Here is Chapter Three.

(Yes, I know, this is supposed to be the week I didn't
post - but the Muses were kind, and you don't refuse
Thalia or Calliope if you ever want them to come
back....  Ger, can I save up my spare week for later?)

Also, I LOVE feedback!  Even if all you say is "I
liked it," that's still VERY welcome, and I WILL
reply. Even if all I can say is "Thank you." 

Anyway, please enjoy!

Raye

----------------

Starlit Reflections: Dark Quarter 

by Raye Johnsen
raye_j@yahoo.com

*****
	Fushigi Yuugi is copyright Watase Yuu, Flower Comics,
Studio Perriot, Pioneer Entertainment, Viz
Communications and other interested parties.  The
characters and situation are used without permission
for personal entertainment only, and no copyright
infringements are intended.  No profit is being made
from this fic; if there was, Tasuki and Tamahome would
lighten me of it, as soon as they could.
*****

Chapter Three:  The People's Priestess - Namame


	It was not long after we met that I came upon Namame
sitting alone upon a rock beside the road.  I sat on
the ground beside the rock, and took advantage of the
peace to write in my then-diary.

	I did not believe he had noticed me until he said,
"Uruki, all anyone wants is to be understood."

	To this day, I cannot think of anything that could
possibly define Namame better.

*****

	It took three days to ride down from Tolan to the
first settlement on the plain below the foothills. 
After the hangover Hatsui had and complained about all
the first morning, I quietly hid the bottle of plum
wine we'd bought from the marketplace.

	That evening, we told stories around the campfire. 
Takiko told us a tale of a sea-sprite who had fallen
in love with a human lord, to the point where she
traded her voice for feet, that she might walk upon
the land as a human maid and so win his affections. 
Both she and I wept at its tragic end, and Hatsui told
us that if she'd had the courage to approach him as
herself, her story would have been very different.

	Hatsui recited a lay of the far North, of a fisherman
who had dealt kindly with the son of the Emperor of
the Sea, but whose greedy and dishonest wife had
driven back to demand wealth and honours of him until
the Emperor lost patience and gave the greedy woman
exactly what she deserved.

	I think Hatsui enjoyed our shivers as he described
the foolish woman's grisly fate a little *too* much.

	For my part, I told the story of Plum Blossom, Jade
Circle and the Winding Scarf.  Hatsui and Takiko were
both sympathetic, annoyed and properly appalled by the
cold-hearted eunuch's icily practical solution to
everyone's problems.

	After we had made each other cry, shake, and
otherwise provided ourselves with material for our
nightmares, we went to our blankets.

	Takiko slept soundly.  Hatsui snored.  Loudly.  All
night.

	I was not good company the next day.

*****

	We were heading north, into the trade routes to the
north and northwest, and I believe a further word of
explanation is needed here.

	The populations of Kounan and Koutou lie securely in
the hands of the Four Gods, bound as they are to north
and west by Hokkan and Sairou, and to the south and
east by sea.  Surrounded by nations that, friendly or
not, still speak the same language and follow the same
religion, it is easy for those of those countries to
forget - or, at least, conveniently not remember -
that we are not all of the world.

	We of Hokkan have no such buffer zone.  To our north
lie tribes of nomadic, wild barbarians (the wild
nomads of Hokkan are civilized), and to the west are
nations, some of which we have cordial relations with,
and some of which we don't.

	In our past, we have conquered these regions.  Many
of their royal families are distantly related to our
own.  As a result we have established trade with these
nations, and caravans regularly travel to and from our
major cities.

	Heading as we were into the great plain that lay
between the mountains that bordered Hokkan on the
north and south, we were riding towards the flat
ground that makes the roads the traders prefer to
drive their wagons over.

	We were riding into bandit territory.

*****

	I was tired and not a good rider.  The combination
slowed our group down considerably, but I cannot be
sorry, not when it was because we were moving slowly
and quietly that we managed to sneak up behind the
first group of raiders.

	They were themselves a small group, only five of
them, but they made up for their lack of numbers with
sheer belligerence.  We looked at their scars.  We
looked at their very sharp weapons.  We listened to
their boasts.

	And then Hatsui, Takiko and I linked hands, I cloaked
us all in shadows, and we quietly slipped past them. 
I kept the cloak up until we were a good two leagues
down the road.

*****

	Rather than risk encountering another party of
bandits, Takiko suggested we join a caravan of
traders.  That seemed to be only sensible, so we rode
towards the nearest cloud of dust on the road.

	The traders in the caravan we encountered objected to
our joining them at their campfires, until I quickly
went through my bag, in the hope of finding something
worth trading, and offered them a string of pearls
that I found there.

