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The wounds weren't too bad, all things considered. Mild cuts and bruises that, while hardly flattering to look at it, could heal on their own in short order. But even so, treatment was preferable. And if their owner hadn't been so reluctant to face Eirin sooner, they could have healed up in even shorter order. To say nothing of the fact she wouldn't even have them if she had just taken the Ultramarine Orb Elixir as instructed and...
Well, no sense in chastising Udongein at this point. She knew she made a poor move. The despondent look on her face and wrinkled ears spoke plenty to that.
At least it wasn't still that look of a soon-to-be exile resigned to their fate; that alone almost made Eirin forget her anger altogether. Almost. The princess still had to help quell it.
But even aside from that, to give due credit, Udonge still managed a successful operation despite deliberately disregarding the most important step and very nearly wasting the whole plan, which would have been catastrophic for everyone and while that didn't come to pass she still got herself needlessly hurt and—
No, stop. Not in the middle of treatment. Wouldn't want to make things worse. Especially after she all but forced Udonge to let her handle it.
Eirin fought the urge to sigh for what felt like the millionth time that night, lips drawing into a thin line as she applied a gauze pad over a trio of scratches on Udonge's right calf. "Who was aggressive enough to scratch you in a spell card duel?"
Udonge flinched at the sudden break in silence. "That stupid fairy," she half-mumbled.
Ah, right, the fairy from Hell. The one with the master whose friend was the instigator of the attack on the Lunar Capital. The one who apparently—as Udonge put it—took that tacky, ugly flag the humans planted on the moon and turned it into a tackier, uglier jester's outfit. Such a description almost made Eirin want to see the thing for herself. And considering the master and the instigator were still at large and liable to strike at the Lunar Capital again, she likely would. As for whether that would be sooner or later... Well, she could contemplate that tomorrow.
Right now, someone else needed her attention.
It was rare for Udongein to go against orders, and never premeditated. Those times she did were no more than the result of her rash decision-making under stress and panic. Was it the same for this case? The humans they enlisted all turned down the elixir, too... Peer pressure, maybe? Though probably not; she'd never gotten along well with any of them. At most, one of them said something that spoke to her own concerns. Or rather, her fears.
Yes, that seemed the most likely. In addition to purifying their past, whoever consumed the Ultramarine Orb Elixir gained the ability to glimpse ahead into the immediate future, allowing them to preemptively secure a clear path to success while avoiding harm. But that hinged on maintaining a level head which, needless to say, becomes increasingly difficult when faced with repeated failures. Stress management. And Udonge... Well, sometimes Udonge handled stress, but sometimes it handled her. And quite roughly. Especially in situations like this latest incident. If she found herself in an especially tight pinch and couldn't find a way out...
Maybe her disobedience was for the best. At least in that regard.
But in every other regard, it wasn't.
Although, in a choice between risking death and risking trapping herself in an inescapable hell... Thinking of it that way, of course Udonge picked the former. And she wasn't the type to rely on others, so the thought of counting on the humans to bail her out likely never crossed her mind. Too proud and independent for her own good, even if they were endearing traits of hers.
The thought made Eirin sigh. She stood, looked down at Udonge, whose gaze was still averted. "We're lucky your wounds weren't any worse."
Udonge's ears and shoulders sagged. "I know. I'm sorry."
"We're even luckier you were able to resolve this incident without the elixir."
She sagged some more. "I know. I'm sorry."
"Even though you could have died."
"I know. I'm sorry."
"Honestly, do you have any idea how worried I was about you?"
"I know. I'm..." Udonge paused. She blinked once, then twice, then she looked up at Eirin. Her expression was one of...surprise? "Sorry?"
The reaction bothered Eirin. "What? Did you think I wouldn't be?"
Udonge's mouth opened, but no words came out. Her eyes darted around the room aimlessly. She managed a, "Well, no, but..." before going silent again.
She didn't assume her own master thought so little of her well-being, did she? Surely not, right? Of course Eirin cared about her safety; it was self-evident by now, after how long they've known each other. It had to be.
It had to, right?
...
Eirin gave her a smile. It was a complicated one filled with a mixture of emotions blended in a specific way she couldn't recall ever feeling before. "I was worried about you. I was afraid I'd see you come home looking so much worse than this."
Udonge looked back up at her, eyes wide once more. She managed an "Uh," and shook her head. "S-Sorry! I don't know why I reacted that way, I swear!"
Well, at least she was just as confused about that reaction. "It's fine, Udonge."
"N-No, it's... I-I mean I... W-What I'm trying to say is, um..."
So it wasn't self-evident. Otherwise she wouldn't be this flustered. But why was she blushing? Embarrassment? Maybe, except... Looking closer, she almost appeared to be fighting back a smile. And she wasn't the type to fight back a smile when nervous; she's the type to force one. But if she wasn't nervous, then what—
A cough pulled Eirin out of her thoughts, and she found Udonge looking her in the eyes. "Yes?"
Udonge took a deep breath. "I... I'm sorry I went against orders. I got... I got scared. Of what might happen to me if I took it. That I might get...stuck, and couldn't find my way out."
So it was that after all. Right again.
Usually, it pleased Eirin to accurately guess Udonge's thoughts and feelings. A smug kind of satisfaction, admittedly, but anyone would be happy to know they understand their apprentice so well. Except this time, she wasn't feeling that. She couldn't, not with Udonge wearing such a pained expression. What to do... Ah, of course.
"It must have been hard on you."
Such a basic, vague thing to say. It could apply to Udonge's fears about disobeying Eirin just as easily as it could to her fighting the Lunarian forces without the elixir. But that was the point; this gave Udonge the opportunity to take the conversation in the direction she wanted, which would make easing her mood that much simpler.
