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ELEMENTAL SHADOWS

-by: lira-chan-

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EDITED ON 04/06/04

EDIT: Removed all author's notes and replies to reviews from all chapters, and moved to my personal webspace. To view these things, go to:

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CHAPTER 1 - Of Strange Children and Secluded Shrines

          “Shinta, Shinta,” came a familiar voice, enticing her to rouse from the sleep-haze she was drifting idly through. Shinta moaned in her sleep and mumbled, resisting the urge to rise from her bed and her rest. When silence reigned for a few moments more, Shinta almost dared to hope that Hisaki had given up- then the persistent prodding began again.

          “Shinta, get your scrawny self out of bead this instant!” Hisaki called over the sounds of her own footfalls on wooden planks. “What am I ever going to do with you? You’re so lazy; you’ll never make a proper Guardian.”

          Shinta ignored the insults, despite a voice coming from somewhere in the back of her mind which urged her to ask if she could really become a Guardian. She wanted it so very much . . . But with her eyes pressed tightly closed, Shinta only heard the hinges creak as Hisaki eased the heavy wooden bedroom door open. However, nothing could save her from the blinding light that poured in when Hisaki thrust the shutters open, dazzling Shinta’s eyes behind their lids. Shinta groaned once more, retreating from the morning light by burying her face in her pillow. It was too late; Hisaki was tugging the thin sheets free of Shinta’s grasping hands, yanking the covers away and leaving Shinta’s bare flesh unprotected. Finally, Shinta gave in to the morning, with its bright light, cold air, and Hisaki’s piercing wake-up calls.

          Opening one dark eye, then the other, Shinta turned to glare at Hisaki in protest. Hisaki only laughed. Shinta narrowed her eyes, staring Hisaki down. Hisaki, too, had raven-black hair and dark eyes. They were sisters, after all. But Hisaki’s dark eyes were brown, despite their attempts to seem black. Shinta’s, on the other hand, were a deep crimson, a color like that of her lips, only considerably darker. Strange eyes- for a strange child. At the moment, the eyes were narrowing further as the delicate skin around them crinkled, and Shinta grinned. Hisaki had won their staring contest again.

          “Hisaki?” Shinta asked, as she crawled to the end of her low, narrow bed, dropping agile-y to the floor. “Am I going to become a Guardian? Really become one, not just play at it? A Guardian- like you?”

          Hisaki’s dark eyes darkened further, clouding with emotion. For a moment, Shinta was afraid she had asked the wrong question. Then Hisaki’s expression cleared, and Shinta’s sister spoke.

          “Do you want to become a Guardian?” Hisaki asked, her tone serious, despite that her query seemed to evade her younger sister’s question.

          “Very much so, I do!” Shinta replied immediately, her tone eager.

          “Then you will become a Guardian,” Hisaki said simply.

          “That’s all?” was Shinta’s incredulous reply. “All I’ve gotta do is want it, and I just get it? I thought you said being a Guardian was work.”

          “And it is,” Hisaki continued. “But it isn’t the sort of work for the weak of heard, the unwilling, or the untrained. You, Shinta, are anything but weak of heart, and you’re undergoing training sessions every day. All that’s left is for you to want it- to embrace the responsibility as a thing not necessary, but desired. With these circumstances and in good time, you will make a fine guardian.”

          Shinta beamed, claiming, “I’m glad you think so. But how much time is ‘good time’? I can’t wait forever, you know.”

          “When the time is right, you will know,” Hisaki asserted sagely. “Now, on with it. You still need to finish getting dressed and ready for lessons.”

          “Yes, Hisaki,” Shinta murmured, looking down at the garment of soft cloth she still clutched in both hands. It was a dress of rose-colored cotton, meant to be pulled over the head and woven by a woman from the village at the base of the hill. Shinta and Hisaki’s grandmother’s temple perched stately on the hill, overlooking the village. The little shrine Hisaki and Shinta were currently in, however, was buried more discreetly amid the trees forming a small forest around and atop the hill. The shrine was a very out-of-the-way place.

          As Shinta was musing, Hisaki left the bedroom. In her sister’s absence, Shinta gathered up the rest of her clothing for the day and stumbled off to the outdoor bathhouse. From that moment on, she’d work extra hard in her ‘Guardianship Lessons.’ Now that she knew the whole ordeal was no joke, she’d have to put forth her best effort, and succeed. Shinta would be the best guardian grandmama’s temple had ever seen. Even if she was only eight at the moment.

          “Shinta!” Hisaki was calling again, unaware that her sister could hear her loud and clear. In the bedroom, Shinta sat on her bed, wrapped in a blanket. She shivered, and snuggled further into the thin material, trying to draw comfort from it. However, the comfort she sought simply could not be found. Shinta needed her sister; she had needed Hisaki desperately at eight, and still required her sister’s familiar presence at twelve.

          “Shinta,” came Hisaki’s voice again, only more softly. Shinta’s sister was now just outside the bedroom door. Hinges squealed as the door was pushed open, and Hisaki stepped into the room.

          “Shinta,” Hisaki said one more time, although it was more of a question than the usual questing call. “Didn’t you promise you would wait for me this morning right outside the shrine? I didn’t want to leave without you.”

          “But why do you have to leave?” Shinta asked in protest, sounding more like the child of eight she had been around her arrival at the shine than the young woman she would soon become.

          “I thought I went over this with you,” said Hisaki, a hint of exasperation in her voice despite her efforts to hide it. “I don’t want to leave the shrine; I have to, as part of my Guardianship duties. I’ve just completed a full turn as a Guardian, a whole dozen years, but now I need to embark on my rededication journey. I promised when I became Guardian that despite all my efforts to help others, I would never forget myself. Now, I depart for a year of traveling and self-discovery, in the name of Guardianship. You understand, don’t you Shinta?”

