The Daimyo of the Mirumoto was beautiful, Kesuan thought. She was of slight build, though long and strong of arm; much like the ancient blade she carried, she had been honed by a single purpose to a pinnacle of lethality. She carried no spare line, no mark of decoration or ornament - even her head was shaved in the careful, precise manner of the Togashi Brotherhood. She was clean of line, pure of form, a perfect work of art.
What Kesuan did not feel for her was desire. Her beauty was too extreme, too functional, too abstract for him to stir his desire; she was beautiful as a blade is beautiful, as the sky is beautiful, as the mountain was beautiful. He could note her beauty, could compose poetry to it, could paint it on silk and deem it a master's work, but never could he imagine a sensual pleasure taken with the Mirumoto Lord, even were it a simple ceremony of tea shared between the two of them.
Daini had taken his war-leaders forward into the castle of the Dragonfly to confer with his sister. The young warrior's face was grim, his eyes hooded beneath the great black-and-gold helm he wore, and Kesuan felt anxious about the young Mirumoto. Beside him stalked his uncle, Sukune, Master of the Dragon Horse; his bearing was weary, but his posture was erect and his hands steady. The remaining war-leaders, chui and gunso, waited on their lord with dignified silence. Finally, Mikoto walked behind, watching the young ise zumi who walked at Daini's side.
Hitomi received them in the Hall of the Dragonfly. She was clad in a simple gold kimono; she wore the full daisho, and her helm was placed by her side, as though in token of the coming war. Her calm, clear eyes took in her brother's form as he approached; not weighing, not evaluating -- it was a simple gaze of waiting to see what her brother might have to say.
Daini stopped, knelt, and bowed deeply to his sister. Kesuan could not help but compare the two. Daini's powerful, strong features had no analogue in his sister's placid countenance. Daini's face was broad, his eyes narrow, his face lined with creases formed by his expressive face. Hitomi's face, however, was smooth, save for a single, chiseled line between her brows, which never seemed to vanish. Her eyes were large, her face round, her fingers long and elegant. There was little physical resemblance between the two.
"My lord." muttered Daini to the floor.
"Daini." Hitomi's voice was lower than Kesuan expected, and soft.
"I have ridden too far east; I must cross these lands to go where our Lord has commanded me." Daini said, never looking up.
"If that is what you need to do."
"Have you received word from him?"
"None. I wait, as I have been bidden. The time is soon, and the place is set. He is coming."
Daini looked up suddenly. "Yokuni comes? Here?"
Hitomi smiled slowly, and the tips of her teeth showed. "The Crab. Satsu's slayer. It will be soon."
"How do you know this, sister?" Daini said suspiciously.
"I have had word from the South. I can feel him always; the foulness of his spirit is known to me. The stench of his taint is in my nostrils, and the scent grows more pungent. The coldness of his eyes sears me always, and I tremble in the growing frost. Satsu himself cries out his warning words. I marvel that you cannot hear his screams." She gazed at him again, her eyes touched with wonder.
Kesuan watched Daini's eyes grow cold, and saw his lip curl back over his teeth for an instant. He mastered himself, drew his mouth into a smile, and bowed again. "It has not been given me to hear the words of our brother," Daini said slowly, "and I rejoice that he has not left you in this time of crisis. I have had my own message from Yokuni, and hasten to discharge my duty." Daini drew out the fan of command, and laid it before him.
Hitomi's eyes fell upon it briefly, then returned to her brother.
"Perhaps the Crab comes to fulfill destiny, as Yokuni foresaw."
"No doubt ," Hitomi noted, "beneath my blade."
"Perhaps Yokuni's wisdom is greater than we realize. Kisada is, as all acknowledge a great general. The armies of the Dragon could do worse for a leader," Daini smiled as though in thought, "Than the son of Kisada."
The line between Hitomi's brows grew deeper.
"I believe that I will not, in fact, continue to the west, but shall turn south, to speak with the son of Kisada."
"Brother," Hitomi said slowly, "you walk a dangerous path. Will you dishonor your brother's name by placing his murderer in command of his armies?"
Daini's smile faded. "Will you, sister, disobey the will of your daimyo and refuse to serve? I was bidden to give the armies of the Dragon to whomever I deem worthy. How shall I know this, without speaking to any who seem likely."
Hitomi's eyes were glassy, and her brow grew heavy. "You could surrender them to me, little brother."
"The Dragon is not yet ready for war with the Crab." Daini said darkly. "No, sister. I will keep my own counsel for the moment. I will turn south, and speak with the Crab. Or will you gainsay my choice." His words were a challenge, and his eyes lit with a wild light.
Mikoto stood then, his vision stained with Daini's blood as the brash samurai would whip forth his blade. "Stay your swords! I speak for Yokuni!"
Hitomi's implacable gaze rested on the tattooed monk. "Who are you to speak to the daimyo of the Mirumoto thus?" Her words were oddly shallow, as though she spoke with ritual formula rather than with heated spirit.
"I am Togashi Mikoto, and I bear Yokuni's word." Mikoto bowed, but shallowly. He drew from his travelling pack a scroll of finest skin, and laid it before Hitomi. "There is the word of Yokuni, spoken at Shiryo no Togashi not a fortnight ago, bidding Daini give the Dragon to whomever he should please. It was not given to Mirumoto Hitomi to gainsay his choice." Mikoto added grimly.
Hitomi's curiously empty eyes rested on Mikoto's face. "It seems not. Nevertheless, it was given to Mirumoto Hitomi to lead the armies of the Mirumoto as well. If my brother goes south, then so shall I. I may not gainsay his choice, but I wish to see the great general my little brother would grant the Sword of the Dragon to. And if the choice displeases me," she smiled then, a smile with little humor in it, "perhaps we will not have to endure that service long."
Daini's eyes remained dangerous, but Mikoto said, "So be it." Kesuan felt the eyes of Hitomi upon him, and the blackness of the crow on his pate was absorbed into her empty eyes until they glittered like black stones in her face.
In a single movement she stood and exited the room. She reminded Kesuan of Yokuni.