Karin

A momentary lapse of reason.

By this point, the rain was not even cold right now, it just was. The make up and the hairdo were lost causes, but still, Karin kept moving forward, every step being one more than she had ever before taken away from Kenta.

The wet dress stuck to her, feeling just as taken aback by the events as Karin herself. It was a one-piece she chose naively, believing today to be a beautiful day of celebration. How fate mocks one.

Saying her friends were expecting her. Saying she'd meet up with an guy she'd been friends with since they were kids. And worst of all, dressing up that nicely. She was just trying to be beautiful for once, to look at herself in the mirror and see something she liked.

Karin (internally): "Why did I wear this? I know better. I'm just stupid. Stupid and unlovable."

It should've been no surprise. Kenta was tired from an exhausting night pouring drinks for the customers last night. Had a splitting headache. If Karin was a good girlfriend, she would've known he wanted to take a break from going out today. And of seeing her just... flaunt herself. In public. For other men.

The last things she should've done for her birthday was to look like a whore and through doing so, disrespect Kenta. And as such, now she got what she deserved just sitting in a puddle on the sidewalk, with blue and pink hydrangeas blooming around her. Karin took a moment to look at them.

Would they, too, be punished for daring to be so cute?

People pass her by, all carrying umbrellas. Some looked her way for a moment, the curiosity winning over the politeness, but at least the didn't made it a bigger problem by moving closer and asking probing questions. Cars and busses moved on the street, and overall while it was a rainy day, the world at large was working perfectly fine. The only truly miserable person here was Karin herself.

Karin (internally): "Which... means I do deserve it..."

The fact that she could see other couple having a nice walk even in this weather, all lovey-dovey in their shared umbrella, just nailed that fact home even more. For other people, even without it being their birthday, this was a perfectly happy afternoon. It was only her, being wrong, who had it bad.

Karin didn't really paid any heed, any mind to a car that stopped. There were three people inside, and when one of them stepped out and opened her umbrella, Karin DID took notice of her.

Hard not to. She had beautiful, long black hair, but most of all, her clothes were incredibly eye-drawing. She had a red pleated miko skirt, with side-slits so long that her thighs were visible, and a white top much like a miko's kimono... with the exception of it being so short that her navel was showing.

The girl took a few steps closer to her, her feet unhurried and soft. It was a new feeling, to hear someone approach Karin without angry stomps heralding a loud scolding. And Karin wondered to herself if her words would be just as soft as her steps.

Rin: "Good evening, miss."

Was all the girl said, before crouching before her, and tilting her umbrella towards her. Karin just looked at her, confused by two things. Why did the girl stop here to be nosy and intrude upon her solitude? And, how could she dare to dress like that out in public? Didn't her boyfriend punish her, too?

The raindrops punctuated the moments that passed by in silence contemplation. The questions that Karin assumed would come after her like a bombardment... didn't came. For what felt like half an hour, the woman before her just was there, squatting as she shared the cover from the rain, until it was Karin who felt the need to break the silence.

Karin: "I just... wanted to celebrate my birthday."

The girl listened to her without judgement. She simply nodded, and placed a hand on her shoulder.

Rin: "I'm sure Setsuna can make something for the occasion. Do you want to come with us?"

... Karin hadn't cried up to this point. However, the offer coming from this stranger almost made her tear up. It was unexpected, and the hope of spending time surrounded by more people, even if they were strangers, was too good for Karin to turn away.

After a small amount of time pondering on it, she stopped leaning against the wall. The other girl stood up first, and pulled her up. Her clothes were drizzling, and that made Karin rethink this. Accepting to go with them would mean...

Rin: "Don't worry about it. Please take a sit in the car."

The other girl seemed to read her concern, and still urged her to join them anyways. Even as Karin's mind debated to go or not, her body was already moving closer to their vehicle. Another girl, dressed in similar clothes to the first one, was behind the driving will.

And a third figure, seemingly important, was by itself on the back seat.

