Kohana found herself in a big square in front of a tall building. The place was crowded and the sun was setting. People around were like a dark sea in which she could hide without being spotted. The only light came from the building, that was towering all over. In the opposite direction there was a park and the gentle sound of a river, passing by it. She decided to walk that way and, the more she went on, the more the light was getting intense. The path showed her the beauty around: trees, flowers, plants and some moths were flying in circles around the street lamps. Benches were all over inviting her to sit and take a rest, but she was pushed by some irresistible force to walk along. She ended up in front of a small red bridge uniting the two portions of land divided by water. A fox was sat in the middle of it staring at her. Kohana wasn't surprised and she got closer expecting some kind of informations.

"I've been waiting for you!" Said the fox.

Kohana without even a sign of flinching kneeled before the animal listening what it had to say.

"The moon is rising, you must prepare for a great journey. There is no time to lose, say farewell to the people close to you and be ready to leave."

"What should I do?" Asked Kohana perplexed.

"You'll know once you'll resolve this riddle."

"What are you talking about?" She replied perplexed.

"There is an animal that is a question mark to humankind,

It can give you only one anwer at the time,

Yet there are seven more you could find,

But be careful before you commit your crime."

"I don't understand." She said impatient.

The fox looked at her and then finished the phrase.

"It likes to roam in the middle of the field,

Untamed, it's the one who knows the ancient law,

It can be either your sword or your shield,

Do not understimate its mighty blow."

The reality blurred and master Gondra appeared.

"Somewhere behind the curtains of sleep there is a world made by illusions that could make us question ourselves. Do we wake up from it? Or do we sleep before and after it?" He asked.

"What?" The girl replied confused.

Kohana woke up and opened her eyes. She still got the imagines in her mind so she reached a piece of paper and wrote the dream on it. She leaned back on her pillow and start remembering.

Before going home, master Gondra talked to her and gave her instructions to do something. She saw her wet clothes on the dark wooden floor. She remembered the heavy rain because of the smell around the room, but she didn't know what happened in the end. The dream she had was too powerful. She lifted the paper on the little wooden table close to her bed. She couldn't read because it was too dark. She moved her blanket and she walked naked across the room to reach the window. The night before she was so exausted and wet that she just wrapped herself in the blanket and felt asleep.

"Kohana?" Called his father from downstairs.

"Breakfast is ready, are you awaken?"

She dressed quickly and answered from the open window. Before going downstairs, she took the piece of paper and saw it was a ticket. Suddenly everything came back to her mind.

The night before master Gondra told her about a journey he was asked to join. He felt too old for that and so he decided to send Kohana. That trip could have been her chance to discover the world and to find herself. It was a cruise that was starting from Japan going to different countries. The task was to partecipate to a meeting at the end of it. That meeting was only for people who dedicated their lives to humankind like the old man did. At first Kohana didn't feel like going, but then master Gondra made her realize it was her chance to change, to find what she had always been looking for.

After this memory Kohana sat on the bed without strenght. Then a smile was drawn on her face. His father opened the door checking if she was alright and she replied with a laugh, giving him a kiss on a cheek. She went downstairs jumping two steps at the time.

Her mum was waiting her standing with her arms crossed next to the kitchen table. Her cup of coffee was almost empty and she was staring at the clock. The scent of coffe and smoke was everywhere.

"Do you want some coffee?" She asked.

"Oh, mum. You know I have my lemonade fifteen minutes before my breakfast instead of coffee."

"Still Master Gondra teaching?"

"Yes it is. For an healthier body."

"I am worried about you. We both are." She said with an apprensive look.

Lin had moved downstairs and he sat on his sofa far from the kitchen table. He was staring at the two women, but he sat in the shadows of the room made by the clouds outside. He lighted up his churchwarden and he started smoking very slowly. Big white spreading vapour molecules were dancing around his mouth.

"What are you going to do?" How will you plan your future? All your friends already have a lifeplan with a project."

"I know you are worried, but you shouldn't be." She said sipping her bitter drink.

"What do you mean?" Her mother insisted.

"It's my decision, first, and then I found a way." Kohana said taking a piece of paper from under her clothes.

Like pigeons gather around an old man who's feeding them, her parents gathered around the dinner table to see what it was the mysterious paper.

"An invitation to where ?" Said Lin.

"It's Hawaii, the final destination. "

"How do you think you will get the money for a trip like that?" Said the woman.

"Everything is already paied." Kohana answered.

Everybody freezed. That moment lasted hours in the girl mind. Kohana felt like looking inside a snow globe: it seemed like snowing , but it was fake. It was all real. The walls, his parents, the table and every word coming out from their mouths.

She found herself outdoor under a tiny white umbrella, after slamming the door. Little rain drops knocked on the top of it. She was crying for the last words she heard.

"Do you remember what happened to your little brother right?" Her mum asked her one moment before.

She couldn't stand the fights between their parents and having no better place to go she moved towards Master Gondra's house.

Lately she had no friends to go to. Everybody left to go studing abroad or had something to do. She had had a boyfriend, but he was too competitive and their lifestyles didn't fit very well. He was doing sports all the time and he treated her like some kind of throphy. Kohana luckily found it out soon and she understood she deserved better. The little island she had been living on didn't suit her anymore.

When Kohana opened the door, Master Gondra was working on a very hard origami: a well shaped horse. He had left the door open seeing she was coming under that funny umbrella that reminded him of a mushroom. Kohana got closer and noticed he was using a technique different from before. He was wetting his fingertips in a bowl and folding the paper more delicately, but still with enthusiasm. There were little drops on the table that looked like somebody cried. The horse was taking a really good shape and it seemed almost real. The master's fingers worked without stopping like a spider that is casting its net. The girl sat in front of him without talking.

"How are your parents?" He asked without turning his head.

"We had a fight."

"About the travel, I guess."

"Yeah. I shouldn't have asked them." She said looking down.

"They shouldn't have interfeared!" He said with decision.

He put down the horse, he dried his fingertips and cleaned the smooth table with precision.

"Your parents gave you life and now they want it back. They should stop deciding for you and pretending you are of their propriety. You were born through them, not for them. Rebel and take back your power, the power to decide, your inner fire."

"But they gave me all I needed, they fed me and took really good care of me. I feel I own them something."

"Of course they did. Love doesn't go straight. It goes in circles."

"What do you mean?"

"It means you don't give to receive, you give because you've already received. One day you'll give to your children as your parents did to you. Bow and arrow share the same relationship."

After he finished saying that her face lighted up and she remained silent to meditate on this.

"What should I do now ?" She asked at last.

"If you really wish to go you should focus on it so that the universe can help you out. Remember you just need the fifty percent of power of will, the rest is divine grace moving for you."

"I don't understand. This is just theory. How can I put it into practice?"

" Simple. Go every night to the shinto temple, light a candle and bring hundred paper crabs the first night, two hundred the second night, three hundred the thrird night and finally four hundred the last night before leaving."

"Why do I have to do that ? It makes no sense." Said the girl.

"Of course it has. When you put your intentions into action you are manifesting them. Manifesting them in rituals filled up with intention is preparing every inch of your body to receive it. It's not about the shape, it's about you being in the present moment doing that and being honest to yourself. From latin, repetita iuvat, to repeat it helps."

"When should I start?" she asked confused.

"Tonight." He replied putting a white paper in front of her.