Chapter 3 – Outside World Blues
Kyouichi walked back to Mizuto's house. He took off his shoes and left them outside. Then he entered. He found himself in a narrow corridor of an old style Japanese house with 6 doors, 3 on each side and a seventh door, through which he entered. Since he didn't know, which door leads to the guest room, he just called out: "Sorry to intrude. Mizuto-san, are you here?"
The first door on the right side opened. "Ah, Kyouichi, come in, come in." invited Mizuto. "Let me show you the guest room."
He then walked to the end of the corridor to the third door on the left side. As Kyouichi was passing by the second pair of doors, he noticed that one of them was ajar and someone was peeking through the gap. As soon as he looked at the peeking person, the door closed.
"Must have been one of their kids…" he thought.
Taking the last few steps through the corridor, Kyouichi turned left and entered a small room. It was supposedly a guest room, but the place was cluttered up with various tailoring equipment and materials. There was a whole heap of woolen balls of various colors and sizes in a wicker basket, stacks of cotton fabric and linen were taking up a major part of the room and countless coils of thread were lined up on all shelves. In the middle of the room, there was still some free space; just enough for one person to stretch on the floor.
"I know it's not much, but at least it's better than sleeping outside." said Mizuto with a humble voice.
"I don't mind at all." Kyouichi reassured him.
"Since we never had any guests staying for the night, Minako uses this room as her storeroom and workshop." explained the fisherman.
"Like I said, I don't mind. Even if you offered me to sleep in the corridor, I'd gladly accept."
Kyouichi slowly sat on the floor.
"Oh, wait, I'll bring a futon for you." Mizuto then walked off somewhere and in a moment he was back with the promised futon.
"Thank you." said Kyouichi as he helped Mizuto to put the futon on the floor.
"There. All set up. I'll leave you for now; you need a good rest. Oh, and I'll be leaving early in the morning to fish at the lake, but I should be back by evening." he informed his new guest. "Until then, you could ask Minako to give you a tour of the village or play with the kids or whatever you like. Just don't leave the village alone."
With that last warning, Mizuto closed the door and went to sleep. Kyouichi undressed himself, lay on the futon and covered himself.
"A nice long nap and I'll feel much better…" he thought. He closed his eyes and tried to think of something pleasant. He was tired after all he's been through, and on a normal day he would have fallen asleep without a problem. But today wasn't a normal day. It was a day, when the most unbelievable things of Kyouichi's not-so-interesting life happened. No matter how hard he tried not to think about them, no matter how tired he was, the flashbacks of today's events kept him awake and haunting his mind.
"What happened in the subway? Where did all the passengers disappear to? Where is this Gensokyo exactly? Why did I appear here? Do people really live here with youkai? What does it mean that Gensokyo is sealed off from the outside world? Is there a way through the Great Barrier? Will I ever see home again? What will my family do? What will I do?"
Kyouichi was just laying there for about an hour and thinking of all sorts of worst-case-scenarios that could happen to him. Then he just couldn't take it anymore. He sat up in his futon, looked around the room, and then he dressed up. Slowly opening the door of the guest room, he stopped to listen for a while. All was quiet. He then tiptoed his way through the corridor, quietly opened the main door and again closed it when he was out. He saw that Naota was still sitting by the campfire, throwing in some more firewood. Besides him, there was no one else on the street. Kyouichi put on his sneakers and went towards the campfire.
The old man didn't seem to have noticed him until he sat down beside him and stared into the fire for a while, his eyes dimly reflecting the flickering flames.
"Can't sleep?" asked Naota.
Kyouichi nodded, but remained silent.
"I know exactly how you feel. Trust me, the first night is the worst."
Kyouichi still didn't say anything.
"Are you sure you still don't want some?" asked Naota holding a full new sake bottle.
This time, Kyouichi accepted. "Yeah, I think I'll have some."
Naota smiled and opened the bottle and passed it to Kyouichi. "Sorry, but I don't have any cups or glasses here with me…"
Kyouichi didn't mind that and took a few big gulps right from the bottle. "Ahhhh! Oh yeah, I needed that."
