Windmaster - Chapter 1 pt2

Back in the Silent City, Ayr ducked under a worn curtain and entered a dimly lit but welcoming tea shop. His nose had led him here from half way across the city, drawn by a fabulous smell that had made his empty stomach ache even more as he’d navigated his way through the crowded, twisting streets. He’d found himself on the city outskirts before a cheerful looking little tea shop in an out of the way courtyard.

It was a small place, but a board outside proclaimed it served more than just tea. It had a wooden façade at the front and a rain porch which sheltered a couple of benches where several people were sitting chatting and sipping drinks in the shade of the building. Above the door on a worn sign ‘The Night Blossom Tea Shop’ was painted in faded characters. Over the wooden façade and up the stonework above an ancient vine of night flowering jasmine caressed the building lending it its name.

His eyes adjusted quickly from the outside glare to the dim interior as he entered. It wasn’t busy inside despite the city being full of revellers for the festival. A few people sat quietly enjoying a drink and partaking of the sweet dumplings that were a speciality of the Spring Rising Festival. There were plenty of tables free; it wasn’t exactly the peak time for business being the middle of the afternoon. Sitting down in an out of the way corner he sighed and drank in the delicious smell that had led him here, it wafted enticingly through a curtained doorway at the back of the dining area which no doubt led to the kitchen. An elderly woman appeared from the darkness at the back of the room and approached him bowing stiffly as she arrived at his table. He nodded his head in response and ordered a large bowl of whatever it was that smelt so good. The fact he didn’t have any money was merely a problem to be dealt with after he’d satisfied the ache in his belly.

The food arrived, a fabulous colourful dish of steamed spice grain with early spring vegetables and thin meat all swimming in a delicate liquor. It tasted as good as it had smelled. He polished off the first bowl and asked for another after which he ordered a plate of the sweet dumplings and a bottle of spice wine. He sat back against the wall and slowly sipped the wine and watched the other customers chatting.

Ayr sat there the whole afternoon watching people come and go, shadows slid across the courtyard outside as evening drew on. The place was getting livelier as people arrived for their dinner. He continued to put off the inevitable; he was just too comfortable sitting there in the snug tea shop his hunger satisfied. He could see the old lady eyeing him with increasing suspicion every time she passed him by to take an order or serve a meal. Then a middle aged woman popped her head out through the curtain at the back and whispered with the old lady, both cast furtive glances in his direction. He wasn’t especially hungry again yet, but in order to allay their suspicions for a little while he ordered another meal followed by several cups of tea. The older lady served him his meal suspiciously but said nothing.

It was late in the evening when most of the customers had left that Ayr knew the time to own up had come. The middle aged woman he had glimpsed before burst out of the kitchen, she strode across the room towards him. She was a formidable looking woman, large and strong, her hair was tied up tightly in a bun, she still wore her apron and her hands were dusted with flour. Her posture and attitude told him immediately she was a woman to be reckoned with. At times like these he wished the shadows would gather him up and hide him, but then, on the other hand he felt an exciting thrill of anticipation wondering how the situation might unfold. Either way there was no avoiding it.

The woman stopped before his table and laid the bill in front of him.He’d run up quite a tab having spent all afternoon and most of the evening enjoying the food and drink of the tiny tea shop.

“We’re closing soon,” the woman said, “You’d best settle up and be on your way.” Ayr consulted the bill and appeared to be engrossed in thought for a moment, then he laid the bill back on the table and sat back against the wall. Stealing all his courage before the imposing woman he announced. “The fact of the matter is I don’t actually have any money.” He kept his nerve and carefully observed the woman for reaction, a gathering storm spread across her features.

“Buntaro!” the storm broke with her terrible cry. Her fierce gaze remained on Ayr, as if she thought he might vanish into thin air if she stopped looking at him. Almost immediately a big, rather portly man appeared from behind the curtain that led into the kitchen.

Of course when Ayr said he had no money, that wasn’t strictly true, while he didn’t have any of the tokens used as coinage, he did have about him various stones that were coveted by humankind. Hard diamond, soft yellow gold, and most precious of all, delicate glowstones of rare hue sat concealed in his coat. They were plentiful in the gateways between the worlds; he had gathered them, played with them when he was a child at the Wind Gate. He could have paid for the meal many times over with just one of these precious gems.

However there was no interest in paying your way like that, you certainly didn’t gain anything by taking the easy way out, Ayr knew, he’d tried.In fact it’d been the very first thing he’d tried when he set out on his journey. After all if he were stuck in the human realm until his Sensei deemed him ready, he may as well have a comfortable time, he had thought. Also he had reasoned, since he was there to learn the hearts and minds of men, where better to start than from the position that all men aspired too. That of the rich man! But he had soon become bored of the lives of the rich. When everything you desire can be bought for a price, life becomes cheap and experience becomes false. Taking the easy life wasn’t as easy as it seemed.

