"I'm sorry about all of this Sanae," Renko shouted as we hurtled toward the mountain.

"Don't blame yourself," she replied. "I'm the one who invited you two back to the shrine and asked you to stay and I'm the one who talked to the Hakurei miko in the first place. This probably would have happened either way by the sound of it." She turned her head just long enough to flash Renko a weak smile. "By the way, that other person who Suika mentioned coming, Marisa. She's the witch you told me about yesterday, right?"

"Yeah, she wears black and white and rides a broom. She's Reimu's best friend, and whenever Reimu goes out Incident-solving, she's never far behind. Sometimes she's there sticking her neck out first, even."

"Just like you and Merry then?"

"Well, not quite. Merry and I are one Hifuu club together, but the two of them act separately. If anything, I'd say they compete to see who can resolve an Incident first, even if their goals are ultimately the same."

"Oh, they're rivals then! It's the old natural genius versus the hardworking professional trope, that's been a classic since the days of 'Touch'"

"Yeah, I guess so. Reimu's something of a genius in her own way and Marisa pushes herself to new heights in order to compete."

"The fiery passions of youth, colliding in a fierce challenge for dominance. It's almost nostalgic to see a pair like that."

I didn't bother to correct Sanae, but personally I would never describe Reimu as a 'youth.' She was young, certainly, but her personality was nothing like one might expect of someone her age. At times she seemed more like a bitter 40-year old than a teenager, but that might have more to do with the circumstances I tended to encounter her in than the nature of her character.

If I had to guess, I would surmise that Reimu's irascibility arose from her lack of attachment. Her position, both in terms of her role in human society and her location kept her isolated from others and being known as Gensokyo's official troubleshooter left her with both the need to appear impartial and a position that powerful people would naturally seek to influence. For her, making friends would not only be difficult, but risky, possibly even compromising. As a result, she floated through life, untethered and unbothered, reacting as her duty compelled her, but rarely, if ever acting as a result of her own passions. The numerous youkai who filled her life all had something to gain from associating with her, and even if Reimu had wanted to befriend them, she could never be sure of their allegiance. Even with Marisa, who had known Reimu since childhood, there were clear lines which the two of them did not cross. Reimu simply accepted things, be they people, events or relationships as they were. She wasn't the sort to preach or lecture - only lay down lines and punish those who crossed them.

I wondered how much of that nature was due to her role as the Hakurei miko and how much of it was just her personality. Maybe there wasn't that much of a difference between the two things. If that were the case how would she react to Sanae once she got to know her, I wondered? Would she see the girl as an Outsider? As a rival? A threat? Would the two girls who had devoted their lives to the service of the gods become friends? Would they end up like Marisa and Alice, who had plenty in common, but whose similarities only served to highlight their differences, leaving them constantly bickering and sniping at eachother's idiosyncrasies to the point where I could never tell if they were actually friends or not?

For that matter, what would a bright, open-minded girl like Sanae think of someone as set in their ways as Reimu? To the eyes of a girl who had come from the Outside world of the 21st century, maybe someone like Reimu, who upheld tradition and exterminated youkai, would seem judgmental and needlessly violent. Maybe she would see Reimu's attitude of indifference as a sign of callousness or even laziness. Ultimately, it would be impossible for me to know.

I was still pondering such questions as the grounds of the Moriya shrine came into view, emerging from the wisps of cloud surrounding the mountain. Beyond the huddled collection of buildings behind the torii, the huge lake sparkled enticingly.

"It looks like we made it in time. I'll go find Lady Kanako," Sanae said as she alighted. My own feet touched down a moment later, and the feeling of gravity returned to my body. I breathed a sigh of relief.

"What's wrong Sanae? You seem to be in an unusual hurry." Once more the form of Lady Yasaka materialized out of nowhere directly before us. "And you've brought your friends again. I'm happy to see that you are both so eager to come to our shrine."

"Hello again, Lady Yasaka." Renko said, removing her hat momentarily. "I know it's only been half a day, but I asked Sanae to bring us back in the hopes that I might be of some help to you."

"Help? How do you mean?"

"Uh, well, actually..." Sanae began, "I think the shrine maiden from the shrine at the foot of the mountain might be on her way here right now. And she might be beating up everyone she comes across to try and find us. And she might be coming to try to destroy the shrine. Or something. Maybe. I don't actually know what she'll do when she gets here, but she seems to think we're the bad guys."

Kanako's eyes went wide as she heard the story. "Sanae, what did you tell her? It's not like you to just pick a fight for no reason."

"I wasn't trying to! I was trying to be helpful! I made her a perfectly reasonable offer, I thought."

I wasn't sure if I would classify the story we had heard that way, but then again what we had heard had been Reimu's version of the event. We had never asked Sanae to tell her side of it.

"And what is it that Renko and Merry have come here to help with, then?"

"My aim is to act as an intermediary between the two shrines and facilitate negotiation. I'm well-acquainted with the Hakurei miko, and I was hoping I could act as a neutral third party in the event of any disputes." She removed her hat and bowed deeply. "To that end, however, there is something else I have to do first. I need to tell you about Gensokyo's preferred method of conflict resolution. A sort of ritualized dueling involving stylized barrages of magical projectiles, though as an ordinary human, I can't demonstrate myself."

At this statement Kanako and Sanae both turned to look at her in wide-eyed confusion.

