Volume 16 - The Mountain, Chapter 123 - Collateral Damage

Haru and Yuisu were working together on the new pool's jobsite, wrapping up the last of what they could do on their own. Other than a few bits of work on the changing room and paths, the rest of the project involved the spring itself and was the responsibility of the contractor, Mister Satoru. Technically, there was also the work to expand the parking lot but Yuisu planned to hire an outside company to do that, since it required some heavy equipment.

As the two women hammered wooden panels onto the outside walls of the changing room, Yuisu turned to Haru and said, "What was that you said yesterday about rabbit spirits being tricksters in Japanese mythology?"

Haru scoffed and responded, "They're notorious for it, like the Inaba Hare that tricked a bunch of sharks into being a bridge for him. They'd also pull pranks on unsuspecting humans just for fun."

Yuisu thought back to the stories she'd heard as a child, then said, "But not all rabbit spirits were like that. The rabbit in the moon was totally selfless, sacrificing himself to help an old man. And isn't there a story about a different Inaba Hare that guided a goddess to a special mountain?"

Haru shrugged. She didn't know Japanese myth well enough to argue the point any further. Instead, she said, "Hakuto doesn't seem that selfless to me. For all her supposed magic powers, she hasn't helped out around here at all, has she?"

Then Haru stood up to fetch some tools she'd set aside a few minutes earlier. As she crossed the short distance she added, "Myths aside, she's a rabbit and I don't trust her."

Yuisu raised one eyebrow. She was pretty sure that that Hakuto's rabbit-like nature was actually the majority of Haru's problem, and the myth thing was just her attempt to justify it. Yuisu supposed that raptor harpies would have to overcome a lot of predatory instinct to become friends with someone who looked so much like prey.

"What the hell?" Haru squawked suddenly, pulling Yuisu from her thoughts.

"What? What's wrong? Yuisu said. Haru wasn't easily surprised, so Yuisu was a bit worried as she ran over to Haru's side.

Haru was staring down at the ground, at a large clump of overgrown weeds with just a bit of shiny metal peeking out. With disbelief in her voice, she said, "The tools. I set them down here on the open ground, but now they're all tangled in weeds."

"Maybe you actually dropped them in the weeds on accident?" Yuisu suggested, but she didn't entirely believe her own words. She could see how buried the tools were.

Haru scratched her head with one wing. "Huh. Maybe. Can you help me get them out?"

"Sure thing," Yuisu said, then she set down her own tools to help her hand-impaired girlfriend.

While Yuisu tugged at the tangle of plants, Haru sniffed the air and scanned the area for signs of a certain rabbit. She couldn't be sure, but there was a chance that the inconvenient weeds were Hakuto's doing. Maybe sudden plant growth was within the realm of a mountain spirit's abilities.

Haru thought back to earlier when she asked what Hakuto could do. Given Hakuto's cryptic "You'll see, in time" response, it seemed Haru was going to find out the hard way.

Other than the odd encounter with some pesky plants, the rest of the day's work went well. After the sun had set, Yuisu apologized and excused herself, saying, "I've got an international guest that I need to call back about their stay. Different time zones can be such a pain."

"No problem. We're at a good stopping point anyway," Haru said, shaking her head. The movement sent her long strands of pure white hair swishing, and caught Yuisu's eye.

Yuisu smiled and thought, Damn, she's so beautiful. And she's dependable and strong and she really loves me. I just can't believe how lucky I am to—

Those thoughts were interrupted by Haru patting Yuisu on the back with a wide, soft wing. She said, "No time for zoning out, Yuisu. You've got a call to make."

"Oh, right. Seeya in a bit," Yuisu said, then she jogged toward the house.

"I'll be in the spring if you finish quickly," Haru called out. Her shoulders were stiff and sore from the day's work and a soak sounded amazing. She could fly for hours without a problem, but her wings just weren't suited to holding up wooden panels while Yuisu nailed them in place.

After a quick rinse in the shower to get the day's sweat off, Haru made her way to the spring and stripped. She knew the inn's bathing schedule by heart and knew the spring would be reserved for women only, but she was pleasantly surprised to find it empty. It was so much easier to relax all alone.

It also meant that her favorite spot was open: a comfortable nook where the stones along the edge of the pool perfectly supported her wings when she didn't want to get them wet. She settled in there, sinking down until the hot water covered her shoulders and started to melt the tension away.

