寤寐思服 第26章 Draft 15 - 19

Yayoi started to feel the pressure from the mighty sword weigh down on her, and tried to revive the dormant spell in Kagami which previously had enabled Yayoi to assume full control over Kagami. However, with Kagami’s physical body transformed, and later disintegrated, then resembled, Yayoi’s spell disappeared along the process.

Kasumi also found herself having difficulty breathing -- her chest was being crushed by the sheer strength embodied by the sword of light.

Ryō stood on the side with mild interest. Being the one who had fought the most battles, her physical strength held up well under pressure.

Midori stood motionless, but slight movements of her hands gave hint that she had cast spells to alleviate herself of the crushing weight radiated from the sword of light.

Arashi felt the weight of the power as well. Fearing that her lungs would collapse again, she leaned on her sword to ask it to lend her courage and strength. Seeing that Kasumi was having trouble breathing, Arashi became worried about the recent stress fractures on her ribcage that had only started to heal with the help of alchemy. This concern soon proved unnecessary, however, as Arashi felt the energy radiated from the immense sword supporting her from the inside. Even though Arashi had not met this sword before, she felt as if they knew each other.

Akishi looked up from the crowd as well. The jewel over Kagami’s shoulder called out warmly to her, sending her feelings of warmth and kindness, and made her want to hug the students of Kageyama, and reassure them that all shall be well. The jewel filled Akishi’s heart with gentle love for more people than Akishi could imagine. (“This world IS a good world”), Akishi thought. (“Everything has a place, and birds sing, and trees bear fruit. I love this world, and this all-encompassing kindness sustains the world.”)

Kagami saw desire in Yukari’s eyes, “Your Highness, is this power worthy to be pursued and possessed?”

“Yes.” Yukari spoke. Her words were soft, like a whisper meant for a lover. Power and authority shall be her bride, as no mortal had proven themselves worthy to stand beside her dominating presence.

Yukari felt the immense power that Kagami had summoned, and she was determined to assume control over it.

16

The spirit of Kagami gazed at Yukari, and spoke. “Your Highness, the Imperial Princess of Himeyama, what virtue do you possess that shall convince this power to reside in you? For this world is functioning well without a supreme ruler. What benefit will you bring to the world?”

“I take no pleasure in the misery of others, and I judge everyone with equality, giving no preference to those around me. I am suitable to be the ruler with such virtues, and for the ruler to have unparalleled strength, order shall then be kept for the world, which is the benefit.”

Yukari seemed confident and took pride in her answers. Kagami, however, seemed less impressed.

“The power that I wield within me, along with myself, are of another realm. It’s a world with no magic, but plenty in states and nations and governments. The so-called virtues of yours are but the bare minimum that commoners in my realm expect from the leaders of the land.”

Kagami’s spirit started speaking sharp words. “With power, comes responsibility. And greater power demands greater responsibility. In the realm where this power originated, leaders of the land, with no magic power or divine power, which is what you behold in front of you, take on greater responsibility for the common people than what you, with unrivaled power, are committed to do.”

Kagami continued.

“There are leaders and governments who strive to provide adequate and affordable housing for everyone.” [Finland]

“There are nations who go to great lengths to serve the needs of the elderly, and provide ample schooling for the young.” [Japan]

“There are governments who are committed to fight every wildfire and every flood, and send in tens of thousands of knights and guards to transfer people to safety.” [China]

“There are countries who provide money to assist the lives of the young and the old.” [Canada]

“There are leaders who plan in great detail so every person can have access to work.” [Singapore]

“There are places where workers are guaranteed sufficient rest during the noon hours so people can have sufficient energy to tackle their workload.” [Greece]

“There are countries that put in enormous effort to promote their farming products so goods will be sold at a good price for the farmers.” [Italy]

“There are places that have an extensive network of public carriages so commoners can travel in ease.”[Northern Ireland]

“There are countries that eagerly bring in foreigners to teach their children a foreign language, so they will grow up and find it easier to become affluent merchants or successful workers in influential guilds.” [South Korea]

“There are also leaders who, unable to efficiently remedy the difficulty faced in their academies, bring in a multitude of teachers from far corners of the world, so that they can seek out the most effective method to foster success in their children’s academic growth.” [UK]

“There are also leaders who risk their own lives to improve the financial and political structure of their states, and die trying.”[USA]

“All of these nations and leaders and governments strive to serve the commoners while having no magic power to help them establish superiority. Yukari, why do you seek to possess this power which is called the divine? To what end shall you use it?”

