It is a beautiful morning in Gensokyo. People are proceeding with their daily lives, youkais have not been up to any trouble, and the weather is clear, not a single black cloud in sight. This tranquil atmosphere also applies to a quaint, little place, called the Hakurei Shrine. Looking from afar, the no-residence shrine is as empty as it is today. No human (nor youkai) is mingling about, trying to interrupt the shrine maiden's day. The sole shrine maiden that had kept this place running for many years, the ones that solve most (if not, all during her time) the incident that could disrupt Gensokyo's balance. From finding a missing loved one, to performing the yearly ritual, to 'youkai extermination'. She does it all, if, you have the money for it. And, if you couldn't pay her, she'll accept it if you were to spread word of her achievement. That girl has always love to be rewarded for her work. Mainly due to the fact that her shrine had been in the red for all its lifetime. Nobody had any idea why, but the Hakurei Shrine could never have any a modicum amount of income. Whenever the shrine would make a profit, misfortune would befall it. Ranging from stray fire to youkai mishaps, to a failed business opportunity. Any misfortune that could happened, it can (and will in due time) happen at the Hakurei Shrine. However, maybe due to the impoverished state of the shrine, the shrine maiden had become exceptionally strong. Living day to day, not knowing whether you have any meal to last the winter, or the storm, or any disaster for that matter, she has toughened up her willpower and be able to persist through any challenge. Not to mention, she has friends that she could rely on, from human to youkai, that comes to check up on her. Speaking of the person who we are speaking of is coming out from the inner shrine right now.
The sliding door open and comes out a girl. With her ruby eyes, long brown-blackish hair with a large red ribbon tied on the back and red tubes on her sidelocks on either side. Her red skirt, sleeveless red-top with a white collar, tied with a ribbon in the middle. On her arms, a detached white sleeve, exposing her armpit (and the sarashi that is tied around her chest). With her iconic color scheme, many monikers had been given to her: the red-white shrine maiden, the armpit miko, the red-white slasher and many others from her peers and from people that fear her. She is none other than
Hakurei Reimu.
She is currently walking towards the steps of the shrine while carrying a tray. On it, a bowl of congee, topped with some grilled onions, some chives and few other greens with a spoon and next to it, a glass of water. Looking even closer, her left hand that is carrying the tray, is covered in bandages. She takes the steps down of the shrine and donned on her brown shoes. She continues walking until she reaches her destination: a simple shed.
Or, what used to be her shed.
The shed, with its stone base and wooden wall and roof, is now plastered with talisman. Even the entrance to the shed, covered (from top to bottom) in talisman and locked with a simple lock (before the entrance, a small wooden countertop is present). Talisman, that she had write and put herself. But, why had the shrine maiden done something like this? Well, the answer will soon lay out in the open. Placing the tray on the countertop, the shrine maiden procures a key from her sleeves and insert the key in the lock's keyhole. With a resounding ka-chunk, the lock is open. Picking the tray up, she opens the door and enters.
Inside the shed, is now empty. If you were to spin inside this room, you will only see the same wooden wall, wooden ceiling, that one window slightly below the roof, before reaching the truss so that there is sufficient air flow entering the dry shed. All of her belongings have been hoist away for safekeeping for the time being. The gap hag had been kind enough to hold her valuable belongings for free, with no string attached.
... that's a lie of course. That woman wouldn't do anything for free. A youkai? Doing something with the kindness of their heart? For no return? Hah, what a joke. Gensokyo would flip upside down first before that ever happens. What's important, is that the shed is now completely empty.
... almost, completely empty.
In the farthest back, in the middle, lays a simple blanket. To the right of it, a simple bottle, and a hole (some planks have been removed gently) with a black garbage bag, covering the hole. Looking at the bottle, a kind of golden colored liquid is inside. The shrine maiden smiles looking at the bottle. She turns her head, but instead, looks to the left. Thrown about is some other bottles: some are filled with water, half are used, and the rest are empty. Seems like she has to procure more after this. Now, back to the middle. She walks forward, carrying the tray of food and water with her. Only the sounds of the shrine maiden's feet could be heard. The emptiness of the room made the noise more pronounced. Getting closer towards the blanket, a shadow is becoming more prominent. The shed itself is a bit on the darker side, as the only light source that is available is from that one small window and if you open the door. Coming in closer, a smell of sweat pierces through her nose. She'll bring some towel and a bucket of water after this to clean up. And now, arriving at her destination, she looks down at the shadow, now become clearer and more apparent,
A normal human.
