Yuri Worlds
[68] Warmth
Being outside towards the afternoon was already Misaki‘s preference as the millennium-old resort started to become unseasonably warm.
Their hosts apologized for the technical troubles and insisted that their patios were far cooler than their rooms or anywhere else in the complex. Misaki spread out, her sweat slowly drying. It didn’t take her long to come to terms with the realities of sweaty underboobs and discover a new pain along her right foot, almost at the last toe. The problem wasn’t the nail that she fussed with previously, but rather an all-new one that she hadn’t even touched. It felt pretty banged up, and her best guess was that, when she was switched off like a light, her vacated body just smashed down on that spot, and whatever else gravity decided to punish.
Icy, water-drenched towels did their part but also brought on renewed drowsiness for each of them. It felt like a desert summer, more typical back home, invaded the mountainside. Maybe they would have to stick around the showers until things finally managed to cool off. Cold refreshments were given freely by every inn worker, along with copious apologies.
This sudden, unexpected afternoon heat wave forced them to revisit the old ways they kept guests cool and relaxed during such unpleasantness. Furthermore, they passed around vouchers for a full compensation weekend at a time of their choosing. That was very nice of them, Misaki thought; however, it was not exactly something she could use considering the question of whether they’d ever be able to return was still up in the air.
Misaki playfully remarked that this meant she would totally have to figure out a way to either extend her stay or come again soon so this free thing wouldn’t go to waste. Yuka teased her in turn, gently needling that the only reason she wanted to come back was for this deal. It wasn’t long before they resorted to a barrage of tickles.
Mercifully, a breeze eventually arrived and stirred waves of cool air over them. They snacked on chill things, and Yuka looked at the little soaking bath outside. It was smaller than a typical Jacuzzi from Misaki‘s perspective but larger than the fire-heated oil drums Yuka knew for makeshift rural bathing. Misaki also had vague memories of things like them appearing in shows that Guy and Dwight watched for fun. Typically, they existed as a point of comedy because several characters crammed themselves into a small one, and naked violence soon resulted.
At some point, though the cause appeared as inconclusive as what brought on the sudden heat, coolness crept back into the cozy spaces of the inn. It may have simply been that they got used to the current level as the breeze teased away the sharpest edges without stripping color or anything else.
They snuggled together without getting so close that spirits jostled about or sticky, lingering sweat made things gross, and resumed watching the next couple of episodes. Eventually, Naoko made a reappearance and regaled them with memories of more science fiction programs than they could ever successfully watch all the trailers for. She admitted that for most of the ones she cited, she had barely even begun. Time was in such short supply when it came to these sorts of things too.
They whiled away the day in as much cool comfort as they could muster. When it came time for supper, with a tint of amber light blending into the horizon, the talk of the group was this proposal to walk around in the dark. As Misaki may have guessed, warnings about picking up unnatural spirits and malicious presences soon vaulted to the top of many concerns.
These sentiments were countered by the younger members of the group, who just wanted to have some fun. They were supported by the staff, who made it clear that well-tended small shrines flanked the deepest parts of the forest, especially towards the summit, and blessings and dispels were often done upon regularly traveled trails to make sure they were safe for all.
This assuaged some worries, especially from the Sasaki moms, but Ayame still bristled with tension and uncertainty. Her eyes avoided Misaki‘s, but with conspicuous effort. Misaki didn’t respond to any of it. She remained polite and friendly, even though she felt a little hurt by Ayame’s aloofness, but endeavored to not take whatever was going on with her personally. Ultimately, the group agreed to several routes for this challenge. A path even milder than the one that Yuka and Misaki took themselves as a pre-breakfast warm-up would suffice for the older women.
Three others branched out from the inn, merged at a point on the side of the mountain, and allowed multiple choices for the route back. The ten of them in five groups were the only specifics not yet decided. It only seemed fair to draw straws for that.
Chika and Haruka wound up together, and Misaki felt a potent desire to advise Chika on things to look for in her partner but still couldn’t quite tease specifics out of the amorphous place in her mind. The combo of Bianka and Namiko promised the possibility of their personalities mixing on the trek, elevating the spirits of each. Misaki took some time to giggle with Nami over dinner and apologize for being otherwise scarce. Her friend had no concerns. She was just playfully glad to see her happy.
Naoko together with Yuka disappointed her, but Misaki understood that those were just the odds. Yuka was grateful to be with someone she felt comfortable with, but her eyes did a puppy-like pleading in Misaki’s direction.
Maharu and Kosame were a combination Misaki hadn’t really seen together before. Considering their recent gloomy dispositions, she hoped neither would rain on the other. And that meant she was left with Yasha, who had no updates about her efforts to contact the company and no opinion about this whole challenge thing or who she was paired up with. She hoped it all would be fine, but she didn’t have particularly high hopes. At best, she figured they’d trade perfunctory interactions and get it over with quickly. The courage would have to be hers to strive for an enjoyable time with this companion.
She briefly probed the possibility of whether anyone wanted to trade partners, but she was the only one aside from Yuka. She worried about being too blatant with that sentiment, but it was clear that Yasha really didn’t care. The reward for making it back included an extra scoop of ice cream in addition to what was served at dinner.
Some of them hurried off as though this were a race. Misaki and Yasha left the comfortable, slowly cooling confines of the inn for the close uncertainty of the forest. The trees trapped some significant measure of the residual heat as the sun slipped over the high, jagged horizon. Assaulting moisture wrapped around her like an invisible, stifling blanket. Her toe still seemed sensitive when stuck inside her shoes.
Without prelude or proper framing for her statement, Yasha announced to her, “I’ll be cutting my trip a week short. I’ll leave the rest of this time to you and your friends. I suspect that works out for the best.”
Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.
Her words struck so suddenly that Misaki stumbled through comprehending them as more unfolded before her. Cutting the trip short really required no explanation, as Yasha cited the wristband chaos from earlier. She made it clear that she would be taking all of their concerns and complaints to the highest authority she could possibly acquire access to within the company. CEO, head of PR, travel coordinator, and scientific advisor. She assured Misaki that she was well enough connected, with so much money sunk into her travels, that her complaints were sure to have an effect.
A mellow sense of shock pervaded Misaki‘s senses as she continued to process what she was hearing. She also had no idea what to do with the inscrutable, harsh woman’s pleasant expression. It didn’t reach as far as a smile and felt more like witnessing the mechanical efforts of a stern teacher trying on different expressions, but it strangely comforted Misaki against the swelling, no longer sweltering, darkness of the evening.
Misaki managed to withhold her questions until Yasha inquired first about how she was feeling about everything that had happened lately. That unprompted show of concern left her flummoxed about what details to focus on and what was inappropriate. She ultimately opted for a vague reflection on running into strange spiritual things with the nurse lady, feeling out of body when she passed out yesterday, and enjoying relief to be free of the wristbands.
For a lingering spell, Yasha rubbed her cheek and looked like she had something critical on her mind she wanted to share. She grunted softly but held her tongue. They did discuss Ayame later, but without specifics. Yasha expressed relief that they hadn’t gotten tangled up in anything else, and it was apparently her turn to consider but withhold her thoughts. No matter how much she might’ve missed, Misaki knew that others had missed plenty too. She could’ve shared all the details between them, but listening offered the prospect of gleaning hints of what Yasha wanted to keep to herself.
The forest shifted sharply with shadows and the curtain of darkness. It wasn’t a complete transformation, as she still recognized the close and vast spaces from this morning, along with all their unknown corridors and cheerful crannies. The lack of light gave the impression of spookiness lurking beyond what could be seen. Enough to play with her imagination and tease her confidence. Subtle sounds also had their own nervous mysteries. The breadth of her familiarity with wilderness at night was relegated to the light-sprinkled expanse of a desert void clinging to the cusp of a distant park or familiar landmarks with friendly spaces beyond. Every little noise crept with uncertain freshness. A rustle could belong to a simple hare rolling in the underbrush or a vengeful bear who wanted to eat their faces off.
Some sounds spurred their curiosity, while others drove them to attentive silence. They didn’t get too close but walked together until they arrived at the end of the trail. It was easy to tell that they weren’t the first ones there, as the little ribbons placed by the staff as proof they made it all the way were depleted but not yet down to the final pair. Maharu and Kosame arrived soon after, and Maharu launched herself with full hugging force at both of them. Yasha ruffled the blue-haired girl’s locks with a few fingers and reminded her that she had a new set of handmade ropes that needed to be played with before bedtime.
Maharu answered with a wink and a nod, as though this were actually some coded reference that no one else understood and not literally just rope. Misaki couldn’t prevent her mind from going certain places that her friends would’ve also made quips about.
But the moment and the participants just felt wrong as she judged and scolded her imagination. She could see and feel nothing between them that it was anything but a genuine game. She also thought Yasha looked like she wanted to pass along to Maharu that she had less than a day left to her trip. But the girl composed herself with a stiff, tightened lower lip and flashed a glance of renewed harshness in Misaki‘s direction.
Don’t you dare tell her yet, was the clear communication. Misaki complied, even though she knew it would’ve been better if Maharu knew what disappointment was looming in the future. She’d lost so much unexpectedly. She deserved to know and prepare herself. But that wasn’t Misaki‘s responsibility.
Despite the clear rules of the test of courage, most of that was thrown out as the four of them basically played together, with Kosame waxing romantically about her day as Maharu burst ahead and orbited back in bold circles. She flung herself at every questionable patch of darkness as though she were confident that exuberance and energy were all that was required to make friends with whatever monsters lurked beyond, and if that didn’t work, she could probably punch them well enough to make them regret being mean.
It wasn’t anything like the tests of courage that Misaki knew from what pop cultural fragments she acquired, but she enjoyed the experience all the same. Except for one vital aspect. Yuka. If only she could’ve had her for this last real trek. Even Chika or Namiko would’ve made it so memorable. Her mind sparkled with untapped possibilities, along with passing silly references woven between scary movies watched with Chika that she girlishly hid from. That never happened, despite her imagination detailing so many clear specifics of what could’ve occurred.
She and Yasha didn’t exchange more than a cursory glance when they returned to the inn and slipped through the excited mass of their fellow vacationers. No one saw anything that escaped normal explanation, but they all had plenty of stories to tell about cracking branches and the faintest, whispering footsteps that had to be something beyond their reckoning.
One last snack was required, along with one last soothing soak. Then there was to be one last chat with certain girls. One last viewing of the show so strange yet familiar to Misaki. One last cozying up as the night enveloped them. One last reminder that they had to get up early to grab their train, hurry back, and then hurry to make sure everyone was ready for the looming festival. Maharu’s energy dwindled to nervous chagrin at every mention. So, she attempted one last card game with her partners promising they would go easy on her. But it was still never in doubt that she would finish in last place. She gave one last sigh of resignation that this was the way things were going to be, along with a last recovery, promising she wasn’t quite going to give up yet.
One last spell of goofiness between the antsy group as tiredness danced its own way, like a spirit that existed independently from any of them, and lulled them all into her comforting grasp. One last sleep in this old, special place where so many shocking and terrible things happened, but also things great and marvelous.
This was done, and whatever came next would soon be on its way.