It was odd seeing him again, it shouldn’t have been, but it felt like that for her.
“What? Oh, no,” she said to him, recalling his question. “I’m not lost, I just… couldn’t sleep. So, I went for a walk around the mansion, is all.”
“I see, I suppose that explains why you decided to do so, then just lay in bed. The restlessness of the mind can be a tricky thing to handle.” Toya said. his gaze then narrowed as he then asked. “Is something wrong?”
So many things are. Taryn thought to herself. “As I said, I’ve been having trouble sleeping.” She told him. As she glanced down towards the ground and notice how he wasn’t wearing anything on his feet. He was barefoot. That was a little strange. “Why are you walking around at this time of night?”
“Similar to you, I suppose. Unable to sleep, I often take a walk on nights like these through one of the many gardens. It gives one a sense of solace and peace, doing so. With no one to disturb and bother.”
“I’ll leave you be then,” Taryn said as she stood up and turned to leave. “Enjoy the rest of your walk.”
“Would you like to join me?” this caused her to stop in her tracks and looked back at him with a faint frown. “I actually would not mind the company for tonight.”
“Wouldn’t I be a bother to you, though?” she asked him. “You did say before you walk alone, so no one bothers you.”
“Yes, but,” he gave her a gentle smile. “There can always be an exception to it.”
Taryn was quiet for a moment as she simply stared at the hand that he offered her. She couldn’t tell if he meant it, or if he was merely showing forced consideration. “As long as you’re okay with it.”
“I would not be asking if I wasn’t,” he said and simply waited. Taryn hesitated, glancing at the ground, then back at him before, finally, joining him. He then led her to another garden, one that had a stone bench to sit on. Thankfully this one was on the opposite way of where the red hydrangeas were.
“May I ask you something?” she asked, and Toya simply nodded. “The hydrangea flowers, I saw some red ones before. It’s not really a normal thing to see, so I was wondering if you might know why they’re like that.”
“You’re talking about the garden at the far back of the mansion.” He said. “Those flowers have always been red; you know how, depending on the nurturance of the ground, it may affect the flower’s colour.”
“I do. We have some in my backyard back at home, they’re blue like these. But what would make them all naturally dark red?”
Toya turned in the flowers’ direction, the crisp blue colour being caught by the moon’s light. “Sato-san told you about some of this village’s history, didn’t he?”
She nodded. “He did, then, are you saying that the village burning down is connected to those flowers as well?”
“In a sense, after the village was rebuilt, a great sickness came through like a tidal wave. Devastating many households here, including those in the mansion. But the graveyard which is located right at the back of the mansion was too small. This was at a time before we cremated our dead. And the second graveyard at the village’s Shrine wouldn’t have enough space for those who died. So, the villagers collectively decided to dig up a garden and use it as a mass grave. It’s said that many were buried in that garden. And those hydrangeas absorbed what remained, making the flowers red like blood.”
Taryn remained silent, her gaze resting upon the blue flowers. For the flowers to still have such a vibrant red colour after all this time… “It must have been a lot of people who died.” She said softly then turned her attention to him. “May I ask you one more thing?”
“I don’t see why not.”
“Your English is perfect; I can barely detect even a Japanese accent. I hope this doesn’t sound rude, but where did you learn to speak it?”
He was quiet for a moment before giving a faint laugh. Taryn looked at him, slightly confused.
“Why are you laughing?”
“I did not mean to laugh.” He says. “It’s just that you ask your question, and then quickly apologize for it being rude. You did that before when we first met.”
Taryn felt her cheeks become warm as she looked away from him. “Yeah, I… I know. It’s a habit. A bad one that I need to stop.”
“It’s all right, and I don’t find your question rude. I don’t think there’s much of anything that I would find rude coming from you.”
She looked back at him with a frown. “Huh?”
Toya merely smiled. “To answer your question, Lowell-san, Kōeihei village has had many visitors over the years. And when more and more people from the West began to come here, a few of us began to study and learn the language to not have an issue with communicating with one another. Sato-san, Ayako-san, I and a few others know your language from an instructor. It took some time to correct certain words, including how you pronounce words with a hard R or even mixing up L and R sounds. We weren’t sure how to pronounce your and your friend’s names. At least for your last name, it rolls easily off the tongue when someone only knows Japanese. But for some reason, your given name was difficult. But now that we know how to say it properly, I have to say, I rather like how it sounds. Taryn.”