He passed the bottle back to Naota, who did the same. Naota then started talking: "I was spirited away when I was 14. It was during the Second World War. It was in summer. I went to the woods with my father to help him get some wood for his work as usual. I had marked several trees the day before which he could use, so I went on ahead of him. When I got to the marked trees, I expected my father to be right behind me, but he wasn't. I had waited there for 5, 10, 20 minutes, but he still wasn't coming. I was worried that something happened to him, so I just left my tools lying on the ground and ran back the same way I walked to the marked trees. After about a minute I found him as he was chopping down some other trees, which he found perhaps more suitable. I was relieved to see that nothing happened to him, so I just waved at him and went back to get my tools. I was absolutely certain that I took exactly the same path to the marked trees, where I had left the tools, but as I went further, I could not recognize my surroundings. I kept walking and finally reached the place where I had left the tools, but they were gone. Even stranger was, that the trees were somehow unmarked. I thought I was losing my mind. I didn't know what to think, let alone what to do. So I just decided to return to my father, but the path back was not the same. Instead of getting out of the forest and into my village, I found myself on some road overgrown with higan flowers, with no sign of any village nearby. I didn't know if it was real or just a bad dream, but I followed the road down the hill. It was already getting dark by that time. Then I thought I saw something like a ghost near the path. I can't really describe it, but that very sight sent me running like the wind. The path took me all the way to another forest which I didn't recognize. Heck, even the plants growing there didn't seem to be from this country. I just kept walking through the forest, which just didn't seem to have an end. It was dark and I thought that I would never find my way out, but in the darkness I had seen a light. I followed it and after a few minutes, I got out of that creepy forest. The light was actually more lights, it was this here village. When I asked the people where I was and heard the answer, I thought that everyone had gone crazy including me. One of the families then took me into custody and raised me until I was adult and able to stand on my own. It was very hard getting used to live here. And not a single day has passed without thought about my home and my family."
The old man again drank some sake right from the bottle and passed it to Kyouichi.
"So, what about you, kid? Will you tell me your story?" asked Naota.
Kyouichi took a deep breath, another few gulps of sake from the bottle, which was already half-empty and told Naota how he ended up in Gensokyo with all details.
"That was quite an adventure you've experienced, young one." acknowledged Naota after hearing Kyouichi's story.
Kyouichi's mood got somewhat better and even the pain of his wounds eased up. Was it because of the sake or because he had shared his problems with someone? That wasn't important. The important thing was that he knew he wasn't alone with this problem.
"You mentioned earlier something about not taking any apprentices…" Kyouichi changed the topic. "Are you a craftsman?"
"I used to be." replied the old man. "I was a carpenter like my father. By the time I was spirited away, I already knew a thing or two about woodwork. Since the folks here didn't seem to be too… technically advanced, my modern techniques and design of my products became quite popular here. I even helped with the designs of many houses, which were built more recently. I'm even partly responsible for that Fairy Post Office building."
"Wow, that's really something…" said Kyouichi in amazement. "But why are you still wearing your working overalls when you said that you retired?"
"Heh, force of habit, kid, force of habit." laughed Naota and again drank from the bottle.
"How did you get used to this place? Can you give me any advice?"
"Yes. Make friends. Many friends. Walk around the village, talk to people and offer your help whenever you can. As for the youkai, avoid them, but if you can't, then act as politely as possible and you should not be harmed. Be careful though, most of the youkai in Gensokyo look exactly like humans, so it's often hard to tell if you're dealing with a human or youkai. Some of them however, have more… distinctive features like wings, animal ears and tails or just downright strange clothes. One of my friends is something like a guard or a youkai fighter, his name is Yukiyama. I can make arrangements so that he would accompany you, should you ever decide to travel outside the village. Oh, and yeah, you should find some work. Nothing is for free, even in Gensokyo."
"Yeah, but what sort of work? I'm no craftsman or a warrior."
"Everything can be learned, boy. Just ask around the village. I'm sure there's someone who can teach you something and make you useful." Naota cheered Kyouichi up. "But first, you should let those wounds heal up."
"I know. You don't have to tell me." muttered Kyouichi and he finished off the rest of the sake in the bottle.
"Umm… Do you know anything about Reimu Hakurei?" asked Kyouichi all of a sudden.
"What, the shrine maiden? Yeah, you can see her in the village doing shopping once or twice a week. I've been here before she was born, but the first time I had seen her was… I think seven years ago."
What else can you tell me about her?" Kyouichi was curious.
"Hmph, not much really." shrugged the old carpenter, who apparently never seemed to care much about anything that didn't concern him directly. "I haven't talked to her, I've just heard that she supposedly keeps the peace here and according to some, she is already responsible for resolving numerous youkai related incidents. Personally, I think it's all just part of the village legends. She's just a kid after all, even younger than you."
"But Mizuto told me that she knows a lot about the Great Boundary…"
"Mizuto collects all sorts of farfetched folktales. You can't take everything he tells you too seriously." Naota growled back.
"The same he thinks about those who claim to have met the border youkai." remarked Kyouichi.
"Ha! Even I have my doubts, kid. The youkai I met 20 years ago could have been just about any other youkai. I just told one of the folks here what she looked like and the guy told me that it could have been Yukari. Other than this… theory, I have no proof, so yeah…" Naota paused himself for a while. "And if you're really into every rumor and folktale, then you should also know that this Hakurei girl hangs around with all sorts of youkai, right at the shrine. But I really don't feel like going there to check, oh no."
