Meizuki awoke to stillness.
She rose slowly, breathing in the dust of the shrine. She hadn't meant to sleep in the first place, but the familiar confines and her exhaustion had conspired to make her lie down on the floor and close her eyes nevertheless. Even now, a part of her longed to return to slumber.
No. There was far too much to do. She had already indulged herself long enough.
She straightened her clothes and exited the shrine. She very nearly collided with someone sitting on the porch.
"Good morning." said Gennouchi no Manako, wearing her usual cat-like smile. She leaned back to better take in Meizuki's expression. "I had a feeling... you would return here as soon as... the purification ritual was complete."
"Good morning." Meizuki nodded in acknowledgement. Lady Manako had never insisted on protocol.
"I hope you didn't... exert yourself."
Instinctively, Meizuki placed a hand on her stomach. "Not at all. I'm quite prepared for today."
She found it harder to smile at Lady Manako than she usually did. It was usually a trifle as long as she kept in mind everything she had come to learn of the spiritualist: her efficiency, her resourcefulness, and her steadfast dedication to her calling and allies alike. But then, it was no normal day, and Meizuki's reserves had been depleted to where she could only follow Lady Manako's lead and focus on the essentials.
"You still have... time to rest. The ritual will take place... at sunset. Shall we return to the village... together?"
Meizuki said not a word.
Lady Manako's lips curled further upward. "Or perhaps you have... another task to take care of?"
Meizuki met the stare of the three eyes aimed at her. "Will you judge me for it?"
Lady Manako chuckled and opened her fist. She traced the outline of the eye tattooed on her palm with her finger, a gesture Meizuki knew meant she was restful. "I am not to judge... those who fight by my side. I am quite certain where your loyalties lie. Do what you must to... enjoy yourself today. I only ask you do not... enter the woods unarmed. As many youkai as I have trapped... some may yet remain."
Meizuki said nothing until she had walked past Lady Manako and onto the courtyard. Though it had been meticulously reconstructed along with the shrine's edifice, she swore the ground was uneven under her feet. She halted and called the Hakurei Yin-Yang orb to her side.
"It's not a matter of enjoyment. It's a matter of restitution."
Lady Manako followed her with her eyes, but when Meizuki turned to look at her, she averted her gaze. "I will see you... at sunfall, Lady Meizuki."
Meizuki nodded and kept going.
Lady Manako called after her. "Just remember that we all must do... our duty. To exterminate youkai."
Meizuki walked onwards without reply, trying not to listen to the whispers echoing from the walls of the shrine.
Meizuki entered the copse with the orb hovering dutifully after her. She had trod a faint path in the damp grass, and now followed it without thought, her hands folded into her sleeves. The forest was alive with the dawn of summer: new green blossomed forth wherever the light touched the ground. She barely noticed. She did register that the woods were hushed, like the forest itself was holding its breath in anticipation. It could well be. For all of the exterminators' diligence, some youkai were bound to be lurking about, and they were certain to have caught whiff of their plans.
Meizuki lowered her gaze and kept moving. She dared them to bother her.
The path led to a small clearing. At its centre stood a large, vaguely rectangular rock. Meizuki had made an effort to smooth out its corners, and had put especial effort into the name she had carved onto the front. Even so, she could hardly see her handiwork in spite of knowing where to look: the corners remained jagged, the symbols barely visible.
A small stone bowl stood before the rock. Tufts of grass had sprouted around it since her last visit.
Meizuki crouched down and let the orb sink into the forest floor behind her. The bowl had filled with rainwater overnight. She let it be and pushed her palms together. The trees around her stilled as she began to pray.
"Here? Really?"
Meizuki's eyes flew wide open.
She knew the voice, of course. It was one that shouldn't have existed.
It took all her willpower to slowly rotate her head.
Awazuki looked much as she had during her last moments in life. Her hair was wildly askew, violently green and inhuman, and her clothes sported the same tears they had when she had perished. None of the stains, however; not even a hint of the fatal wound. Even so, there was no mistaking her for what she was now, especially since her feet hovered an entire inch above ground.
