Chapter 1: The Oboke Recluse

Chapter 1:
The Oboke Recluse

 

THE RAIN DRUMMED DOWN outside the window, blocking what little light this realm of perpetual night received. Hence our heavy reliance on glimmerflies. Two insect-powered lamps lit the room now, casting eerie, uneven glows.

“This looks disgusting…” the boy said, scowling at the bowl he shoved back at me. “I only eat the highest-quality organic rice, cooked in a clay pot.” He turned away with a huff but glanced back at me from the corner of his eye. “Hey, why are you looking at me like that? Is this how you treat injured patients?”

“I think it’s a perfectly acceptable look for people who barge into someone else’s house and put on airs—like you,” I said. “Besides, you sure look to be in pretty good spirits. I hardly think you need taking care of.”

I poured the uneaten rice porridge back into the pot and glared at the boy.

He called himself Shirai Suimei. He was pale everywhere, from skin with hardly any pigment to his shock of white hair, though he did have brown eyes. The overall effect was still like one of those somber pretty boys from a manga.

“Of course I need to be taken care of. Can’t you see I’m injured?” Though that haughty tone certainly didn’t fit the pretty boy image.

Okay, fine. Suimei was actually as injured as he claimed. A bandage covered the cut on his forehead. The wound wasn’t deep, but it had bled a ton, like head wounds tend to do.

That’s right, he was still a victim in all this, so I needed to be nice. It had already occurred to me that his arrogance might be his way of masking some sort of mental distress. My shoulders slumped as I thought of Shinonome-san, the person who’d first taught me that lesson.

“All right, looks like I don’t have much of a choice,” I sighed. “I’ll be looking after you, but the moment you’re better, I want you out. Human.”

“Huh?” Suimei narrowed his eyes to examine me. “But you’re human too, lady. What’re you doing here?”

“I don’t need to explain myself to you.”

I turned my back on my self-proclaimed patient and headed for the kitchen, mind wandering back to how this had all come to be my problem…

 

***

It had started the night before, in fact.

The rain pounded down, soaking through my clothes, making them cling to my skin. I wanted to pluck the wet fabric away, but there was no time for that.

I looked at my father in horror. He stood frozen amid the downpour.

“It looks like you killed him…” I trailed off.

“I did no such thing, that much I can promise,” Shinonome-san insisted.

“Fair enough. I doubt you even could.”

“Oh, shut up, you!”

“So, you going to fess up?”

“I told you, that’s not what happened, so there’s nothing for me to fess up to. This isn’t the human world, you know. There won’t be any police to come looking for the culprit. Idiot. And—hey, didn’t I tell you not to follow me?” Shinonome-san covered his face with his hands and tilted his head up toward the sky.

Ah well, might as well stop teasing him already. I set Nyaa-san down so I could kneel at the boy’s side. His eyes, lined with white lashes, were squeezed shut. He wouldn’t be waking up any time soon. The pouring rain washed away the blood oozing from his forehead, dyeing the ground beneath him red.

“Is he alive?” Shinonome-san asked.

“Yes, it seems like he’s just unconscious. Despite how the bleeding makes it look, his injury isn’t all that bad.”

Even with the rain, some of the glimmerflies stubbornly lingered, their light illuminating the boy’s face. His forehead was cold to the touch, though that might have been due to the rain. In any case, we couldn’t leave him here; his condition would surely worsen. Given the bleeding, it might even prove fatal. We needed to move him indoors, and fast.

Besides, judging by the swarming glimmerflies, he was definitely human.

“Someone’s going to eat him if we just leave him here,” I said. “We’ve gotta do something, right?”

The denizens of the town were starting to take notice of the unusual glimmerfly swarm. It wouldn’t be long before spirits of all shapes and sizes were drawn to this place, and they’d no doubt be quite pleased to find an unconscious human just waiting for them.

“Kaori?”

For some reason, my whole body was trembling.

Even though I didn’t have any real memories of when I’d entered the spirit realm, just the thought of this boy getting lost and winding up here suddenly filled me with despair.

Then Shinonome-san wrapped his arms around me. My father’s gentle warmth transferred through his large palms and into me, slowly easing my anxiety. As long as I had this peculiar spirit by my side, I knew I’d be fine.

Nyaa-san finally broke the silence. “So whaddya wanna do, Kaori? You’re gonna take him back to his world, right?”

I knew it would be wise to heed her suggestion. All we had to do was get him to an ambulance. Medical professionals would whisk him off to a hospital where he could be reunited with his family. In fact, I could leave as soon as the ambulance arrived. I was very much on board with this idea and was just about to agree when a hand grabbed me.

“Aaahh…” The unconscious boy finally woke up. “Don’t…leave me. Stay…here…”

A feverish flush lit his cheeks. His brown eyes gazed right through me. Immediately after muttering his plea, he fell back into unconsciousness. He was like a sickly child reaching for his mother. Oh, no…

“Haaah, we can’t just leave the kid here like this.” Shinonome-san shook his head. He hefted Suimei over his shoulder.

“Shinonome-san?!” I gasped.

All he offered was a noncommittal shrug. “Remember when you were young? No matter how tiny the spirit, how weak the animal, you could never turn your back on them. Well, that’s the same here. Damn.” He shot me a teasing grin. “I guess the blame falls on whoever raised their kid like that, huh? You gotta be ready to take responsibility.”

With that, we made our slow way down the street, the boy slung over Shinonome-san’s shoulder. He’d be coming home with us after all. The idea prodded at some strange, dark memories deep within me, but what else could we do?

“Thanks,” I muttered along the way.

