"Ayaya. You can yell at me all you want, but it's not my decision to make."
"But I went through all this trouble to send you a vision and everything!"
"Well, I'll admit, its not often that one receives a calling directly from the Hakurei miko. Much less in the form of a dream. Much less while I was awake and trying to fly somewhere. That is pretty suspicious."
"That wasn't my fault. The vision was their idea, and everything they do is suspicious. They wouldn't even give me a straight answer as to why they wanted to talk to you."
"Ayayayaya, very suspicious indeed."
As we pounded up the stone steps to the shrine, we heard the tail edge of a conversation like that carried on the breeze. We crested the stairs, panting and sweating as both Aya and Reimu turned to stare at us.
"Well, well, well! It's the two detectives. I wouldn't think this shrine would be the sort of place anyone would be in a hurry to get to." Aya said, smirking as we doubled over beneath the torii.
"You -shut up about my shrine. You," Reimu said, as she waved her finger at the two of us. "-what are you both getting up to this time?"
Aya tilted her head, only mildly surprised by Reimu's blatant hostility. After managing to catch her breath, Renko raised her hand then stood up. "Nothing to do with you or your business this time, Reimu, I just wanted to talk to miss Shameimaru before she left."
"Speaking of which, I've hung around here for too long already. I'm on an important assignment, after all. If you'll excuse me."
"That assignment wouldn't have anything to do with the Moriya shrine, would it?" Renko called out hurriedly.
Aya's attention snapped back to us immediately. "And how do you know about that?" She asked, her pen and notebook instantly in hand.
Reimu sighed in exasperation. "These guys were both at the shrine the other night."
"Ayaya, I saw that there were some other humans there, but I didn't bother to get a look at them. I should have guessed it would be you."
"Yes, I know you're in a hurry, so I'll get straight to the point. Miss Shameimaru, why have none of the tengu newspapers published an issue in the last month? And why are the tengu city's border guards on high alert? For what reason, exactly, are the tengu so afraid of the newcomers at the Moriya shrine?"
In reaction to Renko's barrage of questions, Aya's smug grin immediately faded.
"...Renko Usami," she began, after a moment's delay, "would it be accurate to say you're already acquainted with the gods of that shrine and their miko?"
"She's a priestess, not a miko, and yes, I think it's safe to say we're friends."
"What is the purpose of that shrine? Who is that god and what is she up to?"
"You'd be better of asking them yourself, they're eager to talk to a tengu representative. As far as I know, their only goal is to gather faith and promote religion in Gensokyo."
"Hmmmmm." Aya pressed the top of her fountain pen against her chin thoughtfully.
"By the way, Reimu. What were you and Aya discussing just now?"
"Kanako sent that blue miko over here to ask me to get in touch with the tengu for them. She wanted me to invite them to a party. Apparently none of the tengu will talk to them directly."
"A party?"
I remember that Kanako had mentioned that she intended to gather faith among the youkai of the mountain before starting in on her plans for the Hakurei shrine. I suppose this was the next step in her plan to do that.
"Like I keep saying though, I don't have the authority to make a decision like that on my own. It'll have to go up through the chain of command, to people I don't even have permission to talk to."
"I don't know why you're being so cautious, Kanako's not a curse god and they haven't done anything to the tengu yet, have they?"
"No, but it's still not a wise play to let anyone important walk into their territory. They could be taken hostage or tortured for information, or brainwashed into turning traitor."
"I don't think Kanako would do any of that. If you're so concerned though, why not arrange to hold the party on neutral ground?" Renko interjected.
Aya and Reimu both spoke at the same time. "Neutral ground?"
"Sure. We could use the Hakurei Shrine, for example. If Reimu's present, then neither side can try anything funny, right? You could even have Merry and I be here as impartial third-party witnesses so that no one can dispute any agreements after the fact."
"Hmmm, that's worth considering."
"Wait a minute, I didn't agree to any of this, why is it being held at my place?"
"Well, I assume you'd want to collect a facility rental fee from both parties in addition to your fees for acting as security, but we could go and ask if we could hold it at Eientei if you prefer.
"Fees? As in, I could charge money for this?"
"I don't see why not. You're providing a valuable service to both parties. What's more, since neither side trusts the other, they'll need you to provide food and drinks that can be trusted by all parties. For a reasonable fee, of course."
"Alright, I'm in."
"It's an idea with merit." Aya admitted. "But I still can't decide on my own. I'll bring this offer to the great tengu. I can't make any promises as to how long it will take upper management to make a decision though. Now then, it seems I have several messages to deliver." Aya flexed her wings, turning toward Youkai Mountain to the north.
"Hold it one minute, if you would, miss Shameimaru," Renko said, reaching out toward her.
"Ayayaya. What now?"
"As a fellow professional dealer in the trade of information I hope you won't mind me saying that I would like to be compensated for giving you the idea to host your meeting with the delegation from Moriya Shrine here. My fees are not exorbitant, I'd simply like to know what it is that has kept the tengu so busy and guarded for the last month."
The reporter turned toward Renko with a clack of her geta on the cobblestone path and crossed her arms, her black wings folding around her then flexing backward in what looked like it must be a tengu gesture of annoyance. "So now it's a tit-for-tat arrangement, eh?"
