ltimately, I could not force myself to stay awake much longer and lay down in my bed, firmly deciding that I would only sleep for a couple of hours. I set the alarm clock to wake me up in two hours, and just when I was done, my eyelids seemed to close like two heavy bulkheads, blocking out the invading light. For a moment, I imagined the sound of two gigantic gates approaching the respective other wing before closing with a reverberating sound. Before I could begin to muse about this interesting imagery, my mind had already drifted into the sweet oblivion of exhaustion-induced sleep.

Or so it should have been, but rather than a welcome nothingness, purgatory awaited me in the depths of my subconscious, as a lucid dream of a shattered landscape played before my eyes. The sky was a vivid vermillion, accompanied by clouds of scarlet and a sickly, barely glaring red sun. My bare feet touched the warm and smooth ground and when I looked down, I noticed that I was standing on glass, seeing my own distorted reflection. Shocked, I stepped back and cracked the surface on impact, scattering the glass into the air as if gravity had no effect on the fragments. The broken glass cut my naked feet and legs, but I felt no pain as I watched my blood join the reflective pieces dancing in the air. An overwhelming calm suddenly washed over me, as my eyes scanned the landscape while watching the world move in slow motion. There was no visible life, but I felt the presence of something extremely familiar, as if I was staring into an opaque mirror.

I raised my hand and accidentally brushed over the rusted mountains in the distance, breaking off their summits, upon which they became volcanoes. The whole landscape was illuminated by the crimson outburst, as the blood of the earth spew forth at my gentle touch. I took a step forward, shattering the ground beneath me, as a fine web of cracks expanded toward the horizon in all directions. With my next step, the world shuddered and the glass fell toward the sky like snow, cutting into my skin and drawing blood, with droplets flying up to join the scarlet clouds. I felt a strange excitement at the thought that my presence was ravaging the lands and I spun around my own axis with my arms outstretched. A whirlwind of glass shards formed and the distant elevations were ripped and broken at my whim. Laughter formed in my throat as I looked up to let its sound devastate the world, but suddenly I was looking into a person's face, a featureless visage that only had a pair of eyes, which stared into mine.

Laughter was replaced by the excruciating urge to scream at the top of my lungs, but I felt no air in my chest. I could only continue to stare, as I drew short, scorching breaths as the diamond dust of the shattered world entered my trachea and destroyed my insides. Unable to scream, I could only see as the eyes seemed to take a mocking form, reflecting my terrorized face in their glossy surface. The pain was unbearable but without an outlet, my mind was nearing self-destruction for self-preservation. I tasted blood...

... and jumped up into a sitting position on my bed, gasping for air, bringing salvation to my craving lungs. I must have bitten the inside of my mouth, as I could still taste blood, but it did not seem too bad. I was soaking wet and still sweating profusely, as my ragged breath caught and choked on the scream I had been unable to release in the dream. However, I was in my room and safe, so I suppressed the urge and coughed it out instead; the neighbors would surely be disturbed and possibly even call the police. The dream was fading from my memory with every passing second and I felt reality taking over my mind again. However, one detail remained burned into my mind as if it had been done so physically: The eyes of the otherwise featureless face had reflected my own and in the recursive reflections, I had been able to see that my eyes were the same as my counterpart's.

I had expected to find that the alarm clock had not done its work again, but I had actually woken up a few minutes before it would have roused me. My mind was finally back on normal levels, but I did not feel like reading yet; aside from the temporary aversion of the supernatural, I had to take a shower and change the blanket, as well as hang out the soaked futon, lest I had to spend a night on the floor. Since I had taken a bath and already let out the water earlier, I decided that going to a public bath would save me the hassle to refill my tab, and serve as a change of pace. The least I wanted to be right now was left alone with my thoughts.

Soon, after thoroughly washing myself, I relaxed in the hot water of the practically empty public bath. I had arrived at the time when younger and middle aged people were not yet back from work, while the elderly had already left for home to watch their series or to pursue a healthy lifestyle of going to sleep and waking up early. Sinking deeper into the water, I closed my eyes and let the warmth soak into my very depth to replace the chill that was now plaguing me, as the single most disturbing memory of the nightmare remained. When I was thoroughly satisfied, I opened my eyes and stood up from the water to leave, back home to the books that were calling.

