When we neared the Tokyo station, Kaname-sensei volunteered to look for our guide, though the notion was not needed. The shinkansen doors slid open with a hiss. The rush of cold station air greeted us as we got off the train.

  The platform hummed with movement, other commuters surging forward, the echo of rolling suitcases, the clipped heels of office workers darting toward the escalators. As our group got onto the platform, we immediately spotted a foreign person, standing on the side, holding up a sign with his right hand.

  The man in question was young, maybe around Kaname-sensei’s age, dressed in a fancy tuxedo. The sign he was holding was well-made, printed on what looked to be foam board with a glossy finish. If the person holding the sign wasn’t eye catching enough, what was written on the front was.

  Welcome, Japan Delegates

  Red Curtain Event to Western Cape

  When we saw the sign, we headed towards him. There were many people who had disembarked with us, and were moving in the same direction as us, but as soon as he noticed our group, his face lit up with a wide smile.

  My classmates and I looked to Kaname-sensei, but we saw that she herself was a bit nervous. I can sympathize with her, first time talking with someone is a bit hard, but you add the fact that they may or may not understand your language and it becomes a whole ordeal.

  “Hello everyone,” he greeted in English, looking at all of us gathered in front of him. “I presume that all of you are our guests?”

  I may not know much about English unlike my friend Reika, but I do know that, from the accent, the man in front of us is British. Fortunately for Kaname-sensei, there were four people here who could answer in her stead.

  “Uhm, yes, I suppose that would be us,” Terrance answered before extending his right hand to the guide. “Terrance Rosemont.”

  “This one is Spencer McMillan. And this one is Kaname Toudou, the kid’s home-room teacher,” Terrance added, gesturing first to Spencer on his right and then to Kaname-sensei beside him.

  “Remington Percival Clifford-De Lacy. You can call me Remy,” Remy said, smiling as he shook hands with Terrance.

  “Are you, our guide? But I suppose the sign is a dead giveaway,” Spencer said casually with a grin, shaking hands with Remy.

  “Indeed I am. My instructions are to bring everyone directly to the hotel,” Remy answered before turning to face Kaname-sensei.

  “Naistu to meet chu—,” Kaname-sensei said very quickly. She tried to say it in English, but in the process bit her tongue.

  It was understandable since it was only her second year of teaching, and Kaname-sensei probably had never spoken to any foreigner other than Arthur and Tryan as well as their fathers. She was more nervous than we thought.

  Now she was red-faced while holding hands with a man, unfortunately, it was not for romantic reasons.

  “Oh, it’s alright, please don’t worry,” Remy answered in fluent Japanese, causing our teacher to stare at him, mouth agape. “I, myself am fairly fluent, so I don’t mind.”

  After he said that, he turned to look at the other two people he was speaking with.

  “That is, if both of you gentlemen don’t mind as well?” he asked Spencer and Terrance.

  “No, after living in this country for more than five years, yeah, we’re already fluent, so we don’t mind.” Terrance answered with a smile while Spencer nodded.

  “So then, as you heard sensei, please feel free to speak in Japanese,” Remy said turning back to Kaname-sensei with a small smile.

  “Come on! Say that from the beginning!” Kaname-sensei blurted out. For a moment, Remy was shocked, however in the next moment, he began to laugh.

  Kaname-sensei, somehow even became redder.

  “Sorry for speaking like that,” she said, apologizing with a low bow.

  “Ah, no, please don’t mind it,” Remy said waving his free hand, before turning his attention to us. “So, these are your students? Are they all present?”

  “Uhm, yes, they are my students,” Kaname-sensei replied, looking quite relieved that Remy was not insulted. “But we do have one person who would be coming late. Her name is Hanazono Reika.”

  “Yes, we have been informed of her late arrival, not to worry,” Remy said, with a reassuring nod. “Her—guardian, has given a very good reason for her tardiness and our organizers have allowed her to attend, so everything is in order.”

  At his words, Suzu and I both sighed in relief. Knowing my best friend would be allowed to attend was one thing, but hearing it confirmed directly was another.

  “Now, then, on to business,” Remy continued. He switched the sign to his other hand and pulled a clipboard from inside his coat before glancing at everyone. “Roll call.”

  Since there weren’t that many of us, Remy managed to get through his list in only a few minutes, though the way he did it was strange. He would call a name, and when someone responded, he would ask if they were the one whose name he had called.

  “Now, that is finished, I have to talk about the rules,” Remy said after stowing the clipboard back inside his coat. “But, if we stay here for too long, we might cause trouble for other people so I will summarize them for convenience.”

  “First the three no's, no fighting, littering or drinking, anywhere. Next, during the event, stay within the hotel grounds, this is for safety reasons. For food, a special place has been reserved for everyone; it is located on the tenth floor of the hotel. It is a function room on the left, which will also serve as the venue for the event.”