"I'll just have to ask her then." said Kyouichi.
"Then I suggest that you wait here in the village until she comes by to shop. It's already a miracle that you made it to the village at night and as far as I know, miracles don't happen twice." lectured Naota.
"I think the sake is starting to take effect." the young man yawned, opening his mouth wide.
"I was about to go home too, anyway. We can talk again tomorrow, kid." said Naota while standing up.
They both bid each other good night and parted ways. Kyouichi again silently sneaked into the Saitou house, into the guest room and stretched himself on the futon. Within less than five minutes, he was sound asleep.
"Children, breakfast!"
"Coming, mom!"
Some voices have awakened Kyouichi. He sloppily put on his glasses and checked the time on his cell phone. It was just a few minutes past 9, but for him, it was still too early to get up. After all, he had no reason to be up early. As of yesterday, he officially no longer attended school and was no longer assigned to his current part-time job. People in the outside world might think he just got sick or something, but only Kyouichi knew that he would not see any of the people from that world any time soon. His head still hurt a bit after yesterday's sake, so what's the harm if he prolonged his nap by a few more hours? He put his head on the pillow again and fell asleep.
Finally he woke up, all fresh, but it was already past noon.
"Oh, crap! I don't wanna waste my day like this!"
He put on his clothes and went to the kitchen, where Minako was preparing something.
"Good morning, Kyouichi. Even if it's already afternoon." greeted Minako with a pleasant smile.
"*yawn*…morning." yawned Kyouichi. "Um…where can I like… wash myself or something?"
"The bathroom is right opposite the kitchen." answered Minako.
Kyouichi opened the sliding door to the bathroom. It was a small room with a wooden ofuro. The water was most likely supplied by a well somewhere behind the house and heated by a coal or firewood heater with a water tank, almost like a modern boiler. Kyouichi undressed himself and unbound his bandages. First, he used one bucket of water just to clean himself. There was no shower in this house and it was most likely so in all the other houses in the village. He had to be careful even while cleaning himself, as any soap in his wounds would burn him like hell. When he was done, he just wrapped himself in one of the towels he borrowed from the hanger and went back to the guest room. Minako was already there, standing and looking thoughtfully at a bunch of different kimonos.
"Ah, Kyouichi-kun, there you are. I noticed, that you're missing your upper part of your clothes, so I was thinking which kimono would suit you the best." started Minako full of excitement.
"Well, I…" Kyouichi didn't even get to finish his sentence as Minako kept explaining.
"I was thinking, like you can't ruin anything if you go traditional, but since you are not so traditional, as someone from the outside world, maybe some of these here would suit you better…"
"But…" Kyouichi again failed to interrupt Minako.
"I'm not sure if I have the right sizes of the less formal models right now, but I still think that traditional style would go better with your personality…"
Kyouichi wondered how can she judge someone's personality when she barely knows him and how does "traditional style" fit his personality. Meanwhile, Minako finally decided to pick a simple, traditional, white kimono with a black hakama.
"Go ahead, try it on." urged Minako.
Kyouichi just stared at her with a raised eyebrow…
"Oh, of course, I'm going already…" she suddenly realized, that people need some privacy while changing clothes. She left the guest room and closed the door.
"Now this will be fun to wear…" mumbled Kyouichi as he finished putting on the kimono and tying the hakama around his waist.
As soon as he was dressed up, Minako was already knocking on the door. "Can I come in and take a look?"
"Yeah, I'm already dressed up."
Minako opened the door and looked at Kyouichi in his new attire. "M-hm. Just as I thought; it suits you really well. Now you look like a native inhabitant of Gensokyo."
"Thank you very much. I can pay you for it right now…"
"Oh, no, no, no!" Minako shook her head in disagreement. "Think of it as a welcome gift. I had a talk with my husband yesterday and he said that until you purchase your own house, this will be your home…"
"I... I can't thank you enough for your kindness. I'll do my best to find some work soon and as soon as I earn enough money, I'll buy my own house." promised Kyouichi. He still hoped that he would be able to return home one day. But since he didn't know when or even if that day would come, he just had to prepare for proper life in Gensokyo.
"Well then, how about I showed you around the village?" asked Minako.
"That was my plan, originally. If you're not too busy, then I would gladly take a tour of the village."
"I don't work on weekends, so I'm not busy. But first, you should eat something. You already missed the breakfast, so lunch will be your first meal today." said Minako as she went to the kitchen, followed by Kyouichi. Actually, lunch as a first meal was nothing unusual for Kyouichi back in the outside world. That is, unless his lectures started in the morning, when he had proper breakfast, just like all normal people.