“It’s nothing, really,” Shinonome-san said. “Oh, but hey, you could pay me back by making meat for dinner tomorrow! Something big, thick, and juicy that practically falls right off the plate.”

That stopped me right in my tracks. He had to be joking, right? “You know we can’t afford that.”

Shinonome-san just marched cheerfully on ahead, not a care in the world.

“Nnng…gah! That irresponsible little…” I grumbled. Despite my frustration, the familiar banter set me at ease. Jeez, he knew just how to get to me. In the end, Shinonome-san was a great dad.

I watched him carry Suimei ahead of me and smiled to myself, knowing that despite it all, I really could rely on him.

 

***

“It figures he’d finally give in,” I sighed to myself.

Despite his earlier protests, Suimei eventually caved in to hunger and requested food. With no shortage of annoyance, I served him another helping of rice porridge and watched him completely clean his bowl. Perhaps he’d finally learned a little humility and gratitude for our efforts in his rescue and care.

“It was certainly edible,” he said.

Ungrateful brat. I wrung out his clothes with a bit more force than strictly necessary. “Gaaaah, this has to be some kind of scam!” I groaned. “Any normal person would have said thank you by now, you know? Maybe mentioned how they’ll never forget the favor—something like that, right?!”

“Heh, and what kind of favor are you talking about?” he asked.

“Oh shush, you. Hurry up and change your clothes.”

“I was going to do that anyway.”

What had happened to the weak, helpless boy sprawled in the street with a head wound? He’s become quite the brazen little interloper. He’d looked on the verge of death when we found him, but apparently we had nothing to worry about.

“I guess it’s a positive thing that you’re feeling so self-possessed,” I muttered.

Suimei didn’t respond as I shoved his clothes toward him and left the room. I hadn’t seen my father for some time, so I headed to see if he’d come home yet. Shortly after dropping off Suimei, Shinonome-san had left the house, and he still hadn’t returned. According to the clock, it’d been almost a full day. Just where had he run off to?

“I swear, I won’t forgive him if he’s out playing at a time like this,” I moaned.

Suddenly, a commotion sounded in the store. I hurried toward the noise, assuming Shinonome-san had finally returned. Yet all that awaited me was Goblin.

“G-good evening…” Goblin’s eyes darted around uneasily before he peered toward our home. Maybe he was here to see Shinonome-san? Well, he seemed a harmless sort, so I knelt down to meet him at eye level.

“What’s wrong?” I asked. “Did something happen? Unfortunately, the proprietor isn’t here right now.”

“R-really?!” Goblin sat down hard on the ground as if in shock, and thick tears trailed down his cheeks. In the following instant, he lost the last of his composure.

Pushing a poor little guy like him would only make matters worse, so I kept my face as flat and calm as possible as I reached out to comfort him.

“What…?” he mumbled. Goblin tensed as I ran my hand through his straw-like hair. I didn’t push him for answers, just waited patiently until he was ready. Finally, he opened his mouth. “I-I-I visited my friend to see if he’d read me that book I borrowed. B-but he’s in real bad shape. Like, in real bad pain. I-I just don’t know what to do.”

“So you came here?” I asked.

Goblin nodded stiffly and began to sob all over again.

“Thank you for telling me. You did a good job.” I pulled him into a tight embrace. He shuddered, clinging tightly to my clothes with his crimson hands. He seemed badly rattled by whatever had happened to his friend. What a heavy burden to carry all on his own. Shinonome-san might have been able to help, but he was nowhere to be found at the moment. “What’s your friend’s name?” I asked gently.

His voice trembled as he spoke. “Y-Yamajiji.”

“Yamajiji” was a legendary spirit said to live deep in the mountains of Kochi Prefecture on the island of Shikoku. Much like the Yamauba, he was believed to be incredibly wealthy and would often challenge hunters to contests to see who could yell the loudest.

Many spirits out in the spirit realm didn’t have their own unique name, so we usually resorted to using locations to figure out who someone was talking about. “Yamajiji? Where’s he from?” I asked.

“Huh? Uh, I…uh…well…O-O-O-Oboke.”

“Oh! Right!” I smacked my fist against my palm. I actually knew the Oboke Yamajiji.

I got some details on Yamajiji’s condition from Goblin, and then I started preparing. It sounded like the usual issue. I stowed a box of medicine in my bag and looked up to find Suimei watching me, but I ignored him for the moment.

Aaaaand…done! I hefted the bag onto my back and reached out for Goblin’s hand. “All right, ready to go, Goblin-kun?”

“Huh? You’re coming with me?” he asked.

“Of course. Just leave it to me!” I thumped my chest several times for emphasis and smiled down at Goblin.

I clasped his hand, and we stepped out into town. Fortunately, the rain had finally let up, returning the world to its usual rainbow-sheened darkness. Goblin kept glancing up at me nervously as we walked, but I smiled and gestured at the sky. “Hey, look.”

“W-wow! So many glimmerflies!” he gasped.

“Pretty cool, huh?”

Before I knew it, the insects surrounded us. Most spirits marveled at the sight of a human standing in a glowing cloud of glimmerflies, and Goblin proved no different. His eyes practically shimmered as he reached out for the bugs.

“Having fun?” I asked.

“Yeah!”

I smiled. Poor Goblin was finally relaxing enough to enjoy himself. It seemed these glimmerflies could be useful for something other than illumination, huh? Thanks, guys.

One landed right on my finger, almost as if in response to my unspoken praise. “Oh, hey there.”

All the illumination jogged my memory. I reached into my pocket and pulled out a folded piece of paper, inside of which were two stars: one yellow and the other a pale pink. I tossed one into my mouth and the other into Goblin’s. The star melted away within the warm confines of my mouth, a sweet, sugary mixture seeping over my tongue. The faceless woman from the confectionery shop, Noppera-bo, often made these as a specialty item, and Shinonome-san always bought some for me.

