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Author Topic: ♪ Ren: The White Mask ♪  (Read 3085 times)

emptyanima

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♪ Ren: The White Mask ♪
« on: September 15, 2014, 06:56:32 AM »
Click image for portrait link.
Name: Ren Kawabata
Meaning: Water lily, River bank.
Age: 23 Yrs.
Race: Human
Geisha
Origin: Roshiya, Rokushima Taiyoo (Ravenloft Native)


"Love of beauty is taste. The creation of beauty is art." ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson

Sayuri's Theme - John Williams (Ren's Theme)
« Last Edit: January 24, 2021, 06:43:19 AM by emptyanima »

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Prologue
« Reply #1 on: September 15, 2014, 09:49:44 AM »
Prologue: The River's Source


Like the water-lily of her namesake, Ren drifted through her early years. Born on the southwestern sun island, she dwelt in Roshiya. At the age of thirteen, she possessed a face that was sure to become beautiful, and her limbs, while gangly now with the changing of the form, were those that could learn grace. Thus, in that year, Ren was sold to the okiya. Her training as a maiko soon began. What she may have been too young to comprehend, was the safety of this place. For in Rokushima Taiyoo, a place torn by civil war, the okiya had to be a welcome reprieve from the fighting, brother against brother, father against son. To be in the okiya was to be in another world, and for all her knowledge, it made Ren ignorant.

~

It would be a lie to say that the path to maiko was an easy one. Each day, Ren spent many hours learning the arts of the erudite companions. She learnt to play the shamisen, the three-stringed, thin-necked lute. It was an instrument designed to provide gentle accompaniment, and not to overpower with sound. In this way, it was similar to those who played it. She learnt their dances, symbolic of myth and legend, and performed with such precise control.

"To be a maiko, and following this, a geisha, you must be able to bring your clients into a world that does not exist. You must paint it for him. Each man who looks upon you must see you to be graceful, beautiful, accomplished. To be beloved of one client, but not another... this is insufficient."

During her formative years in the okiya, Ren would have her white mask and crimson lips applied by her onee-san. Her obi would be tied by her others, the back of her neck painted white, a small portion of her skin left untouched as the mark of maiko - it was believed to drive clients utterly wild.

Each night, they laid their heads atop wooden struts instead of pillows, that their meticulously-styled hair would not be put out of place. At the base of each strut, grains of rice were scattered. If the apprentice woke with these grains in her hair, it was clear that she had not slept gracefully enough, and still had much to learn.

There was also cha-do, the art of tea. The tea ceremony was an important part of the women's work. Tea was more than a drink of refreshment. It showed attention, devotion, and brought calm and peace to clients seeking relaxation.

~

Over the years, Ren worked hard in her training, and never rested from it a day. Through sun and snow, sickness and health, she was married to her craft. She painted her kimonos, tied her own obi. She painted her face with the white mask and crimson lips. She dressed her hair with lilies and jewels unaided. And it brought fruit. She attained the rank of maiko at the age of eighteen, and was beloved by all visitors to the okiya. When she played her shamisen, the guests watched in enraptured silence. When she sang, their hearts were lifted. When she conducted the ceremony of tea with a client, they were made to feel as though they were the most important man in the world, if only for a few moments. And when she danced...

The water-lily moved as though she did indeed float, her limbs like reeds in their natural movement. The jewels in her jet hair sounded like wind chimes, calling the spirits of the kami to watch. Her feet made barely a sound as they brushed the floor, and if her eyes met a client's, as they peered over a finely-painted fan, it was not a look the man would soon forget.

As new young girls were brought into the okiya to train, they were encouraged to be as Kawabata Ren, the lily of Roshiya. And as her name danced on the lips of their clients, her onee-san worked quietly to find her danna - a patron.

~

One night, after she had danced, Ren went to wash the mask from her face. Her onee-san found her, smiling from ear to ear.

"Ren-chan, I bring wonderful news! I have found you a patron, and he has offered a large price for your mizuage, the highest of all the offers. Your remember Seto-sama, hai?"

Ren nodded. Seto had watched her dance many times, and had been served by her on many occasions. He was a rich man, with several shujin, or princes, in his family history. A more distinguished patron would be very difficult to come by, unless it had been Yami Shinpi of the Seven Towers himself.

Over the coming week, Seto came to Ren in the okiya, and beginning at her knees, he dabbed egg-white with his fingertips on her inside leg. Ren lay, with her head on the wooden strut, her kimono untied, as each night her patron would apply the egg-white a little higher. On the last day of that week, Seto had the prize for which he had paid - the water-lily's maidenhood.