"Well..." A familiar voice resounded through the otherwise empty bath hall. "Did I not tell you to always keep the charm on you?" I spun around and found the woman in purple, sitting on something my mind was unable to fully comprehend, basically floating in midair above the hot water. Her eyes scrutinized me in my completely stunned and naked state and seemed displeased with what she saw. "You really did not bring it... I cannot sense it anywhere nearby either." She seemed to be undisturbed by the fact that this was the men's bath and that I stood before her in my birthday suit. "I can see that it is too late now... your soul, and thus, your life, literally hangs on a tiny thread."

As I had been shocked by her sudden appearance and her shamelessness before, I found myself at attention now. "What do you mean by that? The charm you gave me caused a friend of mine a headache when she saw it..." I sunk back into the water and spoke to the mysterious woman in a somber voice. "So..."

"It was not meant to be seen by anybody but you alone," Her voice sounded harsh and her expression was one of disapproval, but I tried to stand my ground. "Why did you even give me something that had such an effect on other people?" I asked in response, but it only garnered a dangerous flash in her eyes, which silenced me instantly.

"Now that it has come to this... However, I don't understand why you are still so lively. At this point, you should already be seeing the Sanzu river." The blonde showed a troubled expression and looked me in the eyes, as if to find the answer inside my head. I did not exactly understand what she said, since I could not see my own soul, but I assumed that the situation looked extremely dire. "You crossed the border again, but somehow were able to survive. I can guarantee you, from the look of things, that you will die the next time."

For some reason, the heavy words did not shock me as much as they did the last time, considering the fact that they were much more dire than the last time. I felt strangely detached from my problem, as if I was watching a movie with the protagonist experiencing the things I was, rather than experiencing them myself. The divergence would come the moment the movie took a turn to the supernatural, while my life would surely continue normally. However, no matter how much I was, likely guided by my subconscious, telling myself that, I had a perfect case of the supernatural, staring down at me, floating in midair sitting on something I could not comprehend. "What should I do?"

"Now is the time to make the decision you put off yesterday night. If you decide to stay in this world, I will have to change your memories. If you wish to come with me, your existence will irrevocably vanish from this world. There is no turning back. Which will it be?" The woman's expression made clear that I could not take the easy way out by saying that I needed more time to think; it was time to make a decision and stand by it.

There was one thing that had to be done first though. "Could you let me get out of the bath and get dressed first, please?" I said, sheepishly, but also in an attempt to disrupt the blonde's countenance by making her aware of the situation. "Please, go ahead," She answered plainly and continued to stare at me. That attempt had failed miserably and made me feel even worse than before. Thus, I quickly got out of the water and proceeded to rinse myself again, all the while feeling a pair of amethysts boring into my back. The uncomfortable stare continued, until I could finally return it comfortably, now fully dressed. In the meantime, my mind had been running at the top of its capacities, thinking about the decision I had forced myself into.

"At least let us return to my home first. By the time we arrive there, I will tell you my decision," Was all I could conjure in the short time that the mysterious woman had given me. Her face showed clear disapproval, but she complied and finally came to stand on even ground with me, as the thing she had been sitting on disappeared into nothingness. She was wearing a dress that looked almost the same as the one she had been the previous day and it was clear that the purple color was her trademark. When we walked outside the bath house, she opened her parasol and walked ahead of me, as if she knew the way to my home. Not thinking too much of it, considering her capabilities, I followed behind her. We walked through the empty streets, tinted in the red of the setting sun, as my mind raced towards either a conclusion or self-destruction. The time of the decision was approaching and I was unable to make a definite choice.

I mulled over the choice presented to me, thinking of any and all reasons for either option. If I chose to stay, I would forget everything about my dream and continue to live out my life in this world I myself had dubbed boring. On the other hand, I would be able to see the people who were dear to me and have a definite lookout on the future, and with it the chance to find something in the world to make it less boring.

The reason for me to go was that in my pursuit of knowledge and the unknown, I had the chance to go to a place where all I wished to be real was real. If I took my chances and ventured into that world I would be able to see the dream I had almost completely given up during my studies. However, this meant that I could never return to this side again and lose all I had built up here. In either case, I wanted the decision to be based on all these rational reasons, but I knew that ultimately I would let my feelings decide.

We soon arrived in front of my door and I stopped, my brain basically overheating, as my heartbeat increased in frequency; both thoughts and feelings were jumbled and I was unable to make a decision like this. Maybe upon entering my room, I would see a sign that would point me in the direction of the choice I should pick, like people did in games or movies. The door opened, seemingly in slow motion and I stepped into my house, followed by the mysterious blonde. It felt as if there was a weight added onto my shoulders with every step I took and when I finally reached the middle of my single room from the entrance, it had appeared to me as if a millennium had passed and the whole world was on my shoulders. It was time - and there was no sign that told me of the path I should take.

