Assumptions resulted in misunderstandings. Understanding resulted in trust.

Sorah, Qawasumi, and I walked in one row as the two of us supported Sorah. My leg was pretty banged up as well, but I managed with a slight limp. I didn’t want to go into details of what actually happened when the arrow went into my left foot. At first, we attempted to rush to the nearest hospital. Given the circumstances the best one to go to would be one where foreign tourists would be accepted as a norm; I lived in Toshima, so Sekino Hospital could suffice.

We helped Sorah walk the crosswalks and let passing people go ahead in the sidewalk. However what deterred our attention the most, was Qawasumi and Sorah looking around with vast curiosity. People in suits and ties walked past us, as cars zoomed down the local roads for rush hour. Plants hung from balconies and scarce trees lifted their branches high for the new light of day. Concrete buildings towered over us like mighty stone sculptures guarding office workers, as cafés blinked their opening neon signs open.

“Buildings of glass…” Sorah held out his hand as his eyes sparkled in wonder. “In your world this is just a normal building?”

“In big cities like Tokyo, it is.”

“...” Qawasumi rapidly shook her head. “There’s no time to gawk. Mister Kaizenji, lead us the way.”

Blue skies and fluffy clouds periodically blanketed the sun. Rays flashed like a camera lens, as the nearby children in school uniforms skipped along to the twinkling lights of the train crossing.

“It’s okay, Ruri, I got time.” Sorah took a deep breath eyes closed, before exhaling with a beautiful smile on his face while his eyes slowly opened to the lifting of his head. “The view… isn’t so bad.”

Now that I observed all these little things about the city I’d lived in, I guess it had pretty amazing vistas. Qawasumi and I slowed our pace as Sorah looked around happily. Soon enough, Qawasumi began to let out a smile as well.

Young adolescents that passed by shot glances at us. Some people snapped a quick photo or two with their smartphone, and I overheard the whispers of people asking, ‘cosplayers?’. The older adults heading to work paid no heed to us and overtook our slow strides.

As we sauntered we passed a police box. The officers there stood up from their desks and ran outside, trailing behind our backs. Qawasumi tensed up her grip, until I let her know what was going on.

“You three, are you in need of help?” One of the officers asked with a worried look at Sorah and I’s limp.

I spoke up, “Yes, sir. My friend and I need to find a hospital. Preferably Sekino Hospital.”

The officer gasped as he turned towards his other coworker. They both nodded and agreed to take us straight there. Sorah and Qawasumi were reluctant at first, referring to the police cars as ‘steel wagons’ and ‘intimidating oxcart’. But I pushed them first to fill the right and middle seats, as I took the left one. The two of them flinched at the start of the car’s ignition, before it began driving.

The two cops sat in the front, as one of them glanced into the rearview mirror. “So, where are your friends from?”

“France.” I lied as fast as I breathed. I figured it was believable enough.

“France, huh?” He laughed as he leaned his arm against the door. “Now that I’ve met some French for the first time in my life, the myth isn’t a lie. You have some pretty friends.”

“Th… Thanks?...”

“Mister Kaizenji, what did he say?”

“He said you guys were good-looking.”

“The nerve—”

Sorah bonked Qawasumi on the head, and turned to the cops. “Hello. My name… Pierre Reynaud.”

“‘Pierre Reynaud’? That’s a good name.” The other cop handling the wheel commented, “Your Japanese is very good.”

Ouch… Sorah got jouzu’d.

The two outlanders stared outside the car window as everything seemed to fly past them in a fleeting image. SUVs and trucks whirred by endlessly, the traffic lights working diligently as the automated crossing guard. Crowds of people funneled into sidewalks like schools of fish, a mixture of students and salarymen alike. Just staring at suits made me remember my last failed interview months before.

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The kind police officers dropped us off at the hospital’s façade. The humble building occupied merely the size of a small block with three floors. We thanked the cops with words and a bow, before making our way across the smooth tiles. And… The problem of Sorah and Qawasumi trying to comprehend a sliding glass door.

Reception into Sekino Hospital was a success, and they examined me and Sorah’s injuries. The only difficult part was explaining my way out of how we obtained such damages to our bodies. The staff and emergency physicians were responsive and thorough; We received actual medical treatment and wished us on our way when we requested to. Although I still had to cough up the bill. Good thing I withdrew money prior.

“Now what?” said Qawasumi, who sat on a yellow pole barrier. She stared at the afternoon colors of the sky and shut her eyes, while her hair swayed to a lone gale. Sorah stood with one crutch, his entire side of his abdomen wrapped in bandage.

“We’ll visit a convenience store, then we’ll take a train.” I was a step ahead already, formulating a plan since we left the apartment. “There’s no sign of the door back to your guys’ world. Even if we open every door in Tokyo.”

“So that means we’re stuck here until it reopens again.” Sorah paraphrased and walked towards the end of the sidewalk. “‘Convenience store’... ‘Train’... There are a lot of things that we don’t know about. A lot of things we could learn from. Mister Kaizenji, please guide us.”