"Not really. Telling me would actually be to your benefit. I already have a general understanding of the Moriya Shrine's position and needs. If you can't give me a picture of the struggles the tengu have been contending with, then it will be more difficult to act as an unbiased third party during your upcoming negotiations." She beamed her most infuriating grin at Aya.
Aya looked her over for a moment, with an odd expression that was somewhere between admiration and disgust. After a few seconds of calculation, her face folded into a grin that was a mirror of Renko's.
"Ayah, it should be fine to tell you that much, I think. There's not all that much to tell though. Ever since the departure of the oni, we tengu have ruled the mountain and all of its people without contest. Now along comes a powerful and mysterious god without warning."
"That much I expected, but is that alone really enough of a concern to keep tengu management tangled up in negotiations for a month?"
"Ayayaya. It shouldn't be. There just happens to be a difference of opinion between two powerful factions. Tengu society is not monolithic. One group is in favour of accepting the new gods and benefitting from their blessings and the other will accept no hierarchy that puts anything above the tengu. Among the parties involved, this has moved on from being merely a political debate to a philosophical one, with both sides insisting that they exclusively have the moral high ground. In addition to being a mysterious god, this newcomer is also an Outsider, which means we don't have any of the usual background information, secrets or leverage the tengu typically rely on in negotiations. That's why I lead Reimu and Marisa to the shrine, so I could conduct some information gathering."
"Well, if that was your goal, why not just interview the priestess and goddess of the Moriya shrine directly? That would've been a lot quicker, wouldn't it?"
"Ayaya, so naïve. If I were to interview them I'd have to take responsibility for any impressions the newcomers formed about tengu society and be responsible for managing the perceptions of a new faction on the mountain. If Reimu goes after them though, I'm just reporting on the shrine maiden like usual. Among the tengu, the newspaper business is a high-stakes profession with a lot of political import. You have to be discrete if you want to keep a job like mine."
"And that's why there's been no new edition of the Bunbunmaru Shinbun in a month? You've been being discrete?"
"There's a lot to manage here! My stories have to not only convey information but be sure to paint my superiors in a flattering light. The pen may be mightier than the sword, but people with swords have a tendency to take pens away from people who write things they don't like. I'd like to conduct an interview, but this has been a very stressful month for me as a reporter!"
"So all of this caginess is just because the god of the Moriya shrine is an unknown entity?"
"That's a big deal! Not even the great tengu themselves had heard of them!"
"Wouldn't that be true of any god from the Outside world?"
"I wouldn't think so. Most gods, even in the Outside are old, going back centuries, aren't they? Long before the erection of the Great Hakurei Barrier. The tengu have always collected stories, but we have no record of any god like the one at that shrine as either a local or foreign god going back to antiquity. We think she must be a former human who only recently became a god. The tengu, as a society, aren't big on anything new."
"Wait, do you mean Sanae? The green-haired wind priestess? Do the tengu see her as a god rather than just a human? She's just borrowing the power of the god enshrined there, isn't she?"
"What? The human? No, she's just a human, isn't she? I'm talking about the god who lives there. You must have met her, haven't you?"
"Wait a minute -what are you talking about?" Reimu interrupted. That girl there, the one who dresses like me but in a different color. Renko, why would the tengu think she's a god?"
"Ah, that's something we can fill you in on later, Reimu. For now there's something here that doesn't add up. Exactly which deity are you talking about when mentioned this new god who used to be a human, miss Shameimaru? The tall lady who wears a mirror and a shimenawa? She told us she was both the god Takeminakata and his wife Yasakatome combined into one. Or rather, that the two of them had always been one and humans just worshipped them as two different entities."
"Takeminakata? No, impossible. I'd bet my left eye she's a much younger god than that. If Takeminakata were here, the tengu management would have welcomed him. Despite being so young she seems to be quite powerful though. That's why management is so worried about her. She's an unknown. Ayah. Renko? Are you alright?" Aya was staring at my partner, whose dumbfounded expression was staring sightlessly into the middle distance.
Recovering herself, Renko closed her mouth and swallowed audibly. "No way..." she muttered. "No way, could that really be what this is all about?"
"Miss Renko? Hello? Anyone home?" Aya asked, prodding her in the forehead with the back of the fountain pen.
I reached out to touch Renko's shoulder but before I could, she snapped back to herself.
"I get it now. Thank you very much miss Shameimaru, your insights are much appreciated. Please consider your debt paid in full. Merry and I will happily attend and facilitate any negotiations between the tengu people and the Moriya shrine."
"Ayah? Well that's good, I guess. If there's nothing more, I've got places to be."
"Hey don't just ignore the landlord!" Reimu said as the tengu turned again to leave. "I'll provide food and drink for your meeting, but I expect compensation. And visitors are expected to leave a donation!"
"Ayaya, people might be more inclined to throw you a few coins if there weren't an oni sleeping in your donation box."
"I'll chase her out. I'm counting on you to make sure any tengu big wigs in attendance understand that this isn't a free meal though. Make sure to mention that!" Reimu said, closing in on Aya and waving her gohei.
"Ayah, what sort of fees are we talking about? Do we get to see a menu?" the reporter asked, backing away with her shoulders slumping.
While the two of them were busy haggling over the details I took the opportunity to whisper to Renko.
"Renko, what's up? Have you figured something out?"
Renko turned away and began to walk with me toward the stairs we had just rushed up, a strangely vague smile on her face. "I think I've just solved the mystery of the Moriya Shrine. If I'm right though... then we can never tell Sanae."