One day that changed.  She was sitting beneath a cherry tree, weaving part of the third shirt—sized for her third-youngest brother Kazuya—when she heard the unmistakable sounds of a hunting party.  She quickly scrambled into the tree, trying to reach a spot that would be well above the heads of the hunters.  If they didn’t look up, they’d never see her.

    As the hunters approached, she began to hear their voices.  From their conversation, they were samurai of a daimyo by the name of Nikkaido, which was not a name Hokuto recognized.  She was far from her father’s lands, and the name did not belong to any of the Kisaragis’ neighbors.

    When the party finally came in view, it was obvious that they were returning from a successful hunt:  two of them bore on their shoulders a pole on which a large buck was trussed.  The men were laughing and boasting; Hokuto smiled faintly, reminded of her father’s samurai doing similar things.  How she missed those times!  Her past seemed to be a fading dream, getting dimmer and dimmer with each day she spent in the wilderness.

    One of the men’s voices caught her attention, and she looked for the speaker with the soft but clear tenor voice.  He was young, probably only a few years older than herself, but his bearing was that of a noble; Hokuto realized that he must be the daimyo.  She leaned forward slightly on her unsteady perch and the branch shook slightly, the leaves hissing against one another.  The girl almost wanted to curse.  The men had to have heard that sound.

    As she had guessed, the hunters all looked up sharply at the noise, staring into the foliage of the cherry tree.  Nikkaido was the first to spot her, his eyes meeting hers through the leaves.  He smiled at her, a shy, surprised smile like a rainbow after a storm.

    “Well, what exactly do we have here?” he said in his quiet voice.  His samurai whispered among themselves.

    Hokuto shook her head and said nothing; she would not break her vow, not even for the handsome young daimyo.

    “Show respect for your daimyo, girl,” one of the men said disapprovingly.  “Answer when he speaks.”

    The girl shook her head again and tried to indicate that she could not talk.  If she pretended to be a mute, she certainly would not have to break her oath, and they would probably leave her alone.

    “You cannot talk?” Nikkaido asked curiously.  “What a strange thing!  Still, one wonders why you’re sitting in a tree, dressed in men’s clothing.  Come down and come with us to my home,  and I’ll see that you’re comfortable—although, I’d imagine that just about anything is more comfortable than a tree.”  He grinned.

    Hokuto was tempted; she was rather tired of being all alone in the forest.  Even though she wouldn’t be able to speak, it would be nice to be in human company again.  But if she left the woods, how would she find the atooshi bark to finish her shirts?  She gave the daimyo a small smile but waved her hand in polite refusal.

    “No?”  The man sighed theatrically.  “At least come down for a moment, tree-spirit, just so I can truthfully say I saw one of the kami of the forest.”  His tone was droll; Hokuto was intrigued by his clever words, and, against her better judgement, carefully climbed down from her perch to stand before him, bowing primly then standing straight, showing no fear in her posture.

    Nikkaido stared at her for a long moment, then a slow smile crept across his face.  “I wish I had the honor of your name, my lady, but I suppose it won’t come to me from your lips.  My name is Kairyuu Nikkaido, the daimyo of this area—but of course you knew that.  I…” he trailed off, still looking at her with almost frightening intensity.  “Are you sure you won’t come?  It isn’t far from here at all—my home sits in the shadow of the forest.”

    The girl tried to avoid his rapt gaze—what was wrong with him, anyway? —as she considered it.   If she could come and go as she pleased, she would be more than happy to go back to civilization, but women did not customarily wander around in the woods alone.  Taking a chance, she showed the men her rough loom and the atooshi fabric on it.

    “What…?” Kairyuu touched the fabric gently.

    “Atooshi,” one of his older samurai murmured.  “She needs the bark, I suppose?”  He looked at Hokuto for confirmation.  She nodded, glad that someone understood.

    “But what for?  She’s not Ainu…” another man wondered.

    “You want to stay in the forest to get this bark?” Kairyuu asked.  The girl nodded again.  “Well, if you came to my home, I would not hinder your going out to gather what you need.  However, I’d have to send at least one of my men with you, for safety’s sake.  The four-legged animals here may be gentle, but some of the two-legged kind are not.”

    Hokuto’s mouth twisted as she thought it over.  It sounded all well and good, but it seemed strange for some reason.  Also, the young daimyo seemed entranced; what was it about her that captured his attention so thoroughly?  Finally, though, her good sense won over.  She had been lucky that she had not been attacked, by human or animal, thus far; it would be foolish to give up such a good offer.  After a moment’s hesitation, she looked up at Kairyuu and nodded.

