Chapter Text
One month have passed and the Hakurei Shrine is still normal: the usual no-guest (because of the youkai), the usual wind, the usual lack of donation (in term of money) and other normalcy that happens here. The Hakurei Miko, Reimu, sits on the porch, taking in a sip of tea. Next to her, a plate full of hard candy that was given to her by the hap gap as apology for the other time when she bails out of her punishment. Reimu was still mad at her but, there is nothing that she could do. Every time that she tries to scold her, she’ll just do something more outlandish. Honestly, that woman needs to act her age. Telling herself to others that she’s, ‘Forever 17★ !’ while winking and striking a peace sign is not something a 17-year-old would do.
… well, except for that wind-priestess but she has always been odd, so it doesn’t count.
‘Anyway, this candy that she brought…” Reimu thought to herself. She picks one from the plate, removes the wrapping that comes with it and plop it inside her mouth, the taste of strawberry permeates her mouth as she sucks on it. Yukari said that she had brought in the candy she had gotten from the Outside World, saying that it was popular with the teens and the young, but when Reimu gave it to Rinnosuke, he explained that this candy is usually given to children by old people. Even her taste of snacks is that of and old person, but Reimu wouldn’t comment on that to her as that would make her snack giv- uh, friend, to retract her gift and be sullen by the sudden realization. And also, even though the candy that she had is not filling, it does give her something to satisfy her urge of wanting to taste. No more that she needs to scour the ground, trying to find any grass or flowers that could satiate her urges.
‘Even though the candy’s fine, it’s hard to bite on…” Reimu commented. It’s a hard candy and you can bite into it, but that will leave you with shard stuck to your gums. Fishing for the shard pains her, so she settles on for sucking. This way, she could also enjoy the hard candy to its fullest, every single bit, maximize its potential to the fullest (and by that: leaving no scrap of food behind). So today, it seems her day will be filled with this candy, bitter tea, and a good, lazy, time. No one would interrupt her for the day. No incident will occur and there is nothing that will change tha-
“Hey~ Reimu~,” a (slurred) voice could be heard coming from her left.
…
Reimu glances to the direction of the voice and see her infamous sake gourd and knows, that only one person in this shrine would be day-drinking right now. Well, nothing good ever happens when you expect it. Reimu sighs, trying to take in her last moment of relaxation before an arm wraps around her shoulder. The tiny girl with her horn gets closer to Reimu, inching closer until their body touches, a purple sake gourd with talismans plastered on it with red string attached to the body of it, is held with her other hand. Her outfit that a simple white sleeveless shirt (it looks originally to be a long-sleeve shirt, judging by how there is a tear near the armpit) with red ribbon on her neck, on her waist a metal belt, with long purple skirt. Not to forget as well, she also had three long chain (two on both arms and one on her belt) that has shapes starting from a sphere, a cube and a pyramid. Her long orange hair reaches her back (is it because of her size?) and her brown eyes look at Reimu’s direction. The person in question, is Suika Ibuki.
“Hey hey~ what’s with the long face?~” she singsong-ly says, “A fine day like today isn’t something to frown upon.”
“It was a fine day, but then someone came and ruin it for me,” Reimu sarcastically says.
“Hm?~ Really?~ Where is the person that is pestering you?” Suika turn her head left and right, while Reimu only watch her antics. Another sigh before Reimu says,
“Please get away from you, you reek of alcohol right now,” she tries to push the oni away, her mouth smells of sake (then again, when has it ever not?), and that just make the oni laugh,
“Hahaha, silly Reimu. Alcohol is the lifeblood for onis~. Saying that sounds like you’re trying to eradicate our kind,~” she takes a swig from her gourd.
“Well, I hope that you take your life more moderately. Also, please don’t drink near the holy shrine. You’re going to scare away the worshippers that came by,” Reimu tries again to push the oni away, but her strength is palpable. The oni have always boast about their strength, and it shows.
“Hm?~ Human worshippers?” Suika turns to the shrine entrance, trying to find the fabled human worshipper that Reimu talks and to prove her point, only a gust of wind pass by, moving the leaves across the shrine, passing nothing.
“You know what I mean!” Reimu angrily says, “Also, get your hand away from me! It’s hot enough as it and I don’t want to smell your stinky breath!” she pushes Suika again, but was only able to after Suika removes her hand from Reimu’s shoulder.
“Hey, it’s not that stinky!~” Suika tries to reason with Reimu, “I’ve already washed my mouth before coming here.”
“Oh really? With what?”
