The Song of the Wild Geese

by India Millar

  His voice was warm. I risked a quick look at his face. He was smiling, inclining his head slightly as though the conversation was deeply important to him.

  “Don’t make her feel important, Seemon.” Auntie smirked. “It’s bad enough having Lord Dai at her feet without you telling her how lovely she is as well.”

  “My dear Hana, all your geisha are exceptional. If they were not, they would have no place in your tea house. And anyway, you know perfectly well that none of the geisha are as lovely as their mistress.”

  Auntie smiled. It was like watching a butterfly hatching from a pupae. She looked years younger suddenly. It crossed my mind that she looked a little flustered, and that she only turned to reach for a flask of sake to hide her face. Seemon glanced at her quickly and then stared straight at me, opening his eyes very wide and parting his lips, almost in a kiss. The expression was gone in a flash, but it was enough.

  The rest of the evening was a strange journey. I watched the other geisha cluster around Seemon at every opportunity. He charmed them, just as he had charmed Auntie. At least I had the consolation of seeing that he seemed to favor all of us equally. All, that was, except me. To me, he was simply polite.

  Kita-san tired quickly of Tamayu’s attentions and claimed me back to his side.

  “You find our gaijin fascinating, Terue-chan?”

  I jumped with surprise. I thought I had treated Seemon like every other patron.

  “He is the first gaijin I have ever seen properly,” I said quickly. “I did not mean to be rude.”

  “Ah!” He wagged his finger at me roguishly. “I have noticed that all the ladies find him fascinating. Is it his hair? So different from us Japanese men, of course. Or…” He leaned forward and spoke softly. “Or is it the stories that we have all heard about the gaijin men? Do you think he really does have a tail?”

  “I have no idea, Kita-san.” I was deeply grateful for my makeup. I could feel my cheeks glowing. “I suppose he is an attractive man, in a strange sort of way.”

  “You don’t sound too sure about it.” He seemed pleased. “Quite right. Stick to what you know, that’s what I say.”

  I watched Seemon covertly as I fawned on my patron, doing my best to make him feel he was the sole object of my attention. He pressed sake on me, and although I rarely drank, I took several cups simply to be polite. After a while, I realized that Kita-san had been right. The room seemed to me to be unbearably hot and I was forced to use my fan in earnest.

  “I thank you for your hospitality, Hana.” I blinked. Seemon was rising to his feet and bowing deeply to Auntie. “But it’s late, and I think it’s time we left you.”

  I glanced at the oil lamps. The wicks needed trimming, and the level of the oil had sunk by half. I was astonished. Where had the evening vanished to? All the patrons were rising at Seemon’s words, stretching and yawning and easing the cricks out of their necks. Kita-san was alone in seeming to wish to linger, but Seemon caught his attention and he rose instantly, a dog obedient to his master.

  “Perhaps I could arrange a little further entertainment for you all?” Auntie smiled knowingly. I froze. I knew only too well what she meant.

  It was perfectly normal, of course. These men had been entertained by us all evening. They had been served sake and tea. They had listened to us sing and dance, raised their heads high as we had flattered them endlessly. Now, it was time for other entertainment entirely. They were no doubt ready to move on to one of the less reputable houses in the flower and willow world, where they would spend the night with high-class courtesans. And if the house in question was recommended by Auntie—as was usually the case—tomorrow, she would instruct one of the boys to go round and collect her flower money for the introduction. Who knew? It might even be that they would simply move across the courtyard to the Hidden House. The very thought filled me with intense jealousy.

  Seemon was leaving me to go and enjoy himself with another woman. Perhaps even a woman who was my friend.

  “I thank you, Hana.” He smiled at Auntie and shrugged his shoulders. “But I, at least, have business early tomorrow and my thoughts are already fully occupied. I doubt I would be able to do justice to any other woman this evening. Of course, my friends may have more stamina than I do.”