Steam rose from the rippling surface into the cooling night air, nightbirds started their evening serenade, and Haru drifted off into total relaxation.

Then something changed. The hot water pouring into the spring became ice cold. Within 30 seconds the pool had become lukewarm and the temperature just kept dropping.

"What the hell?" Haru proclaimed for the second time that day. She jumped out of the cooling water and stood by the side of the pool, shivering. Despite the late hour and high elevation, the air was actually warmer than the water.

Shit, Haru thought, This is really bad. If the spring is putting out cold water now, the Inn's going to be in bad shape. She frowned deeply and covered her chilly chest with her wings. And after all that work on the new pool…

Haru was devastated. With tears in her eyes at the profound loss of the hot spring, she started toward the changing room. She was dreading having to deliver the bad news to Yuisu, and she was genuinely worried about the financial future of the inn.

Then her keen ears caught a faint sound from the bushes to the north side of the inn. It was definitely someone giggling.

Haru's head snapped around and she stared in that direction, but there were just some shaking leaves and a distant rustling sound. Whatever had made the sound was gone, and the sulfur smell of the spring covered up its scent.

In fact, the smell of sulfur seemed to be getting stronger. Haru glanced down at the water's surface and saw it was steaming again. She dipped a talon in and found that it had already nearly returned to its proper temperature.

She should have been happy that the spring had recovered, but instead she scowled and hissed out a single word: "Hakuto…"

Haru had become convinced that the pesky weeds and the inexplicably-cold hot spring had both been Hakuto's doing, and she vowed to get that trickster back. While the mountain spirit had supernatural methods to play pranks, she was soon to learn that Haru had some tricks of her own.

The next day, Yuisu invited Hakuto to join them for dinner, but Hakuto was on the fence about it. She wasn't sure she'd like modern human food.

Haru saw a perfect opportunity and said, "I think you'll like Yuisu's cooking. Just the other day, I had an amazing meal that was absolutely delicious."

She continued slowly, with intense emphasis on every descriptive word, "It was succulent and juicy and had the most delightful texture, like the freshest peach. I tore into it, quickly at first, but then I slowed down and savored it, enjoying every element of the experience, every sensation that contributed to the wonderful whole. If I could, I'd eat that all day, every day."

Hakuto blinked and her nose wiggled excitedly. Her curiosity was piqued and her mouth watered at the thought of such a phenomenal meal. "Oh wow, that sounds amazing! What kind of food was it?"

Haru cracked a wicked smile and said, "Oh, it wasn't technically food. I was actually talking about eating pussy. I guess I get sex and Yuisu's cooking confused, since they're both so awesome."

Hakuto's face fell and she fought off a desire to gag. Despite her asexuality, she actively tried to not be a prude, but Haru's bait-and-switch had been far too much. The whiplash of realizing that a mouth-wateringly appetizing meal had actually been a graphic description of lesbian sex all along… it was more than Hakuto could handle.

She turned tail and ran off, reverting to her rabbit form on the way. She scurried back to her den, and it took several hours before she was able to keep an appetite long enough to eat something because every thought of food brought back Haru's lurid descriptions.

Yuisu promptly scolded Haru, but Haru just shrugged and said, "I was just trying to say your cooking is as good as sex. Not my fault Hakuto doesn't appreciate it."

From there, the pranks quickly escalated into an all out war. First, Hakuto used her sway over wildlife to have all the large wild animals of the mountain avoid the inn's property, leaving Haru's hunting grounds barren. Haru responded by putting a bowl of cheap pet store rabbit food on the back porch, where residents and guests could see it. It was labeled with a big sign that said, 'For the local hobo'.

Next, Hakuto learned Haru's work schedule and started whipping up a cold mountain wind whenever Haru was trying to commute. Haru had to start bundling up in winter clothes to fly to and from work, which earned some strange looks in town. She was also forced to admit that Hakuto's mountain spirit powers were more powerful than expected.

Haru stepped things up after that. She ordered a huge box of colorful plastic eggs and started a rumor among the inn's guests that the god of the mountain preferred tributes in the form of Easter eggs. She handed out the plastic eggs for free and even told the guests where to leave them: in Hakuto's burrow.

The prank had its desired effect of annoying Hakuto to no end, but it annoyed others too. Some of the eggs ended up scattered around the inn and landscape, much to Sya's displeasure, since she and Rem had to clean them up. Sya had a low tolerance for nonsense normally, but she took particular offense when it increased her workload.

