Chapter Text
in the rain that joined heaven and earth, children were playing with death
“Faster, faster!! Do you want to die?!”
“I’m trying! I'm running as fast as I can!”
A schoolgirl was running through the wall of rain, the raindrops crashing at her and flooding her eyes, making it hard to see. Behind her, a little boy was trotting, crying and flailing, trying to catch up.
A chain was dangling on his neck. It rattled unpleasantly.
It was nighttime when both of them found themselves running away from something, rushing through the deserted streets of Miyama.
That something was catching up fast.
A deep and enormous shadow was following two running figures. It almost looked like a deep abyss that was spreading on the ground and threatening to swallow anyone who was unlucky enough to lose their footing.
“Airi-san I can’t,” the boy wailed and tears streamed down from his horrified eyes, “It’s going to eat me! I don’t want to die!”
“Please, just a little bit more! There's a shrine nearby, you will be safe there.”
She reached her hand on instinct, trying to grab the boy’s hand and pull him closer to her. Instead, it went through his little body. The boy, startled, stumbled and fell flat on the ground. Immediately, Airi turned back dashed to the little ghost, reaching out her hands and trying to cover him from shadow.
The abyss came close and closer, and soon enough it would swallow both of them.
‘This is not how it was supposed to be!’ Airi internally screamed, ‘I’m not ready! I couldn't do anything!’
‘I can’t die before I see her again!’
Heavy drops of rain slamming on concrete ground mixed with boy’s cries and chain’s metallic screech. A symphony of an approaching doom. The shadow got closer and slowly, a putrid mouth formed on it’s surface, with rotten, human-looking teeth clacking in anticipation of a feast. Helpless, Airi closed her eyes, praying for her death to be a painless one.
The chain’s rattling came to a sudden stop.
But she was still there, on wet ground, heavy rain hitting her neck and making her shudder from the cold. She didn’t die. The little boy was still quivering and sniffling beside her.
She dared to raise her head and look.
A tall, imposing figure was standing in front of them, his back facing two survivors. There was an umbrella in his hand, shielding him from the rain, and his posture was relaxed and even too laid-back. As if there was nothing that could possibly kill him.
Then the girl notices that the ravaging shadow was gone.
The figure turns to the pair, and she sees a young boy, probably her age, with short purple hair and striking golden eyes that were gleaming with mischief.
“Trying to outrun a Jikininki?” His voice sounded pleasant, but he spoke in such a deprecating tone, Airi couldn't help but feel a bit ashamed. He was smiling kindly, but there was a mocking glint in his eyes.“Are you good at track running?”
She’s caught off guard by his question and tone. Bewilderment started to vain and the situation finally dawning on her. This guy saved them. He destroyed the yokai. She’s not happy about this.
“My best time was 9.9 seconds.” For some reason, Airi felt like she needed to defend herself. This guy looked like a sleazebag, certainly he felt some sort of morbid satisfaction that he saved her from the yokai. Taunting her over the fact that she owes him her life. “Are you an exorcist? How did you get rid of that thing?”
“E-eh, why are you so cold? I just wanted to compliment your exceptional running abilities.” The guy’s tone turned sad, and his striking eyes now looked a little bit teary, like a child who’s being scolded. This facade lasted for a second, and then a sly smirk came back to his face. The boy offered his hand. “My name is Kamishiro Rui, I’m just a high-school student at Miyojou High. Let’s be friends, shall we?”
Airi rose to her feet, ignoring his hand, and dusted off her skirt. It’s the first time she meets another person who can see and interact with spirits. More than that, this boy obliterated a hungry Jikininki just like that. She doesn't have any powers. That makes him dangerous.
“I’m not going to be friends with a person who I just met. What are your intentions? I’ve been helping unsent spirits for a month now, and I’ve never seen you around.”
“Ah, so stern and scary. I didn’t know that a cute girl can be so cold.”
