Book #1: The Wind and The Rain: Kutzu and Namie

Chapter One- Blood and Tears

" That's the most stupid idea!" Namie's mother screamed into the telephone. "I love our people, don't make the taxes go up." She screamed again, this time louder. 

Namie's little sister clinged to her mother's long kimono with her clammy hands. 

"I'm sorry ma'am," the man on the other line said in a squeaky voice, "None of us are rich, we can't live on five yen a month!" 

There was a small pause in which Namie took a bite of her udon noodles with her crooked chopsticks. 

"Ugg!" her mom then screamed and slammed the phone on the hook.

 "Mom," Namie said in her sweet nine year old voice, "You have to calm down, for you, Ai, and me."

Namie's little sister, Ai , came in close to Namie and hugged her tightly. 

 Namie's mom nodded and then plopped herself down on a straw mat. 

"We barely have any noodles, you can't see your father who is all the way in Osaka on a three year business trip, and I can't afford to send you to school!" Namie's mom started balling her shriveled hands covering her red eyes. 

Namie ran to the small, dirty kitchen.  She jumped on the stool to grab a cup of tea and a mint leaf for her mother. She then jumped off back on the floor. On her way back to the living room she tripped on one of the tatami mats and she fell. One of her tabi socks went flying up along with the tea.  Her brown kimono had dragged up so what you saw was her tea stained juban.  As she started to get up, the hot tea fell on her head, burning it. Namie screamed and ran outside into the fall rainstorm.  She then slipped on the garden stone and fell into a huge pile of mud.  Crying she lay there for a moment then she sat up in the puddle of mud and looked down at her leg. She had a huge scratch down her leg and it was bleeding rapidly.  Namie started to pray for her dad. She prayed that he was okay.