Maidens of the Kaleidoscope

~Hakurei Shrine~ => Patchouli's Scarlet Library => Kosuzu's Grand Bookstore => Topic started by: Mima on April 25, 2009, 01:26:11 PM

Title: Reborn in Gensokyo series (RiG4 has begun!)
Post by: Mima on April 25, 2009, 01:26:11 PM: Notice (19 May 2010): This version of the RiG series can't be updated any more for obvious reasons and the most up to date version is at Mima's new site, here (http://www.usuallydead.com/mima). Further contents should be posted on that site rather than in this thread. Thanks!

Directory

RiG1: Right here. :V
OLaD: http://www.shrinemaiden.org/forum/index.php?topic=948.0
RiG2: http://www.shrinemaiden.org/forum/index.php?topic=188.msg43931#msg43931
RiG3: http://www.shrinemaiden.org/forum/index.php?topic=188.msg88732#msg88732
RiG4: http://www.shrinemaiden.org/forum/index.php?topic=188.msg94167#msg94167

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Hey, hello, hi, here's an upgraded RiG1 for the new forum. So what's new? Well, it's mostly that my writing style changed over time (With a rather dramatic switch that took place in between RiG1 and 2). So, I've worked through the story and changed it to read better as well as adding little bits. RiG2, OLaD and RiG3 will follow soon enough, although they will be receiving less attention since they're in a better condition anyway.

Well then, let's begin.

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Reborn In Gensokyo

Prologue

Yet another ordinarily boring day and here I am driving to work yet again. I don?t know why I bother going really, I hardly enjoy the thing anyway; Standing behind a counter or walking down aisles doing menial tasks such as putting things on shelves is hardly an extreme activity. Still, money is money, I suppose.

I tapped my fingers on the steering wheel along to the latest track of music to start playing, some music track called Riverside Sight, or something similar to that, it was pretty catchy and as a result slightly distracting, which was something I needed.

I sighed in annoyance, these traffic lights always had a tendency to take an eternity to change, and today was no different. Traffic flew by in front of me, everyone in the morning work rush, with any luck; I won?t have to do this in a year or two. Once I have some qualifications under my belt mornings won?t exist anymore, I?ll just sleep past them. High pay, low hours, it?s a dream worth working for... But that?s still a few years away. My mind switched back to reality and I growled a little since the lights still hasn?t changed, how long are these things going to take?

I took a look at my radio, ?Track 4 2:30? Are these things broken or something? I could have sworn the song started after I got here... Suddenly, out of the corner of my eye I noticed the cars at the sides had stopped, could it be?! The red light disappeared, my heart started pounding. An amber light! I shouted out loud, ?Yeah!? Putting my car into gear and when the light turned green I started to move forward. I cheered, ?It?s about time!? Hooray! Everything was going well again! Then I heard the noise of someone?s horn and looked to see a car heading straight for me.

Everything slowed down around me, unfortunately so did I, so I couldn?t do much, except ponder the situation. Some idiot just ran a red light at possibly 60 mph or more and is heading straight for me. The speed I?m going is completely useless and grazing and hitboxes don?t exist in real life. Damn you video games for your lies on survival. The freeze seemed to be taking too long now, I mean I?ve already thought of every possible way to try and escape and they all won?t work. The world slowly started to speed back up again as I felt myself able to move I pondered what to do, but the world was picking up speed too fast, so instead of saying something cool or trying to do something, I didn?t even manage two words.

?Oh f-?

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Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo (Digitally Remastered!)
Post by: Mima on April 25, 2009, 01:26:36 PM: Chapter 1

Pain.

Nothing but pain... Am I dead? Where am I? What?s up with me?

Slowly my mind adjusted to become used to the pain, but wherever I am, I can?t move and I can?t even open my eyes. At that point I swore I could see some light, ever so slightly, like if you looked at a light with your eyes closed.

I came to the conclusion that I?m alive, but I still have no idea how I got here or where I am and to make matters worse, my head was hurting too much to try and remember anything anyway so I merely did nothing at all. It was quite pleasant after the pain subsided, but there was still the problem of me seeming to be paralysed.

What felt like an hour passed and another familiar feeling began to set in, boredom. Although I had no sense how long I?d truly been conscious for, I was already bored, usually I?d do something like think up a story or plan something, but in this current state where my head feels ready to blow up I thought that it might not be the best idea. I even tried to think of some gentle music to listen to, but that didn?t work. Oh joy.

Then, my heart jumped, I heard something new; Footsteps along with someone humming. Suddenly, thoughts began to dash around my head.

Well, whoever it is, at least they sound cheerful, I might get some help!

?Hey! What the hell do you think you?re doing lying there!?? A fairly light but loud voice shouted.

Or not.

I heard the footsteps get closer, ?If you don?t get out of here, right now then?? There was a pause, from which the voice emerged much more menacing, ?I?ll have to use force.?

Alarm bells starting ringing in my head and immediately I went to move away, only to remember my body had failed.

?Are you even listening to me?!? The voice started to get more impatient as the footsteps once again got closer.

Without warning, everything went silent for a moment.

Am I dead now?

Things remained silent and I began pondered to myself.

Oh damn, if this is death, then I think I?m going to go mad, with nothi-

Suddenly, the pain of which I had almost become used to spiked immensely as something hit me near the kidneys, again, and again. The output of pain was starting to make my mind scrambled.

I heard the voice again, presumably talking to herself, at least I think it?s a 'her', ?I wonder if it?s dead.? I felt two fingers rest on my neck, checking for a pulse, ?Oh, it?s not.? I was quite relieved to hear that line.

?I wonder if anyone would miss this if I took it?? The voice once again sounded slightly menacing.

Wait, what? Take what?

My mind went frantic again and then I felt my arm being lifted followed by my whole body being dragged along the floor and it wasn?t much longer before I began to black out from the pain.

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Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo (Digitally Remastered!)
Post by: Mima on April 25, 2009, 01:26:54 PM: Chapter 2

I realised my own consciousness again and after resting for a brief period of time, I remembered the condition I was in, seemingly paralysed. This time however, the pain had faded somewhat and I felt a lot more comfortable, like I was resting in? a bed?

After pondering more theories, most of which consisted of asking myself if I was dead, I decided to remain optimistic and made myself believe I was alive and was just ill, or something like that.
At that point I heard a bang, which echoed slightly but since nothing happened after what felt like a minute, I let it go by. In the silence I slowly started to get the familiar feeling of boredom, and since my head felt slightly more stable I decided I would try and recall why I might be here in this undesirable state.

Other than a few ridiculous stories made by my mind I got nothing, not even an idea where I am, or was. In an attempt for comfort, I started to search my mind for something that I could remember, something I?d have imprinted into my head but instead a horrible mixture of sorrow and fear entered my head, when I realised I couldn?t even remember my own name. Still, it could be the shock. What if I?m paralysed? I could have suffered a head injury or something and now I?m lying in a hospital bed.

The panicking riot in my mind was culled upon hearing another loud bang similar to the last, though this one sounded much closer. It resembled something like a door slamming or of that sort. I started to think upon the new questions, which had arisen from that, am I really in a hospital? Other than the bangs, which seemed too loud, it?s was too quiet. Feeling exhausted, I dismissed the question in my head with a mere comment, ?Wherever I am, at least the bed?s comfy.?

I heard yet another door, this one wasn?t loud though, a door was being opened and I could only guess it was a door to this room due to how clear the noise was, which means I have company. After hearing a few footsteps I heard the same humming from yesterday followed by an impatient sigh, ?It?s still not awake yet!?

Or that?s what you think, anyway.

?This is no good, if it doesn?t do something soon I?ll just have to use it for target practice.?

She can?t be talking about me can she? Don?t say I?m stuck in some psycho?s house.

Suddenly, in the midst of panic, I felt my body twitch a little; it wasn?t much, but hopefully a signal to my strength actually returning.

?Yes! Finally!?

It seemed my strength was finally returning, but straight away I wondered if this was really a good time.

I heard the girl give a quizzical noise, ?Did he just-??

I waited for a few moments, before struggling to open my eyes slightly and slowly focused, to find a girl with green hair and red eyes right in front of me, staring at me.

It nearly gave me a heart attack.

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Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo (Digitally Remastered!)
Post by: Mima on April 25, 2009, 01:27:13 PM: Chapter 3

?Hiiii!? The girl said, in a friendly, long, musical tone.

Least she seems cheerful... for now

With my mind in a mess and a throbbing headache I opened my mouth to reply, ?? Hell?o??

?It can talk!? The girl expressed excitedly.

Closing my eyes I thought to myself, about the fact I was being called an ?it? and realised that closing my eyes reduced some of the pain.

?Hey! Don?t you dare go back sleep!? Suddenly the carefree voice had turned ferocious, it wasn?t long after that my eyes sprung open again out of fear, if not anything else, ?That?s better!? Just like that, the voice had gone carefree again.

I struggled to lift my arm and wiped my eyes, allowing me to see better and looked at my visitor, or am I her visitor? She had fairly long green hair, which triggered something in my head saying that wasn?t normal, as were the red eyes. She wore a pink shirt covered by a long red dress with a pattern that only reminded me of something you see on a tablecloth, oddly, although all the colours were bright, it suited her quite well. ?You?re a human, right??

??Yeah?? I mumbled. What else am I going to be?

The girl proudly sung, ?I?m Yuka Kazami, and you?re currently in the Kazami mansion.? Her eyes shone a look of expectation.

??Oh? okay?? I replied, rather confused.

Yuka?s face showed a little disappointment but then she smiled again, ?You?re from the village, right??

?What village?? I slowly replied. How vague.

Yuka?s expression changed again, ?Stop asking stupid questions, you know what village I mean.?

I closed my eyes to think, before remembering the previous time and opened them quickly, ?Actually I don?t, I? can?t remember anything, not even who I am.?

Yuka?s face turned to a menacing grin, ?Is that so? Well, I must be going now. Bye bye!? As she finished she stood up and walked out the room.

?B-bye.? I stammered.

What the hell have I got myself into now? She?s psychotic! Still, if I keep her in a good mood, I should be fairly safe for the time being? I hope.

I closed my eyes and took a moment to regain my senses, when I opened my eyes again I noticed how bright the room was. The colours, like Yuka?s, were all blindingly bright as well as sporting a large flower them, it?s no wonder my head hurt when I woke up really.

As I looked around my attention went to that of a bird of some kind in the window, a blackbird or something like that and next to it a black box of some sort. The bird was pecking the box causing the box to click each time, ?Wow, my head must be a mess, it?s almost like that bird is using a camera, what could it-?? My voice was suddenly interrupted by a voice I instantly recognised as my captor.

?Hey, crow! What the hell do you think you?re doing spying on me!? I heard Yuka shouted in a violent tone.

Blackbird, crow, close enough.

Almost instantly, the crow flew away and a few seconds later a storm of flowers flew by the window.

A higher pitched voice replied, ?I?m getting my scoop! Flower youkai steals and holds captive a human!?

?Want a scoop? Try ?Crow brutally murdered for not minding its own business!?? The next thing I knew all I could see out the window was light.

I really must have injured my head.

In the light I saw a figure fly away, presumably the crow, but I could have sworn it looked strangely human-like.

Wanting to know what in the world had just happened, I decided to take a risk and try and get over to the window, luckily it was next to the chair Yuka sat in so I swung out of bed and wobbled over to the chair, I walked better than I thought I would but still ended up crashing down onto the chair. At that point Yuka appeared in the window and smiled, ?Ignore that crow, it?s always being nosey? Bye!? The next thing I knew, she was gone again.

Surely it?s time to wake up now.

I pushed myself up in the chair and looked out the window? Only to be bewildered by the fact I wasn?t on the ground floor, but rather one floor up. ?How- why- how could she possibly have been in front of that window? Flying? No, that ridiculous.?

I wobbled back over to bed and got back in, psycho or not, she had a good taste in beds considering how comfy this one was, one could spend all day in it. Still in disbelief, I sat a moment before trying all methods to make myself wake up, pinching myself, confusing myself and various other things that I figured would make me wake up, to no success. ?What?s going on, this must be a dream... it?s got to be.?

As I pondered on my situation, still lying in bed, I heard the door open and looked up to see a small creature fly in with a plate of food and a some water and place it down on the bedside table beside me, it stared at me for a few seconds and then without a word it flew away and out the room. ?Uh, thanks.? I called out after it.

My mind completely gave up trying to comprehend things at this point, having just seen a fairy or something like that fly into the room and leave me some food. I looked at the food and realised how hungry I actually was and that my throat was burning. I?d never been one for salads, or water, but I didn?t really care at this point and started my meal.

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Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo (Digitally Remastered!)
Post by: Mima on April 25, 2009, 01:27:31 PM: Chapter 4

There were no more events that day, I finished my meal, which was surprisingly good tasting for a salad and it wasn?t long after that before I was lying in bed thinking about what had happened that day, even if most of it was unknown.

Despite resting since I had got here, however long that was, I found myself falling asleep once again but in a way it was a blessing, since it took my mind off panicking about things.

When I opened my eyes my heart skipped a beat due to the unfamiliarity of the room, until my brain started up and I remembered where I was, as this occurred a rush of memories stormed through my head from the day before bringing me up to speed.

Feeling stronger, I decided today I?d be brave and explore some of the surroundings; even it was just this so-called Kazami Mansion. As I lifted myself up I noticed that the sun was already high in the sky suggesting it was sometime near midday, as I turned around and felt stupid as I realised there was a clock opposite me stating the time, it was roughly 11:15.

I pushed myself to the side of the bed and waited a moment before standing up, pushing against the wall to keep my balance. Once I felt steady I pushed myself away from the wall and took a few steps, and to my relief I didn?t fall over.

I noticed that in the corner of the room there was a large mirror to which I walked over to and looked at myself, to my relief I hadn?t changed physically and was still wearing my usual get-up consisting of a shirt, jacket and denim jeans. I started to try and do something with my hair, which had been disturbed a good deal due to the amount of bed-rest I had had, but gave it up as a bad job and decided to leave the room.

As I left the room I found myself facing a wall, and a window to my right. However to my left was a fairly long corridor with several doors on each side. I saw one or two of those fairies like the one yesterday, which caused me to double take before I remembered about the previous encounter.

Walking down the corridor I noticed the colour scheme remained the same as the room I stayed in, bright colours and the pattern from Yuka?s dress matched the carpet here, while the walls were spared from that, as I continued down the passage, I noticed the wall on the left eventually stopping, bringing new sights instead.

To my left now appeared to be the hall of the mansion, a few steps further ahead were one of two sets of stairs leading downstairs, which I started to use. The hall surprised me with its size and confirmed that I was definitely in a mansion. The colour?s dropped a little in this room since the walls appeared to be made from wood with its original colour to my relief, although the floor maintained its brightness.

At the bottom of the stairs I confirmed my thoughts, the door on the far wall lead outside, which was definitely something worth noting in case things got problematic. When I looked back to the stairs I noticed two arches between the two stairways leading elsewhere and since there was nothing else to do here, I continued exploring the mansion, choosing to go through the right arch.

I soon found myself in another large room with a table in the middle, it would be presumed that this was the dining room, quite a large room for one person especially since the table could fit at least ten but as I thought that another thought entered my head, ?What if there are more people here then just her?? My body froze for a moment at the thought of more lunatics before I regained my senses and moved on.

Through the next door was the kitchen, but since there were some fairies cleaning and working in there I decided I would be best staying out of the way, since there was nothing else in this area, I decided the next thing to explore would be to return to the hall and take the left arch.

As I begun to walk down the left arch I heard a familiar voice from behind me, ?Here you are, I thought you?d ran away!? I slowly turned around to find myself face to face with Yuka who was half leaning on a pink umbrella or parasol. ?What do you think of my mansion??

I paused for a moment, ?It?s? quite the nice place.? I decided to not mention the choice of colours. ?How many people live here?? I questioned.

?Oh, just me. Always been that way.? Yuka spun around aimlessly without a care, ?I?m going for a walk, care to come along??

Even if I had only been able to walk for less than an hour, those thoughts were still overrode by not getting on her bad side. ?I could do, I guess.?

?Okay, let?s goooo.? Yuka sung as she turned around and begun to walk away, with no other ideas I just started to follow her.

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Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo (Digitally Remastered!)
Post by: Mima on April 25, 2009, 01:27:52 PM: Chapter 5

The first thing I noticed is that Yuka left the door unlocked, which struck me as quite odd since anyone could walk in, but then I reminded myself about who?s house it was, plus I bet those Fairies would do something, however little it may be.

Yuka opened her parasol and strolled ahead while I trailed a little behind taking in the surroundings, it was mostly what I saw from the window, fields and flowers. The only thing different was this path I was slowly travelling along.

Things felt very slow, almost as if this path was unending, I looked behind to see the mansion was nearly out of sight so with no destination in sight I started to make up more stories in my mind to keep me entertained, but not to much success. For some reason I wasn?t that surprised to see that Yuka was quite content; she was still ahead humming some melody.

Mixed feelings arose when I saw a much smaller house ahead. I was relieved that this road wasn?t seemingly endless and empty but then I wondered that if there was an occupant, what?s to say they?re not like Yuka?

As I expected, as we approached the house I saw the silhouette of someone around the house, whoever it was they appeared to be holding a staff or something. As we got closer, the figure turned and started to approach; it was also revealed that the item in question was a scythe.

Trying to keep myself calm I continued walking as if I hadn?t noticed anyone when I heard a voice other then Yuka?s, also female. ?Good morning, Yuka!?

?Hello.? Yuka cheerfully replied.

At least she really does appear to be in a good mood today.

?Hey, is that the human you found?? The newcomer said as she arrived. The woman had blonde hair and was wearing a crimson dress with pink frills. She was also wearing a hat, which was pink with a red ribbon wrapped around it. It took me a moment but I saw that she also had yellow eyes, which, like Yuka?s struck me as odd.

?It is, I thought it was broken or something but it seems to be quite a good one.? I thought about pointing out that I?m not an object and that I have a name, but the fact I didn?t actually know what it is caused me to stall.

?So what are you going to do with it?? The scythe wielding woman asked, casually.

Yuka shrugged, ?I?m not too sure really, haven?t made my mind up.?

?Why don?t you just chop it up!?? My eyes widened as I saw the woman swing her scythe missing my neck my inches.

?No, no, I don?t do things like that.? My heart lifted a little hearing that before it sunk again as Yuka continued talking, ?I prefer to just blow them away, it leaves no mess.? Yuka cheerfully claimed while grinning devilishly at me.

The woman laughed, ?That?s true. So anyway, what are you up to today??

?Just the usual, but the human tagged along today so there might be some detours.? I wondered at the word ?usual? for a moment, I really couldn?t see this being a normal quiet walk.

?Sounds nice, want me to do the usual??

?Correct, let nothing in, or out.? Even though the topic seemed a little more serious, Yuka?s tone didn?t change. ?See you later Elly.? Yuka spoke as she started to walk away.

?Bye Miss Yuka!? Elly shouted from behind.

I looked at Elly for a moment, ?Umm, bye.? After which I began walking a little faster to catch up with Yuka slightly.

?Bye Yuka?s human!? I heard Elly shout, which almost made me start laughing at how ridiculous it sounded.

A few more minutes passed as the scenery returned to being uneventful and quite boring, the only thing different was the appearance of a river to the left, however the water looked strangely red, I could guess what it was and fearing my answer to the question was true, I decided not to ask Yuka about it.

I couldn?t see anything in the distance that looked interesting, which made me wonder if I should have stayed at the mansion. I caught up with Yuka and tried my luck at asking a few more questions, ?So, she works for you??

?Yes, she guards the house.? Yuka cheerfully replied.

?From there? Isn?t that a little far away from the house?? I questioned, thinking of the horrific walk from the mansion to Elly?s house.

Yuka very slightly shook her head, ?No, since this path is the only way to reach the mansion.

?Can?t someone just come in the other direction though??

?No, because this is the only way to get here.? Yuka pointed at something and I jumped as I saw a shimmering field at the end of the path, how I?d not seen it earlier was somewhat confusing.

?Is? is that a portal?? I mumbled.

?What else would it be?? Yuka said confidently, right before walking into the portal.

I watched the portal as I saw Yuka appear on the other side and began walking away. Walking up to the portal I stopped and slowly reached at it with my left hand into the tip of my finger was enveloped in the portal, I took my hand out and to my relief nothing unfortunate or painful had happened. I reached in again placing my whole hand in before taking a deep breath and jumping in, unaware of what awaited.

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Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo (Digitally Remastered!)
Post by: Mima on April 25, 2009, 01:28:09 PM: Chapter 6

The whole world was white but slowly the world started to gain colour, the world seemed very yellow, until I saw that I was standing in a field of sunflowers with Yuka standing in the middle.

?This is, quite a lot of sunflowers.? I said for the sake of saying something.

?It is.? Yuka replied with a hint of pride before walking off and examining more flowers.

?So, I?ve gathered you like flowers, judging from this and your mansion?s grounds.?

?Obviously.? She replied, giving me a look of sarcasm.

I continued to stand where I was, leaving Yuka walking around the field having decided that it would simply be best to leave her to her own game and not touch anything.

I started to look at the surroundings and to my surprise there was more sights then I expected, straight ahead there was a dark looking forest while to my right there was what appeared to be a few houses, there?s possibly more but I just couldn?t see far enough but I presumed it was a village of some kind, maybe the one Yuka asked me if I was from. Finally, to my left and leading all the way behind me was a large lake, it could be the sea but from what I could see it didn?t appear to go off anywhere so I gathered it was surrounded by land.

Minutes passed by and Yuka was still parading around the flower field. ? ?Yuka, how long are you planning on staying here??

Yuka looked at the gold watch on her dress, ?Oh, not for long today, only an hour or so.? My jaw dropped on hearing this.

How can someone spend this long in a flower field doing what appears to be nothing!?

I waited a few more moments before getting another idea, ?Hey, Yuka, mind if I go and look around??

?No, but don?t go too far or you?ll get killed.? She answered in a sickly-sweet tone. After pausing at the last comment I continued.

?So, if you?re leaving in an hour, I don?t suppose you have a spare watch or anything do you? I don?t want to get left behind and killed you see.? I laughed weakly.

Yuka stopped for a moment looking at the sunflower she was tending to and turned and walked towards me.

Uh oh, what did I do wrong?

Yuka stared at me for a moment before reaching into her shirt pocket and taking out a silver pocket watch. ?Lose it and I?ll kill you myself.? Yuka smiled at me with a cute grin.

?Oh, thanks. I?ll, just be over there, near the lake or something.? I stammered before Yuka walked back over to the flowers.

Walking towards the lake I examined the watch, it was quite the nice piece of crafting. The Roman numerals and old-fashioned hands gave the watch a feeling of antiquity. Turning the watch over there was a flower finely engraved into the back of the watch; I guess Yuka truly was flower mad.

The walk along the lakeside seemed to be quite uneventful, but it was best that way. There appeared to be an island in the middle of the lake with a lone building on it resembling a small castle, everything I?ve seen here so far seemed to have an odd detail, for instance this castle was coloured a dark red, like a crimson.

Seeing as there was no way to get to that structure I continued to walk along the river looking for more things when I found a corner, leading to what I considered the south side.

?Hey, stop it! That?s cruel!? A light, concerned voice cried.

?It?s not like they feel anything!? A confident yet childish voice replied, ?Besides they always turn out alright!? There was a sound of a smash and something breaking, ?Well, maybe not that one.?

?Cirno! Stop picking on the poor frogs!? The more timid of the two voices pleaded.

Frogs? Freezing? Now what?

I poked my head around the corner and saw two human-child sized fairies, much bigger than the fairies from Yuka?s mansion, standing there. The larger of the two, though not by much, looked just like a larger version of the mansion fairies although she was wearing a simple blue dress and had green hair, but the other one looked a lot more unique, the fairy was wearing a dress roughly the same colour as her friend?s but had hair of a much lighter shade of blue, and rather than the ?normal? wings I had seen, they looked like they were made from shards of ice. In her hand with a ball of ice with something inside, presumably a frog and the pieces of ice on the floor suggested that used to be a frog.

The fairies stopped arguing about the frogs and the smaller, more mischievous looking one walked over to the lake looking away from the other fairy, I saw from an angle that she was smiling mischievously, ?Daiyousei, I heard some bad news??

?What? What news Cirno?? The smaller fairy sounded a little cautious.

The fairy raised her voice, ?That a human is coming to kill you!?

In a panic the smaller fairy started looking around for danger and caught sight of me, before she started screaming.

The blue fairy spun around laughing at the screaming green fairy, ?Relax! It was a joke!? The fairy did nothing but continue screaming and pointed at me, ?It?s the human coming to kill me!?

Cirno?s face filled with surprise as she spotted me, ?Hey you! Human! I?ll teach you not to try and kill Daiyousei!? The ice fairy started to run at me while I retreated back around the corner and ran.

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Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo (Digitally Remastered!)
Post by: Mima on April 25, 2009, 01:28:32 PM: Chapter 7

?Get back here Daiyousei-killer!? The blue fairy shouted as I found several icicles flying past my head, thankfully inaccurate.

Turning my head back I saw that the fairy was flying after me slightly off the ground, ?What are you talking about? I couldn?t kill anything if I tried!?

?I heard a rumour that a human was going to kill Daiyousei so you must be it!? The fairy swooped down and grabbed my leg before I shook her off.

?But didn?t you-? My speech was interrupted as I fell to the floor. ?What the...?? Looking for the problem, I saw that my leg was covered in ice.

?I?ve got you now!? The fairy cheered, ?Hey Daiyousei! Come and look what I caught!?

?W-what, Cirno?? The timid fairy poked her head around the corner before seeing me. ?Ah! Please don?t kill me!?

?Believe me, the only one at risk of dying here, is myself.? I groaned half-apologetically, ?Especially since your friend is trying to kill me because of a rumour she made up.?

The shy fairy walked closer and looked at me, and then at Cirno. ?Cirno, did you make that rumour up??

?M-Maybe?? Cirno looked at the floor, almost as if she was trying to remember if she did or not.

?Don?t be cruel like you are to those frogs, let the human go.? Daiyousei asked Cirno.

?Fine? But if you try and hurt either of us I?ll freeze you solid!? Despite being half my size, she tried to look threatening to me, but failed.

I tried to get up but the lack of movement reminded me my leg was covered in ice. ?Can?t you do something about this??

?No, just let it unfreeze, it works for the frogs.? Cirno started talking as though she was an expert in that area.

?Well, I hope you don?t mind me sitting here for a while then because I can?t do much else.?

Daiyousei sat down, ?It?s ok, so why are you here anyway? Not many humans come around here, especially with that mansion there.? The fairy motioned to the red castle-like building I saw earlier.

?Well, I?d like to know that myself, I just woke up in some unfamiliar place suddenly and I can?t remember anything before that so I?m just trying to find somewhere that triggers my memories.? I reached into my pocket and took out the watch.

Oh good, hopefully there?ll be time for my leg to thaw.

?Wow, that?s nice.? Cirno poked the watch.

?Yeah, someone named Yuka gave it me.?

Cirno raised her voice slightly, ?I know! She?s your wife right?!?

The next thing I knew I was laughing hysterically while Cirno looked at me looking amused but obviously bewildered about what I was laughing at.

Calming down slightly, ?No, no, I?d have been dead a long time ago if I was?? I paused briefly, regaining my composure, ?Yuka?s the one who found me when I first got here. She?s over there in that flower field.?

Looking worried, Daiyousei quietly asked, ?Is she that scary lady with the green hair??

?Yeah? ?Scary?, I can tell you?ve already met her.?

?She beat up Cirno once!? The timid fairy announced.

?Huh? She did?? Cirno sat there with a dumb expression, obviously trying to remember.

?When all those flowers were everywhere and then she made more which beat you up!? I couldn?t help but think how odd that sounded.

Cirno stood up and yelled rather angrily, ?I didn?t lose! I left because she was too easy!?

I raised an eyebrow in confusion while Daiyousei tried to calm her down, ?Cirno??

?If you don?t believe me, I?ll go fight her now!? Cirno started to walk at the flower fields.

?Wait!? Daiyousei and I shouted together.

?No! I won?t stop until you believe me!? The ice fairy yelled back as she continued to pace forwards.

?We? We do believe you!? Daiyousei shouted back.

Cirno snapped at her friend, and increased the speed of departure, ?Liar!?

She?s doomed.

After shaking my leg for a moment I was finally able to move it and stood up, grabbed Daiyousei and started to run after Cirno, but she was far ahead.

?Hey you meanie! Come and fight me!? The defiant blue fairy cried as she stood on the edge of the flower field.

There was no response or sign of Yuka.

?Are you scared?!? Cirno arrogantly taunted.

Yuka?s head appeared over some flowers, ?Go away.? Just as quick as she appeared, she was gone again.

Cirno turned around with a look of rejection before spinning around again. ?Fine! If you don?t want to fight, I?ll make you!?

Uh oh.

Cirno began to freeze some of the flowers, causing a few to shatter.

She?s got a death wish.

Yuka appeared on the hill to the right of where she was previously, with an evil smile she walked down towards Cirno who seems frozen with fear. A moment later a second Yuka appeared to the left where she was previously, and began walking to Cirno, though they generally looked the same, this Yuka looked slightly more insane, with a much more psychotic grin and slightly messier hair covering some of her face.

Here comes trouble.

With the two Yukas facing her, Cirno snapped out of her frozen state and shouted, ?Fine, if you need two to beat me then I will deal twice the power!? Cirno reached out of her pocket and pulled out a card and held it in the air. ?Icicle Fall!?

Nothing happened for a few moments until suddenly some rather large icicles bombarded the area around Cirno and the double Yukas. Both Yukas merely laughed and held their parasols above them causing the icicles to shatter on impact.

Wow, that?s a good parasol.

After the icicles stopped the Yukas lowered their parasols so they faced Cirno. ?My turn.? Not wanting to take any chances I grabbed Daiyousei and dived to the ground just before two enormous lasers blasted over us.

After the lasers subsided I looked up to see a single Yuka walking back up the hill and a blackened Cirno lying on the floor.

?She lost again.? Daiyousei walked over to Cirno.

?We? drew?? I heard Cirno say before she fell silent.

I was afraid to ask, ?Is? Is she dead??

?No, she?s just sleeping, a few hours and she?ll be back to herself.?

Wow, fairies are quite resilient.

?Do you want a hand taking her somewhere?? I asked feeling half-responsible.

?No, no, it?s okay.? She smiled back, her expression explaining that this isn?t the first time this has happened.

I looked at the pocket watch, ?Oh, okay. Well, I think I has best go to Yuka now, might be worth making sure she?s not doing anything... malicious.?

?Okay, what?s your name anyway?? Daiyousei asked as I was starting to leave.

?I? don?t know, like I said, I lost my memories.?

?Oh? Well I?m Daiyousei and she?s Cirno, come back sometime.?

?I will, if I?m alive.? I laughed nervously before walking to the flowers, ?See you around.?

Well, at least I had made some friends in this place.

---
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo (Digitally Remastered!)
Post by: Mima on April 25, 2009, 01:28:48 PM: Chapter 8

After standing around for a few minutes I decided to go and face Yuka, who was plodding around the flower field like I left her. Luckily, she appeared to be back to how she was earlier, I?m not sure what the term would be since ?friendly? doesn?t feel right.

?So?? I delayed a moment thinking how weird this sounded, ?You can split into two or something, huh??

?When I want to.? She replied casually.

?And you can also fire big lasers with your umbrella?? I almost shook my head in how absurd this sounded.

?Yes, it gets rid of those pesky flies.? She answered without any concern.

It struck me then that everyone I had met so far seemed to be able to use magic or was magical in nature; I got my hopes up for a moment and asked Yuka another question, ?Do you think I can cast magic like everyone else??

?Of course not.? Yuka giggled and teased me, ?Humans have to practice and I can tell you haven?t.?

?So, I take it you?re not human.?

?Haven?t I told you? I?m the strongest Youkai in Gensokyo!? Yuka spun around.

Youkai?? Gensokyo?? What?

Judging by her bragging I took a guess that Gensokyo was the land I?m in, the term Youkai sounded fairly familiar, it was a magic being or something.

?I see? So why did the fairy hold a card up in the air when she attacked you.?

?Because she?s a do-gooder. Now, it?s time to go.? Yuka turned to the side and started to walk off as she did last time.

I quickly caught up and walked beside her, ?So, where are we going next? Another field?? I feared for the worst.

?Not this time, we?re going to go to the human village today.?

Great, perhaps someone there won?t try and kill me on sight. I might even get to know what?s going on around here!

It turned out that the buildings I had seen from the flower field was the human village, on approaching I noticed a few humans that had noticed us disappeared promptly, it appeared that Yuka was well known here already.

Approaching the village, which now seems fairly deserted a lone figure ran towards us from the village. As usual she was wearing a fairly strange outfit, the dress she was wearing was mainly blue with touches of white and a ribbon, but the more unusual part was that on top of her long silver hair lay a hat of some kind, which looked like a blue box with a red ribbon on it

?I thought I told you not to come here anymore!? Whoever she was, she certainly knew who Yuka was.

?Relax, I?m not here for violence today.? Yuka walked past the woman, obviously without a care.

Flustered, the woman sighed and turned to me, ?And who do you think you are.?

?I wish I knew myself.? I mumbled.

?In case you had not noticed, this is a village for humans, not youkai!? The woman shouted at me.

?Well, I am a human so that?s alright.? I grumbled somewhat, unhappy at this unneeded prejudice.

The woman?s voice suddenly turned caring, ?Y-you are? Well, what are you doing with her then?! Don?t you know she?s dangerous??

?Yeah-?

Yuka suddenly cut in, ?Oh, don?t mind him. He?s my human.?

?What do you mean ?your human?? You can?t just steal one for yourself!? She argued.

?I found him near my house, therefore it belongs to me.? Once again, I was being talked about like a possession.

The woman turned back to me, ?Did you live here once??

?I don?t know, I can?t remember. I can?t remember anything, in fa-? Yuka cut in again.

?If you?re going to be talking, I?m going up there, you have an hour again.? Yuka walked off leaving the newcomer with the decision to chase after Yuka or stay with me, after a moment she calmed down and stayed put.

?Shouldn?t you watch out in case she does anything? She just blasted some fairy to oblivion.?

?No, she?s gone to the flower shop, so she won?t be much trouble unless they?re using the wrong weed killer or whatever it was she caused hell over last time.? She mused.

Flower shop, what a surprise.

The woman introduced herself, ?I?m Keine Kamashirasawa, the village?s protector.?

?Oh, hi, I?d tell you my name, but like I said, I can?t think what it is.? I replied sheepishly

?You can?t remember anything at all?? Keine asked, looking puzzled.

?No, the most recent thing I can remember is waking up in what I think was a field, but even then I couldn?t open my eyes and see.?

?I see, well, I guess you might like some things explaining to you then. Come.? Keine turned around and looked at me waiting for me to follow. Eager to find out some answers I followed her. ?The things I?m about to say may seem unreal or fake, but it?s true. Having met someone like Ms Kazami already, you?ll probably take it in better.?

?You?re currently in a land called Gensokyo, Gensokyo is filled with all sorts of weird and wonderful things such as magic and youkai. Due to the youkai and their tendencies to attack humans, however uncommon that actually is now, most humans live here in this village where it?s safe from them.? I looked around and saw the village was actually bigger then it first appeared, ?Youkai have powers far beyond most humans and many can kill a human without trying.?

?Yeah, like I saw that fairy get hurt, if I hadn?t leapt out the way I?d have been a goner.?

?Indeed, well, here we are.? Keine announced with a gentle smile.

Keine walked up to a building and knocked on the door, ?It?s me, Keine.?

?Come in!? A young voice called.

Keine opened the door and motioned for me to go in, entering, I let Keine take the lead again and before long we found a purple-haired girl before us, sat at a table and writing something down into a book.

?Hello, Akyu.? Keine smiled.

The girl looked up from her writing, ?Hello Keine, what can I do for you?? Akyu then noticed me, ?And you, I?ve never met. I?m Hieda no Akyu, pleased to meet you.?

---
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo (Digitally Remastered!)
Post by: Mima on April 25, 2009, 01:29:15 PM: Chapter 9

?Oh, hi? I?m, well I don?t know.? I stuttered, still not used to the fact.

Akyu looked at Keine and then back at me, ?Memory loss??

Keine shook her head, ?No, I believe it?s a little more than that.?

Akyu looked at me again and I noticed her eyes matched her purple hair. ?I can see where you?re coming from. Where did you find him?? Akyu took a sip of her tea.

?He turned up in the village with Yuka Kazami, whose elsewhere in the village.? Keine?s voice sounded more worried as she remembered Yuka was still around.

?He?s done well not to get himself killed then.? The purple haired girl said, with a hint of surprise.

I interrupted the conversation slightly, ?Is she really all that dangerous? She told me she?s the most powerful? youkai in Gensokyo.?

?She?s not too far off, though?? Keine lowered her voice slightly, ?There?s a few most likely more powerful, but don?t tell her, she won?t take it nicely.?

?Have a look at those books behind you.? When I noticed Akyu was talking to me I spun around I saw a large collection of books, which looked the same only with different numbers on at the bottom. ?Take one and bring it over here.?

Following Akyu?s orders I took the book over to her and she immediately flicked through the pages opening the book fully on a page titled ?Yuka Kazami?. I looked down at the page where there was a drawing capturing her menacing smile. ?This book has information about her??

?Yes, have a look.? I picked up the book and began reading it. Straight away my heart jumped when I saw the lines ?Threat Level: Extremely High, Human Friendship level: Very Poor.? I started to read the more detailed section.

?Those books can be best described as an encyclopedia of Gensokyo, everyone and everything of note is in there, so it might do you well to have a read.? Keine explained as I read more about Yuka.

Manipulation of flowers, not advised to confront her?

After reading a moment I said out loud the question in my head, ?How am I still alive??

?That?s a question I?m not too sure on, though the most likely thing is that she got bored.? Keine answered in thought.

?What do you mean, bored?? I questioned, confused at the rather vague reply.

?Some youkai have been known to do some? unusual things when bored, such as a Night Sparrow youkai named Mystia Lorelei, who instead of attacking humans, opened up a food stand selling Lamprey. I can only guess that Yuka got bored and decided to take you in.?

Was that meant to make me feel safer or something? It wasn?t working much. I cleared my throat a little before adding, ?But that doesn?t explain why I ended up there, or in Gensokyo at that.?

?About that.? Keine began talking, ?Looking at the clues, I think it?s safe to say you?re an outsider.?

I was confused, ?An outsider??

Keine continued, ?Your memory loss and your clothing are signs that you?re not from Gensokyo, but rather from the outside world.?

?I have no idea what you?re talking about.?

?Let?s start from the beginning, Gensokyo is, at its core, a dream land. Completely separated from what you may call the real world. Though to us, this world is as real as it can get.?

And I?m lost again.

?In short, you?re not from this world, however your presence here is like a dream. In other words, you?re most likely unconscious in the real world, so your soul ventured here to Gensokyo and that?s why you?re in this situation.?

Suffering from a slight information overload I paused for a moment to gather my thoughts.

?However, due to the fact you?re human it means your stay is only temporary.?

She?s saying more!

?When your real body wakes up, you?ll disappear from here, back to your world.? Keine ended the sentence with a slight sense of unhappiness.

I paused for a moment longer, ?Doesn?t that mean all humans here will??

?No, humans actually born here will remain here, it?s also why they?re slightly magical and you?re not.? Akyu added her knowledge to the current torrent of information.

I tried to work things out further, ?So surely that means I might be here for years??

?However long your real body is unconscious for, it could be days... it could be years.?

My mind searched for a response to that lesson but only managed to come out with, ?Oh.?

I?m starting to think I would be better off not knowing that, I really shouldn?t have asked.

?You still have plenty of time before Yuka?s expecting you, so feel free to stay here and ask questions, or just learn about Gensokyo, it might be helpful to you.? Akyu said with an eager smile, it would appear she likes to talk about what she knows.

?So you think I should continue going with her?? I said, rather surprised.

Keine frowned, ?Well, however much I fear for your safety, it would be best for you to continue to go with Yuka, to prevent her putting anyone else?s lives at risk? I?m sorry.?

?I see, well, if I did? die... here, what would happen to me?? I looked away fearing the worst.

?I?m not completely sure, but I?m fairly certain your soul would return to your real body and do nothing, simply put, the next thing you?d know, you?d have woken up there.?

So I?m fairly expendable.

Without another word I sat down at the table Akyu was at and stared at the book, thinking about things.

So it doesn?t matter if I die, that?s a little more comforting. But what?s the ?real world? by the sounds of it it?s nothing like here.

I focused my eyes and out of the corner of my eye I caught sight of Yuka?s name in the book Akyu was writing in, it then struck me that all through Keine?s explanation, Akyu had been writing something, probably about me.

On a further inspection noticed that ?Addition of Yuka Kazami section? was written at the top of the page, I began to read the first paragraph, which started ?In one summer, Yuka took in a human?? At that point Akyu looked up and noticed me reading her work in progress.

?So? what are you writing about me??

Akyu grinned, ?Just a general article, outsiders are fairly rare now, since they disappear so quickly, or a youkai finds them, not to mention that befriending a youkai such as Yuka Kazami is extremely unusual.?

I chuckled a little, ?I hardly call it befriending. She threatens me and leaves me behind all the time.?

?Compared to her normal behaviour, it?s like you are friends.?

Once again the helpful reply appeared, ?Oh.? Akyu waited a few seconds before going back to her article.

I began thinking about the lecture again, and that of the real world,

I wonder if it?s safer then here, whether youkai are there.

I cursed my memory loss, but then thought of something. ?Hold on, if outsiders don?t remember the ?real world? then how do you know about it? Is this all one potentially false theory??

Keine smiled at me, ?No, it?s true. Youkai can remember it.?

?What, so now you?re saying youkai are from the ?real world???

?No, they used to be, before they died.? I braced myself for another lecture. ?Youkai are the free souls of those who died in the real world, and ended up here rather than reincarnating. Since the souls are free and immortal, they become youkai.?

?Oh.? I sighed in my mind at my response again.

?Have a think about it, it?ll make sense soon enough.?

?I don?t really have a choice now, do I?? I sighed before opening the encyclopedia and beginning to read.

The one thing that I definitely knew was that my head hurt.

---
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo (Digitally Remastered!)
Post by: Mima on April 25, 2009, 01:30:32 PM: Chapter 10

I lay the book down on the table and checked the pocket watch, luckily there was still 5 minutes left until Yuka was moving on. So without any delay I placed the watch back in my pocket and picked up the book to continue reading.

It was hard to believe that this book was factual; some of the articles were so unbelievable that had I not seen some of Gensokyo already, I?d never have believed it.

But it was true, and it hadn?t quite sunk in how weird things were. Further reading of Yuka?s didn?t calm my thoughts any more. Everything pointed to her attacking everyone who entered her field, let alone her little world in that portal.

There seemed to be some even scarier to imagine though, Flandre Scarlet is a vampire who lives in that mansion I saw and according to the book, she can destroy anything due to the ability she has, so believe it or not, I guess things could be worse.

The recent history proved interesting, magical incidents occurring often and it?s usually left to a shrine maiden to sort things out. Events have ranged from Gensokyo being covered in mist from an outbreak of flowers, it?s said someone even stole the moon. One thing I must admit, this place sure isn?t boring.

The next page explained a youkai called Yukari Yakumo who can control borders, which apparently make up everything. I slowly started to feel small and overwhelmed, I?d been reading this book learning about various powers and fights, yet I?m stuck to do nothing, except run.

With little other action to take, I sighed to myself and sat back in the chair.

Oh well, at least it means you?re less likely to get hurt.

I was enjoying the book though; it was quite fascinating knowing what the youkai can do, and what to do in case you encounter them, which I thought was quite valuable information. Once again I reached into my pocket and pulled out the watch, 3 minutes left.

I can read another article in that time.

Quickly I flicked the page and began to read ?Ten-?

?EXTRA!?

I jumped out of my seat at the sudden voice, which sounded familiar for some reason.

The door to the building opened and another new face walked in, this black haired girl was wearing a slightly formal looking plain black skirt and white blouse decorated with hints of black in the forms of buttons and ribbons, over that she wore a small brown vest with leaf patterns scattered over it. Once again I noticed another unusual headwear, it looked like a small red pointed box on the top of her head, though it was nothing compared to that of Keine?s, the straps which dangled along the sides of her head had some balls of fluff attached.

The girl walked over to Keine and Akyu, ?Hello Miss Kamashirasawa, Miss Hieda and?? It was obvious she?d seen me, ?Oh! You?re that human Miss Kazami stole??

Puzzled, I replied, ?Um? yeah I am, have we met??

?No, no, I just investigated the matter. My name?s Aya Shameimaru, the fastest reporter in Gensokyo.?

I bet that means she was that crow with the camera that I saw Yuka attack.

?So, can I ask you a few questions?? Aya looked at me enthusiastically.

?I guess so.?

?Great! So how?d you get kidnapped by Yuka?? She sat ready with a notepad and paper.

?I don?t know the details, I just woke up in her mansion since she?d found me somewhere.? Aya began jotting things down.

She sounded happy with what she was hearing, ?Okay, and where did you come from before that??

?Again, I don?t know. No memory, you see.? Aya continued writing.

?Interesting, an outsider. So how did you escape from Miss Kazami?? She grinned expectantly at the latest question.

?I? didn?t, she?s somewhere else in the village, I?m meant to be meeting her soon.?

?Oh, so you?re still stuck with her, well, I?d like to ask more but these extras don?t deliver themselves! See you around!? Running around the room Aya shouted goodbye to Keine and Akyu and disappeared.

I shrugged to myself and noticed Aya?s name was on the page I was about to read.

Crow Tengu, huh?

I decided to quickly read the article before I left considering I?d just encountered her. I was hardly a few lines in before I heard Aya again outside, ?Hello Miss Kazami, would you care to answer some questions on-? The rest of the sentence was drowned out by the sound of Yuka?s laser from earlier which caused Keine to jump from her seat in alarm and run outside.

I continued to read over the sound of Keine shouting; by the sounds of it Aya had left the scene since I couldn?t hear her recognisable voice but I could imagine Yuka standing there with a grin of some sort, not caring what about what was being said to her.

As I finished the page I closed the book deciding it would be best to meet Yuka now, before I got absorbed back into the book. Walking over to the bookshelf to replace it, I heard Akyu speak at me, ?You can take that if you wish.?

?What, this?? I waved the book.

?Yes, if you look at how many editions there are it wouldn?t matter if a middle one went missing, especially since I could always rewrite it if the worst did happen.?

I felt honoured, ?Are you sure??

?It?s helping a human isn?t it? That?s one of the purposes of it, to inform.? She smiled happily.

?Oh, well, thank you. I?ll try to get it back to you soon.?

?Don?t worry about it, but feel free to come back whenever you want. Goodbye.? She cheerfully said her goodbyes before looking back down to her work.

?Bye.? I walked over to the door and passed Keine, who was looking flustered once again.

?Good luck.? She whispered, ?Come back her if she troubles you.?

I nodded and took a last look around before going through the doorway and saw the headline of the Extra that Aya delivered ?Ice Fairy beaten after trying to freeze Frog God.?

Laughing at Cirno in my head, I left the residence to meet Yuka.

---
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo (Digitally Remastered!)
Post by: Mima on April 25, 2009, 01:31:01 PM: Chapter 11

I had somewhat predicted the scene outside already as I left the building, and as I guessed, Yuka was standing in the centre of the village, and in the direction from which we entered the village was scorched earth, obviously where the Tengu journalist was shot at.

Yuka noticed me out of the corner of her eye and turned to me, ?Oh, it?s you. I wondered if you?d turn up.?

Like I have a choice.

As usual, after acknowledging my presence Yuka turned around and begun walking, as always she knew where she was going.

Catching up to Yuka I begun to walk beside her who was strolling under her parasol as always. I took a final look over my shoulder I saw a worried looking Keine watching from Akyu?s doorway, I nodded my head slightly and paid attention to the things ahead.

As I walked beside Yuka I started to wonder back to what I was told, Yuka was a vicious youkai who killed for fun and took no hesitation to slaughter people who went into her field, but still here I am, found by her in her own dream world, taken in and still very much alive, as much as being here as part of a weird pseudo-dream experience can be, or whatever Keine was saying.

I decided it might be best not to ask her directly, since the thoughts of her going, ?Oh, good point.? followed by her blasting me away haunted my thoughts, so instead I decided to use a different subject, ?So, where are we going now??

?Well, I thought about going to the flower field for another hour.?

Please, no.

?But I changed my mind, so instead we?re going to visit Reimu!? Yuka shouted happily, as though it was something to look forward to.

Reimu? Reimu?

The name seemed fairly familiar so I must have heard it from Akyu or Keine. Suddenly it struck me, the book... I nearly hit myself for having forgotten about the book already and taking it from under my arm, I opened it and began to scan through it.

Reading a hefty book while walking wasn?t the easiest thing to do, but something told me Yuka wouldn?t slow down or stop even if I asked so through perseverance I eventually got to the page marked Reimu Hakurei and begun perusing through the article.

From the looks of it, she?s also extremely powerful, and also a figure of importance in Gensokyo, and though she exterminates youkai for a living, there?s always youkai at her shrine since she has a notorious reputation for being lazy.

?So what?s that?? To my surprise, Yuka had started speaking and was looking at the book.

Unsure what to say, I replied, ?This? Akyu, I mean Miss Hieda gave it me, it?s got lots of information of Gensokyo so it?s helping me understand things a lot.?

?Do I get mentioned in it?? She asked curiously.

I answered with a nod, ?Yes.?

?Does it say I?m the most powerful youkai in Gensokyo?? Yuka grinned.

?Something like that.? I answered vaguely, so I wasn't technically lying.

?Well, that?s alright then, it?s a good book.?

Bemused by what was said, I continued reading until I noticed Yuka stopped, I looked up from the book to find myself faced by the large, dark forest I saw earlier.

I looked at Yuka and back at the forest, which continued to look pitch black and full of danger. ?We have to walk through this?!? I said, louder then I wanted.

?No.? A huge feeling of relief fell upon me, ?We fly.?

Wha-what?

I turned to Yuka again, but only saw her shoes; she?d always started to float up in the air.

I?m not walking through that!

?W-wait!? I shouted, Yuka stopped moving for a moment before turning in the air and looked at me inquisitively.

?Unlike some people, I-I can?t fly.? Yuka gave me a piercing stare such as earlier, which made me wonder if the small sarcasm I used was too much. I saw Yuka?s arm move causing me to flinch, the next thing I knew, Yuka had snatched my hand by the wrist and dragged me into the air where Yuka soon picked up speed across the sea of trees, leaving me hanging by my wrist.

Normally, I?d be panicking about the amount of danger I was in, but it didn?t matter, I was flying and the feeling of flying through the air was unreal. I looked up at Yuka, who still had her senseless smile on her face, obviously not being affected by my weight at all.

I wish I could fly like this?

I closed my eyes and let the air blast into my face, I was pleasantly refreshing and the experience as a hole helped me to relax

I wonder if you can do this in the ?real world?? I don?t feel you can, this just feels too... magical.

Opening my eyes I looked around, admiring the view, the flower field was only just in sight now, it seemed that we were heading uphill and a small building was just coming into sight, about the same distance as the field.

That must be the shrine.

The forest itself below us remained as dark and unwelcoming as ever but I caught sight of a cloud of grey mist floating just over the forest, much like Yuka and myself. The mist suddenly changed direction and started flying at us. ?Hey, Yuka.?

Yuka ignored me and continued flying while the mist continued to get closer prompting me to try shouting again, ?Yuka!? Whatever that mist was, it wasn?t stopping and I wasn't taking any risks so I shouted as loud as I could, ?Yuka!?

Yuka turned and snapped at me, ?What!? With my free hand I pointed at the approaching mist and almost instantly that devilish grin appeared on her face again. Yuka swung her parasol and just like earlier, an oversized laser blasted by my head hitting the cloud.

I heard a childish voice echo from nowhere ?Owwwww!?

The mist moved erratically until it started to build up in one spot until to my surprise what looked like a child with horns appeared.

---
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo (Digitally Remastered!)
Post by: Mima on April 25, 2009, 01:31:19 PM: Chapter 12

?What was that for!?? The girl childishly complained at Yuka.

The girl was wearing a torn pink blouse, mainly where you?d expect sleeves and a long dress which started purple at the top and became paler as you went down until it was white, which was decorated by a purple ribbon which weaved in and out the dress. Around her neck she wore a red ribbon tied as a bow and a purple one around one of her horns, I could just make out that she had brown eyes and also sported long orange hair which looked like it came down to her knees in a ponytail behind her. There were four strange objects with her, three were shapes attached by chains and the forth was a purple container of some sort that she was holding in one hand.

?I only came here to see if you wanted to see Reimu? She?s at the shrine so-? The girl was interrupted by another laser from Yuka.