    His smile was like the warmth of the sun in spring.  “Marvelous.  Come along then,” he took her arm, “it is only a little farther.”

    Hokuto smiled shyly back at him as she made her return to civilization.
 
 

    Nagisa was coldly angry.  The laws of coincidence seemed to be working in a strange way.  Her brother-in-law Kairyuu had brought home a mute girl from the forest who apparently liked to weave with atooshi.  As unlikely as that combination of details was, Nagisa knew exactly what it signified.  Somehow, that flock of cranes that she had created when she was “Ayane” had found someone to break their spell, and this girl was the one.

    The woman clenched her hands into fists, frustrated.  She wouldn’t be able to do anything to the girl; Kairyuu was obviously smitten with her.  The most she could do was either try to sabotage the girl’s weaving or make her speak, and neither would be simple.  Nagisa was positive that that fool Kairyuu wanted to marry the girl, despite her inability to speak; she was very pretty—the woman would not admit that she was beautiful—and the daimyo was looking for a wife.  She was going to have to try to convince him not the marry the girl for some reason or another; then, when the man’s infatuation had worn off, she could start destroying the girl’s work, and the hopes of those six birds.

    Patience is all that it takes, Nagisa reassured herself.  Patience.
 
 

    Hokuto was quite happy in her new surroundings.  Kairyuu was very gracious, and his samurai were generally kind to her.  As a matter of fact, the only person in the household who showed her any unkindness was Kairyuu’s sister-in-law Nagisa.  For some reason the Hokuto couldn’t fathom, the woman hated her.

    Could she possibly be jealous of the girl’s beauty?  Hokuto could hardly believe it at first; men were constantly telling her how fair she was!  After living in the forest for three years, she had had little time to worry about her appearance, and it was hard for her to understand that she had grown from a somewhat gawky tomboy trapped in women’s clothing to a graceful young woman who wore men’s clothing by choice.  The comments Kairyuu and his men made often brought an embarrassed blush to her face, but she was pleased; it was nice to feel pretty and desirable.

    She was often sorely tempted to try to speak.  When she had first arrived at the house, Kairyuu had asked her if she knew how to write, but she feigned illiteracy.  She wasn’t sure that writing didn’t count as speaking; it seemed like too easy a way to get around a vow of silence.  All she could do was try to use signs and signals to indicate what she wanted to say, but it seemed to be working.  At least she didn’t have to pretend to be deaf—that would have stretched her imagination to its limits.

    Just as Kairyuu had promised, she was free to go gather atooshi whenever she wished, as long as she took one of his men with her.  Occasionally, the daimyo himself would accompany her, making her smile with ludicrous stories that he made up at the drop of a hat.  He was very charming, she decided, but what did he want with her?  That question made her more than a little nervous around the man, but still, it was a pleasant sort of nervousness, a kind of giddiness that made her light-headed.  What is this? she wondered.  Am I in love?

    Hokuto shook her head.  It was a strange thought, but…was it true?  And if so, what could she do about it?
 
 

    As it turned out, the girl really didn’t have to do anything about it.  Kairyuu solved the problem by proposing marriage to her, before his entire household, at dinner one night.  Hokuto was probably the only person who was truly surprised, but she had blushed and nodded her consent.  Everyone congratulated the newly betrothed couple, but there were a few whispers around the table.  Wasn’t she a commoner?  Where was her family to consent to the marriage—although, who would refuse an alliance with such a powerful daimyo?  Why didn’t she speak, anyway?  Was she born mute, or was it some curse?  The flurry of whispering died down when one of the samurai proposed a toast, but the questions still circulated for weeks afterwards.

    Nagisa was very displeased.  She drew Kairyuu aside one day to speak to him about his bride-to-be.

    “Why do you seek to marry this girl?” the woman asked.  “She is a commoner and an orphan, apparently.  You gain nothing by taking her to wife.”

    “I wish she had the voice to tell us about herself,” Kairyuu said, looking out a window at the garden outside.  “Look at the way she carries herself around the house—she is not some unschooled peasant.  She is of noble blood, I’m positive.  And she is beautiful, and clever.  If she had the use of words, I’m sure she’d be eloquent, and that her voice would be sweet.  There is nothing bad to be said about her.”  The man turned to look at his sister-in-law.  “It is a poorly-hidden secret that you hate her, Nagisa.  Why is that?  She can’t have done you any insult; she’s not capable of such a thing.”