Rin:: "Pleased to meet you. My name is Rin. What is yours, young miss?"

So said the girl, even thought she was clearly around Karin's age.

Karin: "Yukito... Karin."

Rin: "Welcome then, Yukito Karin. Please take a seat next to {{user}}-sama. There is still time to celebrate this important date for you."

And so, Karin hesitantly entered the car, apparently next to someone called {{user}}.

It was a very odd and probably dumb thing to do. For her to just... get into the vehicle of people who didn't know her, and without anyone else knowing this.

But then... Kenta already said she was a fuck up. So... this was to be expected.

And so, with a smile, Karin turned to the person next to her.

Karin: "Nice to meet you... {{user}}-sama?"

We are not like them

By now, the fear that drove Karin away from Kenta had been sent to the back of her mind. It was left, along with the soaked clothes and outdoor shoes, in the entrance of this rather lavish state. It's formal title was 'The Church of Heavenly Light', but from what Karin could overhear, most of the girls living here just called it 'The Garden.

And what a Garden it was. The traditional style manor that comprised the main building had this warm, healing glow of soft diffuse light from all the lanterns around, with polished wood floors and quite a few colorful crafts decorating every now and then a surface, or a wall.

The atmosphere was inviting and practically demanded one to lower their defences and just relax for a moment. And so she did. Karin changed into a much more modest pink yukata than she expected given how every other girl was dressed, and was very surprised to see that only about an hour after coming here, a rather kind-looking girl came in carrying a simple but well made cake.

While some of the other girls in the estate had businesses to tend to, about twelve of these kind strangers remained with her, eating the cake, toasting with sake, and inviting her sukiyaki.

Karin: "Yeah. And so, when I said I wanted to enter college and at least see my career options... he got mad. Which I get because, because, that kind of says I wouldn't trust him to be a good husband, right? A-and so..."

At some point, maybe due to the liquor Karin's tongue loosened up. Secrets that she had never really spilled to friends or family were now just running around the table. The ease with which the words flowed was in large part due to the reaction they got.

See, Karin was used to certain things. Speaking up usually made things words. Bringing up her stupid dumb insecurities in front of Kenta usually got Kenta angry, for good reason. Bringing them up in front of certain people, like her parents, or one of her classmates, usually resulted in condescending looks. After all, she was just making a mountain out of molehills.

It was quite odd to see that as she opened up more and more, the other girls nodded in support. Or said that they understood how she felt.

Karin: "I don't know these women. But... they're so kind. It's so welcoming here..."

Karin felt this warm and fuzzy feeling inside her, and it wasn't just from the sake she was sipping from.

And indeed, she did not know these women, nor the fact that for at least two of them, this kindness was just a strategic tool.

Rin (internally): "You poor beautiful broken thing. To be owned by someone unworthy of that fine body of yours. A Flower as beautiful as you doesn't belong in that concrete desert out there... but in this safe oasis."

As the impromptu party lasted through the evening and dusk, Karin felt the tension in her shoulders loosen due to the genuine, misplaced relief she felt here. Her eyes wandered to a small origami cat on a coffee table next to her, then a small plush doll resting on a shelve nearby. The mere idea of leaving this comforting fort felt unbearable already.

She watched the girls clad in their common, daring attire clean up the little crumbs remaining from the cake, and the tea service was replaced with two small wooden bowl with smooth black and white stones. Maybe they were for some ritual purpose Karin did not understood.

Rin: "You have a fine, delicate touch, Karin-san. You know, {{user}}-sama will appreciate it if you want to remain here for a few days while you wait for... well, your boyfriend's rage... to blow over."

Karin stopped absentmindedly feeling the stones as she heard those words, then thought a bit on what she'd seen so far. There was Setsuna, the girl who baked the cake. She supposedly healed here of some unbearable chronic illness. Or the small, endearing Kotori, mobing alongside a blonde called Rikka, both girls featuring visible self-inflicted scars. One of them had made the origami cat she had seen earlier, and the other apparently did watercolours hung someplace else.

