Far Away

It must have been more than a week traveling on top of a giant fox until we arrived at Ōtsu. I have to admit I never missed modern transportation as much as I do now. 

We also came across a few thieves, but when most of them realized that Mina was a samurai, Momo was a priestess trained in archery and Sana was a half-kitsune who could roast them in seconds, they quickly ran away.

But at least this night we wouldn't have to sleep in the middle of the woods. We'd be staying at an inn, and the best part was that there was a hot spring for clients to bathe. 

Finally, we wouldn't have to use a river for that!

I picked up a mirror from inside the makeup kit that came along with me from the future. Luckily, my skin didn't seem to be doing too bad, considering I hadn't done any of my skincare routines for weeks.

"Are those things from the future?" Sana asked, and her foxy features were accentuated by how curious she looked. Though honestly, her personality was more like a friendly puppy, if anything. 

"Yep, this is my makeup kit," I responded, handing the pouch for her to examine it. 

She grabbed my cushion and opened it, her eyes widening when she saw her reflection in it's mirror. 

"What is this for?" The kitsune girl asked, delicately picking up the pad and staring at it. 

"You can apply it to your face to create an even complexion and hide flaws," I answered, taking the cushion from her hand. "Hey, what if I put some makeup on you?"

"Are you implying I need it?" Sana asked, raising an eyebrow, her lips curled in a smirk. 

"That's not what I said!" I defended myself, giggling. "I don't think you need it, but we can do it just for fun." 

"Okay, okay!" She answered excitedly, and I could tell she was eager to try on something from the future. 

"We won't do anything crazy, alright?" I asked, dipping the pad into the cushion foundation and then lightly tapping it on her face. 

A few minutes after I finished doing her makeup, the other two girls walked inside the room, returning from the hot springs. 

"What happened to your face?" Momo asked, her eyes fixed on Sana. 

"Nayeon put some makeup from the future on me!" The half-kitsune explained. "Don't I look pretty?"

"Do you guys want to try it out too?" I asked. It was comforting doing something from my time. It gave me a sense of normality and connection to my old day-to-day life.

"Ah, go ahead first, Mina," Momo said, pushing her towards us. "I'm sleepy, so I'm gonna lie down a bit."

"I never agreed to this," the samurai protested, seeming reluctant, but sitting down in front of me anyway.

"I promise you it's not that bad," I whispered, moving a bit closer to her.

Mina had her hair down, which was quite a rare sight. It gave her a more innocent-looking appearance and made her features stand out. Being so near to her gave me a more generous opportunity to observe them, and she was strikingly beautiful, as expected.

I gently tucked a few strands behind her ears, and the other girl shut her eyes closed. I started to apply the cushion foundation on her, being careful not to erase her moles, which were such a beautiful part of her appearance. 

I skipped a lot of the steps I would usually go through, but it's not like she needed it. Honestly, I just wanted to get this over as soon as possible. Mina was probably tired from the trip, and my heart was beating dangerously fast. 

Taking a deep breath, I swiped a red tint on her lips, using my fingers to delicately spread the product over them, creating a uniform appearance. Touching her lips gave me a tingly feeling, and I couldn't stop staring at them. 

It was so different from doing Sana's makeup. I felt so conscious and nervous about every single move I made. 

"Okay, I'm done," I said, my voice cracking a bit.

"You look so pretty, Mitang!" Sana said, picking up my mirror and showing Mina her reflection. 

"Yeah, you do," I agreed, not managing to meet her eyes and playing with my clothes' fabric.

When I looked at Mina, her cheeks looked red, but I was unsure if she was blushing or if it was just the makeup I applied to her. 

"Well, I'm going to sleep now," I suddenly said, unable to handle the situation any further. Quickly putting my stuff back inside my backpack, I hurried to my mattress and hid underneath the sheets. 

This couldn't be happening. I couldn't allow it to happen. My heart was still pounding hard inside my chest as if it was about to explode. And it was always like that every time Mina was close to me.

