Neshiki Week 2021
Day 1: Fairytale
The Bright Side of the Moon
There were very few things that Neku Sakuraba cared too much about.
For example, he didn't care for the Shibuya castle, neither did he care for those residing in it. The building felt more of a burden than a benefit. Though, saying that aloud would get him into trouble.
He didn't care for the officials that traipsed around during the daytime. Walking around in a manner so that one couldn't miss the way their hakama fluttered about. Self-important snakes. Once again, he kept those thoughts for himself.
Climbing trees wasn't a hobby he cared for, either. He was much more comfortable on the ground or near water.
Still, he made an exception this time.
He had been in the middle of a late-night stroll when his eyes were drawn to something hanging from a tree branch. Curiosity got the better of him, on this rare occasion, and he scaled up the tree. The bark creaked, protesting against his sandals. He managed to grab the mysterious item before the tree could give up on him.
Leaning against the bark he could see that this was some kind of robe. He had never felt anything so delicate before. The moon's light shone just brightly enough for him to recognise that the weaving was intricate. Too intricate for anything he or anyone not directly in the Shibuya family could own.
Under normal circumstances, Neku would probably have left the robe where he found it. The owner might come looking for it. And if it was someone important that would be too much of a nuisance for him.
He considered it for a moment. Leaving the robe.
Then he thought of one of the few things he did care about.
Carefully, he folded up the robe and walked back to the village with it tucked under his arm, the moon's light following him.
xxxxx
Despite the unusual find three nights ago, it was back to business as usual. He breathed in the afternoon air, listening to the sounds surrounding him. Despite it being close to summertime, he felt a bit of a chill, so he tightened his everyday robe around him.
The Shibuya river, named very creatively after the residing family, had a tranquil flow. The stillness made catching fish unaware more difficult.
Few chose to make a living from fishing in these waters. Most fishermen lived on the coasts. Neku, however, had found himself suited to being a fisherman along these banks. When asked how he did it, it was difficult to explain. He operated on sound rather than sight. The slightest disturbance in the stillness was enough to give him a hint to where he could find his bounty.
Patience was always important as he often had to wait until evening to reap his reward. As the sun started to set, the sky starting to match the shades in his hair, he opened his eyes and pulled on his line.
Looks like he would have plenty of dinner for tonight.
He placed the fish with the rest of his catches from the morning. They were rather large catches and would make for a good trade.
Satisfied at the prospect, he began strapping the basket to his back when he heard a shout.
"Thief!"
Neku tensed. A thief? Around these parts?
He spun around, trying to see where this thief might be. There was no one around him...just trees and more trees.
"Thief!"
The voice sounded like it came from above.
If his eyes weren't deceiving him, the voice had indeed come from above him after all. Stood on the branch of a tree was a young woman in flowing robes. They were elegant, clearly fit for a noble or even someone more important such as a royal. The way her hair was held in a bun by a comb and a hairpin was also not something that another commoner could afford. Neku did not know of anyone of that stature who would do something as 'crass' as climbing a tree, though.
"Finally! I was wondering if you could hear me or not," said the woman. "Hello, Thief. Good to meet you."
"You mean to say that you were referring to me as 'Thief', not that you are currently in pursuit of a thief?" he asked, evenly. "I can't say it's good to meet you too, if our first exchange is going to be you throwing out accusations."
He quickly realised that she was standing on the same branch that he had discovered the robe from last night. For all intents and purposes, seeing as how the robe he found was similarly decorated to the one she had adorned, she wasn't wrong in calling him what she did.
Still, he couldn't admit to it right away. If she was one of the more heavy-handed nobles it might not end well for him.
"It's not just an accusation, it's fact. One of the critter spirits residing in this realm took it from me while I was resting. They're very agile here but I finally tracked that thing down to ask where my robe was. Said it left it in a tree and someone came along and took it. I can see traces of the essence that the robe would give out on you." She jumped down from the tree. Rather than crashing down, just before she landed it seemed like her descent slowed before her feet touched the ground. There was no thud, only the soft rustling of the leaves around her. She strolled right up to him, sizing him up. "Mmhmm like I thought, the essence is definitely there. Humans can't see it but it's plain as night to me!"
Oh. Oh no .
He had taken something belonging to this spirit, hadn't he?
Tales of run-ins with spirits weren't unusual but true stories were few and far between. Even those that were most likely to be true were often suspected of being exaggerated. Especially if it was coming from some unscathed, who simply claimed to see a dancing woman. It was a lot more believable when it came from, say, someone who had recently had an eye taken away.
"You want it back, I assume?"
"You admit to taking it?"
He shrugged. "No point in lying to a...a whatever you are."
"I'm a celestial maiden," she said, helpfully.
"Right."
He could believe that. While she said it wasn't visible to humans Neku thought he could see a bit of light radiating from her skin, her hair. Everywhere.
"May I please have it back now?" she asked.
Hm. Hold on...
"Can't you just summon it back to you?"
"I can't do that."
"How come?"
"I don't have that kind of magic without the robe," she said, with a frown. "Besides, I don't know where the robe is."
Hm...
"So, you can't get to it unless I get it to you or if I tell you where it is."
"Exactly. Now, can you please return it to me?"
"...No."
The shock was apparent on her face to the point that it was almost comical. "What do you mean by 'no'?"
"I won't be returning it to you," he answered. He made a point of adjusting the basket on his back. "And I'll be heading home now."
"You can't just take something that doesn't belong to you!"
"Sure you can. It's called stealing. Thieves do it all the time. And like you said, I'm a thief."
"W- what?!" she sputtered. "Aren't you afraid I'm going to curse you?"
"You can't do that. You just told me you don't even have the power to summon it back to you, yourself."
She fell quiet and Neku knew at once that his risky words had paid off.
"I'll be leaving now."
He trudged past the dejected maiden.
He did feel guilty, seeing her downward expression but he couldn't return the robe.
xxxxx
Neku wasn't so naive to think that a celestial maiden would give up so easily on retrieving one of her possessions. He didn't expect her to follow him all the way home, however.
He had been under the impression that she would be restricted to a certain area but she waved off that notion, there was no such thing. There was a fair bit of pulling on his arm, trying to trip him up and, frankly, irritating attempts to get him to stop in his tracks but nevertheless, they ended up at his home.
She was a funny one.
The maiden seemed to have no qualms about hurling a few insults his way as she tried to prevent him from going home but she asked if she could come in once they got there.
"I would have broken in if you said no but I'd rather not sink down to the same level as a thief," was her explanation.
She looked very out of place in his house. He was good at what he did, so he secured a decent living and a comfortable enough home but the plain, small abode was such a stark contrast to the maiden. She would be more fit for the neighbouring castle.
A fisherman's home didn't have the most pleasant of fragrances. The way the maiden scrunched her nose up made her dislike of it very obvious. She was clearly aware that it was showing up on her face, as she made even more visible attempts to straighten her expression out.
"Heh."
...That wasn't meant to slip out.
