(Notes: This chapter directly references the events of th15.5/Antinomy of Common Flowers, but I hopefully wrote it in a way that makes sense even if you aren't familiar with the story.

In this chapter, I also introduce the closest thing this story has to an OC - but it's the kind of thing that isn't unlikely in canon and her role is small, so I left her unnamed.

The next chapter will be up next week as usual, but after that I'm going to be taking a hiatus from writing for a month or so - just so I can recharge for NaNoWriMo. As a result, I won't be logging onto ffnet either. More notes at the end, but for now enjoy.)


x


"I remember everything."

A long red hat. Dark blue hair. Black and white clothing... a tail... Yukari remembered everything.

Well, almost everything. But she remembered enough to know that the cause of her curse must have originated here: in this strange, colourful domain where nothing made sense. Where experience could be felt in multiple dimensions. Where your very sense of identity could change from one minute to the next.

"Ah... Miss Yakumo". The woman in a bizarre black and white dress adorned with black and white orbs curtsied politely. She wore a tired and troubled expression. "Good morning. I have - no surprise I'm sure - been expecting you."

Yukari had already run out of patience - she snapped her fingers, binding the woman's wrists into the air with gaps, before rushing and seizing her fragile-feeling neck tightly in her hand. The woman's red cap flopped to the indefinite ground, revealing her long, deep blue hair.

The blonde youkai snarled maliciously at her captive - her eyes ablaze with fury.

"Hmm... hmm, yes. I probably deserved that." Called another, apologetic voice from behind Yukari. This made Yukari clench her teeth tighter, though she had seen this coming.

Yukari span around, quickly ensnaring the doppelganger behind her too. "Congratulations on being one of the few youkai alive to behold my anger, Doremy Sweet." Yukari growled intimidatingly. Doremy stared directly back into Yukari's gaze, unblinking.

For the first time in centuries, Yukari was genuinely struggling to maintain her composure against an 'opponent'. She had just so desperately wanted to do something about these painful feelings and before she knew it she was here, in the Dream World. In Doremy Sweet's domain.

It was uncharacteristically direct and hasty for Yukari, and even she was unsure what exactly her plan was.

All she knew was that she needed to know why. She had always thought Doremy was a perfectly reasonable, even polite youkai. Everything about this dream incident was still frustratingly beyond Yukari's grasp, and now her shikigami had died because of it.

Surely discovering the truth and punishing Doremy would help her find inner peace?

"I know not what your intention was in placing that curse on me... petty payback for my actions during the Perfect Possession incident, perhaps. But do you have any idea how much danger you put Gensokyo in with your actions? How much suffering you have inflicted upon my servants!?"

A soft, apologetic sigh floated to Yukari's ears from above. "I am aware... and I am truly, sincerely sorry. My domain has been compromised, so please give me a moment to determine how I may best help you find solace."

Yukari grimaced at the baku's calm tone. A third Doremy floated down from above, one leg crossed over the other. She opened a thick, purple book and held it in one hand, flicking through its pages dexterously before arriving at one page and giving it a scan over.

"I'm aware I am in no position to be making demands, but if you would, please listen carefully. In fact... if any external onlookers would please pay attention too." Doremy then shut the book with a loud thunk before continuing.

"Truth be told, venerable youkai sage, i wish i could give you a more satisfactory answer." the baku frowned. "Even with all my power over dreams... Never did i expect for the dream world to lash out in such a haphazard and dangerous way. Still, your fury is entirely warranted. How ever you intend to find inner peace, i shall accept it. If you wish to kill me, please be done with it quickly so i may return to work."

...Was that it? Was that Doremy's big explanation?

The first and second Doremys were quickly losing the blood to their hands and showed signs of physical discomfort, but the third Doremy didn't look remotely scared. She didn't look remotely angry. She just looked anxious... and sad. Like something was deeply frustrating her.

Yukari's lips quivered. Her fists shuddered with a desperate tension. She snapped her fingers.

In an instant, all three Doremys were sliced in half by Yukari's gaps, their skin puncturing and unfurling as a pink, soap-like liquid drained from them while they slowly deflated. Dry husks looking more like empty balloons than bodies flopped limply to the ground. Yukari clenched her fist and stared down at the ground - if it could even be called that.

