ce she earned the income by which we all lived. And being an empress she would have been very

om the moment I began taking lessons at the school, the most junior cocoon in our okiya was me. Long before midnight, Pumpkin and the two elderly maids were sound asleep on their futons only a meter or so away on the wood floor of the entrance hall; but I had to go on kneeling there, struggling to stay awake until sometimes as late as two o'clock in the morning. Granny's room was nearby, and she slept with her light on and her door opened a crack. The bar of light that fell across my empty futon made me think of a day, not long before Satsu and I were taken away from our

But when the interior door opened, I was surprised to see a man, wearing a traditional, loose-fitting workman's jacket tied shut at the hip and a pair of peasant trousers-though he didn't look at all like a workman

," he said to me in a low

I was frightened of answering him, but I managed to say my name, and then he moistened a fi

ur okiya, answering that telephone to book Hatsu-momo's engagements, sometimes for banquets or parties six months to a year in advance. Usually Hatsumomo's schedule didn't fill up completely until the morning before, and calls continued through the evening from teahouses whose customer

switchboard operator. She had to be connected with several teahouses before she at last located Hatsumomo and left a message tha

s' room, so I made up my mind to say nothing to anyone. This turned out to be a good thing, bec

t if you ever mention that a man came here, or even that I

d her. I heard a short muffled conversation, and then the okiya was silent. Occasionally I thought I heard a soft whimper or a groan, but the sounds were so quiet, I couldn't be sure. I won't say I knew just what they wer

hat Hatsumomo was doing; and it's a measure of how much power she had over us that no one spoke a word to Mother or Auntie or Granny. Hatsumomo would certainly have been in trouble for having a boyfriend, much less for bringing him back to the okiya. The time she spent with him earned no revenue, and even took

water at the well in the courtyard, I heard the outside d

n," said a deep voice

lot of noise. I hurried into my position on my knees, and in a moment Hatsumomo was in the formal entrance hall, holding two packages wrapped in linen paper. Soon another geisha stepped in behind her, so tall

umomo. "She has a name, I think, but why do

g sister and me something to drink, why don't you?" The deep voice I'd

her friend had already made their way down to the courtyard, and were standing in wooden shoes in the dirt corridor. I could see they were very drunk, and Hatsumomo's friend had feet much too big for our little wooden shoes, so that she could hardly wa

d, and bent down to empty both glasses

r friend, but it was already too

kage, and spread out upon the walkway an exquisite kimono in different powdery shades of green, with a vine motif bearing red leaves. Really, it was a glorious silk gauze-though of summer weight, and certainly not appropriate for the f

urned to her friend again and told her, "It's time

, but when she wras able to speak, s

ne other than the geisha we both ha

re a genius. But how did

Satoka! I'm talking a

ho

etter-Than-You-Are

y goodness, it is Mameha's kimono. I can't believe I didn't

it, I heard what I thought was moaning coming up from the basement stairs. So I thought, 'It can't be! This is too much fun!' A

believe i

he theater. I knew she'd do anything to keep me from telling, so I went to her later and told her I

, pointing to the second package that la

buy with her own money,

rin. "What maid has enou

to know where it came from. Anyway, Little Miss Stup

t allowed in the store

me say anything twice tonight. I have plans for you. After

atsumomo had the power to make my life miserable

pened the door and flipped a light switch with a loud snap. I could see shelves stacked with sheets and pillows, as well as s

are up there

hey said things like Kata-Komon, ~Ro-"Stenciled Designs, Open-Weave Silk Gauze"; and Kuromontsuki, Awase-"Black-Crested Formal Robes with Inner Lining." To tell the truth, I couldn't understand all the characters at the time, but I did manage to find the case with Ha-tsumomo's name on it, on a top shelf. I had trouble taking it down, but finally I added the new kimono to the few others, also wrapped in linen paper, and replaced the case where I'd found it. Out of curiosity, I opened another of the cases very quickly and found it stacked to the top

he kimono when she refolded it. She had dribbled some water from the well onto her inkstone and was now sitting on the walkway grinding ink. When it was good and black, she dipped a brush in it and smoothed its tip ag