Oh look, another fight started by Yuka for no apparent reason.

?Fine! If you want to be like that.? The girl took the purple container and opened it, and began drinking from it.

Oh, it?s a flask or something, I expected something more sinister.

Once the girl stopped drinking she turned into mist again and began spreading out before enveloping us.

Yuka laughed, ?Hiding? ?Coward.?

?No!? I heard the voice behind me and as Yuka swung in the air I saw the girl, behind a row of large purple orbs, which were heading straight for us.

Yuka merely laughed and flew towards the wall, ?Waaaaaait!? I shouted as Yuka flew straight into the wall, not wanting to close my eyes I watched in amazement as Yuka flew straight through a gap along with me without either of us having any contact with the orbs.

?One.? Yuka laughed again.

One, what?

The attacker took another drink before dropping to the ground. ?Take this!? She shouted in a high-pitched voice. The girl began to effortlessly pull trees out of the ground and began launching them at us, Yuka however continued to weave between the trees keeping her and myself from harm, as we passed the final tree I noticed the girl was flying straight for us, with a tree in each hand.

Just how strong is she?!

To my relief, Yuka stopped advancing towards the tree wielding child-like opponent.

Oh, she does have some sense in combat.

Making me panic once more, the girl swung the trees at us and instead of dodging as I expected, Yuka simply held out her arms and blocked the trees, causing one to land dangerously near myself. As the power struggle waged, Yuka giggled tormentingly at her opponent, ?You?re still underestimating me!?

How can she possibly still be enjoying this?

Yuka?s voice turned menacing again, ?Two.? A few seconds later, the power struggle was so immense the trees simply snapped.

Taking a mist form again, the attacker picked up speed and began circling the two of us at an incredible speed, firing a large amount of pink and blue bolts at us.

Once again, Yuka stayed in the middle of the barrage, elegantly spinning between the bullets while I swung around in a much less graceful but somehow still-controlled manner. Yuka began dodging faster and faster to match the barrage as I began to feel disorientated from the spinning when suddenly Yuka changed direction and then back again as I saw a bullet pass where my head would have been.

?Three.? Suddenly the bullets stopped firing and the human shape reappeared from the mist.

Yuka flew straight at the girl and swung her parasol firing a barrage of lasers. ?Whaaaa!? The girl cried as she dodged between then. ?If you want to go and see Reimu, then just go!? Yuka fired another volley of round bullets before they seemingly hit an invisible wall and dispersed. Yuka looked to the side and my head followed to see a woman wearing red and white on the hill, obviously the one who had just caused that wall.

That must be Reimu.

?Oh look, it?s Reimu!? Yuka seemed to lose all her menacing personality and returned to her slightly air-headed personality. Acting as though the fight never happened, Yuka flew away from her opponent and towards Reimu.

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Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo (Digitally Remastered!)
Post by: Mima on April 25, 2009, 01:31:46 PM: Chapter 13

For some reason, I wasn?t all that confused about why Yuka suddenly stopped the fight, maybe I?m just getting used to the unexpected. Flying towards her, Reimu was a little further away than I thought she was at first; it must have been a skilled shot to get the spell between the two fighters.

?Hi!? A voice spoke to my left, I shook with surprise a moment before I noticed it was the girl who Yuka was just fighting.

?Hi.? I replied unenthusiastically.

?What are you doing?? The girl asked.

?Ask her, she?s the one? leading me everywhere.? I motioned at Yuka with my free hand.

?And why are you with her??

I paused for a few seconds, ?It?s a long story, and I have a feeling Miss Hakurei will be wanting an explanation, so wait until then.?

?Miss Hakurei?? The girl stopped, ?Oh, Reimu!? The girl then proceeded to drink a lot more out of her flask before asking excitedly, ?So, you coming to the party??

?Not that I know of, what party??

?The best party ever! I finally got Reimu to let me organise this year's party, so it?s going to be the best one ever!? The girl was clearly looking forward to it due to the volume and cheerfulness in her speech even if I had no idea what the party in question was.

?What are you doing here!?? A more serious sounding voice interrupted and as I suspected, the source was Reimu Hakurei was stood in front of the approaching Yuka, not looking too happy about the situation. Reimu had shoulder length dark brown, almost black hair and wore a long red dress with a white collar decorated with a blue ribbon; she wore another ribbon in her hair, though this one was red and of a much larger size. She also wore some weird detached white sleeves, which I decided to not question further.

?I?ve come to visit!? Yuka cheerfully claimed.

Reimu sighed and stared at Yuka, before her eyes moved to scan myself, and then the other girl, before Reimu double-took and came back to me. Reimu began to shout, ?What in the Hakurei Spirit?s name are you doing with a human!?

Yuka waved her parasol, brushing the question away, ?Relax? the human?s mine, I didn?t steal him, I found him.?

What kind of excuse is that?!

?That?s not how things work!? Reimu objected, but it was too late, Yuka had already walked past her, dragging me along.

Considering she?s a youkai exterminator she?s not doing much.

It wasn?t long before I was stood in front of the shrine. Considering the Hakurei shrine is home to one of the most important beings in Gensokyo, the shrine wasn?t really all that spectacular, it just looked like a typical, slightly run down building. Yuka continued marching to the shrine before sitting down at the front, I followed suit and sat down near her.

A few moments later the Shrine Maiden approached the shrine with a tired, uncaring expression, ?What do you want today.?

?Just visiting.? Yuka said perkily, ?Now get some tea, Reimu.? Reimu stood still and stared at Yuka, before walking off into the shrine.

Why is a Youkai Exterminator now taking orders from a youkai?

Soon enough, Reimu emerged with tea for everyone and it wasn't long before the three of us were slowly drinking tea, I eventually found myself explaining the already too familiar story to Reimu about myself, and noticed Yuka looked as though she already knew everything, such as that I?m an ?outsider?.

Maybe she knew all along?

Another period of silence struck, since there was nothing to lose, I began talking, ?So, I hear that you have to resolve incidents around here.?

?There?s always someone up to trouble, it?s my job to sort it out.? Reimu yawned before drinking more tea.

I thought it was also your job to stop youkai, so why are there several here?

Staring out in front of the shrine I noticed a small purple thing in the corner of my eye, however it had disappeared by the time I looked. I watched as Reimu reached for her tea to find it missing and under her breath mumbled, ?I?ll kill her.? I could only guess that someone had just pulled a prank or something along those lines.

Reimu left again, presumably to get more tea and out of the blue she cried, ?Get out!? Shortly followed by a swarm of small beings resembling the mist girl from before emerging from the shrine stampeding out of the shrine giggling and laughing eventually running behind the shrine.

Once again, things started to slow down for a few minutes and I couldn't think of any questions worth asking, however the silence was broken when another new voice called out, ?Reimu!? I sensed the voice coming from behind me, turning my head around I saw a woman with long green hair reaching down to, if not past her hips and wearing highly decorated blue robes, with a yellow trim along the edges and a symbol resembling a sun on her pointed brimless wizard hat.

?Oh, look who?s finally decided to reappear!? Reimu growled.

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Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo (Digitally Remastered!)
Post by: Mima on April 25, 2009, 01:32:32 PM: Chapter 14

As Reimu turned the corner with a new cup of tea, the latest newcomer dived at her causing the latest lot of tea to spill on the floor a few metres away while they fell on the floor. ?Did you miss me?? The girl in blue said happily.

?Get. Off. Me. Now.? Reimu growled with her teeth gritted.

?Is that any way to talk to your-?

?You had best not say what I think you?re about to.? Reimu spoke threateningly, eyes narrowed.

?Goddess!? The woman cheered.

A piece of paper appeared in Reimu?s hand and was slapped onto the other?s face who simply started laughing. The piece of paper started to glow a bright red when suddenly it cut off and the paper fluttered to the floor. ?Enough proof?? The woman teased, picking up the useless paper before getting up and leaning back against the shrine. ?I thought you?d be as pleased as this.?

?Ecstatic.? The bitter voice of the Miko said.

?I guess that makes me a Hakurei now.? The woman grinned at Reimu, ?Mima Hakurei. Sounds quite good.?

It didn't take long for Reimu?s bitter expression changed back to the lazy one from earlier as she walked back into the shrine.

To get tea, no doubt.

Mima, however walked over to Yuka and I and sat down next to her. ?Long time no see.?

?Yes, last time was in Makai, wasn't it? All those years ago...? Yuka chatted.

?That?s right, when we beat up Shinki. It?s thanks to back then for what I am now.? Mima smiled warmly.

Yuka tilted her head, ?Oh??

Mima continued explaining, ?I ended up living in Makai and with Shinki's help and training I was eventually able to achieve godhood, and what better place is there to be a deity then here? The place that everyone you know visits.?

Yuka drunk more of her tea, ?I see.?

Reimu plodded out of the shrine carrying two more cups of tea before sitting down next to Mima and passing her one.

Easily forgiven, I guess.

Mima stretched, ?Oh, it does feel good to be back. Makai is a little too dark for my liking.?

Reimu objected, ?But aren?t you an evil spirit? You should like it.?

Mima laughed, ?Oh, Reimu. It?s not good to stereotype, one cannot do as much in the dark.? Mima stretched in the sunlight, ?It?s also colder there.? Mima turned to Reimu and winked, ?Also, I?m more than a soul now, you should remember that... servant.?

Just as it seemed things were going to go quiet, Mima began speaking again, ?So, how?s my little apprentice??

Reimu sighed, ?She?s still alive, somehow. She's usually hanging around here... when she?s not stealing or blowing things up that is.?

I barely heard Yuka murmur something, ?Another to kill.?

What?!

At that moment Mima turned and looked at me, ?So, who are you? I don?t believe we?ve met.?

Not knowing my name is really getting annoying now.

?I?m... I?m just a human, with no memory, or powers, Y-Yuka is kinda looking after me.?

?Oh?? Mima raised an eyebrow, ?That?s rather unusual, I?m surprised you haven?t ripped him to pieces yet.?

Yuka laughed, ?Everyone wants a change every now and then.?

Mima looked up at the sky, ?Well, I guess that would make you my first human worshipper!?

?Oh?? I looked around a little, ?That?s? good.?

?Indeed!? Mima exclaimed, ?I?ll be a much better god then the last one!?

Last one?

I asked quietly, ?There was another god? What happened??

Mima giggled, ?She disappeared because lazy Hakurei here didn?t get any worshippers, and since she had no power of her own, she just disappeared!? Mima lowered her voice, ?And since the slot was free, I took it!?

Being a god works like that?

?So, what are you a god of?? I questioned.

?Nothing in particular. I have extremely strong magical powers in general.? Mima bragged, ?Especially in darkness magic.?

A god of darkness at the shrine that is supposedly good? How weird.

Silence fell upon the shrine once again, until also like before Mima broke it, ?You know what this shrine needs? A party to celebrate my wonderful self becoming the shrine?s deity.?

Reimu replied quietly, ?There?s already a ?party? coming up, the annual shrine festival.?

Mima smirked, ?Well then, that shall be my party then.?

Before Reimu could object the swarm of miniature girls appeared again, ?Heyyyyyy!? One of them stretched out the word, ?You can?t just change the party! I?m planning this one!?

Mima looked disapprovingly at the swarm, ?Well then Oni, you can change it then.?

?Nooooo, that?s not what I meant!? The small girls formed into one, ?What I say goes!?

Mima?s smile turned slightly evil, ?Well then, I?ll have to make you say it then.? Standing up, Mima summoned a silver coloured staff with the head being a crescent moon. As Mima and the Oni faced each other I felt a tug on my shirt, and upon looking saw Yuka stood up and looking ready to leave.

Half-reluctantly, not wanting to miss the fight, I pulled myself up and turned to Mima who was now making the Oni dance by summoning vines of darkness from the ground trying to catch her.

?Er... bye.? I said aimlessly before leaving the two to their fun.

?Oh, leaving? Bye! Be sure to come to the party, human! You too, Yuka!? Mima was interrupted by the Oni and before long the fighting was out of earshot.

I wonder if all gods are weird like that? For an ?evil being? she didn?t seem all that evil.

Remembering about the book I had been subconsciously holding, I quickly opened it and began to scan through it.

The only Oni here is Suika Ibuki, so that must be here. Nothing about Mima though, or that Shinki who was mentioned, something worth asking Akyu about, I guess? If I ever get there again.

As I hung suspended above the forest I thought about the events that just occurred, I had met the most powerful human in Gensokyo, saw an Oni which were meant to have disappeared according to the book and became ?friends? with the new God of the shrine, of which there are no records of in what I presume was the premier information source of Gensokyo. I let out a big yawn and said to myself, ?Talk about an eventful day??

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Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo (Digitally Remastered!)
Post by: Mima on April 25, 2009, 01:32:51 PM: Chapter 15

Another loud yawn escaped my mouth as I continued to hang above a sea of trees, flying forwards at reasonably slow pace, far slower than the trip in the other direction. No matter how interesting seeing all the odd things in this land was, it couldn?t stop me from becoming tired, even if I hadn?t done that much, I guess the constant fear of being destroyed in one way or another takes its toll on the mind.

Since Yuka was holding one of my arms, I couldn?t even have a look through the book. Everyone?s backgrounds just seem to be interesting to read, plus it?s never a bad thing to know about your enemies, or friends, or whatever position Yuka puts herself in.

Yuka didn?t seem to be paying much attention to anything, except flying forwards and humming a slow melody, which was quite catchy. Out of boredom, I took reached into my pocket for the watch Yuka gave me, expecting the time to be late afternoon, I was quite surprised to see it was already 6 o?clock, and the sky hadn?t even started to lose its brightness yet.

A few minutes passed and at long last the dark mass below us disappeared, instead there was the slope leading to the hill of flowers, and most likely the way back home.

Is it really my home? I?ve only been here a day, but I guess in a way-

My thoughts were stopped dead when I noticed Yuka had gone silent and we were slowly descending.

Looking ahead I saw the outline of someone in the flower fields, presumably whom Yuka was about to confront. The figure looked a little large for Cirno, plus there was a lack of wings. The figure then moved, stopped a moment and then lifted off the ground and began heading towards us.

Here we go?

As usual, the person in front was female, she had light blue eyes and long shoulder length red hair with a braid either side of her face. Her clothing followed the usual pattern of Gensokyo, being unique, which in this case was a green robe resembling something from martial arts, and a matching coloured beret on her head which was dominated by the large golden star on the front of it.

The girl approached and looked at Yuka, before looking at me. ?Oh, it?s just you.? Suddenly the girl lost all interest, and flew away which I thought was a rather poor choice of actions when facing Yuka.

?Looking for someone?? I looked up at Yuka who just spoke, who was wearing a large smile on her face.

The girl froze in the air, ?N-no, why would I be looking for someone??

Yuka's smirked, ?Because you?re not standing outside some worthless mansion's gate doing nothing.?

The girl began playing with her braided hair, ?No? I?m just on my break.?

Yuka?s expression remained the same, ?So who did you mistake me for??

?Oh, S-Sakuya. I was looking for Sakuya.? The girl answered, obviously getting more stressed.

?And what would the maid be doing at this time, not working??

?Well, we were going on a picnic.? By now, it was completely obvious she was lying just by her body language and voice, she was nervously scratching the back of her head and having descended, was pacing slightly.

?At a time like this?? Yuka grinned devilishly, causing the green-clad woman to nod.

How persistent does she want to be?

?Well, that would explain why I saw that vampire girl with the weird wings then.? Yuka relaxed, and smiled.

?Flandre! You?ve seen her? Where!? The girl shouted with excitement.

?Just kidding.? Yuka suddenly teased.

The girl started to look worried again, ?Whaaaaat! That?s not fair...? The girl drooped down and flew away before looking back, ?I bet she?s been found now, there?s? no need for you to do anything, thank you!?

Yuka wouldn?t be the first I?d ask for help, not even to get an animal out a tree.

Blocking the images of small animals being blown up along with the tree, I noticed that Yuka had already arrived at the hill of flowers, where the portal to her mansion was.

?Well then, shall we?? Yuka smiled before disappearing from sight.

So it IS back to the mansion after all.

Before walking in, I took a quick look around; there wasn?t anyone else around, even Cirno, so unless Daiyousei carried her away like she said, she must have recovered. Before entering, for some reason even I didn't quite know, I held my breath before jumping into the transparent yet bright portal.

Soon after, my vision began to restore itself, as I was thrown out the portal, the last thing I was expecting to see in front of me was that familiar red pattern. ?Watch o-!? It was too late before I slammed into the back of Yuka sending both of us to the ground.

Uh oh. Not good, not good, not good.

I quickly jumped to my feet and stood beside Yuka who lay still. ?I-I?m sorry.? My nerves started to behave frantically until Yuka suddenly rolled her head and started looking at me, with an expression that certainly wasn?t happy.

Pick your words carefully.

?Oh, you?re alright... I guessed you would be? Considering you?re the strongest youkai, I didn?t think a pathetic fall like that would hurt you.? Yuka continued her piercing stare before her eyes suddenly warmed up and she smiled somewhat.

Good work, you saved yourself from a gruesome death.

I offered my hand out to Yuka, which to my surprise, she actually took, and so it wasn?t long before she had regained her composure and we were walking along the road back to the mansion, which strangely looked a lot shorter than before.

?So, what happened today, you do that all the time?? I asked out of the blue.

?Yes, I do.? Yuka grinned.

?Don?t you ever get bored of standing in a field all day??

Yuka looked at me and sighed, ?Humans understand so little? Listen, if you find something that you like then you should do it, and until you become bored of it you should make the most of it.?

Weird philosophy.

Still, the mood she was in at the moment was actually quite pleasant.

Seeing the river of blood at the side of me, reminded me back to the previous encounter, I asked, ?Isn't that vampire... Flandre or whatever, meant to be incredibly powerful??

?Supposedly, but Reimu told me that she?s always locked away in the mansion, which makes it difficult for a duel.? Yuka explained, with a hint of sadness in her voice, most likely disappointment due to a lack of a fight.

So that?s why that girl was hiding the facts, she knew Yuka might be interested.

As we walked past the gatekeeper?s house I noticed Elly was lying outside the house in a reclining chair, fast asleep.

That?s? efficient working.

?So, what exactly is this place?? I questioned, for the sake of starting another conversation.

Yuka looked at me puzzled slightly, ?Which place??

?This, here. Since we entered that portal, it seems different from Gensokyo.? I motioned around the two of us.

?Oh, right. This is a dream world, or to be exact, my dream world and because it?s my dream world, it gives me some control over it. The mansion, fairies, they?re all part of this world, and I can control everything.

I have no idea how that works, but fair enough.

Before I knew it, the mansion was already in front of us.

Wow, that was quick.

?I made the house closer, if that?s what you?re thinking.? Yuka bragged as she opened the door and entered.

How on earth did I not notice, I was looking at it for most of the time!

Slightly confused, I merely followed Yuka into the mansion; I?ve suffered too much confusion today.

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Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo (Digitally Remastered!)
Post by: Mima on April 25, 2009, 01:33:08 PM: Chapter 16

Home. Once again I was surprised that I accepted the fact so easily, it was just yesterday that I? appeared here and found myself terrified of the owner, yet a day later I?m fully accepting it, along with everything I?ve seen. I?ve even got used to the homicidal habits of Yuka... slightly.

I snapped back to reality due to a sharp jab from a parasol, ?Are you listening!? Yuka growled.

?Oh, yeah.? I lied.

?If you ever need anything, just bother one of those.? Yuka pointed her parasol at one of the fairies fluttering frantically around the mansion, ?They?ll do what you ask, or they?ll have me to talk to.? I noticed at the end of that sentence, one fairy started to slowly work away from Yuka, ?Ask for anything, it?s a dream world after all.?

Although creepy, I much prefer Yuka in this mood?

?Well then, shall we have dinner?? The youkai asked pleasantly.

?What is it??

Please don?t say human or anything like that.

?Anything you want, weren't you listening again?? Yuka gave a slightly irritated stare.

The thoughts of gigantic feasts filled my head before I was jabbed again, ?Come on.?

I followed Yuka down the hallway, reaching the room I found in my previous exploration, the dining room, with the large table. As soon as Yuka sat at the table, the fairies immediately sprung into activity, setting the table and preparing the food, while one fairy flew up to me and just stared.

I guess it wants to know what I want. Thinking about it, I don?t know what to ask for; if I ask for something they don?t know, god knows what I might get. Stick to the basics, I guess.

?Have you got any chicken, and vegetables??

There?s nothing wrong with an old fashioned Sunday dinner.

To my relief, the fairy simply nodded before flying off, within a few minutes a trio of fairies had already served Yuka?s dinner, which caused me to double take, she?d been served some kind of pie, and chips. ?If there?s one good thing about you outsiders, it?s your food, I read about this in something that came from the human world, a newspaper or something... Anyway it's much better than the gruel you find in that village.?

A few moments later, the same group of fairies arrived with an eye-catching meal; the eye-catching part was the chicken, uncooked and still covered in feathers. I stared at the chicken, which appeared to stare back before Yuka spoke, ?If you weren?t expecting that, describe it better, they?re quite dumb at times.?

One of the fairies outside of Yuka's vision gave her an evil look before turning to me again, ?Let?s try again, can I have the chicken like humans have them, that?s without the feathers... and cooked.? Just like before, the fairy nodded and carried the chicken away.

The wait was, unsurprisingly longer this time, just as the fairies appeared with my meal, Yuka stood up, finished. ?I?m going to sleep, good night.? I watched as Yuka walked around the corner and let out a sigh.

Finally, a little more freedom.

I looked down at my meal, which appeared a lot more edible this time, turning to the fairy I gave my thanks and the fairy bowed in return before flying off. Considering the fairies were ?quite dumb? the meal tasted absolutely delicious, maybe it was just the hunger making it better, but it was certainly something.

Once I?d finished it I followed what Yuka did and just left, presuming the fairies would clean up like they did for her. Also following what Yuka did, I decided I would go bed, or least back to my room, where I could do some reading.

At the top of the stairs, the door right ahead looked much more expensive and decorated then the others, so I could only guess that I was looking at the door to Yuka's room. Continuing down the passage I began thinking about how the colour scheme actually worked in this house, somehow.

Finally.

Finally, I was back in my room, flopping onto the overly soft bed and almost being swallowed by it, I gave a complementary stretch and yawn. While I lay there doing very little, a fairy flew in and placed something on a chair before bowing and flying out again. Curious, I climbed off the bed and went to investigate. Upon examination it turned out to be a set of green pyjamas complete with a night cap, not caring what I?d look like I got changed, though giving the night cap a miss.

At last, I slid into bed and put out the candle, leaving the room in complete darkness, and yet for some reason I couldn?t sleep despite the weariness I was feeling. I tolerated it for a few minutes before sitting up. ?Maybe reading that book will help me get to sleep.?

Fumbling in the dark I tried to find a way to get some light in the room when, as my eyes scanned by I saw some red lights in the window. ?Oh, great. I didn?t close the curtains.? Since I could map the room in my mind now, I thought of the path and obstacles to the window and slowly got out of bed and plodded over to the window.

This is Yuka?s dream world, a mansion surrounded by flowers... Why would there be lights in the distance?

I stood still for a moment, not taking my eyes off the lights until my fears were confirmed, the ?lights? blinked.

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Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo (Digitally Remastered!)
Post by: Mima on April 25, 2009, 01:33:40 PM: Chapter 17

That can?t be Yuka, can it? She went to bed, surely?

The eyes simply did nothing, as if they were expecting me to do something, such as panic and flee.

Surely, if I ran that?d just make things worse, like, provoke it or something? Perhaps if I just move slowly and normally, it?ll lose interest.

I gulped somewhat before attempted to walk to the window calmly and fumbled for the curtain, finally I found it and swung it in front of the window. I took a step back, before slowly taking another and waited.

Nothing, it would?ve done something by now, it?s got to just be some weak youkai that found its way here.

Trying to reassure myself, I began to start the seemingly long walk back to my bed.

It can?t be that Flandre, she wouldn?t have been so quiet, with the power to destroy anything, being stealthy isn?t really an issue.

Finally, I reached the bed and slid back in, this time burying myself slightly more under the quilt.

Plus, surely Yuka would know if Flandre was here, it?s her world, she can do as she pleases.

Slightly happier and warm under the quilt I turned onto my side.

Oh dear god.

The other window, the one beside my bed, was inhabited by two red objects.

It?s got to be. I?ve got to find Yuka.

I waited a moment and pretended I had calmed down, before falling out the side of my bed and making a run for the door. As I reached the door there was a huge crashing noise, as the ceiling above the doorway collapsed, practically trapping me in the room.

I started to run for the other window, before tripping over a table and was hit by a falling lamp.

A lamp!

I felt around the lamp frantically until I finally found a way to turn it on, the room suddenly filled with light and allowed me to have a slightly better glimpse of what was in the window. A young looking girl with blonde shoulder-length hair and a pigtail, and a frilly white hat decorated with a red ribbon but her most striking feature at the moment would be the demonic grin on her face.

At that moment I swore I heard her laugh, as the wall next to the window began to glow red around a certain point. The light got brighter and brighter until the wall suddenly exploded sending debris and dust flying through the room.

Coughing from the dust, I looked up to see the girl was now standing at the room, watching me with the same smile. ?I win!? The girl shouted in a childish voice you?d expect from a child like her, a slightly insane vampire who's been locked away.

?Y-You win? Won-? I coughed again, ?W-Won what??

?My game! I?ve caught a human!?

?Why, would you want to catch a human?? I questioned back, trying to stall time.

The girl looked at me slightly disappointed, ?Are you really that dumb? To eat! I?ve never had a fresh human before.? The girl stepped forward, ?And now is my chance.?

At that point I noticed what was behind the girl, attached to her. Instead of the typical bat wings, if any, you would expect from a vampire, there were, as mentioned in the encyclopedia, wings that appeared to be made from metal and crystals, which appeared almost, like a rainbow in their range of colours.

I started to back away but my attacker got closer every moment until my heart sunk, my back had reached the wall. ?You lose!? The girl opened her mouth, revealing her pointed fangs.

With no other idea left I was left with my last, seemingly useless resort, ?Yuka!? I shouted at the top of my lungs.

Immediately the girl started laughing, ?She can?t help you, I never lose against anyone!?

At that very moment my ears picked up on a new noise, a strange humming sound, which I?d heard before from somewhere.

... Laser!

Immediately I dived to the floor and rolled away from Flandre causing her to start laughing again, ?Stop resisting! You?re going to die no matter-? The humming noise stopped, there was a second of silence. Suddenly there was another huge crashing noise during which all I heard the vampire manage was, ?What-?

The crashing noise was caused by an all too familiar laser which struck through the doorway and into Flandre who was further blasted into the wall sending her straight through it, causing another shower of rubble and dust.

Even with the dust, it was easy to make out the figure of Yuka, parasol in hand, walk through the doorway, with a satisfied grin. Yuka turned to look at me and spoke in a cheerful tone, ?Wait here.? After giving me the order, she began walking over to the latest hole in the wall and once there she began surveying the area through the gap in the wall for any sign of activity by the attacker.

Without warning the walls of the room began to crumble and shatter, causing Yuka to jump back several metres grabbing me by the hand as she leapt. The youkai looked around for a moment, possibly for a safe spot before she dragged me across the room quickly and escaped out of the hole in the wall, landing on a bed of flowers. Once I had picked myself up I looked behind and saw the sight of the roof of the room having already collapsed completely, if I hadn?t have got dragged out, I?d have been a goner for sure.

Childish laughter filled the air causing Yuka to grab me by the arm again and throw me to the down, ?Don?t move.?

You said something like that last time, and it didn?t help.

Presumably from the roof, Flandre descended into sight almost completely unharmed by Yuka?s attack minus a small trickle of blood which ran down the side of her face.

?So, you want to play too, do you?? Flandre giggled, licking the blood as it ran down her face, causing her to look even more evil.

?I?d love to.? Yuka replied, sounding equally insane before jumping up into the air to meet Flandre, who started laughing.

Flandre continued to laugh hysterically, ?You think you can win!? I won?t lose to someone like you!? As she held out her arm, a metallic object resembling her wings except without the crystals, materialised in her hand. With a loud humming noise the object then shone a bright scarlet colour and grew in size to about 2 metres long, ?Let?s go!?

Flandre lunged straight at Yuka who promptly dived out of the way and fired another giant beam at her attacker, dishearteningly however, the vampire merely turned around and cleaved the beam in two.

Yuka giggled, ?Not bad, you might be a worthy fight.?

?That laser won?t work on me! Marisa?s already used it too much!? Flandre bragged.

?That witch?? Yuka hissed, before adopting a stance, preparing her for another attack from Flandre.

On cue, Flandre swooped down, but away from Yuka, and it took a couple of seconds for her intention to register in my mind.

She?s aiming for me!

Recognising the situation I did the only thing I could? run. As I was sprinting, I took a chance to look behind me and began to lose hope as I saw the vampire was catching up much faster than I could sprint, looking forward to check where I was running, I was haunted by the maniacal laughing behind me.

Flandre screamed, ?Got you!? instantly followed by a shattering, cracking noise behind me; the shock of the sound caused me to trip over and roll on the floor. Quickly picking myself up slightly I looked back to see Yuka standing in front of Flandre, holding her parasol, which was now in two halves. Thankfully though, Flandre?s weapon had also lost its glow and laser-like appearance and had returned to normal, if you can call it that.

Yuka looked at a piece of her parasol in disbelief before throwing them to the floor, ?Leave the human out of this, you can do what you want with him after you?re done with me.? Yuka spoke in a more serious tone then before.

?Worried?? Flandre mocked devilishly before lunging again at Yuka, swiping with her hands which somehow looked more like claws now, foreseeing the attack, Yuka jumped to the side and delivered a kick to the side of Flandre launching her to the ground leaving her lying face down in the dirt. In the few seconds where nothing was happening I snuck over the mansion and hid behind a piece of debris, which at least offered slightly more protection then standing next to them.

?That?s what you get for fighting with the strongest youkai there is!? Yuka gloated over Flandre. Swooping down, the green haired youkai grabbed the vampire by the leg and threw her into the air like a doll, as the vampire reaches the peak of ascent, Yuka began charging at her ready to strike when Flandre suddenly corrected herself and grabbed Yuka by her right shoulder.

?Game over!? Flandre shouted as Yuka struggled to break free from the vice-like grip. ?It's too late now!? Red energies started to gather and focus around one spot on Yuka?s shoulder; it became apparent that Flandre was going to use her powers to simply destroy Yuka.

?Yuka, get out of there!? I shouted, despite knowing how obvious the advice was. Despite the situation, Yuka calmed looked over at me and nodded assuringly before looking back at Flandre and smiled. As the light on her shoulder was almost white with intensity, Yuka swung around and kicked Flandre and at that moment there was an explosion and a shower of blood, followed by screaming.

Reluctantly, I looked up at the scene and was somewhat surprised to see that Yuka was alive albeit missing her right arm, which she was clutching with her other. The screeching however was coming from Flandre, whose arm was hanging limp at the elbow, Yuka?s kick must have shattered it disrupting her power enough to only destroy her arm.

Both of the fighters backed up slightly and lowered to the ground although constantly facing each other. Not taking her eyes off the vampire, Yuka reached down and ripped the head off a sunflower and held it to her wound, causing the sunflower to grow and cover the bleeding.

That?s one way of using her powers, I guess. Though I?m surprised she hasn?t changed much from the injury.

Flandre became silent once again, with only the look of anger on her face, eyes burning brighter than ever before.

?DIE!? Flandre screamed as she jumped at the wounded Yuka, who once again spun out of the way but this time she wasn?t expecting the next attack by Flandre, who spun on the spot and lunged with her working arm again clawing her face, followed by a lash from her wings which impaled through Yuka?s stomach.

Immediately following the disgusting noise from the impaling, Flandre started laughing hysterically and even louder than before and worryingly Yuka was beginning to look a lot wearier now.

That?s it, she?s finished now.

Toying with Yuka, Flandre shook her wings around with Yuka still hanging from them, ?I win! You lose!? Flandre continued singing her victory chant and dancing slightly as if her arm wasn?t damaged at all. Afterwards she pulled her wings in closer and licked some of the blood off Yuka, ?How horrible, Youkai are useless even if-? Flandre paused as something struck her, ?What are you smiling at!? A yellow glow surrounded Yuka for a moment causing Flandre to push her wings away slightly, revealing to me that Yuka was indeed smiling... both of them.

A second Yuka had appeared although impaled on Flandre?s other wing which caused the vampire to panic. ?Get off me!? Flandre frantically cried as both Yukas placed a foot on Flandre and grabbed the wing they were stuck on with their remaining arm. ?No!? Flandre shrieked before screaming in pain.

Oh? my god?

It was obvious that the pair of Yukas were pulling Flandre?s wings off her, causing the screams of pain to get louder and louder to the point where I covered by ears and was almost looking away.

The screaming continued for what seemed like an eternity with the evermore blood-soaked Yukas still dislocating the wing until finally there was a screech that almost pierced my eardrums. I looked over at the trio, and there stood the two Yukas holding a wing each.

Both of them threw the wings to the ground causing them to immediately disintegrate as they hit the ground shortly followed by one of the Yukas disappearing in a spiralling yellow spark. As though synchronised with the other's departure, the other Yuka, the real one, fell to one knee and for a moment everything went scarily quiet for a moment.

?How dare you...? A weakened but hateful voice shouted

No way.

?How dare you!? The voice shouted again as an all too familiar figure climbed from the ground, ?I will kill you! I will kill you! I will kill you!?

?You?ve... already lost.? Yuka laughed, obviously in pain. ?This is my world... and that... gives me the advantage.?

?I?ll kill you now!? Flandre lurched forward, but failed to move.

The sky suddenly lit up with sunlight what was just a moment ago the middle of the night was now brighter than the middle of the day, the result caused me to cover my eyes for a moment, only hearing what was said.

?Sunlight!? Flandre laughed, ?That was your trick? It doesn?t work on me!? Flandre shouted, trying to sound stronger then she was.

?No. But now you can see your defeat.? Yuka grinned at Flandre with her trademark menacing grin.

Surrounding Flandre was an entire field of flowers, which started to grow and swarm around her to the point where she was completely blocked from sight. Many more flowers started to join the swarm though these ones remained much more mobile and acted more like razors circling Flandre, though luckily the sheer mass of flowers hid the actual scene from me.

After a minute of continuous barraging, the flowered froze in place for a moment before the swarm exploded into the air sending a mix of flowers and petals scattering across the sky.

I couldn?t see Flandre any more, she was simply covered by too many flowers but it was obvious that spell had finished her off. A few seconds later I realised that Yuka was also missing, running in the former battle's direction I started to look around until I froze with shock slightly as I found Yuka, pale and drenched in blood, ?You?re? alright, that?s? good.? Yuka proceeded to lie on the ground, ?I?m going? to sleep, get? Elly to throw that girl out? before she wakes up.?

Flowers immediately started to cover Yuka and within a few seconds had formed something resembling a cocoon around her. I could only hope she was really sleeping and not actually dead, although I wouldn?t be surprised due to all the blood she lost from her arm and the wounds in her stomach. After waiting a few, uneventful moments, I followed Yuka?s order and went to fetch Elly, my mind was too much of a mess to come up with any other ideas.

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Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo (Digitally Remastered!)
Post by: Mima on April 25, 2009, 01:33:58 PM: Chapter 18

Upon reaching it, I started to hit Elly?s door as much as I could, to little prevail, continuing for a few more seconds I heard quietly, ?Okay? okay? I can hear you??

I heard a series of bumps and crashes approaching until finally the door opened revealing a half-asleep Elly still dressed in her white nightclothes, though still holding her trademark scythe.

?What is it..? Oh! It?s you! Yuka?s human! Hello!? Elly suddenly proclaimed.

Thanks, like I didn?t know that.

?What?s the matter?? She questioned before yawning.

She really slept through it all? How?!

?Over there!? I pointed towards the mansion, ?I was just attacked by a vampire! This vampire also proceeded to nearly kill Yuka before getting beaten. Yuka then told me to get you before surrounding herself with flowers!? I nearly shouted at Elly, half hysterically.

?Really?? Elly replied, tilting her head to the side slightly.

?Yes, really! Why would I lie about something like this!?? I shouted.

?Well? Yuka could have put you up to it.?

I continued to shout, ?Well, she didn?t! Now come on!?

?Fine?? Elly sighed before leaving the house, and began walking in the direction I pointed. It seemed that she was in no hurry at all about Yuka, which means I?m possibly overreacting but didn't really care. ?So? was it a good fight?? Elly asked out the blue.

?Good? Well, it was rather violent if that?s what you mean. Yuka?s arm was blown off and then she got impaled, so, yes, it was violent.?

?Ah, it?s a shame I didn?t see it.? Elly said, genuinely disappointed.

Is she really a guard?

It wasn?t long before we were stood before the body of the vampire, already some of the cuts had started to heal and two metallic looking lumps were already forcing their way out of her back. ?Vampires are quite known for their regeneration, it?s difficult to slay them since they recover so fast.? Elly explained without me asking.

Picking up the corpse, Elly slung the regenerating body over her shoulder, ?Well, I had best throw this out. Someone?ll collect it eventually.?

?What about Yuka? She looked pretty bad.?

Elly laughed, ?Don?t worry, just leave her be and she?ll be back soon enough, this isn?t the first time, you know. She always gets into situations like this, you should already know how much she enjoys fighting...? Elly looked at me, ?You should go to sleep as well, you look almost as bad as her.? Elly paused briefly as she poked the unconscious Flandre. ?Anyway, I?ll see you around!? Elly spun around and walked in the direction of the portal, Flandre in one arm and her scythe in the other.

I guess I should head back to the mansion, just in case there?s anything else around.

I started the short walk back to the mansion, noticing that the fairies had already started work rebuilding the damaged room.

So they don?t even need orders from Yuka, not bad.

Entering the mansion all I just wanted a place to sit down. Although I had not taken part in the fight itself, it seemed to have taken a lot out of me and now that the adrenaline had run out, I could feel my mind blurring slightly with exhaustion. Walking down the passage on the other side to the dining room I felt slightly heartened by the sight of a large comfy looking armchair. Wobbling over to it I sat down and leant back, finally letting the events soak into my mind.

Someone had tried to kill me; Yuka then proceeded to save me and fought the attacker, an insane vampire, and both of them sustained injuries that should have killed them and yet somehow they?re both alive. What a world this is.

By my feelings I took a guess that my world, the real world was nothing like this. Everything feels so exciting and unusual here that I can only think that the world I come from has nothing like this. My comparisons came to an end as I could feel my mind dulling and my thoughts slowing down until finally everything started going blank.

There was a small thudding noise and I realised I was conscious again, followed by another quiet, but noticeable thud.

I guess I should see what it is.

My mind began to start up though it was as lazy as the rest of my body, eventually I lazily opened my eyes.

What I wasn?t expecting to see was a blood covered Yuka smiling at me; it certainly woke me up, in the form of me almost jumping out of my skin. ?Good morning!? She chirped happily.

?M-morning? I mumbled. Looking at Yuka, it proved what Elly said, she was already back to normal. ?I see? you got your arm back.? I asked, wondering on how weird that question sounded.

?Hmm? Oh, yes. I?ve had worse.? She brushed the question away without a care.

Why am I not surprised at her not caring about losing a limb.

Yuka spoke airily, ?Well, I?m going to wash, I don?t like being covered in vampire blood much.? Peeling some dried blood off her face, she turned and left the room.

Wow, she regenerated quickly.

I scanned the room for a clock to check but couldn't see one right away.

I?d say it took about 8 hours for her to get an arm back, that?s unreal.

Deciding it would be best to do something rather than nothing, I got up from the chair and started to explore around the half of the mansion I was in now.

The exploration turned out quite uneventful, there weren?t anything special, just more normal looking rooms, though I wasn?t really sure what I was expecting. The only room worth noticing was a study, full of books and similar things which I decided to spend some time in.

Looking for more information in general, I began to scan through the titles of the books looking for anything interesting. As I moved around the room concentrating on the book I bumped into something, ?Hey, watch it.? ?Or someone.

I looked up to see a young witch standing in front of me, it was quite obvious since her clothes matched them completely, and the only unusual part was the apron she wore also, which felt out of place. The witch had shoulder length blonde hair with her hair braided on one side of her face, which matched the colour of her eyes.

She looked at me for a moment before wearing a mischievous grin on her face and spoke, ?Yo.?

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Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo (Digitally Remastered!)
Post by: Mima on April 25, 2009, 01:34:17 PM: Chapter 19

I looked at the witch before replying, ?Hi.? Why do I know this is just more trouble?

?You the librarian here or something?? The witch questioned.

I shook my head, ?N-no. I?m just an ordinary human; to be honest I?ve never been in here before.?

?Really, an ordinary human? Living with Miss Flower Power isn?t really ordinary, I know.? I couldn?t help but laugh somewhat at the nickname for Yuka. ?Marisa?s the name, who?re you??

?Well, I don?t exactly have one.? I mumbled, getting bored of having to use that answer.

?I see, seems librarians don?t get names.? Marisa spoke under her breath.

?I told you! I?m not a librarian!? I objected.

?Yeah, so where?s the spells kept?? It seemed the witch was only hearing what she wanted to hear.

I shrugged my shoulders, ?I have no idea; the fairies are more likely to know then me.?

?I?ll pass, they?re only good for blowing away.?

Almost sounded as homicidal as Yuka.

The witch turned back to raiding through the bookshelves when an idea entered my head, ?I think I know where the spell is.?

Throwing the book she was holding to the side, the witch turned excitedly, ?Really! Where??

?Yuka will have it with her; she used it in a fight with a vampire last night.?

?Dammit!? The witch shouted and tapped herself on the head, ?I should have thought of that.?

There was another moment of silence while the witch stood deep in thought, ?I gather you?re here to? steal a spell?? I interrupted.

?Steal?? Marisa started to laugh, ?Nah, I?m just borrowing it.?

?Without her permission?? I continued the line.

?Yep!? The witch chirped, obviously having done this before. ?So, where is Flower Power then??

?Having a bath or something, she said she was going to get the blood from the fight off her.?

The witch sighed, ?Guess I?ll have to wait for a while then.? The witch reached around the corner, producing a bag, and started to place books into it.

And just like that, she starts to steal books, right in front of me. Still, it?s not like I can do anything? except stall her maybe?

?So? Do you go to the shrine much??? I quietly started.

The witch looked up from the bag, ?Huh? Reimu?s place? Of course, we?re best pals! Ain?t you heard of me before?? Straight away, before I could even answer, she went back to her work.

It?s not working! She?s still stealing!

Stealing...

?Say, have you met the new Hakurei Deity yet?? I questioned.

Marisa looked up from her work slightly annoyed before looking curious, ?Hmm? There?s a new god? Since when??

?Yesterday, she arrived when I was there.? I grinned.

I really hope I?m right. Thieving, magic, sound about right.

?Her name is Mima.? I answered.

?M-Mima! Lady Mima?s back!?? Marisa suddenly screamed excitedly.

Bingo!

?What, is she at the shrine now!? She asked in a hurry.

I nodded positively before commenting, ?Well, yes. Like I said, she?s the goddess, so I?d expect she?d be there.?

Reaching behind the same corner as last time, this time she picked up a broom before running to leave the room. ?Wait, you?re not playing a trick are you??

If you think that, then why are you asking me?!

I shook my head, ?No, she?s there.?

Marisa grinned at me before turning around to leave the room. ?Oof!?

Picking herself up off the floor, Marisa looked up to see Yuka watching over her, having bumped into her as she walked into the room.

Oh boy, here we go again.

?Hey there! I was just leaving!? Marisa cockily spoke to Yuka, who replied with a stare.

They?re obviously not friends.

?So, yeah? See you later!? Marisa jumped into the air and at the same time swinging her broomstick around and landing on it. Laughing, she started to move away, ?I?m in a bit of a rush, so I?ll come back some other time!?

As the witch flew out of sight, it was easy to predict Yuka?s next move. With her usual confident grin she raised her parasol, ready to attack.

She managed to fix that too?!

In a few seconds an all too familiar noise echoed around the library with the complementary flash of light. A second or two later I heard Marisa cry in alarm, ?Watch it! Stop using my spell on me!?

Instead of listening, Yuka began to chase after Marisa, ?What do you mean your spell! You stole it from me you?? Yuka shouted before their voices faded into the distance.

With a sigh I turned around and looked at the mess left by the witch and not wanting to follow the other two and risk getting blown up, I decided it would be best to just stall around and have a look in a minute or two. Wondering if peaceful days existed here, I picked up some of the discarded books and replaced them on the shelves.

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Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo (Digitally Remastered!)
Post by: Mima on April 25, 2009, 01:34:37 PM: Chapter 20

I?d let a few minutes pass before I started to move away from the study to check up on the chase from before. The house was in surprisingly good condition, compared to what I had imagined? I had somewhat expected the mansion to be wrecked with depressed looking fairies already working on the repair job, but minus the odd scorch mark on the wall and a burnt up tapestry or painting of some sort, it wasn?t that bad.

Well, I am surprised.

I wondered down the hall, smiling at my prediction being half-right due to a fairy frowning while working on a scorched part of the wall. Continuing on, I reached the front door, which appeared to be hanging from their hinges, presumably from the force of Marisa when she rocketed into them during her escape. Whatever the reason, the doors were stuck and weren?t willing to open, with normal force anyway.

With a good kick, I?m sure it?d open.

?1? 2?-?

Wait! What if Yuka?s on the other side?

At that point my head enacted the scene of kicking the door down, sending Yuka flying in the process, followed by me being chased down and blown away, much like how she just murderously chased after Marisa.

It?d be wise to check for her.

I walked up to the door and began to try and see Yuka through one of the many dents and cracks in the door, to little success. ?Looks clear? Let?s g-? The next thing I knew, I was lying on the floor after a sharp impact to my face.

What the hell was that?! Wait, it?s not like I can?t guess?

Looking up, I found myself unsurprised to see Yuka, having just kicked the door down from her side.

Yuka looked at me with a strange look, ?What are you doing on the floor??

?Don?t act like you don?t know.? I groaned, nursing my nose, out of the corner of my eyes I noticed noticing my nose was bleeding, as signalled by the blood covering my hand.

Yuka merely smiled, ?I have no idea what you?re talking about.?

Without any prompting from the master of the mansion, a fairy flew up to me and held a piece of cloth of something like that against my nose.

Why would I not be surprised if chloroform was on this cloth?

Looking at the scene bemused Yuka gave a sneer, ?Humans, what weak beings, one little strike to the face and they need help.?

Thanks for those valuable words of encouragement, Yuka.

Getting up from the floor, taking and holding the piece of cloth to my nose and sarcastically spoke to Yuka, ?I gather you got rid of the witch then.?

?Oh yes, she was too much in a hurry to see that mentor of hers to put up a good fight.? Yuka jokingly lamented.

Haven?t you had enough fights yet!?

Thinking of Mima, I remembered about asking Akyu about her, next time I see her. ?Where will we be going today?? I asked, sounding like I knew everywhere in Gensokyo.

?The flower field.? Yuka spoke simply.

?And?? I urged with a notable touch of worry in my voice.

?Just the flower field, the shrine maiden has asked me to make displays for tomorrow?s party.? Yuka smiled. ?You can go where you want though.?

That was the answer I was waiting for, a free ticket to the village. ?So, are we leaving now?? I questioned, while moving the blood-covered cloth slightly to check the wound but the still-flowing blood caused me to replace it immediately.

?If you want.? As usual, Yuka turned around and began to walk at her own pace, ignoring me AND thus making me have to catch up with her.

Much like the night before, the walk from the mansion was much shorter, Elly was again sitting outside her house doing nothing, greeting Yuka as she passed, ?No luck on that witch, Yuka? You?ll get her one day.?

Yuka gave a mixture of a sneer and a growl and continued walking past Elly, ?I guess you?re well acquainted with Marisa then?? I questioned once we were away from Elly?s house.

Yuka sighed, ?Yes, ever since the shrine maiden and her barged in and she stole one of my spells, she?s been coming back and trying to steal even more.?

?Ah, she mentioned something like that to me.? Something clicked in my head from last night when the vampire talked about Yuka using Marisa?s spell. ?She stole that? big laser spell, right??

?That?s right.? Yuka answered.

Before I could ask about the spell she wants to steal, I saw we were already at the portal, and Yuka had already walked though.

I noticed that my nose had finally stopped bleeding so I put the cloth I was using away and sarcastically mumbled, ?Thanks for waiting.? After which I strolled through the portal and into the brightness of the flower field.

Yuka had already started manipulating the flowers, grouping them together and sorting them into patterns, as you expect in flower displays. I waited around for a few, uneventful minutes and eventually decided to move on. ?I?m going to go off for a bit then.?

?Suit yourself, don?t get killed.? Yuka spoke menacingly with her back to me. Without another word, I started to walk to the village, wondering if Yuka had said something with good meaning for once, but knowing her it could mean the complete opposite.

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Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo (Digitally Remastered!)
Post by: Mima on April 25, 2009, 01:34:52 PM: Chapter 21

Checking behind my shoulder every few minutes, it eventually became clear that Yuka really was intent on doing the work and not planning anything else, mostly involving me. The walk was overall uneventful, I expected something as little as a sighting of Cirno but there was nothing of the sort, I could only guess she?d gone to challenge that frog god again.

This time around the village was actually busy, presumably they must have seen Yuka coming since she wasn?t exactly the type of person to blend into a crowd. The villagers didn?t take notice of me much until I was in the outskirts of the village, then the strange looks and whispers began.

They probably remember me with Yuka or something.

The villagers mostly ignored me except monitoring me out of the corner of their eyes until as the time before, Keine emerged from a building and saw it was me, as she approached she called, ?Hello again! Good to see you?re alright!? Keine took a quick look around and spoke in a quieter tone, ?I was quite worried leaving you with her. I thought you might get killed or- Oh, your nose! What happened!? Did she do it?!?

I?d forgotten about my nose for a moment, no doubt it had a layer of blood around it giving it away to Keine, ?It?s nothing? I merely had an encounter with a door? that was moving.? I answered vaguely.

Keine looked at me sceptically for a moment before shaking her head, ?If you say so.? Keine looked away in thought for a moment before turning back to me, face back it?s friendly self, ?So, what are you here for today??

I shrugged my shoulders, ?Nothing in particular, Yuka?s in that field of hers making flower displays or something for a party.?

?Oh yes, that?s tomorrow isn?t it?? Keine replied.

?Yeah, so are you going too?? I asked for the sake of asking.

Keine nodded, ?Yes, they?ve stopped by here a few times for preparations, so I ended up getting invited, it sounds like quite the crowd is going to be there.? Keine paused again before speaking, ?If you?ve got nothing to do, would you like to visit Akyu?s again, seeing as you seemed to enjoy it last time??

I answered with a nod, ?Sure, I?ve got a few questions to ask anyway.?

Keine smiled, ?Okay then. Let?s go shall we?? Unlike Yuka, Keine waited for me to start moving before she did. As we walked, Keine spoke. ?So, what do you think of your stay in Gensokyo so far??

I couldn?t think of a suitable word to describe things, ?I don?t know really, things are quite confusing when you?re dealing with youkai, gods and vampires all in the first day.?

?Gensokyo is indeed an overwhelming place? Wait? Vampire!? You didn?t encounter the one that escaped last night, did you?? Keine suddenly went alert.

?You mean Flandre?? I laughed weakly, ?Encounter? it was more like a meeting that put me seconds away from being killed by her. If it wasn?t for Yuka, I?d be dead.?

?You?re very lucky; she?s the last person I?d expect to save someone else.? Keine replied sounding slightly surprised.

?Yeah, I was quite surprised, but I know she was after a fight with Flandre anyway, so she had another reason.?

?So, she must have won otherwise you wouldn?t be here, looks like there more good in her then I thought.? As she finished, I saw we were finally in front of Akyu?s house, as I approached the door, Keine spoke from behind. ?I?ve got a few things to do, just go on in and I?ll be back later on. See you later.?

?Alright then, bye.? Keine smiled and walked off, somewhere else in the village. I turned and looked and the door, and knocked on it. There was no response, so as Keine said I walked in.

Around the corner, just like last time, Akyu was sat at the table, writing. ?Hi, Akyu.?

The purple haired girl looked up from her work, ?Oh, hello again. Nice to see you haven?t been hurt, or worse.?

I laughed, ?Well, things have certainly tried to do so.? I explained the story of Flandre to Akyu, who I noticed was writing the story down as I spoke.

?That vampire is quite the handful at times, for the most part she stays at the mansion but there?s always the odd occasion that she breaks out, and then there?s always trouble. It?s quite fortunate you didn?t get harmed.?

As the conversation slowed down I looked around the room when I saw a painting of the Hakurei Shrine, ?I remember now, I have a question.?

?Oh? What is it?? Akyu looked at me inquisitively.

?Who?s Mima? I met her yesterday and there?s no record of her in the book you lent me.? I queried.

