[x] Mingle, casually.

I stepped aside from Byakuren - I would, after all, have plenty of time alone with her later. For now, I had finally rooted out the last of our shared enemy’s pawns, and thereby completed the ‘duty’ my wife had so lovingly foisted on me. Now, I would be damn certain to make the most of what remained of this festival. So, naturally, I glanced around the party for the… damn it. We had just stamped out the booze trail. Worse, it would do me precisely zero good to be seen attempting to bum sake off other attendees.

Resigned to my sobriety, I settled for swiping a small carrying plate, piling some leftover takoyaki onto it, and nibbling on it as I drifted through the thinner crowd. Small talk murmured around me and I even got to exchange a few pleasantries back, but little of interest came to my ears or from my lips, until I found myself wandering back to Byakuren’s unruly inner circle.

Minamitsu clapped me on the back, laughing. “Well, well, well. If it ain’t the blushin’ bride!”

I yelped as her hand struck me, but straightened myself and cleared my throat. “Excuse me. I am the triumphant lor-” But promptly, my brow furrowed. After all my insistences, I could not duck from the feminine moniker. “The… triumphant lady.”

She rolled her eyes. “Sure ya are, sure ya are. That’s why the two of ya disappeared together for so long. Really gettin’... cozy with one another, ain’cha?”

I opened my mouth to protest, but Ichirin beat me to the objection. “Clearly, it’s because more of those kidnappers were still loose. Byakuren would never sink to such activities under these conditions! Honestly, can’t you think of anything else to talk about?”

Minamitsu answered with a huff and pointed shrug. “Fine, fine.” And immediately, she swung around to my side and bumped her shoulder against mine. “Say, after all the events we’ve so generously invited you too, maybe you could return the favor, eh?”

To that, my eyes narrowed and my ears sharpened, just what was she-

“Maybe… a little, hm… post-bachelor-”

I huffed. “Bachelorette. And besides, it’s not like I was truly single before my ressurr-”

To that, her eyes rolled again. “Fine, a posthumous-bachelorette party. Just uh, you, me, Ichirin… and Shou, I guess~”

Ah. Desires for meat and good sake reached my ears. She wanted to sample some of my own favored dishes… without my wife around to complain about their… contents.

I could not help a condescending smile as I answered with open palms and a shrug. For all their talk of discipline and asceticism, compared to my own disciples, they-

A fresh hand clapped my shoulder, swiftly turning my smile to a scowl. Honestly, these damn Buddhists needed to learn the virtues of personal spa… the hand had to reach from considerably further down than any Buddhist I knew, and given its fixation on Kanako and Sanae…

“Excuse me, girls. But this bride and I need to have a little chat~”

I huffed, but had the grace to turn my gaze gently, where I found Suwako releasing my shoulder and stepping back. With a cup of sake in her right hand, she waved with her left. “Got all those spies rounded up, did ya?”

To that, I answered by puffing out my chest. “Of course! Against my keen ears and my new wife’s might, there was no challenge for us.” But, sensing the tension, I chose to slip in a slight touch of the diplomatic. “Of course, none of this would have been possible, if not for Sanae’s generous assistance in our earlier confrontation.”

Suwako took a sip of her cup, then released a satisfied sigh. And a belch. “Of course, of course. And speaking of that wife, I do hope you two aren’t thinking of doing anything rash in the coming weeks. You’ve made my dear partner quite nervous lately, you know.” Her eyes then narrowed. “I’d hate to see her pushed into any… rash deci-”

“Ah! Lady Suwako, there you are!”

At once, Suwako flinched. But though her eyes scowled, I did not miss the upward twitch in her lips. She and I both spun around to find a woman of similar stature marching toward us with indomitable pride, her gray topknot flopping every which way with each step. …And behind Futo, strode Sana-no, Sanae blitzed past Futo to race up to Suwako and throw her head downward in a deep bow. “Lady Suwako, we did it! We caught the mastermind, and I punished her properly for making fun of you!”

Futo scrambled up to her side. And then, planting hands on her knees, huffing, she turned her own gaze my way. “Y-yea! The foul wench, Ms. Fu-”

I slapped a hand over her mouth, then turned a stern gaze both to her and Sanae. “Let’s not shout these matters to the world, shall we?”

Suwako answered her shrine maiden by patting her head - and earning an abashed but happy giggle in response. With a sigh, my own gaze, softening to a warm smile, turned to my own disciple. “Good job, Futo.”

To which Futo giggled as she bowed. “I hast performed only my job, crown pr-”

“Over here, mother. Your wife’s been lonely.”

Byakuren murmured. “Please, Kokoro, we’re both busy right now. If you could just-”

I glanced aside. Now Kokoro was dragging someone else into this already crowded cluster of people. And of course, it was Byakuren, herself.

“Hurry, before she tires of your presence, or forgets her responsibilities.”

I let out a tiny groan at that. Me? Abandoning my responsibilities? I never do anything of the sort!

Still, it seemed unlikely the damn menreiki would let go of this any time soon, so, I…

I blinked. There was one other cluster of desires that rose among the crowd. One I recognized not for its intensity, but for its uncomfortable familiarity. One of the first people I heard after my revival. Casting my eyes around once more, I spotted one new figure now lingering just outside the festivities. Someone with a tense gaze, composed half of wariness, half of self-consciousness, turned our way. Someone with brown hair and a big red bow behind her head.

Reimu. The woman who’d dragged me into this farce to start.

[ ] I turned aside to deal with Kokoro before she made a big mess of anything.

