3. A Visit
Shouwa 58 (1983)
A few days after they played poker together which ended in a strange conversation, the club members sit together after finishing a memory game. Though Satoko had managed to switch cards secretly, Keiichi has won the game, which is a rare event in the club.
"I'm afraid of the punishment ..." Rena blushes when looking at Keiichi's victorious face. "Can't I put on that maid costume and serve you with a drink, Keiichi-kun?"
"Come on, Rena, play by the rules. I like it when you act as a maid, but as you suggest that to me yourself, I think you just like that costume. Maybe you could work in a maid cafe as a part-time job. They say the customers treat the maids with a special devotion."
Satoko wrinkles her nose. "I don't even want to know what Keiichi-san means by that. His dirty smile tells me all about it."
"Haoo, but I will get to work in a lovely maid outfit ... That's not too bad, is it? Is it?"
"Come on, Rena, I was only joking. You won't get around that punishment game we agreed on earlier."
"So I have to tell you a secret? Can I tell you in private? Can I?" Rena gives Keiichi a shy look which makes him enjoy the situation even more.
Keiichi looks at the other club members. He seems to consider if he should fulfill Rena's request.
"You should ask her about the colour of her underwear, ni-paa!" Rika is enjoying the situation while Rena is getting more and more afraid of what Keiichi will ask her to tell them.
"Well, Rika-chan ... that sounds nice, but I think I'll grant Rena's wish to tell her secret only to me."
"Oh, Keiichi-san, you're such a killjoy!" Satoko pouts with her arms folded in front of her chest.
"Well, Satoko, maybe you should win the next time we choose this for the punishment. Consider yourself lucky that we don't have punishments for playing dirty like you always do."
"O-ho-ho! I think most people who blame others for playing dirty, secretly wish they had come up with that trick first."
"Mi-, Satoko has a point there." Rika smiles while she's busy putting away the memory cards.
"Whatever, Rena will have to tell me her secret on our way home."
"I'm afraid Keiichi-kun is going to ask me something very embarrassing ..."
"In any case, prepare yourself. As a winner, I have a right to hear the whole truth and nothing but the truth."
"I bet Keiichi can be a severe judge, even if the witness is a cute girl like Rena."
"You're right, Rika-chan! Anything but the truth will be regarded as false witness, which is a horrible crime!"
A few minutes later, Keiichi and Rena are on their way home after saying goodbye to Satoko and Rika.
"Keiichi-kun ... will it be okay if I just tell you the colour of my underwear? Will it?" Rena asks Keiichi with a red face, obviously fearing he will ask something even more awkward.
"Rena, it seems you don't know me too well though we see each other almost every day. If you had been paying more attention to my gentlemanlike behavior, you'd know I would never ask a lady such an outrageous question." He rubs Rena's hair with a big grin.
"I really didn't know that, Keiichi-kun, I'm sorry ... I always thought you were a bit lecherous. I mean, I like you anyway."
"What? You must be joking! However, Rena, what I would really like to know ..."
"What is it? What is it?"
"Don't worry ... It's nothing embarrassing. Just tell me who that girl is."
"That girl ... you mean ..."
"I'm sure you remember. The one we were talking about after the game of poker." Keiichi keeps walking without noticing that Rena has stopped. She stands at the side of the road without any motion, looking at him with a serious expression.
"Yes ... It's only natural that you want to know. I wonder if I should have avoided talking about her in the first place."
Keiichi is startled, not only because Rena's voice comes from behind, but also because the tone of her voice has changed. He turns around slowly and looks at her face. It seems almost as if a new person is standing there, looking down at the gravel in deep concentration. The cute Rena who blushes so often, seems to be gone now. Does he know Rena at all? Is this the real Rena?
"What is it? Why have you stopped here?" Behind Rena, Keiichi sees a watermill. It is a lovely spot, specially in the late afternoon when the sun covers everything in golden light. Rena stands there, still not moving, inseparably connected to the beautiful scenery. He feels as if he's looking at a painting.
Then Rena gazes at him firmly with her deep eyes. "Let's go and meet her then."
Keiichi feels uneasy. Meet ... her? So this girl is here, in Hinamizawa? Why doesn't she go to school with them? Why doesn't he know her?
"Come this way, Keiichi-kun."
He follows her until he sees a big estate. He knows this traditional manor with the old thatched roof. This is the home of the Sonozaki family, one of the Three Families and nowadays the most influential of them. People say they rule the whole Shishibone area with their businesses and their political connections. So now he's going to meet this girl called Mion. She must be attending a private school, maybe far away. That's nothing strange, considering her background ...
"Keiichi-kun ... Did you ever hear of Oyashiro-sama's curse?"
"What? You mean ... these deaths which happen every year, at the Watanagashi day? I think Satoko and Rika's parents died that day, two or three years ago."
"That isn't everything, Keiichi-kun. The curse is a lot more ... it defines the rules for living in Hinamizawa. I was told that when I was six or seven years old. Oyashiro-sama's rules are very simple. Once you live in Hinamizawa, stay there. Don't doubt your friends. Build a bond of trust and help each other. Otherwise, there'll be a curse. You'll feel the presence of Oyashiro-sama at night. And if you don't understand that it's the curse, something terrible will happen to you. That girl experienced something like that."
Keiichi wants to say he doesn't believe anything of what Rena is telling him. But looking at Rena's serious face, he doesn't even have the courage to doubt what she said.
"It's time you know about the curse. For people who live here without that knowledge, it might be too late one day."