"I made some onigiri today." said Minako while serving the onigiri and tea.
Kyouichi was hungry, so he ate 4 onigiri rice balls in a blink of an eye. Then he just slowly sipped the hot green tea.
"You make some of the best onigiri I've ever eaten." praised Kyouichi.
"I'm glad you like them…" Minako replied with a happy smile. "So, shall we go for a walk then?"
"Yes, please show me the village."
"Ok, let's go."
Minako put on her sandals and Kyouichi his sneakers.
"Hmm, this doesn't go too well with the kimono." he stated. "But the hakama almost completely covers my feet, so I guess that's ok."
"If you want some sandals, I know a good shop." informed Minako as they both left the house.
The weather today was just as nice as yesterday. Kyouichi for the first time saw the Human Village in broad daylight. It was a beautiful village with traditional Japanese houses lining the streets. Some of the houses however, were built in European style. The whole village looked like a mixture of two different countries. Far in the distance, Kyouichi saw the Youkai Mountain and not far from its foot, he saw an area covered in thick mist.
"That must be the Misty Lake." he thought.
As they walked down the street, several villagers greeted Minako and curiously looked at Kyouichi.
"You're quite popular here, Minako-san." stated the outsider.
Minako blushed. "This is a small village. Pretty much everyone knows everyone around here."
"If you say so…"
They passed the fireside where Kyouichi met old Naota. The fire was already extinguished, and nobody was sitting on the logs around it. People on the street were doing their everyday activities: working in their gardens, repairing their houses, selling various things. The children were playing tag or hide-and-seek. Kyouichi also saw several armed men dressed almost like him as they were patrolling the village. The street slightly turned right as they walked further. After a few moments, they walked to a large circular area with many market stalls. In the middle of the marketplace was a large bronze dragon-shaped statue. The dragon looked like a serpent with hands and horns. It could be something over 2 meters tall and 3 meters long. Its eyes were made of some odd white gems and it seemed that they had some kind of inner glow.
"This is the statue enshrining our highest order dragon deity." explained Minako. "It is said that the dragon is thicker than the oldest tree and so long that he blocks out the sky. He is said to live in the ocean, or the heaven, or in the rain. His cry can rend the heavens and create thunderstorms. When he stirs about, earthquakes occur. However, he is also Gensokyo's god of creation. Some say, that he appears in Gensokyo's greatest times of need. Last time he was seen was when Gensokyo was sealed. This statue is said to be able to predict the weather. Depending on the color of its eyes, you can tell what the weather will be."
"Really?" asked amazed Kyouichi. "So what does it mean when its eyes are white?"
"White means that it will be sunny, blue means rain, grey means cloudy… But when they are red, that means something very strange is happening in Gensokyo. It was so during many youkai incidents… Thankfully, everything was somehow resolved."
"That reminds me… do you know about Reimu Hakurei?" asked Kyouichi.
"I'm a bit surprised you know about her."
"Mizuto told me."
"Well, Reimu-chan is a nice girl. Last year she bought a yukata from me for the summer festival. But usually she just buys new miko clothes from me."
"And… does she really resolve all those incidents with youkai?"
Minako looked a bit puzzled. "Well I think she really did resolve… at least some of them."
"What incidents were there?" Kyouichi wanted to know.
"Well, for example, once there was this thick red mist that suddenly appeared one day all over Gensokyo. It was kind of scary. It blocked out the sun and somehow it made people feel weak and dizzy. Nobody was allowed to go out of their houses. We were all wondering what could be causing the mist, but before anyone from the village set out to investigate, the mist suddenly dissolved."
"Strange…" stated Kyouichi as he tried to imagine how it must have been.
"We later discovered that it was Reimu-san's work that stopped that strange mist. She even got a reward from the village chief for that one…" recalled Minako with a spacey look on her face.
"What was the source of the mist then?"
"Well, I… don't really know, but I've heard that it came from the Misty Lake…"
"Say, aren't you the least bit worried about your husband who goes fishing there?" asked Kyouichi.
"No." smiled Minako. "Or to be exact, not anymore. You see, before the incident with the red mist, the lake was a much revered place, which nobody dared to approach. Those few foolish fishermen who went there back then never returned. But once the mist incident was resolved, Reimu herself assured us that the lake area will be much safer for humans from that day on. People were hesitant to believe at first, but after some time, they started to go fishing at the lake again. Eventually, a small fishing colony was founded. Of course, the youkai still lurk everywhere, waiting for their prey, so the fishermen are always escorted by guards to the lake. Well, not just fishermen, but everybody who has any business outside the village."
"What about other incidents?"
