Wisteria by MissTeak

An unexpected encounter

Standard disclaimers apply.

A/N: A new story from MissTeak! Unlike "Love after Loss", which takes place in a modern setting and is closer to our hearts, this is MissTeak's first long story which takes place in the feudal era setting. It takes place mainly in a geisha house, and I've researched on the geisha history and information quite extensively for this story. A maiko is an apprentice geisha, who has yet to undergo the mizuage ceremony to become a full-fledged geisha.

Kagome, after the battle with Naraku which killed Inuyasha, was supposed to return to the modern time. Miroku and Sango had settled down happily, and Shippo was adopted by his fox demon relatives, leaving Kagome with the clear option to return home. However, just as she was a few steps from the well, a gust of sweet scent swept by, before she felt herself falling, falling into a deep slumber...

Title: Wisteria

Chapter One: An unexpected encounter

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She ran and ran, her smooth cotton socks and heavy kimono preventing her from sprinting on the freshly polished wood, while she could still hear the heavier and much faster footsteps pounding behind her. Her mouth was dry, and her heart beating at a frenzied pace, while she willed herself to continue running, and hopefully, be successful in hiding from him.

She hoped he could not catch up with her. If he did, she would be, undoubtedly, suffering the same fate as many of the other maikos before her.

Unfortunately the bear demon seemed intent on having her for himself, from his relentless chase despite that clumsy, enormous bulk. Lord Kumano was widely notorious for this – he would always visit their geisha house in the Western Gion quarter after his hunting trips, paying extravagant amounts of gold for the company of the maikos.

His pedophilic streak, which led to a lack of interest in the matured, elegant geisha, was the reason behind the brutal deflowering and maniacal sexual abuse of some young, inexperienced maiko. It was agonizing to hear the helpless screams and begging from the chamber he booked every time he came, and she could silently pray that he did not call on her.

But unfortunately for Kagome, her most dreaded fear came true. Lord Kumano, who's heard of the young maiko who has been with the geisha house for slightly more than a year, had expressed his interest in her. No one would deny gold when it was presented so readily, and Kagome was brought almost immediately into the suite by their oka, who was the manager of the maikos.

She would have gasped in shock at his ugliness, if it wasn't for the fact that she had heard all about this horrible patron from another maiko, Suiren. Thinking about her friend never failed to send tears to Kagome's eyes...she could never forget the sight of Suiren lying unconscious in a small pool of her own blood from between her legs, with her kimono undone, luscious long hair disheveled and slender hands bound tightly with a thick rope. The poor girl was never the same again after this brutal assault, and had to be sent away from the geisha house eventually.

Lord Kumano was definitely humanoid in his appearance like most of the high ranking, aristocratic demons, yet his face still held a feral, hungry look like that of a wild grizzly bear. Thick, coarse brown fur covered those enormouss bulging arms, while a wide mouth which never seemed to be able to close fully would reveal razor sharp fangs, striking fear in the hearts of those who lay eyes upon him. His hair was long, but it was not silky or whatsoever. It resembled an unruly bush of yellowish white tangles. He was built like a warrior indeed, but he was not an elegant warrior – he reminded Kagome of a savage.

True to that impression, he acted like a savage as well. Talking with a booming voice, highly boisterous, dangerously strong and indulging in wine, meat and lust...that was the package that was Lord Kumano.

She could feel his eyes, revealing a carnal hunger, fixed on her as she stepped daintily into the room, her feet shuffling softly against the tatami. It was difficult to even walk elegantly, for nervousness was gripping at Kagome so strongly, and her hands were trembling despite herself. All she could think of then was Suiren, and the high possibility of herself being violated in the very same, or if not, more perverse manner that night.

Is that what sex is supposed to be? So very violent and brutal? Kagome was from the modern Tokyo, and sex was not uncommonly heard about among her peers. But still, hearing about it and experiencing it were two completely different issues, and Kagome could not fight the fear mounting in her.

A few other males in the room, undoubtedly the Lord's generals, were also turning their full attention to her, some waggling their eyebrows suggestively at each other before snickering. Kagome felt fear. What if Kumano was not the only one who wanted to have his way with her? Was this the way she would lose her virginity – by being violated by at least 8 men?

Maiko patrons would not usually touch the girls sexually before they were ready to become a full-fledged geisha through the deflowering ritual, known as the mizuage. For this, Kagome could only curse the money-minded people of the geisha house. For the sake of money, they could betray their conscience and the rules of the geisha world by allowing Kumano to simply demand for any girl he fancied, and violate them way before it was their time for maturation into a geisha. Kumano was not even her patron. Kagome, being new, had not been claimed by any regular patron yet.