"Did you say something?" the maiden asked. She had given up, seeming to have decided to settle on frowning.
"No." Neku put his things down, opening his basket and retrieving two of the fish he caught today. He would sell the rest tomorrow but he intended to preserve these two for later on. As he got his sheets of konbu to start his preservation process, he noticed movement out of the corner of his eyes. "You, do you have something to say?"
He really did have to hold back from laughing this time. The contrast between the prim and proper way she was seated and his run-down home was too much. That and she was clearly squirming.
"I want to go look around your home for my robes," she said, adding a pained, "please."
Turning back to salt his fish, he said, "Sure, do what you want."
He heard rather than saw her scramble to her feet. Once given permission she didn't hesitate to go through everything he owned. Which wasn't very much. While he was comfortable, he didn't have many things actually within his home. Just the essentials. Due to that, it didn't take her very long to carry out her inspection, though it was long enough for him to finish filleting the fish, salting them and placing them in between the konbu sheets.
Her search finished with her investigation of his bamboo fishing rods.
"Careful with those," he called over to her, "they're very difficult to make." Setting aside the fish, he washed his hands in the pot of freshwater that he kept. He wasn't fussed about watching her rummage through his belongings up until now. His fishing rods were the only things of value that he couldn't afford to get damaged.
"My robe was very difficult to make too!" she said, with a huff. She did, however, gently return the rods to their place.
He leaned back against his table, crossing his arms. "You made the robe? Yourself?"
"Yes! I did! It's probably one of my best creations yet," she said, with a hint of pride in her voice. "It was very difficult to obtain the right materials."
"Oh? How so?"
"It's made with threads from a celestial silkworm's cocoon," she said, waving a finger in the air. "They're extremely difficult to find, you know since those silkworms hide their cocoons in very obscure locations."
"Sounds hard."
"It was! But that was the easiest part! I had to then boil the cocoons in water then reel in the threads from them. You have to do that one by one for each thread, you know! Then of course there's the dying - I'm lucky I didn't stain any of my other robes - the spinning...and then the weaving. The weaving is my favourite part, I'm not too bad at the other bits but I'm kind of confident with my weaving."
While she chattered, her frown disappeared and was replaced by an eager smile, accompanied by bright eyes. She seemed to emit a little more light as well. It wouldn't be incorrect to describe her as radiant.
Or...maybe she only appeared brighter because she was a lot closer to him now. She had taken several steps towards him during her explanation. He wondered if she realised it.
"So, it means a lot to you?" he asked, leaning a bit further back. She, perhaps unconsciously, took another step forward.
"It does," she said, voice softer now. "Can I please have it back now?"
He sighed. Stared at the ceiling. Looked back at her.
"I don't have it anymore."
xxxxx
Neku caught good quality fish.
That's why he continued to have patrons at the local village's market. You would almost never hear of someone falling ill due to something he had caught, which was rare.
His fish were popular, not him.
Him? Oh, the villagers didn't really like him. Which was fine, since he didn't care what they thought of him and he didn't care too much about them as long as they bought his stock.
His exchanges with the villagers, therefore, usually consisted of showing his available fish, waiting for the villager to choose their fish and then haggling them for a fair price. Took ten minutes for those that knew what they wanted and maybe twenty at most for someone more indecisive.
Due to the new attraction that his store acquired, the conversations he was having to endure extended.
By new attraction, he meant the maiden who had followed him to work.
"I hope your son feels better soon, Mr. Doi! Enjoy your supper!"
"Thank you, young miss. It was lovely speaking with you. And thank you, Mr. Sakuraba."
Mr. Doi was one of Neku's regular patrons but Neku hadn't talked to him in any capacity outside of his trading. "Didn't even know he had a son," he muttered.
"Have you bothered trying to have a long conversation with anyone you trade with?" the maiden asked him.
"What for?"
She rolled her eyes. "And that's why you wouldn't have known. I've only been here a day and I can tell that you aren't exactly the most charismatic trader."
The maiden had been here all day.
When he told her that he didn't have the robe anymore, she was unsurprisingly less than pleased. As the questions rained down on him, he asked her to leave for the night. With her permission to be in his house rescinded, she did leave.
She was standing right in front of his doorstep the moment he stepped out of the house.
Her questions continued all the way until town, though he wasn't ready to answer them yet. When she saw that he was about to begin work, she quietened down. Only for a few moments though, because she warmed up to anyone coming to trade quite easily.
"Maybe not. You're turning out to be a chatty trader."
"Don't complain, it's bringing you more business, isn't it?"
Hm. He did have a few more customers pop by than usual today. "Not sure if it has anything to do with your chattiness. The villagers might just be interested in seeing someone new in town. Especially someone wearing robes like yours."
In the daylight, the glow the maiden had was imperceptible. She looked like a regular person, though that was enough to hold some attention. She was not as unusual a sight as she might have been in another town, since the villagers in the area surrounding Shibuya castle were more wealthy than others, but her clothes were still not common even around here.
"Either way. You're getting more trade done. So," she clapped her hands together, "will you now please tell me where exactly my robe is, Thief?"
She was smiling but her eyes twitched. Not pleased.
"Are all moon maidens as strange as you?"
" Celestial maiden to you. I know you're trying to change the subject but I am not strange."
"You are. You've been swinging from angry to polite this whole time. Just pick one."
The maiden looked around, seeming to check if there wasn't anyone else. The corner that he set up to trade today was quiet for now. Seeing that, she put her hands on her hips. "Listen. I'm in the human plane and this isn't my home. I'm a guest here. I'm just trying to be courteous to humans since it is your home. Even if one of you is a low-life who steals celestial maidens' robes."
"You make it sound like I make a habit of it."
"I do apologise. You were just so good at stealing my robe that I was surprised it was your first time!" said the maiden, voice sharp. "No, wait. I don't need to apologise. Because you stole my robe. "
Last evening he had backed himself against his table but this time they were already in a corner, there was nowhere else for him to retreat to. "That's true. I should be the one apologising."
The maiden looked hopeful for a moment. It made saying his next words harder.
"But I won't, it'll only be empty because I can't tell you who has it."
Her shoulders sagged. "Can't? Or won't."
He pursed his lips, shaking his head.
She waved as she noticed a few more villagers approaching. "...Then I guess I'll be sticking around until you feel persuaded to tell me. I can wait."
xxxxx
The maiden's patience was something to be admired.
Or perhaps it was plain stubbornness.
Either way, for the following few days they fell into a routine. At night she would leave him alone but during the day she would either pester him while he was fishing or while he was trading. If this had been anyone else he would have chased them away for being a nuisance but he was aware that he wronged her.
An observation he made during their time together, was that she wasn't as chatty as he per his first impression of her. Her conversations with the other villages were long but mostly because she would ask them questions about themselves and they were more than happy to oblige. The exception to that was when there was a particularly well-dressed person. Then the maiden would be more proactive and launch into a spiel of asking what cloth it was made of and which area they had obtained their garments from.
