Shijo woke with a start as the door to his quarters burst open behind him. "Isozaki! Come quickly, one of the others said the Guardian of the Skies will be touching down!"

The monk's right hand still clutched a now dried brush, while his left arm supported his head. He could feel a long line of drool running down from the corner of his mouth down his face and with mild disgust said in a croaky voice, "I would say enter, Moriya, but I think you've already done so." He stared down at his unfinished kakemono he'd been working on before sleep had gotten the better of him, and rubbed his eyes after setting his brush down. "Could you please repeat that?" He stood and turned to face Moriya.

The younger monk's face and bald head shone with clear excitement as he repeated at top speed, "The Rainbow! It's happening! After a century, the Negura is about to begin!"

Shijo wiped his mouth clean and strode up to the young man and patted him thrice on the shoulder. "Then we should be wary of fires." He yawned and added, "Though I'm fairly certain that Ho-oh has yet to set any significant part of the forests ablaze. It is not in its nature. Still…" He turned to his right and walked over to the large bed where Wakumi slumbered. He knelt down and prodded the vaporeon once in her side and said, "Wake up, you sleepy loaf. Stop doing such a good job of impersonating me and get ready to fight a few fires."

The vaporeon yawned widely before turning her gaze to Shijo and letting out a single whine. "Yes, up. All the way up, walking around, running even. We have little time to waste if whomever informed Moriya of the Negura is right." The pokemon got to her feet sluggishly and yawned again, then wagged her tail once in a feeble sort of way. "Good enough." He strode out of his room, stopping only long enough to remove four cloth pouches from a drawer by the door, and heard Moriya following right behind him and Wakumi padding along some distance behind.

"Are the others in such a state of hurry?" asked Shijo over his shoulder.

The younger monk looked embarrassed. "N-not really, no. They didn't share my enthusiasm, being honest."

"It is a holy event, but the monastery wisely thought to prepare itself."

Moriya frowned. "This is only supposed to happen once a century, Isozaki. I would have expected...more excitement."

Shijo inclined his head as he passed another monk on his way out into the courtyard, having now left the long hallway lined with sliding doors to the monks' quarters, before looking back at Moriya. "When something happens once a century, you can be certain that there will be some degree of excitement. Anticipation. Perhaps even trepidation. But old are the bones of many a monk here. For them, as much as for myself, knowing something will happen once a century means something more than witnessing a literal once-in-a-lifetime event."

"What does it mean?"

"It means you know to prepare for it. The holiest day of our lives has been an eventuality in the minds of so many here, that finally seeing it arrive is more a relief than a cause for excitement. When this day ends, it will be waved off with a bittersweetness the likes of which you may associate with seeing off a close if quarrelsome relative. Glad to know it's over, sad to see the back of them." At this, Shijo stopped and glanced around the courtyard. Usually nearly devoid of any foot traffic, it now had several monks hurrying back and forth, their faces set into expressions of deliberation and focus. One bore a tenbinbō, another held a large basket filled with an assortment of berries, and still others carried buckets of water, fine brushes, files and cloths.

One monk caught sight of Shijo and hurried over. "Isozaki," he said, inclining his head.

"Saza, I see that everything's running smoothly. Did you need anything from Moriya or I?" asked Shijo.

The monk frowned and rubbed his chin. "You're to gather the ash and charcoal, yes?" he asked.

"Mm. Yes, that was my assigned duty," replied Shijo, nodding all the while.

"Then show young Moriya here what that entails. It would be good for him to know to respect our livelihood and treasure how rare it is. Just make sure he minds his distance. Others will be working to ensure Ho-oh is comfortable."

"Of course. I'll have Wakumi on hand to hose him down if he gets over-excited." He turned and winked at his vaporeon, who wagged her tail and wriggled her ears.

"I wouldn't dare do anything to provoke our most sacred bird!" said Moriya indignantly.

"Well you say that now, but so did one Saza Yuji when he and I could still think of growing our hair back." He smirked at Saza.

"Yes, yes, I was young and reckless. And so I feel all the more comfortable in saying that you," replied Saza, now pointing at Moriya, "should take care so as not to carve Moriya Jomei below my own name in the minds of every monk here. You'll never hear the end of it."

Shijo wiped the sweat from his brow using the overlarge sleeves of his sōtōshū. Beside him, Wakumi sprayed streams of water from her mouth at burning trees and spots of the underbrush. Ho-oh had not burnt a terrible amount of the forest thus far, but it was very clear that it had not yet found its roosting spot. He took a swig from the canteen that hung from his neck and looked to Moriya, who appeared to be suffering in the heat of the blazes. "Not nearly as glamorous as you may have hoped, eh?" he said, smiling.

The monk's face shone with sweat, his breathing heavy. "I wasn't expecting a hike this long." He too took a swig from his canteen and looked to the sudowoodo following alongside him. "Did you, Ryo?" The false tree shrugged its arms and mumbled something indistinct. "Bah, you're a rock-type. You're probably good to hike another thirty kilometers." Ryo chuckled at this and overtook Moriya. "Show off."