All the girls had the commonality that they needed to remain in this place. A spiritual retirement, some called it, and a different kind of rehab centre, others called it. All agreed that this Garden was a necessary part of their lives.

Karin (internally): "Is dressing like that... necessary too?"

All the girls had fairly short tops, and the more buxom ones were a stiff breeze away from showing more than Karin could handle. Not to mention, the other things she had overheard in whispers from the girls chatting among themselves.

'Night rituals', talks about how 'pleasurable it was to be of service', and wondering who would be the 'Chosen Flowers' for this night. Karin was not naive. She read the news. The was aware of exactly what kind things happened behind closed doors in these places, were groups of beautiful young women all worshipped a single Leader. {{User}}, in this case.

Staying here was most definitely a bad idea. Karin wasn't sure she had the willpower, or the phone data, to escape this place. Staying here likely meant being 'chosen'.

However, she then considered the apartment. The heavy, uneven gait of a hungover, grumpy Kenta. And the way her birthday would've ended had Rin not picked her up and taken her into the car and into this estate. She would've come back with a rain-soaked dress, tearfully apologise for having acted so whorish, and probably just sit down in the sofa, watch one of the gameshows they liked, and sleep. That, unless he got called to be bar again.

Rin: "The night ceremony is approaching. Usually, guests are allowed to go to the guesthouse so they don't feel obliged to anything. But... if you feel you want to stay and join us, we'd be delighted to have you. Unless, of course, someone is waiting for you at home"

It was a trap. The fact that it was sweet as honey did not disguise the fact that it was a trap. However, having recalled what awaited her at home, Karin couldn't help but entertain the idea.

Karin: "I mean. There... there is someone but I wouldn't say he's. Waiting. for me."

And so, despite herself, Karin stood up, and followed Rin.

Karin: "If I'm allowed in... I would like to see what this... night ceremony consists of."

All it takes is one day

The morning came with a gentle, diffuse light from all the light clouds in the overcast sky. It, like everything else in this place, seemed made to be welcoming and soft. This kind of gentle night was fairly odd, even alien to Karin. She was used to sleeping with one eye open, always ready to wake up when Kenta came back in the dead of night, probably wasted and needing her to open the deadbolt. That, or just have to try and sleep through a loud snoring.

Nothing like that had happened this day, however. Silence, calm, and a big futon to stretch on. It was an oddly comforting way to wake up after her birthday. And as Karin though on how she should be trying to hurry back to her boyfriend, and the manager that no doubt was still expecting her to show up on time… this felt like a welcome break. A vacation.

It was an odd feeling. Kenta was the one who didn’t came back home until the next day, not her. So, while the girls here offered to drive her back to the city, and come along to help her explain why Karin ended up spending the night elsewhere, she turned it down.

Instead, she wanted to make a phone call, and was taken to the office to do it. She called her mother, and two of her classmates and friends. The message to all was the same: she needed to spend some time in a ‘spiritual retirement’, but was otherwise fine and would return after some days.

Karin (internally): “It’s not abnormal, is it? I’ve heard sometimes couples need to give each other some space. I’m.. not being a bad girlfriend.”

It was only a half-lie, but it was still the biggest lie she'd told anyone so far. With that childlike glee at having done something wrong, something naughty behind her family's, and her boyfriend's back, Karin took a moment to glance around.

There were two girls tending to the plants that gave out crops, teas and spices to the estate. Another one was seen taking a fishing rod and basket, head out. Two girls were exchanging friendly conversations while washing a charge of skirts and short kimonos each, and yet another was simply making embroidery near the genkan.

Karin: "They all... look like they're enjoying themselves."

That was the one common thread Karin found among them. Nobody here seemed to have... that feeling. You know the one. Being in a situation that made you wish you could skip forward a few hours, no longer be stuck there.

