Chapter Text
Humans, youkai, ghosts and beasts were all gathered at the Hakurei shrine, each one with a cup full of sake and a plate of food. They all chatted amongst themselves, enjoying the blossoming cherry trees underneath the soft light of the moon.
Reimu was able to hold a flower viewing party with Kasen's help. The Hermit provided the sake and the shrine maiden made as much food as she could. Afterwards, she spent the entire night tending to the guests at the shrine and making sure they all enjoyed their time. It was the method she chose for being useful. For now that had to suffice, for now she was doing something.
After the little breakdown she had during her visit to Marisa's house, Reimu had to do something, anything, to distract herself from her thoughts. Cooking food for a bunch of rowdy Youkai helped a little, but her mind kept going back to her conversation with Marisa.
The feeling of being left out and not having any purpose lingered, and she couldn't shake it off easily. The once prideful Hakurei shrine maiden, was humbled by the realization that she wasn't needed. However, she still had to keep up appearances, she couldn't let the others know about the little crisis she was going through.
It's not like anyone in Gensokyo was sensible enough to understand or help Reimu cope with her situation. At best they would make fun of her and move on, at worst they would pity her and she hated that thought more than anything else.
Reimu was accustomed to being looked at with pitying eyes, it started early when she was just an orphaned girl training to become a shrine maiden. A girl with no one to rely upon, and no one to rely upon her. She couldn't handle the thought of those close to her looking at her the same way.
She tried to stay positive as much as she could. This too will pass, soon enough she'll be useful again.
The sound of roaring laughter brought her back to reality, she looked up from where she sat and saw Suika and Yuugi engaging in a drinking contest with several fairies cheering them on. The two oni were drinking and laughing without a care in the world, and so far their competition seemed like a tie.
Off in the distance Reimu could see Flandre and Marisa playing some sort of rock paper scissors game where the loser got spell cards thrown at them. She overheard Mokou trying to make a bet with Keine on who was going to win, but instead she got lectured to not engage in such activities.
In the midst of all that chaos, the sound of a soft giggle grabbed Reimu’s attention and it wouldn’t let go. When looking around for the source of the voice her eyes fell upon Yuyuko, who had a delightful smile on her face as she sat with her back against a cherry tree.
Strangely, the pink haired woman was alone, neither Youmu nor Yukari were accompanying her. She just sat there, looking up at the moon and drinking sake, but the smile never left her face.
Everything else around Reimu seemed to fade away, there were no sounds, no party, no youkai having a drinking contest, just the ghost princess under the cherry tree.
Reimu was mesmerized by the scene, the ghostly beauty of Yuyuko bathed in the glow of the moon, paired with the cherry petals gently falling above her. Almost as if she was witnessing a moving painting. She couldn't help but stare in awe. A sharp pang shot up to her heart, she felt strange.
Yuyuko must've felt Reimu staring at her because she looked over at the shrine maiden and waved at her to come closer. Panic set into her body but without knowing what else to do, Reimu simply walked over to the ghost princess and sat beneath the tree next to her.
"You've thrown quite a delightful party, Reimu," Yuyuko poured a drink for Reimu and handed the small cup to her, Reimu accepted it without much thought. "The food was especially delicious!" she added.
"Th-Thank you…" Reimu could only whisper as she looked down into her reflection in the cup. A cherry petal had landed in it, floating on the sake gently. Reimu felt really strange, it was very uncharacteristic of her to be like that. Normally, she’d boast about how she’s the best cook in Gensokyo or how no other flower viewing party beats hers.
"The moon sure is beautiful tonight," Yuyuko took another drink of her sake and sighed out in bliss.
Reimu looked up and saw the moon and stars reflected in Yuyuko's eyes. She could've sworn she hadn’t seen anything as breathtaking before.
"It doesn't compare to your beauty" she blurted out before she could think about it.
Yuyuko turned her head to face Reimu with a shocked expression on her face "oh my!" She unfurled her fan with a flick of her wrist and brought it up to cover the bottom half of her face. "I didn't know you were so bold, Reimu." Her gaze softened as she spoke.
The realization of what she had just said dawned upon the shrine maiden and her face got flushed. She felt so embarrassed that she hoped Yukari would open up a gap and transport her to a place where no one would see her again.
"No I-I um.. what I meant was—"
Yuyuko cut her off by unfurling her fan and pointing it at Reimu a bit threateningly. "You're not about to compliment a woman's beauty then take it back, are you, Reimu? " there was a hint of annoyance in her voice which made the shrine maiden flinch. Angering a youkai was one thing, but angering a woman who you might have a slight attraction towards? pretty scary.
