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To Dream of Darkness

A story by DoggyStyle57

Chapter 45, Written April 2012

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Chapter 45 - The Fushimi Inari shrine

It was not long after the wedding that Jiro's mother, in the traditional way of Japanese households, sought to dominate her daughter in law. The older vixen was constantly finding fault in everything that Kira did, from how she dealt with the servants to her manners at dinner. From what Kira had learned so far in the minds of the Japanese natives that she had invaded, this was normal and accepted behavior in their culture - one of the few ways that a woman could exercise power was to bully and dominate her daughters-in-law, or, as she got older, to take her place as matriarch over her children's families.

Kira allowed the old woman to have her spiteful pleasures for the next three months, demurely and politely accepting the vicious criticisms and promising to do better as her husband's wife, while avoiding confrontations as much as possible. When she had finally had enough, Kira implanted a powerful compulsion in the minds of her parents in law, directing them to spend most of their time with their elder son and his wife, and to stay away from Kira and Jiro. Meanwhile, Kira slowly but surely placed each of Jiro's samurai under her spell, so they would obediently serve her wishes, and not question her actions.

When not performing her duties as Jiro's wife, Kira found she was in many ways almost a prisoner in the city. She was allowed to do as she pleased within the city proper, shopping for the household's needs, or visiting either of the two Inari shrines that were within the city. But to leave the city, even to go to the Yoshiwara pleasure quarter, just outside the city gates, she had to possess a travel permit from the Diamyo or the Shogun. For Kira this was little more than an annoyance. She could teleport past any guards, and could leave Asha in her place if she needed to be away for any extended period without permission. But she didn't bother with that just yet. There was a great deal that she could learn here without ever leaving the city, and she set about gathering as much information as she could.

Kira tried to find more kitsune to talk to, but no matter where she went, she was unable to speak to one privately. She would see one on occasion when shopping in the city, or when she went to the Inari shrines, but they seemed to be actively avoiding her. As soon as she made eye contact with any of them, they would either turn aside and go elsewhere, or would subtly shake their heads and indicate that she should not speak to them. Attempts to contact their minds were met with an impenetrable defense, and were ignored. And at the Shrines, the priests that she met were all just normal foxes. The many-tailed priest that had officiated at her wedding was never there.

She only found two things worth knowing at the Inari shrines in Edo.

The first was that her fire elemental, Asha, did not have to avoid setting foot within the 'consecrated' areas of the Japanese shrines. Looking around the shrines with her sight magically enhanced, in hopes of finding Kitsune to talk to, Kira on occasion saw quite a few supernatural creatures, unseen by the others at the shrine and quite magical in nature. In fact, she saw more of them near shrines than anywhere else. The knowledge she had obtained from natives of this land indicated that these spirits, called yokai, were very similar to what her own culture would call demons, spirits or minor deities. They came and went as they pleased, and with a little persuasion Asha came to the shrines and found that she also could pass freely, and that she could see many of these creatures, and they could see her.

The second valuable bit of information was that Kira had passed within a few miles of the largest Inari shrine in this land on her journey to Edo. It was in Kyoto, and rested at the base of a mountain sacred to Inari. They said that at Fushimi Inari shrine, the paths from the main gate and outer shrine to the inner, more sacred shrine was lined with over one thousand red Torii gates, each donated by faithful devotees of Inari over the thousand years that this shrine had existed there.

Still, this was becoming extremely frustrating to Kira. She could not understand why the kitsune were avoiding her. She had been on her best behavior since arriving in Edo, and had even been helpful to the real Kira and her friends, giving credit for her good deeds to Inari and the kitsune. So why were they shunning her? It made no sense.

Finally, she told Jiro that she wished to go to Fushimi Inari shrine, in Kyoto. "It has been three months since we wed, my husband, and still my belly does not swell with our child, despite our frequent mating. I have prayed at both of the Inari shrines here in Edo, seeking Inari's blessing for fertility for us, but to no avail. Perhaps if I travel to Kyoto, and as an offering pay for the construction of a new Torii gate at Inari's principal shrine, Inari will accept that sign of our devotion and bless us with a child?" she said, though she doubted Inari would, or could, restore fertility to her, when Kira had willingly consigned that ability to Hell. What she actually hoped was that the donation, which she certainly would make, would be seen by the kitsune here - and by Inari, if the deity actually paid any attention to the actions of lesser beings - as a friendly gesture, so she could talk to them at length.