  The other patrons grinned and nodded enthusiastically. Even Kita-san appeared pleased by the idea. I had to keep my fan unfurled in front of my face to hide my delight at Seemon’s words.

  We bowed the patrons out. Cash chinked in our hands. These were generous men. Kita-san wrapped my fingers around my flower money, leaning toward me confidentially.

  “I doubt that Lord Dai could ever tire of you, child. But if that day ever came…” His voice tailed off and he raised his eyebrows suggestively.

  I smiled and did my best to look flattered, even as I remembered that he was on his way to pleasure himself with another woman. What high opinions these men had of themselves!

  The patrons crowded out together, in high spirits, the geisha following in their shadows. Seemon hung back as Auntie hurried to the hall to bid farewell to her other guests. Suddenly the room was empty of everybody but us two.

  He took the few steps to my side quickly and spoke softly and urgently.

  “Tomorrow, as early as you can slip away without being seen, come to the garden door of the Hidden House.”

  We both heard the sound of slipper-clad footsteps in the corridor and suddenly Seemon was speaking in a normal tone, his voice seeming very loud in the empty, echoing room.

  “Good night, Terue-san. When I next see Lord Dai, I shall compliment him on his luck in winning you.”

  Auntie smiled and stood back from the open door to usher him out.

  Fourteen

  Even the echo

  Of the moon in a puddle

  Is magnificent

  Once all the patrons had gone, I waited impatiently. I longed for the geisha to yawn and complain they were tired. That they thought the patrons would never leave. That sitting on their heels for so long had made them stiff and they needed the maids to massage their legs before they could crawl into their futons and sleep.

  But the gods turned a deaf ear to my hopes.

  “Well, wasn’t that the strangest thing!” Saki darted a glance around at each of us, her face alight with interest.

  I yawned, feigning boredom. “What was so strange about it?” I asked lazily. “The patrons are always just the same.”

  “I know one that isn’t!” Tamayu said, her tone eager. “Isn’t Seemon-san amazing? Do you know, he even made up a haiku to praise the flower in my hair?”

  Ren and Saki murmured appreciatively. I managed a smile. Oh, why couldn’t they all go to bed and leave me with my thoughts?

  “He’s delicious.” Saki nodded. “I don’t care if he has got a tail, the rest of the men could learn a thing or two from him about what it takes to please a woman. I actually felt as if he was listening to what I was saying!”

  “Did you notice, he even had Auntie hanging on his words?” Ren giggled.

  “I should think so,” I said casually. “He was the guest of honor, after all.”

  The geisha nodded seriously at my words.

  “And don’t you find that very strange?” Tamayu’s forehead was furrowed, as though she was finding it difficult to put her thoughts into words. “I mean, charming as he is, he’s only a gaijin. Yet he seems to know everybody. Or at least all the important people.”

  “That’s true,” Ren agreed eagerly. “And nobody really knows anything much about him. The only gossip I’ve heard is the same as Lord Ito’s maid told me. He’s said to be a very important trader, come to see if he can persuade our merchants to do business with his country. But if he were just a low caste merchant, the nobles would never welcome him into their company, would they?”

  We all shook our heads. Not that it mattered greatly to me. If Seemon had been nothing more than a tradesman come to do some work on the tea house, I would still have be
en attracted to him. Although even as I told myself that, I wondered. He was an attractive man, for sure, but part of that allure was the aura of mystery around him.

  “Who were the other patrons tonight?” I asked. “Auntie was very nice to them, but I didn’t know any of them. They were neither nobles nor merchants, even I could see that.”

  Saki and Tamayu exchanged knowing glances.

  “Of course,” Tamayu said smugly. “You new girls wouldn’t have seen them before. Saki and I have, but never together like they were tonight.”

  “Are they important men?” Ren asked. “They weren’t superior caste, were they?”

  “Not nobles, no.” Tamayu frowned, clearly ordering her thoughts. “But not merchants either. I’ve heard it said that they are the men who really hold the power in Japan. They’re civil servants. Salarymen.”

