When Akiko woke up in the morning, light streaming through the window, she wasn’t sure whether it was a dream. She sat up in the futon and looked around the room. Her vestments were hanging in front of the closet, but that was where they had been the previous day, and where she remembered hanging them up after coming back to bed. What had she done with her underwear? Stuffed it in with the other washing, she remembered. That was no help; she couldn’t recall how many pairs of knickers had been in there the previous night. Getting up, she pulled on a yukata and went to inspect the vestments. There were no obvious signs of the battle, but there were a few marks that could have been due to it.

She went to the office, where Shiraishi was sitting, and picked up the kagurasuzu, inspecting it carefully. Again, she couldn’t see anything, but then she didn’t remember it being damaged last night.

“Akiko?” Shiraishi sounded puzzled.

“Oh, sorry. Good morning. Er, were you here all of last night?” If it hadn’t been a dream, Shiraishi should have seen her.

“Ah. Actually, I went and had a bath. The protesters had all gone home. I think I may have fallen asleep there, for a little while. Why?”

“I…” What? “I want to know whether something actually happened last night. I thought I was fighting kegare spirits at the entrance to the precincts, but now I think it might have been a dream.”

“We could look outside,” Shiraishi suggested, and Akiko nodded. That was a good idea.

The ground near the entrance did look like people had been walking there, but then it always did. It was still wet, but it looked like it had rained in the latter part of the night, so that needn’t have been due to her. Akiko frowned, and switched her vision to look for kegare.

There were two patches, fungal tendrils reaching up, swaying in a breeze that Akiko could not feel, reaching out for the ground around them, trying to spread. Two patches, roughly where she remembered the rat and centipede getting past her.

“Well?” Shiraishi asked.

“We need to purify the shrine grounds; there’s kegare here.”

“And the battle?”

“Real in some sense, I think.” Akiko looked round at the priest. “To be honest, I’m not sure what difference it makes any more. The spirits I fight in my dreams can have a real effect, and the other shrine, and…” She stopped, drew breath, and forced herself to continue. “And the vision of the aramitama, they all have real consequences. I suppose knowing it wasn’t just a dream dream is enough.”

Shiraishi was nodding.

“It sounds like you’re right. So, there’s pollution around here, yes?” Akiko nodded, pointing to the patches. “Well then,” Shiraishi continued, “we’d better get on with purifying it. This bit is definitely real, and we can’t let pollution build up within the shrine.”

“No. But it worries me, Revd Shiraishi.”

“What worries you?”

“Kegare getting into the shrine. It means that Tamao isn’t strong enough to keep it out any more.”

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Akiko could hear the protesters gathering at the foot of the stairs as they began the harae, but they stayed at the bottom, not interfering with the ceremony. As they continued, however, things got louder, and Akiko could hear someone, a woman, protesting at not being allowed past. She forced herself to concentrate on the ceremony until Shiraishi had finished, the kegare swept away from the grounds once more.

The priest lowered the ohnusa and looked at Akiko.

“Well?”

“All clear now,” Akiko confirmed.

“Good.” Shiraishi turned to look at the steps, and sighed. “I suppose we’d better go and see what’s going on down there this time.”

Akiko followed her down the steps, and they could soon see the problem. The protesters were standing in a wall across the bottom, totally blocking the path. They were quiet, but they weren’t moving. Beyond them stood Ms Yamanaka, in a different kimono today, her expression one of frustration. She looked up as Akiko and Shiraishi came into view.

“Good morning. I’m afraid that these people will not let me pass.”

“You’ve made your point,” Shiraishi said, her voice weary. “Now get out of the way and let her into the shrine.”

The protesters made no move, continuing to stand shoulder to shoulder. Mrs Watanabe wasn’t there, but neither was Mr Akiyama. In fact, it seemed to have been a long time since he had come, and Akiko suddenly wondered whether he was deliberately staying out of it, while the protesters pushed the boundaries further and harder.

“Come on,” Shiraishi tried again. “You are preventing her from going about her legitimate business. You know that’s illegal.”

