Reunited – Chapter 13

My date night is ruined when everyone else invites themselves along for it. I love my family and friends, but, dammit, I haven’t had a proper date with Jiro since we arrived on Yūsei. I knew I would be giving up a lot of my freedom once we were on Yūsei, but I thought that every now and then, before things got hectic, I’d be able to go out to dinner with Jiro like we used to. Maybe I’m being stupid and selfish. I am selfish. I am.

I spend the entire evening talking to Hiro and his parents about the town to the north of us, Izumo, while everyone else has a fantastic time. I watch them all out of the corner of my eye, laughing, clicking cups and drinking, talking until they’re flushed. Jiro sits on the other side of the room, and I can’t talk to him, can’t even get up to use the bathroom because Hideki and Kohaku are so nervous amongst the foreigners, they sweat through their shirts. Rubbing salt into my emotional wounds, Jiro carries both Kazenoho and Oninoten because I shouldn’t carry my sword in front of our guests. Bullshit. I’m already being marginalized.

I feign tiredness before the night is even late and ask Jiro to take me home early, handing over babysitting duties to Sakai and Lucy. We’re silent all the way through town. I stare at the ground watching my feet navigate the streets and not even bothering to look up.

“What’s wrong?” Jiro sits on our bed while I work on the knots in my kimono. My face burns with anger I can barely keep a lid on.

“Nothing. It’s dumb.”

“I’m sure it’s something.”

Jiro pries the top off, and my dragon bursts forth from my chest, ripping my sanity in two. “Jiro, that is the last time I don’t carry my sword because I’m a woman. It’s one thing to not carry it because I’m negotiating or visiting peaceful properties, and it’s another thing to not carry it because of my sex. Kazenoho belongs to me!”

As usual, Jiro sits and waits as my temper rises, but after a few heartbeats, he reaches into his obi and starts to loosen the fabric. “I didn’t want to offend them since they’re our guests here.”

“In a way, we’re their guests on this world. It belonged to them before we even got here, but I want to make this our world too. Should we set aside all of our laws, our rights, just because they believe differently? My gods, did you hear Kohaku tonight? Women can’t vote here, and they have to obtain permission from the central government to marry. They do blood tests. It’s not right.”

I wonder what they even check for. My fingers ache trying to pull apart the cord around my waist.

“I cannot undo this knot! Damned Beni. Why does she have to be so good at what she does?” I sigh and throw my arms down at my side, my temper all burned out. Jiro smiles, gets up from the bed, and his long fingers work away at the knot on my front, but he tugs on the cord and leans down to look into my face.

“If you want to carry your sword from now on, I won’t stop you. I think you’re right. We shouldn’t let them dictate which customs we keep and which we lose. Kazenoho does belong to you. I was there the day you two chose each other, remember?”

Remembering that moment makes me tear up, how I held it, and I knew we were meant for each other. No one is going to take my sword away from me.

“Let’s discuss a few things,” he says, tugging at the obi and tossing it on the floor. “First…” He pulls my arm and directs me out the door, along the creaking floorboards to his mother and Beni’s room. Jiro pushes open their bedroom door, and the room is empty. “Lucy moved my mother and Beni to your aunts’ old room this morning. The only people here besides us are Mark and Lucy.”

“Really?” I’m going to kiss Lucy when I see her again.

“Everyone has been ordered to message us before entering our wing. A guard at the end of the hall will make sure we are secluded.”

“This is the best news I’ve had in weeks.” I’m unable to keep the giddiness from my voice.

“I wish I had done this sooner.” He pushes the door closed and pulls me back to our room. “She has been outrageously unkind. I’ve talked with her, begged her, even threatened her. Nothing works. I thought this attitude was a phase, that it would end, and I’m sorry she hasn’t turned around.” He sighs, sadness clouding his face. “You have no idea what I’ve been through the last ten years with her and my father.”

I pull him to me and hug him. “I’m sorry you’ve been through so much. Her attitude has gotten better, I swear. Just look at our room.” I sweep my hand over our space. Our small room is not half as homey as our old apartment but fewer boxes line the walls.

“We’ll get everything unpacked soon. I promise.” He sits on the bed and faces me. “We need to talk other business. Usagi needs a sword.”

I sit next to him and wave my hand. “He can have one of mine.”

“Are you sure?”

“Please. Why do I need those swords?”

He shakes his head and laughs. “I take these things far more seriously than you do. If you’re not troubled with giving up a family heirloom, we’ll choose one for him tomorrow.”

“Who better to use them?” I shrug.

“What else is wrong? You were down before we even left for dinner.” He brings his hands up to my face and strokes my cheeks with his thumbs. It’s Serious Jiro, Intense Jiro, the one who peers straight down to my soul and steals it away. I can’t lie to him.

“I’m so sorry. I’m selfish. I wanted a date night.” My lower lip starts to quiver. “Just you and me and Miko and Yoichi, like the old days. I miss the times when it was only us, and I could sneak my hand under the table and hold yours. Or when we used to kiss each other in public and not care who saw us. Now it’s always business.” I swipe away at my tears. I wish I were stronger and didn’t care about these things.

