White Fox

Impostors

"I'll take the floor," said Aiko, curling up beside the futon like a cat. Mitsuhide picked her up "—Ack!" And then tossed her gently onto the futon, where she landed with a small thump.

"No, you'll take the futon."

"And where will you sleep?" asked Aiko, sitting up and rubbing her back.

"On the futon," he said with a smile.

"Sorry, I missed the part where we were married."

He smiled as Aiko narrowed her eyes and blocked his path. "Don't fret. My room is next door." A strange emotion welled up in her, and she pushed it aside to analyze later. He nodded to the wall, and then brushed her hair back from her face. "Yell if you need me."

She nodded and he left to his room, darkness covering his trail. Aiko lay on the futon and stared at the ceiling, letting her thoughts drift. It took her a little while to realize she was feeling disappointed that he hadn't stayed in her room, and then shook herself out of those indecent thoughts. She closed her eyes, and reality began to slip away. Hearing a door open, she wondered if she were dreaming, but then footsteps followed the opening of the door. Mitsuhide's footsteps were gentle, steady and soft.

These weren't his.

Her eyes flew open as she rolled on the futon, a knife embedded where she was moments ago.

"You're not Mitsuhide Akechi," said the man holding the knife. His eyes were wide, but the rest of his face was covered with a mask.

"And on this day, mistakes were made," muttered Aiko, kicking the knife. It slid across the floor and landed against the door.

The man didn't even look at the knife. He was still gaping at Aiko. "You're a woman!"

"Nice observation. Who are you?"

The knife gleamed in the moonlight, and he made a run for it. But the door flew open, and there stood Mitsuhide, his eyes molten lava.

"Mitsuhide!"

Mitsuhide grabbed the man and pushed him to the floor. "Kyubei!" he called.

Mitsuhide's vassal entered the room, his eyes on the man on the floor.

"Who are you?" asked Mitsuhide.

"As if I'd—Argh!"

Aiko winced as Mitsuhide twisted his arm to the point of breaking.

A monk of Hongan-ji!" Mitsuhide loosed his grip, and the man threw him a dirty look. "Someone is out to kill your precious lord."

Mitsuhide smiled. "Your master wouldn't be the only one out there." Aiko nodded in agreement, already writing a list in her head.

Kyubei stepped forward and Mitsuhide nodded to him. "Take him back to the castle and lock him in the dungeons." He looked at the man, his eyes darkening in a way that made Aiko's hair stand on end. "You've got a few days until I return. I suggest you think long and hard about what you're going to confess, before I have you begging for death."

As they left, Mitsuhide turned to Aiko, cupping her cheek. She leaned into the warmth like a cat, and that seemed to amuse Mitsuhide. "Little one, are you alright?"

She nodded with a glance at the bed, which had a hole in it. "I have a bad feeling about Azuchi."

Mitsuhide's thumb caressed her cheek, and Aiko shivered. "Kyubei will be back soon. If anything is amiss, we will know." He pulled her into her arms, and Aiko turned enough to look at his face. The shadows hid his expression, but his hold on her was tender. "Meanwhile—" his breath tickled her ear "—Would you rather share a room or risk sleeping alone?"

"Share a room," she said without even thinking twice. "My futon has been shish-kebabbed."

"Shish-kebabbed?"

"Destroyed. Impaled. Skewered," she said, fixing her mistake. He had a hand on her shoulder as he led her to his room, and Aiko collapsed on the futon, exhausted. He sat beside her. "My town had a unique dialect."

"You've lived in Azuchi your whole life," said Mitsuhide, his eyes narrowing.

"Ah, so you've investigated me," she said, turning to look at him. She smiled at his unimpressed face. "Well then, if I can't lie, it's a secret."'

He traced a finger over her lips. "Well, I'm sure I'll have fun getting those secrets from you."

"Yes, yes, but come sleep. It's late," she said. The adrenaline faded and she felt her eyes closing. His hand caressed her hair, but she didn't stay awake long enough to see if he'd come to sleep as well.

The next day, they headed back to their spot outside the temple. Both of them sat together, but before Mitsuhide could wander off and disappear, someone stopped before them.

"Where are you two from?"

"Edo," said Mitsuhide, as Aiko chanced a glance up. It was a monk, but it wasn't someone she'd seen before.

The monk considered both of them with a friendly smile, and Aiko felt a pang in her heart, knowing what was going to happen.

"Well, would you like to have a cup of tea at our temple?" he asked, as Aiko looked at Mitsuhide, knowing they were about to take advantage of his kindness.

"We'd be honored."

They followed him down the road, and he took them into a winding path through a forest. Aiko looked around, feeling like the trees were closing around on her. "Nice place to get murdered," she muttered under her breath. Aiko shivered, and Mitsuhide discreetly put an arm around her waist, as if saying he was there.

The temple was deep in the forest. It was a humble abode, but the wooden structure did extend quite a ways. Aiko was surprised to see there were many monks scattered all over the place—and the strangest was that some of them were wielding weapons. They seemed out of place, and she said as much as well.

"We're the monks of Hongan-ji. Nobunaga Oda destroyed our temple, so we're currently taking refuge here."

Aiko nodded, and Mitsuhide pursed his lips. The monk left them in a room, saying he was off to get what he needed for a tea ceremony.

Aiko closed her eyes and listened to the area around her, picking out the names she wanted to hear. She tapped Mitsuhide's thigh before she started tracing what she heard. 'Nobunaga, Honno-ji, Kennyo, assassinate.'

"So they were behind the Honno-ji incident," said Mitsuhide under his breath.

Aiko nodded. "I think Kennyo is somewhere in here as well," she said worriedly. "He would recognize you."

He placed a hand on her head. "We'll be gone before then, little mouse."

The man returned, and Aiko watched as he performed the tea ceremony, and then she was at a loss as to what to do. Deciding to use her best tactic, she mimicked everything Mitsuhide did, hoping there was no gender discrimination in this. Mitsuhide caught her eye and nodded his approval, and she quietly breathed a sigh of relief, before sitting quietly as Mitsuhide took lead of the conversation. She was impressed at the rapid-fire lies he spoke about his monkhood.

They bowed before they left the room together, and Mitsuhide leaned to her, whispering in her ear. "Good girl."

She knew he was talking about their success into looking into the Honno-ji incident. "I'm glad that man wasn't one of ours. He leaked quite a bit of information, including the size of Kennyo's army." She looked up at Mitsuhide. "Or that could be because you somehow managed to discreetly weasel it out of him."

"Is that a lovelorn gaze?" asked Mitsuhide, giving her a sideways glance. "Have you finally fallen for me?"

"Absolutely not!" she said, her cheeks flushing.

He laughed and she sighed, placing her hands on her cheeks to cool them down.

A surprise waited for them at the inn.

"Rebellion? In the castle city?" repeated Aiko, staring at Kyubei, who nodded. Mitsuhide pursed his lips, and she could almost hear his brain cells firing in thought.

"Aiko, we're heading back."

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