Fire Ceremony II: The Bonfire

"That's fine. You are here now, Misa-chan!" Shouichi said, snuggling her warmly. Her candy-like, sweet body odour was delightful. It was one of the best feelings Shouichi had ever encountered in his ordinary life.

Shouichi was still uncertain how he managed to make Ishikawa Misaki, a literal ten, become his girlfriend at all. The way Misaki and Shouichi effortlessly clicked and became a loving couple, was too good to be true, wasn't it? The thought alone terrified him at night.

"...Okay, lovebirds…" Shinji let out a big envious sneer, while Emi giggled at his oddly-contorted facial features.

"Shou-senpai, did you change your perfume?" Misaki asked nonchalantly, sniffing at his neck and then the fabric of his yukata.

"Eh? N~Nope…" Shouichi answered, his face poker, but his eyes parted with her suspicious eyes. 

"Really... that's odd... I thought I smelled a faint vanilla aroma... " The girlfriend grumbled under her breath, her eyes glancing downward with her thoughts pondering, "Did you work at Yamamoto-san's stall today?" Misaki probed, finding the root cause of the aroma.

"Oh! Yeah!" Shouichi burst, playing along with her idea, "I was in the shop for a while, I guess. Hahaha." His twitching smile was insincere followed by a dry laughter.

But in reality, "It must have been from Ayane's scent earlier when we were doing the deed... Yikes! " Shouichi got a quick unsightly flashback, swallowing a big gulp of saliva, composing himself.

"Man, I'm super jealous right now." The tall and thin friend, Hinoda, spoke to Naggi, his tone nothing but pure jealousy, "Must be noice (nice)!" He said fluently in sarcasm.

"Couldn't help it, brother. We both got 'L rizz'," The muscular boy with curly hair, Naggi, cheered up his brooding tall friend, wearing an understanding smile.

After a while, the bell chimed loudly from the main shrine, Misaki reflexively looked at the time on a silver watch on her wrist. 

"Senpai! The Fire Ceremony is about to start! Do you hear the bell ringing?" Misaki urged, her fingers finding his hand, and soon they were intertwined firmly. Her dark obsidian eyes glittered with a pinkish hue under the light of the festival lanterns. As her small hand gently tugged him, Shouichi felt as though they were a real couple, the kind destined to be together for the rest of their lives. A warm sensation filled his heart like never before. With every beat of his heart and every breath he took, he was constantly reminded of Misaki.

"Y~Yeah? I think I heard it," Shouichi eventually replied, straining his ears. The large bells echoed through the chattering crowds.

"Are they starting soon?" Kazumi excitedly turned to ask her big boyfriend, Ito Toru. 

"Yeah! I think so, we should move to the front." Toru answered, flat in his tone. 

***

The group slowly made their way toward the direction of the goddess's statue, flowing with the moving crowd. A maiden wearing a strange mask danced around, performing a ritual while holding a large torch. Under the moonlit night, the long pole with a fiery tip created the illusion of a floating fireball, rising and falling as she twirled and moved in sync with the background music.

People were watching it with awe, grasping as the torch maiden performed an incredible stunt, backflipping while holding the torch. 

It was fierce, bold, yet beautiful like a fiery phoenix soaring through the night sky, illuminating everything in its path.

"Wow…" Shouichi gasped in astonishment. He was one of the crowd being captivated by the electrifying performance.

"Hehe, it's really amazing," Misaki murmured softly, though her gaze was not on the show at all. Her large eyes, brimming with affection, traced every feature of Shouichi's face like she wanted his image to etch to her retinas for eternity. Anyone could tell instantly that she was beyond admiration — she was deeply, madly in love with her boyfriend.

"Eh? Misa-chan," Shouichi asked, looking at her questioningly. "Did my face have something on it?"

"Nope. I just love you so so much!" Misaki confessed, bold and forward, complimenting with her sweetest smile. As a free spirit, she always chose to stay true to herself and her feelings.

"Hahaha…" Shouichi couldn't contain his joy, overflowing through his complexion, "I love you, too." He replied, returning the same sentiment. His hands pulled her closer, her delicate frame pressing against his chest. He then brushed her beautiful, glassy hair gently. In response, Misaki smiled and purred contently like a little kitten.

