by Cristy Burne
"Ugh," she said, wrinkling her nose in disgust. "Children. Who'd have one? Who'd be one?" She plonked Kazu on the teacher's desk and turned back to me, ignoring his wails.
I used my free arm to rip the curtain from my mouth. "It's OK, Kazu," I said, trying to sound comforting. "You'll be all right."
But Kazu looked at me, all tied up and trapped, and he cried even louder. He was right. There was no way things were going to be OK. I hoped like crazy he wouldn't have to watch me being eaten. And I hoped she might really let him go, after she'd finished with me.
Okuda advanced towards me, the red symbols on her neck working their way free. Her head was about to come off. She was licking her lips. I hoped I'd taste rotten, that she'd choke on my bones, that...
"Hey, fruit loop. Yeah you. You ever think about getting your hair done? 'Cos you look half-dead. You look awful. And you really need to do something about that problem with your neck."
My heart leapt. It was Cait!
She was poking her head round the classroom door. But what was she doing?
Run, I tried to scream. Run now, while you still have a chance. The sound died in my throat, the curtains crushing the air from my lungs.
But Cait didn't run. Instead she grinned and winked at me, as if this was some kind of game, just another of Alex's tricks on an unsuspecting supply teacher. And then she walked right into the classroom.
"That's got to be the worst suit I've ever seen," she said to Okuda, shaking her head in disgust. "It hurts my eyes just looking at it."
Okuda's body swung around. All her attention was now focused on Cait, but her head was still working its way free.
And still Cait didn't run.
"Hey, what you got there?" Cait chirped, looking at Kazu where he sat on the teacher's desk. He'd stopped screaming his lungs out, but the tears were still wet on his cheek and his little face was red. "I think that's Miku's baby brother. And I don't think he likes you. Why don't I just go and get him?"
Cait took a few steps towards Kazu. Distracted from her head-weaving, Okuda scurried to come between them.
"What's the matter, demon?" Cait asked. "Oh. What's that? You're going to need your arms if you want to keep me from grabbing Kazu? That's right. You better keep your head on while I'm in the room."
I had no idea what game Cait was playing. Once the head came off, Okuda could snap through Cait's neck and be back with her body in seconds, before Kazu had any chance of getting away. He was too young to walk, let alone escape.
"Foolish girl," Okuda spat, but her head stayed close to her neck. Maybe Cait knew what she was doing. Okuda couldn't send her head flying around the room without leaving Kazu unprotected and alone with her headless body.
I couldn't hear what Cait said next. The sound of dripping water was getting louder, and her voice was drowned out by a steady gushing noise.
Okuda didn't seem to notice. She was riveted by Cait. Probably deciding what to do next. Attack and eat Cait now? Or grab Kazu first and eat Cait later? And I could do nothing to help. I was completely stuck, pinned down by the pinching, grabbing curtains.
The sound of running water was growing into a roar. I couldn't hear anything Cait and Okuda were saying.
Poor Kazu seemed lost and confused, all alone on the teacher's desk. He'd stopped crying, though, and began to show interest in what Cait was doing. He sat up and crawled a little way in her direction, closer to the edge of the desk.
Panicked, I tried to scream a warning, but the sound was trapped by the curtains before it could get out. Please stay still, Kazu, I willed. Don't move any further.
Cait and Okuda continued their face-off. Trickles of water began streaming through the open door.
Cait didn't seem to notice the growing tide. She was preparing to fight Okuda. The two of them moved in circles around the desks, like sumo wrestlers in the ring, each sizing the other up before their bout could begin. Except what could Cait do? She had no powers. No secret weapons. Nothing.
Suddenly Okuda swooped, but not at Cait. Instead she made a dash for the teacher's desk, grabbing Kazu and hoisting him high above her head in triumph. Her lips curled into a victory cry, but I heard nothing.
The sound of water was now so loud it was all I could hear. I couldn't even hear Kazu start screaming again, but I could tell from his face that he was yelling loud enough to bring the fire brigade. If only such a thing were possible. If only they would come.