?Mima, you say? Are you sure it was her? She?s been missing for quite a while now. It was probably just Marisa Kirisame playing a prank.? Akyu replied.

?No, it was her, I met Marisa this morning and she was overjoyed to hear the news, plus they looked completely different, Mima had blue clothes and long green hair while Marisa wore black and was blonde.? I objected.

?Well, that sounds like her. Where did you see her?? Akyu asked curiously, pen in hand.

?At the Hakurei Shrine, she appeared there a while after we got there, and she started to annoy Reimu on how she?d become the deity of the shrine.?

?Interesting?? Akyu was writing everything down, ?Very interesting, looks like I?ll have to make a new article soon, if she?s become the Hakurei deity then it?s vital I write about her.?

?So, she wasn?t a god once?? I asked.

?No, in fact for a long time she was opposed to the Hakurei bloodline to the extent of trying to kill them along with the rest of mankind.? Akyu went on to explain.

I was quite surprised, ?She was? I figured she was evil somehow due to her magic, but I didn?t think she was that bad.?

?Yes, she appears all over Gensokyo?s timeline appearing and trying to kill the current Shrine Maiden, failing each time though it didn?t seem to deter her. She just wanted ?Revenge for her death? and to resurrect herself. However during the last time she appeared, she just seemed have given up on what she aimed for so long and settled down.? Akyu jotted something down in the book, ?After her final attempt she became friendlier to everyone, mainly staying around the shrine she once hated, and then when the Makai accident occurred, she wasn?t seen again.?

I interrupted the explanation, ?Makai incident??

?A few years ago there was an incident where demons were entering Gensokyo in quite large numbers, in the end it was discovered they were arriving from Makai, Reimu Hakurei, Marisa Kirisame, Yuka Kazami and Mima ventured into Makai and put an end to the case, though Mima hasn?t been seen by anyone since then, until now.? Akyu played with the pen around her fingers, ?I can only guess that she stayed in Makai and became a goddess with the help of Shinki, who?s the goddess there.?

?And so, just like that, someone who was once pure evil became the goddess of a shrine which stands for good, or so I?m lead to believe??

?Like I said, Mima changed, it wouldn?t be surprising to hear she?s forgiven whatever happened to her and no longer wants revenge or to be reincarnated, I guess being a god is better than that.?

?I see...? I paused for a brief moment.

Mima must have honestly changed then, she didn?t seem that bad when I met her, more mischievous then evil.

I queried Akyu again, ?One last thing then, what reason did Yuka have for going to Makai, she doesn?t exactly seem like the kind of person to team up with Reimu to fight evil.?

Akyu looked up again, ?She never said herself so there?s only guesses, some say she went for the fights, some say she went to chase after Marisa Kirisame? She has quite the hatred for her since Marisa stole one of Yuka?s favoured spells, Master Spark.?

I laughed, ?Yeah, I?ve experienced that hatred up close when she caught Marisa trying to steal another spell but the other theory sounds about right too.? As the conversation ended, Akyu looked back to what she was working on, I took that as an invitation to get a more recent copy of the book then I had and started to read.

---
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo (Digitally Remastered!)
Post by: Mima on April 25, 2009, 01:35:12 PM: Chapter 22

It?s quite amazing how much time can pass when you find a good book; looking up to the clock I saw that the time had already passed 3 hours, the clock showing it was now 4 o?clock.

Keine had come and gone, although she was reluctant to leave me alone. It took a good deal of convincing her that I was honestly all right after scaring her with my encounter with Flandre. Akyu, as always, noted what I explained, maybe because I?m from the outside, I?m not sure.

I wasn?t too sure what possessed me to do it, but I decided that I was going to go exploring again but this time it would be outside of the village, maybe it was overconfidence since I knew the majority of notable beings in Gensokyo now although but that doesn?t mean I can fight them off or anything.

?Well, I?m going to go and explore for a while, I might be back later on and if not then I?ve probably been dragged off by Yuka.? I laughed, ?Or killed.? I chuckled weakly at my addition to the sentence.

Akyu, as usual looked up at me, ?Okay, be careful. See you next time!? Akyu spoke optimistically.

Why do things feel like I?m going on a suicide mission? Wait, it probably is suicide.

Standing up I waved goodbye to Akyu and made my way outside. ?So, where should I go?? I said to myself as I looked around. Unfortunately, my choice was narrowed by the fact that the village was surrounded by woods on every side.

Not much of a choice, I guess.

To no surprise, I decided that if I was going anywhere, it would be into the woods. Choosing to enter at an angle which went alongside and in close proximity to the flower field, it would allow me to at least attempt to flee to Yuka in the case that everything went bad.

I?m all for exploring, but it?s not like there?ll be anything interesting in these trees.

As I somewhat expected, the forest has a chilly atmosphere, and was also quite dark to my dismay. Walking in the same angle I entered, I was able to remain in sight of the light from outside. I began wondering about what I could possibly hope to find during this exploration, since in my mind a forest never seemed like a thing to hide something interesting, just creepy.

Without warning, the surroundings suddenly got a lot darker; looking up and around, even the light was the outside was nowhere to be seen.

What in the world is going on? Oh wait, it?s not like I don?t know, it?s something life-threatening.

Almost on cue, I could just make out a patch of the floor began moving towards me, the buzzing and hissing made it clear that it was actually a swarm of insects, heading for me.

Run!

My mind screamed continuously as I followed the order until I realized that in my panic, I?d lost all bearings and the darkness certainly wasn?t giving any clues regarding my position. As I ran in an unknown direction, the noises got louder, which means they?re either catching up or there?s even more of them, either way I wasn?t planning on finding out and pushed myself to run faster.

The area began to get even darker, so I decided to run to the side, hoping that it would take me out the forest, or at least get lighter, but to little prevail. Another problem is that I can?t run forever, already I felt myself tiring and getting slower.

This darkness is getting to the point where I can?t see anyth-

A familiar feeling in the form of a tree, struck me in the face causing me to fall backwards to the ground, as I fell I recalled the incident with the door earlier. Wondering how intact my nose was, I lay half-dazed on the forest floor, wondering why I hadn?t been surrounded by a swarm of vicious flesh rending bugs yet; again on cue there was a noise, but not what I was expecting.

Giggling?!

?We got him!? Someone sung out loud.

?Great work team!? Another voice called.

?Yeah!? A much higher pitched and immature sounding voice shouted.

?What are we waiting for? Let?s get him!? The sounds of footsteps got louder and louder signalling their approach until the same voice as before cut in, ?Hey wait, I think I know him.?

It can?t be, can it? Oh, the irony.

?It is you!? A familiar voice shouted at me, ?Of all the people to catch, it?s you!?

?You know him, Cirno??

Just as I thought.

?Yeah, I met him yesterday, he?s not bad for a human, and he hangs around with that Yuka, she?d kill us if we did anything.?

?Who?s Yukaaaaaaa?? The immature voice called again.

?Don?t you know anything?! The one that uses all the flowers and tries to beat us up when she sees us!? Another voice snapped at one questioning Yuka.

?And the one who beat Cirno yesterday!? I heard Daiyousei add.

?Shut up.? The voice of Cirno interrupted.

A more serious sounding voice spoke, ?Well, what do you want to do with him??

?Eat hiiiiim.? The squeaky immature voice said.

No, no, let?s not.

?We can?t eat him if he?s Cirno?s friend... and if it was annoy Kazami.? Spoke another serious sounding voice.

I like that answer, go for that one.

Finally, my head had stopped hurting enough for me to lift it from the ground and actually have a look at my would-be attackers. As their voices, and the presence of Cirno suggested, it was a group of younger looking youkai.

The first had fairly short pink hair and strange ears protruding from them, wearing a burgundy and white dress decorated with pink ribbons, which snaked down the dress, she also wore a matching coloured hat on her hat, which sported wings or something resembling them. Her final noticeable feature, were the purple and pink wings, resembling a birds, on her back.

The next youkai was a more childish looking one, presumably the immature sounding one; she wore a simple black shirt and dress over a long sleeved white blouse, which contrasted with her bright blonde hair. In her hair was a small red ribbon, though it looked like it had suffered some wear and tear through the years.

The final newcomer had her back turned to me, but from what I could make out she wore a white shirt and blue trousers, reaching to her knees, though most of her appearance was blocked by her black cape. Hidden among her greenish-blue hair were two antennae, which suggested that she was the one controlling the bugs from earlier.

I had hunches on who they are, having read the book not long ago, however probably due to the fright and possible concussion of head butting a tree, I just couldn?t remember at that moment.

---
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo (Digitally Remastered!)
Post by: Mima on April 25, 2009, 01:35:32 PM: Chapter 23

Pushing myself off the ground, I leant back against the tree I had previously encountered face to face and noticed my nose was pouring with blood once more.

I watched as Cirno marched up to me, hands on her hips, ?Why the heck are you here?? She asked.

?I want to ask you that too.? I groaned.

Cirno sighed slightly, ?Isn?t it obvious, playing with my friends unlike you!? Cirno looked back at the group, where a couple waved back. ?But this is a place for youkai, not for a weak human like you! Even Daiyousei could beat you up!? Cirno laughed.

?Hey Cirno, that?s not very nice.? I heard a timid Daiyousei object.

?Unless you want to get killed, you should get out of here.? Cirno announced, trying to sound much more formidable then she was.

?Well then? Where can I get out? Thanks to you and your little squad, I have no idea where I am and which way I?m meant to be going.? I complained.

A grin appeared on Cirno?s face before she ran over to her little group who then huddled together and began whispering.

Obviously, no good is going to come from this.

The group nodded together before Cirno ran back up to me, ?We?ll show you the way out of the forest.?

?Oh, that?s good, I was think-?

?If... You beat us at a game.? Cirno interrupted me.

I knew it. Nothing is ever easy.

?Fine? What game?? I said, with a slight sigh.

Cirno continued to mischievously grin, ?Anything, you can choose.?

?And what if I lose?? I questioned cautiously. ?You and your friends kill me or something??

?No, we play again, and again, and again, until you win!? Cirno scolded me.

Just what I wanted, to be playing games with Youkai continuously for my freedom.

?So? any game?? I asked.

?Yep!?

Without thinking I immediately blurted out, ?Fine, we?ll play tag.?

?Okay!? Cirno shouted, already running off.

Eager to win, I started to sprint after Cirno and relieved to see I was catching up; Cirno was just in my reach when I heard another shout, ?Now!?

At that moment, everyone flew up into the air several metres out of my reach and began giggling. ?Catch us if you can!? One of the girls taunted, as I stood on the floor baffled.

There?s no point playing this, there?s no way I can reach them and even if I climbed a tree, it?s not like they can?t just fly away.

In what must be the shortest game ever, I announced my loss. ?Alright, alright, you lot win, let?s play the next game.?

The girls slowly floated down, laughing and whispering in each other?s ears the topic most likely being how useless I was at that game. Cirno laughed again and sneered, ?Pick something that?ll last a bit longer, I don?t want to have to go easy on you!?

For obvious reasons, I found the fact a fairy was laughing at me quite irritating so I began to put thought into the next game.

Something without chasing, what wouldn?t they be good at? I looked at the group again and something struck me, the majority of them weren?t exactly camouflaged, even Rumia (Who I suspected it was) though fairly well blended in black, had a head full of blonde hair which stuck out like a sore thumb, add the various bright blues and greens and pink from the others, and the idea emerged.

??Hide and seek.?

?Huh.? Cirno looked puzzled for an unknown reason.

?Hide and seek, I?ll give you time to hide and then come and find you, but as soon as I find you, you?re out, no chasing or anything like that.? I grinned.

Cirno looked up at me stubbornly as though she was working something out, as you?d expect she didn?t figure anything out and she soon returned to her overconfident smile. ?Fine then, get counting? and don?t look.?

?Whatever.? I turned around and leant face first against the tree I had head-butted from earlier and as I did I heard the sounds of footsteps decreasing in volume could signalling I was alone.

Well, at least that means no one is going to smash my head against this tree while I?m not looking.

Since Cirno gave me no exact number to count to, I counted to ninety nine before beginning my search. In my head, I was expecting to turn around and see at least one straight away, but that wasn?t reality, there wasn?t anyone to be seen, but I also realised then that there was no time limit on the game; I had all the time I wanted to find them.

Beginning my search I wanted down the most obvious route, following the sounds of the footsteps from earlier and it wasn?t before long I noticed patches of blue among the green leaves of a bush. I walked over to the overgrown plant and pulled some of the leaves away revealed a startled looking Daiyousei.

?Oh? hello...? She spoke quietly. ?I guess I?m out then??

?Yeah? Tough luck?? I replied sympathetically, for some reason.

One down, four to go!

Not far away from Daiyousei, I noticed in the corner of my eye some white in an otherwise brown tree, after a moment of staring, I could make out the shape of Wriggle Nightbug, lying on top of the branch.

Thank god these youkai are distinctive enough to remember the names.

?You can come down, Wriggle.? I smirked. Unhappily, Wriggle hovered down from the tree branch, and it almost felt like she was missing a buzzing noise when she flew.

?It took Cirno ages to find me up there.? Wriggle complained.

Ha, not me.

A few more minutes passed before I found the next target; I noticed that in the middle of an area without much cover from the trees, there was an odd shadow, right in the middle. Looking up, in the worst place for hiding in the air imaginable was an orb of darkness, which must be Rumia.

After shouting her down, much like the others, and waiting for her to tease the others about lasting longer than them, we set off to find the final two, Cirno and who I presumed was Mystia Lorelei, if I remember right, she?s a Night Sparrow with a large love for singing.

Despite her wearing bright pink and Cirno wearing bright blue, they were surprisingly difficult to find, even after what felt like 10 minutes of searching.

Looks like I?ll have to play dirty.

I walked a few more steps forward before turning around to the group following me, and spoke in a much louder voice than usual.

I hope she doesn?t outright swoop down and rip my throat out for this.

?You know, I don?t think that Mystia can sing very well at all, she vastly overrates herself, in fact I think I can sing much better!?

All I got from the others were strange and confused looks, ?I don?t even know why you hang around with her, if I had to listen to her all the time, I think my ears would bl-? I was suddenly interrupted by a force colliding with my back sending me to the floor.

Turning around to see who did it, I saw a furious looking Mystia looking at me, ?What are you talking about, I can sing much better then you?ll ever be able to you useless human! I don?t know why I shouldn?t just kill-?

?You?re out.? I interrupted Mystia?s high pitched, almost screaming rant and was promptly followed by the laughter of the others.

Giggling, Wriggle spoke, ?Mystia, you just gave yourself away, you could have won!? before laughing even more. Mystia looked embarrassed and stood behind the others.

?Don?t worry Mystia, I didn?t mean what I said.? I apologized, thinking it?s better to make peace rather than have a youkai hunt you down in the future.

?Okay? sorry?? Mystia spoke quietly, still bright red with embarrassment.

?So, it?s just Cirno herself left.? I spoke while walking away from the others, in a fashion much like Yuka.

However the problem arose that no matter how long or hard I looked, there was no sign at all of anything blue. Even my bluff about finding a pond full of frogs failed to draw her out of her hiding place.

Even more time passed to the point the sky was starting to due and lose its colour, and I found myself explaining my story to my followers, ?And then Akyu and Keine explained how I?m not from Gensokyo, and that I might one day return to-? Once again, I found myself interrupted as I tripped through a pile of fallen leaves.

?Watch it, you big idiot, you could-? Just as sudden as the voice started, it stopped.

Bingo.

I started to brush the leaves away with my foot revealing Cirno looking at me. ?Idiot, if you didn?t stand on me you?d never have found me.?

I thought it was quite impressive that Cirno had spent something like an hour buried under a pile of leaves, ?Well, you were the hardest the find, if that?s any consolation.?

Cirno sneered and smiled slightly, ?That?s because I?m the best!?

?So, about the way out of here?? I went straight to the point.

Cirno laughed, ?That?s easy! It?s over there.? Cirno pointed in a direction and began walking in that direction and in no more than 10 seconds later I could see the exit to the forest.

?See you later, we?re going back in the forest, the night?s just beginning you know!? The ice fairy ringleader spoke.

?Yeah, see you later.? I answered, and after exchanging farewells with the others I left the forest leaving me not too far away from the flower field.

---
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo (Digitally Remastered!)
Post by: Mima on April 25, 2009, 01:35:50 PM: Chapter 24

As I had noticed earlier, the sky was starting to get darker now, checking Yuka?s pocket watch it told the time as a few minutes before 6 o?clock.

Damn, I got stuck playing children?s games for longer than I thought.

Strolling down to the flower field I noticed there was no activity or movement in the flower field.

Oh great, she?s already gone on without me.

Thankfully, it wasn?t exactly difficult to find the way back home, this time.

For a moment I wondered how Yuka could make the so-called flower displays yet the flower field looked completely unchanged or possibly grown even more flowers, until I remembered Yuka?s powers probably allowed her to create new flowers out of nowhere. Thinking about that made me realize that since the flowers weren?t here, there?s a good chance she?s taken the flowers, or making them at the shrine.

Either way, I wasn?t going back into that forest to get roped into another game, so I decided to go in the portal and return to the mansion, which would be much safer. I hope.

Since there was no point hanging around, I started to enter the portal and see if Yuka is back when I heard, in the usual cheerful voice, ?Hi!?

Speak of the devil.

?I was wondering when you?d get back.? Yuka spoke in her uncaring voice.

I looked at her quizzically, ?You?ve been looking for me??

?No.? Yuka started laughing, ?I?ve been with Reimu making those flowers like I said.?

Why did I know that would be the answer?

?Although, I did see you playing around in the forest when I flew over.? She added, quickly.

?You could have stopped by, I was stuck in there! Forced to play games to get out!? I almost shouted at Yuka.

?Well, you looked like you were having fun, so I thought, ?Why intervene?? and continued on my way.? Yuka?s face was wearing that menacing grin again.

I grumbled to myself for a few seconds before asking casually, ?I gather you got the flowers done then??

?With plenty of time left, I spent most of the day drinking tea with Reimu.? Yuka continued smiling at me. ?You should have come along.?

I have a sarcastic look, ?I already told you. I was stuck in that forest for hours.?

?Well? you shouldn?t have got lost in the first place.? Yuka laughed.

I merely gave an evil look of my own at Yuka before walking into the portal and emerging on the other side as usual.

A few metres up the pathway, I decided it would be best to wait for Yuka, who emerged a few seconds later, smiling even more. Arms crossed, I waited for her to parade by before joining her at her side. ?So, that festival or party, or whatever it is tomorrow. What?s to be expected??

Yuka shrugged carelessly, ?Who knows? Drinking, talking? I guess dancing if you?re into that. With that Oni in charge the only thing for sure is drinking.?

I thought back to how Suika was when I saw her, my memories recalled that she was drinking alcohol every other moment, ?Ah, but didn?t Mima seem like she was going to do things as well.? I added.

?Like I said, drinking, talking, probably some music also. I should expect even you humans have parties like that.?

?Well, yeah, we do.? I replied.

?Well it?s the same, only the fights are much more fun.? Yuka got an evil look in her eye.

I wonder what part Yuka goes for.

?So, there are a lot of people going?? I asked for the sake of wasting time.

?Oh, not that many. I think Reimu mentioned about ten were invited last year.?

?Ten? That?s not that much.?

Yuka quickly started talking again, ?No, but an extra fifty or so turned up on top of that. So I would say it?ll be about the same this year.?

Suddenly the thought of a nice peaceful afternoon shattered as a huge crowd of people appeared around the shrine in my mind. ?As a complete guess, I gather most of the others are going to be youkai??

Yuka nodded, ?That?s how it usually is.?

Great work from the supposed youkai hunter, instead of destroying them she?s inviting them to parties, what?s she going to do? Poison the sake?

Continuing up the patch, I ended up explaining the events in the forest to Yuka, who merely laughed every time I mentioned an event where something went wrong for me, which was quite a lot of the story. As we passed by her, it was apparent that Elly was sleeping on the job considering she was collapsed out on a sun lounger.

As the story finished, the chilling silent returned, so I started to talk once again, starting with a curious question, ?So, uh, do you photosynthesize or something??

Yuka looked at me and gave me a rather odd look.

?I just wondered, being a flower youkai you might photosynthesize or something, and that?d explain why you have your parasol, to stop getting hyperactive, or gaining any unwanted weight? or something?? I started to question my own questioning.

Yuka replied with a sigh, ?I?m not a flower youkai as you think, I am a youkai with the ability to manipulate flowers, not a youkai who was formerly a flower.?

I paused for a moment, ?So by just ?a youkai? you used to be a human once??

Yuka made a noise of some sort, confirming the accusation, but not sounding too happy about it.

?What about your life as a human, Keine said that Youkai remember their mortal lives.? I asked, wondering if I was asking questions on thin ice.

Yuka sneered, ?I left my memories of my humanity behind a long time ago... I don?t want anything to do with that corrupt world.?

It doesn?t sound like you have.

?Everything that could be wrong is wrong in that world. I?d love nothing more than to destroy it myself.? Yuka continued.

Okay, she?s starting to sound insane, again.

Trying to take things of the subject, slightly, I interrupted, ?So, why am I here then? You know well enough I?m from? that world.? I paused, wondering if Yuka would just turn around and hit me after what she was just ranting about.

Instead, she merely looked amused, ?Why not??

I merely sighed before continuing on, ?Well then, at least you know what your name was.? For a moment, names ran through my head of what Yuka?s name may have been, presuming she changed it when she became a youkai.

?Haru.? Yuka chirped.

I merely looked puzzled, ?Haru??

?You were just talking about a name.?

?What, that?s my name from the other world, or one you just made up?? I was getting more confused by the minute.

?I made it up, why would I know about something from your world??

I looked at Yuka for a moment before shrugging my arms; ?You have a better idea of things then me.?

?Of course I do.? Yuka bragged, before reaching and opening the mansion door.

I swear that mansion sneaks up on me.

Following Yuka into the mansion, I wondered about the name she?d just given me.

Haru? Can?t say I?m particularly fond of it. Well, as long as it keeps her happy I guess.

---
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo (Digitally Remastered!)
Post by: Mima on April 25, 2009, 01:36:09 PM: Chapter 25

As Yuka played strolled through the mansion, something hit me. Outside, I failed to notice that the gaping hole in the side of the house, which was once my room, had disappeared. I poked my head around the front door and spotted I wasn?t mistaken.

Wow, those fairies work fast.

Walking back in the house, Yuka had already disappeared, so I took the free time to have a look at the new room. The hallway looked unchanged, though I guess the only damage would have been around the doorway, which Yuka obliterated, quite needlessly.

At least it stopped Flandre from having a free supper.

I opened the door and was quite surprised to see the room was completely, the same, down to every small detail.

Well, that was anti-climatic, I guess.

Walking back to the main hall of the mansion I thought how boring the room was, being exactly the same, but after remembering what happened earlier when I looked from something adventurous, I changed my mind. As I was about to turn the corner for the stairs I heard Yuka?s all too familiar voice shouting, ?Haaaaaaaaruuuuuuuu!?

I paused for a moment, ?What?? I mimicked Yuka in a sarcastic fashion.

?Come here!? She shouted, still as chirpy sounding.

Following the voice downstairs, slightly nervous at what she had planned.

Why do the thoughts of being hurt or killed enter my head whenever Yuka wants something?

I looked around the corner, and as I had gathered, Yuka was standing there, ?Look what I got for tomorrow!? Yuka pointed to something blue on the table, which on closer inspection seemed to be a pile of clothes.

?Oh, that?s nice? What?s wrong with your usual outfit?? I questioned cautiously.

Yuka laughed and practically sung, ?No? It?s not for me, it?s for youuuu!? Yuka then picked up the clothes and displayed them, revealing a blue suit-like outfit, with the same pattern as Yuka?s.

Wow, it?s like an oversized tablecloth.

Suddenly, my attention was caught by the yellow cravat, similar to the ribbon Yuka wore around her neck except ridiculous looking. Okay, I?m not wearing that. Nada.

?So, you want me to wear that?? I questioned, frantically.

?What?s wrong, don?t you like it?? Yuka grinned, already knowing I wasn?t exactly keen on the idea, ?Why don?t you go and try it on now??

I quickly replied, ?I?m sure it?ll fit perfectly, I?ll just wait until tomorrow like you said.?

Hopefully, I?ll come up with something by then.

Yuka continued to look amused, ?If you say so.? She turned around, ?Time for dinner, anyway.? She continued to speak playfully.

After Yuka walked off, I stared at the clothes and thought about what to do, but no ideas worked, if I burnt them, Yuka would probably burn me in return, so that was a big no. Letting the clothes have the victory for now, I walked off towards the dining room.

Dinner was uneventful, minus the fact I spent more time arguing with the fairy about what I wanted then actually eating. After the 5th time of sending the food back for various reasons, such as it not being cooked, smashed to a pulp and other creative ways of making the food inedible such as heavily overdoing the spices, I started to think, and decided that since the fairies knew my lack of power, and aggression, they were pulling all the pranks and tricks on me since I wasn?t going to blow them to shreds like Yuka would.

Yuka had already long gone before I finally finished, I gave the fairies an evil stare while they laughed, deciding it would be best to give up, I just walked back through the hallway, passing the pile of blue clothes which I also gave an evil stare, before arriving back in the main hall.

It wasn?t that late, according to the clock it was only around 7 o?clock, but it certainly didn?t feel like it, it felt much later in the day. I hung around the main hall but came to the conclusion that since there was nothing else of interest to do, it would probably be best to go to bed, especially with that festival tomorrow.

As I reached the top of the stairs, I noticed the door directly at the top, Yuka?s room was open and from the distance I was, it appeared like it was pitch black with lights shining around it.

What the heck? Is there a disco in there or something?

Closer to the door, I leaned to the side to see inside the room, surprised that the room wasn?t there, it seemed.

The room just seemed to be a part of space, with the moving lights actually being stars shooting by.

What the hell, how can this possibly work?

I stood wondering about how it could possibly be used as a room, thinking for a moment there?d be an invisible floor I went to step in the room to test my theory when I noticed, that in the distance were some platforms, which probably means that there isn?t a floor where I was about to step.

Jumping back away from the door, not wanting to test if I?d fall or not, I quickly decided to move on, also for the reason that if Yuka came back and saw me looking in her room, there?d probably be a good chance she?d use it as an excuse to induce pain on me.

With nothing else left to do, expect ponder upon how Yuka?s room seemed to be a part of space, I walked back to my room and opened the door before shouting, ?I?m going bed? Good night?? It probably wouldn?t stop Yuka, if she wanted to talk or annoy me, she?d just wake me up anyway.

The first thing I noticed when I walked into the room is that those accursed clothes had appeared on the chair. It would seem Yuka was quite determined to get me to wear them.

So, this means war.

Making sure I closed the curtains this time around to prevent any unwanted guests I got into bed with all my clothes on, better than having someone steal them off the table while I slept, leaving me with those things.

Lying in bed I wondered about the events that happened today, this place was still unbelievable, I met a witch and somehow ended up playing hide and seek with two fairies, a bug, a sparrow and a darkness youkai. The weird thing was that in my heart, I was actually enjoying it, it just felt good, and thinking of that it made me wonder back to what the real world was like.

Corrupt, wrong.

If by what Yuka was saying, I definitely wasn?t in a rush to go back there to find out. With a yawn, I decided to leave all my thinking until tomorrow and fell asleep.

I woke up to banging on the door, ?Haru, it?s the party today! Get ready!?

Oh great, A Yuka wake-up call.

Looking at the clock on the wall, which said 6 o?clock, I shut my eyes and went to fall back asleep.

Until the thudding returned, ?Hey! I can?t hear you getting ready!? Yuka was back, and louder. Climbing out of bed, I walked over to the door and opened it, revealing Yuka in her pink nightclothes and cap. ?Get a move on!?

?How can you moan at me, when you?re not even getting ready!?? Noticing the sleeve of my shirt, I added, ?At least I?m dressed!?

Yuka grinned, ?Go have a bath, you smell.?

Thanks for being blunt, again.

I paused for a few seconds, ?Fine, where??

Yuka kicked the door behind her, before walking away, ?Don?t take too long!?

As Yuka walked away, I couldn?t help but ask, ?When does this festival start then??

?12 o?clock.? She laughed before walking away, and into her room, which I had a gut feeling she was going back to sleep.

In the end I decided I?d stay up for the six hours, by the time I got back to sleep it?d be time to wake up again anyway. Following Yuka?s rather harsh advice, I?d start with a bath.

It took me a while to actually find the bath, since it was hidden around a corner for some weird reason, it was surprisingly easy to find the right temperature, and most likely magic was behind it.

After a while in the bath, I heard a door slam, followed by the quiet sound of a fairy flying, a few seconds later, I heard the sound of the door slamming again. Slowly looking, around the corner, the room was empty. ?No!? I noticed that my clothes I?d left in a pile had been taken and replaced by those same blue clothes from the night before.

She planned this! I can?t believe I underestimated her!

Once I?d finished swearing profusely I went and inspected the clothes, the horrible, oversized, bright yellow cravat was there and looking around, there just happened to coincidently be no other clothes, forcing me to wear it.

Looking in the mirror, it almost looked like I was being drowned by the overflowing cravat, taking the easiest solution I tucked the cravat inside the shirt, which fortunately hid the majority of it, I encouraged myself by saying that if anyone only glanced then they?d think it?s a tie.

Slowly, unhappy but ultimately wearing the outfit, I slowly walked out; being cautious of Yuka or fairies who may have been standing watch, ready to laugh. Fortunately, there wasn?t.

---
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo (Digitally Remastered!)
Post by: Mima on April 25, 2009, 01:36:25 PM: Chapter 26

Just as predicted, Yuka didn?t stir from her room for another 3 hours by which time I had already eaten breakfast, with fewer confrontations with the fairies this time and read the rest of the encyclopedia Akyu gave to me.

When Yuka walked into the study, she was already wearing her trademark red dress and usual attire. She looked at me for a moment before cheerfully stating, ?Oh, you decided to wear that then! It looks good!?

I muttered under my breath about Yuka planning it all along, but not at the volume so Yuka could hear it. ?So, what are you planning for 3 hours?? I asked out of boredom.

Yuka simply stood and thought for a moment.

Don?t say sleep.

?Not much, really.? Yuka then continued and sat down on a chair. A moment later, she looked at me for a few seconds before speaking up, ?Haven?t you finished that book yet? You?ve been reading it enough.?

?In fact, yes. I finished it not long ago.? I said, smugly expecting Yuka to be somewhat surprised.

?I see, well, pass it here.? Yuka reached out for the book, which I gave to her. She began scanning through the pages before stopping on one and reading through it. ?I bet I?ve beaten all of these in here.?

?I expected you had, somehow.? I commented.

Yuka grinned, ?It?s just annoying how you have to stick to those useless spell card rules, being able to use your full power feels great.?

And a lot more violent.

I briefly recalled the bloody spectacle that was her fight with Flandre and the mess that occurred as a result.

Yuka pulled out a collection of cards from her pocket and held them in the air. ?These are the accursed things if you care to look.?

I got out the chair and to walk over and inspect the cards, but Yuka openly passed them to me. The card on top was, unsurprisingly red with that ever-so-familiar pattern that was Yuka?s trademark and in extremely neat black handwriting ?Double Spark? was wrote in the centre of the card with a small picture of said Double Spark at the top; other than that, there wasn?t much else on the card.

?So, how do you use these things then?? I held the card up in the air and said the name trying to cause something to happen, but to no prevail.

?First, you have to use your own spell cards? and then you just do what you do then.? Yuka said simply.

?Oh, how do you get them then?? I asked, wishing I had powers.

?You just use the spell you want while holding an uncharged spell card, that?s it.?

?Oh, that?s? simple.? I drifted off, expecting something a little more difficult. I handed the cards back to Yuka before sitting down again.

The next hour or so involved Yuka bragging and telling stories about beating all the various entries in the book, though they all seemed to follow the same pattern; Yuka would start a fight, then they?d clash powers, Yuka would overpower them and then she?d blast them away with a Spark. I guess there must be some variety, since Flandre?s fight was slightly different.

I also wondered about how she fared against some of the more powerful beings. I?ve already read that she was beaten by Reimu a few years back, and couldn?t help but wonder how my losses she?d suffered, but I wasn?t surprised about how she never mentioned any.

The room fell silent for a few minutes before Yuka stood up, ?Now what are you doing??

?Going to the festival, what else?? Yuka sung.

I looked at my pocket watch, ?It?s only 10:30, isn?t that a little early??

?They won?t mind! The Oni has probably already got them in such a state that they won?t notice.?

I got out of the chair and began to walk to Yuka, ?If you say so.?

As Yuka and I marched out of the mansion, I made sure the accursed cravat was still out of sight, in case anyone happened to around outside to see.

The walk was fairly uneventful and silent and as usual I spied Elly at her usual spot and as we walked up she noticed us and shouted, ?Time already??

Yuka nodded her head causing Elly to reach for her hat and scythe and joined us as we walked by. Walking beside Yuka and I she gave a cheer, ?Okay! Let?s go!?

?Oh, you?re coming too?? I asked quietly.

?Yep!? She was still shouting, even though she was standing next to me.

?So, what if someone attacks the mansion?? I cautiously queried.

Elly laughed before replying, ?I doubt it, everyone?ll be partying, and the fairies will attack any unimportant weaklings that would try anything.?

She certainly seems to be in high spirits.

The walk to the portal was a bit less boring, since Elly was a lot more talkative then Yuka; clearly she seemed to be happy about going to the party and either Yuka wasn?t or she was a master of hiding her emotions, I decided it was both, though mostly the latter.

Thinking about it, every time I?ve seen Elly she?s been stuck here, I guess I?d be excited about a day out if I had to do the same.

I ended up telling Elly everything that had happened to me in the last two days, which was heck of a lot for two days.

Story finished, we reached the portal where the two other walked in normally while I, as always followed slightly cautiously ending up in the flower field none-the-less.

---
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo (Digitally Remastered!)
Post by: Mima on April 25, 2009, 01:36:44 PM: Chapter 27

As I expected, the flower field hadn?t changed one bit, not that there was a reason why it would, unless someone was up to a prank but that?s not a good idea due to the owner.

For a change, Yuka was waiting for me, most likely due to the presence of Elly, who was talking non-stop to her. As I approached them, Yuka looked at me for a moment before she gave the go-ahead, ?Let?s head off then.?

As usual, Yuka was walking under the shade of her parasol while Elly just spun the pole of the scythe around in her hand causing the blade to spin around, almost hypnotically, though it may have just been instincts making sure the blade didn?t come anywhere near me.

Soon enough, we left the flower field and were faced with the smaller field of grass standing between the flowers and the forest. We soon reached the other side and apart from a sighting of Cirno and Daiyousei flapping away towards the shrine, playing a game as they travelled it was pleasantly uneventful, as I had expected and hoped.

I had best not get involved in another of their games if they?re going to be there.

Putting the thought to the back of my mind, I looked forward to see the forest only a few metres away, for a moment I thought we might have been walking through it until I felt Yuka grab my wrist in a fashion similar to last time and I immediately felt myself being dragged into the air. As I dangled helplessly, I noticed that Elly could fly too, not a surprise really, since it seems everyone flies and has powers, apart from me.

Out of the blue, Elly shouted again, ?Hey! I can hear music!? Yuka nodded to agree, while I merely looked confused, I couldn?t hear anything. Gliding over the forest, I could see the fight versus Suika as it unfolded in my mind, the bare patch in the forest where Suika uprooted and wielded some trees. Luckily however, there seemed to be no attackers this time around.

Finally, a minute or two later I finally heard some music, ?Oh, I can hear that music you were talking about now.?

?You only just heard it?? Elly asked.

?Well, I am human after all.? I replied, unhappily.

Elly laughed, ?Don?t worry so much! There?s nothing wrong with being a human.?

Only they?re weaker, get eaten; don?t have powers or anything, nothing wrong with that. Does that mean Yuka?s been hearing what I?ve been muttering?

From other directions I could see groups of others flying to the shrine, though they were too far away to distinguish who they were, only that they weren?t just ordinary birds.

I reached for my watch, and checked the time, even though it was barely 11 o?clock, an hour before the event should start and the shrine was getting busy already.

Looks like everyone had the same idea as Yuka, is everyone trying to get good seats or something?

As we approached the shrine, I noticed the silhouette of Aya prowling around the shrine.

Hunting for a story even at a party, why am I not surprised?

My thoughts were interrupted by a vaguely familiar voice. ?Hello again!? The voice sung cheerfully. Focusing my eyes and looking up, I saw the recognisable figure of Mima standing in front of us. ?Still here I see!? She aimed the sentence at me.

?Well, yeah, where else am I going to go? Had you expected Yuka to have incinerated me by now?? I spoke at a much lower volume than Mima.

Mima merely laughed, ?Have fun, it?s my party as well, so don?t let that grumpy shrine maiden spoil it!? Mima glided away, towards the next group of travellers heading for the shrine.

Well, maybe there?ll be a little variety other then constant drinking then.

It wasn?t much longer before we finally landed in the grounds of the shrine, no matter how great it felt to fly, even if it was more being hanging from someone who could potentially drop you at any moment for a laugh, there was always a feeling of relief shortly followed by dizziness once you land.

Once I?d finished leaning against one of the trees to get my balance back, I approached Yuka and Elly, who seemed to be talking about where to sit. Seeing me approaching, Yuka greeted me with a comment, ?Weakling.?.

How friendly, and I believe we?ve already established I?m a human.

I considered complaining about the newfound prejudice against me, but decided to give it up before I started, ?Have you even decided where we?re sitting yet??

?As a matter of fact, we have. Right over there by the shade.? Yuka pointed to the left of the shrine, where a line of trees cast a shadow over part of the grassy area.

?Oh, fair enough.? I politely said before wandering over there, presuming I was being followed by Yuka and Elly.

When did they make their minds up?

I dropped myself onto the grass stretched for a while, until something caught my attention. I looked up and saw a miniature Suika Ibuki looking at me. ?Hiiii.?

?Hello?? I replied slowly, wondering what may happen next.

?What are you doing down there?? The mini-Suika asked in a high pitch voice.

?Lying down.? I sighed, giving the obvious answer.

?Why not just get a chair?? The Oni questioned with her squeaky voice.

I looked around, ?Really, where are they??

?We?ll get you one!? A much louder voice said, or rather, a group of voices and soon enough, a stampede of mini-Suikas had run to the edge of the forest and began tugging on the closest tree and only a few seconds later the tree was completely uprooted and flying in the air, crashing to the ground inches away from Yuka, who didn?t even flinch at the close encounter.

?T-thanks, I guess?? I told the first girl quietly.

?No problem!? The group replied in unison, before running off followed by an angry looking Reimu, shouting about not pulling trees out of the ground.

This is going to be a long day?

Looking behind me, Elly and Yuka were already sat on the tree, viewing the events around them; dragging myself onto the tree beside them I waited for things to start.

---
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo (Digitally Remastered!)
Post by: Mima on April 25, 2009, 01:37:04 PM: Chapter 28

The shrine just continued to fill and fill, Yuka was more than right with her guess of there being more than fifty and it was getting to the point that the crowd, alongside the tables which had appeared out of nowhere, probably with the help of a certain Oni.

Although the numbers were now getting large, there was little to no interaction with each other because everyone seemed to be staying in the groups they arrived in. The furthest anyone had moved was up to the shrine to talk with Reimu, who didn?t look too pleased about being so popular. For most of the time she was sat in the usual spot, drinking the usual tea doing her usual activity, nothing; the only difference this time was that she was joined by Marisa.

Soon enough, Mima appeared next to Reimu in a small explosion of darkness and promptly shouted to get everyone?s attention, which she didn?t. Obviously noticing the lack of interest the deity fired a ball of darkness in the sky eclipsing the sun momentarily causing everyone to look what happened. As the darkness was washed away from the sun?s sight, Mima was hovering in its place with a smile.

?Now that I have your attention, I?d like to welcome you all to the Hakurei festival!? Mima shouted happily, causing some talking among the groups.

Mima went on to brag, ?I see there?s lots of people here I don?t know, if you don?t know me, I am Mima, and I am the deity of this shrine!?

The groups began talking louder, I couldn?t help but hear comments like, ?There?s actually a god??, ?I thought it was one of those godless shrines.?, ?I heard Reimu chased the god away so she didn?t have to share donations!?

Mima interrupted, ?Yes, yes, there is a Hakurei Deity? Anyway, I dedicate this festival to the shrine as a whole, here?s for a year of prosperity!? Mima raised her voice, while a group of mini-Suikas danced, almost like cheerleaders.

Dedicating the festival to the shrine organising it, that?s? odd?

?So, enjoy yourselves today and-?

?Make sure you donate!? The voice of Reimu interrupted.

Mima shook her head disapprovingly and hovered down to Reimu as the Suika crowd shouted, ?Party! Party! Go!?

There wasn?t any particular rush or change in activity for a few minutes, but eventually people started to get up and move around, the majority to the shrine where I guessed the food and alcohol was.

I felt quite pleased that I could recognise some of the others and I have ideas on who some others were by their looks matching their descriptions in the book, though there were still plenty I had no clue regarding their identity.

After a few minutes, the opening rush to the shrine had ended quite peacefully except when Reimu chased a pink haired woman wearing a blue and white kimono away who was carrying several plates full of food, followed by a grey haired girl wearing a green dress who was carrying equally as much food if not more.

After that spectacle, Yuka rose from her seat shortly followed by Elly and they wandered over to the shrine, with me trailing behind them.

One thing I noticed at the shrine was that a lot of the food was rice and something that looked like curry, but considering the apparent financial state of the shrine, this is probably all they could get.

Since I didn?t actually know what I was getting I just mimicked what Yuka did until I had a bountiful looking portion of food before waiting for her to move on, next up were the drinks and it became apparent that the only source of anything to drink was Suika?s purple flask object, inconvenient to say the least since I didn?t really want to end up in a horrible drunken state.

Deciding to just get on with it, I just poured some of the sake into a glass like everyone else and followed the flower youkai back to where we sat. On the way I spotted Keine and Akyu sitting on the other side of the shrine while Cirno and her mob weren?t too far away from where Elly was already eating, though they probably hadn?t made themselves known due to the presence of Yuka.

The meal itself wasn?t that bad; it had obviously been done many times before, once again confirming my idea about the shrine?s budget. It didn?t match the taste of what you would get from the Kazami mansion, but it did the job. The drink however was a different story.

I fortunately caught the smell of the sake before drinking it, which alone was enough to almost cause me to throw it away; I expected extremely potent poison to have the same scent as this. I stared at the liquid for a minute before deciding to go through with it, it was a party after all.

One? Two? Three!

For a brief moment, it actually tasted quite decent, I wouldn?t have minded drinking more, but then the after-taste kicked in.

Immediately I started coughing uncontrollably in revulsion, after yet another minute of agony I finally managed to get self-control back and managed to hear Yuka ask, ?Have you finished?? Looking around slightly, I noticed the number of spectators were watching and laughing at my act so to avoid any further embarrassment; I sat down next to Yuka and tried to keep a minimal presence.

After a few minutes of sitting in self-induced solitude, I noticed the party was changing slightly, another wave of Suikas stole everyone?s washing up and took it out of sight and soon after people began to move around and actually talk with others. At the same time, three girls dressed exactly the same, the only difference being their hair colour and costume colour stood in front of the shrine holding musical instruments.

I guess this is the entertainment.

The girl wearing black with blonde hair seemed to be the leader, holding a violin with a brown haired girl wearing red standing ready behind her with a keyboard which seemed to be hovering due to wings on either side. On the other side with a silver haired girl wearing white holding a trumpet, who started to play music, shortly joined by the other two. Soon enough, the ensemble was filling the festival with bright, slightly addictive music.

As a result there was more movement in the crowds so I took the chance to move around as well, ?Mind if I go for a walk?? I quickly asked Yuka.

?Suit yourself.?

I planned to head over to Keine and Akyu first, since I?d get to see a fair bit on the walk there. On the way, while looking at who else had turned up, I passed Mima who was drifting from group to group talking; no doubt bragging about her position, alongside her was Marisa also seemed to be doing the same thing as her mentor.

Another bonus to the long walk was being able to match faces to descriptions I had read, for example it was simple to spot the group from Eientei due to the presence of the rabbits, I took a guess that the woman wearing a red and black dress must be Eirin, due to the nurse?s hat with matched the colour of the dress. Eliminating Eirin, the only other visitor who isn?t a rabbit would be Kaguya, who looked to be stretched out and sleeping. Sleeping, this early into the party?!

Finally, I got to my destination, where Keine greeted me with a wave and invited me to sit down. ?So, are you enjoying yourself??

?Well, things still seems a bit slow and? I can?t say I think much of the drinks.? I replied, with the detestable taste of the sake still present.

?You didn?t drink that horrible Oni sake did you??

?Yes.?

?No wonder, drinks from Oni all tend to be? strong.? Keine explained.

I looked at Akyu, who to no surprise was observing the events and recording them. I asked, ?So, any idea what?s to come today??

?Well, if everyone went as planned, this is probably all that would happen. However with the introduction of alcohol and the personalities of some of the visitors here today, you can never guess.? Akyu replied.

Keine spoke again, ?Yes, these events can be quite unpredictable, different things happen each year so we can?t help you there.?

It was only at that point that I noticed there was someone else with Keine and Akyu, sitting out of sight to keep a low presence like I did. She had long bluish-silver hair tied with a red and white ribbon and wearing a smoky brown shirt mostly covered with extremely baggy red overalls, which matched the colour of her eyes. Keine noticed me looking and answered, ?That?s Mokou, if you?re wondering, you may have read about her.? Mokou turned to look at me and raised a hand to greet me.

?Mokou, that?s the outsider I was talking about.? Keine spoke to her friend in a happy tone.

Mokou turned to look at me again and commented uncaringly, ?Looks scrawny.?

?Well, you were like that once.? Keine snapped back making Mokou pause for a moment before returning to her drink, which I noticed was that ghastly sake.

I stayed with Keine, Mokou and Akyu for a few more minutes as they helped me identify some more of the guests such as Sikieiki and Komachi, a Yama and her Shinigami who both seemed to have put work behind them to come to the festival. ?And that?s very rare, Miss Yamaxanadu is well known for workaholic personality. Komachi must have really put forward a good argument to come.? Keine explained. I thought once again on how surreal Gensokyo is, how even judges of the dead come to festivals alongside rabbits, vampires and god knows what else.

After identifying a few more people, I decided it would be best to move on. After saying goodbye to the everyone I walked the long way around the groups on my way to Yuka, Mima was still going around from group to group, though I found it quite odd that she only gave a nod to the Yakumo family rather than the full life story she seemed to be giving everyone else, though this was interrupted from someone dropping in front of me.

?Hello!?

Oh god, I recognise that voice.

I froze in terror slightly and looked forward to see the recognisable form of Flandre Scarlet in front of me.

?H-hello, F-Flandre? I see you?re alright now.?

?Yeah, that nasty woman really hurt me.? She spoke with a childish sadness.

Wasn?t it to stop you from killing her, and me at that matter?

?It was fun though; we?ll have to play again sometime!? Flandre shouted cheerfully.

Her personality has done a complete 180 since I last saw her.

I paused for a moment, ?Well, if I have to play, maybe something not too violent, maybe tag, or hide and seek.?

?Okay! It?s a deal!? Flandre jumped happily until someone shouted her name. Turning to look where it came from, I could only guess it was the other residents of the mansion, I picked out Remilia Scarlet easily, she was easy to pick out since being she looked similar to Flandre, only slightly more mature, lighter clothes, silver-blue hair and with real looking wings like that of a bat?s. Alongside her was a maid, who I guessed was Sakuya Izayoi and next to her was someone reading a book that was obstructing my vision of her; that had to be Patchouli Knowledge and close by was Hong Meirin who I had met before.

As Flandre ran over to her family whilst waving and shouting goodbye, I let out a sigh of relief at not having to deal with a near-death encounter and continued on.

I also passed by Cirno and her group who were cheering on Mystia who had begun singing along with the music, even though the lyrics she was singing made no sense whatsoever. Still, the rhythm sounded good and it went with the mood of the festival. The only gang member not present was Wriggle, who was sat down a little distance away, seemingly enjoying it by herself; that was until Suika turned up and began talking to her, which instantly made her look uncomfortable.

I reached and sat down next to Yuka again, who looked to be swaying from side to side almost unnoticeably to the music, ?So, are you enjoying yourself?? I asked.

?There?s no reason not to be is there? That?s what festivals are for.?

?I guess so.? I paused for a moment thinking of something to say, ?So, everyone here, I gather you?ve beaten them all at one point or another??

?Not quite.? Yuka chirped.

?Oh?? I was quite surprised at the answer.

?The newcomers over there.? Yuka pointed at a group on the other side of the shrine, though I couldn?t see very well, one had large purple hair and was wearing a red dress with what looked like a large piece of rope behind her. Next to her sat a green haired girl wearing a blue dress similar to Reimu?s, which suggested she was a Miko and the final one was a younger looking girl with long blonde hair, a purple dress and a strange brown hat with what appeared to be eyes on it.

?They?re new here, only the witch and the Miko have actually fought with them yet, I?ll get my chance though.? Yuka spoke with her menacing grin.

?I had a feeling you?d say that.? Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed that Suika was trying to make Wriggle drink from the purple flask despite the objections from her. Leaving them to it, I turned my head back to Yuka and noticed someone flying overhead.

There were actually two figures high above, one was a short blonde haired girl wearing a blue dress decorated with pink ribbons and a white scarf-like object, also by her were two small humanoid objects, which led me to believe it was Alice Margatroid, someone know for her use of dolls. The other was a woman with silver hair, which ended in a pigtail and wore fairly simple red robes with a pink shirt or similar object under that.

?Who?s that?? I said out loud.

?Oh look, it?s Shinki!? Yuka shouted perkily.

Shinki turned and noticed Yuka and waved before continuing to follow Alice to the shrine. ?Well, come on, let?s go meet her!? Yuka ordered before strolling after Shinki.

I turned to see what Elly was doing but she was nowhere to be seen and Wriggle was swaying from side to side alongside Suika who were both trying to sing along with the music, badly, so I just got up and went to meet the goddess of Makai.

By the time I got there, there was already a small crowd; Shinki and Alice were being greeted by Reimu, Marisa, Mima and Yuka. ?It?s so been so long since I?ve seen you all!? Shinki shouted excitedly, ?Apart from Mima of course, and I see you haven?t taken long to make yourself at home.? Shinki looked around at everyone partying.

Mima laughed, ?Well, of course, what else are you to do??

Reimu added, ?You?re the one I have to thank for making HER a god?? Still not pleased about Mima.

The conversation went on, talking about the old times and when they last met, which wasn?t too fun for me, since I had no idea what the hell they were talking about. Eventually they started to begin talking about a reunion fight; however it was quickly stopped by the complaints of Reimu, not wanting her shrine demolished by collateral damage by Shinki or something like that.

After the disappointment, the others whispered between them, no doubt organising another location for some time.

The party picked up even more at that point, the music seemed to have got louder and people were starting to head to the front, to dance or talk, generally more party like behaviour.

The fact all of the residents of Gensokyo were together, having a good time, whether they be human, youkai even a death god felt somewhat? inspiring, even arch-enemies such as Mokou and Kaguya haven?t torn into each other?s throats yet, nor did Flandre attempt anything violent. I thought that even Yuka had done well; I know how much she wants to fight the newcomers she pointed out, yet had refrained from it.

I was unsure why, but I was enjoying everything, though I hardly knew anyone, everyone felt like friends and there was just a good feeling in the atmosphere, and for once I wanted to stay here and not go-

Home?

Suddenly, a jolt went through my body and the next thing I knew, I was lying on the floor, unable to move.

---
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo (Digitally Remastered!)
Post by: Mima on April 25, 2009, 01:37:23 PM: Chapter 29

Yuka spoke quietly, obviously feeling embarrassed, ?What are you doing this time??

?I wish I knew.? I spoke, surprisingly calm even though I couldn?t move a limb.

?Well hurry and get up. You?re making a scene.? Yuka scolded quietly as I could hear laughter in the background, no doubt laughing at me supposedly tripping over.

I struggled for a few seconds, ?I? can?t.?

?What?? Why?? Yuka gave me an impatient stare.

?I? don?t know, I can?t move.?

Perhaps, you?re dying.

The laughter had calmed down, and had mostly turned into mumbling and whispers.

For a reason I wasn?t sure of, I laughed a little, ?You know, I think I?m dying, or going back to my world or whatever it is.?

Yuka looked at me for a moment before the realisation noticeably hit her, ?I? see.?

The volume of the area rose slightly and I could have sworn I heard gasps or sounds of surprise, but I was still alive so I wondered if it was just the sake causing unnecessary reactions, but when I noticed Yuka had closed her eyes slightly, I knew something was up. Mustering all my remaining strength, I rolled my head to the side.

That?s what?s up.

My entire arm was transparent, forcing my head a bit more, I saw it wasn?t limited to that; my entire body was fading, seemingly out of existence.