Still no response, although Akiko saw that some of the protesters did shuffle a bit, apparently nervous at the mention of the law. Shiraishi folded her arms and waited, but the protesters didn’t even look round at her, didn’t acknowledge her presence.

“You can’t stand there all day!” Shiraishi sounded quite frustrated, now, but the protesters were still immovable, as if to say that they thought they certainly could stand there all day.

“They wouldn’t respond when I challenged them, either,” Ms Yamanaka offered, looking up at them, her expression almost as frustrated. “Is there another way into the shrine?”

Shiraishi shook her head.

“Not a practical one; you couldn’t climb the slopes in a kimono.”

Ms Yamanaka looked around, clearly annoyed, but there was still no move from the protesters. Akiko heard a car pull up, and Ms Yamanaka looked in that direction. A few moments later Mr Tanaka came into view at the bottom of the steps.

“Is there a problem?” Mr Tanaka asked.

“These people won’t let me through,” Ms Yamanaka explained, and Mr Tanaka looked a bit surprised.

“Really? Why won’t you let her enter the shrine?”

As before, the protesters said nothing, just standing there. Mr Tanaka’s face darkened rapidly.

“At least do me the courtesy of answering!” There was still no response. “Right. I’m entering the shrine. This woman will be entering with me. You can either get out of the way, or I’ll push you out of the way.”

The protesters did shift a little at that, but they still didn’t move far. Mr Tanaka set his face, and then turned to glance at Ms Yamanaka.

“Follow me.”

He walked straight up to the steps, aiming between two of the protesters, and when they didn’t move he pushed against them, trying to force his way through. For a moment, it looked like they would block him, but then he twisted sideways, they both stumbled, and he walked through the gap that appeared, followed by Ms Yamanaka.

He said nothing until they were all within the shrine precincts, out of earshot of the protesters.

“Idiots! What do they think they’re doing?”

“You got through them very easily,” Shiraishi commented.

“Years of experience on rush hour trains,” Mr Tanaka shrugged, and then turned serious again.

“Revd Shiraishi, we would like you to purify our house again. As soon as possible.”

06: Wild Festival, Episode 37 | 1 Comment »

Akiko was almost afraid to breathe. She knew that the air wasn’t really that thick with midges, that it was just a way of seeing the kegare, but still it was like a grey cloud filling the room. The walls were covered in a forest of fungal growths, reaching out into the room, flexing and twisting as if searching for something and exhaling clouds of spores. Between them long, sinuous, glistening things moved, occasionally glancing out at Akiko with glittering, faceted eyes.

She did breathe, and the stench hit her. Sewage, rotting flesh, rotten eggs… She could not check the reflex, and she gagged, stumbling at the entrance. Quickly, almost desperately, she forced her vision back to normal, and all the kegare vanished at once, leaving a family home, maybe in need of a clean, but not a breeding ground for fungus. Shiraishi and the Tanakas looked at her, concerned.

“I’m sorry,” Akiko said. “I’m all right now. We should get on with the purification.”

She helped Shiraishi set up the himorogi in the living room, trying not to think about what the kegare must look like, and then took up her place, holding the kagurasuzu. I don’t need to look at the kegare, she told herself. It will all be fine once the harae starts.

At first, it looked like she was right. Shiraishi began to intone the norito, kneeling in front of the ohnusa.

Then the priest coughed, briefly interrupting the flow. Akiko looked at her, as she coughed again, harder this time, and drew breath with a tortured sound, before doubling over coughing again.

Gritting her teeth, Akiko switched her vision to see the kegare. One of the worm things from the wall was coiled around Shiraishi’s neck, its jaws snapping at her face as it tightened its grip, and the priest struggled to breathe. Akiko swung the kagurasuzu towards it, the sound of the bells clearing a path through the cloud of midges, and the things lost its grip, falling to the floor with a high-pitched whine.