There was a significant increase in traffic in his corner of the market but he was beginning to see that there were a lot of people who were also just stopping by, without really intending to trade anything with him. They were there to speak with the maiden.
Her interest in humans was genuine. She told him that she had never come to the human plane before this so never had the chance to interact with humans.
"You've got all this opportunity to speak to people and you don't. Why's that?" she asked, pensively.
"Not interested."
He only came into the village to make ends meet, not to listen to the woes of the villagers.
Listening to the villagers' woes and providing them with a few insights were something that the maiden really seemed to enjoy. With her lack of experience with humans, though...her suggestions could sometimes be...off.
"That's an easy one Mrs. Hoshi. I think you should hold it by its leg and shake it. I think that will stop it from crying!"
Neku didn't want to get involved.
" Or if you feed it a silkworm, that might do the trick."
He really didn't want to get involved.
"Or I know! Is there a lake nearby that you could dip it into?"
Looks like he was getting involved.
"Mrs. Hoshi, I think you should give him the same toy that you gave his older sister. The brat - I mean - the child is clearly throwing a tantrum because he wants the same thing as her."
The woman's face, which had been contorted into a look of pure shock at each of the maiden's suggestions, relaxed as she heard Neku's ones.
"You're right! That must be it. Thank you, Mr. Sakuraba. And - well, it was lovely talking to you again today Miss." She placed a small bag of rice in Neku's hand before scurrying home with the fish she traded.
The maiden expressed concern as she watched Mrs. Hoshi leave. "Do you think I made a mistake?"
"I don't just think that, I know that you just made a bunch of wild suggestions," he said, bluntly.
"What? What makes you so sure that you're right?" she asked, defensively.
"Younger siblings like imitating older siblings, that's general knowledge. General human knowledge, at least. Just like it's general human knowledge that you should not dip children into lakes," he said, dryly. "She probably thought you insane."
The maiden deflated. "Oh no. I was just suggesting what the celestial caregiver used to do with me when I was younger. Are those not common practices anymore?"
"I don't think they were ever common practices for human children."
"He tricked me! That fluffhead!" her cheeks puffed up. "One of my friends told me that human children were raised the same way as we were."
"I can tell you that we're very different."
He had been noticing more differences for a while.
The maiden would join him in eating when he was taking a break for lunch but she had never said she was hungry or usually only had one or two bites. He had asked she couldn't eat human food but she informed him that celestial spirits needed to consume food more infrequently than humans did. Her robes reached the floor so he wasn't absolutely certain of this but he thought she wasn't wearing shoes. She also...well he thought she walked but if she did she was light on her feet because at times it looked like she glided across the ground. Though, it wasn't in an eerie way. It was actually quite amusing since she did so pretty absent-mindedly.
She was different appearances wise too. He thought the glow visible in the evening was the only different physical trait she had but he thought her hair was different too. The bun was nothing unexpected with someone who was from nobility but it looked extremely soft too. Softer than human hair. Almost like silk.
"Is your hair soft because you eat silkworms?" he asked, allowing himself to indulge in the silly question.
"Celestial silkworms," she said, with emphasis. Tilting her head to one side she patted the back of her head. "I'm not sure. It's possible. Is it much different from human hair?" She stared at the top of his head. "Let me compare it."
He didn't like where this was going. "...What, you want to touch it?"
"So, not only do you steal my robe but you want to deprive me of expanding on my knowledge of humans?" she said, exaggerating her offence.
Urgh.
"Fine."
She raised a hand and tapped the top of his spikes. "Quite prickly. Though not everyone's hair must be as prickly as yours. "
He didn't expect her to be so thorough but she took her time. Combing her fingers in between the strands. Even massaging his scalp for a moment which he did protest at. "Watch it!"
"You've got a hard head. Your hair's definitely rougher than mine," she said, one hand rested on his shoulder as her other hand went to the base of his head, fingers brushing against his neck.
A shiver ran through him. "Your hands are cold." Looks like he just discovered another difference - celestial maidens had a lower body temperature than humans.
"Afternoon, Mr. Sakuraba, I'm here to pick up my - oho!" It was Mr. Iwata, who stopped mid-sentence and began scratching his chin with a grin. "Younguns' these days. I'll be back later then."
He turned around and walked right back where he came from, before Neku could even open his mouth.
The maiden, hand still on his shoulder shook him. "Why would he greet us and then go the other way? Doesn't he usually trade for something while he's here?"
Neku was just as bewildered. "This one has got me stumped."
That was odd and he had encountered a lot of oddness these days.
xxxxx
"To obtain the heart of the village's most elusive, handsome, young bachelor, I'm impressed!"
"Even you have a lover Mr. Sakuraba! I would have never guessed it!"
"Why, miss, I did not know you were coupled with Mr. Sakuraba in that manner, what a surprise!"
"So my eyes weren't deceiving me! I thought I spotted a smile out of you recently, Mr. Sakuraba!"
The mystery of Mr. Iwata's turnaround was solved, very quickly.
Neku was appalled to learn how fast the rumour had spread, The maiden took it very into her stride and seemed to decide that she would go full-on with it.
"How do you like to spend your time together?"
"I join him on his fishing days. He's very quiet, as you know, so I do most of the talking."
"How patient of you!"
"Oh, it's nothing!"
Right.
"Missy, how come we've never seen you before this?"
"I live quite far away from here."
"And how long will you be here, missy?"
"Oh, I'm just waiting a few more days to collect something of mine, then I'll be off."
"Ah, he'll surely miss you."
Ha ha.
"Dearie, I didn't know Mr. Sakuraba had a wife."
"Gosh no, we aren't married. Truth be told, he hasn't proposed."
"Oh my, you shouldn't keep her waiting too long, son."
"I agree."
Mmhmm.
Neku let out the longest breath he ever had. "I have more people coming to ogle us than to trade. This is ridiculous."
The maiden laughed, "Well, you know what you have to do to get rid of me."
"Not happening."
xxxxx
The fisherman drummed his fingers on his knee. He was sitting cross-legged on the floor. Trade was slower today. He hated to admit it but it coincided too well with the absence of his 'lover'.
Had she finally given up?
It had been over a few weeks.
No, that was too quick to give up, wasn't it?
A few children ran down the streets rounding his corner. He recognised them as kids who were friendly with the maiden. They didn't hide their disappointment when they didn't spot her.
"Where's Mrs. Sakuraba?" one of them asked.
" I'm Sakuraba, she's not," he said. "And I don't know where she is."
"Is that why you look so grumpy?" asked another. "Do you miss her? Do you want us to go look for her?"
He ignored the first question. And the second. "You can do what you want."
The children scampered off, declaring that they would find her.
At least he managed to get rid of them.
The day dragged on, the sun moving across the sky at a tortoises' pace. It was a hot day and he felt sweat begin to drip down his collar. Right, he remembered now that he hated trading as summer approached. Long hours under the sun weren't pleasant. He supposed he forgot about that while being distracted by more troubling things, like the maiden.
