Where the Wild Ladies Are

by Aoko Matsuda

  Well, thought Tomihime, this is one for the books. It had been a long time since anyone had been able to see her.

  The young man stopped short in front of Tomihime.

  “Hello, my name is Shigeru Himekawa. I’ve recently taken over from Mr. Tei as the regional supervisor for this district, so I thought I’d stop by and introduce myself.”

  “Himekawa?” Tomihime stared at the man. In former times, men had wriggled and squirmed when Tomihime pinned them with her piercing gaze, but this young man showed no signs of doing so. Instead, he sat down very neatly beside Tomihime’s outstretched legs and, with rather unseasoned movements, took out a business card and handed it to her.

  Tomihime accepted it, although she really couldn’t see the point in these white slips of paper. This would be the second one she owned now, the first having been given to her by Himekawa’s predecessor, Mr. Tei. Tomihime had liked Mr. Tei. He was a pleasantly unmanly sort of man. Tomihime had always been drawn to men who stood out from the pack, with that dewy gleam in their eyes. Zushonosuke had been that type, too.

  “Another guy with that name came up here, once, some time ago now. But it’s just your name that’s the same. You’re not like him at all.”

  The young man’s suit had clearly been purchased from a mass retailer, and it was on the cusp of being the wrong size. Something about the innocuousness of his attire gave him a shabby air. Poor guy, thought Tomihime.

  “Really?” He cocked his head.

  “Yeah, that guy risked his life to come up here. They all did, back then. They were petrified of us. I say ‘us,’ though, of course, there’s only me now. Earlier, there were a few of us women here, and boy, were we something to see! We were unbeatable! Ach, those were the times. Those were my days of glory! You don’t see guys staking their lives to climb up here now, that’s for sure. They all put on those silly slipper things and come shuffling by. Do you know what I’m talking about? They’re so loud, those slippers.”

  Seeing the disdain on Tomihime’s face, the young man frowned. “Should I have risked my life to come up here? I think that could definitely be arranged, at least in terms of mental preparation. I’ll remember that for next time.”

  Tomihime snorted. “Don’t worry about it. It’s just that everything felt really new back then, you know? We felt like we were special. I mean, we actually were special, and that felt great, but I’m over that now. Just come up normally, via the stairs. To be perfectly honest, I couldn’t care less.”

  The young man winced. “You’re still special, even now, Miss Tomihime. Mr. Tei has also been concerned that your morale has been low of late.”

  Tomihime eyed this new Himekawa sullenly. What had she done to deserve a visit from such a total dork? And when the old Himekawa had been so dreamy, too. If only they were in an open field right now, Tomihime thought, she would rip up a fistful of grass and throw it in this man’s face.

  “I wish you’d shut up! I’m still performing fine, okay? It’s no easy task, you know, protecting a whole castle. And tell me, will you, what’s the point of it? These days it’s nothing more than a tourist attraction, pure and simple. I’m absolutely unnecessary, aren’t I?”

  At Tomihime’s outburst, the young man frowned once more, directing his eyes up to the ceiling like a little boy posed with an impossible demand. Then he looked again at Tomihime.

  “You’re absolutely needed. The role of maintaining balance in a place, keeping things running smoothly, is an absolutely crucial one. Before making my way over here, I took a stroll around Himeji and what struck me was this: wherever you are in this town, you have a view of this castle. Whenever you go, you can look up and see it towering so beautifully above you. It’s a most reassuring presence. In other words, Miss Tomihime, it’s as if you are single-handedly protecting all the citizens of this city.”

  “Those are big claims.”

  “Yes.”

  Still glaring straight ahead, Tomihime shifted her legs and tucked them up beside her into a slightly neater arrangement. “So how come you can see me, anyway?”

  The New Himekawa scratched his head. “Well, actually, my mother died not too long ago, and then for a time all kinds of strange things happened, then finally my mother started appearing to me.”

  “That’s cool!”

  The New Himekawa nodded seriously. “She said that in the beginning, she just wanted to avenge my father. But then, apparently, as she was figuring out how to perform scary stunts and practicing them, she realized what fun it was. She came to me because she wanted someone to whom she could show all her tricks to. Kind of like a magician.”