(“Hey, you listening?” someone grumbled.)

Surprise flashed over Goblin’s face when I popped the candy into his mouth, but in the next moment, his cheeks flushed a bright red and a look of sheer bliss washed across his face. He pressed his crimson hands against his cheeks and let out a contented sigh. “This must be what happiness tastes like!”

Looks like that sweet little star candy managed to wipe away all his concerns. I had to admit, his reaction was absolutely adorable.

“Don’t ignore me,” someone growled.

“Ehhh?” I seized up as someone grabbed my collar and yanked me back. Spinning around, I found Suimei staring blankly back at me.

“What, you wanted some too?” I asked.

“No.” He looked supremely annoyed.

“Then go back home and rest,” I said. “You’re a helpless patient in need of diligent nursing, aren’t you?”

At this, Suimei stuck out his lip. “What, and sit idly by while the person who saved my life puts themself in harm’s way?”

Suimei reached out and clung to my arm. I blinked. Admittedly, there was something handsome about that stoic, emotionless face of his. His voice was always unusually calm and level. Yet now his eyes wavered, revealing his worry. Apparently he really was concerned about my well-being.

“You know, I’m surprised you’re such a nice guy,” I said.

Suimei furrowed his brow. “Surprised is a little rude, I think. You know, unlike the Yamauba, Yamajiji isn’t really known for attacking humans, though he’s no stranger to abducting children and cattle. I really don’t think an ordinary girl like you is in any position to try to meet with him.”

I snorted and held his gaze while I called out to Nyaa-san. “Hey, are people back in the human world usually this familiar with the spirit realm as this guy?”

“Hard to say,” Nyaa-san said. “I spent a lot of time out there, and I didn’t really meet all that many people who were so well informed. There were some, of course, but they were usually hobbyists, researchers, authors…and exorcists.”

Suimei’s eyes widened. For all he tried to hide his emotions, he was basically an open book. His eyes revealed everything he tried to hold back.

A sly smirk tugged on my lips, and my hand fell on his shoulder with a thump. I leaned in and whispered into his ear. “I have no idea what brought you here to the spirit realm, but this is no place for humans. I’m sure it’s a bit strange for you to hear that coming from me, but all the same, assuming you are an exorcist, then you must know how dangerous these spirits can be.”

He remained silent.

“I’m just trying to do you a favor…and thank you for worrying about me. But you best go home before one of the spirits out here decides to chomp your head right off.”

It was a dire warning, but that really was just how things went in the spirit realm. Though special circumstances allowed me to remain, any other human could hardly hope to survive for long.

Suimei brushed my hand away and glowered at the ground, a despondent look creasing his face. “I already know all that. But…I have no home to go back to. It’s not like I came here without a reason. I just messed up and got hurt. That’s why I can’t return.”

“Hmm.” Messed up? What did that mean? And what did it have to do with finding him lying in the street bleeding?

I narrowed my eyes at the strange boy. He looked young. Not only that, he was even shorter than me. Probably a high school student.

And how did some kid become an exorcist? Wasn’t that a job for adults? The one time I’d seen an exorcist was when an old man had come here to try to face off with some spirits. He’d been covered in inexplicable amulets and stones. But Suimei was slight and small, hardly intimidating. Maybe he was some kind of exorcist in training? In that case, maybe I could work with him.

I chuckled to myself as the plan fell into place. Suimei’s face tensed while Nyaa-san grimaced.

“Oh, no way!” she moaned. “Nothing good ever happens when you get that look on your face, Kaori.” Nyaa-san batted her front paws against my leg in annoyance.

Sorry, Nyaa-san. There was just no way I could pass up an amazing opportunity like this.

Suimei was still thoroughly confused as I grabbed his arm. His eyes went wide, but I offered a bright smile. “All right, Suimei, why don’t you come with me?” I said. “You know, I’ve been thinking about this for a while now, but I’m sure that if an exorcist actually had a chance to get to know all these spirits, they’d certainly get along. And it’ll be a great experience to boot! So it’s decided!”

“Whoa, wait a minute!” he protested. “I don’t know where you got that crazy idea, but I’ll never befriend a spirit!”

“Seeing is believing, you know? All right, Goblin-kun, take my hand. Now, let’s go!” I cheerfully dragged them both along in my wake.

“Think of the people who will have to clean up after you for once,” Nyaa-san said, sighing heavily, though the sound was quickly lost to the winds.

 

***

“Where are we?” Bewilderment and annoyance warred in Suimei’s tone.

We’d headed down a long, dark alley to a dilapidated wooden door. I didn’t bother answering Suimei before taking out a wet wipe to clean Goblin’s hands. The poor guy looked like he wanted to cry when he realized the sugar stars he’d been clutching like precious treasures had melted in his hands.

“The stars, they melted…” he said.

“It’s fine, I have more. Next time, I need to give you a wrapper to keep them in.” I wiped away his tears and pinky promised that I’d get more stars before the next time we met. He brightened instantly.

“You’re always such a Goody Two-shoes, Kaori,” Nyaa-san teased.

“Oh, be nice, Nyaa-san.”

Suimei finally recovered enough from his confusion to interject. “Hey, aren’t we off to meet the Yamajiji from Oboke? Oboke’s in Tokushima Prefecture, you know. Are we going by plane? Train?”

“Huh? You mean public transportation? Out in the human world? No way, not a chance,” I said. “Who knows when we’d even get there—and it’s already too late at this point. Besides, I don’t have that kind of money.”

At this, he looked even more confused. “Then how do you plan to get there?”