Guess he didn't need to worry about that problem anymore, at least.
It had been a slow day but evening was drawing near so Neku began to pack up his belongings.
"We found her!"
The children from earlier were pulling at the sleeve of the maiden's robes. She had something clutched in between her arms and Neku inhaled sharply before realising that the robes were a different colour than the one he...stole.
"Guess what! Miss Ueno and Miss Koike invited me to their home and let me try out their human spinning wheel! They're not too different from celestial ones," she said excitedly. The children let go of her sleeve as she rushed over, practically shoving the robe in Neku's face. "I weaved this today! I weaved a human robe! My best friend is going to fall over when I show this to her! What do you think?"
She placed it in his hand and he unfolded it so that he could see the full thing. It wasn't dyed but even in plain white, it was beautifully woven. He was sure it would not only be comfortable but also practical to wear, judging by its softness.
"It's…" It was hard to think of the correct word to describe it as, with her staring at his face so intensely. He didn't want to get this wrong because she was always so excited when it came to weaving.
"He likes it!" one of the children chirped.
"Yeah, probably 'cause you made it!"
"He was sulking all day because you weren't here."
The maiden blinked twice. "Really?"
"No," he said. The continued stare made him think that maybe he answered a little too quickly. He gave the robe back to her.
"Are you not going to keep it, Mr. Sakuraba?"
"He can have it," said the maiden, "if he wants to trade it for another robe." She raised her eyebrows at him.
"You children need to learn when to stop talking," Neku said, addressing the children instead. "It's getting dark soon go home."
Once they left, Neku turned to the maiden.
"We better get going too. We don't want to start another rumour."
They usually left the village earlier than this, since they both agreed that it would cause even more commotion if the villagers saw her glowing.
As the sky grew darker and the maiden glowed brighter, they made their way down the small path leading to his home on the outskirts. He was always a little fascinated with the way she glowed, it really reminded him that she was an otherworldly being. Though...was it him or was her light dimmer today?
"You...okay?"
"Who, me?"
"Who else would I be talking to?"
"Oh, right." The maiden held a hand in front of her. "It's possibly because it's cloudy tonight. The moonlight isn't as strong." She sighed. "I'm fine with sleeping outside because I can get more moonlight but there's just no point on a night like this. Someone could be more hospitable and allow me to stay."
He stopped in his tracks. "You were sleeping outside this whole time?"
"Not exactly. I didn't sleep the first few days, so I explored the area. I don't need as much sleep, the same way as to how I don't need as much food," she said. "I think I've adapted maybe too well to the human cycle now."
They reached the entrance to his home and Neku slid his door open.
"So...you coming in, or what?"
Even though it wasn't as bright as usual, it was still light enough that he could fully see the smile that grew on her face. "Yes, thanks! That was an invitation, right?"
"Yes, yes, just come in."
xxxxx
He couldn't sleep.
It was just one of those nights where it was much too warm to sleep comfortably.
He glanced at where the maiden was sleeping. Far as he was from the village, it was usually pitch black at night, but her soft glow allowed him to see her. He couldn't offer her anything fancy such as tatami mats but she insisted that their arrangement would be sufficient. As long as he stayed on his side of the room, she had said, with narrowed eyes. He certainly agreed to that but even at this distance it was all feeling a little bit too intimate to him.
She hadn't voiced any worries about it but he wondered if she was really okay with staying in the same room as him? Neku didn't particularly mind himself, as he didn't think there was anything unseemly about sharing a room but he knew that the villagers would talk if they got wind of this. If she fell out of their favour and they started badmouthing her, he wouldn't like that.
Flipping onto his side he could see that the maiden was still sleeping as soundly as could be. She removed her pin and comb as she slept so she was looking a lot less regal as her hair fell messily across her face. She didn't sleep the most gracefully either, she was also sleeping on her side but it was to the point where another roll would probably land her on her face.
Thump.
...Huh, it actually happened.
"Ouch."
He tried to hold it in, he really did. But he failed miserably and Neku let out a laugh that was louder than appropriate for this time of night. It was a good thing he didn't have any neighbours that he would bother with his volume.
She raised herself with one palm on the ground, the other one rubbing her forehead."Stupid human floor." She whipped her head around. "And why are you still awake?"
"Someone was snoring."
"I don't snore ," she said, indignantly. "You're a thief and a liar."
"Alright, alright, you weren't snoring," he said. "I was awake anyway."
"How come?"
"Too hot."
"Doesn't feel hot to me."
"That's probably 'cause of your….whatever it is that makes you glow."
"Ah, my essence. You're correct, I do recall that essence is cool for humans."
"Essence? That thing you mentioned you found on me?"
"You had some because you had been holding my robe. There's very little trace of it on you now, though," her eyes glinted, "which is how I could tell that you were telling the truth about not having my robe anymore."
"Hm. I see."
She was sitting down now, looking in his direction. Her brown eyes, he noticed, were glowing slightly too. He could tell without asking that she could see him clearly even though the area right around him was still dark. "Would you...would you like me to share some essence with you? To cool you down?"
"...How would you do that?"
"Similar to the essence transferring to you from my robe. I'd just have to be close enough to you for a long enough period of time."
"Okay," he said before his brain could catch up with what his mouth agreed to.
And what he agreed to, seemed to be the maiden crawling towards him and then laying on her side again. Except she was close.
Very close.
"This will probably do."
Again, Neku didn't think there was anything unseemly about this, she was, after all, just kindly offering some respite from the heat. This distance, however...
"I need to reconsider something. I believe you said we were supposed to stay on our own side," he managed to say. "This would break our arrangement, wouldn't it?"
"I said that you were supposed to stay on your side," the maiden said pointedly. "This isn't related to that - I mean - this is for practical reasons."
Though her tone was very insistent, he thought he saw her cheeks darken slightly.
Alright, so she was also conscious of their...proximity to each other.
Not that it mattered, not at all.
"You're right. I appreciate it, thank you." It didn't take long but he actually was starting to feel a little cooler.
"You're welcome," she said, in a soft whisper. "And..do you think…" She moved her face ever so slightly closer. "That you'd be appreciative enough to tell me who you sold my robe to?"
He pinched her cheek. " Sold? " he scoffed. "I didn't sell it to anyone. If I sold that I don't think I'd need to fish for the rest of my life."
"Really?" she said, though her voice was muffled by him pinching. "Then why won't you tell me where it is?"
"It's…" he hesitated. "It's complicated." He released her cheek. "I can't tell you."
"I figured you wouldn't," she said. "I've been sticking around you, trying to get a hint of who you might have talked to about it but none of the villagers knows anything about you. You don't seem to have a single friend or foe...you really are just the village's fisherman."
"That's how I like things."
"Doesn't it get lonely?"
"...No," he said. "I'm okay with the way things are. I think that being too involved with too many people has more risks than merits."
"I find that strange, I thought humans always liked company."
"Not always."
