Volume 23 Chapter 2 (1/2)
She gave her roo clean, helped her , checked the TV Guide for the New Year's specials and in no time at all it was New Year's Eve and her father was slurping soba noodles as he watched the annual Red and White New Year's singing contest
Even if she was carrying soht it was as though the reset button was pressed across all of japan and the new year arrived
”Happy New Year!”
Her father spoke over the top of the countdown progra ht a new lucky direction that the protective talisman had to face, and to make sure it didn't fall down it was held in place from above with tape It was bad luck to stick the talisain after it had fallen down Her father stood on a stool, holding the talisht hand as he reached doith his left
”Coht up”
Yuuki cut a piece of tape froh he could have just used the serrated edge attached to the tape holder, he alwayswas, ”If this is going to be the sash that wreathes the talisinably powerful God, then it's better to ht”
It was probably because of his methodical nature that their father made Yuuki his assistant Incidentally, Yumi had been involved a bit earlier when she'd played the role of the guide, standing back fro fro directions like, ”A bit to the left”
Despite these sort of involvements with the shi+nto Gods, the eldest son and the eldest daughter of the fukuzawa family had attended a Buddhist and Christian school, respectively, since they were young
Now then With the talis safely, the whole family could finally say, ”Happy New Year”
Aunt Taeko's fa on a vacation to Hawaii this year, so there was no talk of both parents going to Yaifts
”Let's ood year too”
The amount inside the decorative envelope was the same as last year, but they weren't too disappointed because they'd been informed of this ahead of tih the aone up by a bit last year to eh school
To a few hours froht to their parents, the two children headed towards their rooms on the second floor
”I kinda feel wide awake”
Yuuki said, stopping in the middle of the stairway in front of her
”Oh, you feel that way too, Yuuki?”
She'd felt a bit drohen so the New Year's singing contest, but she'd pushed past that and was now completely awake
”Yeah I guess I'll play a gaet tired”
Her brother occasionally seemed like an old ah school boy
”But you know, they say you should start the year the way you intend to spend the whole year If you start off just playing gaet addicted and that's all you do for the whole year?”
In the past, Yua corandfather had warned her that, ”You'll be addicted to them for the whole year” Ever since then, she'd paid particularly close attention to how she spent January 1st
”Addicted to ga TV downstairs is out too”
He could have just laughed off the superstition but her earnest younger brother gave it serious consideration, standing in the h since she was stuck behind him, Yumi would have preferred that he'd at least finished cli the stairs first
”Hey, Yuuki”
She was about to tell hi in his room, but Yuuki raised his head
”I know I'll head out for a bit”
”Head out?”
”For a walk Just around the neighborhood”
He begged her pardon and squeezed past her down the stairs She obediently let hiht better of it and followed after him
”So you're going to spend the whole year going for a walk?”
”It'll be good for my health, don't you think?”
Probably There was no need to worry though, it was different to a ga for a walk
”Wait, I'll go too”
Yurabbed her brother's elbow But Yuuki immediately rejected this
”No way, you're a girl”
”No fair”
”Huh”
”It's fine for a boy, but not for a girl That's not fair”
The fukuzawa faender equality Yuuki was fully aware of this too
”Let me tell you, it's not sexual discrimination”
”I know You're just worried about me”
”That's right”
Yuuki shook free of his sister's hand
”But it annoys me I know it's different, but it still really annoys me”
As she was saying this, Yuuely realized that her annoyance wasn't just directed at not being able to go for a walk in the ht
Even though she realized it, she couldn't stop herself It was troubling that she was bothered by such a small matter
If she kept going on about how annoying it was, it would probably get her brother down too, so he agreed to let her co with some conditions attached
”… You can coet permission from mom and dad”
So it looked like Yuuki would have gone out without saying a word if it was just hihly good son's excursion they'd probably just forgive hi a boy after all
The lights in the living room were already off When she reached her parents' roo into his pajaers
”You'll be with Yuuki?”
Their eyes ood response Since it was the sort of situation where they
As she'd expected, her father frowned as he spoke
”Be back by one”
”Alright!”
Yu on Yuuki They believed that, if push came to shove, he would protect his older sister Of course, it ithout saying that this wasn't per as they were together Today was special because it was the first day of the new year
”Back by one That's only 30 minutes”
Yuuki said, his face plainly showing that this was a hindrance Apparently he'd been so their parents to talk her out of it while he'd been waiting at the entrance
”We're just going around the neighborhood, right? Thirty h”
”But still”
He'd said it would be just around the neighborhood, but it looked like her brother had been planning on going further afield
”Well, can't do ot thirty hborhood”
They put on their coats and then set out carrying only their house key
The night air was cold and stung her exposed flesh, but she could tell that it was clear air she was breathing in
As they walked the residential streets she completely lost track of what time it was
There were still quite a few houses with light leaking through the s
There weren't a lot of people walking the streets, but there were more than she'd expected
”They're going to visit a shrine”
Yuuki said, pointing at the young couple walking in front of them
”A shrine visit? How can you tell?”
”The guy's carrying a ceremonial arrow”
Then, in that case, wouldn't they be returning fro to it? Yumi asked this and Yuuki explained that each year people would take their old one as an offering when they bought a new one, so they carried the was that there was a shi+nto shrine not that far away in the direction they were going, whereas there wasn't one anywhere near as close in the opposite direction
”A shrine visit, huh?”
”Ah, it's no good We'd never make it back by one if we followed them”
”I wasn't really going to suggest that”
Although she had briefly considered it It'd be really bad if she was back late after pushi+ng hard for per she could do about that She'd have to make do with just a walk around the block after all
As she alking along, looking up at the sky, she saw a star speed past
”Did you see that? Hey, did you see that?”
Yumi pointed up at the sky and her brother said, ”What?”
”A shooting star, a shooting star I guess you can still see them even in Tokyo”
She was so excited she slapped Yuuki's arms
”It's because the air in Tokyo clears up during the New Year's break Still, I guess it's good that you saw it, Yumi”
”It's not good I forgot to make a wish”
If youstar disappears, it will coh, as you'd expect, that was impossible But it happened because of the difficulty, or so the theory went
”Do you have a wish?”
Yuuki asked
”Well”
She was a teenage girl She had all sorts of wishes
- And then
”Are you fine with anywhere?”
”Huh? Anywhere?”
”For a shrine visit”
Her brother said, ”Co for about tenfor them at their destination
”Oh oh oh”
She cried out, without thinking In the winding alley between two houses, there was a small shrine
”How did you know about this place?”
”I found it ages ago, when I was riding around aiuess you didn't know about it then, Yumi”
”Yeah Even though it's right in our neighborhood”
Passing under the red torii gate, they came to a small altar about 30cm wide and tall
”Ah, we should have brought some money to offer”
She couldn't see an offertory box, but there was a bit of a depression at the front of the altar where a couple of coins had been left They could have been from an earlier visitor, or perhaps they'd been there since last year
”We did”