They began walking toward home, Gilly swinging the closed umbrella along beside her. The drops of water felt good on her face, refreshing and cold. She thought it was a beautiful day after all and wondered what was for dinner.
“How is your new school year? I was sorry to miss your first day of school,” Tenshio asked, after a bit.
“Your father was there.”
“Are you enjoying being a senior?”
“Well, yes, but…” Gilly paused, her mind racing. She’d been wondering about this for some time, but had been too afraid of the answer to ask it. "We never discussed where I would take my two year apprenticeship,” she reminded him, at last.
“Did you have some place in mind?”
“Did you?” She looked up at him, an unspoken hope in her eyes.
“I had been considering Minami City,” he said calmly. “I heard from Master Yuudai that Miss Aiko will be apprenticing herself there. I thought you might like to be near her.”
“Miniami City?” Gilly said, horrified. “That far away?”
“It’s not that far,” Tenshio objected. “I thought you would like to go there. You’ve visited there often, and are close to Aiko’s family.”
“Do you want me to go there?” she asked.
“That choice is yours to make,” he said, looking down at her puzzlement. “If you did, it would be perfectly suitable.”
Her heart sunk at this second disappointment. “Well, if you think it would be the most suitable thing,” she said, discouraged.
“Gilly, if you had some other plan in mind, you can certainly pursue that,” Tenshio said, wondering why she looked so cast down. “Please tell me, if you do.”
“It doesn’t matter. I’ll just go to Minami city.”
“Gillian,” said Tenshio, standing still on the path. They stood at the out edge of his father’s garden, looking bedraggled by the rain and the ravages of autumn. “It does matter, if you wish to do something else. Did you have some other plan in mind?”
“No!” Gilly said firmly. “I didn’t.”
He looked at her suspiciously, knowing that she was hiding something from him. However, she was clearly unwilling to talk to him about it. He felt a strange reluctance to pry, as he looked down at her. She wasn’t a child anymore; she had a right to keep her own counsel.
“There is no need to decide until winter break,” Tenshio said at last. “So we will not make any concrete plans until then.”
“Very well, Master Tenshio,” she murmured.
He looked at her, his expression concerned. “Do you remember what I said to you when I returned from the Ishii no Torii?” he asked.
“Well, yes,” Gilly said in amazement, her heart beginning to pound.
“The Eiheisama did not tell me exactly what role you would have to play in the fate of the Spirit Realm, only that it would be vital. I can’t help but think, Gilly, with all this disturbance, that your role might come sooner rather than later.”
“Oh,” breathed Gilly, trying to manage her disappointment. That was not exactly the part of that conversation that she remembered best.
“I wish I knew more, so that I could better prepare you,” Tenshio said, half to himself. He looked at her; her face looked a little pale to him. “Please don’t worry, Gilly,” he said kindly, putting his hand on her shoulder. “It is in the hands of the Sacred Realm.”
“Yes, Master Tenshio,” Gilly said softly, her head down.
