世 界 中 の 芸 者
“Sana-san,” bid the Geisha.
“Hai, Hina-san?” answered the Maiko.
“Geisha world tour?”
“Geisha world tour.”
—
And so, Hina and Sana were off again to spread merriment, joy, and the beauty of the great Oyashiman culture to the poor, ugly gaijin of the world! A vibrant heritage would be shared, performances would light up the stages of the far corners of Braevos, and smiles would blossom upon the faces of those would meet.
First stop: Karoslund. The icy air bit at the geisha’s flesh, each moment of exploration to the village stinging. Almost as if the wind was cruelly whispering to them; turn back. But the strong Geisha did not. They pressed onwards. For they were protectors of their people, paragons of their culture and traditions. Their lives were forged in discipline and hardship, so that their beauty, their art, and their strength might be shared with the world.
When they finally managed to reach the village, they were kindly greeted by a few of the locals. A small child, a weirdly emotional blonde woman, and an quiet redheaded man. In this performance, Hina strummed the shamisen, her voice weaving poetry into the air, while Sana brought the tale to life through nihon buyo, a graceful fan dance that painted each word in motion. With their performance well received by the villagers, the two were off to their second stop of their world tour!
“Empty-handed
I entered the world.
Barefoot I leave it.
My coming, my going.
Two simple happenings
that got entangled.”
—
The Geisha were off once more, venturing deeper into the forest. The next stop: The Ghetto of Norland (The Lichtenwald). They moved into the heart of the village, the tavern. There, they met the faces of the kindly owner, a green oyashi devil, a half yosei.
Sana, justifiably nervous, whispered to Hina before their performance started; clearly weary of the residents and downtrodden scenery around them. A contrast from the place they had come from, verily. Hina had responded with, “It is our duty to spread happiness to the poor, idiot gaijin. And they definitely need happiness.”
After a brief pep talk, the geisha took the stage once more. This time, Hina led with her fan dance, each movement fluid, and alive. All the while, Sana gave voice to the tale, singing poetry with quiet strength.
“sound of a stream
sunlight danced on water
life wakes again”
—
[!] A colorized depiction of Hina
and Sana in the Lichtenwald, circa 2030
With another well-received performance behind them, the Geisha turned back toward Burgundy, Alba. There, they caught sight of a few Reinmar soldiers in a tavern. Still on their mission to spread joy and culture, the Geisha approached the trio. “Ohayou gozaimasu,” Sana called out, bowing in her approach. “We are GEISHA of the KOYOMACHI, here to spread our culture and HAPPINESS to you sad, poor gaijin.” Verily, was Hina’s words were well kept in Sana’s head.
Obviously, the soldiers did not take well to this. The geisha profusely apologized. Despite this, their performance art was welcomed nonetheless. In their last performance of the day, both Geisha danced Nihon Buyo whilst also preforming the ancient Oyashiman conversation poetry: Renga. Their fans were tossed in their air, and caught with expert precision. They moved so naturally and swiftly, akin to the pull and push of the waves in the water. As soft as snowfall, as elegant as the birds in the sky.
“Mist veils the mountains, a heron glides through silence, dawn in early spring.
Temple bells ring in the light, startling the plum blossoms.
Footprints in the snow have already started to soften. warmth returns too soon.
A folded fan in my sleeve still holds the scent of cedar.
I wait by the stream, listening to melting ice. old songs in the flow.
When the moon clears from the clouds, will you walk this path again?”
—
With their final performance concluded and met with applause, the geisha turned back towards the sakura blossom scenery of their homeland. The second world tour of the Koyomachi had been a success, and they were quickly making a name for themselves. All was well for the Oyashiman!