Yukari’s eyes looked blank and confused for the first time in her life. She could not think of the answer, and if she spoke nothing in return, it would reflect poorly in the eyes of others. “I will be able to answer them once I become the sole sovereign of this world. And I will commit myself to use the power correctly.”

“In that case, why should the power be entrusted to you now?”

Yukari looked confident again -- she knew what to say as the answer had been abiding in her since her birth.

“I command magic power that is unmatched in this world; its strength is in a higher realm compared to anyone else. My might is like the sky, overlooking the people of this world. The only reason for this to happen to me must be that I am destined to reign over this world. The universe has chosen me since the day of my birth.”

“That is childish, Yukari. A different universe has a children’s book, where it says ‘the only reason for there to be bees, is to make honey, and the only reason for there to be honey, is so that I can eat it.’.”

Kagami sounded depressed and disappointed.

“Yukari, it is immature to see the world as if everything is about you. No it is not, and the world will function fine without you ascending the throne. Why didn’t you think that the universe gave you great power so that you can save people, animals, and plants from fires and floods? From earthquakes and volcano eruptions? So that you can pacify the raging elements with your supremacy in magic? So that when people encounter seemingly irreconcilable conflict, they will listen to your arbitration because all nations revere your greatness?”

“Those are reasons for me to be the monarch, are they not, Kagami?”

“No, they are not. All of them can be accomplished without you being the ruler over all. You only need to perform the tasks that would require your participation, since none of them prescribed a royal prerequisite.”

Kagami continued, “saving people from disasters requires you to care about them when you hear the news, and to go and help with your superb prowess. It does not necessitate you having to wear a crown.”

“Yukari, you are not yet ready. Your virtues are insufficient to have this power as your companion. This power, which you behold with your own eyes, is divine power. It desires to bring joyful light into every heart, and move everyone to love each other, until the whole of creation can live in a holy fellowship of self-giving.”

“Yukari, you say that you do not delight in the misery of others, and I see that you have spared the lives of many. But you have failed to remove malice from the hearts of your followers. You have not fostered a loving heart in Ryō. This is not a transgression of hers against you, but a shortcoming of your own.”

“Yukari, you say that you treat everyone equally, but you have yet to remove indifference and contempt from yourself, let alone from those around you, toward the weak. You severely punish those who do not show respect to you, but I have not used any title for you in this conversation since I transformed into this state, and you have zero protest against it. You treat everyone equally because they are all weak and all identical and all dust according to your opinion. As soon as I display a power on par with or surpassing your own, you treat me differently and favorably.”

“Yukari, please listen to the story of a man who was made a king.”

Kagami’s voice grew softer, and continued.

“In the universe where I came from, there was an enormous flood more than four thousand years ago. The village chiefs and tribe chiefs gathered to seek a solution. They found a wise old person who suggested building dikes around villages and precious farm fields. The people did according to what was suggested, and the flood destroyed the dikes.”

“The people were angry, and they executed the wise old man. Then they asked his son to give his opinion, and the son said he needed to investigate the situation first.”

“The young man traveled all over the land, listening to people from all walks of life. Due to traveling in wet conditions, he developed a limp from arthritis, and the language called ‘walking alone limping and hunched over’ by that person’s name . Due to poor living conditions during the investigation, he had poor hygiene and couldn’t clean his teeth, and his teeth started hurting, and the language still called toothache by that person’s name more than four thousand years later.”

“He traveled, he listened, he had conversations. Many times he passed right in front of his house, but didn’t have time to go in and say a greeting to his family. So for the years he was investigating the flood, never once did he go into his own home despite having had opportunities. He then designed canals to be built, and marked hills to be dug through. He worked alongside everyone until the work was finally completed. Because of this, all tribe leaders met afterwards, and made him the first sovereign of the land.”

“Yukari, do not think it was easy to design canals. With dikes, each village can build their own, but canals need the consent of every village along the way. What was once fertile fields will be lost forever when it becomes the bottom of a canal. What were once rich hunting grounds will be no more as the canal would block animals from arriving. What once were friendly neighbouring villages will have strife because one will become prosperous with better access to water and transportation while the other stands still.”

“The young man did not have political power, or status, or superior strength on battlefields. He had to convince everyone with his words, his politeness, his wisdom, and his sincerity.”

