As David readied his futon, he made a mental note to get a new souvenir for Jessica. With Kou already fading out, he began to drift off, yet he was not surprised that the strange girl in gray came to mind. He wondered if he would see her again.
SKI PATROL
I should have realized it back then. Love can never start with deception and violence. How many before me have gone to battle for love only to find that it was not for another that they fought, but for themselves…
The next morning, Class 2B woke again at six, and the students were soon preparing to leave the hotel. Since there were other students in his room, David was safe from Takumi’s promised reprisal, though he was sure it would come eventually.
For their fourth day, the second year Nakano Junior High School students traveled by bus to Oita Prefecture. High in the mountains, they passed snow covered rice paddies and small groups of houses until they arrived at their destination. Thick curtains of fog hid the mountain before them, and the only things they could see past the large building in front of them were the swinging ski lift chairs disappearing into the mist. Although no one had brought snow clothes, inside the warm lobby, attendants directed them to locker rooms, where the students changed into matching outfits, boots, and skis. An attendant guided David to a separate counter where he received a different set. Out of all the students, he was one of three who already knew how to either snowboard or ski. During the planning sessions, David had pulled the gaijin card and convinced Yukiko to get his teachers to let him go snowboarding instead.
David attempted to fit in and follow Japanese custom, but as the incident with the camera proved, his attempts were not always effective. He had begged Yukiko, and she had agreed to ask his teachers to let him go snowboarding. The twins had tried to convince her to let them switch as well. Since the class was only for skiing and they had never gone before, their pleas had not worked. While David had been far from athletic growing up, he had learned to snowboard while on a trip with his father’s TV station. While he had never gotten past the basics, he was far more comfortable with the idea of being on one board than two.
David was careful not to smile as an attendant led him aside to get his snowboard. Takumi’s glare was particularly epic.
‘Takumi usually keeps better control over his emotions.’
‘I wouldn’t want to hunt him right now. He still has not forgiven you for that picture.’
‘Maybe if I wipeout into a tree they’ll all feel better,’ David replied as he caught the stares of his other envious classmates.
With many stares following him, David slid over to the lift with a push from his free foot. He just caught the rest of Class 2B gather around their instructor and begin stretching as he reached the ski lift line. The last thing he saw as he faded into the low clouds was a few specks tilting their skis between parallel and triangle positions.
It took David one trip down the first half of the mountain to remember his s-curves. He was delighted at how his hard-won balance made snowboarding almost easy.
‘Do not become distracted by the snow-slider. We must stay alert.’
David acknowledged Kou’s concerns, but it was hard not to slide into a zone where nothing but the speed mattered. As his body relaxed, the board seemed to move on its own, letting him navigate around the other skiers and snowboarders. Despite his warnings, Kou purred with excitement as they gained more speed than he had ever achieved before. His second time down, the class was higher on the slopes, so David stopped to watch and help, as some of his classmates were having trouble staying up. He was surprised that even Rie and Takumi were having problems. Even with the same training David had received, they were not prepared to think about balancing on long pieces of fiberglass just to stay upright.
While David helped Kenta re-attach a ski, he saw Rie slip and fall. He moved to catch her, but somehow Hidemi was there first, catching her before Rie could hit the ground. It was an agile move for their class’s resident genius, but David caught the bit of her face that was still visible stiffen as she helped Rie back up.
‘Rie must have been heavier than she expected,’ David thought with a laugh. As soon as he got Kenta’s ski back in place, he shifted his weight and slipped away. In order to test the extent of his ability with his board, David took the second lift to the top of the mountain. Although he had never gone down the more treacherous slopes back home, he figured he could handle it, or at least heal fast enough to make it down the mountain without too many problems.
On the lonely ride up, David’s mind wandered. Something about Hidemi’s expression bugged him. His training with Masao had taught him to analyze the world, to ask questions and seek answers that could explain how things truly were. His interest pulled Kou from the Zodiac Tiger’s memories, and together they sought a reason for their interest.
Unbidden the image in his mind shifted from Hidemi. Kou growled. The girl in gray was in David’s thoughts so much that Kou was becoming annoyed. No one had ever occupied David’s mind quite so much, and what was in David’s mind, affected Kou’s as well. As David approached the lift drop off, he shrugged aside the errant thoughts and concentrated instead on lifting the front of his board and positioning himself so he would not fall down like fool during the exit.
At the top of the hill, he slid away from the lift to a small area next to a stand of trees. David sat, sinking into a drift of fresh snow. Beside him, the back edge of the mountain tapered away into a wonderland of trees and clean, fresh snow. David reached forward to brush white mush from his quick-lock bindings.
‘I’m sorry, okay? You don’t have to give me the silent treatment,’ David said as he peered through the fog, thinner at the top than it had been lower down.
‘We are being watched,’ Kou replied. David jerked his foot back out of the binding and joined Kou in re-checking the area.
Sure enough, David spotted a lone figure hiding down the opposite slope of the mountain, away from skiers and prying eyes. Whoever it was wore the same rental outfit that David and the rest of his classmates had received before the lessons. As David studied the figure, he adjusted himself so he could escape down the more populated slope. Seeing David about to leave, the mysterious figure stood, pulled back her hood, and waved at him.
Without stopping to consider any further danger, David tilted the edge of his board around a barrier rope and propelled himself across the slight decline. He slid toward the girl from Okinawa slowly, watching all the while. Soon tall forest trees surrounded him, cutting them off from the top of the mountain. He slid to an easy stop a few feet from the girl and noticed she was shaking, though it did not appear to be from the cold.
“Quick, behind the tree,” she said in a harsh whisper. David smiled at her dramatic tone and moved under the shadow of a tall pine.
“So what is it that you want? I don’t even know your name.” David moved closer, drawn by curiosity and his quickened heartbeat. She looked to be about the same age, though it was always difficult for David to gauge just how old Japanese people actually were. Her eyes were soft and inviting, despite the fear that seemed to be radiating throughout her entire body. She moved closer to him, her hand reaching up for his face.
Her cold fingers brushed past his cheek, setting it aflame. With a shockingly strong grip, she brought his head closer, as if to whisper in his ear. David just caught her stiffen in fear as his back exploded in lances of pain. A sudden weight on his back drove him past the trembling girl. Sharp claws of pain drove into his shoulder and ribs.
“She’s mine,” growled a voice, carried by hot fetid breath close to David’s ear. With the extra weight, David and his attacker scooted forward on his snowboard. Since only one of