[ ] I slipped away to address the mysterious shrine maiden’s arrival.

[ ] I yoinked Byakuren off of Kokoro, and slipped away, alone, with my wife.

[ ] I stuck with this messy cluster for now, ignoring the menreiki as best I could.

[x] I slipped away to address the mysterious shrine maiden’s arrival.

“Excuse me, ladies, darling.” I smiled, warm at Byakuren and Futo, tight at Kokoro, polite to the rest. And then promptly pushed my way through the crowds, toward the lurking shrine maiden. And as much as I feared her business, her desires gave me some optimism. Worried and wanting to ensure we upheld our end of the deal, of course. But also… remorse.

“Get back here, mother. You need to kiss your w-”

“Fie, thine scheme! Mine honorable prince hast yet her congratulations incomplete.”

I flinched. “I’ll be back soon, I promise.” From there, I tuned out both the menreiki’s meddlesome blather and my disciples injured huff. I’d need to make things up to her later as well, I feared. More than a few eyes followed my exodus from Byakuren’s company, just one of the prices I paid for participating in this… oh, who was I kidding? It was the price of fame, and one I’d happily pay tenfold more, even as their shifting attention made the red shrine maiden flinch and brought her own gaze my way far sooner than I’d have preferred. I sighed, but kept my gaze calm in a conscious effort not to spook her much further. Her sudden urge to flee the party entirely rather drowned out the goals that I actually wanted to hear. In fact, she’d already turned aside and-

I lurched forward, clapping a palm atop her shoulder and pulling her back just long enough for my soft, charming voice to reach her ear. “What is it you wish to say, dear maiden?”

She paused, then cast a sideways glance backward. One devoid of the mushy warmth I’d hoped for. “Shouldn’t you save that language for someone else? One specific other woman?”

Ah. Of course. The deal. Her desires now made it all too clear. Convince the world Byakuren and I were madly in love for two weeks, and she’d reward each of us with a favor of our choice. She’d come to check up on it this evening, and now I had interrupted her quiet performance evaluation. How terrible of me. But amid the shrine maiden’s frustration, that feeling returned. Doubt, remorse. Even fear. A desire to escape the looming consequences of her own actions, hm? Quite curious. I sighed again, more pointedly and dramatically, this time. I turned my voice another notch down, nearly to a whisper now. “You’ve heavy matters on your heart. Shall we take this somewhere a little more private?”

Her gaze soured, and her answer came under her breath. “That’s not helping, you know.”

But I just smiled. She only half intended me to hear it, anyways. Instead, I gestured back toward the temple. And with a quiet groan, she turned now to fully face me, then march past m-she grabbed my wrist and hauled me to-away from the temple, toward the outer gate. I yelped as I spun and stumbled to keep up with her. “The wilderness is hardly the place for…”

But I had to trail off. Her grip only tightened, and her desires didn’t even waver at my protest. So, I meekly shuffled after her. Best not to anger this woman most days, even when your blank check to victory didn’t ride on her satisfaction. I did, however, cast a friendly wave back to the disciples I left, earning me an adorable pout from Kokoro as I passed. “Pardon me, we’ve some business to attend to real quick. I’ll be back in just a moment, my love!”

Byakuren chuckled, but couldn’t quite hide the faint flush of her cheeks. She was no Tojiko, but at least she showed some of the proper reverence for my charms! Finally! Regardless, Reimu and I had barely stepped out of the gate before she veered us off the trail and a bit into the woods. Thankfully, the fairies were relatively sparse here. And since she was the one to choose the spot, I would not hold my tongue further. “Have we impressed you yet, Lady Hakurei?”

Reimu answered with a yet deeper scowl before she finally released my wrist to turn and rest her back against a nearby tree. Thankfully, these specimens proved to be of a relatively thin breed - and more importantly, with a relatively smooth bark. I opted instead to retrieve my shaku and lower it over my lips. She only snorted at my cool, mysterious gesture. “You’ve… done adequately. Actually, I, urgh…”

I tilted my head. That remorse only redoubled now. In fact, her desire to see the deal through had…

“You should have turned me down. Back when…” she pinched the bridge of her nose, “when this all started.

I tilted my head, now gently tapping the shaku to my chin. “Oh, when you were so desperate for our cooperation?”

Now, her face flushed an adorable shade of red as she pinched her eyes shut. “Don’t remind me. Please, don’t.”

Indeed. She stated her desire plenty clearly, but her heart screamed a similar request. I even began to wonder if we were not the only ones suffering a hangover that morning. I spun the shaku in place. “Regardless of what’s best, the deal is already in place. You’re not asking to renege on it, are you?”

She held quiet, quite a bit longer than I’d hoped. Her desires muddied up, but one of those urges was to do precisely that. Drop the deal here and now, forget it ever happened. I took a breath. Another wanted us to quietly forget. Another to pummel her past self into paste. But I still heard plenty on her desire to see it through to completion, and get a new angle to sell her shrine on.

I caught whispers of ‘shame’ and ‘glory’ and ‘easy money’ and ‘Bunbunmaru headlines’… the latter with some hope, but mostly fear.

I took a slow breath in through my nose, then a much longer, softer one out through my mouth. And at last, I lowered the shaku. You’ve come to the right place, Lady Hakurei. No one’s as great a counselor as-”

“Don’t!”

I blinked. Her face flushed deeper, now etched in a deep scowl.

“Don’t patronize me, Miko. Just… don’t embarrass me.”

I tilted my head. “Then, tell me what you want.” I tapped my shaku to her chest. “Where does your heart lie?”

