Just before the exit to the Youkai Forest, a small gap opens up, and from inside Ail jumps out, falling on the ground on his back. His entire face twists in agonizing pain upon landing on the ground; the shock of the impact reaching his broken right arm. He can hear voices nearby, so ignoring the pain, he sits up and springs to his feet, immediately hiding behind some trees. Not too far ahead, Nitori, the Aki sisters, and a couple of tengu are having a discussion about the events with the unsettling energies from the shrine at the mountain top. Ail thinks they are setting up an ambush, but thankfully, there is a trail of trees he can hide behind while he escapes. He’s about to move when he spots Kanako flying above them, looking grimly all around. Nitori and Shizuha call for her, but she hurries away, shouting “sorry, I’m looking for Ail now!” The small group stares confused at the goddess, and shortly after, Suwako lands and hurriedly asks “have you guys seen Ail, or Kanako?” Ail can see great concern in her eyes as she awaits the answer. Minoriko says “Ail? No, we haven’t seen him. We did see Kanako. She hurried away, headed in that direction.” Minoriko points east, then Suwako sighs and says “thanks... I better go after her.” Shizuha shouts “now wait just a minute! What’s going on around here!? First the green maiden tells us some nasty stories about Ail, there’s been a mess of heavy energies coming from YOUR shrine, and now you’re all looking for Ail!” Suwako sweats and says “look, I’ll explain everything next time. Right now, I have to find him, or Kanako. I’m sorry!” Suwako lifts to the air, followed by Minoriko and Shizuha, Minoriko shouting “that’s NOT good enough!” Ail watches from behind the trees and waits until Suwako and the Aki sisters are gone, then starts to move, however he steps on a twig, immediately unsettling Nitori and the two tengu. The small wolf tengu shouts “is anyone there?” Nitori gets closer to the tree Ail is hiding behind and sniffs around, saying “Ail’s scent! He’s been here!” Terrorized, hoping he’s not found, he closes his eyes and mouth some words. He trembles and sweats as he lowers his head and notices some traces of blood on the ground where he landed and the blood dripping from behind him on the tree. The wounds on his back have opened up again, and he knows this will only help to his capture. Again, he closes his eyes and mouths a prayer. Nitori and the two tengu walk right in front of him, look around, then spot the blood on the floor a few feet away from him. Nitori gasps and says “wah? What happened here?” The young crow tengu says “our missing person seems to be bleeding... he’s left too much blood around to be successfully sniffed out.” The wolf tengu quickly says “let’s report this to the others.” The crow tengu nods and quickly both fly away to the mountain. Nitori stays a bit longer, looking at the blood and where it leads. Ail knows she can see where he is after she smirks at him. She casually turns around and places her arms behind her head and says “I better head home now.” She turns to face Ail again and says “the optical camouflage will keep you hidden, but I don’t think it’ll work for too long. Don’t worry... I won’t tell anyone I saw you, but do go and see the doctor.” Ail calms down, gulps, then nods. Nitori sighs and as she leaves she says “at least say a ‘yes’ or something... I can’t see you. Well, whatever. Just go... NOW!” Ail takes her advice and immediately runs, hiding behind the trail of trees and bushes wile still invisible.
At the Myouren Temple, Shou and Byakuren stand by around the trees and bushes that stand far away from the temple. Byakuren looks around with worry and expectation, while Shou scouts around with her vigilant eyes and listens carefully for any signs of movement. She hears some rustling a little farther away, then signals Byakuren’s right. Byakuren looks around, but sees nothing. Shou stand in the middle of the road, staring straight in front of her with determination, and just as Byakuren asks “Shou, what’s the matter? What do you see?” The optical camouflage fails again and Ail materializes right in front of their eyes. Surprised, Byakuren says “A... Ail!?” Shou says “we were worried SICK about you! Why are you hiding from us!?” Ail jumps away, ignoring the pain from his broken arm, shouting “no! Get BACK!” Concerned, Byakuren says “Ail, we just want to help you!” Ail keeps backing away as Shou and Byakuren walk closer and asks “and who’s going to help YOU when I cause another catastrophe?” Shou and Byakuren stop and back away, Hijiri gasping at Ail’s question. She asks “Ail, what are you talking about? You don’t cause-“ Ail interrupts her, saying “I appreciate your concern, I TRULLY do... but for your safety and my peace of mind, please stay away!” Shou growls and says “Ail, I thought we already talked about thi-“ “THIS IS NOT THE SAME THING!!!” shouts Ail. He flinches and groans as the pain in his arm throbs sharply, then breathes heavily and says “and what will happen when you get tired of my stupid blundering, my causing incidents all around? You will want me far away from you, and I wouldn’t blame you for it.” Shou and Byakuren stare in shock at Ail as he walks around them, taking the road to the Human Village, but before leaving he says “thank you for everything. I really appreciate it. But please, do yourselves a favor; keep away from me and live in peace.” Ail begins his walk to the village backward at first, making sure neither Byakuren or Shou follow him, then turns around after a light bow and heads toward the