Chapter 4.5
-One Month after Chapter 4
Two Drunk Mikos and a Conversation
.
.
"Hey, Sanae, can you pour me another cup?"
"Sure, Reimu."
"Thank you."
"…Ah…this is the best…"
"Maybe I'll have another cup, too…"
"…Mmm! I just can't get enough of this taste!"
"I know right? Suika gave me this bottle earlier today."
"…"
"…"
"It's so peaceful tonight."
"It is."
"No fairies, no incident. No Marisa, too."
"Kind of a miracle, no?"
"Aahahaha!"
"Ehehe!"
"But really, we hadn't had time to ourselves lately."
"Yea. It seemed like the youkai partied nearly every week this month at your shrine."
"Nearly every day, is more like."
"You know, I always wondered why they come to your shrine and not mine for parties."
"Probably because they know I can't boot them all out. At least your Goddesses seemed to be well respected among them."
"I guess. But I know that Kanako-sama and Suwako-sama love a good party."
"…"
"…"
"Is there anything we have to do tomorrow?"
"Hmm. I think it would be nice to clean the kitchen."
"Didn't we just clean it last week?"
"We did, but after yesterday's party, I think someone tried to hide empty sake bottles in there."
"Ugh, those youkai…Wait, I don't remember seeing them today."
"Oh, that's because I put them in the trash bin already. I don't know what else they did, though. But it'll probably be fast to do."
"Ok."
"…"
"…"
"…Reimu, have you ever thought about…having a family?"
"Pfff-what!?"
"Ah, never mind, I never said that!"
"Wait, wait, Sanae, what do you mean?"
"…Well, I was thinking that, one day, I would like us to get married…"
"..Uhuh…?"
"…And I thought, when we do, we could have, maybe, a child…"
"…But aren't we…you know…girls?"
"Well, we could adopt a kid! Or, maybe I can…make a miracle so one of us could…bear one somehow…"
"…Um, I don't know what to say…"
"…Please forget I said anything about it…"
"…No, it's just…"
"…"
"…"
"…"
"…Sanae?"
"…Hmm?"
"…Long before I ever met you, I believed that I would be alone for the rest of my life. As the Hakurei Shrine Maiden, my role was to exterminate youkai. But, people feared everything and anything to do with them. And so, I was left alone by most of the other humans.
…I like to think that I was more than prepared to accept it. It was, after all, the role I was born into and trained for. But, there were times when I felt immense loneliness and betrayal."
"…Reimu…"
"…At some point, a scarlet, red mist appeared and covered Gensokyo in a thick haze. Not long after, Winter refused to end, and the Netherworld seemed to be the only place bursting with Spring. Incident after incident started to appear, and for every one of them, I went out to solve them. It was like someone or something demanded that I do more than my fair amount of work, and for nothing in return."
"…"
"After a while, I felt something change about me. I began to think these incidents were actually blessings in disguise. The youkai I beat in danmaku started coming to the shrine, not caring that I exterminate them for a living. Although I threatened to expel and exterminate them properly, they never minded me telling them that. They were loud, rude, and obnoxious…but they kept me company.
…If it were any other day, I know I wouldn't say this. But I'm grateful that the youkai come here. Sometimes I feel like…I don't know how to act around humans anymore…"
"…Reimu…"
"…I'm sorry…"
"No, it's okay. This was something you had to tell someone."
"…No, not just anyone. I wanted to tell you."
"…Sanae, what you said about having a family. I think now…I guess I wouldn't mind having one…if it will still mean being with you."
"…Please stay with me forever, Sanae…"
"I will, Reimu. Forever and ever."
.
.