A/N: I apologize for the long wait. I was diagnosed with Dysthymia (mild persistent depression) and it got worse (symptoms of Double depression was growing in magnitude) and I had a Major Depressive Episode at the end of last year hence it greatly affected my mood on the activities I had once enjoyed (e.g. writing). I left that hateful medical school; good thing too since my disorder is greatly affecting my concentration.

I'm so sorry if I hadn't replied to recent reviews. I'm a little busy and concentrating on winning the fight against this thing.

Yes, new cover art. There are more; if any of you are interested in viewing them, please check them all out on my dA and Pixiv. I also drew scenes from Chapter 14 and 15. (I'm not a bad artist, I promise). Like the last time I said, updates will come more slowly now that I've decided to make more cover arts/scenes for every chapter.

By the way, if any of you want to take a break from the sober mood of AAC then please enjoy that Jisuka smut (Trill). I hope you guys also enjoy the cover art of that as well. It's posted both in my dA and Pixiv; it has the mature filter on, so I'm afraid it cannot be viewed by visitors and an accounted is required.

Disclaimer: No, I don't own the Tekken franchise since if did I wouldn't have had stupid money troubles at the start of my school term. Either way, I wouldn't want to own the franchise as of late. *cough* Tekken Revolution's *cough cough* Vampire girl *cough* Kamiya Shin *cough cough cough*

…And the recent trailer didn't get me hyped at all.

Anhedonia (You can look this up in Wikipedia or google).

Moving on….Read, review and enjoy.

SOUNDLESS SOLACE

After being able to breathe properly once again, Asuka realized that she was holding on to the sleeves of Jin's jacket. She suddenly felt irritated; she quickly moved away from him and made sure that they were five steps apart. Asuka could feel her throat burning and she gave a hacking cough, and when clamped a hand over her mouth, she felt that her cheeks were a little moist; she hadn't noticed that she had shed tears.

Why does he have to see me always like this? Asuka thought angrily and her voice rose, "What the hell are you doing here?"

Jin didn't reply. It made her so conscious all of a sudden; he still didn't look away from her face….he still didn't look away from the image of her crying.

"You're really nosy, do you know that?" said Asuka thickly, turning away and wiping her face with the sleeve of her mofuku. "Jeez, can't you just leave me alone even for a sec?"

She marched out of the dojo, but she didn't get very far. Asuka stopped at the engawa and stood facing the garden for she couldn't think of anywhere else to go to be alone. She was sure her mother was already upstairs and she didn't want to be near her at the moment even though they were several layers of concrete, wood and furnishings apart.

Asuka wiped her face once again and cursed under her breath; she always hated crying and what was worse was that it had to be Jin who had to always see it. The instances when he had seen her weeping has become too many and Asuka could not help but feel ashamed and angry of her unintentional display of weakness and his impeccable timing of catching her at it. It was always him who saw her in her most vulnerable state and every time that would happen the circumstances provided no leeway of excuses to hide such helplessness.

Idiot, thought Asuka scathingly. Doesn't he have anything else better to do?

Her nose was beginning to run and she wiped it roughly with the sleeve of her mofuku. She looked out into the dark garden and saw the tables were covered in a thin blanket of snow. Back then when the weather was warmer, she used to lounge back there and suddenly recalling that that was the spot where she first hurled a few hostile words with Jin…

Jin…He had maintained composure all the time; he had not betrayed a shard of emotion. Asuka grimaced; she wasn't so sure whether he really cared about Master Kazama or he was just good at hiding his feelings. In comparison to Jin, Asuka must have scored zero in terms of discipline and control; she must have looked terribly feeble and clingy…

That idiot… she thought again.

When Asuka started to shiver, she finally decided to spend time by herself somewhere else; not exactly sure where to go, but when she entered the tatami room, she found Jin standing in front of Master Kazama's ato kazari*. The room was a little dark; the only sources of illumination were the glowing incense and candles. It created a lowly atmosphere of sorrow and tranquility. Jin turned his gaze towards Asuka as she simply stood at the threshold of the fusuma.

She wanted to say something at him; at first she wanted to make him leave, but it was quite cruel to do so. Asuka felt quite annoyed that Jin was there for she wanted to be alone at Master Kazama's altar, just as annoyed when she saw Master Kazama drinking with Jin before classes in this very same room months ago…the time when her father looked like he had the time of his life….

