman in red robes sat together on the windswept curved trunk of a gnarled saxaul tree by the edge of the lake. There was no moonlight to illuminate the scene, only a single point of light that hung above them like a tiny star.
“... in the end, you should cherish those who are still here,” the woman was saying. She cradled a cup of rice wine in her hands. She looked up as Eitsu and Tsubaki approached, the light from the tiny star winking gently in her red eyes. Ayame stood up hastily, almost spilling her own wine.
“I'll leave you to it.” The woman bowed politely to Eitsu and Tsubaki, then walked alone along the lake shore, away from the party and the three women who watched her go.
“Aya-chan,” Eitsu said at last. “Can we... talk?”
Ayame put her wine cup down and held out her hands; Tsubaki took one and Eitsu took the other. “Yeah, we should, but...” Her hands trembled. “Just for now... Maybe later? For now, I just want to...”
The three of them wrapped their arms around each other. Eitsu could feel Ayame begin to cry, and she looked up to find Tsubaki's dark eyes filling with silent tears too.
“Don't cry, you two. It's bad luck on the new year.” Eitsu cast about for a cheerful topic. “Hey what happened earlier when you and Sek Gon were crossing the river? That woman looked pretty pissed off was she was following you.”
At this, Ayame finally began to laugh. “Brother Gaam went ahead and placed some kind of shiny metal away from the path. He told Maan Dzi King it was the river. She didn't believe him, but he insisted so much that she went to prove him wrong, and whilst her back was turned, he got his sword out and flew us all the way to the finish line. Maan Dzi King couldn't catch us.”
With Sek Gon's value going up in her eyes, despite his impassive face, Eitsu laughingly pulled them all down to sit, she on one side of Ayame and Tsubaki on the other, still holding hands. They sat together until the sky began to grow pale once more.
“So, what do you all wish for?”
“Hm?”
“Aren't you going to do hatsumode? Praying for the new year?”
“You're supposed to go to a shrine for that.”
Eitsu snorted. “Why go to a shrine? I'm right here.”
Tsubaki clapped her hands together. “Eitsubyou no Mikoto. I pray that you stop sneaking under my skirts in cat form and-”
“Hey!”
“Eitsubyou no Mikoto...” Ayame pressed her hands together and squeezed her eyes shut. “I pray that we all stay safe and... that the two of you will stay by my side until I'm an old woman.”
“Do we mean that much to you?” Eitsu tried to joke.
“Yes.”
Eitsu rubbed her cheek against Ayame's shoulder, and Tsubaki leaned gently on her other side, the scent of camellia oil softly swaddling them all. They could hear the cheers of the other party-goers as the sun spilled its first light of the new year over the horizon.
“We'll stay, little one,” Tsubaki said.
“You won't be able to get rid of us, brat,” Eitsu laughed.
Ayame smiled into the sunrise. “I'm glad.”