There was a lull in their conversation. Her face told him that she couldn't fathom the thought of not wanting company. The villagers living so close to Shibuya castle were all living more decent lives than other villagers. So he thought he would have to look out for himself when he came here.
When the maiden came along, these past few days, he felt like he had seen more of them than he thought he ever would. While he couldn't see himself being as open with them as she seemed to be, he found that he didn't mind them as much as he used to.
"Do celestial beings have the tendency to talk to everyone they come in contact with or is that just you?"
"Well...you know how I favour weaving quite a bit?"
"A 'bit'?"
"Ha ha. Anyway...it's said to make the perfect garment, one needs to understand the wearer perfectly."
"It's impossible to understand anyone perfectly."
"Maybe but I think that you can get a step closer by talking to people. I want to be able to weave clothes that anyone, celestial beings or humans, can wear. I've tried to talk to as many humans I can because of that." She poked at his shoulder. "You're probably the most difficult to make a garment for. Since you don't talk about yourself."
"Even if I wanted to, there's not much to talk about," Neku said. "I'm just a fisherman. Grew up in a common village. Moved here for the prospects. Probably going to spend the rest of my life like this."
"You sound like an old man," she said. "You know maybe I really will give that robe I made earlier to you. I based its form on another young man I saw earlier, so maybe it'll do you some good. My offer to exchange it for my robe still stands, of course."
"I'm not going to tell you where it is just because you're giving me a nice robe." And it was a nice robe.
"Worth a try. You really think it's nice though, right?"
"I wouldn't say it if I didn't mean it."
She beamed, as bright as the moon.
He felt himself smiling back. Huh. This maiden really was something... Hm...
"I've been calling you the maiden in my head but...do you have a name?"
Her smile waned. "I'm sorry, I do but I'm not really supposed to share it with humans."
"Oh."
"I was kind of glad that you never asked because I wouldn't be able to tell you."
"Right." He winced, he could hear his own disappointment.
"It makes me happy that you did ask, though," she said as if trying to cheer him up. "Oh hey, I know! To make up for it, do you want to feel my hair?"
"Excuse me?" he said, confused, wondering if his ears were working properly. It was about as odd of a suggestion as to her advice regarding dropping a child in a lake.
"Yes, it's not quite the equivalent of my name but you allowed me to touch your hair a while back. Think of it as returning the favour."
"Uhuh."
"Don't pull that face! This is a once in a lifetime opportunity. Humans rarely come in close contact with one of us, let alone get to feel our hair. Think of it as bridging human and celestials' relationships," she said. She broke into a grin again. "I'm joking, how about - "
His fingers had already found their way through her hair just as she said that. He paused. "Sorry, I - " He moved to pull his hand away but found her hand at his wrist.
"No, no, it's okay!" she said, quickly. "Go ahead."
She released his wrist, dropping her hands so they were tucked back close to her.
It did feel like silk. No, it was softer than he imagined. He didn't think even silk could compare to how soft her hair felt. No wonder she called his hair rough, the two were incomparable.
His fingertips grazed the back of her head, threading through to the tips and all the way to the front. The maiden's hair was long enough to be tied in a bun but it was actually still fairly on the shorter side. He played with the strands between his thumb and his forefinger, watching the way some of them fell away.
She shifted slightly and his fingers ended up brushing against her cheeks.
Oh. They were soft too.
Neku held his breath.
He should move his hand away now.
Right?
She made a content hum and leaned into his touch.
"You - "
And then there was a light snore. Another soft hum. The maiden had fallen asleep again.
This sleeping arrangement was supposed to stave off the heat but his face felt warmer than ever.
And to make matters worse that stupid thing in his chest was making a racket.
He cursed at himself.
This was maybe just a tiny, little bit unseemly, after all.
xxxxx
They faced an extremely rude awakening in the morning.
"Neku!" a loud yell rang out from outside.
The young man groaned as he tried to sit up rubbing his temples. It had taken him a while to properly fall asleep and he was not prepared to be woken up like this.
Through blurred morning vision, he looked to his side and noticed the maiden was not still sleeping...ah, there she was. She looked refreshed and her hair was back in her bun, comb and pins back neatly in her hair. The maiden went to open the door and - wait open the door?!
"Wait -!"
Too late.
"Good morning," she chirped happily.
"Mornin'!" said the man at the door, enthusiastically. "...Huh?"
A smaller head popped around the door as well. "Morning - hm?"
The two parties stared at each other for ten long painfully long seconds.
Then the two at the door's eyes travelled to where Neku was sitting. Hair messy, clothes dishevelled. Mood, grim.
" Bwaaaaah!" He covered the younger girl's eyes. "Neku?! You got...you got married ?!"
"No, Bito, I'm not married," he said, getting up and straightening out his clothes. "Why's that your first conclusion?"
Bito looked between the Neku and the maiden once again.
"So…" He moved from covering his sister's eyes to her ears, "you're unmarried?!" He sounded even more scandalised. He was also yelling, so covering her ears was doing nothing and her eyes went round.
"Please, calm down Bito," Neku said, though he didn't have enough energy. "And you can let go of Raimu's ears, there's nothing going on that she needs that for. I'm not married either."
The maiden herself seemed stuck where she was standing. Of course...she was probably very surprised.
"Then what's a girl that looks like she belongs at the castle doing here this early? You were still sleepin' when I knocked! You sure nothin' happened?"
"...Of course, not - ", he remembered last night, "no, nothing. Not a thing." Nothing super unseemly.
"Somethin' did happen!" Bito now chose to cover his own mouth.
Raimu covered her mouth too.
This wasn't great for him but he was more worried about the maiden's reaction.
"Who are they?" she asked, slowly. There it was.
"I'm Bito and this is my sister Raimu," said Bito. "Neku's from our hometown. It's only the next town over, so he usually comes back to visit every month. We made it here this time around! How about you? How'd you know him?"
"He's helping me find something that was stolen from me." The maiden walked up to the three of them and Neku tensed up.
"Oh no," Raimu said, frowning. "I hope you find it soon. Is there anything we can do to help?"
"Perhaps. I made some porridge for the morning. I'd like to have a word with Sakuraba outside so could you give us a few moments alone?"
Bito ran straight for the food. "Sure, not gonna say no to breakfast."
His sister took her time to give the maiden a short bow. "Thank you very much for the food, miss."
"No problem at all. Just be careful not to spill any on your robe. Sakuraba was the one who gave it to you, wasn't he?"
Raimu smiled widely. "He was!"
Neku's stomach turned as the maiden said, "That's nice."
xxxxx
Silence was usually something he welcomed.
It was hard to find that in summer, especially with the chirping cicadas heralding the turn to the season. Even now, he could hear them sing, especially since they had headed down the path away from his home, the one that led down to his fishing spot.
The silence that filled the gap between him and the maiden was anything but pleasant.
He couldn't blame her.
Of course she'd be angry.
He had kept her in the dark about her robes whereabouts for so long.
