What Was Hidden end Chpt 4, all chpt 5. and bonus!
I know things are off a bit... they usually are with my sketches. The finished product will be much better, I promise! This is just a concept sketch.
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Sakujun lay on the bed staring at the ceiling of Tomio’s room. For a teahouse, its elegance was quiet and soothing, but a current of forbidden sensuality lent it the allure of a gem glittering in a pond.
The door opened. Sakujun ignored the people entering the room carrying the customary tables prepared for entertainment. When the door closed, there was only one left.
“You had the nerve to make me wait, Tomio?” Sakujun asked in a soft voice. He turned on his side to watch the man glide toward him, a seduction in black and red silk.
“Ah, it was but a small wait.” He pouted prettily, his black eyes dancing. “I couldn’t come to you wearing the dirt of the streets and I came bearing many gifts.” With a small flourish, Tomio pulled a small wooden box from his sleeve and tossed it to Sakujun.
Inside the box, a small dagger lay cradled in a bed of silk. Sakujun pulled the dagger from it’s sheath. Small rubies had been set into its metal haft. He glanced up at Tomio. “Did you order this from the same smith that made Li’s dagger?”
Tomio smiled. “Yes, that came from the same smith. I don’t think there’s any other who makes metal hafts like those.”
Wary, Sakujun set the box on the table and pretended to continue to admire the knife. “This is nice. You shouldn’t have.”
“I’m not finished.”
Tomio’s lips being next to his ear made Sakujun jump. Sliding the knife back into it’s sheath, Sakujun tucked it into his sash.
Tomio chuckled and handed him a cup of tea in one of the cups he’d brought. “Thank you for the new set. It is… very lovely.”
A sharp clap had music playing to which Tomio began dancing and singing to. His long limbs, beautifully extended as he rolled his hips seduced as well as his limpid gaze as he smiled behind a hand or shoulder when he turned. He even used his hair in the dance to veil and unveil parts of his face and body as he danced. Sakujun fully appreciated the beauty of the man in front of him.
This man could rival almost all women in the art of seduction. Coy looks, beauty, grace, he held all the prized elements of a courtesan, but there was more. Sakujun knew under the many masks, that Tomio only allowed him to see more. Beyond what even he knew there was a well even deeper that hid many secrets that tempted him to try to learn more about Tomio.
Sweet poison that breaks women’s and men’s hearts indiscriminately. A cold assassin, passionate lover, indifferent partner, or is there another hidden facet to Tomio? Could it be that there is still something that I’ve not seduced from the courtesan? Sakujun tipped his head to the side as he played with the question. Maybe it was a little too soon to throw away this toy. Tomio had, to some degree, the same gift the Shuurei had of being able to keep boredom at bay.
The music ended and Tomio stopped short of arms reach. “I… I am embarrassed about what happened before. Please, forget about what I said.” He gracefully dropped to his knees. As he did, his robe loosened, exposing his shoulder and neck which were framed by the silken strands of his black hair.
Sakujun rose from the bed and knelt behind Tomio, wrapping his arms around his shoulders. “I brought you the set in apology for breaking the cup yesterday.” Coming to a quick decision, he continued. Gently, he turned Tomio’s face toward his and looked into the large black eyes. “I didn’t replace the cup I broke, because it represents our friendship in the past.” He nodded toward the table beside them. The black tea set gleamed in the sunlight. “I want our friendship to blossom, not grow fragile with age. A new set for a renewed friendship.”
“It’s a beautiful set. Thank you.”
The quiet words and carefully blank face told Sakujun that his message had been understood. Things in life were fleeting and fragile. Most would end up broken and useless. If he wasn’t careful, he too would become like the old set, broken, useless, and replaced with something new. However, if he continued to prove his value, he would be found at Sakujun’s side.
“I will be leaving tomorrow. I will send word when I am back to visit.” Sakujun cupped Tomio’s face with his hand caressed his cheek with his thumb. “You are a beautiful peony, beautiful and bold against the white snow of the courtesan court. No one can rival your talent or beauty, Tomio. I see you.”
When the mask started to slip from Tomio’s eyes, Sakujun buried his face into the man’s silky hair in order to hide the triumph he knew the man would read in his own expression. A few well chosen words and all women and men fall into my hands. I am a puppet-master of men.
Sakujun took a moment to play with Tomio’s hair. It was one of his favorite things about the man. The blue-black hair, so warm and fine, felt like strands of liquid silk. He inhaled and paused with a frown. For a moment, the image of Shuurei came to mind as he smelled a scent close to hers on Tomio’s hair. He inhaled again, still playing with the courtesan’s hair and staying relaxed. No, this time, I am sure. This is my kitten’s scent. What has my old toy been doing with my new one?