“He risked angering people in asking people to compromise for the sake of the whole. Yukari, will you risk yourself, your prestige, and your reputation in order to bring goodness to the world? Or will you gain immunity by inaction?”

“Yukari, a leader is not made by having many swords.”

Yukari fell silent. She felt shame for the first time in her life today, and a slight hint of being insufficient and inferior, just like how she, earlier for the first time, was unable to supply a satisfactory answer.

Some time later, Kagami spoke again.

“I am kagami, the mirror. I reflect reality as it is. Inner desires, virtues and vices, follies and shortcomings, are made plain and visible to everyone by me. The mighty sword of light is strength, the mirror is wisdom, and the jewel is benevolence. The divine contains all of them, and they are indivisible. The divine power cannot exist in mightiness alone.”

“This power demands whoever wields it to move the hearts of millions, with wisdom and discretion in their action. To promote goodness in people, until everyone is like family to one another. To move people’s hearts so everyone shares what they have, and help each other with chores and work.”

“No command from a monarch can achieve that. No ruling set forth from a sovereign, backed by the display of power on battlefields, can move people’s hearts toward loving each other.”

“Yukari, now I shall pronounce my verdict.”

17

“Yukari, now I shall pronounce my verdict.” Kagami looked at Yukari with understanding and compassion.

“Those who desire the crown shall first bear its weight of responsibility. As you have not readied yourself to take on the weight of being a monarch, your crown shall be temporarily taken away from you.”

“If people continue to follow you because of the wisdom you display in settling disputes, if people gather around you and obey your word because you espouse goodness in them, then you shall be made a ruler by people themselves.”

“If one day your wisdom has the capacity to uplift every person, along with the whole world, with her animals and plants, her rivers and mountains, her fields and lakes, if one day your loving kindness brings your heart to embrace the entire creation, and to move every heart toward caring fellowship, this power shall then seek you out and abide with you, as you have first proven yourself by taking on the grand responsibility.”

As Kagami had finished her judgement, the swords of light that had scattered all across the sky, which were formed by the dust of light left over from forming the holy vessels, charged at the Five.

Yukari, Midori, and Kasumi stood petrified, while Yayoi tried to activate transport spells and escape, and Ryō, being the most experienced on the battlefield, was the only one who managed to cast spells of defense before the swords arrived.

The swords passed through the spells of defence and transportation as if the magic matrices did not exist, and impaled the bodies of the Five.

The swords passed through the bodies as if the swords themselves were just part of a mirage, but as the blades pierced the Five, each sword tip removed a glowing fragment of magic from within them. The rain of the swords seemed to last forever, and by the end, the Five were sitting on the ground, exhausted, despite the fact that the swords did not inflict a single moment of pain, nor left behind a single wound.

“The extraordinary capacity for magic has been momentarily removed from you. Go and become real leaders, and your supreme strength shall return with jubilation.”

Yukari felt weak for the first time. (“Is this how commoners feel!”)

“Kagami, this is impossible! I can not be a leader if I am weak and tired. No one will listen to my words, let alone obey my commands!”

“Do not worry. The rest of your group are stripped of their superior ranking as well. None of them are going to usurp you. You are familiar with administration. That experience and expertise still abides in you. Trust yourself. You will achieve success in operating Himeyama even without supreme magical talent.”

“My dear friends at Kageyama,” Kagami’s voice was now becoming faint, “thank you for the years of joy. I humbly beseech you to forgive Yukari and everyone at Himeyama, and do not turn them away when they want to have conversations with you. Teach Himeyama how to care and love and serve, not by words, but by your gentle gift of friendship.”

Kagami then looked at Arashi and Akishi, “my dear Oneesama, my dear Oneechan, take good care of yourselves, and may you live in peace and happiness, for the rest of your lives...”

Kagami’s voice faded away into the stillness. The sun had already set behind the dark clouds. The glowing holy vessels, which had lit up the space, began to disintegrate, returning to floating specks of light, then disappearing into the darkness.

The outline of Kagami’s spirit body began to glow, but instead of becoming solid again, it started to evaporate, until at last all that was left was a small whiff of smoke, which seemed ready to dissipate.

Arashi ran to the location where Kagami had been, while shouting with great urgency, “Akishi! Come help!”

Akishi dashed forward, “she has sacrificed her body AND her spirit -- we cannot revive her!”

Kagami had sacrificed her physical body to bring the divine power to this world, and the price for temporarily deactivating The Five’s unparalleled talents was her spirit.

