Chapter Text
Konoe Michiko 近衞 美智子
Act I
序章 (Joshō) | Prologue
春分"Shunbun" ❀࿐Spring Equinox
Akebono 曙(Dawn)
22 February 1882,
Peninsular and Oriental Steam Navigation Company
Departing the Port of Yokohama
Michiko sat sternly atop a bench on the promenade deck, staring towards the open sea and taking in the salty air. The port of Yokohama was barely in view as multitudes of steamships and sailboats flooded the spruce waters. The silent maiden was dressed in heavy silk chirimen adorned with hand-painted lily motifs and a family crest, her heavy wooden geta hung from her feet, her waist ribbon Obi clutching and correcting her posture, her face slick with white powder Oshiroi, and her lips painted with deep red beni. Michiko was ready to depart for this journey, even if she felt that she physically could not dare to move an inch.
She took a deep breath and averted her gaze towards the shimmery wooden floor of the deck, as it reflected the shadows of wandering passengers; reminding Michiko of the state of her journey and the people left behind. Chatter of excitement filled the deck, invading Michiko’s trance whilst she recalled a conversation with her step-sister.
Yoru 夜(Evening)
21 February 1882,
Imadegawa Gomon (Northern Gate), Kyoto
Konoe Risa’s Chambers
“Michi~...Of all the moments to leave me, why did it have to be this one?”
Konoe Risa whined to the silent Michiko; packing & folding clothes, shoes, and her makeup into separate bags and into her knot bag (kinchaku). Her wrapping cloth (furoshiki) was packed to the brim as she responded:
“Chichi-ue insisted, Risa. You are the one person, if not the only, who understands the consequence of denying his directive.”
“But aren’t you too young to travel on your lonesome?” Risa pouted as she kneeled next to Michiko.
Michiko gazed downwards at Risa’s pitiful eyes, easily bringing out the guilt Michiko felt when she agreed to go in the first place. Sighing, Michiko breathes out:
“Perhaps Chichi-ue simply wants to test me, gauge my ability that he has so carefully fostered throughout his fatherhood.”
Michiko gets to her knees in a graceful manner, and faces her sour-faced sister. Simultaneously, grazing her hand and placing fallen hair behind her sister’s ear.
“Or… he doesn’t want any distractions for your engagement with that Kazuo boy…”
Risa giggles and rises to walk towards the window of her warm-lit bedroom, her two hands clasped behind her back.
“Oh~ then I shall complain to Chichi...That nothing could possibly distract me from him~”
Michiko judges her sister without sparing a thought, standing by the cabinet and staring back towards her sister’s direction.
“Hm~ Well, you must make haste. Tell our father that you’ve fallen deeply for a boy. He’d definitely give up and reconsider this deal he’s making with the Westerners, and no one would need to travel anywhere.”
“Really?!” Risa responds quickly, gleefully almost. As if she truly believed in Michiko’s sarcasm-rimmed words at that moment.
It made Michiko bewildered for just a second. It was puzzling for her to comprehend the extent of her sister’s seemingly simple idea of their father. The same father who had drilled Michiko with tactics to persuade the Englishmen of their goods, the same father who married his mistress after Michiko’s mother passed, the same father who decided to send his only daughter across the globe.
She understood from an early age that it was impractical to despise her step-sister, let alone ignore or avoid her. At the same time, she’d come to notice that they share almost nothing in common. Their father’s hardened face was never apparent in Risa’s dimpled smile or even Michiko’s voidless eyes; and perhaps the only trait they shared was the burden of the Konoe name. Even so, Michiko could see the effects of her step-mother’s upbringing on Risa. She had invaded Michiko's mundane life with an unadulterated and fearless kiss on her cheek, the moment they met. Michiko was simply impressed that Risa never let their father’s words hurt her, and still continues to admire her; albeit unbeknownst to her stepsister...
“You’ll be fine without me, O-ne-chan. Just get your proposal, graciously accept with humble conditions, refrain from kisses, and bow your head, just like we’ve practiced. Besides, I’d rather go in your place anyways.”
Risa frowned and dragged her feet across the bamboo-weaved floor, approaching to hug her little sister.
“Hai, hai, Michi~ Please be safe and don’t say “He-llo” to strangers unless they are familiar with Chichi.”
“Hah... and what if those strangers are Chichi’s familiars?”
“Well then, just bow your head. Best to hope they assume Japanese maidens are mute.”
The two sisters, bonded by their noble name, and their inevitable fate, shared a moment of laughter. Risa unlocked Michiko from her tight embrace, cupping and taking a long look at her little sister’s smeared maked-up face, and smiled with joy and a smidge of sadness.
The sisters’ grew quiet and stared off outside to the moonlit sky, a silent acknowledgement whisked past their face with the swish of the wind. Both their eyes shone with undisputed hope, yet they knew that the moon they stared at shall change by the time they’re together. When they reunite, and spend a night like this again, Risa may be entrapped in her own ‘family parade’, or worse disowned for her unconventional attitude towards etiquette.
And right now, as the sea pulled her further and further from her distant home, Michiko could only pray for her own sister that it wasn’t the latter.