“Alcohol~” she opens her mouth, and the stench enter Reimu’s nose, causing her to pinch it.
“Of course it was that, you alcoholic,” Reimu snarks. However, Suika takes that as a compliment making Reimu sighs again. There’s no end to reason with this one. Or rather, everyone else that Reimu had met, their character(ego) is too high. No matter what Reimu said, they’ll just go back to their own ways (or even worse). Well, it’s not much of a problem for Reimu, as she could just duke it out with them if they ever stepped out of line, but doing it everytime is not fun and counter productive. Just for once, Reimu wanted to see them act the way the she wants, which is to not bother her with more troubles. “So, what do you want?” she asks.
“Hm?~ I was just drinking the night away and thought that it’s better to have a buddy to join with, so,” she brings out a sake glass, pour it from her sake gourd and hands it to Reimu, “here,” she holds it there, waiting for Reimu to take it from her. However, Reimu did not.
“Look, Suika, I’m in the middle of work right now, and drinking right now would effectively ruin the shrine’s image. I mean, what if people saw that I’m not doing my job properly!” Reimu explains.
“Reimu, there’s no one here right now,” Suika points out the obvious, “and besides, your shrine has always been emp-“ bonk, Suika head been hit by Reimu’s fist. Impressively, Suika did not even flinch from that, “Ow, what was that for?”
“Shut up! You don’t have to say it like that!” Reimu clenches her fist, Reimu is standing in front of Suika, “Besides, it’s all your guy's fault that the shrine has become this way! I’ve overheard from the people in the village recently that someone had on their way here, someone, had been pestering them to drink. And I’ve only known one person that does that,” she crosses her arm.
“Hey hey, Reimu~ that’s slander,” Suika retorts, “Maybe it was different cute oni that is hindering your business. Besides, I’ve been helping to promote this shrine as well.”
“… really?” Reimu raises her eyebrows.
“Really really~. Everynight, at Geidontei, I’ve been giving praises and encouraging people to come~.”
“That’s my Suika!” Reimu gives Suika the biggest smile that she could and Suika laughs seeing that. This is great! Sooner or later, people will come flocking in the shrine. Reimu could already see that her donation box filled with mons. Her mind is racing by the idea of having actual money!
… wait, but that’s strange.
“Wait, then why haven’t people been coming here at all?” Reimu asks, confused by the emptiness of the shrine grounds.
“Hm~ I don’t know?” Suika tilts her head, “Well, I told them all about the shrine positively, drinking merrily with the pub goers. But after a while, everyone passed out.”
“… th-they, passed out?”
“Hm? Yeah, everyone d-“ bonk, comes another fist.
“Then they won’t remember anything at all you stupid oni!” Reimu screams. She knew that trusting anyone else (much less a youkai) is too much to ask. Without hesitation, Reimu grab the sake cup from Suika hand and quickly intake it’s content, not caring anymore about the shrine reputation. Suika look at Reimu and rooted her on. Soon, Reimu finishes her first cup.
“Wow, that was great Reimu,~” Suika whistles. Reimu gives Suika back the cup and sits down next to her, she clutches her temple.
“Sigh, whenever you people come here, my head started to hurt. Is it so hard to just, have a normal day?” she lowers her body. Suika just watch while taking a swig. After that, another person calls out to Reimu.
“Y-yo, Reimu!” it’s Marisa, with her iconic broom and black white magician outfit. She slowly hovers down to the ground and soon realize that Suika is there next to Reimu, “Oh, you’re here too, Suika?” Marisa greets the oni. The oni raise her sake gourd,
“I’m here~. Drinking with my ol’ friend, Reimu here.”
“Don’t listen to her, she’s just here because she’s bored,” Reimu interrupts. Suika laughs, “So, what do you need, Marisa?”
“Oh right, are you free tonight?”
“Hm? Well, I was going to count the amount of donation that I received today, but as you can see,” she points to the empty shrine, sans the three, “So, I’m free. Why?”
“Well, I was thinking of inviting you for a meal tonight. You know, at the village?” Marisa fiddles with her finger.
“Well, I’m going if you’re paying,” Reimu teases, “But, this is rare. It’s been a while since you’ve invited me. Usually, you went by and mooch off of others, mainly from those two other magicians.”
“Hey! I don’t really do that! I properly paid my part! What do you think of me Reimu?” Reimu laughs inbetween, “A-anyway, that’s not important. I just… thought that it’s nice to have a meal together, you know?”
