Mariko walked though the hallway of the central shrine of Kinkaku-ji. Other than the faint echo of her footsteps and the soft chanting of priestesses, the hallway was completely silent. Here and there were calligraphied scrolls depicting sceneries or poetry by Matsuda's hand which covered the walls.
She stopped and knelt down behind a screen and quitely slid it open. A soft light, shining through the shoji paper screen which separated the room from the flowering gardens outside the shrine, illuminated the figure sitting in the center. The Tokoma behind her was decorated with gold colored atsumono chrysanthemums.
Mariko waited a moment to admire the view before speaking.
Risako was meditating the whole day. But her memories kept coming to disturb her.
So she used a technique passed on by an old teacher, to visualize her memories as if she's in a theatre, watching a movie in her own mind.
First, came the memory of his father, his family. The look on their faces when she decided to go study to become an engineer. When she didn't want to spend her overseeing the ploweing of fields and hauling of food. When she wanted to be herself.
The memories, and those were many, of all the atrocities she witnessed in Bretonia, of all she's been through. Of the hipocrisy in Liberty, the House named after the one thing they hat the most...
The memory of her first kill. The look on that scummy ship dealer's face when he realized he was already dying. His agony trying to cling for any resemblance of life. Risako was a very peaceful person up to this point. She neve though of killing before. But this... changed her.
She felt as if no one deserved that agony, except the men that exploit and force that same agony in Kusari, only a longer one. Living under that oppression was nothing more than a slow death. That's why she felt like that. That's why it felt powerful to fight back.
She then remembered her battle alone against a full squadron of KNF near Planet Kyushu. Her frustration affecting her aim. Her rage being the only thing that kept her alive. That and the piloting skills she accrued flying around.
Then the lights went up a bit and her mind theatre turned to a faint orange. She saw sitting next to her, Tomoyo-sensei. Hironara-sensei. Yamada-sensei. To her, they were all sisters, but also masters. They were the fisrt to really treat her as a family. Together they whatched new, memories, one that Risako is very fond of. Her trial in Tohoku. The trial of the new minarai that she was part of as escort to the Taisho-sama.
The destruction of a base abandoned by the oppressors. The expedition into unkown space. The senseis were always gentle. Their sisters were always kind. The Matriarch is balanced both in discipline and in care.
But more importantly, Cardamine and Frindship made her aim sharper, her turns quicker, her bow sharper.
For a moment that could have lasted more than an hour....... silence.
Peace.
Risako was sitting in a lotus position. Finally at peace. A smile tried to come out, but she didn't let that. The time is for sharpness.
Mariko preceeded Risako through the corridor towards the large ceremonial chamber with 15 tatami mats where Risako's Initiation would take place. She walked slowly while explaining the details of the ritual to Risako.
"Sister Mayumi, will take you through the the stages of the ritual to become a full fledged member of the Gen'an Chrysanthemum movement.
I am unsure how versed you are in the san san kudo ceremony, but ours is inspired on it. San san kudo is basicly a ceremony where people form familiar bonds between eachother. Couples use it for marriage, geisha use it to form bonds of sisterhood. During san san kudo, both participants take 3 sips of sake from 3 bowls, afterwards they will have become family. It is more complex that than ofcourse, a whole etiquette has to be followed and ritualistic gestures observed.
But like I said, ours is a modified version.
The first part will be the same as san san kudo. You will both take 3 sips of the bowl of sake from Kyushu presented to you, starting with the elder Sister. The initiate, you, will be second. It symbolises the birth of our movement when Lady Matsuda started her rebellion by trying to assassinate Kyushu's planetary ambassador.
In the second part, you will both be brought a knife. You make a cut on your thumb. This time the initiate begins and the elder Sister after. This symbolises that we shed blood with and for eachother. We fight for the same cause. We do not surrender.
And finally, you both partake in cardamine. This will be done at the same time. Cardamine is our bond and our weapon. It keeps out those who seek to infiltrate and destroy us from within.
Risako was full of adrenaline, eyes focused on her master.
"Only one, sensei. Who's going to be my elder sister? I'd be honored if it's any of our movement, but I'd be even happier if it's Ayakura-sama"
Risako pondered on the words that just came out, hoping it wasn't too rebelious of her to have a preference on her own initiation. For a moment, the whole situation seemed funny. She is expected, and ready, to put her life on the line and be disciplined, obedient, but caring, to her sisters, in an organization that is otherwise treated as terrorist, disorganized and unlawful. What they say about us out there, that couldn't be further from the truth.
As usual in Sirius, things that most men say are the opposite of what they are in reality.
She paused infront of the shoji screen which separated them from the ceremonial room on the other side.
"Ayakura Tomoyo-sama will have the honor of becoming your Elder Sister. She is already waiting for your arrival. I guess the Kami smile on you. Now do I as I do. Kneel behind the screen with me as we enter a sacred room. After I opened it, in a kneeling position move into the room and shut the screen behind you. Bow to the gathering, stand up and sit on the pillow across the table of Ayakura-sama."
She knelt behind the screen and waited until Risako took her position before sliding the shoji panel open
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