Hatsukoi - Chapter 2
Wow! This story idea really has gotten me back into the writing spirit! Here is the next chapter! ^^
Chapter 2 - Lost in Translation
“Matsushima-sama, what is that?”
Matsushima wrinkled his brow in annoyance. He had been in the midst of composing a poem in his head about the koi fish when Tsuruoka had interrupted his thoughts. “I-I’m not sure, Tsuruoka. I was in the middle of something, here, so in the future, I would appreciate -”
But before Matsushima could finish his sentence, Tsuruoka had run forward, his lithe body already gone from Matsushima’s side before he could restrain him.
Tsuruoka knelt next to prostrate man, trying to figure out how he had made his sudden appearance. His eyes took in everything from the man’s sodden clothes to his strange hairstyle and attire. As he looked, Tsuruoka couldn’t help but notice how the man’s bizarre clothing clung to his finely-muscled body in all the right ways and how attractive he was, despite the stranger being rather dark in countenance. He reached out and brushed a lock of hair out of the newcomer’s face, trying to see him more clearly. But, before he could draw away, the man’s arm shot up and Tsuruoka felt strong fingers enclose around his wrist, holding him there.
“W-what?” he spluttered.
“Who are you…and where am I?” asked the stranger, ignoring Tsuruoka’s outburst completely.
Tsuruoka answered, his voice steady, despite being transfixed by the other’s strangely piercing eyes, “I am Tsuruoka. This...is the Ooku.”
* * *
“So, let me get this straight -”
As the stranger was speaking, out of the corner of his eyes, Tsuruoka saw Matsushima briefly close his eyes irritably. He sighed inwardly to himself, brushing a long lock of hair out of his face - this stranger was being too loudmouthed for his own good. Here, in the Ooku, composure and impeccable manners were valued. Evidently, the stranger did not understand the meaning of either of those principles.
“- this is the fifth year of the Shotoku era, and this -” the man gestured around him wildly. “- is the palace for the Shogun’s man harem?”
Matsushima replied, his voice level, trying not to betray too much condescension, “The Ooku is the place where the samurai who serve the Shogun reside. We are not something as distasteful as what you have called a ‘man harem’! Have you no manners, sir?”
The stranger looked from Matsushima to Tsuruoka, and as his gaze passed over Tsuruoka, he couldn’t help but look away, hoping that the stranger wouldn’t notice his flushed features. He really was very attractive, in a sort of handsome, rugged, unrefined sort of way, the sort of attractiveness that you don’t find very often within the Ooku. And now that he had been dressed in the appropriate attire - he had refused to do anything to his hair - Tsuruoka found himself hoping against hope that Matsushima would follow his request and allow the newcomer to stay so that he could learn to assimilate into the society of the other Ooku courtiers.
“I usually have perfectly good manners, if I do say so myself,” the stranger was saying. Tsuruoka had lost himself staring at him for the umpteenth time. “It’s just that it’s not every day that a guy learns that he’s been mysteriously transported almost 300 years into his past! I mean, I was just praying at this little Buddha statue when -”
“Would you please stop your inane babbling!” interrupted Matsushima, kneading his forehead with one hand. He sighed heavily. “The only reason why you are not dead right now for trespassing on imperial grounds is that face of yours.”
“My face -?”
“Yes, your face, sir,” answered Matsushima sharply. “The Ooku values great beauty here, and the fact that your face miraculously retains some, is the only reason why you are still alive.” Matsushima raised one hand delicately to gesture at Tsuruoka. “Tsuruoka has made a recommendation for you to stay. He hopes that you may somehow learn to fit in with the rest of us, and that you will find happiness serving the Shogun. If what you say is true, it is unlikely that you will be able to find your way back to your time, so why not do something useful with your life while you are here?” Matsushima smirked. “I, for one, think it’s rather unlikely, but you should find some decency in you to thank your savior.”
The stranger turned to look at Tsuruoka, and was gazing at him as if he had just seen him for the first time. Awkwardly, and with a little embarrassment, Tsuruoka lowered his head, his hair falling across his face. The stranger’s mouth opened and shut for a moment, then he got up from his seated position opposite of Tsuruoka and Matsushima to kneel in front of Tsuruoka.
Tsuruoka’s eyes widened as the stranger slowly reached out a hand to raise Tsuruoka’s chin so he could look him full in the face. Tsuruoka thought his heart would beat right out of his chest - the stranger’s touch was so gentle.
“Sorry,” the stranger apologized sheepishly, “but I like it better when I can see the person’s face when I’m thanking him.” He removed his hand and bowed his head deeply. “Thank you very much, Tsuruoka-sama, for saving my life.”
Tsuruoka shook his head slightly. “No need to thank me. What is your name, if I may ask?” he asked curiously, still a little awestruck.
“Oh,” said the stranger, raising his head, a smile breaking across his face. “My name is Nishikido Ryo.”