"Was that cathartic?"

A fourth Doremy approached Yukari from behind and gave her a gentle rub on the back. "Are you okay? No, I'm sorry. Stupid question."

Doremy couldn't be killed in the Dream World. In fact, Doremy probably would be particularly difficult to kill no matter where she was. Yukari knew this would be the outcome, even before coming. Besides, if one truly were to kill the Ruler of the Dream World, the impact it could have over dreams could be quite terrifying indeed.

Nonetheless, she felt the urge to immediately satisfy her anger.

No one was around to stop her anymore, after all.

"This curse that induced 75 years of sleep in me... you mean to tell me it was not your doing?" Yukari finally spoke.

"The Dream World's doing, but not of my design, Miss Yakumo." Doremy gently shook her head, floating in front of Yukari again.

"As I'm certain you recall from the Perfect Possession incident... the Dream World is my realm, but there are some forces here beyond my power. When things are disturbed, sometimes it is all I can do to mitigate the damage. That is why I was so desperate to clean up the mess caused by Perfect Possession back then."

The Perfect Possession incident was a particularly messy incident that took place in Gensokyo just over 76 years ago. It was a dangerous side-effect of Gensokyo's mysterious tendency to turn popular urban legends into reality.

Gensokyo's residents became able to possess one another, allowing people to swap places near instantaneously. However, as being possessed forced people into a sort of dream-like state, the incident caused the Dream World to fall into discord. It caused Dream World denizens to become more violent and unruly.

Yukari's eyes lidded as she contemplated just how out of control things must have gotten. She crossed her arms and irritably bit her thumb. "So... the Dream World's balance has been thrown off ever since the Perfect Possession incident... or perhaps it was Sumireko's overuse of it..."

"Ahaha... something like that." Doremy shrugged. "That Sumireko... such an interesting girl."

Sumireko Usami was a human from the Outside World with the peculiar ability to physically visit Gensokyo while she slept - which caused abnormalities in the Dream World too. Of course, it had been a long, long time since Yukari had last seen her.

"Is she still alive?" Yukari asked monotonously.

"I wonder? I don't believe it is my right to tell you those kinds of things." Doremy shrugged apologetically and looked to change the subject.

"In any case, you may recall in your dream your goal was to destroy Gensokyo to force my power as a dream youkai to wane. Unusually, I was unable to intervene in your dream at all - but the intended effect was the same, if only because you severed whatever connection existed between Gensokyo and the Dream World in that dream, and forcefully dispelled its hold over you."

"I see." Yukari shut her eyes in thought. Her rage towards the baku had somewhat subsided, but a hopeless frustration had taken its place. "You had noticed that inconsistency where I had not?"

"Of course." Doremy nodded gently, briefly gesturing to her book. "I may have been powerless, but I have detailed records and knowledge of all dreams. You have only just been able to reclaim the faded memories of that dream, but I am certain more inconsistencies will become known to you should you continue to observe for them."

The baku tapped the back of her hand to her book. "In fact! Please do keep an eye out for any inconsistencies or things that may have been affected by this incident... in both your dreams and your reality, with both things that have already happened and those still yet to happen. If not for me, then to prevent another tragedy like this befalling Gensokyo again."

Was there really an 'incident' here at all though? Or was Doremy just trying to soothe Yukari's tortured soul?

Gensokyo... Gensokyo was fine. Was it truly a tragedy that spanned the scope of all lives in Gensokyo? No... This was a tragedy that affected only Yukari, personally. That wasn't even a tragedy, because Yukari was Gensokyo's objective guardian. A youkai who valued order above all things, least of all sentiment or emotion.

Yukari scrunched her eyes shut in resentment, and turned to leave.

"I am truly sorry, Miss Yakumo. I am." Doremy spoke up before Yukari could hurry through her gap. "I understand that this has not been satisfactory for you, but I pray you find peace somehow. Be it through your old friends, or through protecting Gensokyo as you always have... with those observant eyes of yours.