With Kazu safe in her arms, Okuda seemed to think it was time for more action. She waved a hand and once again the desklids began banging and fireballs started dropping from the ceiling. The noise of desklids and waterfalls seemed to fill the entire room, a tsunami of sound.
But something strange was happening. Okuda's fireballs were fizzling out as soon as they hit the ground. She'd been so busy unravelling her head and preparing to fly that she hadn't noticed. While she'd been focused on Cait, the classroom had flooded. We were now ankle-deep in water.
Cait splashed across to where I stood trapped, taking care to stay clear of the waving, grabbing curtains. "Don't worry," she yelled over the noise. "She'll be here soon."
I had no idea what she was talking about, but then she pointed to the door.
There, unmistakably, was a series of growing ripples, each rushing to catch the other as they raced into the room. Something massive was behind those ripples, sweeping water into our room, surfing the waves up the corridor towards us.
Cait pointed again to the door and grinned. "She's coming."
The woman of the wet. The dragon woman.
She was back.
Okuda stared at the ripples, purple mouth hanging wide open. Slowly the desks stopped banging, the fireballs stopped falling. Even the curtains seemed to loosen their grip.
The nukekubi swung round to face the door, nearly losing her head in her haste. But she was still holding Kazu tightly.
What was she thinking? What were those red markings doing as the dragon woman approached? Sewing Okuda together? Or unravelling?
Suddenly the rushing of water was gone. Even Kazu seemed to sense that something was happening. His screams became a quiet whimper. Something large was sliding, swishing, slithering its way towards us. I nearly cheered.
The dragon woman was coming.
As soon as her snake-like body appeared in the corridor, Okuda gasped and stepped backwards, away from the door. "Nure-onna."
Then everything fell silent.
"Nukekubi," the green woman hissed. "I see you have the child."
"And what of it?" Okuda sneered, holding Kazu closer.
"What are you doing so far from home?" the dragon woman asked, almost sadly. "Must you insist on hunting these children?" She stayed in the doorway, her red tongue forked and ready.
Okuda growled, baring her teeth like a fox. "But you are also far from home, woman of the wet. This is not your place."
The nure-onna slid further into the room, revealing more of her scaly green skin. "But there you are wrong, nukekubi," she said, smiling so that her fangs shone and glittered in the light.
"What?" Okuda spat. "This is not our country, nure-onna. You have no power over me here."
But I could sense Okuda's confidence dropping. Was she scared of the dragon woman? Bit by bit, the curtains were loosening their grip. Careful not to draw too much attention, I wrestled my other arm free and began to unwrap myself.
The two demons didn't seem to notice.
The dragon woman flicked her tongue and raised one perfect eyebrow at Okuda. "Where one belongs," she hissed, "depends on one's actions..."
"Don't be stupid," Okuda snarled. "Your kind don't belong here."
"No," the nure-onna hissed. "It is you who is not welcome here, nukekubi. I came tonight on the bidding of the Takeshita zashiki-warashi, the child ghost, Zashiko. I came to hunt you, with this child as your bait."
The dragon woman pointed at Kazu and I gasped. Bait? She was no better than Okuda. It didn't seem to matter who won t
his contest. Either way, we were doomed.
"But," the dragon woman continued, gesturing at Cait and me, "these children took him and deserved him, and with that they bought your life, for one more night."
"What are you talking about?" Okuda sneered.
"I have returned because this curly-haired child asked for my help." The dragon woman's eyes flashed and she nodded her hissing head at Cait.
Cait blushed. "Turns out she's OK after all," she whispered, pulling aside bits of curtain to help me escape.
But could the nure-onna really be OK? I couldn't forget what she'd just said. She'd brought Kazu as bait? Human bait? What kind of demon was she?
Cait and I both stared at the nure-onna, whose snaking body rippled with muscle as she slid further into the room.
Okuda backed away, still holding Kazu.
"I came here today to eat these children. And that is my right."
"And that," hissed the dragon woman, "is your downfall, nukekubi. For you will be judged by your actions."
Okuda held Kazu close to her open mouth, threatening. "Don't come any closer."
