I said this would take a long time, and I was right! I'm actually surprised at how long this ended up. I was expecting to have made it to the next revelation. This bit of confusion should be good enough though.
I am interested in this! Yorihime and Toyohime need to show up more often in fiction, imo. I will look forward to more.
Er... Well, it'll be a while before we see those two again, especially given how much time writing this eats up. Though they do have a part to play.
Anyway, onward....
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Renko blinked. ?Wait, Scarlet Devil Mansion? That doesn't sound all that safe.?
Maribel had to agree with her friend at first. However something stirred at the back of her mind. ?Renko, I think this is the place where the maid gave me those cookies. When I visited in my dreams.?
The gatekeeper raised an eyebrow at that. ?I don't recall meeting you before, and if you are human there's no chance that you could have entered the mansion without me knowing.? She then frowned. ?However, I suppose stranger things have happened. In any case, while the lady of the house is a vampire, she would be terribly bored without the occasional human guest. You have my word that you will be safe from harm all this night, and you will be escorted back to the village. A far better deal then the other youkai are likely to give you.?
Maribel looked at Renko to find her friend gazing back at her. They nodded to each other once. It was a better deal then the last one. Renko stepped forward and bowed again. ?Thanks for your hospitality. Please take care of us.?
Huian bowed again in reply, then opened the gates. ?Please follow me.? The gatekeeper began walking across the gardens towards the mansion. Meribel and Renko carefully followed after her down the path through the rose and lilac bushes.
As the trio reached the doors they swung open seemingly by themselves. The effect was impressive, but it was ruined slightly by the distortion in Maribel's eyes. She paused, staring at the oddity. ?What's wrong?? Renko asked.
Maribel peered at the distortion more. ?The boundary of... space. Yes. Space is wrong in there.?
Huian blinked then gave Maribel an appraising stare. ?Interesting. Most humans from the outside world aren't as in tune with their powers as you seem to be. Yes, the space within the mansion is distorted to make it larger on the inside then on the outside. We need that to house the library.?
The sheer impossibility of that would have normally caused Maribel to start asking dozens of questions, but today seemed to be full of impossible events. Instead she just nodded in acceptance. Renko seemed to be pondering the matter, but she was silent as well.
Huian turned back towards the now open doors. ?The upper floors have been increased in size as well, so please don't wander about too much. I'll show you to the guest room.?
As the trio walked through the doors they quietly closed. This time the girls could see two maids with fairy wings operating them. The mansion itself was well lit, yet still dark because of the crimson wallpaper. The two girls noted that the lights were simple freestanding globes as they followed their guide.
Eventually Huian opened one of the many doors, leading to a sitting room. This room favored white, making it seem far brighter then the hallways. Inside was a woman in a nightgown. The lady had small black bat wings, strawberry blond hair and a languid expression. In her off hand she carried a book. She stood and nodded to the two girls at the doorway, before turning to Huian. ?Who are our guests??
The gatekeeper's calm expression turned to dismay. ?Whoops. Uh...?
?You didn't ask,? the woman said with a grin. She stepped forward towards Huian, then with a sudden move kissed the other woman on the nose. ?You should be more careful, dearest.?
Renko coughed. ?I'm Renko Usami,? she stated to prevent their guide from further embarrassment.
?And I'm Maribel Hearn,? Mary added.
The woman's expression evened out again. ?A pleasure to meet you both. I'm Dinah Margatroid, assistant librarian of the mansion.? She looked at the gatekeeper. ?Will you be joining us Huian??
Huian shook her head. ?No. I should return to my post until the mistress has finished eating dinner.? She bowed first to Dinah, then to Mary and Renko. ?Dinah will be able to show you to the dining room.?
Dinah sighed. ?Oh well. I'll be sure to tell you anything interesting that happens.? She turned back to the waiting girls as the gate guard left. ?I'm sure you two have had a fairly confusing journey. Feel free to converse by yourselves or ask me questions.?
Maribel sighed and sat down on one of the sofas. Renko sat down beside her, while their host sat back down in her chair. There was a long pause as the two girls tried to think of what to say.
Renko acted first. She was always good at getting her bearings even without the stars. ?So, um, are you a vampire??
