【稲荷の使者】
"Jin..."
"Where are you, Jin?"
The raspy voice was getting louder. He got up and hesitantly opened the barn door. Cold air flooded the space around him, snow flakes hitting his feverish face, melting almost instantly.
The man on the ground was slowly pulling himself closer, heavy armor making his movements difficult. A bright streak of red was left in the snow behind him.
The boy was too scared to move. It was as if the god of snow, Kuraokami himself, froze him to the spot. He watched the man inch forward until he reached the door, pulling himself up a little. He then grabbed the boy's ankle and looked up at him. Wearing a mask and a helmet, his eyes were the only feature visible on his face. There was fear in them. Desperation.
"Jin,...why won't you help me?"
A little stream of blood started to pour out of the corner of the mask's mouth, soaking the strands of cord supporting the heavy helmet. The boy couldn't bear to look anymore and closed his eyes, but the man's grip was becoming stronger. It was starting to sting and burn, and soon his whole leg felt like it was on fire.
The boy waited for someone to help, anybody, but no one was coming. He was alone. Collecting all the courage left in him, he opened his eyes...
Jin blinked himself awake. He didn't move or make a sound; he only stared at the ceiling above while his mind was letting go of the last pieces of the dream.
After a few moments he looked down at his feet and found Yasunari tightly hugging his left leg.
That explains the dream.
He must have rolled in his sleep and somehow ended up close to where Jin was laying. He watched Yasunari's calm face for a while, envious of whatever peaceful dream he was having, then carefully wiggled his leg out of the grip, making sure not to wake him. He stood up and looked around the rest of the tent.
Shigesato was laying closer to the table, and on the other side of it Ryuzo was sleeping on his back. His legs were still crossed under the table, hinting at the fact that after their conversation ended he just laid back and fell asleep right there.
Jin picked up the blanket he was using and covered Yasunari, and without any more delay stepped out into the cold night.
~~~
It was going to be another chilly day. The clouds were rolling in, threatening to bring a very early snow for the season. The trees in Omi were now dropping the last of the leaves, getting ready for the tough winter ahead.
Rin's days were being mashed into one another with the amount of work she had. Hunting took most of her time, as she now had to travel further away from the village. The animals seemed to have learnt what she was up to and stayed away from the valley, so sometimes she had to go as far as the Old Toyotama hills.
She often used one of the horses from Omi stables, since she didn't have one of her own. For the most part she didn't need one; work orders were usually delivered by messengers and they would stay in the village until Rin and Yukihiro finished the job, then took the goods back with them. And if she was required at one of the clan meetings, which was very rare, her father would bring an extra horse with him.
For the past few years Yashamaru let her borrow a beautiful black horse, Koyami, and they grew accustomed to each other. She was a small horse compared to others, but beside carrying riders she was also used to heavier loads, be it firewood or harvested vegetables.
An occasional dead boar on her back was nothing.
The cold weather wasn't the only thing settling in. Bears began to frequent the area more often and it was Rin's luck that she stumbled upon one now. She was close to the woodcutter's shelter, not too far from the village, when she heard a low growl up ahead. The sound startled her, but luckily they were still far enough so Koyami managed to stay calm.
Rin's bow was tied to the saddle and she reached for it, however, it would be sheer madness to attempt to kill the bear by herself. An experienced hunter could probably do it, but it was still very dangerous.
Instead she kept her distance and headed south into the forest, keeping an eye on the animal just in case it decided to charge them.
"It would be nice to have some help," she said out loud, half to Koyami, half to herself.
It wasn't a complaint, but a mere wishful thinking. She spent most of the days alone or in a company of an aging, often grumpy bowyer and other than Yuriko she didn't get to talk to many other people. Her mother was in Azamo Bay visiting her sister for a change, and her father was yet to respond to the last letter she sent to him.
To top it all off, she was still moping over the moon viewing festival, which she had to spend watching Ryuzo stuff his face with dumplings and rice.
She couldn't believe Jin would send him as his substitute. What was he thinking?
Of course she knew there was a chance Jin and his uncle couldn't make it. She still kept her hopes up. However, those hopes were crushed the moment she spotted Ryuzo in the crowd. Alone.
She let out a deep sigh and looked up at the clouds above. It was probably close to midday, but it was difficult to tell, not seeing where exactly the sun was.
Suddenly she heard a rhythmical sound coming down the hill up ahead. Hooves hitting the ground at a slow pace. She saw the horse first, as it was pure white, creating stark contrast with the general brownness of the forest around. She had to blink twice upon seeing the rider, who seemed as surprised as she was.
Jin made it halfway to her, sitting up straight in the saddle, eyebrows raised. He looked confused, as if he forgot who he was and what he was doing there.
For a moment Rin thought she was dreaming and shook her head in order to wake up. She was just thinking about him, yet he was the last person she expected to see right now.
"Jin?"
"What are you doing here?" His voice was quiet and soft, and she almost didn't hear him. He studied her face for a while before looking down at the bow attached to her saddle.
"What does it look like?" was the first thing that came to her mind, still shocked from the sudden change in her surroundings.
Jin looked around. The path to Omi he was following was nowhere to be seen. They were in the middle of a forest. Then he recalled why he came here and quickly looked at her.
"There was a fox." His eyes shifted to the ground again, scanning the intertwined tree roots spreading across.
"I followed it here."
Rin looked at the leaf covered ground as well. There were trees in all directions with roots covering one another in a chaos of twists and turns. Any of them could be hiding a fox den.
Then a realization struck her and she grew suspicious. Wouldn't that be a perfect excuse for somebody to show up out of nowhere?
"Do you often follow foxes to unknown places, Lord Sakai?" She was trying to sound like her mother, using her judging, doubtful voice. At the same time she couldn't help but smile.