"I don't need to," the nure-onna said. "Your home is not here, nukekubi."
For a second Okuda was silent, then something strange happened. Her face seemed to grow purple, just like her awful lipstick.
"What are you doing?" she gasped. "What's happening?"
"You are being judged." The dragon woman did nothing, just stared at Okuda's flushing face, her red eyes narrow as slits.
I pulled free from the last of the curtains, watching in awe.
"But he's so heavy," Okuda gasped, confused. "He's just a baby. It's not possible for him to be this... heavy..." Her face was glowing red with effort now. Sweat was pouring from her brow and her arms began shuddering, as if carrying an extraordinary weight.
"It's Kazu," I whispered to Cait. "She did it to me earlier."
I watched as Okuda's entire body shook with the effort of carrying my tiny brother.
Suddenly the dragon woman reared up on her snake's body. "You care for this child?" she demanded, addressing Okuda as the nukekubi struggled to hang on to Kazu's weight.
"Of course not," Okuda spat. "You know I don't, so don't bother asking. And stop what it is that you're doing." She was trying to fling Kazu away, but her arms had stopped responding.
The dragon demon hissed again, her eyes blood-red and angry. "You promise to take good care of this child?" she asked, spitting each word from between dripping white fangs.
"Rubbish..." Okuda gasped. "Never. Why are you doing this?" She staggered to one knee, as if crushed under a massive load.
"This," roared the dragon woman, "is my work. My place. My home. And Zashiko's plan. And if you will not care for this child..."
"I...will ...not..." Okuda struggled for breath, falling now on both knees, as if she was praying for forgiveness.
"If you will not care for this child," the nure-onna continued, "then you choose your own fate." Her tongue flicked again and again, and her eyes began to bulge inside her green face.
For an instant it seemed that Okuda might be strong enough to stand again, but that moment passed. She wailed where she knelt on the floor, a wrenching noise that sent Kazu once again into a flood of tears.
The angry red characters around Okuda's neck were lost in the rush of blood to her head, but I could see them still working away, stitching or unstitching to set her head free.
Just as her body collapsed to the ground, Okuda's head flew up, cackling and wailing.
"You cannot beat me," the head crowed, sweeping in a wide circle above our heads.
"I am sorry, nukekubi," said the dragon woman. "But I already have." She turned to stare at the place where Okuda's body had been, but all that was left was a shrinking pile of caramel clothes.
Okuda's body was literally shrivelling away, disappearing. She was being crushed into nothing.
"No..." Okuda's head gave one final shriek, then fell limp and lifeless to the floor, its black hair flung out on the ground like a flag.
Everyone was silent for a long time.
"Is she...?" Cait asked eventually.
The woman of the wet nodded slowly. "It was Zashiko's plan. And my work."
"When the body is destroyed..." Cait whispered.
"...the nukekubi is dead," I finished, wondering at what we had just seen. Then I shook my head to clear my thoughts. We were forgetting one important thing.
I rushed across the classroom to the pile of clothes that had been Mrs Okuda. There, sitting happily, though his cheeks were still wet, was my brother.
"Kazu," I cried, scooping him up in my arms. He smiled and gurgled a hello. He seemed fine, and he weighed just the same as ever. "What happened here?" I asked, confronting the dragon woman again. "Who are you?"
"I have already told you," she said. "I am the nure-onna. Woman of the wet." Her tongue slid slowly in and out, like a snake resting after a large meal. "I do not usually travel so far from Japan, but this nukekubi was causing trouble, and the Takeshitas are well known in my circles. It seems Zashiko still cares for you," she smiled. "All the way from Japan, she still watches for you."
"What about you?" Cait asked. "Now what?"
The serpent demon hissed, a soft, sighing sound. "I think I like it here. There is plenty for me to do."
"You know you can't always flood our school," Cait grinned. "And not all our teachers are cut-throat demons."
