Yatagarasu Series
Volume 1:
Ravens Shouldn't
Wear Kimono
Author: Chisato Abe
Part 2: Summer
Section 2
Listen to this chapter!
Asebi closed her eyes and gave herself a moment of perfect stillness. The only noises she heard were the gentle fluttering of a fan, the soft chirping of a summer bird, and the distant echo of flowing water. The wind whispered through the cattails below. Asebi opened her eyes, nodded to herself, and then lowered her gaze to her nagon. She gave her full attention to the instrument as she played a new song.
Summer sun shone overhead, falling on Asebi and her instrument as she plucked out chords and harmonics. The song was slow to start, with a simple melody that was easy to remember, like a song loved in childhood.
“Oh. She’s a better player than I expected,” an attendant said in an undertone. Several other attendants and ladies-in-waiting appeared pleasantly surprised by the performance.
The music brightened, evoking the warm sunshine of early summer. The tempo quickened, though the song’s essential character remained the same. The melody was light and flowing like water moving quickly over river stones.
Masuho no Susuki found herself swept up in the music. No one with mediocre skill playing the koto—or the nagon—could hope to play such a song. She was not certain that she could play something similar on her own koto. She might attempt it, but she didn’t think that she’d be able to maintain such a brisk tempo for an extended period. Asebi’s playing technique was perfect.
Asebi radiated joy as she played a song celebrating summer. This instrument was easy for her to play; it was like an extension of her own body. She thought about pure spring water trickling down from the mountaintops and saw illusory water droplets scattering from the silvery strings of the nagon. Bright sunlight reflected off of the scattering drops. Green plants sought out the water and the sun, stretching toward the sky.
Masuho no Susuki held her breath, captivated by the sight of Asebi, who seemed to be glowing from within. She didn’t understand what she was feeling until Asebi stopped playing. Asebi looked up at her and smiled, and then Masuho no Susuki understood that she’d been completely under Asebi’s spell during the song.
“How wonderful!” Princess Fujinami said, clapping her hands.
The princess’ voice snapped the duchesses and their attendants out of their daze. The ladies-in-waiting and maids who worked in the Spring Hall began a round of enthusiastic applause.
Ukogi gave Asebi a smug look full of pride.
Shiratama was like an ice sculpture. She hadn’t moved because she was still in shock. She could hardly believe what had just happened.
Masuho no Susuki’s ladies-in-waiting shared whispered conversations full of admiration and more than a little confusion. Masuho no Susuki herself remained silent. She kept staring at Asebi.
“Your face will stick like that, and that will be the end of the Nishiie family’s fabled beauty,” Hamayū said in a barbed tone. She grinned mischievously at Masuho no Susuki.
Hamayū had approached while Masuho no Susuki had been distracted. She bit her lip so that she wouldn’t show too much displeasure at Hamayū’s casual, disrespectful teasing. “You knew about this, didn’t you?”
“Knew about what? It’s common knowledge that the Azumaya family trains many outstanding musicians,” Hamayū said, half-exasperated. She wanted to tell Masuho no Susuki to pay more attention to the world around her, but left the words implied and unsaid. “Perhaps there’s a lesson here. Careless words and actions damage one’s character in the end.”
“Speak for yourself,” Masuho no Susuki said. “My words and actions are not your concern.”
Asebi was ignorant of the hubbub she’d caused. She exchanged a few pleasantries with Princess Fujinami and smiled shyly. Her unpretentious demeanor filled Masuho no Susuki with irrational rage.
Masuho no Susuki calmed herself. Everyone assumed their previous places and waited for the Crown Prince to make an appearance. Time dragged on endlessly, but the Crown Prince did not appear.
The duchesses exchanged formal greetings and left offerings for the Mountain God. The Crown Prince remained absent. Everyone knew that he was late. He had an obligation to attend this ceremony, and yet he did not come. At first, some of the bolder ladies-in-waiting voiced their displeasure at the Crown Prince’s tardiness. Their displeasure gradually changed into disappointment and confusion.