	"I didn't know you had that," Takiko commented
quietly as we lay in our blankets near one of the
campfires, inside the caravan's guards.

	"Neither did I," I replied, equally quietly.  "Chiu
Yuen appears to have packed several pieces of my
jewellery in my bag.  I suppose she realized I'd have
to have something to pay my way with...."  I drew a
deep breath.  If I were home at court, I would have
eaten a meal of soft breads and rich, sweet pork with
delicious vegetables, not chewed old cheese and bread,
and instead of lying in these scratchy blankets I'd be
sleeping on fresh cotton sheets.  Chiu Yuen would have
tucked me in and kissed me goodnight, and I would be
lulled to sleep by her soft singing as she sewed in my
outer room.

	I rolled away from Takiko so that she wouldn't see me
cry.

*****

	We entered the trade city of Lunyan a week later,
slowly but with our persons and property intact. 

	Hatsui had stayed away from the trader's campfires
after the first night with the caravan, and he hadn't
stayed there with them for very long after Takiko and
I had excused ourselves.  He hadn't gotten drunk once
either.

	As we waved goodbye to the caravan, I said to him,
very softly, "I thought that you and they would have
become better friends."

	Hatsui smiled at me and said, "And I thought you were
honest, Uruki!"

	I blushed and said, "From what the gate guards in
Tolan said, I thought you enjoyed drinking with other
men."

	He shrugged and said, "The company wasn't bad, but I
don't like alcohol much.  I only drank to stop
hearing.  I'd've needed to drink around them, but I
never have with you or Takiko."

	"Oh," I said.

	He grinned and said, very softly, "Besides, it's fun
to make you blush."

	"Why, *you* -"

	A passerby said sharply to Hatsui, "Stop teasing your
sister, boy!" 

	We both snapped "Hey!" at the spot where the stranger
had been.

	Takiko giggled.

*****

	We found an inn in a side street of the caravanserai,
and after we deposited our bags in the room we
engaged, we felt the need to explore the city a
little.  (We decided on one room because Hatsui,
whatever his other faults, was a gentleman, and we
didn't trust the innkeeper not to let the fact that
two young ladies were alone in a small room be known
to undesirable persons.)

	After we extracted our valuables from our bags and
hid them on our persons (we *really* didn't trust that
innkeeper) we wandered out to the marketplace. 
Naturally enough, the place was buzzing with rumour.

	It was while we were idly inspecting some cloths at a
stall that we heard the first rumour concerning
myself.

	"Oh, but have you heard about the High Princess
Meiran?" the stallkeeper asked Hatsui, as he leaned
against the post holding up the awning.  (He'd placed
himself there, telling the stallkeeper that 'a brother
has to keep an eye on his sisters', and ostentatiously
ignoring the face I made.)  

	Hatsui controlled his face admirably, his eyes only
flicking to me momentarily, and then back to the
seller.  "No," he replied blandly.  "What did she do?"

	"Why, she vanished from the Court!  The Great Khan's
most treasured and beautiful daughter -" I snorted,
and turned it into a cough - "the poor man is
heartbroken!"

	"He is?" I asked, and if Takiko choked at the note of
saccharine sweetness I infused into my voice, the
stallkeeper didn't notice.  "But why would she leave
her father's side?"

	"Because she was called to become one of the
Priestess of Genbu's handmaidens, and she did not
dream of refusing!  Can you imagine?  With her eyes
flashing like elegant dark stars -" (I have brown
eyes.  *Big* brown eyes.  'Elegant' is *not* the word)
"her glorious cloud of dark hair -" (My hair is brown,
fine and flyaway.  'Glorious' is not the word
*either*) "and skin white as milk -" (I really did
snort at this one.  My mind suddenly filled with
countless memories of Chiu Yuen scolding me for
sitting in the sun, and pointing at the reflection of
my pinkened nose in the mirror. It didn't stop me,
though - I knew that one day I'd have to go with the
Priestess of Genbu and I'd have to be able to walk in
the sun.  The cloth seller apparently didn't notice,
though, and continued) "she was the jewel of Tolan. 
All the Court is in mourning for her loss, and the
Great Khan has charged the Priestess to hurry and save
Hokkan, and return his precious daughter to him!"

	"I wonder how the Priestess will save Hokkan?" Takiko
asked innocently.

	"I'm sure *I* don't know!  She sits in state down in
Tolan, and contemplates such things.  She will know
the best way to stop those greedy easterners.  Not
that the west is much better!  Constantly exhorting us
to worship their Buddha, and charging ruinous rates to
honest traders.  Praise Genbu, He's watching over us!"