The dragon woman smiled. "I know. Maybe you will not need to see me again. There are others who have followed you, the noppera-bo, the okubi, the amazake-baba and more. Most will not cause you trouble. They are just curious. You are Takeshita, after all. You carry your grandmother's blood, and her grandmother's blood before that. The nukekubi was right. You have great powers, though you do not know it yet." The demon looked distressed. A strange trickling noise had interrupted her thoughts. "I must go," she said. "The waters recede."
She reversed her massive body out of the door, riding slowly on the retreating waves.
"But, what kind of powers?" I asked, desperate to know more before she left.
She smiled at me, fangs gleaming. "You will find them. Already you have discovered more than I thought possible. And your curly-haired friend is a wise one, and brave." She turned and nodded kindly at Cait. "Together, you will discover even more."
There was a strange gurgling sound, like water draining from a sink, and then, in an instant, she had gone.
I rushed to the door and peered down the corridor. But all I could see was the gleam of drying puddles. The woman of the wet had disappeared.
We didn't have long to wait till morning. The sun was already climbing the sky as we jumped from our classroom window, passing Kazu like a delicate treasure between us. All around, the snow was melting, turning into tiny streams and trickles down the street. I wondered about the yuki-onna. Where had she disappeared to?
"Wonder if there'll be any school today," Cait said, kicking at the snow as we walked home.
I grimaced. "There'd better not be a maths test. I don't think I could get a single question right. I'm exhausted."
So, it seemed, was Kazu. He was asleep again, breathing soundly in Cait's arms with not a sign of the cough that had troubled him before.
"Hey, Miku Mouse," a voice yelled from down the street.
I turned to see who it was, just in time to get a snowball in the face. Choking and spluttering, I cleared the icy snow from my eyes, desperate to see what demon was attacking us this time.
"How's your mum?" the demon yelled. Except it wasn't a demon. It was Alex, grinning and scooping more snow for another attack. "Did you hear? No school today. The pipes burst and the whole place flooded overnight. Cool, huh?"
Another snowball came sailing across the street in our direction.
We ducked and I gathered some snow for a counter-attack. "My mum's in hospital actually," I said. "She hurt her ankle on the ice last night." I hurled the snowball in Alex's dire
ction and started walking away. "Come on, Cait, let's get home."
I expected a snowball in the back at any moment, but none came.
"Sorry about your mum," Alex called. There was a pause, but I didn't look back. "Will we see you at the park later on?" he yelled.
This time I turned around, not sure if Alex was teasing or not.
His face seemed serious.
"Maybe," I called, and he smiled.
"Cool. You can come too, O'Neill. We're planning a mega snowfight. Awesome." He hurled another snowball at us and we scurried away.
"You really going to a snowfight with Alex?" Cait asked.
"Dunno." I grinned. "Depends on whether Mum's OK. And whether Mrs Williams can babysit Kazu."
I let us through my front door and we floated like sleepwalkers into the flat.
"Hey, you want to stay over tonight as well?" I asked, grinning.
"Will it be like last night?" Cait asked.
"Maybe."
"Then maybe," Cait answered, grinning back. "But first, we eat. I'm starving. We'll need our strength if we're going to throw snowballs all afternoon."
We tucked Kazu into his cot and cranked out another pizza, this time Hawaiian.
While it was cooking, I dragged a chair over to our front door and stuck another cedar leaf in the door-frame. Better safe than sorry, even if they did only work on minor demons.
And although we also ate this pizza fast enough to burn our tongues, we left a spare piece on the bench, just in case Zashiko was passing by and in the mood for something new. I hoped my Baba would be proud.
I still prefer teddy bears and bunny rabbits to ghosts and evil spirits, but it's too late for that now. One day I'll tell Kazu all about what happened, and I'll teach him more about the Takeshita ghosts and demons that still haunt us. Who knows what could be waiting just around the corner?
If you ever come up against a nukekubi of your own, I hope that some of what you've read here will help you. Don't forget what you've learned, and keep your eyes peeled for strange red markings or peculiar itchings. And if you wake up one morning to find that your pillow is down by your feet instead of up by your head, or the light in your ceiling is rocking like a boat, be very thankful. It could be that someone is looking out for you.