Now that sleeping places were apparently fair game, Hakuto decided to attack Haru on that front. She stealthily opened the window of Haru and Yuisu's bedroom and guided several birds to start roosting inside. They made a total mess of the place and even ruined a couple of Yuisu's precious yuri manga.

"That's it, Haru. This needs to stop," Yuisu fumed as she tried to salvage a book that was covered in bird poop. She was quite upset, even though all the damaged books could be easily replaced. Thankfully, all her signed and collector copies were in a display case and had escaped unharmed.

Haru nodded. "Agreed. Hakuto's taken it too far. I'll make sure to get her back for this," she said, misinterpreting Yuisu's words. Then she flitted out of the room, already planning her revenge.

Left alone with her cleaning supplies and manga, Yuisu clenched her jaw in frustration and mumbled, "I meant all the pranks need to stop. You're part of the problem, Haru."

With a sigh, Yuisu added, "But I don't know how to confront you without risking hurting our relationship…"

The next day, Yuisu answered a knock at the front door to find a very pitiful-looking Hakuto standing there. The rabbit-girl was covered from head to toe in dirt and grass and pine needles. She was so dirty that it was hard to tell the original color of her hair and fur.

Yuisu thought, So this was Haru's revenge, but she asked, "What in the world happened to you?"

Hakuto brushed a clump of dirt-crusted hair away from her eyes and quietly said, "A trap dumped glue on me in my burrow. Shapeshifting to this form didn't help, and now all the glue has hardened and I'm afraid to shrink back."

Yuisu gasped in surprise. She wasn't happy with Hakuto after the manga thing, but that didn't mean Hakuto deserved what had happened to her.

Hakuto fidgeted and thumped one foot nervously, then added, "Can I please use your washroom?"

Yuisu quickly answered, "Of course! I've got some shampoo that should be able to get that out, and I'll help you wash if you want."

Hakuto looked like she was about to cry and her voice wavered as she replied, "That would be wonderful."

A few minutes later, Hakuto sat naked on a small stool in the spacious bathing room, with her furry knees pulled up against her chest. Yuisu was kneeling behind her, wearing a t-shirt and shorts and trying not to get distracted by Hakuto's nudity. Her fluffy tail was actually doing Yuisu a huge service by hiding some of her wonderfully perky butt.

"This shampoo isn't meant for glue specifically, but it seems to be doing a good job," Yuisu said, making small talk as she worked on Hakuto's glue-caked ears. The rich lather softened the glue and lifted it out of Hakuto's soft, dense fur.

"Yeah, it is working well. And it smells amazing." She sniffed the air, enjoying the calming lavender scent. "I don't remember anything like this the last time I visited a bathhouse."

Yuisu chuckled. "Yeah, I suppose shampoo is a rather recent thing, at least on your timescale." She switched to cleaning the other ear and said, "Since you like it so much, you can have this bottle. And you can bathe here whenever you want."

Hakuto spun around on her seat and faced Yuisu with bright, excited eyes. "Really?! You're so wonderful, Yuisu! And I'm so very sorry about that bird prank. I didn't think about how it would affect you."

Yuisu smiled and tightly clasped her hands together, fighting ferociously to keep her eyes on Hakuto's face instead of her naked body. "It's okay. Nothing irreplaceable was damaged. And thank you for apologizing." Yuisu was about to ask Hakuto to stop the pranks entirely, but she was interrupted.

Hakuto cheered, "Oh, you're so nice to me, Yuisu!" Then she spread her paws wide and pulled Yuisu into a hug, pinning Yuisu's arms between their bodies. She had also spread her knees, meaning Yuisu's wrists were pressed up against the most intimate part of Hakuto's body.

Yuisu totally forgot about the pranks and her face flushed crimson as she felt how amazingly soft Hakuto's rabbit-fur pubic hair was against her skin. "N-no pr-problem," she stuttered. She took an unsteady breath and said, "Let's get back to washing out that glue, okay?"

Just a few feet away in the laundry room, Haru's talons dug a deep gouge into the wooden floor. She had been slowly folding her laundry when she'd heard Yuisu's trademark 'flustered and aroused' voice coming from the bathing room. She had overheard Hakuto's cheer as well.

As jealousy and anger overtook her thoughts, Haru swept up her laundry in her wings and left in a hurry. She had a new prank to plan…