Generated a quickie with QwQ demo.
Scene: Hakurei Shrine
The Hakurei Shrine stands serene under a cloudless sky, though its once-vibrant torii gate now bears the faintest dust. Reimu Hakurei, her red hair tied in its usual twin tails, sweeps the courtyard with a broom. The donation box nearby is empty, its slot gazing upward like a hollow eye. A breeze stirs the leaves, and the sound of footsteps interrupts the stillness.
>Reimu (without looking up): "Hm? Someone’s here. ...Anon?"
Anon steps into view, his lobster-red skin contrasting sharply with the shrine’s muted greens and whites. His black tuxedo is crisp, the red bowtie a bold accent. He wears an eyepatch over his left eye, and a jagged scar peeks from beneath his shrapnel-adorned forehead. He pauses, then tosses a handful of coins into the donation box. The clatter echoes.
>Reimu (glancing at the box, then at him, brow quirking): "You’ve gotten... taller. And meaner-looking. That eyepatch isn’t just for style, is it?"
<(voice low, neutral): "...Needed it."
>Reimu (snorts, leaning on her broom): "Right. You always were a drama magnet. Still showing up unannounced, though. What’s the occasion? A new youkai invasion? A discount at Marisa’s ramen stand?"
Anon shifts, his gaze drifting to the shrine’s entrance. His silence stretches.
>Reimu (softening slightly): "You... okay? You used to chatter like a magpie when you were little. Now you’re quieter than a sleeping youkai."
<(after a pause): "Places change. People too."
A sudden gust of wind whirls around them. Aya Shameimaru materializes, her red eyes sharp behind camera lenses. She lands gracefully, her geta clacking against the ground.
>Aya (grinning, snapping a photo): "Ah! A dramatic reunion! The great Reimu Hakurei and... who might this be? A new shrine guardian? A mysterious stranger with a secret?!"
>Reimu (scowling): "Aya! This isn’t a story. And he’s not a stranger —he’s that kid who used to sneak into the shrine to eat Marisa’s leftover onigiri."
>Aya (leaning in, camera flashing): "But look at him now! That eyepatch! The scars! The tuxedo ! Reimu, is this a love interest? A rival? A mysterious benefactor ?!"
<(flinching slightly at the camera’s light): "...Stop."
>Reimu (crossing arms): "He’s just here to drop coins in my donation box because he feels sorry for me. How’s that for a headline?"
>Aya (gasping dramatically): "A shrine maiden reduced to charity ? Sensational ! But wait—what’s his story? Why the sudden generosity? What’s behind those scars?!"
<(stepping back, voice harder): ''"None of your business."
>Reimu (hastily, before Aya can escalate): "Hey, that’s enough. Leave him alone. And you—"
>Reimu (to Anon, softer): "—you don’t have to explain anything. But if you’re here, stay a while. Marisa’s probably got some old snacks in her room."
Aya pouts but keeps filming, muttering about "exclusive interviews." Anon hesitates, then nods once. The shrine’s quiet is broken again—not by youkai, but by the relentless hum of gossip, and the faintest flicker of curiosity in Reimu’s eyes.