Their gaze met. Jin's features showed no signs of emotion, but Asuka thought she felt a fissure underneath that strong and impassive face. Months have passed and she thought that she was never going to get accustomed to her cousin's demeanor; he was always so aloof, stoic and with subtle manner of conceitedness. Showing concern and emotion didn't compliment that character.

It seems that both were trying to stare the other down and yet not betraying any emotion. Asuka quickly felt angry; she was losing at this silent game. Yet she realized that affinity was stirring once again…that she wanted to be near him. Scowling, she turned her gaze away and went up to her bedroom to be left alone with her thoughts.

Asuka slowly opened her eyes; the alarm clock pointed that it was almost noon. She turned over and remained still; the heavy grief weighted seemed to bring her entire body down. When she heard noises outside her bedroom, she pulled her blanket over herself and curled up.

Her bedroom door creaked open; Asuka closed her eyes and stiffened. She could feel her mother's movements and expected that she would feel her mother's hand on her shoulder, her soft whisper on Asuka's ear telling her that breakfast was ready, but she only felt her going at the foot of her bed, picked up something and left without another word. Asuka waited for her mother's footsteps to subside before opening her eyes and making any movements.

Asuka heard the front door slide open and close. She got up, exited her room and through the hallway window, watched her mother walking towards the gate. She was carrying a large rectangular box in her arms, probably containing their rented mofuku. A part of Asuka wanted to call out to her mother, but she disappeared from view as she had thought about it.

The sight of her mother leaving rekindled resentment. Would everything be like this from this point forward? Everything should be avoided, ignored and feigned?

It made Asuka very angry; she wanted to do something to make her mother face the reality of things, that there are things that cannot be avoided, cannot be turned away and cannot be overlooked. She balled her fists so hard that her fingernails dug into her palms and, quickly losing control, punched the wooden windowsill. The wood cracked against her knuckles and wondered what her mother would say when she would see the damage.

And Asuka imagined her mother's soft voice, her pleasantries, her politeness and how gently she would apprehend her. That smile, that gentle demeanor and that sweetness…

How fake.

Always pretending as if everything's lovely! Asuka thought savagely. She's a fucking coward!

The terrible mix of anger, grief and resentment bubbled within. Asuka stormed downstairs, not knowing what to really do and when she had reached the dojo, she almost walked into Jin.

He always looked unaffected…as if nothing was wrong…like her mother.

"What? Are you gonna pretend like everything's lovely too?" demanded Asuka angrily.

Jin didn't reply. He simply looked at her and with his usual air of calmness and indifference. His cool apathy became the heat that brought to a boil of her simmering fury.

"I bet you're just like her!" Asuka burst out. "You act like nothing's wrong and as if it's not a big deal! Do you really think that it's that easy to forget all of this? Did you really think that it's that easy to cast all of this aside? It's not over!"

She stopped short. Impulse had taken over and Asuka continued, "I wasted my gut caring about her in the first place! I wish I haven't because she doesn't give a shit! She's so damn shallow pretending to be all butterflies, kittens and sunshine! But that's not how it is now! The two of you act like it's nothing! It's fucking disgusting!"

She suddenly paced and cracked her knuckles. She was so ready to fight; she knew that she was taking out her fury onto her cousin. Half of her wished that she gave him a reason to strike, but a part of her wished that he wouldn't….that he would just listen.

"She really thinks I'm stupid, that I don't see what's going on, like I don't notice anything! I ain't a kid that can be lied at! She's the one who's the damn idiot! It's so damn annoying of her smiling and pretending everything's lovely all the damn time! Makes me think: did she know that Dad was sick and pretended everything was fine!? THEN IT'S ALL HER FAULT!"

A memory suddenly surfaced and Asuka took a deep breath to continued raving. "When that perverted old pig almost touched me, Dad and I were talkin' about it, but what did she do? She wanted to make as if nothing happened! As if nothing was a big deal! But it WAS! It WAS a big deal! So is this! Dad's gone! IT IS A BIG DEAL!

"She's so fucking weak! I don't need a weakling like her! I don't have to depend on someone like her! If she wants to leave and don't want to step up that Dad's gone, fine! That's not my mother! That's one person who's definitely I don't want to be related with! I'd rather take someone else rather than her as my mother!"

At the end of the last sentence Asuka bellowed, something seemed to have crossed Jin's features; his eyes looked at her as if she should be careful what she should be demanding.

