The sun was setting behind her as Akiko walked down the path towards the torii, her shadow stretching out over the beach and the sea, the water turning dark as the first stars became visible in the east. A breeze blew from the shrine, ruffling Akiko’s hair and carrying the smell of pine trees. The gentle whisper of the waves was calming, and Akiko put one hand on the upright of the torii as she looked out over the ocean.

The wind got stronger, and the surface of the sea was churned into white-capped waves, stained red by the light of the evening sun. The waves were louder now, and Akiko realised that the water was rising, rising quickly, and threatening the shrine. Grabbing an offering dish, she ran through the gate, out onto the sand, and bent down, scooping up some of the water and casting it away.

She felt the cold wetness on her feet, soaking through her socks, and took a hurried step back, back through the torii. The water was still rising, no matter how quickly she tried to bail, and the wind from behind her was getting stronger. She felt the sand shift under her feet, as the sea started to wash it away, and took another step back. Her sleeves were sodden, and the water was now around her ankles, as the wind blew her hair forward, whipping it around her face, in her eyes.

With a groan, the torii collapsed, its base undermined, crashing into the sea, the water thrown up drenching Akiko as she desperately scooped water up with her dish. The wind gusted from behind, and she stumbled, the sand slipping away under her feet, the water, almost at her knees, pulling at her legs. She staggered, but kept her balance, reaching down with the bowl once more.

The wave filled her nose, mouth, and eyes with stinging salt water, knocking her back, and the wind from behind her stole her last chance to stay standing. Her feet slipped away from under her, and the waters closed over her, sucking her down, further into the darkness than should have been possible. Her lungs were agony as she fought to swim up, the wet vestments pulling her down, entangling her.

Akiko sat bolt upright in bed, gulping down tortured breaths as her heart rate slowed back to something approaching normal.

<em>Well, that was subtle symbolism,</em> she thought. <em>I wonder what it could possibly mean.</em> She got out of bed and grabbed her yukata, but she paused at the windows as she heard the sound of falling rain. Sighing, she went round to the front door, taking an umbrella as she stepped out into the shrine precincts.

The smell of the damp earth was somehow deeply calming, as if the rain was washing away the salt water of the sea. She stood there for quite some time, breathing deeply, enjoying the experience.

“What is it?â€

Shiraishi was standing beside her, looking concerned.

“A dream,â€ Akiko replied. “I dreamed I was trying to hold back the tide by scooping it up in an offering dish.â€

“Do you think it’s a message?â€

“Well, now, what do you think it could possibly mean?â€ Akiko was sorry for the tone as soon as she had spoken, but, really, the priest had to understand how frustrating the situation was.

“That carrying out purifications in particular areas is no way to deal with the general pollution.â€

“Brilliant! Why didn’t I think of that!â€ This time, Akiko realised that she had to apologise. “I’m sorry. It’s just that I’ve been worried about that for some time, now.â€

“So, maybe it was just a dream? You know, a result of your stress. Not a message from the kami.â€

“Do you really think…â€ Akiko paused. <em>Maybe it was,</em> she thought. “Do you really think the individual purifications are making a difference?â€

Shiraishi looked at her for a few moments, and Akiko felt herself blushing. The priest seemed to have noticed that that hadn’t been her original question.

“Yes.â€ Shiraishi sounded completely confident. “You saw the Tanakas’ grandmother before and after. The purifications make a big difference to the people we purify.â€

“But do they do anything about the tide of pollution? I’m sure that everywhere looks worse than it did.â€

The priest sighed, and looked away, into the depths of the shrine.

“I don’t know. I don’t understand the tide of pollution at all.â€ She looked back at Akiko. “But that is the point. I have no idea what to do about the general situation, but I know what we can do to help some people within it. Do you have any ideas for dealing with the whole problem?â€ Akiko had to shake her head. “So, it’s better to do something that we know does some good, than to do nothing at all.â€

“But we might be wasting our effort.â€

“We might be. But I think there’s a much better chance that we’d be wasting time if we did nothing.â€

Akiko said nothing, staring into the darkness. The priest’s argument did make a lot of sense. But still…

“Does it really mean anything if the general pollution makes everyone suffer in the end anyway?â€

“Probably not.â€ For the first time, Akiko heard real tension in the priest’s voice, and Shiraishi took a deep breath before continuing. “We have to deal with the real problem. Or someone has to. But…â€ She stopped again, and walked away from Akiko, looking out at the shrine woods, the trees barely visible at the edges of the light. “We can’t do nothing.â€ She turned round to face Akiko again.

“You are the one who talks to the kami. Find out what we have to do to solve the problem. Get us some supernatural guidance.â€

Akiko held Shiraishi’s gaze for a few moments, but then had to look down. It was true. The kami had spoken to her. If they were going to get any answers, then that was where they would come from. She remembered the last time she had spoken to the kami, in the other shrine precincts, and looked back at Shiraishi.

“I’ll try. I’m not sure how I get Tamao to talk to me, but I’ll try. But…â€

She didn’t want to say it, as if saying it would make it more likely to be true, but she couldn’t justify hiding it from the priest. She decided to say it, but then couldn’t make her mouth work. She swallowed, and tried again.

“I’m not sure Tamao knows, either.â€