The Dream Shifter

Chapter 155

Midnight seemed far too close, yet it was still hours away from arriving. In the altered Japan the nights came heavier and darker. It left a deep foreboding for anyone that traveled under the unusual sky. This particular night proved to be even more pitch, though despite that the stars poked through as vibrantly as ever, possibly even stronger than before.

Fumiko returned to her house trying to avoid being detected by her parents. Ever since the monster had attacked her there was no dealing with how oppressively protective they became. She understood why they worried about her, but it started to make it difficult to do anything out of the house. Since she discovered the magical powers that she possessed Fumiko forced herself to learn how to use them. Escaping the house to do so proved a challenging feat, more so than the training. Fumiko was not about to let her parents know that she had gained a strange ability. What little freedom she had left would have been smothered.

When she was in the hall nearing her room the next room down, her sister's room called to her. Before she realized what happened her hand turned the knob and pushed the door opened. "Kimiko…" Fumiko slowly dragged herself over to the bed. She put the pillow in her lap and dropped her back into the corner.

Her mind wandered thinking back to Mieko, who she had rescued with her powers. She looked down at her hand while the other pressed the pillow against her chest. "I don't know why I have this power, sister… But I was able to save Mieko with it. So I think it is a good thing…" After a little rest to recover from the trouble that Mieko had been Fumiko had escorted her back to her house. Fumiko could still see that day clearly in her mind. She etched it into her heart next to the deep scar that rested unhealed. "But it's not enough… Sister, I'm sorry but I must go away for a while…"

Fumiko dug her face into the pillow trying to ignore the pain that ran through her arm. "I think I have this power so I can be of help to him, sister… He saved me even though I had misjudged him… He's a good person… So I must help him. I don't know if I can repay my debt to him, but I'll learn soon enough…"

Chapter 91 – The Decision

Minutes turned to an hour before Fumiko could move from her sister's room. However, she knew that she had to do something else still before going to sleep. "What should I tell our parents, sister? As much as I would like to just go without a word that wouldn't be fair to them. They aren't going to be very understanding…" Fumiko pulled herself up out of the corner and returned the pillow carefully back to the bed. She reluctantly shuffled out of the room.

The war room, as Fumiko had started to call the dining room for all frequent planning sessions by her parents to solve their numerous dilemmas, held a thick wall in the air making her approach tense. She did not like speaking to them while they were worrying over adult matters, but there really was no other time that she had left. The notice she had was so sudden. She was just going to have to make do with her situation. "Excuse me… Mom… Dad…"

Her father immediately turned his head to Fumiko already on edge. "Is something wrong?"

"What is it, Fumiko?"

"Well…you see…" Fumiko shifted her weight back a little as a counter to avoiding fidgeting noticeably. There was no idea in her mind what she was going to say and knowing how they would react to anything that she was going to say. She knew that she just had to say it straight and figure her way out of it as she went along. "I've got somewhere I'm going in the morning…"

Both of her parents stood up from their chairs suddenly. "What are you talking about?!"

"You can't go outside! It's too dangerous to be out there!"

"Remember how it was last week when you were outside!"

"I know the danger!" She felt like she had already experience the moment before. It gave her a strange disconnected feeling. "But there's something important I have to do…"

Her mother staggered a step towards her with a confusion look on her face. "What's more important than your life?!"

"I've got to help a friend… I just found out a little bit ago that they need my help!" Fumiko still did not know where she was going, but found that mixing in truth into the lie seemed to make it form easier. It was almost taking on a life of its own. "It's because it is dangerous that I have to go!"

"But Fumiko—" Her father tried to protest further, but was cut off.

"She my friend and she's in trouble! I've already decided that I was going to help." The lied continued to grow on its own and filled the answers without Fumiko thinking about it. "School still closed so I won't be neglecting it. It's out of town so I'm going to be gone for a little while."

"What?!"

"You can't be serious! That's completely out of the question! You're not leaving this house!"

"I'm going and that's the end of it! I'm not going to be scared of this world like you two are! I'm leaving by four in morning so if want to say goodbye do it then!" Fumiko turned away from them and marched off to her room. She slammed her door closed and dropped to her bed feeling her legs shaking. Near the end it had felt like she was going to collapse at any moment. The strength in her body had been completely drained away. 'I can't believe I spoke to them like that… What sort of person am I?'

Sharp thuds against a wooden target wormed their way through the grounds of the Chinen estate. The forest covering did a perfect job of trapping and reflecting noise. It made it nearly impossible to approach the main house as every sound seemed to be amplified. It worked well as a protection against intruders, almost as though it was done on purpose.

Chiharu approached her tree target and retrieved the kunai that she had thrown. The spread of the blades was greater than she had wished. She felt that her timing had been thrown off. She planned to continue until it fit to her satisfaction. "What is it Tamotsu?" called Chiharu having picked up the slightest change in sound from his feet.

He had remained out of her sight, but pulled himself out of the shadows having been discovered. "Forgive me, Lady Chiharu! I didn't want to disturb during your training!" Once announced he moved himself to be in her vision.

"Enough with the formalities!" She threw a kunai at the tree sticking deeply into the trunk. "What's on your mind?"

"It's none of my business, Lady Chiharu, but I was unable to find you on the grounds for twenty minutes. Some of the men started asking questions."

"You're right, Tamotsu. It isn't your business." Another kunai stuck into the tree, missing her desired target by a few centimeters. "I'm the head of this clan and what I do is my prerogative. I don't need to ask anyone's permission to do something."

Tamotsu lowered his head a little trying lessen his position to her. "You're right, Lady Chiharu. However, the men look to you for guidance and leadership. You can't be the head of the clan if you're not here."

The third kunai hit shallowly and fell to the ground. A slight twitch from Chiharu was all she allowed even after she had tried to not show any reaction. "What good are men to me if they can't think and react on their own? I don't need mindless soldiers that fall apart the moment I'm not around to order them."

"You're right, Lady Chiharu. The men need more training."

"…as do I…" she whispered to herself.

"Lady Chiharu?" Tamotsu questioned in confusion having not completely heard her mumbling.

"Leave me now!" she snapped having not what him to have heard any of what she said.

"Right away, Lady Chiharu!"

Tamotsu promptly disappeared back into the main house. Chiharu remained outside staring down at the remaining two kunai in her hands. The hand that held them was shaking slightly uncontrollably making her sweat a little. She flinched quickly and snapped herself back into a throwing position. Without even thinking she threw the two kunai together at the tree. They both had hit shallowly and dropped to the ground clattering against one another. Chiharu clinched her hand into a fist frustrated by her weakness.

The walk back to their house remained fairly quiet between the siblings. Neither of them had much to say to the other. Yori remained mute waiting for any moment that his sister needed him rather than trying to press any issue that surfaced in his mind. In the case of Yumi, she held fast to trying to fully grasp everything that she was doing.

The whole scene happened so fast for her that she was still processing it. She may have been acting consciously around the group, but it was not until after it was settled that it truly began to filter through her. The point that confused her still more than anything else was why the fairy had summoned her. She knew nothing about the others, but figured that if the fairy claimed they had powers it must be true. It was not the case with Yumi. She knew that she did not have any powers. Her presence felt out of place with the rest. Yumi wondered if there was some other motive involved, but all she had been able to do is second guess things.