Still...he had to try and convince her not to take the robe back, because -
"That girl...Raimu," she said, finally. "She's sick, isn't she?"
"You can tell?"
"When you have essence on you, it appears as a certain colour depending on who it is, or what it pulls from you. Yours yesterday shows that the essence was expelling the heat from you. Hers is showing that it's warding off illness."
Neku was not as surprised to hear that the maiden could tell as he ought to be but he was relieved. Now that she knew that, there was no point keeping everything else from her.
"I know it's not an excuse. Keeping what is yours from you was - is - still wrong." He tried to meet her eyes but she was still looking down at where she was walking. "But I went to visit the Bito household in the town the day after. The markings didn't match anything from the Shibuya family. Returning the robe outright was out of the question anyway, I could have been accused of stealing it instead of finding it by one of the nobles and...that wouldn't end well. If Raimu could identify it, they could send it back with the family seal. Bito volunteered to deliver it back himself. Their family are wealthy merchants due to the family trade Raimu has become familiar with scrolls and seals. But she has always been sickly and it's been getting a lot worse this past year and she's been bedridden ever since her condition worsened, so we passed her the different scrolls to look at."
"We couldn't find a matching seal with any of the great families. We scoured every scroll that day. I stayed the night at the household and the next morning Raimu was out of bed. On a whim, she had tried on the robe and it was so comfortable she had fallen asleep in it. She hadn't been out of bed for a year and yet there she was. "
"Yes, the robe would have given her the essence to do that," said the maiden, though she still didn't turn to him.
"Bito thought it was some kind of miracle. I've heard of nobles acquiring items enchanted by spirits so I thought by some luck I had found one of them. Raimu's a better person than I am, though. She said we had to find whoever it belonged to even more urgently now. I told her that she should keep it for now and she could return it if she ever met its owner."
"And that's why you didn't want to tell me who you'd given it to," she did meet his eyes, this time. "Because you knew she would give it back to me - but she'd have to go back to being bedridden again."
"That's the gist of it."
The maiden's expression turned sombre.
"You've made this very difficult for me."
"I know." Keeping the truth from her helped Raimu recover but he also knew that the maiden's kind heart would be conflicted about taking it back if she knew Raimu's situation. It had been better for her to think of him as selfish - and she wouldn't even be completely wrong.
"I've been keeping something from you too." She stopped in her tracks, suddenly.
"What do you mean?" He slowed to a stop, too.
"Robes made from the cocoons of celestial silkworms have powerful magic," she said. "Healing someone like Raimu requires that magic. Crossing over to the human plane requires that magic. And...so does getting back home."
"You don't mean - "
"That robe is weaved to be perfect for the wearer. For me. I can't get home without it."
No.
His throat went dry. "All this time, you were here because you couldn't go home."
"Yes…and I think I need to go home soon. I'm not sure how long I'll last on this plane."
Wait...
"Yesterday you said you were dimmer because there wasn't any moonlight. But it's because you've been here for too long? Why didn't you tell me?" The question sounded hypocritical even as they left his mouth. "No...it makes sense not to tell me."
"Of course, I couldn't trust you at first right away. But you know, the essence I saw when we first met told me that you weren't all bad. And I had only been in this realm a few days so I was curious about you and the village," she said. "But even later when I started to think maybe you might have a reason...the robe giving access to the other plane is a secret. Like my name, I'm not supposed to tell humans," she had a faint smile, "but I think I'm at my limit."
Gods, what had he done?
"I'm sorry. I'm so sorry."
"It's okay. It's not too late. I just...feel so bad for Raimu," she said. "It might sound awful but I'm glad this turned out to be your reason, though. I knew I was right, you had walls up around yourself but I knew you had a heart in there. You're a lot nicer than I thought. Maybe it's just those two but I can see you care for them a lot."
"I care for you too."
His voice came out quiet but firm.
He took her by the hand, pulling her back the way they had come from.
"This isn't going to be easy but we're getting you home."
He squeezed her hand tightly, not caring how cold they were.
xxxxx
The Bito siblings were his friends growing up. Living next door to merchants was an experience in itself but they were always seeking him out to play.
The elder brother was a bit clumsy with words but his giant heart made up for it. He was also always very overprotective of Raimu.
Neku wasn't completely sure how he would react to what they had to tell him.
Both siblings, however, listened attentively. And the kindness they had always shown him won out.
"Neku, you big idiot." Bito started sobbing. "Of course, we'll give it back."
Raimu moved immediately to untie the robe but the maiden stopped her, insisting that she could keep it on until tonight.
She wouldn't be able to go home until night fell, anyway.
After the robe was given back the effects would still last a few more days, so there wouldn't be a problem getting Raimu back home. Raimu requested that they went around Neku's village before they went back tomorrow; she wanted to explore the area with her own two feet while she could.
It was around noon when they started their tour around the village. A few of them came up, curious that Neku had even more companions this time. They asked the Bito siblings were friends of Neku or the bride.
"Moon maiden, you sure you didn't get married to Neku while you were here?" Bito asked as the third person called her Neku's wife.
She giggled. "Quite sure."
"It's a small village. They like to talk," Neku said, dismissively.
"Would you be opposed to marrying Neku?" Raimu asked. Urgh, he forgot how cheeky the younger Bito could be.
"Cut that out. She's a celestial maiden of course she wouldn't marry a human." He continued quickly, "generally speaking."
"Actually, there's no rule that forbids that in particular," the maiden interjected. "I could marry a human if I wanted to." She looked away from the group hurriedly, though they could all see a bit of redness in her ears. "Generally speaking."
Both Bitos were grinning from ear to ear. Neku had no comment for that.
Neku took them right up to the edge of the Shibuya castle. It was a beautiful site, though of course, they couldn't enter. He suggested that they go visit the Konno Hachimangu Shrine and make offerings there. He almost never went, himself, but he knew Raimu would probably like that.
Raimu ran ahead and Neku couldn't help the twinge of sadness upon knowing that she wouldn't be able to move freely like she was now. Bito had a brave face on but he could tell that he was just keeping it together for all their sakes.
"I want to say goodbye to a few people before I leave," the maiden said, watching Raimu solemnly, as they got nearer to their destination. "So, I will rejoin you at your house this evening."
"You sure?"
"Yes, besides I'm not very sure about visiting Hachiman's shrine. He sort of doesn't like us. Celestial spirits, I mean." She smiled nervously and Neku had the feeling she was understating Hachiman's dislike of them. He'd hesitate too if he was out of favour with a war god.
"Alright, see you later."
She headed off in one direction.
Neku watched her retreating figure.
He could only imagine the villagers' reactions to her telling them she was moving on from their village. If the children were to cry, he wouldn't be surprised. He was sure there would be a few of the elder folks who would continue pestering him about her even after she had gone. Their small village would feel a whole lot smaller without her.
The thought of never seeing her again caused his chest to ache.
"Hey! Neku, come on," called out Bito, snapping Neku out of his thoughts. Bito was already passing the first Torii gate.