All I can do in return is continue to watch over and accompany your dreams as I always have done. I only ask that you not forget what we have discussed here today... so you may never again forget how frightening dreams can be."

Doremy was right. Yukari had never felt so undermined, so unsatisfied with an incident's 'conclusion', so lacking in control. She was Gensokyo's great manipulator, but she had been made forcefully reminded of one of life's greatest truths - that natural forces could not always be controlled to begin with.

There was nagging emptiness in her stomach like there had to have been something she was missing. Some detail she had forgotten. Something that didn't add up...

But in her mind? This was it. This was all there was. In her growing despair, Yukari could only see this 'incident' as a cruel accident, one she may have had a hand in causing due to her own role in the Perfect Possession incident all those years ago.

There was no solution, no conclusion. Only a harsh reminder of why Yukari had chosen to distance herself from things like 'friends' in the first place.


As things stood, the only thing Yukari could bring herself to do was continue as Gensokyo's concealed manipulator and protector. She was done making friends for now. She was hesitant to even let other old friends back into her life, anxious that she could somehow lose them too if she dared get attached to them again.

Yukari floated above the trees near Hakurei Shrine, silently observing the new Hakurei shrine maiden - Reimu Hakurei's successor. She was a young girl, likely not much older in age than Reimu had been when Yukari first met her. Her hair was dark and she wore simple red and white miko robes.

'She certainly is a Hakurei shrine maiden...' Yukari thought to herself, a bittersweet ache tugging at her heart.

The young shrine maiden was with two others: an older woman with long green hair that shimmered in the wind like plantlife, as well as Hakurei Shrine's faithful komainu, Aunn Komano.

"Why not go introduce yourself?" A familiar voice asked gently from behind. Yukari was slightly surprised, but upon remembering who the voice belonged to the surprise faded.

"It's good to see you again, Kanako." Yukari smiled pleasantly. "Only a wind god of your calibre would be able to sneak up on me like that."

"It's good to see you too, Yukari." Kanako chuckled to herself. "You must still be sleepy, today's lazy and uninspired winds hide very little."

"Is that so...?" Yukari fanned herself playfully. "Perhaps I should keep my distance from the shrine, then."

"Simply observing, hm?" The wind goddess raised an eyebrow.

A brief silence followed as the two watched the shrine. After a moment, Kanako spoke again. "She's a good kid... but she still has much to learn about Gensokyo and the way the world works. She's a little like Reimu, so perhaps she'll be one of those strange few who actually likes you."

It was a bit much to take in - Yukari didn't feel ready to move on yet. Watching the new shrine maiden only made her miss Reimu more. Everyone else had seen Reimu mature, grow old and die.

It was so frustrating... Reimu wasn't even a decade older than this young shrine maiden when Yukari had last seen her. She had missed most of Reimu's life, and Marisa's too. Now it felt like she barely even knew them, despite how she treasured them.

"That woman is... Sanae?" Yukari asked, looking to change the subject.

"Yes." Kanako beamed proudly, gazing down towards the tall, green-haired woman helping the Hakurei shrine maiden. "Not only is she a skilled, veteran shrine maiden now, she has become a god with miraculous powers that may surpass those of even my partner Suwako and I."

Yukari glared down at Sanae from behind her fan. Far from the overeager and occasionally awkward personality she had as a young adult, Sanae's majestic beauty was now almost intimidating. Her aura significantly more graceful and calm. She wore long, flowing white robes with a blue trim, and her hair appeared to shimmer with a natural glow.

"She has fully shed her humanity, I see." Yukari asked, though it had been quite obvious from what Kanako was saying.

The wind god nodded. "Sanae was only half-human to begin with. Given all the faith she has gathered for Moriya Shrine over the years and her increasingly reliable power to cause miracles, she was perhaps always destined to become a great god."

The blonde youkai continued to watch them silently, a quiet melancholy in her eyes. Catching Yukari's expression, Kanako sighed gently. "We could not be more proud of her... but she has been so, so lonely since those two passed away. She truly loved both of them. She was always attached at the hip to Reimu..."

Yukari's ears notably pricked up, her eyes flickering. "Sanae stopped ageing as a human would... she must have known it was coming."