Taryn glanced at him; he just spoke her first name without any honorific. That usually wasn’t done without a specific reason. Mainly if one was in a relationship with the other or were very close to one another.
“Why don’t we sit for a little while?” Toya suggested as he indicated to the stone bench.
She merely followed suit but remained quiet. Only for Toya to break the silence.
“May I ask you something now?” when she nodded, he looked down at her feet, or, more specifically, her toes. “Why are your toes like that?”
She looked down at her feet as she wore her sandals, wiggling her slightly curled toes. “Oh, that. I was born premature, and because of it, I developed some issues. My toes are one of them, though it’s the only real physical issue I have. People call it Hammer Toe because of how they look curled. Although mine is faint in comparison to many others who have this issue. The doctors say it’s due to a neurological problem in my brain where the signals sent to my feet are messed up, and my toes ended up like this. Even though I was born with it. It’s pretty common for those who wear high heels all the time.”
“It doesn’t hurt?”
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“No, it’s just how they are. My family thought about getting treatment, but it didn’t seem worth it with all the pain I’d have to go through. No one sees my feet anyway. Well, except now in the summer, I guess.” She leaned forwards, drawing his eyes away from her feet as she moved her legs to hide them underneath the bench to be out of sight for now. “Does seeing them like this bother you?”
He shook his head slowly. “No, I was only concerned that you might have an injury. Making it difficult or even painful to walk.”
“Have you had people come here before that had problems walking?”
“A few times…” but he changed the topic. “When I saw you earlier, you seemed to be focused on something. May I ask what that was?”
Taryn held up the silver compact before handing it over so he could have a closer look. “It belonged to my Mom.” She said as he looked it over.
“What do the symbols mean?”
She leaned a bit further and pointed to one side. “This is of the Celtic Tree of Life, while the other side has two, the one along the edge is interlaced circles are the Celtic symbol for Eternity because it’s all interlocked, unlike other symbols. So, you could say that it means Infinite Life. While in the middle is the Celtic Shield, meaning that it will protect the person who has it in their position from horrible events. So it could also be seen as it will protect a person forever.”
He looked at it with interest. “Really?”
Taryn gave a modest shrug. “Well, that’s what my Mom says.” He then handed it back to her and she smiled warmly at it. “But even if it didn’t, I’d still hold on to it.”
“It must hold great value.”
She turned it in her hands. “Maybe? It is made of silver, I never did get it appraised before, it’s been in my Mom’s family for so long so…”
“That is not what I meant,” Toya cut her off. “By value, I meant that it must be of great importance to you. Regardless of its material worth, you have great sentimental value to it.”
She looked back at it and smiled. “That’s for sure, I can’t see myself without anymore. It’d be like losing a part of myself if I had.”
The two then fell into silence shortly after. Only for Toya to then start humming before singing softly under his breath. Taryn closed her eyes and listened. His voice was pleasant, soothing against her ears as a faint wind brushed past them. She recognized it as the one he had played before on the koto. But now, hearing it being sung, she recalled the name of it.
Sakura.
It was an old song, but one that was recognized throughout Japan and even other parts of the world. She had only ever heard women sing this song, so hearing it being sung by a man, there were some differences, but she found herself becoming somewhat relaxed in hearing his voice. If it continued, she might just fall asleep from it.
“Lowell-san?” she opened her eyes to see that Toya was now standing before her, looking down at her; his green eyes looked almost brighter. She wasn’t sure if it was because of the nighttime sky, or if she just hadn’t been paying close enough attention. “We should probably head in. It’s getting cooler, and with what you are wearing, you may catch a cold.”
It was, but she honestly didn’t feel much of a difference, but that was due to her body temperature. Some days the cold wouldn’t bother her, much like tonight.
When she stood up, he then added. “But before you head off, may I ask you to come with me? I believe I know a way to help with your restless sleep.”
Toya led Taryn back inside the mansion, guiding her to a small tucked-away kitchen. With a partially tiled floor, as the rest was that of a tatami. It looked almost as though it hadn’t been touched in a while but was still very clean. Upon entering this small, modest kitchen, Toya turned on a small lamp and placed it on the table in the middle of the room.
The kitchen was more of a classic Japanese design, with the table low to the ground with sitting mats on either side of the oval-shaped table.
“Please,” Toya spoke as he motioned towards the table and mat. “Sit, this will only take a moment.”