“Gods, you’re sweet.” He pulls me into a hug off the bed. “You don this hard exterior for everyone, and I know you’re fun, but I forget how sentimental you can be. We’ve had to put our relationship aside to do business. I don’t like it anymore than you do. Do you realize we’ve been together less than a year if you subtract the time you spent away in the desert?”

“It’s hard to believe.”

“It’s true, though. And despite being married already, we still have a lot to learn about each other. Don’t hide from me.”

I bury my face in his chest and inhale. Our kimonos smell like cedar now. One whole wall of our closet is cedar to keep away cloth-eating bugs. I had no idea what the smell was for the first few weeks, but I loved the scent immediately. Mariko was the one who figured it out.

“Jiro, it’s been twenty days…” I look up at him but immediately bring my face back to his chest.

He reaches around to my back and pulls my hips against him.

“Oh, I know. I’ve counted every damned day, and we are going to pour water on this drought immediately. But I want to make you happy. What else can I do?” His voice is soft, and brushing my hair to one side, he kisses my neck. Mmmm. That’s nice. We haven’t even kissed in days. His lips work their way down to my clavicle, and he pushes the kimono from my shoulders. Now I’m only wearing the white undergarment.

“I want a date night, as silly as that is. I need more nights where it’s just the two of us… empty houses are nice, too.”

“It’s not silly to want to spend time with me. It makes me happy. Consider it done. Now, I feel I must make up for the past. Get into bed this instant.”

I smile up at him and raise my eyebrows. “What about Momo? She looks really comfortable there right now.”

“Don’t hesitate. I’m about to step away from you, and you have very little on. You’ll be cold in moments.” He steps away, his warmth evaporates, and I immediately regret letting him undress me. “Momo has been evicted, but this is why she has a basket in the closet.”

I dive for the bed before my body freezes as he lifts Momo and places her in the closet. The white undergarment comes off, and I toss it to the floor before burrowing under the blanket.

He strips down and climbs into the bed, hovering over me. “Have you missed me? I’ve missed you,” he says, his hand traveling over my stomach, caressing my hip. I kiss him, my tongue moving way down his and sucking his breath away. And then I have to pull back and come up for air before I lose myself completely so fast. An empty house is a rare luxury. I should try and make these moments alone last.

“You’re mine, Sanaa, and now we have at least a whole hour for me to show you.”

—-

We’re all having breakfast together two mornings later when Sakai sighs, puts his chopsticks down, and clears his throat.

“We’re not getting anywhere with the Watanabes. They are the most tight-lipped people I have ever met. I still haven’t learned anything about this house, this town, or about Fujiwara other than what Hiro told you Sanaa.”

“And the few little things Kohaku said at dinner the other night about women not being able to vote, hold office, and marry whomever they want.” Lucy humphs and crosses her arms. She’s been sulking around the house these past two days, alternately contemplating or kicking at stones in the garden. Lucy is also someone people don’t say no to. There’s no way she’s going to bow down to this kind of oppression.

“Don’t forget that women can’t fight or carry swords. I wonder if they would want to regulate how we dress or act in public.” I stab at the piece of fish Oyama gave me and sigh. Lucy’s mood has infected me as well.

“I’d like to see them try.” Sakai folds his arms across his chest and slyly smiles at Lucy. “It’s time we expanded our research. If Kohaku, Hideki, and Hiro aren’t going to tell us anything, then we should make our way to Izumo and investigate their culture ourselves.”

“All of us?” Field trip! I want to go!

“I’m thinking it will be me, Mariko, Jiro, Usagi, Oyama, Kentaro, Beni, and you, Sanaa. Lucy and I discussed the situation, and we should keep non-Japanese in Yamato for this trip. Hideki and Kohaku got used to Lucy but only because they were outnumbered here. We will be outnumbered there.”

My palms sweat immediately, and I wipe them on my pants. We’re in the minority on this planet. I keep thinking that we’re more advanced than they are so we’re stronger, but they have strength in numbers. It’s not an even playing field by any means.

“We’ll need to sit down and plan logistics for this because the last thing I want is to show up and get arrested.” Sakai jerks his chin at me. What? What did I do?

Jiro whistles and drums his fingers on the table, avoiding eye contact. Great. He’s been talking with Sakai about my almost blow-up at Hiro.

“I… I…” I stammer and swallow. “I want to carry my own sword, but I don’t want to be arrested, yet I can’t be unarmed either. I swear I don’t want to make trouble.” Jiro reaches under the table and squeezes my hand, but I pull it away. I should know, as long as it’s not about our private life, anything I say to Jiro is repeatable, but I still want to smack him.

“I understand. You’re only worried about your safety. We’ll make sure you’re always armed. So Jiro and I will talk about dressing for this trip and what we should pack based on what I observed there during my first few weeks on Yūsei. I didn’t spend enough time in Izumo to learn much, but this time we’ll go back with Hideki and Kohaku. They have offered to introduce us to their neighbors. We’ll stay at a ryokan near the outskirts of town, blend in, and get to know the people on this trip. Nothing too involved. Then we’ll plan our next trip after that once we’re back here to debrief.”

I smile, but inside I’m freaking out. This is a major turning point. What happens if things go wrong?