	The hot-food vendor we patronized had a far more
colourful version to share.  "The Emperor of Koutou
stole her out of her own bed with vile magics!  All
this talk about being 'called by Genbu' is just a
front to preserve the poor girl's reputation.  They
say she's so beautiful - that Emperor's probably made
the princess his concubine already."

	My face must have been an absolute picture, for the
vendor bent over and said worriedly, "Are you all
right, miss?  The food didn't disagree with you?"

	I coughed.  "N-no," I managed.  "Just - just went
down the wrong way."

	"Oh, that's a relief.  It's so hard to get good foods
these days - all the locals are gouging us terribly. 
It's enough to make you wish the story about the
Priestess of Genbu really *was* true."

	Takiko was the one to have the coughing fit this
time, as we left.  

	And so we bounced from stall to stall and story to
story.  I heard about five different version of my
name (although how they managed to construct 'Xai Tan'
out of 'Mei Ling' I *still* don't know) and about six
versions of my leaving Court, from being stolen
entirely against my will out of my bed to leaving with
full departure ceremonies.  Belief in the Priestess of
Genbu varied from absolute belief to absolute
disbelief.

	We were tired and amazed when we returned to our inn.

*****

	Lying in bed that night - ah, for mattresses, pillows
and clean sheets! - I said, "I really can't believe
that the Khan is spreading such rumours about me."

	Hatsui's voice came out of the darkness.  "Perhaps he
isn't."

	"But who else would?"

	"Did you have enemies at your father's Court?" Takiko
asked.

	"I suppose," I replied.  "Everyone has enemies at the
Court of the Great Khan.  But these rumours are
*silly*!  I'm not the great beauty they're describing,
so if they're meant to hinder me, they're not working
- people are looking me in the face while telling me
these stories.  The only thing I can think that these
rumours will do is make it difficult for me to go back
to Court...." my voice trailed off as I thought about
that.

	I'd never really liked it at Court, but it was the
closest thing I had to a home.  I had been born and
raised there, but I'd never really belonged there.

	"Do you want to go back?" Takiko asked.

	"Not... really," I replied slowly, "but there isn't
really anywhere else I can go."

	"My mother probably wouldn't mind adopting a
daughter," Hatsui interjected, "if you don't mind
being a commoner."

	"Thank you," I said to both of them.

*****

	The next day, we ventured forth again, to the
merchant's sector this time.  We took our leave of the
inn (much to the innkeeper's disappointment, because
we had paid a rather high price for that room) and
headed off to sell several pieces of the jewellery
that Chiu Yuen had thought to provide me with. 
Hatsui's purse was running far too thin for anyone's
liking, least of all his.

	The merchant's quarter had all the bustle of colour
and crowding of the caravanserai, but as it was the
place where the merchants who remained here all year
round lived, the buildings here were a bit more
permanent, built of stone rather than canvas and wood.

	We chose a jewellers' shop that was a bit quieter
than the rest.  I'd heard enough rumours the day
before to satisfy any craving I had for fame, Hatsui
was not wildly enthusiastic about crowds in the first
place, and Takiko had had enough window shopping the
day before.  We slipped in quietly and waited till the
shop was empty of everyone except the jeweller and
ourselves.

	I think he got a bit of a shock when he turned around
to see a fine emerald necklace laid on the counter. 
He looked up to see Hatsui grinning at him.  

	"It's for sale," Hatsui said calmly.  "How much do
you think it's worth?"

	As we'd heard the prices this man was charging his
other customers, we'd revised our strategy.  He wasn't
selling his goods cheap and could well afford to give
us a decent price.

	"I'll give you... a hundred gold for it," The
jeweller said.

	Hatsui glared.  "You know it's worth at least a
thousand gold.  Give us nine hundred and stop wasting
our time."

	"I can't afford that!" the jeweller protested. 
"You'll bankrupt me!  A hundred and fifty."

	"In a place like this?  You can well and truly afford
it.  We'll drop to eight hundred and fifty."

	As we were haggling, a door behind the counter
opened, and out stepped the most beautiful young man
I'd ever seen.  He had the same dark green eyes as the
jeweller, but his hair was the colour of the gold set
around the emeralds we were haggling over.  Beside me,
I heard Takiko draw in a deep breath.

	He looked up and glanced at us.  His eyes ran over
Hatsui and I, and came to a sudden stop on Takiko.  He
drew in a breath of his own.

	I felt my ankle suddenly start burning.  I didn't
need to look to see that my symbol was blazing out
through my sock.

	Hatsui swore and began rubbing the back of his right
hand, as if that would make the fire of Genbu's mark
fade.

	The boy flipped his left arm up, displaying the
underside to us and showing the sigil 'Bi' on the
inside of his wrist.

