Chapter One: The end of spring.

Part 1 

"Ah..... Im finally done writing.......but...."

Seated at his writing table, Fujiwara no Tos.h.i.+tsugu looked up from his scroll, brush in hand. Despite his hard work, the small mountain of scrolls stacked at the end of his table did not seem to grow smaller. He sighed and rubbed his already sore shoulder, muttering under his breath. 

"Sigh... one missing apprentice... days of extra work."

Under his apprentices.h.i.+p, Abe no Masahiro entered the Bureau of Onmyō last summer. Before then, paper work had been handled evenly by those at the bureau. Usually, whoever notice paperwork piling up handled it. There was no dedicated person or position that was devoted to paperwork. So when the apprentices.h.i.+p began, these tasks naturally fell to Masahiro, so that the others could focus on their own tasks. In the fall of last year, Masahiro went on leave for over a month, causing a ma.s.sive backlog of work that fell to Tos.h.i.+tsugu. Now as Masahiro's work load increased, his absence led to even greater mounds of work for Tos.h.i.+tsugu and the others. 

Tos.h.i.+tsugu put down his brush and took a deep breath. "We've all gotten too used with having this apprentice around. "

With the arrival of an apprentice whose sole job was paperwork, the others came to gradually recognize that paperwork was not their job, and slowly this awareness pervaded the bureau. But should this person be absent, his work fell on the others, and annoying burden that distracted them from their already busy schedules. Complaints echoed through the department, "It's all because of that Masahiro and his far too frequent extended leaves." But really, there was nothing to say. Masahiro was away in Izumo on official business. 

Tos.h.i.+tsugu took issue with these complaints, it was wrong to blame Masahiro. Although he was small, weak and frequently ill, he worked with a cheery efficiency that has yet to be matched by anyone in the bureau. He was really not at fault for his absences, and shouldn't be blamed for them. 

Although Tos.h.i.+tsugu had, in the past, reprimanded Masahiro for his frequent absences, his feelings for the boy warmed up after he took great steps to clean up his act; working harder, longer and really allowing his dedication to show. It was rewarding to see the young apprentice developed the work ethic worthy of an onmyouji. 

"Though... truth be told... Masahiro was probably present on the mission to merely observe. Lord Narachika will be sure to take care of things....."  

Tos.h.i.+tsugu wrinkled his brow and muttered. 

Tos.h.i.+tsugu's quiet revere was interrupted as the astrologer Abe no Masachika pa.s.sed by his doorway. 

"Ah... Most respected onmyouji, your features are quite troubled. Is something the matter? " 

Masachika inquired as he stopped just short of the threshold. 

Startled out of his revere, Tos.h.i.+tsugu hurriedly composed himself, staring at Masachika's cheery face. 

"Ah! ... It's.... oh... it's nothing...." 

Tos.h.i.+tsugu bewilderedly answered, unsure if he should go into the details. 

Reaching a decision he answered, " Well, I've been a little out of practice, and am a little unused to paperwork. I was just reminiscing to the days when I was a mere apprentice and paperwork had been my sole responsibility."

Tos.h.i.+tsugu felt a little uncomfortable about lying, but there was no need to go into some lengthy discussion about Masahiro's absences.... still he felt a little guilt.  

Tos.h.i.+tsugu is an onmyouji, he worked at the bureau of Onmyō  and had taken the oath of the onmyouji. "Thou shalt not mislead" weighed heavily on his heart, and he had always been careful to keep his speech free of falsehoods and fabrications.

Masachika simply nodded and replied with a smile 

" Ah... so that's it...... Sometimes, I also reminisce of the days in which I was first inducted and was a.s.signed with all manners of errands and paper work. It is surprising that you share these experiences."

"Is it really surprising? " 

Tos.h.i.+tsugu answered with some hesitance. Masachika tilted his head in response. 

The astrologer Abe no Yos.h.i.+masa has three sons. The firstborn was Narachika the Onmyouji, the second son was no other than Masachika the astrologer who stood before him. The third son, was the currently absent apprentice, Abe no Masahiro. 

Compared to his boisterous, valiant eldest brother Narachika, who was always in the spotlight, Masachika gave off a sense of calm observant stability. This was especially apparent when he was stargazing, quietly observing the distant lights for hours on end, just like his father.     

For the Abe family, who had chosen the path of the Onmyo as their livelihood, nearly all members had strong capabilities in their respective fields. There were very few exceptions. The fact that the house of Abe was headed by the famed Abe no Seimei was already a step up above others in the same field. Tos.h.i.+tsugu furrowed his brow as he thought of the faces of the Abe family. It was true that Masahiro had impressive abilities. He had a decent Kenki ability, was a hard worker, and had been named as a heir by Seimei himself. However, his actual ability was still miles away from that of Narachika and Masachika.... and if he did manage to surpa.s.s them in skill, there was still Abe no Seimei himself, who would be hard pressed to budge from his throne.

Though it was not his concern, Tos.h.i.+tsugu couldnt help but feel a little daunted by Masahiro's struggle. 

"Ah yes, there's another thing. We received a letter yesterday from the Abe brothers in Izumo. Things are settling down over there and with luck, they should arrive back in early May. " 

Masachika broke into his thoughts.

"Really? That's fast." 

And indeed it was, with the original plans, they would not be able to return until at least the end of May.

"Well, the full details will come out after they've returned, but I guess their mission is complete and they are set to return early." 

Masachika nodded, failing to notice Tos.h.i.+tsugu's sigh of relief at the news. 

"I see... so I suppose that means that they have safely completed the mission and have set foot on the return home."

Uneasiness flashed across Masachika's expression at Tos.h.i.+tsugu words, an fleeting darkness that hinted that all was not well. But it was quickly gone again, replaced by his usual cheery visage. 

"...uh.... yes... they are safe and on their way home." 

Tos.h.i.+tsugu seemed oblivious to the worry in his words.  

"If it had been Masahiro alone, I would have been worried. But he is accompanied by Lord Narachika, so my heart is at ease. They are returning in May you say?  I am glad."

Tos.h.i.+tsugu was definitely looking forward to Masahiro's return, the backlog of work was so great that if he was gone any longer, there might be mutiny among the ranks. 

"I apologize for the inconvenience that his absence has caused. Please continue looking after Masahiro when he returns." 

"Ah, please don't worry. It is our duty." Tos.h.i.+tsugu nodded vigoriously at these words and smiled. As he looked up at Masachika, he noticed for the first time, a strange lingering uneasiness to his expression.  

Was everything really alright?