"Hmm…" Minako was thinking. "Oh, there was this really loooong winter. It lasted until Satsuki."
"Satsuki… wait, that would be May by our calendar. That's really long, but how do you know it was caused by youkai?" Kyouichi kept asking.
"Ehehehe…" Minako giggled in slight embarrassment. "I really cannot say that it was caused by youkai with certainty, but if you live here for some time, you soon learn that Gensokyo is a place where wonderful and mysterious things happen quite often, and that is all because of the youkai."
"Did Reimu solve that one too?"
"Some say that she did, some say that it was just an unusually long winter that comes once in a hundred years… There were many other incidents, but I really don't know much about them…" Minako frowned.
"Ok, sorry for being so curious. Let's move on." suggested Kyouichi.
"Yes. I almost forgot I was supposed to show you the village." Minako stared walking again and Kyouichi followed her.
"So, as you can see, this is the marketplace." she explained. "The stalls here only sell food and other basic staples. Specialized goods are sold at shops like those over there."
"Oh!" called Kyouichi as he read one of the shop signs. "Saitou textiles. Is that really your shop, Minako-san?"
"Yes, that's where I sell all sorts of clothing for all sorts of occasions. Well, it's not really my shop since it's rented by the village council. I pay a monthly rent of 25 000 yen, but having a shop in the village center shows some prestige. That way, more people… and youkai come to buy my clothes than from other tailors."
"Oh yeah, about the youkai… aren't they dangerous?" wondered Kyouichi.
"Many people and youkai learned to coexist in peace with each other. If you ask me, youkai tend to be much better customers than most humans. They are also more polite."
"But there are also those who will attack humans on sight, right?"
"Yes, and that's why people must be careful at all times when traveling outside the village."
Minako kept walking towards some large mansion-like building just at the edge of the marketplace.
"That there is the village hall." she pointed at the building. "We don't have to go there now, but every inhabitant of the village has to be properly registered there."
"I… I'm still hoping to return home if there is a way…" said Kyouichi.
"I understand that, Kyouichi." Minako looked at him with compassion. "I don't know anything about the Great Boundary, but if there really is a way, then Reimu would be the first person I'd talk to."
"I intend to. I'm supposed to wait here until she comes to shop here."
"Hmm…" Minako took a look around the marketplace. "I don't see her anywhere..."
"That's ok, Minako-san, I still need to heal up before I can even think about returning home."
"I've never heard of any outsiders who managed to return home, but I'm just a simple woman who makes and sells clothes. You should definitely try and look for a way home. Me and Mizuto will support you as much as we can."
"Thanks. I hope I'm not causing you much trouble…" thanked Kyouichi.
Minako just shook her head. "Trouble? We are glad to have you with us… even if it's just for a few days."
"Is that so?" wondered Kyouichi.
"If it wasn't us, then any other family would surely take care of you…" Minako reassured him.
"One thing I have to admit… People here sure are nicer than where I come from."
Kyouichi kept following Minako through the market district. Among other shops, he could see a butcher shop, a tanner's workshop, a smithy, a carpenter's workshop, a stonecutter's workshop and many more. There was also a small tavern and several people were sitting outside, enjoying their drinks and talking. Minako then suddenly stopped at one of the shops and pointed at it. "This is the shoe shop I mentioned earlier. Let's get you some fine sandals to fit your kimono."
"Ok, let's…" agreed Kyouichi and entered the shop with Minako.
The shop was quite large inside and offered quite a selection of traditional, formal, informal, heavy-duty or ceremonial footwear. Since it was spring, the spring and summer footwear was dominating the shelves. The shoes and sandals were made from all sorts of materials such as rice straw, wood, leather, even silk and snake skin. Minako didn't hesitate for a second and she deftly made her way through a few other customers to one of the shelves. Kyouichi also weaved his way though the shelves and people in the shop to Minako. She had already picked 3 different pairs of sandals for Kyouichi to try on.
"Come, come, don't just stand there, try them on!" she urged.
"Are you always so energetic when you're shopping?" asked Kyouichi as he was putting on the first pair.
"I just really like to try out new things, especially clothes and shoes…" she explained. "Besides, I've still got the whole village to show you. We shouldn't waste much time here."
"You're not planning to take me to every single shop in the village, are you?"
"Don't worry, I'll just show you the most important places here…" she replied. "Now let me take a look at you… These are quite nice, but I also like this pair. Why don't you try on these too?"
Kyouichi sighed and tried out all the pairs which Minako picked for him.
"Alright, we'll take these, these and these here." said Minako after a while of thinking.
"Whoa, wait a second." Kyouichi objected. "I don't think I have that much money with me..."
"I'll be paying for them." said Minako with a cheerful smile.