	"Yu Ping!" the jeweller gasped.  "How many times have
I told you?  Put that away before somebody sees you!"

	"It's a bit late," I said as calmly as I could. 
"Hello, Namame.  I'm Uruki, and this is Hatsui.  We've
been looking for you."

	The jeweller turned and looked at us.  Hatsui grinned
and lifted his hand, displaying his character.

	Takiko kicked my ankle.

	"Oh! and this is Okuda Takiko, the Priestess of
Genbu," I introduced her.

	Namame's face lit up, as if he had just been
presented to a goddess.  He came out from behind the
counter, revealing a slender physique, and fell to one
knee before Takiko.  "My Lady," he said soulfully, "I
am Yu Ping, Genbu Shichiseishi Namame, and I am yours
to command."

	Takiko blushed.  "Please rise," she said quietly.  "I
am young, and a stranger in this land.  I would we
were friends."  She did not lift her eyes from
Namame's as he rose from his genuflection, and he did
not turn his eyes away from her face.

	The jeweller, Hatsui and I looked at each other.

	"Five hundred gold for the necklace?" the jeweller
eventually asked, with a sigh.

	"That was what we were thinking, yes," I agreed. 
"Um... about your son...."

	The jeweller sagged onto a stool.  "My youngest," he
said sadly.  "I guess... I mean, I always knew it
would happen, it's just that... well... I wasn't
expecting it to be so *soon*.  He's only seventeen."

	Hatsui cleared his throat.  "It's not like he's going
away forever.  We'll bring him back.  And... um...." 
He glanced over at where Takiko and Namame were still
staring at each other.

	Namame's father looked at them, and then looked at
us.  "Yes," he sighed, and then straightened himself. 
"I would consider it an honour if you would dine with
my family tonight, and spend the night within my
house," he formally invited us.

	"We are honoured, and delighted to accept your
gracious hospitality," I replied.

	"Thank you," Hatsui added.

	We turned to look at Namame and Takiko.

	"They've got to blink *sometime*," Hatsui predicted.

*****

	We set off north the next morning, deeper into the
plains that led up to the steppe.

	Namame's family had all been very interested in us. 
Takiko had been taken to the bosom of the family, and
asked to recite her history several times.  All his
female relatives spent their time fussing over her. 
Hatsui had found Namame's brothers congenial company
and spent more than a little time with them.

	I felt left out, and the visit had left me feeling
hollow.

	It is an odd feeling to no longer be the centre of
someone's attention.  Almost from the moment Takiko
had entered Hokkan, I had been by her side.  She had
always turned to me first, over the past week.  We had
discovered saddle sores and the city's stink together.

	And now she was talking with and confiding in Namame.

	I turned my back on them and dug my heels into my
pony's sides.  We had four more Shichiseishi to find. 
But the wind blew past me, and I felt emptier than
ever.

**********

Author's Notes:

	1. Takiko told the story of the Little Mermaid, by
Hans Christian Andersen, which was written in the
nineteenth century and would have been available in
Japan by 1923.
	Hatsui told the story of the Kindly Fisherman
(sometimes the Honest Fisherman), which is a classic
folktale found in various forms all over Asia; the
best-known version in the West appears in the Thousand
And One Nights, but it is found in the Far East as
well.
	I am not sure exactly which region or time produced
"The Dance of the Winding Scarf", but I found it in
'Lotos Blossoms' by Princess Der Ling.  As it is the
tale of a murderous rivalry between two imperial
concubines, it would probably have been officially
banned and unofficially popular at Court.

	2. My previous mistake has been corrected in the
version of Dark Quarter available at my website, but
for those who haven't seen it: Koutou is to the east,
not the west, and Sairou is to the west, not the east.
 My mistake.

	3. The physical configuration of Hokkan, as described
here, is based on the map of the World of the Four
Gods, as drawn by Watase-sensei in the second Fushigi
Yuugi artbook.  It can be seen online at Felicia, Tomo
no Miko's website.

	4. There is no indication of what the currency of
Hokkan was in canon, and Mongolia, before the Manchu
took control of China, had a complex barter system. 
So, as there are no clues to the former and it would
be entirely too complex (not to mention boring as I
explain it) to use the latter, I'm using the modern
Chinese currency scheme, replacing 'yuan/kuai',
'jiao/mao' and 'fen' with 'gold', 'silver' and
'copper', respectively.
	For reference, if you ever have occasion to encounter
Chinese currency, ten jiao make one yuan and ten fen
make one jiao.

=====
raye_j@yahoo.com
http://www.thejohnsens.com/index.html

"It went away? 'I dwell in darkness without you'
and it WENT AWAY?!"
   - Sorcha, 'Willow'

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