The decision came to me as I, for the last time, pondered the reasons that kept me in this world and those that enticed me to leave for another one. Even if the other side was not safe and I knew nothing of it, it meant following my dreams. Maybe I did Columbus' and Magellan's motivations for their respective world-changing endeavors no justice when I compared myself to them, but I felt like an explorer who had learned of the possibilities lying beyond the horizon. Not grasping it would be to waste an opportunity that would never come again. Humanity saw its final frontier in space, but if I could trust my feelings, they told me that I had possibly found a new one and would be a pioneer like those of the old days, when the world seemed so much bigger.

However, the real reason for choosing the treacherous, yet to be illuminated path, stood right before me, when I turned around to face my companion. A single look into her face told me what my answer should be; she stood for all the things I had almost given up due to the overbearing reality of the world I lived in. If I did not grasp this opportunity, I would surely regret it for the rest of my life, and the fear in that overpowered all rationale. There are many things one can regret, but one should never regret choosing the path of following one's dreams and ambitions.

With what I believed to be determination I turned to the lady in purple and presented her with my decision. "I will go with you to the other side," Was all I said. Her expression did not betray her thoughts as she looked me deep into the eyes, as if to judge my resolve. Certainly, if it had been any less than absolute resolution, she might have scolded me. But it seemed that she did not find any trace of doubt in my unwavering gaze. The blonde closed her eyes for a short moment and opened them again, an expression on her face that I felt represented resignation.

"Very well. Then prepare to depart," She said and proceeded to sit down on my swiveling chair to wait for me to pack my things. I thought that I needed more time for this kind of endeavor, but I had none to waste; for every single grain of sand in my hourglass was more precious than a diamond. I quickly packed the most important things one needed for camping out without carrying too much. Coming from Tôkyô, I had participated in a few survival camps to prepare for natural disasters such as earthquakes, and being a diligent person, I had items such as flashlights, a small first aid kit and an all-purpose pocket knife.

Shouldering my backpack, I finally came to stand in front of the woman, signaling that I was ready to go. I had written a letter to explain my circumstances for all those I would leave behind, still harboring the hopes for a possible return to this world, and had sent a short mail to each Maribel and Renko, telling them to come to my room later to pick it up. With this little bequest, I left no regrets behind; I saw it as going to a distant country in which I would be unable to communicate with the people here, but from where I would eventually return.

"Close your eyes," The blonde said and stood up from my chair. I did as told and suddenly felt something touching my hand, before I realized that it was the feeling of her hand, now no longer covered in a glove. With this, I felt a slight tremor like from a tiny earthquake, but nothing more, before I heard the woman's voice again as the feeling from her hand vanished from mine. "You can open your eyes again."

I did as told and found myself in a traditionally styled room covered by Shôji on all four sides. It reminded me of the house of my grandparents', but I was too excited to feel nostalgia; the paper screen before me suggested that there was daylight on the other side. Thus, if I were to slide it open, I would get another glimpse of the world that I had reached over the danger of breaking apart my soul. Parting the Shôji in the middle, I slid both open at the same time and stepped outside onto the veranda and looked up, expecting a dazzling sun in the blue sky. However, I was welcomed by a purple sky with inky black streaks that seemed to be in constant motion while also standing still. Sometimes giant purple eyes would open, creating a stark contrast with their white sclera on the dark, infinitely distant surface that seemed to loom right overhead. A cold shiver ran down my spine and it felt as if my brain was on fire, when I was unable to comprehend the otherness of this sight. I was frozen in place and cold sweat started to form all over my body, when I heard the steps of the blonde approaching from behind.

"It might be a little late, but I forgot to introduce myself. I am the overseer of the border between this world and the one you just came from," She said, her voice coming from directly behind me. "They call me the Yôkai sage. My name is Yakumo Yukari."

Maribel received the mail from Kyôma the moment she was walking up the stairs to Renko's apartment. From it she gathered that he was doing something rash and quickly rushed up the last few steps and up to his door, which was next to hers. She almost slammed it open as she noticed that it was unlocked, and shouted his name, but nobody was inside. "That idiot..." She muttered with a strained expression on her face. However, she found that the room was not only devoid of human presences but actually devoid of everything. There was no furniture and it did not look like somebody was living in it or even had lived there for a while; Maribel walked into the room and checked the kitchen and bathroom, to find the same sight repeated. Of course, the letter Kyôma had mentioned that was supposed to be on his desk had vanished, along with said desk.

