Mizu has bruised the pride and ego of many a small, weak man. They were not nearly so hurt as they would be if they knew she is a woman, only Mikio's known that, but her status as a half-breed was enough for Taigen to lose his honor and, she suspects, get kicked out of his dojo. The ridiculousness of that is something else, given everyone in the dojo lost to her, but the point stands. Mizu is not supposed to be as good a swordsman as she is. As a wife, she shouldn't be one at all. Except Mikio wanted, he said he wanted, to see her for who she truly is, not how her mother wants her to be. He didn't expect her to be better than him, not someone who taught herself and never had a master, not a mixed breed, not a woman, certainly not all of those things together. Mizu didn't expect him to reject her, not when they built so much between the two of them over such a long period of time.
They were both fools.
"He chose the far fetched hope that giving Kai to his lord would restore his honor over what we had, what we were," Mizu says firmly and without forgiveness. He could have never given her Kai. He could have chosen that from the beginning, and Mizu wouldn't have held it against him. It's only because he chose her before and that he called her a monster that it hurts so much. That she doesn't forgive it.
It isn't even the worst part of that day. Mizu leans against Vergil and lets him hold her and takes comfort in finding something better. She's not sure she'd ever talk about Mikio and those days without that.
"There was little time to consider the issue, however, because no sooner had my mother informed me of this fact than the sound of multiple hoof beats came from outside. I did not wish to give myself away by bringing my sword, should it not concern my identity, so I tucked a kitchen knife into my obi and went out to meet them. The men immediately dismantled and approached me with weapons. I asked them what white devil they served—I've never found out who placed the price on my head—but they only pointed me out as the devil present."
Mizu pauses and sighs. There's only two ways those men could learn of her existence at that location: her mother or Mikio. She didn't need to hear more to know that, but everyone loves to injure a demon like her. Everyone in Japan, at least.
"They told me someone turned me in for the bounty. It was drawing toward a fight when I heard Mikio returned. He was on his horse, saw the scene, and left." Bitterness bleeds through those words. He not only sold her horse but left her to fight and if she were not good enough to die. "I killed them all. When it was over, Mikio returned and apologized. Said he'd been a coward and wanted to make things right between us."
Mizu scoffs. "If he'd fought them with me, if he'd said that and stood by my side, I would have forgiven him."
Except, he didn't. He was a coward through and through.
"My mother came out and accused him of betraying me. Since she was smoking opium, he asked her how she bought it and accused her of betraying me. They argued and fought, and I walked away, drenched in blood. He stabbed her and begged me for forgiveness. I threw the knife over my shoulder, just the way he'd taught me to cut a peach from a branch, to land right in his eye." Mizu's tone is cold and distant, recounting events rather than emotions. "I eventually came back for my things, to pack what supplies and money there was, and left."
It was over in a handful of minutes. So much gone so quickly once everyone showed their true selves. The sum total of her romantic experiences before Vergil.
cw: reference to racism, sexism, arranged marriages, murder
They were both fools.
"He chose the far fetched hope that giving Kai to his lord would restore his honor over what we had, what we were," Mizu says firmly and without forgiveness. He could have never given her Kai. He could have chosen that from the beginning, and Mizu wouldn't have held it against him. It's only because he chose her before and that he called her a monster that it hurts so much. That she doesn't forgive it.
It isn't even the worst part of that day. Mizu leans against Vergil and lets him hold her and takes comfort in finding something better. She's not sure she'd ever talk about Mikio and those days without that.
"There was little time to consider the issue, however, because no sooner had my mother informed me of this fact than the sound of multiple hoof beats came from outside. I did not wish to give myself away by bringing my sword, should it not concern my identity, so I tucked a kitchen knife into my obi and went out to meet them. The men immediately dismantled and approached me with weapons. I asked them what white devil they served—I've never found out who placed the price on my head—but they only pointed me out as the devil present."
Mizu pauses and sighs. There's only two ways those men could learn of her existence at that location: her mother or Mikio. She didn't need to hear more to know that, but everyone loves to injure a demon like her. Everyone in Japan, at least.
"They told me someone turned me in for the bounty. It was drawing toward a fight when I heard Mikio returned. He was on his horse, saw the scene, and left." Bitterness bleeds through those words. He not only sold her horse but left her to fight and if she were not good enough to die. "I killed them all. When it was over, Mikio returned and apologized. Said he'd been a coward and wanted to make things right between us."
Mizu scoffs. "If he'd fought them with me, if he'd said that and stood by my side, I would have forgiven him."
Except, he didn't. He was a coward through and through.
"My mother came out and accused him of betraying me. Since she was smoking opium, he asked her how she bought it and accused her of betraying me. They argued and fought, and I walked away, drenched in blood. He stabbed her and begged me for forgiveness. I threw the knife over my shoulder, just the way he'd taught me to cut a peach from a branch, to land right in his eye." Mizu's tone is cold and distant, recounting events rather than emotions. "I eventually came back for my things, to pack what supplies and money there was, and left."
It was over in a handful of minutes. So much gone so quickly once everyone showed their true selves. The sum total of her romantic experiences before Vergil.