Arthur Golden - Memoirs of a Geisha

Dr. Crab, of course, was another matter. Mameha had to begin by going around to the principal teahouses in Gion and asking the mistresses to notify her if the Doctor should show up. We waited a few nights until word came that he’d turned up at a teahouse named Yashino, as the guest of another man. I rushed to Mameha’s apartment to change my clothing and then set out for the Yashino with the box of ekubo wrapped up in a square of silk.

The Yashino was a fairly new teahouse, built in a completely Western style. The rooms were elegant in their own way, with dark wooden beams and so on; but instead of tatami mats and tables surrounded by cushions, the room into which I was shown that evening had a floor of hardwood, with a dark Persian rug, a coffee table, and a few overstuffed chairs. I have to admit it never occurred to me to sit on one of the chairs. Instead I knelt on the rug to wait for Mameha, although the floor was terribly hard on my knees. I was still in that position a half hour later when she came in.

“What are you doing?” she said to me. “This isn’t a Japanese-style room. Sit in one of these chairs and try to look as if you belong.”

I did as Mameha said. But when she sat down opposite me, she looked every bit as uncomfortable as I probably did.

The Doctor, it seemed, was attending a party in the next room. Mameha had been entertaining him for some time already. “I’m pouring him lots of beer so he’ll have to go to the toilet,” she told me. “When he does, I’ll catch him in the hallway and ask that he step in here. You must give him the ekubo right away. I don’t know how he’ll react, but it will be our only chance to undo the damage Hatsumomo has done.”

Mameha left, and I waited in my chair a long while. I was hot and nervous, and I worried that my perspiration would cause my white makeup to turn into a crumpled-looking mess as bad as a futon after being slept in. I looked for something to distract myself; but the best I could do was stand from time to time to catch a glimpse of my face in a mirror hanging on the wall.

Finally I heard voices, then a tapping at the door, and Mameha swung it open.

“Just one moment, Doctor, if you please,” she said.

I could see Dr. Crab in the darkness of the hallway, looking as stern as those old portraits you see in the lobbies of banks. He was peering at me through his glasses. I wasn’t sure what to do; normally I would have bowed on the mats, so I went ahead and knelt on the rug to bow in the same way, even though I was certain Mameha would be unhappy with me for doing it. I don’t think the Doctor even looked at me.

“I prefer to get back to the party,” he said to Mameha. “Please excuse me.”

“Sayuri has brought something for you, Doctor,” Mameha told him. “Just for a moment, if you please.”

She gestured for him to come into the room and saw that he was seated comfortably in one of the overstuffed chairs. After this, I think she must have forgotten what she’d told me earlier, because we both knelt on the rug, one of us at each of Dr. Crab’s knees. I’m sure the Doctor felt grand to have two such ornately dressed women kneeling at his feet that way.

“I’m sorry that I haven’t seen you in several days,” I said to him. “And already the weather is growing warm. It seems to me as if an entire season has passed!”

The Doctor didn’t respond, but just peered back at me.

“Please accept these ekubo , Doctor,” I said, and after bowing, placed the package on a side table near his hand. He put his hands in his lap as if to say he wouldn’t dream of touching it.

“Why are you giving me this?”

Mameha interrupted. “I’m so sorry, Doctor. I led Sayuri to believe you might enjoy receiving ekubo from her. I hope I’m not mistaken?”

“You are mistaken. Perhaps you don’t know this girl as well as you think. I regard you highly, Mameha-san, but it’s a poor reflection on you to recommend her to me.”

“I’m sorry, Doctor,” she said. “I had no idea you felt that way. I’ve been under the impression you were fond of Sayuri.”

“Very well. Now that everything is clear, I’ll go back to the party.”

“But may I ask? Did Sayuri offend you somehow? Things seem to have changed so unexpectedly.”

“She certainly did. As I told you, I’m offended by people who mislead me.”

“Sayuri-san, how shameful of you to mislead the Doctor!” Mameha said to me. “You must have told him something you knew was untrue. What was it?”

“I don’t know!” I said as innocently as I could. “Unless it was a few weeks ago when I suggested that the weather was getting warmer, and it wasn’t really…”

Mameha gave me a look when I said this; I don’t think she liked it.

“This is between the two of you,” the Doctor said. “It is no concern of mine. Please excuse me.”

“But, Doctor, before you go,” Mameha said, “could there be some misunderstanding? Sayuri’s an honest girl and would never knowingly mislead anyone. Particularly someone who’s been so kind to her.”

“I suggest you ask her about the boy in her neighborhood,” the Doctor said.

I was very relieved he’d brought up the subject at last. He was such a reserved man, I wouldn’t have been surprised if he’d refused to mention it at all.

“So that’s the problem!” Mameha said to him. “You must have been talking with Hatsumomo.”

“I don’t see why that matters,” he said.

“She’s been spreading this story all over Gion. It’s completely untrue! Ever since Sayuri was given an important role on the stage in Dances of the Old Capital , Hatsumomo has spent all her energy trying to disgrace her.”

Dances of the Old Capital was Gion’s biggest annual event. Its opening was only six weeks away, at the beginning of April. All the dance roles had been assigned some months earlier, and I would have felt honored to take one. A teacher of mine had even suggested it, but as far as I knew, my only role would be in the orchestra and not on the stage at all. Mameha had insisted on this to avoid provoking Hatsumomo.

When the Doctor glanced at me, I did my best to look like someone who would be dancing an important role and had known it for some time.

“I’m afraid to say this, Doctor, but Hatsumomo is a known liar,” Mameha went on. “It’s risky to believe anything she says.”

“If Hatsumomo is a liar, this is the first I’ve heard of it.”

“No one would dream of telling you such a thing,” Mameha said, speaking in a quiet voice as though she really were afraid of being overheard. “So many geisha are dishonest! No one wants to be the first to make accusations. But either I’m lying to you now or else Hatsumomo was lying when she told you the story. It’s a matter of deciding which of us you know better, Doctor, and which of us you trust more.”

“I don’t see why Hatsumomo would make up stories just because Sayuri has a role on the stage.”

“Surely you’ve met Hatsumomo’s younger sister, Pumpkin. Hatsumomo hoped Pumpkin would take a certain role, but it seems Sayuri has ended up with it instead. And I was given the role Hatsumomo wanted! But none of this matters, Doctor. If Sayuri’s integrity is in doubt, I can well understand that you might prefer not to accept the ekubo she has presented to you.”

The Doctor sat a long while looking at me. Finally he said, “I’ll ask one of my doctors from the hospital to examine her.”

“I’d like to be as cooperative as I can,” Mameha replied, “but I’d have difficulty arranging such a thing, since you haven’t yet agreed to be Sayuri’s mizuage patron. If her integrity is in doubt… well, Sayuri will be presenting ekubo to a great many men. I’m sure most will be skeptical of stories they hear from Hatsumomo.”