Uncontrollable shaking overcame Maribel as she considered the implications of this phenomenon and she opened her cell phone. Repeatedly going through her data, she grew more and more desperate with each passing second. After a while she sank to her knees, the phone clenched tightly in her hand, as she finally discontinued her futile efforts to find any hint of Kyôma's existence in her mail history. "That... idiot..."

It felt as if an icicle was boring into my back as the voice of the Yôkai sage pierced my mind. She stood right behind me and I could perceive her overwhelming presence more than ever, as it exercised an almost tangible pressure that seemed to grip my heart directly. The eyes in the sky unanimously turned to look at me for a split second before continuing their irregular movements, but it had lasted for so short a period of time that I was unsure of whether it had happened at all or it had all been just a hallucination from the fear that was gripping me with all its might.

However, when I gathered all my courage and turned around to face Yukari, a wave of relief washed over me; it was audible to me in the form of blood rushing to my ears. Before me she stood with a beautiful and pure smile, betraying no ill will, as she continued to speak. "Welcome to Gensôkyô, welcome to my home," She said, as her purple eyes were unclouded by the knowledge of eternity, showing a girlish side to her I had not witnessed before. When she noticed my expression, mischief returned to her features as she eyed me with a smug grin. "Oh, were you possibly afraid that I had brought you to some strange place just to devour you?" For a good reason that clearly non-serious question did not appear to be a mere joke, but I tried to brush off the thought nervously. "If anything, I would be feeding you to my Shiki instead." With this statement, my body tensed up again. Seeing the mischievous grin defiling Yukari's face I understood that she was playing a macabre prank on me.

"Really, as a Yôkai you shouldn't be joking like that. When you say it, it doesn't seem like a joke at all," I said and sighed, garnering a giggle from the blonde as she hid her lips behind her fan. "Well, let me introduce you to my Shiki. Ran!" Yukari said and called out to somebody. From one moment to the next, I suddenly felt a presence behind me where there had been none before and spun around in response. Before me stood the blonde I had met before when I had ventured into this world with Maribel. Now that I saw her, I remembered that she had mentioned a Yukari-sama when talking to a girl with cat ears.

"So you are the Yukari she was talking about?" I turned around, back to Yukari, who only smiled knowingly. Remembering my manners, I returned my attention to the fox-like woman and bowed to her. "Nice to make your acquaintance, I am Kagami Kyôma," I said and showed her the warmest smile I could afford in my still slightly confused state. However, Ran returned it with a look of disapproval before turning to face her master, now concern mixing in with her previous expression.

"Why is he here? This is not a place for humans," She said while having basically banished me from her perception, as she proceeded without paying me any attention. "His presence could have an adverse effect on the great border and after all, he is..."

"I am well aware of that, Ran," Yukari cut in and the seven, eight,... nine-tailed fox closed her mouth immediately. "Then you should understand why I brought him here all the more..." I thought that I had glimpsed a hint of loneliness and sadness in her features for a moment but I could not be sure about it, since it passed quickly. "I will examine the tear in his soul before I bring him to the human village," She continued with a definite expression and turned to look at me.

Considering the strange sky above us, I did not even need to ask to know that this house was certainly not close to the human village. Ran showed a skepticism at Yukari's words but did not object as she bowed to her and left, without deigning to look at me again. Pushing aside the former's cold attitude, I looked the latter in the eyes and raised an eyebrow, trying to communicate my confusion at the one-sided decision to make me live in the human village. However, it was obvious when looking at the outside, that I could not stay in such a psychedelic place for too long or I would develop mental health issues.

"Even if I say 'examine', there is not much I can do. To me, it looks as if even staring at it alone could cause the tiny thread that holds the two pieces of your soul together to rip apart," Yukari explained and sighed. "I cannot illustrate it to you in a better way than this." If she felt something because of my state, she did not show it, but I thought that there was a feeling of regret mixed into the blonde's voice. "I can only give you another charm and tell you not to try and cross the border again. I am aware of the possibility that what you are doing is caused by your subconscious, but if you keep the charm on you, it should not happen on accident." She handed me another charm, one that looked exactly like the previous one. This time I would heed her words and actually keep it on me; I put it around my neck like a pendant and hid it under my clothes.

