Chapter 8: Wakumi, the herbalist
It is a sunny day of late Spring in Gensokyo. The Sun is shining, while there are barely any clouds in the sky. However, as for our heroine Nijiko, things are not the best. A few days ago, she came down with a nasty cold. This obviously puts some strain to Rinnosuke, who now has to take care of her as well.
"ACHOO!" Nijiko sneezes, as she is laying in her bed. Her nose is not only running from the cold, she also experiences mild fever as well.
"Bless you." Rinnosuke says as he hands her a cup of hot tea.
"I hate this cold... I wanna go out so badly and practise my Magic."
"You should remain in bed until your fever goes down." the half-Yokai shopkeeper says.
"And what about helping around the shop?" the heterochromatic girl asks while drinking her tea.
"I am going to handle it, dont worry. Try to rest."
He then stands up and leaves the room. Marisa and Reimu are shown in front of the shop, visibly concerned about Nijiko. As Rinnosuke shows up, the witch runs to him:
"How is Nijiko-chan?"
"Her cold is quite nasty with mild fever." he says. "She have to remain in bed for a few days for sure."
"Man, but today was supposed to be our practice session, ze..." Marisa frowns.
"Sure, but thats a simple cold right? She should be fine." Reimu remarks.
"But Reimu, what if her condition turns to worse, ze?"
"I agree on the fact, that she needs a doctor." Rinnosuke says.
"Alright, I am going to get Eirin, ze!" Marisa says and is about to go, when the shrine maiden grabs her shoulder:
"No. Remember what I said. We are going to keep her in a secret to others until she masters her Magic well enough."
"But Sakuya already knows about her, ze!"
"She promised that she would keep Akimitsu-san as a secret even to her mistress, Remilia." Reimu says.
"In that case, I say you should ask Aokawa-san." Rinnosuke brings it up.
"Huh? You mean Wakumi Aokawa? The Honengame who works as a herbalist in the Human Village, ze?" Marisa asks.
"Oh her. One of the very few Yokai whose presence is tolerated, because she actively helps humans out." Reimu says.
"As I remember, she also studied under Eirin for a couple of years. Then lets ask her, ze! Thanks for a the tip, Kourin!"
"Alright, lets do that."
Reimu and Marisa then takes to the sky and heads towards the Village, as Rinnosuke glances after them.
...
The duo soon arrives at the Human Village, where they head to the pharmacy Wakumi runs. It is a small, but neat building with a curved room.
"Excuse us!" Reimu says as she enters alongside Marisa. Inside the pharmacy, we see several shelves and closets, containing several kinds of medicines.
"Oh, Hakurei-san! Kirisame-san! Welcome. Can I help you?" A young-looking woman welcomes them. She is nearly as tall as Marisa. She has fair skin, long brown hair tied into a bun held together by a pair of golden hair sticks. Her eyes are golden in color, with blue rings around her irises. She wears a dark-blue long-sleeved kimono with purple obi and similarly colored accents, decorated with pink carnation flower and light-blue dragonfly patterns. She completes her outfit with long white socks and traditional wooden sandals. She is Wakumi Aokawa, a Honengame in her human form, working as a herbalist. Since she is benelovent towards humans, she is allowed to stay and work in the Human Village, albeit taking on a human disguise. Thanks to her friendly personality and medical skills, she is well-respected in the village, despite settling in only a couple of years ago.
"Well, its about a friend of us, ze." Marisa says. "She caught a nasty cold and we are worrying about her."
"She is a human right?" Wakumi asks.
"Yes. Her name is Nijiko Akimitsu, a girl from the Outside World brought in by Yukari a few weeks ago. Currently working as an assistant in Kourindou." Reimu explains.
"Oh, she is that Akimitsu-san! I have heard a lot about her from Motoori-san and Akyuu-san. For some reason, I long to meet her, yet I did not have much opportunities due to work. Wait a sec, I am going to pack my stuff, then we can go."
After the Honengame went back to the back of her shop, Marisa and Reimu looks at each other. It seems that Nijiko is already becoming quite well known in the Human Village.
"I guess her getting involved in that incident with the cleptomaniac Kitsune sure has to do with this..." she shrine maiden remarks in her mind, as she remembers that after she solved the incident by the Yokai Mountain a few days ago, she visited the Human Village to check, and was told by Keine about what happened. The history teacher was visibly not happy about this. Then her thoughts are interrupted by the returning Wakumi:
"Alright, I am packed some medical tools and medicines. We are ready to go."
