The night wind in the corridor gradually turned cool.
Kikyo sat beside Chiyo.
She held that charm in her hand, her fingertips rubbing again and again over the faded golden patterns on the cloth pouch.
She had many questions.
So many that when she had seen him in the open space just now, all of them had jammed in her throat, and she couldn't force out a single word.
Only after Kikyo made herself calm down did she speak.
"Chiyo."
"Mm."
"You inject new Spiritual Power into this charm every year?"
"Mm."
"Once a year?"
"Mm."
Kikyo's voice was very calm, but her fingers tightened around the charm.
"No wonder every time I use it, there's Spiritual Power..."
Chiyo did not look at her. His gaze fell on the cherry tree in the courtyard, as if he were looking at the tree, and also as if he were looking somewhere farther away.
"If I promised something, I have to do it."
Kikyo fell silent for a while.
"Then you promised me other things, too."
Chiyo turned his head to look at her.
Kikyo did not avoid his gaze.
"You said that if one day I ran into something I couldn't solve, I should hold it tight. It would help me."
"You did."
"When you said that, your tone was very serious."
"I thought you weren't only talking about the charm."
Chiyo did not speak.
Kikyo looked into his eyes. Those scarlet eyes seemed very gentle in the lantern light, without the sharpness that had made people afraid to look directly at them when they first met at the Shrine all those years ago.
"Did you also promise other things that even you don't remember?"
"Perhaps."
Kikyo lowered her head and tied the charm back at her waist.
She did not