Characters are not mine, appreciate comments though.
A heaven without its hell
She carefully unwraps his soiled bandages with hands adept with experience. Her brow furrows with concentration as she tries to free his wounded flesh from its woven bindings. She looks up at him and smiles as she removes the last strip and stands up to remove her own bindings. His rough hands graze her flawless back as he sends her robes pooling beneath her.
He steps into the bath and extends his hand. She takes his offering and he helps her into the cold embrace of the water. She sits, bracing her back on the wooden wall. He sits in the circle of her thighs and rests his head on her shoulder. She feels his coarse hair beneath her chin and her body erupts with the heat that contact with his body releases. She begins to scoop water up with her palm and bathe his chest as the steam begins to rise.
I remember you Shishio Makoto, the one with the somber face and the beautiful eyes. It was your eyes that made me notice you when you stepped into our parlor that day. With the high ranking officials circling us and the haze of sake and opium filling our heads. I saw you; I noticed your eyes. And as my patron led me into the evening rooms, I caught those beautiful red oceans and I smiled, a smile only meant for you.
She lets out a soft sigh as she rests her head on his back.
I remember you Yumi Komagata, the only one who offered me a smile. I remember your face as I left your patron's body laying on top of you and his blood staining your sheets. Your were but a child then, a child whore, and you were so beautiful.
The room fills with the silky smell of peaches as she lather's his hair. He looks behind him and faces her. His long fingers find themselves on the beads of green on her head and he pulls them slowly out of her hair. She shakes her brown tresses and as it falls about her she smiles.
I remember you Yumi Komagata, as you sat beside me and amused me with your happy chatter. You told me of your dreams and your hopes and I caught a glimpse of the world through your eyes. You did not mention that night you first saw me, nor the circumstances that brought about our first meeting. You were not afraid of the monster that stood before you. You were not afraid of me. I was supposed to kill you then. And as we sat there alone in the darkened room, you looked up at me and smiled once more. A last request, you said, tell me your name. I stared down at you, the moonlight wrapping your face in a gossamer veil. I was supposed to kill you then. And I could not.
She gathers her hair in a soapy bun and brushes the lather from her eyes. She takes the small vial beside her and unscrews the cap, filling the room with yet a new scent. She pours some of the oil on her hand and begins to knead his inflamed skin.
I remember you Shishio Makoto, I thought I would never see you again. You came to me that night to take my life but you did not. And I knew I was supposed to be grateful, and I was, but it wasn't enough, I knew I would never see you again and it tore me up inside. And yet there you were, in your tattered robes and silent manner. And my heart was overjoyed. And as we found ourselves once again inside that small room, you spoke to me. I began to undress and you stopped my hand. You did not wish to partake of other men's property, you said, let me hear your voice, the only thing no one else has claimed. And as I stood there looking at you, I knew. When you left me that night I knew you now owned my life and as I heard you ask for me to speak, I knew you owned my soul as well. And as I memorized every line of your handsome face I whispered, this is no other man's property but your own.
They sit together again the soapy water filling their nostrils with a scent all their own. He holds her in his arms, burying his head in the waves of bronze that flowed from her head. He lifts his hand interlaced with hers and gazes at it for a time.
I remember you Yumi Komagata, that night as I came to say goodbye. Creeping into the shadows of the sleeping evening. Thanking the gods, I did not have to see you in the arms of another man tonight. I knelt beside you, my bandages preventing me from taking every inch of you in to my memory. My body was inflamed and it almost drove me insane but it could not compare to burning I had inside. I would let the hatred consume me but I would not allow myself to take you with me. And so I am here, bidding you farewell. I move my searing lips to your forehead, touching it ever so slightly so as not to waken you. As I drew back you opened your eyes and stared at me. I held my breath, waiting for you to scream. You smile and motion for me to lie down beside you, come take your place beside me you whispered when I hesitated. And I did, and never had anything felt so much mine before. Twice I have shown you monsters, and twice you enveloped me in your embrace. I let out a long labored sigh and lost myself once more in you.
They move out of the bath and she dries him with the towels. And she begins to rub him with ointment.
I remember you Shishio Makoto, you who brought the child Soujiro to me one night as I lay in my bedchamber. I smile and I tell you I cannot keep him there, they would not let me. You tell me to gather all my belongings and I knew, that beyond my door no other breathed. I look at the boy, his wide eyes questioning me and I smile a freer smile. I ruffle his dirty hair and I plant a kiss on his forehead.
She moves the roll of bandages gently over his arm unashamed of her nakedness.
I remember you Yumi Komagata, I remember seeing you teach Soujiro how to spell his name. And you laugh as he asks you something. And I decided. This world did not suit us three. I would make it.
She helps him into his robes. He watches her as she puts on her garments, imprisoning her hair in the beads of green once more. They set out of the bath, his arm around her waist possessively and her head on his shoulder.
I know you Yumi Komagata, you have made this world bearable for me and now I will make it into a heaven for us.
I know you Shishio Makoto, I would choose a flaming hell over a heaven with all of its beautiful fields and blissful songs if it would not let me stay like this, by your side.
end
Note: I'm not very familiar with Shishio and Yumi's past but this is what I think might have happened.