    “I don’t trust her.  She does strange things—like weaving atooshi.  We’re not barbarians like the Ainu; we don’t do such things here.  What reason could she have for such a foolish thing?”

    “Whatever her reasons are, we won’t hear them from her lips.”  The daimyo sighed.  “And whatever her reasons are, you shall not disturb her.”   His voice turned cold.  “I know you’re trying as hard as you can to prevent this marriage, but give it up.  It will happen.”  With that, Kairyuu turned at left Nagisa alone by the window, flexing her fingers in aggravation.
 
 

    The couple was soon happily married, with blessings from all except Nagisa.  After a little less than a year, Hokuto gave birth to a healthy boy who she named Mitsuru.  Nagisa, seeing an opportunity to destroy the girl, waited two nights, then, while Hokuto slept soundly, took the baby away and smeared chicken blood on the girl’s face around her mouth.  Early the next morning, she entered the room as if to rouse the girl, then screamed at the sight of the blood, waking Hokuto and Kairyuu, who started violently when he saw his wife’s face.
 
    “What is the meaning of this?” he asked in a shaking voice.  Hokuto put her hand up to her face, then gasped when she felt the dried blood.

    “Where is the baby?” Nagisa gasped, looking alarmed.  She stared at Hokuto and made a sign to drive away evil.

    “The baby’s gone?” Kairyuu demanded.  “What is going on here?!”

    “Oh, this is just too horrible.”  The older woman feigned a shudder.  “I told you that…that witch was not to be trusted!”  She pointed at Hokuto, who was staring at the empty crib.  “She is a monster!  She has eaten your child!”

    “What?!”  Kairyuu looked at his wife, whose eyes were filled with tears.  She waved her hands in denial, then turned to the crib, picking up the blanket and clutching it close to her.

    “She is a monster!” Nagisa repeated.

    “No.  I cannot believe that she would ever do such a thing.  She cannot speak a word to defend herself, but that does not make her guilty.”

    “But what will the people think?”

    “I don’t particularly care what they think; I know she is innocent.  Besides, everyone besides you, Nagisa, loves her; she is the darling of the province.  No, I shall not worry what other people think…but you…Tread very carefully, sister-in-law.  The first person I would accuse of this crime is you, but I have no evidence.”  Kairyuu glared at the woman, who bristled in anger.

    “How dare you accuse me!  Do you think I would stoop so low as to steal babies?  What would I do with him, anyway?”  In reality, she had taken the baby to a peasant woman in her pay, who would care for the boy as one of her own.  Even a fox had no stomach for killing babies.  “I tried to warn you that your wife is a witch.  Now look what she has done.  It is up to you to decide what is right in this circumstance.”

    “I already know what is right:  my heart.  It tells me my wife is innocent of such a terrible deed.  Now, leave us—and if you value your life, say nothing of this.  I could not kill you, not without evidence, but I could have you sent away.  Don’t tempt me.”

    Nagisa bared her teeth in anger, but left without a word.  Kairyuu went to his wife and held her as she cried silently, mute even in her grief.
 
 

    There were many speculations about the disappearance of the daimyo’s son, but no one really suspected Hokuto of such a thing; she seemed such an innocent girl, and there was no way she could be a man-eating monster.

    Even Hokuto’s strongest supporters, however, were a little shaken when, a year later, the incident was repeated.  This time it was her new daughter Sumire that disappeared, under the same strange circumstances.  Kairyuu, however, still staunchly believed in his wife’s innocence.  Unable to say anything in her own defense, Hokuto continued to weave shirts for her brothers, a deep sadness in her eyes.  Her silent grief made Kairyuu powerfully angry at whoever had done this to them.  While he still suspected Nagisa, it was impossible to prove her guilt.  Frustrated, he swore to himself that he would never let this happen again:  their next child would be carefully guarded, and if the baby-stealer made another attempt, they would be apprehended and dealt with.  He tried to comfort Hokuto with that thought, but her pain, though grown quieter, would never go away completely; a woman never forgot a child of her body, and not knowing whether those children were alive or dead drove the girl into quiet anguish.
 
 

    Another year passed, and another child was born, a son whom the couple named Sho.  As Kairyuu had planned, a guard stood at the bedroom door every night, and nothing happened.  Whoever the kidnapper was, they had been discouraged by the sight of an armed samurai.