“Then, we can just eat here. Just bring over some food, I prefer meat, and we can have a banquet,” after hearing Reimu says the word ‘banquet’, Suika started to listen in on the conversation. Marisa mumbles something but afterwards, she says,
“No, I wanted to treat you for tonight,” Marisa says.
“And I be glad to come. However, how come? It’s hard for you to treat others, what’s the catch?”
“… am I really that stingy in your eyes…” Marisa mumbles and sigh before saying, "I wanted to apologize for last time..." Marisa head turn downcast.
'Last time?' Reimu thought to herself before realizing what she meant, 'Ah, she meant the underwear thing. Right,' Reimu had already forgotten about the incident, however,
"Yeah, I'm still mad at you, you know?" what's the harm teasing the person in front of her right now? Ah, she's sulking.
"I know, I know! I shouldn't have done that... I don't know what came over me," she pouts, "So, I thought of treating you. As a way of apologizing."
"Hm? Marisa, am I that cheap to you?" Reimu acts coy. She then places a hand on her chest, "I'm hurt..."
"W-what? No, no! I never thought of you like that, Reimu!" Marisa tries to fix the situation. She looks pitiful right now. Alright, that's enough teasing, Reimu, you already had your fun. In turn of that, Reimu laughs,
"I'm kidding, Marisa. Don't worry, I've already forgiven you. But," Reimu gives a smile, "I'm still taking that meal tonight. No take backs!"
"Geez, Reimu..." Marisa playfully pouts, "But, really? You'll come?"
"Yeah. When have I've said no to a free meal? You make it like you've never known me at all."
"Great! Then, I'll see you later then," Marisa gives a big smile to Reimu while waving and started to move. But before she could, she can feel a tug from her skirt. Looking at the direction, Suika was holding her skirt. She smiles to Marisa, which Marisa smiles back. Then, Suika points to herself. Seeing that, Marisa is confused. Reimu, however, sees what it is that Suika wants,
"No, Suika, you're not invited," Reimu stoically says. Hearing that from Reimu, Suika turns with a surprised face, in shock by the curtness.
"What!? Reimu, you can't do that!" Suika protests, "You can't just have a party and not invite the oni! That's wrong!"
"Huh? Weird. I've never heard of that rule before. Also, no, you're not invited."
"Wh-wha-huh?" she mouthed out. Afterwards, Suika pleads to Marisa, and it seems that Marisa only wanted it to be only the two of them. Pouting, Suika throws a tantrum, "No, no no! I want to come! It's been a while that you had held a banquet and when I heard of you having one, I'm not invited?! This is awful! You're awful Reimu!" she sprawls on the floor and starts banging on the floor.
"First of all, it's not a banquet, it's just a simple meal. And second, this is punishment for driving my worshippers away. Lastly, stop banging on my floor, you'll leave a dent!" Reimu explains while scolds the last one.
"But it wasn't me who drove them away!"
"Really? Funny, when I was telling you that rumor, you immediately said an oni was drinking with them. If I recalled, I've never mention the perpetrator's race now, have I?"
"... oni likes to drink~"
"And oni lives in the underground~. Except for you," Reimu copies Suika mannerism, "Don't worry, Marisa, she won't be coming with. I'll make sure of it," Reimu glares at Suika, "Don't you have something else to do?"
"Oh right. Then, I'll see you later, Reimu," and saying that, Marisa left. Only a shrine maiden and a (sulking) oni are behind. 'Well, how should I pass the time?' Reimu thought to herself. It's nice knowing that tonight meals are already secured. Now, she just needs to pass the time for that free meal. Wonder where Marisa will bring her tonight? There isn't really anthing fancy that she could think of, but then again, Reimu would prefer something filling. After all, food should always fill the stomach, taste is important too, but quantity is better. Oh, right, speaking of underwear,
'... maybe I should wear something... cuter... hehe' Reimu mumbles to herself, clearly looking forward to tonight. However, danger is lurking in the daylight. The oni next to her is unhappy with the arrangement, scream out,
"That's not fair, Reimu!" Suika stands up. Then, a mist-like atmosphere appears for a second near the oni, and a few moments after, tiny Suikas' could be seen, one of them wears a male outfit for some reason.