Suddenly, a one-eyed paper lantern with a wicked toothy smile appeared in the air. Airi immediately tensed, sensing danger, but then the creature flew towards the boy and started snuggling and licking his face. It acted like an overexcited puppy that wanted to get some pats and praises from his owner. A freakish puppy.
Petting his fiendish companion, Kamishiro spoke:
“It’s Chōchin-obake if you don’t know. Adorable little thing, wouldn’t you agree?” Getting nothing in return but a glare, the young man continued: “My little friend saw you playing tag with a Jikininki and alerted me of that. At first, I assumed that you had some sort of plan to defeat it, but the more and more I watched, the more it became clear that you were just a pair of sad, helpless sods running for their lives. So I decided to intervene. You're welcome.”
The sleazebag had the audacity to laugh. All this time while Airi was running for her life, trying to save a child and almost dying in the process – he saw all that and only decided to help out at the last moment possible. And in the end, he made a fool out of her. Anger started bubbling inside her.
“Listen here, you measly…!”
She was interrupted by a loud sob.
The little ghost boy, who kept quiet all this time, was now standing beside the pair with his face buried in hands, his incorporeal body trembling with every gasp and sob. He was crying and wailing, calling for his mother to come and protect him.
“I don’t want to be here anymore!” he screamed so loud, the whole town would have heard him in, “I don’t want to be eaten!! Mummy, mummy, save me! Please mummy, come back! Come back…”
If he wasn't already dead, Airi would have started worrying that the boy is going to suffocate with how deep and pained his breaths were. She walked past the sleazebag, raising her hands in an anxious gesture that was supposed to be a comforting hug. She keeps forgetting herself.
“Toshiro-kun, don’t cry, it’s okay, it’s okay,” Airi hovered uselessly over the ghost. She can’t quite find comforting words to tell him. How do you even comfort a dead child who is aware of his fate but can’t understand why he ended up like this? It’s different from dealing with her sisters. “The scary monster is gone. We can go to shrine now, and you will be safe there.”
Little spirit only cried harder: “NO! I don’t want to go to shrine! I want to see my mummy!” The boy was in hysterics now, clawing at his face and shaking his head. “Where is she?! You promised that we will find her, Airi-san!”
She took a deep breath. Let’s try again.“It will be easier for me to find her while you are there, so you won’t be in constant danger. I promise, you will see her again…”
“Why didn't she die with me?!”
She stops, shocked: “What?”
“Why did I die alone?! Why didn't she come for me? Mummy abandoned me, she doesn’t care, she hates me!”
Suddenly, Toshiro’s body dropped fully on the road. His breaths became even more laboured and ragged. Like something was pressing him down to the earth.
Only then, Airi remembered about the chain on the boy’s neck.
The boy grabbed the chain, trying to lift it off his body. It was to no avail. He tried and tried to move the piece of metal off his throat, his face distorted in a horrifying grimace.“Airi-san…” he croaked out, "It's heavy…”
Airi started to panic. She fell on her knees near Toshiro, trying to think of something, anything, that could have eased his suffering. She tried to grasp the chain and lift it, only for her hands to go through it once again. A myriad of thoughts were swirling inside her head. Why did the chain suddenly become heavy? What is going to happen to Toshiro? Can she even help him? Another person is going to die because of her. Why is she so useless?
“If you can do nothing but feel sorry for yourself, then step aside.”
Rui’s voice, now cold and sharp, cut through the air and pulled Airi from her panicked state. He unceremoniously threw his umbrella at the distressed girl and kneeled in front of spirit.
“Hey there. You’re Toshiro-kun, right? My name is Rui.”
The boy responded with another pained gasp. While Airi was protesting and asking to stop torturing him, Rui gently put his hand on the chain and started muttering something under his nose. It sounded like some ancient incantation. A soft pale blue light emitted from Rui’s hand, and the chain started glowing with the same colour. Toshiro deeply breathed in. After two or three minutes, the light subdued and Rui helped the little boy to sit up.
‘He can touch spirits’ Airi thought with awe. ‘What was that. Where did he learn that?’