“Akishi! Now even her soul is going to perish; I want to preserve my Kagami-chan in my dear sword before she vanishes forever.”

“Okay then, Arashi. I will draw a spell quickly with my blood, and you trace it carefully with yours.”

The two worked hurriedly while everyone looked on.

“Arashi, sword!”

They placed the sword onto the spell, and Akishi poured her strength into activating the magic.

The whiff of smoke started to drift toward the sword, and Arashi rejoiced. “Success!”

“Not done yet!” Akishi replied.

The whiff of smoke attached itself to the tip of the sword, and a pure glow of light blue started to coat the entire sword, like shimmering light from a pure aquamarine.

Suddenly, just as the glow was about to merge into the sword, it quickly started to fade. “It failed!” Cried Akishi, being taken by surprise.

“What went wrong?!” Arashi quickly asked.

“Her soul is not enough in quantity -- it’s incomplete!”

“Ryō!” Demanded Yukari.

“It’s in my sleeping chamber.” Ryō said in a depressed tone, rather disengaged.

“We don’t have enough magic to teleport anymore. Someone from Kageyama has to retrieve it from Himeyama.” Said Kasumi.

“Arashi, she will be gone in one single minute.” Came Akishi’s voice.

Arashi took up the sword, with a fraction of it still vaguely glowing. She slashed the air in front of her, pouring her whole being into the mightiness of the attack.

The sword, unable to bear the energy, began to shake. Its surface started cracking, segments of the blade broke off along the edge of the sword.

A turbulent wind formed with the attack, and along the path of the blade’s daring cut, appeared a thin black line -- an opening to the unknown dark void.

“Kagami, you said you were from another realm. In this world, your incomplete soul cannot be in existence. So wherever there’s a world that an incomplete soul can survive, I am sending you there!” With these words, Arashi thrusted the sword into the void. “My sword, my dear companion, though damaged, may you take good care of Kagami on my behalf. Whatever transpires, live in peace, health, and happiness.”

The sword disappeared into the void. Arashi wanted to say the last words of ‘farewell’, but no sound came forth as she opened her mouth.

Tears slowly came down the faces of Akishi and Arashi. They sat on the ground, with the spell traced in blood between them. Neither of them said a word, as tears fell on the ground.

Yukari stood up, and slowly walked over to Arashi. Then Yukari sat down on the ground.

Yukari did not know how to comfort someone deep in mourning, but she thought she could start by learning to be at Arashi’s side in silence.

18

“Gagh!...” Hitomi sat up in bed.

“Wha...oh...”

(“I am in my bedroom. I thought I died at Kageyama...”)

“That was a bizarre dream... that was a loooonnnnng dream...” Hitomi said out loud.

“So somehow my soul was incomplete, and Arashi had to slice open the fabric of time and space to send me into this world. Huh.” Hitomi lay back down.

(“Well, whether it was just a dream or not, it is interesting. Maybe the ‘there’s something missing’ got on my mind so much that my subconsciousness got worked into making a dream to provide an answer.”) Hitomi closed her eyes and pulled her blanket up to her chin.

(“Good enough of a reason for me. Alarm won’t ring for another five hours. Today, I go to the lake to end it with Rin.”) Hitomi went back to sleep.

It was a windy day when Hitomi left her apartment. Windy like two years ago. The biting wind stung Hitomi’s face as she tried to retie her scarf. Rin had knitted that scarf. It was her first gift to Hitomi.

Hitomi wondered what would happen. Would Rin demand it back? And then cut it up into pieces? Would she want Hitomi to keep the scarf but promise to never wear it again?...

Hitomi walked past several benches along the shore of the lake, until she arrived at where they had sat two years ago. Hitomi sat down, rather resolved, and waited for the inevitable.

There were footsteps, hurried footsteps of someone running. Expecting Rin to come by on a cold day, in an empty park, Hitomi stood up to give her greeting.

“Kagami!” Rin ran herself right into Hitomi, and cried out the name that Hitomi did not expect. Rin hugged Hitomi’s head, pressing it tightly against her soft chest. “Kagami-chan...”

“Arashi Oneesama?!” Hitomi looked up in disbelief. “Rin! You had a dream, too?”

“No, not a dream. This morning as I woke, I suddenly had a flood of memories rushing into my mind. I even got a headache. I don’t know where the memory came from, or what opened the floodgate, but I had the memory of someone named Arashi, and you are Arashi’s Kagami.”

