Free Yokai by Dave Ferraro

different every time. Each mirror I go
through seems to lead to some strange landscape, almost like
they’ve been placed there to show off the beauty of it.”
    “ Placed there? By
whom?”
    Yumiko pursed her lips. “By its
ruler.” She shook her head. “Anyway, I found that while I can go
through mirrors, the people I bring through can not. I can send a
yokai there, and they can not leave.”
    Shou looked up. “I was wondering how
you killed a yokai. You can’t do it very easily, can
you?”
    “ Not often,” Yumiko
acknowledged. “Most yokai are tied to the spirit world by a totem
of some sort. It can be difficult to unearth them. The Slit-Mouthed
Woman’s may have been the scissors used to cut her face. The Funa
Yurei, the ship that sank with them aboard it. For oni, any mortal
wound to their body will do, as their magic is in their armor and
once it fails them, they have failed as warriors. Destroy the
totem, destroy the yokai.” She licked her lips. “It’s not always
easy to identify the totem, however. Another way to rid the world
of yokai is to perform a proper exorcism, which can also be a
tedious process. I’m good at what I do because I can rid our world
of them in a much simpler, quicker way. I can control mirrors. As
long as I touch a yokai with one, I can send them through it.” She
gestured toward her sword. “Which is why I use my mirror sword for
most battles.”
    Shou stared at her fallen sword for a
moment. “So, what happens to the yokai you leave there?”
    “ I don’t know. I don’t
exactly schedule follow-up visits.” She shrugged. “I assume they
find peace. It really is beautiful there. But either way, they
can’t bother humans any longer. They’re trapped there.”
    Shou looked thoughtful, then cut the
end of the thread, admiring his handiwork. He tilted Tanuki a few
times, then nodded. “He should be fine, at least if he’s as
resilient as other yokai.”
    Yumiko smiled. “Thank you.”
    “ Don’t mention it.” Shou
narrowed his eyes at her. “You can see them, can’t you? You talked
to the tanuki when I couldn’t see him earlier.”
    “ Yes. I can see yokai
everywhere, when others can’t. Another reason I’m good at what I
do.”
    “ That’s quite an
advantage,” Shou said. “What else is different about you? I mean,
how else did you change when you came back?”
    Yumiko hesitated, then lifted a hand
and pressed it against her left breast. “I came back a mirror image
myself.”
    “ What does that
mean?”
    “ I look the same on the
outside, but not on the inside. My organs have switched sides. My
heart is on the wrong side of my body now.”
    “ Wrong side?” Shou frowned,
then his eyes drifted down to her hand over her right breast.
“Everything is symmetrical on the outside,” he said. Then he
reached forward, pushing her hand out of the way, his hand flat
against her chest. She gasped and made to slap his hand away, but
he caught her wrist with his other hand. “You’re right,” he said as
he dropped his hand and looked at her more closely.
    Yumiko was blushing scarlet, and
turned away, covering her chest. “Of course I’m right,” she
snapped.
    “ I just didn’t…” He looked
her over, from head to toe, then ran a hand back through his hair.
“Amazing.”
    “ Well, it’s not amazing
having gone through what I have, Mr. Fujiwara.” She stood tall.
“Thank you for looking after Tanuki. I will consider that payment
for services.” She turned and scooped Tanuki up in her arms,
rushing from the room. “Please return the key to the room on your
way out.”
    Once in the hall, she leaned back
against the wall. She didn’t know why she’d shared all of that with
Shou. Perhaps because she’d been so lonely for so long, it felt
good to let it out. Master Mori and Tanuki were the only ones who
knew the truth about her condition. And now Shou. But it wasn’t
like she was going to see him ever again. She’d just needed to…talk
to someone,