The smell was still almost overpowering, but Akiko didn’t dare take her eyes off the spirits. Another worm sprang from the wall, aiming for the priest, but Akiko blocked it, as Shiraishi continued to recite the norito and the light built up within the ohnusa. As Akiko stepped back again, she suddenly realised that the ohnusa was rocking, and glanced at the table on which it stood, seeing the worm creatures attacking its legs with their jaws, winding round them and pulling, shaking, trying to topple it.

The bells swung down again, driving them away before they could finish the job, leaving the ohnusa safe, and now glowing too brightly for them to approach again. Akiko stepped back, and worms dropped on her from the ceiling, their touch stinging her skin, their jaws plunging into her like hot needles.

She cried out, swinging the bells around herself, worms dropping from her, screeching on the floor, as Shiraishi finished the norito and picked up the ohnusa.

The light flowed through the house like a river, washing the walls clean, drowning the midges and sweeping them away, cleansing the air of the smell and soothing Akiko’s injuries. As Shiraishi looked at her for confirmation, Akiko went to the door and looked out at the other rooms of the house. They also seemed to be clear, and she nodded.

The Tanakas were looking from Akiko to Shiraishi and back again, confusion and fear on their faces.

“What happened?”

Shiraishi looked over at Akiko, who just shook her head.

“The kegare,” the priest said. “You should be careful about purity for a while, and do you have a kamidana?”

“Well, not a formal one…” Mr Tanaka replied, sounding a little embarrassed. While he discussed the details with Shiraishi, Akiko realised that she was shaking, and sank down on a chair.

So much pollution…

06: Wild Festival, Episode 37 | 5 Comments »

Akiko and Shiraishi were both quiet on the way home, and Akiko assumed that Shiraishi had been as unnerved by the assault as she herself had.

“What on…” Shiraishi’s voice was disbelieving, fed up, and Akiko looked up to see what was happening.

There was a large crowd gathered at the foot of the steps to the shrine. Some were the protesters, but there were other people as well, people wearing clothes that were almost, but not quite, military uniforms. Then she spotted a couple of people in kimono. Mr Fujimura and Ms Yamanaka.

“Why can’t they just leave us alone?” the priest asked, of no-one in particular, as she parked the car in the shrine’s parking spot. Akiko didn’t bother to answer, and wasn’t even sure which group were “they”, or whether the priest meant both.

The atmosphere at the foot of the steps was tense, but didn’t seem to have gone beyond the two groups staring at each other. Looking around, Akiko saw Akira standing on the steps, and she smiled her thanks to him. He nodded back, looking slightly embarrassed; it was true that there was basically nothing he could do if trouble did start.

“Revd Shiraishi, Ms Yamanaka told me about the trouble you were having.” Mr Fujimura broke the silence, bowing to the priest. “I see that she was not exaggerating.” The protesters still said nothing, but they were not disguising their hostility as they watched Mr Fujimura and his followers.

“We are having some trouble with these people, that is true.” Shiraishi’s tone was cautious, non-commital.

“I hate to see a shrine under this sort of pressure. It is not respectful to the kami. I would be honoured if you would allow me to have some of my associates help to watch the shrine, to ensure that there is no trouble.”

Akiko looked at the people with him, and forced herself not to frown. They were clearly right-wingers, which wouldn’t help to convince people that the shrine wasn’t connected with fascism. On the other hand, they did need more people to help watch the shrine, especially if they were going to go out and purify more homes. The image of the Tanakas’ home was suddenly vividly before her mind, and she couldn’t suppress a shudder. She turned back to look at Shiraishi, who was also thinking.

Then she bowed.

“Thank you, Mr Fujimura. This shrine is deeply in your debt.”

“Fascists!” came a cry from the protesters, and Mr Fujimura whipped round, searching their faces for all the world as if he were a teacher looking for a misbehaving pupil.

“You are the ones dishonouring your race!” he replied, his voice calm and cold. Akiko looked away, and met Akira’s eyes. He didn’t look any happier than she felt.

