Eastern Wonderland Story - Book 1: Highly Responsive to Prayers

[wererat42]

Eastern Wonderland Story
Book 1 ? Highly Responsive to Prayers


Gensokyo. A land far to the east that time, not to mention everyone else living on the outside world, had long forgotten. An invisible barrier encompassed the entirety of this land, designed not only as a seal to keep its denizens contained within, but also to keep trespassers from the world outside from entering. This was mainly because of the nature of a majority of these denizens.

Youkai, ghosts, demons, tsukumogami, and fairies? anything and everything that would be dismissed as mere flight of fancy or subject of fairytale in the outside world, here are as real as the people who live alongside them, acting as wardens (and as for the unlucky ones, dinner). They are the descendants of the greatest heroes their country had ever seen, heroes who had volunteered to shut themselves into an eternal prison with the youkai nearly one hundred years ago.

Time passes, truth becomes legend, and on the outside life goes on for the people, grown complacent with their science, unafraid of the dark, unaware that the visions that haunt their dreams exist just beyond the curtain.

In a nondescript plot of land, on the edge of the barrier, there lies an equally nondescript Shinto shrine, tended by a single girl.

This shine was known as the Hakurei Shrine, and for generations it had been the last line of defense for the humans who lived in Gensokyo. The shaman girl who lived there was called Reimu Hakurei, shrine maiden in training.

What she did not realize was that on this day, the first of many incidents would occur. And it would begin with a simple visit.

This is the beginning of her story - of my story.

[wererat42]

Chapter 1 – The Ascetic

Year 116 – 1st of the Godless Month
First let me get the obligatory introductions out of the way. My name is Reimu, the current attendant of the Hakurei Shrine. I’ve been told that my name means something like 'dream vision’ or ‘revelation’ which honestly sounds like a load of crock to me. Who knows? For some reason the people I know like explaining how to read their names even if I don’t ask them. My only real understanding of the ideograms that represent my language comes from two things, the worn out books left over by my predecessors and the lessons of this girl who shows up at least once a week. She looks about my age but is probably a lot older.

Then we come to the second part of my name. Hakurei. I hear it means something along the lines of ‘esteemed companion’ but in truth it’s just the opposite. The Hakurei Shrine is a desolate place. It’s location tends to deter visitations of those who aren’t brave (or crazy) enough to make the trip through youkai-infested woods. Even fewer people would willingly choose to walk the same path as the Hakurei, for our line isn’t exactly known for their life expectancy. Truth be told, I am probably the last. My mother died before I had a chance to remember her face and my father… I don’t know if I even have one. So yeah, not a lot of companionship or camaraderie to be had here. No friends, no family, no worshipers (at least not the donation-bearing kind), nothing but a broken-down shrine and me, idly sweeping fallen leaves from the paving stones under the single red torii with a dingy old bamboo broom. There wasn’t really any point to the cleaning, since no one would be around to appreciate it, I was just trying to keep busy to keep from losing my mind to boredom.

After most of the path had been cleared I propped a hand on my hip and stabbed the end of the boom into the ground like a soldier standing on guard while I quietly surveyed the shrine grounds; not too shabby for a single morning’s worth of work. Maybe I’d get really wild and clean out the old storehouse. Or at least the though crossed my mind until I heard the tip-tap of wooden clogs coming up the stone stairs leading up to my shrine. It surprised me enough that I almost dropped my broom.

“Well, I haven’t seen you in a while, Ri…”

I stopped halfway. The person now standing at the top of the stairs was unfamiliar to me; shoulder-length strawberry blonde - almost red - hair topped with a pair of buns, a simple white dress with a solid black panel in the front, and over that had been embroidered a golden vine-like pattern. Still, the one feature that stood out the most above the rest was her arms. One was wrapped up to her sleeve with a white linen bandage. The other was clapped with an iron shackle.

“…can I help you with something? Did you lose your way or something?” I wasn’t going to hold my breath and expect that this lady had actually come here by design. Call me a pessimist, though I like the sound of ‘realistic’ better. The woman looked at me for a second, then sighed and started walking towards the shrine.

“Uh, hello?” I asked again. “You break out of jail or something? Can you hear me? Nihao? Odango Lady? Meatbun?”

She stopped suddenly and turned back to me, looking somewhat surprised. Okay, so she could understand me well enough. At least that would make it easier to figure out what she wanted. Probably.

“Meat… bun?” she asked incredulously.

