SKY OF PAPER: AN ASIAN STEAMPUNK FANTASY

CHAPTER 14

"Tell me what’s happening?" I asked. "Am I going to be a slave?"

He grabbed my shoulder, as if taking offense to what I’d said.

"You're much more important than you know Terr, both you and Kassashimei. Master Hotaka said what he needed to say in front of Master Lu and the other officials. But he knows, as well as I, that gifted people such as you should not be wasted on petty things. We are preserving your future Terr. We are preserving this country's future, so that even if everything were to fall, you and the others would still remain to keep its traditions alive."

"Master Ichiro, what do you mean? Is something going to happen?"

"A change is coming Terr, and we all have to prepare for it.” From the firm expression on his face, he allowed the tiniest hint of a smile to appear. “Don’t forget, there’s still a test that lies ahead for you."

The journey down Mt. Ko Mei seemed strangely serene, almost peaceful. Even the clacking of the horses' hooves and the clatter of the carriage against the rough, dirt road seemed somehow subdued. Before we left, the Boar informed us of a place in Capital City that awaited us; a small school that trained and took care of people like us. In the distance, just above the tree tops at the base of the mountain sat the shining lights of the city. Seeing them from atop the mountain, the city seemed nothing more than a faint glow at night, as clouds and fog shrouded most of what we could see. But now that we were so much closer, and below the hazy mountain top, the city's brilliance revealed itself to me for the very first time. I watched, transfixed like a moth gazing into a flame, growing more anxious and nervous as we steadily approached.

"I wasn't going to cry," Kassashimei said abruptly.

I turned my attention to the girl beside me and noticed that she was still looking away.

"You saw me didn't you?" she continued. "The way I was back then when we faced Master Hotaka? I wasn't going to cry. No matter what you thought, no matter how my face looked I wasn't going to cry."

"Kass, I'm sorry. I'm sorry that I got you in trouble. If it wasn't for me-"

"Say it Terr, say that you believe me," she said in a tone that sounded desperate. She finally turned her head towards me, but her face was hidden in the night's, moonless, murky shadow. "You believe me right? I don't cry. I don't ever cry."

"What are you talking about? I'm trying to apologize and you're talking about crying."

"Don't apologize," she said, giving me a forceful shove. "You may be selfish and stubborn, but I chose to be your shyo mah. If you apologize now, it will be like saying that I made the wrong choice to be paired with you. Is that how you want me to feel? Do you want me to regret being your shyo mah?"

I rubbed my shoulder, sighing awkwardly.

"Why did you do it then," I asked. "Why did you choose me?"

"Because Etsu asked me dummy."

"Is that the only reason?"

She was silent for moment. Though I could not see her face, I saw her hand fiddling uneasily with the loose end of her sash that was tied about the waist of her robe.

"Did you know that my family comes from many generations of devout fortune tellers and priests? We were among the most respected in the northern provinces. All sorts of people, even rich dignitaries came for our predictions and words of wisdom. If my family told someone that they were going to be rich… well, they were probably going to be. But sometimes I wondered if it really was destiny, or if it was because we encouraged him to work harder.

Of all twenty four of my brothers, sisters and cousins, my parents predicted that one of us would not follow into priesthood. And so, when the spirits revealed to them that I was to be that person, that I was meant for other things; everyone, including my grandparents and great grandparents, made it their duty to map out my life and to bless it with as much good fortune as possible.

According to their predictions, they said that I would find myself atop a mountain, high above the world, that I would meet a boy with a sort of courage that I would come to admire. They said that he would inspire me to accomplish great things, and with our lives entwined, help shape the world together."

She clenched her sash with a balled fist. "It was their way of telling me that I should grow up to be successful and rich, that I should marry a good man, or be shunned as the child who failed her family. Even though I was raised as a priestess, there are some destinies I refuse to believe in, especially the ones that are forced upon me. I never became the shining daughter that my parents wanted me to be.”

She gave a sly laugh. “You want to know a secret? I’m an even worse student than you are. I struggled everyday to be as mediocre as possible. I failed as many tests as I passed, and was even scolded more times than I could count. But I was glad; I was happy you see. Because it meant that I was forging my own future, that some predictions, no matter how spiritual, are sometimes nothing more than vain expectations."

"Is that why you accepted when Etsu asked you to become my shyo mah?"

"You're not rich are you?"

I shook my head.

"You aren't in anyway related to the Emperor or have cousins with piles of money who are willing to adopt you?"

I shook my head again."

"That's good. Then you aren't in my parents’ predictions, and you certainly aren't courageous or inspiring."

I grunted, pretending to be disappointed. "So is that it? I have none of the traits that this prediction said I‘d have?"

"Nope, none at all. Unless you dream of dragons."

"What?"

"My parents also said that he would dream of dragons."