He couldn’t understand why humans all seemed to desire and strive for the life of the rich. He eventually concluded that only after experiencing it could they realise how pointless it was, and once a human had achieved the goal of becoming rich, pride prevented any of them from revealing the truth of the matter to their fellow man, and so they lived their dull rich lives, and the secret was their burden alone, while every other man aspired to be them. Well, he thought, I suppose you’ve got to have something to aim for.

Since experiencing such a life, he’d never again taken the easy road, and although it had not always been pleasant, his life had certainly been rich in experience. Ayr chuckled at the irony of it all.

He was brought back to reality by the chilling shadow that passed over him as if the very sun itself had been eclipsed. The huge man named Buntaro crossed the room in barely three giant strides and stood in front of Ayr’s table, arms folded across his barrel of a chest.

“You find something funny?” the big man glowered at him.

Ayr smiled up at them with what he hoped as a placating smile. He wasn’t scared, after all what’s the worst that could happen? They’d throw him out, or put him to work, or maybe rough him up a bit.

“Not at all,” he said.

“How did you intend to pay the bill when you came in here filling your belly with our food?”

“Maybe, I could offer you some service in exchange for the cost of my bill?” Ayr said reasonably. The formidable woman raised a sceptical eyebrow.

“And what might you have to offer us young sir?” the big fellow enquired.

“I can wash dishes or clean tables!” Ayr announced cheerfully. Ayr noticed a minute change in Buntaro’s posture and in his eye caught the glimpse of something which gave him hope. Buntaro leaned across to the woman,

“We could do with a hand; after all you know how busy it gets during the festival.” he said surreptitiously out of the corner of his mouth. The woman rolled her eyes and contemplated Ayr again; Ayr tried to look like a model employee.

“Well, at least you didn’t just try and run off without paying,” she sighed, a long pause followed, with both Ayr and the giant man giving her hopeful looks.

“Fine!” she said throwing up her hands and turning on her heel. “But it’s only until he works off his debt and the festival is over!” she disappeared behind the curtain grumbling something about useless lazy oafs, the two men watching her go with relief. Ayr turned to look at Buntaro, the man’s face turned serious, clearly trying to impress some sort of authority over Ayr, but barely being able to hide his joy at getting a helper.

“Right, welcome to the Night Blossom, I’m Buntaro, that scary lady is my wife Heather,” he said cheerfully, “Let’s put you to work lad!”

Ayr spent the rest of the evening cheerfully washing a huge pile of pots and pans and cups and dishes while Buntaro supervised. It was late when he was done and Buntaro showed him where he could sleep and warned him in no uncertain terms what he would do to him if he found he’d run off in the morning.

~~~~~

As the dawn twilight filled the courtyard in front of the Night Blossom, Ayr danced across the smooth flagstones, his wooden bokken held in both hands whirling about him in an elaborate pattern. The movement of his feet and stroke of his sword in perfect harmony he had been there for most of the night, he didn't sleep much, he didn’t need to. As the rays of the sun finally broke above the high city's walls, chasing away the shadows of the night and the night flowering jasmine that covered the walls closed its delicate petals, he became aware of the city around him stirring from its slumber. Birds awoke and soon the air was filled with their morning song.

Buntaro emerged from the shop; he was somewhat surprised to see Ayr still there. Buntaro stretched and yawned and crossed to a stone sink full of water on the other side of the courtyard he plunged his head directly into the icy water and came up gasping, then turned and watched Ayr who was still engrossed in his sword practice.

“So you’re a Samurai are you lad?” said Buntaro, the icy water dripping from his untidy hair and bristly chin. Ayr stopped and greeted Buntaro with a bow.

“I know how to handle a sword myself y’know, and I used to be quite renowned for my skill,” Buntaro continued wistfully. “Of course these days there’s no call for a Samurai. Not that I'm complaining,” he added hastily.

Ayr considered the portly, unfit, unkempt form of Buntaro standing before him and tried to imagine the man wielding a sword. But it wasn't just Buntaro’s gut that was of epic proportions, he was tall and well built too. No doubt he had power but Ayr found it hard to imagine the giant man had ever gracefully wielded the weapons of the Samurai. Ayr was roused from his contemplation by the roar of laughter; he looked up in surprise and could see from the look in Buntaro’s eye that he had read his thoughts. Buntaro strode up to Ayr and slapped him on the shoulder with a giant hand.

“I can't deny I've let myself go a bit,” he said. “Well, you've tasted my wife's cooking! Talking of which it’s about time for breakfast.” he said and strode off towards the kitchen, chuckling leaving Ayr alone in the courtyard, the light of the dawning day rising warm on his back.

Buy the book: http://www.lulu.com/shop/shiro/windmaster/paperback/product-5326447.html