***

After a while, four masked monks began lighting the pile of wooden logs in each direction of the statue. It took them a few attempts before the flames finally caught. The crowd watched eagerly as the fire spread rapidly, growing larger and larger. The heat was so intense that even from ten meters away, they could feel it radiating on their skin.

"Good evening, Ishikawa-san!" Suddenly a familiar voice came from beside Misaki, Misaki turned to find a jet-black-haired girl walking toward her. Her striking purple eyes expressed a strange friendliness toward Misaki. 

"Huh? Good evening, Morimura-senpai," Misaki's voice trailed off, uncertain how to react. Their recent dispute still tainted her mind. Soon the junior decided to respectively bow her head to her senior, Morimura Ayane. 

"There you are, Ayane-chan!"

"Morimura-senpai!" Shinji and Emi greeted her with a gentle smile while poking their faces to welcome her. They were standing on the left side of Shouichi. Ayane simply smiled and waved back in response.

"May I watch the Fire Ceremony with you guys?" Ayane asked impressionlessly. Misaki's hesitant eyes darted at Shouichi for advice.

Shouichi encouraged his girlfriend with a quick nod and soft smile.

"Yes, please join us, Morimura-san!" Misaki eventually answered and the tension in the air lifted slightly. 

Ayane did not speak, she simply nodded. Soon her gaze shifted toward the main attraction. 

"I guess, that's fine? I was worried for a little bit there." Shouichi thought, feeling a sweat trickling down his face. 

The fire erupted into a raging inferno, like an amber wall of flame burning brightly around the statue, giving the illusion of the goddess surrounded by a fiery aura. It was a breathtaking and magnificent display. The crowd fell silent, gasping in pure astonishment.

"Shouichi-kun, Misaki-chan, do you guys know what the Fire Ceremony is for?" Ayane spoke up after a while, quizzing them like a reality show. 

"I have no idea, I've been wondering that too actually," Shouichi replied cluelessly and shrugged.

"I've heard it symbolises the rebirth of Amaterasu Omikami, the goddess of the sun... Is that right?" Misaki said, surprising Shouichi with how knowledgeable she was. But then it dawned on him — Misaki was also a big movie geek, with a vast knowledge of films, especially in the horror genre.

"10 points for Ishikawa-san!" Ayane proclaimed theatrically, pointing at Misaki, "Zero points for Shouichi-kun..." Her voice shifted to a sneer at Shouichi as Ayane gestured a zero with her fingers.

"Yay!" Misaki exclaimed with joy, clapping her hands gleefully.

"This Fire Ceremony is a worship ritual, dedicated to the sun goddess, demonstrating a fraction of Amaterasu Omikami's radiant power," Ayane explained, lifting her finger as she spoke.

"What a huge nerd, Pffp!" Shouichi thought, containing his laughter internally. 

"I'm smart, right? Shou-senpai?" Misaki asked cutely, brushing her shoulders on his firm chest.

"Hahaha, of course, you are!" Shouichi involuntarily petted her like a cat.

After a moment, Shouichi voiced his speculation, "The statue looks very ancient, though?" 

"Nice observation, Shouichi-kun! It's said that the statue existed long before Kurohashi town was founded," Ayane replied. Misaki, unusually attentive, listened closely to her explanation aka 'Yapping session'.

"Wow, that's crazy..." Shouichi exclaimed, intrigued.

"Right? Senpai! I didn't know that before," Misaki agreed, nodding her head repeatedly.

"You're really knowledgeable, both in and out of the classroom, Morimura-senpai... You're a genius, just like they claimed!" Misaki said, her tone sincere.

"Hahaha!" The girls chuckled aloud, and it seemed as though they had never been foes to begin with. The mood lightened, and the tension dissolved from the air around them.

For a long while, Ayane appeared to be fidgeting with her braided hair, her mouth opened and closed, although no words escaped those lips. 

Eventually, Ayane spoke up, "Ishikawa-san… I'd like to apologise for that day. It was insensitive and horrible of me, especially considering your past." Ayane bowed deeply, her gesture a clear sign of a sincere apology.

"Eh? Morumura-san?" Misaki gasped, baffled by the sudden turn of events, cupping her mouth. 

"I've reflected on my actions and I've truly regretted them ever since. I'm genuinely sorry, Ishikawa-san," Ayane repeated, her voice filled with empathy.

