Old Promises, New Mysteries: Book 2 of The Kinstone series

The ride back to Tokyo was just as long and if I might say…boring as I remembered it. Not saying that I loved watching the countryside roll past us.

I was still wrapped up in my feelings about my farewell to everyone from the village that I didn’t even think about reaching into my suitcase and pulling out a book to read. So I was left to just wallow in my swirling head.

There is however the benefit of having both of my aunts now with me and my bonded lying at my feet. All three stayed close, always watching.

I could tell that Asha would’ve loved nothing more than to have just simply flown us to Tokyo. It’d definitely make the trip shorter, but would’ve reduced the remaining time she had left with me. So endure the train we all did. I think this also was a way for me to reintegrate myself into human civilization.

I had been living in such a remote region and amongst yokai, which to be fair, live and work like any normal person only with crazy magical powers and not to mention nonhuman features that I sort of forgot how the rest of the world was. These past few months felt like I had never left the Estate, only ten times the area and more people.

This was also now the exact opposite of when Yukari first brought me to Mie, that with every stop we made, the train car became more and more crowded. I saw there were a few more yokai in disguise.

A few glanced at us, and gave a simple bow to each of my aunts. They didn’t want to draw too much attention from the humans, so it was always brief and nearly unnoticeable.

A few children darted through the passengers, heading straight for Fenris. What child doesn’t love the sight of a big, fluffy “dog”? I grinned watching the wolf perk up his head as they came closer.

Seeing little children coming towards him had never been anything new for him. He loved chasing the kids back in the village, even having a few dangle off of his tails.

Just before the little ones got close to him, their parents would snatch them up. He received a few odd glances from people. He did however have to sit up as more people crowded onto the train.

The view outside gradually began to show more and more signs of civilization as the number of buildings slowly increased. I pulled out my phone, following our progress along the track.

Our station was still a ways off and my butt was starting to hurt from sitting down on the hard seat for so long. I wanted to stand up a couple of times just to relieve the pain, the problem was that the car was getting more and more crowded, which left little room to maneuver about. I didn’t even sleep at all during the trip, still too wired and sort of nervous about returning home.

I think the moment I got into the air, most of the tension could potentially just fly out of me and result in an instant crash onto wherever I plopped my body onto, either the bed or into my seat. That part of this trip I was looking forward to. The over twelve to fourteen hour trip on the plane, with only Fenris in the main cabin to keep me company.

I had been flying so much over the past couple of years that I had learned to completely ignore the roars of the engines. The cabin had also been lined with ever greater noise reduction material that you would think you were sitting in a room while on the ground.

As our stop drew ever closer, I felt hands resting onto mine. I glanced up at both of my aunts, who smiled at me. Both women held my hands tightly, reassuring me, obviously knowing of my growing nervousness. I leaned back into my seat, clinging to theirs.

So many words were spoken silently through the warmth of their palms. I missed the feeling of having my tails wrapped up in another’s, but this was still just as nice. Some of my tension finally began to seep from my body, allowing me to breathe more easily.

I glanced over Fenris, who stared back at me with his big wolfish eyes. I smiled softly to him, knowing he would love nothing more than for me to curl up into his side and sleep. With the long flight ahead, that was going to be a rather distinct possibility.

We were now in the very heart of the city. Tall buildings now occupied the view of every window. While I love Tokyo, I still didn’t like being in the middle of a huge city. Yukari was correct in saying that I preferred being out in nature rather than civilization. My time in Mie was proof of that.

I instantly missed the simplicity of the countryside, with the rare faint chance of hearing a truck driving on the road. I missed waking up the sound of the ocean, opening my window and gazing out onto it, feeling the sea breeze rushing into my hair. I also hate being overly-crowded by people, loving instead the small number of people that lived in the village, which roughly numbered no more than three to four hundred.

There is a peace and serenity that I had fallen in love with. A feeling that I knew I was going to have again once I got home to the Estate. The desire to have this long trip done with and be home was growing stronger with every passing moment.

The train finally came to a stop at where we were to get off. The sheer mass of humanity, now occupied the car, soon spilled out onto the platform. The four of us rose from our seats and followed the now never-ending flood of bodies.

I clutched tightly to Fenris’ leash, making sure not to become lost in the crowd. Asha still gripped my suitcase tightly, eyeing anyone that came too close to us. Yukari brought up the rear, making sure that I stayed with the group.

As I stepped onto the platform, I could see high school students all waiting for their chance to board and head to wherever they needed to go. Men dressed in suits and carrying briefcases were scattered about, some even holding newspapers in their hands.

No one looked towards us, even with the fact that a large black dog was stepping onto the platform. I smiled as we traversed the station in peace.

We turned and headed down the stairs and saw a small black limo waiting for us at the entrance to the station. I nearly had to cover my ears as the sounds of the cars driving along the road, now were seemingly deafening to me.

It wasn’t quite as bad while on the platform, but now it was. It took me a moment to adjust to noise. I took a deep breath and calmed myself.

Without a word we all climbed into it, with Fenris stretching out of long body onto the floor. I giggled listening to his joints as they popped loudly. He clearly was enjoying the ability to move around again.

I found my seat, turning to see my suitcase being placed into the trunk. Asha and Yukari both retook their spots on each side of me. They leaned over and held me tightly, gripping my hands.

“Just a little while longer sweetheart,” whispered the kitsune.

“Soon we too will have to let you go,” added the ryujin.

I clung tightly to their hands, feeling a lump growing in my throat. I had spent more time with both of them that ever before and grown more attached to them than ever before in the past two years. Part of me did not want to leave, it wanted to just turn around and go back to the village.

But the truth is that my home lies on the other side of the world. My heart longed desperately to simply throw myself into the waiting arms of my mother. I nodded, fighting back the swelling tears in my eyes.

My eyes closed, loving how close my aunts were to me. The car soon pulled forward and then away from the station.

The trip through the city was thankfully nowhere near as long as our journey on the train. I giggled to myself, thinking how I wasn’t going to have the chance to return to Akihabara. I wanted to at least spend a little time there, and snatch up a few things for my trip home.

But…there really just wasn’t any time for a short stop over to the district. While my plane could wait forever for me to arrive, I knew that Rachel wouldn’t.

Next time, I thought to myself.

I opened my eyes, watching the buildings slowly pass us by in the window, seeing the people strolling along the sidewalks. I still couldn’t believe that it had been nearly two and half months since I last saw this many people.

Even during the festival the total attendance only reached around maybe one to two thousand at best. So yeah…I really hated crowds.

The car then turned down a familiar street where I eyed the front of Yukari’s building, the first place I stayed upon my return. It now looked more massive than before, like you could fit the house into it a thousand times over and there’d still be room left over.

I turned to look at Yukari, who smiled back at me, pressing her forehead into mine. I giggled, wanting her to envelop me within her tails. Another forehead pressed into mine.

I spun my head to look into Asha’s golden dragon-like eyes. Her smile was soothing and calm, much like the river she lived by. I imagined feeling her claws gently combing through my hair as I sat upon her serpentine lap. I never could accept seeing them as human, only as yokai. The part of me that was yokai seemed to agree with that opinion. I nestled myself in between the both of them, feeling their arms wrapping around me, forming a cocoon of sorts.