The Winter Peony (Young Hanzo x Reader)

First Strike

The matriarch lifted her head and smiled gently to [Y/N] who did not return the gesture, instead the youth reached for Hanzo's hand, closing her eyes as he returned her grip tightly. "We have to take care of each other, for everyone outside this family...no...this room would rather see you dead and buried than happy and prospering." Ryoko put a hand on Genji's head and watched as Hanzo turned to face [Y/N], taking both her hands in his. "We do not move without consulting each other from this moment on." She wrapped her arm around Genji and nodded to Hanzo and [Y/N] who nodded back in return. "Hopefully we can get this visit over with and done before long, and the wedding can get underway. I want you two to go back to planning it as you were before this mess fell in our laps. The more we have planned and agreed upon, the quicker getting the materials and necessities will be."

"Yes." Hanzo's rumble made [Y/N] look up at him, she could see a shine in his dark brown eyes as he stared at her. "The sooner we are wed, the sooner our largest problems will be behind us."

A soft cough on the other side of the door left the entire group on edge, [Y/N] could feel the hairs on the back of her neck prickle in anticipation. From the corner of her eye, she watched Genji flinch, Hanzo's jaw clench and Ryoko straighten her back—pulling away from Genji slightly as she eyed the door suspiciously.

"Lady Shimada, the Kobayashi women will be approaching the gate soon, a rider has returned with news that they are traveling by horse-drawn carriage." The clipped tone from the opposite side of the closed door had become familiar to [Y/N]. She was a lady in waiting to Ryoko, dressed as a servant she was a warrior who was charged with keeping Ryoko Shimada out of dangers way and did not go far without her charge.

"Then it is time for us to greet them." Ryoko stood and smoothed her kimono out, relaxing her face before putting on her matronly smile. "Come my fledglings, smiles now and remember what I've said. Remember it well, or it will be the end of our clan."

-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-

The Shimada's and [Y/N] waited outside the gate to the estate, servants waiting both outside and inside the gate to assist the Kobayashi clan members and take general orders. [Y/N] gave a quick glance around the walls that made the estate its own little world—the servants and workers had even made time to clean the weeds away from the walls and sweep the pathway that lead to the main house.

Hanzo reached out and touched her hand lightly, a simple brush of his fingers to the back of her hand, but it was enough to remind her to keep sharp. She watched the road, hearing the neighing of horses just before the carriage appeared in the distance.

Hanzo clapped his hands, hushing the servant's fervent whispers and alerting them to take their practiced positions for receiving guests of high standing. Men servants stood outside the gate on either side of the Shimada family, and women servants stood inside the gate, all with their hands to their sides and eyes to the ground. Hanzo stood beside Genji, with [Y/N] and Ryoko standing just behind them.

When the carriage had come to a stop, Hanzo motioned for the male servants to begin helping the women exit. The first was an elderly woman, with her greying hair pulled back into a simple style to match her simple blue kimono with flower designs. She had age marks around her eyes, and laugh lines around her mouth that twitched as she smiled to Hanzo when she approached. The second woman was tall and lithe with stark black hair hanging down around her shoulders. Her face was thin and her chin more pointed than the elderly woman's.

She reminds me of a weasel, [Y/N] thought as she respectfully bowed her head as the woman approached to stand by her mother.

"Hello, Shimada-dono." The middle-aged woman greeted, "Thank you for allowing our visit to your home—I'm sorry to have come at such short notice—but we were passing by on our trip to visit some of our establishments," She gestured down the road, the smile stretched wide across her thin face, making it look more pointed and scary. "And we couldn't pass up the chance to check in on one of our favorite families." She eyed Ryoko behind him and [Y/N]. "But oh my," she put a hand to her face and looked around, "I do not see Lord Shimada? Will he be joining us? What about Lord [L/N]?"