As something resembling calm finally descended on the group, they found themselves working their way down the shopping street by the bridge. Beyond, they could see a flight of stairs and another torii gate.
“That’s Enoshima Shrine up ahead,” Makima said, leading them under the gate. Aki read from the guidebook as they walked, pointing out the shrine’s three halls along with a smattering of historical anecdotes. For Denji, it went in one ear and out the other. All he knew was that the further they went, the bigger the sea looked and the better his mood got.
When they reached the third hall, Makima turned to Denji and Power. “Have either of you paid respects at a shrine before?”
They both shook their heads.
“Nope,” said Denji.
“I’m basically a god,” said Power with an air of superiority. “You should be worshipping me.”
“Let me show you what to do.” Makima smiled and took a five-yen coin from her wallet. She dropped it into an offering box. She bowed her head twice, clapped twice, and then bowed again, bringing her hands together in front of her with her eyes closed. “That’s how you send a wish to the gods.”
“Gah ha ha!” laughed Power. “I’ve never heard anything so stupid. You make your own wishes come true through sheer force!” But that didn’t stop her from darting forward excitedly to try it herself. She flung a coin—procured from Aki—into the offering box, then gave two huge, dramatic claps. “I wish for a Nobel Prize! And also that all humans everywhere will die, and also that the monster known as Makima will vanish from this world!”
“You’re not supposed to say your wishes out loud, Power, my dear,” Makima advised.
“You’re sure wishing up a storm for someone who thinks it’s stupid,” said Denji.
Power froze, then turned with a cunning look on her face. “You must have misheard. Denji said the part about wanting you to vanish!”
“Why would I say that?” Denji disputed the slander.
“Don’t worry,” said Makima. “For today, I’ll pretend I didn’t hear anything. We’ll just enjoy our little vacation.”
Power breathed a sigh of relief. Aki cleared his throat. “I guess I’ll go next.” He approached the shrine and offered his respects quietly.
“Yo, Aki,” said Denji as Aki stepped away from the shrine. “What’d you wish for?”
“I’ll be keeping that to myself, thanks.”
“I bet I can guess. It was, like, revenge or something, wasn’t it?” Denji prodded, as if he cared.
“That would be a better wish than the ones Power made, but I’m not going to bother the gods with that. I can get revenge on my own.”
“What was it then?” Denji wouldn’t drop it.
“I don’t have to tell you.”
Denji and Power glanced at each other, then ducked together for a whispered conversation. “Sounds sketchy,” said Denji. “Do you think he wished for something, y’know, filthy?”
“I don’t think. I know! Topknot acts like a prude, but the animal lust rolls off him!”
“That’s enough out of both of you!” Aki snapped. He looked at the ground and his voice suddenly became much quieter. “I prayed that you both find happiness.”
That brought Denji and Power up short. They looked at each other again—then burst out laughing.
“What, like, seriously?!”
“You pray for the dumbest things, Topknot!”
“Dammit! I take it back!”
“You two be nice to your mother.”
“I’m not their mom, Ms. Makima!”
As the brief furor subsided, Makima gave Denji a gentle push. “One more to go. Your turn, Denji.”
“Gee, I, uh … okay …” Denji approached the offering box and stood uncertainly, then clapped as he’d seen the others do. When he closed his eyes, he realized he had no idea what to pray for. The first thing he thought of was Pochita, but Makima had told him that Pochita was alive inside him. Somehow Denji felt it was wrong to ask for more than that. He was on his way to achieving the normal life he’d always wished for, and now he was on a beach vacation with Makima, the kind of trip he’d thought he could only take in his dreams.
There were still things he wanted, of course. To eat steak for breakfast every morning. To have tons of girlfriends, even if he was foggy about exactly what he’d do with them. But he wasn’t sure what to ask for. Denji had a dim intuition that if he wished for too many things, none of them would come true.
Denji let his eyes flutter open. He glanced back. Makima stood framed in the sunlight, kissed by the sea breeze. She looked at him quizzically. Surely no one could be so sweet.
It’s gotta be Ms. Makima, Denji thought. He stuck his elbows way out so he could press his hands together as hard as possible. I pray that I get to go on another trip with Ms. Makima!
No, no, wait. He was talking to the gods. Was he going to bug them with a weak-ass request like that?
I pray Ms. Makima will go out with me!
Good start, but he could do better. Wishing didn’t cost anything.
