"What are you?" Shin asked to the odd creature. It tried to shake the cage off, but it was impossible for it to escape.

"What do you think I am?" It replied annoyingly. "Hey, could you open this cage for me? I can't reach the lock."

"Wait a moment." Shin started to notice something on the creature's pawn. Something familiar hanging on it. It was the collar he got from his book. "You are the tanuki thief from moments ago!"

"Impressive, you figure it out. Are you expecting a reward or something?" Shin frowned at the creature. It realized that he wasn't in a good position to open its mouth. "Sorry, but could you open this for me?

"Sure, if you give it to me back what you stole." Shin said while crossing his warms.

"What!? No way! I can't give you that!" The tanuki said while hiding the collar.

"Why not?"

"I…I can't tell you that…"

"Oh? So you expect me to let you go without returning something is mine?" Shin said while raising an eyebrow.

"This isn't yours!"

"Then from whom?"

"No one! That thing is dangerous and…! Oh shoot, I said too much." The tanuki said while covering its mouth. Shin finally caught him where he wanted it.

"Aha! So that is why you stole it. Why it is dangerous then?"

"I…uh…well…" The strange creature struggled with its words.

"I will let you go if you tell me why."

"Really?"

"Depending on what you tell me, I would like that collar back."

"Hah! Yeah, as if!" The tanuki said while crossing its arms.

"Oh, what is that I'm looking at...? That seems interesting." Shin started to play dumb by looking at the woods and walking away from the cage. That made the tanuki desperate of getting out of the trap.

"Alright, alright, I will do what you say, but you have to promise me something before I let you keep that."

"Deal." Shin started to release the cage's lock. Slowly opening above while the tanuki jumped out of it while stretching its tiny limbs. "Now, as you promised."

"Right, to put it simple. This collar is what I called a 'Symbol,' which can cause horrible things to anyone who is wearing it."

"Symbol, huh?" Shin said while examining the collar in front of the light. "What kind of terrible things it can cause?"

"A lot of things." The tanuki was being vague with its response, something that Shin wasn't convinced at all.

"Uh-hu… so that's it? Because if I want to keep it, at least you could tell me what it does."

"The most I can tell you is do not wear it in front of a mirror or any reflective surface." The tanuki warned the teenager. He was curious about why, but at least he got enough information. "So promise me that you won't try it."

"Don't worry. I won't." Shin said it while putting the Symbol inside his back pocket.

"Also, don't tell anyone you saw me. If you really value your life." It said while trying to sound menacing, and the teenager wasn't amused by it. From one moment to another, the tanuki grabbed a leaf while putting it over the creature's head. A small cloud of smoke engulfing, transforming into a normal tanuki and running away from the area.

Shin started to wonder if that was a dream or it really happened. He couldn't believe that his second day on the island and he already encountered weird stuff. What a bizarre day.

"Heeeey!" Shin heard someone's voice coming through the woods. Between the bushes, Hikaru was pushing them away as he saw Shin standing in front of the cage. "There you are, where were you been?" She asked her twin.

"I…" Shin tried to come up with an excuse since he couldn't explain what happened between him and the weird tanuki. "I saw an animal trapped on this cage, so I helped it out."

"Yeah, I can understand that. I still don't understand why people would that to wildlife." The girl said with the discontent about treatment on nature. "But anyways, I was looking for you because you still need to get your school uniform."

"Okay." The twins walked back to the city, leaving the place while the tanuki was over the tree observing them without blowing its cover.

"Tch. I still need to get it back" It muttered between the branches.

Evening

After spending a whole day from buying school supplies and a new set of uniforms for Shin. The twins arrived home with a lot of bags on both hands. Notebooks, pencils, pens, sticky notes, and backpacks were enough for them to survive in their first month of school. Their father didn't return home yet, so they decided to watch TV as for how tired they were. Without subways, using buses or ferries were their only way as they couldn't get something faster than a bike.

"…And that concludes the story about the church's fundraising. In other news, there's been an increase in the water's level which some of the fishermen became cautious about. There's no confirmation if there's an incoming storm or other kinds of environmental hazards for the upcoming week. We highly recommend all residents close to bays and beaches to not get near them until further information." The anchorman said on the local news. Hikaru looked worried about after hearing that.

"I hope this is just a temporary thing." She began biting her lip, a common tic of hers.

"I could say the same." Shin scratched behind his left ear. While changing channels, the twins heard someone going through the main door.

"I'm home." They heard their dad's voice opening the door while taking off his shoes. He walked to the living room with a box. "Hey, I brought pizza since I didn't want you to make dinner tonight."

"You came earlier than usual." Hikaru said with surprised.

"I thought in finishing all the paperwork at home instead of my office. So, how was the shopping day in the city?"

"It was good, never thought to look like Kyoto." Shin asked.

"Yeah, we have an interesting view when you combine both modern and traditional buildings. You just scratched the surface as there's a lot more here." Their father, Tsuba, said with a small smile while serving pizza slice for everyone. "Which I would like to ask you. How excited are you to go for a picnic on Sunday?" The twin looked with surprise about his idea. Shin reacted positively but Hikaru not so much.

"Really, aren't you going to be busy that day?" She asked with skepticism on her voice.

