The sky was cloudless, but without so much as a hint of stars: apparently, they had decided that since all of Gensokyo was awake, they could take the opportunity to sleep through the night.
Mokou stood up from her log and walked to the edge of the slope of the hill with her hands in her pockets. Come to think of it, when was the last time she had looked up and seen the stars staring back down at her? Had the constellations of Gensokyo winked out of existence without her even noticing?
Well, it didn't matter much. No-one in the ragged bunch of youkai and humans she shared the hilltop with were actually looking at the sky. Their attention was on the horizon at the edge of Gensokyo, waiting for it to change.
Mokou followed their lead. She was so lost in thought the fluttering of feathers barely roused her, and it wasn't till she was directly addressed that her eyes focused again.
"Anything of note, Mokou?"
She turned to see Aya with her camera on the ready. "All calm. I thought you'd be with the main crowd for the historic event."
"I was there already." Aya rested the camera in the crook of her arm and whipped out her notebook with such swiftness Mokou couldn't tell where she had pulled it from. "How about an exclusive interview? I'm sure the public would love to hear the opinion of the eldest human resident of Gensokyo."
Mokou wouldn't help but chuckle at being described in such a manner. "Think you'll need someone less boring to interview. I'm fine with this, and I'm sure the Hakurei shrine maiden will handle it well." The new Hakurei shrine maiden seemed like a dutiful enough a girl, but her name eluded Mokou. She was out there with the majority of Gensokyo, performing the ritual necessary to dissolve the barrier without incident, or at least making impressive hand gestures while the youkai sages quietly took care of matters off-stage.
"She did. The barrier is down."
"Oh." Mokou peered into the horizon. At a glance, it was just as before, but with careful scrutiny she saw distant lights far ahead where before there had been nothing but black trees. Firelight, she if anyone knew, and not the blazing sun replicas the outside world had been rumoured to have. She wasn't sure whether she was relieved or disappointed.
Aya wasn't letting it bother her, in any case. "So, a comment for our readers?"
Mokou shrugged. "It looks nice."
Aya scribbled the words down, then turned her head and quirked an eyebrow, clearly expecting a juicier continuation.
Mokou ignored her and focused instead on the tenor of the voices slowly rising around her as they too understood what had passed over them like the hand of a silent ghost. There was nervousness, and longing, even resignation, but one emotion slowly rose above all others like the stars over a desolate land.
Hope.
She could learn to love this new land too, she was sure. It was simply a matter of reforming tracks of thought that were like stone and reshaping habits that had become her very nature till her previous life was like a phantom. She had done it before, though almost by accident. Surely she wasn't yet so calcified she couldn't do so again.
It had been easier back when there had been someone to take her by the hand and lead her down the right path, but that was like saying life would have been easier if she had never left the womb.
She turned back towards Aya. "They say the point of Gensokyo was to make sure youkai would survive, so I'm glad it lasted long enough for the outside world to start believing in them again."
Aya nodded and made another note. Mokou couldn't imagine anyone actually wanting to read these banal statements, but then, she wasn't a reporter. Moreover, she was fascinated by the sheer energy Aya conducted herself with. She was more than old enough to hold herself in check, but there was a kind of giddiness radiating from every subtle movement she made. On her face was reflected the same uncertain anticipation as on those around her only a fraction of her age.
Mokou waited till she was done writing and no longer: knowing Aya, she would fly away after she was satisfied so fast Mokou wouldn't even notice it if she blinked at the wrong moment. "Aya?"
Aya put her notebook away. "Yes?"
Mokou gestured at her to come closer.
"Hm?" Aya leaned in, perfectly keeping her poise as she cupped a hand around her pointed ear, anticipating a whispered secret. Even now, she towered over Mokou. Of course she'd worn her longest-toothed geta for the occasion.
Still, she was close enough for Mokou to grab her by the back of her head and pull her further down till their foreheads touched. Aya tensed, still maintaining her balance, but relaxed as she realised Mokou's gesture wasn't meant as an aggressive one.
She blinked when she was released, clearly expecting an explanation. Mokou only gave her a smile.
She looked on as Aya took her leave, spreading her wings wide till they melted with the night sky, camera back in hand, likely off to take pictures of their brave old world. Perhaps Mokou ought to have put her feelings into words or a less ambiguous gesture, but those could be reported ahead.
The people slowly dispersed, speaking in hushed tones, like the nothing they had witnessed was to be revered. Mokou watched till the last of their backs vanished into the shadows, then put her hands back in her pockets and meandered after them.
After all, where else was she going to go?