Tsuruoka blinked back at him. The smile had completely transformed Nishikido’s face, brightening it with a radiance of a magnitude that he hadn’t seen before. “Nishikido-san…” he repeated softly, enjoying the feeling of the name rolling from his lips.
“Hmph,” said Matsushima, looking at Nishikido distastefully. “Well, that’s unfortunate. There’s already a Nishikido in the Ooku. We can’t have you both running around this place with the same name. That would only cause confusion and disorder.”
“Why doesn’t he go by his given name, then?” suggested Tsuruoka.
There was a moment of contemplation, then Matsushima reached into his robes and drew out a fan. “If it is agreeable for him, he may go by his given name. Otherwise -” At this, Matsushima drew the fan horizontally across his throat. Tsuruoka gulped, he knew full well what that meant.
“Besides,” Matsushima went on, “he is only ever going to a lowly page boy, so it shouldn’t matter if he’s called by his surname or his given name.”
The stranger seemed to ignore this, only addressing Tsuruoka, “Well, I guess I’m going to be known as Ryo, then.”
Tsuruoka smiled shyly. “Yes, Ryo-san. I think it’s a good name for you.”
“Tsuruoka!” called Matsushima, bringing both Tsuruoka and Ryo back to their present situation. “Since you seem to have taken such a liking to Ryo, why don’t you take him on as your new project. There have been so many new personnel changes recently, so it’s probably better for this one, who evidently doesn’t even know the way of the samurai, to have some supervision to make sure he doesn’t botch things up too badly. I’ll have him serve you, and you can teach him about the ways of the Ooku. Is that acceptable for you? It might be more of a hassle than a help to have someone like him around.”
Tsuruoka nodded at Matsushima. “Yes, that is completely acceptable. Thank you, Matsushima-sama, for arranging this for me.”
“Of course. I would never do anything not to your benefit, Tsuruoka. You know how much I care for you,” Matsushima replied, reaching over to stroke Tsuruoka’s arm for the briefest of moments.
“Matsushima-sama…” murmured Tsuruoka and inclined his head again, his heart full of emotion.
“Now, go on! I’m sure there are plenty of topics about the Ooku and the art of being civilized that you have to teach Ryo, here!” Matsushima said, clearing his throat. “It’s best that you two get going.”
“Thank you, Matsushima-sama,” Tsuruoka and Ryo said at exactly the same time. They looked at each other in surprise, and then back at Matsushima, who indicated the door with his fan, telling them that it was time to leave him in peace.
- - -
Yay for Ryo's actual first appearance! :D
This way for Chapter 3~
Chapter 2 - Lost in Translation
“Matsushima-sama, what is that?”
Matsushima wrinkled his brow in annoyance. He had been in the midst of composing a poem in his head about the koi fish when Tsuruoka had interrupted his thoughts. “I-I’m not sure, Tsuruoka. I was in the middle of something, here, so in the future, I would appreciate -”
But before Matsushima could finish his sentence, Tsuruoka had run forward, his lithe body already gone from Matsushima’s side before he could restrain him.
Tsuruoka knelt next to prostrate man, trying to figure out how he had made his sudden appearance. His eyes took in everything from the man’s sodden clothes to his strange hairstyle and attire. As he looked, Tsuruoka couldn’t help but notice how the man’s bizarre clothing clung to his finely-muscled body in all the right ways and how attractive he was, despite the stranger being rather dark in countenance. He reached out and brushed a lock of hair out of the newcomer’s face, trying to see him more clearly. But, before he could draw away, the man’s arm shot up and Tsuruoka felt strong fingers enclose around his wrist, holding him there.
“W-what?” he spluttered.
“Who are you…and where am I?” asked the stranger, ignoring Tsuruoka’s outburst completely.
Tsuruoka answered, his voice steady, despite being transfixed by the other’s strangely piercing eyes, “I am Tsuruoka. This...is the Ooku.”
* * *
“So, let me get this straight -”
As the stranger was speaking, out of the corner of his eyes, Tsuruoka saw Matsushima briefly close his eyes irritably. He sighed inwardly to himself, brushing a long lock of hair out of his face - this stranger was being too loudmouthed for his own good. Here, in the Ooku, composure and impeccable manners were valued. Evidently, the stranger did not understand the meaning of either of those principles.
“- this is the fifth year of the Shotoku era, and this -” the man gestured around him wildly. “- is the palace for the Shogun’s man harem?”
Matsushima replied, his voice level, trying not to betray too much condescension, “The Ooku is the place where the samurai who serve the Shogun reside. We are not something as distasteful as what you have called a ‘man harem’! Have you no manners, sir?”
The stranger looked from Matsushima to Tsuruoka, and as his gaze passed over Tsuruoka, he couldn’t help but look away, hoping that the stranger wouldn’t notice his flushed features. He really was very attractive, in a sort of handsome, rugged, unrefined sort of way, the sort of attractiveness that you don’t find very often within the Ooku. And now that he had been dressed in the appropriate attire - he had refused to do anything to his hair - Tsuruoka found himself hoping against hope that Matsushima would follow his request and allow the newcomer to stay so that he could learn to assimilate into the society of the other Ooku courtiers.