village. Meanwhile, at the Hakurei Shrine, Kanako lands next to the hot springs and looks around. Glaring around, she walks to the donation box and looks all around it, then continues her way to the shrine’s back. Standing where she can’t be seen from the open sliding doors, she glares all around, but sighs disappointed and turns around to find Reimu staring angrily at her while crossing her arms. Reimu asks “and what, or who might you be looking for?” Kanako stutters for a while as Reimu stares at her with accusing eyes, but then she sighs and clams down, then says “I... did something terrible, Reimu. I want to fix it.” Reimu smirks and says “if you really want to fix it, let Ail come to you instead of hunting him down.” Kanako gasps and opens her eyes wide and asks “you-you know? How?” Reimu chuckles and says “we could feel everything from over here, and as to ‘how exactly’... well that’s our little secret.” Kanako lets out a small, defeated smile, then asks “what about Budou?” Reimu’s eyes show anger after Kanako’s question, but she manages to calmly reply “we had to put a sleep spell on her to calm her down... but she’ll be ok. Now, you should go and repair that shrine of yours, and while you do that, you better think about your actions.” Kanako looks down to the ground away from Reimu, then says “fine. I may have done enough damage as it is, anyway.” Kanako flies away, immediately heading back to the Moriya Shrine, then Suwako jumps from behind a tree and nods at Reimu while saying “thank you very much.” Reimu smiles and says “it was my pleasure.” Sounding relieved, Suwako says “at least I know she wasn’t looking to finish him off after all.” Reimu smiles and says “she’s thick-headed at times, but she still has heart.” From inside the shrine, Minoriko shouts “Reimu~ We’re out of yams!” Annoyed, Reimu shouts back “then go ahead and grow some more!”
At the entrance to the Human Village, Ail peeks inside and sees Kyo’s house. The doors are closed and so are all the windows. Kyo is out, so going in would be a bad idea. He looks at his clothes and thinks “I’m like a walking corpse... I should go around regardless.” Ail is about to turn away from the village and head all the way around it, but finds Medicine and Kyo behind him, looking worried at him. Kyo asks “you weren’t planning on going around the village in that state, right?” Ail is lost for words and just glares back at Kyo. Medicine says “that arm must hurt. What if a wild youkai attacks you?” Looking more concerned, Kyo says “for what is worth, I’m sorry I made you go to that hell, my friend.” Ail takes to steps backward and says “don’t start apologizing! It wasn’t your fault. All this is my OWN fault, alright!? Now, let me go before I cause another mess around-“ Ail’s third step back reveals Luna right behind him, smiling widely and saying “you can say the stupidest things when unsettled. Look, let us at least walk you to the doctor. Nothing more.” Ail panics and manages to summon energy from his own life force to jump over Luna, reaching the top of the roof of their two-story house. Ail shouts “stay AWAY! All I cause is trouble for those around me!” Kyo activates the amplifier on his waist and says “tch! When will you learn to listen to advice!?” He flies after Ail, making him jump, using more of his life force energy. Kyo clenches his teeth and says “dammit! He can be so stubborn!” Ail lands on Renko and Maribel’s roof, but bends his foot when he lands and falls to the ground. Before touching the hard ground he clenches his eyes shut and thinks “this is it.” but there’s a loud rumble and Ail feels as though he sliding. When he opens his eyes again he spots a large patch of dirt in the shape of a tall slide, and Renko and Maribel staring at him from behind the patch. Ignoring the sharp throbbing pain from his arm, he manages to get up, then says “th-thanks. Now please, let me through.” Maribel notices his right arm, now swollen so much it looks like the blessed bracelet could pop off at any moment. She gasps and shouts “Ail, what happened to your arm!?” Renko exclaims “whoa!!! Ail, what the hell are you doing!? Get going to Eirin’s, now!” Ail backs away from the two girls and says “s-sure... Just keep away from me!” To Ail’s dismay, Keine flies straight to him, cutting him off from escaping, and sounding very serious she says “Anilan, what the hell happened to you? That arm, those cuts, your face!? And you are using your life force as energy!? Come with me, I’m taking you to Eirin’s Clinic RIGHT NOW!” Ail tries to speak, but gets really nervous when Kyo, Luna and Medicine arrive and surround him. He gets so scared he starts to tremble, then shouts “you keep AWAY!” Kyo calmly says “look, we are just trying to help you.” Ail shouts back “NO, just get AWAY!” He summons energy from his life force, but feels as if he can’t move, yet still feels very comfortable. He looks above himself and sees Unzan holding on to him tightly, then hears Ichirin shouting “don’t squeeze him too hard, Unzan. That arm’s hurt enough!” She waves at Kyo and says “don’t worry bro, we’ll take him to the clinic!” Byakuren and Shou fly next to Ichirin, then wave back at Kyo as he shouts “make sure he stops jumping around!” Ichirin giggles and says “he won’t be escaping Unzan that easily.” Byakuren, in a serious tone of voice says “enough chit-chat. Let’s take him to the doctor’s!” Keine shouts “do you know the way?” From farther ahead, Mokou shouts “Don’t worry! I’ll guide them there. Let’s go!” As they all leave with Ail trapped by Unzan, Kyo looks toward his friend and says “he’s broken...”