The protesters, outnumbered and clearly a little intimidated, did move aside as soon as they moved to enter the shrine, and while Ms Yamanaka came with them, Mr Fujimura excused himself, pleading an appointment. After Ms Yamanaka had paid her respects, Akiko found herself with Akira in the shrine office.

“Do you really want those people here?” he asked, suddenly. Akiko looked up at him, and then shook her head.

“No, but the protesters worry me more.”

Akira sighed.

“I wish I had more time to spend here.”

“Mm, so do I.”

“Really?” Akira sounded very pleased. “Well then, er, would you like to have dinner with me? On Friday?” For a moment Akiko wanted to turn him down, but then she realised that the guards meant she could go out.

“Yes, thank you. That would be nice.”

06: Wild Festival, Episode 37 | 5 Comments »

Yoshiko was perfectly happy for Akiko to get a couple of full nights’ sleep once she explained the situation, and by Thursday morning Akiko felt a lot better. She’d slept well, with no disturbing dreams, as if Tamao realised that she needed the rest.

Maybe he does, she thought, remembering the way he had encircled the iwakura in her last vision, dream, whatever. Maybe he is finally getting some idea of what it’s like to be human.

She went into the kitchen after showering and dressing, and found Shiraishi eating quickly. The priest glanced up.

“Mr Fujimura called. He wants us to do an Ise Yohai for him and the guards. Could you do the morning ceremonies by yourself while I sort out the norito?”

“A what?”

“A norito… Oh. Ise Yohai. Paying reverence to the Grand Shrines of Ise from a long way off.” Her face twisted for a moment as she frowned. “It was very common in State Shinto. I don’t suppose that’s entirely unconnected with why Mr Fujimura wants one.” She shook her head then, as if to clear it. “Anyway, it’s a fairly simple ceremony, and always done with a himorogi, so the lack of the shrine buildings is no problem. I just need to put the norito together; I’ve not actually done one before.”

“Oh, certainly. No problem.” Akiko got her breakfast. “What time are they coming?”

“Ten. So we have time.”

They were exactly on time, Mr Fujimura, Ms Yamanaka, and about two dozen young men in uniform. Akiko switched to check them for kegare as they approached the shrine, but they were all virtually clean, unlike the protesters, and guided them to the seats they had set out, facing west and a little south, towards Ise, and then went to join Shiraishi and put her over-mantle on; Shiraishi had decided that she would dance one of the simple dances as part of the ceremony.

Kneeling to one side as Shiraishi performed the first part of the ceremony, Akiko felt remarkably calm, despite the fact that this would be the first time she danced in front of a significant audience. It’s not for them, it’s for the kami, she thought. I hope the kami doesn’t possess me… But even that thought did not worry her. If it happens, it happens.

She rose to dance, as Shiraishi started beating the small drum, setting the rhythm. The moves were slow and stately, and Akiko found that she still had to pay attention, still had to think about them. This is good, she told herself. I’m still in control.

She turned towards the himorogi, and felt a sudden wave of warmth, a sense of being watched, assessed. The feeling was so strong that she almost lost the rhythm, almost stopped turning, but practice kept her going. The sense weakened, but did not vanish entirely, strengthening every time she turned back to the himorogi, until she sank to the ground to conclude the dance, and the awareness vanished, with a vague sense of what could have been approval.

She stood naturally, and returned to her place, the ceremony proceeding to its conclusion without incident. In the office, later, when she mentioned it to Shiraishi the priest just shrugged.

“Could have been anything or nothing. If we worried about every detail of something that seemed supernatural, we’d get nowhere. So don’t bother about it until it actually seems to want something, or need something.”

Akiko had to admit that that sounded like very good advice.

06: Wild Festival, Episode 37 | 5 Comments »

The guards Fujimura had sent, and Akiko couldn’t help thinking of them in those terms, were certainly very polite. They stayed out of the shrine grounds for the most part, except for paying their respects to the kami when the arrived and just before they left. Indeed, Akiko could almost have forgotten that they were there, most of the time, if she hadn’t constantly felt the need to check on them. The people who had come to the shrine had commented, but Shiraishi had just said that they were making sure that the protesters didn’t cause trouble, and since the protesters were clearly there, that seemed to work.