With this, Yukari requested me to close my eyes again so that we could move to the human village. However, I did not immediately heed Yukari's request as I still had some questions left that needed answers to. Among the first was the pressing question regarding how I would live in this world; specifically how I would be able to make a living here.

"How will I live in this world?"

"Gensôkyô," Yukari interjected.

"How will I live in Gensôkyô? I'm completely new here and I don't suppose I will be simply accepted into a household like an exchange student, right?" The latter part was spoken half as a joke, but the issue at hand was obvious; I had no established relationships other than with Yukari, with whom I could not stay due to apparent reasons. I looked outside the room and into the purple sky, quickly averting my eyes again. Either I would get used to it over time and lose a part of my human self, or I would go completely insane; I could practically see my SAN points dropping whenever I looked into the sky that looked back occasionally.

"People from the outside world are usually quite welcome in the village. You bring knowledge from the outside world and until the things you can talk about run dry, you will be well received by the people. I do hope you have prepared such things," Yukari said with a mischievous smile. I started to suspect that it was all just an amusing pastime to this Yôkai sage, abducting people from the human world and setting them free in this unknown place and then watching them struggle like mice in a maze. For obvious reasons, I did not voice my train of thoughts, as I returned Yukari's purple gaze.

"I happen to know a certain chronicler of Gensôkyô's history who owns a huge mansion. There are plenty of spare rooms for you to stay in. In exchange for that, you will have to be entertaining in your knowledge," Continuing the explanation, Yukari walked past me onto the veranda. "As long as you are in the human village, you will not meet many Yôkai. You could see some if you wander into the forest, but I would advise against that before paying the Hakurei shrine maiden a visit first."

"I think that in a world where Yôkai exist, it is common sense to not go into a forest where you might be attacked by them and get eaten," I remarked, but it ellicited an amused expression from my benefactor.

"You should not use too much common sense here. This is always the hardest thing to learn for people who come from the outside world, but also the first thing they learn to accept," Yukari commented. "Even before accepting the fact that they are inferior to the beings here in basically all regards." The latter part was muttered behind her fan but most likely intentionally audible to me. I did not see the need to say anything about that and instead proceeded to ask the next question.

"What kind of Yôkai are you?" I asked with a straight face and was met with a clearly surprised expression; possibly the first honest emotional response I had seen from her. She was so taken aback that her mouth stayed open, while her purple irises were fully visible. After a moment of silence, in which my expression did not change - it had been a serious question and I demanded some kind of response - Yukari finally started to laugh, hiding her face behind her fan.

"This is the first time somebody asked me that with such a straight expression," Yukari answered, still wearing a wide smile on her lips. "People either asked me that when sitting on the floor, completely terrified by my appearance, or as a mere joke." She closed her fan and showed me her smile behind it, her eyes glittering with mischief. "Well, what do you think I might be?"

Even with all my knowledge of the supernatural, I was unable to recall any being that controlled dimensions or borders as Yukari did. On the other hand, Yôkai stories - by now I was convinced that some of them were in fact actual records of Yôkai appearances - only came into existence when there was a survivor to tell of them. Therefore, those that killed their victims without ever letting anyone go or those that could not be perceived as Yôkai certainly were never recorded. Now I had to wonder what type the one before me was, hoping for her denial of being the former type. That she did not entirely fit into the latter type was painfully obvious; while she appeared human, the air surrounding her was clearly something beyond that. Few would dismiss that feeling as mere imagination.

"I'm not sure. I have never heard of any Yôkai like you before," Was my honest answer. Yukari commented on that with a confident smile and her fists on her hips. "That is because there are none like me." Now it was my turn to laugh, not at what she said but because of the completely out-of-character pose. For a moment, I thought I had glimpsed the true character of Yukari, a woman like any other, as young in her heart as her appearance suggested. While my laughter lasted, I tried to observe the blonde, as she acted hurt, an exaggerated pout on her lips. In this moment I thought of her not as a Yôkai but a normal girl, and it felt like no mystery would be able to create a rift between our relationship as people. Even if it may be only one-sided, it made me feel that being able to think so meant that Gensôkyô could not be a bad place.

"I'm feeling tired. Usually I don't stay awake at this time of the day," Yukari remarked with a suppressed yawn, after we had finally calmed down. I took that as the sign that she wanted to conclude the question and answer session and finally bring me to the human village.

"Let's go then," I said, ready for the next step in my adventure.