Masashi Asagiri was no stranger to moving.
Minori, of course, had never enjoyed it. That was why he had stopped taking her with him. There were men like Suzuki who took their children with them but Minori had never gone for that. There were times when they both had to move, times when she got into trouble, and there were times when only he had to move. To oversee a project, to assure a client, to do the thousands of things he had to do to keep his daughter fed. He was no stranger to moving, to picking up and settling down again on some foreign shore. He didn't enjoy it, he didn't look forward to it, it was always just a means to an end.
And right now that end was Minori's safety.
"Minori, open the door." Said Masashi as he knocked on his daughter's bedroom door. She had no idea the danger that she was in, that was why she was being this obstinate. A building away there had been some kind of attack or…or act of vandalism…or he didn't even know what. There had been a ruckus and blood had been found on the scene.
He wasn't going to stick around to find out what had happened.
It could have been anything from reckless teenagers to the yakuza having one of their many wars. He didn't know, he didn't like dealing with those sorts of people. He was done dipping his fingers in the underworld. He had, before, as many had before him. The yakuza might have been a bunch of violent thugs but they were useful violent thugs. They had served their purpose and now he was done with them…and as far as he knew they had parted on good terms…
It might have just been kids.
There was so much out there that kids weren't supposed to be seeing, to be exposed to. Things that he had never even been able to conceive of. Sex, violence, drug use. Things that Minori didn't need to know about. Things that no kid needed to know about. When kids saw these things they imitated them. How many times had he taken his grandfather's katana out and pretended that he was a ronin in the days of old? How many times had he tried to swing from tree to tree like Tarzan? How many times had he put an oatmeal box on his head and pretended that he was a space pilot? Things had changed to much. Now the children pretended to be socialites, the worst sort, partiers, and gangsters. Minori didn't need to see that, to be around that.
He needed to get his daughter out of here.
"Minori, please, open the door. I'm begging you." Said Masashi, knocking again. He knocked gently at the door, like the doctor had said. The latest in the string of them had told him that he needed to do more to be Minori's 'friend'. Not a peer, no, but someone that she could come to with her problems. Someone that she could feel safe talking to. He was her father, she should have been able to talk to him about whatever was on her mind, but he did see where the doctor was coming from. His own father…if he had done even a tenth of the things that Minori had done he wouldn't have been able to stand there and try to be a better father to his own daughter.
He was going to do this right.
There was a stirring on the other side of the door. He had already had her school called. She wasn't expected anywhere today but on their plane and out of Tokyo. If there was some kind of yakuza war brewing then he didn't want to be in the middle of it. If there was some bad blood between him and the family he worked with he didn't want to put his daughter in harm's way. If this was just kids being idiotic again he didn't want Minori anywhere near that sort of contagion. No, she was sick enough already.
She hadn't been herself in so long.
"Why should I?" asked Minori, quietly, and finally. She should have been happy to be leaving. She hadn't cared at all for her new school or the children in her class. She hardly had any friends at all. Before, when she had been young, she had practically talked his ears raw and bloody with tales of what went on between her and the other girls in her class. He wished that he had listened. Even if he had no interest at all in who wore which earrings to what event, who had been talking to who's boyfriend, and who's makeup had been 'on point' or whatever it was that the kids said these days. Now she hardly spoke to him at all and when she did there was such…such derision in her tone…and this sort of smirk on her face…
He knocked again.
"Minori, please, you have to open the door. The staff need to pack your room for you." said Masashi. More stirring. She should have just done as he told her…no. He wasn't going to be authoritarian like that. When he acted like that she sought an escape and that was what had brought her to drugs in the first place. Well that and that terrible little friend of hers…he was going to stay calm. Children could sense the moods of their parents. He simply needed to convince her that a move was in her best interest. They would have to stay in the area, of course, near to her doctors…or the doctors could be brought out. The country house would have to do for now. It was going to be inconvenient for the both of them, her because of the interruption to her studies and him because of the interruption to his work…but it would be worth it.
Anything to save his little girl.
