I'm pretty sure it was a banner ad that lured me here. "What dwells within", I think it said, and I first saw it at <a href="http://www.drunkduck.com/The_Gods_of_ArrKelaan/" rel="nofollow">The Gods of Arr-Kelaan</a>. And I'm still here, even after learning what dwells within. It's like watching <i>Twin Peaks</i> after the murderer of Laura Palmer has been revealed! ;-)

So it was the promise of a supernatural mystery that drew me in. When it comes to Akiko I'm ambivalent. On the one hand I think she's very well written, but on the other hand I often wish that she could've been more proactive and willing to examine and experiment. At the very start, when she first entered through the torii and the weather changed abruptly, I wanted her to step back out of the torii to see if the weather would change back. And then step through the torii again to see if the phenomenon would repeat itself. And if it did, that would clearly have been a sign of something extraordinary. But perhaps such a scientific disposition would not have been compatible with her ability to see spirits?