AFTER 30 YEARS
Chapter 4
"Sleep. Fall asleep."
Those words were suggested to me and my heart started to feel light. I felt my body itself lighten and float up into the dream.
"Come here."
In a dark world multiple voices begged me to come down, I realized. A woman? A man? Three figures awaited me on the ground. All of them wore veils in front of their faces. One woman and two men. All three were dressed in yukata. One of them men held out his arms to me, reaching out to my hands. Slim hands held mine.
"Naru?" I said, staring dumbfounded at the young man with the veil. Usually it was Naru appearing in my dreams, although not at time like these - when - whatever I was doing now? Whoever he was, he certainly looked like him, but the atmosphere was anything but comfortable.
"Naru is that you?"
He tilted his head as if he was not familiar with the name. My eyes went down his neck to see a necklace holding a mirror pendant at the end. Half of a mirror, broken into pieces. The other man and the woman surrounded me from behind. He was muscular and dark and she looked like a princess with long hair reaching down to her knees.
"Who are you people?" I asked.
"Come with us."
The words echoed around and I was unable to determine which voice belonged whom.
* * *
I woke up and I did not remember a thing after I asked Bou-san to stop the car. The room was pitch dark. Had night already fallen? I panicked, pushed off the sheets and grabbed for my own garments. It seemed I had been sleeping a futon and thankfully had been in my own clothes.
"Bou-san?!" I called out.
Nothing.
"Hello?! Is somebody there?" I called out again, "Excuse me. Can somebody turn on the lights - I can't see a thing! By the way, can someone tell me where the hell I am?!"
I couldn't hear anything in response to my questions. Just nothing and it started to scare the hell out of me. There's creaking outside whatever this room is. Behind me I could hear the shoving of a door. I could see light streaming in on the floor to the right of me. A shadow followed in. I didn't dare to look myself who the person was. This person was kneeling in front of the entrance.
"Taniyama Mai-san. I see you have woken up."
The voice of a mature woman.
"Where am I? What am I doing here?!"
"For now, please refrain from asking questions. They will be answered in due time by those involved."
The words she spoke were calm and neutral. I turned around and saw the person just in time by closing the shoji doors. She wore a thin white veil in front of her face, covering everything except her mouth and chin. Why was she hiding her identity like that? In due time? I didn't understand it at all. Moments ago I was happily with Bou-san in his car and then got chased down by crazy people and now... this! What do they want from us?!
The door had closed shut and I was in the darkness again. Before I knew it, the shoji in front of me opened. Two females in beige kimono's, and again with white veils in front of their heads, had appeared. One of them was a tall lady who had entered with a candle light in her hands, and she proceeded to lit up the candles that were in the room. The other was holding a black kimono with cherry blossom patterns. It seemed that the room was bigger and more luxurious than I had imagined. A six mat tatami room.... I could very well imagine this as a ryoukan for kidnapped people.
The shorter lady with braided black hair addressed me the first.
"Taniyama Mai-san. Could you please stand up and allow me to change you into your new garments?"
"W-Why would I?"
"This is an order Taniyama-san," said the tall woman with grey long hair sternly.
"From who?"
The woman pursed her lips. Oh whatever. No questions right? I hesitantly stood up and glared at the woman. The other lady helped me change into the kimono she had prepared for me. I wasn't used to wearing them in the least.
"Motoyo-san, I'm going to help Takako-san to bring the dishes for Taniyama-san and the other visitor," she said, "then I'll alert the others."
Motoyo nodded.
"Go ahead, Kasaki-san."
After litting up all the candles, Kasaki folded up the futon and made it disappear in one of the closets hidden in the wall, then she left and shut the shoji behind her.
"She's scary..." I mentioned out loud, and then slapped my mouth. Damn, I should keep my mouth shut... anything could happen here!
Despite the insult, Motoyo smiled for some reason and I felt oddly at ease. For some reason I got dolled up by the lady. Elaborate hairpins in my hair and the faint use of make up was proof of this. I didn't question her at all. As long as they didn't do anything weird to me I wouldn't budge. The veils reminded me of the dream I had before I woke up... or passed out. I remembered again. Those three people also had their faces covered with some sort of veil. It was a strange dream, just as it was strange how they had been using candles to lighten the room. All of this hassle made me feel as if I had time travelled to the nineteenth century.
Just as I was beginning to get impatient, the shoji behind me opened. I turned around to see Kasaki and the woman I first saw when I woke up with a serving table.
Oh God. They really pulled a ryoukan on me from the looks of it. The fish!
"Thank you Takako-san," Motoyo said.
I nodded politely despite my situation and Takako left again. Ugh, the conflicted feeling I'm having didn't help at all. I was just so intimidated to just run out! Wait. I could have run out when I was still wearing my clothes - it's too much of a hassle in this kimono! I felt stupid, because they never restrained me in the first place. Fear must have stricken my face, because Motoyo tilted her head.