"What's the point? Here, there, anywhere…things are alike all over. People are alike all over." Said Minori
"The point is that this place…this place isn't good for you. Now come on, we're going to the country house. You can take in the air and the calm. You love the country." Said Masashi
"The countryside is just the city but with it's problems hidden under a veneer of tranquility. At least the city is open in it's wickedness, it's depravity. The people within it are at least themselves." Said Minori. Masashi sighed. She was going through some kind of nihilistic phase. He had done the same when he had been a little older than her. The only difference was that he had spent his time quoting Faust. She was quoting…he had no idea what she had been quoting from.
He could not wait for the end of this phase.
"That's very…that's a very interesting observation. It looks like you've been reading-" said Masashi
"It's easy to be yourself, to show yourself, when you're drowning in a sea of others. In a sea of wickedness and depravity. In a sea of-" said Minori
"That's very poetic and creative, Minori, and I'm….I'm happy that you're expressing the feelings you have inside of you but right now we need to get going. We have a schedule to keep." Said Masashi. He did his best to sound calm, to sound like a friend type. To sound like what Minori needed him to sound like. He had made so many mistakes in his time but that…that hadn't been one of them. If the doctor had seen him then he would have been proud. It felt wrong, though, to beg his own child to do something….to have to beg at all. Asagiri's didn't beg.
The pride came before the fall.
"You have a schedule to keep, you mean." Said Minori
"Well, yes, we both do, now open the door." Said Masashi
"If your schedule is so important to you, if you're going to live your life according to your address book, then why do you even need me? Why let me tell you what to do? Why even take me into account at all?" asked Minori
"You are the most important thing in my life, Minori. I know that I haven't always shown you that but you are." Said Masashi. He did his best to stay calm. There was more stirring on the other side of the door. He didn't know how she could have turned out like this. He had given her everything and still she acted like this. He had given her more than he ever could have asked for when he had been her age. He had done so much…but what was it all worth? In the pursuit of money, in the pursuit of more, he had lost everything.
His wife.
He had lost her and he was losing his daughter, too. A chill went down his spine. The thought of it, the feel of it, was passing through him. It passed through him like a winter wind. It was almost as if there were some kind of draft…all the more reason to leave. All the more reason to get her out of this place. The draft passed over him. She had point, or whoever she was quoting did, about cities. There was something about them that just let all the evils of the world fester. Drugs, sex, lies…but people were alike all over, weren't they?
If they were then how was he supposed to protect her?
What was he supposed to do? Just keep on running? Moving from place to place? He already had a meeting that he was missing. Tokyo was the biggest city in Japan, maybe even the world, and there was so much that he had to do here. There was so much money to be made. The last quarter hadn't been good, not what had been projected at all, and Minori…she needed doctors. Not only doctors but psychologists and psychiatrists. Spiritualists and healers. Tutors, too, now. The best that he could find. The economy it's self was due for another downturn. The price of real estate had gone through the roof since Suzuki started buying up everything he could. Masashi had to keep up but it was hard…he was going to have to maybe even liquidate some assets if he wanted to-
"If I'm the most important thing in your life then why are you thinking about work right now?" asked Minori
"I'm not, I'm only thinking of you. There's been an incident near her and it's not safe here anymore. Not in this neighborhood and maybe not even in Tokyo." Said Masashi
"Are you? Or are you thinking about how much all of this is going to cost you? Well, Father?" asked Minori
"Minori, no, you know how I feel about-" said Masashi
"After all, Papa, you've always known the price of everything. Even a hug. You would have made a wonderful accountant." Said Minori
"Now that's not-" said Masashi
"Daddy, really, you don't have to lie to me. Aren't you the one who told me that a lie costs far more than the truth ever could?" asked Minori. She asked in her sweetest voice, the voice that he knew she used when she wanted something. The voice that cut him right through, right like a knife. He wanted to give her whatever he wanted…and he wanted to get as far away from her as he possibly could.
What kind of father was he?
"Minori, you listen to me. I love you more than anything else in the world and I would do anything for you. I care more about you than money, than this home, than anything else…and because I care about you I am going to ask you one last time to open this door and let your room be packed up so we can leave this place before we get caught up in whatever's next." Said Masashi through clenched teeth.
