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  Owen closed his eyes and shook his head.

  'It was a blood clot. Something we hadn't picked up; couldn't have picked up. I had to go and tell his parents. I'll never forget the look in their eyes...'

  He paused again, rubbing both eyes with the palm of his hand.

  'Darren Lucas. The funny thing is, you get so many patients, and you forget their names eventually, but I never forgot Darren's. I forgot all about Michael. There were dozens more nutters over the years; you can't remember all of them. But now he's back. It must be my fault. It must be something I've done, something I've screwed up. He comes to me all those years ago and now he's back, here, now.'

  Toshiko went to him immediately, putting her arms around him. There was a moment, just a moment, when they looked into each other's eyes and neither of them was entirely sure what the embrace meant.

  Toshiko broke away suddenly.

  'I'm sorry,' she said. 'But trust me, Owen. It's not just you.'

  FIVE

  The fireworks exploding over the River Dojima reminded her of flowers. Like great big burning flowers of pink, and blue, and green. Toshiko Sato's father held her in his arms while behind them, on the river itself, the boats made their way out towards the point where the Dojima meets the Okawa, each one carrying dozens of people, all of them dressed in brightly coloured costumes.

  'Smile!' said her mother, and Toshiko and her father beamed for the lens in the seconds before they were both near-blinded by the flash.

  The Tenjin Festival was Toshiko's favourite time of year, better than the Cherry Blossom Festival, or the Aizen Festival. Better, even, than the Midosuji Parade, and she loved the Midosuji Parade.

  It was only during the festivals that her father ever seemed to have time for them. It wasn't his fault, as her mother often reminded her. Her father was a very busy man with a very important job, and he often had to travel far away, but he never missed the Tenjin Festival.

  When the procession of the boats was over, Toshiko's parents walked her back through the city streets, each holding her hand. They stopped at a stall where her father bought her a bag of wagashi sweets, and then they walked down to the nearest subway.

  The train was busy, thanks to the festival, and Toshiko spent all of her journey on the Yotsubashi Line surrounded by a forest of people's legs. She held on tightly to a nearby bar and tried not to stumble when the train stopped suddenly in each station. It was a little quieter on the Midosuji Line, but even so she still had to sit on her mother's lap.

  By the time they got to their stop, Toshiko was asleep and had to be carried up the steps to their apartment, which overlooked Minami, in the south of the city. On clear days, which didn't come very often, you could see out past the city to the bay of Osaka, and her father had told her that on some days you could even see Kobe, though she didn't believe him.

  She woke as her father opened the door and they stepped into the apartment, her mother and father kicking off their shoes. As her mother carried her through to her room, they passed the door to her grandmother's bedroom, and she could hear her grandmother snoring, as she did almost every night. In the mornings, of course, when her mother or father would say something about the snoring, Grandma would deny it, saying they must have been imagining it, which was a source of endless amusement for Toshiko and her parents.

  Her mother tried to put her to bed and turn out the light but, having slept for much of the subway journey, Toshiko was restless and wanted a bedtime story.

  'All right,' said Toshiko's mother, eyeing her suspiciously. 'You can have a story, but just the one. It's way past your bedtime. Which story would you like? Tin-Tin? The fairy tales?'

  'Fairy tales!' said Toshiko, suddenly very much awake, clapping her hands together and bouncing up and down on her bed.

  'OK... Fairy tales it is,' said her mother, picking the book from Toshiko's shelf and sitting on the edge of the bed. She opened the book, and began to read.

  'This story is called "The Land Of Perpetual Life". Many, many years ago, there lived a rich man called Sentaro. His father had been a powerful and wealthy man, and Sentaro inherited his fortunes from him, but he was not hardworking like his father, and spent his time being idle and lazy.

  'One day, when Sentaro was thirty-three years old, he thought of death and sickness, and the thoughts made him very sad.

  '"I would like to live until I am six hundred years old, at least," said Sentaro, "so that I am never sick and I am never old. The span of a man's life is far too short."

