Ten Things I Hate About Mitsuhide

Chapter 11 - --hime

 "Kaya, I can cook. In fact, I always prepare breakfast for my brother and sisters, so I don't mind helping out here too." Sho made good her announcement by literally yanking the teakettle out of my hands.

"I don't mind cooking." I'd gotten used to making my own meals while living with Mitsuhide – granted it had started as self defense, but at least I got to control what went into the pot. "You're a personal maid, not a kitchen maid. Which, by the way, I have been, so I know what kind of work goes into that."

"And, as your personal maid, I've spent the last week trying to soften the callouses on your hands, so if you ruin them again, you'll only be making more work for me." With as much as skill over the fire as she had with my hair, she expertly finished my breakfast stirfry and slid it into a bowl. "There you go. Please eat it." She added something under her breath about people needing to appreciate her skills.

Since I sensed a teenage sulk approaching, I knelt at the table. "Only if you eat too." It felt weird eating while she watched me.

"I ate already." She put the wok in a deep bucket of water. Then she set another pot of water on the coals to heat up.

"I'm hungry." A third voice piped up, as all of a sudden the boy I had meet a couple weeks ago – Hiko - appeared at the top of the staircase. He trotted into the eating area. "Feed me, Sho."

They know each other?

Ok, yeah, I got the connection ... Hiko worked for Shojumaru, who had been the one to recommend Sho to us.

"Hiko! You can't just walk into people's houses like this. Someone might get upset." She clasped her hands in front of her, and bowed – then bowed again. "Miss Kaya, please excuse my brother. He has forgotten his manners."

"The man downstairs said I could come up." Hiko tossed a small coin purse at Sho. "You forgot your money and I'm going to the docks with Shojumaru, so you were on my way." He plopped down at the table and eyed my almost empty plate. Sho sighed, but she found a jar of umboshi and poured some into a dish. Hiko reached for it, but Sho cuffed him on the back of the head and nodded her head toward me. Belated remembering his manners, Hiko jumped back up and bowed. "I'm Hiko."

I caught myself from reminding him that we had met already, since it was Katsu whom he had met. "Happy to meet you Master Hiko. I'm Kaya."

The hot water steamed and hissed, spitting a bit at the fire, and Sho dumped some of it in the bucket with the dirty dishes. "Thank you for bringing my coin purse. I planned to stop at the market later, so you saved me some embarrassment."

Hiko shrugged. "Well, you could always steal what you want."

Sho gasped and slapped her hand over his mouth. "Miss Kaya, he is telling a joke. We are not a family of theives."

Hoping to keep the information flowing, I just shrugged. "Wouldn't bother me if you were. People have to eat. Although I would rather you not steal from me – if you need something, just ask."

"There." Hiko mumbled around a mouthful of food. "I wish the Kaigoshu would see it that way."

"I haven't been in Sakai very long. Are the Kaigoshu really tough on thieves?" I knew they had set the prices and trade agreements, but aside from that, how much daily governance were they responsible for?

Hiko winked. "If you're caught."

"Which," Sho said as she set a cup of tea in front of him, "you were."

"But that worked out." Hiko turned back to me. "Before I knew him, I tried to steal Shojumaru's money. He grabbed my arm so fast I thought he was going to tear it right off. Figured that would be the end of me-"