Kanako arrives to the Moriya Shrine at early noon, and just before landing next to the shrine’s entrance, the mirror on her chest falls off, making a loud clanking sound upon hitting the ground. Kanako looks at it and says “what the hell? This never happened before.” She bends down and picks it up, and immediately sees the image of Ail smiling at her. When she looks into the mirror, she realizes it’s the day before, when they were fighting Mirida. Ail has just received Kanako’s mirror into his heart and immediately she hears his thoughts, saying “a blessing from Kanako. There’s no way I can lose now.” The scene moves ahead by the time Ail is out of energy. He thinks “I... I don’t believe this. I’m gonna end up dead at this pace. Ugh! This is all my fault. These shadows, and these incidents.. all my fault. I am so glad... I got so many friends by my side, specially the goddesses. Yes, that’s right. I got three goddesses here with me. I know I can count on them.. but... what can I do for them in return? Maybe more faith in Kanako and Suwako as a start? But what about Sanae, she’s a living goddess... Does faith work for her too?” By now, Kanako’s eyes fill with tears as she trembles and falls on the shrine’s porch, sitting down as she stares into the mirror. Now she’s looking into his dreams, where he’s flying over Gensokyo, and to his left, Sanae flies along with him, shortly followed by Budou, who flies in between them. They reach the Moriya Shrine, greeting the goddesses with a bow, then Ail grabs a yellow thread from the ground, and with an excited smile on his face he flies away until he reaches the Hakurei Shrine. He hands Reimu the thread and she ties it on a wooden support inside her own shrine. Both shrines start glowing at the same time, then the humans and youkai arrive to both shrines, filling them with light as they all share a smile with each other, all living in harmony. A dark cloud rises just above Ail, unsettling him and making him run away toward a blank area. He’s alone and scared; the only other thing in there with him is a dark version of himself, laughing at him and torturing his mind with visions of his friend’s death. Out of nowhere many of Ail’s friends come and fly straight to him. Reimu, Remilia, Reisen, Byakuren, Shou, Kyo and many more, all aiding him with hope, however, it’s still not enough and he continues to be pushed away by his dark self. Sanae and Budou now stand behind him, smiling and waving at him, giving him more hope, aiding him as he fights back, but it’s still not enough. He uses his bracelet and summons Kanako and Suwako. The boost of power he gets from their presence allows him to push the darkness away, however, Kanako watches as her other self in Ail’s dream glares at him from behind with glowing red eyes, then her dream self stare back at her real self and smiles. Kanako can’t watch anymore. She closes her eyes as she covers the mirror with her left hand. When she opens her tear-filled eyes, right in front of her stands Ayalina, staring back at her with a serious expression. They stare at each other for some time, then Kanako asks “aren’t you going to beat me to a pulp?” Ayalina replies “as much as I’d want to, I believe you are being punished enough as it is.” Kanako tries to smile, but only ends up frowning and looking to the ground. Ayalina sighs and sits next to Kanako and says “he really trusted you, and I’ll never understand why. Well, other than Kyo, he’s never really had luck with friends.” Kanako raises her head to meet Ayalina’s eyes, though is unable to ask, but Ayalina quickly answers “before his friends here in Gensokyo, Kyo was Ail’s only real friend, though I don’t know about you, because like you, his other ‘friends’ betrayed him. Still, from what I can see in that mirror, he really had the outmost faith in you... and somehow... Well, never mind that.” With a cracked voice, Kanako says “but... he was taking Sanae away from me. I...” Ayalina sighs and says “and to me, it felt like your Sanae was taking Ail away from me. Whenever we talked, all he talked about, other than the adventures he got into, was Sanae. I got a bit jealous at first, but I came to accept it.” Ayalina gets closer to Kanako’s ear and says “though, between you and me, he’s as thick as a brick on these matters *giggle*” Kanako manages to chuckle a little before asking “will he ever forgive me?” Ayalina stands up and says “well, he may be thick, but he’s got a big heart. He’ll forgive you. Now, I want to ask you...” Kanako looks at Ayalina as she gets up and backs away saying “...please, try and be a little more understanding. And you could use some more tact, dear.” With those words, right in front of Kanako’s eyes, Ayalina disappears, making a loud “poof” and leaving behind a small bed of flowers that turn to magical dust after some time. Kanako stays sitting where she is, placing both hands on her face while thinking how to make Sanae, Ail and Budou forgive her for what she’s done.