“Your hair.” I said, pointing at the top of her head, and in turn the woman touched the tips of her bandaged fingers to her hair buns, as though realizing for the first time they were there. “Don’t see many people walking around like that these days, especially not around here. So, do you prefer going with ‘Odango’?”

“Kasen will do.” The woman said, lowering her arm. “Kasen Ibara. I am but a simple ascetic from the mountains, come to pay my respect to the Hakurei Shrine. You must be Reimu, young, impetuous, and kind of crude. Quite a bit like her, if memory serves.”

“Like who?” I asked, losing my patience. I felt my grip on the broom handle tighten. There was that weird feeling in my gut again - the feeling that something was about to happen. “Did you come all this way just to insult me?”   

“How old are you, Hakurei Maiden?” the question Kasen posed was so simple it threw me off guard.

“What?”

“How old are you?”

I thought about it for a moment. My age had never really been a big deal to me before. I hadn’t bothered to write it down anywhere, and there wasn’t anyone around to remind me. There wasn’t much point anyway. It’s not like a birthday had any real importance. You’re just a year older than you were before.

“If I had to guess, eleven.”

“Correct.” Kasen said, bringing her palms together. “And it was decided long ago that eleven would be a good age for you to begin your spiritual training. And that I would be the one to guide you through the early stages.”

I looked at the Odango Lady skeptically. This was sounding fishier by the minute. “Spiritual training?”

“You didn’t think that the extend of the Hakurei Maiden’s duties ended at sweeping the front porch did you?” Kasen shook her head. “You have been charged with a sacred trust. To protect the balance of Gensokyo, to safeguard the Great Boundary, to…”

“Yes, thank you very much for reminding me, Odango Lady. Who exactly decided all of this, anyway? And why should I trust you?”
“With this training, you should be able to tell for yourself who you can and cannot trust. As for the rest, well, I guess you could say friends in high places. High and low… and actually not so much friends as friendly depending on circumstance.”

“You’re not going to be talking in riddles like this often, are you?” I asked wearily.

“Only in the case where a straight answer would be ill-advised.” Kasen said, holding a finger up in a ‘matter-of-fact’ gesture. “Where ignorance is bliss, ‘tis folly to be wise.”

“Funny line coming from an ascetic.”

“You’re understand in time.” The Odango Lady continued. “Too much knowlege can be overwhelming to a young, impressionable mind. It’s always best to start with something simple, the complicated parts can always wait.”

“Well then, where do I start?”

Kasen smiled and pointed somewhere behind me. I turned to see the old storehouse I had been half-considering opening up earlier. I rarely ever went inside, namely because I knew there were a great many cursed objects sealed away inside that I didn’t have the skill to handle. My thoughts of cleaning it had actually been more whimsical than anything.

“In there is as good a place as any, I think.”

I sighed. I sincerely hoped this intuition thing turned out to be nothing.

[wererat42]

I had only just started piling things up outside the door of the storehouse, and I was already getting tired. It probably didn’t help that I’d just finished the morning sweeping. This wasn’t some kind of stamina training, was it? There was no way to be sure, though Kasen would go through some of the things that I brought out, occasionally shaking her head and setting aside the boxes sealed with ofuda talismans she recognized as ‘dangerous’ and set them down on a special ‘quarantine’ area. As time passed, her expression steadily grew more and more flustered.

“It shouldn’t be this difficult to find!” said the Odango head, crossing her arms gravely. “I know the last maiden enjoyed collecting oddball knickknacks and the like, but this is ridiculous.”

“You… knew her?” I asked, peering quizzically at a stone figure of a strange-looking turtle.

“We were acquainted.” Kasen answered, then her eyes seemed to lose focus for a while, as though she was recalling a lifetime’s worth of memories. Eventually she blinked and shook her head. “Anyway, what we’re looking for is going to be in a wooden box, polished teak, about this big,” she demonstrated just how big by holding her hands about five sun wide. “And it has a Taoist symbol on the lid.”

“How am I supposed to find anything with an explanation like that?” I asked, giving her a dubious glance, then pointed inside the storehouse, which was filled with boxes of all shapes and sizes.

“How? I thought it was a rather good description.” She rubbed her chin thoughtfully. “Well, perhaps it would be a good idea to take a short respite. None of these things will be going anywhere soon.”

“Whatever.” I said under my breath as I walked towards the well to draw a jar of water. “I’d say make yourself at home, but you already have.”