"Anything? Is that what I am, Dad? A thing? Something to be owned? A doll to be put up on display? A prize to show the world that you've made it? You have a child and while she may not be a son you've managed to mold her into that perfect image we call 'lady'-" said Minori
"Minori, now you-"said Masashi. He had been about to raise his voice. He had been able to feel it, his vocal cords tightening, the veins in his neck beginning to bulge. His face must have been turning red. He knew that he wasn't supposed to raise his voice to her but this…this feeling….this phase…whatever she was going through…this was a very trying time for them both…but he had to stay calm-
The doorbell rang.
-or he could leave the situation entirely. That was something else that you were supposed to do when you were in the middle of a conflict. Sometimes the best thing to do was walk away and wait for feelings to settle. So that was what he did. The sound of the doorbell had filled the house. Someone was trying to get up to their floor. He walked away from the door, waving off a servant who had undoubtably come to inform him of the ringing of the bell. Of the person who'd come to the door.
Of the door he was going to answer.
He knew that it was dangerous, answering his own door at a time like this, but right now he felt like he could take on the world. He felt like he could put his fist through a wall, or bend a steel beam. Anger was an intoxicant. He knew that a level of emotional discipline was needed to make it in this world, to make it in this business. He had to get past this thing, to let this thing pass. He had to calm down. He couldn't take it out on Minori.
Thankfully it wasn't Minori on the other side of the front door.
"You!" said Masashi as he jabbed a finger in her direction. That girl. Minori's terrible little friend. The one who had ruined her life. He wanted to throw her out, to pick her up and throw her out of the foyer and out of Minori's life. She didn't need this girl in her life. She didn't need this girl standing here rocking on her heels like…like she was just another one of Minori's little school friends…but Minori didn't have friends, she couldn't have friends. Her ordeal had been so traumatic to her that she didn't know how to pick her friends anymore. The drugs had done so much…this girl, the one who had gotten her the drugs had done so much….so much to hurt her…
If this girl hadn't been Suzuki's daughter then he would have…he didn't even want to think about what he would have done.
"Hello Asagiri-san, is Minori-kun, I mean is Asagiri-kun here?" said the Suzuki girl as she played with the end of her hair. Her eyes darted around, almost like she was afraid of something…he felt the hair on the back of his arms standing up. It felt almost as though someone were watching him…almost as though there were a thousand eyes on him right now looking clean through him….
"Minori isn't here right now, she's at school, like you should be." Said Masashi. He glanced behind himself. It was almost as though someone were back there. If Minori were to suddenly appear behind him he wouldn't have known what to do. Suzuki, not that he had every gotten up close and personal with the man, but he did know that Suzuki could be downright…unpleasant…when it came to his daughter. His rumored favorite child and heir to everything he had. If he were to have gotten caught in a lie…she must have had people around. Suzuki's ties to the yakuza went deep.
He had to proceed with caution.
"I don't go to school, I'm almost fourteen." Said the Suzuki girl.
"That's right, you're homeschooled…anyway, Minori isn't here right now. So why don't you just head on back home? Things in the city aren't safe right now, I'm sure that your people could tell you as much." Said Masashi
"That's why I'm here. It's not safe here for you. There's-" said the Suzuki girl
"What do you know?" asked Masashi. He didn't mean to say it so loudly, or to take a step closer to her, it just happened. She didn't seem to be bothered. She just looked at him with that same, nonplussed, look she had been staring at him with this whole time…the same look she had been giving him since the day they'd met.
He was so tired of that look…but he couldn't say a word about it. Not to her. Not knowing who he was.
"I know that there's a spirit here and it's really big and dangerous. It's so big that it even feels weird to me." said the Suzuki girl.
"A spirit?" asked Masashi. That was what had brought him into Suzuki's orbit. Supposedly he could communicate with spirits amongst other things. Things that he had never seen. He had looked into it, spoken to Suzuki numerous times, and the answer had always been the same. There was no way to look into the other side.
Because spirits weren't real.
"Yes, a big one." Said the Suzuki girl. She pointed at something behind him. He nearly turned around. He didn't, of course, because there were no spirits. She was lying. If spirits had been real then he would have been able to talk to…then he would have been able to talk to a great many people.