  'Sentaro had heard stories of people who lived much longer than normal men, and indeed women, such as the Princess of Yamato who, so he'd been told, lived to the ripe old age of five hundred. He had heard stories, too, of a mighty Chinese emperor called Shin-no-Shiko, who had built the Great Wall of China. Despite his riches, his palaces, and his precious stones, Shin-no-Shiko was unhappy because he knew that one day he would die.

  'Every day when he woke up, and every night when he went to sleep, Shin-no-Shiko would pray that somebody might give him the famous Elixir of Life—'

  'What's an elixir?' asked Toshiko.

  'It's like a drink,' said her Mum. 'A drink that makes you live for ever.'

  'OK:

  'So... Where was I? Oh yes. He prayed that somebody might give him the famous Elixir of Life.

  Then one day a courtier, whose name was Jofuku, told him that far, far away across the sea, on Mount Fuji, there lived hermits who possessed the Elixir of Life, and that whoever drank it would live for ever.

  'Shin-no-Shiko told Jofuku to travel to Mount Fuji, find the hermits, and bring back with him a bottle of the magical elixir. He gave Jofuku his best boat, and a chest filled with his finest jewels and bags full of gold, for him to give as gifts to the hermits.

  'Jofuku sailed away across the sea, but he never returned. It was said, however, that the hermits on Mount Fuji now worshipped Jofuku as their patron god.

  'Hearing of this story, Sentaro was determined that he would find the hermits and, if he could, join them, so that he might have the water of perpetual life.

  'He travelled for many days and many nights, until he reached Mount Fuji, but there were no hermits to be found. All that remained on the mountain was the shrine of Jofuku. As he had travelled for so long, Sentaro prayed for seven more days, pleading for Jofuku to show him the way to the hermits and their elixir.

  'On the night of the seventh day, as Sentaro knelt inside the temple, a door opened with a great big BANG!'

  Her mother yelled the word, and Toshiko jumped and then giggled.

  'And from out of the door came the spirit of Jofuku, like a glowing puff of smoke.

  '"Sentaro!" said Jofuku. "You are a selfish man and your wish cannot easily be granted. Do you really think that you would like to live as a hermit? Hermits can only eat fruit and berries and the bark of pine trees; a hermit cannot live amongst others, amongst family or friends, and must live by many rules. The hermit does not feel hunger, or pain. You, Sentaro, live well. You eat fine foods, and drink much sake. You are not like other men, for you are lazy, and when it is cold you complain that it is too cold, and when it is hot you complain that it is too hot. A hermit does not do these things. Do you think that you could really live as a hermit?

  '"However, as you have prayed now for seven days and seven nights, I will help you in another way. I will send you from Mount Fuji to the Land of Perpetual Life, where nobody dies, and where everyone lives for ever!"

  'And with that, Jofuku placed in Sentaro's hand an origami crane, and he told him to sit on the back of the crane, so that it could carry him to this faraway land.

  'Sure enough, when Sentaro sat on the crane it grew and grew and grew until it was bigger than any normal crane, and then it carried him away, over the top of Mount Fuji, and out over the big blue sea.

  'They flew across the ocean for many thousands of miles, Sentaro and the paper bird, until they reached a faraway island. When they landed on this island the origami cran
e folded itself up and flew straight into Sentaro's pocket.

  'Sentaro walked around the island, and saw that the people there were prosperous and wealthy, and so he settled at a hotel in one of the villages. The owner of the hotel, a kindly man, spoke with the governor of the island and arranged for Sentaro to be given a house of his own, so that he could live for ever in the Land of Perpetual Life.

  'And it was true what Jofuku had said, for in the Land of Perpetual Life nobody ever died or got sick. People came to the island from all around, from China and India and even faraway Africa, and told the people on the island about a land called Horaizan, where everybody was eternally happy, but the only way to reach this land was by travelling through the gates of death.

  'Unlike Sentaro, the people of the island were not afraid of dying. In fact they longed for it, so desperately did they want to experience paradise. They were tired of their long, long lives, and wished to live in Horaizan instead.

  'But nothing could help them. When they drank poisons, unlike you or me, the people in the Land of Perpetual Life did not get sick or die, but carried on living, even healthier than before. The people there would eat the poisonous globe fish in their restaurants, and even sauces made from Spanish flies...'