She shoved my shaku aside and took a step aside, her gaze following suit… to the forest floor. “I just came to check on you. Make sure you don’t blow your cover. That’s all.”

Well, she at least told half the truth. But I had a rare chance here. My dealbroker felt fear and remorse, buttons I could press for more lenience, perhaps a shorter bargain, or further boons. But of course, one could hardly call it ‘safe’ to press another’s buttons, especially when they’re this volatile. And precisely what did I want when it all ended, anyway?

[ ] Suggest to cut the deal in half. One week from when it started, no longer.

[ ] Reassure Reimu. No one outperforms the prince!

[ ] Hug Reimu. I had to see-or feel-how she’d respond.

[ ] Suggest Reimu confess before the press beats her to it.

[x] Reassure Reimu. No one outperforms the prince!

My shaku rebuffed, I tapped my hand on her shoulder instead. “Then relax. As a woman of countless talents, I’m nearly as good a showwoman as I am a counselor. You could come to none better than I to protect you from embarrassment!”

She flinched, pushed my hand aside, and pressed a finger to my lips all in one frantic motion. “Then at least keep your voice down.”

I huffed, scowling back at her for such a rude interruption. For perhaps a split-second, I even considering changing direction. Certainly, her aggressive posture and nervous grimace-however cute it may be-riled up the urge to establish superiority. But no, I was too magnanimous for-

“And wipe that smug look off your face. It’s driving me crazy.”

I scowled again, this time with maybe just the teensiest bit of a pout in it. I stepped back and turned toward the temple once more, but made a point to flare out my cape as I did. “Very well. Then,” I cast my gaze back, forcing a humble-well, a less haughty-grin to my face, “I shall return to my wife, so we can finish celebrating our grand victory.” I offered her a hand, once more. “Care to join us?”

Her face flushed, just slightly. But she stomped past me, disregarding my hand. “I’m fine on my own.”

I sighed, but followed after. The poor girl was just so stubborn, so fixated on the unimportant details. ‘What will they think of me? Will people stop donating? How would Marisa take it?’ Silly nonsense that utterly paled in comparison to the favor of the imperial prince! But wisely, I held my tongue as I returned to the party.

But I scarcely made it through the outer gate before a single cluster of desires materialized out of thin air behind me. I twisted around, but not fast enough to keep a pair of hands from slamming against my shoulders and hurling me further forward. My dignified, royal yelp, however, fast found itself muffled by a considerable bust, heedless of the cloth that separated me from… I gulped, then pressed my hands to that bust to push off it. Yet even as I did, a heady mix of surprise, embarrassment, and pleasure hit me from the woman it belonged to. The normal pleasure, that is. Nothing inappropriate. At least, no more than where my face had planted. Regardless, I pushed off and stepped back so I could straighten my back and look Byakuren in the eyes.

Around us, humans boasted to giggling youkai. Couples wrapped themselves in one another’s arms. A flushed Ichirin and Shou may as well have cheered us on the way their sloppy grins fixated on us. Of course, Byakuren noticed none of that. She smiled, though that smile twitched as she fought to maintain her proper, polite demeanor. She then cast a sour-but adorable-pout over my shoulder, to… Murasa, who only snickered at us from the outer wall. Well, half of Murasa. Seems she had done some phantom trickery to ambush me the way she did. And of course, when my own gaze followed, the cheeky phantom answered only with a salute before she turned green and vanished.

I let out a giggle, one whose tone proved just a bit more abashed than I’d prefer. So to make up for that slip-up, I wrapped an arm around Byakuren’s waist and tapped my shaku beneath her chin. “The night is young, and our enemies subdued. Let’s make the most of our time together, shall we?”

Byakuren’s face turned a lovely-if still subdued-shade of pink. But that smile, still shaking, came out more sincere. She wrapped both arms behind my back, pulling me closer in. A simple question fell from her lips. “I love you, dear. But don’t we still have work to do?”

Now, it was my turn to pout. That question would have made excellent foreplay, but she uttered it in earnest! I shook my head, very emphatically. I would not dignify such a silly question with words - at first, that is. Instead, I nodded my head aside and thrust my shaku outward, gesturing to the crowds around us.

Though we’d cut the booze trail off at its roots, the drinks that slipped through left plenty of guests, human and youkai, quite unsteady, with a messy assortment of giggles, sniffles, and all. I caught no less than three different couples locking lips behind my wife’s back… including that bunny and her human boyfriend, who had to be exploring quite deep into… that didn’t matter. Sure, a few arguments-some of them rather slurred-broke out, but they were few, far between, and surrounded by plenty of people level-headed enough to keep any tragedies from occurring. Then, pointedly tapping one earmuff, I brought my gaze back to Byakuren. “Your festival is going fine. We have won. Don’t make me drag your lovely Buddhist butt to the fun.”

Now, Byakuren huffed. “I am perfectly capable of balancing my life. And you will refrain from mentioning such…” a brief pause followed, “parts of my body.” But barely a second passed before she added a rather curious addendum, barely above a whisper. “In such mixed company.”

I couldn’t help a faint chuckle at that. But as her eyes returned to mine, I only now realized I stared down a terrible dilemma. Byakuren, for all her ideals, lacked the spirit or experience to suggest a proper romantic activity, so I would have to make this call. We’d already danced, so I’d…

[ ] Invite her to another dance. This one slower and closer.

[ ] Egg some folks into danmaku matches… then sit back and watch the fireworks with Byakuren.

