Himitsu (Book One of the Kakureta Hana series)

I: Ichi

We leave Rika and Jun with Bashira, deciding it will be safer for the two of them to stay out of the village as much as possible.  Ryuu stops by the house to grab our bags, and I remain on the porch while he is inside, watching Osamu walk among the grove of trees.

I carefully touch my obi where I stuck the small origami flower that he had given me.  Bashira had tried to dodge my questions about why she had a wedding kimono when she seemed to have no love interests, but she had finally told me the truth, leaving my heart to ache for her with the progression of the telling.

"Are you ready to go, Sakura?" Ryuu asks, reaching out a hand to me.  He has both of our bags slung over his shoulder and a light smile touches his lips.

Accepting his help, I run my fingers across his cheek.  "Yamane Osamu seemed to be saying goodbye.  Do you think we will see him again?"

My husband kisses me gently before taking my hand in his.  "I cannot say that I know the future.  I know that whatever lies before us will not be easy, Sakura, and I fear that it will be far more difficult for Rika and Jun than even they think.  And I believe that Yamane Osamu knows more than he lets on."

I thread my fingers more tightly in his, feeling the truth of his words deep within.  The moment that someone suspected that Jun and I were not who we said we were or the traitor within the Amachi clan decided to dig deeper into the truth of the matter, our future would likely become deadly.

"We need to write a letter to Taro," I tell Ryuu.  "Or rather, you need to write a letter to Taro.  If we hide what has happened, it will allow suspicions and worries to fester within the clan.  Besides, we all need something to rejoice in during these never-ending days of war.  The future of the clan is a step closer to being secure.  Once Rika and Jun have a child, there will be someone to take control of the clan eventually."

It falls silent except for the sound of our feet following the path back to the village.  Then, he tugs me to a stop and places his hands on either side of my head, our bags dropping to the ground.

"Are you going to be all right with this, Sakura?  To watch someone take your place and to watch his children lead a clan that should have been your child's birthright?"

"Oh, Ryuu.  It would have never been my child's.  To have a child when I was the head of the Amachi clan would have shattered my whole identity.  Any child of mine would have either died an early death on the battlefield, wondering what happened to their parents or would have killed along with me.

"I am content to allow Rika and Jun's children to take authority over the clan when their time comes.  I never want a child to go through what I went through," I answer, my eyes latched onto his amber gaze.  "You and I could have never existed if I had not stripped off the identity of Lord Amachi Junichi.  Even if we had found a way, we would have been in danger every time that we decided to come together."

A look I cannot quite decipher flits across his face before his lips come down against mine.  A thousand butterflies take flight from my stomach, infecting my blood, even as the taste of Ryuu ingrains itself within my heart.

"As much as I would love to remain here and continue to kiss you," Ryuu says huskily, breaking away, "we best get to the village inn before someone sends out a search party."

I laugh and tighten my hold on his hand once he has reclaimed our bags from the ground.  And we set off once more.

The owner of the inn welcomes us warmly though there are strange shadows in his eyes whenever the Yamane name comes up in the conversation.

After his wife shows us our room, Ryuu sits to compose a letter to Taro while I change out of the white kimono, intending to return it to Bashira in one piece.