At the Bamboo Forest of the Lost, before reaching Eirin’s Clinic, Ichirin sounds disappointed when she says “so you’re Ail. Lady Hijiri said you were wise, but all I see is a cry-baby.” A vein pops on Ail’s forehead as he smirks dangerously at Ichirin and replies “well, lady, I truly don’t care what you think. Let me go before I cause trouble for you too!” Ichirin replies “I’m Ichirin Kumoi, and the one holding you is Unzan, and you made Hijiri nee-sama worried. If she’s worried, I’m worried. So no, I’m not letting you go.” Byakuren flies closer to Ichirin and whispers something, then Ichirin says “I see... Well, I believe this is the place?” Mokou lands next to the gates of Entei and says “you are correct.” Unzan places Ail gently on the ground inside the grounds of Entei, then Ichirin says “there, you see? Nothing happened! And if anything did happen, you got plenty of friends to take care of anything that does pop up.” Ail quickly backs away from the small group hovering above him and asks “well, what if I am the problem!? What would you do then?” Ichirin gasps and is unable to answer. Byakuren and Shou look away, unable to answer either. Ail scoffs and says “that’s what I though.” From the clinic, Eirin says “I was wondering when you might show up! Come on, let’s take a look at...” Ail looks at Eirin and Reisen as they stand next to the door to the clinic. Like a frightened animal, Ail stares back, unblinking, as he slowly backs away. Eirin takes a good look at him and says “Udonge, go stand by in the living room. I’ll call you if I need you.” Confused, Reisen stares at Eirin, but quickly realizes her master is serious, so she straightens out and says “right away, Master. Please don’t hesitate to call me.” Eirin smiles tenderly, sending chills down Reisen’s spine, then says “oh don’t worry. I won’t.” After Reisen leaves Eirin looks up and says “thank you very much for bringing him here. Please, allow me to handle things from here.” Byakuren and Shou stare at Eirin for a moment, then Byakuren says “understood. Please let us know what happens. Come on ladies and Unzan.” Mokou is already gone from the gate when Byakuren, Shou, Ichirin and Unzan fly by. Ail relaxes and Eirin quickly notices this and smiles while saying “it’s alright. They are all gone. It’s just you and me now. Come on in and I’ll treat those wounds.” Ail hesitates for a moment, but slowly walks toward the clinic, spotting Kaguya, Tewi and Reisen staring at him concernedly from inside the mansion. He stops and without looking at Kaguya he says “you were right about me, Princess of the Moon.” He continues walking to Eirin, leaving Kaguya surprised inside the large mansion. Eirin opens the door, allowing him inside the clinic, then follows him inside.