“Is it easier to breathe, Toshiro-kun?”
Toshiro, who still looked shaken and scared, nodded slightly. He pulled on his chain, feeling its weight in his arm. It looked like it became considerably lighter. Before anyone even had an opportunity to ask, Rui already started speaking:
“Listen to me, Toshiro-kun,” he pointed at the metallic noose dangling on the boy’s neck, his tone serious and gaze hard, “This chain is a manifestation of your regrets. The stronger your hatred towards the living, the heavier it becomes.”
Toshiro’s eyes widened with realization and horror, but he did not let out a sound. Rui nodded, allowing himself to continue, “First, it slows you down. Then you’re unable to lift your neck. Lastly, it becomes so heavy it pins you to the ground, and you’re unable to move. It suffocates you just enough to bring you endless pain, and you can’t do anything about it but lay here and choke until a yokai comes and devours you. Do you understand?”
The boy nodded mournfully. Airi notices that tears started to pool at his eyes again. She mentally goes back to several minutes ago, when Toshiro, in pain, condemned and cursed his mother. This must have the regret that made the chain so heavy. She wonders if for that brief moment Toshiro let himself hate his mother. She shuddered at the thought.
“I can help you pass on.”
Unexpected words left Rui’s mouth, making both of them speechless. What does he mean by ‘pass on?’ Is he going to obliterate the ghost like he did with yokai? Basically destroy whatever left of Toshiro? Airi gathered herself quickly, rising to her feet. This is not right. She can't let this happen, it’s too cruel.
“What do you mean?” Her yells echoed through the street, but Rui clearly paid no attention to her, his eyes fixed firmly on the crestfallen boy before him. This only agitated Airi more. “What about his regret? You can’t just…!”
“Will it hurt?”
Toshiro’s meek voice sounded so broken, Airi felt a crack appearing on her heart.
It's her fault he even considers it.
She wishes she could have done a better job, protected him better. Instead, a shady man is now tempting him to leave without finding peace.
But something strange happened.
Rui’s eyes, for the first time in this night, looked kind. He put his hand on Toshiro’s head and caressed his hair gently. At this moment, Rui looked like a caring older brother who tried to calm his younger sibling.
“No,” his voice, devoid of any snark and bite, of any phony sweetness, sounded almost remorseful, “I promise you it won’t. I’m sorry you didn’t get to see your mother. But at least I can offer you rest. I won't force you to do anything. The choice is yours.”
Toshiro fell silent. Airi promptly run towards him and tried to put her hand on the boy's shoulder only to stop herself halfway. She couldn't utter anything and just fidgeted the hem of her skirt, anxiously waiting for the decision.
‘Please don't say yes,’ she pleaded, ‘Give me another chance.’
Toshiro lifted his head and looked at Airi with sad and tired eyes. Those weren’t the eyes of a child. Those were eyes of a tortured soul, begging to end his torment.
“Rui-san,” the boy spoke, his voice hollow, “I want to go.”
Airi could feel her heart finally break at this moment.
Kamishiro only nodded and put his palm on the boy's forehead, both of them closed their eyes and prepared for the ritual. The blue glow from before emitted from his hand, and soon it covered Toshiro’s fully. His body began to crack and little bits of it flew towards the sky. It looked like ash of a burning paper, lifted by the heat and slowly disintegrating. His face was laced with cracks and scars, but Toshiro finally looked serene and calm. He opened his eyes and looked at Airi. Mouthing a small “thank you” he fully disappeared, with the last flickers of his body, like fireflies, going higher and higher, until they too dimmed and faded.
Airi couldn't tear her eyes away. A little boy, who entrusted his soul to her, was now gone. And all she did was to make his last moments filled with dread and pain.
“He never got to fulfil his last wish.”
Airi's voice turned a murderous.
Kamishiro was back to his nonchalant attitude, just shrugged, disinterested: “I eased him of his grudge and helped him find peace.”
