Michiko laughed. “Don’t worry, John-san. We have Tobias-san to protect us if the kitsune get restless.”
“Oh, yes, I am sure I could do a lot of damage with my crutches of doom.” I glanced up at the mountain. Was Matsuri up there watching and laughing at me? “Come on, you two! I’m cold.”
“You should have brought a jacket then, Tobi.”
“Don’t mother-hen me, John.”
“Oh, that’s enough. Honestly, you two quarrel like two old men.”
The two of us looked at each other for a moment, and then burst out laughing. “Don’t worry, Michiko. We know it’s in good fun.”
“Yeah, this is the last time John gets to badger me.”
Michiko laughed. “I guess that will be my job now hmm, Tobias-san?”
“Too right!” John agreed.
As we stood at the front door of the Peach Blossom, we saw that the inside of the bar was packed. People lined its length leaving us only a narrow pathway to the private room at the back.
“I hope we’re going to get those dumplings again.” My stomach warmed with the thought of the delicious morsels I’d eaten last time. “Hopefully, I won’t eat or drink as much as I did before.”
“You’ll do fine, Tobi.” John slid open the door to the private room. Colorful lights and decorations greeted me. There were at least thirty people sitting around the long communal table with food spread out in a fantastic buffet.
“Tobias-san!” I saw Toshi Sato waving from one side of the room. The SEL director was still wearing that same fine, pin-striped suit, his gray hair plastered back as best he could to cover his balding head. He came to meet us, shaking our hands warmly. “I’ve been hearing great things about all of you from Ryuto-san!”
“Well, I couldn’t do it without Michiko, Sato-san. She’s a lifesaver with the kids.”
“Ah! I am so glad it worked out, Tobias-san. Feel free to enjoy the food. The singing will begin shortly. I am hoping everyone will join in.”
John came to my side. “I’m going to help myself to some grub. You two want anything while you find us a seat?”
Michiko shrugged. “Any aburrage sushi or udon they have and some of the dumplings, John-san.”
“No sushi for me. As good as it looks, I don’t know what half of that stuff up there is.”
“You ain’t had sushi ‘til you’ve had it in Japan, my friend.”
“Just get me whatever is cooked.”
“Your loss, Tobi.”
“There’s an open space right near the stage, Tobias-san. Let’s get it!” I glanced over at the table Michiko pointed to. Sure enough, it was near the karaoke machine.
“Uhm, maybe we can get another spot in the back?”
“Oh, come now, Tobias-san. It’s the only one left!” She took me by the hand and led me to it.
“I’m not singing again. You can’t drag me up there.”
“You did fine last time!” She laughed. “At least you can watch and enjoy like everyone else.”
That is true.
I began to relax. Perhaps this wasn’t going to be so bad. Soon enough, John slid up to the table with two trays heaped with different foods.
He grinned down at us, his hair seeming a ruddy red-orange in the flaring lights. “I figured I’d just bring a bit of everything for all of us to share. It would do you good to try some of this stuff, Tobi. You’re all skin and bones, man.” He handed me a pair of chopsticks.
I took the chopsticks and broke them apart to rub any splinters off before deciding where I could possibly begin. For his part, John had a healthy appetite, helping himself to three quarters of what he’d brought for all three of us.
I didn’t mind so much since most of what he took was sushi or sashimi, raw things like octopus or rolls with a strange, goopy orange substance that Michiko told me was sea urchin. John also had plenty of eel and squid, not to mention two bowls of udon noodles and a plate of ten dumplings.
While John and Michiko strayed into exotic foodstuffs, I was content with a bowl of noodles and a little tray of my favorite curried dumplings.
I was in mid-bite when the lights dimmed, and Mr. Sato took the stage. He squinted against the glare of a spotlight, raising his hand slightly to get a better view of all of us as he took the microphone in his hand.