From this moment on, Ren was a maiko no longer. With this rite of passage, she had become a full-fledged geisha. Her obi was now tied in the taiko, or drum-style. No longer did she bear the maiko mark on the back of her neck. And as her patron, Seto supplied much to the okiya, which flourished with Ren as their brightest star.

~

But the river of her life began a different course, and the water-lily felt herself tugged away from Roshiya, from all of the sun islands of Rokushima Taiyoo. Tales had come to her of traders from the lands of Core, from Darkon and Dementlieu, and from the mouths of her clients she heard accounts of their barbarism and gracelessness. Goodbyes, several tearful, were shared. Ren left the okiya at Roshiya behind.

Seto paid for a boat to take her through The Way of Venomous Tears, the mistway that went from Rokushima Taiyoo and into the Sea of Sorrows. The harsh winds and storms caused the ship to veer off course, and while many survived the wreck, the few who did not dying in protection of the water-lily, they travelled on foot the rest of the way. They were eyed with suspicion, and many times they were threatened. But Ren's grace protected them, and those who watched her dance or shared tea with her soon put aside their threats.

The Core presented those who accompanied Ren with many opportunities, and one by one they broke away to pursue them. Seto was the last to leave.

"Ren-chan, will you not stay with me? You are away from the okiya, from Roshiya, from the whole of the Sun Islands. All war and bloodshed is behind. Wed me, Ren-chan, and make me the happiest man of all." Ren shook her head slowly.

"I cannot, Seto-sama. I promised before the kami to bring grace to these people. I will not turn on it now." With a heavy heart, Seto let the water-lily he had grown to love drift on, and continue the course of the river of her days. And so it was, that completely alone, and beginning to grow afraid, Ren reached what is arguably the most graceless place in all the Core.

Barovia.
« Last Edit: December 04, 2015, 04:44:08 AM by emptyanima »

emptyanima

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Notes, In Haiku.
« Reply #2 on: September 15, 2014, 10:51:11 AM »
1
Core
Land like cooking pot
Many flavours together
Not all harmonise.

2
Tsukito
His hands are broken
I mend them with white bindings
and his soul with tea.

3
Clan
Many rivers meet
I bow before you, daimyo
Others bow beside me.

4
Hunger
The young man eats fish
In a manner most horrid
Beasts better mannered.

5
Weather
Weather is strange here
Changes in the time it takes
to wave a fan once.
« Last Edit: September 15, 2014, 02:51:11 PM by emptyanima »

emptyanima

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Notes, In Haiku: II
« Reply #3 on: September 16, 2014, 08:51:56 AM »
6
Tea
Tea - a kami's kiss
that causes all sadness to
vanish in its steam.

7
Cave
Don't sit in darkness
- wolves are hiding in shadows
waiting for a meal.

8
Bee
To need help's no shame
- the honey bee cannot build
a palace alone.

9
Stream
Can't tread same stream twice
- It must make the promised trip
to meet the wide sea.

10
Patron
I made a promise
A wife serves only one man
The geisha countless.

emptyanima

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Notes, In Haiku: III
« Reply #4 on: September 18, 2014, 05:28:36 AM »
11
Luck
All falls into place
Silk streams about me, flowing
Imbued with bird kami.

12
Work
Soldiers and athletes
The best ones train every day
The same for geisha.

13
Pride
I dance for others
But I miss it so greatly
I dance for myself.

14
Community
Greater than our parts
Many rice grains fill the stomach
Better together.

15
Grace
Many can stand tall
But to glide, walk fluidly
Takes more practice.


emptyanima

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Notes, In Haiku: IV
« Reply #5 on: November 03, 2014, 09:51:36 AM »
All falls into place
Silk streams about me, flowing
Imbued with bird kami.

((Credit to RedwizardD for the beautiful artwork!))

16
Moon Man's Poem
Windswept mountain vale;
Warrior's tomb and mournful prayer,
One more spirit lost.

17
Victor
The door bursts open,
Golden armour is sprayed red,
By blood of monsters.

18
Dancer
Graceful as water,
Lightfooted as the ether,
She moves over earth.

19
Face
Eyes are soul windows,
She writhes now in discomfort,
Shamed by her face.

20
Face II
But she does not see,
That she should not feel this shame,
She is survivor.

emptyanima

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Notes, In Haiku: V
« Reply #6 on: January 18, 2015, 10:27:03 AM »
I danced The Lily for my theatre audition today, and sang of home in my own tongue. A song sung often in the okiya. A song that is a lie. My heart yearns to write of the truth. The truth of the song. The truth of my dance. The truth of Rokushima Taiyoo.


