Much like the Hakurei shrine, the Moriya shrine's main building combined a front area for worship and offerings with a private residence in the back. It was there, in a Japanese style parlor behind the room containing a grand display of sacred artifacts and offerings, that the three of us now sat. It must have served as a living room.
"Sorry about the teabags, I haven't had a chance to go into the village to buy proper tea yet." Sanae said as she brought out three steaming mugs. Taking one and sipping, I found the taste nostalgic. Not quite the same as the artificial tea-flavored drinks I remembered from the Scientific Century, but not entirely dissimilar either.
"This is really quite a magnificent shrine," Renko said as she took her own mug.
Sanae laughed softly then replied. "Maybe, but it's a pain to maintain something this big, and if it doesn't serve the purpose of gathering the faithful to support the gods, then it's all for nothing."
"Is that why you came to Gensokyo then?"
"Yes. To regain the faith lost to us in the Outside world. To foster a revival of faith and godliness among humanity."
Renko paused for a moment before asking her next question. "Miss Sanae, do you have a family? Since coming to this shrine yourself and lady Yasaka are the only people we've seen, and it seems like she's not quite here all the time."
At once the mood in the room changed significantly. Sanae looked down for just a moment before laughing and waving dismissively. "Well, not a human family, no, but I have the company of the gods and that's all the family I could need. It's nothing to be worried about."
"Gods?" Renko asked, catching the detail. "Plural? I assume you mean Yasakatome's husband, Takeminakata? If I recall correctly some of their children were venerated at the Suwa grand shrine as well. Are all of them here too?"
"Oh. Uh... well... it's not quite... that is to say... Oh! I have some tea cakes! I bet you haven't had sweets from the Outside world in a long time. I'll go get them." Sanae hurried out of the room, looking flustered.
I turned to Renko and raised an eyebrow. She grinned back at me. "A little suspicious, wouldn't you say?" She asked. "This shrine seems to conceal quite a few secrets."
"We're their first visitors. They may not be ready to show the public everything here just yet. Besides, it's not like they're doing any harm." I leaned in close, lowering my voice to a whisper and told her about the barrier I had felt surrounding the pillars on the lake earlier.
"I see," she said with a nod. "That's probably where it would be then."
"Renko, what is it you're thinking?"
"Merry, do you remember when we went to the Suwa Grand Shrine? On the way back from the hospital you had been confined to? We talked about it there, how the Suwa shrine had some gods on the outside like Yasakatome and Takeminakata that they worshipped publicly and other gods that only the initiated priests and priestesses were allowed to know about that they worshipped in secret."
"...Renko, you're thinking about getting up and sneaking off to have a look around the place right now, aren't you?"
"Merry, it's not very polite to read my mind like that. You should let a girl have a few secrets to herself."
"Anybody could have predicted that Renko, you're practically wearing a sign that says 'I'm too curious for my own good.' Sanae's just been too polite to call you on it."
"Well, if you already know then let's get going, before she gets back."
'Renko, the last time I went exploring with you while the two of us were supposed to be sitting tight in a room somewhere, I ended up trapped in an underground cell with a vampire reading Agatha Christy for hours and hours. I don't even have any books with me at the moment."
"Look on the bright side, Merry. If not for that you wouldn't have become Flandre's favorite human. I bet she still asks about you when she's not busy dueling with Marisa or fighting with her sister. Besides, I know you're just as curious about this place as I am. You loved it when we went to visit the real Suwa Grand Shrine. Who knows, the secrets of how this place is related to the shrine in the Outside world may have implications for us and our chance of returning to our own world too."
"I admit it's interesting, but wouldn't it be better just to ask Sanae?"
"And let her know that we're interested so she can hide everything away? We're the Hifuu Club, Merry, it's our sworn duty to bring to light the secrets of the world!"
I sighed, but when Renko climbed to her feet and extended her hand, I took it.
"Being curious and eager to learn more about our shrine and religion is all well and good, but don't you think snooping around your host's home when they're not looking is going a bit too far?"
The voice that had said this did not seem to have come from anywhere in particular, it was simply spoken as if the words had appeared directly in our brains. I froze in position as Renko looked around. A moment later, Lady Yasaka materialized, appearing directly before us, seated at the table. Just as before, she had come from nowhere. Now that she was here though, she looked as if she belonged as much as any of the rest of us, with no sign of lingering distortion or abnormality about her. If not for her unusual clothes and accessories, she could have been mistaken for an ordinary, if extremely confident, human. I wondered if, perhaps, at least for the moment, she was one. If this body in front of us was not an illusion but instead a flesh and blood creation of a goddess, then where did its consciousness reside? Did it persist outside of this body? Certainly it still seemed to exist after the woman before us had vanished earlier.
The goddess across the table from us narrowed her eyes as she regarded Renko. "Sanae will be happy to answer any questions you may have. I'd ask that if you want to be welcome on these sacred grounds you not go snooping around without permission though."
Renko held her hands up, palms open. "Ah well, I guess we're caught in the act. Good to know that you can see everything that goes on here though. If you don't mind, may I ask you a few questions while we wait for Sanae to return?" The boldness with which Renko could turn an admission of guilt into an interrogation was astonishing, but I don't know if that sort of shamelessness is something that should be praised.
Kanako's eyes widened in response to Renko's audacity, but then she laughed. "You're a most unusual human to make such a request, but it's been a long time since I've had a chance to speak to any humans besides Sanae. Ask your questions. I will answer if it is within my power to do so."