Kasaki settled the table down in front of me.
"Eat."
She's ordering me now to eat?!
I pouted and stared at the variation of small dishes. Good heavens! This should have been a dream for any ryoukan tourist. Could I be in Kyoto now? I shook my head and picked up the chopsticks.
This wasn't cheap. Oh no.
Every time I crunched on something delicious my heart broke as I tried to think of the price of this dinner. Motoyo tilted her head again.
"You do not need to look so guilty. This dinner is for free."
I stared at her with a huge eyes. This is too good to be true! Of course she had to be lying. Motoyo smiled. I considered that smile and hoped it was free after all. Kasaki coughed behind me.
"Naive child," she muttered.
My shoulders hung instantly. She really did hate me or something.
"Now now Kasaki-chan, you didn't need to be that truthful," Motoyo laughed it off.
I felt another stab in the heart. Can you believe it?! They were bullying me! Stupid bullies!
"Taniyama-san," Kasaki began, "After the dinner you will be lead by us to the conference room. You'll meet those involved in your situation. You do not have to worry, you won't get hurt."
"You expect me to believe that?" I asked.
Kasaki shrugged. Well. That was that. I finished my dinner quickly. Motoyo took care of the serving table and brought it away through the doors behind. Then the other woman gestured me to follow her. From the well lit room into the dark hallways of who knows where I am.
* * *
I woke up to find myself to be the object of laughing stock of the two dudes who kidnapped us to some... traditional inn. I had been sleeping in a futon in the middle of a pretty much empty room with the two watching over me like hawks. The foreign looking guy informed me that Mai was in one of the other room, sleeping soundly. I was still concerned about that girl's welfare, but I was reassured that she was just sleeping. Right. Then I realized someone had changed me into a light green yukata while I was unconscious. Apparently I got stark naked. Not wearing any underwear. Damn it.
"Hey you with the difficult name!"
He stared at me.
"Call me Jon," said the person whose name was Jonathan, I had learned after they properly introduced themselves. The other boy with brown hair was named Jin. After the whole incident they had changed into a brown yukata as well. I had wondered why they were using those things when it was still in the middle of winter.
"…Jon," I repeated and then grimaced, "Nah, sounds too much like a pal who isn't nearly as suspicious as you."
"Is that so?"
"An Australian, he's 'bout your age, younger and an absolute angel. How about calling you the devil?" I decided.
Jonathan kept his back turned to me and to my own surprise he didn't react to my insult.
"Nathan."
"Fair enough," I closed my eyes for a moment, "Will you tell me who's the pervert who changed me into this yukata?! - is it one of you?!"
"How could that be!" Jonathan turned around with an annoyed expression, "If I had to guess it would be a woman who changed you while you were sleeping."
"A woman?! Who?" I cried out, flustered. Woman or man, they'd still be a pervert. A woman...
Jin frowned and Jonathan slapped the boy's back.
"Oh you know who, Jin!" he laughed, "She wouldn't allow anyone else to do that to this guy ever since she laid her eyes on him!"
Pervert. I got touched by some perverted woman!
At that moment the shoji doors opened, revealing a short haired lady with a serving plate.
"Oh wow, can we say delicious? Or poisonous?" I commented as she placed it down in front of me.
"It contains no poison," the lady said, "Would have been a waste of money."
Come to think of it... would there be any reason to poison me at all?
Jin sighed wearily.
"Takako-san, is it time already?"
"You are expected to be at the conference room within fifteen minutes."
"Understood," he said.
"Conference room? What's happening?" I asked as Takako moved away from me. I stared at the table. Hot damn, this food looks too delicious! I was too tempted not to think of it as poison!
Jonathan waltzed through the room.
"You won't be attending the meeting."
"...and Mai is?"
"Yes."
"There's nothing, like perverted going to happen. I swear if you-"
"None of that, Takigawa-san. None of that," Jonathan assured with a smile, "If anything... Shibuya-san, that man will suffer great consequences."
"Ha Naru, a man? More like a stuck-up brat!"
Jonathan smirked.
"I see. You'll meet with Mai after the meeting, then it's your turn."
I glared at him as the young men parted through the opened gaps in the wall.
"For your information," Jonathan added with a highly mischievous look in his eyes, "The woman behind you got you changed. Why don't you two have a chat? I'm sure she can explain a few things for you..."
The doors were tightly shut behind him and I could stare at the walls baffled by his answer. Seconds later I dared to look at the woman still veiled with a white sheet in front of her face. Her mouth smiled.
"Well.... who are you exactly?" I asked, sensing there was something more to this.
"Your wife," Takako answered primly.