Even Princess Fujinami started fidgeting a little from behind a bamboo blind. She called for an end to the evening’s ceremonies. Food and wine was served to everyone present, and then the ceremony concluded.
The Crown Prince had not come.
“What is the meaning of this?” Samomo muttered to herself. She stepped away from Hamayū so that she could confer with Asebi and Ukogi.
“His Highness is not someone who would skip a ceremony without reason, surely?” Asebi asked.
“Could something have happened to the Crown Prince?” Ukogi asked.
“I do not know,” Samomo said. Her expression clouded with worry. “But I did hear something that concerns me.”
“What is it?” Asebi asked. The Crown Prince’s absence left her ill at ease.
Samomo nodded to herself, sighed, and then said, “Some of the ladies-in-waiting who serve the imperial family still gather for tea in Wisteria Hall, even if they are assigned elsewhere. The other day, one of the ladies-in-waiting who still serves the imperial family told us that Empress Oumurasaki said something unusual.”
“What did the Empress say?”
“She said that a karasudayū has entered the imperial court in secret.”1
Ukogi gasped in surprise.
“What is a karasudayū?” Asebi asked.
“You said there is a karasudayū among us?” Ukogi asked. “Where? Are they in Sakura Palace? Did the Empress truly say such a thing?”
Ukogi’s agitation was obvious, but Asebi didn’t understand the reason for it. She was about to ask what a karasudayū was again when she heard a sharp crack like a tree branch snapping.
Startled, Asebi looked in the direction of the noise and noticed a tree growing awkwardly over a massive mountain rock. The tree was firmly rooted on the mountainside, but it was swaying back and forth in a way that looked unnatural.
“Who’s there?” Ukogi called out sharply.
Suddenly, a shrill cry like a scream echoed across the cooling platform. Attendants and ladies-in-waiting stirred to raise the alarm. A pitch-black shadowy figure emerged from between the branches of the tree Asebi had noticed before. The figure fell right in front of Asebi, Ukogi and Samomo and stood with difficulty. The figure was about as tall as a human, but they scattered feathers absolutely everywhere.
The figure staggered toward the edge of the platform, disturbing irises and summer flowers. They stepped into a shaft of sunlight, revealing an enormous bird.
Samomo screamed.
Chaos erupted. Maids ran in all directions, screaming and shouting. The imperial palace’s maids created an orderly line and then circled around Asebi and the others, each spaced equally apart on the platform.
“An intruder!”
“Call the Yamauchishu!”
The imperial palace’s maids stripped off their outer layer of clothing, revealing kimonos of pure black.
“Step back from the edge, duchess,” one of the maids commanded.
Ukogi shielded Asebi and urged her gently backward.
“Ukogi, what is happening?” Asebi asked.
“Don’t worry,” Ukogi said. “These women are called the Fujimiyaren. They will protect you.”2
Asebi still didn’t understand.
The huge bird escaped from the water and found itself surrounded by Fujimiyaren. Before the guards could move in, the bird took flight.
One of the Fujimiyaren kicked off the ground to chase the bird. But what could she possibly do? She couldn’t fly, could she?
As Asebi looked on in confusion in fear, the woman’s body warped like a piece of taffy and re-formed in the shape of a giant bird that looked very similar to the one she was chasing after. She had three legs and two powerful wings.
Asebi blinked in shock, but this was no illusion.
One by one, the other Fujimiyaren took to the sky, transforming into huge birds with three legs. They circled the intruder in the sky.
Asebi collapsed to her knees on the spot. Black feathers fell down and scattered on the floor around her.
“Duchess, are you all right?” Ukogi asked.
“Ukogi! What—what was that? Why did those women turn into horses?!” She clung to Ukogi, trembling like a leaf.
“Please calm down. It’s all right. They are all just like us: Yatagarasu.”
“What did you say? What does that mean?”