Swallowing discreetly, Kagome knelt down on the fresh tatami mats, before running her slender fingers over the taut strings of the Japanese koto placed in front of her. She could still feel their eyes on her; it was the same feeling that emerged in her whenever she watched documentary films with lions hunting a helpless baby gazelle. Vunerable, exposed...those were the words.

The familiar music started, while she reminded herself to focus on the task at hand, playing the music piece which she had practiced for countless days and nights. She remembered the teachings of her oka that work and clients always came first, and as a maiko, her priority was in entertaining her clients, making them as happy as she could with her skills.

Melodiously, her koto sang as Kagome plucked its strings, but it wasn't before long when she let out a surprised shriek and the music was cut off abruptly with a loud 'twang' which signified the breaking of one of the koto strings.

Kumano had shoved the entire koto aside in his eagerness to get to her, before wrapping his beefy arms around Kagome and pulling her to press against himself. "What a beautiful maiko-chan...why haven't you addressed me?"

His breath smelled rancid from the close proximity, causing her to shrink back to avoid the putrid odor, while stammering meekly in what she thought was a submissive and sweet voice. There was simply no other option but to obey, for she could feel sharp claws pressing against her back through the fabric.

"O-Onii..." (Meaning 'big brother', which was how the girls addressed their patrons)

"Isn't your voice sweet...the fresh scent of the wisteria from you is simply intoxicating, dearest Fuji-chan..."

Fuji, the Japanese name of the wisteria flower, was Kagome's given name in the geisha house, Hanaka. All the girls at Hanaka were named after flowers, just like Kagome was Fuji the wisteria and Suiren was the water lily.

"Thank you for the compliment, Lord Kumano...Fuji is highly flattered by your kind words...now, if only you would let me get back to playing for yo-" Kagome tried to inch out of his grasp, moving towards the discarded music instrument. Escape subtlety, she told herself.

"No, Fuji-chan...I can think of so many more exciting things to do with you..."

Before Kagome could react properly to that blatantly hinting sentence, the pudgy bear demon paws were already moving frantically over her beautifully embroidered kimono, trying to reach for the intricately tied obi at Kagome's back. She started struggling for all she was worth, trying to wriggle her way out of his clumsy grip.

Scared to death and desperate for escape, Kagome did the first thing she thought of. Gritting her teeth and mustering all the strength she had in her, she pushed the heavy groping hands off her, before sprinting to the sliding shoji as quickly as she could and running down the polished corridor. It was now or never – either she escaped, or she would have to suffer what Suiren and some other unfortunate girls did. Kagome was still a modern girl underneath it all, and she was a fighter.

So she ran aimlessly, just hoping to throw the bear demon off as she turned corners which she hoped he would be unfamiliar with. If only her bow and arrow was with her...she would have purified him in an instant. Running past rooms with joyous laughter and music ringing from the interior made her envious; why was she so unlucky as to have to entertain Lord Kumano?

The tightly bound kimono prevented her from taking big strides, and Kagome felt fear gripping her when she sensed the reverberations in the wood underneath her feet from behind her. Kumano was still hot on her heels, and there was nothing she could do about it. The fear was threatening to cut off her ability to think clearly, and in her mind, the mental image of a rabbit being torn apart by a raging bear was all she could conjure. Kumano was definitely angry, hungry and fully capable of destroying her.

The weight of the wig was adding a pressure to her back as she ran, while the hairpins in her hair swung back and forth rhythmically with her pace. A trickle of perspiration ran down the side of her face, while she bit her lower lip and run on with another burst of strength called forth by fear. She would be punished severely for running away from a client like this, but Kagome could not care less. Anything, even death, would be better than having Kumano violate and break her.

She could still hear him, calling out her name 'Fuji' from behind her. She was really stupid to have chosen to run...demons could easily outrun her anytime. Shippo could beat her at sprinting sometimes, not to say a full-fledged bear demon warrior like Kumano. Casting a frightful glance over her shoulder, Kagome saw nothing, before she shrieked once again as she collided heavily with a firm, tall figure, falling backwards onto her bottom unceremoniously with a loud thud.

All she could see was a flash of white before her fall, and in her fear clouded mind, Kagome heard a familiar voice from her position at the person's feet.

A voice that could only belong to him.

"Are you alright?"

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To be continued...

A/N: I would like to emphasize one point here, which is the common misunderstanding of geishas being prostitutes. They do provide sexual favors if they have to, but the geisha house is not a brothel and the girls are definitely not prostitutes. If they sell anything, it would have to be their skills in dancing, music and entertainment, but not their bodies.

Anyway, hope you guys enjoyed this new chapter! Please do tell me what you think about it! Thank you for reviewing "Love after Loss" as well!