"I believe I can get you a travel permit and give you an escort for that purpose," Jiro replied, already looking forward to spending the nights of his wife's absence in the arms of his favorite Geisha girl. "I know who to speak to. Pick four of my men to accompany you and your maid, and I will get the permit for you."

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A week later, Kira, Keiko and their four samurai escorts arrived in Kyoto, and got rooms in an inn there. The next morning, Kira, Keiko and one of the samurai went to the Shrine. The first thing that Kira noticed there was that as far as she could tell, all of the miko, or shrine maidens, and all of the Shinto priests, were kitsune!

Kira approached one of the shrine maidens. The miko was, to normal eyesight, a red fox girl who was perhaps sixteen, wearing red Hakima pants and a white kimono jacket, and with white ribbons in her hair. But Kira could see that the girl actually had two tails. Kira bowed politely and said, "Excuse me. I need to speak with the senior priest of this temple. Can you assist me?"

The miko looked at Kira and frowned, before replying, "You do? Very well. What shall I tell him, as to the reason for your desire to speak directly with him?"

"My family wishes to make a considerable donation to the shrine. We wish to pay for another torii gate here, and to offer certain prayers for my family," Kira said. "I also have... personal reasons that I need to speak with him. Please? I have come from Edo just for this visit."

The miko looked at Asha and at the Samurai, and said, "They should wait here. If the priest agrees to speak with you, it would be privately."

"I agree," Kira replied, instructing Asha and the samurai to wait for her.

"This way, then," the miko said, as she turned and led Kira past the shrine that was closest to the entrance, and up a long and winding part that was arched over with literally thousands of crimson red Torii gates, packed so close together that it would be difficult to pass between them to leave the path to either side.

"You realize, I hope, that many, many people have done as you propose to do, and asked for a torii gate to be built here? Such donations are usually to thank Inari for the prosperity or other blessings that she has already given to a family or an individual. If you do fund one, it could be on this path or on the other main path, or even on the upper paths by the lesser shrines. It may be hard to even locate the one you sponsor," the miko said. Then she pointed to inscriptions on the back or each arch above them and said, "The donor's names are on each arch, however, so once you are close to the right location, you can see which is yours."

"I don't particularly care if I can find it," Kira said honestly. "As long as Inari knows it is there, as my sincere offering for her favor. And as long as the other kitsune know."

The miko remained silent at that, and at the end of the path led Kira to another, somewhat larger shrine. "This is Myobu Valley Shrine, or the inner shrine. The kitsune who come to seek Inari's guidance usually come to this particular shrine at this place, though there are several others higher up on the mountain that the public use for various types of requests or inspiration. Wait in front of the shrine. Pray to Inari, if that is your wish, and if you know how. I will see if the priest is willing to speak to such a young Nogitsune."

Kira could hear the undisguised contempt in the miko's voice as she called Kira a Nogitsune. She wondered what it was about her that marked her so clearly to them as an outsider, and not one of Inari's Zenko Kitsune. Was that why the others were shunning her? Because they could tell that she wasn't sworn to serve Inari?

The Shinto priest came out of the shrine a few minutes later, and the miko left them and walked back down the hill. Kira realized that she recognized this white-furred fox! He was the same Kitsune that had officiated at her wedding. She tried to count his tails, but they moved constantly and she couldn't tell if there were seven, eight or nine of them. "Thank you for seeing me," she began. "I wish to make a donation, for a torii gate here. How much will that cost me?"

"So I was told. But I know that is not your main reason for seeking me. Tell me, why does a one-tailed Nogitsune wish to make an offering at Inari's temple, of any sort at all?" the priest asked.

"To get the other kitsune to at least listen to me? On my wedding night, I was told by a kitsune in the Shogun's court to seek the kitsune at either of the Inari shrines in Edo. But when I tried to do so, they all avoided me! Please, can you tell me why?" Kira asked.

"Walk with me, and I will answer your questions, if you will answer mine," the priest replied. He led Kira down a path to the side of a peaceful lake nestled like a reflecting pool in the heart of the valley. He stopped on a stone bridge that arched across part of the lake. He looked down at some large fish swimming below the bridge, and commented, "The Koi are beautiful, are they not?"

Kira looked into the still water, and watched the fish swimming, She could see her own reflection and that of the priest as she replied, "Yes. But what do fish have to do with my questions?"