“Kite, mina o arigatō gozaimasu! Thank you all for coming. “Watashitachi wa watashitachi no meiyo no gesuto toko no yoru ofu o kaishi shimasu! We will start this evening off with our guests of honor!” He gestured to our table, and the light shone down on the three of us. “Come on up, you three!”
Instantly, I felt my appetite vanish. “Did you know about this, Michiko?”
“I told you that we might be encouraged to participate, Tobias-san. Not to worry, John-san will go first!”
“Who, me?” John nearly spat out a mouth full of food. “I’m just getting started on my dinner! Why don’t you go up first, Tobi?”
I folded my arms over my chest. After the last time on the karaoke stage, I wasn’t about to let him lampoon me into singing for people again. “Heck, no! You’re not putting me up there.”
“It will be fun, Tobias-san! Come on, I’ll join you!” Before I could even respond, she was on her feet. I hobbled my way onto the stage, the glare of the lights focused in on me like red-hot irons.
John gave me the thumbs up. Michiko took the microphone into her slender hands. “Tobias-san and I will be singing tonight’s first song!”
Already my gut was queasy with the mere thought of being the center of attention. My glasses began to fog up, and I frantically pointed to some blurred English. “There, we’ll just sing whatever that is!”
“Good choice!” The familiar music of the Village People and “YMCA” played from the stage speakers. Michiko giggled. “We need another two, otherwise it won’t work because Tobias-san can only be the “m” with his crutches! John-san, Maeda-san!”
The two men looked at one another. John shrugged, resigned and joined us. As cold mesh of the microphone was thrust into my face, I felt a moment’s hesitation, and then I began to sing. I followed her lead as our voices blended. Whenever the four letters were called out, we made the proper gestures, reducing the crowd to hysterics. Before long, the song was finished.
She bowed. I saw Michiko’s face bright red as mine felt. Our fingers clenched tightly together. As we let go, I saw Sato-san leaning over to say something to John. I offered him the microphone as we stepped off the stage.
“Before I start, I would like to thank everyone for coming especially my friends, Tobias Blackwood and Michiko Yamasaki. I think we can all agree that everyone’s going to plug their ears when they hear me start squealing.” There was a murmur of laughter. “I do want to say that it’s been an honor knowing all of you, and I will never forget our time together.”
As I sat there listening, I finally understood Michiko’s words. With the rain came new life and new opportunities. The rain of John’s departure meant my blossoming. The spring was just dawning on my horizon waiting to open up before me.
My ears stung long after John got off the stage. Hearing him belt out music in his accent was something akin to a poorly strung cello being played by a hungry grizzly bear. Still, it was all in good fun, and it made me feel all the better about my own singing.
As the evening began to wind down, people filtered out into the bar. The once lustrous table of food was down to a few scraps. The music had died down, and the three of us were still sitting at our table by the stage.
“Why are you looking so glum, Tobi?”
“Just hard to get a grip on the fact you won’t be around after tomorrow.”
“I know that’s hard, Tobi, but you’ll manage. After all you still have Michiko,” he said nudging me under the table.
She glanced around now, kimono sleeves draped lightly over her hands. It looked like she was searching for something. I noticed this and caught her arm. “You all right?”
“Yes, yes. I just
…” She hesitated, and I sensed an urgency. “I should go. It is quite late.”
“Do you want us to see you home, Michiko?”
“That is very kind of you, Tobias-san but not necessary. Talk with John-san and enjoy yourself.” She paused halfway to the door to wave back at me. “See you tomorrow.” She disappeared.
I felt another elbow in my side. “She likes ya, Tobi.”
“I don’t know about that, John.” I carefully lifted a small shot of sake, my second of the evening. “What would she like about me? I’m just a clumsy oaf when it comes to just about everything over here.”
“Maybe, but perhaps that’s what she likes about ya.” He clapped his hand on my shoulder. “Let me give a little bit of advice because God knows I won’t be able to offer it very easily after tonight. Learn about her, Tobi. Get to know Michiko because she’s one in a million.”
“You’re probably right.”