"Don't look at me like that!" she snapped at him. The silence seemed to have hummed the anger of the recent spoken emotions that had finally been addressed and said out loud.

Asuka's gaze then went to the kamidana. It could be yokujitsu sai*today; she wondered if Master Kazama's soul was standing where they were, listening to every word Asuka had said. She looked down on her feet, thinking of her father. Would Master Kazama consoled Asuka in what she had yelled about, or would he have been unimaginably fuming at how his daughter had said about those terrible things about her mother, his wife?

There was a soft meow; Hachimitsu appeared, slinked between Jin's ankles and started rubbing against Asuka's legs. His light green eyes probed her; it gave the impression that the cat had wondered why she was so angry at her own mother. She looked back at Jin and scowled; Hachimitsu couldn't talk so he couldn't tell her what he was thinking, but Jin can…he just refused to talk. If Master Kazama's soul was truly here…Asuka wouldn't be able hear whatever he was thinking.

No one in this household was worth talking to. Asuka suddenly stormed off towards the genkan. The cold air hit her face as she stormed out of the gate. She did not know exactly where to go; she didn't want to talk to any of her father's students and she felt embarrassed talking about such things with Akemi.

Asuka didn't have a clear idea where her feet were taking her, but soon she found herself in the bustling street downtown. She looked around and saw men and women in business suits talking into their mobile phones, glancing at their wristwatches and hurrying about. There were middle-aged women in kimonos walking past clutching grocery bags. Teenagers meeting up with friends and talking where they should be spending this cold day before classes start…

Asuka bit her numb lips, folded her arms and tucked her hands into the crook of her elbows; she had forgotten to put on a jacket, but that wasn't why she felt so cold. Why can't the world stop for a whole minute and talk about Kazama Junicihiro?

She walked on, not wanting to see this sickening sight of people going about not giving a damn that Master Kazama was gone…It was just like her mother…not giving a damn about him at all.

It seemed to have taken just a second for Asuka to be transported from the middle of downtown to the quiet path towards the public cemetery. She slowed down her pace as she walked up the path and when it seemed that she had reached the middle of the slope of the hill, she sensed someone was walking behind her. She whipped around to see who it was and she swore out loud to discover who it was.

It was Jin.

Asuka stood glaring at him; did he follow her all the way here without saying anything? She was beginning to think that he was some sort of silent oddball. She didn't have the drive to fight and so instead she rolled her eyes and continued walking up towards the cemetery.

When they had reached the stone steps, Asuka gradually slowed down until she stopped as she realized something that she should have brought with her. She took a deep breath, turned around and faced Jin who was still a dozen steps behind her.

"Flowers," she said abruptly.

Jin didn't even bat an eye, but it inquired nonetheless. What do you mean?

"Flowers," Asuka repeated. She must have sounded like an idiot blabbering nonsense, "Flowers for Dad's grave."

"There might be some by the road," he replied.

"It's winter, you idiot."

"I'm sure we can look for decent ones at least," Jin said reassuringly.

Asuka looked away. She somehow felt ashamed of how she had treated him lately; ever since Master Kazama's death, he had been cordial towards her, but she had used him as an outlet of her negative emotions, and yet he had not complained.

"Go look for some then," ordered Asuka, folding her arms. She didn't intend to be mean-spirited to the only person who already seen her in her weakest state, but she was also angry at Jin for knowing so.

Jin didn't reply; he stepped out of the stone path and Asuka watched him disappear into the snow-capped trees. It wasn't long before he emerged with some narcissus flowers in his hand. The flowers were quite tiny, but they didn't look so bad.

"That's it? That's all?" commented Asuka. "Can't you do better than that?"

Again, Jin didn't retort. He went to look for more flowers; it seems that he had ventured farther from the path for it took longer to return and when he did, he had more flowers. Somehow, seeing Jin holding flowers broke out a wave of relief in Asuka.

When she reached out to take the flowers, it happened again: when her fingers slightly brushed against his, when she was close to him she felt it. This time it was stronger; it felt like something caressed Asuka's face. It might have been the same for Jin; they looked into one another's eyes. Asuka felt her cheeks going warmer and so she snatched the flowers and quickly moved away from him.

It wasn't anything ominous yet it made her greatly uncomfortable; she didn't like the feeling that she needs to be close to Jin. Asuka muttered inaudible words of courtesy. They walked in silence for several seconds before she spoke again.