A regular human. Black hair, two eyes, small nose, ears, torso, arms, hands- ehem, hand, butt, thighs, legs, and feet. No matter how you look at it, it's just a human. A human male. Perfectly ordinary. Except that the male has lost his left hand, due to...unintentional circumstances. Closing in, the man has his eyes closed, his breathing normal. Looks like he is asleep. The shrine maiden gets down, sit and places the tray lightly so that she wouldn't wake him up. However, that effort was rendered useless, as the cling-clanging sounds of the tableware is so pronounced. Because of that, the male jerk a bit before slowly, he opens his eyes. His black eyes. Normal. Black. Eyes. He blinks slowly, trying to adjust his eyes to the amount of light that is present. The shrine maiden looks at his face: no bruises, no blemishes, and no cuts either. Under his head, where the neck is, a collar wrapped in many talismans, written with different inscription.
"Hey, you're awake," The shrine maiden begins talking with a soft tone, "I'm sorry for waking you up. I've brought you some food. It's just a simple congee… again. But, it's better than nothing, right?" The shrine maiden converses with the human, but he gives no responds. The shrine maiden then picks up a spoonful of congee and places it in front of him, "Come on. Sit up. You need to eat," The shrine maiden waits for the human to do what she asked, but again, he gives no responses. Getting impatient, the shrine maiden instead cups his cheeks, and force fed it to him. The shrine maiden sometimes had fed him too fast until the human would cough because the food would enter the wrong pipe, then she would force fed him water, resulting in the same outcome. Eventually, the food and water are finished, but the human seems more tired than before he had woken up. The shrine maiden places the congee and glass of water back to the tray and says, "If you had eaten normally, it wouldn't be as painful," and after she finished placing the tableware, she continues, "I'll bring over a towel and water. I need to clean you up," and the shrine maiden tries to stand up, but then, a voice.
"Rei…- UmVpbXU= - …mu" a coarse voice came from the human. The shrine maiden waits for him to finish.
"Be…- QmUgZnJlZQ= -…ree"
"K…- S2lsbCBtZQ= -…me"
Anger surfaces for the shrine maiden. She throws the tray down and grabs him by the collar. She raises her right hand, ball it into a fist and,
*thud*
Punch (hard) right at the human's face. Not even an ounce of hesitation or any intention to hit lightly ever crosses her mind. She raises her fist again and,
*thud*
Punches again. In between punches, the shrine maiden says, "Don't."*thud*"You."*thwak*"Ever."*whack*"Use that language."*bam*"Ever again!" She continues her punches until her anger subside. When she had stopped her barrage of punches, she looks back to the aftermath. His face had turned blue. Bruises and blood could be seen coming from his face and his orifices. His eyes look lifeless, but thankfully, he's breathing. The shrine maiden looks to the back of her hand. Some blood is present on her knuckles. Mixed of his and hers are mingling with each other. Seeing the blood, the shrine maiden hands started to shake. She turns back to the human, trying to reach out to his head but retract it. Instead, she clenches her fist, quickly picks up the fallen tray and tableware, and leaves the shed.
Outside, she put back the lock on its place and locked it again. The shrine maiden heaves a big sigh and takes a deep breathe. It seems she had been holding her breathe. She takes a few seconds, taking deep breathes and after she became a bit calmer, she picked up the tray from the counter and begins walking towards the shrine.
Another day, the same words, the shrine maiden thought to herself. The same words, after a few months of her bringing him back. And she hated that. Not the fact that he wanted her to finish him (she disliked that as well). The fact that he had learned the youkai language. That is what made her peeved. With no prior understanding, he had become more fluent in youkai language than he is with his own language. He has to be reminded every day that he is human. An ordinary. Human. Nothing less, nothing more. And, it's not her fault that she had to get physical. It's his. His stubbornness what made her more violent. If he had listened to her and done what she had asked him, he wouldn't be in this much pain. It's not her fault.
But, how long does she have to keep this up? How long will this keep on going? Days? Weeks? Months? Years? Is she doing the right thing? Have she done just? Is this wrong? Should she just stop?
None of the above ever crosses the shrine maiden's head. The one thing in her mind, however, is her determination to bring him back. No matter how long, or painful the journey is. And if there isn't a chance, she'll make one. She will bring him back. Reimu had promised herself that. She'll do whatever it takes. Even, if she has to play by the sage's rule. The shrine maiden reaches the inner shrine and enters the room. She has to bring out the water bucket and towel. She also has to bring in more water for him. Not to mention, to dispose the filled water bottle as well. The shrine maiden's work has increased, but this is fine. The day is long, and knowing that he is still alive, gives the shrine maiden the determination to keep going. Just a bit longer. She'll bring him back.