by Dani Hoots
“What did you do?”
Tears ran down her face. “I wept over his body and never left it, becoming one with the snow. I never left him.”
“Then what are you doing out here? Should you not go to the other side so you can be with your husband there?”
“But I can’t leave this place. The town nearby—it was their fault we had to live in the forest. They cast us out when we were poor and needed help. I will never forgive them.”
“So you wait for men to come out here, cause a large snowstorm, and bury them beneath the snow?”
She nodded. “It’s what they deserve.”
Akikumo shook his head. “No, these aren’t the men who did you wrong. These are innocent men. You must move on. Do you want me to help you move on?”
The woman appeared as if she was giving what he proposed much thought. No one had ever given her the chance to move on, and she must have forgotten how. “Please.”
Standing up, Akikumo bowed, clapped his hands together twice, and bowed once more. Suddenly the woman became snowflakes and was taken by the wind. Akikumo took a deep breath and let it out slowly.
“Thank you,” a voice whispered. I glanced all around but didn’t see any sign of the woman. She had moved on.
Turning to the human, Akikumo lifted him up and placed him on his back to carry. “Let’s go, Ketsue-chan. We need to get this man somewhere warm.”
I followed him as he headed back into the forest. “Why did you help the ghost if she was hurting people?”
“Her heart was in the right place. She missed her husband and got lost. I simply helped her find her way.”
“Why are you helping this man then? It seems that he only wanted to talk to the ghost because she was a beautiful woman.”
“Even so, he doesn’t deserve to die. And remember before when I said we were to be generous to others?”
I did. “Do you think if this man survives and we get him to town, they will be generous and give us honey-preserved apples?”
Akikumo rolled his eyes.
Chapter Nineteen
Present day—Hida Mountains
WE RESTED WELL AT THE onsen and woke at sunrise to head back out for the day. Yamato located the peaks of Mount Tate and Tsurugi, and we highlighted the area between the two mountains where Akikumo’s home could be. I knew the building had to be above the tree level, as Akikumo loved the mountaintops. Once our hike was planned, we made our way over the mountain.
The closest mountain to us was Mount Gaki. Once we were on the top, I could get a better look of the area and see if I remember anything. Hopefully I would, but as Yamato pointed out, I was not good with directions.
I never noticed before as I always had someone else with me and I didn’t have to worry about which way we were headed. Now that I was on my own and out of the safety of the shrine, I was completely confused.
“How is your leg?” I asked Yamato as he led us up the mountainside. He wore similar clothes to the day before, but they were a different color. Now he wore a red button-down shirt over a white T-shirt and light jeans. I still wore my white-and-blue yukata, as I was used to wearing the same thing for a few days of traveling at a time.
He shrugged. “It’s fine. The wound closed before we went into the bath last night, and any soreness was gone when I woke up.”
“That’s yokai medicine for you.”
“If humans had such efficient medicine, there would be much more peace.”
I laughed. “Really? You think so? I doubt any of that would change humans. I think it would make them more lazy as they didn’t have consequences to their actions.”
“I suppose that is true. Although not all illnesses result from one’s choice.”
“But it is the result of humans as a whole. That’s where everything will go downhill, then the people would pay the price for that.”
“You have a point there.”
We reached the top of the mountain, and I gazed out on the valleys. The lush forest surrounded us and filled in the spaces between the peaks. I caught glimpses of lakes and rivers. There might be a few rivers we would have to find a way to get across. That would be a future problem we would solve once we got there.
After yesterday’s fiasco, I decided it would be easier to stay in my kitsune form and listen for humans and change back if need be. I didn’t want any yokai to have the upper hand out there, not when we were so close.
Yamato pointed. “Our best bet is to head toward Mount Harinoki and stay the night near the top. Then tomorrow we can climb down to the Kurobe River, make our way around the dam, and head up Mount Tate first. From there we can hike up Mount Tsurugi. We will have to go around the dam or else we will come upon more humans than we want.”
“No humans, please.”
“Which is why we will have to go way around. I think it will be fine though. These are enormous mountains.”
“Lead the way.” I gestured forward.
Walking across these mountains reminded me of all the traveling Akikumo and I did while we were together. I didn’t realize how much I missed those adventures until I found myself out here with Yamato. I had been so alone at the Inari shrine that having even a human traveling with me felt refreshing. It was strange to think this was my outcome after years of wanting to get away from all humans in general. Akikumo would be proud once he saw me.
Mount Gaki was a lot more rocky than I remembered, although I had been on so many mountaintops that I was losing count and meshed most together. Most of Japan was like that, which made it hard for humans to use a lot of the land. I was thankful for this as it meant my habitat was still there. I took in a big breath of the mountain air and said thanks to the kami as they had blessed us with sunshine. Anything was better than the winter months here, however, as I remembered their bitter bite when the snow fell, until spring came and melted away the snow. It fascinated me how different this land could look between summer and winter.
Making our way down the mountain and into the valley, I noticed we were coming upon a road that had vehicles racing by. I turned into my human form.