Fox or no fox, she was happy to see him.
Jin recovered from his initial surprise as well and was quick to react, setting his eyes on her in a gravely serious, dark look.
"Always."
She swallowed hard, not ready for that. Her cheeks started to burn up and even though they were most likely red from the cold air, she still worried he would notice.
Not saying anything else he kept looking at her, lips curling up at the corners into a smile, which made her even more nervous.
"I didn't know you were coming," she said, trying to break the awkward silence. It worked.
"I didn't either. My uncle told me to take a few days. He also wanted me to deliver these." He looked at a few rolled up pelts placed behind Kaito's saddle.
"He said he went to his family cemetery this morning and saw Yuriko there."
"She must have told him about our shortage," Rin stated with a frown forming on her face. Yukihiro mentioned Yuriko stopped by a few times when she was out for a hunt. Maybe she talked to Takeru as well?
Her frown deepened. They needed help but they weren't desperate. At least not enough to bother Lord Shimura with it.
"She must have," Jin replied, recalling his earlier conversation with his uncle. "He'll have his men bring some meat, too."
Her eyes grew wide at that. She knew Yuriko had her way with words sometimes, but what in the world did she tell him?
"I didn't know it was that bad," Jin continued, sending her an apologetic look. He felt guilty for not bringing this up to his uncle earlier. Not to ask for supplies, but to be allowed to obtain them on his own.
"It's not," Rin replied quickly, seeing the look on his face. It was true. Takeru was keeping a list of what they needed and they were almost there. Jin was busy with his own schedule and she didn't expect him to know every single detail about the village.
Also, she didn't want to bother him with it just because it was difficult. That's not the kind of person she was.
Jin's features grew softer, but she saw it in his eyes that he wasn't about to let it go that easily. He was disappointed in himself and she has known him long enough to know he'd probably sulk over it for an unhealthy amount of time.
"Either way, I don't think you'll need to hunt for some time."
Rin let out a sigh of relief. She didn't mind the work, but she was glad for not having to wash blood off her hands anymore. She knew it was all for a good cause, but it was getting a little bit too much.
"Should we head back then?" she asked, not knowing what to say next. He was giving her that look again, like he's thinking of saying something but doesn't know how to begin. His fingers were unconsciously brushing thought Kaito's mane, eyes set on one of the trees nearby.
"Actually, I was thinking,..." he trailed off for a bit, not sure how to continue. "We could go see the shrine today, if you'd like."
Seeing the surprise in her eyes, he quickly added, "I mean if you're not busy."
Rin chuckled at his sudden change in behavior. How does he go from teasing her to being serious so quickly, and now he's being shy?
"Well, you just freed up the rest of my day," she said, leaving her thoughts to herself. He looked awkward enough to even bring this up and she didn't need to make it worse.
"And I would love to go."
Jin visibly relaxed and his eyes brightened up. He was thinking about this for some time now, milling it over in his mind, not sure how to ask. He was hoping they could make the trip before snow arrived and made the climb more difficult.
"You know, my mother should be coming back any day so it's probably good to go now. Or we wouldn't hear the end of it."
Rin rolled her eyes and glanced at Jin, who only laughed at that. He was pretty sure Lady Nagao wouldn't accept any excuses, even if they included Lord Shimura.
"So it's settled then," Jin stated with a grin and a sense of finality in his voice. "I just need to drop these pelts off in the village."
"And I should probably let Takeru-san know about the news, so he's not looking for me later."
They nodded at each other in a mutual agreement and spurred the horses into a trot, heading towards the village side by side.
"By the way, thanks for ruining my day by sending Ryuzo over for dinner the other night," she called out, but couldn't really find it in her to be upset with him anymore. "I thought he'd never leave."
Jin snickered at that. "Maybe you shouldn't be so mean to him. He's part of the reason I got some time off."
She raised her eyebrows. "Really? How so?"
"It's kind of a long story, but since you asked,..." he trailed off and relaxed in the saddle, resting his arm on the hilt of the katana at his side.
For the rest of the ride to the village he told her about Ryuzo and their drinking night, followed by the Adachi brothers half dead from hangover in the morning. They were in no shape for training, and even after Jin had them liven up in the river they couldn't even draw their swords without getting nauseous.
Yasunari was blue and green in the face and ended up throwing up, but Jin left that part to himself; he didn't need to reveal all the details. He dismissed them for the day and just when he was about to train on his own, Lord Shimura showed up and gave him a permission to leave for a few days.
When they finally reached the gate marking the entrance to the village, Jin halted Kaito and gave her a puzzled look.
"There really was a fox, you know. Back in the forest."
Rin studied his face, looking for any sign of deception, but his confusion seemed genuine.
The way his eyes rounded up, slight frown creating a little wrinkle between his eyebrows, as if he was worried she wouldn't believe him. He was saying the truth.
"I believe you," she finally said, giving him a reassuring smile. She had her own experience with foxes; they tend to disappear as quickly as they appear, leaving you with a feeling they are secretly watching even when you can't see them anymore. She just never had one lead her to a person, that's all.
She looked towards the village, catching a sight of the blacksmith's house in the distance, then looked back at Jin.
"Meet you here in a little bit?"
~~~~~~~~~~
Please vote if you like the story, and if you have time leave comments or feedback. It would be nice knowing which parts you like (and which you don't). :)
Koyami, Rin's horse, is written 小闇, translating as 'little darkness'. It's a slightly unusual reading, but it's correct!
~~~~~~~~~~
Inari (稲荷) - one of the principal Shinto kami, patron of foxes, fertility, agriculture, and prosperity
Kuraokami (闇龗) - kami of rain and snow