They have arrived at the gate. Rena rings the bell and talks to somebody by the intercom. "This is Ryuuguu ... I've brought a friend ... Yes, he knows ... Oh, I'm sorry to hear that! Alright, thank you." Keiichi notices some surveillance cameras. They don't make him feel good at all. What is this all about?
"Come on, Keiichi-kun." They enter the premises of the Sonozaki estate. Keiichi is amazed by the proportions of the garden. The house is not less impressive. It looks rather old and it's not taken care of very well, but the size alone is astonishing. It must have lots of rooms. Maybe he could enjoy the sight if the circumstances were different. This is not a fun visit to a friend. Rena's words about the curse begin to take hold of his thoughts. Should he open his mind to what she just told him, so it doesn't catch him off guard one day? Or does opening your mind to this belief allow the curse to start working?
Rena exchanges some words with a lady who seems to be some kind of housekeeper. "I'm sorry Oryou-sama doesn't feel well at the moment. Please say hello to her and tell her I hope she'll get better soon ... Oh, thank you. We'll go to Mii-chan's room now."
Mii-chan? So that's what Rena calls her. It sounds cute. Oryou must be the highly revered head of the family. Keiichi feels relieved that they don't have to attend upon her. He's not good at dealing with old people, specially the high-class ones.
"Rena ... Why doesn't Mion-san come down to welcome us? I don't mean to question her manners, but ... usually people come to the door when you visit them, right?"
"In this house, nothing is as usual, Keiichi-kun. Particularly since last year."
"Last year? You mean ... the curse?"
"Yes. It's this room. Please don't make much noise. She's very sensitive."
Keiichi enters the room. He sees a girl, probably a bit older than him, in an armchair. She wears a beautiful kimono with traditional embroidery on it. Her body looks shapely, but faint. Long, straight hair frames a pretty, but very pale face with an expression which looks kind of empty to Keiichi. It seems like she spends most of her time in her room. It hurts him to see a girl about his age looking so sad and lonely. She doesn't turn her face toward Keiichi or Rena. He even wonders if she has noticed their presence.
Keiichi's throat feels dry and he feels the urge to say something. He can't come up with something trivial, so he asks Rena about another subject that is bothering him. "Is Houjou Satoshi-san ... in a similar condition?" He thinks Mion can't hear him because he's whispering at the other end of the room.
Rena throws an angry look at him. In opposition to Keiichi, she is sure Mion can hear him very well. When Mion hears the name "Satoshi", her features are slightly distorted.
"Sorry, Keiichi-kun ... please don't say anything for a while. I'm going to talk to Mii-chan." Cautiously, Rena sits down on another chair near Mion and starts to talk to her about school life. Mion's features calm down slowly.
"Keiichi-kun is very fun. Satoko-chan likes him very much, they're always bickering." She giggles, while Keiichi wonders if she's telling the truth. Satoko likes him very much? Until today, he didn't think so.
Rena carries on. "He keeps losing when we're playing the club games, but today he won and he used my punishment to get to know you! Isn't that funny? You must come and join us again, Mii-chan. We're all practicing a lot, so that we can beat you in every game when you come back." She keeps talking in a friendly voice. From what she says, Keiichi notices that Mion used to be the class representative, which is currently Keiichi's role because he's the oldest student. She also was the leader of the club and it sounds like there could be no leader more energetic than Mion. It's too depressing to hear these stories and look at this weak, indifferent girl in her large armchair.
Finally, Rena finishes her report and beckons Keiichi over to her. "Now, Keiichi-kun, please say hello to Mion." Keiichi clears his throat. He has a hard time saying the simple expressions of greeting somebody. "Hello, Sonozaki-san. Let me introduce myself. I'm Maebara Keiichi. Please call me Keiichi, if you like. Let's be friendly to each other." Mion doesn't say anything. In fact, she didn't say anything since they came. At least she takes a look at Keiichi with her sad eyes. He asks himself if this is a good sign already. He feels sorry and uncomfortable. But he thinks he should not look at this girl as if she consisted of nothing more than her illness. She must be a great leader and friend, considering what Rena said.
They say goodbye and leave Mion to herself. She sits there like she did when they came, looking beautiful but weak, staring into the emptiness of her room.
As soon as they have left the manor, Keiichi says sorry to Rena. "Forgive me for that question about Satoshi. It seems my curiosity got the better of me."
"Actually, I should have warned you. Mii-chan and Satoshi-kun ... they were good friends, as we are. There's still more you don't know. Like Shii-chan. That's her twin sister, Shion."
"A twin sister? Identical twins, you mean?"
"Yes, it was stunning how they resembled each other. Their personalities were different, but if you knew them well, you could see how close they were. Anyway, something happened last year. Do you remember what I told you about the curse? I wonder why some people don't see the connection. Since then ... Mii-chan suffered from a depression first, and then it became apathy. Now she has people who help her with everything. Fortunately, her family is wealthy, so she's provided with everything she needs. She's still very lonely with only her grandma and the staff around. Her parents come to visit her very often, but they can't move in here because of their business in Okinomiya. It must be painful for you to look at her, but I guess it is even more painful for me, because I remember what she was like until last Watanagashi."
Watanagashi ... the time of Oyashiro-sama's curse. Keiichi is walking next to Rena in silence. Though he has so many questions, the sight of Mion haunts his mind, so that he's unable to ask Rena anything for a long while. All they're doing is listen to the Higurashi, crying as the daylight is slowly fading away.