Tenshi woke up to another day in Gensokyo. Immediately, it was both too hot and too noisy, with insects and fairies alike making a spectacle of themselves. She grinned at the commotion, then assessed the sky. It was already well into the afternoon, but that was no problem. Things tended to get more interesting during night-time, anyway.
She sat up and was greeted with a view of a sea of trees in the full embrace of summer. It wasn't the same as gazing down from the edge of a cloud, but it was something at least. Perhaps someone might have found it strange that she was sleeping in a treetop, but then, it didn't particularly matter what the earth-crawlers thought about where she rested. Besides, there wasn't a single swelling in Gensokyo worthy of her dignity anyway.
Unless... She leapt down from the tree, landing on both feet with a reverberating stomp. If there was no suitable place for her to stay, she would simply have to build one for herself. That way, she could ascertain it met her standards as far as any place possibly could, and it wasn't even like it would be her first building project in Gensokyo.
She found a suitable patch of grass in a nearby clearing and lay down with her arms under her head, perfecting her vision. The house would have to be big, of course, and on a tall hill or some other highly visible place so that passers-by could weep at the sight of its glory. Or would it be better to have a hidden palace utterly unknowable to all but those she invited in? Either way, there would have to be plenty of rooms and a garden large enough for parties. And a wing for Shion, of course: she could already picture the poverty goddess' tears of joy upon being invited to move in. Next to that should be a display room for treasures to impress any and all visitors...
"So here you are, Eldest Daughter."
Tenshi opened her eyes, then blinked on the off chance tit turned out the past month had all been an elaborate dream. No, she was still in Gensokyo. And that was without a doubt the real Iku hovering above her, the familiar scarlet ripple of her garments vivid against the crisp blue skies. After all, if she had been conjured up by Tenshi's imagination, she wouldn't have been holding a basket. "Iku?"
Iku nodded and descended, which was to say her feet now hovered only half a shaku off the ground.
Tenshi sat up, but was in no hurry to stand. She knew Iku came to the surface at times — they had even visited Gensokyo a few times together before Tenshi's exile — but actually seeing Iku before her now, her shawl slowly moving by itself as if still caressed by the high winds of the sea of clouds, felt surreal. "Why are you here? Do you have a message for me?"
"No. I came on my own accord."
"Oh." Tenshi swallowed an unexpected lump of disappointment, then decided it hadn't actually existed. It wasn't like she wished to hear from anyone in Heaven in the first place. "Then what do you want?"
"To see how you are faring. Have you been well?"
"Obviously." Tenshi leaned back on her elbows to show just how relaxed her life in Gensokyo was. "The food is awful and most of the earth-crawlers are terribly low-class, but it's not like those things can touch me. It's less boring here, anyway. I'll start building myself a house soon."
"You will?"
"Gensokyo has never seen anything so close to Heaven on Earth as when I'm done with it."
"I see." Iku smiled. "I'm relieved to discover you in such high spirits."
"Did you think I'd be moping?"
"Not precisely, no. But I did fear you might have begun to feel somewhat homesick."
Tenshi waved a dismissive hand. "What's there to miss?" The fields of flowers, the impeccable food and drink, the perfect weather in which gardens flourished without a drop of rain, the luxurious surroundings... "The downsides of staying here are nothing compared to the boredom of Heaven."
Iku's eyes flickered in a way which Tenshi knew meant she was deliberately reading the atmosphere instead of attuning to it by instinct. "I should have known you wouldn't struggle to assert yourself no matter where you went."
"Exactly." Tenshi flicked her hair over her shoulder. "So why are you really here? Are you slacking off from work?"
"Hardly."
"So you're just here to see me." Tenshi grinned. "Your life must be really dull without me around."
"As it happens, things have been exceptionally pleasant and peaceful since your expulsion. I have been able to do my work without constant distractions, and the atmosphere when I make my reports has been at its most congenial in years."
Tenshi glared. "Did you come here to pick a fight?"
"No. And in truth..." Suddenly, Iku's smile was less polite and vague and more like a cloud had drifted across the sun. "The skies have indeed lost a fair bit of their colours in your absence."
Tenshi ignored the strange atmosphere and puffed out her chest. "Of course they have."
"...In any case, I thought you might have grown bored with the fare on the surface. Perhaps these will not be quite so monotonous after a break from them."
She handed Tenshi the basket. Tenshi could have guessed its contents even before she peered in.
"Peaches, huh? "They'll do." In fact, she wasn't sure the fruits had ever looked quite so juicy. She placed the basket on the ground and sat up properly, crossing her legs. "How did you get these?"
"Through honest means, if that is what you are asking."
Tenshi shrugged and grabbed a peach. She studied its fuzzy surface just for a moment before biting in.
"You know," she proclaimed after the first few chews, "even these taste different over here."
"They do?"
"Try them for yourself." The half-eaten peach in one hand, Tenshi reached for another and tossed it into the air. Iku caught it with surprising deftness and hovered downwards until she finally landed, seating herself next to Tenshi.
They ate in silence until Iku slowed down, frowning slightly before swallowing and studying the fruit. "Yes, you were correct. The taste isn't bad by any means, but there is a different tang to it than in Heaven."
"It's the air down here." Tenshi took another large bite. "They're still better than any of the dirt-tasting food down here."
She ate the rest of the fruit with relish. She was about to chuck the pit over her shoulder and reach for another when a sudden thought crossed her mind.
"Hey, Iku..." She turned the pit around on her palm. "If I buried this in what passes for good soil here, do you think it would grow?"
"Possibly. It would take decades, naturally, and any fruit that might grow from it would not match those borne by heavenly trees. Undoubtedly they would be exceptional for Earth, however."
"Hmm." Tenshi tossed the pit into the air and caught it again. Was she thinking about this too hard? Shouldn't she simply do it instead of wondering if the act was tantamount to acknowledging she wasn't about to return to Heaven any time soon? She really should, because worrying about things like that was stupid. She'd grow peaches just for the fun of it, and it wouldn't take decades. There were always ways to get around wait times when one knew how. "I need more of these."
"I believe I can return with more peaches in time." Iku's tone was careful.
"Good." Tenshi smirked at her. "Just you wait. Before long you'll get to visit my peach orchard."
"...I suppose that if it becomes a problem, the guardians of Gensokyo will take care of it."
"What are you muttering about?"
"Nothing of significance, Eldest Daughter."
"Anyway, it's going to be spectacular. Far beyond anything anyone living here has ever dreamed of. You'll see!"
"I will look forward to it, then."
Tenshi beamed. She tucked into her second peach and shielded her eyes from the glare of the sun. It was funny how much more blinding its light was on the surface even though it was so much closer to Heaven. She then turned to look at Iku, who was calmly observing the distant clouds. She no longer looked quite so out of place even if the sheen of her clothes still made her pop against their earthly surroundings. "You know, Iku... I really don't miss anyone from back home. But it's pretty nice to see you again."
Iku turned to smile at her. "I'm surprised to say this myself, but... likewise, Eldest Daughter."
Happy to be magnanimous, Tenshi handed Iku another peach. It was accepted with good grace.
Later, after she had waved Iku goodbye, having reminded her to both return to see her house soon and to tell anyone who asked that Tenshi was doing just peachy on Earth, thank you very much, Tenshi noticed the peach pits. Namely, the ones Iku had left in a neat row next to the basket.
"Good. You can dry there." She pushed her own stack of pits next to them, then snagged the basket and rushed towards what passed for civilisation in Gensokyo to boast about the remaining fruits of Heaven.