"Nothing. They are merely pleasant to look at," he replied. Then he asked, "Who are you, and where have you come from?"

"I am Murakami Kira, wife of Murakami Jiro, and I come here from Edo, where I now live with my husband. Before I was married, I was called Hamada Kira. My parents live in Nagasaki," Kira replied.

"That is who you say you are now, but it is not who you are," the priest stated simply. "The kitsune in Edo have spoken to me about you, and of course I saw you there myself. You created a bit of a stir when it was recognized at your wedding that you were not a mortal samurai vixen. The Celestial Court would usually have been informed if an actual marriage was planned between a kitsune and a mortal samurai in the Shogun's favor. It is inconsequential for one of us to trick a peasant or a merchant in that way. But we have a delicate agreement with the Shogun, and disruptions to the samurai households that are closely in his favor are not looked upon kindly. After your wedding, the Edo kitsune determined that you are a young nogitsune_who is for some reason impersonating Hamada Kira. The real Kira is devotee of Inari, but she is not a kitsune, nor is she a magic worker. You, on the other hand, appear to be a very young kitsune or a half-kitsune, yet do not serve Inari, and you travel in the company of a fiery yokai, who acts like your servant. That implies that you are also a fairly powerful mage. Now, I will ask you again. Who are you, and why can we find no record of your existence? Even the _Nogitsune will usually record their births with the Celestial Court."

Kira took a deep breath, and said, "Until I was four, and my magical abilities began to manifest, I thought my parents and I were all Humans, like our neighbors. We looked like Humans, and not like foxes or wolves or other furred folk. When I started making magic, my parents showed me that they were both different too, and they started to train me to use my powers. My father was something close to Human. He was from a race of shape changers that called themselves the Feral Folk, who could look Human or could be many types of furred species, at will. My mother said she was a kitsune. So that means I am only half kitsune. But both of my parents died before mother could explain what it meant to be kitsune, or where she was from. She never mentioned any 'Celestial Court'. We were... in a very isolated area, and I was only eight when they died. You have no record of my real identity for that reason."

"I am saddened to hear that you lost your parents," the priest said. "Apparently something kept them from recording your birth before they died. Can you tell me then what your mother's name was, and how many tails she had? Surely you at least know what province and town you were born closest to?"

"In her kitsune form, my mother had three tails. Her fur was red and white, like mine is now, but her hair was auburn - a reddish brown. I never heard her real name. She was simply 'mother' to me as a child. I only recall hearing the nearby settlement referred to as 'the village," Kira replied. "I had a rough time surviving on my own. Our home was burned down by... ronin, I guess. I didn't know who I could trust, for a long time. Survival was more important than understanding my heritage. It took me eleven years to get to where I am now."

"I see," the priest said, though he had frowned on occasion as Kira told him her story. "I am also aware that the real Hamada Kira recently made an offering to Inari in a lesser shrine, far from Edo, thanking Inari for the aid of two three-tailed kitsune... aid that Inari did not send to her. It appears that you told her that you and your yokai companion were three-tailed kitsune, and then you took Kira's place, apparently with her blessing? Why?" the priest asked.

"I needed an identity in this realm, and a position in society that would grant me access to the Inari shrines, where I could learn of kitsune. The real Hamada Kira needed to find a new identity, to get out of an arranged marriage that she did not want, so she could remain with the man she loved. It seemed like a fair exchange to me," Kira said simply. "I was travelling with them and protecting them. At the time I had hoped only to learn from them, and to use their presence as a way to enter Edo and meet someone influential who I might either impersonate or gain the favor of. They stopped at a shrine in Osaka, and were pleading for Inari's intervention. I went with them to talk to the priest and learn more about Inari, and about kitsune. When I heard their prayers to Inari, I let them believe that Inari was answering their prayers, and allowed them to perceive me in a form that they could believe as one of Inari's kitsune. Is that so wrong? I did not cheat them. I did for them as well as Inari or her kitsune could have done."

"Perhaps you did in this case serve Inari's will and act as she would have wished. But you are not in Inari's service, and we have little reason to trust you. You have lied about many things, and I do not yet think you are fully telling me the truth," the priest said. "A peasant would know the names of all the nearby villages. A samurai would at least know their family name, and their own name. But you decline to tell me these things, simple though they are. I do believe you when you say you needed a new identity. Because I believe, from what you have told me, that you are not even from Japan."