"You can't be serious…"
"Like I said, the clothes will be your welcome gift. And the sandals are a part of that too."
"I guess I can't really refuse then..."
Minako then paid for the 3 pairs of sandals and the shopkeeper packed them in a decorated bag made of coated rice paper.
"You can put one of the pairs on right away." Minako suggested.
"Yeah." Kyouichi nodded and put on a pair of quality cherrywood sandals.
"It will take a while getting used to walking around in these." muttered Kyouichi as he almost tripped on his first steps in the new sandals.
"Once again, thank you, Minako-san." thanked Kyouichi while exiting the shoe shop with Minako.
"You're welcome." smiled Minako and pointed at one of the streets. "We'll be going down that street now."
Kyouichi just followed her without a word. They entered a street adjacent to the marketplace and followed it. The street was also lined with small shops, but there were more houses than shops. Kyouichi noticed that there were more of those armed patrols on this street. Taking a closer look, he noticed their uniforms also had a golden dragon shaped insignia on their chest.
Their shoulders were decorated with various amounts of golden stripes, probably showing their rank or skill. They wielded mostly swords and spears, but some of them were armed with bows and arrows.
"Who are these men, Minako-san?" asked Kyouichi with a hushed voice.
"They're the Ryuuken warriors." explained Minako. "They serve and protect the village and its inhabitants from aggressive youkai. Some of them are stationed at the lake to guard the fishermen. Some escort the woodcutters, hunters, farmers and those who need to travel outside the village. They also help to resolve youkai incidents."
"Hey, that's a great idea, Minako-san!" Kyouichi rejoiced. "I could ask them if they could escort me to the shrine…"
"Ummm, Kyouichi, that won't be so simple..."
"Why not?"
"Their numbers are not too great and every man is needed at one place or another. They won't accompany just anyone either. You will need to find work that requires one to leave the village or special approval from the village chief, and of course, money."
"I see." muttered Kyouichi. "But why are there so many of them on this street?"
"See that building over there?" Minako pointed at large temple-like building further down the street. It had a large courtyard surrounded by a tall stone wall. Two of the Ryuuken guards were standing at the entrance.
"That's their dojo."
"What if I joined them?" Kyouichi speculated, but Minako brought him back to earth.
"I don't think that will be possible for an outsider. Since they are native Gensokyo inhabitants, they also inherited some magic powers from their ancestors. I've heard that people in the outside world don't have such power and cannot learn magic."
"Eh? Does that mean that you also inherited some magic powers?"
"Yes, every human born in Gensokyo has some potential to learn magic and be able to defend himself against youkai if need be. But not everyone has equal potential to learn and to fight."
Kyouichi was amazed. "That's incredible, Minako-san."
"Oh, I'm not that incredible." replied Minako modestly. "At best, I could defend myself from a couple of fairies. When I was little, I dreamed of becoming a sorceress or something like that, but learning magic is no easy feat. Instead of taking the path of magic, I decided to make a living of my greatest talent and hobby - sewing. If everyone in the village was a warrior or a wizard, there would be no one to grow crops, make clothes or build houses…"
"Good point…"
They passed the training grounds of the Ryuuken and headed further down the street when Minako turned left to another street.
"Over there…" she continued, "…is the village school. It's one of the newer buildings in the village, but was already renovated several times. It originally started just as a history school in 117, but later became an affiliated academy."
The school was a two storey building built in old Japanese style. However, the second floor seemed to have been built more recently. The roof was covered with dark-green clay tiles.
"You attended this school?" asked Kyouichi.
"Yes, it's the only school in the village after all. I was already adult when I started attending it, tough." answered Minako and nodded. "Keine-sensei, who was my teacher, still teaches Gensokyo history. She's been around since the founding of this village."
"So she must be pretty old by now." stated Kyouichi.
"Well, she's a youkai, a were-hakutaku to be exact."
"A what?"
"You know, the legendary spiritual beast resembling a lion with horns that is said to visit and advise only kings of virtue. It is known as Bai Ze in Chinese folklore."
"Oh yeah, now that you mention it, I think I heard about it somewhere." Kyouichi recalled. "According to that legend, it visited the Yellow Emperor, Huang-di and it explained that there are 11 520 youkai in the world describing each one in detail and even teaching him how to deal with each of them. The emperor wrote all that knowledge down in a book known as Bai Ze Tu, which of course no longer exists."
Minako nodded. "Yes, and one such hakutaku, I mean were-hakutaku is Keine-sensei."
"Why were-hakutaku?" asked Kyouichi with a confused look.
"That's because she's half human and transforms into a hakutaku when the moon is full." answered Minako. "Ever heard of werewolves?"
