Cloths of Heaven
Chapter 1
(i)
“So,” the king of Inabayama said, sitting back at his desk and templing his fingers under his chin, “it is for the best of our kingdom that upon her fifteenth birthday that Aya Fujimiya is married to Lord Crawford of Eressea. This will promote trade between the two lands and to honour the wedding Ran Fujimiya will accompany her for one year, in his role as Captain of the Heaven Guard. Do you have any questions, Lord Fujimiya.”
Ranmura Fujimiya looked at the document the king had read aloud to him and worked out the ramifications to his family. The Fujimiya were rich and powerful, related to the king on the distaff side, and they looked a little alike. “This is satisfactory, majesty,” he said with a low bow, “we are Fujimiya, the right hand of the throne, Aya will do as you ask, but,” he stopped meeting his king's eye, “might it be possible for the two of them to meet, before the wedding. She is a head strong girl, but well beloved of her mother and myself, I would at least like to see the man she is to marry.”
“I will send word to Eressea that you have accepted the offer and that you would like to meet the boy before the wedding.” He scratched something quickly on the paper with the quill. “Is there anything else, Fujimiya?”
“No, majesty.” He said with another low bow. He waited until he left the room before he let out a deep sigh. Leaning against the door he looked again at the order his king had given him. Eressea was a long way away and he simply did not wish to send his daughter that far, even if the king had made the concession, such as it was, of sending Ran with her. Aya was his heir, his daughter, Ran had been summoned into the Heaven Guard almost before he was born, but Aya would inherit the Fujimiya estates, and now it seemed that they would go to someone else, a foreigner. Taking another deep breath he walked down the hall to break the news to his wife.
Ayako Fujimiya had been the most beautiful woman in the kingdom with long berry red hair and eyes the colour of twilight. As she had grown older the star of her beauty about the court seemed to wane, as her waist thickened with children, but to Ranmura she never looked less lovely than she had the first time he had seen her. Their son, Ran, had inherited her unique colouring but their daughter Aya favoured her father with large black eyes and hair that was violet black.
Ayako sat at her laploom, her fingers deft and true, tracing out the design of the sea-maiden upon the canvas, the ring glinting in her hand. “You look vexed, husband” she said fondly. It never failed to amaze Ranmura that he had been so lucky with the woman that the old king had chosen for him, she was beautiful and wise and he loved her so much. Love was not something one expected in marriage, but he loved his wife dearly.
“The king has decided a husband for Aya.” He said quietly.
Ayako's brows furrowed for a moment. “She's barely thirteen.” She said, “Is it to be soon?”
“On her fifteenth birthday,” he told his wife, “to a high ranking lord of Eressea, Lord Crawford.”
Ayako pursed her lips. ”I assumed it would be Lord Takatori's youngest son, being as they are of an age. The king has been throwing them together since childhood, I assumed it would be for a marriage.”
“It would make my heart lighter if he had chosen young Omi, at least I know the boy. I know nothing of this Crawford other than he has a vast estate on Eressea and is very wealthy.” He sat in the chair facing his wife, her marble white hands were resting on the laploom.
“We should be grateful,” Ayako said, “that he is wealthy, it will make a good match for Inabayama,” her voice was sad however, “but not, maybe, such a good match for Aya.” From the window of her solar she could see the beach and her two children running amok. They were pelting up and down the beach with Omi and a dog that they had found somewhere. They were good children, she thought, Aya was impetuous and charming, where Ran was shy and reserved. They had been raised to know that their wants were secondary to the needs of the kingdom. Aya would understand, she might rant and rave, but she would understand. Eressea was only a week away by sea.
Ran, however, would be desolate without his twin.
(ii)
Ran watched as his sister ran ahead, turning back to look at him with a blinding smile. She was running backwards as the dog ran circles about her heels, her skirt fluttering in the sea breeze as she laughed. “You can't catch me, Ran,” she shouted back, “you never can,” and impishly the young princess of the Fujimiya family stuck her tongue out at her twin. She knew, however, that Ran never could catch her because he never wanted to. In Inabayama twins were considered blessed above all others, and although he and his sister weren't identical, or even truly looked alike, Ran knew his sister had the love of the goddess because she was the very best thing in his world.
“Omi,” she called out, the wind was blowing her twin braids around her face and the sun was setting behind her with her skirt whipping about her legs. “I bet you can't catch me.” And then with a laugh she sprinted off across the sand.
“I will catch you,” Omi shouted back and ran after her leaving Ran a few steps behind. Omi was much younger than them but they always made sure to include him in their games. He was a cherub of a prince with soft blonde hair and large blue eyes. His name was actually Mamoru but no one ever called him that, and he had the questionable virtue of being the third in line for the throne. Ran knew his duty, he would be a captain of the Heaven Guard, he would protect his nation first and his family second, but Aya would always be first in his heart.
She was far ahead, he could catch up with them if he sprinted, he was taller than them both with all his height in his legs. It was then that he saw her, the strange maiden sitting on the rocks where the beach was shadowed by the towers. She sat patiently, staring out to sea, with a brush in her hand as she sang softly under her breath. She turned to him and her mercurial eyes sparkled with mischief. She was small, but perfectly formed, and wore a long dress of dark rich green. Ran thought he knew everyone in the court, but he had never seen her before, and it was unlike the women of Inabayama to dress their hair in public, even his mother never left her bedchamber before her hair was braided and covered with a veil. The woman's dress was open almost completely to show her bosom, which Ran thought was mildly disturbing because decent women didn't dress like that.