“It’s obvious, isn’t it?” I smiled and turned the doorknob of the dilapidated door before us, only to be greeted by a clamorous roar and a warm blast of air.

Flames roared on the other side of the door. The moans of the dying whined under the snarls of angry demons and a raging fire. The glimmerflies surrounding me flapped away to escape the heat, though some were drawn to the red glow on the other side.

Suimei’s face drained of color. “You can’t be serious.”

I couldn’t suppress a grin. “Oh, I’m serious, all right.”

He grabbed my arm. “What the literal hell are you talking about? No way!”

“All right, we’re off!” I crowed. With that, I dove straight through the door, dragging the pale Suimei right along with me.

“Waaaaaaaaaugh!”

We began our rapid descent into said literal hell. Suimei’s screams echoed throughout the chamber, briefly silencing the cries of the burning sinners. I reached out to Goblin as we continued to drop and searched for Nyaa-san. As I did, something large cushioned our fall.

“All right, Kaori, let’s go,” Nyaa-san said.

“Yep!”

That “something large” was Nyaa-san herself, now the size of a tiger. We sat on her back as she raced across glowing red magma. Up ahead, a figure stood atop the bridge linking the magma to the infernal lake of blood.

“Hey, Kaori, heading somewhere?” the figure called.

“As a matter of fact we are,” I called back. “Oh, right, the fare… Here’s a dumpling!”

“Ooh, nice! Thanks!”

“I bet it’d be even better if you roasted it in the fires over there. Anyway, see ya!”

“Have a safe trip!”

The red, horned oni dressed in little more than a loincloth waved happily before heading off to go roast his treat.

Nyaa-san bore us through a hollow in a large tree next to the infernal lake of blood. This teleported us to the human world. We emerged close to Oboke Gorge, located in the Yoshinogawa River Valley in Tokushima.

I hopped off Nyaa-san’s back to survey our surroundings.

The sun had already set, and the cool night air chilled my skin. The sudden temperature change left me covered in goosebumps. The only light came from a waning moon and the star-filled sky. Insects chirped in the foliage. We were far from civilization and therefore light pollution, which allowed us a stunning view of even the faintest stars.

“Wow…” I gaped at the twinkling human sky arrayed overhead. Though the spirit realm lived in a perpetual night, the beauty of this night was entirely its own.

Abruptly, someone grabbed my shoulder. I turned to find a very pale Suimei. “A-are you insane, riding through hell on top of a cat like that? How does that seem like a good idea to you?”

“Huh?” I blinked. “I mean, that’s what it’s always like when Shinonome-san and I go out.”

The spirit realm wasn’t merely the domain of spirits; it was also the land of the dead. Finding a door that led to the bowels of hell was hardly unusual. These doors connected to locations throughout Japan and didn’t obey the laws of space-time, making them incredibly convenient for traveling just about anywhere.

Suimei dragged a hand through his white hair and mumbled under his breath. “Then you and that Shinonome guy are weirder than I thought, what with riding on a cat and all. And c’mon, you just tossed a dumpling to that oni like it was nothing? Are you friends? None of this makes any sense.”

Was Suimei just tired from his ordeal? Where was this coming from? I pulled a water bottle out of my bag and passed it to him. He practically yanked it out of my hand and gulped down the contents. That seemed to help, at least. Maybe everything we’d just seen was a bit much for a normal human. I patted him on the back, feeling a bit guilty. He had just suffered that serious injury, after all.

“Well, you’ll just have to get used to it, I guess,” I said.

“I’ll pass.”

“Heh, when did you get back?” an unfamiliar voice said.

A blue-white ball of flame sprang to life from nowhere, rising into the air to bob around us. It quickly grew in intensity despite the lack of any fuel source and wove around as if it were trying to tease or maybe scare us away.

“An onibi? No, that’s not right,” I muttered.

An onibi occurred when a flame flared up with no apparent source or cause. Some blamed them on kitsune. But we were in Tokushima, which was more known for its tanuki spirits. In fact, we stood right on the location of the legend known as the Awa Tanuki Wars.

“So maybe it’s a chochinbi?” I mused. Those were a kind of onibi associated with tanuki.

Just as the words left my mouth, a little tanuki leapt out of a nearby shrub. The thrill of guessing correctly faded as the spirit whirled and dashed off in the opposite direction, tail flopping as it bounded off.

Goblin took my hand and shouted with glee. “That’s my friend! Hurry!”

“He’s going to show us the way? Well, that’s convenient.”

Finding Yamajiji’s ramshackle hut at night would have proved a real hassle, so I was glad to have a guide. Besides, there was something so quaint about walking along through the twilight as the tanuki’s little butt swayed back and forth in front of us.

My mood lifted as we followed the little spirit. Then someone tugged on my arm, forcing us to stop. I glared over at Suimei.

“What’s your problem?” I snapped.

“You’ve gotta be a real special kind of idiot to follow a tanuki into the mountains,” he said. “That’s gotta be something else in disguise.”

Suimei’s face still hadn’t regained much color. I squinted after the tanuki, not yet convinced I needed to worry.

“What makes you so sure?” I asked. “And even if it were something in disguise, what’s wrong with that? There’s nothing to be scared of.”

“Nnngh…” He clenched his fist, annoyance tightening his face.

Nyaa-san padded up and rubbed against my legs, fixing Suimei with a harsh look. “Kaori’s always been like this, so the sooner you give up the better. Besides, as long as I’m here, there’s nothing to worry about. You saw me back there, didn’t you? Don’t write me off as some ordinary house cat, okay?”