Sakujun pulled the knife from it’s sheath and slid it beneath Tomio’s chin. Instead of stiffening and trembling, the courtesan laughed softly.
“I was wondering when you would start questioning me about things.”
Thrusting the man away, Sakujun stood and leaned against a cabinet. “The knife, the silk, and the box all belong to Li. Your hair smells of Kourin. What is going on, Tomio?”
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Chapter 5
Rough hands thrust her into a room, forcing Shuurei to catch herself on the edge of a table. She bit back a groan of pain she felt her wound reopen.
“Wait here.” The two doors were slammed shut and locked.
Shuurei sat on the floor and examined her ankle. Blood soaked through the bandage and started dripping on the floor. Grabbing the edge of her sleeve, Shuurei tore several long strips and wrapped her ankle as tightly as she could, hoping it would staunch the bleeding.
The door opened and a bevy of women entered. One dropped her bundle and erhu carelessly in a trunk and locked it. The others carried food, towels, and water.
Suddenly Shurrei found herself surrounded by the women. Hands were everywhere, trying to remove clothing, comb her hair, and bathe her.
“Stop! There’s no need for this, I can attend myself.” She batted at the hands and managed to keep her clothes as she placed a table between herself and the women.
I need to calm down and think of a way out of this mess. A renewed attack from the women broke her concentration. This time, Shuurei scrambled away and picked up one of the bowls of water, dumping it on the women closest to her. “I said stop.” All movement stopped. Several of the women looked hurt and Shuurei felt a twinge of guilt. If it were Kochouneesan helping her, she wouldn’t have panicked like this. “Ah… I’m sorry, but please, I really can do this myself.”
A sharp clap had the women retreating from the room. A towel landed at Shuurei’s feet. “If you don’t mind, please clean up the mess you made.”
Shuurei jumped. Tomio sprawled on his bed, his robe draped elegantly over him studying her with the eyes of a courtesan. Something doesn’t quite fit here. If he wanted me dead, he should have killed me back at the inn. She shook her head, trying to clear the cobwebs of the drug still clouding it. What in the world was in that drink? I can’t think enough to get myself out of this mess.
“You don’t seem to be shocked by your surroundings, Kourin. I’m not surprised. Although you look innocent, Senyasama wouldn’t choose a child over a woman to entertain him.”
Senya, that demon! If I run into him again, I’ll kill him. She set the bowl on the floor upright and began mopping up the water.
“Before I answer your question, I want an honest answer. The men who were protecting me, are they…” Shuurei swallowed hard. Death was a hard subject for her. She’d seen enough of it when she was a child, but it didn’t make it any easier to see. She threw the towel into the bowl and tucked her hands into her sleeves where she clenched them into tight fists.
“I don’t know. Although, it seemed to me that they were more another set of captors rather than protectors. Anyway, you should be more worried about your situation instead of another’s.” Tomio sighed and waved his hand at the food and then a shelf containing many tea sets. “Please choose which tea set you would like to drink from. We might as well eat as we talk. I feel that we’ll be here for a while.”
Shuurei unclenched her hands, easing her nails from where they’d embedded themselves into her palms. The pain helped clear her mind. She looked around the small room. Beautiful paintings and furniture made the room warm and inviting, and told much about the man in front of her.
“Actually, your… teahouse is quite nice.” Shuurei looked straight into Tomio’s black eyes.
“I used to work for some unique friends, so a place like this isn’t very threatening. Also, a room decorated by such a gentle person won’t scare me.”
“Oh?” Tomio’s drawn-out response held a multitude of questions.
Shuurei ignored them and slowly walked over to the shelf, careful to mask the limp that would give away her wound. All of the sets were beautiful, but one set caught her eye. It lacked a cup, was noticeably older than most of the others, but something about it fit the man perfectly.
“I’d like to use this set, if you don’t mind.”
“Why would you choose from a set obviously incomplete when there are other, more beautiful ones to partake from?” Tomio murmured.
Shuurei looked at his mask-like face, so much like one of Senior Secretary Kou’s masks, hiding away everything from the world. “It’s because, this tea set is very much like you, Tomiosan. A man who still keeps the rest of his world together yet it’s incomplete because a piece of his heart is missing.” She caught a glimpse of startled surprise, pain, and a small thaw in the icy dislike he held for her before the mask slid back in place.
“If it’s what you desire.” He rose from the bed and retrieved the set.
As Tomio prepared the tea, Shuurei watched his careful movements. Tomio was beautiful to watch as he worked. “So, what is it that you want to speak with me about that would have you attacking people guarding me?”
Tomio startled then smiled but it didn’t reach his eyes. “Straight to the point aren’t you? I like that. I had planned on forcing you to work in my house and making you serve Senyasama, but my plans have changed somewhat.” He set the tea set on the table and turned to face her holding a small white packet between two fingers. A smile curved his lips, but his eyes held a look that cut through Shuurei’s composure.