  “Oh, is that all?” Ren was clearly unimpressed.

  “They might not appear to be rich, but they are. And far more importantly, they hold real power in their hands.” Saki nodded seriously. “They don’t get paid much, but anybody who wants anything done at the highest level goes to them. And the more important the favor, then the more it costs. These men are very high ranking civil servants. They matter, trust me. I noticed Kita-san was very interested in you, Terue.”

  “He seemed to be.” I nodded.

  “Be nice to him,” she suggested. “If something should happen to Lord Dai, and at his age, you never know what his health’s like, it would be good for you to have somebody else in line to be your patron.”

  I blinked in surprise. Saki was seriously suggesting that Kita-san could take my daimyo’s place? I suddenly understood how very important tonight’s patrons had been.

  “And the gaijin is their friend?” Ren, too, had obviously made the connection.

  “Exactly,” Tamayu said crisply. “It’s very strange. All the other gaijin in Edo are largely confined to Dejima. With it being an island, the authorities think they’re safe there. And anyway, all the gaijin I’ve ever seen have been Dutch, and he isn’t.”

  She spoke the strange word carefully, preening at her skill in a foreign language.

  “How do you know Seemon-san isn’t Dutch?” I asked innocently.

  “Because when we were at Lord Ito’s house, I heard one of the patrons ask Seemon-san if he spoke Dutch, and he laughed and said he did, but not as well as he spoke Japanese.”

  “But if he isn’t Dutch, where does he come from? We know he must be important or the great men wouldn’t even bother to notice him. So what is he here for?”

  Silence met my questions.

  “Don’t know,” Tamayu said finally. “Nobody does. Some say he’s taking an interest in the opium trade. He’d better watch out if he is as the yakuza aren’t going to be pleased about a gaijin interfering in their business. He goes to the kabuki a lot, but I can’t believe he wants to buy a share in the theater. The men who own it would never let a gaijin buy into the kabuki anyway. And there’s already enough Dutch gaijin merchants who want to export our silk and porcelain. They’ve got that market to themselves.”

  “I think it’s something to do with politics,” Ren said. “It can’t be anything else, can it? I mean, everybody knows that Japan is the most important country in the whole world and that every other country envies our wealth and culture, so perhaps Seemon-san has been sent to take a look at us. So he can go back home eventually and explain to his nobles how great we are and how they should be afraid of us. To warn them not to try and tamper with us.”

  “Do you know, she might even be right?” Saki said slowly. “It would make sense. At least that would explain why all the nobles and important civil servants are being so courteous to him.”

  “But where has he come from?” I persisted.

  Saki shrugged. “No idea. If he’s not Dutch, what other countries are out there?”

  That silenced all of us. We knew there was a world outside Japan, but what it was, what the countries called themselves, we had no idea. It didn’t matter to us. We had never given it a thought. Why should we? Every Japanese person knew that Japan was the greatest, most superior country that had ever existed. Compared to our own culture, the rest of the world was inhabited by savages who had to be kept at bay lest they contaminate our purity.

  The idea that even one gaijin—special as he appeared to be—might be able to infiltrate our sealed world was deeply disturbing.

  Tamayu yawned suddenly. “It doesn’t matter.” She shrugged. “I don’t expect he’ll be here for much longer anyway. I suppose the nobles are treating him like some sort of new toy. When they get bored with the novelty of him, they’ll forget all about him and he’ll just go back to wherever he came from.”

  My stomach clenched at the thought. Seemon was going to leave? Soon? Ah, no! I would not let that happen.

  Perhaps some of my thoughts showed on my face because Saki smiled at me.

  “Oh, I don’t know. He seems to be quite well established here. Perhaps he’ll stay with us long enough for at least one of us to find out if he really has got a tail!”

  We all laughed, but Saki put her hand on my shoulder when we reached her door, holding me back until the others had gone.