Suimei frowned. “Yeah, but…”

“Gah, you’re a real stubborn one, aren’t you?” Nyaa-san sighed. Then she grew right before our eyes, her bones creaking as they and her connective tissues expanded. In a matter of moments, the small black cat transformed into a massive, fanged beast. She snarled and snapped at Suimei. “You think I’m gonna let a little tanuki get the best of me?”

A deep crimson flame flickered out of Nyaa-san’s mouth as she spoke. I sat back to enjoy the show. Nyaa-san and I had spent a long time together, after all, and I knew she was just messing with Suimei. If she were really angry, he wouldn’t even be standing anymore.

It seemed her display did the trick. Suimei wiped the sweat from his brow and apologized.

 

***

A wagging tail led us along the animal trail through the forest.

Darkness closed in as we ventured even farther from human civilization. Thankfully, the tanuki’s chochinbi, a sort of onibi, lit our way. Insects chirped at us as we disturbed the night, but we pushed on.

I turned to check on Suimei, but he was keeping up. He must have had some practice hiking. It made sense. Exorcists probably wound up chasing spirits up into the mountains all the time.

We continued like that for around fifteen minutes before the gurgle of flowing water broke the quiet.

“Yoshinogawa River! We’re close!” Goblin cried.

He was right: We only had to trudge on for a few more minutes before we hit the Oboke Gorge. Starlight glistened off the river valley’s metamorphic rock.

We hopped onto Nyaa-san’s back so she could carry us into the valley below. The river lay dark right now, but I could imagine it gleaming in the sunlight, filled with tour boats and canoes. Tonight, it contained only the watery reflection of the moon and a few pinpricks of light from the stars.

“It’s right beyond that gash in the rock. Let’s go!” Goblin urged.

“Watch your step,” I said.

He yawned. “You know, I’m feeling pretty sleepy.”

“Hey, don’t leave me here!” Suimei yelled as we slid off Nyaa-san and headed for the gap Goblin had indicated.

“Hey, Yamajiji, you here?” I called.

We stepped through the gash and into a damp cave. Animal bones clattered beneath my feet, turning the floor treacherous. Water dripped somewhere in the distance, echoing in the dark cave. As we pushed deeper, a presence hung in the air, heavy and oppressive.

“What is it?” Suimei whispered.

“Shh!” I hissed. I grabbed Suimei to halt him and strained to see through the darkness ahead. Off in the inky blackness, just out of the range of the chochinbi’s glow, I could make out something…or perhaps someone. “…Yamajiji?” I said, voice trembling.

Something lunged right at us.

“Watch out!” I cried.

“Aaah!” Suimei grabbed my hand and yanked me toward the wall and out of the way just as a loud crash clamored around us. I shivered as I peered down at the gash torn into the floor, as though someone had scooped out the stone like ice cream. I followed the gash and made out a humanoid silhouette ahead.

Crunch. Crunch. Ptooey.

The figure chewed on the stones it’d just scooped up before spitting them out. Ever so slowly, it turned to face us, finally exposing its features to the flickering light of the chochinbi.

The creature before us was…completely bizarre. It only stood about a hundred centimeters, but dark gray fur covered its entire body, like some fuzzy little animal. That only made its eyes creepier. They were off-kilter—one so small you might miss it and the other so large it took up most of its face.

Those strange, bloodshot eyes darted around before its lips stretched over its fangs in something like a smile.

“Oh…Yamajiji, it’s been a while. I see you’re doing well,” Goblin said.

Nyaa-san responded first, growing in size again before diving at Yamajiji. I knew she was trying to keep me out of harm’s way, but she put herself at risk in the process.

I called out to Suimei. “Hey, you’re an exorcist, aren’t you? Can’t you do something about him?”

“Aah…oh, right!” Suimei dug in the pouch hanging from his waist and pulled out a glass bottle filled with some kind of hard, white substance. He grabbed the stopper but hesitated before actually pulling it out, and then he returned the bottle to his pouch with a sigh. “I can’t freely use my abilities right now.”

“Wait, what?”

“It’s complicated.”

“Right, great, I see.” So much for that. I hunched down, rummaging through my backpack for my bag of medicine.

“You’re not going to mock me for being so useless?” Suimei asked.

Huh? What was this all about? “Why would I do that?”

Though his face revealed as little as ever, I could tell he was deep in thought. I squinted, trying to puzzle out what he meant.

“Do you want me to talk down to you since you couldn’t help?” I asked. “You’re definitely a weird one. In that case, I should be mad at me too. Unlike the other beings in the spirit realm, I don’t have any sort of special abilities to rely on.”

“Really?” he said.

“Yep. As you can see, I’m just a normal human, but I still have a few tricks up my sleeve.” I pressed the item I had pulled from my bag into Suimei’s hand and smiled. “This’ll solve all our problems. Now go for it.”

“Hey, wait a second…”

We weren’t going to get many shots at this. Nyaa-san had Yamajiji pinned down, so this was our best chance. I stepped cautiously forward.

“Stop jerking me around and tell me what’s going on here!” Yamajiji howled.

“No one’s jerking you around,” Nyaa-san said.

I stepped up next to Yamajiji and pulled out a razor and a wet compress. “The compress will help for lower back pain, okay?”

While Nyaa-san held Yamajiji in place, I chopped away the fur on his lower back and pressed the wet compress to his exposed flesh.

“Uwaaaaaauuugh!” he wailed, his voice echoing through the chamber. He writhed, limbs lashing out, those strange eyes rolling. You see, that compress was a special one just for spirits. Whatever it was doing, it was quite effective.

I searched for Suimei, who looked even paler than when we’d jumped into hell. “Hurry up and put it on!” I urged. “Can’t you see he’s in pain?”

