Fireworks' prettiness

A dark-orange fox tail wagging lightly, almost going unnoticed. Two pairs of ears: normal human ears and fox ears, the latter being black on the outside and white within, softly moving in response to their owner's emotions. Lastly, dense clothes keep the cold of the winter away from her body. Nothing in her appearance is what you would expect from a maniacal weasel-killer—more like someone you would expect to see at a Comiket.

Maybe she is not the maniac. I should ask first or I'll look as the weasel killer.

"Excuse me, is this weasel yours?" I said, pointing at the animal with my finger.

Is my finger moving erratically, or am I still dizzy?

She didn't answer. Instead, she was just looking at nothing, as if thinking deeply. After a few seconds, she looks at the weasel.

"Mr. Kamaitachi, Mr. Ghost, I'm busy right now. Can I go through your wagon?"

Ghost? Me? Wait, Kamaitachi? What is a Kamaitachi?

The wagon is struck by an uncomfortable silence, letting the swinging in my vision and the noise of the rails dominate the scene.

It's been a while and my head is still shaking. Is the train really swinging? Being here is starting to disgust me. I want to leave now. If I leave cautiously and silently, I may be able to pass this problem to this weird cosplay woman.

I try to sneak out, crawling to the nearest door.

"Wait, human. Don't leave yet," said the voice coming from the weasel.

My body shivers. I was caught. Frightened, I decide to stop moving.

"Woman with strong will, why are you here? Unarmed, even."

"Mr. Kamaitachi, I was lost on the streets when I found this subway. I just wanted to go to a place."

"And what kind of place were you going this late?"

"I was going to a shrine."

"And which shrine were you going to?"

"A shrine in the north—that is all I know."

"I understand. Unfortunately, you had been fooled, just as this man had."

The woman looks at me as her ears raise, denoting her astonishment.

She isn't surprised because she really thought I was a ghost, right? Could she stop? I don't like to be looked at. I want to run away. I want to go.

The woman focuses her gaze on the weasel once more.

"Fooled, you say?"

"Yes, as we are inside a tsukumogami."

"A tsukumogami? Aren't they smaller, like umbrellas?"

"Under the right conditions, every object can harbor a soul and transform into a tsukumogami. Trains are no exception."

What language are they speaking right now? I don't understand what they're talking about. Why do they need me here? I don't want to listen. I'm feeling sick. I'll vomit at this rate.

"I see, so you are saying that there is no driver?"

"I didn't say such a thing. There is a driver."

"Who?"

"It is a tanuki. That would be the only explanation for your presence here."

"What could be the correlation between a tanuki and a tsukumogami? Aren't they shapeshifters?"

"The tanuki aren't shapeshifters, but masters of illusion. Their capabilities extend from making small changes to the environment to play with the senses of those whom they want to trick. You can't trust your eyes when near one."

"So, they led us here?"

"You are correct."

Even though I know what a tanuki is, I'm not following anything they're saying. She is talking deadly seriously to a dead weasel. It is ridiculous. These people seem dangerous. I'm leaving. I cannot withstand this strange pressure anymore.

I stand up and run to the door as fast as my legs let me. The tottering floor makes it hard to stand, but the woman and the weasel scare me more than a fall, so I endure it and run through the door. I wasn't looking, but they were probably looking at me, because they stopped talking.

I run until the pain in my legs reaches an unbearable point, feeling the job's fatigue all over my body. My throat is burning, and the silent pain has increased to the point of not being silent anymore.

~Ugh~

I tried to reach the driver to report the dead weasel, but the train is just too long. I stop completely in front of another door, planning to take a break.

~Uf~

After opening the door, I see familiar ears.

"You're back," said the woman.

I fall on my knees near the weasel. The doubt about if this is a real, fantastic, and dire situation instead of some crazy people making stuff up on the midnight train begins to grow on me.

"Is this train infinite? Are we trapped here? Are we going to die here?"

"The train is not infinite. You were just deceived by your senses. But be calm, the tanuki don't kill their passengers, however I can't assure you the destination is a safe place. It's unusual for a tanuki to trick other yokai." The tanuki stops for a moment before continuing its talk with the woman, "As you could see, we can't reach the driver's wagon if it does not want to see us."

I put my hands on my head and silently cried in despair. Meanwhile, the mysterious fox woman focuses her sight on nothing for the second time, standing still for a couple of seconds.

~Fluf~

Her ears move. Then, she touches them. Lastly, she stares at her tail, expressionless.

"Huh?"

She moves her sight onto me.

What does she want from me now?

"You. I want to confirm it. Are you a ghost?"

"I'm human."

"You. Can you see this?"

She points at her tail. I slowly nod in response.

"…"

She makes a strange face, half smile, half some indescribable emotion.

"I see…"

White noise floods the wagon once more.

"Ahem," the woman clears her throat to attract my attention and the weasel's, who is still looking half-dead on the swaying floor. "Mr. Kamaitachi, is it possible to leave this train by breaking the windows?"

"The windows, you say."

The weasel stops to think before continuing its speech.

"There is a possibility that neither the tanuki nor the tsukumogami would notice it, but if you fail, they will inevitably become enraged. The consequences of a tanuki rage are unknown even for me. Personally, if you think the fall from the train is worth the effort, this could be your best opportunity to leave."

"Thanks, but please, answer one last question. I was told you were a powerful being. Why are you staying here, lying motionless on the floor?"

"Why is the reason you are asking now?"

"I don't discard the chance that you are here because of your will, but I can't discard either that you might be hurt in some way. You mentioned earlier that you did not know where this train was going."

"I see, you are right. I was sleeping on a mountain when suddenly, this train appeared unannounced and knocked me. I woke up here and, at this moment, I am on the verge of death."

"Can you leave on your own?"

"If I use my remaining energy, I might be able to."

"Could you follow my path?"

"I would appreciate if you let me do so."

The woman looked at me again.

"Wha- what is the matter… lady?"

"By coincidence, do you have any solid object? There is none on the ground."

"No, no, no. I lost my phone."

"It's okay. Also, you should follow afterwards, this place seems dangerous."

"Thanks? Thank you!"

I make another dogeza. As I'm seeing the floor, I can't see her reaction.

I hope I'm not making a blunder.

The woman approaches the window, remaining calm for a few seconds.

~Sigh~

"Here goes nothing," she murmurs.

Putting her tail on the floor, she creates a little fire near her face, focusing the flame on a small area of the pane. After a while, she stops the flame and starts to continuously exhale cold air into the same area, which starts to show some little cracks.

The woman sighs once more and prepares her fist, making a face that says she really doesn't want to do this. But with no more options, it was clear that she was going to do it anyway.

While I'm looking, the woman disappears in an instant. Thinking I'm hallucinating, I close my eyes and open them again. All of a sudden, I can't see one thing. Everything is dark, as if the light were stolen. I try to get up.

Wait. Where is up?

I stop feeling my legs.

I can't feel my body.

Even my throat isn't burning. All the pain in my body disappeared.

Then a horrible sharp sound begins, constant and loud, much worse than screams or metal scratches. It increases its pitch gradually, drilling into my head, driving me crazy. I try to cover my ears, but I can't sense them. Desperately I try to scream, but I'm not able to hear myself.

A flashlight appears, and then another one, and another one, and another one, like fireworks, exploding until they cover everything. The remaining light from the explosions starts to make amorphous figures without visible beginning or end. And when I couldn't withstand them anymore, they stopped. The dark void consumes everything again.

Without energy to try to talk, even less to scream. I contemplate the nothingness as my consciousness is all I have.