He stood up. “Best get home; I have a lot of packing to do.”
“I’ll come with you. I don’t see a reason to stay.”
“All right, Tobi. That sounds good.”
A light misting of rain greeted us as we left the bar and emerged into the city street. The street lamps cast a shimmering glow on buildings and cobbled streets, and the air smelled cool and clean with the distant scent of wet wood and stone.
Somewhere a cicada called, and a motorcycle revved as if in response before the sound disappeared back into the relatively quiet night. There were only a few cars about, passing us by along the narrow street as we approached the more gaudy and brightly lit areas in the shadow of the Fushimi Temple.
John paused. “You go on ahead, Tobi. I need a pack of gum. Won’t be long.”
I found a place where I could watch the street. It seemed so strange that such a pristine and holy place as the temple could be so close to a commercial space. I couldn’t help but glance up from the flickering light of the convenience store to the distant glow of the temple.
I noticed something sitting in the middle of the road. Glancing around, I saw no one and hobbled my way over toward it. It was a small onion-shaped ball. It looked like a stone I’d seen in the mouth of one of the fox statues.
A swirling, luminescent mist flickered within like a captured firefly. I poked at it with my crutches—nothing happened. I carefully leaned down, reaching out toward it. The light within expanded slowly outwards.
I quickly retracted my hand. The light died out.
What is this thing?
Carefully, I reached out once more. The ball remained still as I put it in my pants pocket.
A hand wrapped around my shoulder. “Whatcha find, Tobi?” I jumped straight up, and John immediately released me, moving back a space. “Take it easy! It’s just me, eh? Sheesh, you’re as pale as a ghost.”
“It must have been the sake. I just found a neat smooth stone I thought I’d keep.” I took it out of my pocket and showed him.
“Stone, huh?” He peered at it. “Looks like any old rock to me. Well, come on! We don’t want to miss our train.”
At the train station, there was no one else around, and the only sound was the constant hum of electricity. Huge moths the size of my thumb fluttered up toward the bulbs above us, beating their grey mottled wings in search of warmth.
Thankfully, it didn’t take long before we were back in the familiar surroundings of our neighborhood. We made our way up the hill toward the house. We stopped in the front yard gazing at the darkened windows. Only one light shone in the kitchen, but John held me back.
“Listen, Tobi, after tomorrow I might not see you for a long time. I wanted to tell you how fun it’s been and what a good friend you are. Here, take this.” He handed me a little card with a hastily written address. “This is how you can contact me. Send a postcard every once in a while. Let me know how you’re doing, all right?”
“I will, John.”
“If I don’t see you in the morning … it’s been a slice.”
After he went upstairs, I paused in the kitchen. The little Shinto shrine above the door seemed larger in the dim light cast from above the stove behind me. Reaching in my pocket, I found the strange stone and set it down upon the table. It looked almost like a jewel now, glowing softly.
What are you?
I took it back upstairs, sliding it into my nightstand drawer before slipping into bed. I lay awake only a short while gazing at the ceiling as I heard the patter of rain on the slated shingles above me. I felt my eyes grow weary, slowly closing against the hypnotic caress of the trickling water outside and drifted off to dreams.
I was sitting alone in my empty classroom. The normally glossy surfaces appeared washed out with fading colors. It was like standing in a still, moist watercolor where objects lacked line or definition and are only vague impressions of their true selves.
In fact, the only things that were defined were two objects on my desk. One was my white fox statue, the second the strange blue jewel. As I watched, both began to glow. The statue grew and shifted and changed until it was the size of a real fox. It now had five tails streaming behind it wreathed in purple fire.
The fox’s eyes settled on the jewel and then returned to me. A fierce determination, an accusation lingered there, and I realized that the fox, my charm, was waiting for something.
What is it? What are you trying to tell me?
She looked at the jewel, then at me again, and this time her teeth were bared. I felt a chill prickle down my neck, and then I realized that she wasn’t staring at me, she was staring at something behind me. I slowly turned my head.