Suwako arrives to the Moriya Shrine, spotting Kanako restoring the grounds on her own, however, doing so half-heartedly. Suwako lands and walks to Kanako and in a rough and angry tone of voice she asks “so? Are you happy?” Kanako’s eyes hide under a dark shadow, tears falling non-stop trough her cheeks. Suwako sighs, crosses her arms, then says “I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have said that... but you had it coming.” Kanako sweeps some dirt inside the hole made by Ail’s final attack, then lifts her arms in the air, trying to summon one of her logs, but her voice cracks and she is unable to. Suwako notices the mirror is missing again, then looks desperately around, then shouts “Kanako, where’s the mirror!? Please tell me you didn’t!!” Kanako drops her arms and points toward the shrine, with her left arm. Suwako sighs with relief, and gasps when realizing something and asks “what did you see?!” Kanako doesn’t answer, so Suwako desperately shouts “dammit Kanako, what did you see!?” Kanako starts to hyperventilate, then drops on her knees and drops herself on Suwako, embracing her tightly and crying “I made a horrible mistake! I should have listened! But Sanae... Now she...” After recovering from the surprise, Suwako hugs Kanako back and softly says “I warned you this could happen, but I know my granddaughter well. It might take some days... maybe a week, but she’ll forgive you.” Kanako continues to cry on Suwako’s shoulders under the dark and cloudy sky, feeling as though all hope has left her. Suwako pats Kanako’s back and says “look, too many things happened a little too fast, so maybe we should rest and...” Kanako cries harder as she says “Sanae... Ail... Budou... They’re gone! They’re not coming back!” Suwako can’t find any comforting words and seems she’s also falling into depression, and just when she’s about to cry the dark clouds begin to slowly split apart, allowing the noon sun to shrine on them. Suwako smiles as the warmth of the sun fills her body then pats Kanako’s head and says “they’ll all come back. You’ll see.” Suwako waits until Kanako calms down a bit, and with a smile on her face she says “so we better have this shrine clean and ready for when they do.” Kanako pushes herself away from Suwako to look into her eyes, then Suwako says “come on. This should take us the rest of the day, but it’ll be worth it.” Kanako sniffles and manages to smile back at Suwako, then wipes away a teardrop from her left eye with her finger and with a cracked, yet relaxed voice replies “l-let’s get started then *sniffle*.”
Meanwhile, Sanae and Kogasa fly above the Bamboo Forest, scanning the area thoroughly. Kogasa sighs and asks “nee-san, he might be back in his home already. Why don’t we check there?” Distracted, Sanae replies “huh? Oh, right... That...” Kogasa clenches her eyes and cries “that wasn’t even a sentence! Come on nee-san, cheer up! What if he sees you like that when we find him?” Sanae snaps out of her thoughts and says “wha-? Did you say something?” Before Kogasa complains, she and Sanae spot a large group of girls looking through the windows at Eirin’s Clinic. Sanae Recognizes Byakuren, Shou, Ichirin, Reisen, Kaguya, Tewi, Aya and Hina, so she and Kogasa exchange surprised stares before landing. Sanae asks “hey guys, what are you all-“ Ichirin shushes Sanae and whispers “Ail’s in there! He’s really jumpy, so we’re trying to keep qui-“ Sanae knocks Ichirin away as she rushes to a window, exclaiming “Ail is here!” Ichirin gets up from the ground, nods at Kogasa, then both find another window to peek through. Inside the clinic, Eirin approaches Ail with a scalpel and says “I’m going to have to cut that sleeve off.” Ail softly says “go ahead...” He looks at a small mirror on a small table next to the bed he’s sitting on and notices the onlookers on the windows, paying more attention at Sanae, who stares back at him through the mirror with longing eyes. Ail sighs, so Eirin says “I can put up a curtain if you want.” Ail softly replies “it’s alright... They’re away from me... away from danger.” Concerned and curious, Eirin tries to look into Ail’s eyes as she removes his shirt, cutting it from the right side in order to remove it. After removing it, she gasps at the sight. Outside, even Byakuren winces and says “my goodness! How is he even alive!?” Sanae quietly continues to watch, now concern filling her longing eyes. Ail’s back is full of dried up stab wounds, and looks as though he’s been badly burned. His entire right arm is swollen all the way up to his shoulder, where the stab wound there is still bleeding a little, while his left arm looks less damaged, but still burned. His chest is full of cuts and bruises, and his abdomen is one large black bruise as well. Angrily, Eirin says “Ail, what in the world happened to you? You should have come STRAIGHT to me! Look at you! It’s a miracle you’re even alive!!!” Eirin touches Ail’s left arm, then gasps and says “and your life force... Ail...” Sounding concerned now, she lets go of his arm and asks “what happened to you?” Ail looks down and in a low, yet angry tone of voice, Ail says “Eirin... you’ve been alive for a long time...” Eirin smiles dangerously at Ail, but before she says anything Ail rises his voice and letting a few tears escape him he says “Eirin, I’m serious!! Of all my fr... of all the people I know, you are the only one I can ask this. You’ve met many, you’ve seen a lot. Eirin... am I a villain? Am I... a bad person?” Eirin is left in shock at the question. At first, she is hesitant to answer, but summons the courage, sighs, then says “Ail, every single one of us have both light and darkness in us. There is no way for one to survive without the other. That is why the paths we choose through life define who we are... and no, I don’t believe you are.” Ail sighs with great relief, then looks at Eirin’s eyes and asks “and do you think I belong here in Gensokyo, then?” Eirin closes her eyes, letting out some air through her nose and with her eyes closed still she says “that answer... I cannot give to you. You are the only one that can answer that question for yourself. Now, let’s treat those injuries...” Again, Ail looks to the mirror, exchanging sad stares with Sanae, then looks away as Eirin begins to treat him.