As I filled the clay jar I could hear the distinct sound of footsteps behind me. No. It couldn’t be. Two visitors in the same day - much less spaced no more than an hour apart? The planets must have aligned. I turned to administer the standard greeting and nearly dropped the jar when I saw who it was.

“Ri…” The girl standing before me looked about three or four years older than I was, wore a red and white blouse, and her straight blonde hair was held together with a red bow. Under one arm she carried an assortment of books and loose papers, and hanging on the opposite arm was a large bag. It was one of the few people I ever looked forward to seeing, regardless of whether they brought donations or not. “Rin!”

I set the jar down and threw my arms around the other girl, Rin Satsuki. The impact caused her to drop most of her books, but she just sort of laughed and tousled my hair.

“Hello, Reimu.” She said, patting me on the back. “You’re acting like we haven’t seen each other in years.”

“It’s been more than a week!” I complained. “That feels like a year when you live alone in a desolate shrine like this.”

“Reimu, you shouldn’t talk about your own home like that.” Rin chided, touching the tip of her finger to my nose. “It keeps you warm in the winter, shades you in the summer, and it protects you from the rain.”

“Where have you been?”

Rin smiled, and the surrounding area seemed to brighten just a little. “I’ve been busy with a few things. Sorry I couldn’t see you any sooner. But believe me, I’ve really looked forward to coming.”

Rin suddenly disengaged from my embrace, her body becoming rigid. She was looking at something behind me, and her hand was moving towards her bag.

“Oh? Who is this?”

The voice belonged to Kasen she must have come over to see what was taking me so long.

“That should be my line,” answered Rin, her tone suspicious. “What brings you to this place, and why has that storehouse been opened?”

“Oh, forgive me. I didn’t mean to alarm anyone.” Kasen said apologetically. “I am but a humble pilgrim, Kasen Ibara. I was tasked with the duty of aiding Reimu with her spiritual training.”

“A hermit?” Rin said, her hand moving away from the bag. “I should be the one to apologize. I felt a source of great power and saw a person I did not recognize. Allow me to introduce myself. I am Rin Satsuki, a traveling doctor and scholar of ancient lore.”

“I don’t mind.” Kasen said. “I would be weary in your place, too. Regarding the storehouse, I am helping Reimu search for something that will help her in her training. Something that will be indispensable in the days ahead.”

“You’re can’t really mean that, could you?” Rin asked, picking up her fallen books.

“Yes. It is time for her to take up the mantle.”

I looked between the two as they exchanged enigmatic words. “Guys… can we start making sense here, please?”

Kasen looked at me. “Let’s start looking again. Only this time we’ll have an extra pair of hands.” She glanced at Rin.

“Yes… I suppose I can help you with that.”

I followed Kasen back to the storehouse, with Rin walking close beside me. She breathed in the air and exhaled. “I see you’ve been cleaning up the shrine on a regular basis.  There’s a good atmosphere here.” She smiled. “I’m sure one day thus will be a gathering place for many people.”

“So long as they bring donations.” I sighed. “Shrine maiden isn’t exactly a lucrative business. Especially at a shine out in the middle of nowhere.”

I soon found myself back at work, though with Rin helping me and talking about old folktales, it wasn’t quite so bad.

“And then,” she said, altering her voice so she sounded like an old woman. “After the man cut down that shining stalk of bamboo, within the hollow center he found a baby, no bigger than your hand, whom he took in to raise as his own daughter. She grew up to be the most beautiful lady in all the land!”

I couldn’t help but laugh aloud at her impersonation. And the stories she told were pretty interesting, too.

“Oh!” Kasen suddenly called out, picking up a small wooden box. Blowing the dust off the top, she came over and handed it to me. “Here it is, I found it! Why something so important was buried under all this junk, I’ll never know, but here it is!”

The box was about how she described it, with the black and white yin-yang etched into the lid. Why something that was plainly a Taoist symbol was doing at a Shinto shrine, rather than a tomoe, I couldn’t immediately say, but when Kasen removed the lid I could see it wasn’t wholly unrelated to the actual contents of the box.

It was an orb. Its round black and white surface perfectly smooth, about the size of my fist, and when I picked it up it weighed no more than an apple. It didn’t take long to realize that the colors and design matched with the image on the lid: a yin-yang orb.

[wererat42]

I just realized that I'd forgotten to make any sort of introduction. Eastern Wonderland Story is going to be a series that follows Reimu from childhood, before she was ever known as the Shrine Maiden of Paradise and shows her as she comes to understand her own abilities and her purpose.