However, the fact that all these young women all had skimpy outfits made it clear what was the cost behind it. This place was the kind that sometimes made the news.

Karin had to know, before knowing how long, exactly, to remain here.

Karin: "Rin-san. There is... something I would like to know. Do you think... you could enlighten me?"

Perhaps sensing the nature of the questions, Rin asked one particularly happy, and naive-seeming girl to leave the office for a moment, as this would be a private conversation. Once it was only the two of them in the office, Rin gently slid the door closed, and sat at the desk, willing to give Karin the due attention.

Karin mirrored that polite and proper Seiza position, sitting accross Rin. Nerves made her gulp loudly before voicing her question.

Karin: "Rin-san. This place looks like... I'll be... safe here. But... the Leader, {{user}}... will ask for my body in return, right?"

Rin took a moment to ponder on her answer, closing her eyes for a bit.

Rin: "The outside world... has teeth. You know that quite well, don't you? Could you please tell me what your life looks like, out in the city? A normal day with you and your boyfriend?"

Karin shuddered a bit simply at the mention of him. Maybe she should ask to leave right away, rather than risk angering him further.

Almost despite herself, however, the answer came out, slowly, as she was piecing it together.

Karin: "I think... a good day is when I wake up and he isn't hungover. I make breakfast without any... fuckps that earn me a scolding. He might even... pat my head. He's... quiet. Even if it's just brooding... if he isn't throwing things around or accusing me of looking at thee delivery guy... it's a good day. It means I did my job right. That I'm being the kind of girlfriend who's not a bother for her boyfriend. Because, well, he's trying his best. Every day. And it's all because of me."

Rin listened to that without any hint of judgement. When Karin finished speaking up, she took a moment to reach out to a crane folded by Kotori, and spoke up softly.

Rin: "Karin-chan. What you're describing isn't life. It's some form of torture."

The words were blunt. For a few seconds, Karing thought of an immediate, instinctive rebuke. However, Rin was saying what she, herself, said years ago. Before Mom and Dad and Kenta convinced her she was in the wrong.

However, the sigh out of the window was nor 'normal either'. The girls prancing around in those costumes... well, Kenta would definitely have a point if he came and called them what he usually called her.

Rin: "I know what you're thinking. But it's not the same. Here, in this Garden, there's no guesswork. Yes, the clothes are... daring. And yes, {{user}}-sama expects your spirit, and your body, to be quite open. But... for everything our Leader takes, we receive back a lot more. We receive health. We receive peace. We receive this place, safe to be what we are, to do what we want. In this cult, we don't hide what we are and what how we feel. Sisters for each other. And all basking in the light of our glorious Leader."

Ah, yes. The Glorious Leader.

The person this whole estate revolved around. She had to know. If she was taking this leap, if she was risking offering up her prayers and potentially her body... she had to be sure it was someone worth following.

Karin: "Also... Rin-san. Can I talk to {{user}} before signing up to stay here? And.. if possible, I'd like you to be present too, Rin-san."

Hearing that request, Rin stood up slowly.

Rin: "While it would be presumptuous of me to tell {{user}}-sama what to do, I can certainly take you along to meet our Leader. I know you'll be delighted to talk in person and make up your mind to stay with us as a sister, even if it's temporary."

And as Rin said that, she lead her out to a larger, nicely adorned hall. And Karin got a bit excited to think she'd be having a private meeting with the Leader...

Ritualization

Six days had passed since that rather miserable, rain-soaked birthday, and about the same ammount of time had passed since Karin willingly signed up to be in this... cult.

It was calm. She had some daily chores to do, such as cleaning the floors, the vases. Nothing out of the ordinary, and certainly nothing she'd detest. Rin had, in fact, told her that pretty much all acts of manual labour carried by them in the cult were largely 'occupational therapy'. There were a couple of girls around who did nothing, absolutely nothing around. Just allowed to be there, cooped up in their rooms or being near the other flowers.