"Due to the unfairness of the shrine maiden, we march!" the 'leader' shouts, followed by the other Suikas', "Forward! For the banquet!" and with that, the tiny Suikas' rush to where Reimu is sitting. Getting off guard, Reimu could only mutter a 'what?' looking at the onis antics. Just like bugs, the Suikas had latch onto Reimu's body: some went to her stomach, others onto her feet and other various places that a girl would be too embarrassed to mention. Reimu, stunned by the onis' action, only sat in place, waiting for her next move, "Men!" the 'leader' raises her hand. Then, she executes her command, "Begin the punishment! Tickle her!" and with that, Reimu could feel tiny (yet many) amount of stimulation coming from inside her outfit, just like the sensation of a many legged bugs, crawling onto her body. It brings shiver. But afterwards, Reimu began to laugh,
"Suika, wha-what are yo-ah ahahhaha hahahahhha!" Reimu laughs, while clutching her stomach, the tiny Suika's move whenever Reimu hands try to impede their actions. More and more of laughter coming out from Reimu. The leader crosses her arms, "Now, apologize to the oni! And bring her along for the banquet!" she demands. Reimu, however, did not pay any attention to the leader as she is battling her life with the tiny oni that is crawling and tickling her entire body. This goes on for almost a minute, and Reimu's breath becoming ragged.
"P- ah-please, s-ah-stop aha-stop," Reimu plead for the oni to stop, but the tickling continue. However, in between tickling, something egregious happens: Reimu's sarashi came undone. The few Suika's that are on the upper torso of Reimu managed to get her sarashi undone (whether intentional or not is unknown) and Reimu notices that her sarashi had loosen, "W-wa-ah-wait Sui-Suika s-ah-stop m-my-!" and without skipping a bit, one of the Suika's accidentally brushes the hard nips of Reimu, in turn, Reimu,
"Hyanh~♥" Reimu moans, taken aback by the sudden stimulation. Hearing that, all the Suikas' stop in tracks.
"... whut?" the leader, in shock, says.
"Reimu! You can't be doing this during daylight!" a voice rings out from the corner, it's Marisa. Because of this, Suika turns around to face Marisa and stare.
"...whut?" Suika, still in shock, says. Why is Marisa here?
"Su.I.Ka!♥" an angry shrine maiden stands up, and quickly grabs the tiny leader directly in front of her face, the other tiny oni had fallen off of Reimu. Reimu kept on smiling, but Suika knows that she had messed up.
"Ehehe..." Suika laughs, trying to ease the tension. In one swift motion, Reimu runs inside, while carrying Suika in hand, brings out a glass jar with holes on top, places the tiny oni inside and close the lid. Suika watches all the while and then laughs,
"Wahaha! Reimu, you know that nothing could contain me! I just need to change my density and I ca-" Suika stops talking when she sees that Reimu had put down plenty of talisman on the jar. She, at first, only shakes her head, but when she tries to change her size back to its original, she's unable too, and that's when she realizes, she had gone too far.
... whoops. Because of this, Suika hit the surface of the glass jar, screaming, "No, Reimu! Don't put me inside the glass jar!" the sound of glass being hit could be heard.
"Stay there, and reflect on your action! You're lucky I didn't bring out a jar that have no holes on them!" she angrily says, and place the tiny oni next to her. Afterwards, Reimu sits down and tries to fix her sarashi. When she tried to open her tops, only then she realizes that Marisa was staring at her, "Um, Marisa, do you mind?"
"O-oh, right. Sorry!" Marisa turns around. The sound of clothes rustling could be heard from inside the shrine. Soon after, Reimu says that she had finished fixing her clothes and, in turn, Marisa turns back to Reimu, her hair is still disheveled but and her outfit is filled with creases,
"Sorry that you have to see that, Marisa," Reimu says.
"N-no, you don't have to say sorry," Marisa looks away, embarrassed. The two stays silent before Reimu asks,
"So, is there anything else that you need from me, Marisa? You came back here again after leaving."
"Oh. I forgot to tell you what time I'll be picking you up."
"... wow, how gentlemanly," Reimu picks up the last two candy from the tray and opens one of them. But before she could eat it, Marisa asks,
"Hm? What are you eating there, Reimu?"
"Hm? This? Oh, Yukari brought over some candy," *plop* "Ith sweeth," Reimu says between sucking on the candy.
"Do you have any left?" She does, but Reimu doesn't want to part with the last candy.
"No, thith ith the lasth one," saying that, Marisa looks a bit sad. Then, Reimu have a devilish idea,
"Then," Reimu puts out her tounge, on it, the sole candy, cover in saliva, "You can haf dis one," Reimu gauges Marisa's reaction. As expected, shock, came with flustered.
"Wh-ha-what huh?" Marisa tries to make sense of the situation, "H-haha come on, Reimu, you should stop messing around like this..."
"? I'm shereeous though?" Reimu replies, her tounge still out. Marisa stares in disbelief at first, followed by looking around, a blush spreading on her face.