“I usually have perfectly good manners, if I do say so myself,” the stranger was saying. Tsuruoka had lost himself staring at him for the umpteenth time. “It’s just that it’s not every day that a guy learns that he’s been mysteriously transported almost 300 years into his past! I mean, I was just praying at this little Buddha statue when -”
“Would you please stop your inane babbling!” interrupted Matsushima, kneading his forehead with one hand. He sighed heavily. “The only reason why you are not dead right now for trespassing on imperial grounds is that face of yours.”
“My face -?”
“Yes, your face, sir,” answered Matsushima sharply. “The Ooku values great beauty here, and the fact that your face miraculously retains some, is the only reason why you are still alive.” Matsushima raised one hand delicately to gesture at Tsuruoka. “Tsuruoka has made a recommendation for you to stay. He hopes that you may somehow learn to fit in with the rest of us, and that you will find happiness serving the Shogun. If what you say is true, it is unlikely that you will be able to find your way back to your time, so why not do something useful with your life while you are here?” Matsushima smirked. “I, for one, think it’s rather unlikely, but you should find some decency in you to thank your savior.”
The stranger turned to look at Tsuruoka, and was gazing at him as if he had just seen him for the first time. Awkwardly, and with a little embarrassment, Tsuruoka lowered his head, his hair falling across his face. The stranger’s mouth opened and shut for a moment, then he got up from his seated position opposite of Tsuruoka and Matsushima to kneel in front of Tsuruoka.
Tsuruoka’s eyes widened as the stranger slowly reached out a hand to raise Tsuruoka’s chin so he could look him full in the face. Tsuruoka thought his heart would beat right out of his chest - the stranger’s touch was so gentle.
“Sorry,” the stranger apologized sheepishly, “but I like it better when I can see the person’s face when I’m thanking him.” He removed his hand and bowed his head deeply. “Thank you very much, Tsuruoka-sama, for saving my life.”
Tsuruoka shook his head slightly. “No need to thank me. What is your name, if I may ask?” he asked curiously, still a little awestruck.
“Oh,” said the stranger, raising his head, a smile breaking across his face. “My name is Nishikido Ryo.”
Tsuruoka blinked back at him. The smile had completely transformed Nishikido’s face, brightening it with a radiance of a magnitude that he hadn’t seen before. “Nishikido-san…” he repeated softly, enjoying the feeling of the name rolling from his lips.
“Hmph,” said Matsushima, looking at Nishikido distastefully. “Well, that’s unfortunate. There’s already a Nishikido in the Ooku. We can’t have you both running around this place with the same name. That would only cause confusion and disorder.”
“Why doesn’t he go by his given name, then?” suggested Tsuruoka.
There was a moment of contemplation, then Matsushima reached into his robes and drew out a fan. “If it is agreeable for him, he may go by his given name. Otherwise -” At this, Matsushima drew the fan horizontally across his throat. Tsuruoka gulped, he knew full well what that meant.
“Besides,” Matsushima went on, “he is only ever going to a lowly page boy, so it shouldn’t matter if he’s called by his surname or his given name.”
The stranger seemed to ignore this, only addressing Tsuruoka, “Well, I guess I’m going to be known as Ryo, then.”
Tsuruoka smiled shyly. “Yes, Ryo-san. I think it’s a good name for you.”
“Tsuruoka!” called Matsushima, bringing both Tsuruoka and Ryo back to their present situation. “Since you seem to have taken such a liking to Ryo, why don’t you take him on as your new project. There have been so many new personnel changes recently, so it’s probably better for this one, who evidently doesn’t even know the way of the samurai, to have some supervision to make sure he doesn’t botch things up too badly. I’ll have him serve you, and you can teach him about the ways of the Ooku. Is that acceptable for you? It might be more of a hassle than a help to have someone like him around.”
Tsuruoka nodded at Matsushima. “Yes, that is completely acceptable. Thank you, Matsushima-sama, for arranging this for me.”
“Of course. I would never do anything not to your benefit, Tsuruoka. You know how much I care for you,” Matsushima replied, reaching over to stroke Tsuruoka’s arm for the briefest of moments.
“Matsushima-sama…” murmured Tsuruoka and inclined his head again, his heart full of emotion.
“Now, go on! I’m sure there are plenty of topics about the Ooku and the art of being civilized that you have to teach Ryo, here!” Matsushima said, clearing his throat. “It’s best that you two get going.”
“Thank you, Matsushima-sama,” Tsuruoka and Ryo said at exactly the same time. They looked at each other in surprise, and then back at Matsushima, who indicated the door with his fan, telling them that it was time to leave him in peace.
- - -
Yay for Ryo's actual first appearance! :D
This way for Chapter 3~