"Then what are we waiting for, ze!" Marisa tells everyone.
They then leave the village and take into the sky once again. Wakumi is riding behind Marisa on the broom, since she herself is incapable to fly, in contrast to other residents of Gensokyo.
"Hmmm, Wakumi... I am curious. Why have you decided to come to the Human Village?" Marisa asks.
"It happened after I learned everything I needed from Eirin-sensei." Wakumi responds. "I have decided to work as a pharmacist on my own, but as I noticed, Eirin-sensei is not really keen on competition. We then had an agreement, that I would solely treat humans using medicines strictly made out of herbs, this is why I became a herbalist in the Human Village."
"However, for that you were only allowed to stay if you take in a human disguise." Reimu adds.
"Yes. I am still grateful for you and Keine-san that I could stay in the village." the Honengame smiles back. "Alright, now its time for my question: what kind of person is Akimitsu-san really?"
"She is a really nice and hardworking person, ze!" the witch smirks. "I could not wish a better pupil than her, ze!"
"Marisa is currently teaching Akimitsu-san for Magic usage." the shrine maiden says. "So the girl would be able to protect herself and participate in danmaku battles if the time comes."
"Oh, I see. Now I wanna meet her even more." Wakumi sports a wider smile.
...
Soon, they arrive at Kourindou. For Wakumi, it is not the first time she visited the shop, since she was here a couple of time after she settled in the village. The trio then enters, with Rinnosuke waiting for them inside.
"Yo Kourin, we are here!" Marisa announces.
"It is nice to see you again, Morichika-kun." Wakumi bows.
"Likewise, Aokawa-san." Rinnosuke returns the bow.
"So, where is the patient?"
"Please, follow me. She is right ahead in that room." the half-Yokai shopkeeper replies, then turns to Reimu and Marisa. "As for you girls, please wait outside, if you dont wanna catch the cold from her."
"Okay." Reimu nods.
"Awww, but I wanted to see her, ze." Marisa frowns.
Wakumi proceeds to follow Rinnosuke into the room, where Nijiko is. As they enter, she greets the girl with a smile:
"Greetings, you must be Akimitsu-san."
"She is a medic from the Human Village, Wakumi Aokawa." Rinnosuke introduces the herbalist. "She is here to examine you."
"Nice to meet you, Aokawa-san..." Nijiko sits up slowly.
"Now, please leave the two of us alone, Morichika-kun." Wakumi asks Rinnosuke.
The half-Yokai shopkeeper nods and leaves the room. The heterochromatic girl takes a look at Wakumi and is able to inmediately notice from her aura that she is not human.
"Excuse me Aokawa-san, but are you a Yokai?" she asks.
Wakumi is caught a bit off-guard by the question. It was the first time that someone actually managed (who wasnt either Reimu or Keine) to look through her disguise.
"Yes, I am a Yokai. But dont worry, I wont eat you." the Honengame giggles. "Can I ask, how are you able to tell I am one?"
"It is my ability." Nijiko replies. "I am able to sense the auras of others, which allows me to sense even supernatural beings."
"Oh, that is a neat ability to have." Wakumi remarks as she examines Nijiko. She checks her pulse, her body heat and her breathing, among other things. "Hmmm, your cold is nasty for sure, but nothing serious." She then reaches into her bag and takes out a glass of medicine. "Take twice a day from this syrup and you are going to recover soon. Dont worry, it is 100% safe, since it is made fully from natural ingredients, by myself no less."
"Wow, that sounds impressive. Thanks a lot, Aokawa-san." Nijiko smiles.
"You dont have to thank me, I am just doing my work, thats all." the Honengame blushes from the compliment. Suddenly, her eyes glow for a moment. Nijiko appears to notice this, before the pharmacist turns away.
"What was that?" the heterochromatic girl asks.
"Nothing, really..." Wakumi sports a nervous smile, then appears to regain her composure. "Remember, you have to remain in bed for this week, until you recover."
"Understood, Doctor!" Nijiko nods and lays back into the bed.
"I wish my best to your recovering." the Honengame says and leaves the room. "Have a good day."
"Likewise, Aokawa-san."