?Well, this really was short lived.? I spoke out loud, in a sad tone. ?I was sort of hoping to spend a bit longer here.? I forced my head so I was facing up again, and noticed there was a crowd building around me, Mima, Marisa, Keine, Cirno, everyone was looking sad at the event, just as though we were all friends.

To me, the situation felt really awkward, ?Well, thanks for the party and everything, shame I have to leave a bit early.? I closed my eyes for a moment, ?It?s sure been unforgettable anyway.?

I laughed, ?I guess I?ll find out my human name soon enough.? I felt my body twitch again, but with no result. Carelessly, I spoke again, ?Don?t let me going effect things? Have a good party!? If everyone else was going to be sad, I?d be the cheery one, no matter how distraught I was about leaving.

Suddenly, my mind started to fill with memories, my real life, and the event that got me here in the first place; in fact I felt the same as the incident before.

Why is this taking so long?

Also without warning I felt a bit of strength that let me climb back onto my feet, but not much else since when I looked at my hands, I saw they were fading much more quickly now.

?Well, I guess this is it? Goodbye everyone.?

Everyone tried to smile, and said their farewells in various fashions ranging from the childish voices of Cirno and her squad to the much more mature voices of those such as Keine and Mokou.

I turned around to see Yuka who had turned so her back was facing me with her parasol blocking most of her from sight.

I checked my hands again, not long left, ?Well, goodbye.?

You?ve already said that.

?And thanks, Yuka??

A few seconds after, everything had frozen, just like before.

A final few seconds of solitude.

I took the remaining few seconds to look around at everyone. ?I?ve only been here for a few days, but they were the best days of my life.? With my memories back, I knew what I had to look forward to back in my world, and I did not want to go. But as time started to return to normal, I knew I had to.

For a few seconds, nothing happened, everything was normal, but suddenly I completely froze and everything I could see started to move away and at the same time, darkness was falling in from all sides.

The final image was of Cirno and her gang with Keine and Akyu waving and trying to look cheerful, with Yuka in the middle, still turned away.

After a painfully long amount of time, that image had succumbed into complete darkness and I felt another jolt through my body, followed by nothing.

The first thing I heard was beeping. It was quite annoying actually, since it?s just keep going and going.

The sound of technology, I didn?t think I?d be so depressed to hear it.

The noise along assured me I was in a hospital, it would seem whatever accident I was in was enough to have a heart monitor being used, but I guess it?s common sense when someone?s been in a crash and then in a coma for several days.

I was fully conscious, but as before, I felt completely sapped of energy, with such a reminder I began to drift back to my thoughts of Gensokyo. My nostalgia was cut short when a door?s slam signalled to me that someone had entered the room and whoever it was, they were just walking around, and by the sounds of it, writing things down. Summoning all the strength I could, I managed to open one of my eyes, followed by the other, albeit slowly.

My hunch that it was a nurse was correct, checking the machines to my side. I looked around the room to learn my surroundings drowsily and after a few minutes of just sitting there, the nurse finally realised I was awake, with a jump.

?Oh! G-good morning!? The nurse asked nervously. ?How are you feeling??

I waited for a few seconds before struggling to speak, ?I could? be better??

The nurse nodded, ?Okay, well, you?re currently in a hospital, you?ve been in an accident.?

Yes, I know that much.

I began to wonder if her tone and personality suggested she was new at this job.

?To be honest, we weren?t expecting you to wake up so early.?

?I got a bit? messed up then?? I questioned cautiously.

The nurse smiled, ?Nothing that won?t mend, your head was just hit badly.?

?I see, so how many days has it been since then? 3, maybe 4 days?? I asked, wanting to test my theory.

The nurse looked surprised, ?Why, yes. 4 days. What told you that??

?It?s a long story.? I weakly grinned.

The nurse looked at me, surprised and confused, ?You?ll? have to tell me sometime? But for now, you should really get some rest.?

?Yeah? I think I should.? The nurse left the room shortly after, leaving me to drift back to sleep.

Eventually, I became aware of things once more, I opened my eyes and checked things; I was still in the hospital room to my disappointment so I simply lay in bed for what felt like an eternity waiting for something to happen.

This is more boring than standing around in Yuka?s field all day.

Eventually, the nurse from before returned holding a large bag and greeted me with a cheerful smile, ?Hello again. Feeling any better??

?A bit.? I replied.

?Well, you?re going to be in this room until you?re discharged, and since you?re awake now, I thought I?d bring you your stuff.? As the nurse reached into bag she added, ?You didn?t lose anything in the crash, so don?t worry.?

The nurse began to take things out of the bag and place them beside me, after showing me whatever it is. Mainly they were just clothes, my wallet and keys.

Well, that?s everything I had on me, at least nothing was stolen.

?There?s one more thing.? The nurse interrupted my thoughts. ?There was one more object in there, it wasn?t registered in any patients? records, but there?s no way it could have have in by accident, so one of the other nurses must have just forgotten to record it.?

The nurse reached into her pocket and held her arm out, and put it into my hand, ?I find it quite odd really; you tend not to forget about something like that.? I opened my hand when I saw what it was; I was almost paralysed with shock.

An antique silver pocket watch, with a flower engraved on the back.

---
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo (Digitally Remastered!)
Post by: Mima on April 25, 2009, 01:38:17 PM: Epilogue

As time went by, I became more and more mobile and healthy, but at the same time, more and more depressed. Every time I looked at the watch, it only made me feel worse, and even a feeling of homesickness.

Yuka?s words echoed in my head every time I watched the news, the world was corrupt, the news was dominated by death, wars and misery. No matter where you looked, there just seemed to be nothing good about anything. Not even the others in the hospital seemed friendly, just self-centred and only caring for their own well-being.

No matter what I did, I always ended up comparing it to Gensokyo, and every time I did, this world came up second. Even though people claimed there was a god, it never made itself known or seem to care, nor were what they apparently said was listened to; everything just seemed to suggest that the world was in decline. In the back of my mind, the whole situation just made me feel like I?d end up getting killed by someone, but then again, I?m sure Yuka would be no different.

I knew one thing for sure though, was that I hated this world. If the opportunity let itself known, I?d go back to Gensokyo without a second thought? But unless Yukari Yakumo turned up through a gap offering a one-way trip to Gensokyo, there wasn?t much hope.

There?s always one way.

I can?t say I wanted to take that choice though, what if it was all just a dream?

You never have dreams, never mind one as advanced as that.

There was still the chance it was a dream though.

Why have you got that watch then?

I probably just hit my head and forgot I owned it before.

What?s there to lose?

My life.

My mind was a wreck, arguing with itself, do I take the ultimate gamble to go back to Gensokyo?

My mind drifted back, to the thought that had been bothering me. ?Youkai are the free souls of those who died in the real world, and ended up here rather than reincarnating. Since the souls are free and immortal, they become youkai.?

But how does one avoid reincarnation?

Perhaps one just wishes for it.

And maybe it?ll be easier since I?ve been there before.

As every moment passed, I found myself more and more tempted to go through with it.

But how?

I didn?t want a painful or slow death, so messing with any of the medicine or anything would be out of the question, as was the use of a knife. A gun would have been handy, but there was no way I was going to get one, especially in a hospital.

What about, falling?

No, I can?t do that? Could I? In theory, it sounded all right, it?s not too long, the mess is completely irrelevant to me and it?ll feel like flying right?

After I had made my decision, I spent a few more days inside the hospital, continuing to think about it until something made me decide to go ahead with it at that moment, thankfully the hospital had a rooftop at a decent height, and it was accessible if you could run fast or be slightly stealthy.

I waited another hour or so, got properly dressed and set off, for the last time.

I can?t believe I?m going through with this.

The journey was pleasantly uneventful, since I didn?t look injured and dressed casually; there wasn?t any suspicion on me and I stepped onto the roof surprisingly easy.

They really need better security.

I nervously walked to the edge of the building, the determination from before had dropped slightly upon seeing the height, okay, I was used to flying with Yuka, but not this high.

It?s worth it, right?

I stood at the edge and closed my eyes, enjoying the feeling of the wind blasting me compared to being holed up for the last few days.

?S-Stop, don?t do it!? A voice interrupted the moment of surreal tranquillity. ?Please don?t jump!?

I turned to see that it was the nurse from before accompanied by a police officer, who for some absolutely absurd reason was holding a stun gun.

Not the best thing for this situation really.

Well, you?ve got yourself in a situation now; either you jump, or probably get locked away in a mental care home since you now look officially insane.

?Move away from the edge and lie down!? The policeman started to bark orders.

I grinned and looked forward, ?There?s only one person who has a chance of giving me orders.? I held out my arm in the air like I was used to when flying, and leapt while shouting, ?Sorry!? Slightly more cheerful then it should have been.

One thing I was right about, I was used to the sensation of falling, it didn?t feel too bad, until I spun upside down, which I wasn?t enjoying and soon enough it became apparent it was going to be a head-first impact.

Definitely no turning back now. This was the right choice, right?

Right?

Finally, the ground was only a few metres away, and this gamble would be over, and then all too familiar, time began to slow down, leaving me upside down and my head barely centimetres away from the floor.

This is really getting annoying now.

In my mind, I considered myself a veteran at this, since I?d experienced death three times in the last week now.

I took my last view of the technological maze that was the city, before the gears of time turned once again and a split second later, my thoughts ended.

?

?

I? I?m alive?

I was once again in the state where I had woken up in an unknown location. This time it didn?t take long for me to open my eyes and to be greeted by the sight of a flower field, with the Kazami mansion looming in the distance.

?I?m? back??

I put my hands to the ground to push myself up, but noticed for some reason my head was tilted to the side at an unhealthy 90-degree angle. After pushing it slightly it seemed to crack back into place, and everything seemed back to normal.

The next thing I noticed was that my fresh attire I had worn for my leap had disappeared and had been replaced with my forced blue attire.

Another difference that struck me as odd was that this time around, I felt surprisingly healthy, and was able to pick myself up fairly quickly, compared to the previous times I was completely sapped of energy.

I really must be a youkai now...

Well, there was only one thing left now, I began my walk over to the mansion, which as I expected hasn?t changed a bit; it had only been a few days since I left. As I continued my steady trek I wondered for a moment, how long I?ll be a youkai for, but I blew the thoughts away, I had no intention of anything like that.

It wasn?t long before the front door of the mansion stood in front of me.

Well... here goes.

I knocked on the door a few times and waited but to my disappointment, there was no response. I knocked the door for longer and louder this time and waited again, once again to no response.

I searched my pockets for the pocket watch which I thankfully still had, and looked at the time; it was still morning, so she shouldn?t have gone to the field yet. For the final time, I knocked on the door even louder and waited. ?What the hell do you want?!? A voice growled from the other side of the door before the door started to open. ?Have you got a death wish, or? some? thing?? Yuka?s expression turned from furious to confused as she saw me.

?I?ve? come back? I? didn?t like that world, so I thought I?d come back here.? I said, awkwardly.

?So I can see?? Yuka smiled, a few seconds went by, ?So, what is your name then? You seemed eager to find out.?

I paused for a moment, ?? Haru.?

Yuka smiled before stretching out and hugging me,

Whoa, a Yuka hug, now that?s a rarity, I wonder if I just hit my head too hard?

I felt a drop of water hit me on the back of the neck and a few seconds later Yuka spoke again, ?Oh, looks like rain, come on, let?s go inside.?

As Yuka walked away, I thought to myself that coming back had to be the right choice.

---

And we are done. At least for this story, there's still 3 more to go.

Next up: Of Light and Darkness.

Found here: http://www.shrinemaiden.org/forum/index.php?topic=948.0 (http://www.shrinemaiden.org/forum/index.php?topic=948.0)

Make sure you read this before moving on to RiG2!

holy shit red text it must be serious
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo (Digitally Remastered!)
Post by: Satori Komeiji on April 26, 2009, 12:30:44 AM: sweet now we can read them all together
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo (Digitally Remastered!)
Post by: DarkslimeZ on April 27, 2009, 12:53:21 AM: (Warning: any elitism in this post is purely unintentional... also, please note this is the first time I've read this ^^)

Frankly, I didn't think one of those stories about getting warped to Gensokyo and meeting your favorite character and stuff would be very interesting, but for some reason I enjoyed reading this. It's very light-hearted. Maybe I'm just getting soft. I liked the end of it, actually, but I personally think it should have been a longer and more involved internal argument over suicide(that's certainly what I would have done, at least).

Maybe it's the fact that the main character keeps getting thrown into one life-threatening situation after another, and he really can't do anything about it, that interests me, rather than you giving him magic powers right away. XD

Let's see, concrit, concrit. The reason for this post. First, the positives. Your spelling is 99.9% flawless(and I'm not just saying that because Cirno is <3), and your writing has a really good pace. I found myself not really getting bored during the stories. But anyway, keep up those aspects of your writing. You're not very descriptive, but with this kind of story, you don't actually need to be - I once wrote a 23-page short story using nothing but dialogue, and it managed to work. With the way you do it, there's enough information to figure out what's going on. Also, the train-of-thought in the epilogue impressed me. In any case, if I stay on the positives too long, you won't ever get anything out of the post. ^^;

It took me a little while to figure out exactly what was bugging me about your writing - at first it was simply the fact that you have a lot of run-on sentences going on. I finally realized that the bigger problem is probably that long sentences is all you have. Good writing involves a combination of long and short sentences in order to provide some variety. With that said, here are a few examples I took out of the story to show you.

Quote
After I had made my decision, I spent a few more days inside the hospital, continuing to think about it until something made me decide to go ahead with it at that moment, thankfully the hospital had a rooftop at a decent height, and it was accessible if you could run fast or be slightly stealthy.

This is a textbook example of a bad run-on sentence. This would be much better as two(or even three) sentences:

Quote
After I had made my decision, I spent a few days to continue to think about it. Something eventually made me decide to go ahead with it on the spot. Thankfully, the hospital had a rooftop at a decent height, and it was accessible to fast runners or those who were stealthy enough.

Maybe not a textbook solution, but you see my point? Here's another one:

Quote
?Isn?t it obvious, playing with my friends unlike you!?

This is an example of the wrong place to use a comma. A semicolon, or even a question mark, would have made it fine.

Quote
The screeching however was coming from Flandre, whose arm was hanging limp at the elbow, Yuka?s kick must have shattered it disrupting her power enough to only destroy her arm.

Would be better as:

Quote
The screeching, however, was coming from Flandre, whose arm was hanging limp at her side. Yuka's kick must have shattered it and disrupted her power just long enough to destroy her arm.

I'm not exactly sure how an arm can hang limp at an elbow.

Are you getting the picture? The most important thing to remember is that commas do not connect separate sentences, especially without conjunctions the join the sentences together. But don't take the wrong thing away and overuse semicolons, either. Semicolons are used to join separate but related sentences. If they're not related enough - and you get used to when you can and can't use semicolons by reading and writing more - it generally sounds weird.

Also, use hyphens very sparingly. They're fine everywhere except literature. For example, I just used one in the last sentence. There are times where you can use them, but still.

Anyway, I hope you took something out of this post. X3 I look forward to seeing your next rewrites!
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo (Digitally Remastered!)
Post by: Mima on July 19, 2009, 11:08:05 PM: Okay, recently I've been busy with my AD6A thing, but that's done now and will be appearing soon.

I've now begun the tedious task of working through RiG2 and rather than posting it all at once, I'll probably post it in blocks, so for now here's the first 4-5 chapters.

Once again, make sure you have read OLaD first! http://www.shrinemaiden.org/forum/index.php?topic=948.0 (http://www.shrinemaiden.org/forum/index.php?topic=948.0)
oh my god more red text

---

Resurrected in Gensokyo

Prologue

It?s been a day since I was reborn in Gensokyo. Actually, it?s the second time but that depends on if you counted my short stay as a human but that was always destined as a temporary thing.

Either way, I?ve already put my death as a human in the past and am looking forward to my new life. A new life as a Youkai.

When I woke up I was greeted by the ceiling; one of a green colour with a square pattern, which always reminds me of a tea towel back in the human world. I remained still for a moment enjoying the comfort of the bed before I finally forced myself to get out and wobbled over to the window to enjoy the view of outside.

Rather than the usual bustling city or typical urbanised environment, one that is filled with cars, noise and horrible bland colours primarily grey. I was instead greeted by the sight of a giant field of flowers, spanning as far as you could see, it was quite probable that in that field there was a flower of every possible colour? but I wasn?t going to check.

My mind replayed the still-fresh memories of my last moments as a human and I grinned to myself at my lack of regrets of having thrown myself off a building the previous day. Turning around I quickly got changed. Even though my life expectancy had been extended to potentially limitless like all youkai I didn?t want to waste any of it right now. Seeing people?s reactions at my resurrection was something not to be missed especially after the reaction of Yuka when she first saw me yesterday.

Wondering outside my room I walked down the usual small corridor until I found myself in the main hallway. As always, the double doors of Yuka?s room were shut and thus giving no clue regarding whether she was conscious or not. As I descended the stairway closest to me I wondered if I could actually survive an instance where I annoyed Yuka to the point of violence but deciding it was a tad too early into my new life to consider something like that, I quickly put the thought away.

I walked under the archway as though by old habits and found myself in the dining room where as was the norm, one of the fairies fluttered nearby. The winged being simply hovered stationary, patiently waiting to be informed about what I wanted, to which I just said, ?Anything?ll do.?

I sat down at the table and waited, using the time to think about where to go and what to do. With the restrictions of being a human removed, Gensokyo just became a whole lot better.

I think I?ll head to the village first, I bet Keine?s initial expression will be amusing? There?s also Akyu, she?ll probably have already started to write about that party? and me dying? so she?d probably appreciate the update.

Soon enough the same fairy from before arrived and with its arrival it lay a plate down on the table. The contents of which contained what looked like fried eggs so without a second thought I dug into the meal. It would seem that dying made you surprisingly hungry.

A few minutes into the meal, an all too familiar voice spoke out behind me. ?Enjoying yourself??

Already knowing the owner of the voice, I spoke out. ?Yes, I am. It?s better than the junk they gave me in the hospital. That?s for sure.?

?I see. But you mean to say you were in there for more than a day? Weakling.? Yuka sneered.

?Hey, they were the ones keeping me in. Apparently if you get hit by a car then they want to keep you in for a week.? I replied.

?A car?? Yuka sounded puzzled for a second.

I looked at Yuka for a second, and saw her expression was true. ?Yeah, don?t you know what they are??

?I never would have asked if I didn?t.? She sharply said.

But she didn?t even directly ask?!

?I guess they are a little too modern for you.? I knew Yuka was considered an old youkai, so I guessed it was a few hundred years at least and that she wouldn?t care in reading about human technology. ?Well, it?s a big metal thing you sit in, and move to places that are far away in, since they can?t fly or anything you tend to get hit by others sometimes? It hurts too, that?s how I got here the first time. I?ll show you one sometime, somehow.?

Yuka sneered again, ?Typical, useless humans end up killing each other just moving around.?

Staying silent to admit that point, I spoke after a few seconds. ?So, what are you doing today??

?I should ask you the same.? Yuka replied.

?Well, I was planning on going to the human village for a bit.? I answered.

Yuka grinned, ?You?re a youkai now, not a human.?

?Yes, but I?m gonna try and be a good youkai. I?m not going to kill people for fun. Plus I have some friends there who?d probably appreciate knowing I?m back.?

The flower youkai sat silent for a moment. ?Suit yourself?? I stood up from the chair I was sat on and was ready to walk away when she spoke once more. ??But I?m going to come along too.?
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (Now on Remastered RiG2)
Post by: Mima on July 19, 2009, 11:09:22 PM: Chapter 1

?You?re not having anything to eat?? I quickly asked.

?No, I have already. Now come on.? Yuka ordered as she began to walk away.

Didn?t take her long to take charge again.

I quickly ran up beside Yuka as she grabbed her parasol from beside the front door before leaving. ?Any reason you?re coming along with me?? I asked.

?Not particularly.? Yuka replied as she opened her parasol before pacing down the road, which appeared to be quite short today. ?It?s been a while since I?ve been out, and some exercise is always good.?

There was a silence for a moment before Yuka spoke again. ?So, what made you come back??

?Didn?t I say already?? I answered quickly. ?Because I?d rather have risked death to come back here than to linger in that world any longer.?

Yuka laughed slightly, ?And I bet you?d never have considered it until I?d told you how rotten the world is? maybe I did influence you after all.?

?That and? the news regarding the state of the world didn?t help; it was just greed, murder and crime.? I added.

?Humans have always been like that, even back? when I was one.? Yuka spoke, with a recognizable trace of hatred.

Whoa, she just mentioned her past.

I took a chance at asking Yuka a question, ?Your life? as a human. What happened? What were things like??

Yuka just grinned slightly, ?Now, now. There?s plenty of time in the future to talk about that.?

Damn it, she sidestepped the question.

At that point, I noticed we were walking by Elly?s house, which seems inactive as it usually was. ?Guess like she?s asleep again.? I thought out loud.

?She usually is.? Yuka answered without any trace of negativity in it.

Doesn?t she even care?

Eventually, without many more words spoken, we arrived at the shimmering portal showing a distorted view of the world outside which was, as usual, the flower field.

Following the usual routine I waited for Yuka to step through first before I entered myself. I gave a sigh of relief as my eyes readjusted since I was greeted by the familiar site of an ocean of sunflowers.

?Ah? back in the real Gensokyo.? I quietly mumbled to myself.

I quickly looked around to make sure everything was the same, not that I had expected it to change at all.

Like nothing had changed, Yuka had already marched away towards the village so after a final unsuccessful check to see if I could spot anything interesting. I picked up the pace until I had caught up to her and walked alongside her.

I swear she must speed up when I?m not looking.

?So, Yuka. How long have you been a youkai?? I asked out of the blue as we approached the village. She?d already dodged one question about her past today but I guessed it wouldn?t hurt to try another.

Yuka looked at me for a few seconds, ?I told you, there?s plenty of time for you to find out.?

I groaned in disappointment regardless of the fact I had pre-empted that answer. I snapped out of my thoughts however when I noticed a few of the villagers had noticed us, or rather Yuka, and were behaving apprehensively. Chances were they probably weren?t too bothered about me since as far as they likely knew, I was still a human. Yuka didn?t seem to be phased by the cold reception, she just continued on with her usual smile and unflinching approach.

It wasn?t much longer after we entered the village that I noticed the distinguishable hat of Keine Kamashirasawa who was stood against the door of a building, holding it open and waving to the children who were leaving it.

So, that must be where she teaches History.

Turning around, I saw Yuka has taken an interest in one of the shops near her? much to the owner?s dismay. Since she appeared distracted, I told my intention to Yuka. ?I?m going to go and talk to Keine.?

Browsing through various items, Yuka replied. ?Okay, I?ll come find you.?

With a grin, I hastily crept up the road as Keine was facing the other way and once I was a few metres away I spoke out casually. ?Good morning Keine.?

Keine spoke cheerfully as she turned around. ?Oh, hello! I?ve not seen you for a few-? Suddenly her expression changed to something priceless. ?Wha-what? But how, didn?t you? I saw you?.? The sentence ended in a whisper. ?Die??

?I did die, and then I spent a few days in the human world before I? decided I?d rather live in Gensokyo.? I explained quickly.

Keine looked at me cynically. ?You mean you killed yourself??

?Well, it was a case of either jumping off the building voluntarily or being locked up for being mentally insane.? I laughed, making sure not to mention how I got into said situation with full intention to commit suicide.

Without warning Keine hit me on the top of my head. ?You shouldn?t be so stupid with your life! What if you didn?t come back here, it would have been a complete waste!? Keine looked at me, with a look that gave the impression of an annoyed teacher for a few seconds before the expression settled back to its usual gentle look. ?Still, it?s good to see you again, and I?m sure Akyu will be pleased to see you... and hear your story, of course.?

?Yeah, I?ll have to give her a visit. I don?t want people thinking I?m a ghost or anything.? I noted to myself out loud.

Keine spoke out interrupting my thoughts. ?We can go now if you wish, I?ve not got anything else to do today.?

?Oh alright then. Let?s go now.?

?Will she care if you?re going away somewhere?? Keine asked quietly whilst motioning towards Yuka.

I grinned and shook my head, ?I doubt it, the fact I?m back in Gensokyo is enough to please her at the moment.?

?I see. Let?s go then.? Keine said as she held her arm out to signal which way I should start walking.
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (Now on Remastered RiG2)
Post by: Mima on July 19, 2009, 11:09:53 PM: Chapter 2

The walk to Akyu?s residence was short, and fairly quiet. I had a feeling that Keine wasn?t bothering to ask any questions at least until I got to Akyu?s, possibly since she?d want to hear the same things anyway.

It wasn?t long before we were stood in front of the large aged building that was the Hieda residence. Keine walked up to and opened the front door and then waited for me to enter before following me.

Without warning, Keine shouted out behind. ?Akyu? Are you home??

I should think so? The door was unlocked. Well, unless they leave the library section unlocked.

?Yes.? Akyu?s voice shouted, distinctly weaker than Keine?s. ?I?ve got a surprise, Keine!?

Keine grinned at me, ?Is that so? Well, as a matter of fact, I have a surprise too? and I bet mine is more surprising!?

Akyu shouted back. ?Okay then, we?ll see! Come on in!?

Keine walked over to the doorway and stood in it, holding her hand out to tell me to stay out of sight. ?Okay, you go first.?

Remaining hidden, I walked over to the doorway so I could better hear Akyu. ?I?ve finished writing this book! Everything we know about Mima since her first records which go all the way back to the start of Gensokyo.?

?That?s quite a long time.? Keine spoke out. ?And it took you? four days to write all that??

?Yes! I started gathering the information when she was sighted again, and mainly started compiling the information after her party so it?s quite the record, even for me!? Akyu sounded quite overjoyed at her book wrote in record time. ?So, anyway, what?s your surprise??

Keine moved out of the doorway slightly and waved her arm to signal me over. Following the order I walked into the doorway and spoke out with a large smirk on my face. ?Hello, Akyu.?

Akyu looked at me with wide eyes before looking at Keine and then back at me. After a few seconds her expression returned to normal. ?I see? that is quite a surprise. Well, come in, come in!?

Following Akyu?s request I entered the room closely followed by Keine who sat down at the table she was at. ?I take it that you?re not a human anymore.? She asked as I sat down.

?That?s right.? I replied.

I noticed that Akyu had instinctively pulled some paper and a pen towards her. Obviously wanting to record some information.

?I must admit, I wasn?t expecting to see you again? at least in this lifetime. You must not have liked the human world much?? Akyu inquired before beginning to chew the end of her pen.

I laughed slightly and nodded. ?Exactly right. Well? to put it extremely short. I stayed there for a few days and then threw myself off a building. Next thing I know, I?m awake back in the gardens of the Kazami Mansion.?

?And you were fortunate enough to come back here. You?re very lucky indeed.? Keine quietly added.

?So yes, I got here sometime yesterday and mostly slept and so here I am now.?

Akyu, who was already frantically writing things onto a piece of paper looked up at me. ?Is the human world really that bad now? To make you voluntarily lose your life to escape it.?

?For a chance of coming back here it was? and I have no regrets.? I answered.

?Miss Kazami must have been really happy to see you as well.? Akyu smiled.

I shrugged slightly, ?She seemed quite pleased, probably because she has someone to boss around again now.?

?Well, she was certainly gloomy after you? disappeared, I even got to speak with her when she dropped the book you borrowed back here? and that doesn?t occur every day.?

Akyu continued to write things down on the paper, mumbling as she wrote. ?Powers? unknown, threat level? low.?

Oh yes, I wonder what powers I?ll get? Hopefully something that isn?t useless.

?Oh, of course!? Akyu spoke out loud, ?I forgot the most important thing!?

Slightly puzzled, I queried her. ?What??

?Your name!? Akyu almost shouted.

?Oh, yeah? I forgot about that.? I mumbled, feeling a little foolish.

I didn?t ever tell them my name, did I? I was only named after I met Akyu.

?It?s Haru.? I spoke out, thinking back to when I first received the name and wasn?t too fond of it.

Keine interrupted. ?That name isn?t what I really expected.?

?Well, it?s not my human name. That?s lost in the past. Yuka gave me this name when I was here before? and I think it?s better to use this one here.?

?Okay, I see.? Akyu mumbled as she wrote the name down. ?There, that?s as much as I can do for now. You?ve still got to gain your powers etcetera and until then I can?t write much more.?

?Okay? But I didn?t come here to deliberately get an article wrote about me. I just came to say hello, and say that I?m? not dead? sorta.? I said quietly.

Akyu laughed, ?Yes, I know. It?s just my routine that I do this.? Akyu laughed with a big grin. ?Well, make yourself at home. Help yourself to a book? maybe read my latest one!? She smiled at me whilst pushing the book she showed to Keine forward.

?I?ll go and get some tea. I?m sure Yuka will know you?re here. You came here with her, yes?? Akyu turned around as she was walking away.

?Yeah, she?s around somewhere, silently terrorising the villagers and whatnot.? I laughed as I picked up the book.

I opened the book and began reading about the history of the new Deity of the Hakurei Shrine, Mima. An ?evil spirit? whom I?d met briefly on a few occasions. According to the book she actually had a really horrible life so it?s no wonder she was evil at one point.

Akyu returned with tea for the three of us and time passed as we read and discussed about life in Gensokyo.
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (Now on Remastered RiG2)
Post by: Mima on July 19, 2009, 11:10:05 PM: Chapter 3

A couple of hours passed, at Akyu?s house, when the sound of the door slamming interrupted the silence.

Bet I know who this is.

A few seconds later the recognisable red and green of Yuka appeared from around the corner causing Keine to suddenly tense.

?Oh, good afternoon Miss Kazami!? Akyu spoke cheerfully, without a hint of fear in her voice.

?Hello there.? Yuka spoke with an equally cheerfully tone before walking in and sitting down uninvited.

?You?re a bit later then I thought you?d be. Didn?t you just go to look in some shops?? I asked her.

Yuka sneered, ?That I did. But then there were some youkai who needed teaching a lesson? seems they?d got overconfident in the week or so I hadn?t beat them.?

Keine gave a cold stare at Yuka who was too busy laughing at herself to notice or even care.

While Yuka sat amused I gave out a long yawn. ?Oh? sorry?. Not saying you?re boring or anything Akyu? I just suddenly feel tired.? I laughed awkwardly.

?It?s no surprise really.? Akyu plainly stated.

?Really?? I quietly asked.

?Of course, you should remember that were only ?born? less than 24 hours ago. You haven?t completely adapted to a youkai yet and that?s going to take its toll on your body.?

I groaned slightly, ?What? I was planning on seeing loads of other people by the end of the day.?

?At least you?ll have something to look forward to tomorrow.? Keine added.

?You mean you want to go to bed already?? Yuka spoke out cynically.

I replied with another yawn, ?I guess so, yeah.?

Rolling her eyes and following up with a sigh, she stood up. ?Come on then, let?s go.? As she ended the sentence she marched out the door whilst mumbling a goodbye to the two others in the room.

Jumping out of my seat to follow her, I quickly apologized for my abrupt exit and bid farewell to Akyu and Keine. Leaving the building quickly to find Yuka before she disappeared I was almost surprised to see her stood still outside and only starting to walk away as she saw me coming.

I began walking at a pace which allowed me to eventually catch up with her. Once I was back alongside her I asked her, ?So, what powers do you think I?ll get??

Raising an eyebrow she looked at me. ?How the hell am I meant to know? I might be able to do a lot but I can?t see into the future.?

?Well, you like flowers? and you got your powers to manipulate them? so there must be a pattern or something?? I kept pressing the matter.

Yuka shook her head, ?Coincidence.?

?Oh, really?? I asked quietly, not entirely believing her.

?Yes. So you?re just going to have to wait and find out.? Yuka sharply replied to mark the end of that topic.

Yuka and I continued through the village followed by a descent down the slight slope to reach the flower field.As I was walking I was distracted by the thoughts in my mind which were debating what powers I might get and when. My thoughts were ceased however when I was rudely interrupted by a slightly high-pitched voice, one I knew I had heard before.

?What the heck? What are you doing here!?? The person cried in some form of shock. As I looked up there was a flash which blinded me for a moment. As my vision began to return I managed to make out that someone was now standing in front of me. ?Are you for real?!? The girl cried again before looking down at her camera.

?Hello, Aya.? I spoke with a slightly irritated tone, mainly due to the point-blank camera flash I just received.

?So, you?re real? ?Or did Miss Yuka here magically make a clone out of loneliness?? Aya devilishly grinned before clumsily falling backwards to dodge a lunge by Yuka.

Aya looked at me again. ?So, you must be the real deal.? Aya quickly reached into her pocket and pulled out a pen and paper. ?So, wanna tell me how you did it??

Another yawn escaped me, shortly followed by my reply. ?I?d like to. But... I?m honestly too tired to do anything and I?ve told the story too many times today, I think.?

Aya looked a little disappointed. ?Is that it? I see.?

?But? if you come around tomorrow then I?ll tell you about it then.? I quickly added.

Aya?s look of disappointment switched to the opposite. ?Alright then! I?ll come around after my deliveries! See you tomorrow!? Without another word she took to the sky at an unreal speed and flew out of sight in a matter of seconds.

Looking down from the sky, I noticed Yuka had disappeared from my side and to no surprise she was once again walking a good distance ahead. As usual, I ended up running after her. ?Do you always have to leave me behind?? I asked behind her.

?It?s your fault for being so slow. You should pay more attention.? She replied smugly before she continued her silent march through the flower field and into the portal back home.

Pausing before I followed her; I looked towards the eye-catching Scarlet Mansion in the centre of the lake and noticed Cirno and Daiyousei playing by the water?s edge. I pondered for a moment about whether to go and say hello to them or not but another yawn followed by a feeling of drowsiness quickly caused me to decide. ?Maybe tomorrow.? I said to myself as I quietly entered the portal.
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (Now on Remastered RiG2)
Post by: Mima on July 19, 2009, 11:10:18 PM: Chapter 4

When I arrived at the other side of the portal, I noticed the walk to the mansion looked quite short again. I thought in my head that it was probably Yuka?s way of being helpful or maybe even kind for once. Regardless, she?d already done her usual trick of disappearing ahead and was already at the door of the mansion, entering it as I saw her.

My walk back was a lot slower although I was quite amused to see that Elly had finally got to her guard post? however that hadn?t stopped her setting up a sun chair and falling asleep on that.

As I was approaching the mansion my mind began to drift back to the human world and what it was like there. I found myself thinking mostly about issues regarding my death and what would have happened as a result. No doubt there?d have been a futile effort to bring me back to life? followed by the media? and then the emergency services. Eventually it?d just be another death amongst hundreds of others. Maybe the hospital might have got better security as a result; it really was easy to sneak up on the roof after all.

I looked up to the large mansion in front of me, my new home. It didn?t matter if the other habitant was a renowned violent youkai, who enjoyed genocide. It was better than the other world where society forced you to be the same and follow the same rules.

The deep thoughts I had just pondered didn?t really help with my effort to stay conscious so I quickly entered through the door to spot Yuka at the top of one of the stairways. ?You took your time.? She spoke with a grin. ?It?s nearly time for dinner, be ready.?

I yawned once more, ?You know, I?m gonna pass on it tonight. I?m just gonna head to bed now.?

Yuka simply sneered. ?Suit yourself. Weakling.?

?Oh, come on? I?ve been alive for less than a day, cut me some slack.? I moaned.

?My beginning was much tougher than yours, I didn?t get a free place to stay thrown at me.? Yuka continued to grin creepily.

?What did you have to do then?? I asked curiously.

?I thought I already told you that I?d tell you another time.? She mocked.

?Oh forget it.? I moaned, as I walked up the opposite stairway and took the corner to get to my room.

Walking into my room, it didn?t take me long to just collapse on my bed face first. I couldn?t say I really cared since a few seconds later I was already asleep.

?

?

When I opened my eyes, I was surprised by the sight I saw, or rather, the lack of anything.

Just white, everywhere, or maybe just a bright light? I couldn?t tell, but there was nothing, not even the bed I remembered falling on.

Slowly, I got up, and walked in a random direction, until for some reason, a mirror stood in front of me, facing at an odd angle. Walking over to it, I stood in front of it to see myself when the ground shook, and the next thing I knew, I was back in the mansion.

?What the hell was all that about?? I mumbled to myself

Just like in the ?dream? before, I slowly climbed out of bed, and got opened the wardrobe, to my surprise I saw many more of the same clothes I was wearing.

?Is that why it seems like everyone wears the same thing? They just have hundreds of the same costume?? I mumbled to myself, before changing.

Dozily, I wondered over the mirror, being cautious in case any stray earthquakes may occur at coincidently the same time.

When I looked in the mirror, I shook, but it wasn?t due to any tectonic movements, it was myself, jumping in surprise. My once brown eyes had turned a much more typically youkai red, while my brownish-black hair has brightened slightly leaving it a mostly brown-blonde colour.

?This is a result of being a youkai?? I asked myself, confused. ?So my hair?s lightened? How random?. Still? at least it?s not pink or anything.? After some consideration, blonde was actually quite a regular colour in Gensokyo so I wasn?t too unique there, nor with the eye colour.

After I?d finally managed to get over the change, I hastily moved outside the room to surprise Yuka.

I began walking down the stairs whilst looking for a sign of Yuka. A quick look in the lobby discovered nothing and she seem to be in the dining area either. Fortunately, soon after I heard her humming to herself, the source of the noise being the library area.

Walking down there, I noticed Yuka was reading a book, which made sense considering she was in a room full of them.

?Hey Yuka! Look! My hair?s changed colour! Eyes too!? I shouted, trying to catch her attention.

?So it would seem.? She spoke before returning to her book.

?That?s it?? I asked.

Yuka raised an eyebrow, ?Yes. What were you expecting??

?Well, some form of surprise really.? I muttered.

?Not from me. Having your appearance change is nothing big.? Yuka spoke.

?Oh, alright.? I spoke, ?Well, I?m just gonna go and get some breakfast.?

?Suit yourself.? The flower youkai spoke uncaringly.

I began to walk away before finally adding, ?Oh, do you think I get some pow-?

?I have no idea. Stop asking me.? Yuka interrupted.

With that said, I just continued walking on with the intent of getting some food.
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (Now on Remastered RiG2)
Post by: Mima on July 20, 2009, 01:26:07 AM: Chapter 5

Breakfast passed as normal?. Well, as normal as breakfast can be when fairies are the ones cooking and serving the food. Sometimes I wondered how or even why the fairies stayed here; they obviously showed some fear towards Yuka. So unless they were part of Yuka?s dream as well, I don?t really know why they don?t just take off and run away. Regardless of that, they do stay and on the bright side? that means less work for me.

Sitting at the table and not planning on doing anything, I noticed something move in the window. Keeping my eye on the window I eventually noticed a crow sit on the windowsill for a few seconds before squawking and flying out.

?Aya?? I said to myself quietly, ?Oh yeah. I said I?d explain my story.?

Standing up and wandering over to the window, I looked out for the Tengu but for some reason there was no sign of her or that crow.

?Guess she moved to avoid attracting Yuka?s attention.? I spoke quietly. Following my theory, I headed over to the main lobby and left the mansion through the main door.

A gust of wind hit me as I opened the door, causing the army of flowers in the field to sway lightly. Quickly, I poked my head outside the doorway and looked around for Aya but to no success. The next step was walking outside and shutting the door behind me before taking a stroll away from my home. Walking to the left into part of the flowers, I found myself standing in the exact same spot I stood a few days ago watching the bloodbath that was Yuka fighting off Flandre Scarlet.

?Hello there!? A voice called from above me. Looking up, Aya was stood on the roof of the mansion as I made eye contact she quickly leapt off and landed effortlessly in front of me.

?Sorry for bringing you outside, I?m sure you understand why you did it.? Aya quickly spoke.

?To prevent Yuka from tearing you to pieces?? I grinned.

?I?m sure she?d attempt to, yes.? She said while rolling her eyes. ?So, anyway! Your story!? Her voice picked up as she produced her notebook from her pocket.

I waited for a moment. ?So, what exactly do you want to know??

?Anything. Something worthy of an article. Tell me what happened in the real world.? Aya spoke quickly.

?Not that much really. I kinda lay in bed at a hospital for a few days; the news I heard and saw as well as the people I met made me lose faith in mankind?. So I leapt off the top of the building and fell a good number of stories to my death for the chance to come back here.? I explained, all too familiar with the story.

?Guess you must like this place then.? Aya grinned again.

?Of course, I wouldn?t have done something so drastic had I not.? I replied sarcastically.

?Okay.? Aya grinned menacingly as she quickly wrote everything in her pad. ?So? what about your life now? Any plans? I see you?ve changed slightly, got any powers yet??

I quickly went over the questions in my head, ?Plans? Nothing at all. Changes, yeah. I?m sure can tell my hair and eyes changed and finally?. No, I don?t have any powers yet, sadly.? I replied at a speed similar to what the Tengu asked me.

?I see? Well, I bet I can write an article out of this.? Aya chirped.

With not that many lies I hope.

?Oh yes, one more thing.? Aya spoke out before reaching into a small, courier-like bag which hung off her shoulder and producing a newspaper. ?Here?s a? free sample of the excellent Bunbunmaru newspaper! See what you think, and you can subscribe if you want!? She said pushily.

Slowly, I reached for the newspaper whilst thinking of a point related to what Aya was speaking of. I, myself, didn?t actually have any money. Yuka didn?t seem to have a lack of it as suggested by the huge mansion full of various items. Yet I?d never seen any cash used around Gensokyo, partly down to my lack of time and being anywhere near a shop. Suddenly, images of Yuka threatening and beating up random youkai and stealing their money and belongings with a large sadistic grin entered my head.

Quickly, I just flicked through the pages of the newspapers, catching note of the headlines as they flashed by.

?Miko seen doing work?

?Forest damaged by laser experiment?

?Ice Fairy vs. Frog God, the rematch?

In other words, the news wasn?t all that important. In fact it was mostly gossip. By chance however, I caught sight of the back cover which for some odd reason was in colour instead the standard monochrome that dominated the rest of the paper. ?Huh, why?s this in colour??

?What?s what in colour?? Aya spoke in a confused manner as her head turned around to look.

?The back cover.? I answered as I looked at it, noticing a small logo that appeared to be weird red bow-like thing, with red eyes.

Where have I seen that before? It looks vaguely familiar.

?Let me see that!? Aya shouted as she snatched the paper out of my hands. ?Who did this?!?

I stood beside Aya, reading the content of the mystery back cover.

?Greetings citizens of Gensokyo!

Presenting, a competition of fantastic proportions!

Need to prove a point over a rival? Ashamed of having plans foiled by others? Fed up of being pushed around? Want to prove yourself as the most powerful in Gensokyo?

Take part in the biggest game Gensokyo has ever seen! Where the winners get a mystery prize? and of course? bragging rights!

To take part, be at the Hakurei Shrine at 4 o?clock this afternoon!

Yakumo Inc.

P.S. Thank you to our sponsors Bunbunmaru news for printing and distributing this message!?

?Yukari, again? How dare her! Using Bunbunmaru for her games?. She could have at least told me!? Aya shouted. ?I swear if I find her, I?ll teach her a lesson. Manipulation of boundaries or not!?

I doubt you could beat someone like Yukari despite your almighty fury over the fact someone vandalised your newspaper.

Aya groaned with frustration. ?I?m sorry, but I?ve got to get to the bottom of this. I?ll see you another time about your subscription!? The Tengu called as she leapt into the sky.

As she flew away, I laughed quietly at her anger for a few seconds before turning around to go back in the mansion. My actions were cut short when I jumped back in surprise to see Yuka standing there; who was wearing the same grin I had just lost.

?Taking amusement in other people?s distress as usual.? I muttered, despite me doing the same just before.

?So, did you enjoy your ?secret meeting??? She said mockingly.

?Oh yes. Lots of fun.? I replied sarcastically.

Yuka tried to look at the paper I was holding. ?So, what?s this I heard about Yukari??

?Oh. It?s just some prank of hers or something apparently. She said she?s holding a competition.? I replied, handing her the paper which she took and immediately began reading.

A few seconds later, Yuka spoke, ?I see?. Well, we should head there later then.?

?What?! Really? Why would you want to do that?? I asked, surprised at her reaction to the article.

Yuka grinned devilishly. ?Is it not obvious? A chance to best Yukari isn?t something to be missed.?

By the tone of her voice, it sounded like she wanted to go to beat up Yukari, rather than actually take part in the event that was happening.

?But 4 o?clock is quite a while away. Surely we?re not going now?? I asked. ?Maybe I could try and get my powers? or learn to fly? or something.? I quietly added.

?Alright, that?s it.? Yuka said sharply.

Oh crap.

Yuka began to march into the flower field, ?Come on.? She barked as an order. ?If you?re going to bother me so much about it then we?ll try and get your powers? with my methods.?

As Yuka continued to storm off, I mentally hit myself for opening my mouth and tried to shake off the looming feeling that her methods involved pain? and unfairness? and more pain.
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (Now on Remastered RiG2)
Post by: Mima on July 21, 2009, 12:32:38 AM: Chapter 6

?Come on!? Yuka shouted, when she noticed around and noticed me standing still.

Slowly I began to walk over to Yuka, quite apprehensive about what was about to happen.

?What do you want to try first? Flying? or your power?? Yuka spoke quickly.

I hesitated for a moment. ?Uh, it?s alright, we?ll do it another time.?

?You can?t decide? Too bad. I guess I will then?? Yuka interrupted me before pausing in thought for a moment. ?Flying then.?

Oh god.

Yuka turned sideways and thought once more. ?Now, I would say that? desperation would be a good catalyst, no?? Yuka grinned at me.

?I think I?ll pass.? I quickly spoke.

Yuka began laughing to herself quietly prompting me to back off.

Ah hell.

Turning around, I found myself face to face with an oversized flower that happened to be spinning viciously in the air.

You?ve gotta be kidding.

?Erm? you?re not really going to attack me with that? are you?. Yuka?? I spoke hesitantly.

Yuka?s grin just turned menacing. ?I?d start flying if I were you.?

Quickly, I closed my eyes and tried to concentrate on flying? on taking off from the ground. I wasn?t sure what to do; I just felt that trying to tap into some unknown source of energy might be the best thing to do. Unfortunately for me, it didn?t work at all. All it did succeed in doing was make me open my eyes and falling into a state of panic when I saw the flower moving towards me.

Urk.

Relying on my natural reaction, I turned in the other direction and ran away from it. The As I ran for my life I tried a series of small jumps into the air occasionally as an attempt to trigger some form of flight.

Yuka?s slightly psychotic laughing rung from behind me, ?That?s not right! I said fly! Not run!?

Spinning around as I run, I noticed the sunflower had obtained quite a lot of acceleration.

Run faster, run faster!

Unfortunately, the faster I ran the faster the flower became, gaining far more speed than I could reach even in my new youkai state. With the flower only a few metres away, I closed my eyes and concentrated hard, determined to fly and leapt as high as I could.

But that didn?t work. Landing on the floor awkwardly I looked up to see the flower point-blank before I felt an impact and blacked out immediately.

?

?

?

As I began to notice myself thinking again. My mind pieced together what had just happened.

Oh yeah, that flower.

As I lay there I felt the wind blowing against me; a sign that I was still in the field.

Feels quite nostalgic, hopefully I don?t get kicked this time.

Thankfully it didn?t take long for me to force open my eyes revealing a pleasant blue sky and a few flowers swaying around me. Sitting up, I noticed I hadn?t been moved an inch from where I fell and there was no sign of Yuka either.

?Oh great, she just about killed me, and then left me for dead.? I said to myself. ?How nice of her.?

My muttering was interrupted by the sound of someone clearing their throat behind me.

Oh hell.

A laugh came from behind me, the source of which was obvious. ?You really are a weakling.?

?I think we established that a while ago.? I spoke quietly. I began to rub my head since the pierces pain of a headache had begun to make itself known.

?It only took one flower to knock you out cold? for two hours.? Yuka grinned. Her expression showed that she was obviously enjoying the torment.

I paused for a moment. ?I didn?t fly by any chance, and just don?t remember did I??

?The only flying you did was from the impact of that flower smashing into you.? The flower youkai lightly kicked my arm as she spoke which did little but fall back without much feeling.

I paused a moment before the realisation hit me. ?What the hell! You broke my arm?!? In my head, I went over that sentence and how odd it sounded, especially from someone who was human a few days ago.

Yuka?s evil grin continued, ?Not my problem. It?ll mend.?

Picking myself up with my other arm. I lifted up my limp, broken arm and struggled to tuck it inside my shirt to act as a very poor, almost useless sling; much to the confusion of Yuka.

?What are you trying to do?? She asked.

?To support my arm?. To help it heal faster.? I explained quickly.

Yuka playfully but powerfully hit my broken arm. ?You?re a youkai; you don?t need to do stuff like that. It?ll be fixed in no time!?

Not if you keep hitting it like that.

Yuka reached into her pocket and pulled out a watch and looked at it for a moment before placing it back. ?Now, stop messing around and come along. It?s time to head to the shrine.?

What a successful lesson, no flying, no magic or anything. Just a chance to be cannon fodder and a broken arm.

With very little choice on the matter, I did nothing but follow her.
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (Now on Remastered RiG2)
Post by: Mima on July 22, 2009, 12:12:24 AM: Chapter 7

Yuka happily paced away, humming a song to herself. Yuka being content was a thing to be expected really, mainly since she has already has her dose of violence for the day. I began to wonder if this event was for more unfortunate for myself than it appeared; how she had just beaten me senseless has probably made her realize, if she hadn?t before, that now I?m a youkai and so I?m as good a target as anyone else.

As we wondered along the path towards the portal, I tried shaking my arm a little but it did little but cause a few twinges of pain.

Using the lesson I learnt earlier, I decided not to open my mouth and say anything, just in case Yuka decided to use it as a reason to inflict pain on me.

Instead of talking, I spend the trip heading from the portal to the shrine thinking of the events ahead. Aya won?t have done an article and passed it around in the few hours that had progressed since our meeting, and something told me that Yuka wasn?t the only one interested in that competition. The way the article was wrote seemed to try and appeal or lure the majority of residents in Gensokyo. Images of the shrine during the party entered my mind, making me use that as an estimate for the amount of people that would be there. Hopefully, Aya would be there and I could make her do a live report or something similar; the main reason being that I really didn?t want to have to explain my story to someone once more.

Soon enough, I noticed the scenery ahead looked darker and after focusing my eyes I realized we had reached the forest blocking the shrine from the central field.

Oh yes, this place again, well, I haven?t got a choice but to ask Yuka for a lift again.

?Yuka, before you take off like you do? Remember, I?m gonna need a lift.?

Yuka just looked around at me and snatched my arm and took off immediately without a word.

Least that went alright.

As we flew over the forest, I recognised the site where Yuka and Suika battled each other, the site being obvious due to the patch of forest that was missing trees. When I considered it, it didn?t feel like it was less than a week ago because of how much that had happened, but it was.

As my mind ran the events of the fight in my mind, Yuka spoke with a strange tone again. ?Attempt number two.?

What?

I thought for a moment.

Oh damn!

Less than a second later, Yuka released my hand and allowed gravity to do its work. ?What the hell are you doiiiiiiing?!? I futilely shouted as I fell to the ground.

I knew she?d use me as stress relief? not that she has anything to be stressed about.

Now, come on! Prove her wrong! Fly!

Unfortunately, just like earlier, any abilities that I might have were still lying dormant and still not willing to wake up regardless of the danger and pain I was facing. Inevitably a few seconds later and to what I guess would be Yuka?s amusement, I hit the ground. Ironically, the force of the impact was directed at the same arm that suffered the impact the previous time. Unluckily for me, this time around I didn?t even have the pain release of blacking out.

Shouting in pain for a moment, I rolled over onto my good arm to try and relieve the pain a little but to little effect. After all, I?d just been dropped 20 metres to the ground.

As expected, I heard Yuka gently hit the ground behind me and start to giggle to herself, ?Oh dear, looks like it didn?t work again.?

I coughed as a result of getting winded from the drop. ?O-obviously.?

Yuka hummed airily. ?Better luck next time.? She spoke quickly, before grabbing my arm and dragging me into the air.

At that point, I noticed she was holding my bad arm which caused more pain to flare through my nervous system. ?G-grab my other arm instead? damn it.? I hissed through gritted teeth.

She merely looked at me and gave me a bemused look before, as I somewhat predicted, dropping me again.

I shouted in frustration. ?Oh, what the h-? I was cut short by Yuka actually catching me by my other arm.

?You were saying?? Yuka spoke sarcastically.

Rather than answer that question, I left it as a rhetorical one and decided to keep quiet. It was a better choice than risking a free-fall trip to the ground again.

?Can we? just head to the shrine now.? I spoke after a pause.

?What do you think we?re doing?? Yuka replied.

Well, lingering around here so you can let me fall to the ground actually.

