That evening I walked back to the shrine with haste. I took the steps up to the path two at a time, almost out of breath at the top. But when I got to the steps of the shrine, a strange woman sat there. She wore a purple dress, and a white mob cap with a red ribbon. She held a pale pink parasol, the tip pressed into the ground between her feet. She leaned on it like it was the only thing keeping her up. The woman looked up to me as I approached.

Her eyes were a deep violet that gave way to an ancient, all knowing soul. They showed a great deal of restrained power, exuding an air of omniscience. I felt I could see all of time through them, but still knew nothing. And yet, these strong, fearsome eyes held tears in them. It felt like an eternity as I stood there analyzing this stranger. I felt like I should be frightened by her, but I wasn't. Something about her resonated deep within me, the instinctual, animal part of me left by our ancestors. I couldn't determine whether she was a threat or if her presence should comfort me.

Even without her saying anything, without being told about her appearance previously, some part of my mind just knew that this person was Yukari. While she didn't scare me on her own, the fact that someone held in such regard as she, was crying, made me shutter. Before I could ask what happened, a whisper escaped her lips.

"You should go see for yourself. I could explain now but you won't believe me until you see it," Yukari said. Her statement confused me, but it carried a concerning weight.

She sat unmoving, unbreathing, waiting for me to make my decision. I walked to the door of the shrine, to see Reimu and the silver maid sitting at the table, conversing about something I couldn't determine. I heard "Spring Snow" somewhere in there but that's the most I could make out. The maid noticed me first. She snapped her head to face me, a sudden fear in her eyes. I wasn't sure why she was so afraid. She bid Reimu a hurried farewell, and vanished. Reimu turned to me, the life back in her eyes, her inviting smile lighting up the room. She stood with grace, carefully raising herself to full height.

"Hello!" she said with great enthusiasm. "How can I help you?"

I froze. How can I help you? What kind of greeting is that for your partner?

Sakuya reappeared, leaning in close to my ear. In a voice so small I almost didn't hear, she whispered to me.

"I must speak with you outside. Now."

I quickly apologized to Reimu and said I would return in a moment, following the maid outside. Her silver hair almost blinded me as the setting sun reflected off of it. Once we were out of view from the door, she vanished. Yukari, who was still sitting on the steps, turned to look at me. There aren't words strong enough to describe the sadness and guilt she held in her eyes.

"Please, come sit for a while. The least I can do is explain," she said, her voice wavering.

I sat myself next to her, unsure what to say. After a long moment, she began to speak.

"That girl in there isn't the Reimu you knew. That I knew. She's still Reimu Hakurei, just an earlier, different version. She thinks it's still 10 years ago, worrying about the fallout of the Spring Snow Incident. She thinks Sakuya has been the one by her side in every fight. She has no idea who Marisa is. Rather, who Marisa was."

So Sakuya was the maid's name. But that's about the only answer I got from what Yukari has said.

"What do you mean by a different version?" I asked, fearing the worst.

And then the worst came.

"I had to erase and rearrange her memories. We, as in Gensokyo, couldn't have an unstable Hakurei. Not while there isn't a replacement in training yet. Reimu's all we have, and we have to keep her on track. If she kept going off the deep end, she likely would've killed herself. At the least she would've been unable to perform her duties. No Hakurei means no barrier. No barrier, no youkai. It hurt me deeply to change everything she thinks and knows, but it had to be done. Losing Marisa broke her. The only way to fix her was to make her believe Marisa never existed. But because the two had become a package deal, I had to take away her memory of a lot of incidents to impose any sort of separation. It was the only way. I'm so sorry. But it's for the best."

I was full of both fear and fury. I didn't know which to act on. I knew Yukari had a point, but this couldn't have been the only way.

"There had to be another solution. There had to be something else you could've done." I tried to mask the rage that was boiling inside of me.

"Believe me, if anyone could've found another way, it would be me. This is what had to happen. Don't go thinking I enjoy this. This hurts me as much as it does you." Yukari said, unable to meet my eyes.

Her cocky attitude was just too much. First, she lets Marisa die and starts all this, and now she's saying that she's the only one wise enough to solve this? Now I know why everyone talked about this woman so harshly.

I swung for her as hard as I could, hoping to stun her, so I could get a better position and pummel her until I felt better about losing the love of my life, or until I got tired. Whichever came first. But, before my fist got within inches of her, Yukari vanished. My anger did all but subside.

I stood, deciding not to get the girl that used to be Reimu involved in this. She's innocent. I'm not going to try and explain who I am, or yell at her, or bust up the shrine. I'm going to wait until that golden haired demon lets her guard down, and give her a piece of my mind. But that's a long wait. I think I'll head home in the meantime.

As I started down the steps, just far enough I couldn't be seen from the shrine, I heard 'Reimu' call out.

"Miss Yakumo? Sakuya? Where did you go? Who was that other guy? Hello? Hello-o?"

It stung. It was the same voice I had come to know so well. The same one I had heard speak hundreds of thousands, even millions of words to me, always carrying a weight of warmth, of comfort, of compassion. But what I heard now, carried nothing. In one sentence, it had shed that weight, becoming an empty meaningless sound, indistinguishable from the leaves in the wind. It was nothing. It meant nothing.

I continued to make my way home, not breaking my stride. The setting sun was in my face, prompting me to eye the ground as I walked.

I'm sorry Reimu. I wish it didn't end this way. I hope you can be happy again, even if it's without me.

A/N

So that's Ending 2! Not as deadly as Ending 1, but I think equally as tragic and unnerving. Stay tuned for Ending 3 (the happy ending).