A Wish Upon the Moon

AFTER AKARI LEFT ON HER OWN, Ryuuji and Hotaru walked to the shrine to offer their prayers. It was a quiet and solemn moment, where Ryuuji expressed his gratitude for the blessings he had received since the year before.

One of them was meeting Akari, who brought energy and cheerfulness into his life, and another major one was his recent reunion with Hotaru.

Then he vowed to protect both of them, and begged for the strength to do so.

With his prayers done, he bowed once and waited for Hotaru. Then, they walked together to buy a pair of paper slips, and each of them wrote a wish privately.

Hotaru didn’t hesitate, writing down “I wish happiness to my beloved,” but Ryuuji found himself unable to find the right words.

Something was nagging at him.

He had a gut feeling that something had gone wrong, but he wasn’t sure what.

Then, as he racked his brains to figure it out, it dawned on him…

“Hotaru used her Kotodama on me, didn’t she?”

Ryuuji had spent decades with her, and over time became quite sensitive to her power. She always made it a point not to use it against other people’s will, but this time around, he was certain she had crossed that line.

“She’s hiding something. It must be why Akari left without us.”

And with that, he broke the spell… but he still had no idea what Akari and Hotaru had talked about. Chances were that if he pressed Akari to tell him, Hotaru would take action to cover it up again.

Trying to pry where Hotaru didn’t want him to see was a delicate matter. Thus, if he wanted to find out, he would need to resort to a higher power than her.

Knowing this, Ryuuji wrote a message into his paper slip:

“I wish to speak with you.”

Afterwards, he met up with Hotaru and hung their wishes on a bamboo branch.

However, as soon as Hotaru turned around, Ryuuji quietly used a teleportation spell on his slip. Its destination: as close to the moon as he could get it.

With that, his gambit was complete, and he made off with Hotaru to find Akari.

* * *

THEY REGROUPED WITH HER SHORTLY AFTERWARDS, but the return home was quiet and somber. It was a far cry from the festive mood they had enjoyed during the afternoon, yet Ryuuji didn’t question it.

Eventually they arrived at Hotaru’s apartment, and she asked Akari to go with her to the soundproofed booth.

“We’ll sleep in here, Ryuuji. It’s gonna be a girls’ night, so you can use my room.”

“Sure. Have fun, you two,” he said, knowing it would be to no avail.

Akari was uncharacteristically sullen, so whatever it was that Hotaru had told her, it couldn’t be good.

The girls locked the door once they went in, and Ryuuji made off to Hotaru’s bedroom. Fortunately for him, the room had a veranda, and he was aching for a smoke.

He stepped outside, lit a cigarette and gave it a good, long puff.

Then, as the smoke he exhaled dissipated into the air, he noticed a white snake quietly observing him, perched on top of the veranda’s railing.

The creature’s gaze was deep and inscrutable. Ryuuji had met it once before.

“It’s good to see you again, Reigetsu-sama. It’s been a while.”

He might’ve appeared under a different guise this time, but there was no chance Ryuuji could possibly mistake that dragon.

“A while indeed, Hasegawa Ryuuji. Eight years and a half, plus change. And now, as the crucible of fate is put in motion, here we meet again.”

Ryuuji felt like the dragon spoke into his very soul. Even under the aspect of a snake, its presence was no less potent.

“Thank you for answering my call,” said Ryuuji, extinguishing his cigarette on the railing. “I do this at risk of overstepping your boundaries, but there is something I wish to discuss.”

“And great insight you have shown in seeking me. Indeed, we must talk.”

So the dragon was in agreement. Good, Ryuuji thought.

“First and foremost, please allow me to thank you for your help back then. If you hadn’t come to stop Hotaru, it would’ve been the end of us. But not only did you save our lives, you even spared her. For that, Reigetsu-sama… I am forever in your debt.”

Ryuuji bowed with the utmost respect, but the dragon shook his head.

“No. There is no debt, Hasegawa Ryuuji. I descended that day because the Voice of Ruin called to me, and she could only do so because of you. It was you who saved the last vestiges of her humanity, and in doing so, you allowed her to reach me. If there is a debt to be owed for that day, the one it is owed to is you.”

It was high praise coming from Reigetsu, the likes of which Ryuuji would’ve never expected from a Greater Kami. Considering his status as a pariah, it was a miracle the dragon even deigned to speak to him.

“I am unworthy of your words. The actions I took that day were for my own interest, nothing more.”

“There is no sin in that. You followed what your heart saw as the right path, even if it came at a terrible cost.”

Even if Ryuuji saw Hotaru’s safety as his own interest, in reality, he still took action for someone else. That was worthy of respect, in Reigetsu’s book.

“But I digress. You did not call me tonight to praise you. You wished for us to speak, and in honor of your virtues, I shall grant that to you. So tell me, Ryuuji. What is it you wish to discuss?”

Indeed, thanking the dragon was of secondary importance. Unfortunately, there was a much more urgent matter at hand.

“I believe Hotaru is lying to me. It’s only a gut feeling, but I fear she has a secret she wants to keep from me no matter what… even if she must use her power on me to hide it.”

Ryuuji was aware he summoned a celestial dragon over a hunch. If he was wrong about it, it would be perfectly reasonable for Reigetsu to smite him on the spot. Yet the dragon closed his eyes and nodded, pondering his response.

“Indeed. She tricked you earlier today when she argued with the young one. And if you pressed either of them for answers, she would do so again.”

He knew it. He fucking knew it.

“And if I asked you to tell me her secret…?”

“I would shield you from her. Just be aware, she will punch you.”

The dragon offered him an outright bargain.

“In that case, tell me. Please, Reigetsu-sama. I’m begging you.”

Ryuuji bowed deeply, pouring his heart into the request.

“If that truly is your wish, then I shall. But before I do, I must warn you. Hotaru keeps this from you because she cares for your safety. I have read the omens, and the stars have decreed you shall lose your humanity if you learn of this.”

The celestial dragon graced him with a glimpse of the future. His warning was no bluff. If Ryuuji learned whatever Hotaru was hiding, he would fall to corruption. It was inevitable.

Faced with that, he gave Reigetsu his answer.

“I don’t care. If I am to fall for her sake, then so be it. It’s my decision to make.”

The dragon nodded once more, measuring Ryuuji’s resolve.

“So be it. Listen, and listen well, Hasegawa Ryuuji. This is the truth of our covenant; of the pact the Voice of Ruin and I share.”

Ryuuji approached the serpent, and the creature slithered close to him. Then it crawled up to his shoulders, and whispered the entire story to his ear.