Deciding to remain silent again and just let myself recover, I let Yuka fly wherever she was heading, which luckily did appear to be the shrine.

I really can?t wait to fly, especially if every day without it turns out as painful as this.
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (Now on Remastered RiG2)
Post by: Mima on July 23, 2009, 09:49:14 PM: Chapter 8

As I was only able to sorrowfully look at my twice-broken arm dangling below me, I was relieved by finally seeing the sight of the Hakurei Shrine behind a row of trees.

?D?j? vu.? I spoke out loud, noticing the events going on.

?What are you talking about now?? Yuka complained.

?All these people flying towards the shrine? and all the people here already?. It?s just like it was a few days ago.? I explained quickly.

Yuka began to slowly swing me, enough to make me start fearing for my safety again. ?Stupid, there are always gatherings at the shrine; it?s not just a yearly thing you know.?

I replied quietly again. ?Oh, I see.?

Please stop swinging me around now.

Fortunately, Yuka soon stopped and promptly headed over to the shrine where she dropped me safely to the ground. Thankful that was back on solid earth I joined Yuka for the short walk over to the shrine.

?So, what kind of competition do you think it will be, Yuka?? I asked out the blue.

?Beats me, there?s no telling what things might be when she?s doing things.? She replied with a tone that suggested experience with events like this.

The swarm of people at the shrine wandered around each other causing a quite hypnotic swirl of colours. It was impossible to listen in on a single conversation mostly due to the sheer number of visitors that were currently trying to talk. That scrambled mess continued until one voice became comprehensible, one coming from behind us.

?Good afternoon, Yuka Kazami!? The voice sung.

Turning around, I found myself faced by the Deity of the Hakurei Shrine herself, Mima. Who looks slightly confused herself.

?Hello.? Yuka replied in a simple manner.

Mima remained still for a moment as though she was expecting Yuka to say something else. ?So? can you explain why all these people are hanging around my shrine?? She asked with an irritated tone.

?Yukari Yakumo. She said she had set up a competition and that everyone should come here to join in.? I answered for Yuka.

Mima growled to herself quietly. ?I should have known,? Turning her back to us, she hovered quietly. ?I wonder what she?s up to this time.?

There was another awkward silence until the goddess spoke out again. ?Just to point out I?m not slow or anything, I have noticed you?re back.?

Here we go again.

?I can guess that you must have done something unbelievably stupid to yourself to come back here, I don?t want the details right now? but welcome back.? Mima spoke mournfully.

The blue-clad deity spun around with a smile on her face. ?Sad to think that my first human worshipper died? and during my party! It was quite the mood killer. And it wasn?t until I got that Oni to bring out the heavy stuff that moods got lifted again. I bet they never saw this coming though, especially Miss Kazami here.?

?I was a little surprised, so what?? Yuka added, trying to sound like she was uninterested.

?Well, we should go and see if the Yakumos have decided to show their little event.? Mima declared as she began to move.

With Mima floating beside us, the three of us began the final short walk, or hover in Mima?s case, to the main part of the shrine.

?That arm of yours, is that Yuka?s doing?? Mima suddenly questioned.

I paused a moment before I quietly replied. ?Oh, this? Yes, it was.?

I?d completely forgotten I had a broken arm.

?Now, now, Yuka. You shouldn?t be so harsh on him just yet, you?ll scare him off.? Mima scolded mockingly.

Yuka sneered and glanced at me. ?He?s too scared to run.?

?Of what? The dangers of Gensokyo? or your wrath?? Mima replied whilst laughing.

?The latter? of course.? Yuka answered, laughing as well.

While the two next to me laughed, I just feigned awkward laughter.

Why does it always feel like I might die in the next instance?

That?s what you get for choosing to live with a youkai who kills people for fun, moron.

Standing outside the shrine, I realized that amongst the colours of everyone present I hadn?t seen Reimu, which suggested she didn?t know that this was going on, just like Mima.

Looks like there?ll be more fireworks later.

I thought to myself as I, like everyone else present, waited for Yukari.
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (Now on Remastered RiG2)
Post by: Mima on July 25, 2009, 09:47:23 PM: Chapter 9

Irritatingly, time continued to pass and all that occurred was that the crowd got more rowdy and impatient as they waited for the Gap Youkai?s arrival.

From what I?ve heard about her, I bet she?s doing this on purpose to wind everyone up.

Out of curiosity, I aimed a question at both the Flower Youkai and Spirit-turned-Deity that were next to me. ?So, out of interest?. How did a violent youkai and a goddess become friends in the first place??

Mima turned to look at me. ?Oh?? It was a few years ago now, five or six I think. Demons started roaming around Gensokyo or something like that.?

Something like that?

?Whatever it was, I slept through it at first. It was only when I got to the shrine that Reimu told me to get the person sleeping on the shrine and help Marisa and her find the source of the demons. Of course, that person turned out to be Miss Kazami, who was visiting after being beaten by Reimu the year before.? Mima smirked at Yuka.

Yuka argued. ?Well, I think if someone attacked you while you were asleep, you?d lose too!?

Mima chuckled to herself. ?Whatever. Either way, we ventured into a realm called Makai and that?s where we fought the Demon Goddess alongside Reimu and Marisa.?

?Shinki, right?? I interrupted.

Mima nodded. ?Ah yes, you met her a few days ago. Well? now you know the link.?

?I see. But, since you were away in Makai from then on?. When did you get such a hatred of Yukari? I thought she only started being a nuisance for Reimu from a few years ago? or so I read anyway.? I questioned.

?She?s been around a long time. Longer than I have? probably. So we?ve? crossed paths on a number of occasions in the past. Unpleasant occasions.? Mima looked away slightly, obviously not wanting to say too much.

I nodded to her. ?I see, well, I won-?

Interrupting me, a voice giggled ominously behind me. ?Did someone say my name?? The voice said, before continuing more bone-chilling laughing.

Turning around, I was unsurprised to see Yukari Yakumo there; or rather half of her, protruding from a gap which I noticed this close up seemed to have red eyes staring from it.

Yukari instantly found herself facing Mima?s staff, which she?d seemingly summoned in an instant. ?Explain what the hell you?re up to, now.?

Yukari merely chuckled for a moment, showing no care for Mima?s aggression. ?I?m sure everyone here would like to know the answer to that. After all, that?s why you?re all here, to find out? what is Yukari Yakumo?s big competition??

Mima just growled, ?Enough. Get it over with. And then leave.?

?Why are you being so cold, Mima?? Yukari chuckled again. ?You should be pleased I chose your shrine.?

?Get it done with, now.? Mima insisted sharply.

The gap Yukari was riding rose into the air, above the crowd, ?Greeting everyone, I?m sure you?re all eager with anticipation for today?s little? game, are you??

The crowd didn?t do much in the way of replying or acting excited. They just looked at each other with confused expressions.

?Well, today?s game is very simple. Soon, you?ll have to decide on teams, there?s no limit per se but? the more there are in a team, the worse your prize will be if you win. I should also mention that means you?ll have to share it too.? The youkai announced followed by more ominous giggling.

?Each team will be given a riddle or clue, and the answer will eventually take them to a location where they will find another clue. Eventually, they will lead you to where I am and the first team who finds me wins the prize!?

The crowd talked amongst itself for a while until Yukari spoke out again, ?So, it?s time to choose your team. You have 2 minutes.?

Immediately, the crowd sprung to life with human and youkai alike flying and running to others. As I watched them, I heard another voice shout from behind me, where Mima and Yuka stood. ?Yo, Lady Mima, you?re coming with me!? Obviously, by the ?Yo? I could tell that it was Marisa Kirisame.

?I?m sorry Marisa, but I won?t take part. Not if it?s her in charge.? Mima replied coldly.

?Oh, come on Lady Mima! It?s only a bit of fun! We?ll win for sure!? Marisa shouted as she dragged Mima away, who did nothing but sigh.

Eventually the crowd began to form into small clusters of pairs and the odd trio scattered around. I also noted that it seemed strange that there was still no sign of Reimu.

?Looks like no one?s going to be your partner, Yuka.? I spoke as I turned to look at her.

?Don?t be stupid. You will.? She snapped back.

?I will?? I said surprised.

Yuka stared at me. ?Yes, you will. You had better not have any ideas of teaming with anyone else.?

I quickly shook my head. ?No, it?s not that. I just thought I was a little too? weak? to be your teammate.?

Yuka grinned. ?Simple, I?m more then capable of making up for your weakness? plus there?s less of a struggle over the prize.?

Taking advantage of my weakness, that?s below the belt.

I replied with the only answer I could without the risk of getting hurt. ??Okay.?

As I finished that sentence, I noticed a small gap appear between Yuka and I and from it a piece of paper dropped out and slowly fell to the floor, which I quickly picked up.

?What does it say?? Yuka asked instantly.

Confused, I flipped the paper around, and held it to the sky. ?Nothing, its blank??

?Give me that!? Yuka snapped at me as she snatched it from my hand.

As she looked at it, I looked around at the other teams to see if they had got blank sheets too. By the looks of their confused expressions, they did. One thing that caught my eye was Alice who was standing alone until a red-clad figure snuck up behind her after a minute or so.

?Aliiiice!? The woman shouted happily.

Alice physically jumped in fright before turning around to see who it was. As she turned, I remembered her as Shinki, the goddess of Makai mentioned earlier.

?Oh, mother. It?s you. What are you doing here?? Alice spoke sounding out of breath.

?I heard there was a contest. So I left Yumeko to her work and came to see what was going on! So, who are you going with? I bet everyone wants to be with my little Alice!?

Alice turned away with a rejected look. ?No one. Marisa went with Mima.?

?Don?t worry then! I?ll go with you!? Shinki shouted cheerfully.

Alice looked shocked, and turned away again. ?It?s okay mother, I don?t care about this stupid contest anyway.?

?Is it? because I embarrass you?? Shinki sounded rejected and turned away in a fashion mimicking what Alice did previously.

?N-no! Not at all mother!? Alice quickly replied turning around to face the demon.

?Well then, we?ll be a team then! Team Makai! How?s that sound?? Shinki quickly returned to her cheerful self.

Defeated by the rejected parent trick, nasty.

Yukari?s voice boomed through the area again, interrupting everything that was going on, ?Time?s up! Now, I?m sure you have your paper now. You?ll get your clues when the contest starts, which will be in ten seconds!? Yukari paused for a moment, ?I advise you leave quickly.?

Everyone looked at each other, confused by the last comment, which even Yuka looked clueless to.

?5??

?4??

?3??

?2??

Everyone got ready to leap into the sky, or to run away.

?1??

?Go!?

As Yukari started the race, she ducked into one of her gaps whilst opening another. From the newly opened gap fell Reimu, who landed in the middle of the crowd.

?I swear I am going to kill you Yukari? And you lot?. Just what are you doing at here! Get lost? now!? Reimu screamed as she reached into her clothing and presented a range of spell cards.

The laughter quickly turned to fear as everyone began to scatter from the shrine as youkai found themselves being chased by homing seals and bouncing yin-yang orbs. Feeling my arm being grabbed by Yuka I found myself being dragged into the air and into a direction that was thankfully away from the shrine.

Looks like this competition has Yuka?s interest more than a fight with Reimu. That?s surprising.
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (Now on Remastered RiG2)
Post by: Mima on July 27, 2009, 12:49:35 PM: Chapter 10

As the screams of pain continues to ring behind me I decided not to look back, just in case I made eye-contact and found myself being chased by a swarm of amulets.

?So? Yuka, where are we going?? I quietly asked.

?Be patient, will you? I haven?t even looked at the damn paper yet.? Yuka snapped back.

?Oh? right? Well, shouldn?t we take a look before rushing off?? I added quietly once more.

Yuka growled as she slammed the piece of paper into my face. The paper itself wasn?t painful but the fist that Yuka lovingly placed behind it certainly did. ?You look at it.? She menacingly commented as I noticed I was being swung in the air for a moment.

At that point, I noticed another problem, my arm was broken, and my other arm was held by Yuka.

Complain again and she?ll drop you again.

After flying with the paper stuck in my face for a few moments I decided I had no choice but to try something. To my surprise I was able to move my not-long broken arm.

Wow, youkai healing really is quick.

I slowly moved my arm over to my face. As it moved, my arm began to hurt intensely; but that was to be expected when you considered that it was broken roughly half an hour ago. Grabbing the piece of paper, I let my arm drop down although I made sure to keep a firm grip on it lest I wanted to face the wrath of Yuka.

Gathering my strength again, I pulled my arm back up to look at the text on it.

?Go and red a book.?

?What the hell??? I spoke out loud, catching Yuka?s attention.

Yuka looked at me with an irritated expression. ?What?s wrong now??

??Go and red a book.?, that?s what the clue says.? I answered.

?You mean, ?Go and read a book??? Yuka looked at me cynically.

I shook my head. ?No, I mean, ?Go and red a book?. That?s what it says.? I insisted.

?Pass that here!? Yuka snapped at me again as she snatched the paper from my hand.

?Go and red a book?? Yuka thought out loud. ?Well done Haru, you can read.?

Thanks for patronising me.

?Is it just a spelling mistake though?? I asked.

Yuka swung me slightly. ?Don?t be stupid. She?s not going to do something as stupid as a spelling error.?

I thought for a moment, ?I?ve only been to two places with a decent amount of books; your mansion and Akyu?s house. But ther-?

?There?s nothing red about them though.? Yuka interrupted.

?Yes, thanks for letting me finish.? I mumbled.

?Did you say something?? Yuka glanced at me.

?What? No.? I answered, making sure I looked away.

Yuka went quiet for a moment and simply continued flying.

Just wait? it?ll be freefall time soon.

?The clue?s key point is obviously ?Red?, and there?s only one thing in Gensokyo that can mean that.?

?Scarlet.? I said out loud.

?Well done, you might be of some use after all.? Yuka grinned evilly at me.

What?s made her decide to play bully today? Oh wait, it?s Yuka.

I thought back to the book I borrowed off Akyu. There was a library inside the Scarlet Devil Mansion and quite a large one at that if rumours are to be believed. A youkai named Patchouli Knowledge is known to practically live inside there too. Hopefully we wouldn?t have to stay in the library long enough to encounter her in a bad mood.

Looking around, I noticed that the crowd was dispersing in all sorts of directions, not just the way that Yuka and I were heading. ?I guess everyone must have got different starting clues, at least that doesn?t make it a huge game of follow the leader.? I commented out loud.

The scenery soon changed as we glided across Gensokyo. The dark, unwelcome forest gave way to the bright, cheerful field full of colours of which I was so familiar. From the field it was only a short distance until we flew over a large, pleasantly blue lake, the same lake where I first met Cirno before finally approaching the mansion.

?So, this is the Scarlet Devil Mansion?? I said to myself.

The mansion itself was quite what you expect from a haunted house, old-fashioned and generally creepy looking. However, those thoughts were banished when you remembered the mansion was coloured entirely scarlet, which just made it odd.

Soon enough, we had finished crossing the lake and landed safely on the island which held the mansion. With nothing blocking our way from our destination, we took the final, short walk to reach the mansion. A mansion that was a home to vampires, time-stopping maids and god knows what else.
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (Now on Remastered RiG2)
Post by: Mima on July 28, 2009, 12:31:58 AM: Chapter 11

As we approached the giant red residence, a figure started to approach us. As the figure got closer it became more and more obvious who it was. The strange green Chinese dress and similarly coloured beret with a star dominating the front as well as a head of long red hair which trailed down to her back were all obvious signs of who it was. It was the woman who talked to us on the night that Flandre attacked me. Having read the Gensokyo Chronicle, I took a confident guess that it was Hong Meiling, the gate-guard of the mansion.

As she stood in front of us, her expression could be easily seen and it was the same one as when we last met, uneasy and worried. I was also confident that I knew what, or rather, who was causing it.

?H-hello there, if you?re here to see the mistress, she?s currently out. Please come back later.? She stuttered, ending the sentence with a bow.

Before Yuka could say something, I quickly took over. ?We were wondering if we could go into the library. There?s something we need to check, please.?

Meiling quickly spoke under her voice. ?She can?t be trying to hunt Patchy down now can she? Poor Patchy?? Looking directly at me she spoke out. ?Sorry, but, I can?t let you go in if Miss Scarlet isn?t here.?

?Well, as you probably know by now?. Flandre attacked and almost killed me so if you let me in then? we?ll call it even.? I replied with a grin.

Meiling looked puzzled. ?That?s a strange favour but? I guess I can let you in.?

?Ah, thanks!? I shouted.

?On one condition.? Meiling gravely added.

I looked back at the guard. ?What??

Please don?t be a blood toll or something.

?I-I-I-I?m afraid M-Miss Yuka cannot go in. Someone might get h-hurt or the mansion might b-be trashed.? Meiling spoke, almost shaking.

?Can?t you make an exception this once? I promise I won't let her do anything wrong.? I pleaded.

Yuka laughed as she objected. ?Oh will you? I?d like to see you try.?

Crap.

?No, no, it?s alright Haru. You go alone.? Yuka spoke, a little more seriously.

?W-what?? I spoke out, probably sounding a little more surprised then I should have.

?Go on alone; I?m sure you?ll find it. In the mean time, I think I?ll help train this gate-guard to be stronger.? Yuka grinning menacingly as she turned her gaze to Meiling.

?Eh?!? Meiling shouted in fright.

As Yuka leapt at the youkai, I quickly got out of the way, opened the gate and ran to the mansion; just in case there were any stray Danmaku.

Fortunately the door was unlocked so I quickly entered and closed the door behind me. After the thud of the door had finished echoing it was followed by the sound of one of Yuka?s lasers blasting something, presumably Meiling.

As I examined the mansion I was surprised by the size of it. For some reason it looked a lot more spacious than what it did outside. As I was stood pondering about it I was hit by another thought. ?Where?s the library??

Obviously, Meiling wouldn?t be able to tell me in her current situation, so I just walked forward whilst observing the mansion. It was spotlessly clean, almost perfect, with a very regal d?cor that reminded me of castles and mansions I had visited back in the Human World.

I was looking at an old looking painting of someone fishing off a bridge when I noticed something move in the corner of my eye. Quickly turning to look at it, I found myself looking at a fairy dressed like a maid who casually flew out of a doorway, looked at me and then continued to its own business.

Looks like it?s not so bothered about me being here.

?Excuse me. Miss? Fairy....? I called out awkwardly.

The fairy turned around to look at me, looking curious yet puzzled.

?I don?t suppose you could direct me to the library, could you?? I asked quietly.

The fairy?s face lit up and began nodding positively as she smiled.

?That?s great?. So where is it??

The fairy spun ninety degrees and pointed at the door it had just left.

?Oh, it?s right in there?? I asked quickly.

The fairy replied with a nod.

?Oh, that was pretty stupid of me. Thanks a lot.? I nodded my head in thanks.

The fairy curtsied slightly before flying off. Presumably to go back to whatever she was doing,

So far, so good.

?Whoa.? I said out loud as I looked through the doorway.

I was hit with surprise at the size of the library. I was expecting it to be big but this place was enormous. By the looks of it, it was big enough to make human world warehouses appear as dwarves. Bookshelves sat on top of bookshelves making them appear to be three, maybe even four stories. The only problem was there were no walkways for the upper bookcases so until I learnt to fly I was confident that I wouldn?t be reaching all the way up there any time soon.

Hopefully the bookshelves are arranged nicely and don?t turn into a labyrinth. The last thing I want is to be left stranded for days and days until Yuka finally loses it and hunts me down.

Wondering in, I began to wonder how the heck I was going to find something in this gargantuan room especially since I didn?t know what I was specifically looking for.

As I wondered in no particular direction, I began to see the wide range of books that were in here; factual, fiction, foreign languages I?d never even seen before. This place was like the holy grail of literacy.

?Wow, this place is amazing?? I spoke out unconsciously.

?I?m glad you think so.? A voice spoke from beside me, causing me to almost jump out of my skin.

Quickly spinning to the side, I faced the unknown voice to see a long, purple haired woman wearing a white nightcap and purple and white striped pyjamas. Also noticeable was the large open book she was holding and resting on her lap.

?Y-you must be Patchouli? Miss Knowledge. I?m Haru.? I spoke out clumsily, still slightly shaken from the shock.

The woman smiled weakly. ?Yes, that?s me. We?ve not met before have we?? She asked as her eyes scanned me.

I was about to speak when she began to talk again in her odd voice. Sometimes it sounded arguably normal whilst at others it was almost empty of emotion. ?But I have seen you before. I was at the party at the shrine, so I know well what? happened to you. I am also aware of how you are back. However, that doesn?t explain why you?re here inside my library.?

?Well, it might sound odd but? I?m not sure exactly what I?m looking for.? I told the magician hesitantly. ?I just got a clue to a game that I should be looking for something.?

Patchouli sat still for a moment. ?Yukari?s game, I presume? The Mistress and Sakuya left to take part in that game earlier.? The purple youkai looked down at her book and gave out a sigh, ?Looks like this place has turned into a playground.?

?You might be lucky actually. The clues seem quite unique so you might not get visited by that many people.? I spoke out, unsure of what I was saying but trying to make Patchouli feel better.

?I see. This would also explain that? thing that appeared in my library earlier. I thought it was Marisa turning this place into a dumping ground to be honest.? Patchouli said quietly, still reading her book.

I took a quick look around but saw nothing and so asked. ?I don?t suppose you could help me find it, could you??

Patchouli remained seated and continued reading her book for what felt like a few minutes, ?I guess so. Can you fly yet??

I looked down. ?No. Not yet.?

?I see. Well, try to keep up.? Patchouli spoke as she rose a few inches off the ground and began to head deeper into the library. I noticed that even now she was moving, her natural movement seemed to be with her feet hovering slightly off the ground.

I began to walk beside her when she started talking again. ?So, where is Yuka? I?d have thought she?d be here with you.?

I grinned slightly. ?She?s outside training... with Meiling.?

Patchouli smiled slightly. ?I see. Well, at least there?s no mess in here.?

As I walked through the various aisles I looked at the surroundings which were as to be expected, all books. However the collection of such was purely amazing, every collection was complete, no series missing a part. Sometimes there were even copies of the same book but in different languages. It made me begin to wonder how long it took for this sanctuary of books to form and how valuable some of these things were.

?May I inquire into how you knew my name? I didn?t think I was so well-known in Gensokyo, unlike my library.? Patchouli asked without warning, sounding like she was bragging towards the end of the sentence.

I quickly thought about how I actually knew. ?Oh, right. I read about you. The Gensokyo Chronicle by Akyu? uh... Hieda.?

?Hieda no Akyu? I should have guessed.? Patchouli mused to herself. ?I suppose you must be alright if she?s let you read her beloved books. I take it you enjoy reading?? Patchouli looked at me expectantly.

?Oh, yeah. I can say I don?t read as much as you, going by your reputation, but let?s just say that if it wasn?t for reading and that Chronicle Akyu lent me?. I wouldn?t have lived as long as I did the last time I was here.? I explained to her and watched as her expression lightened up.

?Well, here we are.? Patchouli announced but still generally quiet, soon after she burst out coughing. ?Straining my voice?. Not a good day.?

She barely even spoke ?normal? volume.

The object was merely a metal box in the centre of a crossroad of aisles, completely silver and slightly reflective. On all the sides it appeared completely blank and so the only part of note was the top, which slightly resembled a printer. Upon examining the top closer there seemed to be two slots, but no instructions to it.

I reached into my pocket and pulled out the piece of paper that had the clue on. ?What?s that?? Patchouli asked, looking over my shoulder thanks to the extra height she gained from her levitation.

?It?s what brought me here.? I quickly spoke, before I placed the paper near one of the slots. Carefully, I tried to push the paper into one of the slots but felt something was blocking it and so signalling a futile attempt. Moving to the other side, I tried the other slot which accepted the paper and with a series of whirring from the machinery it took the paper off me.

?Oh, it?s gone.? I said with a bit of disappointment.

?Is that it?? Patchouli asked, now floating beside the box.

Suddenly, the box began whirring again with noises resembling a printer and from the other slot; a piece of paper was produced. It seemed exactly the same as the previous one except the text, which I had expected.

?That?s it; I?ve got what I came for?. I guess.? I spoke with a little excitement.

That?ll show Yuka, I can do stuff by myself.

?I was expecting something a bit more? dramatic considering it?s from Yukari.? Patchouli quietly commented.

?She?s probably planning something else.? I quickly replied, ?Anyway, thank you Patchouli for your help. I should go now to give you some peace, and stop Yuka?s? playtime.?

?Can you remember the way out?? Patchouli asked quietly, as usual.

I nodded. ?Yeah, it was pretty much a straight line from where we came from, with a turn to the? left? where I met you?. I think.?

?Correct. Good luck with your game but I must ask that you don?t tell the Mistress of my assistance. She may not be terribly pleased about it.? Patchouli asked seriously.

?No problem, I won?t say a word.?

?Thank you. Also, if Akyu has placed trust in you then I shall do the same. Next time I see her I shall inform Meiling to allow you access to the library. I know you will find a much larger selection to choose from here than at the Hieda library. Just do not linger too much in the Mansion itself; you never know who you may run into.?

What is this? War of the Libraries or something? Some secret library feud between Patchouli and Akyu? ? I?m just not going to ask.

I quickly bid farewell to Patchouli before turning around to where I came from and began to run back to the entrance. Hoping to find Yuka and possibly what was left of Meiling.
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (Now on Remastered RiG2)
Post by: Mima on July 30, 2009, 01:49:49 AM: Chapter 12

After leaving the library I quickly headed for the front door and avoided looking around, just in case another inhabitant such as Flandre was lurking around. I quickly opened the door, left through it and slammed it behind me before hastily walked down the small pathway to the gate.

I noticed at this point that there wasn?t much movement going on outside the gate. I was expecting to see flowers flying in all directions and screams of pain but instead it was eerily quiet.

Walking up to the gate, I took a look through the bars and still found no sign of anyone.

Where the hell could they be?

After walking through the gateway and carefully shutting it behind me I was greeted by Yuka?s voice. ?Ah, hello Haru. Did everything go alright?? She spoke cheerfully.

I nodded cautiously. ?Yeah, there?s another piece of paper now.? I explained as I reached into my pocket and produced the piece of paper.

Yuka quickly swiped the paper from my hand and looked at it. ?Simple enough.? She spoke sounding uninterested.

?W-What?? I spoke in a confused tone after realizing that I hadn?t actually looked at the paper yet. ?You mean you figured the answer already??

?Yes.? She replied simply.

Since the conversation seemed to have ended by her decision, I decided to ask about the other pressing matter at hand.

?So, Yuka?. What did you do with Meiling?? I asked cautiously.

Yuka raised an eyebrow, ?You mean her?? She spoke as she stepped to the side, revealing Meiling; who looked fairly beaten and almost whimpering against the wall.

?Ah, well? At least you didn?t kill her or anything.? I began to speak out, saying things as they entered my head.

?It can be arranged,? Yuka grinned.

I shook my head, ?No. No need to do that. Let?s just move on, time?s a wasting.?

Yuka grinned as she grabbed my arm and took off; back in the direction we came from originally towards the flower field.

In the air I suddenly realized something. ?Hey, uh?. What does the clue actually say? I? erm? never thought to look.?

Yuka looked down at me with a look that said ?You?re useless? before handing me the paper.

?Head to the site of a double disaster failure.?

?Sounds like a history question. That rules me out.? I mumbled.

?It?s an easy question for me. Especially considering I was? involved in one of them.? Yuka added cheerfully.

?Really? What about the other one?? I asked.

?Unfortunately not. But I know who was the cause of the other one. In fact? you do too.?

I paired Yuka?s hint with one of the incidents I read about in Akyu?s works. ?Mima.?

?You got something right for once.? Yuka grinned.

?All I can remember is that Mima was on a mountain during her incident? is that it?? I quietly questioned.

?That?s what I believe. The other incident that occurred there was the Makai incident when Mima and I ventured into said demon world to stop the flow of demons entering Gensokyo. The portal that leads there is in a cave at the base of the same mountain.? Yuka explained, sounding proud of her accomplishments as usual. ?Of course, we fixed the problem by beating up Shinki.?

?Yeah, I?ve already heard.? I commented.

Yuka gave a bitter stare. ?Well, it won?t hurt to hear about it again. It?s a vital part of Gensokyo?s history.?

If you say so.

Yuka continued chatting about her adventures into Makai. Every now and then she?d briefly and lightly give Mima some credit but mostly kept it all for herself.

Time passed as we flew and eventually we approached a mountain close to the Hakurei Shrine; whose airspace appeared to be clear of amulets and yin-yang orbs now. Looking back at the mountain I began another conversation with my ?teammate?. ?So, is this it??

?This is it.? Yuka simply answered.

?Where do you think the machine will be? Inside the mountain? or on it??

?What? machine?? Yuka asked, looking quite confused.

?Oh right. In the library there was this weird metal box and you had to put the paper into a slot which made it give you the next clue.?

Yuka nodded. ?Whatever it is, it?ll be on the mountain. Makai itself won?t count as the mountain.?

?What?? I mumbled, confused slightly. ?Forget it. Let?s just get this done with.?

As we ascended to the top of the mountain it started to remind me of why I?d never been a huge fan of heights, but it?s something I?d have to get over if I ever planned on flying myself.

At the top of the mountain there were a few things scattered around; a table, some books and a thing that looked strangely like an altar with a bookstand facing it. By the looks of it we were on the historic site where Mima once tried to resurrect herself. Regarding the scenery, I noticed that a table and some stacked books were hiding what we had come for; another strange, purple-tinted metal box.

?It?s there Yuka, that machine I mentioned.? I called as I pointed at it.

?Well, what are you waiting for? Get the next clue.? Yuka ordered.

I began to make my way over to the box when a voice caused me to stop dead.

?Well, well. What do we have here? A flower and a weed!? The voice jeered, quickly followed by laughing and giggling.
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (Now on Remastered RiG2)
Post by: Mima on July 31, 2009, 12:43:32 AM: Chapter 13

?Where?? Another unknown voice spoke out.

?Right in front of you, you dumb lummox.? The first voice shouted back.

I turned around slowly to avoid attention and as I looked, my eyes were drawn to a large black orb that was floating stationary in the sky.

?Perhaps if you didn?t sit in that stupid darkness all day you might be able to do something!? The first person continued shouted, whose voice I soon recognised as Wriggle Nightbug.

?But the sun is too bright? and scary? The orb replied in a long, stretched out sentence which sounded almost musical.

Wriggle spoke again. ?Well, what?s the point? The sun?s already gone in, it?s night time already.?

It is? Could have fooled me.

?Why didn?t you say so?? The orb suddenly dispersed with a poof revealing Rumia. The darkness youkai immediately flinched from the sunlight and re-summoned her orb of darkness.

?Ahhhhh! That was mean.? She spoke sadly.

Although Wriggle was laughing so much that she was unable to talk or make any addition attacks, it only took a simple clearing of the throat by Yuka to silence the both of them.

?Well? what do we have here? A worm, it would appear.? She spoke mockingly.

Wriggle stepped forward. ?I?m a firefly! Not a worm!?

Yuka merely pushed some hair away from her eyes. ?Worms, fireflies? They?re all meaningless; such is the nature of bugs.?

?That was mean!? The voice of Rumia suddenly interrupted.

The flower youkai grinned as she addressed the other youkai. ?And what do we have here? Why, it looks like an insignificant ball of darkness.?

I quickly took over from Yuka. ?So, what do you two want??

?What do you think? The same as you; the next clue.? Wriggle replied with her arms folded, probably trying to appear more confident. ?I told everyone that Mystia and I were the smartest and winning this contest will just prove it to them!?

I glanced sideways at Yuka who was doing the same. ?Why are you with Rumia then??

Wriggle looked up. ?She decided that she?d rather open a refreshments stall for the contest so I got stuck with her.? She replied as she pointed back at Rumia.

Yuka merely laughed. ?Yeah, right. Your game ends now.?

Wriggle looked at Yuka before turning her gaze to me for a few seconds. Finally looking back at Yuka she announced her idea. ?Let?s play another game then. Two versus two. When one of the two hits the ground, they both lose.?

I quietly mumbled to Yuka, ?That puts me out of this then?. with the lack of flying for starters, not to mention that I-?

?Deal.? Yuka spoke out loud.

?Haha, big mistake!? Wriggle burst out laughing. ?Rumia, go for the human!?

I guess the news hasn?t got to them yet.

?Okay!? Rumia sung, stretching the word out for seconds again.

Yuka chuckled to herself sinisterly before quietly addressing me. ?Ready, Haru??

?There?s no other choice is there?? I mumbled.

?No.? Yuka smirked as she grabbed me and lifted me into the air.

Wriggle rose up higher so that she had a height advantage before shouting to Rumia to follow her. Slowly, Rumia began to follow her order.

?Moonlight Ray!? The darkness youkai spontaneously shouted; causing two lasers to fire from her darkness a second or two later and effectively trapping us between the two. Soon after that I noticed that Rumia had begun to throw a series of small projectiles at us, making the confined area appear to be a much larger problem.

Although my reaction was to feel overwhelmed by the fact we were trapped and being bombarded, Yuka?s first reaction was to simply laugh and dodge at the last moment. As she was dodging happily through the bullets she appeared to be having more fun in swinging me at the approaching bullets but changing direction at the last moment. Fortunately for me, her moment of fun was interrupted by a cry from Wriggle.

?Nightbug Tornado!?

The light-scattering of bullets between the lasers were now joined by disorientating waves of what looks like insects.

To no surprise, Yuka continued to grin as she seemingly created several incredibly large sunflowers in front of her and launched them forward at her attackers. As the sun-like flowers approached their targets they conveniently caught any insects on the way there.

The sunflowers themselves were quite slow and their size also made them quite obvious which allowed Wriggle plenty of time to assess the situation and dodge. On the other hand, Rumia who was as good as blind had no idea of the incoming danger and as the sunflowers began to enter her pitch black surrounding, there were only shrieks of pain.

Wriggle shouted, ?Argh, you idiot! Try being useful for once!?

There were only whimpers from Rumia in reply.

Wriggle approached the youkai and began to talk to her quietly. Rumia didn?t appear to respond at all and there was an added problem in that it was impossible to see what she was doing.

It did, however, become clear when the massive array of bullets emerged from her hideout, shortly followed by her who appeared to be charging at us.

?That?s right, Rumia!? Wriggle shouted as she re-entered the fray with another volley of projectiles.

Yuka continued to dodge, sporting her usual over-confident grin until she was caught off-guard slightly which allowed Rumia to strike me hard enough to lose Yuka?s grip.

Free-fall time.

As I fell, I noticed that the fight had shifted us over the side of the mountain which meant a much longer drop to the ground. Obviously that meant that there was a lot more pain was to be expected at the end.

Not to mention that Yuka is not gonna be happy? really not happy.

The scenery flew by at a ridiculous rate and when I looked down; I couldn?t help but see that the floor was fast approaching. ?Final stop, the ground.? I muttered to myself.

Waiting for the worst to happen, I closed my eyes. It was better than seeing what spikes or god knows what else I might land on.

?

?Any minute now.?

For some reason, even after what felt like a minute, the moment never came.

I slowly opened my eyes to find that, to my amazement, I was above the ground by a couple of metres.

Am? Am I flying?

I quickly tried to move around or gain some altitude but to little prevail. I could only seem to keep the position I was already in.

?Hey, Rumia! He hasn't touched the ground! Let?s end this!? Wriggle commanded.

Oh great, something good happens and then something bad.

Wriggle and Rumia both dive-bombed towards me, obviously one strike away from grounding me. All of a sudden, a small yellow star appeared in front of me and spiralled upwards revealing Yuka.

?Wait, you can teleport now?? I mumbled to myself before I noticed something.

Yuka was floating between the two charging youkai and myself but I then saw that Yuka was also up near the top of the mountain, behind the two.

Wait, that means?

Wriggle?s face seemed to notice what was happening as well and as both Yukas rose their parasol towards the youkai she moved to dodge but was caught in the crossfire between the two enormous lasers that was the result.

The higher Yuka moved her laser?s aim away from the mountain as the Yuka next to me aimed at the mountain, which effectively slammed the two youkai into the side of the mountain. As the laser subsided, it left the two youkai to fall down the side of the cliff which looked extremely painful. Even when I compared it to the thoughts I imagined would happen when I fell off.

Just like she appeared, the Yuka next to me vanished with another spiral of the small golden star and the other, real Yuka flew down to greet me.

?See, no trouble at all.? She bragged.

I shrugged. ?Whatever, it was close though. If I hadn?t have flew like I am, we?d have lost.?

?Well, I told you that dropping you would make you fly.? She chirped happily.

I sighed quietly. ?Whatever you say.?

?Now, let us get the next clue!? She announced before turning around and flying back up.

I shouted after her. ?You?re forgetting something! Or someone! I can?t seem to really fly yet, just? hover...? I explained as I tried to rock back and forth to encourage some movement but to no success.

Following the routine, Yuka flew down and snatched my wrist before towing me through the air up to the top of the mountain.
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (Now on Remastered RiG2)
Post by: Mima on August 04, 2009, 01:56:10 AM: A RiG related story, Strawberry Crisis, is featured in the new edition of Another Dream, AD6A.

Any feedback/comments can be left in this topic.

http://www.shrinemaiden.org/forum/index.php?topic=1423.0 (http://www.shrinemaiden.org/forum/index.php?topic=1423.0)

Next RiG2 Chapter is estimated to be posted tomorrow or the day after, it's a big (awesome) one.
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (Now on Remastered RiG2)
Post by: Mima on August 06, 2009, 11:20:53 PM: Chapter 14

As I was towed up I weakly tried to move around. I felt slight feelings of movement but nothing huge, not to mention it wasn?t helping that I was being pulled quite sharply.

Once we?d found the machine again, Yuka lightly threw me away which caused me to slowly hover down to the ground.

As I tried to control myself once again, Yuka was more interested in getting the next clue; she looked at the machine before walking around it a few times, which made me notice her.

?You put the paper in the top.? I commented.

Yuka looked at me for a moment before looking back down at the contraption and followed what I said. Soon enough, the machine spat out the next clue which Yuka snatched away.

The flower youkai read the paper for a few seconds before frowning slightly.

?What?s up, not able to solve the puzzle within 5 seconds?? I joked cautiously.

?No, it?s the opposite.? Yuka spoke out, ?And that?s what I find suspicious.? As usual, Yuka marched to the side of the mountain before taking to the air. Once she had flew off the side of the mountain she turned around. ?Come on, we haven?t got all day.?

I nodded before moving quickly over to her and taking a small jump up in the air. Thankfully I began to hover, proving it wasn?t just a one-off. I also thought it?d was better to make sure I could hover now with solid ground right below me rather than just jump off the side like Yuka.

Movement was finally making itself known to me and I was able to move forward and eventually behind Yuka as she flew away. Unfortunately, she was still moving far too fast for me. When she eventually noticed, she gave an irritated sigh before flying back and grabbing my sleeve, towing me through the air once again.

?Where are we going?? I asked after a minute or so.

Yuka sighed. ?Mugenkan.?

?Where?? I asked, puzzled.

Yuka raised an eyebrow as she looked at me. ?Are you being serious??

?Yes.? I asked, now as puzzled as her.

?You live there, idiot.? Yuka turned her head back, looking at where she was flying.

Suddenly, I was even more confused. ?What? I thought you said we lived at the Kazami Mansion??

?Yes, that?s the mansion. Mugenkan is the dream-world itself. Although what we?re looking for is most likely in the mansion since I put very little else there except Elly?s house and flowers.? Yuka began explaining.

?Oh, I see. You never told me that.? I commented.

Yuka shrugged and made a loud, uncaring sigh. ?It?s not my fault. You never asked.?

?I never said it was.? I replied.

There was very little other conversation occur on the way to Mugenkan and fortunately, the fact we were descending this time made the journey a little faster, and followed me to practice my flying a few times.

I began to wonder what Yuka would do next. She used to pick on me by dropping me from great heights but now I can fly I?ve rendered that option useless. I dread to think what she may think of next.

The familiar, welcoming sight of the yellow sea of sunflowers soon came into view. As we approached I noticed that Yuka let go of me as we approached the portal, maybe she was trying to catch me off-guard but in the end I was able to comfortably slow down and gently land on the ground.

?Getting the hang of it, are you?? Yuka asked.

?Well, sorta. I mean, I still can?t fly around well, but at least I can stop you breaking my arms.? I laughed.

Yuka smirked. ?Oh, I assure you I have many other ways to do that.?

Damn my big mouth.

Yuka chuckled to herself for a moment. ?Now, come on. We have another clue to find.? She spoke as she entered the portal.

I sighed and quickly entered the portal, hoping that Yuka hadn?t suddenly done one of her teleporting acts and was already by the mansion by now.

Turns out she had.

Frustrated, I shouted after her. ?Oh, come on! How the hell do you do that!??

I thought I could just make out that she was grinning when I suddenly heard her voice all around me. ?I told you already. This is my world. I can do anything I want. Just like how I can sense that there?s something unknown to me in the mansion which is obviously what we?re looking for. Now hurry up and get here.?

Sighing once more, I began to walk over to Yuka when in a disorientating moment I suddenly seemed to step several hundred metres in a single pace which placed me next to Yuka.

?What the-? I muttered.

?I?ve got no time for you to be casually walking all the way here.? Yuka laughed as she entered the mansion. Noting that she?d left the door open for me and with little other choice, I simply followed her into the mansion.

?So, Yuka? You can tell where that machine is already?? I asked.

Yuka turned and nodded as she walked. ?Yes, in fact, I can tell you it?s upstairs and located in the second room on the left in the west wing of the building.? She flashed a smug grin as she continued to walk away.

That?s a point; I?ve never seen the west wing of the house. I wonder what?s there?

Yuka gracefully ascended the stairs, humming her usual tune as she did.

I wonder that music is that she?s humming?

?Come on, hurry up.? Yuka ordered without warning as we walked down the hallway.

?But I?m right behind you!? I complained.

Yuka merely laughed to herself and opened the door. ?See, what did I say? Just where I said it would be.?

Upon entering the room I froze for a moment. ?What? the hell??

The room I had just entered defined an entertainment centre in Gensokyo. The sheer shock of seeing something so unexpected for the resident of the mansion left me speechless.

In fact, it went against what I believed was logical in Gensokyo.

The first thing I noticed was the average sized television which was placed uncaringly in a corner. It was quite obvious that it hadn?t seen much use for however long it had been there due to a visible layer of dust resting on top. At a brief glance, I guessed that there were DVDs or VHS videos sitting near it but I was too distracted by the room as a whole to take too much notice. Close to that were some long, comfy looking settees which as usual had the trademark Kazami pattern embroidered on them.

Along the opposite wall, there were what appeared to be a giant collection of instruments; a piano, a violin, a saxophone, a guitar, and even some that were similar to the TV in that they shouldn?t even exist in Gensokyo?s time period, such as electric guitars.

?You can?t be serious?? I muttered.

Yuka made a quizzical noise. ?What?s the matter now??

?Everything in this room, it?s like a giant contradiction to Gensokyo itself, there?s no power here.? I argued.

?In Gensokyo, there is not. But what did I say earlier? I control this dream world, I can make anything happen.?

?But, why?? Why have all these stuff? It seems really odd, for you.?

Yuka looked sarcastic. ?If you think I?m someone who has stood outside for the last millennium on each and every day, you?re wrong. Even I can get bored? you should know that by now.? Yuka tapped her foot on the floor.

?So, you learnt how to play instruments?? I asked, still bewildered.

Yuka grinned confidently. ?Oh yes, I did. ?What?s wrong Haru? You still seem surprised.?

I shook my head. ?I?m sorry; it?s just? hard to imagine you playing a guitar like that.? I quietly spoke while pointing at the electric guitar she was stood by.

Yuka looked at me for a moment, her grin growing as she reached down and picked the guitar up.

Oh boy.

Immediately, Yuka began to thrash the guitar quickly, making me wonder if I was to hear music or just a load of noise.

Slightly to my surprise, the thrashing became much more structured and eventually a little slower.

?So, what do you call this music?? I asked while it was a little quieter.

Yuka thought for a moment, ?Inanimate Dream.?

?Odd name.? I commented, which caused Yuka to frown and raise the volume of her music.

Eventually, the music finished its process of building up and exploded into an array of fast notes which made the music itself sound quite insane. Quite suiting really when you considered the person who was playing it and I presume created it.

Minutes passed as Yuka continued to attack her guitar which continued to leave me in a state of shock and disbelief. Yuka Kazami? playing a guitar to such a high level of skill?. Amazing?.

A few minutes passed and eventually the song came to an end. As though she had lost interest in a split second, Yuka merely tossed the guitar to the side and stepped forward. ?Well? Believe I can play it now??

?Y-Yeah? that was? pretty awesome. If you played like that outside, you?d become instantly famous? and you wouldn?t have to kill anyone or anything like that.? I praised with a hint of sarcasm at the end.

Yuka merely smirked. ?Now we haven?t got any more time to waste. Let?s get this over with.? As she finished speaking she walked over to the odd clue-giving machine which I had only just noticed. Although with all the various technological items scattered in the room it blended in quite well.

The routine followed and soon enough Yuka received another clue. Upon reading I noticed she flinched a little and hissed. ?Typical.?

?What?s the matter??

?Final Clue! Head to the place closest to the outside!? She announced, voiced in a mocking version of Yukari.

?Which means?? I asked.

Yuka brushed some hair from her face. ?It?s the place that has the great border. Or rather, the Hakurei Border.?

?Which means? the shrine??

Yuka nodded. ?She never even moved in the first place.?

Yuka tucked the clue into one of her pockets. ?Well then, we should go. Get this waste of time done once and for all.?

Wait, weren?t you the one who wanted to do this in the first place?

?Come on, Haru.? She said from the doorway before disappearing from sight.

As I followed her, I couldn?t help but wonder what were in the other rooms on this side of the mansion. I also made a memo in my head to come and check it out when I had the time.

This time, Yuka didn?t even bother with the stairs and simply jumped off the guard rail, landing elegantly in the main hall.

Show off.

I considered trying the same for a moment but when I recalled the amount of falls I had already suffered today changed my mind and I decided to just hover down the stairs for practice. At the bottom, as usual, I walked beside Yuka as we walked out of the mansion to the portal which again was practically next to the mansion.

As soon as we got to the other side of the portal, I saw Yuka take to the sky and head straight in the direction of the shrine. Slowly but surely I followed suit and soon found myself able to fly forward at a half-decent pace following the flower youkai.

Out of the blue, Yuka asked me a question. ?So, do you enjoy living back there? In Mugenkan??

I nodded, though partly distracted by the scenery and the fact I was finally flying without Yuka?s aid. ?Yeah? it?s nice, colourful, unusual, sophisticated and you?re there.?

Did I just say that?

I quickly spoke again to try and take her mind off what I just said before it sank in. ?Why? Are you thinking of kicking me out or something??

Yuka smiled. ?No, no reason. I just wondered what you thought of it.?

A moment of silence passed until I broke it again. ?Where did you get those things from anyway? In that room I mean,? I asked curiously. ?I know you can make them since it?s your world but? surely you need to know of such a thing first.?

?Oh, there?s a little shop on the other side of the shrine. It deals in all sorts of useless human items like what you saw. I just so happened to have a few books from there which gave me the ideas. I suppose I can take you there one day.? The youkai explained.

?Human items? From the outside world??

?Yes. Mostly due to Yakumo and her gap manipulating.?

?I see. That?s interesting to know. I might find something decent there.?

Time passed by fairly quickly as I got into a small conversation with the flower youkai about her music. She told me why she made her own music and basically just bragged about how she was more talented then myself. I ended the conversation by telling her that I?d learn to play now I have the chance, and one day I?d be better than her. Although since she always had to have the last word, she just told me to dream on.

Here we are. Back again.

The Hakurei Shrine stood in front of us, standing out against the twilight sky. Noting the sky?s colour I checked the time; it?d soon be approaching night-time so we finished at quite a good time.

I noticed Yuka began to speed up, faster than I could go, when she announced. ?I think we?re the first ones here!?

?Well, let?s just get there first, shall we?? I mumbled.

As Yuka?s feet hit solid ground, a flash of purple above her caught my eye. Recognising it instantly as one of Yukari?s gaps I shouted out to warn Yuka. ?Yuka, above you!? I warned.

Yuka quickly looked up and instinctively fired her parasol directly into the gap. After a few seconds it was clear that it did very little, if anything to affect the gap.

?Ow?? A voice called out a few seconds later with the source of the voice, Yukari, dropping out upside-down from the gap. ?That was awfully uncalled for.?

Yuka sneered. ?You shouldn?t sneak up on me then.?

Finally, I caught up with Yuka and since Yukari was also there I asked her the question both Yuka and I wanted the answer for. ?Are we first here??

?Yes! Congratulations! Well done! Bravo! You are the winners!? She cheered childishly although with an eerie tone in her voice. ?Now, if you don?t mind me I have to make some preparations for your prize. Just wait here and? gloat at the others? I know that?s your style.? She smirked before quickly diving into her gap to dodge a lunge from Yuka.

Despite Yuka?s outburst that ended up being exactly what we did; lounging around the shrine while we waited for people to arrive. Soon enough Mima and Marisa arrived, followed by Remilia and Sakuya. Clearly both teams were quite annoyed by our presence.

?You can be serious, you won?? Marisa shouted.

?Yes. Do have you got a problem with that?? Yuka asked in a bitter sweet tone, one that I?d come to recognise too well as a threat.

Mima interrupted. ?Well, let?s just sit aside and see what they get. She never actually said what the prize was, did she??

Yuka shrugged. ?As long as it?s something worth my time otherwise she?ll have hell to pay.? I couldn?t help but laugh slightly at Yuka?s violent attitude.

Eventually the shrine gained quite a large crowd comprised of around ten teams. Out of nowhere, Yukari announced her arrival by descending in the centre of the crowd through another gap. ?Let?s have a round of applause for our winners!?

There was a very slow, quiet series of clapping before it turned silent.

Noticing something, I asked Yukari a question. ?Where?re the others? There were at least four more teams here at the start.?

Yukari laughed from behind her fan. ?The cause is the team of the Tengu and the Kappa.? Yukari held an arm out. ?You know the Kappa love technology and well? as soon as that little kappa?s eyes caught sight of what I used to distribute the clues she did what all her kind does; she took it apart. Here we are now going into the night and she still hasn?t fixed it. Of course, the other teams who had clues for that location are also stuck there and well? when I last checked, a large scale brawl had broken out there.

?Where was it?? Mima asked.

?Oh, in the doctor?s lab at Eientei.? Yukari laughed while at the same time Reisen shrieked in panic and grabbed Tewi and dragged her back in the direction of Eientei.

There was a little more discussion on the clues and what happened to each team when Yukari cleared her voice getting everyone?s attention again.

?And now! Time for the prize! First, and only, prize goes to our beloved Flower Youkai and her minion!?

Minion!?

?Your prize is?? Yukari covered her mouth again and stopped talking completely.

?What? Out with it?? Yuka demanded.

?A chance to play in my next game! Win that game and you get anything you want!? Yukari shouted with her arms held out to her sides.

?You cannot be serious.? Yuka lashed out with a deadly-serious expression on her face. ?What is this game anyway??

?Oh, that?s simple. You just have to get back here.? Yukari smiled.

There was a pause as everyone waited for a reaction from Yuka.

?Not interested.? She commented passively.

?What!?? Yukari shouted in surprise before pausing briefly to regain her composure. As she turned back to us I noticed a serious look appeared in her eyes, her voice matched her eyes. ?There?s no choice about it, you?re going to play whether you like it or not.?

I jumped slightly as a strange red and purple border appeared around the shrine. ?Try escaping now.? Yukari giggled ominously with half her face covered by her fan once again.

?What are you planning M-Yukari?? Mima shouted.

Yukari took a few steps towards us and leaned her head forward as though she was examining us. ?There?s a slight problem with you. You?re simply too powerful?. You could hurt someone so for this game something needs to be done about it.?

Suddenly Yukari began talking again but this time it was as if someone muted her; there was no sound coming from her at all.

Wait a second? I can?t read her lips. No, what?s she saying?

Wait, she?s hiding her hand in the fold of her dress.

Spell Card.

?Yuka, she-?

?Haru, get back! She?s attacking!? Yuka shouted.

Acknowledging her with a nod, I leapt backwards at the same time as her although what neither of us had predicted was for a laser to appear between us and with no time to react. The next thing I knew was that my arm flared with pain as the laser grazed it, far more pain then when Yuka had broken it or dropped me. Even though I wasn?t in contact with the laser for more than a couple of seconds, the pain remained far too intense for me and I found myself dropping to one knee. Looking to the side, I was slightly disheartened that Yuka had suffered the same wound but as I?d expected she seemed to stand the pain more than myself.

Suddenly, just as quick as it appeared, the laser disappeared again.