"Y-you're serious?" Marisa asks again.
"Hm." Reimu continues. After Marisa done fighting with her thoughts, she leans closer, and places one hand on Reimu's shoulder. Closer and closer she gets closer to Reimu's face. With Marisa's eyes close, she put out her tounge as well, and then,
*plop*
"...?" Marisa could feel something enters her mouth. Something sweet and hard. The taste of strawberry. She opens her eyes and sees that Reimu had place her hand near her mouth, and Reimu's mouth had already been closed. She gives a coy smile,
"Just kidding~" she teases. Realizing what had happened, Marisa's face flushed red, and she playfully hits Reimu in the shoulder for a while, Reimu laughs. After the awkward conversation had finished, the two had finished with their plans and Marisa laughs. Reimu watches the magician leaves her vision. Afterwards, Reimu hid her face in embarrassment,
'...why did I do that...?" Reimu wonders. It's unlike her to do something like that. She tries to find reason, and in the end, she blames it on the alcohol. Yeah, she was drunk, that's it. Case solved. Reimu stretches her arms upwards and stands up, leaving the porch. Leaving the sole oni, watching the whole ordeal, and the only thing that she could say is,
"... whut?"
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'I've managed to score a date with Reimu!' silently, the magician scream. Marisa is on her way back home after leaving the Hakurei Shrine. She had asks Reimu out for dinner, tonight at the Human Village, and Reimu agrees! Well, Reimu is never one to refuse a free meal. And Marisa did use the pretext of apologizing to get Reimu to go on with her plan, but hey, what matters is the end! In the end, she scored a date, and she couldn't be more happier, 'I was so afraid that she'll refuse,' Marisa thought to herself. Well, it's unlikely for Reimu to do so, but Marisa did anger the girl, so, is it wrong for her to be a bit anxious? She was also afraid that her plan would go awry due to Suika. Luckily, Reimu managed to curb that fear away. She feels a bit bad for Suika, maybe later, she'll make a banquet like she had wanted. It has been a while since the last time everyone get together. And, it's more of a chance for Marisa to meet with Reimu, so it's a win-win. Now, all she has to do is just meet up with Reimu, and show her a good time. Who knows, maybe thing will escalate a bit further... just kidding.
...
wait, had she told Reimu when she'll be picking her up? Or where they were supposed to meet?
...
No, no she hadn't! Drats, she has to go back to and tell her. And due to that, Marisa makes a u-turn, straight to the Hakurei Shrine.
Thankfully, Marisa hadn't gone that far yet, and she quickly approaches the shrine. In a rush, she descends from her broom, currently standing at the entrance of the shrine. Afterwards, she speedwalk to the porch, hoping that Reimu is still there at the moment. However, Marisa turns to a stop. This is because she had heard something. A voice that came from the corner of the shrine. The voice of the girl that she always known,
"-ah...ah-... st-..." Reimu's voice could be heard from the corner, her breath sounds ragged. Any normal person would have thought of nothing of this. Maybe Reimu was stretching, or exercising even. However, because of the promised 'date' tonight, Marisa mind may have been in the gutter,
'R-Reimu... no, no she couldn't be...' Marisa thought to herself, hearing the shrine maiden's ragged breath fully focus, trying to hear her every breath, 'A shrine maiden... doing it this early... in the holy place... no no that can't be it. But, Reimu is human, and human have those kinds of needs too. I mean, Even I do it sometimes too,' Marisa head in the clouds. Hearing the shrine maiden breath like this, not to mention in secret, have the sense of amoral to it. Marisa's body began to slightly sweat, in places that she will not mention. But, after a while, Marisa regains back her sanity. She shakes her head, throwing away the pink thoughts that clouded her mind and thinks carefully. This could be the same situation with Aunn. I mean, Suika is there with her, there's no way that she will do thi-
"Hyanh~♥" a moan could be heard from the corner and Marisa sprints into action, she cannot miss this sight of Reimu and if she is mad, she could just apologize. Sorry, Reimu, but this is not something a shrine maiden should do in daylight! And with that, Marisa says,
"Reimu! You can't be doing this during daylight!" and what she stumbles upon is a dishevel Reimu, with many (tiny) Suika's on top of her body. All the Suika turns their head to Marisa, and Marisa could see one of them (why is it wearing a male-ish outfit?) looks confused. Because of this vulnerability, Reimu managed to pick the leader(?) of the pack, and placed it inside a glass jar. After that, Reimu, looking angry picks up a white wrapping, and turn her back from Marisa. She raises her top and Marisa could see her back for a bit before she brings it back down. Reimu then asks Marisa to turn away, because she tries to re-wear her sarashi, in which Marisa do. The sound of rustling clothes could be heard.