  “And that’s how you came to see us?”

  “At first I could only see my mother, actually. But she was always a really sociable person, a bit too sociable if you ask me, so it was only a matter of time before she started bringing along all these friends of hers from the ghost world. I told her a bunch of times not to bother because I couldn’t see them, but she wasn’t having any of it. She kept bringing them along and introducing them to me, totally convinced that I’d be able to see them, and then, sure enough, I started to be able to.”

  “Like a special education for a gifted child!”

  “Yes, I suppose.”

  “And did Mr. Tei know about your gifts from the beginning?”

  “No. Actually, all of this happened after I had started work at the company. I asked him the other day why he’d agreed to take me on. He said he just had a good feeling about me.”

  “Huh.”

  “Oh, and he also told me I seemed kind of dazed, which meant I wouldn’t be overly affected by what was going on around me. He said he doesn’t take on people who ‘acclimatize too well to the age in which they’re living.’”

  “Right . . .” Tomihime stared at the New Himekawa with an expression that made no secret of what a weirdo she thought him to be, but he didn’t recoil in the slightest.

  Instead he said, “Well, I should get going. It’s nearly closing time, and I just dropped by to make your acquaintance. But I’ll be back.”

  As the New Himekawa lifted his skinny backside from the floor, Tomihime found herself getting to her feet too.

  “Oh, come to think of it . . .” He glanced toward the south window, and then moved closer to it. “I was planning to drop by and say hello to Okiku too.”

  Standing side by side, Tomihime and the young man peered down. The Okiku Well, situated in the ni-no-maru, instantly entered their visual field. A number of people were crowded around it, peering down into its depths. Not too far off stood a security guard.

  “She’s not there, you know,” Tomihime said, casually.

  “What! Are you serious?” The New Himekawa’s voice was a shrill cry. Tomihime plugged her fingers in her ears, feigning a wince. “Yeah, she left ages and ages ago. I guess it must have been sometime in the eighties? We discussed it all, before she left. You know what she’s like—she’s always been such a worrier. So she dropped by and asked me if I thought she’d stayed long enough. I reassured her that she’d done her time, and said I didn’t mind at all, that she should go for it. Told her I’d take care of everything.”

  “I see! Still, that comes a bit of a disappointment, I must say.”

  “But you hadn’t noticed, right? That’s how it is with wells. And knowing that, I started to think that maybe the same goes for me. Maybe the castle would be perfectly fine without me being here. You know this idea that the dead will stay attached to this world, and be here forever? That’s more or less just human arrogance. Okiku transmigrated, and now she’s over there, doing very well for herself with that fine young man of hers.”

  Tomihime indicated a spot a little to the west of the station. Although there was no hope of him ever seeing where she was pointing, the New Himekawa squinted politely in the direction of Tomihime’s finger.

  “But the funny thing is, even after transmigrating, she’s still there counting plates! I guess she’s bound to them by desti
ny or whatever. Tomihime grinned, but the New Himekawa wasn’t looking at her. He was looking between the well and the spot to the west, over and over, as if entranced. Finally, with a pained look on his face, he returned his gaze to Tomihime.

  Tomihime opened her mouth and to her surprise found herself saying, without a smidgen of irony, “I mean, I’m fine to carry on for the time being.”

  The young man’s face broke into a look of such intense joy that Tomihime felt spite resurfacing in her immediately. “But don’t go thinking I’m going to hold out for your sake when I get really sick of it.”

  “No, of course,” said the New Himekawa. “If and when that happens, let’s get together and discuss our options.” He nodded gravely several times.

  A couple of hours after the young man disappeared down the stairs, night fell on the castle. Before going to sleep, it was time for Tomihime to carry out her end-of-day ritual.

  She made a leisurely tour of the castle keep, surveying the scenery outside its windows. In the quietude of the deserted castle, the floorboards creaked distinctly beneath her feet. Deep down, Tomihime knew. This town, now sinking into darkness, glinting with the lights from the people’s houses and the neon of down-town, belonged to her. This radiant white castle where she was now standing was who she was. This place was hers—indisputably, sickeningly, hers.