The girls outside the clinic grow more impatient as the minutes pass by, and all are talking among each other, but when Ail screams Sanae is the first to reach the window. Inside, Eirin says “I’m sorry, but I’m going to have to use a sleeping drug on you now. This will be too painful for you to bare.” Ail breathes with difficulty and grunts lightly, then nods and gruffly says “yeah... go ahead.” From outside, Sanae places her hand on the window, wishing she could reach inside. Kogasa places a hand on her shoulder and says “nee-san... Maybe it would be best if you didn’t watch.” Sanae sighs and says “I guess you’re right, Kogasa.” From the distance, Byakuren shouts “look, the sun’s back out, so why don’t we all calm down and have a picnic while we wait?” All the other girls look to Byakuren and exclaim “eeh~!?” Byakuren and Shou have set up a large checkered red and white blanket with food and drinks on it, inviting the girls over, and quickly the other girls join in, all finding a comfortable spot to sit on while they eat, however, one spot remains empty. Sanae takes another look inside the clinic through the window and spots Ail lying on the bed with his broken arm extended on a small table. Eirin is on the side of the window, and surprising Sanae she calmly says “you better go eat something. I’ll be done in an hour or so.” Sanae places her hand on her chest and takes a few breaths to calm down after the surprise, then lowers her head and blushes as her stomach rumbles, then says “I guess... I should...” Hungry but reluctant, Sanae leaves the window and heads to Byakuren’s picnic, receiving a rice-ball after sitting down. She takes a bite while her mind wanders, but the though suddenly strikes her. She looks to her left, then the right, then asks “um... miss Byakuren?” With an angelical smile on her face, Byakuren asks “what is it, dear? Is something wrong?” Sanae looks around and says “I don’t see any ovens or barbecues. How did you make all this?” Byakuren continues to smile as she lifts a finger in the air, waves it, then says “that’s a secre~t.” Shou approaches Sanae and asks “miss Sanae? What’s a barbecue?” About an hour passes when Eirin finally comes out of the clinic. She approaches the girls and with a tired smile she says “I managed to relieve the swelling and place a cast on his arm.” Sanae springs up and rapidly asks “is he going to be ok!? Can we go see him!? Why is he running away from us!?” Calmly, Eirin signals Sanae to calm down and sit down, and after Sanae sits back down she says “he’ll be alright. If he didn’t have youkai blood in him... Anyway, right now he’s very scared. He believes he’s the cause of all the shadows and he thinks that by keeping away from us, he’ll keep us safe.” Sanae springs to her feet again and shouts “that’s foolish! Why on earth would he be thinking such things?” Eirin sighs and asks “why did you strike his face like that?” Sanae falls on the blanket again, this time with an embarrassed and sad look on her face. Before she can explain, Eirin says “you can explain later. I promised him none of us would be around when he leaves, so let’s head inside.” Reisen asks “Master, is it really ok to let him leave so soon? Those injuries were...” Eirin nods and says “even if I force him to stay, he’ll just escape any way he can. I rather he leaves peacefully than fight his way out.”
