The golden ornament

The golden ornament

Not far from their Japanese style pension there was a second hand shop which sold typical geisha dresses and garments. Linda with her nose glued to the window kept saying to her mother

"I want that golden ornament!"

"You've already bought a lot of stuff in Shijuku yesterday during our trip!"

"But I want it! It says 'buy me, you'll be beautiful'!" wailed Linda.

"You're already beautiful without it, honey"

"Yes, exactly what the boys say in school!"

"Don't mind them right now!" laughed the mother.

Linda was upset because she absolutely wanted that ornament. The golden stick ending in a goldfish shape was irresistible. She spent hours glued to the shop window. She just wanted it and even stopped to eat. She became even more obedient than she already was, just to have her ornament. In her mind it was already her property! Her mother just couldn't stand it anymore and considering she had no reason not to, she decided to buy her ornament.

It was in Kyoto that everything happened, in the historic heart of the city that cannot be said to be as modern as Tokyo is. Although you could find some modern hits everything was wrapped up with an ancient solemn mysticism that made you lose the sense of the reality.

"Oh that is really a good deal, ma'am!" said the vendor. He seemed almost relieved to be getting rid of the item. "It belonged, as the little sign says, to the great Geisha Rokujo. She was already famous at thirteen".

That was the end of the conversation. He didn't seem willing to add anything more. Linda was really happy now. She seemed satisfied, she felt more self confident too.

From that evening she didn't take off the geisha ornament from her dark red hair. She spent a huge part of the day just staring at her image in the mirror. And after a couple of days nobody could persuade her to move from her reflection. Her mum started worrying again, she heard her muttering something in front of the mirror

"I'm wonderful! There is no other girl as good-looking as me! They'll eat their words back! The fools!"

Linda also started to send back the dishes untouched.

Her mother was worried more and more as the days passed by. She heard her saying weird things, like

"They thought I was just one of the failed maiko serving geisha! But they were wrong. I'm already the best geisha in Kyoto! And I'll soon be presented to court!"

She seemed to have a kind of dark veil on her eyes. They seemed to stare afar. A place and a time that nobody could reach.

Linda's mother was quite sure that everything was due to the ornament she was wearing. She always heard about Japanese traditions and superstitions and how the Japanese, even nowadays, can live hand in hand with the old folklore! She also tried to sneak in Linda's bedroom, now she absolutely required one for herself only, to try in the darkness to take the ornament off her hair. It was then that a shadow even darker than the night itself overwhelmed her. She didn't know what it was but felt an awful pressure on her chest like she couldn't breathe anymore.

She withdrew her hand from her daughter's head and at the same time with her pale fingers, the dark shadow withdrew itself. She could breathe again and closed the sandy coloured sliding paper door.

She decided then, to go to the shop again and ask for explanations.

The owner of the place apparently wasn't there and the girl left in the shop spoke only Japanese. Linda's mother didn't know what to do. She just wandered around the old Kyoto, through geisha quarters, until she ended up in a small cemetery. Even in death Japanese were all the same and tidy. All those thin gravestones gave the idea of a wide stone forest from where a thin fluffy smoke strings were rising here and there in the blue evening sky.

There was an old lady not far from there, washing a gravestone throwing gently some water with a wooden pipe shaped scoop.

Linda's mother followed her for no specific reason. She just felt the figure of the lady with her white hair tied on a big bump so reassuring.

Only after she realized she was in a temple. Everything was made of wood painted in gold, white and red. A gigantic Buddha statue was in the middle. The place was dark but not scary.

Suddenly she heard a voice talking in Japanese. It was a young priest addressing her. She just knew the words necessary to tell him she didn't understand him. He knew a bit of English so he was able to talk to her. He was well informed about Kyoto history, traditions and folklore. He gave her the bad news she feared.

She asked if he knew who Rokujo was. He said that Rokujo was sadly famous in Heian period for both her beauty and for her story.

She was sold to a tea house when she was only five and completed her geisha training surprisingly fast, becoming the most well known and requested geisha in all the banquets, at only 13. It was said that even the emperor wanted to enjoy her services. She was due to serve at court at the end of the year. But two weeks before, she was found dead on the bank of a river. Her favourite ornament, with the goldfish at the end, stuck in her breast.

"Oh my god" shrieked Linda's mother "It's the very same ornament I bought for my daughter"

"But it couldn't be the same ma'am" said smiling the priest.

"I don't know, but ever since she wore it she behaved strangely and she speaks in front of the mirror continuously. She's not herself anymore!" and started to cry, face in her hands.

After few minutes of silence the priest, with a grave tone, said

"I'm afraid that if it is what I'm thinking it is, we should fulfil Rokujo's will before her spirit could permanently damage your daughter. Only then will she be free from her!"

"And do you really think I can go to the emperor and say that my daughter is possessed by the spirit of a geisha who was supposed to serve his ancestors centuries ago?" she gave a faint smile for the nonsense she just spoke.

"No, but you can fool her! I know you'll find a way"

That wasn't a great help for the poor mother but she solved to go back to the pension and try to find a way to sort everything out.

She stepped behind Linda's door and kneeled on the wooden floor that gave on the inner garden.

"Linda it's your mother, I'm coming in"

"You're not allowed in, woman! You picked the wrong room"

There was a thick silence for a while and then she tried again

"Lady Rokujo I'm here to bring you to the palace. May I help you?"

"No, wait me at the entrance and call a rickshaw."

The important and cold voice coming from across the paper door wasn't her daughter's anymore.

She was lucky enough that, in the historic part of Kyoto, the time seemed frozen. She called a rickshaw and gave the driver the instructions.

Linda appeared on the threshold. She was absolutely beautiful. Her mother didn't know where she managed to get that rich kimono. It was night blue with a sunset scene painted on the bottom, an orange obi was fastened around her waist. Her ornament was keeping her hair up. She was glorious.

For a brief moment the mother felt proud of her gorgeous daughter. Then she realized she wasn't Linda anymore.

They took the rickshaw and headed to their destination. They took the street that ran beside the river.

Linda shivered

"Is everything all right?" asked the mother and without waiting for an answer she just pushed her out of the rickshaw. The driver immediately stopped shouting something the lady didn't understand.

She jumped on the street, following the daughter, who landed heavily on the grassy bank below.

As a result of the impact the ornament came out of her hair, now spread around her head like a peacock tail.

The setting sun rendered the sky pink and orange. And some of the childish colour began appearing again on Linda's cheeks. She was alive and now fast asleep. Her mother left her place beside her just for just a few seconds.

She reached for the ornament and smashed it with her foot.

"You're free now from all your vanity" she believed she heard a wailing from the broken golden object.