  Inspiration for the Stories

  “Smartening Up”: Musume Dōjōji (The Maid of Dōjō Temple)—kabuki

  For years Dōjō Temple has been without a bell. Legend has it that this was the doing of a young woman named Kiyohime, who fell in love with Anchin, a handsome priest at the temple. Being a priest, Anchin attempted to discourage Kiyohime’s advances, and eventually, after countless rejections, Kiyohime’s love morphed into a powerful hatred and she herself transformed into a fierce, fire-breathing serpent. The terrified priest ran to Dōjō Temple and hid beneath its huge bell. The snake coiled itself around the bell, breathing a stream of fire until the bell melted and the priest burned to death.

  Ever since, Dōjō Temple not only has been bell-less, but its site has been off limits to women. The kabuki begins as the temple has finally been gifted with a new bell, for which a dedication ceremony is to be held. A beautiful young woman arrives at the temple, introducing herself as a traveling dancer named Hanako. Swayed by her enthusiasm and her beauty, the young monks agree to let her in the temple. Hanako steps inside the temple grounds and begins to dance at length. After a while the priests begin to suspect something is awry, but it is too late. By the time Hanako stands atop of the temple bell, she has revealed herself to be the spirit of Kiyohime.

  “The Peony Lanterns”: Botan Dōrō (The Peony Lantern)—rakugo

  In the rakugo version of this well-known ghost story, Otsuyu meets Shinzaburō Hagiwara, a rōnin, or masterless samurai, and the two fall in love, but are forbidden from being together because they come from different social classes. So deep is Otsuyu’s yearning that she eventually dies of lovesickness. Come Obon (the time in mid-August when spirits of the deceased return to earth), Otsuyu appears at Shinzaburō’s door and the lovers enjoy a passionate reunion. Soon she is visiting him every night, bearing a peony lantern.

  Noticing that Shinzaburō is growing more haggard and believing him to be possessed, his tenant hangs a talisman outside the door, preventing the entry of Otsuyu’s ghost. Those passing the house at nightfall see a lantern floating sadly around the vicinity of Shinzaburō’s house.

  Eventually, the promise of financial compensation persuades the tenant and his wife to sell Shinzaburō’s soul. They remove the talisman, and the lantern bobs joyfully inside. The next morning, Shinzaburō’s corpse is found embracing a skeleton.

  “My Superpower”: Yotsuya Kaidan and Kaidan Ichikawazutsumi—rakugo

  Yotsuya Kaidan is arguably the most famous Japanese ghost story of all time.

  When Iemon’s family decides that he should marry someone else, they send his wife Oiwa face cream laced with poison to disfigure her. Repulsed by Oiwa’s transformed countenance, Iemon asks his brother Takuetsu to rape her to give him grounds for divorce; not having the heart to do so, Takuetsu instead shows Oiwa her own reflection. Oiwa flies into a rage, slips, and accidentally falls on her sword, later returning as a vengeful ghost.

  Okon is an ex-geisha from another ghostly tale. She becomes friendly with the gambler Jirōkichi, and the two marry, although Jirōkichi’s dissolute lifestyle means they never have any money. After a while, Okon develops a pimple on her face, which worsens into a terrible disease. Jirōkichi leaves to raise the money for her treatment, promising to return within ten days. He comes back on the eleventh day to find his wife gone. It is much later, when he has married another woman, that Okon returns to pay him a visit.

  “Quite a Catch”: Kotsutsuri (Skeleton Fishing)—rakugo

  A male geisha is taken by a young gentleman on a boat trip down the river, along with various other entertainers. He isn’t too keen to fish, but when his host offers a reward for whoever turns in the biggest catch, he applies himself, eventually fishing out a skeleton. He starts to throw it back into the river in disgust, but the host tells him to take it to a temple and have it given rites. This he does, and returns home. In the early hours the following morning, he has a visitor in the form of a young woman. The woman tells him of her troubled past, and explains that she’d thrown herself into the river. Thanks to him, she says, she has been saved. When his neighbor comes to complain about the noise, the male geisha tells him what has happened, and the neighbor, wanting to find himself a woman, also manages to locate a skeleton. In the end, however, the ghost who comes to thank him is none other than the warlord Ishikawa Goemon, causing the neighbor great disappointment.