I pray I could have s—I mean, uh, make love to Ms. Makima! He’d better watch his language with the gods. That’d show them he’d grown up a little since Aki had castigated him about his dirty mouth when he first arrived at Public Safety.
Even after those prayers, Denji remained silent with his hands pressed together. He couldn’t shake the sense that he was forgetting something. Something important. In the end, he let his hands drift apart without remembering what it was.
As they trotted down the path back from the shrine, Makima glanced at him. “What did you pray for, Denji?”
“Oh—uh—nothing special.”
“Oh?” Her almond-shaped eyes gave him a long, hard look.
“What?” Denji sweated under the gaze.
“Was it something … inappropriate?” Makima hinted.
“N-no, I swear!” he said, averting his eyes. Then he had a thought. “What did you pray for, Ms. Makima?”
“Me? I prayed for clear weather tonight.”
That left Denji scratching his head. Makima gave him a teasing smile and hopped down the stairs away from the shrine. “All right. To the sea!”
“Swimming!” Power exclaimed, raising her hands to the clear blue sky. Act Two of their vacation had begun.
The group found a beach at the foot of Benten Bridge. The sunbaked sand brought the heat of summer to the soles of their feet. Denji and Aki, wearing swim trunks, sat under a rented umbrella with their knees drawn up to their chests as they waited for Makima and Power to emerge from the changing area.
“Oh, man!” said Denji, barely able to hear himself over the pounding of his heart. “I’m so stoked to see Ms. Makima in a swimsuit! What do you think it’ll look like?” He squinted in the sun.
After a pause, Aki shrugged. “I wouldn’t know.”
“Well, duh. But it’s fun to wonder! You think it’ll be, like, a bikini? I bet it’s black!” Makima always looked so coolly beautiful in her tailored black suits, it was hard to picture her in another color.
“You shouldn’t be picturing your superiors in swimsuits,” Aki admonished.
“Aw, what’s wrong with it? Just ’cause you don’t have any imagination …” Denji flopped down on the sand, sulking.
Aki gave a long sigh. He muttered, “It wouldn’t be black. Ms. Makima would wear white.”
“You think?” Denji’s head whipped up. When he’d first moved in with Aki, he’d thought the older hunter was a nagging pain in the ass. Now, he was starting to discover, maybe he wasn’t such a bad guy.
Aki gazed over the horizon. “Hey, Denji …”
“Yeah?”
“I used to take you for nothing but a cheap street punk, but you’re starting to learn how to listen to people, aren’t you? At least … a little.”
Denji smirked. “Suddenly feeling all warm and squishy?”
“Just a passing thought.”
“Weird thought.”
Aki pressed on. “Keep listening, okay? And learn how to be halfway polite, for God’s sake.”
“Yeah, sure. I’ll see what I can do.”
Aki really did sound like a mom. Or at least what Denji imagined a mom would sound like.
Aki’s gaze shifted back to Denji. He looked oddly serene. “I know you can do it.”
“Uh … thanks?” Denji frowned, not sure what to make of the unexpected encouragement, when a voice called from behind them.
“Sorry to keep you waiting!”
Makima! “She’s back!” Denji exclaimed, jumping to his feet. He sank down just as quickly. “Aw, Ms. Makima, you’re not wearing a swimsuit!”
Makima wore a wide-brimmed straw hat and a sundress the color of the sea, the same outfit she’d had on before. The only alteration to her ensemble was the book in her hand.
“Of course not,” she said. “I wasn’t planning to swim. I didn’t even bring a swimsuit. I just went to grab a book I could read on
the beach.”
“Aww …” Denji said dejectedly.
“Greetings, humans! Feast your eyes on Power!” With that, Power leapt into view clad in a two-piece black swimsuit.
Denji stared. “A black bikini …”
Power put her hands on her hips, puffed out her chest, and laughed proudly. “Gah ha ha ha! Do you not feel blessed to have seen me this way? You owe me gratitude for the rest of your miserable lives!”
“You dropped a boob,” Denji said, listlessly pointing at Power’s feet. A chest pad was lying there. As usual, she was stuffing her top.
“No! How could this happen? The humiliation!” Power clutched her uneven chest. Her wail could be heard across the sandy beach.
Later, Denji and Power rented an inflatable raft and paddled out to sea. They made their way along the cerulean surface, the little oar cutting through the wave crests.
“Gah ha ha ha!” Power cackled. “Go, Denji! Paddle! Drive us forward!” She was in even higher spirits than usual.