'... if I were to turn my head here...' Marisa evil thought crept in for a second, however, she wasn't able to follow through, because Reimu had finished re-dress. Marisa turns around, and she could see that Reimu does not look presentable in the slightest: her dress had creases on them, and her hair is a mess. Reimu apologizes to Marisa for showing her her bad side, in which Marisa it's fine. Reimu also asks the reason Marisa came back, and Marisa told her that she wanted to tell her the meeting place.
However, before she could, Reimu picks something up from the plate and starts to unwrap something. Curios, Marisa asks her what she is holding there, and Reimu tell her that it's candy she received from Yukari. Lucky her~. She asks if there's any left, to which Reimu says no. Oh well, it's look like it's not my da-... hm? Wh-what is Rei- what? HUH? Why is she showing me her tongue?! Hm? Candy? For me? 'Oh how kind of you~' did you think I was going to say that?! Did you think Marisa would accept that? Well of course she wants to! The sweetness of the candy, covered in the sweetness of her lover(delusion) saliva? That is the food of the elite. Even thinking about it, only a few percentiles of people could achieved that. And now, Reimu is giving her this blessing for free?! Is there a catch? Someone out there is punking her right now? Also, is it getting hot in here or...?
... is this real?
... looks like Reimu is serious. ... now, Marisa, do you have it in you, to follow this through. The girl in front of you clearly using all her courage to give you this luxury, and to say no, would be wrong. This is fine, right? Reimu was the one who instigated her. Does this mean, for Reimu, to her? And because of that, Marisa closes her eyes, and putting her tongue out, leaning in closer to Reimu, and taking the candy away from her,
...? What's this? It's sweet. It's... candy, right? But, where's the wetness of Reimu's saliva? Marisa opens her eyes, and see that Reimu removes her hand away from Marisa's mouth, and teasingly joke to her. Embarrassement, in full force. And to hide it, Marisa (playfully) punches her while Reimu laughs. When had Reimu became such a seductress?! Had she always had this ability? How many people had she use this on? Hopefully, she only uses this on Marisa, and no one else! Afterwards, Marisa told Reimu the time and place that she'll come, and headed home, embarrassment (and arousal) come from the magician.
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That night, same day, Suika is seen walking towards the direction of the Human Village while carrying a full sake bottle and cup. Reimu had finally brought her out of the jar after a bit of 'persuasion' from her. However, that's not important tonight. Suika, walking to the Human Village, suddenly moves past it, never to enter it to begin with. She does, however, walks a bit further, the grassy field touches the sole of her sandals. She walks until she reaches her destination: two boulders, perfect for sitting, with the view of the stars and moon. Suika walks towards the boulder. She places the sake cup (the sake cup was white colored, with a drawing of a slice of watermelon on it) ontop of the boulder to her left, and fills it with the sake bottle that she was carrying. Then, the bottle is placed on top the same boulder, right next to it. Suika climbs on the other boulder, and pour herself a cup, but this time, a red sakazuki, a gift that she had received from Yuugi. She looks at the full moon, and take a swig of it. After finishing it, she pours another and before drinking, she swirls it in her hand. This action she follows after her other companion. Yes, her long gone companion...
"Pwah! Nothing beats a good sake~" Suika drank from her cup, clearly enjoying it. I mean, what is there to not enjoy? A good drink, and a good atmosphere. It will be a crime if she were to not enjoy this. Usually, Yuugi was supposed to be her drinking partner, but lately, she had found someone else to enjoy it.
"Su-Suika!" a voice called out. Suika turns her head, and sees a young woman walking towards her. She had black hair, and a bob cut that covers her entire eyes and a petite body. Suika had never seen her eyes before this, and when asked if she could, the woman would shy away. She had always been timid, her mannerism shows that she lacks confidence. But, this young woman is brave enough to drink with an oni.
"Ah there you are~" Suika waved to the young woman, "I was just thinking of you~"
"Really? It wasn't anything bad, was it?" the young woman questioned, scared of what others had thought of her.
"Hahaha, don't worry~ don't worry~. Come, a drink, it's a waste to not let loose on this wonderful night~" she poured the girl a drink, and so begin the two night out. Suika had met the girl when she was having a drink with Yuugi. When Yuugi had left, leaving Suika all alone, the woman fell down behind her a few meters away. Curios, Suika reached out to her, and sooner or later, the two had become close. Closed enough to drink together and share stories. The woman wasn't even afraid that Suika was an oni. What a weird one, she is.