    It was near the end of Hokuto’s six-year silence; all but the sleeve of one shirt was finished, and her spirits seemed to lift now that she was able to hold her son.  She looked forward to being able to speak to her husband and her child, and to seeing her brothers again.  Everything seemed to be going so well—it was only a little while longer until life would be perfect.

    Nagisa was growing desperate.  How was she going to get around the guard at the couple’s door to get to the baby?  She was running out of time to destroy Hokuto’s work, and she had to think of a way to get past the guard without revealing her true identity.  After a few frantic hours of thinking, she finally came up with a workable plan.  That night, disguised as one of Kairyuu’s samurai, she walked down the hallway where the guard stood outside the daimyo's bedroom door.  She offered the guard some sake from a bottle she had dosed with opium, then continued down the hall.  In a short while, the guard was asleep at his post, and when he awoke, he would remember nothing.

    Smiling triumphantly, Nagisa crept into the bedroom and took the sleeping baby from his crib, then covered Hokuto’s face in blood.  The girl seemed as if she might awaken; Nagisa held a sprig of a pungent herb under her nose to ensure she stayed asleep.  Trying not to laugh at how simple the task had been, the woman snuck out again, sure of her victory.
 
 

    Kairyuu felt a coldness spreading in his heart.  It had happened again.  What would the people think?  He still believed in his wife’s innocence, but would everyone else?  He knew that many people would hold that this third time was proof positive of Hokuto’s guilt; the door had been guarded, so who could have gotten in?  The man who had been on duty that night admitted to having dozed off briefly, but Kairyuu knew him to be a very light sleeper, which is why he had been picked to be the guard—the merest sound would have alerted him.

    Whoever had planned all of this had planned very carefully, it seemed.  There was no other suspect for the crime besides Hokuto.  When the news was spread that another child had disappeared under the same strange circumstances, people began to call for Kairyuu to do something about his wife, who was surely a witch.  Dark rumors began to spread about her:  the fact that she was a witch explained her beauty, and her silence was a curse upon her from the gods.  Her forays into the forest were trips to gather special herbs she needed to cast spells.  Kairyuu listened helplessly, slipping into despair.  Their arguments made too much sense!

    “I’m sorry, Lord Nikkaido,” one of his advisors told him, “but you are going to have to take action against your wife before your people do.  The idea of a child-killer disturbs everyone, and if babies start disappearing in the peasants’ households, you know who they will blame.”

    Kairyuu looked at the seriousness in the old man’s face.  “What…what should I do?”

    The advisor looked at his daimyo with great pity.  “They are calling for her to be burned.”

    “I cannot.”  The young man choked back a sob.  “I could never do such a thing.  She is my wife, not a witch, and I love her.  I will not send her to her death for something no one can prove.”

    “The little evidence there is is proof enough after three times,” the advisor said quietly.  “I am truly sorry, my lord, but there is nothing to be done.  If you do not do this now, the people will take it into their own hands, and who knows what would happen then?”

    Just then, Hokuto walked in, dressed only in a thick white inner robe.  She smiled sadly at Kairyuu and kissed him, then knelt at his feet.  Her message was obvious:  she was ready for whatever fate he would give her.  The young man’s eyes filled with tears as he took his wife’s hand in his own and rose, looking outside at the large crowd that had gathered to see justice done.  Some of them shouted when they saw him at the window with the “witch”, but most held their silence to hear what their daimyo would decree.

    Miserably, Kairyuu raised his voice to address the crowd.  “Hear my words:  On this day, I, Kairyuu Nikkaido, declare this woman to be a—“ here he paused, pain evident on his face, “a murderer.  Her punishment will be burning, at sunset tomorrow.”

    Most of the crowd cheered, but not happily.  The few that still believed in Hokuto’s innocence shook their heads, feeling pity for the young daimyo trapped between love and justice.

    Only two people smiled in that dark hour:  Nagisa, in triumph, and Hokuto, in hope.  Tomorrow was the last day of her silence, and when she could speak, everything would be made right again.
 
 

    It was time for the burning.  Hokuto gathered up the atooshi shirts, all completed, and two of Kairyuu’s samurai led her to the pyre that had been built for the occasion.  The men had not the heart to deny her right to take the shirts with her.  They wouldn’t protect her from the fire, so what harm could they do?

    Kairyuu waited for her behind the pyre.  He kissed her softly one last time, sending a wave of whispers through the gathered crowd.  Did he still love her, even though she had been proven a witch?

    Hokuto was taken to the top of the pyre, her ankles bound so that she could not try to climb off the structure.  She held the shirts over one arm and patiently watched the sky, confident her brothers would come.

