The border between solid and liquid was about to collapse. Already her bones were turning into water, her flesh one with the surrounding currents.
It would have been so simple to breathe in one last time and allow herself to be swept away. Instead, she groped blindly for the shifting borders, reasserting the boundaries between herself and the rest of the world. Whatever she was, she was not running water.
With the solidification of her identity came exhaustion and a sudden chill. Ignoring both, she grasped the ripples in the fabric of the universe, twisting and weaving them into more familiar patterns. The border of life and death. The border of past and present. The border of sleep and wakefulness.
It was thus that Yukari Yakumo opened her eyes and discovered she was floating down an icy river on a raft of white cherry petals.
She blinked slowly, too drowsy for curiosity and certain she was in no immediate danger. The current's flow was steady, and while her clothes were inundated with water, their weight wasn't enough to drag her beneath the surface. Interestingly, her hair had refused to absorb any moisture: as light as sunbeams, her long tresses floated around her like an aura.
Long... yes. How long had her hair been long? For the past five minutes? For the past five centuries?
Her ears were underwater. She listened to the whispers of the river as she puzzled over the nature of time until she heard commotion from above. A voice, two voices, rapidly approaching.
She combed her fingers through the petals coalescing about her — so many, so pale, so blindingly bright even in the non-existent sunlight — then finally sat up.
There were hands upon her almost at once, guiding her gently but firmly ashore. Even with all strength gone from her body, the border between movement and stillness remained within reach. Soon her knees hit solid ground.
"...ll right?"
"...appened?"
Ears still ringing with river-song, Yukari blinked droplets of water from her lashes and looked up. Her rescuers were humans, most likely brothers, their faces knitted in nigh identical frowns of concern. Their clothes were rough and threadbare, and the lengths of cloth they had tied around their heads to shield their ears from the winter winds were heavily patched.
Yukari took her time reconstructing what they had said to her, filling in the gaps. What they spoke was not a foreign language. It was regardless proof she had travelled to a foreign land.
...One of these days, she was going to die doing this.
She stood up, evaporating the water in her clothes as she did so. At full height, she towered over both men. Their eyes widened as they understood the person they had rescued from the river was not merely a stranger.
She gave them a knife-sharp smile. "Thank you."
One man ran at once, bolting upriver like a spooked horse. The other one trembled like a leaf, looking just about ready to soil himself, but he held his ground. He was unusually brave. Or perhaps merely paralysed by terror.
Regardless, Yukari nodded at him before sweeping past him. She located a narrow footpath close to the river and followed it downstream.
The man began to say something in a hoarse voice, then changed his mind. Yukari heard him turn around and hurry after his brother.
Idly, she combed the cherry blossoms from her hair and kept moving forward.
The truth was that Yukari had hurt herself. She suspected it had been by accident: exploring the limitless boundaries of the universe was perilous even if one knew precisely what they were doing, and while she would never admit it to another soul, she was still learning. With no memories of how she had wound up in the river, however, it remained a guess.
She walked quietly along, amusing herself by watching the fuzzy border between where the path ended and the wilderness began, especially uneven where dead grass invaded the beaten path. There was a surprising amount of snow on the ground, and whenever she chose to breathe, her exhalations rose as fog towards the pale sky.
For now, she was at peace in this world of winter. She watched her dress transform as she idly toyed with the boundaries of line and curve and purple and blue, and slowly took stock of what she had done to herself.
To start with, she had clearly travelled back in time. That was an outdated way of thinking of the matter, considering she had left the linear notion of time far behind her, but the thought still rang true. Where she had landed was another question. The Kamakura period? Heian? Nara, even?
Even if this was hardly the farthest she had ever travelled, she was likely stranded for now. Time could be tricky to manipulate, and if she had damaged herself as badly as she suspected, it would take a while to regain enough strength to return whence she had come.
Assuming she even wished to return, of course.
She abandoned the river in favour of dormant fields and then equally dormant woodlands, moving more slowly as she poked at the tangle of fractured borders within her. Goodness. It would take days to straighten everything out. Weeks, even.
She left them be for now. While there were some gaps in her memory, her name and all that came with it were firmly lodged where they belonged. She could take this unintended excursion as a brief holiday if she so pleased.
As she thought that, the scent of cherry blossoms, so vivid she momentarily felt buried within them, caught her attention. Seeing no reason not to, she followed it through the frozen land.