You may have noticed a few things. One, young Reimu is something of a brat, and two, there are a few characters who were not introduced in Highly Responsive to Prayers, and one who was never introduced at all. Well, HrTP didn't really have much in the way of narrative, so to make this into a plausible story I had to improvise a little.

Reimu is young and impulsive very different from the present Reimu. Here she has very little control over her power. We know that Kasen visited Reimu in the past, though we don't know how long ago. For now both she and Rin will act as something like mentor and guide. Other familiar characters might make appearances here and there. 

That's enough from me. On with the the story.


“All that work for this?” I asked in disbelief, holding the orb out toward Kasen. Her eyes widened almost as large as saucers.

“Woah! Watch where you’re pointing that thing!” the meatbun ascetic said, quickly stepping back as though I’d just pulled out a bomb. I looked again at the orb. There was nothing remotely remarkable about it other than its polished surface devoid of any noticeable flaws

“No need to get so overexcited, Miss Ibara.” Rin said, laughing lightly. “I wouldn’t think Reimu could know what it even does.”

“And that is exactly why she shouldn’t be waving it around mindlessly.” Kasen retorted, and then turned to me. “Listen, Reimu, this is going to be my first lesson to you. What you hold is the Hakurei Yin-yang Orb, the sacred weapon of your clan, and it represents your role in Gensokyo. You are not merely the protector of the Boundary, you are the equalizer. In your duty you must treat all things as though they were equal. Hatred and wickedness may exist in the hearts of men; kindness and compassion dwell among the tribes of youkai. White and black, darkness and light, all are the same. Youkai feed on humans when their numbers swell, humans exterminate youkai. Without this relationship either population would grow to the point that the land could no longer support them. That is the nature of yin and yang. That is the truth of Gensokyo.”
         
“You’re doing this on purpose, aren’t you?” I muttered, tossing the orb from hand to hand. “As soon as somebody feels like talking sense, I’m ready.”

“Basically, your job isn’t to just go around randomly killing youkai,” said Rin. “Think of it along the lines of a hunter hunting to keep the number of rabbits under control.”

“Except I don’t think rabbits eat people. So you said this is a weapon?” I hefted the orb, testing its weight. “I guess I could surprise someone if I threw it at them, doesn’t really weigh that much.”

“As the heir to the Hakurei, you have the power to exert control the orb.” Kasen explained. “Reach out with your heart and will the orb to move.”

“Think of it like a prayer.” Rin added.

How was it that these two seemed to know more about something that was supposedly mine than I did? I narrowed my eyes at the yin-yang thing in the palm of my hand. So it was like willpower? Move, I directed my thoughts toward the orb. Nothing. Not even a twitch. Move… please?

The orb spontaneously rolled over in my hand. Wow, it actually worked. I glanced up at Rin and Kasen, who were watching my progress eagerly. This didn’t really bother me, coming from Rin, but something about Kasen’s scrutinous gaze, like someone watching a baby making its first steps before stumbling to a fall, really irked me.

“Now see if you can make it float under its own power,” the Odango Lady said.

“I think that’s enough for right now,” said Rin with a tone of concern. “This is already more than the previous maiden could do at first.”

“Really?” I looked at Rin. I’d always sort of figured that she was older than she looked, but had she known the previous maiden when she was my age? If this was more than she was able to do, then maybe I could do it. I focused on the orb, concentrating my thoughts to make it rise from the palm of my hand and into the air.

“Don’t get overconfident, Reimu,” said Kasen. “You do not control the orb. You may ask it to follow you and it may agree to do so, but it is not simply a tool.”

What kind of nonsense was she spouting out now? I narrowed my eyes at the orb. Ever since she showed up she’s done nothing but nag me, and it’s getting on my nerves. All I was planning on doing today was do a little cleaning, maybe have a cup of tea if it got cold later. But no, some lady with meatbuns on her head had to come and make me got through that dusty storehouse to find a little ball and make it float around…

“Reimu, calm down.”  It was Rin who was talking to me.

“What?”

“Reimu, the orb.”
 
I turned my eyes to the yin-yang orb. It was floating above my hand and was spinning wildly, as through it were being pulled at from twenty different directions at once. Also, was it just me, or was it slowly growing bigger?

“Reimu, clear your mind.”  Kasen instructed me. “Try to get it to slow down.”