"What do you and Dad usually do when I'm not around anyway?"

"Shōgi," replied Jin truthfully.

"And drinking?" she supplied.

"Tea,"

Asuka snorted. "Yeah, right. That wasn't what you two were drinking last time I saw the both of ya together."

"That was unplanned." he responded. The tone in his voice was quite sheepish. Asuka looked at him; she never heard him like that. Hearing genuine emotions from someone so indifferent was like a rare treat.

It made her smile a little.

They finally reached the cemetery. Asuka navigated through the headstones, located Master Kazama's haka* and she knelt down and laid the flowers at the base of the cold stone. She stared at Master Kazama's engraved characters for a long time that she momentarily forgot that she was with Jin.

Jin spoke unless he was spoken to, but it didn't annoy Asuka like it used to; she didn't want to talk, but she didn't want to be alone either. Asuka reached out and pressed her hand against the frozen stone, over the engraved characters of Master Kazama's name. The cold was numbing her palm, but she didn't remove her hand.

"When you and Dad were together…have you noticed anything funny? Did he drop any hints…anything at all…about him being sick? Back then…I realized he was just that…saying he wasn't as strong as he used to be…He's good at that stuff…"

Jin didn't reply immediately and when he did, it came slowly. "I did not want to even consider that he was getting weak."

The cold started to hurt her hand and a fissure appeared on the sleet.

"What did you want to think?" asked Asuka, her hand still on the melting ice. Then she added, "Was it the same to what I wanted to think?"

Jin gave no reply, but she knew what his answer would be. Asuka finally removed her hand; the ice had now completely melted away. She stared for a very long time staring at Master Kazama's name etched on the white marble-like stone.

Minutes had passed and neither exchanged any words. Asuka finally stood up. All of sudden she felt her eyes stinging; hot tears came streaming down her cheeks before she could stop them. At the corner of Asuka's eye, she saw Jin looking sideways at her, but her arms remained at her sides.

She no longer bothered wiping her tears or turning away like it no longer irked her when Jin wouldn't reply or stayed silent. Asuka let them fall, but after a few moments, she wiped her face roughly with the sleeve of her sweater.

"It's cold," she said, pouting. "Let's go home."

"Tadaima!" Asuka called out as she slid open the front doors.

Hachimitsu gave a loud meow, darted towards Asuka and started rubbing himself incessantly against her legs.

"Yo," she said, bending over and picking up her pet cat. "Did I make you wait?"

Hachimitsu purred. Asuka looked around and saw that her mother's shoes weren't in the getabako. She found herself staring at the empty space for a few minutes. Asuka heard the sliding door being closed; she looked at her right and saw Jin taking his hood off. Hachimitsu leapt from her arms and slinked around Jin's ankles.

"Mom's not yet home," she said, taking her shoes off and putting them properly inside the getabako. She didn't look at him again and went straight upstairs.

Asuka passed by her parents' bedroom door without a second glance, but when her hand was on her bedroom's doorknob, a thought struck her. She looked over her shoulder and considered if her mother had locked the door before leaving. She moved towards the door, turned the knob and slowly creaked it open.

Asuka stood for a minute on the threshold; the ticking clock on the bedside table seemed to be in sync with her heartbeat. She strode inside, went straight to Master Kazama's cabinet and opened it. Asuka pushed the clothes aside and quickly found what she was looking for—the chest that contained Master Kazama's cache of stowed medicine bottles. However, the bottles weren't the ones that she wanted to see; she set aside the box and pulled out the large photo album and dashed out of her parent's bedroom.

She was oblivious that she was making a lot of noise than wise as she slammed the bedroom door and her feet thudded on the wooden floor. In her haste to be alone in her bedroom, Asuka forgot the amount of contents in the album; the envelopes slipped from the pages and its contents spilled onto the floor. Asuka cursed loudly. She quickly bent over to gather the photographs.

"Is there something wrong?" came a voice.

Asuka jumped, thinking it was her mother, but the voice was definitely different. She straightened up and saw it was Jin. He apparently heard her from downstairs, wondered what the commotion was all about and thought Asuka had gotten herself in some sort of mess.

"Nothing," replied Asuka quickly; she immediately bent over again to gather the old and faded photos littered at her feet.