It wasn't long until she came to the edge of a large estate, confidently labelling the current time period as Heian based on what she saw of the buildings beyond the trees. Cherry trees abounded in the large grove within the garden. They were all barren without a single bud in sight.
Regardless, the scent of blossoms was stronger than ever. Yukari crossed the boundary and entered the garden.
Her senses grew muted as she traversed the silent grove. The land lay still and dead: only a few struggling plum trees brought any colour to her surroundings. The air tasted thin and metallic, and what sunlight fell upon the tree trunks seemed unusually subdued. The border between winter and its neighbouring seasons grew more distant with each step.
The manor house to her right was identical to so many others she had seen in so many other places. It was no doubt inhabited by the exact kinds of humans she met everywhere she went. Only, it was too quiet. It was as if the building itself was hibernating.
The moment she thought that, Yukari turned her head and finally saw the source of the mysterious scent of spring.
Deep in the garden, separated from the other trees by a wide berth, stood an ancient cherry tree in full bloom. Its flowers grew in countless cloud-like clusters, their petals so vibrantly colourful they almost glowed. The sense one felt taking in the sight was that of utter calm.
Were the blossoms too beautiful and numerous? Was the colour of their petals just a little too bright, their scent too strong? Did the tree's age-knotted bark look impossibly soft and inviting, as if urging any passers-by to rest their heads against it? Yes, yes, and yes. But Yukari hardly needed to rely on such observations to discern the tree's true nature. Its malice towards humanity practically shone through its bark.
She approached the youkai tree, studying it as she might any unusual landmark. Up close, the tree whispered wordlessly of peaceful slumber. The air around it carried none of the bite of winter: it sang instead of spring and soon approaching summer rains. She admired the strength of the tree's lure even if she couldn't feel its sting for herself.
It was then that she saw the young woman walking across the garden. She was tall for the era, with anachronistically short hair which looked uneven enough to suggest she had hewn it to its current length herself. Her sky-blue clothes were well-made but too thin for the season: then again, she seemed to pay no mind to the cold air blowing right through her.
A flock of blue-winged butterflies traced her every movement. They rested on her arms and shoulders and fluttered everywhere around her, their numbers so great the sound of their beating wings was audible even from a distance.
The girl appeared as utterly indifferent to them as she did to the cold. Her gaze fixed upon the youkai tree as she took another slow step forward.
Yukari looked on with some interest, trying to decide what to make of her. She was human, but there was a fuzziness to the borders of her being, a suggestion that she might one day accidentally slip across and become something else entirely. Indeed, when Yukari observed her closely enough, she saw that the butterflies were not resting on the girl's body, but rather clung to an invisible shadow superimposed over her.
A gale swept across the garden. A cascade of cherry blossoms scattered slowly around Yukari in a parody of snow.
Finally, the girl halted by the farthest-reaching root of the youkai tree. She looked up at the blossoms. A sudden fit of violent emotions flitted across her face so briefly Yukari barely had time to see them: recognition, and hatred.
She grasped the collar of her robe.
In growing surprise, Yukari watched the girl shrug off the outmost layer of her clothes, followed by the rest of them, until she stood there only in her under-robe and hakama, surrounded by garments resembling broken pieces of the sky. She closed her eyes and remained statue-still, clearly awaiting something. One by one, the entire swarm of butterflies came to rest upon her.
Stirred by a sudden urge to speak to the girl, Yukari stepped forward. The dead grass crinkled beneath her shoe.
The girl inhaled sharply. Metal glinted in the air by her person for just an instant before vanishing. The next moment, her eyes were wild and wide open as they locked upon Yukari.
"Oh." An exhalation, and a shiver. The girl began to shake as though the chill in the air had finally pierced through her trance. "I..."
The butterflies stirred, rising up in an asynchronous cloud. Most remained with the girl, but about a dozen began making their fluttering way towards Yukari.
"Run!" The sudden urgency in the girl's voice felt like a concealed blade being sprung. "Don't let them touch you!"
Yukari ignored her and extended her hand to meet the butterflies. The foremost of them, landed on her index finger, slowly opening and closing its wings its azure, black-bordered wings. Yukari's skin tingled where it rested.
DEATH, its presence screamed. As Yukari had known it would.