“Aren’t you the one who hurt him?” he said. He dabbed at his head like he was trying to fight off a headache.

“I didn’t hurt him at all!”

“Wait, so…he’s thrashing around like that because his back hurts?” Suimei said.

“That’s right. He throws his back out like this sometimes. Unlike humans, who are usually able to cope with injuries like that, spirits tend to go a little wild. It’s kinda weird, I know.”

While we spoke, I slapped the other compress on, resulting in a whimper from Yamajiji before he began to convulse. The poor spirit was still clearly in pain. I’d need to spread this out a bit.

“Hey, I’m really sorry about this, Yamajiji, but I’m going to have to shave away some more fur,” I said. “Just hang in there, okay?”

“Nooo…ngyaaaaaaaa!” he groaned.

I shaved away patches of fur at random and slapped on more compresses, each application resulting in another cry and more convulsions. Soon, compresses almost entirely covered Yamajiji’s lower back, but he was finally returning to normal.

I breathed out a sigh of relief. “Wow, that was pretty crazy.”

Yamajiji gingerly sat up, glaring in my direction. Nevertheless, his pain must have eased, because his eyes weren’t nearly so bloodshot and he could evidently think clearly again. He sniffed at the compresses on his back while I poured him a glass of alcohol.

“I’m glad you’re back to normal,” I said.

“The back pain was bad, for sure, but having you slap those down on me like that was pretty awful,” Yamajiji mumbled. He noisily sucked down the drink I offered, then gaped at the empty cup.

“Huh?” I frowned. “But Shinonome-san said to always slap on the compresses as hard as you can.”

“Mind if I take a bite out of your old man for that?” he snorted. “Just a nibble.”

“Not at all, he’s all yours.”

Yamajiji’s bite strength was so powerful that he could probably crush the head of a wild boar. I didn’t think Shinonome-san would let himself get gnawed on so easily, but it would be fun to at least watch the old man have to run around to escape Yamajiji’s ire. I giggled at the mental image as I refilled Yamajiji’s cup.

Suimei watched on silently. He didn’t look the least bit relaxed, still eyeing Yamajiji warily.

“Come on over, Suimei,” I said. “It’s okay now.”

“No thanks.”

I smiled wryly at his stubbornness. I supposed it only made sense that someone who made a living by exorcising spirits wouldn’t trust them so easily.

Yamajiji downed his second cup in a single gulp. “Hey, what brings you here anyway?” he asked. “You didn’t come all the way out here just to fix my back, did you?”

“Oh, that’s right!” I clapped my hands. “Goblin-kun wanted you to read him a book.”

“Huh?”

Yamajiji and I searched for Goblin and found him shyly peeking out from behind a rock.

“Heyyy, Goblin-kuuun,” I called.

“Eek!” he squeaked.

Despite my efforts to wave him over, Goblin only stood there trembling, hugging his tanuki companion close to his chest. It seemed he’d never seen Yamajiji really lose it like that. In general, Yamajiji were benign, so the sudden change must have been quite alarming.

Nyaa-san wasn’t taking “no” for an answer, though. She hefted Goblin up by the scruff of his neck and carried him over. “Stop playing games and get out here.”

Nyaa-san dumped Goblin unceremoniously in front of Yamajiji. Goblin shuddered and shook, clutching his tanuki, who now scrambled to escape. Yamajiji reached out and affectionately mussed the trembling kid’s hair.

“So, you wanted me to read you a book, huh?” he said.

“Uh…um. A-are you okay now?” Goblin asked. “You’re back to normal? You’re not gonna gobble me up, right, Yamajiji?”

“Of course not! Now gimme that book.” Yamajiji took the book in his oversized hands and squinted. “It’s way too dark to read over here, but I’ve got a nice place a little deeper in. Follow me.”

Yamajiji took Goblin’s hand and led him deeper into the cave, to a place where a hole in the ceiling allowed the light of the moon to filter in. Compared to the rest of the cave, it almost looked like a stage illuminated by a spotlight. Yamajiji and Goblin settled down with the book, Goblin’s fears apparently allayed.

“Long, long ago,” Yamajiji read.

The Yamajiji were known for their loud voices. According to some, they could cause all sorts of natural disasters just by belting one out. Though this Yamajiji was certainly quite loud, his voice didn’t strike me as all that menacing as he read. In fact, there was something quite soothing about the way his words reverberated through the rocky cave. A light scratchiness added age to the smooth notes of his voice.

“The round, yellow moon…” he went on.

I closed my eyes and sank into the story. His unique Awa accent made his voice rich, like syrup pouring into my ears and spreading warmth through my whole body.

Before I knew it, Suimei sat next to me, watching the spirits in front of us.

“Thanks,” I whispered, hoping not to interrupt the reading.

“What for?” he asked, eyes narrowing in suspicion.

“The compress. I appreciated your help.”

“I don’t recall doing anything particularly helpful…”

“Hm, well you were at least there with me.”

“Last I checked, you dragged me after you.”

Suimei’s scowl deepened as we spoke. He seemed determined to disagree no matter what I said. I chuckled and shook my head. What a weird guy. It had to be tough living life that way, being so stubborn and set in your ways. Well, at least he was straightforward.

“You’re an interesting one, you know that?” I said.

“Where’d that come from all of a sudden?” Suimei snorted and turned his head away. I couldn’t help but chuckle in spite of myself. He was way too easy to tease.

“I’m glad Goblin-kun got to read his book,” I said, focusing on the storytelling instead.

Suimei remained silent and stared straight ahead.

“You know, you seem to be in a pretty bad mood. What’s wrong?” I asked.

“Bad mood? Me? No way.”

“Well, you certainly don’t seem to be in a good mood.”