But getting involved with her was too dangerous. Anything that bloomed between us was set to be a failure because we had an expiration date. The whole point of what we were doing was to send me back to the future, which meant I wouldn't see her anymore. 

Just the thought of that pained me, and I tried my best to hold back tears even though I felt like crying my chest out. I didn't know why I was getting attached to Mina so fast, but I hated the idea of falling for her.

It's safe to say that even despite sleeping in a cozy inn after a hot bath, I did not have a good night's sleep. I couldn't stop thinking about my feelings for Mina, and I may or may not have cried once. 

But now I had to seal those feelings away to focus on more pressing matters. We had to obtain clues about Sana's father, and Momo found out there was a festival happening in town, so we thought it would be an excellent place to find some information since there would be a lot of people attending.

"We should split up, it'll be easier that way," Momo said, as we walked through a crowd of people. 

"Great, I'll go with Sana then," I said, putting my hand on the kitsune's shoulder. "We'll go this way, and you guys can go the other way."

Mina didn't say anything, but I could tell that she was stunned along with the other two. Sana's puzzled face quickly turned into a smile, and she pulled my sleeve, saying: 

"Okay, let's go then!"

The Japanese festivals in the 15th century didn't seem all that different from those I experienced. Especially considering in the future, most people use traditional Japanese clothes anyway. The most remarkable difference was the lack of modernized technology. 

As Sana walked by my side, I could notice her fox ears twitching every now and then. So I took the courage and asked her, "Sana? Would you mind if I touched your ears?" 

"Huh? Why do you wanna do that?" She asked, but kneeling a bit anyway, so her head was more comfortable to access.

"I can't help it, they're just so cute!" I exclaimed, giving her fluffy ears a few light squeezes and scratching them. She smiled widely at me, and I could see how accentuated her sharp canines were.

"You know, I usually get that kind of request, but... usually it's from little kids," Sana commented as I fiddled a bit more with them. "They're the ones who usually like to play with my ears." 

"You can't blame me. Nobody has fluffy ears like this in my time!" I countered, and she abruptly pulled her head back. 

"What do you mean?" She asked, her eyes widened in what seemed to be fear. 

"Oh... it's just that I didn't really know yokai existed before returning to the past," I answered, worried that I struck some sort of nerve.

"Well... kitsune are shape-shifters... perhaps we just adapted to your time by hiding our fox features," she answered, seeming a bit gloomy. "It's sad that apparently, we had to hide."

"Why would you have to hide?" I asked, genuinely oblivious about what she was talking about.

"A lot of humans despise yokai. They think all of them are heartless monsters. And the same goes for yokai, many of them hate humans and find them insignificant, powerless creatures," she began explaining, and I could see the anguish in her eyes as she spoke. "My parents were different though... my father cherished humans, so much that he deeply fell in love with one." 

"Your mother... right?" I asked tentatively as it seemed to be a hard topic for Sana. 

She glanced at me and smiled nodding. "Yeah, my mother," she replied. "They were in love with each other and were excited to start a family. At least that's what I was told. I can't remember either of them. My mother... she died when giving birth to me," Sana added, and I could see tears starting to appear in her troubled eyes.

"I'm so sorry about that, Sana," I whispered, taking hold of her hand and squeezing it to comfort her. 

"It's okay... thank you, Nayeon," she replied softly. "My father couldn't bear the pain of losing my mother. She was everything to him... so he left everything behind, including me, and began roaming aimlessly all over the country. He probably wouldn't be able to look into the eyes of the one responsible for the death of the person he loved the most."

"That's not true!" I immediately countered, pressing her hand even tighter. "You're not responsible for any of that, Sana... if anything, you're the biggest victim. You lost both your parents that day."

She bit her lips as she glanced at me, her eyes shimmering. "My father left me with the Hirai family. They were the only ones he could trust me with... but I've got to see him. I have to ask why he abandoned me. Did he truly find me guilty...?"

"Don't worry, Sana, we'll find him!" I firmly said, trying to reassure her. "Then you'll get your answers. And I'm going to kick his ass if he says anything bad about you!" 

