Tea Leaves and Opal Necklaces

Oiwa

Match Twenty-One: Oiwa:

Now, Kiku feels the pain in his spine. It felt like claws scratched out of his back. He sat over his tub, gripping the edge. The Japanese man took in heavy breaths as sweat came over his body. He could sleep or stand up straight. This new pain started back three weeks ago. It started at the base of his spine. When the pain started, his wrists and ankles went numb. His hands shook as they began cold. Kiku could barely hold things anymore.

What is this?

Massage and ice packs weren't helping. Sena had to help him into bed. By day three, the pain started traveling up Kiku's spine. He looked like an old man hunched over. A cane couldn't help with his balance either. Touching the handle alone would cause the black on his hands to flare up. It didn't help that she was in the background again.

Her deep red nails caressed his chest. Kiku looked behind him out of the corner of his eye. Those black eyes still haunted him no matter how many times he saw them. She was nothing but a yuki-onna. He shivered at the image of her taking pieces of his soul and grinding it with her teeth like a beast chewing on the bones. That vile woman wrapped her arms around him from behind.

"Do not worry," she purred in his ear. "This pain will not last long. Think of this like a wedding gift." This vile woman dug her claws deeper into him. She wouldn't be satisfied until she turn him apart from the inside out. He hated to think what she could to Sena next. His wife hadn't experienced the horror of the Woman in Red yet.

"Please leave me alone," he whispered. She kissed him on the nape.

"No know that isn't possible," she said. "You and I are like a couple to be wed." The pain is his spine increased to the core of the bone. He sucked in a mouthful of air. But, every part of him froze when another image took over his mind. This one, he hadn't even seen before. This couldn't be her doing. No, this was different.

-Feudal Japan-

He was fifteen and a disappointment. His brothers and sister led successful lives. The oldest son was to be next head of their noble clan. The middle was a powerful samurai general. Even the daughter was to marry another heir to a noble clan to make their family stronger. But their youngest son?

Oh boy.

The youngest son never had any ambitions for his future. He looked attractive, but that's all he had going for him. He had no interest in war, politics, or education. He stayed locked away in his room for most of his days. The servants and his family couldn't get him out. Gossip floated around the youngest son. The parents would sometimes pretend that he didn't exist. They would make up stories about him when they asked about their youngest son.

"He's away in the capital studying," they would say. But, all of the nobles saw through their lies and continued to talk. The parents became desperate to repair their broken image of their youngest son. They decided to marry him off to save their reputation.

The bride had to be beautiful, elegant with manners, intelligent, and a dutiful wife. The list for this mission proved to be asking too much in this given situation. Initially, the search wasn't fruitful. No noble families would allow their daughters to be married off to the disgrace of a son. Having a poor bride would make things worse. In the end, they had no choice but to look for a poor wife.

The older nobleman went into the countryside to look for a bride. Every day, he traveled from village to village with his search. Most of the women were either old ladies or too young. The young women were already married off. The older nobleman didn't want to have to marry off his son to a really young girl. He pushed that to the back of his mind. The older nobleman vowed to either find his son a wife or restore family's honor with his life.