[ ] Take a trip to the Hakurei Shrine, to reminisce about where this all started.

[ ] Go back to my place, so I can put on a private performance, just for Byakuren.

[x] Invite her to another dance. This one slower and closer.

I slid my hands around my wife’s firm hips, then gently leaned my head in, until our lips grazed one another. “Trust your body. Let it guide you. Flow with the rhythm.”

When I pulled back, Byakuren’s eyes narrowed. “What rhythm? There’s no mus-wah!”

I yanked her back with me half a step, then swung around a quarter circle. One hand rose from her hips to her back. She stumbled, her bust and… her body rubbing against mine. Already, I felt that familiar, dangerous desire welling up within her. But I’d flirted with plenty of fires, and hers I’d already ta… well, I’d already, ah… encountered before!

Around us, of course, guests gawked or giggled. But I only grinned. It would have been terribly awkward to demand a song out of the blue, but I needed not do so. I simply pulled a single hand back to lift an earmuff. I focused, listening for…

There.

Kyouko was the first ‘victim,’ someone desiring accompaniment to our slow, swaying dance. Of course, it was to avoid secondhand embarrassment, but all that mattered is that it was there. So, I tugged on it. Pulled it toward myself to inflame, to stir to action.

And soon enough, the yamabiko started humming. This ignited a few more embers that I then breathed a flame of my own to. More humming, some clapping. At some point, Mystia’s melodious voice joined the chorus - seems she’d come to check up on her friend, given where all the mayhem had originated from. And now, Kyouko’s contributions brought fullness and resonance to the growing music.

I pulled my earmuff down, only to catch a pout from Byakuren. She patted my shoulder blade, a bit too firmly, as she whispered, “you toyed with our guests’ desires, didn’t you?”

I scoffed, offended, as I pulled her in a slow, gentle spin. “I merely showed them our desire, and encouraged them to answer their own.”

She scowled, pulling away half a step. “You really must do something about your manipulative habits.” But as she finished, she pressed closer than before.

I tutted, then pointedly blew a soft breath across her ear. “Let’s leave such topics for more… private discussions, shall we?” Her frown endured, but so did the music. I rubbed her back and caressed her cheek. “They’re expressing their spirit and enjoying themselves. Nothing more. Surely, this once, we could be the ones to follow their example.”

Now, she released a sigh. “Just this once.”

Beyond this, I could not say precisely what happened. For another moment, I’d let go of my plans, my coordinations, and gave in to my universe’s rhythm. I fell into steady, gentle motions with my wife. Swaying, shifting, pushing and stepping and spinning. It all came so smooth, so natural, that only a single clear memory endured beyond it.

The moment Byakuren pressed me so close that I struggled to breathe against her mighty bosom… then pressed her lips to mine. It was not the gentle, grazing kiss I’d given earlier. This one near ground our faces together. One too forceful, to be honest. But that was just like her. Fierce, unyielding, and sometimes, just a little brutish.

And when I paused our dance to lose myself in the moment, she brought me a true surprise. Her tongue slipped between my teeth.

Perhaps… I should have tamed the fire before playing with it.

---

I let out a small yawn, pulling the covers just a bit tighter over my otherwise bare chest. Only the dimmest moonlight illuminated the head monk’s private bedchamber. I turned my head sideways, to the mighty, beautiful woman whose body still pressed so close as slow, tranquil breaths poured from those lovely lips. I couldn’t tell for certain how long I’d slept, or how long remained until sunrise. But like the details of our dance, that didn’t truly matter.

We had… what? A week left? A week of our little deal, our arrangement. With that looming over my head, I could hold only so much confidence in where the two of us stood. Would it continue after, when she no longer had it as an excuse to engage so intimately with me? Would I, when I could truly, publicly, return to my phantom wife’s arms? What did any of this mean, when built upon such deception?

I… couldn’t help it. I lifted a hand from the futon to stroke my sleeping wife’s long, soft hair. A smile invaded my face, then forced me to let it linger. I could not deny that, however naive, I found her relentless drive, her unflinching passion, intoxicating. I could push as firm and hard as I desired, and at most she’d bend - never break. She challenged me in ways even my lovely Tojiko could not, even if she lacked the phantom’s touch for raw, unfiltered language. I could plunge as deep as I desired into her soul, and still… I pursed my lips. Perhaps I needed manage some desires of my own. For a moment, my gaze turned upward. What would Futo think, if I chose to stay? Did I truly wish to…

A hand slid across my own. My eyes returned to my wife, who’d now pressed my palm to her own head. Her eyes had yet to open, but that did not stop her tongue. “Awake already, dear?”

I sighed, slumping back into the futon. “Just for a moment.”

Eyes still closed, her mouth curved into a grin. A rather mischievous one. She said nothing, but her desire screamed her intentions - just a second too late for me to stop it.

She pulled me in to another kiss. One less brutish, but no less passionate. And for all my imperial pride, I relented to her desire. And it wasn’t long before sleep returned to us both.

But when morning came, we would still have work to do. Messes to clean up in the aftermath of Mamizou’s now-thwarted scheme. People to attend to. Reputations to shore up. And when that time came, where would I place my focus?

[ ] Teaching my disciples. I had to rebuild the trust that tanuki stole.

[ ] Smoothing over conflicts between our temples.

[ ] Attending to those close to me: Futo, Tojiko, and… Byakuren.

[ ] Educating Kokoro. I had a chance to turn her into a proper Taoist.

[x] Attending to those close to me: Futo, Tojiko, and… Byakuren.
　[x] & Kokoro!