“Are you sure?” Taryn asked, as she made her way to the table but remained standing. While Toya moved past and began rummaging in some cupboards. “I can help if you’d like.”
He kept his back to her. “That’s very kind of you to offer. But there’s no need. You are a guest in this mansion.”
Taryn sat down on the nearest mat; she felt like he wouldn’t budge on the matter. She looked at Toya’s back, who now seemed rather focused on what he was doing. He did say that he knew of something that could help her sleep; could it have been something to drink or eat? She wasn’t entirely sure.
Not long after a kettle boiled, Toya soon walked over, with two cups on a round tray. He then knelt on the ground before her and placed the tray in the center of the table, before taking his left hand to grasp his kimono sleeve as his right hand held one cup and set it before her. He then moved to do the same thing as before but placed the second cup before himself.
“Try it,” he said as he placed his hands in his lap.
Taryn took the cup in both of her hands and looked at the contents. It was black but held a subtle aroma. Is it some kind of tea? She thought before taking a sip only to grimace at the taste. For it was too bitter.
Toya seemed somewhat amused by this. “I see you can’t handle bitter drinks. I’m sorry, I should have warned you.”
“No, it’s okay, I’m just not used to something like this.”
Toya stood from his seat and took the cup from her hands, heading back to the kitchen. “We have some natural sweeteners that will rid the bitter taste. Several of the staff who work here tend to hide it in the kitchens, but I know some of their hiding places. Many of them have a rather impressive sweet tooth.”
Taryn didn’t speak; she could relate to that, for she had one as well. She preferred something sweet or even spicy rather than bitter tasting. Toya then shortly returned; this time, he remained standing as he offered her the cup once more.
“Try it now,” she did, and he asked. “Does it taste alright?” when she nodded, he looked relieved. “That’s good.” Then turned to sit and take his cup, placing his left hand along the bottom while his right held it in place. “I often have this when I can’t sleep, it’s better than anything else, pills don’t do anything for me.”
“Probably healthier that way then,” Taryn spoke, as she now held the empty half cup in both hands. “How much do you normally drink this?”
“About once a week,” he tells her. “Though, with the coming festival, I tend to have it about three times as much, perhaps more.” He then looked at her after another moment of silence. “So? How do you feel? Think it’s helping?”
“I think so,” she then finished her drink. “Thank you very much.” before looking around to ask. “What would you like me to do with the cup?”
“You can leave it; I’ll have it taken care of later.” He left his cup and stood, offering his hand to her. “For now, since you’re done. We should probably head back to your room. It’d be terrible if you ended up sleeping in the middle of the hallway or getting lost again.”
She looked back to his half-empty cup. “You’re not going to finish?”
“I will later, my main concern was for you, Lowell-san. Come, we should return you to your room.”
She took his offered hand and stood up then when he let go she followed the man once more. Along the way, she began to feel somewhat sluggish, perhaps her exhaustion finally kicked in, or the tea was doing its magic. Everything around her just started to sound muted, even the groan of the wood underneath her feet. It was a strange feeling, to be sure. And by the time Toya walked up to the second floor, Taryn felt like she could barely keep her eyes open.
“Here we are,” he said. “This is your room, correct?” he paused. “Oh, you look as though you’re about to sleep standing up.”
She rubbed her eyes with the knuckle of her index finger. “Whatever that is tea seems to be doing the trick. Think I could take some of that home with me? My Mom would kill to have something like that.”
Toya gave a soft laugh. “I’ll see what I can do. But for now, head to bed.”
“Yeah…” she entered the first part of the room only to stop and look back at Toya, offering another bow of thanks. “Thank you again for this and for before.”
He gave a slight smile. “It was my pleasure,” he then began to bring the sliding door to a close. “Sleep well, Taryn.”
She briefly registered that he had said her name without an honorific once more, but her brain felt far too muddled and tired to care. She let out a stifled yawn before entering the second half of the other room. Her friend was still asleep.
Quietly, Taryn moved to lay on top of the futon, not bothering to pull the covers over herself, she then pulled out the compact mirror and stared at the Tree of Life before placing it by her bed. Perhaps tonight, she’d get a decent night’s sleep…
* * *
As the bright sunshine of May beat down on the passers-by in the busy bustle of Toronto’s city streets. Taryn made her way past the number of people as she readjusted her shoulder back and tucked some strands of her long brown hair behind her ear only to stop and look across the street as a smile broke across her face when a familiar voice called out to her.
“Taryn!”