Slow down. I directed the thought towards the orb, which was spinning so fast now the black and white surface was beginning to blur together.

Stop!

And then it happened. Like a piece of rubber that had been stretched as far as it would go and then suddenly released, it rocketed across the storehouse, stricking the far back wall. Rather than breaking through, it ricocheted back and zipped towards me. Mind racing, my hand grabbed the closest thing within reach; a gohei that was sitting top down in an old urn, then, like one of those western baseball players I’d seen in a few books, I took a swing at it.

A loud crack informed me that the wooden staff had connected, and the orb was sent hurtling towards the top left corner. It bounced off one wall, then to the other, then flew down, ricocheting off the floor.

“How… how do I stop it!?” I cried, my hands tightening around the gohei.

“I don’t know!” Kasen shouted back. Both she and Rin had gotten behind cover. Well, at least they haven’t run out and left me. “It’ll probably stop on its own – eventually.”

The orb hit the floor, then bounced back up and finally hit something. A box that was on one of the stacks I hadn’t pulled out of the storehouse. An old, expertly crafted black-lacquer box with gold edges and a white ofuda pasted onto the side. I froze. Ofuda? There was a sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach as the box teetered off the edge of the stack, and then fell.

It was as though time had slowed down. I saw with perfect clarity the ofuda as it disintegrated. I heard the wooden clank echo though the storehouse, and watched the lid begin to fall off. Something slid out of the opening; something shiny.

It was a beautiful, silver knife.

[ArteShy]

Please continue writing!

[wererat42]

I don?t remember how long the knife just lay motionless on the floor. Maybe it was a few seconds, maybe more. I just stood there not knowing what to expect. Then the blade began to emit a thick black smoke that spiraled upwards until it resembled a small, stationary funnel cloud. The smoke finally began to dissipate, and floating above the knife was a strange woman with long, green hair and a blue conical hat adorned with a large white bow and a pair of blue ribbons on either side. She wore a blue caplet fastened on the front with a yellow over a simple blue dress. Her legs? I did a double take. Under her dress were no visible legs, just a wisp of white smoke that wagged around like a tail.

?Aaaaah, finally I?m free!? the woman exclaimed, stretching her arms out. She looked down below her, reached down, and picked up the knife. ?Another decade in this damned prison and I would?ve gone nuts.? She looked at me, standing there looking as though I?d seen a ghost, though in this case the expression wasn?t misplaced. ?Hey, girl over there. Where am I??

It sounded like Rin was telling me not to say anything to her, but the word ?Hakurei? had already slipped past my lips. The corners of the ghostly woman?s mouth curled up.

?Hakurei, huh? Oh, this is just great. You look a bit young to be the Maiden, but so much the better.? The woman lifted her arm into the air, and a black cloud formed above her; as her fingers closed around it, it coalesced into a silver staff topped with a crescent moon, which was suddenly pointing directly into my face. ?Finally I, the great Mima, can begin my revenge! Sorry, little girl, no hard feeling, alright??

There was a crackling sound, like peals of thunder spaced very close together, and something bright was gathering at the top of the staff. Well that was it. I was probably going to die now. Well, it was a short life and didn?t quite amount to much. Goodbye, father, whoever you are. I?ll see you soon, mother.

?REIMU, GET DOWN!?

?Huh??

Several things happened at once. First, Kasen put her bandaged hand on my shoulder and pushed down. I was surprised by how strong it was. Second, Rin slid in between me and the ghost woman, reached into her bag, and pulled out a handful of acupuncture needles. Third, the yin-yang orb ricocheted off the ceiling and crashed into the back of the ghost woman?s head, knocking her hat off. Last, her aim shifted at the last second thanks to the impact, so the ensuing blast only blew a hole in the ceiling rather than my head. A shaft of sunlight fell through the ceiling, illuminating the now battered storehouse.   

?Owww owww ow!? She held the back of her head, seething with apocalyptic rage. ?That hurt, you miserable little sow!?

While the ghost woman was still reeling, I saw Rin flick her wrist, and a hail of needles shot across the room like darts. The ghost woman saw them in time to bat them away with a swish of her staff, which she swung around with surprising ease for something so long.

?Three against one, and I?ve only just woken up. Those aren?t very good odds, even for me.? She looked up at the gaping hole in the ceiling. ?I think this might be the right time for a? uh, strategic relocation. That?s right! Later!? She threw a mock wave over her shoulder as she rose up into the air and through the hole. After a while I felt Kasen?s grip on my shoulder loosen; it was then that I realized my entire body was shaking.