Awazuki crossed her arms. "You could have at least insisted I get buried in the family tomb."
Meizuki got up slowly, more slowly even than when she had first sat down. She lowered her head. Finally, she found her voice.
"Lady..." It would be safer to call Lady Manako by her clan name, she decided. "Lady Gennouchi thought it better that she arrange everything to do with your bodily remains."
Awazuki wrinkled her nose. "And you let her? Why?" She floated closer to the grave and peered at it with distaste. "You know, I don't think my body's even here. I bet you anything she dug a shallow grave and filled it with rocks just for your benefit."
Meizuki said nothing as Awazuki continued to hover around the grave, frowning at it and occasionally pausing to listen as if hoping to catch the sound of her bones underneath the soil. Finally, she spoke up. "Why are you here?"
Awazuki stilled. Her shoulders relaxed. She looked so solid Meizuki had no doubt she could reach out and touch her. "Right. I'm here to look after you."
Meizuki looked up and met the gaze of those eerie green eyes she had tried so hard to avoid. "What?"
Awazuki's smile was as bright as it had been in life. It felt like an arrow straight to the heart. "I mean, I'm sure it's because that creep didn't give me the proper rites, but at least it means I get to see you again. I was so scared she was going to kill you, too, but I guess she really is just a fool who can't tell the difference between a human and a youkai."
Meizuki swallowed. "But why now?"
"Why not now?"
"It's already been two years."
For the first time, Awazuki's ghost looked uncertain. She hovered right above the grave, staring first at it, then at Meizuki.
"...Two years?"
"Eight seasons exactly."
To that, Awazuki had no reply. Meizuki decided to let her be. If she doubted the truth, Awazuki needed only to look at Meizuki and see she had reached adulthood.
It didn't take long. Only a moment later, Awazuki was shaking her head like she was trying to rid herself of a buzzing fly. "It must have been her doing, too. She probably did something to my body to keep me from seeing you, while..." Here, she blinked rapidly. Either her eyelids were ever so slightly transparent, or her newly emerald eyes simply shone through, casting a faint green shadow on her face.
She hovered closer to Meizuki, heedless of the way she took a step backwards. "What about the barrier?! Is it still intact?"
Meizuki turned away, but nodded. "By the time enough people arrived to reinforce it, we found it to be so badly deteriorated even the most powerful of reinforcements would only sustain it for a couple of years more. We did what we could. Reishoumiya is safe."
"For a couple of years?"
"And for all perpetuity after tonight. Lady Gennouchi said — and I agreed — that if we couldn't fix the previous barrier, we ought to gather as many spiritualists as we could and create a new one entirely. We have done our research, sent for people all over the country, and today, we are prepared for the final ritual."
"Right. Good." Still, Awazuki remained there, looking sullen and not at all like a ghost whose unfinished business had been taken care of. "Though I don't see why she has to be involved in it."
"She is an expert. I had to put Reishoumiya's safety before my own feelings." How easily the words flowed out of her, almost like she had been rehearsing them.
"Mm." It was a thoughtful sound rather than a suspicious one. So, some of Awazuki's sense of duty remained. Meizuki squashed the thought at once. It was a dangerous path to set foot upon. "At least she won't have an excuse to stomp around here afterwards."
Meizuki nodded curtly, the action seeming less like a lie than words. It could even be true: Lady Manako had hinted at other places ravaged by youkai also in need of a master exterminator.
And, with that, she found she had nothing more to say to her sister. No, not her sister. A lingering remnant of someone who, while not quite a youkai in life, was certainly no longer human.
She turned around and knelt down, ready to pray again. "Was that all?"
"What do you mean?"
"Reishoumiya is fine, as am I. If it will take care of your grudges, I can ensure Lady Gennouchi leaves the first thing tomorrow." She risked a glance over her shoulder. The ghost looked baffled. "Is there anything else, besides the rites, that you require to move on?"
Awazuki said nothing for a long while. Though there was only the slightest of breezes, her hair moved as though captured by a gale before settling down once more. Finally, she flashed another smile. An uncertain one. "There's no rush. Turns out, being a ghost isn't so bad. I can stay with you for as long as you like."
