Karasu tweaked his sleeves, listening thoughtfully to the geisha’s silence, allowing it to linger. He kept his face blank, allowing his new red fox to wander into the trap of his own accord.
When the answer came, it made his lips curl into a wide smile. That can be arranged. And soon, it would be. He couldn’t wait to possess this pretty darling. More than that, he couldn’t wait to orchestrate—some day, some time—confusion, and steal the geisha away.
Oh he had plans, alright. And all of them centered around himself and his selfish needs.
The next few words were met with a lessening of his charming but twisted grin, his lips smoothing out and relaxing. “That is good,” Karasu agreed, “because I don’t beg.” He changed mindsets on the spot, from lecher to businessman. “Forgive me for beginning a business discussion in the hall; this is not a secure location. Do you have anywhere more private we might meet?”
The first shipment agreed upon was already smuggled onto Okinawa. It could be delivered at any time, and Karasu fully intended it to be. Once the payment was in his hand. Once he had secured patronage from Kurama. Then and only then would Karasu leave the sweet redheaded boy in peace.
【🌹】 —— The twist of the pirate’s pale lips, even as it lessened,
did not go unnoticed by the geisha—nothing ever did.
Bright eyes took in every subtle sign, every inward
detail of his intentions. Whatever he was planning, it
bore unpleasant consequences from both parties. Call
it nothing more than intuition, but Kurama had never yet
judged a person poorly…and this was a man that, already,
he’d decided that he could not trust. All the same, he and
the rest of the ochaya had little choice at this point.
Calmly, he removed an elegantly painted kiseru from the
sleeve of his kimono, the opposing sleeve from which
he’d retrieved the knife. Those emerald eyes wandered
aside a moment, as if in consideration before turning to
gracefully move down the hall, passing two doors before
disappearing into the room from which he’d emerged—the
same room in which he’d entertained the blind samurai.
As he walked, he spoke in hushed tones. "…Yes. This
will do. We won’t be bothered here.” Even after-hours,
a closed door within the private rooms of the ochaya
were not disturbed. Upon the wall hung two crossed
swords, in the middle of the room sat a small table meant
for tea. In the back, left-hand corner, another door lay
closed—though, this was the door that he was then led
to, through which a small bedroom was set with lavish
comfort for the guest. Clearly, the first room was meant
for a different type of entertainment than the second.
The door was opened, the room shown, but not entered.
With his kiseru now lit, he rolled the metal tip between his
lips with a gaze lying flat and blunt. "…I don’t have time
to waste. Shall we proceed? I’ll take the proof of your
delivery to my Lady, and then you shall have the prior
payments that we’ve promised. Five gold ryo…nine
silver pieces of eight. I will grant you two hours of my
time. That should suffice.” The bargain was worded with
clarity, and caution. He would not leave himself open to any
trickery by this man’s hand. Patiently, he awaited his reply.
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