?Do you know the nature behind my cards? They?re named after various borders I can manipulate?. They all have their own bullet patterns and if one hits you then you?re marked for the manipulation of that border. The main issue being that I never actually invoke that effect.? Yukari explained.

?Until now.?

Yukari quickly muttered a word under her breath and I instantly found myself paralysed and falling backwards to the floor, blacking out the moment I hit the floor.

?

?

?

?

?Wake up!?

?He?s moving. Stop hitting him.?

?Hey, come on! Wake up!?

Suddenly, I came back to my senses. My mind was wracked with feelings of extreme lethargy and weakness, feelings that seemed far too familiar, that reminded me of events gone by. When a sharp blow of realization hit me, I forced my eyes open and using what little strength I had to sit up.

I knew it? I just knew it?

Gone was the blue trousers I wore in Gensokyo and in their place were my old jeans. Checking my arm, there was the sleeve of my old jacket, again in place of my youkai outfit.

?I? I?m human again??

I looked to the person beside me, Mima, who merely nodded with a grim face.

?Where?s Yukari gone. I want to change back.? I muttered.

Mima quietly answered me. ?She said she had some final preparations to do.?

Slowly, I picked myself off the floor, refusing any help that Mima and Marisa offered as I rose.

?Where?s Yuka?? I asked quickly.

Mima motioned to the other side of me with her head, where there was nothing but a large body of light. If that was supposedly Yuka then there was no sign to suggest so, it was impossible to make anything out. ?You were like that until you woke up. That light transformed you, I think.?

?Then that means Yuka??

??Was also hit by the effect.?

Uh oh, DEFCON 1.

Almost as if my thoughts were a signal, the light quickly faded from Yuka who was left lying on the ground. There was a moment of silence as she laid there but then as she began to move and people could see her more clearly the silence was replaced by gasps of shock.

Yuka sat up and examined herself. Clearly, it took a few seconds for things sink in but the instant it did, she leapt to her feet and screamed at an almost unheard volume. ?SHOW YOURSELF YUKARI! CHANGE ME BACK! NOW!?

The spectators, including myself, were still in a state of shock however; due to the fact her transformation had changed her dramatically. She was literally half the size she was normally, almost like a child, and wearing a formal white dress. At that moment I realized it? She WAS a child.

?She changed us back to our human forms before we died. Is that right Mima??

Mima was still visibly shocked, far more than anyone else. ?Mima? Is something wrong??

?I knew it?? She spoke quietly. ?I knew it??

?You knew what? Lady Mima?? Marisa asked.

?I knew I?d met her before?? She continued.

?What, you recognise her even now?? I quickly asked.

?I should have noticed the clues,? She turned and looked at me. ??like your name?.?

?What about it?? I took a chance and grabbed Mima?s sleeve and shook her slightly. ?Make more sense. Have you met her before?? I asked whilst trying to ignore the screams of fury from Yuka.

?I? I- Yes, I?ve met her before. ?A long time ago?. It was her death that was the catalyst to my own? Haruka Kirisame??
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (Now on Remastered RiG2)
Post by: Mima on August 07, 2009, 12:44:36 AM: Oh my, two chapters in one night.

---

Chapter 15

?DON?T YOU EVER USE THAT NAME AGAIN!? Yuka shrieked in a horribly high-pitched mess.

Mima frowned. ?However much you have run away from the past, it has now caught up. It is time for you to face it.?

Yuka remained silent but she was visibly shaking, whether it was from anger or sorrow, I wasn?t sure but I couldn?t help but feel a little sorry for her.

Quietly, I talked to Mima. ?Is she the girl I read about in the book about your past? The girl who was? killed by her father??

?Yes? It was her. The one who was killed to ignite a witch-hunt.? She replied with a whisper.

Mima spoke up slightly. ?Of course, it makes sense a little now.?

?What?? Marisa questioned.

?Your affinity with spark spells.? Mima closed her eyes. ?Spark spells require intense magical power as you know, but on top of that it drains life energy from the user. Enough is drained to kill a human outright and only the strongest youkai can cast it without being severely harmed. And yet, Marisa happily casts the spell fine and Yuka can cast multiple sparks simultaneously?. Obviously something in their blood-line.?

?Silence! I am not related to that? lowlife!? The small, brown-haired girl screamed.

Marisa giggled. ?Sure you are! That means you?re my great, great, great, great, great?.? The witch paused for a moment. ?Let?s just stick with Aunt, eh Auntie Yuka??

I quickly had to hide my grin at the embarrassment Yuka wore on her face.

?Oh, isn?t this sweet? A family reunion.? A voice called out, one that was horribly recognisable and unwanted.

As expected, Yukari dropped out of a gap and into the centre of our gathering. At this point, just her presence was enough to trigger outrage.

?You! Turn me back now! I will annihilate you off the face of Gensokyo!? Yuka shrieked again, taking an aggressive stance towards Yukari.

Yukari giggled. ?Aren?t you just adorable? I?d take you home if we didn?t already have a cat that doesn?t get on well with humans.? She spoke airily.

?Shut up!? Yuka growled as she lunged forward to strike her.

Yukari quietly chuckled as Yuka struck an invisible wall of some kind that propelled her backwards several metres.

?Turn them back Yukari, this has gone on for long enough.? Mima complained.

?The fun hasn?t started yet!? Yukari shouted enthusiastically.

?Why, you? YOU!? Yuka cried again and leapt forward, succeeding only in hitting another wall which this time stayed visible after impact. Strangely, the wall hastily moved towards the former-youkai and appeared to stretch around her, closing her in.

?And now for you.? The gap youkai laughed again before turning to me.

I quickly objected. ?I haven?t even done anythi-? Before I could even finish what I was saying I found that the scenery had suddenly changed in a flash. For some reason I was now beside Yuka.

?What the hell?? I mumbled.

?She gapped you.? Yuka spoke under her breath.

Yukari marched proudly in front of us, laughing as she paced. Finally after what felt like minutes she turned to address us. ?Oh yes, this will be quite fun.?

Yuka began hitting the wall. ?Let me out, damn it! Let me out!?

?Oh, I will let you out! I have to do so for my little game.? Yukari clicked her fingers and a strange large white orb appeared, levitating slightly above her outstretched hand. ?This contains your powers, both of you. If you touch it, you?ll get your powers back! But it?s not just that! It?s also a way to get back here! So basically, if you find this orb, you win!?

Something?s not right.

?Of course, there?s that mysterious question? Where will you be starting from? Well?? Again the youkai giggled sinisterly. ?I?ll let you witness it firsthand.?

Mima?s objections continued to be ignored by Yukari, whose grin just continued to grow.

?Be warned, it might be a bumpy ride! Oh... and please try to keep out of trouble? and keep alive. Bye! Have fun!?

Yuka cried out in panic, grabbed my sleeve and pointed down. When I looked down I saw what was disturbing her, the floor below us was turning into one big gap.

I noticed Mima fire several bolts at Yukari but it was too late; I felt myself fall down and immediately blacked out.

?

?

Where am I?

Was that a dream?

How much of it was a dream?

All of it? None of it?

Slowly, my senses started to function. I could hear people talking? or shouting. Having fun?

Other noises began to make themselves known. Footsteps, the crunching of stones under someone?s feet and a strange buzzing sound.

Then, there was one final noise, one which forced me out of my apparent slumber?. It was the noise of an engine, moving from one side of me, to my other.

As my eyes opened, my worst fears were confirmed. Yukari hadn?t gapped us to somewhere in Gensokyo; she?d gapped us back to the outside world? the world of humans.
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (Now on Remastered RiG2)
Post by: Mima on August 08, 2009, 01:28:09 AM: Chapter 16

Slowly, I began to take in the surroundings; the scenery around me suggested my location to be in a park of some kind. Children were playing some distance away on a large area filled with grass and the source of the buzzing turned out to be a remote controlled plane that they were getting enjoyment out of.

I looked down at my wrist to check the time but upon first glance my attempt was hindered by my human clothing and their longer sleeves. It was only when I looked down that I noticed a girl, Yuka, or possibly Haruka, was asleep next to me.

Ah, I don?t have to go hunting for her at least. Nice of Yukari to do that much, I guess.

Since the only way I could check the time would be to lift my sleeve, I carefully tried to lift my arm up while trying to not wake the sleeping youkai-turned-human.

?You?ll wake her up if you?re not careful.? A voice spoke quietly from beside me, causing me to almost jump in fright.

I quickly turned to see who it was, to find an old lady sitting on the other edge of the park bench.

The old woman laughed slightly ?Did I make you jump? I?m sorry, it?s funny... I jumped just like you did earlier on.?

?Wha-?? I managed to say, still slightly overwhelmed by everything.

I would have thought Yuka would be awake by now.

The old lady continued her tale, ?I never noticed you two sit down next to me, let alone remain unnoticed for you two to fall asleep. Almost like magic, wouldn?t you say?? The woman laughed again.

?Heh, yeah?. Very much so...? I mumbled.

?Cute little thing, isn?t she?? The woman said, looking at the brown haired girl resting beside me.

This?ll answer the question.

I grinned slightly. ?She sure is.? There was slight twitch from the girl in question as I finished speaking.

?Always nice to see children spending time with their parents and not getting into the horrible things that kids do now-a-days.? The woman said, gazing forward into the distance.

Wait, what the hell? Was she aiming that at us? Is she blind or something? Surely I don?t look that old?!

The pensioner gazed at me for a while before talking again. ?Thinking about it, have I seen you before? You look awfully familiar.?

Oh crap. She?s probably seen me in the news or something. Think of something!

?Do you go to the supermarket just down the road from here?? I quickly asked.

The woman smiled. ?Yes, I do.?

?You probably saw me there then. I work there quite a lot.? I bluffed.

The woman closed her eyes. ?Is that it? That would explain things.? Slowly, she looked down at her watch, ?The time is just past noon and means it?s time for me to go. Bye.? The woman said, as she climbed up and slowly wandered off.

I bid her farewell and took a sigh of relief at not being recognised? yet. I looked down again at the resting child and spoke out. ?You can get up now. I know you?re awake.?

No response.

I grinned slightly. ?Aww? Look at little Yuka, she looks so cute as a human. Maybe we should stay here in this world for a while.?

On cue, her eyes snapped open. ?You had better be joking or I?ll rip your arm off.?

I tried to control my laughter and eventually replied. ?Of course I was. Oh, and you gave yourself away as being awake earlier.?

Yuka made an uncaring noise as I spoke again. ?Also, you?re gonna have a little trouble ripping my arm off as you are. Just thought I?d point that out? so don?t even bother trying to attack anyone.?

Yuka spoke grumpily. ?Whatever.?

With a bit of peace and quiet, I sat silently and assessed the situation.

We have no idea where this orb is; theoretically it could be miles away or even in another country. Maybe even hidden in a building or a vault.

Suddenly, I felt paper resting under my hand. Naturally, I read what it said.

?Your destination is within the city and also located outdoors. I thought you might like to know!?

Wait, did she just read my mind or something?

For a second, I could have sworn the text on the paper changed but by the time I looked again, it was unchanged again.

I sat back and closed my eyes for a moment.

No idea where to search, we have no hints either?. I guess we can only keep going until we see it, or until a lead come up.

?Hey! You had better not be falling asleep!? I heard Yuka shout.

?I?m not.? I sighed. Opening my eyes, the modern city filled my vision again. ?Come on, let?s start looking. We?ve got quite a task ahead.?

Standing up, I quickly checked my pockets for anything useful. ?Not much at all?. Oh, my wallet!? I cheered silently at my discovery and hastily opened it to find I wasn?t completely bankrupt. On top of that my credit card was still there, which would be another advantage? if the bank hasn?t deactivated it already due to my death.

That?s a point. Gotta blend in somehow.

I quickly thought back to the encounter a moment ago.

Ha, this will be amusing.

Quickly, I stood up from the chair and grabbed Yuka?s hand, pulling her up too.

?You?ll unhand me if you know what?s good for you.? She threatened sinisterly, even though she was a human child now, she was still able to give a gaze that pierced the soul.

?Sorry, but this is the only way I think we can blend in with the crowds.? I spoke quietly.

Yuka looked cynical. ?What??

?That old woman thought we were related, right? So if we just act that out then we might not be so obvious.?

?What?s the big deal anyway?? She muttered under her breath.

I rolled my eyes. ?You have to remember; this world isn?t as? light-hearted as Gensokyo nor is it used to strange stuff. If they see someone who is meant to be dead walking around with a girl that no-one has ever seen before then that dead person is gonna be in a hell of a lot of trouble. Ideally I?d rather avoid that and actually get back home.? I quickly added to what I was saying to make it relevant to her too. ?So don?t do anything to get us noticed, okay??

Yuka grumbled something that resembled ?Whatever?.

Hey look, you?re holding Yuka?s hand. Shame it?s for completely the wrong reasons and doesn?t count at all.

?So, where do you plan on going first?? Yuka asked quietly.

I paused for a moment; thinking about it we could do with some high ground or something to look out for something. ?I?m sure we?d spot it a mile away considering how it glowed and stuff. The only problem is that it?s not exactly very easy to do. You can?t just walk into somewhere and go onto the top floor.?

Still clueless on what to do, I merely began to walk out of the park while trying to get a good idea on what we could possibly do to get out of this world.
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (Now on Remastered RiG2)
Post by: Mima on August 09, 2009, 11:14:56 PM: Chapter 17

?This is stupid.? Yuka mumbled.

?You know? for once, I agree.? I replied. Noticing a bench close by, I dragged Yuka towards it. ?Let?s sit over there a minute.?

Sitting down, I muttered. ?Well, that was a waste of an hour, really.?

The last hour or so had passed by quickly from checking around the main street of the city and the streets nearby though to no success.

?How dare those humans push me out of the way, as if I was just? just? nothing to them?? Yuka growled.

I sighed. ?Believe me, that?s exactly what you are to them. Here, people care for no-one but themselves.?

Yuka just mumbled something about killing someone under her breath while I sat back and thought about things.

?You know, I?m pretty hungry.? I mused. ?If it was evening in Gensokyo when we left, and it?s the afternoon here?. It must have been a good 12 hours or so at least since I ate? and longer for you??

Yuka nodded as a reply.

?Well, I know a good little place near here.? I stated and began to pull Yuka again. ?You like pizza, right??

?What?? Yuka asked while looking at me cynically.

I nodded slightly. ?I should have guessed you wouldn?t have known about it.? I paused for a moment. ?You like cheese, tomato and bread right??

Yuka paused as well before replying in a sarcastic tone. ?Yes, and that?s what I call a sandwich.?

?No, no, no. It?s not like that. It?s not really like bread; it?s just the first thing I thought of. It?s a lot different. You?ll have to try it, I guess.? I said as I went along.

Yuka just looked shook her head in confusion as we continued walking, cutting through the streets to leave the centre of the city.

?Right, we?re at a road now. Don?t run into it or you might get hit by-? I was cut short by a car which sped past at a ridiculous speed, engine roaring as it passed, causing Yuka to jump back.

?What?. What the hell was that?? Yuka questioned, slightly unnerved.

I chuckled slightly. ?That was a car. Remember when I told you I?d show you one, well, there it went? and here comes a load more.? I ended my sentence as another lot of cars flew by.

?Isn?t there any peace and quiet here either?? Yuka complained.

?No, not in the city.? I quickly replied. ?Anyway, thankfully we haven?t got to cross this road. The place we?re heading for is on this side. But before you get any good idea, believe me; you don?t want to get hit by one of them. Like I said, it?s because of one of those hitting me that I first arrived in Gensokyo.?

The girl just nodded slightly as we continued walking down the street. I continued to find it amusing that Yuka growled every time she had to move for other passer-bys.

Fortunately, the sheer mass of people in the city today helps us to blend in even more; the fact I hasn?t looked at anyone else simply because I couldn?t assured me that they couldn?t do the same.

?Well, here we are.? I spoke in a rather unenthusiastic tone. ?I spent many the afternoons in here, simply wasting time.?

Yuka just sneered and looked down on me... or attempted to but failed since she was only half the height of me.

?Well, let?s go I guess.? I said as I opened the door to let Yuka in, and following her in.

The restaurant section of the building was relatively empty and I couldn?t see if anyone was in the other half of the building. Since there appeared to be a lack of anyone working, I just took Yuka over to a table at the opposite side from the entrance where less people would spot us, or more particularly, me.

Minutes passed without anything happening at all. The only source of sounds other than Yuka, who was examining various items of the building, was another group of people who were sat at the other side of the building. The stillness of the room stood for another minute until a woman, wearing the red and yellow worker uniform of the restaurant entered and talked to the other crowd. As she finished and began to walk away with her back turned to us, I loudly cleared my throat causing her to notice me, and then hastily made her way over.

As she approached, the waitress began apologising for not having noticing us and then asked us if we knew what we wanted, to which I replied that it?d help if we had a menu or something of the sort which caused the girl to hastily depart to retrieve some.

Soon enough the woman was back with the menus, she placed them carefully on the table before explaining that she?d be back in a few minutes once we had decided what we wanted.

Yuka immediately made a noise of disgust. ?Is that a pizza?? She asked as she pointed to the one on the front of the menu. ?It looks hideous.?

?That?s it.? I sat back. ?They taste better then they look, believe me.?

Yuka looked unhappy with the answer and just stared at me.

?I?m serious, now come on. Choose something to have on the pizza.? I asked, pointing at a list of toppings.

Slowly, she read down the list and suddenly said. ?Chicken.?

?Just chicken??

?Yes.?

Suddenly, an image of Mystia entered my mind but I quickly brushed it away.

She?s a sparrow, not a chicken.

?Decided yet?? The girl asked, having suddenly appeared beside me again.

?Yeah, just a medium plain pizza with chicken please.? I answered.

The girl nodded. ?Drinks with that??

?I?ll have a? lemonade and a?? I looked at Yuka and took a random guess. ??A cola.?

The girl nodded again and wondered off.

?What the hell is a cola?? Yuka questioned.

?A drink, you can try it soon enough.?

Yuka sighed. ?I?d have preferred a cup of tea.?

?Relax, try something new. Pretend you?re on holiday or something.? I laughed at the girl?s stubbornness. ?Besides, the tea here is ridiculously expensive.?

?After today you?re not going to need that money again.? Yuka countered.

I stopped a moment. ?Touch??. Well, you hope we get back anyway.?

?Here are your drinks.? The waitress said, seemingly appearing out of nowhere again. She quickly placed them down and wandered off again.

I sighed slightly and picked up my glass to take a drink. ?You expect me to drink this stuff?? Yuka suddenly spoke up.

I sighed again, this time out of irritation. ?What now?

?This stuff looks even worse than the pizza. I wouldn?t be surprised if it was deadly.?

Amused, I looked at her. ?Just drink it, its fine.?

?No.?

Reluctantly, I placed my drink on the table. ?What about this then??

Yuka hummed for a moment. ?It looks reasonably safer to drink.? She said, snatching the glass away.

?You?re sorta behaving like a child, you know?? I mumbled.

?I am a child.? She smirked.

Since she didn?t complain for the next few minutes, I presumed she didn?t mind it much.

More minutes of silence passed by until Yuka decided to crash her fists down onto the table and shouted out, ?How long does it take to cook something?! I have fairies that cook faster than this!?

A few seconds later, the waitress stumbled into the room and saw Yuka as the source of the outburst.

?Good job keeping a low profile.? I whispered.

The woman started heading over to us and in what seemed to be quite a rush, ?Oh great, she?s going to ask us to leave or something.?

As the woman approached, I prepared to apologise for the former youkai?s outburst when she dropped something on the table and said that she was sorry and that our meal should be ready soon before running off again.

Looking down, I saw she?d dropped a kid?s colouring book in front of Yuka, causing me to laugh uncontrollably despite the confused and unhappy looks from Yuka.
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (Now on Remastered RiG2)
Post by: Mima on August 13, 2009, 11:34:26 PM: Chapter 18

I snapped out of the daydream I seem to had drifted into after hearing Yuka say something about ?her? coming back.

The first thing I noticed as my eyes refocused was the fact that Yuka had seemingly drawn fairly detailed and graphic pictures of her? slaughtering the poor waitress? amongst other humans. Quickly, I brushed the picture away from sight as I turned to address the waitress who was fortunately carrying the pizza we were expecting.

The girl hastily placed our meal down on the table whilst apologising for the wait. Other than the typical routine of telling us to enjoy our meal she said nothing afterwards and quickly departed.

There was a strange silence for a moment in which Yuka just stared at the pizza. ?That?s it??

I quickly nodded, ?That?s it, dig in.? I said enthusiastically as I picked up a slice. ?It smells great, better then the cheap ones I used to just nuke in a microwave.? I quickly took a bite. ?It tastes better too!?

?It doesn?t look it.? Yuka commented.

?Looks can be deceiving, try a slice.? I sighed.

Hesitantly, she reached over and picked up a slice before mumbling something like ?It?s as hot as hell??

?What do you expect? It?s been cooking for god knows how long.?

Yuka looked at it for a few more seconds before taking a bite. Slowly, she began to chew it and eventually swallowed.

?Well?? I asked.

However I got no reply, since Yuka had already taken another bite from the pizza.

Heh, I was right for once.

Minutes passed in almost complete silence since Yuka was too busy happily munching away to the extent that I was struggling to catch up with her. Out of the blue, she spoke out. ?You know Haru; you should have put more than chicken on this.?

?Don?t blame me! You chose it.? I argued back.

?Didn?t stop you from having anything as well.? She calmly replied.

I just sighed to myself and continued with the meal.

Dinner is all fun and games, but that?s not getting us any closer to the way out of here.

Still, the idea of finding a high area is the only idea we have; it?s just a case of finding one we can actually get up now.

Refocusing my eyes again, I noticed that there was already only a single slice of pizza remaining. Reaching for it, I looked up to see possibly the most evil gaze I had ever seen Yuka give and so I quickly retracted my hand and allowed her to take it, restoring her to her happy demeanour.

That was close. I thought she was going to stick a knife in my chest.

Less than a minute later, Yuka had finished her dinner and looked fairly content for once. Eager to leave the building and get back to looking for the way out of this world I told her to follow me as I went to pay for the meal. Surprisingly, she actually followed those orders.

As I was paying, there was a cheer from the other section of the building, which I noticed made Yuka wander away slightly to investigate. A few seconds later, the waitress finally finished and I thanked her for the meal and said goodbye before chasing after the runaway youkai.

As I approached the stationary Yuka, she said out loud. ?What the hell is going on in here?? Obviously she was talking about the entertainment half of the building; a large room filled with computers, a music stage in the far corner and far more people compared to the restaurant half of the building.

?This is where people come to play on computers with other people. You know what a computer is?? I began to lecture.

Yuka shook her head negatively. ?Well, a computer is?Well? Ah, Akyu described it as a shikigami for humans; it does all sorts of work for them.? All I got was a blank stare from Yuka, ?Put it this way; as you know, killing humans is bad and will probably end up with you being dead too. However, using a computer you can kill other people? multiple times? for fun.?

As the words left my lips, Yuka?s eyes lit up. ?Let me try it.?

Once again, I let out a sigh. ?We?re meant to be finding a way out of this place, not getting sidetracked all the time.

?It won?t hurt to spend a bit longer here.? She dismissed my worries as she almost skipped over to the closest computer. ?Now Haru, tell me how this works.?

Slowly, I walked over to her and pulled over a chair and tried to rush a computers 101 course with her. After a few minutes she scolded me and told me to just get to the bit where she gets to kill people. Reluctantly, I loaded the game that everyone else was playing and ran Yuka through what she was meant to be doing.

Although she was completely clueless at first, it only took her a few minutes to get the hang of things to the extent that she had started to rain rockets down upon the other unlucky players walking around below her. One thing I noted was that she didn?t seem to quite grasp the meaning of teamwork and so she shot everyone regardless of what colour uniform they were wearing. Unfortunately for Yuka, she couldn?t kill her own side which caused growls of irritation and verbal complains from the youkai-turned-human.

While Yuka enjoyed her daily dose of genocide-filled madness, I just sat back in a chair by her enjoying a cup of coffee that I had bought while she wasn?t paying attention. As I silently enjoyed the extended-rest from searching I found that the best way to remain restful was to falsely acknowledge Yuka whenever she asked if I saw her do such and such to someone during her killing sprees.

Eventually, I was knocked out of my peaceful thoughts by the sounds of someone slaughtering an instrument. Looking up, I noticed a group of late-teens had set up their instruments on the stage and were warming up for a session of jamming regardless of whether the people in the room liked it or not.

With someone with as short a fuse as Yuka, it was inevitable that she was going to complain eventually. What I hadn?t pre-empted though, was for her to scream out at the band as they began to unleash their screeching guitars. ?Learn to play the damn thing before you try to show off!?

Suddenly, the whole room fell silent.

Why do you do this Yuka? Always having to make things difficult.

A few seconds later, one of the band members who I presumed was the leader of the group, spoke into his microphone. ?Oh, what?s this? An unhappy listener?? The rest of his band laughed. ?And I suppose you, little miss, could play better?? He joined in with his comrades to make an obnoxious choir of laughter.

Yuka tried to hide her grin. ?As a matter of fact, yes. I do think I could do better.?

The leader whispered into one of his fellow musician?s ears for a moment. ?Well, then. Please! Enlighten us on how to do so!? He said with an arrogant grin.

?Show them up.? I mumbled under my breath as Yuka stood up. There was no point even attempting to stop her, I?d already learnt she wasn?t one to back down from a challenge.

Yuka marched onto the stage despite the laughing and snickering of everyone in the room and stood before the band?s leader and gave him one of her typical soul-piercing stares.

?Have fun, little miss.? The leader said, still unable to control his arrogance as he passed the guitar to the girl who was half his height.

Yuka fiddled with the guitar for a moment before strumming it which caused a horrible sound to emit from the speakers. Calmly, Yuka spoke up after the noise had subsided. ?First, we need to fix this, which one of your smart little friends just changed.? The girl walked over to what looked like the amplifier and changed something on it.

Yuka gave another strum which caused a much better sounding noise to come from the speakers this time. ?Better, better. Can?t say the equipment is very good though.? As Yuka commented and grinned to herself I noticed that multiple shocked and offended expressions appeared on the band members? faces.

A few seconds later, Yuka began to play around with the guitar, producing something that was only a little bit better than a complete mess. Naturally, such a performance caused painful stares from everyone.

The leader stepped forward. ?Okay, little miss. That?s enough, you?re goi-? Unfortunately for the man, he didn?t get very far before Yuka hit an extremely loud note which led straight into the track she played for me earlier, Inanimate Dream.

As Yuka thrashed the guitar, the song began to speed up to the full pace I had heard earlier. I took a little delight in the shock and embarrassment of the band members caused by the fact they had been shown up by someone appearing half their age.

A few minutes later, the song began to slow down and eventually stopped. As soon as there was complete silence the band stepped forward and the leader began to speak. ?Okay ki-? Unluckily for the band, Yuka wasn?t finished yet and he was cut off right away as she started played again. The difference this time was that it was a track I hadn?t heard before. It was slower than the previous track she played but was still more than good enough to listen to.

The music finally came to an end for the second time, however this time around Yuka ended it by throwing the guitar at the band?s leader who had gloated to her so much previously. As he struggled to catch it, Yuka merely walked off the stage with a satisfied smile and walked back over to me.

?Come on Haru, let?s go.? She proudly spoke as she walked by, causing me to quickly finish my drink and chase after her. As we departed, the air was filled with the protests of the band members on the stage who were calling for her to come back.

When I finally caught up with Yuka, she was already out of the building and just standing in the street. Fortunately in the hour or so we had spent inside, the afternoon rush of busy shoppers seemed to have died down dramatically.

?Worked out where to go yet, Haru?? Yuka questioned right away.

?I have a small idea of where we can go, especially for a lookout.? I grinned.

Yuka tapped her foot impatiently. ?Where??

?Like you?d know it even if I told you... Anyway we?ll go to my university.? I reached into my pocket and flashed a card at her. ?This should get me in any of the buildings without a problem, and why? That?s because they?re some of the tallest buildings in the city?? I explained while feeling quite pleased with my plan.

?Whatever.? Yuka commented, immediately killing the mood. Starting to walk away without me, she shouted back to me as if she was in command again. ?Let?s go.?

?Other way.? I corrected her quietly, causing her to spin around and walk beside me. I grabbed her wrist to attempt to keep up the disguise since I noticed yet another noisy old woman was giving strange looks.

As we walked, I brought up the event that just occurred. ?You sure showed those guys up on that stage.?

?I know.? Yuka said emotionlessly.

?What was the second song? I hadn?t heard that one before.? I asked the girl, trying to keep the conversation alive.

?Sleeping Terror.? She replied with little interest in her voice.

I paused for a moment. ?That?s an odd name for a song.?

?I named it after myself.? Yuka answered immediately.

?First time I?ve ever heard you be called that.? I told her, still puzzled.

Yuka took a breath. ?Back when I was a very young youkai, say? 50 years after I was killed?. Oh, keep in mind I wasn?t ?born? as a youkai until about 30 years after my death.? Yuka began to teach me on her history. ?It was only when I had met other dead humans as a ghost, heard of the crimes they had suffered and eventually told that I was going to be reborn as a human again that I lost control and became reborn as a youkai.?

I nodded; quite surprised that Yuka was telling me about her past. ?When I was first a youkai, I had little self-control; nothing more than a feral beast. Since a youkai develops when it sleeps, that?s all I did for almost all of the time I can remember. The only other thing other than that was kill those that interrupted me, which earned me the name Sleeping Terror from the humans.? Yuka hummed for a minute. ?I wonder if all that sleep was what created Mugenkan. I don?t know? I have little recollection of those days.?

?I see.? was all I could reply with.

The rest of the reasonably short walk was in complete silence. I wasn?t exactly sure what I should say to Yuka to suit the situation so I simply came up with something less serious. ?I?d tell you my past but you wouldn?t like it?. No-one died and there was no violence.? Yuka merely sneered slightly.

?Well, here we are. We?re officially on the campus now.? I claimed quite loud.

?So what? Let?s just find what we have to.? Yuka complained.

As we walked down the street towards the older, taller buildings, I saw a pile of paper ahead. As we passed by, I took one.

?What?s that?? Yuka immediately questioned.

I quickly looked at it. ?By the looks of it, it?s the newsletter.? I spoke with a grin, ?I wonder if I?m in here.?

?Oh, I see. You just want to see if people miss you. How sad.? Yuka gloated.

?Be quiet.? I laughed as I scanned through the few pages and read the titles out. ?Timetables? cancelled classes? fire drill? food fight?? I continued to run through the pages. ?Ah! Here we are, let?s see??

Memo regarding student memorial site.

All students currently vandalising the memorial site of the recently deceased student, please refrain immediately or they will be reported to the police and forced to help with university jobs.

Yumemi Okazaki

Suddenly, I had my own urge to lurk amongst a flower filled area and spark those that came to cause trouble there.
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (Now on Remastered RiG2)
Post by: Mima on August 18, 2009, 11:25:20 PM: Chapter 19

?Haha, people are wrecking your grave. No-one likes you.? Yuka gloated.

?Oh, be quiet.? I grumbled.

Fairly annoyed at the article I had just read, I grabbed Yuka?s hand as usual and continued down the campus? main street. After a few metres, the youkai spoke out. ?Doesn?t something about that memo strike you as odd??

I looked down at read the note again. ?Not really.?

Yuka rolled her eyes. ?The name, you idiot.?

?Yumemi Okazaki?? My voice drifted. ?That name does sound sorta familiar...?

I quickly tried to think of where I had heard it before.

The same place you?ve heard of almost everything lately.

Akyu?s house.

?That?s right? It was in a book at Akyu?s? Not the chronicle I don?t think?? I struggled to remember. ?Ah, it was that book about Mima? It was?? Suddenly, it all came to me. ?Yumemi was a human who apparently warped into and out of Gensokyo!?

Yuka groaned. ?Took you long enough.? She waited for a moment before asking my opinion for once. ?Well, what do you think??

?To be honest, it?s probably more of a coincidence. Why would she be here? It makes no sense.? I tried to come up with some ideas. ?The most we can do is try and look her up in the staff book or something. If she?s under physics or at least science then the chances of it being her is much higher.?

Yuka brushed the answer away with a ?Whatever.? as usual and left me with the task of guiding her to the next destination, which was, in this case, the library. After all, that is logically the best place to find a book.

?You know, after seeing the Scarlet Mansion?s library? This place is pretty awful.? I spoke out as I headed over to a small section of books near the entrance to the library which contained different varieties of information about the university itself such as its history, courses and pretty such. Hopefully with the wide range of information it had, it will also have a yearbook containing the staff.

I quickly ran through the books that were on the shelf until I found the year book belonging to last year and retrieved it. Placing it on a table so that Yuka could see as well, I opened the book and began to look through it.

Immediately to my irritation I noticed that the staff members weren?t listed in any particular order; as the list went on, their names changed erratically, which started the incredibly slow process of reading every single name beneath each photo.

Minutes passed, and my concentration was eventually broken by the sound of Yuka kicking the table progressively louder. ?Will you stop that? It might get unwanted attention? and it?s annoying.? I mumbled.

?Well, do something helpful then.? Yuka snapped at me.

?What do you think I?m doing!? I?m looking as fast as I can!? I snapped back.

Yuka sighed audibly with an agitated tone. ?Look below their names, you fool. ?Administration?. Over there, it?s ?Archaeology?. They?re listed by that, not by their name.?

Hastily, I double-checked her claim. ?Well, what do you know, you?re right. Good observation.?

?Of course.?

?So, I guess we can skip all the way to Physics and check for her there.? I wondered out loud.

A minute or so later we?d finally made some progress in the search.

?Physical science which means that Physics can?t be-? It?s her.? I spoke whilst a little shocked as I stared at the photo and information of a woman named Yumemi Okazaki, the head of the Physics department. Next to her photo was that of another woman noticeable due to her pigtails with the name Chiyuri Kitashirakawa beneath her; another name that I recalled from the book. ?No doubt about it Yuka, it?s definitely them. If anyone can help us, they can.?

?If you can convince them.? Yuka added.

She had a point, even though Yumemi had been to Gensokyo. It still wasn?t going to be easy to make her believe us.

?There?s no harm in trying.? I replied, trying to sound hopeful.

?Of course.? The girl replied.

Fortunately, the university campus in general continued to be quite empty which allowed Yuka and I to travel around easily. The reason most likely being that all classes had ended by this time but the nightlife had yet to emerge.

?I hope Yumemi is still around. It?s gonna be really awkward if she?s already gone home or something.?

Without another thought, I pulled Yuka along as I quickly headed over to the Physics building, or at least what I always thought was it.

After another short journey, whose highlight was when I was forced into a brief moment of hiding to prevent a group of former friends from seeing me, we eventually got to the Physics building. Fortunately the building had a sign upon entry listing all the areas including that the head?s office, which was located on the top floor, much to my dismay.

?Let?s take the lift.? I casually spoke.

?A lift?? The youkai asked, upon hearing yet another unknown human term.

I nodded. ?Yeah, that.? I pointed at the metal door before walking over and pressing the button to call it. ?It?ll save us from walking up 20 or so flights of stairs, which isn?t good.?

Suddenly, there was a ping and the door opened. ?Come on, get in.? Yuka cautiously entered it, followed by myself and I pressed the top button, causing the doors to slowly shut.

?Now what-? Yuka quickly jumped as the lift started to move. ?This thing is horrible, it?s so cramped.? Just one look at her face showed that she was clearly not enjoying the lift.

Yuka began to look around. ?This is taking too long. Make it hurry up.?

?It?s probably going as fast as it can. It?s better than it breaking and dropping us 20 stories whilst trapping us inside and causing our deaths.? I chuckled as I noticed some colour leave Yuka?s face. ?Relax, nothing will go wrong. Are you claustrophobic or something??

Yuka merely made a strange unintelligible noise and a few seconds later the lift stopped, followed by a ping and the doors opening.

?See? No problem at all?? I claimed encouragingly as I walked out. ??And look, the office is right here? So what do we say??

Yuka shrugged. ?Like I know. Just go along with it I guess. It?s not like they?re not going to listen to some little kid like me anyway, just like those fools ignored me earlier.?

?Well, let?s go. No time like the present.? I said as I knocked politely on the door.

For a few seconds there was no reply until suddenly a voice shouted. ?Door?s open!?

I quietly opened the door to find what looked like an empty office, full of paperwork scattered across a table while a fridge and a few other kitchen utensils sat in a corner. On the opposite side of the room was a desk with a computer and monitor on, from which I noticed a head appear from behind.

?Heya!? The girl shouted cheerfully, whom I immediately recognised as Chiyuri; due to her rather bright blonde hair tied into pigtails.

I slowly paced over, trailed by Yuka, until I reached the table. ?Ya just caught me doing some work!? She cheerfully claimed, but when she looked back at the screen I noticed that the concentration in her face, followed by her hand?s position on the keyboard and mouse and the vicious movement and clicking of them suggested she was doing something less productive. ?So, what can I help ya with??

I noticed at this point that she seemed to be wearing a white uniform complete with a blue scarf-like object around her neck, certainly not something from this country but possibly Japan from which I?d seen it used before. The outfit itself seemed quite an odd choice considering she was a teacher.

?I was hoping that I could talk to Yumemi.? I quietly asked.

She nodded carelessly. ?You got problems with ya work??

I hesitated for a moment. ?Yeah, and since you?re a bit busy? I think it?ll probably be best to ask her.?

She laughed. ?That?s good of ya kid. She?s in her lab at the mo.? The assistant tilted her head to the side slightly, motioning to a door at the side of the room. ?Go ahead.?

I nodded my head slightly. ?Thanks a lot. See you.?

I quickly made sure Yuka was following and tried to keep her out of sight as I walked to the door. Just as I was about to open it, I was interrupted by Chiyuri. ?Hey! Wait a second!?

Crap, has she seen Yuka? Is she gonna cause all hell to break loose now?

?You?re forgetting to wear a lab coat! You know how much she flips out if ya forget to wear one!? She shouted with a grin.

I attempted to act like I had forgot, doing terribly in the process. ?Oh? yeah? She nearly ripped my head off last time.? I laughed weakly as I picked a lab coat off the wall and passed it to Yuka before putting one on myself. ?Well, here goes.? I commented again.

I let Yuka into the room before me before entering behind her and shutting the door. This room was a lot different to the previous one, instead of it being an absolute mess the laboratory perfect; all the equipment of the lab was sorted and positioned perfectly. Due to this unexpected tidiness, it allowed me to easily see where work was being done, by a single person wearing an oddly red lab coat.

I tried to sound extremely polite to try and get a good starting impression. After all, I couldn?t afford to blow this opportunity. ?Excuse me, Professor Okazaki??

Without turning around to see us, the shoulder-length red haired woman spoke out in a pleasant tone. ?Yes? What is it??

I gulped slightly. ?I was wondering if you could? answer a few questions for us?? I noticed out of the corner of my eye that Yuka had walked over to a case of what looked like various vials of chemicals. Naturally I began hoping that Yuka doesn?t get any smart or stupid ideas.

?Questions about what?? Yumemi asked, while pouring some chemicals into a concoction.

I paused for a moment, finding myself frozen with hesitation, causing Yumemi to prompt me for an answer. ?Well??

?About? Gensokyo.?

At that exact moment, Yumemi ceased whatever work she was doing and just stood still. ?Gensokyo doesn?t exist. Didn?t you read up on the Japanese Government?s statement? All work to do with Gensokyo was ceased permanently. Does that answer your question?? At that moment, I could immediately sense that Yumemi?s mood has switched to something so filled with hatred it almost felt like she was insane. ?Who sent you anyway? The government? ?Or are you just some nameless chump from the press, sent to annoy me even now??

I found myself frozen again, unable to think of something to say.

?Speak!? She demanded, almost shrieking.

?We?re from? we?re from Gensokyo.? I accidentally let the answer slip out of my mouth

May as well say the whole truth.

I sighed and added something extra. ?Youkai; to be exact.? As I finished, Yumemi burst into laughter.

?You?re from Gensokyo? That?s great, that?s hilarious! You?re youkai as well?? She laughed again. ?That makes my claims of just going there seem sane!?

What felt like half a minute later, she had managed to stop laughing as much. ?Go on then?. Fly! Blow something up! It was never a problem for youkai to do that!?

?Well, we can?t at the minute; we got turned into humans, had our power taken away? and sent here to this world.? I spoke with sorrow, already knowing she wasn?t going to buy it.

I was right, as signalled by the laughter that followed. ?This is hilarious! Listen, you?re an adult, it?s time to stop pretending you?re a monster and all that, that?s for kids.?

Eventually, the laughter turned to silence and Yumemi gave a melancholic sigh. ?Now leave. You?re wasting my time and distracting me; if I make a mistake with this chemical then it will probably blow this whole floor up.?

I looked at Yuka, who appeared to have lost interest in the chemicals, thankfully, and had instead outburst performance and upon catching my eye contact she just shrugged at me.

There?s gotta be a way to prove we?re from there.

?What about you, Yumemi? I know you went there? to Gensokyo.? I shouted to her.

?Leave it alone and go.? She ordered.

I grinned slightly. ?In fact, I bet.... No, I know you want to go back!?

There was a sudden bang, followed the rattling of glassware as she lifted her fist from the table. ?Leave now or I?ll get you removed by force.?

Last chance.

?Hell, I bet you just want to meet up with everyone you met there? Reimu Hakurei, Marisa Kirisame, Mima?? I drifted off, not knowing anyone else who was in that incident.

Out of ideas, I sighed and gave up before noticing that Yumemi hasn?t given another threat.

?Where?. Where did you get those names from?? Yumemi asked, sounding a lot more timid than before.

?I?ve met them, obviously.?

?We never told anyone about whom we met, at least by name, and it should be? impossible to find out who they are from this world.? Yumemi pondered out loud in a daze.

I took the offensive in the conversation. ?Do you finally believe us now??

?For some stupid reason? I? I think I do. I shouldn?t. But? there isn?t any other explanation. We saw to that?? Yumemi continued to sound dazed and confused.

I chuckled slightly. ?Well, if you want your final piece of proof that I?m not of this world? just look at my face.? I confidently spoke, causing her to turn around showing her brown, almost red eyes much like her hair. Straight away her expression showed that she was trying to remember my face from somewhere. Putting her out of her misery I instantly gave her a hint. ?Let?s just say I?m a student who took a fall recently.?

It took a few moments for the words to sink in but eventually her face lit up as she remembered. ?You? What? You died!?

?I know I did. It was one way ticket to Gensokyo? or so I thought.?

Yumemi continued to look moderately confused at what I was saying but at least she looked a bit more understanding of the situation than a moment ago. ?I think we should talk. Not here though, let us go to my office.? With that said, she walked over to the wall to the left of her where there seemed to be a speaker or something. After pressing a button on it, she spoke into the speaker. ?Chiyuri, we have a meeting with some visitors in my office. Get the usual please.?

?Righto!? The playful voice of Chiyuri chirped back through the speaker.

?Please, follow me.? Yumemi calmly asked us as she walked over to the door; unbuttoning her lab coat and placing it on a hook next to the door as she left the room.

With a sigh of relief I looked at Yuka, quickly jumping towards her to grab her hand which was approaching the chemicals that Yumemi had just described the explosive power of. ?Let?s not kill us all, shall we?? I sarcastically asked her before dragged her over to the exit and hastily pushed her out of the laboratory.
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (Now on Remastered RiG2)
Post by: Mima on August 27, 2009, 01:02:42 AM: Chapter 20

As I re-entered the office I noticed Yuka taking off her lab coat, which prompted me to do the same. The difference between us being that I hung mine back up on the hooks rather than Yuka?s careless discarding of the item on the floor.

The sound of Yumemi?s voice addressing Chiyuri caused me to turn my head in the direction of Chiyuri?s desk which Yumemi was stood behind, in front of a doorway. ?In here, please.?

With a quick nod, I followed her instruction after making sure the young girl was following me.

Similar to the comparison between Chiyuri?s office and Yumemi?s laboratory, Yumemi?s office was a lot neater than her assistant?s. By the time we had entered, Yumemi was already seated behind her desk and motioned to some chairs in front of it. ?Take a seat, if you please.?

With a lack of a better alternative I did as she asked and sat down, shortly followed by Yuka. A few seconds later Chiyuri walked into the room and placed on the desk what appeared to be a bowl of strawberries and another smaller bowl filled with cream. The instance the bowls had made contact with the table; Yumemi picked up a strawberry and ate it. ?Mm, help yourself.? She chirped happily as Chiyuri sat down beside her.

Not feeling particularly hungry after the pizza earlier I simply shook my head and sat back, however Yuka was quite the opposite and happily dug into them. Suddenly during the silence, Yumemi cleared her throat and began to speak. ?Well, I think you had best start from the beginning.?

Chiyuri interrupted. ?Eh, what are you talking about? I thought this was about? you know, physics and stuff.?

?No, Chiyuri. These two here, they?re from Gensokyo.? Yumemi announced.

Chiyuri shouted cheerfully, ?What! Really?! That?s great!? The woman?s enthusiasm was curbed by Yumemi, who struck her on the back of her head. ?Hey! Hey! Hey! What was that for?!?

?You idiot! We?ve been studying science for how long now? Have you forgotten all about proof? You should always see sufficient proof before you believe in something!? The red scientist lectured.

Chiyuri nursed the back of her head. ?That?s no excuse to hit me?? In a flash, she suddenly became composed again and looked at Yuka and I. ?So then?. Prove that you?re from Gensokyo!?

She was interrupted by another strike to the head. ?You idiot, it?s too late now! But if someone is claiming they?re from Gensokyo of all places, the chances are?. The chances are more likely of a pig flying!?

Chiyuri pondered out loud. ?Well, if we combined the DNA with something that could fly and somehow triggered an evolutio-? The same interruption occurred again.

?It?s a figure of speech you idiot!? Yumemi shouted as she pulled her hand back and turned to look at us. ?Sorry about that you two?. Chiyuri can be quite? insensible at times, especially considering her job position. Please, explain.?

I decided to go over my story first, considering I knew it more than Yuka?s. Starting from that fateful car crash followed by my adventures in Gensokyo, my short-lived ?resurrection? and finally my return to Gensokyo I then ended it with how we had got into this mess in the first place. As I had expected, Yuka wasn?t too willing to talk about her past, so I simply filled in the gaps that I knew while I told my own story.

?That is quite the amazing story.? Yumemi nodded with a satisfied smile. ?I?d never have thought that you could access Gensokyo like that? several times. I must admit, I am quite jealous; Chiyuri and I have been trying to get back there since we appeared back here.?

?Yup.? Chiyuri replied in a simple fashion.

?I presume you liked it there then.? I laughed.

?Of course, what?s not to like about it? And of course, I still desire data on youkai, or rather magic; that which I failed to gather last time and became a laughing stock as a result?? Yumemi answered; her voice filling with sorrow as the sentence continued.

Moments passed as a complete silence fell upon the room, the monotonousness broken when Yumemi straightened her bowtie slightly. Shortly afterwards, she cleared her throat and began to talk again. ?I have one question. Why did you come here??

I stopped for a moment. ?Well, we were wondering if you could help us in any way.?

Yumemi brushed some hair away from the front of her face. ?Like I just said, we?ve been trying to get back there for years. Believe me, we wouldn?t be here if we had found a way.?

?What about finding our powers? They?re hidden in this world and if we find them, then we can supposedly get back to Gensokyo.? I quickly replied, not wanting to lose this discussion.

Yumemi held her head in thought and spun around in her chair for a few seconds, the lack of a reply from her generated an uneasy silence.

The mood of the room was getting deadly with anticipation until, still facing away, Yumemi quietly addressed her assistant. ?Chiyuri, what do you think? Should we try it?? I noticed she emphasized the word ?it?.

Chiyuri thought for a moment before commenting, sounding oddly serious all of a sudden. ?I think we should. It?s the best opportunity we?ll ever get for it. Though the final decision is yours, boss.?

A few more seconds passed before Yumemi cleared her throat again. ?Very well. Chiyuri, please go and get the book.? I noticed she had emphasised a word again.

Chiyuri nodded and walked over to a nearby shelf, without having to look for it she effortlessly picked a specific book off the shelf; it was quite an old looking, brown-covered book that was decorated by images of magical seals and generally something that looked out of place in a room of science.

Chiyuri handed the book to Yumemi who flicked through the book before closing it and placing it in front of her. ?Do you have a knife on you?? She asked no one in particular.

I shook my head while Yuka was too busy seemingly not caring about the situation which caused Chiyuri to speak again. ?I?ll go get one.?

Ancient looking book, knife, if she asks for a goat next then I?m going to worry about what secret pagan sect I?ve discovered.

Yumemi idly munched on a few more strawberries until Chiyuri dramatically burst into the room whilst wielding a knife; if I didn?t know better from the fashion she entered the room then I?d be scared for my life.

?Here ya go boss!? She said cheerfully whilst passing the knife to her friend.

?Thank you, Chiyuri.? The red scientist nodded as she took the knife and immediately began to run the knife along the inside of the cover.

Hidden something inside the cover of a book? How clich?.

As she peeled the cover away I was fairly surprised to see that there was nothing there, causing Yuka and I to wear confused expressions. Yumemi however continued to look calm which confused us even more.

She poked the cover with the knife before lifting the knife as if she was prying something out and then seemed to grab the invisible object and held it in front of her.

Has her insanity gone kaput?

?Tell me, what do you see here?? Yumemi looked up at us with a grin.

I looked at Yuka who was equally clueless. ?Nothing.?

?Exactly! But this? this is the hidden truth.? Yumemi presented.

I remained silent and in a way hoped that Yuka would impatiently say something, but she didn?t.

?What I told you briefly earlier? about our work, including the data we recorded, being taken by the government? It was a lie. A well crafted, well hidden lie.? Yumemi begins to lecture again. ?When we got back from Gensokyo I was ecstatic at our findings? even if it was incomplete. I had real data regarding magic, enough to prove my theory at least. I couldn?t wait to present it to the other scientists and finally be recognised? but as you know I was betrayed??

Yumemi spoke again quickly. ?However, not even knowing myself at the time, the data I presented to them wasn?t the original. All because she had predicted what would happen and pre-emptively copied the data onto a replica.? Yumemi giggled slightly as she looked at her assistant. ?You see, she isn?t quite the ditz you think she is.?

?Hey?? Chiyuri weakly objected.

?Anyway, after the betrayal we?d been told to pack our belongings and leave and since they had already taken everything even related to the work at the laboratory; it was quite obvious they?d want to check it our personal belongings too, so we ended up using one of our? lesser known inventions.? At that instance Yumemi pulled her hands apart, suddenly making two black sheets of some material appear in her hands. ?When these two sheets are placed together, they practically wipe each other from existence. It can?t be seen or easily detected?. X-rays and metal detectors and such devices probably can?t do anything to help and even more? smaller objects can be sandwiched in it and retain that effect. For instance? a CD?? She said as she pulled one from the back of one of the sheets.

?You know, it woulda been really awkward if it wasn?t ther-? Chiyuri jested before being silenced by another slap around the back of her head.

?Quiet. Anyway, what you see here is in fact the original recording of data which has been hidden for ten long years? and now we finally have a use for it.?

?What?? I asked, being naturally intrigued.

Yumemi coughed. ?We?re going to use sensors to see if we can detect anything that matches the data on this CD.?

Chiyuri cut in. ?When we first tried it all those years ago, there was nothing picked up at all? So if we get even one hit then we know we?re on to something!?

?Chiyuri is correct. You know what to do Chiyuri, upload it into the three government sensors in the city and we?ll start from there.? Yumemi ordered.

?Gotcha, boss.? Chiyuri walked out of the room and a few seconds later burst into the room dramatically again with a laptop under her arm.

Chiyuri grabbed the CD and placed it in the laptop and then typed for a while before looking up. ?It?s just scanning now. ?But you know Yumemi, if they?re still keeping an eye on us then they?re gonna know about this just from the signals.?

?What are they going to do? Take it off us? It?s too late for that.? Yumemi laughed, almost villainously.

Yumemi and Chiyuri just stared at the screen from the other side of the desk; leaving the two of us in suspense until Yuka sighed and walked around to look at the laptop too. After a few seconds she gave her opinion. ?Boring.? With that stated she walked back around and sat down again.

Only because there?s no violence, Yuka.

More uneventful minutes passed.

Looks like we?re out of lu-

?Whoa! We got something!? Chiyuri practically screamed.

Yumemi?s attention suddenly snapped back to the computer. ?What? Where??

?Lemme triangulate it.? Chiyuri replied, already typing.

?Well, where is it?? Yumemi demanded, sounding as impatient as the two of us.

?It?s?? Chiyuri spoke slowly. ?It?s?. The signal is coming strongest from??

?Well??

?From? the hospital!? Chiyuri cheered.

I gave out a large sigh of irritation which caused strange looks from the others. I continued to get said funny looks until the penny finally dropped for Yumemi.

?Ah, that?s??