"So~ what's happening in your life right now?" Suika asked, taking a small sip of sake from her cup. The woman flinched, but quickly spat out lies, saying that she is fine and whatnot, a soft smile on her face. Suika nodded and gives small 'hm hm' before taking another sip. This girl, next to her right now, has a bad habit. And that is,
She always lies.
every word that she spoke of, she lies. Asking her about her day. It's good? A lie. How her relationship with her peers. Everything's fine? A lie. Her work today passes swimmingly. Of course? A lie. No matter what, it's always lies coming out from her mouth. She might have not known this, but the oni kind, they could tell when people lies. Sure, we might be recognized by our strenght, our love for alcohol, and we are also 'honest'. We like people who could fit all those criteria, and despises any foul-play. And this girl, fits nothing on what an oni would like. She's cowardly, a light drinker, and a liar. It's a surprised why Suika was even friends with this girl in the first place. And, why she forces her self to drink, even though she's weak to it. Wondering how an oni can tell if you're lying? Well, that's an oni secret~.
Anyway, today, as well, this girl comes here to lie. The action of someone Suika does not like. However, Suika doesn't pry further, because it seems like that girl doesn't want to continue the conversation. Every time that she comes over, she's more interested in what Suika had to say. A listener type if you will. But, that's not how you foster a relationship. One that only listen and one that talks is not communicating. Not in the slightest. Suika wanted someone that is honest. Someone that would speak her mind, just like her friend, Yuugi.
However, that's not possible, because Yuugi had already went back to Old Hell. She said that she doesn't like the Overworld, with all its rule and such, so, she and the other few oni went underground. So, she will have to do for now. A (passive) drinking buddy is a new experience for her, and trying new things is always fun for the can-do oni.
But tonight, Suika made a mistake. She pressed her for answers. She had asked her why she had been lying all this time, and when she tried to deny it, with her smile and her non-answer, Suika wouldn't budge. It's weird. Usually, she would have let it pass-by. But today, she wanted to know. Maybe it's the alcohol talking, or maybe, Suika just wanted to be her friend. However, the woman won't spill the bean, and after a back and forth, the woman quickly down her sake, knowing full well that she's a lightweight. Afterwards, she talks,
"Its must be fun being you, Suika," the somber woman spoke, "You don't have any worries in life, and you can just do about anything,"
"? Well, that's the privilege of an oni~. But, everyone have worries in life, that includes me as well," Suika responded. Another swig from the woman,
"Yeah, but you can solve everything. Not like me... I'm worthless..."
"What's wrong? You can always talk and sort it out. I'm here all nig-"
"Talking. Won't solve every problem," she sat there, quiet, before continuing, "I have to listen to those people, talking with their sweet words, but behind me..."
"Hey, chin up. What others say shouldn't really affect you-"
"But it does, Suika!" she shouted. The first time that Suika had ever hear her raised her voice, "When you live in a close-knit community, it does matter. Everything that you do, will spread around like wildfire. The 'whisper' will go round and round, distorting the truth, and eventually, the 'whisper' became the truth, while the truth, is buried down," the woman gripped the sake cup tightly in her hand.
"Rumors only lasted for a while, so you shouldn't worry abo-"
"A while?! A while you say?! And what did they do during this whole while?!" she stood up, her anger rose with her, "I know they're talking about me behind my back. Every day, those guys kept looking at my way, and I can hear them giggle at me, all of them."
"... are you really sure about that?" Suika asked.
"Huh?" she raised her voice, surprised by the sudden question. Despite not knowing the girl, Suika could see clearly. See that the girl next to her have very low self-esteem, by the way she acts, and the times that she had slipped out from their previous drinks. It's clear, that she cares too much on what others think. So, she needs to ask this,
"What if, everything that you thought of, is just, an exaggeration. A made-up version of event from your head, blowing it out of proportion?" hearing that, the woman scoffed.
"Heh, so you don't believe me as well..."