    Tears in his eyes, the young daimyo stepped forward with a burning brand to light the pyre.  Smoke began to curl upward, threatening to choke the girl, but she managed to cover her nose and mouth with one of the shirts.  This caused some angry muttering in the crowd, but who was going to go and take the shirts away now?  The flames would consume the witch and her shirts soon enough.

    The fire crept closer and closer to Hokuto’s feet, but she smiled.  At the edge of the forest, she saw the unmistakable outlines of six cranes, winging their way to her swiftly.  Soon they were there, and as each one flew low by her, she threw a shirt over him.  There were five handsome young men standing in the shrinking circle of fire when the last of them—Kairi—flew in to be changed back.  Hokuto moved to throw the last shirt over him, but the left sleeve had caught fire.  She thrashed the flames out, but the sleeve was gone.  The crane bobbed his head at her, so she threw the shirt over him, and he changed back into his human form—but where his left arm should have been, there was a slate-gray wing springing from his shoulder.

    Quickly, Tatsuya, no longer a tall boy but a strong young man, picked up his sister, and the brothers picked their way out of the fire.  The crowd was shouting violently, and Kairyuu waited for the reunited siblings in front of the pyre.

    “What is the meaning of this?” he demanded as Tatsuya set Hokuto down and bent to untie her ankles.

    “The truth will finally be known,” the girl said quietly.  The crowd fell silent.  The girl who had not spoken a word in three years had finally found her voice.

    Kairyuu stared at her.  “I…what witchcraft is this, that you can speak now?  What have you done?”

    “Please…stop throwing around the word ‘witch’.  If there is one such here, it is our sister-in-law Nagisa—or should I say Ayane?”  Hokuto turned to find the woman in the crowd.

    “Lies!” the older woman shrieked.  “She has proven her evil before all of us!”

    “I do not waste my first words in six years on lies,” the girl said coldly.  Quickly, she explained what “Ayane” had done to her brothers, and went on to tell how, two nights ago, Nagisa had crept into their room and stolen the baby.

    “You put something under my nose to put me back to sleep, but I saw you,” Hokuto said, her voice as hard and clear as ice.  “What did you do to my children?”

    Nagisa’s eyes narrowed.  “They are safe, but tell me, little cow, how did you know that I was also Ayane?”  Gasps ran through the crowd as Nagisa freely admitted her guilt.  Kairyuu quickly motioned for two of his men to seize her.

    “Your hair.  I noticed the way you wore it beneath your hood that evil day you attacked my brothers; I had never seen such a style before, and never since, until I came here.  Just think, witch, it was your own vanity that gave you away.”   The girl glared at Nagisa for a long moment, then turned to her husband as if to say something.

    There was a commotion as the two samurai tried to take Nagisa.  She laughed mockingly and began to melt into a small form, low and four-footed.

    “A fox!”  “She is a fox!”  Amid the confusion, the little animal quickly dodged all pursuers and made off into the forest, a ghostly laugh lingering after she had gone.

    “A fox…” Kairyuu said in wonder.  “All the things today—it’s almost too much to believe.”  He looked down at his wife and smiled.  “I’m glad to believe in you, though.”
 
    She spoke quietly, looking up into his eyes.  “My name is Hokuto Kisaragi.”

    “Hokuto…a beautiful name for my beautiful wife, but,” and he kissed her hand, “I would still love you by any other, just as I have when you had no name at all.”
 
 

    The sad night had turned into a joyful one.  Kairyuu declared Tatsuya and Kairi samurai under him; even though Kairi only had one arm, it was his sword arm, and he would clearly become skilled with practice.  The younger boys were also invited to stay in the daimyo’s household, as his brothers-in-law.  Two messengers were sent out, one to the siblings’ father Kagehisa, bearing the good tidings, and one to the peasant town to search for the missing children.  They were quickly discovered, and the woman who had nursed them, who had done so under the mixed threats and bribery from Nagisa, was spared punishment.

    Reunited with almost her entire family, Hokuto felt tears coming to her eyes.  After six years of silence, she now had the freedom to speak, to croon lullabies to her children, to laugh with her brothers, to tell her husband that she loved him.  The great shadow that had followed her for so long had evaporated, and now she could be truly happy, seeing that everyone she loved was also content.  There will be troubles in the future, she thought, not deluding herself, but as long as I have my family to love me, I will never be truly unhappy again.

    Hokuto and Kairyuu watched the sun come up the next morning; it brought with it the dawn of their new life.