“There are roads like this all the way out here?” I asked as we walked up to the human structure.
Yamato nodded. “Yup. That way humans can reach some of the onsen and camping sites easier.”
I shook my head. “Wouldn’t it be much more of an accomplishment if they did it all on their own without a vehicle?”
“I suppose. But many don’t have the time or the physical fitness for such activities.”
“Then they should climb more mountains.”
Yamato laughed. “And get attacked by yokai?”
“Fair point. It is just strange seeing so many humans out here though. It used to only be us yokai.”
Once we crossed the road, we stopped for lunch. I sat on a log and pulled out my onigiri that I’d gotten from the onsen. Munching on the rice, I took a quick look around. Why did this not seem as familiar as it should have? Had that much time passed?
“Still feel lost?” Yamato asked as he ate his lunch.
I shrugged. “Not so much lost as confused. I can’t believe how much time has passed still. It has been jarring.”
“I suppose that would be strange. I can’t imagine being alive that long and witnessing everything that you have.”
I nodded. I had met so many yokai, kami, and humans over the years, and many of them had passed on to the next world. I didn’t even want to try to figure out what the numbers would be.
We finished our meal and started off again. Hours passed as we pushed ourselves up the mountain. Soon we came to the top of Mount Harinoki. The wind was powerful as we stood at the very peak. The sun was beginning to set, and the sky appeared to be painted in swathes of reds, oranges, and pinks. I stretched.
“We made it!”
Yamato collapsed on the ground. “That we did!”
“You should put up your tent before it gets dark. I will start a fire.”
He nodded a
s he rolled over and unpacked his bag. As I readied the fire with some sticks I had gathered on the way up the mountain, I watched in amazement how fast Yamato set up his tent.
“Wow, you are pretty good at that.”
He nodded. “Yeah, we used to go hiking a lot when I was a child. We haven’t for a long time though, but I guess this part stuck with me.”
“How was that? Especially since you could see yokai?”
He shrugged as he took a seat by the fire. “I did fine. Sleeping in my tent alone was the worst as I heard things all night, but my parents didn’t hear anything. Luckily there were a lot of humans around so there weren’t any big problems. It was mainly little ones that tried to play tricks on me.”
“Lucky for you. But that must have been traumatizing as a child. I’m surprised you aren't afraid of them all.” As I used to be with humans. Yet he went on with dealing with them. I supposed it was because no one believed him.
“I was at first, but as time went on, I decided it was fine as long as I didn’t interact with them and kept my distance. Then I gave them food when they wanted it. I am actually a pretty talented cook, might I add.”
“Are you now? Well, you will have to prove that to me later, otherwise I won’t believe you.”
“Are you going to go back to Kyoto after you find Akikumo though? I would figure you would want to stay with him.”
He had a point. I didn’t want to go anywhere that Akikumo wasn’t. “I will see if he will come to Kyoto with me, and then I will show up at your door, demanding food.”
Yamato laughed. “I could see that. You seem to love food a lot. Speaking of which, should we get that package of soup going?”
I nodded. “Yes, let’s.”
Yamato pulled out the package of soup he had brought and filled a small pot with water. “This doesn’t count as my cooking, for the record. Packaged soup never tastes as good as the genuine thing.”
“I haven’t had it either way.”
“I guess you wouldn’t have if you haven’t left the mountain for decades. Well, be ready to be disappointed.”
As he set up the pot above the fire, he kept glancing over at me. I cocked my head a little. “What’s wrong?”
“It’s just... I was wondering if I could pet your tails. They look really soft, and I have been curious. What a real kitsune tail feels like.”
I blushed and fidgeted a little. “I haven’t ever had someone ask me that. I don’t know...”
He held up his hands. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to make it awkward. I just was curious, that’s all.”
I bit my lip. “No, it’s fine. Go ahead and pet it. I keep my tails clean and as fluffy as they can be. You won’t find better tails than mine.”
Yamato stepped closer and stroked my tail. It felt strange to have a human touch my tail, but I knew he didn’t mean anything by it. If I met a creature with such gorgeous tails, I would want to pet them as well.
“It’s super soft!”
I smiled smugly. “Yeah, I know.”
“Are they all this soft?”
“Of course. What kind of kitsune would I be if I didn’t keep them looking like they do?”
“I hear Ichika-san berated you about not keeping your kimono in pristine condition. I guess I assumed you didn’t care about your looks as much as the others.”
“That’s a bit different. My tails are my pride and joy whereas my clothing is not. As you can see...” I gestured to my kimono that had been snagged a few times from branches and slashed from the yokai we had faced. “Traveling does a number on my clothing, but I can always get a new kimono. I can’t get a new tail.”
“I guess that makes sense.”
After a little while, the soup was ready. I blew on it a bit and took a sip. Yamato was right; this was not the best soup in the world, as it was quite salty, but it still tasted fine after a long day of hiking.
“Well.” Yamato gathered my bowl and put away the equipment. “I think we should retire for the night. Are you not going to sleep in a tent?”