She stood up, her legs were tiny but perfectly formed and visible through the slit green lace of her gown, as she tucked her comb into a band around her thigh and walked up to him. Ran was transfixed. She was beautiful, but petite, standing shorter, even than Omi, but it was clear she was a full-grown woman, but she had the scent of brine about her. Everything about her reminded Ran of the sea.
She reached out and laid her palm on his face, it was cold and wet to the touch, and smiled a little wanly, she mouthed something but Ran could not understand her, then with a feather light kiss on his forehead she turned and walked away.
“Wait,” he called after her, not exactly sure why. “Who are you?”
Her smile was sweetly sad as she walked down to the water's edge away from him.
It was only later, when everything had come to a head, he realised what she was.
(iii)
“Mama,” Ran said, “tell me the story of the Piskies.” He was sat on the edge of the bed that he shared with his sister, Aya had fallen asleep as soon as her head hit the pillow, but Ran was sleepless. His mother reached down and swept back his hair, it was the same cherry red as her own.
She sat beside him, wrapping her arms about her son. Their nurse might have the day to day raising of the children, but Ayako made sure to see them safe in their bed, it was Ayako who gave them the warm milk that filled their bellies, and it was Ayako who lulled them to sleep. “Alright, little man,” she said as he lay down on the bed, “in the high places among the mountains and the places where the sea bends the world between ours and the world of the piskies is thin and easily broken.” She looked at her pale and lovely son, lying on the pillows; he was still young enough to crowd him unto her lap and affectionate enough that he never protested that he was a big boy and refused. At six years old Ran knew his destiny and accepted it, he would be his sister's knight, her champion, and rather than resent her for it, it made him love her all the more. Ayako was proud of her little knight, even on nights when he was sleepless. “Sometimes,” she said quietly, “the veil between the worlds is so thin and we can see into their world and they can see into ours and that's when we see the piskies, beautiful maidens with hair the colour of seaweed. They sit in the shadows, in the dark places singing as they brush out their hair. It is very rare to see one, very few people do, but it is said that if you see them you can tell the future.” She leant down and kissed her son's forehead, “one for sorrow, two for mirth, three for a death and four for a birth, five for silver and six for gold, seven for a heart that's lost to the cold, eight for heaven and nine for hell, and ten for a secret you never can tell.”
“I want to see a piskie, Mama,” Ran said softly.
“Not one, little man, but two, never wish to see only one, promise me, you'll wish for two.”
Ran smiled up at her from his pillow. “I promise, Mama, I wish to see two.”
Ayako beamed at her son never knowing his wish would come true.
(iv)
Ran was isolated from the rest of his family as the chiurgeons entered and left his sister's bedchamber. His parents were both with her but Ran was alone outside. Omi had tried to sit with him for a while but Ran's silence had scared him, at nine years old Omi simply could not comprehend what was happening. “Is she going to die?” he had asked.
Ranmura didn't have an answer for him. All he could think of was the beautiful woman on the beach and the strange words she had mouthed to him, words he didn't understand. No one else had seen her, and the beach was part of the private estate of the Fujimiya family, there was no way she could have been there, and within a week his sister had fallen ill. His mother had repeated the refrain again and again through their childhoods, “one for sorrow,” and you must never wish only for one. As a child he had obeyed his mother and wished for two.
He had only seen one.
Now Aya was sick. He couldn't help but feel it was his fault. He had been the one to see the piskie, he hadn't run to catch up with Omi and Aya, and now Aya was sick.
His father came out and his expression was tired. “Papa,” Ran said standing up from the bench. “How is she?”
Ranmura Fujimiya shook his head slowly at his only son. “Come, Ran,” he said, “we must talk to the king.”
The king of Inabayama scared Ran, he always had. He stood behind his father and wished he could be anywhere else, he wanted to be with Aya. She was his twin, his other half, she shouldn't have to be alone. She was ill and she was going through it alone. “You do realise,” the king said, “that this leaves us with a dilemma. Lord Crawford has responded and agreed to the marriage, we have a contract with Eressea and to break it will have serious repercussions for Inabayama.”
Ran wanted to rage at the king, his sister was ill, possibly dying and all the king cared about was the marriage contract that he had agreed with some foreign lord.
“Perhaps,” his father said, “He might take Ran in Aya's place.” His voice was quiet. “Lord Crawford is said to like men as much as women, we could still honour the contract.”
“But papa.” Ran protested, then stopped remembering his place, “I will do what is best for Inabayama,” He said stiffly, lowering his eyes to the tiled floor.
“I can always rely on the Fujimiya,” the king said. “The marriage contract specifically names the Fujimiya heir, and in my opinion Ran was always the fairer of the two. If Aya is unable to complete the contract then Ran you will have to take her place. Do you understand what this means?” Ran looked at the king, “you will abandon your training as a knight of the Heaven Guard and you will learn the arts of pleasing a man such as Aya would have learned.”
“I will do what is best for Inabayama.” Ran repeated but his mind was whirligigging. He was going to have to leave Inabayama, to be married to a man he had only ever heard word of in hushed whispers. Even Aya, who shared everything with him, had told him nothing of the man other than he was to marry her.
“I will assign to you a member of the Heaven Guard to keep you safe for your upcoming nuptials.” The king said, “because of the circumstances surrounding this contract we will take no more chances, Ran, you are to take the next ship to Eressea to meet your upcoming husband. Lord Crawford himself suggested this for your sister and I now regret resisting the offer, you are to stay with him until you are of age to marry and then you will do your duty to Inabayama.”
Ran nodded, the words seeming alien in his mind. He clung to the words he recognised, words that were practically his family motto, words the entire kingdom took for granted “the Fujimiya do their duty by Inabayama.”
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