Messages and Mischief

It took me a moment to fully comprehend his message. Then the implications hit me.
‘What am I supposed to do now? And, what does it mean overall? Are there that many people who can see spirits around? Is it related to his previous accident? It might be...’
I needed to find a way to organize my thoughts. Soon enough, I realized that I was not quite adequate enough yet to solve this on my own. So I wrote a message into the chat group, hoping to consult the help of my friends. While waiting for the answer, I brain-stormed about what I might be able to do and how to answer his question.

Before I could finish to formulate one, my train of thought got interrupted by the ringing of my phone. On reflex, I picked it up without checking the display.
“Hello?”
“Hey there. I added him to the call, you can speak now.”
“So you can talk with multiple people at once? That sure is convenient.”
I was first greeted by Ayame’s bright voice, which in turned passed to a surprised sounding Suzune. Getting the help of two people at once was reassuring, but made another thought crawl into my head. “Did you two somehow know I was going to write you?”
It seemed plausible to me. After all, it was a spirit that showed me the way to the injured old man. It could have relayed information to these two quickly.
“Hm? No. We were just talking on the phone normally.”
“But then Aya goes like ‘Oh, we got a message. Minoru needs help, let’s invite him to the call.’ How do you even read messages while on the phone?”
“I will show you another time. But first, please explain the situation to us.”
“Alright.” I gave a brief recount of what had happened.

“Hmmm. I might know who you are talking about.” Suzune was on top of the game. “In fact, I also know the person that carried him to the police station.”
“Now that is a surprise.” ‘But I am not surprised by this.’
“…It sounds as if you are mocking me?” Suzune’s voice got an underlaying edge.
Quickly, Ayame intervened. “It is actually normal for Suzu to know about a lot of what is going on. As a shrine priestess, many report to her. So, if anyone witnesses or does something, she gets a notification.”
“Sounds hard.” To deal with so many people looking to you. Though I am not any better, as I too rely on her.
“It can be annoying, but it isn’t that much work. I got people below me that take care of most things that do not need my direct involvement. They even hand me in summarized reports, making my life easier.” After taking up the explanation and finishing it for me, Suzune returned to our previous topic. “However, this person came to me directly, as she had interacted with a normal human. She hadn’t caused him collapsing, but saw him fallen over in the street. Not wanting to simply abandon him, she carried him to the police station, and you know the story from there. She hadn’t mentioned anything about feeling anything from him, but I am going to ask her just in case.”

‘So, a spirit that can lift a human and disguise herself or meddle with memories. Sounds dangerous. But she seemed kind enough, so maybe nothing to worry about.’
“But that isn’t the entire story, right?”
“No, of course not. Aya, have you gotten any notice yet?”
“No.” After a short moment of silence, she continued talking. “You see, as I am in good standing with the messenger foxes, if they do something, I often get a report. Not only do I want to know what is going on and care about this town, but this way I can help Suzu with her duties too. So, I take the position of collecting their reports.”
‘Sounds tough, having to do this beside school. Not only that,’ “Thank you for always giving em explanations.”
“It’s fine. We welcomed you into this world after all.”
“Now. First, thank you for helping the old man.”
“You are welcome. But there is no need to thank me. After, all, I am doing what is normal.”
“Yes, and that is why we trust you. Now, to the second matter: We postpone it.”
“…Huh?” ‘Wait, did I hear that right?’
“You heard me right. Just so you know, I am currently busy with organizing the festival. Not only the human side, I need to oversee the youkai too. So, I do not have the time to deal with another person to introduce. Therefore, we delay that until next week.” She heaved a sigh. “Ayame, can I ask you to keep an eye on him?”
“Will do.”
‘Looking after him herself might seem weird, so is she going to send a fox to look after him?’ Putting that aside, “What can I write him as a reply?” ‘Like, what am I allowed to mention.’
Suzune, the unofficial head of this group, gave her verdict. “Lying would be bad in the long run. Just admit that you can see it too. Then, tell him right now is bad, he will be told more next week. Probably on the weekend too, just like you.”
“And please tell him,” Ayame added. “Not to run after anything he sees. Just as a precaution. While they are good at hiding, there might be a chance that he spots one of the little ones spying on him.”
“Alright, got it, will do.”
“Good, then, I declare this conversation over!” Suzune exclaimed.
“… So what know?”
“You leave the call, that’s what! Ayame and I were talking girl stuff, so you have no place here. Shoo shoo.”
‘I would have guessed so about Ayame, but for Suzune to have interest in these topics is… surprising to say the least.’ In my mind, until now, it had always looked like she had a distaste for anything that is purely related to humans, with her outburst and all. But it looked like that take was wrong.
Stifling a giggle, I gave my goodbye. “Got it. Then, see you two later.”
“See you again.” “Get lost.”
With their heartfelt replies, I hung up the call.

Now, with directions to follow, I set upon writing an answer to Suzuki.
‘Sorry for the delayed reply.
Yes, I saw it, and I know what it is.

I am sure that you have many questions. But please wait a bit longer. Right now is kind of bad. And believe me, I truly know how frustrating it can be to have to wait for that answer.

Next week, probably on the weekend, I should be able to tell you everything. So please, have patience until then.’