?Wh-wh-what just happened here!??

?It?s not your fault, Reimu.? Rin was already by my side, putting a calming hand on top of my head. ?It could have happened at any time, if the ofuda was already damaged enough to break from a simple fall.?

?Didn't she call herself Mima?? Kasen picked up the hat that had fallen from the ghost?s head and found the yin-yang orb resting on the ground close to it. It had finally come to a stop. ?Pretty sure she was sealed away about, what, three hundred years ago? Long before the Border went up, anyway. Better go check in at the village, just in case she decides to exact her ?vengeance? on the locals. You?d better stay here with Reimu and make sure she?s okay.?

?Miss Ibara?? Rin began to speak, but faltered.

?One of the villagers has apparently awoken to a power,? Kasen was still talking as she picked up the orb. She didn?t even appear to have taken notice to what Rin had said. ?It seems she can make the whole village invisible or something to that effect. But she?s just a teenager, and I?m not taking any chances.?

Kasen walked over to me, opened my hand, and placed the orb in my palm. ?Keep it by your side, don?t lose it. If anything tries to hurt you, call Miss Satsuki. And if she can?t get to you?? she trailed off, thinking. ?Just throw it at them.?
       
?Wait!? I practically shouted this. Even Kasen, who was moving like a bat from hell stopped in her tracks. ?Tell me what?s going on!?

?Reimu?? Rin began. ?That was the spirit of a very powerful magician who was sealed away by your ancestors. She?s called Mima, and she has a grudge against the entire human race.?

?For? what??

Rin threw her arms up ? the first time I?d ever seen her unable to come up with a certain answer. ?For being alive, I suppose.?

?Suffice to say, it would be really bad if she ever found the village.? Kasen was moving again, towards the door.

?I? I understand.? I finally managed to stammer out. ?This is my fault. At least let me help fix it.?

Rin and Kasen exchanged glances. Eventually the ascetic spoke. ?You?re not ready yet, Reimu. There?s no way you could make it to the village in time on foot. And even if you did, the odds that you would make any difference in a fight are, honestly, slim.?

Even though I knew the fact myself, hearing it from someone else still stung. I knew I was young, even though I was a descendant of the Hakurei I was a failure as a shine maiden. But I still couldn?t sit on my hands while someone else cleaned up my mess.

?Miss Ibara, you go on ahead.? Rin said. She had been looking into my eyes and seemed to have caught a glimpse of my unspoken words. ?I?ll bring Reimu to the village.?

Kasen stood in thought for a second and then turned around. The chain on her manacle clinked as she extended her left arm to me. ?Okay, consider this your first test, Reimu. Take my hand.?

I took it uncertainly into my own. There was no way I could have expected what came next.


This is the end of Chapter One. Hopefully not too many people stopped reading as soon as Mima appeared. Also, the whole 'bouncy yin-yang orb' in the storehouse is meant to be a homage to HRtP's gameplay.

 

[ArteShy]

I liked the bouncy Yin Yang orb weapon. They should have added option of throwing orbs like in HRtP into windows games.

[wererat42]

Small update today, and another familiar character introduced before their first appearance. 


Chapter 2 – Memory of Gensokyo

It was the sensation of getting up suddenly after lying on the floor for a while and then feeling that rush of dizziness, multiplied by about a hundred fold. The first thing I realized was that the comforting feeling of solidness beneath my feet had vanished, and the wind was whipping around me as I spiraled around in place, clutching onto Kasen’s hand. I’d closed my eyes out of instinct the second I’d seen her move, and now that I’d opened them, blinking in the sunlight, I was greeted with a sight unlike anything I had seen before.

A wide, rolling plain of green spread out below me, like a verdant rug with many folds. In the distance I could make out different shapes, craggy rocklike spires rising up into the sky. Brushes of darker green, sparkling blues, and above me, white fluffy shapes floated past. While my eyes soaked in all these sights, my mind eventually caught up.

“I’m… we’re flying!?”

“To be more accurate, you are riding on a pocket of air.” Kasen explained as we ascended. “Now be still, this isn’t as easy as it looks.”

“Here, take my hand as well.” Rin floated up beside me and held her hand out to me. “It will only take a few minutes to reach the village.” I wasn’t sure if my face had turned pale or my eyes gave away my fear, but Rin smiled and looked into my eyes as she took my open hand. “I’m not going to let you fall, Reimu.”

