Nuriko interludes before the Suzaku summoning ceremony. This is a senior citizen plot bunny that I was finally able to wrap up. Dedicated to my dear friend Jade Murasaki.
We Will Meet Again by VAST. Mild spoilers up to Episode 23.
Fushigi Yuugi is copyright of Yuu Watase and others.
by Shi
Where have you gone
My love, my friend?
Somewhere without the rain
I feel afraid now
I feel alone
Will we meet again?
The wind was warm yet cool on my face at the same time. I didn’t know if that was a good omen or not.
Contrasts…heat and cold. Fire and water.
Hope and despair.
I stood by the balcony railing near the doors of my quarters, the one I had occupied since they found out months ago that I was a Suzaku Shichi Seishi. The room was bigger than the one I used to occupy, back in the time when
I was simply regarded as Kourin, a court princess.
The harem was located in an entirely different building from the palace that the Emperor occupied. Now I live like the rest of the seishi, in a wing of the palace that would only be fit for the royal family. We all had these stately, dignified rooms, warmer and more comfortable and more decadent.
And closer to the Emperor.
I wonder if that is such a good thing.
Can you recall what we once knew?
Somewhere without the pain
I feel afraid now, but not alone
We will meet again
The breakfast I had eaten hours ago was still churning around my stomach. The sun was already high up in the sky, indicating noon and lunch. I was half-expecting Miaka to come barreling down the hallway and drag me off the kitchen in a pre-summoning meal. It would be a welcome distraction from this anxiety.
Then again, she had been dragged off by the maids to prepare her for the ceremony. She had to go through this purification ritual as the miko or something of the sort.
I suppose I was getting old and fidgety. The moment I understood the legend of Suzaku no Miko and her Shichi Seishi, I realized right away that it was our destiny to call our god for the safety and prosperity of our land. I had expected that the day would come when I would be called to the service of my miko and my country’s patron diety. And I had expected this day, the time when our Phoenix-god would finally be called.
You will make the wish for me to become a woman, won’t you?
The memory of my asking Miaka to wish me to become a woman was blurry at best, dotted with bursts of nervous energy and sprigs of doubt. But what I felt mattered little, or did not matter at all.
Kourin. Dear, sweet Kourin. Is it time for you to live once more, to be reborn by the hand of a god? I have always thought that if I would be a strong, dependable seishi, I will be rewarded with you coming back to me. I would be gifted with the power to make you live once again, to reclaim the life that you were so cruelly robbed of.
Have I done good? It would only be a matter of time now, when the ceremony will finally begin and the thread of destiny would once again be spun in our favor.
Then, finally, blessedly, we shall both find our peace.
I can’t hear your voice
But you know I feel your soul
I can’t hear your voice
But you know I feel your soul
“Nuriko-san.”
I started at the sound. My name was spoken softly by a voice that was all too familiar, all too tormenting.
Swallowing hard, I forced myself to look at the man walking towards me. He was magnificent as always, clad in red robes shot through with thin golden thread, his mahogany hair flowing down his back like a silken waterfall.
Every inch the perfect Emperor and Suzaki seishi.
“Hotohori-sama,” I said, bowing respectfully. “Konnichi wa.”
“Konnichi wa,” he replied, smiling. “Is everything all right? Are you ready for the ceremony?”
“Hai, of course, I am!” I flashed him my best grin, although at the back of my mind I was wondering why he was here. But this was his palace, after all. He could go anywhere as he pleased. “Everything’s fine, Hotohori-sama.”
“The other seishi are on their way to the temple as we speak,” said Hotohori. “I met them on my way to my rooms. I wondered why you were not with them. I suppose there was no cause for me to be concerned, after all.”
“R-really?” So great was my surprise that I could feel my eyebrows shoot towards my hairline. It took a great deal of self-control for me to clear my throat and straighten my face. Hotohori-sama concerned about me? “I mean, I agree. Nothing to worry about, after all. I was with Miaka longer that I should have been earlier today, while the maids were getting her ready. We talked about…things. Nothing important. Just, you know, girl stuff.”
His eyes held mine intently. “Girl stuff,” he echoed.
“Yes,” I replied, too enthusiastically for my own good. “Suzaku no Miko was very nervous, Hotohori-sama. Who better to discuss your anxieties with than a friend? It’s not everyday that a girl has the great responsibility of summoning a god.”
Hotohori had no response save for an unblinking stare that lasted for several long moments. Finally, he nodded. “Very good. I am certain you saw to it that our miko’s doubts have been assuaged then. It would not bode well for Kounan if she came to the ceremony in low spirits.”
“Miaka had a big breakfast, and an even more substantial morning snack,” I said, ticking them off on my fingers. “I saw to it, too, that the lunch served in her rooms consisted of all her favorites.”
“I see. Well, as everything is in order, I shall leave you to prepare for the ceremony myself.” Hotohori clasped his hands together and began to turn away, only to stop midway and look back at me. “Nuriko?”
“Hotohori-sama?”
“Domo arigatou.” He inclined his head in a humble manner, eyes downcast. “You serve Kounan and Suzaku so well, you put my efforts to shame.”
I felt heat rise in my cheeks. “It’s an honor to serve Kounan and Suzaku, heika-sama. We all do our duty with our very best. Nothing less could be said of you or any of the seishi.”
Hotohori nodded. “I shall see you at the temple, Nuriko.”
I bowed once more. “Yes, of course, Hotohori-sama.”
Where have you gone
My love, my friend?
Somewhere without any pain
As I made my way to the temple, I could not help but think about what occurred earlier. Hotohori-sama was concerned that he couldn’t find me.
He was concerned about me…? Or was he concerned about the absence of a seishi? Both, perhaps?
I had no answer.
Does it matter now? I heard myself asking. You will have what you have always wanted, if Miaka asks Suzaku to make you a woman.
Will she even do so? I thought about how scatterbrained that girl could be. Come to think about it, she had not actually agreed up front.
But I knew why, clearly. I was not even certain if Suzaku-seikun will do such a thing. Turn Ryuuen into a woman, so Kourin could live once more. It was almost the same thing as asking the god to bring someone
back from the dead.
There was only one way to find out.
I made my way up the steps to the temple of Suzaku-seikun, straightening my braid and robes as I went. I took a deep, cleansing breath and pushed the doors open.
It was time to face destiny.
I’m not afraid now
I’m not alone
We will meet again
Image courtesy of Humphrey Muleba @ Unsplash