"Miss Suzuki-" said Masashi
"Shigeko, I like to be called Shigeko. Or Mob, if you're my friend, but I don't think that we're friends. I mean I don't really know you and-" said Shigeko
"Shigeko, then." Said Masashi
"Thank you." said Shigeko
"You're welcome, now please, you've got to head out now. I have a lot of work to do and I know that your father is probably wondering where you are-" said Masashi
"My Dad's in China right now, I don't know where though. He doesn't tell me things like that anymore." Said Shigeko
"Right. Well I know that he wouldn't want you standing around out here unprotected-" said Masashi
"There are people watching me and, anyway, I'm the one who should be protecting you. There's a spirit here, a big one, and I need to keep you and everyone else safe. Nobody but me can fight it, I can feel it. I can feel how big it is…I've never felt a spirit like this before in my whole life. It's like standing in front of a black hole." Said Shigeko
"There are no such things as spirits, Shigeko, if there were then-then…then a great many things in this would be very different and…and I won't…I would like you to leave my home, now, and leave me to my work." Said Masashi. He wasn't going to argue with her. He knew how futile it was to argue with a teenage girl, first of all, and he knew that arguing with this teenage girl would have had dire consequences not only for him but for his daughter as well. He had to think of Minori.
He always had to think of Minori.
"But there are! I can see one and-" said Shigeko
"I have to go now." said Masashi as he closed the door, wishing the entire time that he'd had a servant attend to this instead of him. He needed to get away from her. He needed to get Minori out of here. It almost felt as though he were at war with the entire world. It all seemed to be coming after his daughter, after Minori, after his only child and he felt powerless to defend her. it was as if the entire world were at his doorstep and he was armed with an empty water gun and a dry twig. He was powerless to defend his own child-
-or to even close the door.
It was as if it were stuck on something. As if someone had left the door jam in…but they hadn't. There wasn't even a door jam. It was well and truly stuck…Suzuki Shigeko was holding her hand out like she was trying to stop him…but she wasn't even touching the door. He could feel it, something there, something heavy…he tried to close the door again.
It wouldn't budge.
"Are you…." asked Masashi, the words dying in his mouth before he could get them all out. This defied logic…but there had been a time when he had defied all logic. When he would have done everything not only to defy logic but life and death themselves….but that time had passed. He had thought that he had put those times behind him but obviously he hadn't…
But how could he put something behind him when it was staring him right in the face.
"Please! You have to listen to me! There's something big, here, big and dangerous and-and you need to let me in so I can get rid of it before it can hurt you or Minori or anyone else and-and-and it's really important." Said Shigeko. Masashi bit his tongue. He knew what he wanted to say, he wanted to tell her to get away from him and his family and never come back. But he knew better. This was…this was confirmation of everything that he had ever believed, everything that he had tried to put behind himself. This was real….these things were real. He was…he was going to….he didn't know if he was going to laugh or cry or just faint right there on the spot…
He had to keep it together.
"Very well, then. How about you…you go to Minori's school and protect her first and I'll stay here and evacuate my staff." Said Masashi. He kept his voice level. He kept everything that he was feeling inside of himself where it belonged. He had to keep Minori safe, he had to do the right thing. He swallowed everything that he was feeling. He kept still.
He kept calm.
"But I can-" said Shigeko
"There's no time. Please, go, protect my daughter…protect your friend." Said Masashi, the words turning to ashes in his mouth. She nodded, she understood. Thankfully she understood. He didn't know what he would have done if she hadn't. He didn't know if he could have fought her, it was futile arguing with a teenage girl…
With this teenage girl.
"Oh…ok. I'll protect her if you tell me where she is. I mean I can…I should be there for her, You're right, she's my friend, and I should….I should protect her….but you've got to get everyone away from here right now!" said Shigeko. Masashi didn't know what he could do but give her the name of the school. He had to get her out of here, that was the most important thing right now. He had to get her away and then…and then he had to get away. He had to run. These people…the rumors were true. It was like the floor had been pulled out from under him.
But it hadn't been.
The floor was right there. He was standing on it. He was walking on it. He was going to walk on this floor until he made it back to Minori's room and then he was going to pick her up and carry her out. She was his daughter, she was the most important thing, no, the most important person in the world to him and he was going to protect her from all the dangers around her. Be it teenage stupidity the yakuza, or even the spirits themselves.
He was no stranger to moving, never had been, but running…he and running had never been well acquainted.