"I do! But your line of thinking is dangerous, and I don't want you to do anything irrational to sour your relationship with your peers," Suika explained. She doesn't want her to do something that she regrets, she doesn't want to lose her drinking buddy over this, "Why don't you speak with them, maybe you're misunderstanding somet-"
"If I can, I would have done so! I'm not like you, Suika! I'm not strong, sociable, and can do everything, like how you told me in your stories. I'm just... me," she started to sniffle, before continuing, "Fine, if you don't believe me, it's fine. I'm sorry that I've ruin the mood, I need to be back for now, thank you for your time," and she stomped off. Suika, instead of chasing after the girl, just watch her walk to the direction of the village. There is nothing else that Suika wanted to say, she had said the honest truth. She have to face the fact that not everyone is her enemy. And, she wanted for her to see her own worth. But, it seems that it was too early for Suika to become her crutch to lean on. After all, she's only a drinking companion, they weren't friends to begin with. Besides, that woman will come back here anyway, she could just duke it out if things are still south.
However, that girl never came back. Suika waited months, years, even decades. No sign of the girl anywhere to be seen. Eventually, Suika had forgotten about this spot, as she had move on already.
Until, one night, Suika was walking around the outskirts of the village, and saw two familiar boulders. She walked to it, and saw on top of it: a paper, sake bottle and a white sake cup with a drawing of a suika on it. She opened the note, and it reads:
Hello, Suika. How have you been? I'm doing fine. Well, for starters, it has been a while since I've written a letter, so I apologize for the awkwardness. Ok ok, let's see. Um, yeah, you're right. After our scuffle, that night, I went over to work as usual, and, uh, they never had spoken bad about me. Everything was all in my head, just like you said, hahaha.
... I'm sorry, that I lashed out to you... and I'm sorry that I'm not here... formally apologizing to you... After realizing that, I was, uh, afraid, really. My ego, got the better of me, and, I avoided you. Even now, I wasn't the one who sent you this letter, it was my granddaughter.
Speaking of, have you seen her? She should have given you this letter personally. She has the spitting image of her mother. Oh yeah, I'm married as well, forgot to mention that, hahaha.
Also, if you did received this letter, that means... I'm no longer in this world. This is my last chance, of apologizing to you. I know, this is cowardly of me, and, I know, that you despise this cowardly action. From all the stories that you tell, I could tell you how honest and straightforward you are.
Maybe, that night as well, you were just being honest with me, and I just...
I'm sorry.
Also, I've brought over some sake that you'll surely love! Well, not as much as the one that you always carry, but it should satisfy you. Also, a custom-made sake cup, I made it white because of your shirt and a picture of a watermelon because of your name. I had hope that we could have, one last drink together, but, ultimately, I am a coward.
I'm sorry, Suika, and thank you, for listening to an old woman ramble.
After finishing reading the note, Suika laughed. She laughed and laughed at the silliness.
"Ahahaha, oh, is that why you haven't come here~," Suika laughed, "Well, you human and your egos~. Well, that's something that an oni also has," she placed the note down and pick up the sake cup. Made out of porcelain, she can tell that the quality of the cup is high. If she were to drink her sake from this, it would definitely hit the spot. So, she pours the sake that was on the boulder onto the sake cup. However, she did not take a sip, rather, she placed it back to the boulder. She brings out, instead, her own sake cup, and pour the sake into that. She then sits down on the boulder next to it, the usual spot where Suika used to sit. She raised the glass high, and down it in one gulp, and pour another. Afterwards, Suika spoke,
"You see, I kept coming back here," Suika talked to the moon, "Hoping, that we can have a drink, like we used to, but then again, you'll probably will just listen to what I'm saying anyway while I drone about. So, I'll tell you stories on what I've been doing. You see, I found this weird girl, a girl from the shrine. I was just using my ability to call people for my banquet, this brings about this shrine girl. I got totally scolded by her~" she reminisced the time where she caused an 'incident' (something that Reimu would call), "After that, I got curios about this girl. Who was this strong girl that could bested an oni?~ So, I hung around her shrine, and sees that, she's just an ordinary girl. Like you. Well, except she could float~." she laughed, "Well, long story short: that girl is the total opposite of you. She is honest to her desire, and says it like it is. She has the strength to back it up, and it shows. I mean, a girl that is completely honest with herself, is rare for a human. Everyone that I’ve met always don a mask. I've totally fallen for that girl, but, I don't think that our relationship will go further than a 'friend'. But, I'm fine with that~. I can see that girl from up close, is a blessing for me~," she takes a full swig.
"I wonder... if you were here sitting beside me, would you be rooting for me? If I had chased after you, will our friendship blossom? Hahaha, well... that's pointless anyway~. The future is what's we're looking for. And the present is a gift for ourselves~. So let's enjoy the night!"
back to the present, Suika raised her cup high, and the moon as her witness, she downs her drink. Tonight, she celebrates with her drinking companion.