Meizuki stared at her sister, and felt a splash of an emotion she had felt about her many times before, but had never truly associated with her sister before her final days. It was anger. "I want you to pass on."
Awazuki didn't exactly take a step back, nor could she well blanch with her skin already a deathly pale. She did, however, flinch. "Why?"
"Because that is how it should be." Meizuki turned away and feigned falling into prayer. Seeing Awazuki was no easier than it had been at the beginning, when it had reminded her of how she had been torn away when she had desperately clutched her sister's already stiffening corpse, weeping till the early morning when she had finally fallen unconscious from sheer exhaustion. Now, however, it reminded her of other things. Of Awazuki's hopeless naïvety, in spite of being the eldest. Her shocking lack of propriety and manners. The thoughtless ways in which she made others feel small while claiming to help them.
And above all, her betrayal.
There had been times, especially whenever Meizuki had found herself standing over the body of a youkai she had slain, that she had felt a twinge of sympathy for the creature, possibly even entertained a hope that such deeds might not be necessary. She had considered, even after her mother's death, even after being almost killed by the shimmering monstrosity with vast wings and eyes that should not exist, that there might be a more humane way to keep the youkai at bay.
There had been times. "The dead should not mingle with the living."
"I know, but..." Awazuki sighed. "Now that I'm dead, I'm not actually sure that's true. I was wrong about all youkai being wicked too, after all." She smiled once more. This time, it was a plea. "Besides, I'm already here, so..."
The anger was more than a splash, now. "You shouldn't be here."
Again, the words gave Awazuki pause. Then she eventually continued, it was in a much smaller voice. "Are you still angry with me?"
"How could I not be?" The words escaped from Meizuki's lips before she could stop them, more a sob than an exclamation. Once the first ones were uttered, there was no stopping the rest. "You consorted with youkai behind my back! You betrayed your own people! You killed five men!"
"In self-defence!" Though it was impossible, Awazuki turned a shade paler still. "Did you not see what they did to me?"
Meizuki shook her head. At times, during sleepless nights, she had imagined this very conversation. Only, she now discovered she had never wanted to hold it after all. "You broke your word."
To that, Awazuki had no answer.
Meizuki drew her hands to her sides and stood up, keeping her back towards Awazuki. She forced her voice calm by pretending she was speaking to a villager in need of reassurance. "Please go. I loved you, and I mourned your death as much as any sister ever has, but I trust you no longer. You don't belong in this world."
The ghost became so silent that Meizuki thought she had in fact turned and left, perhaps even faded to another world. Then, she spoke again, in a voice almost like a whisper.
"Why didn't you heal me?"
Meizuki stilled, then turned. "What?"
"Why didn't you heal me?" Till then, the ghost's voice had been much like Awazuki's in life, but now each syllable fell without echo. Her forehead was a map of creases. "You were there. You were holding me, and I spoke with you. You had ample time to use your powers to save me."
Meizuki had no answer. How could she have, after she had spent most of her time over the past eight seasons pushing that very question aside?
Awazuki, meanwhile, was only getting started. It was as though she had forgotten all about the circumstances of her death, only to have the memories rekindled by Meizuki's words. "That man you healed when we were children was far worse wounded than I was. You could have saved me."
She had to say something. "I cannot always control my powers."
"You didn't even try!" It was a wild accusation, as Awazuki had no way of knowing what Meizuki had done after she had drifted off for the final time, but she must have seen from Meizuki's expression that it hit its mark. He voice grew suddenly loud. "You never failed to use them when I was around, not even once. It was always the first thing you tried. Why wouldn't you at least..."
The agitation Awazuki had been working herself up to came to a sudden deafening halt.
"You let me die."
Meizuki found herself just as breathless as the ghost as the world turned utterly silent.
"You let me die," Awazuki repeated, as though as she needed to hear the words a second time to begin to believe in them. "You could have saved me and you didn't. But why..."