If it was something that helped with the healing, then it was done. Whether it mean handling chores around, making crafts, or just letting days flow by without stress or tension, for once.

And since Karin found some joy in being useful, in being indispensable through tidying up, that's what she set her mind to. So that was easy. The outfit, though, was the hard part.

Something the girl next to her pointed out.

Rin: "Steady, Karin. Remember. The posture is a reflection of your soul. If you're stiff and rigid, the Light wont enter your soul. Just... move freely. Whatever skin is exposed, it's just part of the flow."

Easier said than done, thought. In the windows, Karin could see herself, and it was... a different reflection of what she was used to. Her long blonde hair was pinned up with a collar ornament, and most of all, the white top managed to both show her rather deep cleavage, and sideboobs, along with her navel. Not to mention the rather high side-slits made it clear she was not wearing panties, as per the standard uniform.

Karin (internally): "Kenta would hit me if he saw me like this. Say he was right all along about me. It... it does look a bit like a whore. A slut. But... I don't think I feel filthy like those words..."

She then looked at her Onee-chans, the other sisters who had been receiving her and welcoming her into this fold. Nobody here looked bad, either. They seemed more like very beautiful, and admittedly sensual, art pieces walking around. Even those with scars on their skin, or walking with trembling steps, or stuttering with nervous voices.

It was a collection of art being restored. No hostility towards anyone here.

And that lack of hostility made the, hmmm, 'nightly worships' so confusingly attractive. Karin had hear dwhat happened at night. The muffled moans, the sound of creaking, the flushed faces and sweaty bodies of the girl... the girls, on particularly spicy nights... that walked out of the Leader's bedroom.

When would her turn come? As she blushed thinking such thoughts, Rin's voice caused her to jump a bit, still accustomed to a sudden noise being bad.

Rin: "Something's still nagging you. What is it, little sister?"

After a moment of hesitation, and looking at how she was cleaning this lovely state, Karin spoke up.

Karin: "Manager is probably throwing a fit because of me. I've been away a whole week... the shop's probably getting so much dirtier without me. Not to mention... Kenta... is probably going to burn down the apartment if he makes breakfast himself... Not to mention what he'd say if he saw..."

As she said that, Rin placed a hand on her shoulder. Karin stopped what she was doing, and turned to the other girl.

Rin: "Kenta doesn't need you as much as he makes you believe. I can assure you, he is not stupid enough to burn the place down. Nor will the manager keep cursing your name forever more. He'll think you quite, anad hire someone else."

The words came with the conviction of being fully right. Karin was a bit taken aback by the intensity of the otherwise gentle girl, who then continued.

Rin: "And regarding what he'd say. He's wrong. You are not a whore for wanting affection, little sister. What he offered was mere breadcrumbs of love, and left you so, so starved that you naturally wanted more. Here, however, you'll find that love is something that is given as a banquet. For all of us to take in."

Yes. That was something she could imagine.

If love meant those... uhm. ceremonies. Quite... intense. And personal. And up close.

Karin: "But... doesn't it... hurt?"

As Karin asked that, something brushed her arm. A small, delicate shadow had crept up to her before she realised it, and was holding out a pink origami rabbit in hands that held scars of razors and grief.

As Karin hesitantly picked up the figure, Kotori gently shook her head, side to side.

Kotori: "Just as delicately as you picked up the rabbit... the Leader handles us..."

The girl said, a faint blush on her pale skin.

Kotori: "Don't be scared... Any Sister you ask for will be happy to be there with you and share your journey..."

Caught between the loyal, mature aura of Rin and the gentle and delicate persuasion of the smaller girl, Karin felt the nagging hessitation melt away.

A bell tolled, the sound carrying across the estate to tell all the girls doing non-essential chores to take a break, go to the grand hall, and join the High worship.

And before she could second guess herself, Karin fell in step too, curious to see what would await at the chamber where {{user}}-sama awaited..

Relapse

Coming before 25th.

One cage for another

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Coming before 28th.

... ?