Kanako smiled gently at Yukari's almost Pavlovian response - it was beginning to dawn on her that someone else may have loved Reimu and Marisa as dearly as Sanae did. "Everyone knew it was coming, but it was nonetheless difficult to handle. Sanae mourned for weeks... I have never, ever seen her cry as much or as long as she did when Reimu died. Then, when Marisa died it happened all over again."

The god lent an elbow on her knee and her chin on her fist. "Suwako and I had faith that Sanae would recover... but there was a point where we did worry she would never be the same again. Not without them.

I think... if Reimu hadn't entrusted Sanae to mentor her successor in how to be a strong, reliable shrine maiden... she would have found it so much harder to find the strength to move on. We still have so much to thank Reimu for, and we already have a lot to thank her young successor for too."

So that was why...

Yukari continued to watch the shrine wistfully. She watched the young Hakurei girl as she pouted, listening to one of Sanae's lectures. Sanae smiled so sweetly and dotingly at her, almost like the way a mother might at her daughter.

Yukari had not thought much of Sanae in the past, but seeing her like this... knowing she had found inspiration and meaning in helping to continue Reimu's legacy, Yukari could not help but feel an unfamiliar affinity with her.

"Ahh, looks like they have company." Kanako giggled, gesturing towards the shrine entrance. A familiar, blue-haired celestial confidently flew down towards Sanae and the Hakurei girl, riding a keystone.

Yukari grinned curiously. "So she still visits after all these years, hm? I wonder where that troublesome poverty god is."

"Tenshi has actually been visiting the shrine more often lately, it's strange." Kanako raised an eyebrow, crossing her arms. "I cannot recall the last time I saw Shion with her, either."

The youkai tilted her head, now even more curious. "What say you we do a little eavesdropping, then?" She pointed a gloved finger and thumb towards the shrine and gently pulled them apart from each other, opening a small gap near the group at the shrine and a connecting one next to the older women.

Suddenly, the voices of the others were as clear as if Yukari and Kanako had been stood right next to them.

"Good afternoon, Tenshi!" Sanae beamed at the celestial. "I would say it's a pleasant surprise, but it's hardly a surprise at this point." she huffed a smile.

Aunn Komano, the komainu girl with cloudy teal-coloured hair, gave Sanae a gentle poke. It appeared she had noticed something. "Uhhm..."

"Not now, Aunn!" the young Hakurei girl excitedly hushed her. "I think Tenshi's here for a fight again."

Tenshi raised an eyebrow, putting one fist on her hip and the other adjusting the decorated black hat on her head. "Uh... I don't think I'm here to fight, actually."

"You don't think?" Hakurei snarked.

"That's a relief." Sanae's eyes lidded playfully at the her protege, making her pout. "Because we're right in the middle of training, aren't we? We don't have time to fight. So what brings you here today, Tenshi? How's the wife?"

"Wife?" Tenshi paused, puzzled. She bit her lip for a few moments, visibly anxious. "Oh! You mean my darling Shion!" she suddenly realised, her expression brightening as she proudly rested her fists on her hips. "She's well. Well, as well as a misfortune-attracting poverty god can be. I think." the celestial awkwardly babbled then blushed, rubbing the back of her head.

"Yes... uh, who else would I mean?" Sanae smiled sheepishly, giving the other two a shrug.

"Did you just say 'darling'...?" Hakurei teased, snickering. "That's so... posh."

"Be nice." Sanae huffed.

Tenshi smacked her own fist to her chest. "Of course! I'm a celestial, I was born to be proper, polite, modest, and a model citizen for all lowly earthlings!" she gave the trio her sweetest, most sincere smile. "Come to think of it though, I'm really not sure why I came here today. I came here feeling really angry and upset... but now I feel great, so your guess is as good as mine."

Sanae pulled her gohei out and slapped it to her palm intimidatingly. "Are you sure you don't want to fight anyway? We are busy, but I can certainly make a little time for some pest control."

"Geez... are you kidding? It's always so one-sided when you fight me... I'd rather just go home. A bit of fresh air was apparently all I needed anyway!"