"Nayeon!" Sana exclaimed, letting out a few surprise giggles. "My father is a void fox. That's like, the second-highest class of celestial foxes. I can understand why you're mad at him, but we must treat him with respect." 

"Highest class... celestial foxes?" I asked, confused. "What does that mean?" 

"Well, there are two primordial types of kitsune. The wild fox, which is the type of kitsune you'll find more often. These like to trick humans and use their power to scare them. And the other type is the good fox, who can serve the gods and ascend in classes," she began explaining, and I tried my best to focus and understand everything. "The wild fox can only ascend two classes: spirit fox and earth fox. Good foxes can ascend to the highest classes, starting from wizard fox, to void fox, and finally, to the heavenly fox. Tsura, who we met at the temple, is a wizard fox, and Itsuya, who we saw in the flames, lives in the astral realm. She's a heavenly fox, so most of her time is spent there."

"Wow, this is all really fascinating!" I commented, genuinely impressed at their class system. "Which class are you in, Sana?" 

She laughed, but it wasn't a happy one. It was almost sarcastic, something rare for pure-hearted Sana. "I don't have a class... I'm just half-kitsune. I guess it's its own, separate class... since I'm not completely human, and not completely yokai, I'm looked down by both groups."

"That's horrible, Sana," I said, feeling genuinely sorry for her. She didn't deserve all this mistreatment. "To me, you're just an amazingly friendly and adorable friend. I don't care what class you belong to, so I don't see how anyone can look down on you."

"Aww, thanks, Nayeon... I wish everyone thought that way," she replied, tilting her head. "I'm glad you think of me as a friend... here, you can play with my ears a bit more."

I absentmindedly scratched her ears as we walked a bit more when my eyes landed on another person who had the same ears as Sana.

"Look, another kitsune!" I whispered, pointing at the guy who sat down in front of a stall drinking sake. "Maybe he has information on your father!" 

"You could be right," she whispered back. We both looked at each other and nodded. "Let's go talk to him."

As we approached the man, I could observe his appearance better. He had black hair parted in the middle, and his ears were also of the same color. He had vulpine facial features, much like Sana.

"Do you need anything?" He asked with a smirk upon noticing us, probably realizing we were looking at him.

"We're looking for someone," Sana responded.

"And why do you think I'd know that someone?" The man replied. He seemed friendly, and his smile only faded when he took a sip of his drink."

"Because he's a kitsune, and the last time he was seen was on this town," I replied cautiously. 

"We're looking for Ryoma, the void fox," Sana continued, and I could tell she was far more serious than usual.

"Do you happen to know him?" I added hopefully.

"Ah, Ryoma, huh? He was indeed here a couple months ago... but he left already," the man answered. "Good man. Stayed a while to help out some folks."

"What do you mean?" Sana asked, her eyebrows furrowed. 

"I wasn't close to him, but I heard that he spends his days searching for people who need help," he answered, seeming to analyze Sana and gesturing at her. "Are you related to him? I really see some sort of resemblance. He had red hair just like you."

Sana sighed, looking away. "He's my father," she retorted.

"Huh, really? He never mentioned having a kid," the kitsune replied, leaning back against the stall. "Well, if you're his daughter, then that makes you a friend of mine. People in this village have quite a deep gratitude for him. My name's Hoshi," he added, and when he smiled at us, his eyes folded into half-moons.

"I'm Nayeon, and this is Sana," I said awkwardly after a while since Sana wasn't speaking anything. "Thank you for your help, Hoshi."

"Did he tell you where he went?" Sana asked suddenly. 

"He didn't tell me personally," Hoshi replied, resting his head on top of his hand as he finished his sake. "But I heard whispers he was headed to Fujinomiya."

"That's so far from here," Sana answered apprehensively, and my heart sank with that information.

Hoshi chuckled and nodded, saying, "Yeah, it sure is a long road from here to Fujinomiya."

"Fujinomiya?" I heard Momo's voice behind us. She and Mina had just arrived. 

"Can this information be trusted?" Mina asked suspiciously, narrowing her eyes. 

