The spirit was weeping again.
Not loudly. Not dramatically. Just the soft, wet kind of weeping that turned into mist around the edges and made everything smell faintly like damp moss.
The girl crouched nearby, a bowl of plum water in one hand and a bundle of rice paper in the other. She had been sitting there for almost seven minutes. That was six more than she had patience for.
"I brought you the good water," she said gently. "The one with the little purple flower in it."
The spirit hiccupped.
"Okay," she tried again, "so... we're not a fan of purple. That's fine."
She set the bowl down and reached for one of the folded charms Seiji had left for her. It looked exactly like the others. Just paper, with swirly brushstrokes and little dots that supposedly meant something.
The spirit sniffled.
The girl held up the charm and paused.
"You're not going to vanish if I touch you, right?"
The spirit looked up. It had no eyes, but somehow managed to make her feel very judged.
She inched closer. Reached out. The charm fluttered.
"Easy... easy..."
She pressed it lightly against the spirit's shape.
For half a second, it shimmered. The tears slowed.
Then it sizzled like oil in a pan and flew backward into the trees with a sharp fwoomp.
She stared at her hand.
The charm was smoking slightly.
"...Oops."
Behind her, Seiji let out the smallest sigh a human could make without it becoming a groan.
"Wrong charm," he said.
She didn't turn around.
"It looked exactly like the right one."
"It's upside down."
She frowned, flipped the charm over. It looked exactly the same. Just... reversed.
"That's ridiculous."
Seiji stepped beside her and knelt slowly. His knees cracked like they were made of old wood. He took another charm from his sleeve, held it steady in two fingers, and touched it gently to the air where the spirit hovered.
The shimmer returned. The mist slowed. The weeping stopped.
The girl squinted.
"Mine didn't even sparkle like that."
"Because yours told it to go away."
"Oh."
"Not all spirits want to leave. Some just want to be noticed."
The girl flopped back onto her heels and blew a piece of hair out of her face.
"You could have told me that before I sent it into a tree."
"I assumed you read the ink."
"I did."
"You read it upside down."
She crossed her arms.
"Well. Maybe the ink should adjust to me."
Seiji said nothing. Which was probably wise.
The spirit shimmered one last time, then sank gently into the earth, leaving behind a faint trail of light that curled like smoke and faded into the lavender.
The girl tilted her head.
"Where do they go?"
Seiji placed the used charm into a small wooden box and closed it carefully.
"Somewhere better."
She frowned.
"Better than here?"
"For them, maybe."
He stood again, using his staff for balance. His movement was slower today. She noticed it more now.
"You'll learn," he said, already turning back toward the shrine.
She remained crouched in the grass, watching the last of the spirit's light flicker and fade.
"I'm not very good at this," she said aloud.
The breeze played with the edge of her sleeve.
"You're not very patient," Seiji called from the path. "That's different."
She stood, brushed off her knees, and grabbed the rest of the charms from her basket.
"I'm going to figure this out," she muttered. "Then I'm going to outdo your sparkle."
The wind might have chuckled.
Or maybe that was just the plum trees.