"Ah, no I just…" she made some vague hand gestures as she tried to find the correct words, but she ended up with nothing so she simply gave up "I'm sorry… I truly think you're beautiful, I just… spoke without thinking about it, so I started panicking" she confessed, unable to keep eye contact with Yuyuko anymore.
Yuyuko giggled again, the melodic sound was making the shrine maiden's heart beat much louder than before, even the prettiest spell cards couldn't make her heart beat in such an irregular manner.
"Apology accepted" the ghost princess brought her hand down to brush some stray hairs out of Reimu's face "besides, I couldn't get angry at someone as adorable as you" she teased, leaving Reimu confused and blushing more than before.
“Huh?”
Yuyuko's hand lingered on Reimu's cheek, causing the latter to subconsciously lean closer to her. Reimu felt her hand and it was cold, but she could've sworn that she felt her cheeks burning under her touch.
"Consider it as payback, Dear." Once Yuyuko removed her hand, Reimu felt herself craving her touch again. It made her a little scared, it was as if her heart had a mind of its own and right now it made up its mind to stay by Yuyuko's side, threatening to burst at any moment.
In her own embarrassment, Reimu removed the cherry petal from her cup and downed the sake in one go, the liquid slightly burning her throat as she did. She hoped that she could leave the area and forget about that whole interaction, unfortunately for her Yuyuko seemed to notice and cleared her throat rather dramatically.
"You're not about to leave the woman you just called beautiful all alone in a flower viewing party, are you Reimu? " The little annoyance in her voice came back again, and the guilt kept Reimu seated, with her head hung low.
"...I'm not about to"
"Honestly…" Yuyuko folded her arms "I get that you're embarrassed, but at least don't make it obvious that you've been looking at me with those love struck eyes if you're going to end up running away." Not only was Reimu dying of embarrassment, but she was also getting lectured by Yuyuko for some reason, and it made the situation even more uncomfortable for her.
"But, " Yuyuko continued as her gaze pulled away from Reimu and back towards the moon. "I can't deny that this part of you is charming in its own way," a gentle smile made its way up to her lips.
"If you're still embarrassed we can spend our time together in silence, I enjoy your company either way…" With that Yuyuko leaned back against the tree and began humming tunes that Reimu didn't recognize.
Yuyuko’s voice made her feel more at ease, somehow that woman who she’d only shared greetings with, had the shrine maiden falling for her with each passing moment.
Feeling a bit braver, Reimu leaned her head against the shoulder of the taller woman, eliciting a quiet giggle from her. But instead of making a comment about it, she simply brought her hand behind Reimu's head and began idly playing with her hair.
The shrine maiden closed her eyes and enjoyed the moment. With their current proximity Yuyuko could probably hear the loud sounds of her heart, but from the previous lecture Reimu got, she figured that it might not bother Yuyuko as much as it bothered her.
Neither of the two women knew what was happening or what the other person felt towards them, but they were both alone and craving some sort of intimacy. It was simply a coincidence that Reimu got noticed by Yuyuko at the time.
"Reimu," Yuyuko whispered, prompting Reimu to open her eyes. "You don't have to answer, but I'm curious nonetheless. Is there a reason you were alone and not with Marisa tonight?"
Reimu wasn’t sure how to answer that question. It was not like she and Marisa had a fight, but she felt like she couldn’t face her friend properly. That aside, she was so infatuated with Yuyuko at the moment that it made her forget all about her worries. It put her at ease.
"I guess I just didn’t feel like it." A sigh escaped Reimu's lips, it was confusing but she really didn't want to think about it too much. "Does it bother you that I’m here?"
The hand that played with Reimu's hair came to rest on her shoulder. "Not at all, I'm quite happy actually." she couldn't see it, but she could hear the smile in Yuyuko's voice.
A gap opened up next to Yuyuko and the upper half of Yukari's body emerged from it "my, my~ i didn't expect you two to be hanging out together" she rested her chin on the back of her hand.
Feeling embarrassed at her current position, Reimu stopped leaning on Yuyuko's shoulder and gave the gap youkai a wave. Yuyuko pouted at the loss of contact but decided not to mention it. Instead she opted to hold her hand, and Reimu reluctantly intertwined their fingers together.