“So you didn’t live through any of it. I was in a long dream last night, and spent four years in it. Apparently I, as Kagami, lost a fraction of my soul. So maybe that’s the ‘something missing’ in our relationship.”

“No, I didn’t get to live it. But I inherited all of Arashi’s memory, as well as her emotions. Arashi mourned for you deeply in her heart. If there’s any substance to your dream and my newly obtained memory, I might be the incarnation of Arashi’s sword.”

“They wouldn’t even write novels like that, Rin. Life is weirder than fiction.”

The two sat down.

“Rin, well, now we know what might be missing, I guess we can say a friendly fare...”

“Hitomi.” Rin covered up Hitomi’s mouth with her right hand, and held it tight while putting her left arm around Hitomi’s shoulder. “I think, now knowing what Arashi and Kagami did, and knowing how Arashi felt, it doesn’t seem to matter anymore, this so-called ‘something missing’. Here’s something I’ve had since junior high”, and Rin opened her left hand, and in it, was a ring set with an enormous obsidian. “It’s officially classified as a cocktail ring, for wearing to a cocktail party, I guess. Sorry I don’t have anything more suitable, as jewellery stores don’t open this early.”

Hitomi’s eyes were wide-open. (“Oh my... Is this what I think it is?... Is she gonna... Will she get down on one knee?”)

[Rin didn’t.]

Rin drew next to Hitomi’s ear, and simply whispered “will you be mine?”

Rin withdrew her right hand from covering Hitomi’s mouth, and looked expectantly.

Hitomi didn’t answer. She stood, wide-eyed, with her thoughts all tangled. (“Is this it? Like, just a casual question? Like, really? But, I guess we are good again. Rin, the perfect Rin, wants to be with me, with a ring on my hand! *giggles*...”)

Rin was still waiting for an answer, and arched her left eyebrow, wondering what was going on inside Hitomi’s head.

Hitomi lowered her head. Rin’s heart sank.

Hitomi put her arms around Rin, put her head back onto Rin’s beautiful and soft chest, swayed slightly back and forth, and whispered with sweetness, longing, and joy: “...Oneesama...”

Rin smiled and chuckled. “That’s a good name. I like it.”

It was still morning when they left the park, so they visited a breakfast restaurant. Hitomi was giggling randomly out of happiness, and Rin didn’t eat much. She spent most of her meal looking at Hitomi lovingly.

Rin and Hitomi arranged their lives so they could meet for lunch everyday unless something unexpected happened.

Summer came.

“Want to visit yourself?” Hitomi joked with Rin.

“What mischief are you planning this time?” Rin hugged Hitomi from behind.

“We should pay a visit to Atsuta Jin’gū in Nagoya 熱田神宮. You are the incarnation of Arashi’s sword, right. See if you call out to the holy sword in the shrine, would it answer you.” Hitomi carelessly said. “Attack!” She reached behind and tried to tickle Rin.

Rin took control of Hitomi’s hands and held them behind Hitomi’s back. “Then what, go to the grand shrine of Ise 伊勢大神宮 and have you yell at the mirror? My Kagami?”

“That reminds me, Oneesama, would someone be the jewel?”

“I doubt it, Hitomi-chan. Your soul and Arashi’s sword came to this universe. I don’t think anything else came along.”

“Wouldn’t it be funny if there’s someone out there who is the jewel?”

“And then what, Hitomi-chan? Perform a skit in front of His Majesty the Emperor? The Saga of the Imperial Regalia???”

“Hah hah hah! Oath of Sisterhood in the Peach Garden! Hahaha! Oh my, my stomach hurts! Hahaa!”

Time went by fast. By the second semester of her third year at university, Hitomi had her first practicum as a teacher. Having lunch together every day was no longer an option. As school typically ended in mid afternoon, way earlier than the time that Rin would conclude her study for the day, planning for spending time with each other during the work week was becoming difficult.

“Another tiresome week...” Hitomi complained as the two took their seats in a restaurant to enjoy some self-serve grilled meat. “Having to meet only on weekends drains my energy.”

“That’s what ordinary people do when they are dating.” replied Rin.

“But we are not regular people, right? I am an incomplete soul and you are the sword that bears my existence in this world.I should be with you all the time!”

“Is teaching that bad?” Rin put a cherry tomato from the appetizers into Hitomi’s mouth, and Hitomi kissed Rin’s fingers. “You wanted to have a high school experience with leisure and did not take calculus, and so you are unable to just be a physicist in an office.”