Kyouichi slapped his forehead with his palm. "Oh! Now I get it… And if she knows so much about history, maybe she can tell me something that would help me find a way home…"
"Uhh, there's a little problem with that." objected Minako. "You see, it's better to leave her alone when she's transformed."
"Right, the moon was full yesterday." Kyouichi recalled as he wandered for hours through Gensokyo wilderness and found a path to the Human Village only illuminated by moonlight.
"But don't get me wrong." Minako continued. "She is one of the friendliest youkai in Gensokyo. Her power is to manipulate history, but that is quite difficult to explain. Apart from being a teacher, she is also a guardian of the Human Village. She really loves humans and is willing to protect them in case of serious danger. When transformed, she still maintains all her human features but she grows a pair of horns and her eyes turn red. She's not really dangerous to humans in that form, just a bit… edgy. That's why people prefer to avoid her during that time."
"I think it's the same with all women during their… time of the month." jested Kyouichi.
Minako giggled. "Hehe, more or less, yes."
"By the way," Kyouichi digressed, "your children also go to this school, right?"
"Yes, both Tadao-kun and Chitose-chan go to this school. Chitose is older so she's in 2nd grade and Tadao-kun is a 1st grader in middle-school. I wanted to introduce you to them yesterday, but I figured that you needed rest after what you've been through."
Kyouichi tried to imagine a 13 year old boy and a 14 year old girl, who would bear both Minako's and Mizuto's features. His mind, however, still lingered on their teacher, Keine-sensei and her supernatural origin and knowledge. He asked Minako after a moment of silence: "Isn't this Keine-sensei transformed only during the night of full moon?"
"Yes, but she isn't very "social" even during daytime when the moon is in its full phase."
"Alright then. If Reimu won't be able to help me, then I'm paying this Keine a visit."
"You can usually find her at school on weekdays, otherwise she's at home." said Minako while moving on. "Come, I'll show you where she lives."
She walked a bit faster and Kyouichi had to speed up a bit as well. They passed by a large building that looked like a warehouse and at the second turn, Minako turned right to another street. The street eventually led to the southern gate of the Human Village. It wasn't really a gate, just a road leading further outside the village. The village itself had no fortification, walls or even a fence. In the distance, Kyouichi saw a thick bamboo forest and a few hills were visible behind it. Minako stopped at the fourth house from the northern side of the street. "Okay, so this is Keine-sensei's home."
The house looked just like any other Japanese style house in the village. Etched on the door were three kanji characters of the owner's family name.
"Kamishirasawa?" Kyouichi read the writing on the door.
Minako nodded. "Yes, Kamishirasawa Keine lives right here, but as I said earlier…"
"It's best to let her be during the time of full moon, yeah." Kyouichi completed Minako's sentence while looking at the forest in the distance.
"Um, do you know where that road goes to?" he asked.
"The southern road will take you to the Bamboo Forest of the Lost." replied Minako.
"That sounds like a scary place."
"It is." said Minako with an unusually serious tone. "The forest is enchanted, pretty much like the Forest of Magic. Bamboo grows so quickly that the forest constantly changes and one can easily get lost in there. Somewhere inside the forest lies a mysterious mansion called Eientei where Lunarians are said to reside. I haven't been there myself nor, do I know any human who was, but sometimes a few youkai from Eientei come to visit the village and some of them sell medicine."
Minako made a gesture for Kyouichi to follow her and walked back where they came from.
She headed further north without turning to the street with the school and the warehouse. If Kyouichi's sense for navigation was correct, they were getting back to the marketplace, however from a different direction. Along the way Kyouichi saw an interesting new looking building with a touch of both eastern and western architecture. A sign was hanging above the entrance: First Fairy Post Office. The building was rather tall in comparison to other buildings in the village and even had a small tower on its roof. Only now did he notice that many fairies were flying in and out of that tower and traveling with something that looked like small sacks to some unknown destination.
"Whoa!" exclaimed Kyouichi in amazement. "So this is that place Naota was talking about."
"You already met Naota?" asked Minako. "He was working on the design and made many pieces of furniture for the post office too." she added.
"Yeah, he told me about that…" said Kyouichi while staring at the flocks of fairies busily sending and bringing letters and small packages.
"I haven't yet tried using the services of this post office, since I don't know anyone who lives outside the village personally except for Reimu Hakurei."
Kyouichi seriously thought about sending a letter to the Hakurei Shrine to ask for an appointment with Reimu, but he quickly dismissed that idea as he didn't want to waste money on anything unnecessary.
"She will eventually show up in the village anyway." he quietly thought.
They continued walking down the street and Kyouichi could now see a part of the familiar marketplace at the end of the street. Besides the post office, there were other small shops and a couple of red lantern stands on that street. As they were about to enter the marketplace again, Minako turned right instead. Right at the beginning of the street stood opposite of each other two large buildings. One had a symbol of a red cross painted above the entrance.