Morning came, as it always does. The next day saw us focused on cleaning up the remaining fallout from Mamizou’s plot. Tragically, I could not hold the scoundrel indefinitely. Fully eliminating someone as important as her would invoke a level of scrutiny and guardedness that even I was unlikely to withstand for long - and that was assuming the Sages or other such figures did not decide to intervene. Worse, as trouble as she’d caused, it paled in comparison to what some other leaders had attempted in the past. Keeping her just for that would… not be a good look, even if I got away with it.

I did take some pleasure at the sight of her when I did free her, however. Or, rather, the sound. One desire to hide that a mere shrine maiden had given her such a spanking, and another to punish the gray hermit for those candles. I could not stand further harm or threat to my precious disciples after what she had put them through, so I made certain to have a little chat of my own on the way back to the human village. And despite my desire for elegance, what Futo would need is security, so I kept it quite blunt. Just as Mamizou could appear in any form, I could appear from nearly anywhere, only modestly more restrained in my destinations than Yukari herself… as far as Gensokyo went, anyway. She’d caused something between an incident and a kerfuffle, and no doubt got plenty of that fear the youkai so crave out of it. I was prepared to let it all go, for the sake of Gensokyo and my own standing, but that charity would vanish if she sought further retaliation.

By the end, Mamizou had been tapping her foot and drumming her fingers nearly as loud as my charismatic voice, and probably got a few theatrical yawns in there, too. But she hadn’t bothered Futo since, so all’s well that ends well.

And once the last of the immediate fallout had been resolved, I chose to address the matter made most urgent by that very plot. Assurance, trust, community, and comfort. As an administrator, I could provide strong leadership to any who desired. As a faith leader, I could offer wisdom and guidance to all who sought it. As an accomplished duelist, I could protect any who needed it.

But the kind of comfort people now needed could only truly be provided by those close to them. And likewise, that is where I focused my efforts. I attended a few drinking parties with the temple delinquents to resolve my remaining promises, and I made sure to stop by my dojo every now and then to maintain my standing therein. But I devoted my extra time to those closest to me.

I studied together with Futo, who had grown terribly distracted as of late. As the wise guide that I was, I made certain to help her in the most thoughtful way possible. She, however, did not appreciate Murasa’s surprise hug in the middle of her reading and within the safety of my senkai. But barely a couple days later, she thought herself quite sneaky when the two went on a secret date together. Oh, the beautiful shade of red her face turned when I congratulated her upon her return~

Kokoro was a much tougher nut to crack. She sought instruction as well, but only as a pretense to drag me into odd mother-daughter or father-daughter sorts of activities. This was all well and good, if she’d pay any attention to the precious wisdom I was trying to share. Or worse, interrupt crucial administrative or diplomatic meetings with fresh, sometimes inane demands. It got bad enough that Byakuren and I had to take her on in battle more than once to cool her jets by force - because she most certainly wouldn’t listen to reason. In fairness though, our teamwork produced some gorgeous danmaku, sometimes in patterns that Kokoro’s counter fire only enhanced the beauty of.

Tojiko, she was the hardest of the three. Despite my previous concessions, it still took some time to repair our bond - especially as we no longer knew where it lead. Difficult words and harder feelings came out in our engagements, our discussions, and at times our quiet hugs and drinks. The fact I’d only grown closer to Byakuren did nothing to help me. Slowly, however, that bond did heal. We learned to once more enjoy one another’s company. And as painful as my blunt honesty before proved, it made it so much easier to regain her trust now. Of course, we had to put aside romance between us - for the moment. Tojiko got too much fun out of needling me for my past life’s other wives, insisting she would not share her spouse a second time. And yet, she couldn’t hide the whisper of a darker desire: to steal Byakuren from me!

Byakuren, well… the time with her, I must confess, I looked forward to the most. Our arguments benefited from engaging on less personal grounds, which in turn allowed us to hone both our philosophies and our rhetoric against one another. And when we fought with magic or bullets, she kept me on my toes far more than Futo or Tojiko could. In some way, even Kokoro couldn’t entertain me so much - though she wielded greater raw power than either of us, her narrow focus was surprisingly easy to exploit, once you fought her enough to feel it out. But more than that, well…

It was a good several days later. On the evening that would end the second week ‘married’ to Byakuren, the two of sat across from one another, lounging at a low table in a private study of mine. Well, I lounged. She elected to kneel. The sun had set quite a while ago, but neither of us could sleep. And we could only go through so much logistical discussion before-

“I wonder what Kokoro will think.”

I tilted my head, turning a passive smile Byakuren’s way. “She doesn’t depend on us. She’s just using us for her personal experiment.”

“Her development, Miko. She’s trying to learn more about herself, and what better mentors than the two wisest preachers in Gensokyo?”

My eyes narrowed on hers. We’d had plenty of amiable discussions, but on this matter? “My darling Byakuren, did you just-?”

She huffed. “Yes, Miko. You may be mistaken about…” her gaze now turned aside. “Some things. But I see how you became a… a saint, despite it all.”

I giggled, lifting a cup of light sake to my lips as I pondered her answer. “How lovely that you-”

“Kokoro.”

Now I huffed. “Really-” And then closed my mouth. This wasn’t really about her, and we both knew it. She was only the transition intended to confront… that. Here, I gulped. “Well… it would be improper to announce our divorce the second we’ve cashed in our favors, anyway.”

