Entry 4: On Hakurei (Part 1)

When I first referred to "the Shrine" in these records, I was, of course, not insinuating that there is only one shrine in all of Gensokyo (though I'm told that the Hakurei Shrine was indeed once the only shrine around.) It's simply the case that the Hakurei Shrine, being my first and foremost destination after leaving the Mansion, and also carrying the most importance of essentially all the shrines in the realm, deserves to be called as such. Plus, I doubt anyone even only mildly versed in the geography of Gensokyo would fail to recognize the foundation of Gensokyo's very existence.

That, however, is not to say that anyone would recognize the Shrine at first sight. It takes on a fairly decrepit appearance, and is nestled in the farthest reaches of eastern Gensokyo. The path leading up to it is old and worn, and even on the best of days, it'd be hard to even find the beginning of the road to its entrance. So you can perhaps understand the trouble I took to trek all the way from the Mansion, around Misty Lake, under Youkai Mountain, and over to the Shrine. (Don't worry if the names seem unfamiliar to you. At this point, I'm close to simply regurgitating what Patchouli has told me about the surrounding area.)

I was greeted by the sight of a young girl sweeping the stone pavement leading towards the shrine as I finalized the rockier portion of my long walk, feeling the uneven beaten path cut into the soles of my boots. She wore two of the most billowy and comfortable-looking armwraps I'd ever seen, and a simple red vest to complement the white-and-trim theme on the armwraps. What struck me most about her appearance, however, was the massive red ribbon tied on her head, with two more "daughter ribbons" hanging off two ponytails on her faded-brown hair.

Recognizing her as the host of this shrine, I approached her and gave her a perfunctory nod in greeting. She beamed brightly upon seeing me - perhaps friendly visitors were a rare occurrence in a land like this. Especially if those visitors were other humans, of all the people that could come here.

There are several reasons why Reimu Hakurei is such a big name within Gensokyo. One is that she is a direct descendant of the creator of the powerful Hakurei Barrier, which means that Reimu herself, carrying the blood of the Hakurei in her veins, too harbors great potential as a user of worldly magic. Another, a direct consequence of the aforementioned reason, would be her constant fights with those few in number, yet no less significant, close-minded youkai who seek to destroy her home, and maybe the rest of Gensokyo along with it. I've yet to find out what the logic behind such attacks might be, but honestly, I personally would rather stay indoors and have a cup of tea than try and fight someone of Reimu's caliber.

Not that you would take her to be anyone of such power at first sight. Following the example of the shrine that raised her, I soon found that looks could be deceiving.