For the first time since she’d entered the room, Shuurei felt threatened. Swallowing hard, she moved slightly back, but stopped when Tomio’s eyes narrowed. “First, I want you to take this for the pain that’s making your cheeks such a becoming red. Then you will give me your foot. I will treat it so that you don’t continue to bleed on my floor.”
“Sorry, I don’t need any more drugs.” Shuurei said as she jumped to her feet and took a step toward the windows, then shied toward the doors, but Tomio was always in front of her.
Matching her movements with the grace of a dancer, he closed the distance before she could even think to cry out. Strong hands grabbed her, tossed her onto the bed, and had her pinned in the space of a moment.
“I must insist. You see, Senyasama would never forgive me if something happened to you while under my care, Kourin.” He leaned closer, holding the open packet against her lips. “Now take the medicine like a good girl, or I will administer it in a much more exciting way.”
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“Follow me and bring the box.” Tomio walked to the door, which opened immediately.
Sakujun grabbed the box, tucked it into his sleeve and followed Tomio while wondering exactly how private his meetings were in the teahouse. They walked deep into the back of the building. Sakujun, who’d lived there off and on for years, knew most of the house, but the area Tomio led them through was unfamiliar to him.
With a small laugh, Tomio turned to talk to him as they walked. “This is my new personal wing. It parallels what once was my personal wing. That has turned into the common rooms, which is why the rooms you use are now the private rooms and are so quiet. Also, the gardens give the private rooms and my wing space away from the common rooms so they cannot disturb us.”
He’s like a proud housewife. Sakujun thought, although he was impressed. Tomio’s business sense and taste gave him a sharp edge for the entertainment life. However, at the moment, he was more impressed at the way the courtesan continued to walk backward gracefully through the halls weaving around things he couldn’t possibly see as he talked.
As they reached the end of the hall, two guards unbarred a door and opened it. Tomio stepped inside first and slid to the side to allow Sakujun to enter.
Shuurei lay on the bed, her foot elevated and bound in clean bandages. A servant sat beside her, bathing her face, neck, and arms. Around her wrists and waist tied her to the bed.
I like the image. Maybe I’ll forgive Tomio if his excuse is good enough. She doesn’t seem harmed. In fact, it seems as if he’s taken care of her better than my men did. Sakujun glanced at Tomio who leaned against the wall staring at Shuurei with his arms crossed at his waist, tapping his fan unconsciously against his hip and smiled at the man’s unconscious show of jealousy. He definitely thinks of her as a competitor for my affections. Well, he may have gone to scare her off, but ended up saving her against his will.
Sakujun had to swallow back a laugh at the thought. Tomio wasn’t a gracious loser. Shuurei probably didn’t enjoy his method of treatment for her foot. Knowing Tomio, the sadist that he was, he would have drawn out as much fun, without hurting her, as he could in the process. Poor kitten, you have entered a world you’ve never dreamed of even in your worst nightmares. Now that you’ve tasted Tomio’s game, I wonder how you will deal with my games.
They left the room, Tomio’s guards relocking the doors behind them.
“She’s quite the feisty cat.”
Tomio’s quiet comment made Sakujun laugh as they sat in the courtesan’s bedroom. When the man looked at him in askance, he just raised his hand in defeat and shook his head as he continued to chuckle. It would take too much effort to explain.
“I did go to see what about Kourin enthralls you enough to take care of her, even to the extent of getting into the merchants guild.” Tomio didn’t wait for Sakujun to start questioning him. “When I got to the inn, your men had been attacked. Li was the only one still alive. He handed me the box and told me to give it to you. I am assuming there is more in it than the knife, but I didn’t open it.”
Sakujun opened the box and pulled out the silk. Instead of it being a bed of silk for the knife to be cradled in, it was a piece of someone’s robe carrying a mark. Under the silk, the wood held the words Sa clan dissenters written in blood. Sakujun tightened his grip on the box as fury filled him.
To oppose the clan was one thing. To oppose him personally was suicide. All in the clan knew his particular cruelty. None could match him.
I’ll repay the favor, whoever you are. Thank you for making the next couple of days interesting while my kitten is healing from your attack and for giving me a target to take my anger out on. Sakujun shivered in anticipation. It was a good day for hunting.
* * * [To Be Continued]
Now that you've finished the chapters, my little poll. Would you like the extra picture to be:
1. Tomio and Shuurei a duel of wits
2. Tomio's dance of seduction (of course with Sakujun watching)
3. Sakujun playing with Tomio's hair
4. Suggestions?
Thank you for reading. I hope you've enjoyed the story so far. Comments and crits are greatly appreciated.