“That’s not what happened. I did have a very enjoyable high school experience, with woodworking, choir, band, visual art...”

Hitomi laid some cuts of beef onto the now-heated grill. “But I still got into university to major in physics.”

“By applying to the Faculty of Arts, then switching your major after you got admission! Traitor!” Rin pinched Hitomi’s cheeks and yanked and pulled.

Hitomi lightly slapped Rin’s hands off. “I couldn’t be a physics major because second year university mathematics courses didn’t make sense to me, and so I had to stop taking math. No math, no physics.”

“You still got an A- in mathematics even though you couldn’t understand it. If you took on fewer courses and had more time to spend pondering the concepts and doing practice questions, you would have done well. Not every semester has to be filled with five courses, you know. You went to university on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 9 am to 9 pm during your second year, and worked four consecutive days from Friday to Monday with eight hour shifts. With only Wednesday to study on your own, it’s a miracle that you had an A- average that year.”

Rin continued her lecturing. “Don’t blame the supposed ‘incomplete soul’ for the breakdown in relationship that we had. You stuffed your life with work and study, leaving little space for us to be together. Maybe the ‘something missing’ was in fact a reflection of your lack of consideration.”

“...sorry...Oneesama...”

“Either way, our lives are becoming separated again. We have to do something”, was Rin’s conclusion as they started enjoying their meal together.

“Should we move in together?” Hitomi suggested after the meal, now waiting for dessert to arrive.

“Mine is more spacious.” Smiled Rin.

“Mine has a more convenient location.” Retorted Hitomi.

“Will you be the one cooking?”

“Of course!” Replied Hitomi.

“Your apartment, then. And you can kneel by the door when I come home.” Rin smiled.

“How traditional...” Hitomi brought a spoonful of her green tea ice cream to Rin’s mouth, who took a bite and held-on to the spoon afterward with her mouth and wouldn’t let go for a few seconds.

“Well...”Rin finally let go of the spoon, “speaking of being traditional, you should call me ‘Lord’ after we live together.”

“......” Hitomi’s face was very red due to embarrassment.

“So do we consider ourselves ready to be officially married?” asked Hitomi.

“After both of us are done with our studies, the time would feel more suitable to me, but neither of us wants to wait that long. To have you call me ‘Lord’ makes me feel very joyful, but I do enjoy you calling me with honorifics.” Rin enjoyed being called ‘Oneesama’ very much.

“If I’m going to feel embarrassed calling you ‘主人’, I might as well go all the way and actually call you ‘御主人様’ if that’s what satisfies you.” Muttered Hitomi.

“Even better. I am exceedingly pleased with my dear little Hitomi-chan.”

After the meal, Rin and Hitomi took a stroll downtown. “Do we get a wedding?” Asked Hitomi.

“No shrine would allow it, nor can we do it in a chapel. The best we can manage would be renting a garden from a photography firm and getting a ‘partnership certificate’ from the municipal level.”

“Should we travel overseas to Europe or Canada and do it there?”

“So that we can get married in an empty church?”

“No. That would feel awkward.” Hitomi sounded dispirited. “That would feel like we are eloping.”

“So do we become officially together first and then move in together?”

“Sounds about right. Part in the morning, school and work. I come home, cook dinner. You come home: we eat. I do lesson planning and marking, and you can wash dishes and do chores. Then it’s late and it’s bedtime.” Hitomi thought about how a typical day would unfold. “Still sounds depressing, but in a boring middle-aged-couple sort of way.”

“It’s rare in Japan to have both people working, probably, at least partially, for that reason.”

“So let’s plan things out before we move in together. We don’t want it to be a ‘trial run’. It should be a milestone in our lifelong commitment.”

Rin nodded in agreement.

In the end Hitomi found teaching to be too much anyway. During her practicum, students didn’t listen well, and were surprised at the amount of notes on the board during the review lessons before exams, as if they were seeing the concepts for the first time.

“I don’t blame them.” Sighed Hitomi, “Japanese high school students usually have late night tutoring sessions, which makes them tired during the day, and thus needing more tutoring to catch up.” Hitomi said with her chin on her left wrist.

“Hospitals are stressed with the workload as well.” Rin was feeling the pressure, too.

“I think I will just finish university and that will be the end of it. I can go with you to work, go to a park, be back to have lunch together, then do grocery shopping. We get to go home together, cook together, eat together, and relax before bedtime.”