"Until the Rainbow sees fit to roost, we follow it and ensure the fires do not cause unnecessary damage. Fortunately, the forests are lush and Ho-oh shows discretion."

"Why does it burn small tracts of forest before setting down? It could roost anywhere it burns to the ground."

"It is looking for an ideal section to burn into a nest of sorts before settling in. We do not know how it decides this. Our best guess is that the trees will burn at a certain rate, smoke a certain amount and the land will be just so," explained Shijo.

Moriya shook his head. "But beyond that, we know nothing?"

"We are monks of the Sacred Flame, Moriya. Not behavioral researchers. We are connected to the essence of pokemon, of Ho-oh specifically, but we do not pretend to be psychics or highly educated. Merely wise and venerable." Shijo looked down at his wrinkled hand and let out a booming laugh. "Particularly the latter."

"Perhaps you're venerable. I still have my youth," replied Moriya, smirking.

"And you would do well to enjoy it before you wake tomorrow and find that four decades have gotten behind you." Shijo pointed up at the sky and began to jog. "That gout of flame, do you see how emerald and ruby embers dance in the fire? It has found its roost. Hurry." The four rushed forward until they found a long section of burning trees extending far forward. "And now the real damage control begins. Wakumi, if you would be so kind."

The vaporeon hopped forward and opened her mouth, spraying water far and high through the wood. Enormous plumes of steam rose up from the extinguished blazes and drifted towards the monks. Within seconds, Shijo and Moriya were soaked. Ryo stomped forward and began breaking up soil, rolling it over and smothering concentrations of burning brush. It was slow work, and after several minutes of what seemed like agonizingly minor progress, Moriya turned to his fellow monk and asked, "This seems very inefficient. I thought we were to control the fires; at this rate, we'll have an entire forest to douse or smother."

"Other teams are doing work as well, don't worry. And our work is necessarily slow, as we need to give Ho-oh time to properly burn out where it will roost."

"Are you certain?"

"A century ago, the monks made the mistake of simply allowing Ho-oh to burn what it desired and then set off to find it after it had touched down."

"And?"

"And you may have heard of the Great Ecruteak Forest Fire when you were in school."

"Oh."

"Why do you think the trees north of Tin Tower have such brilliant orange and yellow foliage year round?"

"Won't that happen again here, even if we control it?"

"At a greatly reduced scale. The Sacred Ash of the Rainbow is what changes the trees. We collect most of it, but obviously not all of it."

It took nearly two hours to work their way through the line of burnt forest. Despite the fires, the line of land still bore trees that stood upright, untouched brush and greenery marred now and again with soot or blackened mounds of ash. But, all at once, it seemed as if every tree around the four had been felled. The ground was thick with black logs and mounds of ash, but the air was still and somehow free of the scent of smoke. Sitting atop a small mound of fallen, blackened logs and ash was an enormous bird of orange, gold and green. Ho-oh turned its head and watched Shijo and Moriya intently.

The young monk gasped and made to step forward, but Shijo seized his sleeve and yanked him back. "Mind your excitement, Jomei," he said sternly. "We wait for the rest to make their way forward."

"I thought we were to collect ash and charcoal?" asked Moriya.

"Ho-oh is to be fed first. Only then will it allow itself to be groomed, and during that time we will gather our ash and charcoal. Until then, we shall wait." Shijo took a swig from his canteen for added effect and looked about. "Not a terribly large area was burnt."

Moriya looked around as well and shrugged. "It seems a bit excessive if you ask me. How wide is this clearing? Forty, fifty meters? What does it need with all this space?"

"It is difficult to know for certain. Perhaps it likes a spot of advance notice if something rushes out from the woods."

"Ho-oh is divine. What could possibly think it has a chance?"

Shijo laughed and patted the younger monk on the back. "What else? Man."

Moriya furrowed his brow and cast his eyes downward. "I see."

Shijo watched Ho-oh with a small smile as the enormous bird gorged itself on berries. To its right and left, monks ran long, fine brushes through individual feathers. Now and again, one of them would roll a brush on the underside of its wings to draw more preening oil before continuing. Though initially dusty, the bird had become steadily more radiant as the monks did their work, and its expression had shifted from one of wariness to one of enormous comfort. Its powerful wings sagged to allow the monks easier access to the entirety of the appendages, and it clicked its beak happily now and again between mouthfuls of berries.

He got to his knees and squinted beneath Ho-oh and found a pile of brilliant white, glittering ash. "Moriya, look at this." He pointed at the mound of ash. "Sacred Ash."

"That's all we'll be getting?" asked Moriya, frowning.

"There will be patches here and there near its feet or behind it beneath its tail feathers, but this is the largest pile, the one that sits beneath its chest." He crawled forward and began to scoop the ashes into the pouches he had with him. It took less than a minute for Shijo to deplete the pile, and he handed a filled pouch to Moriya and then pointed to the bird's right foot. "Go and check those places, fill the pouch with whatever you find. If you find bits of charcoal that feel warm in your hand and begin to smoke when you roll them in your fingers, place them in this pouch." He handed him another pouch with a waxy interior and a shining golden drawstring.

