Komachi
Well, today is shaping up to be pretty darn horrible. First, everything starts going to hell with New Moon. Then, when I have to go check on the big one, he's missing! I can't think of anything worse… Oh, wait, yes I can, the lecture I'll get when I bring this back to Miss Eiki.
Komachi gently allows her boat to flow down the Sanzu while she pities herself concerning the inevitable lecture. But then she notices a soul drifting down the stream. It doesn't look familiar, and she would know; she usually chats with the spirits she transports. So she fishes him out, and her face becomes even paler as recognition kicks in.
"Oh hell… Please no…"
The spirit pulled enough of itself together to speak. "…Where am I? Ah… Well… At least I'm not stuck in that tree anymore… Who're you?"
I swallowed down the rising dread inside me and replied. "You're in the Sanzu River, where the dead go. I'm Komachi, a ferrywoman. Erm… D'you remember your name, by any chance?"
"Shingetsu somethingorother. I forgot my last name. I'm good with mist, though."
I was probably twitching. I think I made a kind of strangled noise. I don't really remember, because my head was spinning at the time. "That's… That's nice…"
"So am I dead, then? Last I checked I wasn't very good at dying."
I took a moment to decide how to answer this. Technically it was my fault he was immortal, if only because I'd suggested it. I hadn't actually done it, but I still felt guilty. Which is why I didn't tell him that. "Umm, how about we go see the yama? I bet she'll know what to do." See? Technically not a lie.
There was silence for a bit, and then... "How much would you bet, exactly?"
I sighed, and muttered "Right now, not a whole hell of a lot…"
"What, is she drunk or something at the moment?"
I couldn't help myself; I just started laughing. Miss Eiki, drunk. The very thought of it…
…Gave me a great idea.
"Not yet. But if you'll play along, she will be…"
Shi-… That is, the spirit grinned. I had him pegged right; the mischievous type. I probably didn't need to avoid his name now, but old habits die hard. Or in my case, sleep hard.
It didn't take me very long to get back to where I usually meet Miss Eiki. She was there, waiting for me. And when saw my passenger, her eyes went wide and her face a little pale. I took a bottle of sake out from underneath my skirt; it had been suspended there by a series of string. I kept it hidden behind me for the moment.
I put on my best the-end-is-near face and stepped onto the banks with… The New Moon spirit.
"Miss Eiki, Miss Eiki! We've got major problems!" I said, running up to her. I made sure to bounce a little, too. Like I said, old habits die hard.
The spirit floated alongside me. He had a pretty good grasp of what I wanted, too. He said, "Heya, kid. My name's Shingetsu Iforgotmylastname… Have ya seen a yama around here anywhere?"
I slipped to Miss Eiki's side, pulled out my sake, took a quick sip, and did as I always did; gestured toward her with it and asked "Fancy a drop?"
Normally she lectures me about drinking. This time, she opened her mouth, and then slowly closed it. With a look of extreme irritation, she very deliberately snatches the bottle and downs the whole thing all at once.
I can't even do that, and I'm twice her size.
Then she slams the thing down on the ground (She didn't have to bend over much) and proceeds to yell, but not at me. It felt kinda weird not being the subject of her yelling, for once; I'm not usually around when she yells at other people.
I'd quote what she said, but it was mostly nonsense. I heard the word black a number of times, and I think at one point she was ranting about not being a child, and then towards the end she may have been yelling at me for being overdeveloped… But I guess she's a lightweight, because she fell over, asleep, once she ran out of breath. The spirit watched all this in silence, and when it was over, he said "Bloody good show. What now?"
"I dunno" I replied. "Want some sake?"
Yes, I still had some left. Eiki always confiscates the first bottle, so I always have two. I don't know where she puts 'em all, but somewhere there's a lot of bottles with a single gulp out of 'em that I offered her.
The spirit looked around and at himself. "I don't think I can hold things right now, nice as that would be."
I shrugged, and took a gulp anyway. I then considered what to do with Miss Eiki. It didn't take me very long to decide; she looked adorable, and besides, she also looked relaxed. That didn't happen often.
So, leaving her sleeping body there, I decided the best way to fix this was to make the heroic and inevitably suicidal attempt to end it. So I took a deep breath, a deep swig of sake…
"C'mon, Shingetsu. We've got somewhere to be and someone to beat up."
"Sure, works for me. Lead the way, Koma."
Koma, huh? I could get used to that. It was kinda cute. If I was clever, maybe I could get Eiki to call me that a few times before the alcohol left her system, later on.
If I lived, anyway. Which, all things considered, wasn't likely. But that's why I have sake.
To convince myself I have even the faintest chance of beating the New Moon Reaper and forcing his other side back into him. And then somehow giving that side enough power to take over.
I'm pretty sure this wasn't in my job description. Then again, I don't do my job the way it's described anyway.