  “They will serve three meals, every participant, even for tonight. You’ll also find more restaurants on the upper floors. Unfortunately, those aren’t covered by the event, so you’ll need to pay out of your own pocket. But if you’d like, and can afford it, please enjoy.”

  “The lounge on the ground floor, on the west-hand side is open to any of you who want some coffee or a place to relax. The only thing you won’t be able to find at the hotel are snacks but don’t worry, once we go out for the event, you will be allowed to purchase your own.”

  “What else—oh right. Drinking, let’s keep this between ourselves” he said, pausing and looking at the boys. “Though Japan has a legal drinking age, the hotel is quite—lenient—with enforcement.”

  When he said this, some of my classmates, mainly the males looked at him in shock.

  “Of course, you still have to present an ID if you want to buy alcohol,” he said casually before, a mischievous smile spread across his face. “Well, I was once young, so, I, won’t stop you.”

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  “But I will,” Kaname-sensei interjected sternly, her gaze piercing the boys, daring any to contradict her.

  “Of course, sensei,” Remy said, his smile getting wider. “Feel free to hit them over the head when you catch them, the hotel won’t mind that as well.”

  Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Trayn give Arthur a nudge with his elbow. Arthur nudged back and tried to look calm but the corner of his mouth was twitching. It was obvious what those two were about to do.

  “Now, that’s done and over with, it’s time for us to depart,” Remy said cheerfully and gesturing towards the exit. “Our bus is located outside, at the Kajibashi Parking Lot. It’s just a few minutes’ walk from Yaesu south exit for those that are unfamiliar. Shall we?”

  At his words, everyone began to move, each carrying backpacks and trolleys as we fully entered the station.

  We walked eastward from the shinkansen concourse and the building unfolded like a labyrinth before us, with broad marble-floored, corridors branching into corridors and ticket gates with signs overhead, describing destinations in both Japanese and English.

  There were two large domes on its north and south ends, built on an octagonal (8-sided) base. The ceiling was high, decorated with reliefs of the zodiac animals and arranged along 8-sided structure.

  After we passed the ticket gates, we arrived at the Yaesu Central Concourse, a big modern lobby with lots of shops and department stores. From there, we went straight out to the street at a rather quick pace. It cannot be helped as every one of us was excited.

  Stepping out through the entrance was like crossing a threshold between cultures, a European style building in the heart of modern Japan. The red-brick fa?ade rose above us. It was stately and ornate, the twin domes standing proudly.

  From the south exit, we faced the skyscrapers of the Marunouchi and Nihonbashi areas more than the open skyline.

  Once on the streets, however, we turned right and we followed the sidewalk with Remy in the lead. After we crossed the first intersection, we reached the Parking Lot, which was on our right. And just as Remy said, the bus was waiting for us there, though there was a man who was beside the doorway.

  When the man saw us approaching, he removed the driver's cap he was wearing, stood up straight and at attention when Remy stopped beside him.

  “Alright everyone, this is our driver for the duration of the event,” Remy said, turning to face us, and gesturing towards the man. “His name is Namihara Yukihito.”

  He bowed at us in greeting but said nothing, instead he simply stood there.

  “Right then, before everyone boards, I need to give you all something,” Remy said before turning to his companion. “Yuki, please.”

  Yukihito nodded and went inside the bus, when he returned a few seconds later, he was carrying a small box. The box was black, ornate, trimmed with gold and had a lacquered finish.

  “Everyone, please gather around, I will be handing out your passes,” Remy said as he opened the box Yukihito was holding. “These shall serve as your identification pass while you attend the event. When I call your name, please come forward to receive yours.”

  Remy pulled an item from the box and to my great surprise, what he showed us was a small silver shield. It was the same size and design as the one my grandmother had given me. The only difference was that what I am carrying was gold.

  I placed my right hand on my back pocket and felt the tiny item still there. I was suddenly reminded of what my grandmother said, about something happening. Although I am not a superstitious person, having more than one weird thing happen on the same day feels a bit alarming.

  “Please do not lose any of them, they are very important,” Remy continued after he shifted the sign he was carrying to his left hand. “These items, will serve as your identification, not only at the hotel, but even for all the establishments we will visit during the course of the event.”

  Haruto raised his right hand and Remy gestured for him to speak.

  “How will we use them?”

  “Simple, if any ask for identification, just show them these and they will know. And if you plan on buying something at the places that we’ll visit, you can show them these and you will get a discount,” came Remy’s reply.

  He placed the silver item he was holding back into the box and with his right hand, took out his clipboard.

  “Oh! If you are planning on buying liquor, you would still need to show your own ID,” Remy added quickly before he started calling out names from his list.

  The first one to be called was Suzu, that would mean that list wasn’t arranged in alphabetical order. Suzu went up to Remy but he gestured towards Yukihito who seemed to be picking which of the items to give.