After Wakumi comes back from examining Nijiko, Rinnosuke walks to her:
"How is she?"
"She has just a common cold, she is going to recover soon if she takes the medicine daily I gave her."
"Good to know."
Wakumi then walks outside and tells everything to Reimu and Marisa as well. The two girls are relieved, especially the Ordinary Magician.
"I am so glad, ze." she remarks.
"It is just a common cold, nothing to worry about." Wakumi says, then takes on a serious expression. "What to worry though, is about her future."
"Her future?" Reimu asks.
"I had a vision, where I saw Akimitsu-san fighting against an another figure, sadly I could not determine, who were they. Unfortunately, I also cannot even tell when is this going to occur, due to my younger age as a Honengame."
This surprises Reimu a bit, then she also shifts her expression to serious:
"It still means, we have to keep an eye on Akimitsu-san. I had this feeling ever since Yukari refused to send her back. It seems she has some kind of hidden potential, judging from her having a special ability, innate Spiritual Power and an affinity to Magic despite being from the Outside World." the shrine maiden remarks. "If she were born directly to Gensokyo, she could be even a shrine maiden herself, like me or Sanae."
"Hey, dont you even think of yanking away my pupil, ze!" Marisa exclaims.
"This is not what I referred to." Reimu snarks at her friend.
"I now actually see why Have you turned to me for checking on her instead of Eirin-sensei, and thats for the best." Wakumi says. "She should not be revealed to the other residents of Gensokyo until she is ready."
"Although Lady Mima is still nibbing my ear to introduce Nijiko-chan to her, ze..." the witch sighs. "Me and that bigh mouth of mine..."
"Luckily, Kourindou does not have many customers, aside from the regular ones like us, Sanae or Sakuya." Reimu remarks. "I am sure we picked a good place for her."
"I agree in that regard." the Honengame glances back at the shop. "I also noticed, she has been doing a good job as an assistant, since the place is more neat now compared to when I first visited."
"Thats Nijiko-chan for ya, ze!" Marisa grins.
"Alright, now I am taking my leave. Have a good day, Hakurei-san, Kirisame-san." Wakumi bows to the two girl and begins to head to the direction of the Human Village.
"Hey Aokawa-san, dont you need a lift back home? Cause, I can fly you back, ze!" the witch offers.
"Thanks, but I am good. I dont mind a little walk back to the village."
Reimu and Marisa glances after the Honengame as she leaves:
"This Honengame is really something, ze. She just met Nijiko-chan and is already expressing her concern towards her, ze." Marisa remarks.
"Yes, luckily Aokawa-san is one of the very few Yokai we can always count on." Reimu agrees.
...
Back to Wakumi, she is taking on the path leading back to the Human Village. She is deeply in her thoughts, thinking on what her vision could mean regarding to the potential fate of Nijiko.
"I wonder if this could mean big things to come... " she ponders.
Suddenly, her thoughts are interrupted when she notices a gap on the sky. Then, a long object falls down from it, right in front of her.
"Huh? What is that?!" Wakumi walks closer to investigate the item. Much to her surprise, it looks like a magic staff of some kind: it is made out of wood with elaborate markings, as well as tipped with a gemstone which is dazzling in the seven colors of the rainbow. The eyes of the Honengame go big: Nijiko was wielding the very same staff in her vision! She cautiously walks even closer, then slowly picks up the staff. Luckily, nothing happens.
"I bet this staff is intended to Akimitsu-san. I think I am going to give her once she is ready." Wakumi says in her mind as she heads home, now with the staff in her hands. Unbeknowst to her, Yukari is watching her closeby from a gap.
"Everything is coming together nicely." she smiles to herself as she disappears within her gap.
To be continued...
Authors Note: Yet again, I am sorry if the chapters are coming out slowly. In this chapter, I have introduced my third OC, who would play a large role in the story. I hope you like her. The Honengame is actually a Yokai with the body of a turtle (with a bushy seaweed-like tail) and the head of a woman, with short horns on her head. They live in the ocean and are known to have precognitive abilities, often forewarning people about natural disasters or good harvest to come. However, for her true form, I made Wakumi more human-like, with a bipedal stature, as well as human chest and hands, while her body is still encased within the turtle shell. I think with this, she would still fit into the world of Touhou, while retaining some originality at the same time.