For a moment, Byakuren’s eyes flicked my way. She wanted to know what I intended to use my favor for, but wished not to ask. Instead, she cleared her throat. “Quite so. It would be best to give it at least another week. No, a month.”

I sighed. “Best to separate slowly, so as to avoid making too much a scene.”

Byakuren murmured, but shook her head. “That would only invite so many rumors, though. Rumors I can’t help but imagine Mamizou or Kanako leaping on. It would plant a clear target on our backs.”

I pushed myself up and onto my own knees, once more staring my wife down. “But no matter how long we wait, breaking up suddenly would only make a scene.”

Byakuren nodded, now smiling. She said nothing.

I knew what she thought-or, rather, what she wanted. But I wasn’t going to let her get away with something so preposterous and not have the decency to at least give words to it, herself. “If we can’t separate slowly, and we can’t separate quickly, then tell me, dear Byakuren,” I even planted some bait to sweeten the pot for her, “how do we part ways?”

To that, she chuckled. “Why, I suppose there’s no way we can do it. We’ll just need to stay together for,” now her eyes, sat narrow atop her widening grin, locked on to mine, “the rest,” she leaned in closer, “of,” she planted a finger on my chin, “our,” she leaned in close to whisper the final word, “lives.”

And… there it was. She shifted her head, now lining her lips up with mine, but I pushed her back. I scooted backward. My whole body twitched and shuddered. She’d been angling for something like this at least a week. And I couldn’t deny a desire to spend more time so close to her. But… though there was some love therein, her desires for the convenience and utility of ready access to my connections and resources spoke at least as loud, to say nothing of my… body.

I licked my lips. Thankfully, she had the sense to hold off from pushing either issue - the marriage or the kiss. I then parted my own, to tell her I’d…

[ ] Break the marriage, to pursue one another without its incentives manipulating us.

[ ] Keep the marriage, but in earnest, this time.

[ ] Break the marriage, to return to how things were before.

[ ] Keep the marriage, for its utility.

[x] Keep the marriage, but in earnest, this time.

My body only shook harder as I settled on my final answer. Two words escaped my lips. “Very… well.” I felt warm, or perhaps hot. But I was not one to do things halfheartedly. So, when Byakuren leaned back in, I wrapped my arms around her neck and pulled her into the kiss, myself. We held it there barely a few seconds before her tongue prodded my lips and I welcomed it in. Even in here, we battled. Her tongue kept on the offensive, pushing and pressing, while mine swung around hers, eager to taste all of her.

It was… a good couple minutes later before we finally broke the kiss in earnest, both red and panting hard. I wiped the spit off my lips before turning my languid gaze back to my wife. My earnest, sincere… wife. And then I lifted my shaku between us. “However!” I cleared my throat, holding as firm and dignified a tone as I could with the lingering taste of Byakuren still all over my tongue. “This… will not be a political marriage. It will… be one of love, and only love.”

Byakuren chuckled, then climbed around the table to pull me into a gentle hug. “Oh, why would it be anything else, dear?”

I huffed. “You just argued… No, nevermind.” We both knew she had other interests in it, but I hugged her back, regardless. “It will continue as long as our bond remains… and no longer.”

To that, she sighed, giving me a gentle squeeze. “Then, I need only retain your affections for the rest of our lives, right?”

“Sure, sure. But we’re not staying together simply on Kokoro’s account, let alone Reimu’s.” I patted her back-then squeaked when she answered by patting my butt. Face flushed darker, I continued. “I’ve… had quite enough of strictly political marriages by now, and refuse to let this return to-hey!”

She’d pulled back and-damn it. She patted my head. “Yes, yes. Dear. You’re very wise and considerate.”

I scowled back at her. “That is not, at all, what I’m trying to say.”

But she answered with a long-suffering sigh. “No, but if you go on preaching too long, you’ll ruin the mood.”

Now, I pouted. “Oh, you’re worried about me preaching too long?”

But to that, she giggled. “Well, are you worried about getting the most out of the night before we address such serious affairs tomorrow?”

To that, I… I relented. “Fine, fine. So long as you understand the basics, we can finish this discussion tomorrow.”

Now, she clapped. “Oh, that’s what I like to hear~”

From there, the results were perhaps to be expected. It all felt so much like the first marriage of my past life. Young… in a sense. Uncertain, passionate, and perhaps a bit confused. But happy, eager to embrace, to love, to spend our time together.

---

My sandals were the first to touch down on the stone path to the Hakurei Shrine, where this whole mess first began. Byakuren descended soon after, and the two of us marched up to the shrine. The marriage had started as nothing more than a hungover bargain, but once we’d finished, it would be so much more, and so much less. An expression of genuine love and affection. A formality to express our relationship in clear and legal terms… for whatever legality meant in a world where rules operated by domain, and I owned one of my own.

Now, if only the person who dragged us all into this had the decency to wait for our arrival. But no. The donation box laid unattended, the grounds empty. It took a brief listen to spot someone’s desires lazing about inside the building. I let out a sigh as we stepped up to that no-doubt empty box, but couldn’t honestly complain. It didn’t matter how many times I’d reiterated commitment to our decision last night, the thought of doing so in front of the only person to whom we’d allowed it be beholden to before… it left me so, so tense. To say this all as part of some ploy, some trick, well… that was nothing new to me. But to mean it? It’s been literally hundreds of years since the last time I’d made such commitment - and that was back when I had more power than any of my partners, anyway! This… this would be a much more equal partnership. One that no longer offered an explicit expiration date.

“Are you alright, dear?”