          “Sort of,” Shinta said slowly, reluctant to agree with Hisaki. “Tell me again?”

          “Well,” Hisaki began. “You already know how Guardians dedicate their lives to helping and protecting others. Despite the nobility of the undertaking, it’s still a lot of work. Therefore, even when we don’t feel like we need it, we Guardians take routine breaks from our regular duties, just to keep us sane. For the past four years, I’ve been teaching you about Guardianship. Now’s one of the most important lessons. Learn to let go for a time, and continue your studies on your own. Within the year, I’ll be back, and we can perform your initiation ceremony. After that you’ll be a Guardian for real.”

          Shinta smiled a final, teary smile. “It makes sense,” she admitted. “I’ll miss you still, but I do understand. I promise to keep working hard, even without you. Have a safe trip, okay, Hisaki?”

          “I promise,” Hisaki confirmed. She hugged Shinta tightly, and then released her. Nodding one last time, Hisaki ducked out of the room, and within minutes she was gone. Shinta sighed, but she hadn’t lied. She would get by.

          Warmth. All-encompassing warmth, surrounding and caressing the body with a tender embrace. Seeping into every pore, relaxing every muscle, like a soak in the sun-warmed Akusui Lake on a hot summer day. Arousing heavenly pleasure while also evoking a powerful drowsiness; causing time to slow and stroll by lazily, as one does in the village park when afternoon draws to a close, yet the sun still does not set. But clearly as the dropping of the sun below the horizon, all things must draw to a close and be finished, including the reign of the divine warmth.

          Shinta burrowed deeper into her thin sheets, pulling her warm winter blanket over her head to block out the incoming morning light, even as the same watery rays warmed her cheeks. Moments later, she flung back her bed coverings in defeat, surrendering to the morning. Curling her legs up under her, Shinta surveyed her bedroom with bleary eyes. Finally getting out of bed, she swiftly gathered her clothes and her things for the bath in anticipation of the new day. Thusly prepared, she headed out of the shrine in the direction of the bathhouse.

          Outside, Shinta sighed. When her older sister had been with her at the shrine, she would always wake with the dawn, and by the time Shinta rolled out of bed, her bath would be prepared. With her sister gone, Shinta had to do the work of preparing a bath herself. Luckily, the shrine’s facilities weren’t completely ancient, merely old. She was lucky enough to have pipes drawing the water for her, and even a boiler to heat the water. Shinta merely had to provide wood to fuel the boiler, and to start the pipes in their cycling.

          While she waited, Shinta sat on a bench in the outer chamber of the small bathhouse. As she sat, she thought. She and her sister had always followed the old custom of drawing two baths for themselves, but always the third for the spirit of the bathhouse. Even with her sister gone, Shinta continued to abide by the customs she knew. She only drew one bath for herself daily, but every other day she would draw a second bath for the spirit. Shinta only hoped that the spirit would be getting clean enough that way.

          Other than that, Shinta was beginning to worry a little for her sister. She had left early in the spring the year before, and now winter was drawing to a close. Shinta was sure that her sister’s trip was not supposed to last a full year. But what was she to do about it?

          Shinta sighed, exasperated. It was all too much for a girl to think about, especially that early in the morning. Grabbing her towel yet leaving the rest of her things in the main room, Shinta walked into the bath. By that point, the tub would have to be full and ready. Hanging her towel over a wooden dowel mounted on the wall within the inner chamber, Shinta bent to removing her nightclothes. Fully undressed, she stepped into the warm bath with a murmur of pleasure. She didn’t emerge again for quite some time.

          Later that morning, once Shinta had breakfasted and completed her morning chores, Shinta was lounging outside the shrine. She lay full-length on a wooden outdoor bench, its hard surface softened by several rough cotton cushions. From her vantage point right outside the main portion of the shrine, Shinta could see almost all of the small clearing in which the shrine resided. It really was a peaceful place- secluded in the forest, with only the sounds of the wild creatures going about their daily tasks to disturb a person. It was almost too quiet for Shinta, but she liked it. It had been her home for nearly four of her years, and she was only just beginning the thirteenth year of her life on the first day of spring.

          Still looking out at the clearing and the forest surrounding it, Shinta thought on how she was supposed to be studying in preparation for a time when she would be able to assume the duties of a Guardian. Becoming a Guardian was an important goal of Shinta’s, but she’d been unable to focus on her studies, recently. Maybe it was the absence of her sister- Hisaki had always been a guide, helping Shinta on the path towards a Guardian’s knowledge. Now, without that guidance, Shinta felt lost and alone. What she needed was to find Hisaki. Shinta kept telling herself that a year was too long to be gone, but she really didn’t know. She wanted to look for Hisaki; only she didn’t know where to begin.

          Maybe Shinta should begin to search for her sister. Heaven knew Hisaki couldn’t search for herself. Despite such thoughts, Shinta couldn’t just run off on her own, just like she couldn’t abandon the shrine. Someone had to stay and look after it. And what about their resident bathhouse spirit? What would he do without her?

          Shinta still needed to make up her mind. After a bit more thought, Shinta came to a conclusion. It would be unwise to make such a decision just yet, but if Shinta allowed herself to sleep on the matter . . . Maybe she could come up with a reasonable solution. In any case, Shinta had afternoon chores to attend to, and studying to contend with. She would put the decision off until morning, and then she would make her choice.