?Yeah, that?s where I jumped. I should have thought to look there from the first place?. Yukari?s the kind of person whose sense of humour is to put things at places like that.? I mumbled.

Surprisingly, Yumemi was the first to stand up. ?Well, what are we waiting for? Let?s go and find your powers. Chiyuri, meet us downstairs, bring the laptop, batteries, sensor equipment and anything else you can think of.?

?Sure thing.? She cheerfully said as she scooped up the laptop and took it out of the room.

Yumemi walked over to the door too. ?Come on, we?ll go by car. It?ll be much quicker.? At that moment, I noticed Yuka?s face lost a little colour.

Yuka doesn?t like cars? This?ll be fun.

?Alright. Oh, and by the way? thanks for the help.? I said to Yumemi as we walked by her.

?No problem. You?re doing me a favour as well since I will be taking some readings for my own use.? She laughed.

Yuka sneered but I simply replied in a more polite fashion. ?I sort of guessed you would, especially considering you asked Chiyuri for that sensor stuff.?

Yumemi only replied with some laughter as she guided us out of her office and into the lift for another ride? much to Yuka?s disapproval.
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (Now on Remastered RiG2)
Post by: Mima on August 29, 2009, 10:23:24 PM: Chapter 21

?That?s your car?? I asked, looking at the sleek red sports car in front of me.

?Yes, what?s wrong with it?? Yumemi asked curiously.

I shrugged. ?Nothing. Nothing at all. I just expected you to have a larger car, though I was right about it being red.?

Thinking about it, with her position it?s not illogical for her to be quite rich.

?We just need to wait for Chiyuri now.? Yumemi commented as she stood beside the car.

?Oh, I thought this was your car.? I quietly commented.

?It is.? She replied. ?Chiyuri has the keys, she drives it after all.?

Is Chiyuri an assistant or a personal slave or something? I?m beginning to think it?s the latter.

Just a minute or so later, Chiyuri appeared; holding about 3 bags at the same time but seemed to be coping quite well. As she approached the car, she carelessly dropped some of the bags onto the floor in order to reach into one of her pockets. A few seconds later she produced a key ring, and with the press of a button the car clicked, signifying it was unlocked. ?Hop in!? She said cheerfully afterwards.

I wasn?t sure if she had noticed but the size of the car was quite problematic. Although it had enough room to fit the equipment in the boot, it wasn?t so generous when it came to passengers in the back of the car.

Easier for Yuka then myself, I managed to squeeze into the back of the car albeit uncomfortably and simply waited for whatever was going to happen; until I noticed that Yuka was poking my arm.

?What the hell?s that?? She asked cautiously as I turned to look at her, it turned out that she was poking the seatbelt that I had naturally already put on.

?It?s called a seatbelt. You wear it around you and then if Chiyuri messes up and hits something then you?ll be little less likely to die.? I explained with a grin.

?Thanks for the confidence.? Chiyuri shouted, as she was forcing various pieces of electronic equipment into the boot of the car.

Yuka turned and grabbed the seatbelt and yanked it towards her, causing it to lock. ?What the hell, it?s stuck?? She complained, which caused her to apply even more force. To no success, she moaned again. ?Damn thing? broken??

?Try letting go.? I said whilst trying to keep myself from laughing.

She did what I said, causing the belt to reel back to its default position. As it did, she grabbed it again. ?Try not being so forceful.? She looked at me as if I was stupid but tried anyway, seeming surprised when the belt did actually give way. ?Stupid humans, creating devices to encourage you to be gentle.?

A few seconds of fumbling and looking at my seatbelt later, she managed to plug the seatbelt in. Immediately thereafter Yuka made a weird yelping noise. ?This is meant to save you!? It?s about choking me! Stupid humans.?

?You really don?t like humans, do you?? Yumemi spoke normally, now seated.

?Of course I don?t. You even said it earlier; they?re low enough to steal your work. Humans only look out for their own good?. They?re corrupted wastes of space.?

??? There was little to no reply from Yumemi. I couldn?t quite tell if she said something under her breath or whether it was something to do with the car starting up.

Once again to my amusement, I noticed Yuka remained highly alert of her surroundings as the car began to move and it wasn?t until a minute or so later that she began to calm down and relax; at which point she noticed me spectating.

?Flying is much better, isn?t it?? I laughed.

Yuka closed her eyes. ?Most certainly.?

?I third that notion!? Chiyuri shouted cheerfully.

I closed my eyes for a moment. Thinking about it, we?d been awake for a long time now. We?d spent most of the day in Gensokyo and then being sent to a different time zone of which a lot more hours had passed.

?You know, I think I agree with you.? Yumemi spoke as though she was in the middle of thinking something.

?Of course! Flying was great!? Chiyuri shouted again.

?No, what was said before that. Humans being corrupt.? Yumemi sighed. ?We?ve been backstabbed for what we spent our whole lives doing and now that I think about it; even when we complete this data it?s not going anywhere.?

?What do ya mean?? Chiyuri quickly asked.

?I worked on this to help mankind; if we found a way to artificially create magic and thus provide unlimited energy, flight and who knows what else then the world would be a better place.? Yumemi looked up in thought. ?That wouldn?t happen though. Instead, the damn idiots in charge would just use it as another weapon to squabble amongst each other for land and resources. Artificial magic, which could potentially save thousands? no, millions of lives would just become an even easier way to kill people then what there is now?. And I don?t want to be the one responsible for that.?

An awkward silence filled the car for a few minutes. ?We?ll just keep it to ourselves, right?? Chiyuri said cheerfully yet carefully.

?Yes, we?ll find a way.? Yumemi nodded before suddenly snapping out of her sadness. ?Turn left here Chiyuri.?

?We can?t.? Chiyuri answered before being hit by Yumemi.

?Why not!?? Yumemi demanded.

?Because it?s a one way street from the other way!? Chiyuri argued back, returning the hit.

?There was no-one coming! We could have got through!? Yumemi shouted back, volleying another hit at her assistant.

Chiyuri groaned. ?It doesn?t work that way! This is why I?m the only one of the two of us who has a licence now!?

?It?s not my fault they make such ridiculous rules!? Yumemi argued back.

I looked at Yuka and she looked back at me. Just from her expression I knew that for once we shared the same thoughts on the situation and almost simultaneously; we sighed and just let Chiyuri and Yumemi handle the rest of the journey as they were.
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (Now on Remastered RiG2)
Post by: Mima on September 04, 2009, 12:27:52 AM: Chapter 22

The car screeched slightly as it came to an abrupt stop; having pulled into the hospital?s car park not more than a few seconds ago, Chiyuri spotted an empty parking space in the heavily packed area as well as someone heading for it. Endangering our lives our lives in the process, she catapulted the car around another car and pulled a handbrake turn into the available space before the other car could.

Ending with a jolt, Yuka groaned slightly and began muttering. ?Why do human inventions always seem to be death-traps??

?Well, we?re here.? Yumemi announced. ?The short range sensor is picking something up so it couldn?t have been a mistake.? Yumemi then looked back at the small device in her hand, poking the touch screen for whatever purposes she was doing.

?Hey, Haru. There it is.? Yuka said, tugging on my sleeve while pointing out of the car window. Opening the car door and practically pulling me out, she pointing up to the roof. ?Up there, see it??

With little idea what she meant at first, I looked up at where she was pointing and instantly I could see what she was talking about; there was a small growing orb, almost like a miniature sun, floating stationary by the roof.

?That?s our powers that Yukari took off us, right?? I checked.

Yuka nodded. ?We just need to get up there now.?

?What are you talking about?? Yumemi asked, stood behind the two of us.

?That floating orb?. Up there.? I replied, slightly motioning to the roof where it sat in the air.

?I don?t see anything.? The scientist frowned.

?Me neither!? Chiyuri spoke over her boss.

?I guess it makes sense?. It could well be that only we can see our own powers, if everyone could see it then there?d probably be hundreds of humans crowding around and trying to get to this magical orb of light. Who knows what would happen then.?

?Long as it ain?t some weird group hallucination!? Chiyuri chirped, getting an evil look from Yumemi straight after.

?Chiyuri, please get the equipment now. We?ll head straight there since there?s really no point in messing around.?

?Roger, boss.? The assistant said as she collected the couple of bags from the boot, closed it and making the car emit a clicking noise, shortly followed by a beep to signify that it was locked.

?Hey, wait! Don?t lock it yet, you?ve forgotten something!? Yumemi quickly called out.

Chiyuri sighed and unlocked the car. ?Go ahead.?

Yumemi hastily moved over to the boot of the car, opened it moved and began rummaging through the various items before finally standing up straight again and holding what looked like a cloth or something in her hands. Almost rehearsed, she shook the cloth-like object causing it to unfold and drop to the ground, allowing me to finally realize what it was; a cape.

Without a care in the world, she swung the cape around her a few times, caught it on both shoulders, tied the sides around her neck and finally securing it under her collar. With that done, she finally looked satisfied and ordered Chiyuri to head to the hospital.

?Any reason you?re wearing a cape?? I asked, slightly confused.

?Why not?? Yumemi answered simply.

?Call it her version of a comfort blanket.? Chiyuri whispered.

Even more confused, I pressed the issue. ?What??

?She?s always worn a cape for some reason?. Even when she was at school? during exams? if there was anything serious then she?d wear it. ?Much to the amusement of others, I should add.?

Yumemi interrupted. ?But they didn?t get 100% in every exam and become one of the most renowned scientists in the world, did they? Not to mention they were what?? 5 years older than us??

?Whatever you say, boss.? Chiyuri said without a care.

Slowly, we began the short walk to the hospital. On the way, Yumemi began to give a briefing for the situation. ?Listen, we go in and straight to the elevator. Obviously we?ll head to the top floor right away. Also, we can?t risk you being spotted by anyone? so don?t do anything to grab any attention?

Says the one wearing a cape.

?Well, let?s go, the end is near!? Chiyuri cheerfully spoke as she walked through the automatic door.

And so here I was, inside the lobby of the hospital of which I had jumped from the top of, and died in front of, just a few days ago.

Thankfully, everyone seemed too occupied with their own work to take any notice of every individual person that came into the hospital. Fortune was also with us due to the fact the hospital appeared to be extremely busy today, all the chairs in the reception were taken and many people were left standing around thus allowing us to drift through the crowds unnoticed.

?Over there. We can use that lift to go straight to the top.? Yumemi quickly ordered.

With the scientists leading, I did my best to blend in as I followed them. I had a feeling that trying to not act suspicious was probably making us look more suspicious, but at this point there was nothing I could do about it.

After what felt like an eternity, we finally crossed the lobby to the lift. Reaching it first, Yumemi pressed the button and as marked by the display above it, the lift slowly started to descend to pick us up.

?Nearly there now? nearly there.? I spoke quietly.

There was a small pinging noise to signify the lift had arrived and slowly the doors began to open. At that instance, the worst case scenario occurred. Inside the lift was none other than the nurse who took care of me in my final few days and to make things worse, she immediately noticed and recognised me.

?A-ah! You-You?re...? Shocked, the girl stepped forward towards me.

Quickly, I looked at Yumemi and motioned to the lift discreetly. With an affirming nod she dragged Chiyuri in and soon enough the doors closed and they began to ascend to the destination.

Think fast, we need an excuse. Everything depends on this.

My mind struggled to function in the raging storm of panic that was currently present. After a few seconds of fighting to try and find some logic I finally managed to come up with something. ?Ah, excuse me, miss. You wouldn?t happen to be a nurse would you??

The girl physically seemed to calm down a bit and gradually replied. ?Y-yes, can I help you??

?Ah, great. Now I was informed that my... my brother was admitted into here a few days ago. Said he hit his head pretty bad or something. Of course, upon hearing about this, my daughter and I rushed here as fast as we could.? I began lying so much that Tewi Inaba would be proud.

?Your... Your brother?? The nurse asked shyly.

?Yeah, you seem to recognise me so I presume you know him, we?re identical after all.? I laughed.

You?re skating on really thin ice, you know?

?Well, listen. I think you should follow me. We have some? news to tell you then.? The nurse slowly began to speak, obviously unsure about whether to believe me.

She?s gonna tell you that you?re dead, isn?t that strange?

The nurse turned and recalled the lift which had not long smuggled two certain scientists to the roof. Fortunately it was void of any red or white scientists when the doors opened and so she waved her arm to signal us to enter. Once inside, she pressed a button to activate the lift but unfortunately it wasn?t high enough for the destination Yuka and I needed.

The nurse remained silent as the lift rose causing a painful silence to fill the metallic room although the sight of Yuka looking unsettled and scared bought a somewhat cruel delight to me. Eventually the lift arrived at its destination and as the doors opened, the nurse beckoned us to follow her, which we did, until we finally got to what looked like an office.

Following another signal from her arm, I sat down on a chair and made sure Yuka also did so prompting the nurse to finally speak. ?Your brother?. He was admitted with nothing major, somehow the crash he was in barely scratched him aside from a hit to the head which left him unconscious for a few days.?

?Yes, I was informed of that but I heard he also woke up.? I stated, covering my mouth as though in thought but in reality I was actually covering my smile.

?When he woke up, there was nothing wrong? or so we thought. Unfortunately? something? unusual happened.? The nurse began to explain. ?I don?t suppose your daughter... would leave the room for a moment??

And let Yuka roam the hospital without me watching her? I think not, she?d probably unplug someone?s life support for fun.

?She will stay. You might not think so, but she?s probably older than me mentally.? I tried to sound serious.

?I see...? The nurse went quiet for a moment. ?I don?t know how to say this? but? your brother killed himself...?

?He... what?!? I shouted, trying my best to sound surprised.

Everyone thought he was doing fine and to be honest he was getting close to a full recovery. Then one day, he snuck outside and just... leapt off the building? I?m surprised you didn?t hear about it, it?s been quite well publicized?.

?I? I didn?t hear of anything like this. I live... outside of this country, just landed at the airport a few hours ago? The last I heard, he was still recovering and he just killed himself??

?Yes. There were no messages or reasons or anything.? The nurse apologetically spoke, close to crying. ?I-I should go and get a doctor to explain things to you further.?

Can?t let that happen, come on! Think! There?s gotta be an easy way out.

I closed my eyes, trying to look like someone in mourning and in thought. With an idea in my head, I looked up and asked, ?Are his belongings here? I?d like to see if he left any messages.?

?We do, the police have already checked through them and dismissed them; they couldn?t find anything of the sort.? The nurse explained once more, looking slightly odd at my proposal.

?They don?t know how we hid messages. If it?s anything important, we?d always hide the message in the cover of a book. They could easily have missed it.? I lied once more, using Yumemi?s trick with the data CD for my own excuse.

The nurse nodded. ?I see. Please wait here; I shall only be a moment.? The nurse nodded her head and she hastily left the room.

The room was silent for a few seconds before I spoke again. ?Come on Yuka, we?re going.?

?Huh, don?t you want to get your stuff??

I shook my head. ?No, there?s nothing important in there. I know that because I already have my stuff, remember? I don?t know if Yukari?s magic either cloned it or stole it but we shouldn?t risk it. If she finds there?s nothing wherever she?s gone, she?ll know it?s actually me.?

Yuka nodded in understanding and stood up, which I soon followed. ?Come on, straight to the elevator.

As we began the rather short journey back, I whispered into the girl?s ear. ?Quickly, try to walk as fast as you can without looking suspicious.? Another shake of the head gave her confirmation. ?Oh, right, hand.? The former-youkai sighed and let me grab her hand as we raced through the hospital.

?There it is! There?s the lift!? I cheered quietly and without another thought, I had pressed the button and the lift had started to ascend to our floor.

?Hey! Where are you going?? A voice called.

?Oh no, not her again.? I cursed under my breath.

Racing around the corner was the nurse, I was unsure if she?d just noticed us gone or whether the items were gone but either way I was quite sure that she?d finally given in to her paranormal suspicions. ?Someone! Stop them!?

A dinging noise snapped me out of my panic and as the doors opened behind me I jumped back, pulling Yuka with me, and hit the button for the roof repeatedly. At the same time, what appeared to be a security guard was running at the lift.

?Close! Close! Close!? I started muttering as I hit the button more and more, even though I knew it wouldn?t speed the doors up any more.

The doors however finally did their job and closed, allowing the lift to ascend without any unwanted passengers; just Yuka and I. I slumped down against the wall and sighed loudly. ?That was too close, way too close.?

A few seconds of peace later, the lift made its usual noise and the doors opened. ?Hey, you actually made it! Nice one!? The voice of the younger scientist greeted us. ?Yumemi was beginning to start saying you wouldn?t make it up here!?

?I did not!? Yumemi shouted and she hit the other scientist on the back of the head. ?Anyway, the time you spent... having fun? has given us time to set everything up so go right ahead. Get back your powers; I believe they?re over there.? Yumemi pointed to the far edge of the building where I could just see some of the glow from the orb. ?I still can?t see them with my eyes, but with these sensors I can; and I can also read every bit of data regarding your powers... It?s fascinating... The sheer values and raw energy? it?s almost impossible to comprehend.? It was obvious by her voice that she was highly excited and vividly interested in her work at the same time.

?Yeah! Go for it!? Chiyuri shouted joyfully.

?Well then, shall we?? I spoke as I turned to Yuka who had already begun walking over. ?You could at least wait for me!? I complained as I ran slightly to catch up.

She?s already returning to normal.

?Whoa, Yumemi! Look at this!? Chiyuri exclaimed, sounding quite surprised.

?What is it??

I turned to see Chiyuri typing rapidly on the computer, ?Some readings are going absolutely off the scale.?

?What readings?? Yumemi demanded as she moved to look at the screen,

?D-Dimensional stability. This makes no sense. We haven?t had any readings like this since... that time.? Chiyuri went quiet for a moment, ?The readings are getting stronger!?

?At this rate, surely? there?ll be a hole in the fabric of reality itself?? Yumemi thought out loud.

Somehow, I knew what it was, and by the looks of it so did Yuka. And just to confirm our thoughts, placed in-between us and our powers, a purplish-red gap began to open.
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (Now on Remastered RiG2)
Post by: Mima on September 08, 2009, 01:49:18 AM: Chapter 23

?Well, I must admit you?re not very fun at all, are you?? Yukari?s voice echoed out around us. ?I expected to get a lot more fun out of you before you found this place.?

With that said, Yukari hopped out of the gap and landed on another, which swung like a child?s swing.

?Such an amazing bit of luck for you though to find those two.? She whimsically chatted as the gap flew over to the pair of scientists, leaving the larger gap she emerged from suspended ominously in the air. ?It?s been a long time since I saw you two! How are you doing??

?What are you talking about, we?ve never met.? Yumemi spoke, facing up to Yukari.

?Of course. I never said that, did I? I said I?d seen you; for reasons of my own no less!? Yukari continued to not give anything away in the conversation.

Yukari covered most of her face with her fan. ?Tell me, why you could never get back to Gensokyo??

?Because my? our work was taken away.? Yumemi replied.

?No, no. Before that, like straight away, as soon as you got back.? Yukari continued to probe.

?The equipment was damaged.? Yumemi continued to stare down Yukari.

?My, my? Now, I wonder what could have done that. First you appear back in this world without doing anything with your machine and then it breaks by itself, such a mystery!? Yukari?s voice started to shift to that of something tormenting.

Yumemi stood up to the youkai. ?You don?t wonder, you know. Tell me!?

Yukari closed her fan. ?Fine, I will. But as they say, the truth hurts.? Yukari then put her face literally an inch or two away from Yumemi?s. ?Your machine never worked in the first place. I did everything.?

?What the hell are you talking about??

?Your logic! It was flawed. Your technology undeveloped. So I took the liberty of hooking your machine up to some Lunarian technology in your ?working experiment? and then I simply whisked you away to Gensokyo, you knew no better!? Yukari spun 180 degrees. ?I was a bit careless on the return trip, I dropped you slightly and damaged things. ?Awfully sorry.?

?You... you... YOU RUINED MY LIFE, CHIYURI?S LIFE!? Yumemi sprung up but was immediately restrained by Chiyuri.

Yukari sneered and continued to look away for a couple of seconds before she began to fly back over to the two of us. ?You try and do a good deed for someone and they end up hating your guts. It?s not very nice, maybe I should be a villain instead.?

Surprising to me, Yuka had been, and was still remaining silent despite the fact I could sense the pure rage emitting from her.

?So yes, let?s play the villain. Whoooooops!? The gap youkai shouted comically as she spun around and to my horror, she somehow moved the orb containing our powers at least 5 or so metres away from the building. ?Oh no! How did that happen? So clumsy of me!? Yukari looked over to the orb and spoke out sarcastically. ?Ooo, looks like you?re gonna have to jump for that one. Let?s make things even more interesting, shall we??

At that instance, a terrifying grin appeared on her face and almost faster than my eyes could register, she reached into her clothes and pulled out a spell card.

?Now, here?s the next game my beloved playthings! Dodge my nasty, painful spell card and jump far enough to get your powers back to win! Isn?t this fun!? Yukari laughed, now almost insane.

That familiar noise of the lift?s ping, signified its arrival.

Oh great, they?re here too now. More problems.

?Now, now, we can?t have anyone interrupting! Go away!? Yukari shouted playfully and waved her fan slightly. As if that swipe was physically cutting the cables holding it up, the lift creaked before there were several loud snapping noises, causing the lift to drop at an abnormal speed.

?You, just killed them?? I spoke quietly.

?Maybe. What do you care? Now come on, let?s play!? Yukari shouted as though she'd lost control of her emotions.

Eerily, everything went silent like the calm before the storm, but as to be expected it was Yukari broke that silence.

?Well, let?s get right to the interesting bits! Let?s skip all of these and get to the fun ones!? It became apparent that she was referring to her spell cards since she grabbed a handful and threw them into the wind. ?This will start nicely, Border of Life and Death!?

That was enough to break Yuka?s silence as she screamed out. ?What the hell is up with you, you pathetic coward?! Too afraid to just fight me normally??

?Aww? aren?t you just adorable? Still, who cares!?? Yukari switched the tone of her voice as she suddenly launched a barrage of bullets at the two of us.

?Haru, look for the gaps and weave through them.? Yuka tried to give me some last minute advice.

The bullets weren?t very bad at first; even a complete novice to fights such as I had no problem dodging. Unfortunately, Yukari then began to throw more and more bullets, her laughter becoming more and more unstable.

Not only was the torrent of bullets physically exhausting, but also mentally; the sheer range of colours now appearing was beginning to get fairly disorientating.

?Yuka, I?m? having a bit of trouble now...? I mumbled.

Yuka shouted back. ?Just hold on, damn it!?

Suddenly, the bullets were gone, every single one of them. For a moment everything remained still and silent during which time you could see Yukari?s eye twitch slightly. Obviously, she wasn?t expecting that to happen either.

The strange occurrence was explained when I glanced to the scientists and saw the two of them holding what looked like strange, almost comical-looking ray guns aimed at Yukari. It didn?t take Yuka to point out that they?d somehow managed to catch Yukari off-guard and cancel the spell.

?More pests. My word, there?s just so many of them!? Yukari cried in feign-shock before holding her arm in the direction of the scientists. Instantly, an odd green bubble appeared around them and a small amount of laser fire later; it was apparent that they couldn?t escape from it.

?Oh dear, oh dear, oh dear. Looks like I only have one card left, how stupid of me to throw them all away.? Yukari?s voice rose like she was presenting something to a crowd. ?It?s Danmaku Bounded Field time! Wooooo!?

I?ve never seen Yukari like this. It?s seriously like she has lost every grain of sanity. I?ve never even heard of her being this bad.

I suddenly felt something hit my side and looked to see Yuka huddled up next to me.

?W-what?s wrong, Yuka?? I asked unnerved by Yuka not having her usual maverick fighting behavior.

?We?re done for.? Yuka answered, straight to the point.

I grinned like it was a joke. ?You?re kidding, right??

?No, this spell?s always the same and I know from experience that you need to fly through certain gaps in her pattern. We can?t fly and so we can?t dodge it and so we get hit and then it?s over.?

Suddenly, there were hundreds upon hundreds of crashes as bullets began to be spewed out of multiple gaps, circling us. Seconds continued to pass by and the bullets didn?t stop appearing, just continuously forming a layer of pink death around us.

?See what I mean, Haru? We needed to get through there.? Yuka pointed at a small gap that was located at least 8 metres off the ground.

The crashing noises eventually stopped and slowly the projectiles began to move forward, inevitably towards us.

Is this it? Is this the end? There?s no options left.

Yukari appeared again, ironically in the hole in the pattern where the bullets began to pass by her, the gap we needed to have been in to survive. In her hand was the spell card that she was twirling around with her fingers, done in a fashion that seemed to make her even more unlikeable.

Science has no options left, there?s no magic left for us, the only thing left is... what? An act of god?

I laughed to myself quietly, causing Yuka to stare at me oddly. By now, the bullets were only a few metres away and I prepared for the worst.

Without warning, there was a flash. The tone in Yukari?s voice as she yelped in shock gave me some hope and at the instance I looked back at her I saw an impossible sight. A blast of energy, different to the scientists? ray guns, pierced right through the card and struck by Yukari?s face, visibly marking her chin.

All the bullets around us froze in place momentarily before exploding and then disintegrating allowing the twilight sky to look down on us once more, and at the same time we were able to see the cause of this upset.

Floating next to the gap that Yukari never closed was the deity herself, Mima. ?It looks like you could do with a hand!? She laughed confidently.

?You could have helped earlier!? Yuka shouted back, trying to shout annoyed but you could tell she was really thankful.

?Game?s over, Yukari. You can leave now.? Mima spoke, deadly serious with her staff pointed at Yukari.

Yukari looked down at the floor despite wearing a large grin on her face. ?I see. Well, I guess I?ll just?- Go Ran!? Yukari suddenly shouted as she reached into a gap and threw her Kitsune at us. Flying right past Mima the fox landed close to us and stood up.

The fox looked at us, looking truly sorry and apologised. ?Sorry, I don?t want to do this but I have to obey my master, please don?t struggle or anything.?

In no hurry at all, Ran reached into a pocket and pulled out some spell cards. After flicking through a few she picked one out and looked at us. ?This should suffice, I guess.? She mumbled.

As she opened her mouth to cast the spell, the only noise I could hear was ?Yaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa-?

What the heck is th-

At that very split-second, my mind captured the image of a broom handle flying straight into Ran?s left temple. ?-HOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO.? From the force, Ran was sent flying across the roof of the building and as you?d expect, she didn?t get back up afterwards.

Circling around, Marisa circled back around and stopped in front of us. ?You do what you gotta do! Lady Mima and I have got these two!? She spoke joyfully before zooming off and filling the sky with lasers,

Yuka looked at me. ?Come on, let?s go!? With a simple nod for a reply, we both ran to the edge of the building.

?Ran, stop them, quick!? Yukari screeched, firing bullets of her own at us. Things were made more dangerous due to the fact that Marisa and Mima were now too far away to shield us.

Either we both die or just one of us. It?s obvious which is the better choice.

I grabbed Yuka by her arm. ?You?re not thinking...? Yuka spoke, sounding overwhelmed. ?We?ll never make i-? She was cut short as I ran the final few steps and jumped clear off the building, towards the shining sun that was our powers, our life.

As the force of the jump began to weaken and gravity began to take its toll, I swung my arms to the side and towards the orb and released Yuka, hopefully giving her the extra distance that I seemed to have not got; signified by the rapidly increasing speed of which the floor was approached, just like a few days ago. Unfortunately, my head was pointed towards the ground so I couldn?t see any of the dramatics that were going on above, not to mention the boost I had given to Yuka had caused me to spiral towards the earth, making this trip towards death extra horrible.

In a familiar fashion, as I was a few metres away from the ground everything began to slow down before freezing completely.

Oh, this horrible tormenting wait before my painful death.

Something was odd, I could still hear things such as the barrages of bullets and lasers going on above.

That means that I stopped falling someh-

?Are you going to thank me, or what?? A voice spoke out impatiently causing me to smile immensely.

I felt myself be lifted in the air, caused by a, now apparent, grip on my leg. Once lifted, I found myself face to face with the green haired, red eyed youkai named Yuka Kazami.

?Don?t you ever do anything like that ever again, you nearly died!? She shouted at me. ?Anyway...?
Yuka lowered me slightly before suddenly launching me into the sky, aim perfect, towards the orb that now looked duller, possibly due to the fact that Yuka had already retrieved her powers.

As I touched the orb, I suddenly felt myself fill with energy and immediately I stopped in the air. Now able to control my aerial movements, I was now, just like Yuka, a youkai again.

Yuka flew up beside me and it wasn?t long before Yukari let out a scream of frustration. ?Ran, you blew it, look at them!? The Kitsune was suddenly scooped away by a gap leaving just five of us and the two trapped in the bubble.

?I?ve had enough of this! Nothing?s gone to plan!? Yukari screamed, completely unstable and caused bullets to appear in all directions through a multitude of gaps.

?Haru, stay back. It?s time for us to finish this.? Yuka ordered as she flew forward to support Mima and Marisa.

As lasers and bullets were traded by either side in a fight I could barely keep track of, I sawYukari suddenly wave her arm and a much larger gap appeared. From it, Ran began to be catapulting from gap to gap, now reduced to one more projectile to dodge for the trio.

?We?re not done yet!? Yukari shouted as she spun in a circle, fan held in her hand, that movement seemed to cause the gaps to move, rearranging them to surround the three opponents and launching bullets from all sides; were I stuck in there also, I?d have probably been struck by every other bullet but those in the situation seemed to have no problem and even returned fire at Yukari once in a while.

A minute of constant dodging later Yukari was, once again, caught by the edge of a laser.

?Fine! Fine!? She screamed.

Yukari held her arms out to the sides, causing hundreds upon hundreds of gaps to appear alongside her. ?Time for more fun!? She shouted maniacally, acting as a signal for even more bullets to erupt from the mass of portals. This had truly become a battle of endurance as millions upon millions of bullets of varying colours lit up the sky.

It was only then that I noticed that in the sheer confusion of it all, Yukari had seemingly placed a gap behind the centre fighter, Yuka, and my concerns were confirmed when bullets rocketed from that gap and it appeared that Yuka hadn?t noticed either.

?Yuka! Watch out!? I shouted, arm held out towards her.

Suddenly, a blast of light appeared behind Yuka for a moment, blocking any clear visual I had of her. When I could see her clearly again, she was looking in the direction of the surprise gap and in a position to dodge the bullets that I thought were going to hit her. The thing that struck me is that she was looking thoroughly confused at what happened.

?Manipulation of light...? Yukari thought out loud. ?Truly interesting.?

The crazed youkai clicked her fingers and all of the bullets suddenly stopped and faded away. ?Ran, we?re going!? She shouted before grabbing the still projectile-like Ran by the tail as she passed by and threw her into a gap. ?Bye bye.? She said sinisterly before crawling in a gap herself.

With this new-found peace, everything that happened began to sink in and I moved over onto the roof of the building to join the others who had already landed.

?Is it over now?? I asked as I landed.

?Looks like it!? Marisa shouted. ?Good job on the powers! Dunno if I should be jealous!?

?Powers?? I mumbled. ?You mean... flying and all that? I did that before.?

?Nah! I mean that big block of light you made appear out of nowhere! Didn?t you hear what Yukari said? ?Manipulation of light??? Marisa replied.

?That light? was me?? I asked, shocked at the outcome.

?Yes, it was.? Mima spoke out. ?Manipulation of light and manipulation of flowers. That doesn?t sound like too bad a combination to me.? The spirit laughed.

?If you got a completely useless power, I was going to disown you.? Yuka grinned.

I was going to say something when I noticed some movement over on the other side of the roof and suddenly remembered. ?Oh yeah, Mima, Marisa, there?s someone you should meet over there.? I pointed in the appropriate direction and it didn?t take long before, after almost 10 years, magic was facing science once again.

?It?s been a long time, Mima and Marisa.? Yumemi spoke.

?How?s things!?? Chiyuri shouted.

Marisa gave Chiyuri a high-five while Yumemi began to talk. ?I must thank you all from the bottom of my heart. Despite being trapped in that thing, we managed to get all the data we could ever dream of; especially due to those... delightful fireworks at the end.?

?We should be thanking you too. Yuka and I would have been doomed had you not helped us; on more than one occasion I should add.? I spoke out.

?Call it even then!? Chiyuri shouted.

The pleasant atmosphere was shattered by a strange groaning noise. ?Now what?? Yuka hissed.

?The gap.? Mima replied. ?It would appear Yukari has abandoned it and it?s beginning to close on its own. We don?t have much time left.?

?It would appear that this is goodbye then.? Yumemi spoke, sounding rather down.

I paused for a moment, ?There is one other option?. You could come to Gensokyo with us. You said you?d like to go back and this is a one way ticket there!?

Yumemi looked at the gap, the sky and then finally Chiyuri who simply nodded once at her.

?I am going to have to decline your offer.? Yumemi spoke.

?You are? Why?? I was quick to ask.

?We?ve spent 10 years trying to get to Gensokyo now. I was 18 when I first got there and I?m, like everything does, aging. I?m not magically gifted and before I know it, I won?t be in my prime anymore; Gensokyo wouldn?t live up to what I expect from it. I hope you understand what I?m getting at.? Yumemi weakly smiled. ?However, that?s not to say we?ve given up on the place, no. I?m going to test what you told me earlier today. You entered Gensokyo by keeping it in your mind when you died, you believed in it, and we will do the same. When it?s our time to... kick the bucket so to speak, we?ll keep Gensokyo in our hearts and if we?re lucky? then Gensokyo will have some scientific youkai!? She laughed afterwards.

?You?ll have the kappa to compete against then.? Marisa commented.

Chiyuri took over the duty of speaking. ?In the mean time, with this data I think we can finally have some fun. Maybe even prove some theories wrong and maybe, just maybe, prove to those who betrayed us that we were right all along!?

Just like before, the mood was killed by the gap closing. ?We need to leave. Now.? Mima stated. ?Sorry to be leaving so abruptly.?

?We understand, take care of yourselves.? Yumemi waved as we walked away to the gap.

?See ya when we die!? Chiyuri shouted afterwards.

We bid our final farewells before jumping into the final gap in earth, placing us right in front of the Hakurei Shrine; where we had first entered the outside world.

?You?re back, huh?? The lazy Reimu Hakurei spoke as she drunk some tea, sat in her usual spot.

?Thanks for helping, oh faithful shrine maiden.? Mima snapped, as she walked by.

?No problem.?

Mima turned around. ?And you need to do something about that Yakumo, she?s becoming a major problem.?

?Whatever.? Reimu replied.

Uncontrollably, I yawned, and now being back in my usual outfit, I was able to check the watch Yuka gave me which showed it was already tomorrow morning here.

?I don?t about you, but I?m ready to go bed.? I mumbled.

Yuka looked at me. ?You become a youkai and the first thing you want to do is sleep. That?s... actually quite youkai-like actually...? She drifted off as she realised her little insult wasn?t going to work.

?Well then, come on Haru. Let?s go.? Yuka ordered as she turned away from the shrine.

As I walked beside her I felt something grab my hand, looking down I saw that Yuka was holding it. Yuka looked at me and then down at the hands. ?Hmm, force of habit I guess.? She brushed the issue off before returning to her uncaring state, not letting me go though.

It dawned on me then that youkai can live for well over a thousand years, Yuka being an example, and if something like this happens in the first week of becoming a youkai then I almost dread what has yet to come. Almost.

----

That's RiG2 done now.

I'm highly considering not to edit RiG3 right now since it's making me rather "depressed", I might just repost RiG3 as it is and then start getting to something far more interesting. RiG4.
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (RiG2 completed!)
Post by: Mima on September 14, 2009, 09:22:33 PM: Yeahm, editing is boring. Posting RiG3 now, gonna start RiG4 earlier. RiG3 can be edited at a later date, it's not like it changes much.

---

Retribution in Gensokyo

Prologue

Without any sign, I suddenly found myself summoned into conscious by a large jolt, causing the earth around me to shake almost like jelly.

What the hell is this? An earthquake or something?

There?s not been an earthquake since that time with the shrine, don?t say that?s going on again.

Listening past the voices inside my head, I heard someone else shouting, ?Hey, Haru! Wake up! Haru! Come on!?

Slowly, and despite the shaking, I reluctantly opened my eyes to see the source of the motion; the youkai Yuka Kazami jumping on my bed, shouting at me.

What an odd sight, probably dreaming, I guess going back to sleep won?t hurt.

As I closed my eyes, the voice shouted again, this time a little less friendly, ?Don?t you dare go back sleep!? As the voice ended, I felt the full force of the youkai jump on my chest before bouncing off.
?O-okay... I?m awake. You can stop now.? I mumbled as I wiped my eyes. For once, she stopped as ordered. ?So, what?s the occasion.?

?You don?t know?? The short green haired youkai looked at me curiously.

I rested my head back on my pillow. ?Of course I do, that?s why I asked.?

Yuka replied with a sharp kick to the ribs, ?Stop being sarcastic.?

?Okay, fine. Just tell me.? I mumbled, partially in pain.

?It?s your birthday, you idiot!? Yuka shouted cheerfully.

?Really? Can?t say I?ve been following it.? I began to speak. ?2 years already??

?Yep, 2 years and you?re still not dead; maybe you?re not completely useless after all.? Yuka mused out loud.

I sat up, ?So, the only reason you woke me up was to tell me that??

?No, you get presents on your birthday too, don?t you?? Yuka looked at me with her crimson-red eyes.

?If it?s anything like the combat lesson last year, I?ll pass. That was just an excuse for you to beat me into unconsciousness.? I recalled the painful memories.

Yuka argued back. ?You can actually use some magic now, can?t you??

I grinned back. ?Yes, but I recall you knocking me out in a few seconds not helping with that at all.?

?How ungrateful.? The youkai said, still stood at the foot of my bed before carefully jumping off.

?To think, I was going to... to... to...?

?To, what??

?AH-CHOO? Yuka sneezed fairly loud. ?AH-CHOO, AH-CHOO, AH-CHOO.?

?Looks like someone needs to see a doctor.? I commented quietly.

Yuka turned to me, ?No, I don?t. AH-CHOO.?

The youkai continued to sneeze and eventually sat down in one of the chairs in my room and just sniffed. ?Looks like you?ve got a cold or something.?

?Don?t be stupid! Youkai like me don?t get something like a common cold!? Yuka shouted proudly.

I rolled my eyes slightly, ?Sure, well, come on. Let?s go to the doctor?s.?

?I just told you, I?m not going.? Yuka snapped back.

?And I don?t want a cold for my birthday, so we?re going.?

Yuka grumbled to herself before she stood up and left the room, still sniffing.

It?s been a long two years since I?ve started my life as a youkai in the paradise known as Gensokyo, which means it?s nearly been two years since Yuka and I were thrown back to where I used to live; a city in the human world. Though thanks to some good luck and to some friends, we managed to escape and get back here to Gensokyo, a world where magic is dominant rather than science.

The two years since then have been fairly pleasant and uneventful in comparison, I?ve slowly managed to take control of the powers I was given, the manipulation of light, although I?m still considerably weak especially compared to most of Gensokyo?s inhabitants but that?s to be expected with my age, I suppose. That?s if you take Yuka into account, a youkai who?s over 1000 years old and one of the most powerful beings in existence. It might not sound it but her manipulation of flowers is much more formidable then you might first think.

Despite knowing her for two years now, she still remains as unpredictable as she was in day one. Her love for fighting and needless violence remains as strong as ever but she has her calm moments? rarely, but I guess that makes things more fun.

Enigmatically, in the last two years, the ancient youkai Yukari Yakumo, the single most powerful being alive, though Yuka doesn?t want to admit it, has become much less of a problem since the incident two years ago. I myself have very rarely seen her and even Reimu Hakurei, the Shrine Maiden of the Hakurei Shrine has mentioned she?s not been around much and that?s odd because the shrine was apparently her usual place to hang around.

Partly due to that, the last two years have gone by reasonably peaceful with only minor trouble caused mainly by Yuka, excluding the incidents. There seems to be some phenomenon in Gensokyo where there?s a potentially dangerous disaster occur every year, no exceptions. Sometimes even twice a year, as I discovered first hand when Gensokyo suffered earthquakes so powerful they levelled the Hakurei Shrine. They turned out to be caused by a Celestial by the name of Tenshi Hinawai, making it the second accident of that year; the first being a shrine appearing on the youkai mountain and trying to become the dominant shrine, which left Reimu and Marisa Kirisame, a witch and Yuka?s distant descendant, to resolve it as they do with every single incident that occurs. Last year?s incident involved spirits appearing out of the ground and Reimu explained she went underground and fought against a nuclear crow or something along those lines. I?m fairly glad that she hasn?t met Yuka yet or there might be some serious problems at hand.

This year?s disaster hasn?t occurred yet. I can?t say I look forward to them but they?re not so bad, it?s usually a case of sitting around until the shrine maiden does her job unless Yuka gets the idea to join in as it?s been recorded in the past. During the earthquake incident, Yuka theorised that a good lead would be the manipulator of earth, Suwako Moriya, a goddess of the Moriya Shrine, and went to fight her. She soon got stuck in a fight against all three of the shrine?s residents until they were interrupted by another earthquake and watched as the Hakurei Shrine collapsed again. With the shrine?s collapsed so did the fight and it simply turned into a peaceful event of drinking tea while watching the Hakurei Shrine Maiden fight against those who had just destroyed her shrine for the second time.

That?s pretty much how life is in Gensokyo, no matter how bad things get, there?s always a happy ending and you sit beside your former enemy as a friend. It?s strange but it?s true, and that?s one of the reasons I took the choice to kill myself in the human world, those two distant years ago to become a youkai in Gensokyo.
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (RiG2 completed!)
Post by: Mima on September 14, 2009, 09:22:59 PM: Chapter 1

After a few minutes, I was finally in a state in which to go downstairs which was wearing my usual dress style. Originally, I wore a blue dinner suit style outfit which was chosen by Yuka back when I was human but once I had become a youkai I decided I?d prefer something a little less formal but something that?d still keep Yuka happy. The result ended up being a long-sleeved white shirt covered by a short-sleeved blue jacket and also blue trousers, the blue clothes ended up having the same pattern Yuka has on almost everything, a fairly simple squares pattern with the outlines of the squares just being a darker variation of the colour. After Yuka was finally happy with the final design of my new outfit, I realised it bared much more resemblance to Yuka?s but since we were often referred to as a duo now, I guess it?s alright.

Walking left out of my room, I found myself in the lobby of the mansion. The mansion Yuka and I lived in is located in a dream world, slightly divided from Gensokyo and since it?s technically Yuka?s dream world it means that pretty much everything in the dream world was under her control. The result being that the mansion contained quite a lot of bright colours and the square pattern of hers, but it was nothing to complain about.

It became apparent right away that Yuka wasn?t anywhere in the lobby, as to be expected from her reaction to the suggested trip to the doctor?s. I gave a little yell of her name to try and get a response, but to no prevail.

The parasol she always carried around with her was still beside the front door which told me that she was still inside so I descended the closer flight of stairs to the ground floor and wandered through one of the archways, the one that headed towards the dining room.

To no surprise, Yuka was sat at the dining table drinking a cup of tea and looked at me as I entered. ?Here you are.? I said as I walked in.

?And?? The youkai replied before picking up her cup from the saucer and taking another drink.

?Well, we?re going to the doctor?s, aren?t we?? I grinned again.

Yuka sneered and took another sip. ?On your own.?

?I?m not the ill one, you are.? I answered back.

?I?m fine.? The youkai said as she brushed some hair away from her eyes.

I gave a loud sigh. ?Come on.?

?No.?

?I won?t stop you if you choose to beat up Eirin or whoever else is there.? I smirked.

?Hmm, it has been a few months since I fought her and if it?ll shut your annoying self up, I?ll play along.? She grumbled as she finished her tea and stood up, followed by another series of sneezes. ?Don?t say it.? Yuka stopped me before I could speak.

I followed her as she walked through the archway to the entrance of the mansion and picked up her usual parasol. ?You coming or not??

?Of course.? I replied.

Yuka answered by opening her pinkish-white parasol and walked through the front door, leaving me to follow and close the door behind me.

It only took a few seconds to catch up for her as she marched down the path from the mansion. This path was the most abused part of the dream world, she?d always change the length depends on her mood; if she was talkative the path would be fairly long and so allowing plenty of time otherwise she?d cut it short, today being the latter of the two.

Due to the length, it wasn?t long before we walked past the only other structure in the dream world, a small house with a little patio watching over the pathway. This house belonged to Elly, the gate-guard of the dream world. She looks quite intimidating with her large scythe and blood red clothes, but she?s actually very friendly but unlike another gatekeeper in Gensokyo, she does a fairly good job at denying entry. Although in a place like this, it?s usually just a certain fairy and her friends who try to enter.

?Morning, Elly.? I spoke out as we walked by, unsure if she?d noticed us since she was currently sat reading a book.

?G?morning, you two.? The gate-guard looked up with a confident, cheerful grin.?Going off already??

?Yep.? I answered, unsure on whether Yuka would like me advertising that she was ill which I doubted.

?Alright then, see you both later.? Elly smiled before looking down at her book again.

Yuka had already taken a head start when I turned and looked, so I picked up the pace to catch up with her when Elly called, ?Oh yeah! Happy birthday!?

?Oh, uh, thanks!? I shouted back awkwardly.

As I was walking beside the flower youkai I thought out loud. ?I wonder how she knew it was my birthday.?

?She probably has a calendar, they tell you things like that.? Yuka commented.

?Yes, thanks. I know what a calendar is.? I groaned.

The pathway came to an end and as always there was stood a swirling yellow portal, just stood by itself. It was mostly yellow due to what was on the other side of the portal and as normal, Yuka and I just strolled through casually, instantly walking out into a large field that was covered in sunflowers.
Yuka spent quite a lot of time in this field; with her manipulation of flowers she often takes care of the sunflowers as well as the other types which grow around the area. It?s also the worst place to fight her excluding her dream world since effectively every one of the flowers can become a weapon to her, I witnessed that power personally when she fought a mentally unstable vampire and won by turning thousands of flowers into something that was effectively a tornado of blades, almost mutilating her.

Our first destination was the human village; the rabbits of Eientei run a shop there selling medical supplies, which on occasions also had the doctor, Eirin Yagokoro doing work there though her schedule was known to be unpredictable so you?d never know if she was there or not until you actually went to look. Fortunately, the human village was only a short flight up a slight incline from the flower field.

Now hovering in midair, I spoke to Yuka. ?I wonder how Yumemi and Chiyuri are getting on??
?Who knows, but they seemed pretty content with things when we left them.? Yuka replied accompanied with a shrug.

Yumemi and Chiyuri were two scientists, the two who helped us to get back to Gensokyo when we were sent to the human world. Despite having the choice, they chose to stay back on Earth and see to personal business, stating they?d come to Gensokyo one day, when they died, which is usually an odd thing to say had I not personally gone though exactly that.

?They?re probably having a laugh rubbing their findings in everyone?s face.? I casually spoke out. ?I know I would if I was them.?

For the rest of the short journey, Yuka and I flew in general silence, most likely due to the two of us thinking back to that time two years ago.
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (RiG2 completed!)
Post by: Mima on September 14, 2009, 09:23:19 PM: Chapter 2

Arriving at the village, there was the instant appearance of tension in the village, as always, because the feared ?Sleeping Terror? had just entered the village. The townspeople tried to go back to continuing what they were doing, running their shop stalls and general life while the two of us walked through the village, towards where the Eientei Medical Centre was located.

As part of the routine that usually occurred when Yuka entered the village, it wasn?t long before the unmistakeable figure of Keine Kamashirasawa appeared, most notable for the extremely odd box-like hat she wore on most occasions. To be honest, in the two years I?d been around, Yuka hadn?t done anything majorly rash and I guess Keine had realised the same, since the fashion of her appearance had degraded from a hasty run to that of a more watchful eye.

?Good morning Haru, Miss Kazami.? Keine nodded to the two of us as she announced our names.

?Hi, Keine.? I returned the greeting

?What brings the two of you here today?? Keine asked. ?If you?re here to see Akyu today, I?m afraid you won?t be able to, she?s got a bit of a cold and with her... condition.? Keine paused a moment, ?She has to be taken care of, I?m sure you understand.?

?Sad to hear that, but we?re on other business.? Again, I wasn?t sure if Yuka would enjoy me telling everyone that she was ill, so I kept my details to a minimum, ?So, yeah, where we?re heading is on the other side of town so-?

?AH-CHOO!? Yuka sneezed loudly again.

Keine immediately smiled a friendly smile at the red-dressed youkai, ?Oh, Miss Kazami, you don?t mean you?ve caught that cold as well??

Yuka merely made a sneering noise causing Keine to speak once more, ?I see, well, this that?s unfortunate.? There was a momentary pause, ?I?ll take a guess that you?re here for medicine or something similar then??

We started to continue walking through the streets, Keine on the other side of Yuka, most likely to stop her from branching away and causing havoc unnoticed, ?Yeah, that?s what I dragged her along for.? I grinned, ?She?s not too keen on the idea, though.?

Keine laughed lightly, ?Well, no one likes to see the doctor.? There was a short pause, ?But, it?s something you must do if you?re ill, so make sure you go, Miss Kazami!?

Yuka simply didn?t respond and minded her own business.

The reason Keine asked if I was here to see Akyu is because it?s what I mostly do when I visit the village, Hieda no Akyu is a writer, with the memories of her previous incarnations and the ability to remember everything, which makes her a primary source of information, since she writes the Gensokyo Chronicle, a volume of books which contain the details of all youkai and locations of note.

So, what started off as just occasional trips to her acquire knowledge of my new homeland soon changed once I have learnt all I could, from then one, the roles reversed slightly, and I?d return every now and then to tell Akyu of the adventures I?d experienced and the youkai and humans I?d met, which she then recorded for her works. Being such a figure of importance, she was restricted in her movements, as well as her condition, Akyu?s blessing also carries a curse, every reincarnation she goes through, her life span shortens, which generally makes her more and more unhealthy, and in the incidents she gets ill, she gets the best care she could in case it?s an attempt on her life.

Some small chat took place in the short walk through the village until Keine coughed to clear her throat, ?Well, this is the street you need, it?s that white building with the bamboo by the front that you need, I need to go this way for some other business.? She pointed down a street adjacent to the one we needed. ?So, I hope you get on well Miss Kazami and maybe I?ll see the two of you later. Oh, and happy birthday by the way, Haru!?

I spoke quite surprised, ?You remembered too? Am I the only one who didn?t??

Keine giggled discreetly, ?Well, I am a historian after all; I have to remember dates and events, good bye!? With that said, the woman walked away, her large blue frilly dress dominating the small street she headed down.

I turned to the flower youkai, ?May as well get this over with.?

?You make it sound like you?re the one who?s got to go through with this.? Yuka growled slightly.

?Relax, just kidding, it?ll be fine.? I laughed somewhat.

Yuka sneered unhappily and paced down the street at a considerable pace and stopped outside the bamboo-clad building, by the time I had started to walk after her and caught up, she had turned to me with a grin, ?Yes, looks like everything is fine.?

?What?? I asked as I approached, before noticing the building was completely closed, a look through the window showed the lights were turned off and obviously no one was in there, I also noticed a note on the front door which I stepped towards and read out loud.

?Due to unforeseen consequences, the Eientei Medical Centre is closed until further notice-?

?See, looks like we?re just going to have to go home!? Yuka cheered as she interrupted.

I raised my voice, ?-The centre?s services however are running as usual, Ms Fujiwara will come here every hour, on the hour to escort any who need assistance to our main base at Eientei.? I grinned at Yuka, ?Looks like we?re just going to have to take a detour and find Eientei, I don?t think I?ve ever been there, even with you.?

?Not much to see there, rabbits, bamboo, not interesting.? Yuka tried to brush the suggestion aside.

?Well, we?ll just have to put up with it, since we?ve got to go there.? I grinned.

Yuka rolled her eyes, ?You?re being quite persistent on what to do, today.?

I looked up, ?Well, it?s like everyone is saying, it?s supposedly my birthday so we do what I say.?

Yuka stared at me, ?Is that so? I?ll just keep that in mind for when it?s mine then.? She finished the sentence with a crack of her knuckles.

I quickly spoke, ?When is your birthday? You?ve never actually said.?

Yuka flashed a devilish smile at me, ?Oh, you?ll know when it comes.?

?Well that?s not fair, you could be lying.? I objected.

?Life isn?t fair, little Haru.? She spoke in a patronising tone and sarcastically patted my head. ?Well then, let?s go.?

Yuka headed straight towards the piece of forest that was nearby, which didn?t make much sense, since Eientei was hidden deep within the bamboo forest, which I?d never entered but had seen form the small hill that Yuka?s flower field is placed.

?Isn?t the bamboo forest over that way?? I questioned, pointing to our left, I thought this way headed to the shrine.

?This way will probably be quicker in the long run, and it?s nice to have a change of scenery. Having a crowd of humans watching you while you walk gets quite irritating, especially since you can?t do anything back to them like-?