"This is the village hospital." explained Minako. "It doesn't look like much, but it's enough to treat people with all but the most serious of diseases and injuries."
Looking left at the opposite building she continued: "And this is the village fire station. There's always something going on in Gensokyo and not once fires had to be put out in the village."
Besides these two buildings, there were only houses on this street so Minako and Kyouichi just turned back and walked into the marketplace.
"Okay, Kyouichi, I'm going to show you one more place in the village and then you can do whatever you like." Minako smiled at him.
"One more place?"
"The Hieda house, also known as the village archive." she specified.
They walked across the marketplace and entered a street between a shop with ceramics and a tavern called Drunken Oni. Among the smaller shops on this street; a flower shop a sweets shop, a bookstore and a bakery Kyouichi saw more houses with beautiful gardens. He read the name tags on the doors of each of the house, when he found one with the name Hieda engraved on it.
"This is the village archive?" asked Kyouichi with a doubting tone and expression.
"It is the house where Gensokyo's chronicler, Hieda no Akyuu lives. She lives here with her family. Some people find her a bit… strange, but she will kindly welcome anyone who seeks knowledge about Gensokyo. Her compendium, the Gensokyo Chronicle is also a part of the material used by Keine-sensei when teaching history."
"Another useful person worth visiting if Reimu can't help…" noted Kyouichi.
"Well, I hope you enjoyed our little tour of the village." said Minako while clapping her hands together.
"I did." replied Kyouichi. "Thank you for your time, Minako-san."
"You're welcome." she replied. "I'll be doing some more shopping. The kids will be hungry when they come home after playing outside and you too, no doubt."
"I guess I'll look around the village a bit more."
They bowed to each other and parted ways. Minako headed back to the marketplace and Kyouichi walked slowly back to the Saitou house, looking more closely at all the shops along the way and paying more attention to the people on the streets.
"I wonder if any of them is a youkai…" he thought.
He didn't notice anything out of the ordinary on any person he saw so he just kept walking and thinking what will he do next.
Again he looked at the fireside, where some people usually gathered in the evening, but since it was still only afternoon, there was nobody sitting there and the fire wasn't lit yet.
Shrugging his shoulders, he sat on one of the wooden logs to take a short break from all the walking. He picked up a small, half-burnt wooden twig from the ashes of the fireside and started drawing something like a small map of the village, or at least those parts where he had already been to. It was just a bunch of squares and lines in the ashes. As he was about to mark the residence of Keine Kamishirasawa and Hieda no Akyuu on his "map", he heard a bunch of male voices coming closer towards him. One of them sounded quite bossy and resolute. He didn't hear what they were saying until they got close. Kyouichi turned around and saw four men wearing the Ryuuken uniform. The bossy voice belonged to the leader of the squad; a tall, darker man with black hair in tied in a very short pony tail and black moustache. The other men followed him without a word. Kyouichi only heard his last sentence as the men passed him by.
"…then we shouldn't keep them waiting."
He watched as they headed to the edge of the village, to the road where he had come from yesterday. That's when he got an idea. He quickly stood up and ran as fast as he could to catch up with the squad of Ryuuken. But running in footwear he wasn't used to, and with the hakama, wasn't all that easy. As he was getting closer to the leaving men he shouted: "Excuse me!"
*huff*….*huff*….*huff* "Excuse me for a second!"
Kyouichi stumbled for a bit but kept on running towards the four Ryuuken warriors. They stopped and turned around to see who was delaying them. Catching his breath, Kyouichi stopped before the men and bowed down in a sort of apologetic manner.
"What is it, young one?" asked the leader. "We are on duty right now and are about to leave. We don't have any time for you at the moment. Just return back to the village."
"Can I ask where you are going?" asked Kyouichi.
"To the lake." replied the man in charge. "We are to replace four guards stationed there. They too need to take some rest from time to time. Now if you excuse us, we'll be going."
"Could you please let me come with you?" begged Kyouichi. "I only need to get to the shrine."
"I just said that we are going to the lake, not to the shrine." growled the warrior back. "Now beat it!"
"But sir, the shrine is along our way to the lake." objected one of the subordinates.
"Our orders..." shouted the leader who was apparently annoyed, "…are to march directly to the fishing colony at the Misty Lake, relieve four guards of their duty there and replace them; not to escort someone to the shrine. I hope I made myself clear enough. If you need to go outside the village, ask at our headquarters. They might provide you with some guards to escort you. If they consider your business important enough, that is."
He turned his back to Kyouichi and commanded: "Come men, we're going!"
"Yes, sir!" shouted the other three men in unison and turned their backs on the outsider.