Original Stories Fan Fiction ❯ Kazemaru and Miharu ❯ Chapter 32

Before long, though, it was not enough. It wasn't that Miharu didn't appreciate the time she spent with Kaze, it was just… well, that was becoming less and less. He was, after all, the leader of his territory and apparently that entailed more than scaring off the occasional invader. He met with neighboring leaders, discussed minor policy with his vassals, and it struck Miharu that it was very much like being a daimyo.

 

Unfortunately, this meant that Kaze began to spend a lot of time away from the island, leaving Miharu alone and bored. The island, while lovely, was rather small, and there was only so much to be discovered. She watched black and blue butterflies the size of her hand flutter by lazily, and large spiders spin dense webs, and felt the moments without him slide by like a slug.

 

She didn't want to complain, though. Kaze had gone through a lot of trouble to make this life for the both of them, and the last thing she wanted was to sound ungrateful. If only she could have something to do…. She longed for her koto back at the palace, or even the incessant gossiping of her handmaidens. She kept the room spotless, cleaning for probably the first time in her life. She checked all of her newly acquired kimonos for worn spots that might need mending, but they were all in perfect condition. Even if they had needed fixing, she had no needle and thread to fix them with.

 

It was then that Miharu had an idea. Kaze sometimes brought her small gifts, but he always had to trade for something. When things became slow at the palace, sometimes she and her handmaidens would take on the task of embellishing kimonos with embroidery. It was simple enough, and it kept your hands and your mind busy. Perhaps she could convince Kaze to get her some thread, and a needle, and some fabric….

 

***

 

Kaze ran his hand through his hair. “I don't know, Koishii, that's a lot, I'll have to sell some armor or something.”

 

Miharu shook her head. “But if I embroider the fabric, it will become more valuable than all of it separately, and you could trade the embroidered fabric for even more fabric, and…” she said quickly.

 

Kaze laughed. “Ok, ok, I get the idea. I'll talk to baa-san and see what she thinks.”

 

Miharu smiled. “Alright.” She thought about the blind old woman Kaze had spoken of so many times. Perhaps it would be alright, since she was blind. “Do you think I could meet baa-san, sometime?”

 

The smile on Kaze's face faded. “You're lonely, aren't you?”

 

Miharu pulled on her sleeve unconsciously, looking away. “No, I just get bored, when you're gone.” She looked back up at him, smiling. “I'm ok, really.”

 

His smile returned, and he wrapped his arms around her tightly. “We'll see, my love.”

 

***

 

The old woman turned the breastplate over in her hands, her fingers tracing the design hammered into the metal. “This is very fine, Kaze-kun.” She looked up at him with her unseeing eyes. “Your having a party and you didn't invite me?”

 

Kaze laughed, her joke successfully breaking the tension. “No, of course not. It's just, my ma—my wife has grown a bit bored lately, and she'd like a bit of embroidering to keep her busy. She doesn't need it—she intends to trade off the fabric, so she can get more.”

 

She nodded and smiled as if she knew some sort of secret. “You know, I think I still have a needle and some thread laying around, and heaven knows I can't sew without turning my fingers into pincushions. I may be blind, but you know I how I appreciate fine things. Wait here, and I'll be right back.” She dropped the armor in his hands, and shuffled off into the house.

 

Kaze shuffled awkwardly from foot to foot, glancing around at the backs of the houses a ways off. He nearly jumped when he heard a door slam shut within the house, and listened to the soft padding of her tabi on the tatami mats. She reemerged, and in her hands were a folded kimono and a small wooden box.

 

“Now, here is my old sewing kit, it has a few colors in it, not much of course. Tell her to do a little floral design on this kimono—nothing too fancy, I am very old, you know. I bought it for the New Year but hadn't thought to have it embellished. I'll pay her for her work, but only on one condition.”

 

“What?” Kaze stared at her, astounded that she had come up with such a better idea than him.

 

“She has to bring it to me herself.”

 

Kaze blinked for a moment. Were the women in his life secretly conspiring against him? He chuckled. “Alright. She'll be delighted to meet you.”

 

Kaze took the box and tucked it into his obi, and then placed the kimono into the curved inner side of the breastplate to protect it. He paused a moment longer, unsure what to say.

 

“You're welcome,” the old woman chuckled and headed back into the house, a little bell from the front sounding the presence of someone at the restaurant.