Late in the afternoon, after the yohai, however, they did draw attention to themselves. Akiko was in the office, but could hear the shouting from there, and she hurried out to see what was going on.

The protesters had, once again, formed a barrier in front of the shrine, to keep someone out. The guards had lined up at the foot of the stairs, inside the barrier, and had started arguing. Standing beyond the protesters was Kazumi, looking slightly baffled, although she smiled and waved when she saw Akiko.

“You must not stop people who want to worship,” one of the guards said.

“She’s only a child. She needs to be protected from your propaganda!” one of the protesters shot back. Akiko could see Kazumi roll her eyes at this, and briefly smiled. No-one that age thought of themselves as a child.

“You are not going to stop her.” Suddenly, the guards moved forward, not attacking, exactly, but definitely pushing the protesters out of the way. The guards were quiet, but the protesters were very loud in the their objections, trying to push back, again without actually fighting. The guards were in better shape, however, and as a gap opened up, Kazumi darted through and up the steps. As she did, one of the protesters slipped and fell with a cry. Akiko saw a guard offer a hand, but the protester refused it, pushing himself to his feet, and then looking up to glare at Akiko. For a moment, she was afraid that the situation would deteriorate, but the protesters stepped back, and the guards returned to their place.

“Welcome back,” Akiko said, noting that Kazumi was wearing tracksuit bottoms again.

“Thanks,” Kazumi replied as they climbed the steps. “What’s with the Imperial Guard?”

“I don’t think the emperor has anything to do with it,” Akiko replied, a bit puzzled.

“I meant like Star Wars. Dum-dum-dum dum-de-dum dum-de-dum.” Kazumi was grinning, and Akiko laughed as well.

“Better not let them hear you make that comparison. Anyway, they aren’t like that. They’re just…” Just what? Akiko thought. “Just friends of the shrine who don’t want the protesters to cause any damage.”

“Hmm.” Kazumi didn’t sound completely convinced, which was hardly surprising. “Anyway, I just came to do the bowing thing before I went home. I can’t afford another harae at the moment, so…” Akiko quickly switched her vision. Kazumi was heavy with kegare, like a strangling vine growing over her whole body. It was wilting a bit at the edges in the environment of the shrine, but it clearly wasn’t going to be removed.

“Hang on. Don’t tell anyone, but we’ll do you a free one.”

At least help the people we can, Akiko thought, as she hurried off to find the priest.

06: Wild Festival, Episode 37 | 3 Comments »

The shrine precincts were lit by several braziers, the illumination reaching the iwakura but not dispelling the shadows within it. Akiko didn’t remember coming out, but Shiraishi was there, in her vestments, waiting in front of the iwakura, between two of the braziers. The scene reminded Akiko of something… the vision she had had of the wild festival. That was it. So, this was probably a dream.

At that point, Akiko realised that she was looking at the precincts from maybe three or four metres above the ground, and didn’t appear to have a body.

Probably a dream, then, she thought.

There was a noise from the steps, people shouting and running, and Akiko went over to see. Looking down the steps, she could see the mikoshi, its gold sparkling in the light from the torches carried by the men running ahead of and behind it. They, like the men carrying the palanquin, were wearing nothing but loincloths, and were covered in a thin film of sweat. They all started up the steps, just as the women’s mikoshi came into sight behind them. With a shout, the women found a burst of speed, catching up with the men before they could all start climbing.

The steps really weren’t wide enough for both mikoshi to climb at once, but the women weren’t about to let the men go first, forcing their way up. The men and women carrying torches in front of the mikoshi were now standing together on the steps, looking down and laughing and shouting encouragement, and rather more personal comments.

The men managed another step, then a third, and the women realised that they weren’t going to push their way in front here, dropping back slightly. Akiko was watching from above the steps now, and could see the women charge up directly behind the men, just to one side, as close as they could get. As soon as the men reached the top, the women put on another surge of speed, breaking out to one side. Shiraishi stood between the braziers, a sakaki branch in each hand, one adorned with red shide, the other with white. As mikoshi appeared, she raised them, waiting.