I nodded once and smiled back at her.

“I trust you, Rin.”

“Okay, are we done here?” Kasen said, on edge. “Shall we be on our way?”

“Right, let’s get going,” Rin said. “There’s no telling how far ahead of us Mima could be, or how long it could take for her to find the village.”
That said, the three of us began moving forward. After the initial shock had passed, and I had grown accustomed to the altitude, I realized how exhilarating flying could be. The wind blew back my long black hair and the wide sleeves of my kimono. Then I became aware that my red hakama was billowing out behind me.

“It’d be bad if anyone was behind us.” I muttered to myself.     

“What’s wrong, Reimu?”

“Nothing,” I answered, feeling my cheeks burn.

The entirety of Gensokyo spanned out before me. The sprawling Forest of Magic covered most of the distance between my shrine and the village where the majority of the human population congregated. Wide hills rose up in the north, followed by mountain; the tallest of them reaching high above the clouds. At the foot of the mountains there was a vast lake. Behind me the barrier shimmered and occasionally crackled like static.         
   
Looking down upon it from this vantage point, the world in which we lived was a lot bigger than I had imagined. But that still didn’t change the fact that it was a cage, and we were its prisoners.

Eventually the forest gave way to plains, and I before I knew it we were slowly descending. The village gates were before us, and we set down on the ground outside of them just in time to see a young girl with white hair in a plain white kimono and blue hakama running out to greet us.     

“Doctor Satsuki!” She said, her voice strained, “No one knew you would be coming, otherwise we would have…”

“It’s alright, Keine.” Rin said. “Actually, this is something of an emergency. Can we continue this conversation inside the village?”     

“Of course…” the girl said, and then turned her attention to me and Kasen. “Wait a minute, isn’t that the Hakurei maiden? Has something happened?”

This girl, Keine, was incredibly perceptive, wasn’t she? Though she was young, her hair was already as white as fresh snow, and I could even see hints of blue at the roots. There was no doubting this girl was someone special. Still… it did bother me that I was referred to as just the ‘Hakurei maiden’. 

“I’m Reimu,” I introduced myself, bowing to the older girl. “Rin brings me with her sometimes to by food.”

“Keine Kamishirasawa,” the older girl said before looking at Kasen.

“She’s with us.” Rin promptly intervened.
“I’m no one suspicious,” the Odango lady said with a smile, her typical manner suggesting anything but. “Just a simple hermit.” 

“Very well,” Keine said, ushering our motley group in through the gates.

“I would like to meet with the chief a soon as possible.” Rin began as we walked though the village’s main avenue. “This is a matter concerning the safety of the village.”

“The village…?” Keine furrowed her eyebrows. “What has happened?”

Rin explained the situation regarding Mima, taking special care to omit or gloss over the parts where it was actually my fault. Rather, she made it out as we were in the middle of youkai hunting as part of my training, and our path had taken up near the village. Keine nodded at the appropriate moments and said “I see,” though her expression suggested that she couldn’t help but notice holes in Rin’s explanation.

“Okay, let me take you to the…”

Before the girl could finish, one of the villagers ran up to us in a panic, face flushed, breathing heavily and I felt my heart in my throat. Our worst fears were realized; we were too late, Mima was here.

“Keine- oh, Doctor Satsuki! Thank the gods you’re here!” The villager said, trying to catch his breath. “It’s the Hieda Family’s eldest daughter!”

“What's wrong with her?” Rin said, turning to the villager.

“It's the baby… the baby’s coming!”

[wererat42]

I sat at a kotatsu, watching a white-haired girl searching through a rack of scrolls, each one held in an ornate cylindrical scroll case. I noticed myself unconsciously tapping on the top of the kotatsu while I looked around the room uncomfortably. This wasn?t my room. This wasn?t my shrine. Before leaving to see to her patient, Rin had left me in Keine?s care, and Keine had asked for me to come with her to her house. So there I was.

The room was rather big, at least compared to mine. The floors were clean and polished and all surfaces free of dust. Several bookshelves hung on the wall decked with texts. I scanned over the titles; The Histories of Herodotus, The Annals, Sima Qian?s Records of the Grand Historian, the Nihon Shoki...

?You must really like history, Keine.? I muttered this mostly to myself, but the girl briefly paused in her search to look up.

