Kara frowned. “You think it’s just going to go away?”
“Well, if there isn’t going to be a play-”
A ripple of unease went through Kara. She moved nearer to Miho, whispered in her ear, knowing her tone was harsh but not at all sorry.
“Have you already forgotten that thing that chased you in the dark? Or the glimpse we got of Yasu’s body in the woods? Hannya or not, whatever it is, it’s on the hunt now. As long as it has prey, it isn’t going anywhere.”
Had it not been for Ren’s presence by her side, Miho would never have stayed out after dark. Even with Ren there for company, she glanced nervously at the darker shadows they passed, wary for any sign of the Hannya, or even the sense that they were being followed.
For her part, the girl, Chiyoko, seemed to have no sixth sense at all when it came to being pursued. Miho and Ren had followed her from the dorm, across the grounds of the school-keeping a reasonable distance-and down the street past Kara’s house and the train station, to arrive at a tiny sweet shop called Cherry Blossoms. The aromas of the candy coming through the door made Miho hungry, but she and Ren remained outside, across the road, while Chiyoko and a female friend they didn’t recognize browsed inside the sweet shop.
“You do know this is hopeless, right?” Ren said, his voice low.
Miho flinched and looked at him, wondering for a moment if he meant the task at hand or the crush she’d been nurturing for him. She assumed the former, only because in the past couple of days, the awkwardness between them had begun to dissipate. In fact, now that she’d made a fool of herself by basically asking him out, only to learn that he didn’t like girls, their friendship had grown much stronger. They had originally gotten to know each other because both were friends of Sakura, but now Miho and Ren had forged their own bond, thanks to her embarrassment and his kindness.
“You think we’re wasting our time?” she asked.
They stood in the shadows under a tree, across the street from Cherry Blossoms. Chiyoko and her friend had been in there awhile.
Ren shrugged, still staring at the shop. Little slices of moonlight cut through the branches of the tree and made his bronze hair gleam. Miho forced herself not to think about it; he was a friend, and a friend he would stay.
“There aren’t enough of us,” Ren replied. He glanced at her, and she could see the worry in his eyes. “Six of us to watch out for dozens of other students? It isn’t enough. We are very lucky tonight, but what about tomorrow?”
Miho took a deep breath and nodded. What could she say? They had all known the limitations of their plan from the beginning. Now that they had started to implement it, the hugeness of the task only confirmed what they had feared. Tonight, Sakura and Mai were in the lobby of the dormitory, watching out for any Noh club students who might leave the building, though most of them were too anxious to go anywhere after dark. Yasu’s death had thrown a grim shroud over all of them.
Kara and Hachiro were over at the school building. A handful of Noh club kids had gone there to pack up materials they’d already completed for the stage and background. Along with the costumes, some finished and others works-in-progress, they would be carefully stored until work on the production resumed. That meant that Kara and Hachiro could watch over four of the Hannya’s potential targets at one time, even as nearly all of the others were inside their dorms for the night.
Those who lived at home had departed in the afternoon, as soon as Miss Aritomo had finished briefing them. But several of the boarding students had gone out to shop or eat or on other Sunday errands, and Miho and Ren had been left with choosing who they would follow. Chiyoko had been cast to portray the Hannya itself in Dojoji, and so when she and her friend had left the dorm, the decision had been instant. No matter that it might leave others unwatched and therefore more vulnerable-they could only be in one place at a time.
“We had to choose,” she said to Ren.
“That’s my point,” he replied. “What if we chose wrong? Then this is all for nothing. We can’t possibly watch them all. This is wrong. We’ve got to tell people now, before it’s too late.”
Miho took a deep breath. She knew he was right. “When we get back to the dorm tonight, we’ll talk to the others. Kara may argue-mainly because she doesn’t want to embarrass her father-but I agree with you.”
Ren gave a short nod, fixing a kind of contract between them, but then he returned his attention to the sweet shop. Chiyoko really did seem to have been in the shop a long time. Several more seconds ticked by before he took a step out from under the tree.
“Do you think we should go in?” he asked.
Just then the door of the shop clicked open and Chiyoko and her friend emerged, as though summoned by the question. Ren retreated to Miho’s side and the two faced each other, smiling and muttering bits of nothing in low voices, pretending not to notice Chiyoko at all. Miho felt silly, and not at all convincing in this ruse. Even if Ren had been her boyfriend she would not have flirted so openly and completely as she now pretended to. But Chiyoko and her friend chatted happily, thrusting their hands into a shared bag of some sort of sugary candy, and walked on by, in the general direction of the school.
“All set?” Ren asked.
Miho smiled, blushing a bit. “Feeling very silly, but yes. Let’s go.”
They turned, hand in hand, and followed Chiyoko and her friend. The girls meandered a bit, but as they crossed the street and passed in front of a small shoe store, Miho realized their trajectory would not lead them to the school at all. Instead, the two girls went up a small staircase into the train station.
“What now?” Ren muttered.
“Shush,” Miho said, squeezing his hand.
They waited a few seconds before they followed, walking into the station as though it truly was their destination. Miho didn’t understand. Chiyoko should have been scared. Nearly everyone she had spoken to had seemed at least unnerved by Yasu’s death, and wanted to be cautious. But perhaps to Chiyoko, caution just meant not being out in the dark alone.
Her mind raced. Chiyoko had to be going into Miyazu City. Maybe she and her friend were meeting boys from a different school, or had some special shop to visit. Perhaps her friend didn’t live in the dorm and they were going to her house for the night. That made more sense than anything, considering it was a Sunday night. They had no school tomorrow, but the rest of Miyazu City hadn’t changed its schedule. Most of the shops would be closed by now, or closing soon. The city slowed down on Sunday night-there just wasn’t a lot to do.
Eight other people stood on the platform, waiting for the train. Miho and Ren held back, lingering near the entrance to the platform. They could see Chiyoko fine from where they stood. Nothing could possibly happen to her there, with other train riders around. Yet something troubled Miho, making her pulse quicken. The small hairs on the back of her neck bristled and she peered around her at every narrow corner and closed-off exit. The lights on the platform were dim and flickering, and only served to make the dark places darker. Something didn’t feel right.
“We should go. It would be too obvious if we followed them onto the train. They would want to know why we were stalking them. And since we don’t have any idea where they’re going… we really should just go back,” Ren said, and backed up a step, looking to her to follow.
Miho grabbed his wrist. “Wait until the train comes.”
“Why-”
“Please, let’s just wait.” She glanced around again, nudging Ren into the dome of light thrown by a wanly gleaming bulb above. Beyond the edges of that circle of light, the dark seemed to insinuate itself, moving nearer, closing in around her like the inexorable creep of the tide coming in.
The shriek of the train’s brakes, so much like a scream, made her flinch. Her heart pounded. Somehow she hadn’t heard the train coming.
“Are you all right?” Ren asked, squeezing her hand.
She smiled to give him a reassurance she did not feel. “Yes. I’m sorry. The tension is terrible, that’s all.”
As they watched, the people waiting on the platform all boarded the train, including Chiyoko and her friend. For just an instant before she vanished into the train’s interior, Chiyoko glanced back and caught Miho’s eyes. A flicker of recognition sparked there, and curiosity.
Chiyoko gave a little wave.
Miho waved back.