Suimei’s shoulders slumped as he watched the two figures reading under the light of the moon. “I’m an exorcist,” he said eventually. “In fact, I’m the heir to a long line of exorcists. My body may be battered and beaten right now, but up until a short time ago, I’d taken on my fair share of jobs and exorcised a bunch of spirits.”

“Huh, who’d have thunk it?”

“Has anyone ever told you that you never know when to just stay quiet?” Suimei sighed. “Anyway, like I said, I’m an exorcist. And exorcists need spirits to make a living. Spirits exist to be exorcised. They should be loathed and exterminated by humans. …That’s what I was taught and believed. But was it all true? Here they are, just focused on reading a book, even while humans are so close by. How can you hate that? They’re completely absorbed in the story. A story written by humans, no less. I just…don’t know what to think.”

Suimei averted his eyes, lost in his own thoughts. I examined him, inspecting his face, searching for something in that blank void. Then I poked his cheek with a finger.

“Eh, what now?” he muttered.

“Your cheeks are so soft,” I observed. “If only you’d let the rest of your face soften up like that too.”

I grinned as I pinched both of his cheeks, tugging at the pliable flesh. Suimei struggled to pull away, but I refused to let go.

“They live in the same country, share the same language, and even live in the same age as we do,” I said. “Why would you think they wouldn’t love the same stories as we do?”

Suimei stopped struggling and went quiet. I continued to prod his cheeks as I spoke.

“I mean, granted, humans and spirits have different moral persuasions, to say nothing of their bodies, appearances, and upbringings. But we all live in the same place, don’t we? We all see the same things. So of course these stories appeal to all of us. These fanciful tales written by humans contain the power to entice people and spirits just the same.”

I let go of his cheeks to gaze into his brown eyes.

“Sure, there are some spirits out there who attack humans,” I said. “That’s why we need the power of the exorcists. But I don’t want you to lump all spirits together in the same category. There are also plenty of spirits like these here. In fact, I hope that someday, humans and spirits can come together and learn to be friends.”

Suimei just shook his head. “That seems…unlikely. Most humans don’t even take kindly to other humans different from themselves.”

“You’re right there,” I admitted.

I didn’t harbor any fantastical dreams of a world where spirits and humans lived together in perfect harmony. All I really hoped for was peace and friendship inside my little bubble. Alas, even that seemed like a pipe dream at the moment.

“It just wouldn’t really work out, huh?” I sighed.

“Pretty much…” Suimei said.

I sighed again and focused on Goblin and Yamajiji to banish my bleak thoughts.

The bright moonlight shining through the roof enveloped them in a soft glow. Now that I looked a little closer, I noticed that other spirits had joined us, though many seemed to be tanuki, thanks to the location. Everyone stood completely still as they listened intently to Yamajiji. For this moment, at least, the rift between the humans who’d written the story and the spirits reading it evaporated in the simple pleasure of enjoying the tale.

“Hey, Kaori,” Suimei said.

“Yes?”

He spoke slowly, chewing over each word. “What are you? Human? Spirit?”

I responded without a moment’s hesitation. After all, I’d spent years wondering the same myself. “Just going by my body alone, definitely human. But my heart… I think my heart might be with spirits. Or humans? I really don’t know. It’s kinda strange, isn’t it? It’s like I exist in some kind of middle ground, belonging to neither one side nor the other.”

It almost felt like an introduction. Though, now that I thought about it, I’d never actually properly introduced myself to Suimei. I wiped my hand off on my clothes and extended it to him.

“I’m Muramoto Kaori,” I said. “I realize I can come off as a bit impulsive sometimes, but I’m pleased to meet you all the same.”

Suimei showed only a moment’s hesitation before gripping my hand in his own. “Pleased to meet you. I’m Shirai Suimei. I may be clumsy, but I’m an exorcist who prides himself on being able to see through spirits’ tricks. Or should I say, an ex-exorcist… My family’s closed up shop.” I wanted to tease him, but he looked a bit torn up about it. It was just so hard to keep from trading verbal barbs with him, even in a situation like this.

I reclined against the cool rock wall to continue listening to Yamajiji. As he read, the hero of the story tripped over a rock and tumbled head over heels, landing right in a pile of manure. Everyone listening broke out in a fit of laughter, myself included. Suimei, however, simply looked perplexed.

I closed my eyes, drifting into a contented half-doze. The peace afforded by sharing this story wrapped around me like a warm blanket.

 

***

“Why you impertinent little…! Did you ever bother to think about how a parent would feel coming home to find their daughter and an injured boy missing?!”

“I…I’m sorry.”

Suimei and I sat side by side across from Shinonome-san, whose face burned red with anger. He puffed away at his pipe and tapped his foot incessantly, as though the irritation simply couldn’t be contained in his body. Meanwhile, Suimei and I had our heads bowed and our legs folded neatly under us. Nyaa-san, realizing that things were going to get ugly, quietly slipped upstairs. Traitor.

“Goblin-kun came here in tears saying that Yamajiji from Oboke threw out his back again,” I said. “But I’m sorry I didn’t think to leave a note for you. I’ll be sure to do that next time.”

My adoptive father’s face tightened. Still, after only another moment of glaring, the rage gave way to weary acceptance. “Yamajiji, huh? Poor guy. Well, I guess it is what it is.”

I giggled and threw my arms around him. “Aww, you’re a real softie. I knew you couldn’t stay mad.”

“Hey, no hugs! You’re so hot—and heavy too!”

“Whoa, heavy? You didn’t need to go there!”

“So, um, about me…” Suimei spoke up.

“What about you?” asked Shinonome-san. “You’re still here, huh? Well, you look fine, so you ought to be getting home.”