  “The Jealous Type”: Neko no Tadanobu (Tadanobu the Cat)—rakugo

  One day, Jirōkichi, the pupil of a beautiful jōruri teacher, spies her drinking and snuggling up with a handsome married man, Tsunekichi. Filled with envy, Jirōkichi goes to tell the man’s wife, Otowa, who is known for being “the jealous type.” Sure enough, Otowa is seized by a fit of jealousy, making her want to rip her husband’s kimono. But when Jirōkichi spurs her on to rip the kimono to shreds and smash the crockery, Otowa grows calm, and informs Jirōkichi that her husband is in the back room. Yet having just seen the scene of the infidelity with his own eyes, Jirōkichi is unsatisfied, and eventually persuades Tsunekichi to go over to the teacher’s house, where sure enough he finds another version of himself, drinking with the jōruri teacher. Eventually, it transpires that the man’s double is in fact a cat. The cat’s parents had been skinned alive and used to make the strings for a samisen, which is now kept in the jōruri teacher’s house. Missing his parents, the cat would come along as Tsunekichi in order to meet them.

  “Where the Wild Ladies Are”/“Loved One”: Hankonkō (Soul-Summoning Incense)—rakugo

  When a rōnin moves into a row of houses, he keeps his neighbors up by ringing a bell late into the night. When the steward goes over to complain, the rōnin explains that he is saying rites for his dead wife. He confesses that he has received soul-summoning incense from her, and that when he puts this on the fire and rings the bell, his wife appears before him. The steward asks the rōnin to demonstrate, which he does. The steward then asks for a little of the incense, so he, too, can meet his dead wife. But the rōnin refuses, despite all the steward’s pleas, apologizing profusely and saying that this is one wish he cannot oblige.

  Now seized by the longing to see his dead wife, the steward goes out and buys something that he thinks is soul-summoning incense, but which turns out to be medicine with a similar name. Back home, he throws it on the fire and waits. Finally he hears a knocking on the door and goes to answer it thinking it must be his wife, only to find someone coming to complain about all the smoke.

  “A Fox’s Life”: Tenjinyama (Mount Tenjin)—rakugo

  A rather peculiar man decides that, instead of having a cherry-blossom-viewing party under the tre
es like everyone else, he will go to the graveyard. Finishing up his solo banquet, he sees part of a skeleton sticking out of the earth, and takes it home. That night a beautiful woman appears to him, and ends up becoming his wife. When the man boasts to his neighbor about how cheap a ghost-wife is to maintain, the neighbor sets out to the temple find himself such a woman, but fails. He heads into the mountain and prays for a wife. On the way back he runs into a man holding a fox he has captured, and buys it off him. He then frees the fox, and again prays to be delivered a good wife. The fox transforms into a woman, chases after the man, and becomes his bride. Three years after having a son, word of her true identity gets out and she runs away, leaving a verse on the shutters: “If you miss me, come to see me deep in the forests of Mount Tenjin in the south.”

  “What She Can Do”: Kosodate Yūrei (The Child-Raising Ghost)—folk legend

  One night, a pale-faced young woman knocks on the shutters of a candy shop, holding out a coin and asking for a sweet. The owner is suspicious, but relents and gives her one. This continues every night until, on the seventh night, the woman confesses to having no more money and instead offers to trade her haori jacket.

  The next day, the shopkeeper leaves the jacket outside his shop. A rich man passing by recognizes the jacket as one that had been placed in the coffin of his daughter, buried just days before. When the shopkeeper explains the situation, the rich man rushes to his daughter’s grave, from which he hears the cries of a baby. Digging up the coffin, he finds his daughter clutching a newborn. The six coins with which she had been buried, needed to cross the river into the other world, are gone, and instead the baby is sucking on candy. “You became a ghost to look after the child born in the grave!” exclaims the woman’s father. “I promise to bring it up well in your stead.” At this point, the woman’s corpse drops its head as if to nod. The baby is taken in by the temple and grows up to be a great priest.