“That sounds lovely.” Rin kissed Hitomi on her forehand.

Hitomi and Rin decided that they would graduate university, get their “partnership certificate”, and then move in together.

On that day, Rin would no longer be called Oneesama, but would become Hitomi’s goShujin-sama.

Life went on in seemingly perfect lightheartedness. The two graduated, got their certificate, and Rin moved into Hitomi’s apartment.

The essentials were unpacked, along with most of Rin’s books. The rest stayed in boxes. With the busyness of life, there wasn’t time to sort through them.

Twelve years later, when Rin was finally taking a year of sabbatical leave, the two proceeded to sort through the mountain of boxes that Rin brought over.

There were photo albums, baby clothes, elementary school art projects, old diaries, doll clothes, stuffed animals, mementos from grandparents, souvenirs from trips and vacations, old ‘favourite pens’...

Finally, there was the box of ‘miscellaneous objects’. After digging through the box, Hitomi found, in a clear plastic case, a hollow sphere made of golden thread and silver lace, inside which was a spider’s web made of teardrop-shaped pink crystals fixed to threads of silk, with black tassels underneath.

“What’s this?”

“An decoration that I had on my bedside lamp since childhood.”

“It’s so beautiful! May I take it out and have a better look?”

“Go right ahead.” Rin looked at Hitomi as if she wanted to spoil Hitomi with the love in her eyes. Rin felt deep joy, sharing her childhood memories with Hitomi.

Hitomi carefully took the decoration out of the clear box of hard plastic, held it close to her eyes, and looked admiringly.

“It’s so intricate and delicate! How elegant!”

Suddenly, a whiff of smoke came out from the crystal spider web, and entered Hitomi’s forehead.

Hitomi felt exceedingly sleepy, laid her head on Rin’s lap, and was asleep in seconds.

Rin was stunned by what had just happened. She picked up the hollow sphere, and a wave of information entered her consciousness. She saw, from a third person perspective, all of Kagami’s life, and all of Akishi’s life, and Yukari’s, Midori’s, Kasumi’s, Yayoi’s and Ryō’s as well. It was unreal.

She saw what had happened at a little hill by the foot of Kageyama on the day that Kagami went into town for her first time, and knew, that Hitomi was complete again.

Rin took Hitomi to bed, and lay down beside her. Staring at the ceiling, Rin didn’t know what to feel. She is Rin, certainly, but has inherited all of Arashi’s emotions as well. Now with the knowledge of the lives of everyone else from the other world, Rin didn’t know what her exact identity was anymore. Moreover, there seemed to be something else, another consciousness, trying to awake itself.

Hitomi woke up, a little before midnight, and was sleepy but not tired. She no longer felt exhausted by simply living her day to day life, a condition which previously required Hitomi to put her arms around Rin and place her head on Rin as frequently as possible to take much needed rest, as if to recharge.

Hitomi looked to the side, and saw Rin lying beside her. Feeling more clarity in her mind than ever before, Hitomi noticed something that she had not been able to earlier that day.

“Rin, neither of us has changed for the past fifteen years. We still look identical to our wedding photo.”

Rin had a slightly mysterious smile on her face, “it’s late. Sleep.”

She put her hands on Hitomi’s eyes, and Hitomi fell back asleep as if under a spell.

Around them, the world started to disintegrate.

19

“I am on the moon? And that’s the blue earth in the sky? I am dreaming again.” Thought Hitomi as she gazed up at the night view.

She thought she might take a walk, just to explore what a moon in her dream is like.

Hitomi turned around, and saw a shrine on tall pillars, made of white marble. “The original design of Izumo Taisha?! This must be from the anime Kannazuki no Miko!”

Excited that she was having an anime dream, Hitomi ascended the long stairs. She didn’t bother to count, since the shrine sat high up in the air, about 50 metres off the ground -- there would be at least four hundred to five hundred stairs.

After about five minutes, Hitomi stood at the gate of the shrine.

Clapping her hands twice and saying a short prayer, Hitomi entered the building拝殿. At the centre, there was a large ice crystal, encircled by ceremonial straw rope and hanging paper talisman. Inside the crystal was a person frozen in ice, her body slightly bent, her eyes closed, her hands holding her own body. Hitomi took a closer look, “Me?!”

“Yes, that’s you.” A voice said.

Hitomi immediately turned to look, and was shocked“Yukari denka!”