?I suppose I do.? She said before returning to the scrolls. ?I?ve never really given it much thought. Though I must say, I?m impressed you?re able to read those. Our house was once used as a terakoya many years ago, but there hasn?t been a teacher for some time now, so not many people in the village know how to read.?

?Rin's been teaching me.? I said, feeling an odd mix of embarrassment and pride.

?Then she?s a good teacher. I wonder why she doesn?t st- Ah, found it!? Keine picked up a scroll case and brought it over to the kotastu. She popped the top off the case, pulled the scroll out and spread it out in front of her, then found a plain brush and a block of ink. ?This is my own personal copy of the chronicles of the village. It should only take a second.?

?What should only take a second?? I asked, leaning over to read the scroll. To my dismay, it had been entirely written using a style of calligraphy, with small annotations here and there in the margins, and it made my head hurt just looking at it. Why was it the more illegible a letter was the more classy people thought it was? Back when Rin was teaching me how to write, when she looked at my own scribblings she just shook her head and patted me on the head. Talk about double standards.

Keine rolled her brush in the ink and then held it over the scroll for a moment before she began writing on an empty spot, her arm and wrist gliding across the page in a series of intricately fluid motions, not once lifting the brush. When she was done she set the brush down and exhaled. It didn?t take long to notice the effects.

It was like an invisible wave washing over the entire village, starting from the center, and then expanding outward to the very outskirts. When it had passed I was left sitting there looking at the girl across from me quizzically.

?So you felt it?? Keine said, sounding a little surprised. ?Though I suppose that?s to be expected from the Hakurei shrine maiden??

?What was that?? I asked, putting my hands on top of the kotatsu.

 Keine looked down at the words she had written, deep in thought, before responding. ?That was me rewriting the ?history? of this village. To anyone on the outside it will be as though it had never existed.?

?That?s?? I was at a loss for words. ?Unbelievable.?

?It?s not as if I can change history, Reimu.? said Keine, her tone slightly reproving. ?It?s like I can just... hide it, I guess. I don?t even know why I?m able do this in the first place. No one in my family before me has ever demonstrated this sort of ability.?

At least she had a power that was useful. All I was able to do was break seals that were holding evil sprits who wanted to destroy all humanity. I didn?t say that out loud, of course. But Keine did catch the look of consternation on my face.

?Still? you must be pretty frustrated.?

?A-about what?? She could really know, could she?

?Not being able to do anything now except sit here.? Keine said quietly. ?I can sort of relate to that. My parents are always busy, and I?m not a very good host.?

?Oh? no, that?s not what it is.? I laughed to myself. ?It?s just that a lot has been happening lately, and I?ve got a lot on my mind. It?s been a little overwhelming, duty of the Hakurei and all of that.?

?I see.? Keine steepled her hands as she looked at me. ?For such a responsibility to fall on the shoulders of one girl living alone, it must be difficult knowing the fate of all rests on-?

At that moment the door came open and an odango-topped head poked in. ?Pardon the intrusion, but the both of you have been summoned. It seems the delivery has gone well. Except for the father passing out halfway through, anyway? how odd, it wasn?t as though he was the one giving birth.?

After exchanging a blank look we followed Kasen outside and made our way towards a house in the center of the village. I could see Rin standing outside talking to a number of people, one of whom was an elderly man who looked like he must be the village chief. When Rin saw us coming she bowed to the man and turned to face us.

?Reimu?? Rin began, her tone apologetic. ?I?m sorry I asked for you to wait behind. If you?d like to come inside, the mother would like for you to meet the village?s newest addition. She says she wants to bring her daughter to your shine for her miyamairi.?

?Daughter?? Keine looked up. ?Did you just say daughter??

?Yes, is something the matter, Keine??

Keine looked surprised for a moment, and then shook her head. ?No? it?s probably nothing. I just had the feeling I?ve heard those words somewhere before, but I couldn?t have...?

Rin led us into the house, and opened a shoji door to a room where a young woman lay on a futon cradling a newborn child in her arms. I hadn?t seen many babies in the past, and never ones that had just been born, so it was something of a shock to me how small she was, and how she had a mop of dark hair matted on her head.   

As soon as I walked into the room the baby?s eyes opened and blinked. Her gaze fell directly onto me. Was she? looking at me? Was it even possible that she smiled?

?I? I know her?? I heard Keine whisper behind me.

?Have you decided upon a name yet, Miss Hieda? Or would you prefer to wait for your husband??

?No?? The woman shook her head. ?I already knew what she would be called since long ago. Akyuu??