Jin cast his gaze onto the photos and without Asuka noticing, he went closer for a better look. Only when Asuka had gathered the last photo and straightened up was the time did she noticed Jin had one in his hand and was looking at it like Asuka had never seen him before. Asuka moved behind Jin and gazed at the image in the photo; it was that dark-haired woman who he shared features with.

"Is that her?" asked Asuka softly. "Is that your mom?"

"Yes," answered Jin so quietly that he barely moved his lips.

Asuka raised the thick wad of photographs; Jin tore his gaze from his mother's photographs, looked at her and then what she held in her hand.

They did not exchange any words; they seem to understand one another through that sort of connection they had. Asuka carefully tucked in the rest of the photos inside the old album and they descended downstairs. Hachimitsu, positioned like a loaf of bread, gave a load meow at the sight of them; the feline jumped from the couch's armrest and with his aloft tail, followed Jin and Asuka towards the engawa.

They sat close to one another and Hachimitsu curled up close to Jin; the album was in Asuka's lap. They looked through every photograph in the envelopes. The elder Kazamas' smiles and gestures immortalized in glossy papers, unchanging. It was like looking through something where they were forever frozen in time…where they were happy, untroubled and healthy.

Every once and awhile they would come across pictures of themselves together in a playground, in the backyard and in the dojo. Asuka couldn't remember the time they were together, but it meant something; it was something that they had both known even when they were very small and now half-forgotten. Whenever they would come across these kinds of pictures, Asuka would steal a glance at Jin; he still sported that impassive look, but she could feel something stirring within him.

Like before, they did not exchange any words. Asuka wanted to say something, but she couldn't find the right words at this moment. It was better to stay silent. There was something in between them that she still couldn't fully understand; she had only surmised their connection was being related, but she felt like that was not the main reason.

Asuka finally turned to the last page where the portrait of her aunt Jun was. Kazama Jun's beauty was so haunting that Asuka stared, but there seemed to be more than that. Despite her picture had been kept in a chest for years, her beauty had not waned; her melancholic eyes and small smile reached out both to her niece and son, wanting to make her understand the secrets she held.

Asuka was about to close the album when she noticed how Jin was still looking at his mother's portrait. She was not accustomed to see the look of adoration on a person with a very stoic nature; she left the album open and continued to watch him for a few moments before turning her attention to the cherry blossom trees of the yard.

Soon it will be spring, the weather will be warmer and the trees will blossom anew. The winter months were awful. The loss of Master Kazama and the distant relationship of her mother felt terrible and surreal. Asuka thought that she could trust her mother on the loss and pain she felt, but her mother grew distant and fled from her daughter's need for support and comfort.

The soundless transition of the bitter coldness of winter to the new life of spring…Maybe some things were meant to let go and find something new in someone else. It was not easy to forget Master Kazama and the newfound strain of Asuka's relationship with her mother, but she knew that someone understood and without saying too many words.

Asuka lightly leaned her head on Jin's shoulder; he blinked and looked at her. Without looking up, Asuka thought Jin was going to push her away; she felt him tense up a little, but he didn't move away and eased down. Asuka braced herself for any movement, but none came.

Asuka continued to stare unseeingly at the cherry blossom trees with the weight of her head and upper torso on Jin's shoulder. The sleepless nights racked with terrible emotions gradually crumbled and she was finally able to sleep peacefully.

A/N: First and foremost, thank you so much for waiting. I hope this chapter has always kept you interested despite the almost nonexistent update.

To those who have noticed my A/Ns in previous chapters, you have a fair idea that things don't go easy for me. So it turns out I've been suffering from Dysthymia for 3 years already and I showed signs of Double depression…which then led to a Major Depressive Episode. Probably my unhappy childhood contributed as well. (Ah the perks of being a student in a medical school, having access to psychiatric books and having a psychiatrist for a godmother. Isn't it dandy that I was able to 'self-diagnose' while my godmom confirms my disorder? Oh yeah!)

I'm fighting off this depression since it's going to take over me and it's making me do harmful stuff, not to mention affecting my concentration and hence I left that pathetic cesspool of a medical school. I'm very aware that updates make it seem like this fic is dead, but to those who are following me over Twitter or Tumblr, you may have caught a glimpse of my personal grumblings.

I'm getting better, but not fully cured.