  “Take care, younger sister,” she said softly. "Tamayu’s right, for once. He’s a gaijin, and eventually he’ll go back to wherever he came from. Make sure he doesn’t take your essential being with him when he goes.”

  I smiled and shook my head. What nonsense! I barely knew him.

  Yet.

  Fifteen

  Catch a tiger by

  The tail if you must. But be

  Quite sure you are quick!

  I was tired, but sleep eluded me, so I got up very early, before even the maids had risen to light the fires and prepare tea. I heard them, after a while. Listened to them laugh and chat amongst themselves. Sometime later, I heard voices in the hall and understood that Auntie and the boys were leaving the tea house.

  Last night, it had seemed the simplest thing in the world. All I had to do was slip into the garden, stroll across the short space that separated the Green Tea House from the Hidden House, tap on the door, and step into Seemon’s arms. But as night fell into my room, my doubts and fears had grown along with the shadows.

  What if one of the other geisha decided to come into the garden with me, to sit in the sun? What if Big—or the gods save me, Bigger—noticed me going into the Hidden House? What if Auntie saw me and wanted to know what I was doing, where I was going? Oh, it was all impossible. I couldn’t do it. I didn’t dare. My hopes curled and died before they could even see the light of day.

  The knowledge that Auntie and the boys had gone out made me feel a little better. I got up and dressed, wandering around the tea house in bare feet like a silent ghost.

  All the other geisha were still deeply asleep. Tamayu was snoring; she always denied that she snored, but she did. Ren was silent. I dared to slide her door open a fraction and sighed with relief as I saw she was curled up in her futon, deep in her dreams. I hovered outside Saki’s door for a long time, listening carefully. Eventually, I heard the whisper of her breath and relaxed.

  “Do not wake the other geisha.” I caught one of the maids hovering in the corridor, obviously wondering if she should take tea in or wait awhile. “We were very late to bed last night. Let them sleep.”

  And that was it. I had nothing left to fear.

  Still, I hesitated.

  I opened the door into the garden and stared across at the Hidden House door. Just like the tea house, the other place presented a closed face to the early sun. The shadows told me that the morning was barely awake. Was Seemon waiting for me behind that closed door? Waiting and wondering why I didn’t go to him?

  A bird—a dowdy little thing with nothing to recommend it—landed at my feet. I glanced at it and then caught my breath as it began to sing. The liquid notes flowed out effortlessly, soaring in their beauty. I glanced around, expecting to find that i
t was singing to attract a mate, but there was nothing. The bird finished its song abruptly, ruffled its feathers, and then flew off, only to land on a shrub halfway across the garden. I was sure it was glancing back at me.

  Whether it was or not, I made my mind up.

  I stepped cautiously into the garden, not daring to look behind me. Another step, and then another, and I was next to the bird. I raised my eyebrows at him. In response, he took flight and soared over the garden wall. Very well. If he could fly, then so could I! I covered the rest of the garden at a swift trot. I tapped on the Hidden House door before I could think about hesitating.

  The door opened at once. Seemon stepped aside, inviting me in silently. I moved so quickly I knocked into him in my hurry.

  “You came. I was beginning to worry.”

  “Close the door, please!” I was hopping from foot to foot. “Are any of the geisha up yet? Did anybody see you come in here? Where are we going?”

  Seemon smiled and laid his fingers on my lips. “Shush, little one. Nobody will see us. Come.”

  He turned and walked down the corridor, away from the room I had already seen. The layout was similar to the tea house, so I guessed we were going toward the kitchen. Were we going to slide out through a back door? I was very pleased and urged him silently to hurry.

  But I was wrong.

  Instead of going into the kitchen, he pulled a screen aside and led me into a large, very richly furnished room. A futon was laid on the floor but had clearly not been slept on. I was appalled. We were going to stay here, in what was obviously somebody’s room?

  “Here?”

  He shook his head and tugged me across the room. He halted at the wall and pushed a strut in the screen. A section of the wall slid aside and he pulled me through, immediately closing the door behind him.