Not that Eirin couldn't accomplish that if she took the reins, but that wouldn't help their relationship in the long run. Not if she wanted Udonge to understand she cared about her.
"To be honest, it was," Udonge said. "Everything was just...so much, and I couldn't stop to think anything through. I just had to keep pretending I was in control of the situation when everyone could see I had no idea what I was doing. You wouldn't think it'd be so easy to act tough in my position, but..." She laughed. It sounded forced, sardonic. "I wish I could be even half as cool and collected as you, Master. Maybe then I could've followed orders."
She hung her head with a sigh, only to look back up from a gentle touch under her chin. Her eyes widened as they met with Eirin's. Curiously, her blush returned. But why...
Never mind. Eirin could ponder that later. "You did well regardless, Udonge. You don't need to keep beating yourself up over this."
Quivering quips made it clear Udonge was torn between accepting the words and arguing against them, so Eirin continued, "This incident has been resolved thanks to you, and you even did it without the most important part of the plan. Be proud of what you accomplished."
Still the rabbit's lips quivered. But, judging from the struggle to restrain the growing smile on her face, it was merely her anxiety fighting and failing to maintain its grip on her. Eirin took pleasure in watching it lose. Her dear apprentice deserved to be happy for her successes, not to wallow in her missteps.
Udonge laughed again, this one on a far lighter note. Her ears finally relaxed a bit. Her smile now broke out into a grin, a complicated mixture of relief, embarrassment, joy, a hint of pride, and...something Eirin couldn't quite place. Sadly, it disappeared before she could identify it. "S-So what now?" Udonge asked.
She wanted to talk business again? Already? Eirin thought for a moment. "For now, it'd be best to just retire for the night. We can discuss what comes next tomorrow."
"But..."
"Udongein, even if there is more to do, we've done all we can for today. You need rest—put it out of your mind and let me worry about the next step."
It wouldn't do either of them any good to further exhaust themselves tonight, especially not Udonge. Between the wounds and mental duress, both of which had only just begun to heal, the last thing she needed was more to dwell on. Best to let her savor today's victory and save tomorrow's work for then. She needed a good night's sleep. There wasn't really anything else they could accomplish tonight, anyway.
Udonge's gaze fell to the floor, her expression turning thoughtful. After a bit, she gave a small nod and looked back up at Eirin. It was clear from her face she wasn't fully convinced, but was willing to accept her master's advice. Her shoulders relaxed a little and a faint smile appeared. "Alright, if you say so."
Eirin smiled back. She was about to reply when an idea occurred. Physical shows of affection were a good method to show someone you care about them. She'd never done this before, but maybe that would help in this case...
She brought a hand up and gave Udonge's head a pad. A brief, light brush of the hair; not much, but even such a quick gesture should be sufficient. Part of her was distracted by how soft and silky Udonge's hair was. To think it maintained such good quality even after a day of constant fighting. Another part of her felt tempted to prolong the gesture.
For reasons entirely unrelated to said soft and silky hair, of course. Obviously.
But discipline won over impulse and Eirin retracted her hand. She maintained her smile, withheld a chuckle as Udonge looked up at her. A prick of self-awareness compelled her to ask, "Did you not like that?"
Udonge said nothing. She just stared, wide-eyed and unblinking. And her ears, while less wrinkled now, hadn't relaxed so much as they were standing up as straight as they could.
Was it that baffling a gesture? Eirin wasn't exactly one to make these types of gestures, but...
"U-Ummm...!" Shaking her head, Udonge flashed her an awkward grin, a rather noticeable pink dusting her face. "Nnnooope, nope nope not at all! I mean I didn't mind it! At all! It's fine! Super fine! More than fine! Really!"
For once in her eternal life, Eirin found herself genuinely baffled. "What—"
"Okay well I better do what you say and turn in for the night and save it for tomorrow and all that okay goodnight sleep tight!"
And with that flurry of words, Udonge spun on her heel and rushed out the door, slamming it behind her. And leaving an even further baffled Eirin to stare at said door.
...
What was that?
Udonge had never reacted like that before. Did the gesture have the opposite effect? Eirin looked down at her hand, recalling the sensation of Udonge's soft hair.
... No, it couldn't have. She'd used a pretty gentle touch, so it shouldn't have hurt. And Udonge would have turned despondent and shrunk away if that were the case. So what...
Oh, of course. She was simply embarrassed. Her master had never displayed affection in such a way before, and was simply at a loss as to how to react. It was so obvious. Hah. Honestly, what was there to worry about?
Chuckling to herself, Eirin turned her gaze back to the door. "I'll have to keep that one in mind."
Especially if it produced such an adorable reaction.
Meanwhile, just around the corner and down the hallway and around another corner, Reisen was slumped back against the wall, her face buried in her hands as she made a noise akin to a steaming tea kettle. With a scalding hot face to match, no less.
"What was that?!" The words came out strained, as if the mere act of speaking was too difficult. In her defense, it kind of was when your master—one of the most emotionally distant people in Gensokyo—whom you've been pining for since who knows when suddenly gives you a pat on the head, knocking the wind out of you in the best possible way.
But seriously, where did that come from?! Sure, Reisen had always known Master did care about her on some level, but one high enough to do something like that? What was she supposed to infer from it? There couldn't possibly be some, some...reciprocation of feelings going on here, right? Couldn't be...
Groaning, Reisen rest her forehead on her knees. "You can't just go and do that kind of thing with no warning, Master, come on... Don't get my hopes up..."
It was hard not to, though. Even setting the head pat aside, all that stuff Master said about worrying about her and the reassurances, not to mention how she used such a gentle voice when she said all that... And that beautiful smile...
"Aaahhh, whatever. Might as well savor the joy while I can..."
With a dry laugh, she leaned back against the wall and sighed, smiling a bit despite herself.