“Great to see you,Yukari, ” Yuyuko covered the bottom part of her face with her fan again “mind telling us why you’ve been gone all night?” From where Reimu was sitting, she could see that Yuyuko was holding back a smile.
“Oh, it’s a long story I wouldn’t want to bore you two” Yukari dismissed with a wave of her hand, but her tone of voice suggested that she wouldn’t mind sharing the details.
“ But I insist! If it weren't for Reimu here, I would've spent the night all alone! So I'd love to see what sort of excuse you came up with.”
Yukari’s expression faltered slightly but she stayed composed. “Come on now~ it worked out well in the end didn’t it?” she smiled as her gaze fell upon Reimu, who had been quiet throughout that interaction.
"Oh, well," Yuyuko sighed out and folded her fan, "you never miss a flower viewing party so I knew you'd arrive eventually."
"Perhaps there's only one that I haven't attended to…"
"And does it happen to relate to your winter hibernation?"
"I wonder if it does…"
Yuyuko’s grip on Reimu’s hand tightened, but she didn’t quite understand it. Maybe it was the vagueness of Yukari’s answer or the way she looked off into the distance as if she recalled something painful, but Reimu could tell that Yukoko was really affected by it.
Their conversation started to blur in Reimu’s head, those two had a knack for communicating as vaguely as possible, and it became a little hard for her to keep up. With that thought in mind, a realization hit her and she once again felt out of place. The relationship between Yukari and Yuyuko went back centuries, they shared so much history, so much that she knew she could never fully grasp it. She wouldn't be able to keep up with them even if she tried to.
Sitting there next to Yukari she felt outmatched, which was very silly, it was a known fact that those two weren't in a monogamous relationship, and Yukari herself had made it clear that she cared about Reimu deeply and stated many times that she wouldn't mind spending the rest of her life with the shrine maiden.
It was silly and childish, but at that moment Reimu felt as though her infatuation with Yuyuko could never compare with the years of love and dedication Yukari had shown to the ghost princess before and after death. Reimu couldn't do much, she was simply mortal.
"Excuse me, but I have to go now," Reimu said as she got up.
But before she could leave, Yuyuko tugged on her hand "You're leaving, Dear?" The disappointment in her voice was evident, but the shrine maiden felt like she really had to leave.
“Oh, but I’ve just arrived! Can’t you stay a little longer?” Yukari complained.
"Sorry, but I haven't spoken to Marisa all night, so…" She tried to give the two immortals the best smile she could muster at that time.
"I see, well I hope to see you again soon," Yuyuko gave her hand a gentle squeeze before letting go. In the end, Yuyuko saw right through Reimu's previous excuse.
“Take care, Reimu” The gap youkai gave her a wave goodbye.
Reimu left those two alone and as soon as she was out of earshot she let out a sigh she’d been holding in for a while, it would be better if she left them alone, it would be better if she occupied herself with something else.
Her eyes scanned the crowd for the short Magician. She soon spotted her sitting on the steps of the shrine all alone, she had her hat and broom neatly placed on the side.
Now that Reimu wasn’t by Yuyuko’s side, her conversation with Marisa resurfaced and it annoyed her greatly. She wanted to stop thinking about it—No, she had to stop thinking about it.
“Hey, Marisa,” Reimu called out.
“Yo! Reimu!” Marisa turned around and smiled at the shrine maiden, she patted the spot besides her, prompting Reimu to sit there “You’ve been with the others all night, I was worried you forgot all about me,” Marisa whined as she pretended to dry her nonexistent tears, but she quickly became cheerful again.
“I’m here now aren’t I? Besides, you were off playing with Flandre.”
“Yeah, but it would’ve been more fun if you were with us too! Your spell cards are flashy and nice to look at!” Marisa gave her one of those goofy grins “Ah, but don’t get it twisted! My spell cards are prettier and stronger! ‘Cuz mine got those stars and stuff, y’know?”
“There you go with the boasting again!”
“As if you don’t brag about your spell cards?”
“It isn’t bragging if it’s the truth!”
“Then I'm gonna need you to put your mouth where your money is!” Marisa stood up and put her hat back on.
Reimu could only chuckle at the absurdity of their conversation “The saying is all wrong!”
“Don’t change the subject! I challenge you to spell card battle, Reimu!”
“Oh, you’re on!”
As the two flew into the sky something changed in Reimu, she felt light and comfortable, the familiarity of a spell card battle was something she kept clinging onto these days. For the first time in weeks, Reimu was able to smile genuinely.