It may not be the right kind of shrine for this prayer but he would pray for a safe journey home for her.
xxxxx
It was past sunset and the maiden had not yet returned.
Neku paced back and forth in front of his house, looking back towards the path to the village every few minutes. He had lit the torch standing in front of his home, to ensure she could find her way back. She could see in the dark, yes, but he wasn't certain whether her vision would be impaired by her weakened state.
The siblings sat on stumps outside his home, the firelight flickering across their faces.
"Do you think she ran off?" Bito asked.
"What? Why would she do that?" Neku snapped. Realising he had raised his tone, he added a regretful, "Sorry."
"She seems nice," Raimu said. "So maybe…"
He understood the trail of thoughts that she was considering. The maiden was possibly too nice. Perhaps she had the idea that if she disappeared, Raimu would keep the robe and they had no way to give it back to her.
That would truly be selfless of her…
"No, she said she would be back," he said, decidedly. Forcing himself to turn his back on the path, he kneeled in front of Raimu.
She was only a year younger than Bito and himself. Yet she had always seemed so much smaller and that perception grew when her condition declined. He didn't get any sense of fear from her at all at the thought of returning to her ailment. While Bito was hiding it, Raimu truly seemed like she had made her peace with it.
"I'm sorry for all this, Raimu."
"It's okay," she said, trying to reassure him, "I am prepared to spend my three years sitting on a rock."
"You'll be on a tatami, not a rock," said Bito.
"She means that eventually, something will change, even if she has to go through that now." Neku hoped that she would be right.
He heard footsteps from behind him and turned to see the maiden making her way down the path, with a garment in her arms and a fan in her hand. She looked up at the sky and then breathed a sigh of relief. "Good, there's still plenty of time."
"I need to put this robe on," she gestured forward for Neku to take it. "Help me put it over my current clothes."
Noting the seriousness in her voice, he went to help her without question. Bito held on to her fan temporarily. After pulling the garment over from across her back, ensuring that it was tied into place with her hands freely being able to move, Neku readjusted her hair, which had become messy once more.
"Miss Ueno and Koike let me weave at their home again. This is just the thing we need."
"For what?"
She smiled. "You'll see." She addressed the two Bito siblings, "Please follow us to the river."
Bito unstuck the torch from the ground and kept two paces behind Neku, who led the way. The maiden was still glowing enough that Neku could see her face. There was a sense of purpose to her movements and he didn't want to delay whatever she had in mind.
The river's flow was as quiet as the night.
They all stepped onto the bank and she requested her fan back. They were to keep silent.
The maiden stepped forward into the water and yet instead of sinking, she continued to walk as if she was still on solid ground.
She uttered a few words, words that Neku couldn't understand. Perhaps of a long-forgotten language. Or perhaps a language that had never been known to humans in the first place.
Then, she began dancing.
The Konno Hachimangu shrine had a kaguraden for music to be played during certain ceremonies. On very rare occasions there were dancers when the Shibuya family was in attendance.
Nothing Neku had seen during those times came remotely close to the maiden before him.
It was a clear night and the moon shone brightly, an image of it reflected onto the shimmering river below. The light reflected back onto the maiden, emphasising every single fluid movement of her dance. Every flick of her fan was careful, considered. Every extension of her arm was intentional. Yet there was a grace that made it look effortless.
The forest fell into a hush, as if anything that roamed through the night had stopped to watch her dance. Even the trees halted rustling.
With one last sweep of an arm, the maiden finished her dance. Her face held an air of neutrality, of balance right until the end. When it came to a close, her eyes sought out Neku and she smiled.
The dance was beautiful but that was the image that Neku would come to treasure the most.
She walked back to the bank towards him...and then fell into his arms.
He was alarmed, clutching at the back of her clothes. "Hey, what's wrong?"
"Just...tired."
The robe was glowing brightly but upon a closer inspection, she was even dimmer than before.
"Could you please help me out of this robe?"
Raimu rushed forward. Bito, still holding the torch, moved closer, too, in order to give them more light. Neku hadn't realised that he had ended up so close to the riverbank, his feet were almost touching the water. Pulling the maiden more inland, he and Raimu helped untie the robe.
"What was that dance for?" Raimu asked as she managed to get the maiden's arm out of the sleeve.
"For you. I transferred some of my essence into the robe I weaved today," she tried to sit up but she was too weak too. Neku kept his arm around her shoulders, holding on tightly as he used his other hand to unwrap the cloth. "It's what I did to enhance the robe you have on now. It's not as potent as a robe that's made of celestial silk but it should still do the trick."
"Bwaah?!" Bito almost dropped the torch; it slipped out of his hand but he caught it again. "You mean - you mean Raimu will be alright?"
"Yes, she should be."
Neku stared at her, in disbelief. "Why didn't you tell us that's what you were doing?"
"Well...I wasn't fully certain that it would work in the human plane. I didn't want to give you false hope," she said, "but it's worked, I'm sure of it."
The garment was fully off her and the maiden gently held on the robe towards Raimu.
"You didn't have to do this," said Raimu, her voice sounding choked up. She took the robe with both hands and hugged it tight, "but thank you so much."
"You're...the best!" Bito was outright bawling, barely keeping his hold on the torch. "Neku, she's the best!"
"She really is," he agreed, smiling gently as he brushed aside the hair.
Her cheeks were paler than usual so her flush was more prominent, whether it be from the complement or from Neku's gesture.
"That's…" she averted her eyes, shyly. "That's...thanks for saying that. Can you please help me up."
Neku and Raimu helped her to her feet, though she remained leaning against Neku as he kept his arm at her back.
Raimu gave her brother her robe to hold while she took off the one she had hanging over her clothes. The celestial robe - the one that started this all. Picking up the maiden's fan off the ground she returned both of them to her.
"Thank you," said the maiden.
Wordlessly, Neku helped her put on this robe. Perfect for the wearer was an accurate way to describe it, it fit her flawlessly.
The moment she had put it back on, the river turned bright, the reflected moon changing from white to a stark blue.
"Woah," Bito whispered.
"That's the gate back home," she said, though she sounded slightly wistful. "I guess this is goodbye then."
"Thank you again for everything," Raimu said, from behind him.
"Yeah, we owe ya. Thank you, really." Bito, added. "Never met a moon maiden before but I'll let everyone know how amazing you are."
"Glad humans will have something to talk about," the maiden said, with a laugh. "It was lovely meeting you both."
Neku took hold of both her hands, before he could stop himself.
Everything had turned out well, this was the perfect outcome. Raimu was saved and the maiden could go home. So, why was his chest hurting?
He heard the siblings say another goodbye before they headed further down the path home, stopping just far away enough to give him and the maiden some privacy, he suspected.
The maiden grasped his hands. "This is where we part now too, Thief. Though, I suppose I shouldn't call you that anymore."
He nodded, holding her hands tighter.
"The…"
"Yes?"
"The - the villagers are going to miss you when you're gone."
"The villagers...right."
