A (Un)Willing Guest

“This is her,” Kasumi thinks, eyes darting from the compass to the girl standing before her. “I finally found her. Now I just have to… have to…” Her mind freezes. She’s spent so much time trying to find her without sparing a thought for what to do once she does. “Come on, Kasumi, think!” she commands herself, running through dialogue options in her head. Unfortunately, Marshal seems to have already decided what’s going to happen.

“Well, now that you seem to have some energy back, let’s get going,” Marshal says, taking Kasumi’s hands. Her grip is gentle yet unyielding, firm enough to drag Kasumi if she tries to resist. She leads Kasumi back down the mountain trail, cutting corners and taking shortcuts as if she knows the mountain like the back of her hand. After diving through their third bush, they pop out in front of a tall wooden wall. “Here we are,” Marshal says, leading Kasumi along the fence. “You can stay here while we call your parents. Do you know your phone number?”

“Stop treating me like a lost child!” Kasumi yells. She plants her feet and tries to rip her hand free, to no avail. Kasumi’s wrist remains firmly grasped, leaving them in a game of tug-of-war that she has no chance of winning. “And it’s no use trying to call my parents. They aren’t here, so don’t bother.” Marshal looks back at Kasumi, her shocked expression gradually fading into one of understanding.

“Ohh, it’s like that, is it?” she asks, nodding.

“Like what?” Kasumi demands, fearing the delusions no doubt spinning in Marshal’s mind.

“No need to elaborate,” Marshal says, shaking her head. “I know as well as anyone that sometimes a girl has to do what a girl has to do.” She steps off, dragging Kasumi like a plow as she continues yapping. “It doesn’t matter why you need to climb the mountain, but so be it. At least rest here tonight and let us properly supply you.”

“I’m not some bleeding-heart charity case,” Kasumi insists as they turn a corner.

“Oh, well, in that case, you can help me with my chore.”

“What chores?” Kasumi asks, finally looking up at where she’s being dragged. Before her stands a mountainside inn, its design is rustic and aged, like it’s been there a thousand years and counting. Kasumi almost falls when the scattered dirt and gravel turn into a wooden ramp leading to the front door. Marshal steps in without hesitation, dragging Kasumi past the front counter.

“Onee-chan, tell Mom we’re gonna need an extra seat at dinner,” she says, without slowing down. The woman behind the counter, who looks to be in her twenties and shares no traits with Marshal, peers over the counter as Kasumi is dragged down the hall.

“Is she a voluntary guest, at least?” the woman calls.

“Not yet,” Marshal calls, with no hesitation in her voice. “I’ll fix that.”

The next few hours are a blur to Kasumi. She accompanies Marshal from one end of the inn to the other as they perform odd jobs. In each room, Marshal greets everyone with a familial intimacy and introduces Kasumi only as her guest for the night, which nobody questions. Even as they all sit down for dinner, nobody examines Kasumi’s presence.

On instinct, she reverts to her old tactic of blending into the background. She mostly succeeds, finding an easy blind spot amid a seeming rift in the family. One married couple seems excluded from the general conversation and the target of scowls. From her point of silent observation, Kasumi also notices Marshal taking the same pains to blend into the background, her happy demeanor dimmed to further blend in.

“What’s going on here?” Kasumi wonders, moments before being swarmed by children asking to play with “aunty’s guest.” The bath is her only escape, which she takes as soon as Marshal offers.

“Ahh!” Kasumi sighs, finally able to relax in the family’s private bath while everyone else dips in the hot springs. “What did I get myself into?”

“More than you bargained for, eh?” comes a voice from behind the door. Kasumi jumps at the surprise. She relaxes a bit when she recognizes it as Marshal, though she isn’t sure why.

“Don’t come in,” Kasumi barks, sinking so only her eyes are above water.

“Oh, don’t worry about that. I’m just dropping off a change of clothes and your bag.”

“Don’t look in it.”

“Wasn’t going to, though now you have me all curious as to what you want to keep secret.”

“None of your business.”

“Sheesh, so hostile. I thought you’d be past that by now,” Marshal chides.

“What do you mean by ‘past it’? Past what?”

“Your family drama,” Marshal says. Her words are crisp and precise, as if she’s had this conversation before. “You may have noticed it already, but nobody questioned you being here. Well, we see a lot of kids running away from home and coming to the mountain.” Kasumi pulls her chin out of the water, leaning to hear Marshal better. “Most have family drama going on at home, divorces, parents remarrying, stuff like that. When they come without a plan and end up like you, or worse, if they do have a plan.” The words send a shiver down Kasumi’s spine, despite the warm water surrounding her.

