Before the Battle

Family name 7/17

My family house was located on the main island, north of Kashima, in a beautiful landscape of forests, lakes and snow-capped mountains. It took between two hours and two days to get there, depending on the conditions.

These were not good at the moment, so I calculated that I would be lucky to arrive before dark.

The road was covered with a thick layer of icy snow, which made driving very difficult, although I had anticipated this and equipped my car accordingly.

After the war, the infrastructure was in a catastrophic state and repairs were slow. Not only were the roads damaged, but so was the electricity supply.

I discovered this as soon as I left the vicinity of the capital and found out that my mobile phone would soon be completely useless. I took advantage of the last flicker of the fading signal and sent Maya a message to let her know I wouldn't be able to reach her.

I managed to arrive an hour before nightfall.

I parked on the outskirts of the village and decided to continue on foot. The narrow road wound up a slight hill between buildings and I didn't want to risk getting stuck with my car.

I picked up my bag and set off along the snow-covered road to my hometown.

How would my mother react when she saw me?

I gazed nostalgically at all the familiar places, the wooded hills in the background, the river flowing along snow-covered banks and frozen bushes. I passed the houses of our neighbors whose children I used to play with on this very street.

I stopped by an old oak tree.

I smiled as I remembered how much I loved climbing it as a boy.

When I was seven, I fell and Dr Soichiro, a family friend, had to treat my badly sprained ankle. My mother scolded me for climbing the tree despite her permission. But my father, who was still alive at the time, stood up for me.

After my leg had healed, my father and I climbed all the way to the top ot that tree and just the two of us enjoyed the view of the spring landscape. That was one of my best memories of him. And because he died so soon, I didn't have many of them.

I walked up to the high stone wall that surrounded our large garden. Even through it you could see the building with its steep roof and massive wooden posts and rafters. The house had been in my father's family for several generations and had undergone many changes.

As an Imperial officer, my father was offered the chance to move to the capital, but he declined the honour. So we stayed here.

I didn't see anyone outside, but there were lights in the windows.

I stood hesitantly in front of the metal gate, hypnotising it with my gaze, while I was gathering up the courage to enter the garden, walk up the carefully paved path to the house and ring the bell.

I took a deep breath and...

"Taira?" came a familiar voice from behind me. "What are you doing here?"

I turned and looked at Shira with the same confused and surprised expression he was looking at me with.

He was coming up the path from the village, fully armed and with the katana on his back.

I was just about to ask him the same question when I saw a young girl in a white woollen cloak walking at his heels.

Of course he has a girl with him again was my first thought.

But then I realised that the pretty girl beside him had the same light blue eyes as I did, her features bore a striking resemblance to my mother's and the curls of long hair peeking out from behind the hood of her coat were the same dark brown shade as my mother's and mine.