After checking that Suimei’s bleeding had stopped, Shinonome-san gestured toward the exit with his chin. Suimei looked pleadingly at me before turning back to Shinonome-san and bowing his head.

“I know it’s rather sudden, but could I stay here for a while longer?” he asked.

“Wha?” Shinonome-san blinked.

“There’s something I need to do here,” Suimei said. “Would you please consider it?”

Shinonome-san scowled at the sudden request. He leaned in close to Suimei, staring straight into his eyes. Then he snorted with laughter. “Unfortunately for you, kid, your chest is flatter than a washing board, and you’ve got a butt to go along with it. So I’m gonna have to say…no!”

Suimei and I were both completely taken aback by this response.

“Is that really how you make your decisions?” Suimei muttered.

I gasped. “Whoa, wait a sec, so you’re saying he’d be in if he had a huge rack or a big butt?”

Shinonome-san backed up ever so slightly. “No, no…that was a joke, you see. A joke! Ah ha ha ha!”

Shinonome-san attempted to backpedal, but I wasn’t about to let him talk his way out of this one. I crossed my arms and fixed Shinonome-san with a steely glare as sweat beaded on his forehead.

“You’re awful,” I said.

“No, you’ve got it all wrong!” he protested. “It was a joke! Okay, so I shouldn’t make such off-color jokes in front of my daughter, but—hey, you, you’re a man. Back me up here!”

“I mean, I really don’t know what to say…” Suimei said.

Knowing it was a joke did nothing to ease the bad taste in my mouth. I half closed my eyes and sniffed as I stepped behind Suimei. Shinonome-san slumped. Suimei just pulled out his wallet and tossed something on the tatami flooring.

Shinonome-san and I froze at the sight.

“Listen, I’m not asking you to let me just laze about your house,” Suimei said. “I have no intention of staying here for free.”

Fukuzawa Yukichi’s face looked blankly back up at us—the man drawn on the ten-thousand-yen bill. And he wasn’t alone. He sat atop a whole stack of identical ones.

Suimei pushed the stack of money toward Shinonome-san.

“I’m looking for a particular spirit,” he said, “so it’d be easier for me if I could just work from here. I know that humans stand out, but I figure with Kaori also living in the same house, well… Hey, are you listening?”

“Shinonome-san…” I said.

“What, Kaori?”

Shinonome-san and I gawked at the bills. I couldn’t have opened my eyes any wider even if I tried. Suimei observed us placidly.

“Are these real?” Shinonome-san murmured.

“Maybe they’re some kind of play money?” I murmured back.

“Huh, that’d make sense. Just for play, I guess.”

Our excitement ramped up as we inspected the bills. The closer we looked, the more it became apparent that these were real. I glanced back at Suimei and broke out into a fit of laughter. “These are pretty good fakes!”

“What’s with you guys?” Suimei asked, frowning. “You’re pretty eager to just write these off as counterfeits.”

He seemed so insistent that this wasn’t some sort of joke, but that couldn’t possibly be. Were these really, really real?

I jerked my head back up and grabbed both of Suimei’s hands in my own. “You mean that you’ll give this to us if we let you stay here?”

“I, uh, of course,” he said. “I mean, your expenses and everything are going to increase with another person living with you, right?”

“That’s right, of course they are! It’ll be a real hassle, ya know, having another person around.”

Suimei offered a quick nod. “In that case, I’ll pay the same amount every month. You can think of it as rent.”

“Every month?” I gaped.

“Um, correct.”

Shinonome-san shouted as he finished counting the bills. “Hey, Kaori! There’s two hundred thousand here! I can’t believe it, two hundred thousand!”

I swallowed hard and looked Suimei right in the eyes. “Are you sure about this?”

“It’s fine by me,” he insisted.

My whole body shook as I faced Shinonome-san. He wore a broad grin as he gave me the thumbs up. I nodded and turned back toward Suimei, a newfound excitement fluttering in my chest.

“Welcome to the haunted bookstore!” I declared. “It’s old, run-down, and a bit cramped, but please make yourself at home.”

“Hey, no need to talk down about a man’s castle, you know!” Shinonome-san protested.

“I mean, it’s true. Try opening your eyes for once, old man,” I sniffed.

“Why I—I don’t even know what to say to you.” Shinonome-san jabbed a finger at me. “This has nothing to do with the state of the house. Anyway, let’s put that aside. I want meat! Go buy the best, highest-quality meat you can find. Something with some nice, delicious fat that’ll melt away under the slightest touch.”

“Whoa, hang on! We need to watch our spending, you know. But I guess we can do it just this once and send one of these bills off to a new home. I’ll be back.” I leapt up, waving as I threw open the sliding door connecting home and shop, and slipped on some sandals.

“Hey, wait!” Suimei called.

I paused at his desperate tone. Face taut, Suimei reached out to me as though seeking help. “Don’t leave me here alone with the old man.”

Shinonome-san laughed. “What’re you talking about? We’re gonna be sharing everything from now on, aren’t we? Let’s sit around and talk, like men.”

The scowl on Suimei’s face spoke louder than any words he could have chosen then. “No way, quit it. Stay away from me. I’m totally out.”

“Hey, don’t be shy. Back me up, Kaori!” Shinonome-san commanded.

I shook my head, chuckling at the playful exchange, and made my escape. The moment I stepped outside, glimmerflies descended around me, illuminating the spirit world as they batted about my shoulders.

I didn’t get far before a harried voice cried out to me.

“Hang in there until I get back, Suimei!” I called back. “Don’t let the old man get the best of you.”

“You can’t be serious!” he cried.

“See you!”

With that, I skipped away into the town of eternal darkness.