  'Ewww...' said Toshiko. 'Flies? That's horrible!'

  'That's right. Spanish flies. But they were never sick and they never died. Sentaro could not understand it. He thought that he would enjoy living for ever, and so he was the only happy man on the island.

  'After many years, however, Sentaro realised that living for ever was not as enjoyable as he had thought it would be. He wasn't always happy, and things did not always go to plan. Sometimes, in fact, life was very hard and not much fun at all, and nothing ever seemed to change.

  'Sentaro prayed to Jofuku once more, to take him away from this terrible place and, all at once, the origami crane leapt from his pocket, spread its wings and flew him swiftly away from the island and across the sea to Japan.

  'They were halfway across the sea when they flew into a storm. The magical paper crane was soaked through, and its paper began to crumple. Soon enough it could no longer fly, and it fell into the sea with a SPLASH! and took Sentaro with it.

  'Terrified that he might drown, Sentaro cried out for Jofuku to save him, but no rescue came. As he struggled to stop himself from sinking, he saw a terrific SHARK! swimming in the waters nearby. It drew nearer, and nearer, and NEARER!

  '"Help me, Jofuku! Help me!" cried Sentaro as the shark opened it's great big jaws wider and WIDER!'

  Toshiko now hid her face behind her mother's arm, so that she couldn't even see the illustration of the shark inside the book.

  'Suddenly Sentaro awoke and found himself lying on the floor of Jofuku's shrine on Mount Fuji. He realised that all of his adventures in the Land of Perpetual Life had been nothing but a dream.

  'As he thanked the stars and all the gods for his good fortune, a bright light came towards him, and in the light there stood a messenger. The messenger held Sentaro's hand and said, "I am sent by Jofuku who, in answer to your prayer, has given you this dream so that you could see for yourself how it would be to live in the Land of Perpetual Life, and to see how you begged to return to Japan so that you could live a natural life and then pass through the gates of death to the Land of Horaizan. You also saw, when threatened by the shark, that you were scared of death. You now fear both eternal life and death, and this is as a normal man lives. Now return to your home, Sentaro, and live a good and industrious life. Remember your ancestors, and provide for your children. Thus you will live to an old age and be happy, for when selfish desires are granted they do not bring happiness." 'And so Sentaro returned to his home, and he did as the angel had told him, and he lived a long and happy life, where he remembered his ancestors and gave to his children. Sentaro died a very old man, but he is now in the Land of Horaizan, where he lives happily ever after. The End.'

  'Another one, another one,' said Toshiko, and her mother laughed.

  'No, Toshiko. Not tonight. You're very tired. All those fireworks and the boats... It's been a very long day.'

  Toshiko moaned and sulked, though she knew there wouldn't be another story that night. As her mother placed the book on the shelf and went to turn off the light, Toshiko's father appeared in the door.

  'Have you eaten all the edamame?' he asked.

  'No,' replied Toshiko's mother.

  'There's none in the refrigerator. I was feeling a little hungry. Maybe your mother?'

  'She doesn't like edamame.'

  'Mmm.'

  Toshiko's mother turned to her.

  'Goodnight, Toshiko,' she said, beaming.

  'Goodnight, Mum. Goodnight, Dad.'

  The light went off, and the door was quietly closed, plunging the room into darkness.

  As Toshiko drifted off to sleep, she thought of faraway places, like the Land of Horaizan. She liked the stories her mother told her. It felt, sometimes, as if the characters were her friends.

  Osaka was such a big and noisy city and had so many people, but none of the people were like the ones in the stories her mother read. There was no magic in Osaka; only buildings, and flashing signs and subway trains. No magic, that is, until that night.

  When Toshiko awoke early the next morning, there was a man in her room. Had she been any older than five, this might have filled her with terror, or perhaps a greater and deeper sense of threat, but instead the strange appearance of the man simply confused her.

  'Who are you?' she asked.

  The man looked scared, as if he'd seen a ghost, or perhaps the shark out of the fairy tale.

