Finally, after six long and painful hours, the river was crystal clear and running smoothly. They all climbed onboard the bus again, but this time she sat beside a girl named Miwa.
"Boy, that was a lot of work," Miwa said. "But totally worth it. Don't you agree Kokoro?"
"Oh, yeah, sure." She turned her head to gaze out the window.
Miwa shook her head. "You're always so spacey, Kokoro," she said. "I don't get how you do so well in school."
Kokoro shrugged. "Habit, I guess."
When they got back to the school, she changed out of her clothes and rushed out of the building, refusing the rides she was offered. Even though she was sore, she'd much rather walk than trouble someone else for a ride. Besides, I can't give directions, she thought, frowning.
Instead of following the road, she decided to take a shortcut through a grove of trees. The sun-dappled trees were much prettier to look at than a busy, noisy road, and this way she could lose herself in their silence and get home and shower that much faster.
As she strolled along the grassy path, Kokoro watched the fading light coming in through the tree branches speckle her arms and legs with dark spots. "Kinda like a Dalmatian," she murmured.
Suddenly, she saw a twinkle of light. She stopped and turned her head, but she didn't see anything. Shrugging, she started to walk again. But then, out of the corner of her eye she saw it again, only this time it seemed closer.
Kokoro stopped again and turned completely around, but she still didn't see anything. "My eyes must be playing tricks on me," she mumbled. Believing that, she was about to start walking again when she felt something tug on her hair.
She turned around and saw a tiny person with glittery, gossamer wings pulling her hair. The person looked angry as she kept pulling on the lock of her hair she was holding. Kokoro screamed and started to back up, but she tripped on a stick and fell to the ground, her face pale.
"Give it back!" the little person cried in a shrill voice. "Give it back!"
"G-g-give what back? I-I don't know what you're talking about!" Kokoro stammered, scooting backward until her back collided into a tree.
More of the tiny people suddenly appeared and began pulling on her hair, her clothes, and her bag, all shouting, 'Give it back! Give it back!'
Kokoro screamed again as she clumsily got to her feet and began to sprint. "Get away from me, you crazy things!" she yelled, swinging her hair and sending some of the little people flying.
The tiny people fluttered behind her as she ran away, and no matter what she did, she couldn't seem to lose them. She saw that she was headed back into the city, further away from her house, and she hoped that once she got around other people, the things would go away.
But apparently normal people couldn't see them, only a filthy girl running down the sidewalk and occasionally swatting at her hair and her skirt.
Kokoro ducked into an alley, but it was a dead-end. Turning, she spied a stack of crates leading up to a low roof. Quickly she scrambled up them and took off across the tin roof, not bothering to look back. She could still hear squeaky voices yelling at her.
Thank you for making me run marathons all these years Dad, she thought breathlessly, sliding between two rails on a staircase leading off the roof. Racing down the staircase, she passed the side of a house and turned down another narrow alley. The voices seemed to be getting louder, so Kokoro closed her eyes and pushed herself as hard as she could.
As suddenly as they appeared, the voices vanished, and Kokoro stumbled forward and collapsed to her knees. Then she groaned.
"Ow," she moaned, letting her sweaty head fall forward until her chin bumped against her chest. Once she'd caught her breath, she tucked her hair behind her ear and glanced at the ground.
Instead of cement or asphalt, Kokoro was kneeling on, what appeared to be, tiny cobblestones. Looking up, she saw she was not anywhere she recognized; it seemed like a different world entirely.
Little houses, painted bright colors and the appropriate size for dolls, lined a circular town center. In the middle was a tall pole with a stone crow perched on top.
Slowly, Kokoro turned around, her mouth open. The place was beautiful! It was like a picture on a postcard Ami had sent her when her family went to Europe three years ago.
As she turned, she saw the sun slowly sinking between the tiny shingled roofs. Golden light reflected off the opposite windows and the angle they were at directed the light to a central area. Her eyes followed the light, and she saw that it was directed at one of the little houses.
The house was smaller than the ones around it, painted a cheerful green and white with little white balcony encircling the second-story window. On either side of the house were baskets of red and yellow tulips, and next to those were a little red mailbox and a wicker chair.
Kokoro tiptoed over to get a better look, and saw eyes staring back. Stepping closer, she realized the eyes belonged to a cat figurine. It was wearing a white top hat with a long dress coat, red vest, and blue bowtie. In one of his hands was a cane, and the other was pulled behind his back.
She tilted her head and looked into the cat's face as the lights got even brighter. Glittering jade eyes stared back into her own emeralds, and when the cat's flickered for just a second, she gasped and stepped back.
The sun disappeared behind the houses, and all the light faded away. Kokoro backed away from the house, more in shock than fear, until her back bumped into the stone pole. She grabbed it for support and looked up at the sky. That's when she saw that the stone crow once perched on top of the pole had disappeared.
"What happened to the crow?" she murmured.
~*~