I shook my head as I transformed into a fox. “I like to sleep in my fox form while in the wilderness.”
He looked at me a bit surprised I had transformed so quickly. “I guess that makes sense. Well then, good night.”
“Good night, Yama-chan.” I curled up in a ball and tried to fall asleep. All I could think about was the fact that tomorrow it was possible I could see Akikumo again. And the fact that we hadn’t run into any yokai.
Which meant tomorrow something would happen, whether it be good or bad.
Chapter Twenty
Summer 1611 (Edo Period)—Edo
AS WE STEPPED OUT OF the forest, I couldn’t believe my eyes. There were crowds of men and women, traveling on a road that seemed to lead toward Edo. I held on to Akikumo’s cotton kimono, wondering where they all were coming from.
“Why are there so many people? I have never seen so many travel before that didn’t have to do with war.”
Akikumo chuckled as he moved and tucked his white hair behind his ear. “Well, it seems humans are doing more trade between cities and have created a road between Kyoto and Edo.”
I frowned. I did not like the fact that humans were traveling like this. It meant they were impeding into our territory. Now yokai couldn’t come around these parts without humans seeing them and starting a hunt. I clutched Akikumo’s warm hand, not wanting to stray far with all these humans around. His skin was warm and comforting, and I always felt safe when I was close to him. There was nothing to fear when Akikumo was around.
We came upon a narrowing passage with a wooden fence. There were a few men and women stopping people and talking to them. We got in line, and I clutched Akikumo’s kimono some more. He patted my head.
“It will be fine. They are just making sure that no one is coming to cause problems. As you can see, no one can carry a weapon except samurai, who are trained warriors. And, of course, me.”
“Are they really afraid of their own kind like that? Doesn’t it seem strange?”
“Well, you won’t even go talk to your own kind when you see them, so I don’t think you have room to talk. Besides, this country is enormous and there are a lot of different types of humans, just like there are yokai.”
He made a fair point, and I decided to let it go. These humans wouldn’t ever really make sense to me anyway.
I stuck close to him, however, as I still didn’t trust these humans. They did nothing to cause me to change that opinion. As we came closer to the gate, I noticed the air seem to get thicker, and it felt hard to breathe. What was this miasma? Why was it so thick there?
Akikumo glanced down at me, as if seeing if I also noticed the stench. “Do you smell that, Ketsue-chan?”
I nodded. “It reeks of mold and valerian.”
Akikumo chuckled. “That is a suitable way to describe it. You and I are used to the mountain and forest air, and it seems the more humans expand, the more evil energy seems to collect in the cities.”
“Which proves my point that they are evil beings.”
“Or maybe they have more hardships than you and me. The best plants grow in the harshest conditions.”
“So you say.”
We stopped our conversation as we reached the front of the line, and the samurai guard started barking out questions.
“Why are you visiting Edo?”
“We are simply humble travelers wanting to see the capital and buy a gift for our friends,” Akikumo replied gently.
“How long will you be staying?”
“For a few days.”
“Do you know anyone in Edo?”
“No.”
The samurai crossed his arms, as if still suspicious of us. Akikumo, however, kept his cool.
“Where are you going to stay?” the guard asked.
“At a hotel.”
“Do you have enough money to pay for a hotel?”
“Of course.”
“Are you on the run from law e
nforcements in the neighboring towns?”
“No.”
The samurai gestured to the gate. “You may enter.”
We walked past him and entered the town. The stench was even stronger inside, and I covered my nose with my kimono sleeve.
Once we were out of hearing range of the samurai, I leaned over and whispered, “How did he not notice your katana?”
“It is because of my sugure. I hid it from him.”
I forgot Akikumo could hide objects using his sugure. I still needed to get better at it, although I could hide my ears and tails easily now.
Peering around, I found there were a lot more buildings here than I had ever imagined possible. Was this how all the towns would eventually be? There were so many humans walking around and many samurai, who seemed to be the law enforcement of the area, that I worried what if I accidentally transformed into my kitsune self? Would there be a way out of here? I glanced around. No, it would be near impossible. I didn’t believe I could escape.
“I don’t want to be here, Aki-chan. What if I mess up?”
“You will be fine. I am here to keep you safe, remember? I won’t let anything happen to you.”
“I guess.”
He placed his hand on my shoulder. “Now, let us get some food and look around to see what these humans have been up to lately.”
Akikumo led us to a ramen shop. We passed under the cloth banners, and the scent of broth instantly hit me. I was drooling before I ordered my ramen, with a topping of fried tofu of course. They didn’t take long to serve it, and I savored the meal. It was one of the best ramen bowls I had ever eaten. At least humans were getting better at cooking. Maybe I could stay around them if they kept this up.
Once we were finished, Akikumo led us out of the shop and toward the textile area. Men and women adored kimonos and haori as they lined the streets. Most were made of cotton, but they now made many of a finer material that I had seen some kami wear. Humans must have started designing things more intricately just like we yokai had been doing for centuries. Maybe one day they could catch up to us.