The men couldn’t help noticing what the women were doing, and, with a great shout, they also pushed harder, keeping barely ahead as they raced across the precincts, putting the mikoshi down on its stand and kneeling just as the women reached the finishing point.

Shiraishi dropped her right arm, and the white sakaki, and the men erupted in a great cheer. The people gathered to watch the festival, people Akiko had not seen before, also cheered, and the women were laughing, as well, as Tamao slid out from behind the braziers, weaving in and out of the crowd.

Within the iwakura burned a light, white and steady, casting sharp shadows across all the participants.

Then something wrenched inside Akiko, as if she were suddenly falling. There was a screaming in the sky, a piercing sound that filled her awareness, making her long to stop her ears, grab her head, bury her head in her knees. But she had no body, no way to block the clamour, no way to even muffle it.

The people vanished, the braziers vanished, leaving the precincts dark, lit only by the light that still poured from the iwakura. Dark shapes flowed out of the sky, ragged slashes of utter blackness against the air, trailing death and decay behind them as they fell. The light in the iwakura was so bright that not even the stones cast shadows now, but still the black forms came.

Tamao leapt at one, tearing it apart with his jaws, and it vanished into nothingness. He twisted to attack another one, but as he did so a third plunged into the ground of the shrine, and black vines erupted from the spot, spreading quickly, burrowing in and out of the ground.

The things were falling through Akiko now, and every one of them carried a deathly chill, a sense of loss, of failure, of defeat. Weakness, despair, depression.

Akiko couldn’t even shake herself out of it.

There were many patches of vines now, their black tendrils finding each other, weaving together, breaking open into obscene dark flowers, from which more black shapes rose, languidly at first, then seeming to catch a wind that Akiko couldn’t see or feel, a wind that blew differently for each of them.

One of the things struck Tamao, half way down his body. The kami twisted at once, lunging at it, but the thing had already vanished inside his skin, and the kami screamed as a red scale turned black, cracked, disintegrated in a shower of powder. Red and white fluid leaked from behind it.

The kami’s scream snapped Akiko out of her lassitude, and she rushed to Tamao’s side. What could she do? How could she…

She raised the kagurasuzu in her hands, sweeping it through one of the things, which split apart into hundreds of tiny fragments, fragments that were devoured by the bells as she swept them back through it. She ran to catch another one, but even as it vanished Tamao screamed again, and Akiko looked around just in time to see another scale disintegrate.

There was no time to think; another of the things was just above Tamao’s back. Akiko swung the kagurasuzu…

And missed, as something grabbed her ankle and pulled, tumbling her to the ground. The kagurasuzu fell from her grasp, bouncing away, and before she could grab it the tendrils of the vines had wrapped around her wrists, another one crossing her back, probing at her, a gentle pressure that, even through her clothes, made her shudder.

She tried to push herself from the ground, looking up at the iwakura. The black shapes were diving into the light, which flickered as it consumed them. Flickered, and grew dimmer.

More tendrils pressed across her back, forcing her down, and now she could feel them probing across her face, at her neck, the cuffs, pushing up inside her clothes, coiling round her skin so that she could not draw back from their slimy touch. A scream welled up inside her, but she could not, dared not, open her mouth, because a vine was wrapped around her neck, its tip probing at her lips.

Tamao screamed instead, but Akiko could not even look at the kami.

Akiko sprang out of bed with a scream, grabbing the wall and holding on, tight, breathing heavily, shaking, covered in sweat.

A dream, a dream, a dream… She repeated it to herself, even as she checked her skin for marks.

“Akiko! Akiko! Are you all right?” She heard Shiraishi calling from the corridor, but couldn’t muster the will to say anything, to do anything other than breathe and try to recover her composure.

Just a dream.

Just a dream.

06: Wild Festival, Episode 37 | 1 Comment »