Lake Rodney 瓼

---

the lake glared up at him like a mirror with too many memories, surface still but never at peace—just like him. ryūjirō stood at its edge, arms heavy at his sides, jaw clenched against the heat and the way the southern air clung to his coat like sweat-slick regret. he hated the softness of it all, the bloom of green, the birdsong too close to laughter. behind him, @Kaede walked like a shadow that had learned to smile, the little fox—@Clover—tucked close to her side, a stubborn thing. @Suyin trailed behind, all eyes and venom in velvet skin, her every breath threaded with secrets he didn’t want to learn. he didn’t speak. he rarely did. instead, he dropped the battered bundle of gear by a rock, shoulders rolling like he might shed the road itself, and let out a low grunt that wasn’t quite relief. they’d stop here. @Shinjou had been long welcome to join them. any member of his brother's band had. it was long enough to drink, to rest, to let the ache fade from tired limbs before the next stretch of road carved something else out of them. south was where they were going—because masa wasn’t north anymore—and ryūjirō, for all his pride and poison, would see them through it. even if it killed him. especially if it did.

southward.

kaede does not protest the march. she does not complain about the pain in the arches of her feet.

but she is bone-tired and further wrung by her great efforts to keep up such a painted mask.

ryūjirō has taken a concubine. that is what kaede believes.

she hopes the carnal will satisfy this forceful brother masa has left behind.

as for herself, her thoughts have turned toward a kingdom. an imperial palace. it is a dream, and yet it is what she deserves.

ryūjirō signals that they will stop here beside this lake. kaede does not yet set down her own burdens. instead she begins to survey the water, looking for those nests of rich eggs laid by ground-dwelling birds.

suyin lingers a little ways from the others, eyes scanning the lake, but seeing past it. the water ripples—soft, aimless, the kind of peace that unsettles her more than noise ever could. she says nothing.

this band of travelers, patched together by circumstance and war-worn grudges, wasn’t her plan. but plans bend, and she’s nothing if not adaptable. for now, they are useful—strong backs, sharp weapons, people with names that open gates she cannot yet.

she watches ryūjirō set down his pack like he’s shedding the weight he’ll never speak of. the others move around him in careful orbit.

eventually, she moves too. not toward him, but the woman, @Kaede. the one who spoke even less than their oh-so brave and wonderful leader, if such a thing were possible. in truth, she hadn't heard her speak at all.

a warm and polite smile traces her lips, "so, what's your name?"

hope its okay i post again, we can also do a spinoff thread! <3 and sorry in advance bc shes a jerk

she interrupted by the new woman, the dark one glossy as a raven's back.

her radiant welcome is not something anticipated.

kaede is at once envious and scornful.

the other is far more free than she.

and yet she holds none of the lady's nobility.

caught between unsurety and irritation, she levers this all into a bow. "i am the lady kaede, noblewoman to the followers of clan akashita."

above. aside. aloof. withheld.

a treasure.