After sending off the message, I felt a lump in my heart. I had always disliked the not knowing and having no answer. And it got even worse after Ayame and Suzune told me they had the answer that I was looking for, but I had to wait a few days first.
And now I was doing the same to someone else. I hoped he would take it well enough. And he did. A few minutes later, I got a reply from Suzuki.
‘I understand. I am sure there are a lot of things going on, and that you might need time to prepare an answer. So, I will be waiting patiently until it is time.
Thank you for being truthful with me. I will be looking forward to the future.’

‘…What a good boy!’ Not only did he accept my message, he even thanked me for it. He truly is a kind soul. Not only that. Now that I thought about it, it must have taken a lot of courage to even write that first message. If I hadn’t known about spirits and so on, he might have looked crazy. Sure, he could have written it off as a mouse darting across the field, or him still feeling sick and therefore seeing things. Nonetheless, it probably took him quite some surmounting to send it to me. I was now seeing Suzuki in a new light. And in time, if things went good, I might find him to be a valuable ally.

With things cleared out, and new motivation, I joined him in looking forward to the future.

***

No dream again. Perhaps for the best? Maybe I can take it as a sign that I should first take care of the things around me before I take care of my own business. With a positive attitude, I walk down the stairs towards breakfast. Which resolved naturally as always.
Now, after dad left for work, I was alone with mom, who showed me a hint of a sinister smile. And I knew what she meant.
“I haven’t forgotten about it. But, I thought before we go I might help you with housework.”
With a chuckle, the darkness vanished, and a kindness took its place. “Of course. Going to a café right after breakfast wouldn’t be a wise choice.” Her entire face beamed kindness. “So, let us work up an appetite!”
She rose her fist into the sky enthusiastically. One silent stare prompt later, I did the same.

And thus, we set to work. It wasn’t bad at all. In fact, I quite liked doing chores around the house. Living in a clean environment is good for you. And it was never too hard if you kept up with it from the beginning. Which I why I wanted to drill this into my body for when I was going to live alone as an adult. Forming good habits takes time, but is well worth the effort.
And with two people sharing the work, we were done in a flash. The weather report didn’t change in the last two days, and we were looking forward to sunshine the entire day. Therefore, we decided to forgo the dryer and hang up the freshly washed clothes outside in the small backyard. The smell of the detergent mixing with the spring air created a nice scent. ‘One of the little rewards of doing housework.’

“So, what has been recently going on?” Mom suddenly asked me while we were busy.
“What might you be referring to?”
“You know, school and so on. You haven’t told us much about it recently. Do you have any troubles? You know we are here for you.”
“Thank you very much.” A warm smile touched my cheeks. “But I think I told you about me meeting with my friends and the trips?” I was pretty sure that I did.
“Yes you did. But I am not talking about that. Though it is nice for you to include us when talking about your friends. I would really like it if they could visit someday.” I added a mental note to invite the others over sometime in the near future.
Then, her voice shifted. To me, it seemed like the air around her changed too. “But that is not what I wanted to talk about. It is something else I want you to tell me.” Thinking about what it could be, a shock ran through me as her next comment struck home. “Even if you think you can’t talk to us about it.”
Suddenly, I felt cold sweat creeping on me. ‘Could she know? No, it can’t be. If she did, there would have been some kind of sign by now. Or?’ My thoughts started running wild.
“Could it be…” She drew the sentence out, increasing my nervousness, and forcing me to swallow audible. Her eyes were entirely focused on me as she finished the sentence. “…that you have a girlfriend?”
“…” My mind blanked out. Several seconds later, I could only muster a short reply. “Huh?”

“I mean, it makes totally sense. You are much more on your phone than before. While I do not listen into the specifics on your conversation, I still hear you talk on it. You even carry it with you during dinner. And don’t think you can fool me so easily. One of the times you went out to meet with your friends was just an excuse, you met with someone else.”
“How?”
“As your mother, it is easy for me to tell. So?” She leaned forward, excitedly.
As for myself, I allowed to let out a sigh of relieve. ‘So my thoughts were complete wrong.’ Thinking it through once more, this made more sense than the other version in my mind.
Now, my mother was still starring at me expectantly. So, with little choice, I started talking. “Yes, I met with other friends than the ones I am hanging out with this week. Yes, they are girls.” Mom’s excitement rose. “But no, none of them are my girlfriend.”
“Eh~” She looked disappointed, and even started pouting. “But there is someone you are interested in, right?”
“Well…” Almost instantly, a face flashed before my mind. With how much she had been around me, it was no surprise. And mom quickly picked up on it.
“Oh, finally! My son has his first love!” She hopped around. “We need to celebrate”
“…” There was nothing I could say to her right now that might improve the situation. So I just looked at her.
“Oh? Is something amiss? Ah! Don’t worry, I know you expected a questioning. I am just postponing it to the café, that is all.” She gave me a cutesy smile.
‘I am starting to think I should cancel the café visit…’ Of course, I wasn’t serious about it. With how excited my mom was, there was no way I would do that. And it would be a good way for me to try and repay her for all the work she usually does for me.
So, with renewed determination, I set to finish the chores, and mentally prepared myself for the café.