Meizuki bit her lip, her words dying before they even made it to her throat, as the ghost worked out the situation, eyes widening with disbelief.
"You wanted me to die."
With that proclamation, words finally returned to Meizuki. "No."
"There's no other explanation." The ghost was speaking to no-one but herself, looking more lost by the moment. "You conspired with that Gennouchi woman to hunt down Hijiri, and while you were at it, you thought you might as well exterminate me, as well."
"That's not how it went!" Meizuki's voice cracked on the how.
Awazuki jerked her head towards her. Her eyes were burning. "Then how did it go? Did you send those men yourself? Did you simply lie to her and tell her I was a youkai and needed to be put down?"
"No." The effort to keep herself from raising her voice made Meizuki shudder, but she couldn't allow the situation to spiral further out of control.
It looked to be too late for that even before she could mount an excuse. Sharp electricity crackled through the air as Awazuki's hair began to billow all around her, her mouth twisting into a hateful grimace. "And then you come here and cry false tears over me, thinking you could fool me!"
"Sister, I swear—"
"You knew I wasn't going to become a youkai! You knew it! I always kept my word!"
"I couldn't trust you!"
Awazuki jerked her head back and remained silent.
Taking advantage of the sudden calm, Meizuki managed to smother her rising emotions. Though she had told herself not to let the ghost's resemblance to her sister fool her, she had let it happen nevertheless. You couldn't negotiate with youkai, regardless of who they had once been.
As surreptitiously as she could, she beckoned the Hakurei Yin-Yang orb closer to her side. Awazuki had to be dealt with one way or another, no matter how many further wounds to Meizuki's soul it took. "Even on that day, you had sneaked out to see that youkai nun. Even if I trusted your intentions, I couldn't trust your judgement."
"So it was better to have me killed." They were the first quiet words spoken by Awazuki since her fury had first risen. Too quiet. Too cold, too sharp.
Meizuki opened her mouth, unsure whether to agree with or deny the accusation. Before she could do either, she was struck by a gust of wind like a fist that knocked her off her feet.
"Yes, I see how it is." Awazuki's wrath was now tangible aura, one through which no words would get through, either screamed or whispered. Her hair had settled down, billowing softly around her as she rose further into the air. For the moment, she shimmered. "And even if you won't admit it, I can guess the real reason why."
Meizuki tried to move, to no avail; she was kept flattened to the undergrowth by what she could only imagine as a giant, invisible hand. She had bit the inside of her cheek as the force had toppled her, hard. Blood slowly seeped onto her tongue from the wound.
"That's the real reason I couldn't move on, isn't it? I bet some part of me knew all along and kept me here." The flames had been subdued: Awazuki's fury was now a freezing blade, sharp enough to cut bone.
She shrugged up her sleeve to reveal a thin knife, its tip encrusted with rust-coloured blood. "Once, I promised I would never leave you. I intend to keep that promise. I'll stay with you until your very last breath."
Meizuki took a deep breath. It was all she managed before Awazuki lunged towards her like a hawk at its prey. She couldn't even think. All she could do was squeeze her eyes shut and wait for the blade to pierce her heart.
Only, the pain never came.
Slowly, she opened her eyes, and was met with a radiance like sunlight. The Hakurei Yin-Yang Orb hovered in the air before her, radiating with power so immense it made every hair on her body stand on end. It took her a further moment to realise the weight on her had been lifted. She pushed herself up onto her elbows.
Awazuki remained, but she looked diminished, shying away from the orb like a shadow in daylight. She stared at it in utter disbelief, which, as Meizuki sat further up, slowly morphed into a strange, bitter expression.
"Even you would betray me?" Awazuki sounded entirely hollow. Meizuki couldn't tell whether she was addressing her or the orb. "Was no-one but Hijiri ever truly on my side? After everything I..."
Her shoulders slumped. The orb's glow relented somewhat, enough that Meizuki could now clearly see the emotions warring on Awazuki's face, the foxfire in her eyes flickering back and forth as she debated her next course of action.