-.-.-.-.-

And so it was that Renko Usami, a regular human without the slightest bit of power, became the Moriya shrine's instructor on the art of danmaku. At the Scarlet Devil Mansion, the people there had already known the rules, as had the people at Hakugyokuro. I'm not sure if anyone ever told Suika about danmaku and Spell Cards or not, but she seemed to have figured it out, more or less. The group at Eientei had been warned about such things by Tewi, but I'm not sure if they bothered following the rules or not at the time. Here though, we were in the rare position of being the resident experts on the matter, and Renko did her best to explain not only the premise of the battles, but to provide examples and advise on the sorts of barrages we had seen used by others in the past.

"Ha! So this is how the men and monsters of Gensokyo fight?" Kanako had asked, as Renko concluded her training.

"That's right. It was devised as a way for powerful humans and youkai to compete on equal footing without risking their lives or wanton destruction. Reimu is widely considered to be an expert at it."

"I see. How amusing, a pointless and frivolous game played at the highest possible level of competitiveness. Alright then, it's as they say. 'When in Rome, do as the Romans.' Our opponents are thought to be experts, but they've never seen the way we do things. This might be a good opportunity to demonstrate our power, not just to the shrine maiden, but to all the peoples of this mountain at once. From the sound of it, these matches cause quite the spectacle. What do you say, Sanae? If they're coming here expecting to find a fight, should we give them one? It's been a long time since I've acted as a war god." Kanako extended her arms in front of her as she said this, cracking her knuckles and grinning. The utter confidence radiating out from her would have been intimidating even if I hadn't known she was a goddess.

Sanae looked worried for a moment before raising herself up on her tiptoes and whispering something in Lady Yasaka's ear. Kanako responded to whatever she had asked instantly and with supreme confidence. "No, I think that will be just fine. If a shrine maiden comes here to oppose us in the name of her god, then it's only suitable that you should demonstrate your divine powers as well."

"Is that really OK?"

"I'm okaying it. Feel free to call upon whatever power you need."

"Alright," she said, nodding with a determined expression on her face.

I wondered what they might be talking about, but it was clear they seemed intent on keeping it confidential. Renko certainly seemed interested in the conversation, but made no attempt to interject.

"First of all, we should prepare for their arrival. They might come from any direction. I'll head over to the lake to keep a lookout from there. You take our guests to the house and keep them safe."

"Alright, what about Lady Suwako?"

"Let her sleep for now. Her presence would be a little harder to explain. Renko, Merry, thank you for coming back to let us know what to expect. Please feel free to relax in the outer shrine until this is over. I'll see to it that no harm comes to you."

Having said that, Kanako instantly disappeared, bringing the strategy meeting to a sudden close.

"Well, this way then, I suppose."

Sanae led the way up the path to the shrine grounds and over to the main building. Though it was only our second time visiting the site, we would have known the way without her after all of the exploring Renko and I had done last night.

I wondered if any of this was a good idea. In the case of the Scarlet Mist Incident, the Spring Snow Incident and the Eternal Night Incident, we had been involved by circumstance, and largely against our own wills. In the case of the Night Parade of One Hundred Demons Every Three Days Incident and the Sixty Year Cycle Great Barrier Incident, we had been active participants, but our activities had been entirely incidental to the focus of the Incidents. This time, however, was a different story. Renko was actively intervening in this conflict, hoping to act as a mediator in the dispute between the two shrines.

That said, this series of events couldn't really be considered an Incident. Other than arriving unannounced, the goddesses of the Moriya shrine hadn't really done anything to qualify as a villain, and there was no danger looming over the village. I didn't expect that distinction would make Reimu any happier to see us here though.

"What do you look so worried for, Merry? You're going to give yourself wrinkles."

"And whose fault would that be, Renko? Do you really think this is a good idea? What will happen if Reimu finds out you're here?"

"Oh she'll definitely find out. I'm going to be the mediator of their negotiations, after all." She shot me a mischievous smile.

I was beyond sighing at this point and could only shake my head in disbelief. "What do you think you're playing at, Renko?"

Renko poked the brim of her hat with one finger, easing it back on her head as we reached the door of the shrine building. As we made our way inside, she leaned over and whispered in my ear. "This is going to be an Incident all right, Merry, but just for the two of us."

I turned to look at her, wide-eyed. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"Just what I said. A religious war is about to break out between the Moriya and Hakurei shrines. Without any intervention it would probably end in a war of extermination -either the Moriya shrine and its goddesses would be destroyed, or the god of the Hakurei shrine would be expelled, which could mean the end of Gensokyo for all we know. It may seem like we're the cause of this problem, but if we play our cards right, we could actually be the solution. Without us here, this would be sure to become a major Incident, but if we can talk Reimu down, then that will be an Incident that was resolved directly by us, using our own power. An Incident that didn't have to happen."

I stared at her in disbelief.

"Don't you see, Merry? There's no one else who could solve this Incident! Reimu and Marisa are too quick to resort to violence and anyone else wouldn't have befriended Sanae. This requires an Outsider's perspective, and could only be pulled off by someone with the drive to discover the secrets of the Moriya shrine. Finally, after all this time, we've discovered the reason we were brought to this world! The Administrator intended for us to avoid a devastating religious war that might otherwise have torn Gensokyo apart!"

Reaching out, Renko grabbed both of my hands. She was so giddy with excitement she seemed likely to vibrate off of the ground at any moment.

"Now more than ever, Merry, this is a job for the Hifuu Detective Agency!"