The clothes weren’t completely dry, but Akiko decided that they were dry enough; she was starting to feel really hungry, and wanted to get home. She laid them out on a shelf in the changing area in the bathroom, and took the yukata off, hanging it up to avoid creasing. As she reached for her underwear, she thought she saw some movement out of the corner of her eye.

She spun round, quickly trying to cover herself with her hands, worried that someone was watching her. The changing area was quite large, like the bath itself, but not so large that someone could actually hide there. <em>Seeing things is getting to be a habit, girl. You need to be careful,</em> she chided herself, turning back to the shelf.

This time she was sure that something moved behind her, and she turned back towards the mirror. It was large, covering almost the entire wall, and some moved behind her in the reflection, with a flash of colour. She spun back round again, but could see nothing. Quickly, she took the yukata off the hook and pulled it back on, holding it shut. There still didn’t seem to be any hiding place, but Akiko was sure she had seen something. She opened the door and called out.

“Revd Shiraishi!â€ Shiraishi appeared from a room at the other end of the house. “Is there anyone else here?â€ The older woman looked puzzled.

“No, just the two of us. Is anything wrong?â€

“Er, no.â€ Akiko suddenly found her worries ridiculous. It was probably just a piece of cloth flapping as she knocked it. “Sorry, I… I just thought I heard something. No problem. Sorry.â€ She closed the door again, and picked up her knickers, planning to put them on before she took the yukata off, this time. They were a bit cold and damp, and for a moment she didn’t want to put them on.

Again, she had the sense that there was something behind her, and she turned to face the mirror, searching the room with her eyes. Nothing. <em>I’m just nervous,</em> she told herself. She kept looking around the room while she pulled her knickers on, and then took the yukata off so that she could put her bra back on. She finished settling it, glanced in the mirror, and screamed.

Behind her, coiled on the shelf, was a brightly coloured snake.

She spun to face it, backing up as far as she could against the sinks in front of the mirror. But there was nothing on the shelf but her clothes.

“Ms Tanahata? Are you OK?â€ Shiraishi called from outside the door, sounding very concerned. Akiko took a deep breath.

“I’m fine. Sorry. I just…â€ She paused. Just what? What could she say she had done? “I just banged my knee. It was surprise more than anything else. Sorry to disturb you.â€

“Oh, I see. Be careful.â€

“Yes, I will. Sorry.â€

Akiko finished getting dressed, her clothes a little clammy against her skin, but far better than they had been. She thought about getting home while she started fixing her make-up, and decided to ask Shiraishi if it was all right to call a taxi to get her from the shrine.

She was fixing her lipstick when she saw the snake again.

It was behind her, coiled on one of the shelves. Its scales glittered red, green, purple, gold, and silver, and it seemed to be looking straight at her reflection with shining eyes.

Akiko couldn’t move, could hardly breathe. If it weren’t for the difference in size, she would have thought it was the same snake she saw in her dream, but it seemed to have trapped her in its gaze. She kept thinking <em>so beautiful, so beautiful,</em> while a cold hand seemed to squeeze her heart with <em>what if it moves?</em>

But the snake moved no more than Akiko did. Its eyes remained fixed on hers, its head raised above the coils of its body on the shelf. It seemed to be watching her, as if waiting for her to do something.

Akiko forced herself to take a deep breath, and another one. This time, she wouldn’t scream. She willed herself to turn around and face it, but her muscles did not obey. Another deep breath, and this time she did turn round.

The shelf was empty. Frantically, Akiko looked for anywhere the snake could have gone, but, although there was enough cover for a serpent, she didn’t think it could have got to any hiding place while she was turning. Her heart was beating quickly now, and she was beginning to feel genuine fear. She decided to get away from the shrine as quickly as possible, and turned back to the mirror to gather her make-up things.

The snake was clearly visible in the reflection, sitting on the shelf in the same position, looking straight at her. Looking back over her shoulder was a reflex. The shelf was empty. But when she looked back in the mirror, the snake was there.

She felt herself begin to shake as she took her pocket mirror and turned to face the empty shelf. She held the mirror up, and then closed her eyes. Did she really want to see?

Summoning up all her willpower, she opened her eyes again and angled the pocket mirror so that she could see the reflection of the shelf.

The snake looked at her from the mirror, while the shelf in front of her was as empty as ever.

A dam broke inside Akiko, and the fear overwhelmed her. She stuffed her mirror into her bag, and, grabbing her things, dashed out of the changing room and headed for the front door. Shiraishi emerged from a room as she passed.

“Do you want to call a taxi?â€

“No, thank you, I’ll walk.â€

“Walk? It’s still raining. Are you sure you’re all right?â€

“I’m fine. Thank you for the bath, and the tea. I really appreciate it.â€ Akiko had the door of the house open as she said that, and ran out into the wet night, not really caring how she appeared.

She didn’t stop running until the front door of her flat closed behind her, and she sank back against it, gasping for breath.