Chapter 51: 51. Horror and Elation

Yui—or rather the spirit that possessed her—led Jiro into the bathhouse. The lights were out and there was nobody inside.

Jiro watched nervously as Yui locked the door from within and drew close the window blinds. His tongue tasted like ash. What was this spirit planning? And how was he going to free Yui? Jiro knew firsthand how strong Yui’s body could be when she was possessed. There was little hope of overpowering her.

“Look, Yui. Or whatever you are. Maybe we can talk? I don’t know what grudge you—”

“Come. Follow me.”

Yui padded down the bathhouse corridor. She showed no hesitation in the dark: it was all Jiro could do to extend his arms and follow blindly after her. The spirit took him down a corridor, up several flights of stairs, and out a set of double doors.

They stood in a room Jiro had never seen before. Windows open to the night sky produced enough moonlight for Jiro to see that they were in a changing room. A fogged glass door in the far end connected to what looked like an outdoor bath.

Yui swirled around and met Jiro’s eyes. At least he thought their eyes met: it was difficult to tell because Yui had no pupils. Her hair swirled and snaked around her head, and her heels floated ever so slightly off of the floorboards.

“Undress.”

“What?”

“Take off your clothes.”

“Okay …” Jiro turned away and began to undress. In the darkness it was hard to find his balance. Several times he hit his head against the shelves of the changing room. Behind him, he could hear the rustling of Yui’s clothing. She was changing too.

Maybe now that she’s occupied I can tackle her and hold her down. Plant a kiss on her lips like Kaori did. It’s the best shot that I have.

“I know what you’re thinking Jiro,” said the familiar voice again. “But don’t try it. I’m way too fast for you. And too strong.”

A sudden sound nearly sent Jiro tumbling off of his feet. It was something between an explosion and a roar. Then there was a loud clang. Something skidded across the tiles and bumped into Jiro’s foot. Malformed as it was in the dark, it took a moment for Jiro to identify it: a metal garbage bin. It was crushed in the center to form an hourglass shape.

“I need no weapon to damage this vessel. Try anything funny and I crush her neck.”

“What are we going to do? Why am I naked?”

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“Jiro, Jiro … You were always so clueless. What other reason could there be? We are going to take a bath.”

The fogged glass opened to an open-air terrace set into the bathhouse frame and walled off with bamboo to hide it from outside view. At the center was a stone-lined bath that steamed with hot water. Various exotic plants lined the rim of the bath: their waxy leaves glistened in the yellow light of the moon.

“Wonderful, isn’t it?” said the thing that was not Yui. “The bath was in terrible condition when I discovered it. I went through so much trouble to have it restored. Sneaking in here … weeding, scrubbing, applying fresh coats of paint. Making sure the water temperature was just right. Each time I had to take possession of a different vessel. All that hard work … to prepare the baths for this special moment.”

“Special moment?” whispered Jiro.

“Yes, very special.” Yui’s porcelain-white body glowed in the moonlight. She stepped over the stones and slowly slid herself into the bath. “Ahh … that feels wonderful. Romantic isn’t it? What better place for long-lost lovers to reunite? Come here. Join me. I think you’ll find the water just right. After all, I had it adjusted to fit your preferences …”

Jiro stepped slowly into the bath. Yui was right. The water was just right. It was not scalding hot but rather pleasurably so: the kind of bath you could sit in for hours. But how did this spirit know all of this? And why did her voice sound so familiar?

“Long lost lovers?”

“Jiro, Jiro … Come now. Don’t tell me you do not recognize me?” Yui’s face put on a hurt expression. “It was so much work, you know, activating your latent spiritual powers. So much to arrange. So many people to manipulate, so many strings to pull … I had to bring you here to Japan, to this very bathhouse. I had to make you think you wanted to leave Canada, to come to Japan, to start your life anew. And I had to convince your fool of a grandfather to run off to India with the woman I hired.”

Suddenly Yui’s brow furrowed. “But all those pesky women started to get in my way … ruining my plans, attracting your attention.”

“W-what … What are you talking about?” Jiro’s mouth suddenly felt dry.

“You said it yourself. You felt like life was forcing you along a path not of your choosing. Did you think that was your imagination? Well, it wasn’t. It was me. Guiding you every step of the way. Guiding you towards bliss, toward happiness, toward a new beginning …”

“I … I don’t understand.”

“You really are slow to catch on aren’t you Jiro? It’s me. The girl you killed. The girl we killed. And I’m back. Because I love you. Because I want to start all over again.”

The name came like a fist in his throat. Horror and elation mixed into one.

“Misha … Is that you?”

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