"Do I need to worry about offending Ho-oh?" asked Moriya, looking apprehensively at the towering bird.

"Hardly. Just try not to push its feet around if it's standing on a piece of True Charcoal." Shijo chuckled and waved the monk off. "Now go, the rest will be finished with their work soon and that means we must make haste." As Moriya shuffled away, Shijo began to pick through the pile of unremarkable grey ash the Sacred Ash had sat on and pull pieces of charcoal free. Again and again, he found nothing but regular bits of burnt twigs, branches and splintered wood, until finally his fingers seized something warm deep within the pile. He pulled a large chunk of thick charcoal free, easily the size of a small water bottle.

He stood and bowed at Ho-oh then retreated and watched Moriya work. The indescribable feeling of a stare on his back had him turn to look over his shoulder. "Saza."

"How did we do this century with ash and charcoal?"

Shijo held up the large chunk of charcoal he found. "I'd say the monastery will ride out the century in monastic luxury."

Saza laughed and shook his head. "At last, meat once a fortnight instead of once a month."

"Don't go decadent on me, Saza. At the very least we'll have plusher futons."

"Now you're the one falling for decadence. Perhaps we use the windfall for a shrine?"

"To who?"

"The Shrine of the Skies is without its sibling."

"A shrine to Lugia?"

"It seems fitting to erect a Shrine of the Seas, no?"

"Perhaps." He looked at Ho-oh, its head now scanning about and its body language becoming restless. "Hurry up Moriya!"

The monk began to dig frantically through the ash, kicking sizable plumes of it up and coughing and sneezing as he did. At last he stood and threw his arms up in a defeated sort of way. "Good enough!" he shouted in exasperation before jogging back to Shijo.

The pokemon let out a long and melodic cry, kicking up ash all around it and shaking the ground beneath the monks. It's body began to glow a brilliant orange and then it erupted into flame. The brilliant feathers began to burn up, changing from the beautiful greens, oranges and golds to ashen grey and black.

Moriya's jaw dropped and he took several steps forward before Shijo grabbed him roughly by the collar and dragged him back, shouting all the while, "Control, Moriya! You are a monk, not an awestruck, meddlesome trainer! Stand the vigil with dignity as we all do."

The cry died and the blackened Guardian of the Skies raised its wings high in triumph. Then it collapsed completely into ash.

Moriya let out a gasp of despair and struggled to step forward again, but Shijo pulled him back again with more force than his shriveled frame let on. "Jomei! On your knees, now. Invocations of the Skies, all seven parts, aloud."

The young monk's head sagged and he began to mumble the first verse to his knees.

"Louder, and from the beginning! On blue skies eternal, dance, sacred flame," said Shijo sternly.

"Sacred flame, cast embers of your providence…" Moriya continued.

"Come now, Shijo," said Saza quietly in the monk's ear. "That is a tad harsh. He is young and unlearned."

"He is," agreed Shijo, replying just as quietly. He raised his voice and added, "But he must know that his lapse of judgment could have killed him."

Moriya looked up at Shijo mid-verse and cocked his head. "P-pardon, Isozaki?"

Shijo looked down at Moriya and smiled. "Stand up, and see for yourself why I acted so harshly." He pointed at the pile of ash, which had begun to glow orange. Moriya looked on, stunned.

The sound of Ho-oh's cry rushed out of the air around them, but in reverse, and a flame shot up out of the ashes, high into the sky, and began to coalesce into a form. In seconds, the flames exploded once more, and the shining form of Ho-oh soared high above the monks. The feathers that were once orange were now gold, and the feathers that were once green were now orange.

Moriya furrowed his brow, but looked on with admiration nevertheless. "It looks...different."

"Only for the moment," replied Saza.

"For the moment?" said Moriya.

"Yes," said Shijo. "In a few hours, the plumage you are familiar with will return." He pointed up at Ho-oh as it flapped its wings and soared towards the horizon. "Of course, we will not see that."

"We will be lucky to see Ho-oh again at all, honestly," added Saza.

Shijo thumped Moriya on the back once and grinned. "I think you mean, Saza, that Moriya will be lucky to see Ho-oh again. We'll be dead, unless you've been hiding the secrets of reincarnation underneath your futon."

"I'd been meaning to move them. Now I'll have to suffer your presence for eternity," said Saza, his shoulders slumping in defeat.

Moriya handed the pouches of ash and charcoal to Shijo. "I wasn't able to get much more than what you'd already recovered. I'm sorry."

"Hardly a problem. The monastery will endure." Shijo held up the enormous chunk of charcoal he'd found. Moriya's eyes widened. "Quite comfortably. Now, let us be off. It has been an eventful day and I think longingly of the kakemono I was painting."

"What was it of?" asked Saza.

"A lonely tree that sits on a hill. It overlooks a lake. Reminds me of the Lake of Rage," said Shijo.

"Sounds idyllic."

"I believe it will be my grave."

"Scatter you on a hillside by the Lake of Rage, then?" said Saza, putting a hand on his friend's shoulder.

"I'd like that," said Shijo, smiling.

"Alright, I'll allow the decadence just this once."