After the girls enter the mansion, Eirin closes the sliding doors and rings a bell she pulls out of her pocket. Ail cautiously opens the clinic’s door and looks around. After seeing the coast is clear he exits the clinic and walks as fast as he can to the gates. He’s wearing the broken shirt he had come in with, and a large cast that hangs on a white band that’s tide to his neck. His face is full of small bandages, and one large bandage on his left cheek, and through a gap on his shirt, many more bandages can be seen surrounding his entire torso. By now, there are many eyes peering through the many cracks on the windows, and Sanae, Byakuren and Shou’s heads hanging from an opening on the slightly open sliding doors. Sanae notices the cast covers his entire arm, all the way up to his shoulder, and she also notices a bump on the cast, around where his wrist is. Sanae asks “you couldn’t remove the bracelet?” Eirin casually says “it’s magically bound to him.” Sanae sighs and says “I have to apologize to him.” Reisen has set up a table with tea for everyone in the room, so Eirin grabs Sanae’s shoulder, just before she runs after Ail, waving her finger left and right and clicking her tongue. She drags the wind priestess to the table and sits her in front of a cup of tea, then says “perhaps you should explain why the cut on his face?” Sanae sighs and says “I was tricked... by someone I trusted and loved... someone I had so much faith on.” Ail arrive to the Hakurei Shrine at late noon. Though he is able to fly again after resting at the clinic, he’s still flying slowly. Out by the shrine’s gate is Reimu, standing there, waiting for him to land. Ail slowly lands a few feet away from her, then says “don’t get too close. I’m dangerous.” Reimu looks annoyed at him and says “pipe down. You’re as dangerous as a hairball right now.” Ail smiles and says “well, at least I’m not as icky.” Reimu smiles and replies “you still look terrible.” Ail replies “try fighting two powerful goddesses at the same time.” Reimu sighs and asks “so why did you come here?” Ail lowers his head just slightly, then turns his sight to the hot spring and says “I know that you know all that’s happened. I came here... so you could seal my powers away.” Reimu is surprised by his request, but hides her surprise with a smile, then asks “why would I do that?” Ail turns his sight to her and says “I broke the spell card rule, I used a dangerous power, and I almost destroyed Gensokyo with that last spell. Besides... all my powers ever cause is trouble.” Reimu crosses her arms in front of her chest and staring angrily at Ail she says “if you weren’t injured I’d smack that thick head of yours.” Ail stares confused at Reimu, then she says “there’s no need, Ail. What happened today was an accident caused by someone other than yourself.” Ail quickly says “doesn’t that sound familiar.” Reimu sighs and says “look, you are tired. Go home and rest. Take a few days, lock that door, don’t come out and just... rest.” Ail looks down to the ground for a moment, then Reimu asks “is that all?” Ail says “Mima mentioned Budou was here, so...” From the side of the shrine, Budou comes running straight at Ail, crying “papa~! Papa, you’re ok~!” Ail kneels down and extends his left arm, welcoming Budou’s hug. He winces in pain the moment Budou hugs him, though she doesn’t crash on him or squeeze him too tightly. She cries on his shirt “I wanted to help you! I wanted to help papa~!” He hugs her back, softly saying “it’s ok. It’s alright, Budou.” From farther away, Chen, Ran, Phredia, Mima and Rika look at him with pity as he hugs Budou. Ail glares back, then nods at them, letting a small smile escape his lips. He lets go of Budou and looking into her eyes he says “let’s go home, Budou.” He looks at Phredia and shouts “you too, miss guardian fairy.” As Phredia flies straight to Budou, Reimu asks “are you sure about that?” Ail says “she’s got Phredia. She’ll protect Budou, even from me if she has to.” After slowly lifting to the air, Ail and Budou fly back to Ail’s house at the Forest of Magic. Rika approaches Reimu and asks “are you sure about this? He did break your rules.” Reimu smiles as she places an arm around Rika’s neck, making the maid blush pink and says “remember what I promised the yama.” Mima quietly stares at the skies toward Ail and Budou as they slowly fly back home.
It’s a dark night, and half of the grounds at the Moriya Shrine have already been restored, save for a few trees and landscapes directly in front of the shrine itself, and the large hole left by Ail’s last attack a few feet farther ahead. Inside the shrine Suwako eats the soup she has prepared, sitting besides two empty spots at the small table. Kanako sits next to the shrine’s donation box, completely lost in though. She hears a pair of feet patting hard on the ground, but before she has time to look, a small but strong whirlwind picks her up from the ground and tosses her toward the restored path to the shrine’s gates, forcing the goddess to land on her face. Kanako lifts her head and instinctively says “Sanae, I’m so sorry.” From the shadows Sanae asks “why? What did we ever do to you? I had faith in you, I cared about you, I helped you... WE. Yes, it’s not just ‘I’, but ‘WE’! Why would you do that to us?” Kanako manages to sit on the ground and crosses her legs under her skirt, and while staring at the ground in front of her, she says “I was jealous and scared!” Sanae reveals herself from the shadows and stands right in front of Kanako, staring angrily at her and saying “that’s not good enough!” Kanako turns her face away