Author Topic: hungrybookworm's Tasty One Shots - Warmth (Fluffy Reimu/Marisa)  (Read 21507 times)

hungrybookworm

  • Shipper On Board
YES SOMEONE DIES YESSSS I often find myself drawn to dark Touhou stories, and I think yours, unlike many others (including mine T_T), doesn't try to be overly depressing and continue on and on about a character's plight. You focused less on Kosuzu's death and more on everyone's reactions to it, which I think was really neat. ...that's not really the right word to use here, but oh well.

I'm liking this place better than FF.net already.
Thanks! I'd also recommend checking out AO3's Touhou section for another alternative to FF.net! (Watch out for the 18+ stuff though!)

I have a dark heart and keeping it under control can be tough sometimes (haha), but when I write I generally aim for 'serious' rather than 'dark' (though they can get a bit dark sometimes, like this one...) Working out just how much misery to lay on gets easier with experience, so keep writing and you'll definitely get better at it! Remember that less is more, and sometimes a subtle gesture hits the reader way harder than something big and dramatic.

hungrybookworm

  • Shipper On Board
Re: hungrybookworm's Tasty One Shots - A Patchy Smile (Patchouli/Meiling)
« Reply #31 on: October 09, 2015, 05:28:20 PM »
Oh look, something cheerful!

A Patchy Smile
(AO3 Mirror)

?Here?s your tea, Patchouli-sama!? Meiling held the teacup with a huge smile on her face. ?Careful, it?s still hot.?

Patchouli grunted, and didn?t look up from her book.

Meiling placed the cup on the desk, and peered at the page. ?What are you reading??

?Nothing of importance.? There was a deep frown on Patchouli?s forehead, and she was twirling a well-chewed lock of hair around a finger. ?Just research.?

?Is it going badly?? Meiling hadn?t seen her look so glum before.

?It?s going fine.? Patchouli glared, grabbed the cup, and took a sip. ?What are you doing here? Shouldn?t you be guarding the gate??

?I?m on my break, remember?? Meiling usually brought people tea around lunchtime. Sakuya had her hands full in the kitchen, and there were never any intruders at this time of night. ?Anything I can help with??

?No.? Patchouli looked at the book with a sigh. ?Please leave me alone, I need to concentrate.?

This wasn?t like Patchouli. Usually she?d dive into a long rant about that magician stealing books from the library again, or how Koakuma misplaced a really important grimoire earlier. Meiling left the library deep in thought. When was the last time she?d seen Patchouli smile? She couldn?t remember.

She went back to the kitchen, and asked Sakuya.

?Hm, I can?t remember either,? she said, stirring a huge pot full of suspicious red liquid. ?I think it might have been when we all visited the moon??

Meiling nodded, and decided she was going to make Patchouli smile again.

*****
Meiling?s first idea was to give Patchouli things she liked herself. It worked for her, so maybe it would work for Patchouli too! She clearly enjoyed books, so the next morning, Meiling walked into the library with five of her favourite tengu comic books.

Patchouli frowned as she flicked through the first one. ?What?s this for??

?I thought you might enjoy it!?

Patchouli had read them all by the next day, and didn?t seem any happier. ?I could predict the plot a mile away,? she grumbled, ?and the characters kept saying the same thing.?

Next, Meiling tried giving her something tasty to eat. Everyone loved food, and she was sure Patchouli was no exception. Using Sakuya?s stash of cakes and sweets seemed like cheating somehow, so she spent one of her few days off cooking biscuits.

?Sakuya?s lost her touch,? commented Patchouli after biting into one.

Copying Sakuya was a bad idea after all. Meiling decided to go with a more home grown approach. She raided the mansion larder, and made some Chinese almond biscuits instead.

?Not bad I suppose,? said Patchouli. ?Are they supposed to look like charcoal??

*****
?This is hard,? moaned Meiling, back at her usual post outside the gate. ?I don?t know what to do.?

?Well, maybe she?s already happy,? said Sakuya, standing opposite her.

?No, I can tell. She?s definitely not happy.?

?Then maybe you should ask why she?s unhappy? Then you can work out what to do from there.?

Meiling thought over what Patchouli said a few days ago. She seemed troubled over her research, but said it was ?fine? when Meiling asked.

Maybe it wasn?t fine after all.

?I?ll help her with her research!? she declared. ?Then she?ll smile!?

*****
The next day, Meiling went down to the library with a knowing grin on her face. Patchouli was slumped in her chair, a large pile of grimoires on her desk. She looked exhausted.

?Here?s your tea,? said Meiling, presenting the usual teacup. ?How?s the research going??

?Fine.? Patchouli didn?t look up.

?Really? Are you sure it?s going fine??

?Absolutely.? Her voice lacked conviction. Patchouli just sounded tired. ?I?m not an amateur.?

?Well, I?ve got some good news for you! I know a really good trick to make your research go even better!? And before Patchouli could protest, Meiling grabbed her by the shoulders, and pulled her out of her chair. ?Come on, we?re going outside.?

?Wait,? she attempted to struggle. ?I?m busy!?

But Meiling marched her out of the library, and into the evening light. A beautiful sunset filled up the sky, and a gentle breeze blew across the garden. A warm summer twilight.

?It?ll only take fifteen minutes.? Meiling gestured to the two chairs she?d placed in the garden earlier. ?Sit down. I?m going to teach you how to meditate.?

Patchouli looked appalled. ?Meditate??

?Yes, once you meditate, your research will go even better. Promise!? Meiling sat down. ?It won?t take long, really!?

Patchouli looked at the chair skeptically. Then she sighed, and sat down. ?All right. Since it won?t take long.?