Dinah blinked, then laughed. ?Oh, no. I'm a magician, though I do have devil blood in me. You'll know when you meet the mistress of the house. She's fairly unique.? She smiled wider. ?So you don't need to worry about me drinking your blood or anything.?
Renko laughed nervously. ?I wasn't worrying about that. Promise!?
Maribel smiled and shook her head. Turning to her host she asked, ?Is this really Gensoukyo? I'd dreamed of this place, this mansion before, but it was slightly different.?
The magician blinked. ?Yes this is Gensoukyo. I'm surprised you speak of 'before' though. The borders have been tightly bound for the last three hundred years, ever since the Yakumo died. I doubt a dreamer would be able to pass through. Perhaps you were displaced? Tell me, do you have any powers related to time??
Maribel shook her head. ?No. I can see boundaries though. Renko's the one who can always tell what time it is.? She glanced at her friend. ?Though she still manages to always be late.?
Renko shrugged. ?I'm bad at judging how long things will take.? She frowned. ?But are you sure you can't do more then that now Renko? You somehow sent us to the moon. And not our moon either?
Dinah carefully shut her book. ?You managed to travel to the true moon??
Maribel and Renko nodded. ?Though we almost got killed because of it,? Maribel said sadly.
Dinah stood. ?I see... Forgive me, but would you mind telling me about it? We youkai don't exactly have favorable relations with the moon, and the Scarlet Devil Mansion more so. I would not expect them to send humans here.?
?Sure,? Renko replied. ?There's not much to say though.? The girl proceeded to explain their desire to visit the moon, and the disastrous success that followed. Maribel added what she could to the tale.
?So,? Renko finished. ?We don't really know ourselves what's going on. At all. We were hoping to find someone that might be able to help us.
Dinah thought for a moment. ?I should inform my parents about this. They'd know more about the moon, and about such powers, so they'd be better suited to answer your questions.? She waved her hand and a pitcher and two glasses appeared. ?Feel free to have some water while you wait. It shouldn't be too long.?
The winged magician glided out of the room leaving Maribel and Renko to their own devices.
Now that they were alone Mary turned to her friend. ?I'm sorry Renko. I shouldn't have dragged...?
?You should be sorry.? Renko said poking her friend in the chest. Mary flinched back as Renko continued. ?What the hell was with you trying to sacrifice yourself for me back on the moon??
Maribel gaped in confusion. ?But... but I dragged you into that mess! You almost got killed because of me!?
?But we didn't get killed.? Renko said. ?Besides, I would have jumped for this chance even if you had explained it to me beforehand. So don't you dare try to leave me behind again. We're in this together. Alright??
Maribel blinked for a few moments. Then the tears broke through, and she embraced her friend tightly. She tried to apologize, to explain herself, but only sobs came out. Renko simply held her close. ?Shh... It's okay. I understand.?
After a long while Maribel managed to recover. ?I'm sorry.?
?It's fine.? Renko managed a weak smile. ?Just be there to catch me when I crash, okay.?
Maribel smiled, and wiped away a few more tears. ?Sure.?
?Here.? Renko handed her friend a napkin from next to the water pitcher.
Maribel nodded her thanks then wiped her face and blew her nose. She then poured two cups of water. ?So now that I've had my breakdown for today, what should we do??
Renko thought a bit. ?We need to find out where we can go after today, and then how we can survive. After that we need to figure out if there's a way to get back home.?
Maribel managed a weak laugh. ?We finally make it to Gensoukyo and the first thing we think to do is run away.... How strange.?
?We're not running away,? Renko protested. ?We're keeping our options open. Besides, maybe we can find a passage back and forth. We haven't even started our explorations on this side of the border!?
?Very well then.? Maribel said. ?Today's sealing club mission is 'learn how to live in Gensoukyo.'?
?That's the spirit,? a voice said from the doorway.
The two girls turned to find a woman, apparently in her 20s, wearing what could only be described as a witch costume standing there. ?Yo,? the witch said. ?The name's Marisa Kirisame. Dinah told us about your situation, so we're going to have a meeting to see how to help deal with it.? Marisa smiled broadly. ?And so you and the lady of the house don't get bored if it goes into magical esoterica, we'll have dinner too.?