The Twelve Kingdoms: Dreaming of Paradise

happened in the meantime that it seemed like ages ago.
    His soft, gray fur and rhythmically swaying tail—his quivering silver whiskers—she couldn't help giggling to herself. She heard a sound behind her and turned with a start. One of her ladies-in-waiting had at some point entered the room and was setting out tea.
    "Gyokuyou—"
    Gyokuyou raised her head and smiled. "I announced myself, but your attention must have been elsewhere."
    "Sorry."
    "Is that Sir Rakushun? He seems in a good mood. Forgive me for listening in."
    "No, that's okay," said Youko, feeding the bird a grain of silver. "I didn't notice. Rakushun was telling me how Gyokuyou is a name given to talented and comely women."
    Gyokuyou laughed. "If that's what he's telling you, then Sir Rakushun surely must not have ever laid eyes on me. I do look forward to meeting him some day, but I fear he will be disappointed."
    "But weren't you ever thought to be talented and comely?"
    "Oh, I suppose some might have said such a thing when I was a young lass." A bright smile came to the woman's old, weathered face. "Why don't you take a break?"
    "That I will," Youko said. She stood up and went to the divan, flopped down and stretched out. "I've been sitting so long my legs are going to sleep."
    "You're working too hard."
    "All these political terms go in one ear and out the other."
    "Not the kind of material that can be digested in one sitting."
    "It took you a while to learn it too?"
    Gyokuyou nodded. "It certainly did. Even now, I've probably forgotten as much as I've learned. In short, if you can remember the person, you won't remember the position. Fix the person's face in your mind—their position, who they work under, who works for them, and what they do—and by the by it'll all begin to stick."
    "I wonder," Youko sighed. "I'd like to remember who everybody is right away, but they don't really appreciate me hanging around their offices."
    She met ministers above a certain rank at Privy Council meetings, so she could remember them. But the opportunity never presented itself for all their subordinates. She could go around visiting the individual departments, but the departments weren't exactly enamored of that idea either.
    "Yes, that kind of thing is generally frowned upon."
    "So I've been told. 'The precedent does not exist.' But it sounds to my ears like I'm being told not to make a nuisance of myself."
    "Really—" was Gyokuyou's answer.
    The fact of the matter was that no bureaucrat wanted people peeking over his shoulder. All the dirty linen was better stuffed into ministerial closets and left there. Kei was still a kingdom in upheaval. The reign of the previous empress had been short, and the turnover in monarchs before that had been all too frequent. Many in the civil service had served in the Imperial Court going back three dynasties. They had become accustomed to arbitrary rule and corruption. It was only natural that they should come to think of their ministries and departments as their own personal domains.
    "Oh," Youko said, "that reminds me. Just as I figured, the Ministry of Spring turned down my proposal to hire you."
    "You really made such a proposition?"
    "But you know so much about education systems. It seems logical that you should work in a related field, even as an undersecretary. So I made inquiries. They just laughed it off." Youko took a deep breath and let it out. "First they all laugh. They tell me it wasn't that they objected to having a lady minister around, but I just can't go around creating positions on a whim. Like they're lecturing a child. They wouldn't seriously debate the issue with me."
    "I quite enjoy working alongside Your Highness."
    "I like having you around too. But I was thinking of making the most of your talents."
    "Well, then I shall strive to the best assistant to Your Highness that I can be. True, it is a bit off the beaten path for me, but I've always looked forward to new challenges."
    "You really do have a positive outlook on life."
    "I guess because I'm such a curious person at heart."
    "I see," Youko said with a grin.
    "But as Sir Rakushun said, not causing trouble for the bureaucracy is often the best course."
    Youko gave her a long look.
    "Please forgive me," Gyokuyou said. "It wasn't my intention to listen in, but I couldn't help paying attention."
    "Oh, no problem. I'm not picking fights or anything. I haven't attempted any kind of head-on confrontation. They politely ignore everything I say."
    "Yes,