"In that case, I do hope you actually remember your business next time you come dropping by unannounced." Sanae frowned. "This is a strange habit you're developing."

"What's wrong with wanting to randomly turn up at this shrine?" Tenshi pouted, looking a little more irritated. "You do it all the time, that delightful pink-haired hermit too."

Sanae shrugged calmly and gestured towards the younger shrine maiden. "She's in my care now, so... Besides, Hakurei Shrine has been like a second home to me for a long time now."

"A-anyway!" Aunn piped up. "Tenshi, are you taking care of yourself? You seem so aloof and confused lately, I've been wondering if you've been sleeping properly..."

"Plenty. Celestials have to know how to take care of themselves in order to stay beautiful, duh. But, whatever, I'm going."

Sanae smiled pleasantly at Tenshi and put her gohei away. "It's been a pleasure as always Tenshi. Please give Shion my regards."

"I will!" Tenshi grinned widely. "I..." she paused again, staring into space for a few moments. "I... y-yeah!" she rubbed her temple and shook her head, jumping onto her keystone and setting off into the sky.

Noticing Tenshi headed back towards the sky, Yukari quickly shut the gaps and began to sink back into one herself. "Thank you for the familiar company today, Kanako, but I had best make myself scarce."

Kanako raised an eyebrow. "Mm? You seem almost afraid to be seen..."

"While I may have been more sociable and active when we first met, I have always been a youkai who watches Gensokyo from the shadows, and that is all anyone should ever expect of me. I am simply returning to my original role." Yukari giggled as she leant playfully on the edge of her gap, resting her chin in her hands.

The wind god frowned, seeming unconvinced. "For your own good, don't isolate yourself too much. Isolation is unhealthy, even for immortals, gods, and other long-lived types like you youkai." Kanako paused, shooting a fond glance down at Sanae.

"Perhaps you should visit that ghost friend of yours, I'm sure she misses you dearly."

Yukari turned away from Kanako, her eyes lidded with irritation. Avoiding isolation was easier said than done, when caring about mortals could be so painful - her 'ghost friend' included. She shut the gap, leaving without saying another word.

"Hey, who were you just talking to, wind hag? Did I just see what I thought I saw?" asked Tenshi as she floated towards Kanako.

"I'm afraid I have no idea what you mean, celestial hag." Kanako grinned at Tenshi.

"Celestials like the Hinanawi Clan are eternally young, you don't get to call us hag no matter how old I get."

"I wonder~" Kanako teased. "Run along home then, little one."

"If I ever grow old, it'll be because I'm spending too much time around of tiresome old ladies like you." Tenshi stuck her nose up in the air, causing Kanako to chuckle to herself.

After opening her mouth to snap at Kanako some more, Tenshi stopped dead in her tracks, her face suddenly awash with a look of dread. "A-ah... sh-shit, I... I gotta go."

Kanako raised a single eyebrow in concern, as Tenshi sped off.

Back at the shrine, Sanae was diligently resuming the younger shrine maiden's training, before Aunn poked at her again. "Miss Sanae, uh..." she gestured over to the sky, where Kanako and Yukari had been talking earlier. "That familiar smell..."

"Shh... I know." Sanae winked knowingly at Aunn, putting a finger over the komainu's lips. "For now, let's just give her some time, okay?"


x


(Notes: Reimu's successor is obviously very young, so she's more likely to be Reimu's granddaughter than her direct descendent. It's all very intentionally vague.

As for who her other grandparent is? That's intentionally vague, too. Your favourite ship goes here, basically! Reimu/Marisa, Reimu/Sanae, Reimu/Sakuya... anything (except Reimu/Yukari ;_; ) fits! Personally I like to think Sanae is, but there isn't meant to be a definite interpretation.)

Glossary:
Shikigami - A summoned being whose power is tied to that of its master. Sort of like a witch familiar.
Baku - A chimera-like youkai that eats dreams. In Touhou a baku has significant control over dreams.
Miko - shrine maiden or priestess.
Komainu - literally "lion-dog", a statue commonly intended to guard shrines and temples.
Gohei - A wooden wand used in Shinto rituals. In Touhou, Reimu and Sanae both use gohei as weapons for youkai extermination.