There is no use constantly asking me on the next update since there willnever be a fixed schedule. Yes, it will take months, but updates will surely come. I'm not living a charmed life; it's been so difficult these past years. I'm very tired and what I'm going through is emotionally crippling. It's affecting the way I think and the way I think is going to affect, not just this story, but my decisions regarding my life as well.

Fan arts will come occasionally. Please be patient. I'm still in the learning stage. Though turning this fic into a doujinshi is too much, I can still create some panels/scenes for it. I'll post about it in my Deviantart.

Doujinshis in Pixiv. Character designs and chapter portraits in DeviantArt. I don't post much fan arts in Tumblr. To those who want to know how Akemi (I have to draw her later. Not in the mood) and Hachimitsu looks like, check out my DeviantArt (check for the gallery folder 'An Annoying Cliché').

Yeah, I'm advertising. I'll make more scenes. Please stay tuned in my deviantArt/Pixiv/Twitter.

Translation Notes:

*Haka – grave. This is more like a family grave.

The Rituals:

21.) Nōkotsu sai – Entombment of the ashes. In the past, the entombment of the ashes took place on the same day as the cremation. Now it is common for the family to keep the ashes in the house for fifty days (or even longer, if it is not convenient to go to the grave). Perhaps this tendency to live with the ashes reflects a lessening of concern with the impurity of death. It can also be understood as a sort of double burial (the corpse is first disposed of in the furnace and later buried). At the graveside ceremony, a priest recites norito (liturgies or incantations) and the mourners offer tamagushi.

*22.) Ato Kazari – Temporary altar for the newly dead. 'Later decorations'. A simple altar is set up in the house. For fifty days, offerings are given to the deceased. The Shinto offerings are the familiar sakaki, washed rice, salt, water and sake. Candles may be used, and fruits and rice dumplings (dango) may also appear.

*23.) Yokujitsu sai –The day after the funeral. A brief rite is conducted to announce to the soul of the deceased that the funeral has been successfully carried out. This rite also marks the first day of the deceased's career as an ancestor and so can be considered the first memorial service. A Shinto priest conducts the rite either in front of the grave or in front of the temporary altar in the house. The rite is short, but its purpose is important: the deceased is notified that he/she is well and truly dead and reminded not to try to reenter the door that is now closed.

Yokujitsu sai can now be done not necessarily on the succeeding day of the funeral; it can be done on the following week, month or even year.

24.) Kiyoharai no gi – Post-funeral purification rite. The day after the fiftieth-day memorial service, a purification ceremony is performed to remove the impurity of death from the house. In some cases, this purification is conducted some one hundred days or one year after the death, but in any case it is specifically a Shinto ritual.

Shinto priests come to the house and perform the purification using a harai-gushi and entō. First the kamidana, the ancestral altar and the temporary altar are purified. Next, the family and relatives are purified. Then, the priests proceed to purify each room of the house, any attached buildings and grounds.

25.) Reisai – Memorial Rites. This is somewhat an anniversary rite. Shinto memorial observances are modeled on Buddhist memorial services (hōji or hōyō). Buddhist memorial services are held every seven days after the death until the forty-ninth day (7x7) According to the Buddhist doctrine, a person spends forty-nine days in the intermediate existence (chūin or chūu) before his next rebirth, so this transitional period is crucial. According to popular understanding, it takes forty-nine days for the spirit to go to the Pure Land (or to be reborn). During that interval, the spirit can benefit from the prayers and offerings of the living.

Shinto rejects multiples of seven, since the Buddhist connotations are too strong. Instead, Shinto use multiples of ten, holds reisai on the tenth, twentieth, thirtieth, fortieth and fiftieth days after death (notice that fifty ends up very close to the Buddhist forty-nine).

In Shinto, the tenth-day and following memorial services are often conducted in front of the grave. After one year, the memorial services are held in the house. Later, Shinto memorial services are held on the following anniversaries of the death: first, second (optional), third, fifth, tenth, twentieth, thirtieth, fiftieth and hundredth. After fifty days, the reiji/ihai is moved from its solitary position on the temporary altar to the household ancestral altar, where it joins the other ancestors. The spirit has passed through its liminal period, shed its pollution, and is ready to assume responsibilities as the family's guardian deity. The house is purified and the paper is removed from the kamidana and ancestral altar. The family is now free from impurity and may worship at a shrine as usual. In practice, many families prefer to wait longer than fifty days before entering a shrine, often for one year.