?Great! It?s easy. Get comfy. Then close your eyes. Yes, like that. Now let?s start with breathing. Empty your mind, and breath in...? Meiling closed her eyes too, and took a deep breath. ?Breath in, two, three, four. Hold, two, three, four. And out, two, three, four. Now again. Breath in??

They repeated the exercise three or four times. Patchouli did as she was told, and tried to clear her mind. Her research really had been going badly, and her stress levels had shot up over the last few weeks. Meiling was right, meditating was pretty calming, once Patchouli let herself do it. She could feel her worries melting away.

Then she heard a snort. Patchouli opened one eye, and saw Meiling?s head drooping forward. The meditation had been too relaxing, and she?d sent herself to sleep.

She looked adorable. Patchouli couldn?t help it. She covered her mouth, and a wonderful smile spread across her face.


Notes:
1) This fic was written for RabbitEclair/UnmovingGreatLibrary's birthday! Happy birthday! May you write 300k+ words of gay touhous this year too.

2) After all the misery and suffering in the last few fics, I finally wrote some fluff. I've been working on a novel length DDC retelling recently, which is why I've been a bit less active. I'm hoping to post it sometime this winter, so look forward to it!

hungrybookworm

  • Shipper On Board
Re: hungrybookworm's Tasty One Shots - Warmth (Fluffy Reimu/Marisa)
« Reply #32 on: February 26, 2016, 01:25:35 AM »
I wrote this drabble to cheer myself up. It's self-indulgent, cute, fluffy reimari (for once). Enjoy!

Warmth
(AO3 Mirror)

Marisa and Reimu sat on the porch, and watched the evening sunlight light up the treetops. A plate of freshly rolled dumplings sat between them, already half empty. Marisa reached down for seconds, too content to look away from the scenery. Her fingers brushed soft skin.

Her hand was resting on Reimu?s.

Any other day, and Marisa would?ve leapt back and apologised. But today she froze. Her hand stayed in place. One second. Two seconds. Three. Four. A whole minute passed, and neither of them moved.

They both continued staring at the scenery, saying nothing, ignoring everything.

?I?ll make some more tea,? said Reimu, finally pulling her hand away. She stood up, and walked into the main room. Marisa looked at the palm of her hand, and wondered if she?d dreamt it.

When Reimu came back, they talked as they always did. As though nothing had happened at all.

*****
After that, it became a habit. When the shrine grounds were covered in silence, and the two of them sat alone watching the grass sway, Marisa would reach out, and cover Reimu?s hand with her own.

They never spoke during the moment. Speaking would ruin it. Speaking would force them to acknowledge what was happening. After a few minutes, Reimu would pull her hand away, and things would return to normal.

?I saw Kourin the other day,? Marisa said afterwards. ?Apparently he?s got some deal going on with Suzunaan. He sells them books, and they read foreign instruction manuals for him.?

?Hm.? Reimu frowned. ?I hope that doesn?t lead to trouble.?

?Seems unlikely.? Marisa leant back, and stretched. The air smelt warm. ?You know Kourin. He?s probably explaining the mystical properties of bookshelves facing west or something most of the time.?

They continued talking, just like always.

*****
Spring turned to summer. Summer turned to autumn. Reimu and Marisa continued holding hands in silence, watching the world change around them. They started sitting closer together, as though longing for warmth. They found each other far cosier than the coals in the hearth.

Marisa squeezed Reimu?s hand. Reimu?s thumb brushed hers in response. They still never looked at each other.

Gold leaves swirled above the grass. The days were getting shorter, and the sun moved lower through the sky. Soon winter would set in, and night would sweep over Gensokyo by late afternoon.

Time would always march forward. The leaves would always grow back, only to fall again months later. Flowers would bloom and wilt. Children grew into adults, and adults into old age.

And this moment of intimacy too, would end, until the next time they found themselves alone. Or maybe this would be the last time, and Reimu and Marisa would never touch each other again. Marisa broke one of the rules. She glanced at Reimu?s face, and saw that she was smiling.

?Reimu,? she whispered. She opened her mouth, to try and convey how she felt. ?I?? But the words fell away. Saying them felt unnatural, as if they belonged to someone else. ?Um??

Marisa couldn?t say them. Her courage left her. She leant to one side, and rested her head on Reimu?s shoulder instead. Their friendship was delicate. If Marisa said too much, it might crumble.

Reimu didn?t react at first. Marisa wondered if this was her limit.

Then slowly, Reimu pulled her hand away from Marisa?s. For a moment, Marisa feared she?d gone too far. But instead, Reimu put her arm around her, and held Marisa close. Marisa could feel Reimu?s arm tremble. They were both afraid.

The wind fell still. The grounds were engulfed in silence. Time had finally stopped.

?I love you,? said Marisa at last. The words slipped off her tongue. ?I love you, Reimu.?

Reimu said nothing. The trees rustling in the distance broke the silence, growing louder and louder in the wave of wind. The trees in the grounds shook too, gently swaying from side to side.

?Me too,? whispered Reimu. She buried her face in Marisa?s hair, and breathed in. ?I love you too.?

And they clung together.

Re: hungrybookworm's Tasty One Shots - Warmth (Fluffy Reimu/Marisa)
« Reply #33 on: March 06, 2016, 12:38:39 AM »
Awwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww, thats cute!  :3
My old avatars: Old ass turtle, Unzan - Second and Current Avatar by the talented Aoshi-shi

hungrybookworm

  • Shipper On Board
Re: hungrybookworm's Tasty One Shots - Warmth (Fluffy Reimu/Marisa)
« Reply #34 on: March 08, 2016, 10:30:41 AM »
Awwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww, thats cute!  :3
Thank you!