"Yes and they're probably going to come to me with their problems," he continued, looking at where their hands joined. "I guess, since you won't be here, I'll give listening to them a go."
"I'm sure they would like that," she said, with a twinkle in her eyes. "I'll miss them. And you."
Even though his heart was being a nuisance again , it didn't feel right not to be sincere when she was.
"I'll miss you too."
Well, it being a nuisance wasn't that bad if she was going to show him such a fond expression.
"I'll make sure to come back as soon as I can," she said, "I'll check up on how well you're doing with the villagers."
"Yes, you can...hold on, could you just repeat that?"
"That I'll check up on how well you're doing with the villagers?"
"No, did you say you're coming back?" He felt his mouth drop.
"Yes?" she said. She seemed puzzled by his reaction. "Why wouldn't I come back?"
"I…thought that you might not be able to," he said, mind reeling, "or maybe you would not want to? You were so weak so I just thought going back had to be permanent."
"I don't recall mentioning that?" she peered at his face. "I do need to spend quite a while to recover properly. I might get in a little bit of trouble for breaking a few rules. But I should be able to return again after. Perhaps in the next month or two. Although, I'd like to see if I can weave another celestial silkworm robe before then. Raimu's current robe should be fine but I think something with stronger healing magic would work better. My best friend is better at creating specialised robes so I'll work on one with her. So when I visit next we'll definitely have to visit those two."
He let go with one of his hands to cover his face. She's right, she never mentioned anything about not being able to come back. Neku had, for some reason, jumped to his own conclusions.
"Yes, okay. Right."
"Did you think you weren't going to see me again?" She wasn't even teasing him, her question sounded as sincere as before.
"I...I...yes," he admitted. "Please forget about it."
"I thought it was sweet that you would miss me, even if I could visit soon enough," she said, "are you not going to miss me now, then?"
He cursed himself, and then her, and then her stupid wide eyes.
"I will, okay? I probably will. But only a bit." He added hastily, "Just don't take too long before you come back again."
"I won't. I'll come back as soon as I can. I promise."
She held on her free hand, extending her pinky finger. He locked his own with hers. It was a deal then.
The maiden looked back at the river and then back again at him. "Before I depart I do want to ask, would it be okay to stay with you again? I wasn't a fan of spending the night outdoors."
"Of course."
"Perfect. Would you like me to bring anything if I do?"
"If you want to. A tatami would be nice," he answered, with a sinking feeling that he was just going to say 'yes' to anything else she asked.
"Do you want a celestial fishing rod?"
"Didn't know those existed but sure."
"How about some snacks?"
"Yes, that's fine."
"Can I bring some friends to visit?"
"That's fine too."
"Can I visit you at work?"
"Also, fine."
"Can I ask for a kiss before I leave?"
"As I've already said, that's all…" He paused as the sentence registered fully. Eyes flitting quickly from her pink-dusted cheeks to her eyes, he straightened up. "That's all fine."
She tugged gently at the front of his undershirt, his robes already loose from everything that happened. He leaned his head down, closing his eyes and feeling her breath against his lips before she met them with her own.
Fine . He'd admit it, he was going to miss her too much for his own good.
He placed a hand on the small of her back, pulling her closer, his other hand reaching up to cup the back of her head, hands threading once more through the silk of her hair.
Neku was grateful that her lips were as cold as her hands because the warmth spreading across his chest and the heat in his cheeks would surely overwhelm him, otherwise.
She pulled away for a breath and his lips chased hers for a second kiss. She let out a small huff of air as they broke apart.
"I only asked for one," she murmured.
"I know," he said, voice just as low. "I wanted one too."
She leaned closer and he thought she would kiss him again but instead, she whispered something in his ear.
Drawing away from him, she gave him another one of those smiles of hers.
He smiled back at her, for good measure.
"Until we meet again," she said, stepping back into the river.
This time, she didn't walk on the water but descended as if she was walking down unseen stairs, until she had disappeared under the surface completely.
The water returned to its original colour, the glow stopped.
The night returned to the quiet it had always been.
"Until next time."
And the moon shone brightly, as it always did.
x
x
x
x
x
Two months passed. Summer was close to an end.
The young fisherman returned to the river at night with a torch in his hand.
He stuck it down, digging it into the ground next to him.
Sitting down cross-legged, he stared up at the full moon.
"I have the feeling that tonight's the night. Right?"
The river glowed.
A familiar figure rose up.
Huh, she really did bring along a fishing rod this time.
"Good evening, Thief."
"Ha ha."
"I'm joking. It's so good to see you again, Neku."
"It's good to see you too - "
He reached out a hand and she took it.
"- Shiki."
Tadaa! And that, folks, is how you shoe-horn in the share-body-warmth shoujo trope in a summer setting. Hehehehehe. I didn't mean for there to be a sleeping-next-to-each-other scene when I first started but here we are. Maybe I read too many shojos recently but I really don't know where all the petting came from either asldkj. Also, I promised that I would write a kiss for neshiki week so I did. There's so much fluff in here. Definitely the most outrightly romantic I've done. At times I wondered if it was an overload. But no, it is neshiki week. We go soft or we go home.
Also, this is definitely a fastburn instead of my usual slowburn style but since Day 1's theme was fairytale and they fall in love quick in those so I made an exception. This is loosely based on the japanese folklore tale Hagoromo (羽衣) which translates into celestial robe or feather robe. As you can see the feather aspect was thrown out the window. I went with the Noh play version of the story. Though the basic tale of that is fisherman finds robe maiden tells him she needs it to go back to heaven fisherman says okay but only if you show me the celestial dance she dances for him : he's happy she goes home. My story has a lot of additional stuff to it hahaha...Interestingly enough, I found out during research Osamu Tezuka has a manga based on this story...but he set it in space. If he can set it in space, I can fill it with a different plot too hahaha
This wouldn't have been appropriate writing but if I had my way there would be a cliche japanese movie ending song that starts playing right after the line before the five 'x's and then you'd have a montage that pans from Neku fishing, to Neku in the village talking with the kids and then some villagers, and then pan over to Rhyme and Beat in their own town doing their merchant jobs. And then you pan to a scene where Shiki returns to her own plane and you see the back of the heads of her two celestial spirit friends aka Joshua and Eri. And then you see Shiki trying to get another cocoon. And then Shiki and face-obscured-Eri putting together Rhyme's enhanced robe. Then Shiki and faceless Josh somehow getting the celestial fishing rod. THEN the music quietens down and you get the ending scene. Then after the last 'Shiki' the music gets loud again and the rest of the credits play.
I'm describing this all because I feel like you GOTSA KNOW, but again it wouldn't work in the fic hahaha….how I wish I could project my anime ending properly into your heads...how I wish…
If you got through all my rambling, well done you! Thanks for reading this fic! Hope you enjoyed and hope you enjoy the rest of neshiki week! I have more fics to come (though definitely not as long as this one, this one took me out, writing twewy characters without modern slang is hard, hahahaha).
- Dina (06/12/21)