After what felt like hours, the ghost straightened up to her full height. Her relentless, unblinking gaze locked with Meizuki's.
"I will promise you something. A promise I will never break." She paused for a moment, as if for a breath she no longer needed, then continued. "I won't go away until everyone involved in my death has perished. Until you and everyone of your blood is wasting away in whichever Hell you belong to. Until even your name is dead and buried. This, I swear."
Her tone was icy cold, uncompromising and determined. It couldn't quite hide the quivering catch to her voice, but it didn't need to; the words struck Meizuki to the marrow all the same.
"I swear," the ghost repeated, as if needing to convince herself more than she needed Meizuki. "I swear."
Then, just as abruptly as she had arrived, she was gone.
Long after birdsong had finally returned to the woods, Meizuki sat on the forest floor, breathing slowly.
"You were... slow to return, Lady Meizuki."
"We still have plenty of time," Meizuki replied curtly, avoiding Lady Manako's eyes. It was still sunfall, if only barely.
"Mmhm." Lady Manako turned her gaze away from Meizuki and towards the wilderness. "Are you... fully prepared? The others have... already gathered by the barrier."
"I'm ready." She had to be. "How much time do we have?"
"Until the sun has set entirely. There is... no rush as of yet, but perhaps we should depart. The solstice is... the best occasion we have."
As she spoke, Lady Manako's eyes drifted downwards. Meizuki was suddenly painfully conscious of her dirt-encrusted hakama and rumpled robes.
"...I'll get changed, first," she said. She had left some of her old clothes at the shrine. They should serve.
"Yes. Clean clothes are... customary for such rituals."
Meizuki cast a glance at Lady Manako's eclectic, but admittedly spotless outfit, then left the orb on the porch and entered the shrine for the second time that day.
The air felt heavier as she rummaged through her clothes, even oppressive. The Hakurei lineage stretched centuries into history, and the shrine building had long since gained a spirit of its own irrespective of all gods. It appeared to have fled now: the dusty corridors and panels were silent and motionless. She felt like a midget trespassing through the corpse of an oni as she crept back outside, dressed in clothes a hair too small but perfectly serviceable.
The orb awaited her where she had left it. Meizuki was about to call it to her side when she hesitated. Ignoring Lady Manako's inquiring stare, she began examining the family heirloom with great care.
It didn't take an expert to tell what had changed. When listened closely, the orb hummed with intense energy. Its aura glowed when Meizuki brought her hand towards it, tendrils of power stretching towards her, aching to be released.
Most of it was Awazuki's power, she realised slowly. Awazuki's collected strength and resolve. All that remained of Awazuki as she had once been: a shrine maiden of indomitable resolve and immense kindness, and the most wonderful of sisters...
Nothing awaited down that line of thought but darkness, and so she gathered the orb and joined Lady Manako's side. "There is something I need to tell you on the way."
Lady Manako listened without interruption. She smiled as they walked down the steps and began heading towards the cavern, only to snap to attention as soon as Meizuki mentioned Awazuki's ghost. Even then, she continued listening, saying not a word till Meizuki concluded by explaining her narrow escape, and the ominous promise Awazuki had made.
"This is..." She finally began after Meizuki fell silent, hesitating even longer than she usually did before continuing. "Rather unfortunate. I had hoped she would... remain sealed till the new barrier was erected."
Meizuki looked at her in surprise. "You did seal her, then."
Lady Manako nodded. "She was... full of lingering hatred, that one. A human on the cusp of becoming a youkai will, almost inevitably... become a youkai after death. Sealing her was... the best way to ensure she would stay put. Only..." She cast a sidelong glance at Meizuki. "I took great pains to ensure she would remain sealed at my pleasure. That you should see her now means... her powers have grown, even in captivity. No doubt, likewise, her malice..."
Meizuki shuddered.
"It cannot be helped. I will... hunt her down tonight, after the ritual is over. She must be sealed... much like Byakuren Hijiri was, or else... exterminated."
A sudden fear gripped Meizuki. "What if she intervenes with the ritual?"