"It is fine, remember that Sato can handle things without me on the office." Tsuba took a bit of his slice of pizza while Hikaru began looking at her phone for Island's map. She couldn't be sure if they could see most of the places for that day. So far, Shin thought on going to the park that was nearby the house. He hoped that there wouldn't be any weirder creatures on his way soon.

04/08, Sunday, Afternoon.

It was a cloudy day at Suguru Park. People were enjoying the day with children eating ice cream, couples going for a stroll, and seniors sitting on benches while looking at the crowd. It seemed peaceful enough for anyone being to lay on the grass and watching clouds.

Shin and the Matsus went there as they walked from his home, it took him thirty minutes, but it was nothing but a straight line. They saw a lot of people passing by including some oddities such as a teenager wearing a shirt with the peace-symbol while carrying a banner.

"Please, would you like to help our island's ecosystem? Some of the animals are in trouble due to pollution. Please, could you try to recycle trash and help wildlife!?" She was telling the people who were passing, but no one minded her.

The family kept walking while looking for a good spot for a picnic, Shin was curious about that girl asking for support. Then again, most people should be conscious of their environment at some point.

"This looks good." Tsuba said while pointing the perfect spot to set up the picnic. He started to extend a blanket on the ground while Hikaru put their bentos above the blanket. Shin was carrying the drinks on a cooler. "What did you make, Hika-chan?"

"Burger Patties with soy and mixed salad."

"I can smell it and is quite tasty." Shin complemented his sister's cooking.

"Alright, Itadakimasu!" Tsuba was the first to thank the food.

"Itadakimasu!" The twin said as well. The began eating the patties with some special sauce on top. The food tasted better since they were outdoors.

"Can you give me another bottle of water?" Hikaru asked Shin.

"Sure thing." He opened the cooler and gave one bottle to his sister.

"So, how's your life on the island?" Tsuba asked the teenage boy.

"Here is great, it looks like a nice place to live." He said while eating his salad. Hikaru thought the same, she always loved the island.

"Glad to hear that." Tsuba said with a small smile. As they were eating, they heard a person with a small cart selling ice cream. "Hey, Hika-chan. Would you be a dear and buy ice cream for everyone?"

"Okay." She replied while Tsuba pulled a wallet to give her a bill of 1,000 yen to buy for everyone. She stood up and went towards the ice cream seller.

With Shin and his father alone for the moment, he began looking at the teenagers with serious eyes. "So, did you tell her?" Tsuba asked.

"No…" He said while cutting his smile.

"I know that wasn't easy, especially after what you told me on the phone last week. Hikaru didn't ask about her, did she?" Shin only replied by shaking his head. Tsuba sighed while taking a sip of his bottle of water. "Alright, I think it is for the best at the moment. If she ever does, tell me, and I will explain her for you."

Shin nodded with a serious expression that was unusual yet not too strange for himself.

"Don't give me that look, we are finally together as a family. Tomorrow you start school, right? I'm sure you are going to like to meet new people. Did you have friends back in Kyoto?"

"I didn't, I was mostly trying to care myself at home than going out." Shin replied with a somber tone.

"Well, you don't have to worry about it. Hikaru can introduce you to some of her classmates. Always try to put a smile on any situation, alright?" His father's words were enough to give some encouragement to the teenager. Shin tried to put his best face. He didn't want his sister to look at him in such a state.

"I'm back." Hikaru returned with three cups of ice cream on both hands. "Did you talk about something in my absence?"

"Not much, just stuff about tomorrow's school. Which flavors did you get?" Shin asked.

"Strawberry, pistachio, vanilla."

"I would like the one with pistachio, that one is my favorite."

"You too? I bought vanilla because I didn't know which one you would like."

"It looks like we have to solve this problem." Hikaru said with a malicious smile. "Rock-paper-scissors."

"Alright" Shin had no objections to resort it like adults in that one. The twins got into position for the first round while their father observed them while eating his strawberry-flavored ice cream. "1…2…3!" At the same time, Shin drew paper while Hikaru got scissors.

"Hah, score for me." She said victoriously. The second round made Shin thinking carefully on his next move, always a tough choice. "1…2…3!" She did the countdown.

Shin was able to pull that off with paper again, Hikaru lost since she drew rock. "Huh, that was close." He said due not expecting on repeating paper would work out. The twins were getting into position, it was a matter who gets it right in this round. "1…2…3!" He counted as both began doing their choice at the same time.

"A draw." Hikaru said as she and Shin got scissors. "Next one shouldn't last." She tried to sound confident. They were ready for another round while the girl began counting. "1…2…3!"

The winner was already decided.

"I win." Shin said with rock against Hikaru's scissors.

"Awww…oh well." She sighed while accepting defeat.

"You kids had to make it dramatic?" Tsuba said as he was done eating his ice cream cup.

"It had to be done." The teenage girl said as she began eating the vanilla cup. Shin felt a little sorry for taking the pistachio, but at least they know for the next time either of them gets ice cream for the other.

The family picnic was something splendid for Shin. He doesn't remember the last time he had a good time like those. With his new school, he couldn't think exactly what to expect or what kind of people he would meet. Hopefully, his new life in Kaishi will be very different from now one.