The strong wind changed direction from moment to moment, driving cold rain hard into Akiko’s face from all angles. She wiped water from her eyes and peered into the gloom. A flash of colour from ahead, moving, and she ran forward again, splashing into a puddle in the dark. Her trainers and jeans were already sodden, but the rainwater briefly chilled them again.

Thunder roared and lightning flashed, and in the light the brilliantly-coloured serpent turned to look back at her, fixing its eyes on hers. Akiko forced herself to run faster, even as her legs seemed to get heavier by the moment. She was blind in the renewed darkness, and barely avoided a car that swerved past her with screeching brakes and screaming horn. The driver shook his fist at her, but Akiko couldn’t wait, and ran onwards.

Her hair was plastered to her skin, cold around her head, and water ran in rivers down her back and legs to the ground. She could feel the icy needles of rain all over her body, and she stumbled as the wind shifted to blow from behind her, briefly lifting her from her feet.

Quickly recovering her balance, she saw the snake ahead of her, wound around a tall cedar tree, climbing it with smooth movements. As its jewel-like skin passed each branch, it seemed to shed light, leaving the branch wrapped in gold and gems.

Akiko reached the bottom of the tree before the snake disappeared from view above. Jumping, she grabbed the lowest branches, the scent of cedar wood filling her nostrils as the bark began to peel away, the gems left by the snake falling to the ground with the tinkling of small bells.

Gems fell around Akiko like cherry blossoms as she climbed, but she ignored them, concentrating on the bark, rough under the palms of her hands and the soles of her feet. Her dress caught repeatedly on branches as she ascended, and she ripped it free every time. The snake was still visible above her, and then she looked up again at the base of the cloud, and the snake was already gone.

Akiko entered the clouds. She could see and hear nothing, and could not even feel the tree trunk she was clinging to. The air was even clean of scents. Refusing to give up, she made her arms and legs keep climbing, or tried to, even though she couldn’t feel them move.

She broke through the clouds, standing under the torii at the entrance to Tamao Shrine. The sun glittered on the polished stone of the path, and she could see the snake disappearing into the doors of the shrine. She bent down to take her shoes off, because she couldn’t walk into the shrine on high heels…

…And sat bolt upright in bed, groping for the switch for the bedside light. Akiko’s heart was racing, her breath coming in panting gasps, and she was drenched in sweat. The light filled the room, and she looked around at its reassuring normality, slowly calming down.