  'What did you say?' he asked, in English. Toshiko could speak English. Her parents had taught her when she was little and they had lived on the other side of the world, and so she understood him.

  'Who are you?' Toshiko asked, now speaking in English.

  'My name's Michael,' whispered the man. 'Where am I?'

  'This is Osaka,' said Toshiko, rubbing the sleep from her eyes and yawning.

  'Where's Osaka?' asked Michael.

  'In Japan,' said Toshiko.

  Michael laughed, and put his hand over his mouth to silence himself. He started shaking his head and padding quietly from one side of the room to the other.

  'Japan...' he whispered. 'I'm in Japan.'

  He walked over to her window, and opened the blinds just enough so that he could see outside.

  'Oh my God,' he said.

  'What is it? What's the matter?' asked Toshiko.

  'This... this city... It's... huge. It's like something out of a film. And the cars... Look how many cars there are.'

  'How did you get here?'

  'I don't know,' said Michael. 'I still don't know. It's like magic. But don't be scared. I'm not going to hurt you. I just need to go home.'

  'Where's home?'

  'It's a long, long way away.'

  'Like the Land of Horaizan?'

  'No. No... It's further away than that.'

  Outside, in the hallway, Toshiko's parents were leaving for work. Michael looked this way and that around the bedroom, before diving inside a small, pink wardrobe and closing the doors after him. The door to Toshiko's bedroom opened, and her mother leaned into the room.

  'Were you talking to yourself, Toshiko?'

  'I was talking to Michael,' said Toshiko. 'He's a magic person.'

  'It's those fairy tales,' said her father, standing in the hallway. 'Imaginary magic friends! Whatever next?'

  'We're going to work now,' said Toshiko's mother. 'Grandma is watching television. You be a good girl and we'll see you later.'

  The door closed and, as she heard her parents walk down the steps toward their cars, Toshiko said, 'It's OK, now. They've gone.'

  Michael stepped out of the wardrobe. 'I need to go,' he said. 'I need to find a way out of here.'

  'Why can't you use magic?'

  Michael sighed. 'It doesn't work like that,' he said. 'It just happens.'
r />   Michael's stomach made a growling noise, like the noise Toshiko's father made when he was pretending to be a lion, like in a story, and Toshiko laughed.

  'Sorry,' said Michael. 'I'm hungry. I can't remember the last time I ate properly. I took some peas in the pod from your refrigerator last night...'

  Toshiko laughed. 'Those weren't peas in the pod, silly!' she said. They're edamame!'

  'Oh,' said Michael. 'Do you have any more food I can eat? I'll eat something, and then I'll go. God knows what anyone would think if they found me here. I'd probably be strung up.'

  'I have some wagashi,' said Toshiko.

  'What's wagashi?'

  'They're sweeties.'

  Michael shrugged. Sweets would have to do when he was this hungry.

  'I'll go get them,' said Toshiko. 'You stay here.'

  Toshiko got out of bed, and opened her door just a little to check that the coast was clear. She could see her grandmother in the living room, sitting in her favourite armchair. She was already sleeping. Her grandmother seemed to sleep a lot, but then she was usually awake very early, pottering about on the roof garden, watering the plants and feeding the grosbeaks and doves.

  Toshiko tiptoed out of her bedroom and made her way through the living room toward the kitchen. Her grandmother was snoring again and, though Toshiko wanted to laugh, she decided not to, as it might wake the old woman up. On the television was Toshiko's favourite programme, Kagaku ninja tax Gatchaman, or 'Science Ninja Team Gatchaman'. It was a cartoon about five superheroes who worked as a team to fight monsters. Toshiko wanted to be a member of Science Ninja Team Gatchaman.

  As Toshiko slowly and quietly opened the door to the fridge and lifted out the bag of wagashi, a strange thing happened. The picture on the television began to blur and then fizz, as if the signal had been lost. The light inside the fridge flickered several times, and then there was an almighty noise, like the sound of somebody hitting a great big drum. Even so, her grandmother did not wake.

  'Toshiko...' said a voice. It was a terrifying voice, the scariest thing she had ever heard; like the kind of voice a snake might have, or maybe even a dragon.