She looked up from it just in time to see the girl's horror give way to puzzlement. She smiled.
The air in the room was thick enough to be tangible as the girl poured tea into Yukari's cup.
Yukari waited for the girl to set the teapot down before taking a sip. The tea had a staleness to it which suggested it had been steeped from leaves of remarkable antiquity.
"How refreshing," she said regardless, wondering idly how much her smile resembled a smirk. "Thank you, Yuyuko."
Yuyuko's smile was fleeting, but it looked sincere. A lone cherry blossom petal clung to her bangs, its placement so cunning it could have passed for a deliberate accessory. The same couldn't be said of the butterflies tangled in her hair and walking on the back of her hand: their movements were too erratic, the beating of their wings too random.
They had only exchanged a few words after Yuyuko had hastily dressed herself: quick introductions, so simple Yukari had nearly laughed, followed by a polite and unexpected invitation indoors for tea. This despite the fact Yuyuko could be under no illusions about what Yukari was.
In other words, she was someone a little too at ease with the prospect of death. Or else, someone already so heavily stained with it she barely noticed it.
As Yukari drank, she took in the absolute silence in the manor. Usually, a house this size meant several dozen residents. Even assuming Yuyuko was the sole mistress of the manor, surely she ought to have had staff waiting on her. "Does no-one else live here?"
"There is a gardener." Yuyuko paused to drink, then stared down into her cup before continuing. "He lives in his own building on the other side of the estate."
"So you take care of the household duties by yourself?"
"There isn't much to do, in truth." Yuyuko's smile was like winter sunshine: bright, but deceptively cold. "I'm inadequate when it comes to keeping the building from falling into disrepair, but I can handle the day-to-day tasks decently enough."
Her skin had a wan cast to it, the kind which so often plagued humans towards the end of winter. But her eyes were alive and bright as they studied Yukari, seemingly trying to make out the physical differences between humans and youkai.
Finally, she set her cup down. "Speaking of my duties as a host... unless you have some further questions, perhaps it's time I offered you a meal."
"Don't trouble yourself." Youkai ate human food for pleasure rather than sustenance, and the fear of the men who had discovered Yukari in the river was enough to sate her for the time being. "I'm not especially hungry."
Yuyuko looked as though she had been holding her breath for hours. Something mournful flashed across her face, but the next moment, she was as composed as before. She lowered her head. "Perhaps that is for the best. I apologise in advance that all I have to offer is such humble fare."
Yukari smiled. "You should have seen some of the things I've eaten on my travels."
There it was again, that glimmer of curiosity, shining star-like in spite of Yuyuko's hooded eyes. "If I may ask, have you travelled for long?"
"Since the dawn of time."
"Ah." Against all odds, Yuyuko's smile bore some resemblance to summer. "I have never met anyone from the dawn of time before."
"Do I meet with your expectations?"
"I only had the one and there seems to be much more to you than that. How did you end up coming here of all places?"
"Would you prefer the boring truth or the entertaining lie?"
Yuyuko raised her head. The tension which had held her so rigid until then was visibly unwinding as her smile widened. "I would appreciate either."
As it happened, Yukari was too tired to spin an amusing yarn. What did it matter if this lone human knew the truth? It might even be fun. "I came here by chance. I closed my eyes and travelled the currents of space and time until I landed here."
"Why did you do that?"
"Because I wished to forget."
"What did you wish to forget?"
Yukari smiled. "I have forgotten."
The sound of Yuyuko's laughter was as soft as the beating of a butterfly's wings. "I hope you haven't found this destination awfully dull."
"It has already exceeded my expectations."
Yuyuko drank deeply from her cup. Once she was done, she set it on the floor with the kind of gingerness Yukari would have expected from someone handling explosives. She studied Yukari with a vague, almost dazed look for a long moment before speaking again.
"In that case... while the hospitality I can offer is limited and undoubtedly beneath your usual means, I would like to extend you an invitation to remain here for as long as you please."
Yukari considered this unusual offer. She could use a place to rest, and this almost abandoned manor would be a novelty. But what had provoked Yuyuko to suggest it?
Yuyuko met her gaze as boldly as any youkai. Yes, she knew precisely what she was inviting into her life.
A more intriguing question presented itself to Yukari. Did she know precisely from whom she was receiving an invitation in turn?
