Without warning, they swarm her. She waves her too-long sleeves across her face, swatting fruitlessly, as they attack. Some fly past her ears, the chainsaw-buzzing startling her each time. Others sink invisible fangs into her robe and rip the clothing away. More lights come at her, attacking her exposed skin. Soon she is naked. She makes a hopeless attempt to cover her bare parts while pressing her hands against the missing chunks of flesh they take out of her. She collapses into the grass, crying, huddled into a ball for protection.

“That ought to get the message across,” says one of the lights. “Only real demons can get past us. And even then, you gotta be ready to take us all on!”

Another voice laughs. “Yeah, stupid! No freak like you is going anywhere! We’re like that new restaurant: ‘oni only!’”

“Oh, geez,” says the first voice, the ringleader. “Do not mention that restaurant.”

“Why not? The boss seems to like it. Says they got good eatin’.”

“Shut up! We can’t talk about that place in front of her. She’s a wannabe. This ain’t no place for creatures like that!”

Curled up in the grass, the Yokai weeps. The first light lowers itself down to the grass and nips at her toes, savouring the blood. She cries out again.

“Ha! I think she gets it now, chaps. Guess the freak speaks yumego after all. Come on; let’s get out of here. The smell of her is making me sick.”

“Yeah. Good.”

The other lights dance over her head and drift away, still calling her every awful name they can think of. One light lingers behind, illuminating her vision in the darkness, for even the moonlight is gone. The Yokai watches the lights grow smaller and smaller. She sits up a little and looks down at her body, covered in bloody holes, blisters, and bites. Why did they do this to her? What had she done? Perhaps she should have stayed with the faceless yokai, for at least they were civil to her. Even the first group of yokai had not treated her like this. If only she knew the way home …

The light hovering over her head makes a darting motion. It hits her square in her jaw, knocking out a tooth, then flies away to join the others. “Ha!” it shouts. “Guys! Guys, did you see that?! I got a tooth! A whole tooth!”