It had been two days, and Ren still had not warmed up to her. Hanamei was feeling incredibly discouraged, wanting to be on good terms with the gwazemi, but feeling what she desired was impossible. She’d tried everything. At first, she had tried to help with the chores, but Ren would never let her get very far before taking over a task and coldly informing Hanamei she had no skill at performing it. Then she tried to include her in painting, but short of bringing her the supplies, Ren would have nothing to do with any of her projects.
Hanamei considered simply giving up, but she couldn’t bring herself to do so. For some reason, this had come to mean a great deal to her. She wanted to accept Akihato’s offer to be his student. She liked the tower, and she liked the few moments she’d spent with the young Zosara. It felt peaceful and safe. The thought of leaving and going back to a world that would hate and shun her provided her a lot of incentive to make things work here. That meant finding some common ground with Ren.
Though there wasn’t much to be done when the master of the house was gone, Ren still kept herself busy. Hanamei stubbornly trailed her all over the tower, watching intently, eager to jump in and offer assistance despite being shut down time and time again. As they moved into the kitchen together, Ren carrying a huge load of linens and curtains that needed washing, she tried to hurry around her to the wash bins on the far side of the room, hoping to be of some use.
Ren saw her and quickly snapped, “Stay out of the way!”
Hanamei stopped short, instantly hurt as she was whenever the water spirit snarled at her. But this time, she was also fed up. “I’m just trying to help; you don’t need to be so rude! I’ve done nothing to you!”
She threw down the load of laundry and spun to face Hanamei. “You are dangerous. You threaten everything simply by existing. You have no place in this world!”
Taken off guard, Hanamei hung her head in shame. She was used to this sort of treatment, used to being shunned, but never so blatantly. “Oh... I see...” she conceded, the fight having gone out of her. She couldn’t refute what she felt was true.
Ren opened her mouth to continue but stopped short. She regarded Hanamei for a long moment as though she didn’t understand why she was upset or why she had so easily been defeated. Whatever had given her pause, she quickly shook it off. “Put the linens in to soak,” she ordered, turning her back once again and moving to collect the soap.
Confused, it took Hanamei a second to do as she had been told. Once the words had sunk in though, she snapped into action, gathering up the dropped pile of curtains, towels, and other various linens into the vat bubbling with fresh, warm water. She hadn’t more than halfway finished when Ren returned.
The gwazemi promptly began to mix the rough bar into the bin until it dissolved, watching Hanamei from the corner of her eye the entire time. After a moment, she let out a growl and shoved the girl out of her way. “Too slow!” She snatched the remaining towels away and dumped them all into the basin, sloshing water over the edge that splashed the both of them.
Running out of patience, Hanamei shoved Ren right back, though she instantly regretted it when she saw the flash of anger on the spirit’s face. She started to apologize, but the damage was done. Ren gave her a harder push and, unwilling to back down anymore, Hanamei steeled herself and pushed again, too. Back and forth they went until Ren shoved Hanamei so hard she slipped on the wet floor. She tried to catch herself, but a nudge from Ren sent the girl sprawling into the bin of water. Suds and linens flew everywhere upon impact. Hanamei sputtered water out of her mouth and brushed wet hair from her face.
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Ren was grinning, her irritation completely gone for the moment. She must have felt satisfied with herself, as though she had won, because she stretched out her hand to Hanamei. “Serves you right,” she started to say, but for Hanamei, the fight was far from over.
She latched firmly onto Ren’s outstretched arm and yanked with every bit of strength she had. Utterly surprised, the water spirit didn’t have even a second to react, let alone brace to prevent being tugged face-first into the vat beside Hanamei. Spluttering and flailing, she retaliated even before she had fully recovered.
They got lost in a war of shrieking and splashing until a disgruntled male voice caused them both to freeze in place. They were both soaked from head to toe, still sitting side by side in the wash bin like a couple of naughty children.
Standing over them, his face contorted into a disapproving frown, was Jin shaking his head. “Get this cleaned up,” he ordered, “The master could be back at any moment. Is this how you would like him to find you?”
Ren instantly lowered her head, accepting the rebuke. Her cheeks were flushed red with shame, and she refused to look anywhere but down at her water-filled lap. Hanamei, on the other hand, looked around at the water sloshed all over the floor and splattered across the nearby walls and counters, then to Jin’s stern expression, and she just couldn’t help but laugh at the sheer ridiculousness of the whole situation. The problem was, once the giggling started, it became harder and harder for her to stop.
Beside her, Ren was staring at her from the corner of her eye in horror. She gave Hanamei a sharp nudge with her elbow, but all that did was send the girl into even more giggle fits. It must have been infectious, for the longer it went on, the harder it became for Ren to resist laughing herself. She started out with a snort here and a giggle there, continuing her attempts to stop Hanamei, but eventually, the silliness overcame her, and she too erupted into deep, shoulder-shaking laughter.
Jin watched in confusion, clearly not understanding the hilarity of the moment. With another shake of his head, he turned and walked out, leaving the two crazy females to their absurdity.
After several minutes, when tears were streaming from their eyes and their sides ached, they finally lapsed into silence. It took them a bit longer before they truly regained themselves, and when they did, Hanamei started to rise out of the water. She was surprised when Ren helped her to stand up and glanced over to see the gwazemi staring at her searchingly.
Expecting more of the same treatment as before, Hanamei’s heart began to sink, but Ren surprised her once more. “You are still so young,” she tilted her head, a confused frown creasing her brow. “Perhaps... there is hope for you.”
Tears of gratitude welled in Hanamei’s eyes. Nobody had ever said such a nice thing to her before. They had all feared and distrusted her, so had Ren until now. Something had changed her mind, but what? Dropping her chin to her chest, the young woman didn’t know how to respond, so she said the only thing that seemed appropriate. “Thank you, Ren...”
Tenderly, Ren patted her shoulder. “Jin is right. We would be ashamed if the Master found us like this... We will have to clean up.”
“Yes, of course,” Hanamei nodded, reaching down to start ringing out her soaked dress. “Then perhaps,” she added tentatively, “later I could show you my project?”
Ren didn’t seem to be listening, so Hanamei glanced over at her, suddenly afraid again. Immediately she saw why, however. The gwazemi was concentrating, her hands held up in front of her chest in an elegant manner, her gaze glowing more intensely than normal. Before Hanamei’s eyes, Ren took on a whole new visage, her hair becoming as a flowing waterfall and her skin glistening with tiny dewdrops. Around the room, every stray bead of water began to coalesce around the spirit in swirling streams. Even the moisture in Hanamei’s clothes was summoned forth! Once every bit had been collected, the gwazemi lowered it without a single splash back into the washbasin, leaving the room looking as though it hadn’t just been drenched.
Gradually, Ren returned to the way Hanamei was used to seeing her, the magic she had evoked fading as well. After a moment, Ren nodded in reply as though nothing out of the ordinary had happened. “If you complete your chores before supper, then yes, I will help with your project.”
A beaming grin was the only answer Ren received, but it was adequate in conveying Hanamei’s delight. If one person could change their mind about her, then perhaps others could as well. It was a hope she was determined to hold onto.