Lady Manako gave her a thoughtful look. "You are... a better judge of that than I am. However, it sounded to me, based on your words, that she clings... to some semblance of her past self. Would she wish... to destroy everyone she once protected?"
Meizuki said nothing. She truly didn't know.
"Do not fear. If she does intervene... well..." Lady Manako smiled her cat-like smile. "We do have a gathering of the greatest spiritualists in the history of Japan at our disposal. No youkai can match... our collective prowess."
"Yes."
Lady Manako smiled. "If nothing else, it would prove once and for all that you made... the right decision, Lady Meizuki."
"Yes."
"Even if she had lived... she would have become a youkai in very short order."
"Yes."
"No doubt that was the youkai's aim all along. What better way to ensure... the gateway to their realms is opened once more than to corrupt... those devoted to guarding it?"
"Yes..."
Lady Manako halted suddenly and placed a hand on Meizuki's shoulder. Meizuki froze, startled by the gesture. "Lady Meizuki. Tonight, we will guarantee... the expulsion of the youkai. It is... our sacred duty."
Meizuki nodded. She even managed to meet Lady Manako's eyes.
They walked the remaining stretch of the journey in silence.
It was the first time Meizuki had seen everyone involved in raising the barrier in the same place at once. She was at once overwhelmed, both by the chatter and by the sheer number of eyes focusing on her and Lady Manako as they approached the crowd. She tried to keep her nervousness at bay by nodding at everyone whose eyes she met directly, trying to recall each of their names. She had forgotten most of them, but it hardly mattered; all these priests, monks, exorcists, and holy people would leave Reishoumiya for good by the end of the week, leaving Meizuki alone to pick up the pieces of her life.
Lady Manako guided her to their place by the human-warding barrier the youkai had erected, sailing through the crowds with the deftness of an experienced sea-farer. Meizuki followed mutely, looking on as Lady Manako instructed everyone else to take their places likewise. She was glad the exterminator had taken the reins as she had, and found herself once more admiring Lady Manako's poise. She spent the time it took for the others to organise looking around, noting with grim amusement that there was a large gap between her and the barefoot ascetic to her left, big enough to fit another person. If she hadn't met Awazuki's ghost before, before, she would have imagined her hovering there now, taking her part in the push to finally make Reishoumiya safe.
She chanted the words of the ritual without thinking, only half listening to the chorus of the greatest spiritual leaders of the land speaking them with her. She had memorised them well enough, and instead focus on Lady Manako. The exterminator's eyes gleamed as she she raised her hands to channel her power, resplendent in the divine glow that slowly enveloped them all.
As it went on, Meizuki's misgivings melted away. The power she channelled left her to join those of the others, forming a faint outline of the barrier. She lost all track of time, focusing on nothing but the chant, her mouth speaking the words on its own accord as the outline slowly metamorphosed into a glowing net, then a shimmering field, reflecting all the colours of the rainbow.
Then, quite abruptly, she became aware of a different light source. The Hakurei Yin-Yang Orb had left its spot behind her and was now hovering directly before her. She was quite certain she hadn't commanded it to do so. As she stared, it shone all the more brightly, as though trying to rival not just the barrier, but the setting sun itself.
Before she had time to do anything about it, to even react to it with anything more than a blink, the ritual came to an end.
The ground shook. The gathered spiritualists eyed one another, still wearing their expressions from the moment of triumph, when a force like an immense tsunami washed over them all.
Meizuki felt, dimly like a in a dream, like she was being engulfed by the great golden glow of the Hakurei Yin-Yang Orb. She was quite sure it was an illusion her mind had concocted to make her final moments less agonising: everywhere around her, her allies were being unravelled by the backlash of the ritual, torn to pieces by a reflection of their own power. She saw Lady Manako stagger and fall, bleeding from the corners of her eyes, landing right next to the orb.
It was the last thing she saw before the orb too unleashed all of its gathered power. Its glow became her entire world.
Then, nothing.
"Long ago, powerful mountaineering ascetics, exorcists, and spiritual leaders from all areas of the country gathered in order seal away youkai, demons, and other creatures from their land..."