quered threads bunched together like a tiny cable and sewn into place. It was a part of the fabric, yet it seemed so much like an actual vine growing there, I had the feeling I could take i

t, Hatsumomo-

d to me. "Because if you make Hatsumomo tell you

do what I tell her. Write something on the f

ke the maid go back to her futon. Korin wasn't happy with the few uncertain strokes I'd made on the powdery green silk, so Hatsumomo instructed me where to mark the fabric and what sorts of marks to make. There wasn't any meaning to them; Hatsumomo was just trying in her own way to be artistic. Afterward she refolded the

pted. "We have to return the kimono, don't we?

er seen before. The embankment of the stream was stone, most of it covered with patches of moss. Along its top, the backs of the teahouses and okiya connected to form a wall. Reed screens over the windows sliced the yellow light into tiny strips that made me think of what the cook had done to a pickled radish earlier that day. I could hear the laughter of a group of men and geisha. Something very funny must have been happen

d Korin came to a sto

atsumomo said to me. "Or if Miss Perfect herself answers the door, you may give i

n steps led up into the darkness. I was trembling with fear so much, I could go no farther than ha

ss you come back down with the kimono still in your

n, amid all my fears, I couldn't help noticing how extraordinary Hatsumomo's beauty was. She may have been as cruel as a spider, but she was more lovely chewing on her fingernail than most geisha looked posing for a photograph. And the contrast with her f

the stairs, I knelt in the

e me,

ned. "Louder," said Korin.

d again, "

n the other side was no older than Satsu, but thin and nervous as a bird. I handed her the kimon

was for the geisha Mameha; I could tell because of the crisp sheets and the elegant silk cover, as well as the takamakura-"tall pillow"-just like the kind Hatsumomo used.

this way and that to catch the reflection of the light. When she caught sight of the ink marring it, she

an! Who'

glimpse of her mistress. I could see at once why Hatsumomo called Mameha "Miss Perfect." Her face was a perfect oval, just like a doll's, and as smooth and delicate-looking as a

eception room on the first floor. I felt certain they were talking about the kimono; and sure enough, the moment Hatsumomo came in from

rom Mameha and her maid

e she put ink on it, but it was too late. She must have thought it was mine! I don't know why she's hated me so

hey meant "We've waited for you!" But I had no idea what she meant by them. Actually, it was quite a clever thing

ething to do with ruining that kimono?" Ha

eha," Auntie told her. "You hate

e extremely fond of you, Auntie

havior in the okiya, even from you. I have great respect for Mameha. I don't want to hear of anything like this happening again. As for the kimono, someone has to pay for it. I don't kno

reception room and called a m

Auntie. "I don't see why she

girl should be beaten and made to repay the cost of

"I won't have your joints flaring u

were bunched up like fists. I'd been careful since coming to the okiya not to do anything that would lead to a beating. I felt hot suddenly, and the ste

bent on destroying you. There must be

ted me this way since I arrived. I

fool. If she wants to ruin your career badly enough, she'll do it

anything, Auntie

ries to help you. Already she's burdened you

tand ..." I sai

ing to cost you more money than you've ever imag

. how wi

and lessons; if you get sick, your doctor's fees. You pay all of that yourself. Why do you think Mother spends all her

the conversation I'd overheard between Mr. Tanaka and my father, and of what Mrs. Fidget had said about Satsu and me being "suitable." I'd wondered wi

," she went on. "And you'll never pay it back if you end up a fail

dn't much care how

re money into someone who might disappear at any time. That would mean the end of your lessons, and you can't be a geisha without training. Or you can make yourself unpopular with your teachers, so they

e of my hips. That's when I stopped being a geisha. And that's the reason I'm going

my situation worse. Every time my body jolted under the pole, I wailed as loudly as I dared, and pictured Ha-tsumomo's lovely face smiling down at me. When

er so grateful if you

ere I could find my sister,

was going to tell me I hadn't done enough yet, that when she thought of

atsuyo," she told me, "in the distric

ve me a little shove with her foot