from Sanae and tries to turn around, but Sanae smirks and says “oh no, you are not!” She jumps on the goddess and quickly the sounds of smacking, punching, accompanied by Kanako’s please for mercy echo through the darkness of the night. When everything seems to settle down, Kanako’s cream of agony echo all the way to the tengu, where Aya, in order to calm the other tengu down says to them “relax! That’s just the sound of a goddess learning!” Back at the shrine, Sanae has Kanako trapped in a figure 4 leg-lock and is pulling down on Kanako’s leg, looking more and more angry by the second. Kanako’s left pupil pulsates while the right takes the shape of a misshapen star as the goddess punches the ground with her left fist and shouts “Sanae! Uncle, UNCLE!!!” Ignoring Kanako’s pleas Sanae asks again “why!?” Sanae pulls Kanako’s leg again, making the goddess clench her eyes tight and hold her head with both hands. Sanae loosens her grip, giving Kanako a break, then again asks “for the last time... why!!?” Kanako breathes for a moment, then says “I wanted to break your bond with him. He was taking you away, and I didn’t like it. He almost stole you from us!” Sanae pulls Kanako’s leg again and shouts “what kind of brainless, thick-headed, nonsensical tomfoolery is that!!?” Trying to ignore the pain, Kanako shouts “I didn’t want to lose you!!” Sanae pulls Kanako’s leg again and shouts “you idiot, what the hell made you think I’d abandon you!? I’d NEVER do that to either of you. You are my family!” Sanae suddenly lets go of Kanako’s leg after a loud cracking noise and rolls away, standing up almost immediately. Kanako stays on the ground, staring at the sky as she feels relief from the pain, and at the same time, feeling like a fool. When she really thinks about it, Sanae’s never really abandoned them once. She always did her chores, spent time with them, collected faith. This realization hits Kanako hard and while staring blankly at the night sky she asks “what the hell happened? Why didn’t I see all this before?” Sanae stands next to Kanako and angrily shouts “because you were too focused in ruining his life!” Sanae looks to her right and says “hold it right there, you!” A few feet away, Suwako tries to tip-toe away to safety, but Sanae sees her. With a horrifying smile on her face, Sanae reaches for Suwako. Kanako covers her eyes as the sounds of smacks, crunching bones and Suwako’s screams unsettle the night. Sanae tosses Suwako’s hat to Kanako and angrily say “I’m going to bed!” Suwako pops her bruised face from inside the hat as Kanako asks “you hate us, don’t you?” Sanae sighs and calmly says “Kanako, Suwako, you are my family. There is no way I could ever hate either of you...” She turns around, showing her anger at disappointment in her eyes and shouts “but right now I am angry at you two; angry enough to rip you to shreds! So if you don’t mind, I don’t want to see you for a couple of days! Now... GOOD-NIGHT!” Sanae storms to the shrine and after a while the door to her room slams shut. Afterward, Kanako lifts Suwako’s hat in order to look eye-to-eye, then excitedly says “she doesn’t hate us! She’s not going to leave us!” From inside the hat, Suwako says “auu~ I’m hurting in places I didn’t know I had!” Kanako drops on her back, spreading her arms as she falls and letting Suwako roll around while still inside Pyonta and says “I can’t feel my legs.”
At Ail’s house, Budou convinces Ail to lie on his bed, saying “now you stay in bed and rest. I’ll take care of papa until you are all better!” Ail smiles and says “thank you very much, Budou.” Phredia comes from the corridor, holding a cup of warm tea with her magic and slowly brings it to Budou, who helps Ail drink it, saying “Hakurei sis and miss Rika told how to make this while we waited for you to come, but she couldn’t really teach me... so~” Ail takes a sip expecting the worse, but to his surprise, the tea was practically perfect. He takes a quick second gulp and exclaims “MMM~ Budou this is incredible!” Budou giggles and Phredia nods with a smile as Ail finishes his cup of tea. He smacks his lips and says “wow, I am impressed. This was very delicious. Hope you didn’t go through too much trouble. Ah, I know. I’ll do the dishes for you-“ Budou scolds him, saying “ah-ah-ah! Papa stays in bed! You are tired, so I’ll take care of everything while you rest!” Ail frowns and sadly says “y-yes... I guess you’re right.” Ail accommodates himself, preparing to sleep, while Budou and Phredia leave the room, and just before they close the door, Ail says “Budou... Phredia? Thank you... very much.” Budou and Phredia smile angelically back at him, then Budou says “papa always takes care of Budou, so I take care of papa this time!” Ail smiles at them then lies on his back, staring at the ceiling before closing his eyes. Budou and Phredia quietly close the door and head to the kitchen, where Budou wipes the sweat off her forehead and says “phew! Thank goodness. If papa sees this mess, he’d never rest!” Phredia nods at Budou, then both look at the tower of dirty pots, pans, dishes, and a few burn marks around the cabinets above the stove. Inside Ail’s room, Ail continues to stare at the ceiling, thinking “I truly want to smile at her... really feel appreciative for her effort... dear Budou... But I can’t feel a thing. What’s wrong with me?”
To be continued...
Characters and scenario belong to ZUN -Team Shanghai Alice-
Ail, Kyo, Luna, Budou and Phredia were created by Willie G.R.
Rika was created by Snapshot2010
JAN 23 2010
Written by
Willie G.R.
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