Psycho Pass: All Alone With You

The Geisha and the Hound, Pt. 2

Takizawa drove for nearly an hour on the main highway and then took an interchange to the outskirts of the city.  There was the one exit, which led to the base of a mountain shrine in the foothills of a popular park.  Though the cityscape of modern skyscrapers and raised highways was prominent on the horizon, it was possible to turn away and forget the troubles of urban life and urban sprawl by gazing up at the serenity of the rugged hills and uneven rocky slopes.

    "See something interesting?" Kogami asked.  While Takizawa was speaking to a representative from the geisha school, he had followed Akane to the base of a stone stairway leading up to the shrine.

    "When Inspector Takizawa said that there were 1,000 steps, I thought he was being metaphorical."  She stared down at her feet.  "Wearing a kimono with a weighted hem is one thing, but these wooden sandals?"  She looked up at him with dread.  "If I'm going to break my neck, I'd rather do it chasing a criminal, not tripping over my own feet."

    Kogami chuckled, hiding his reaction by stretching his arms over his head.  Careful of the elaborate bow at the small of her back, he gently picked her up in his arms.  "No need to break your neck, Inspector, not when you have an Enforcer to do it for you."  He hesitated on the first step.  "Wait a minute, that didn't exactly come out right."

    "No, it didn't, but I know what you mean."  Akane glanced over his shoulder to her fellow Inspector, who was still negotiating their entrance.  "Shouldn't we wait for Mr. Takizawa?"

    "Something tells me he'll catch up.  Nothing wrong with a head start."

    At the top of the mountain, sweat glistening on his brow, Kogami took the final few steps to the gate of the shrine and set her down.  Though winded from the long climb and from carrying Akane all the way, he controlled his breathing in an attempt to appear unfazed by his exertions.  He was fit and athletic, but the near vertical slope of the steps were a challenge, even he had to admit.

    "Take a moment to catch your breath, Mr. Kogami.  That was certainly an appropriate gesture for the god of war," Takizawa said.  He had respectfully trailed them on the stairway, while he observed Kogami the entire climb.  "The warrior priests here seem to appreciate your efforts as do the other shrine goers.  Let us pray that Futsunushi, the Kami of this shrine is watching, too."  Straightening Akane's kimono, he nodded inconspicuously to the crowd gathered just inside the gate.  "The proper thing to do before entering the gate is to bow and then to walk in on the righthand side."

    Kogami bowed his head slightly as the Inspectors bowed deeply at the shrine entrance.  Following Takizawa's lead, he walked through the gate on the right side and then removed his shoes, unprompted, placing them in a wooden cupboard provided for shrine visitors.  Unsettled by the attention, he kept an eye on the warrior priests who remained, even after the crowd had dispersed.

    "Ever watchful," Takizawa remarked, smiling at Kogami's vigilance. 

    "As a good hound should be," Kogami replied.

    "We are quite safe here.  This is the shrine of Futsunushi no Mikoto, the god of archery and war."

    "Is that why the priests are carrying swords?"

    "In accordance with the deity, it is expected.  Each of them is an accomplished swordsman.  Otherwise, they would not be permitted to carry the weapon or even appear in public without it."

    Akane clasped her hands together in excitement.  "Inspector Takizawa, this is like being on an educational field trip; only I'm learning more than I ever imagined."

    "Come, I've arranged for our privacy," Takizawa said.  "The gentleman I was speaking to earlier was Mr. Akagi, the teamaster's son.  We can wait in the garden until our appointed time.  The shrine is about to close to the public for the evening, but we will be permitted to stay."