"Morimura-san, I'm sorry too! It's~ it's my fault, I should have explained it better, but I was totally out of line, I wasn't thinking straight then," Misaki stammered, her words rushing out as she bowed her head in return, pleading for Ayane's forgiveness. They both apologised to one another thinking they were at fault. 

"Huh? Thank you so much, Ishikawa-san," Ayane replied, her voice softening. It was the last thing she would expect from Misaki so Ayane accepted her sincere apology right away.

"I know you were just trying to protect Shou-senpai, I believe it was never ill-intentioned," Misaki reasoned.

"I guess you guys just got off on the wrong foot. I'm glad we can put that behind us now," Shouichi chimed in, never imagining that the two girls could speak so casually after that day.

"May I hug you, Morimura-san?" Misaki asked gently, fluttering. 

"Right away," Ayane responded, extending her delicate arms to embrace the junior. They held the hug for a good minute before letting go. "How did this turn into a Yuri episode?" Shouichi's lewd thought crept up on him.

"I'm really happy... Actually, do you know you were my idol, Morimura-san?" Misaki asked, sincere in her dark obsidian pupils.

"Huh? What do you mean?" Ayane asked, tilting her head to the side in puzzlement.

"Well, you're really smart, elegant, beautiful. On top of that, you are the coolest girl at our school... I wish I could be like you sometimes, but my brain wouldn't allow it," Misaki explained, her gaze drifting to the flickering wall of flames.

"Ayane is the coolest girl in the school? Did I go to the wrong school or something?" Shouichi disagreed inwardly.

"Hahaha, I'm not that good, you know!" Ayane said flatteringly, waving Misaki off, "Although part of them might be true," She soon added, directing at Shouichi with her conceited eyes.

"Also, people say you are the Sahara Yukiko of Seihei! That's what the junior called you!" Misaki told her a secret and giggled, "Fufufu!"

"I didn't know that before... Until recently..." Ayane answered Misaki but her eyes always stayed with Shouichi.

"By the way, Morimura-senpai, you smell really nice. Is it a vanilla-based fragrance? What brand is it?" Misaki asked switching a subject out of a sudden. 

"Aha, good nose, Misaki-chan! It's my favourite perfume from Dioru, do you like it?" Ayane replied softly, pulling out her inner wrist and letting Misaki sniff it one more time. The girl nodded cheerfully.

"...That's oddly coincidental because I also smelled a faint vanilla aroma like this on Shouichi-senpai," Misaki said to Ayane, although her tone seemed natural, she gave Shouichi a quick, strange glare. It was an empty void, yet it carried a sinister undertone, as though it were the unending abyss of hell itself. Fear crept and nested inside his chest until it felt like an explosion from within.

"Holy moly, did I get caught? Did Misaki figure it out already? I could still say I work in the shop with Ayane, right? That could be a solid cover!" Shouichi racked his brain, his thoughts racing in panic while Ayane remained completely, blissfully clueless.

"As they say, ignorance is bliss."

"Idiot! Don't forget the lover pond!" Shouichi motioned to signal Ayane, but she did not even glance his way, ignoring even his vigorous waves.

"Really?" Ayane sniffed herself a few times, sceptical of Misaki's claim. 

"Ah, I got it! Because you both were at Yamamoto's stall earlier, right? Hahaha. No wonder it kinda stuck on," Misaki gleefully concluded by herself.

Shouichi turned his face away and exhaled deeply in relief, "Oh my goodness... I thought this was going to be the end of their truce!" He told himself.

"Guys, what is that?" Suddenly, Ayane asked, with her volume rising, pointing toward the bonfire. Shouichi and Misaki turned responsively.

There were four monks, each carrying a large long bag, and later they dumped those bags into the raging flames. The impact stirred the flame sparks in the air. 

"Isn't it a bag of charcoal? Maybe they want to add more fuel?" Shouichi tried to rationalise, rubbing his chin. "It does look like a body bag at first," his thought argued.

"I know what it looks like… It's a cadaver pouch... The kind they use to carry corpses," Misaki said slowly, her tone deliberate and designed to spook both seniors.

"Eh? Ishikawa-san, what are you saying? That's very unlikely," Ayane objected, her expression tightening as a grimace spread across her face, a chill running up her spine.