I saw my shadow looming like an inky demon. Its long claw-like fingers reached around me stretching toward the jewel. Before I could react, the stone was swallowed by the inky darkness.
All that remained was the form of a fox, of Matsuri, lit only by a dim purple flame. She lay as if she was dead upon the ground, unmoving. Behind her sat the other fox which my statue had become. Her eyes lingered upon Matsuri, tears trickling down her fur. The purple light that illuminated us all came from her tails.
I crouched down beside them both, hand trembling as I reached out to touch her cold and lifeless body. She turned to ash, and all that was left was the blue jewel now dark and black.
The five-tailed fox stared down at the stone, then at me, and her paw rested upon my hand. She pressed her forehead to my own, golden eyes staring straight into my soul. Only then did I understand and nod.
I promise, I’ll return this, but to whom and where?
She didn’t answer, just lifted her paw and slunk back into the dark. The stone began to vibrate and ring in my hand. I stared at it perplexed as it continued, growing ever louder and closer.
In that instant, my dream gave way to the incessant ringing next to my ear. Fumbling around I found my alarm and read a blurry 2:04. The ringing persisted. My brain was slow in processing what the sound was, and then I realized it was my cell phone. I fumbled with it, not wishing to wake everyone.
“Hello?” My voice betrayed my irritation.
“Where have you been? I’ve been worried sick!”
Mom?
“It’s been over a week, Tobias Blackwood. You haven’t called. You haven’t emailed. I was just about ready to call the embassy or the company or school in order to find you.”
“Mom, it’s two in the morning. Can’t the guilt trip wait?”
There was a moment’s pause, and I could hear my dad say something in the background. “Really? He is?” She was talking to him and not to me. “So I woke him up?”
“Yes, Mom. It’s okay. I got the phone before you woke up everyone in Kyoto.”
“Well, do you want me to call back another time so you can get some sleep?”
I glanced over at the clock. I probably wasn’t about to get back to sleep so quickly anyway. “No, it’s okay. I’m sorry I didn’t call. I’ve just been so busy.”
“Oh, well, that’s good! How’s your friend doing? Are they treating
you well there? Are you eating well?” More murmuring from Dad in the background, and she stopped.
“I’m eating fine, Mom. Mr. and Mrs. Yoshida are very kind and generous with me. As for John, he’s been reassigned. I only learned just today. So I guess I’ll be all on my own out here. It’s okay though. I have a wonderful translator named Michiko who is a wealth of information. I’d probably be lost without her.” I didn’t mention about my leg. Mom wouldn’t be happy about that.
“Oh? Tell me about this girl. I want to know everything!”
“She’s very kind and extremely smart. I think she lives ten minutes away in Fushimi Ward with her younger sister. Apparently, they have family elsewhere, but the parents are dead. She introduced me to a good noodle stand that’s fairly close to work. Other than that, I don’t know too much about her.”
“Do you like this girl?” I heard more mumbling from Dad I couldn’t make out.
“Yes, I really do. I think she likes me too. It’s just awkward for me to put into words my feelings for her. Maybe it’s the same for her toward me.”
I didn’t bring up the fact there was another female in my life, one with a bushy tail and potent magical powers.
That wouldn’t go over too well.
I heard Mom relay what I said to Dad and then there was a fumbling with the phone. “Tobi?” His voice was cautious in the receiver.
“Yes, Sir?”
“I was just telling your Mom that I think you should be candid with this girl. If you don’t feel comfortable with telling her, then I understand. Just don’t rush into things. All right?
“I know, Dad.”
“Good. Now I’m going to let you go so you can sleep. Call us to check in from now on, okay?”
“I will, Dad. Take care, and give my love to everyone. Bye.” I lay there a moment and thought about what he said, but my thoughts quickly turned back to the stone and my dream.
Now I know this stone has to do with the kitsune, but what about that fox? She seemed to be warning me, but why? Who was she?
Kitsune Matsuri: The Open Gateway Page 13