  When it was my turn, my heart was pounding a bit. I did not know what would happen, especially with the thing in my back pocket. When I was in front of Yukihito, out of the corner of my eye, I noticed Remy eyeing my back.

  No, the possibility is high that he was looking at my back pocket. I have no idea how but this person might know what I have in there. I thought for a second that he was going to do something but, thankfully, after I received mine, he simply smiled and called Haruto next.

  “Everyone, I am going to say it again, please do not lose those items. They are very important,” Remy said after everyone was given the silver shield.

  He tucked the sign under his right arm and used the other to stow the clipboard inside his coat before looking up at us with a friendly smile.

  “Well then, everyone, all aboard!” he announced with a cheerful tone.

  I was still a bit nervous from earlier and I was not paying attention too much when I entered the bus. But, because of that, I didn’t catch what actually happened. Probably my classmates were excited and too eager to board the bus, but someone among them started pushing, unfortunately, Remy got caught in the flow.

  When it was Hiroto’s turn to board, Daiki either pushed or was shoved into him, though later he would insist that Takumi pushed him first. That would have been fine, if the sign wasn’t caught between Remy’s arms and Hiroto’s weight. Though it was well made, it was still made of foamboard, which was durable, but still brittle.

  “I’m Sorry! I’m Sorry! I’m Sorry! I’m Sorry for my student’s blunder!”

  From where I was seated, I could see and hear Kaname-sensei. She held Hiroto by the head and was forcing him into a 45-degree bow, while she was bowing over and over while she was apologizing profusely to Remy.

  Remy was holding both pieces of the sign, a wry smile plastered on his face.

  “What do we do about that then?” Yukihito asked, while he rubbed his head with the same hand he was using to hold his driver’s cap.

  “Ah, please stop apologizing, no one was hurt so everything is fine.” Remy said to Kaname-sensei with a reassuring smile.

  Everyone else had entered the bus, but was looking at the unfolding scene, some were standing up to get a better view.

  “Even so, I’m terribly sorry for my student’s blunder!” Kaname-sensei said again, side stepping Remy’s reassurance. “Please allow us to help with fixing it.”

  “True, we do need to get this fixed,” Remy replied, his attention going back to the sign. “And we do need this for tonight as well.”

  I spotted what was printed on the back of the sign, when Remy turned them over.

  Welcome, Phili  ppine Delegates

  Red Curtain Eve  nt to Western Cape.

  “How though?” Yukihito asked, putting on his driver's cap. “At a time like this, most printing shops that can handle something like this would be starting to close.

  “And even if we do find one open, I do not think we can get a new one made until tomorrow, considering how busy they get,” he added as he looked at the tall buildings around the parking lot.

  Remy tucked both halves of the sign under one arm and was deep in thought. After a few moments of thinking, Remy suddenly clapped both of his hands.

  “I have an idea,” he said to Yukihito before turning to the slightly distraught teacher. “Please board the bus, sensei. Do not worry there is no harm done. Just wait for a bit I’ll just go and grab some stuff.”

  With those words, he handed the broken sign to his partner and walked in the direction of the nearest department store. Yukihito shrugged both his shoulders and ushered sensei and Hiroto inside.

  We waited around 30 minutes for Remy to return. During that time, his partner was doing his routine checks on the bus. When he returned Remy was carrying a rectangular cardboard in one hand and a plastic bag on the other. The plastic bag had, what looked to be, pencils, markers, chalk, a pair of scissors, and some duct tape.

  “Really?” Yukihito said with a face filled with a mixture of disbelief and contempt. “This is your idea?”

  “This is the best I’ve got, alright? Cut me some slack,” Remy said with a shrug. “And I am, open to suggestions if you have any.”

  “I’ve seen your hand writing, and it’s not something to be displayed.”

  “How rude!” Remy said indignantly. “Mine’s not as bad as his, so it should be fine. Just drive already. I got a call that their plane already left. For now, this is the best we got.”

  Yukihito again shrugged his shoulders, like he didn’t want to deal with the trouble and started the engine.

  The ride to the hotel was rather silent, mostly because the atmosphere, once joyful, was dampened thanks to the accident. But when we arrived, I couldn’t help but feel that a hotel that looked like that belonged in a magazine.

  As we entered the lobby, Kaname-sensei took this time to apologize again, but Remy brushed it aside and excused himself, making his way to the lounge. The last time I saw him, as we were waiting for the elevator, he was speaking with a stout Japanese man, who looked a bit familiar.

  My mother and I shared a room, but true to my word, I kept the thing my grandmother gave a secret. What are the chances that she and the people organizing this event are from the same group? That was one of the questions floating in my mind when I went to sleep that night.

  That, and what if my grandmother’s warning turned out to be more prophecy than merely intuition?

  Cold -> Fever

  Another POV next chapter

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