“He deserved to say a final goodbye.”Airi's voice trembled with anger and frustration and unshed tears. She knows it's her failure. But she wants to blame him for this. She wants to make him responsible: "If you can make those chains lighter, you should have…”
Kamishiro tsked in annoyance, finally facing Airi. Now instead of boredom, his face showed a poorly disguised contempt: “Tell me, Momoi-san. What did you know about Toshiro-kun?”
She stepped back a bit. “What do you mean?”
“What is his last name? Did he tell you that? Where did he live? What is the name of his father, mother? What school did he attend?”
“I… I don’t know.”
“You don’t know,” he chuckled, and it sounded like an insult, “Were you so caught up in your self-righteous zeal that you forgot to ask him those questions?”
Airi felt a pit in her stomach grow bigger and bigger: “Of course I asked! He didn’t remember anything besides his name and his mother's face!”
“And so, as the brave hero you are, you decided that this is enough to just start a search party and walk around the town infested with hungry and vicious yokai.” Chōchin-obake, that was still floating nearby, now hovered around Airi, laughing and cackling at her anguish. She tried to whack it like a fly with her palm, but the lantern just swooped behind his master. Rui scoffed at the scene. “Quite commendable of you, Momoi-san. You clearly have a lot of patience. Not enough foresight, though.”
“Why you…!”
“And besides that, you clearly possess no spiritual power. So in face of danger, you have proven to be utterly useless.”
His words crashed at her like a heavy boulder. She wanted to scream and shout at that arrogant young man, tell him that it's not true, that he's just playing with her. But what was more painful is that he wasn’t wrong. She doesn't want to admit it, but she can't argue with it either.
She genuinely, wholeheartedly wanted to save Toshiro.
“Were it not for me, not only the child’s soul would have been eaten, you as well would have died a meaningless and pathetic death.”
Then something inside her, something that was hanging by the last thread, finally snapped.
“I… I can’t just do nothing as well!”
Airi’s voice roared like thunder and for the first time Kamishiro looked like he paid attention.
“I don’t know why, but I got these abilities but… I have them now, that has to mean something!” Every day I see these spirits wandering, wailing, crying for the lost ones. I can’t just stand there and ignore their pleas. Even if I’m weak and powerless, I will not leave defenceless behind!”
Kamishiro fixed his eyes on Airi with a cold and heavy gaze, she couldn’t help but feel immense pressure. Still, she refused to let up, refused to let this arrogant boy have an upper hand. She met his striking golden eyes and never once averted her own. If her body trembled, she could always blame it on rain.
Then, in a blink, the atmosphere shifted. Instead of an appraising, demeaning glint, Kamishiro’s eyes were now filled with a playful glee. A crooked, toothy smirk formed on his face.
“Momoi-san,” his pleasant honey-laced tone of voice came back, making Airi want to throw up, “Would it be presumptuous of me to assume…” he started walking towards her, getting closer at a fast pace. Dread filled her again, as she tried to turn away and make a run for it, only to be cornered by those freakish lanterns from before. She shrieked and failed to notice that Rui was now towering over her. He leaned in and whispered venom in her ears.
“...that this is your repentance?”
The air became thick with tension, and she had nowhere to run. Behind her – devoted yokais with sharp teeth. Before her – an enigma with an immense power. She has no choice but to be brave.
“What are you trying to say?”
Rui’s smile widened, and he reached out his hand.
“You refused my offer to be my friend. Can I then propose to you to become my partner?”
Airi narrowed her eyes, her suspicions eating her away, “Why should I?”
Rui didn't relent: “I will offer you my protection. With me by your side, you can cast away whatever sins are crawling on your back. I won’t ask for much in return.”
At the periphery, Airi saw a silhouette of a giant skeleton forming behind Rui. In its sockets, where eyes were supposed to be, a blood-red flame was burning. Horrible scratching sounds hit Airi's ears, and the smell of rotting flesh entered her nose. Her vision blurred as she felt her strength slowly waning.
Airi held her breath and, on sheer willpower, braced herself for a final question.
“You’ll just need to give up your soul to me.”