She stared into the borders of death rippling behind Yuyuko's eyes and smiled. Perhaps she did not. Either way, she was eager to find out. "Very well. I accept."
The setting sun brushed a single orange stroke across the wan winter canvas. Yukari watched the trees in the garden turn into shadows from the porch and allowed her mind to wander.
Yuyuko was a curious human in more ways than one. Her fear of Yukari wasn't non-existent, but it was diluted by curiosity and what Yukari could only interpret as acute loneliness. She was charming and seemed intelligent enough, and would likely make for good companionship during Yukari's convalescence. That was before delving into the mystery of her shadow.
All in all, Yukari was quite looking forward to her sojourn at the estate.
A small bell chimed in the air. For a moment, she thought it rang within her memories, but as the sound grew louder, she caught sight of a man with loosely tied long hair and green garments in the periphery of her vision.
She followed him with her eyes as he moved beneath the trees, the bell chiming each time he raised his left foot.
He stilled suddenly without any provocation, as a prey animal might upon sensing the intent of a lurking tiger. He raised his gaze and stared at the porch.
By then, Yukari was no longer there. She exited the gap she had opened behind the man and savoured the amusing few seconds before he realised she now stood an arm's reach from him. He recoiled from her, his hand going to the blades hanging from his waist.
Yukari tried not to think about how the usually effortless stunt of manipulating space had now cost her something and studied the man instead. His age was hard to pin down, but he appeared to be fighting fit. As with his mistress, there was something off about him: it was as though the true location of his body and where it appeared to stand in the world weren't entirely in alignment. As she narrowed her eyes and focused on the border of what was visible and invisible, she saw a thick haze of phantasmal energy wrapped around him in almost an embrace.
She smiled with more teeth than strictly necessary. "And who might you be?"
The man did something Yukari hadn't expected. While his shoulders remained hunched, he glared at her with no apparent fear. "I don't see how that's any of your business."
Yukari laughed. This time and place was truly a land of surprises. "It's only polite to introduce yourself to honoured visitors, is it not? Assuming you do belong to the retinue of the household and aren't simply a thief lurking in the night."
"I am the retinue. If you want to call it that." The man turned his head aside, looking just about ready to spit. "Youki, of the Konpaku. I'm a gardener."
Gardener. If it was an obfuscation, it was a feeble one. Since Yuyuko had also called him that, perhaps Youki did indeed prune plants around the estate when he found the time from his other duties. As for what else he was...
"A retainer, a gardener..." Yukari widened her smile. "And someone at best half human."
Youki continued to glare at her even as his hand slipped away from the blades. "Let's not waste time. I can gauge an opponent's strength well enough to tell there's not much I can do against you, so I won't bother to try. Just know this: you have nothing to gain here, and you're not welcome."
"On that point, I believe your mistress disagrees."
Youki grunted. "It can't be helped."
"Is there anything else you would like to say for yourself?"
Youki's hand reverted to the hilt of the longer sword. His demeanour was that of a man who knew he was about to die, and who, while not looking forward to the prospect, was resigning himself to the fact. "...I'm not going to beg."
"Shame. It might have been amusing." Yukari waved a dismissive hand at him. "Back to your gardening with you."
Youki stared at her for several moments longer than was polite. Then, with a barely perceptible but regardless significant shake of his head, he turned away. He was already several paces away when he spoke again without looking back. "Leave while you can, youngling."
Yukari watched his silhouette grow small against the barren trees and listened to the wind until the bell's chime was swallowed up by twilight. The man was of no especial interest, but his parting words played upon her mind. What about her had made her appear young to him? How old was she? Surely it was far more—
—the borders splintered and splintered and splintered—
—she stood in a wintry garden beneath grey clouds about to be consumed by the night. She could remain in one place and time and be—
—Was she still herself? Who was Yukari Yakumo? Was she anything more than a collection of false memories and ever-changing borders in a world of constant inconstancy—
She blinked and re-centred herself. Youkai shouldn't think existential thoughts if they wished to keep their spirit intact, nor did they need to: naturally she existed, because else she wouldn't have stood where she was. It was as simple as that.
The faint presence of death by the manor grew more prominent. Yukari looked up to see Yuyuko standing on the porch, pale but unafraid. She smiled at her, and was amused to receive a smile in turn.
Yes. A brief respite in this silent manor with an unusual and fascinating companion. Just what a youkai needed.