High overhead, five large birds continued their aerial combat. The intruder was smaller than the transformed guards and kept trying to find a gap between them to slip through. To no avail. There was no escape for the desperate intruder.
A bird larger than all the others dove in from above.
“The Yamauchishu have arrived, Duchess. We’re safe now.”
The intruder flew closer to the largest bird as if it were seeking protection. But the large newcomer did nothing to shield the intruder. The Fujimiyaren pounced on the intruder all at once.
Asebi heard a blood-curdling scream.
The intruder gave up soon after that. Birds alighted on the platform around Asebi and transformed back into women. The intruder remained in bird form, but they were now firmly restrained by the Fujimiyaren. The women submerged part of the intruder’s beak in the water at the edge of the cooling platform.
“Duchesses, Princess, are you hurt?” one of the Fujimiyaren asked.
“Thank you for your efforts. Everyone is safe,” Hamayū said. Most of the attendants and ladies-in-waiting that remained in the hall were visibly shaken, but Hamayū stood tall and calm at the center of the chaos. “Why not hand over that intruder to the Yamauchishu now?”
“They attacked Sakura Palace,” one of the Fujimiyaren said. “Jurisdiction belongs to the Fujimiyaren.”
Hamayū frowned slightly. “Even so, a dangerous intruder should not be kept in Sakura Palace for any longer than necessary.”
“Yes,” the Fujimiyaren replied simply. “However, we have determined that they are not dangerous.”
“What?”
“The Yamauchishu who just arrived has given testimony. The intruder is in service to the Crown Prince.”
Everyone turned their attention to the bird.
“Don’t get too close,” a lady-in-waiting said apprehensively.
“There’s no way that could be true. An attendant of the Crown Prince would never reveal themselves in their bird form in this shameful way! It is unthinkable!” another woman exclaimed.
Hamayū remained silent, listening to all the complaints and whispers around her. Then she sighed. “If they’re not dangerous, why not let the poor wretch go free? If you keep holding them like that, they’ll drown.”
Bubbles rose to the surface of the water near the bird’s beak.
Takimoto’s mouth pressed into a thin, displeased line. “At your word, Duchess Hamayū of the Summer Hall. Release the creature. If they act out of line again, capture them immediately.”
Members of the Fujimiyaren hastened to obey Takimoto, though not without some reluctance. The bird’s feathers were in disarray. They shook themselves with a painful-looking shudder and then turned around, their acorn-like eyes lingering on Hamayū. They cawed softly as if they wanted to thank her.
Then the shape of the intruder’s wings changed, accompanied by a loud crack. An instant later, there were arms in black sleeves where there had just been wings. The black beak rapidly shrank, and the feathers on the back of the bird’s head became soft hair.
It took only a few seconds for the three-legged great bird to become a boy in a black kimono.
“Thank you very much, Duchess Hamayū,” said the boy. He scratched his head in embarrassment. His hair was a total mess. He appeared to be quite young and very contrite, but Takimoto had no intention of showing him any mercy.
Takimoto slapped the boy hard across the face.
“You fool! How dare you appear in bird form before a princess! And now you’ve transformed before the princess and Sakura Palace’s duchesses! Aren’t you ashamed of yourself?!”
“I—I’m sorry!” the boy stammered, hastily bowing down to the ground, clearly no longer a threat.
The ladies-in-waiting clumped together and confronted the boy. They had nothing but contempt for him.
“Are you really an attendant of the Crown Prince?”
“Isn’t this some kind of mistake?”
The boy wilted in shame.
Translator's Notes
1 烏太夫: Karasudayū is a made-up word with several possible meanings, the two most common being "raven (Noh) actor" and "raven junior priest." ↩
2藤宮連: Fujimiyaren uses the same kanji as Wisteria Hall (藤) for "fuji." 宮 (miya) and 連 (ren) have multiple meanings, most of them unclear from context. If hard-pressed to do it, I'd translate this directly into English as Wisteria Imperial Guards, but this is almost untranslatable. ↩
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