I blinked. I’d dropped my hands to the edge of the donation box for support. Even my resplendent cape couldn’t fully obscure my tension. Remember, remember. We could still break up any day. If, if I was prepared for a little fallout, I could always call it off, even after I’d… oh dear. Now my breathing grew labored. I had to thank my stars that at least my wife was the only one to witness my shameful posture. I waved it off. “I’ll be fine. We… we’ve made our call. All that remains is to go through the motion.”

For a second, Byakuren said nothing. Then, I heard the clink of a coin striking wood. A sideways glance caught Byakuren’s hand just as it retreated from the very box I rested on. She smiled. “Just a small wish for your wellbeing, dear.”

I shook my head, then shifted my left hand from the box to her shoulder. “Please. Prince Shotoku, of all people, would never need such luck.”

To that, she only answered with a soft, caring smile. “But perhaps Miko of the Toyosatomimi does.”

I took one more breath, then pushed back up to a proper, straight-back stand. “Miko is nothing less than Shotoku’s more resplendent form! If Shotoku could handle this, Miko would have no such tr-”

“Please stop.”

I flinched. That wasn’t Byakuren’s voice. Both our gazes lurched to the right, where Reimu stood before us, arms crossed. Her gaze had locked to mine. “Of all the people to talk of themselves like someone else, it’s really creepy coming from your mouth.”

Now turning my body to fully face her, I planted one hand on my hip and with the other I swiped my shaku from my cape. Immediately, she thrust her gohei between us. “I’m not looking for a fight, you know. Even if you do tell me you’re breaking up now.”

I gasped. Byakuren stepped up beside me and gave the shrine maiden a smooth, moderate bow. I followed with one of my own, a bit shallower. “Neither are we. Not for a fight or a breakup.”

Now, she tilted her head, eyes slanted in open questioning. “Then what scared you so much?”

To that, my fingers twitched. She couldn’t have seen it, I would have… damn it. She heard us. I huffed, puffing out my chest. “I was not scared. Merely…”

“Relying on your rival for moral support.”

“My wife.”

Reimu’s quizzical stare only deepened. Byakuren cleared her throat. “Having completed your favor, we are now here for ours. And…”

I gulped, then hardened my gaze. “And to state, formally, that we are… remaining together. Indefinitely.”

The shrine maiden’s expression shifted again, now taking on a distinct shade of disbelief. “Despite, well… everything? You had to have been counting the days until today…”

Byakuren wrapped an arm around my shoulder, pressing my side to hers. “A great deal has happened since that fateful morning. There are multiple paths to a world of harmony and enlightenment, and I have chosen to take mine by her side.”

I took another breath. “And I have… taken her as my wife.”

Byakuren squeezed me quite a bit tighter for a second, no doubt in protest to my possessive language. But if she thought I’d stop playing our games just because we were honestly together now, she would be terribly disappointed.

A good couple seconds passed before Reimu’s mouth opened. “Well… what about,” now she gulped, “your favors. What… do you want?”

It didn’t take my ears to hear the pointed change of topic, the urge to put that thought aside for later consideration rather than answer further - despite clear fear of our answers to this question. Sadly, hers was not the only head it hung over. Far less… risky, to my mind, but no less weighty. I could get Reimu to do just about anything for me… well, I could ask just about anything. Half her fear was needing to renege on the deal if I asked for her… oh, come on! I’d never do that! Nevermind that! Regardless, however exciting the results of our bargain proved, that didn’t make the journey itself any easier. She did owe us, and I was going to cash in, but how? Did I want something practical, perhaps political or religious support? Something more frivolous? Something silly just to see her reaction?

[ ] Establish a “branch shrine” on her grounds, devoted to myself. As a saint, I could gather faith from humans, after all.

[ ] Request a few outside world goods.
　[ ] Exotic booze.
　[ ] Jewelry.
　[ ] A powerful artifact.
　[ ] Write-in.

[ ] Establish a shrine to our romance on her grounds. A reminder of our reliability, and a little PR for the both of us.

[ ] Use her shrine as a go-to neutral ground to mediate Taoist/Buddhist conflicts.

[ ] Have her teach her some of her tricks to my disciples. What better to protect humanity than dedicated sealing and exorcism skills?

[ ] Write-in.

[x] Use her shrine as a go-to neutral ground to mediate Taoist/Buddhist conflicts.

I placed my shaku over my lips, just as a soft giggle burst free of them. “Relax, relax. All’s well, all’s well.” My eyes then narrowed, but much more conspiratorially than warily. “I’ll use your shrine as a neutral ground to mediate disputes between our temples. After all,” I cast my gaze sideways, to Byakuren, “now that we’re in this for the long haul, we’ll need to make more long-term accommodations, won’t we?”

Byakuren smiled, then nodded and bowed to Reimu. “Yes, we will. I trust this arrangement won’t be too bothersome for you?”

Reimu murmured. But I interrupted her parting lips with another giggle. “You are the shrine maiden who brought two great rivals together in love, you know.” Now, I lowered the shaku to my chest. “Why not leverage this, sell mediation services - with our disciples providing the… example for what you could do?”

A moment paused. Reimu grumbled. But then she nodded. “There are… worse favors you could ask for. I’ll grant that.”

Now, I clapped a hand to my shaku. “Excellent! And now, darling, what do you…”

Byakuren took half a step forward, staring Reimu down. “For my part, I will have you show greater sympathy for the youk-”

Gaze suddenly flat, Reimu snorted. “Impossible. Youkai extermination feeds me better than my own stupid shrine, most days.” Then, under her breath, she added, “besides, Yukari would kill me.”