I finally realized that since returning back to my original world, the roles with Sorah and Qawasumi reversed. When I first arrived in their world, they were the ones that guided me, taught me, and helped me in the town of Itogutshi. And now they arrived in my world, and it was my turn to guide them. What a play of fates. And so I laughed at that predicament of reciprocals, before turning to face them. It was my responsibility this time.

I’d thought about it. I didn’t know where this path would lead. But on this peculiar road with Sorah and Qawasumi, there was no better time to do it now. Something I wanted to prove to myself, something that I wanted to work towards with all my heart, that had been conflicting in me this entire time.

“It’s going to be a long commute, but is it okay that we’re going to my dad’s hometown?”

Everything would be okay.

Before setting off, we went to the convenience store and bought some supplies for the trip. It would cost the entire day, so I made sure to buy a map and withdrew the last of my savings from my bank account. Sorah wished to purchase a few snacks unbeknownst to him, so I also broke open my wallet for that. Qawasumi kept on gandering at the sakura mochis on a shelf, pacing back and forth. Despite her protest, I sighed and bought the mochi as well.

Soon we walked to Kanamecho Station, paying for the two’s train pass and handling the Suica cards. They were getting the hang of it, and I could tell by Qawasumi’s confident strides with her sack bouncing behind her.

Waiting at the platform, Sorah and Qawasumi arched back in fright as the train slid onto the tracks, and the gates opened. They still hesitated to cross into the train, and I had to pull them before the doors closed.

The scenic view was even more fleeting than the car. Buildings flew by in seconds as they witnessed the view of Tokyo Proper, the Tokyo Tower reaching for the clouds as the sun began to rest in the horizon. Lights of rainbow filled the skyline with neon while billboards switching on. Each building competed to show off their glamour, with each lightshow more flashy than the next.

“Hey Kawari?”

My shoulders perked up to my given name. I didn’t want to believe the person that addressed me, but sure enough I had to. “Yes, Miss Qawasumi?”

“I’m sorry about what happened with your mom.” She did not make eye contact as her posture was erect, her body already used to the sway of the train and the frequent station stops. “If I may ask… What was your mom like?”

I exhaled, understanding the seriousness of the question. She really wanted to know. “My mom had my expectations for me in life, and I had mine. I tried hard to live up to them only to fall short. But my parents supported me all the way through,” I uttered and placed my hand over my chest. “They gave me an education and instilled in me their values. Good or bad, I wish to understand. Even if my mom hasn’t changed a bit, I want to.”

“I… I see… Expectations, huh,” Qawasumi repeated and cleared her throat. “There’s more to your mom than it looks. There’s reasons why she acts bitter, how she ended up that way… ‘wish to understand’... Maybe, I should do the same about my m—”

“Naka-Meguro. Naka-Meguro Station,” the intercom interrupted her, and Qawasumi never finished the last part.

It took two hours to reach Odawara Station. We’d stopped at stations like Ikebukuro, Shibuya, and Shinjuku, which had given Sorah and Qawasumi a decent amount of the cityscape. By the time the train stopped, we eagerly hopped off and exited the platform. From the station, the sky darkened some time ago and the moon hung low. Crowds flooded from the station’s entrance as company buildings kept their lights illuminated. The humid weather of Tokyo now became cooler as the sweat evaporated from my neck. I checked the map; Since the trains didn’t run down that far south, taking the bus was necessary.

Bugs droned into the night. The bus ride was smooth and calm, mostly straight road with little bumps or turns. No other passengers rode with us. Skyscrapers were replaced by mountains and trees that dominated the pitch-black heights, every once in a while the road became bright from a lone store. Sorah and Qawasumi sat together on the left, while I opted to sit on the right side. Even from across the row, I saw her as the only one with the curtains open, staring idly out the window at the farmlands. The silence was broken only by a passing car or motorcycle, their lights eventually disappearing into the road ahead.

Dim lights of the bus’ interior created a warm ambience. Darkness comforted me in my first nap in ages. The scent of the bus became quite nostalgic, redolent of the last time I visited my father decades ago.

Until finally, we arrived. The small town of Hakone.

As the vehicle came to a gentle halt the doors opened, releasing a rush of cool air tinged with the scent of the earth. Sorah and Qawasumi stepped out, their eyes widening at the sight of the quiet, picturesque town nestled amidst the lush greenery and rolling hills.

We strolled along a narrow street lined with traditional wooden houses and charming little shops. Lanterns illuminated the path, casting a soft glow over the cobblestones. The sound of a nearby river formed a sense of tranquility that washed over us like a soothing balm.

The stars twinkled above, their brilliance heightened by the absence of city lights. Sorah craned his neck, his eyes filled with wonder, as he pointed at the sparkling night sky. “This is familiar. It’s… like back home in Itogutshi.”

This was my father’s town, Hakone.