Hoshi put his hands up in the air, his usual smile still present, "Ouch, is all of this mistrust just because I'm a kitsune? If you don't believe it from me, you can ask the town's priest himself. He's the one who got the information firsthand from Ryoma."

"I think Hoshi can be trusted," I spoke, and his smile grew. "He's been nothing but helpful."

"You're too naive," Mina replied, sighing and closing her eyes. "But you're probably right.... if he was a troublemaker, he wouldn't be allowed here."

"That's right, I'm a good boy," he stated with an eye smile, putting his arms behind his head.

"Seems like we're headed to Fujinomiya then," Momo said, sitting down in one of the stools and raising her arm to ask for a drink. 

"I could use some liquor too," Sana replied, sitting down beside Momo and resting her head on the other girl's shoulder. "Will you two join us?" 

"I don't drink," Mina stated, and her eyes shifted to me.

"Looks like we've got at least one thing in common. I don't drink either," I stated, smiling at the samurai. "Wanna look around the festival together, then?"

Before she could answer, I grabbed her sleeve and dragged her with me, to which she didn't fight back. I looked back and waved, saying, "Thank you for your help, Hoshi!" 

Mina remained silent, not looking at me and, instead, observing the festival decorations. The sun was beginning to set, and the sky was tinted with rich indigo and golden tones. 

"Did you and Momo manage to find anything?" I asked, and finally, Mina glanced at me.

"The most interesting thing that happened was a shopkeeper trying to chase off some wild kitsune trying to steal food from his stall," Mina answered.

I chuckled and replied, "Is that why you were so suspicious of Hoshi? Or are you just suspicious of everyone?" 

"It's wise to not trust strangers so easily," she explained, frowning.

"I remember how you thought I was a foreign spy," I said, smiling as I reminisced how awkward our first meeting was. "Yet, somehow, I knew I could trust you immediately," I added.

"Nayeon," she whispered, her eyes widening a bit at my statement. "You shouldn't put your faith on people so quickly like that."

I bit my lips nervously, looking at her and asking, "Does that mean I shouldn't trust you?"  

Mina's eyes softened, and she smiled at me. "No... you can trust me," she responded. "I wouldn't ever do anything to hurt you, Nayeon."

I wasn't quite sure what to expect, but after hearing her affirming that I could trust, I felt more at ease. Although, even if she said otherwise, I might not have believed her in the first place. 

Perhaps I am naive, just like she said. But if someone doesn't give me a reason to distrust them, I won't do that.

"I know you wouldn't," I said, returning her smile. "I'd be lost without you here, to be honest."

"That's not true," Mina replied, her voice sounding kinder than usual. "You're a clever girl, you'd figure something out."

"I'm still glad I met you, though," I sincerely spoke.

Mina seemed surprised, and said after a while, she suddenly pulled my sleeve, and we both stopped walking. Her action caught me off guard, and I stared at her expectantly. 

"What's wrong?" I asked, frowning in concern.

She hesitantly put a hand inside her pocket and pulled something out. It was rare to see Mina this nervous, and it made me feel the same way, as my chest was hardly palpitating.

"What's that?" I asked, trying to figure out what she was holding and clenching my clothes' fabric.

"I got this for you," Mina answered, revealing a necklace in her hand. It was a necklace with a pendant in the shape of a comma. Her cheeks were red, and I could tell she was struggling. 

My face matched the red color that tinged hers. It was hard to process what was happening. "For...me?" I asked.

"It's not a big deal… but I saw these being sold and thought of getting one for you... so won't forget about your time here when you return home... or me," Mina explained. "I'm sure that ornaments are far more elaborated where you come from. But here, this is the most traditional type of necklace."

I was mesmerized by the sincerity in her eyes and moved closer and closer to Mina until I embraced her for the first time. All I could feel were butterflies in my stomach, as her warmth invaded my body, and she slowly wrapped her arms around me.

"I could never forget about you, Mina," I whispered, hugging her tighter as I pushed back the thoughts of how one day we wouldn't be able to see each other anymore.