I couldn’t help a slight chuckle, though Byakuren answered with more of a pout. “Fine, fine. Then,” she took a step back to drape an arm over my shoulder, “since we devoted two whole weeks to bolstering your image, it would only be fair to return the favor, yes?”

The shrine maiden’s eyes narrowed. “What do you mean?”

But now was my wife’s turn to chuckle. “Personally attend my sermons. At least two of them each week, start to end. For, of course, two weeks.”

Here, Reimu answered with a long, petulant groan. But then, scratching the back of her head, she fixed Byakuren with a firm, steady stare. “Fine. Four sermons, two weeks. Then we’re even.”

Byakuren bowed, and pulled me in alongside her. “Thank you, oh wise shrine maiden.”

But she just waved us off. “Yeah, yeah.” With a slight blush, she turned her gaze aside. “Thanks, by the way.”

Now I was the one to pull the two of us into a bow. “Of course, Ms. Hakurei. We’ve been, in our own way, happy to help.”

---

Reimu grumbled about her commitments just about every step of the way, but she held true to them all the same. Her appearance amid Byakuren’s audience had caused a bit of a stir and quite a few questions. But by the time she’d attended her last one, most of the furor had already died down. And sure enough, as Byakuren and I held together, more than a few spats flared up between our temples. Spats that Reimu proved unexpectedly helpful with - apart from the neutral ground her shrine offered, her peculiar mix of calm and a sharp temper helped grease some negotiations, while ensuring those involved would hold up to whatever agreements they-or she-settled on. It also caused more than a little hesitation among our followers to squabble, especially on matters more likely to irritate the shrine maiden. They, ah, preferred not to be moderated by her, given the choice - thereby encouraging them to find more delicate resolutions of their own, when possible.

A few weeks after affairs had settled down, I found myself resting atop a gentle outcropping. One that gave me a passable view of both the temple and the graveyard. Our two peculiar domains, in essence. My eyes lingered on the amber haze on the horizon. The parting light of a retiring sun. My legs laid crossed, ankle to knee. My hands rested near my feet. I took one slow breath, then another. I’d left my cape and my usual dress behind for this. A simple, lavender kimono would do me just fine. The air had continued to warm, and it would only be appropriate to savor that warmth while it lasted, before the chill of autumn set in. More than a thousand years ago, I ruled a substantial chunk of the Japanese mainland. I’d spread Buddhism throughout my realm. Before I could be cast aside, I’d set the conditions to return to life someday.

But when I returned, I had only a few treasures left and my two closest companions for support. And my former mentor, if I could even count her. I took another breath.

I had no dynasty left to rule. My entire world had been confined to a single valley crawling with youkai. But my body had grown much stronger, and so long as I continued my practice, I would only bring it to ever greater heights. Off in the graveyard, two figures shared a bottle of sake. They laughed, they wobbled, and they kissed. A hermit who’d once been the most stubborn enemy of youkai in all Gensokyo, and a phantom who’d once done little other than kill humans over and over again, at the site where her own ship had once sunk.

A sigh came next. I’d be having a drink of my own, but not yet. I had… needed a bit of time alone. A time to meditate, to think upon myself, free of interference. Free of my own wife, even.

Her passion, her idealism, her perplexing mix of cunning and naivete. They had not waned even slightly, nor had my fondness for them. Her beauty would not fade until she either died completely or had her magic stripped from her. I… I still… loved her. But in my rush to stay together, I’d not allowed myself sufficient time alone. To process what we meant together, what I truly wanted. For a good few hours, long before the sun had begun to set, I’d pondered if I even wished to stay with her. Was it time to push that button? To break it all off?

Even now, my own heart’s twisting desires gave Byakuren’s private knots, so many weeks ago, some competition. Another breath, then two. The phantom and hermit had now settled into resting against a gravestone to hug and touch one another. They’d yet to commit to anything. Indeed, Futo had yet to admit the way her own feelings had even developed. As a result, they spent plenty of time away, growing closer in steady, comfortable steps. Perhaps I ought to have done the same.

The ambers had grown darker, fading into dim orange-reds. Barely a sliver of the weary sun could still be seen. When the twilight came, would I stay, or would I leave? Had I been a fool to allow myself to be again confined, far tighter than a mere valley could restrain me? Or perhaps, did I stand upon the precipice of a whole new dynasty?

I could not deign that last thought with anything but a derisive snort. The only dynasty I’d be ruling like this would be one of youkai. There must yet be better opportunities to establish my foundations some other time, in some other way.

The sun had now set. The deep, dark blue of twilight now cloaked the sky. I took in a long sigh, then rose to my feet. I smiled and placed one sandal to the crack between two rocks. In but the blink of an eye, I returned to my private lounge. There, Byakuren held a low squat, slowly swinging one arm, then another.

“Like this, Koko.”

Kokoro held a similar squat, though hers shook just a bit. She mimicked Byakuren’s movements, displaying a surprising amount of grace for how crude her form was.

“Noh’s still better.”

Byakuren huffed. “Now, now. You’ve only just started.”

Kokoro was the first to notice me, though her eyes held fixed to Byakuren. “Welcome back, mama.”

Byakuren blinked, then turned her gaze my way. She smiled, though a bit strained from the exercise. “Did you find your answer, dear?”

To that, I answered with a warm, gentle smile. I took slow, steady strides forward. Perhaps I’d need another, longer break sometime later. But for now, I’d enjoy the time I had.

With my wife and my adopted daughter.