“What’s that got to do with me?” Kasumi asks, knowing she has nothing of the sort waiting for her back home.

“Well, when we invite them in and make them a part of the family for a night, they always feel so much better afterwards. After a night or two, they’ll get homesick and cry, then we send them home with a smile. It’s always nice when they come back, and we get to hear how things are getting better back home. That’s actually how all my older siblings met their spouses, too. Ahh, but don’t get the wrong idea,” she says, as if clearing up common confusion. “I’m not into girls, and even if I was, I’m a Christian, so that’d be out of the question.”

“You didn’t need to add that last part,” Kasumi murmurs, sinking her nose back under the water.

“In any case, take as long as you need. Once you’re done in the bath, I’ll show you where you’ll be sleeping tonight.” With that, Marshal withdraws, leaving Kasumi alone for the first time since their meeting.

“Better not waste this opportunity,” Kasumi thinks, springing from the bath. She rips open her bag after getting dressed, ensuring Marshal has been faithful to her word. The compass, bottle, and other items Kasumi has picked up are exactly as she left them. She grabs the bottle, its cold green glass covered with condensation from the bath steam. Kasumi looks inside and sees about a liter of liquid. Thinking back, the Diviner hadn’t given her any instructions for the potion, simply saying that it’d help her use her powers without bleeding everywhere.

“But what kind of dosage is it?” Kasumi wonders. Video-game logic would have her chug the entire bottle, but that could leave her vulnerable if she has to fight Marshal. “Best to just take a swig and try it out,” Kasumi determines, uncorking the bottle.

“Bottoms up,” she whispers, pressing the bottle to her lips and taking a swig. She isn’t sure what to expect, but the instantly revolting flavor and a tiny clump, like juice pulp, make her gag. It takes everything in her not to spit it out or throw it up. After gagging for a solid minute, Kasumi regains enough control to try using her powers. She steps into the steam-filled bathroom, feeling the familiar sensation of perceiving through the steam. She tries manipulating it, but finds that even the smallest adjustment is taxing and threatens to turn her nose into a geyser.

“Guess I need more,” Kasumi thinks, taking some motion sickness pills she’s gotten on the train and bracing herself. Though the surprise is gone, it’s more than made up for with dread at what’s to come. She can only stomach six mouthfuls, roughly a quarter of the bottle, and decides that if that isn’t enough, then it isn’t worth it. After dry-heaving for a moment, she reaches out again with the fog. This time, her perception through the fog is as sharp as her fingertips, and she can manipulate it like a third arm. She can even feel the steam coming from the other baths around the inn, both the private baths in the rooms and the public ones outside.

“Time to get to work,” Kasumi whispers, spreading the fog thin. She disperses the fog, funneling it through the ventilation shafts and into every room. If Marshal still has the pearl, then it’s likely she’ll want to keep it on, or at least near, her person at all times. Even if she’s made it inert by soaking it in holy water, there’s still a trace amount of spiritual energy radiating from it. Kasumi searches for that energy and eventually finds a hit. It’s minute, even fainter than what the lowest demons give off, but it’s the only source in the whole inn and thus, her best lead.

Kasumi feels the effects of the potion wear off, her range for the fog dimming as she weaves through the house. She thinks about trying to traverse the firmament to avoid being seen entirely, but decides it isn’t worth the risk of bleeding through the potion any faster. She instead uses the fog to determine the fastest route and avoid anyone along the path, reaching the door just as the potion’s effects finish fading. The room is in the residential annex next to the inn itself, built more like a college dorm to accommodate the family’s dozens of members than a residential house. The fireman’s helmet on the door clues Kasumi in that this is Marshal’s room. Figuring it’s best to get the pearl and get out as soon as possible, she enters the room and begins searching.

The room is a bit different from what Kasumi expects: a mix of childish stuffed animals, scented candles, and a calendar with buff, barely clothed firemen gives the image of a girl who has adopted some aspects of adult life without letting go of childhood. Kasumi begins rummaging through drawers, trying to find the pearl. With every drawer she searches, her lack of progress incenses her frustration until her mind can only focus on the pearl to the detriment of all else. Finally, she feels the faintest touch of supernatural heat in the back of the closet. She latches onto the source, a book of some kind, just as someone opens the door and enters the room.