"Thank you, that's very gracious of you. I'll not waste time with formalities then. This 'Moriya Shrine' bears quite a few similarities to the Suwa Grand Shrine of the Outside world. Too many to simply be coincidence. Are the two one and the same? If so, what happened to the shrine of the Outside world when you relocated here?"
"You already know the answer to that, don't you? The shrine that was left behind in the Outside world was the one that belonged there. A shrine void of faith and divinity, but replete with tourists and human culture. The shrine you are in now is the shrine that was built by man and god together but then forgotten and abandoned by humans. A spiritual place, and suiting home for divinities."
"So with you here, does that mean that all faith in the divinities of the Suwa Grand Shrine has now vanished from the Outside world? I wouldn't have thought a popular shrine like that would have its gods fade so quickly."
"There of course remains some small faith in the the Outside world. Rather than cling to it as it dwindles and recedes, I thought it better to come here and gather new faith from the people of this world."
"I see. So then you came here, along with your husband Takeminakata as well, I presume?"
"No, there is only me."
"So you left him behind? Or was he for some reason unable to come to this world?"
"Neither. There never was a Takeminakata here. There was only me. Humans have been known to worship different aspects of a divinity as if they were different gods, sometimes."
"I see. That's quite an interesting story. Yasakatome appears in the Kojiki but not the Nihonshoki and I suppose that would explain why. The question I really wanted to ask wasn't about you though, it was about the other deity worshipped in this shrine. The hidden one."
"I just told you that I am the only god worshipped here, did I not?" Kanako's reply was measured and calm, but her eyes narrowed as she watched Renko.
"Ah, I must have been mistaken then, my apologies." Renko said, her friendly smile twisting into her usual troublesome grin. "So in that case, you and Sanae came alone to Gensokyo? One god and one teenage priestess?"
"That's correct. I fear that in bringing her here, I may have done the girl a terrible disservice."
"No you didn't, lady Kanako!" Sanae had called from the next room over, and came tromping back into the room holding a tray full of yokan. She unceremoniously shoved her goddess aside, making room for herself at the table as she set the tray down. "I've told you many times that that's not true. I knew what it meant to come here and I made my decision of my own free will. You have nothing to apologize for!"
"I know, I know," the goddess said, placing a hand affectionately on her shoulder. Turning, she regarded the two of us once again, seeming to see us in a new light. "You two. I believe you had told me your names were Merry and Renko, did you not? You and Sanae are both humans from the Outside world and both of similar ages. You should all become friends."
"Eh?" I blinked in surprise at the sudden about-face of the discussion.
"Lady Kanako! I'm old enough to make my own friends!" Sanae protested.
"Now now," Kanako chided, tapping Sanae's shoulder. "Being up high on the mountain like this, it may be difficult for you to meet people from the village. These two are Outsiders just as you are, but with a bit more experience here. I'm sure they can help show you around and introduce to the ins and outs of daily life here."
"Lady Kanako! I came here to run the shrine and help you gather faith! I'm not here to make friends like it's some new high school!"
"Humans should have other humans to play with." Kanako said in a no-nonsense tone. "A life full of diverse activities is a life well-lived. Everything should be done in moderation, even worship. Besides, how do you expect to gather followers if you don't know how to interact with the people of this world?"
Sanae seemed to have been won over by Kanako's words and looked down with an embarrassed expression. Renko sipped at her room-temperature tea as she watched the exchange, but seeing no more objections coming, she put her cup down and reached across the table.
"Well, the idea sounds great to me. I had hoped I might become your friend from the moment we met. It's a pleasure to meet you once again, Sanae." Renko took one of Sanae's hands in both of hers as she said this, fixing her with the same earnest smile she had used on Kagerou before. Renko was a natural charmer, and she could be utterly shameless about it when it suited her purposes.
"Well, um, I don't... That is, I don't really mind either, if it's you..." Sanae trailed of into a mumble and she withdrew her hand and blushed.
"Well, in that case, friend, I'd like to learn more about you. Maybe you could tell me your story."
"My story?"
"Sure, about your life in the Outside world. Where are you from? Maybe you could even tell us about something we'd never heard about from there."
"Oh. OK, sure, I'm sure there's plenty to catch up on. How long have you two been here?"
"Oh geez, what would you say, Merry?" Renko turned to me with a mischievous gleam in her eye.
"Me? Well, uh, I guess it would be safe to say we arrived here a little over four years ago, right?" It wasn't a lie, at least.
"I see. So you would've seen SEED then, but you haven't seen SEED Destiny yet."
Renko blinked in surprise. "SEED?"
"Oh, don't you watch Gundam? Well let's see, you should know Hurricaneger then. Or had Abaranger started yet?"
Renko and I looked at eachother in surprise. The names were utterly foreign. Was she talking about the anime of her time?
"Er, I'm afraid that's a little outside my area of expertise." Renko said, awkwardly.
I looked back across the table to find that once more Kanako had vanished without warning, leaving no trace.
"Well, rather than worry about details like that, why don't you tell us about yourself, Sanae?"
"Me?" She seemed utterly dejected at the idea of changing topics. "There's nothing interesting there to talk about really." She pondered for a moment, then clapped her hands, resuming the energetic, bubbly attitude she had worn when we met her. "More importantly, I should be asking questions of you. I'm a newcomer here, so please tell me everything you know about Gensokyo. What is it that people want here? What needs lie unfulfilled?"
For what seemed like the thousandth time today the mood and topic of the conversation had shifted wildly, careening through highs and lows like a roller coaster. Renko and I looked to eachother once more, then, with a sigh, nodded and began.
