The Other World

Chapter 16 - The One That I Loved

The cherry trees filled the smoking air with their perfume and delicate pink petals. The volcanic ash and the petals drifted to the ground together, covering the undergrowth and muffling Fujisan's footsteps. The ground trembled with emotion, and birds fled from the trees in alarm.

Fujisan placed a hand on a nearby boulder. I'm back, he thought, to calm it. I'm home. He didn't mention that he didn't plan to stay. The mountain was his child, and he was a monster for abandoning it just like so many families had abandoned their children on his slopes. But they had had their reasons. They had their other children to think of. He had Jukai. You do what you need to so your loved ones can live. So he comforted his mountain wordlessly, lying from the bottom of his soul that it would be okay. He would never leave. He would always take care of the mountain.

Aokigahara was lush as she always was at this time of year, despite the ash clinging to the already dark green leaves. Recently, the humans had started putting up signs next to the trail reminding people that life is precious, to try to prevent the suicides. Still, here and there bouquets of flowers were left on the ground next to a marker by a bereaved family member. The small shrine dedicated to Jukai was full of flowers too. Even after all this time, they still believed that she watched over them, the ones that were lost. Didn't they ever think, Fujisan thought angrily, what it would do to her to watch suicides day after day, year after year?

He came to the clearing where the village used to be, where the children Jukai had played with had lived. The village had been deserted long ago, but the ruins remained. The woman Fujisan had loved was buried here, along with her husband and children. He sometimes visited and sat by the grave and talk to her. On this day, he stopped there, to say goodbye, he thought.

To his surprise, there was already someone there: a young man holding some flowers. They stared at each other, both speechless, both scared.

"Who are you?" Fujisan finally growled.

The boy gestured to the grave. "My many times great grandmother lies here," he said.

"This grave?" Fujisan asked. The boy nodded. "But she died over a thousand years ago!"

"You knew her, then?" the boy asked. He said this as if it could possibly be true. Fujisan didn't reply. "There is a tale passed down through my family about her," the boy explained. "It tells of a spirit she knew that lived on this mountain, who watched over her and all of the village children when she was small. They were good friends."

Fujisan glanced down at the grave. The corner of his mouth twitched in nostalgic amusement. So, he thought, you continue to push me to realize things about myself I never would have known, even now when you are gone. If you can talk to me from beyond the grave, where have you been this whole time?

The boy watched this silent exchange with wide eyes. When Fujisan finally looked back up at him, he said, "You must be Fujisan."

"And you are Akari's child," Fujisan said slowly. "What do you want from me?"

"I didn't expect to actually meet you," the boy confessed, setting the flowers down on the grave. "I just came here to pay my respects. From the stories, she seemed like such an amazing person. I hoped to learn more about her by coming here, and I wanted to see if you were real."

"In that respect, you are lucky. I show myself to very few humans now. You caught me by surprise."

"The stories say that you have a sister. Jukai, right? Could I meet her, too?"

Fujisan was silent for a long time, looking at Akari's grave. He stood there so long that the boy started to apologize.

"No," Fujisan said. "Don't be sorry. Yes, yes, come meet her. Akari meant a lot to her, too. She wouldn't want me to keep this to myself."