21
War
My home; okiya
You shielded me from bloodshed,
Sun Islands sundered.

22
War II
Like water lilies,
Which are scattered in the storm,
So too Roshiya.

23
War III
Brothers are at war;
The lily pond where we dwell,
O'erflows with our blood.

23
War IV
My mother sold me;
All men disregard fealty
At the geisha's door.

24
War V
It was safest
For me to serve all patrons
My face; a white mask.

25
War VI
I dance The Lily
For in it, I am myself
And my war-torn home.
« Last Edit: March 23, 2015, 07:20:20 PM by emptyanima »

emptyanima

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Notes, In Haiku: VI
« Reply #7 on: January 25, 2015, 11:58:36 AM »
26
Shinzo
Fellow countryman,
He speaks kindly and with care,
Princes should listen.

27
Ball
New council members,
I extended wishes of peace,
I've seen barricades.

28
Powder
I hid in my room,
When the sound of gunfire echoed,
Reminder of home.

29
Gai-jin
When the gai-jin came,
They did not bring us culture,
But new war weapons.

30
Hope
One day soon, I pray
Music is heard o'er battle,
Men, islands, unite.

emptyanima

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Notes, In Haiku: VII
« Reply #8 on: February 02, 2015, 06:10:53 AM »
31
Scapegoat
Poor boy is punished,
For the rich 'playmate's' rudeness,
The scapegoat from youth.

32
Scapegoat II
For if he is struck,
Forced to bear his better's pains,
What is it they learn?.

33
Scapegoat III
All poor are scapegoats,
Keeping late working hours,
Afforded no rest.

34
Scapegoat IV
And in tragedy,
Tired woman meets her end,
Is labelled careless.

35
Death Poem, for Tomas' Mother
I did not know you,
But if your son mirrors you,
The world is poorer.

emptyanima

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Notes, In Haiku: VIII
« Reply #9 on: March 22, 2015, 11:56:43 PM »

36
Messenger
Performance went well,
I brought a heartfelt message
I hope it was heard.

37
Torn I
A night of tearing,
I, Taiyo torn asunder,
The reading of cards.

38
Torn II
Puppet Mareta,
For Valenya - Conjurer,
Zidonne - the Druid.

49
Torn III
Cards -  I heed them not.
Mine, half-concealed in shadow,
A being deformed.

40
Torn IV
Called The Broken One,
My mind, my body, my soul,
It says they shall break.

41
Torn V
Fitting for the play,
But my fate is with kami,
And not in this trick.
« Last Edit: March 23, 2015, 10:25:13 AM by emptyanima »

emptyanima

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The Broken One
« Reply #10 on: March 28, 2015, 08:17:22 AM »


[This entry stands out from the others - her Rokuma lettering is shaky and broken, moving disorderly across the page.]

Each day, the lulls in memory grow longer, and when I wake, I have caused more, more pain, to myself and others.

My mind is too disordered for haiku. I am consumed by chaos.

I fight sleep because I do not wish to harm anyone.

My mind is scattered to the four winds, broken.

They say, they say it may be the cards.

Oh, how selfish I have been!

It is only now that

see just how

much people

care.

Let
 
me be

whole once more,

I've no wish to be a burden,

And I do not know, in all honesty,

Just how much more my body, my mind, my soul can bear.

The blackness. The thickness. The loss of self to a river of blood and tears.

Shinzo. Valenya. Zidonne. Zachary. Ingwulf. Musashi. Temperance. Mareta. Where would I be without your aid?

I will treasure you most highly, for I have been inward-looking. And as the sun sets on my sanity, the last thought is of the hurt I will cause you.

~~~~

The Sickness ~ What I Know

Ren - The Water Lily - The self to which I cling...


Rin - The Lonely One - The one who cries and seeks to die.


Ran - Chaos, Disturbance - The Violent War-General


Rei - The Obedient - The one who could be so easily abused.

« Last Edit: December 04, 2015, 04:46:43 AM by emptyanima »

emptyanima

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Re: ♪ Ren: The White Mask ♪
« Reply #11 on: August 26, 2016, 11:37:18 AM »
((Bump for safeguard.))