?I get the message, Yuka.? I forwarded with a sigh.

I caught up and walked alongside Yuka as we entered the forest of magic. The Forest of Magic was a mostly uninteresting part of Gensokyo, despite taking up quite a large portion of it. There was very little of interest inside the forest minus a few residences belonging to magicians, Marisa Kirisame and Alice Margatroid, other than that it was just a lot of densely packed trees and wild youkai making it a naturally dark and potentially dangerous area, although wild youkai are among the weakest of the youkai, so even I?d stand a chance against one in combat but on the bright side, wild youkai only tend to attack lone humans which makes things a little safer for me, plus of course I also have the violence-loving flower youkai with me, who?d be more then eager to fight in my stead.

As we slowly got deeper and deeper into the forest, and the density of the nature rose, the canopy of leaves slowly began to cause the visibility to wane, being a youkai of the nature I am, I tend to notice these things a lot faster, considering my power depends on light, but a minute or so later, Yuka finally noticed and let me know about it, as she usually does when something?s wrong.

?Haru, it?s getting dark now, make yourself useful.? She said, as she closed her parasol and simply held it resting on her shoulder.

?If I must.? I mumbled quietly, and held out my arm, hand pointing up, and began to channel some light and concentrate it, mostly through the canopy of the trees until a decently sized orb of light was just floating above my hand. With such a large density of light it acted as a sort of high-powered torch or lamp, causing the forest to dramatically light up around us. One of the more practical non-combat uses I had found for my ability.

With the new source of light, the walk continued on as any other normal walk would be like, that is until, after a good 10 minutes of walking, and just as the scenery had changed to that of bamboo, Yuka froze.

?What?s the matter, Yuka?? I asked, slightly puzzled.

?Something?s watching us. It?s been watching us for a while now, but, something doesn?t feel right.? Yuka spoke normally, ?Can?t you sense it.?

?Nah, I?ve not got as far as that when it comes to developing as a youkai.? I laughed.

Yuka sneered, ?Useless.? Taking a look around to her left, and then her right, Yuka frowned, ?It?s strange, I don?t recognise it the energy.?

I didn?t know what to say, so I merely stayed silent, until rustling caught my attention, causing Yuka and I to both look at some bushes, and to my surprise, I saw Wriggle Nightbug walk, or even shuffle out towards us slowly.
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (RiG2 completed!)
Post by: Mima on September 14, 2009, 09:23:45 PM: Chapter 3

I sighed, ?It?s only Wriggle. You got me worried for a moment there.? Wriggle Nightbug, as her name suggests is an insect youkai, and like insects generally are to other creatures, she?s not the strongest youkai in Gensokyo, she?s well known for hanging around in a certain group, however she?s among the most mature and smart of said group making her a bit more approachable then others. Generally, I get on well with everyone in that group, there have been a few pranks and games that have happened in the past but nothing too major, plus, their general weaker fighting ability and the friendship I have with them allowed me to spar against someone a little less overpowering then Yuka.

I noticed Wriggle was still walking towards us, so I called out, ?Hey Wriggle, what?s up?? I moved my leg to begin walking to her when Yuka?s arm shot out in front of me.

?Stop.? Yuka ordered.

I looked at her, ?What?s wrong with you? It?s only Wriggle.?

Yuka put her face close to mine, and spoke in a cold voice, ?You might not be capable of sensing energies, but I can. And I can tell something is wrong, so don?t doubt me. Okay??

?S-sure.? I muttered quickly, stepping back slightly.

As Wriggle continued to approach I got a better look at her, nothing seemed different, her usual outfit that consists of a fairly simple white button-up shirt, blue-black shorts and a cape of the same colour which ends in two points, almost like the wings of an insect. Her hair was a darker green then Yuka?s, and shorter too giving her a quite tomboyish appearance, the only thing that struck me as odd were the colour of her eyes, which were a pinkish-purple colour, I?d always recalled them being green or maybe blue, but I?m rather careless about minor details such as that, so I could be mistaken.

A few metres away, Wriggle suddenly froze, and suddenly threw her arm out in front of her and began to throw a wave of bullets at us.

?Just as I thought!? Yuka said, and she jumped back several metres before sizing the bullets up and charging back forwards, weaving gracefully between them. Slowly and a little more clumsily, I did the same but unlike Yuka, as I travelled forwards I launched one of two orbs of light, which headed straight at Wriggle who made no effort to dodge, and took the blows but didn?t seem to care that much.

?What the hell is going on?? I shouted at Yuka, who just cursed at me in return.

The insect went into a lower stance before pouncing towards us in small leaps, to which I replied by causing slanted pillars of light to appear between the two of us, a move I?d learnt was effective against Yuka to the extent it makes the incoming pain lose a little bit of momentum and speed, and could even put off weaker youkai... but that wasn?t the case this time, somehow Wriggle managed to charge and weave through the pillars like they were nothing and then prepared to strike finalising in one final, large pounce at me.

Fortunately the blow never came, the first move I ever learnt I had, back in the human world incident, was also one of my most cherished, a complete wall of light appeared in front of me which Wriggle slammed into and as I intensified the light, it actually seemed to cause Wriggle some distress, but not a huge deal.

I wish I knew what was going on.

?Now.? Yuka?s voice commanded.

With a nod, I caused the barrier to completely disappear and not a second later, Wriggle fell to the ground, closely followed by Yuka?s heel which had just collided with the back of Wriggle?s head.

Yuka smiled to herself as she looked down on the still insect youkai before commenting, ?Well, that takes care of that.?

I replied with a shrug, ?If you say so.? Not only was Yuka one of the strongest youkai when it came to magic, she was equally powerful when it came to physical combat, and it?s true a kick like that could leave you unconscious for a few hours.

?Well, let?s leave, I don?t wish to linger around that... demented little youkai.? Yuka added, as she began to walk away.

As we walked through alongside a length of bamboo shoots, I opened my mouth to speak, ?So, what-?

?I have no idea, before you ask me.? Yuka cut me short.

We continued to walk in silence, while I silently thought of an explanation of what just happened, but came nowhere close. Somehow, a generally weak youkai suddenly gained considerable skill when it came to dodging and a general lack of... any sense.

?She?s back again.? Yuka announced, almost at a whisper.

?Wriggle?? I quickly asked.

Yuka nodded to answer the question. ?She?s approaching fairly fast, just do the same again, if you will, I?ll sort her out this time.? She ended her sentence with her usual evil grin as she continued walking beside me.

Although I couldn?t sense a youkai?s energy yet, I had my other, slightly enhanced senses, in this case, hearing made her approach very recognisable.

Get ready; she?s most likely going to pounce, so wait until her footsteps? patterns begin to change.

Now.

Immediately I swung around and threw another wall of light up but was horrified to see that Wriggle had foreseen the move and had jumped to the side and was now circling to flank me.

In the small time I took to shift my arms around, Wriggle was already in my face, attacking me, swiping her claws towards my face. Taken off-guard, I leant back to dodge the slashes but as her attacks continued without any sign of stopping I lost my balance and fell backwards to the ground.

Fortunately, that was actually the window I needed, since the small distance that just formed allowed me to comfortably place a wall between us causing Wriggle once again to jump into it, this time causing her to emit a horrible shriek.

?Haru, now.? Yuka spoke calmly.

I nodded my head as I let the wall disappear, but before Wriggle could regain her senses, Yuka stepped up to her, grabbed her and threw her quite a distance into the air, as the insect was being pulled back by gravity, Yuka lightly tossed the parasol from one hand to the other, pointed it towards Wriggle and laughed as a gigantic laser fired from the tip of the parasol, the well-known spell Master Spark famous for its sheer power, and one of Yuka?s favourite spells, possibly for that reason.

As I expected, Wriggle didn?t respond after being hit by such an attack, her still body crashed to the ground a couple of metres away and remained still, of course, any ?normal? creature would have certainly died from that, but youkai are resilient creatures, able to withstand ridiculous amounts of damage and recover just fine, such as when I witnessed Yuka have her arm blown clean off only to have it recovered the next morning.

?Nice of you to only step in at the end.? I commented as I brushed the dust off me from where I had fallen over.

?You need the practice, I don?t.? She spoke in an elitist voice. ?Now, let?s go, we should see Eientei any minute soon.?

I walked alongside Yuka until we were close to getting out of the clearing, when Yuka spun around and growled, ?What now!??

But this time, Wriggle was moving, but someone, no, something was moving around her, some strange purple, or maybe pink thing, not quite a mist, but very close to something like it rose from the youkai and hovered in the air.

Just before I was about to say something, Yuka asked the question for me, ?What the hell is that??

As though a trigger, the moment Yuka spoke, the strange thing sprung to life, shooting into a thick patch of bamboo, spiralling it a few times and then weaving between bamboo in our direction.

?Yuka, I really don?t think that?s friendly.? I said, slightly panicked.

?Obviously.? She snapped back.

Yuka stepped forward and fired a barrage of large flowers towards the thing, but it took little effort for it to dodge through and continue its charge, as Yuka continued to open fire upon it, I knew I only had one thing that could possibly stop it, another wall.

Like I feared, the thing managed to get close, causing me to throw up another bright wall of light, which the thing slammed into at such a force that for a moment I felt the barrier struggle to hold but to my relief, after the momentum was gone, the creature merely made an even more horrific shriek then Wriggle a moment ago, and continued to do so.

Yuka for once just stood behind me, probably thinking the same thing I was, so I merely kept the defence up until the being let out a final alien scream and sped away into the bamboo.

?It?s gone.? Yuka announced, before I slumped to the ground, quite exhausted from maintaining the light manipulation I?d been using.

?That thing, did it come from Wriggle, is that what made her wrong?? I questioned, slightly out of breath.

?I believe so, I have no idea what it was though, and it definitely wasn?t a youkai.? Yuka answered, quite seriously. ?Well, the insect is alive, but she?s going to be out for a while I?d say, so let?s just get out of here.?

?I can agree to that.? I said, as I roughly picked myself up again and walked with Yuka the rest of the journey to Eientei.
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (RiG2 completed!)
Post by: Mima on September 14, 2009, 09:24:00 PM: Chapter 4

After what felt like too long, I finally found myself able to see an aged looking Japanese style building in the midst of the now dense bamboo.

As it always seems to happen when with Yuka, as we approached the building, someone ran out towards us, looking slightly stressed with the situation, but then, if I didn?t know Yuka much and I saw her approaching my residence, I?d get stressed too.

It was easy to tell from the start, due to the ears, that it was a rabbit approaching, and the only two rabbits with any authority was either Reisen Udongein Inaba or Tewi Inaba, however her height confirmed she was the former and soon enough, it was confirmed when she was close enough to see properly, due to the general low light of the forest.

?Hello...? The moon rabbit in front of us spoke cautiously as she approached us, by the looks of it she was wearing her usual outfit, which was a black business suit style top covering a white shirt, also she was wearing a dark-lavender dress which over all gave her the appearance of an office worker or something similar.

Her hair was a very bright purple which trailed far behind her, past her hips and on her head there were her rabbit ears, they?re quite different to all the other rabbit?s ears, but that just supports the fact she?s a rabbit from the moon, not the earth like all the other rabbits of which Eientei?s workforce consisted of.

?Can I help you?? She continued, sounding as formal as she could.

I replied, giving no effort to sound formal like she was, trying to give her the impression not to be either, ?Well, yes. We?re here to see Eirin. The sign at your shop said to come here.?

Realisation hit the rabbit, ?Ah! I see! So, you?re... here regarding medical business...??

And not to destroy the place. I finished the sentence in my head.

?Yep, we could use some help.? I replied again, since I knew Yuka wouldn?t do explain anything herself.

Reisen nodded, ?I see, well, please follow me. Stick close, in case any of the rabbits try anything funny.? As she said that, her infamous red eyes quickly scanned the area, presumably for any of the tricksters she just mentioned. Reisen?s eyes are infamous because they have the ability to basically make you hallucinate and all sorts of weird stuff like that, I?ve been fortunate enough to not experience it so I don?t know how to best describe it, but I hear losing one?s sanity is a good way to do so.

Once we?d entered the actual mansion itself, there continued to be a mysterious feeling, but then, all new locations carry that feeling, and the rarity of being in such a place probably exaggerated my feelings. The building itself, was as you?d expect, very old fashioned building, made primarily of bamboo and wood. As we walked through the maze-like corridors, various rabbits ran by with various items for who knows what purposes, but fortunately none of them seemed very malicious.

As we turned another corner, I noticed that one of the doors had a couple of chairs beside it, possibly being a makeshift waiting room, this was confirmed when, as we reached the door, the moon rabbit knocked on the door.

?Yes?? A distant voice called from behind the door.

Reisen spoke louder than usual at the door, ?Master, you have a... patient here to see you.?

?Very well, please send them in Udonge.? The voice ordered.

?I shall take my leave now, I?m fairly sure those rabbits are up to something...? Reisen?s voice drifted off to thoughtful tone, as though anticipating the rabbits? next move. She quickly opened the door, gave a slight bow and then chased after a rabbit that ran by, with a cry, ?Hey! Where do you think you?re taking that!??

I slowly entered the door, briefly pulling Yuka?s sleeve since she wasn?t following me which caused her to growl quietly and stomp in after me which caused the red and blue clad woman at the desk to turn around to look at us.

?Well, well. This is quite the surprise.? She spoke with a tone of false shock, before moving her hands along the sides of her head to brush her bright silver hair back.

Eirin Yagokoro was originally a person of note on the moon, but due to some historical mishaps and such, she ended up residing in Gensokyo running Eientei. Some say that it?s Kaguya Houraisen that?s the one in charge of Eientei, but anyone who?s seen the two with their own eyes will know that it?s the genius in front of us that?s actually running things. Eirin specialises in the medical line of work, as you would guess from the medical store and such, but she?s probably the single greatest doctor there will ever be, especially since she created the cure for death. Kaguya, her rival Mokou and maybe even Eirin herself, are all immortal due to a potion that she created once, the Hourai elixir, and because they consumed it, they?re cursed to wander the world forever, even if they get absolutely butchered, somehow, they?re restored to normal, it makes me wonder if there?s a cure to the cure to death.

?So, to what do I owe this honour?? The doctor smirked, ?It?s not every day that a youkai of your... status... comes here nicely.?

?Stop with the theatrics.? Yuka spoke.

Eirin chuckled, ?I see, that?s how it is.?

Wait, what? Trouble after just one sentence... That must be a record for even Yuka.

?Your voice has a slight rasp tone, caused usually by something such as the common cold located primarily in the throat or even chest.? Eirin continued to talk.

?So, the mighty Yuka Kazami, the unstoppable Youkai, has contracted something as worthless as a common cold.?

?Shut up, before I make you.? Yuka snapped back.

Eirin chuckled again, ?It?s not stopped your feistiness though, has it? Maybe time is finally catching up and your age is taking its toll.?

There weren?t any signs of it, but Yuka was probably close to just losing it, being the short-tempered person she is. Fortunately, I think Eirin managed to see that as well since she interrupted the awkwardness with a slightly more welcoming voice, ?Please, sit down, I won?t be a moment.?

As we slowly made our way over, Eirin stood up from her desk and walked through a doorway opposite where we had entered the room. The noise of glass gently hitting other glass rung through the room for a few minutes until Eirin finally reappeared, holding a tray with several glass flasks of oddly coloured chemicals.

?I shall spare you the humiliation of diagnosing the problem and your physical condition, I have a good idea already from our previous encounters which I can?t say were as... civilised.? Eirin chuckled quietly to herself. ?I shall also presume that you want this ailment cured as soon as possible. Well, I have just the thing.? Her chuckling suddenly got a lot darker.

In front of us, at a table facing us, Eirin started with a small vial and a flask filled with a thick red liquid that looked like blood but seemed to be a bit thicker. Regardless of what it was, she poured in a quarter of the vial and then immediately poured in a few drops of a thin green liquid, followed by a pink and then another red liquid, thinner than the previous liquids.

With that, Eirin seemed content and shook the vial lighter in her hand for a moment eventually she looked at the vial and gave herself a nod of approval and with that, she held the vial out to the two of us, of course as I expected, I was the only one who made an effort to obtain it.

?I?m not drinking that; it could be some damn poison or something.? Yuka immediately complained.

Eirin simply returned a grin, ?Trust me, I?m a doctor.?

There was a moment where simply nothing happened, no one spoke or moved at all, I wasn?t sure what to do.

?Well, it?s simple... Miss Kazami. You ingest that vial as it is, or I?ll simply introduce it to your system with this.? Eirin?s grin had grown larger as she sat there playing with a syringe.

Yuka snapped back again, ?Don?t you dare come near me with that.?

Yuka is afraid of needles? Surely not.

?One or the other.? Eirin spoke with a whimsical tone.

Fortunately there wasn?t another awkward silence, instead Yuka immediately growled, ?Fine, just give me the damn thing.?

I held out my arm slightly and immediately Yuka reached over and snatched the vial from it. ?This had better be what you say, or you?ll have hell to pay.?

?You should hope it?s what I said, or you could be one dead youkai.? She laughed for a moment, arms folded.

Yuka hesitated for a moment, but then suddenly pushed her head back and drunk the rather unpleasant looking liquid.

?Well?? I asked.

?Nothing.? Yuka shrugged.

?Give it a moment.? Eirin spoke.

Yuka yelped in pain and reached for her chest to which I sprung out of my seat and ran to her, ?W-What the hell is this! C-c-chest burning, Yagokoro... you...?

?Hush now, Miss Kazami, good medicine is usually the most unpleasant. I assure you nothing is wrong. Hopefully.? I noticed she added that final word on just to add uneasiness. ?Your cells are just being pushed to the point that the chemicals will just, well, get rid of them to put it simple. The inferior virus won?t be so lucky and it?ll be simply destroyed.? Throughout the speech, Yuka continued to writhe in pain until a minute or so later, she started to calm down a little.

?How are you feeling now?? I said quietly.

Yuka took a breath, ?To be honest? Worst than when I came in.?

Eirin stood up one again and walked over to the desk she was working at when we entered and began jotting something down and something began to make me wonder if Yuka had just been used as a test subject, but I decided for everyone?s sake not to raise the issue.

Eirin walked back to face us, ?You might suffer some weakness due to the intensity of what you just took, but rest assured that you?ll be back to your usual self by... at least tonight.

Yuka displayed that she was feeling better by growling again, ?Tonight?? She weakly slammed her fist on the arm of the chair she was sat in. She looked at me, ?I wanted to hunt that thing we saw.?

Eirin sneered, ?What thing??

I answered quickly to stop Yuka from saying anything potentially unpleasant, ?Just some weird purple-pink cloud thing, it was doing something to Wriggle Nightbug and then tried to attack us, but it fled and we came straight here.?

Eirin closed her eyes for a moment, ?I see, and since your appearance isn?t... highly presentable...? I realized at that point that the fall in the fight earlier and caused me to get a slight bit more dirt on me then I?d first seen. ?...I will take a shot in the dark and say that you got into a fight with this Nightbug??

I nodded in response.

?Did she seem normal?? Eirin asked, still serious.

?Completely feral.? I replied.

?Intriguing. Very intriguing.? Eirin commented.

I looked out the corner of my eye to see that Yuka was starting to look a bit more active, clenching her fist and such. ?Does that mean anything to you?? I asked Eirin.

?As a matter of fact, yes, it does.? Eirin looked away slightly. ?A few days ago, one of the rabbits here went, well, insane. I thought Udonge had been abusing her powers and may or may not have made her take a medicine similar to the one Miss Kazami took, albeit a bit less stable.?

A glance at Yuka showed that she might have caught on that the medicine she took was unfinished.

?The rabbit attacked other rabbits and eventually was chased off into the forest, a day or so later the rabbit returned, looking in quite a... burnt state and with no recollection of the events. I?m sure that she had run into an encounter with a certain Fujiwara but we learnt nothing of it. But what I?m getting at is maybe there?s a good chance our incidents are connected, that... ?cloud? as you put it, could possibly be behind this incident too, which begs the question, what is it??

Eirin turned to look at Yuka, who was just beginning to get out of her seat and stand up, ?Now, doctor?s orders, no chasing after that thing today, okay?? The doctor once again stood up and retrieved another book and began writing something into it, ?I?ll assign some rabbits to keep an eye up for anything like a, purple-pink cloud, to quote you, or any youkai behaving erratically.?

Yuka, now stood up, but still a bit wobbly spoke, ?Come on Haru, let?s leave.?

Eirin grinned, ?Be sure to get plenty of rest, and as a favour of bringing this to my attention I shall inform you if anything interesting comes up.?

I nodded, ?Fine, well, thanks for things Dr Yagokoro.? I said, as I followed Yuka who was now leaving the room by herself.

?No problem, have a safe journey.? She called after us, after which I closed the door and easily caught up with Yuka.

I looked at Yuka, who didn?t look to be in her best shape, ?How are you feeling now.?

?How do you think? Awful. I feel even worse than before I took the damn medicine.? She mumbled quietly.

I walked alongside Yuka, who seemed to know which way to go through the mansion?s corridors in order to find the way out, whether she remembered them when she entered or previous visits here, I?ll probably never know. But in the end, we stood outside, back in the dark bamboo forest.

?Before you ask, we?re going to Mugenkan, I need a nap.? Yuka continued to speak, ?And make yourself useful, carry this while I don?t need it.? She lazily passed her parasol to me.

From then on, the rest of the journey was what Yuka had wanted, a simple, uneventful journey back to Mugenkan.
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (RiG2 completed!)
Post by: Mima on September 14, 2009, 09:24:18 PM: Chapter 5

For the last few hours, Yuka had retreated to her room leaving me with very little to do, at one point I considered going to see if I could access Akyu?s works to see if I could find anything about the strange entity we encountered, but in the end I ended up just sitting around Mugenkan, or rather on the roof of the mansion.

Since I could fly it wasn?t hard to actually get up there, and almost passively using my ability made sure it never got too dark or cold up there. The higher altitude gave quite a breathtaking view of the rainbow coloured flower fields and on occasion it was just so relaxing up there I could get some thinking done, but that wasn?t the case in this instance.

As the sun was starting to set, as suggested by the fact it was harder to maintain a good level of light so I began to consider whether or not to go inside but my thoughts were stopped prematurely.

?Hey! What are you doing up there again?? An all too well-known voice shouted.

Standing up, I took a jump off the roof, applying some flight near the end to make sure I didn?t slam into the ground like I had on previous attempts, and fortunately found myself landing in front of the much better looking Yuka.

?How are you feeling now?? I asked as I landed.

?Better.? Yuka replied simply.

I grinned, ?You mean the medicine you doubted so much worked??

?I think all I needed was a good sleep.? Yuka replied with a straight face causing me to sigh loudly.

?So, what are you doing up? The doctor told you to rest.? I waved my finger jokingly.

?Oh be quiet. As a matter of fact, we?re going out.? Yuka spoke, leaning casually on her parasol.

Why she needs a parasol when it?s getting dark, I don?t know. But then again, she?s probably hoping for a fight.

?Going where?? I asked.

Yuka waved her hand, ?Oh, nothing big, I just feel like going out.?

?If you say so.? I replied, partly because I was fairly bored myself.

Yuka nodded, ?Well then, what are we waiting for?? With that said she turned away and began her stroll down the path from the mansion, shortly followed by myself.

As we wandered down the rather colourful path, as helped by the flowers either side, Yuka asked a question, ?So, you mean that say, that while I was napping, you did nothing but sit on that roof??

?Pretty much.? I replied, with a yawn.

Yuka playfully sighed, ?So boring, can?t you do anything without me??

?Obviously not.? I said sarcastically.

Yuka chuckled a little and continued walking with me, and as usual, she entered the portal a moment before me, and we emerged outside, in the darkening flower field.

?It certainly is becoming winter.? Yuka mused out loud.

I looked at Yuka, ?What makes you say that??

?Just check the time, it?s only about 6 o?clock and it?s already getting dark, not long ago we had far more hours of light.? Yuka replied.

?Ah, I see.? I commented, ?So, are you going to tell me where we?re going??

?Nowhere special, don?t get too panicky.? Yuka remarked mockingly.

It became pretty clear where we were heading after Yuka began to head in the direction she was, there were only two things in that direction, a rather small and sparse part of the forest of magic and the Hakurei Shrine, the latter being the most likely destination.

Despite the Hakurei Shrine being home to the infamous Reimu Hakurei, the one responsible for exterminating youkai and resolving disasters, I found myself spending a lot of time there, as did many other youkai. It?s quite a nice place really.

As we flew over the forest, I wondered for a moment if that entity from before would appear, but this time I kept hopeful and fortunately, there wasn?t anything eventful happen in the reasonably short cruise.

As we approached the shrine I couldn?t see anyone, but Yuka didn?t seem that concerned, so I just followed her.

Suddenly, Yuka spun backwards and faced down with her parasol open as a figure sprung from the trees below, catching me completely off guard.

?Wait a second! You ain?t who we?re after!? The approaching figure suddenly froze in a few metres from Yuka, showing who it was, Marisa Kirisame, clad in her usual blue and white, somewhat over-sized witch costume complete with broom, on which she rode.

Another figure quickly approached from where Marisa appeared from, ?Marisa, you need to stop being so hasty and try assessing a situation.? The voice, and soon after the unmistakeable figure showed it was Mima, Marisa?s mentor and also the goddess of the Hakurei Shrine as of two years a few days ago. Her figure is unmistakeable since due to her not only being a goddess, but she?s also a ghost, or a wandering soul, thus the lack of legs and instead a weird ghostly tail.

?Good evening Yuka, Haru.? She greeted. ?Sorry about the mix-up.? She laughed, as she lifted the pointed blue hat she wore, of which the colour and yellow sun-like patterns matched the dress-like robes she wore and scratched her green haired head.

?Why in Gensokyo were you both waiting down there?? Yuka asked.

?We were waiting to ambush someone, obviously!? Marisa replied.

Yuka wasn?t particularly fond of Marisa for one reason; Marisa has what could probably be described as minor kleptomania, and among the things she?s stolen includes one or two of Yuka?s spells which she then adopted as her trademark, so to speak, which didn?t please Yuka at all. Also technically Yuka is a very distant aunt to Marisa, spanning a roughly 1300 year gap, but I wasn?t sure where Yuka stood on that matter, she never likes to acknowledge her previous existence as a human.

?Marisa is right, that annoying little darkness youkai came by earlier and caused no end of trouble, so we were going wait until she came back and catch her off-guard.? Mima pointed at her apprentice, ?Her idea, not mine.?

Yuka sneered, ?And how long have you been down there??

?Three hours?? Marisa guessed. I noticed Yuka had an expression that showed she was laughing in her mind.

?Anyway, I?m heading back to the shrine, are you two coming?? Mima asked.

Yuka nodded, ?Of course.?

?I?m coming too!? Marisa shouted, and then zoomed off to the shrine.

Mima suddenly popped up between Yuka and I, and shouted, ?Well then! Let?s go!?

Despite Mima having a horrible history including being murdered and at one point vowing to destroy the Hakurei bloodline, at some point she lost her evilness and is actually quite friendly, and one of the few people who can mess around with Yuka, putting her as her best friend. They were unknowingly paired up having never met each other before to solve one of the incidents in Gensokyo and seem to have got on well.

?That darkness youkai, Mima, do you mean Rumia?? I asked.

Mima nodded slightly, ?Yeah, that might be it, wears black, short blonde hair.?

?It?s not usual for her to attack here of all places.? I stated.

?She didn?t seem to particularly care, just attacked out of the blue, in daylight to make things even more odd.? Mima answered.

I looked at Yuka, ?Do you think that thing is behind it??

?Quite likely.?

?Oh? What ?thing??? Mima questioned.

I shook my head slightly, ?We?ll tell you when we get to the shrine, Reimu and Marisa will probably want to hear this too.?

?If you say so...? Mima shrugged her shoulders.

Upon reaching the shrine, we found Reimu Hakurei, the famous shrine maiden casually sat by the shrine drinking tea, her usual pastime, while Marisa was a bit more laidback, literally, lying on her back possibly asleep, prompting Mima to make her metallic silver staff, with a crescent moon as the headpiece and prodded her, causing her to move.

?I?m awake! I?m awake!? The witch said as she sat up.

?Go and fetch us some tea.? Mima ordered.

Marisa rolled over, ?Hey Reimu, go get us some tea!?

?No.? The shrine maiden replied, still drinking tea casually.

Marisa groaned as she picked herself off the floor and walked off.

As she left, we all sat down on a ledge at the edge of the shrine where we sat fairly silent for a while until Yuka nudged Mima.

?You ought to watch him, I let him do what he wanted today for his birthday, and I end up spending half the day asleep, ill.? Yuka whispered, but loud enough for me to hear.

Mima grinned, ?That?s horrible, after all the care you?ve given him, he wants to watch you suffer.?

?I know, it?s saddening isn?t it.? Yuka grinned back.

?Stop making me look like the sick and twisted one!? I shouted slightly.

Yuka looked at me bemused, ?Oh, then who are you saying is sick and twisted??

But as I was about to mess up my answer, another voice interrupted, ?Hey, did she just say it?s his birthday??

?I?m pretty sure she did, Suika!? Another voice that I hadn?t heard before answered.

Mima cringed, ?I thought she was on holiday for another week.?

Out of nowhere, Suika and a new girl I hadn?t seen before, much taller than Suika, wearing a plain white shirt and a dark blue skirt, it was clear she was also an Oni like Suika since she was decorated in chains like Suika, and instead of the two horns Suika had, the new girl had a single red horn on her forehead.

Suika looked quite similar, wearing a pinkish shirt which had its sleeves torn off, and a purple dress rather than the dark blue worn by the other Oni. The only other difference was Suika?s hip-length orange hair compared to the other?s hip length blonde hair.

?Nothing like a good party to celebrate a birthday!? Suika shouted, presenting her purple gourd, an unlimited supply of sake.

?I?ll agree to that!? Said the other Oni, as she drunk from the red dish she was holding.

The two Oni?s pleasure was interrupted when Mima tapped her staff on the ground, ?And who might you be?? She aimed the question at the new Oni.

?Oh, I?m Yuugi Hoshiguma, want a drink?? She offered her dish in our general direction.

?She?s an Oni, just like me! We go way back!? Suika interrupted, now pretty much drinking non-stop.

Mima spoke again, ?Oh, she?s who you went to see??

?Yup! But I thought, why sit down there in the dark when we could be up here drinking with everyone!? Suika shouted. ?So I grabbed Yuugi and come back here!?

?Hey, Suika.? Yuugi bent down to Suika to speak in her ear, but spoke normally for some reason, letting us overhear. ?Where do you think the others are? They were following us earlier.?

?What others?!? Mima shouted, ?You mean you?ve invited even more people here?!?

Suika moved her hand reassuringly, ?Relax, there?ll only be, what, 4 more people at the most.? Suika looked around, ?See! There?s one here already!?

Suika began jumping and pointing in the direction of Reimu, and for a moment, I was just confused, until I noticed there was a black pile of fluff, an animal or some sort, asleep on her lap, whether she?d noticed or not I wasn?t sure since she was now reading a book.

?Hey! Orin, come over here!? Yuugi shouted.

From the pile of fur, a head emerged and looked in our direction and meowed, before slowly standing up and stretching and then bounded over to us, and meowed again.

?Heeey, how long you been cuddling Reimu for?? Suika asked, beginning to sound a little less sober.

The cat meowed again.

?Aww, come on, stop messing with us!?

The cat just began purring and lay down close to the three of us already sat down. I noticed then, that the cat not only had black fur, but also, unusually parts which were coloured red, not the mention the cat?s eyes were also red which instantly told there was more to this cat then meets the eye.

?Hey, I got the tea, but will someone help me!? Marisa cried from behind us.

As we looked, Marisa was trying to carry a tray filled with cups of tea which isn?t usually that hard a task, however the tray happened to have a black bird of some sort sitting on the edge of the tray, and not making life easy by circling around the tray causing balance to be all over the place.

?Go away!? Marisa shouted, weaving from side to side to keep balance.

I laughed a little, ?What an annoying crow.?

At that instance, the bird looked at me and flew off the tray, and in my direction, it didn?t take more than a couple of seconds for it to arrive and began pecking my head, quite painfully at that.

?Ow! What the hell!? Yuka give me a hand or something!? I shouted, trying to chase the bird away to little prevail.

Yuka sneered, ?Of course not, you were the one who insulted it.?

?How the hell did I insult it?!? I asked back.

?Well obviously it?s not a crow like you stated, it?s a raven.? Yuka spoke casually.

?Since when have you been a wildlife expert?? I asked again.

Yuka looked at me and grinned. ?Let?s not forget I?m more than a millennium older then you, I?ve had plenty of time.? She answered whimsically.

Not long after, the attacking on my head desisted, and the bird flew up and sat on the roof of the shrine, looking at it again, it looked like every other bird to me, with the exception of the fairly large green ribbon tied around its neck.

?Ahhh... Okuu why?d you hafta be so annoying all the time.? Yuugi spoke out, practically lying on a patch of grass now.

The raven simply cawed as a response, meanwhile I felt Yuka nudge me and she mumbled quietly, ?There?s a strong energy coming from the two, especially the crow, maybe tonight might be more entertaining than I thought.? She ended it with a quiet, sinister laugh.
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (RiG2 completed!)
Post by: Mima on September 14, 2009, 09:24:49 PM: Chapter 6

Reimu groaned in frustration and hissed, ?Not those two again.?

For a moment, I thought she was referring to the cat and raven that had appeared, Orin and Okuu apparently, but that didn?t seem to be a case, when I noticed two more newcomers approaching the shrine, this time however, they were both human, or at least appeared so. From the distance they were, one looked to be wearing a blue and white robe like outfit and had fairly short purple hair while the other wore a yellow jacket like coat and appeared to have silver hair, but vision was restricted lightly due to the large brimmed black hat she wore which had a small yellow ribbon tied around it.

At this moment I realised that these newcomers must have been those behind last year?s incident, neither Yuka or I had met them before now since they didn?t come to this year?s Reitaisai for an unknown reason and being dwellers of the underground, they?re not someone you simply walk into, but there has been rumours that one of the sisters occasionally hikes around Gensokyo relatively unnoticed due to her supposed ability to manipulate the subconscious. They were only rumours though, and due to their rarity there are no records of them, outside of the underworld anyway.

?Heya Reimu!? The one wearing yellow cheerfully shouted as she approached, ?Heya Marisa!?

?Hello.? Reimu replied in a monotone.

?Heya everyone else!? She shouted after Reimu was done.

?Uh, hi.? I said fairly quietly, much like everyone else did, except the two Oni who were now too intoxicated to be polite and shouted their greeting.

Now the duo were close up, I noticed something rather strange, the two of them had what first appeared like wires scattered over them, the pink haired one had red ones and the white haired one had blue, but then I noticed there was a large ball-like object over their heart, which made things even more confusing until I saw the more distant, pink-headed girl?s object was in fact an eye, the other?s must be the same, only the eye is closed, it was quite a weird sight.

The pink haired girl approached us, ?Good evening everyone.? She had a more serious tone then the other girl, who I presumed was her sister.

Once again, our group greeted her, and I noticed the eye on her chest was looking at all of us.

I wonder who they are.

The pink-haired girl cleared her throat quietly, ?My name is Satori Komeiji, this is my sister Koishi Komeiji, and I can see you?ve already met Orin and Okuu.? As she said that, the raven on top of the shrine flew down and perched on her head.

I looked at Yuka for a moment; she had a very slight grin on her face that could be interpreted as something villainous.

Looks like Yuka?s found someone new to fight.

Confusingly, Satori giggled for a brief moment before Mima spoke up, ?I?m Mima, the deity of this shrine, welcome! By the sounds of it you?ve Reimu, Marisa and... those two.? Mima?s voice drifted off as she looked at the two Oni who were just giggling hysterically. ?The only two you?ve not met are our friends, Yuka Kazami and Haru... Kazami?? Her voice rose a little at the end, making it a question, clearly she was unsure if I was considered an actual part of the Kazami house, which to be honest I didn?t know either, asking Yuka would just prompt either a threat or a riddle-like answer knowing her.

?Hey, you Oni, go and get some seats, we?re running out of room.? Mima ordered.

?Kayyyy!? They both shouted as they ran off rather unsteady, causing Mima to sigh.

Looking around quickly, the cat was still lying down doing very little, while Koishi was sat down near Reimu, talking to her about something.

Drinking some of the tea I was given earlier, I made sure to go slowly to try and make someone else bring up a conversation, and fortunately, someone did so.

?So, you were the ones, who nearly turned Genjii, into turtle soup, he wasn?t too pleased about his pond suddenly starting to boil.?

Satori laughed ominously, ?Hasn?t your maiden told you anything? It was her who heated things up.? She pointed at the bird sitting happily on her head. ?And it was her who sent all the spirits up.? She pointed at the cat.

I look a look at the cat, which rolled onto its side carelessly. ?I should also add that it Okuu mentioned it was gods from up here that made Okuu do what she did.?

Mima growled and muttered under her breath quietly, ?Those damn Moriya.?

The conversation stopped at that, until the Oni returned holding a tree each and slammed them onto the floor, narrowly missing Satori and causing the raven to protest loudly, and did nothing but cause the Oni to emit giggles, after a moment, Suika stood up off the freshly dropped tree and ran into the shrine.

I wonder what their powers are, I bet Yuka is probably wondering the same thing too.

They seem a bit creepy and weird really.

The pink-haired girl giggled at that moment for no apparent reason, which suddenly made me suspect something, but decided not to follow up for now.

?Come on, let?s drink, birthdays are for drinking!? Suika shouted, as she dived out of the shrine, holding a tray with a large amount of glasses on before carelessly waving her gourd around, messily filling the glasses, the tray and the immediately area in sake.

Yuugi jumped up at the sight and grabbed a glass, downing it in a second or so, as for me, I could stand the stuff a bit more then when I was a human, but I still couldn?t drink a great deal without the taste making me feel bad.

Oddly enough, as the Oni settled down a bit to the drinking, having left the glasses of sake alone for the other guests to prey upon, I notice that the cat which was sat beside me had got up and walked over to one of the glasses and begun to drink from it. After a few licks of the sake, it gave a cheerful meow prompting the bird to fly over and begin drinking from another glass next to the cat; they were obviously acquainted since other cats I?d met in my lives weren?t so happy to share company with a bird.

Fairly reluctantly, I reached for a glass as everyone else had by now and I slowly took a few sips of the drink, which stilled tasted as bad as I could remember, maybe it?s something you grow used to over a much longer time then I?ve been around for, like maybe a couple of hundred years.

Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed that, oddly enough, the cat and the raven were both oddly glowing red, for a moment I blamed the sake I was holding, but then realised I?d barely drunk anything and I didn?t get drunk that easily. To my surprise, although I should have seen it coming, as the glow intensified to the point you couldn?t see anything; the two animals were replaced with figures far more humanoid.

Where the cat once sat, there was now a bright red haired girl sat in its spot, obviously the same being due to the black cat ears and two tails she had, her hair was crafted into two braids, one down each side of her face and were tied together with a single black ribbon, her clothing was a strangely patterned dress, mostly black but contained some green for the patterns.

The raven however was slightly more surprising in appearance. Her colouring as the bird remained as her hair colour, which trailed far down her back. She wore a fairly frilly white shirt, which had a black trim along the edges and along the centre; however the more eye-catching part was the giant red orb, which resembled an eye in the centre of her chest. He also wore a fairly simple green dress and on one foot she wore a normal shoe but the other foot looked like it had been dropped into wet concrete which had then solidified, very odd. The final part of her that stood out was the two large black wings she had, obviously due to her being a raven, however the wings also seemed to be holding up a strange cape which was white on the outside, but on the inside it was a dark blue starry pattern.

Regardless of their transformations, the two continued doing what they were before, drinking the sake, only now they were able to drink it at a much faster rate and within a few seconds the two of them slammed it onto the floor, thankfully not breaking the glasses, with a cry of ?Done!?

The raven Utsuho cried out, ?Dammit! I lost... again!?

The red haired girl cackled, ?I win, I win!?

?Damn, you always win.? The raven mumbled.

?That?s because I?m just better then you.? The cat teased playfully.

The raven thought for a moment, ?Hmm... Best two out of three!? She shouted as she grabbed the Oni?s gourd and refilled the glasses, and then an exact replay of the previous drinking competition occurred, down to the winner and loser.

?Again!? The raven shouted, and so a seemingly endless chain of drinking occurred causing me, in the end to look for other things going on. The Oni were still drinking, which was nothing new, Satori was still talking with Reimu, but for once Reimu didn?t seem too unhappy about talking.

Mima and Yuka were, in between watching the drinking, beginning to speak with the apparent owners of the two animals, Satori, who still seemed to bother me somehow.

Maybe I should ask about them and what their powers are, just to strike up a conversation.

Satori giggled quietly, ?Well, Orin is a Kasha; she?s in charge of carrying away corpses where we?re from. Okuu, has what is called nuclear fusion manipulation, she regulates the fires of the old Hell.

Nuclear Fusion? Must not get into a fight with her, or tell Yuka.

Satori giggled again, almost confirming my suspicions.

She can read my mind.

?I see you?ve finally figured me out, yes, I can read minds, my sister would also, but she chose to refuse her power, instead she gets to manipulate the subconscious.? Satori laughed once more.

?You can read anyone?s mind?? I asked.

The pink-haired girl was about to say something when she smirked for a moment, ?Yes, your partner is just thinking ?If you can read this, I?ll rip your throat out.? She?s quite vicious isn?t she??

Partner? I don?t think so.

Satori giggled, having read my mind, causing me to curse silently.

?I?m serious.? Yuka stood up, with a large, rather unstable grin on her face.

Satori looked at her, ?I see, if you?re so insistent for a fight.? Satori took a quick jump back and then leapt and remained in the air.

As Yuka laughed and jumped into the air, I let out a loud sigh causing her to look at me, ?Oh shut up, some of us know how to have fun.? I replied with another sigh causing her to turn away and fly at her opponent.

Satori grinned as Yuka appeared, and before Yuka had even stretched her arm forward, Satori was already dodging the laser before it had appeared.

Satori replied by sending a wave of orbs and bullets which looped around creating a wall, but Yuka merely flew through it effortlessly and taunted her opponent, ?Pitiful! I don?t even need to read your mind to dodge your weak attacks.? Yuka ended her speech with a wave of flowers which appeared with a wave of her arm and curved around to surround and close in on Satori, but once more she had already foreseen this and escaped before the flowers had created their trap which causes Yuka to growl.

Satori held her chin in thought for a moment as her third eye moved very slightly, as though it was scanning every part of Yuka, or more likely, her mind.

?This looks like it might be fun.? She said, with an eerie tone, before holding her arms out, one hand over the other and suddenly fired the unmistakeable Master Spark; one of Yuka?s most prized, and previously stolen by Marisa, spells, which I knew straight away, was a mistake on her part.

Yuka laughed, rather insanely as she gracefully dived backwards to dodge it, ?You dare use my own magic against me?? Her voice suddenly turned less hostile and quiet, ?Still, I know how I can beat you, easy.?

Satori?s eyes widened slightly when that was said, but she quickly regained her composure, ?Really now? Not while I can read you, just like a book.? She chuckled quietly.

Yuka brushed some hair from her face, almost in a taunting fashion before I realised what she was doing, since it had been a while since I had seen her cast the spell she was. She made a large arc around her with her parasol before pointing it to the side, and a small yellow spark of light appeared a few metres away and as it hastily spiralled upwards a figure materialised, another Yuka Kazami.

Satori?s eyes widened once again as the event occurred in front of her, ?I c-can?t copy that!??

For some reason, which I?d never remembered to ask Yuka about, she had the ability to make a second version of herself, it wasn?t done through a spell card or similar things but she just seemed to be able to do it, and of course, having two Yukas attack you isn?t a good thing.

Immediately, one Yuka flew in front of Satori, while the other one flew behind her, which confirmed my suspicions on her plan, by positioning herself like that, Satori could only read one Yuka at any time.

Of course, from that point on, the fight didn?t take much longer at all, as Satori panicked and tried to read the incoming attacks she ended up rendering her defence useless allowing both Yukas to close in, dodge her scattered attacks and deliver a couple of blows before sending her plummeting to the ground.

?Master!? Okuu shouted as she cruised through the air to her defeated owner.

?That was a dirty cheap trick! I?ll avenge you, master!? She shouted as she bolted into the air, at Yuka.

A few seconds later, Orin decided to join the fight too causing an all out brawl to start while the rest of the spectators downstairs remained ?civilised? and just tried to ignore them, even the Oni remained fairly calm, minus their drunken giggling.

Fortunately, there wasn?t too much stray fire, for the whole duration of the fight I only had to run out of the way once to dodge a stray miniature sun and twice to dodge a swarm of flowers.

While the fight took place, I merely talked about the former hell with Mima, Koishi, Reimu and the recovering Satori learning quite a fair deal about things down there, and in a way I?d quite like to visit it some time, some parts of it sound quite interesting, and extremely hot.

During our conversation, the fight ended and they simply rejoined us as thought nothing had happened and time began to fly.

...

?Come on Yuka, we had best go home now.? I spoke up, noticing that the several hours of drinking was definitely starting to take effect on everyone, and even the Oni looked practically unconscious now.

?Ah, I?m not even started yet, I can drink more than them Oni ever could.? Yuka shouted.

Once again, I sighed, ?I?m sure you can, so let?s go.?

Yuka moaned in disappointment as she struggled to pick herself off the floor and walk over to where I was.

As well as the others could, they shouted goodbye and such and we left the shrine with Yuka leaning against me, very much drunk.

?Haaaaru.? Yuka slurred.

?What?? I answered.

?Carry meeeee.? She said in some odd drunken playful way.

I glanced at her, ?Carry yourself.?

?Come onnnnn.? She continued.

?Fine... Whatever...? I moaned, causing her to practically jump at me, forcing me to catch her.

Lying sideways, she put an arm around my neck, ?Thanks Haruuu.?

The rather uncomfortable walk progressed slowly, and at last I entered the portal to Mugenkan.

?Hey Yuka, what did you think of those new people then?? I asked.

There was no reply.

I asked again, ?Yuka??

Looking down, as I should have guessed, the flower youkai was peacefully asleep, green hair covering her face slightly.

With a quiet, short laugh, I carried her across the thankfully short path, past Elly?s house, who was already asleep herself, to the mansion where I quietly ascended one of the stairways, silently flew through the space-like dimension of a place Yuka called her bedroom and placed her on her bed before hastily leaving the room and going to bed myself, having realised I now had a headache, most likely due to the small, compared to everyone else?s, amount of Oni sake I drunk.
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (RiG2 completed!)
Post by: Mima on September 14, 2009, 09:25:15 PM: Chapter 7

I was disturbed from my slumber by the sound of something smashing, glass or something of the sort.

Looking at the curtains covering the closest window, I noticed it was already quite bright outside. Wiping my eyes and then letting them focus for a few seconds, the clock opposite the window showed it was a few minutes past eleven o?clock, unusually late since at most, Yuka would have come back and kicked my door and disappeared before I could do anything.

Wobbling out of bed, I stumbled over to the wardrobe and pulled out another set of clothes, matching the majority of the clothes in there and quickly got dressed before I rushed out the room to see what the commotion was.

Reaching the main hall of the mansion, I looked down the stair to see a proud looking Yuka with her arms on her hips, staring at a large smashed window. A few seconds later, a voice I hadn?t heard in a while spoke out, as carefree as ever. ?Still don?t wanna? Alright then, see you next time.? The red haired shinigami, Komachi Onozuka walked over to the mansion?s front door and let herself out.

It wasn?t hard to tell from the scene, that Gensokyo?s Judge of the Dead, Sikieiki Yamaxanadu had come to the mansion on one of her attempts to, put it simple, encourage Yuka to stick to the cycle of life and well, die. I can only guess that Yuka is considered extremely old even for a youkai, and has no intention to die any time soon, I can?t see what damage it?s doing, but the Yama tries none-the-less.

As always, Yuka?s reply was a negative one, and by the looks of it she launched the Judge out of the mansion through the closest window, which the maid fairies were now gathering around and utilising some kind of magic to repair the damage. Sikieiki?s workmate, Komachi Onozuka didn?t share her zealous personality towards work, and was usually slacking in some way, thus her exit from the scene without doing much at all.

?Had some visitors, have we?? I shouted out from where I was, causing Yuka to turn around.

?Finally decided to wake up, have we?? She mimicked. ?Honestly, I was the one who you?d think would sleep longer!?

?Hey, I was the one who had to carry you all the way back last night.? I laughed slightly.

Yuka shouted sarcastically, ?Oh, well boohoo. I always had to carry you around at one point, returning the favour for once won?t hurt.?

I decided any further discussion on the matter would be useless and result in me losing, so I changed the topic, ?So what?s the plan for today then Yuka??

?Isn?t it obvious?? She asked.

?Not really.? I replied, and followed up with a yawn.

Yuka waved her parasol a few times, as though it was a sword or something, ?We?re going to hunt that thing in the forest!?

?You know, I don?t think that?s a good idea.? I spoke back to the youkai.

?You would, you?re boring.? Yuka sneered.

I nodded, ?Thanks, I guess.? With that said I turned back around the corner and finished getting ready.

A few minutes later, I descended the staircase to see Yuka merely playing around with her parasol, namely throwing it in the air and catching it again repeatedly. Upon noticing me, she spoke, ?Finally. Let?s go.?

As I followed Yuka out of the mansion and then walked alongside her as usual I told her the idea I thought of as I was getting ready, ?Hey, Yuka, I think we should go to Akyu?s place first, see if we can find something about that thing you want to hunt, might be better to find some information on it before we just charge blindly... Know your enemy or something like that.?

?Fine, whatever.? She replied, with a slightly irritated tone.

Some way into our journey to the human village, I spoke to Yuka, ?It didn?t take you long to get sober, especially after how much you drunk.?

?Of course, what kind of weakling do you think I am? Had you not been a spoil-sport and made me leave, I could have drunk a lot more.? Yuka bragged.

?And then you?d have probably gone on some drunken crusade against the human village.? I commented.

Yuka shrugged, ?Not that there?s anything wrong with that. In fact, why don?t we go and do that now?? Yuka?s face turned a bit more sinister, she gave a small giggle and lifted off the ground and flew at the village at a considerably high speed.

?W-wait! Hold on!? I shouted as I flew after her as fast as I could.

Yuka ignored me, and instead held her parasol out in front of her, her usual move before casting Master Spark.

Yuka spoke to herself, ?Three... Two... One...?

?Wait, don?t!? I shouted.

Yuka just laughed and turned around, ?You are so incredibly easy to wind up, you know that??

I gave a quick sigh of relief, ?Whatever...? I dropped down to the ground, and began walking again.

Yuka continued to chuckle and she dropped down beside me and wrapped her arm around mine as we walked along.

The rest of the journey simply consisted of Yuka humming a melody and soon enough, we reached the human village where Keine was already waiting for us.

?Good afternoon Keine.? I shouted out as we approached.

?Good afternoon, Haru, Yuka.? She spoke back.

As we got closer, Keine spoke again, ?A rather terrified human reported there was a hostile looking youkai taking an offensive stance against the village. I presume you?re the guilty party?? She then only stared at us, with a rather serious expression.

Before I could say anything, Yuka spoke up shouting in a cheerful voice, ?Well Haru, looks like more people then you can?t take a joke, let?s be going then!? I then found myself being dragged away by Yuka and just managed to catch a glimpse of Keine?s expression, confused.

For some reason, Keine decided to not follow us today, maybe she could read Yuka?s mood as not being one of a threat, or maybe she had other business, whatever it was, we managed to get to Akyu?s residence without our usual escort today.

I knocked on the front door of the residence and a few seconds later, a fairly weak voice shouted out, ?Come in!?

As the voice stated I opened the door and let Yuka in before entering and closing the door behind me. Walking down the corridor and taking the first left as usual, Akyu was sat at her usual table, doing her usual pastime; writing.

?Ah, Haru, and Miss Kazami too, it?s a pleasure to see you both!? She greeted cheerfully.

?Good afternoon, Miss Hieda.? Yuka spoke out.

?Hi, Akyu.? I said afterwards. ?How are you today? I heard you were ill yesterday.?

?Oh, very well thank you, Miss Yagokoro was kind enough to get some medicine delivered to me and I was fine by the time I woke up today, she?s quite the genius.?

I decided for my own safety to not mention Yuka?s similar condition.

?So, what brings the two of you here today?? Akyu happily asked.

?Ah, we?re here to try and find some information.? I replied.

Akyu nodded, ?I see, you?re not the first to do so today. Just half an hour ago I was visited by Marisa and Miss Mima, and they?re not the only ones.?

?Ah!? I said in surprise, I turned and spoke to Yuka, ?We never told Mima and the others about that thing we saw, with all the fighting and drinking I completely forgot.? Yuka just shrugged as a reply.

?What thing, may I ask?? Akyu questioned.

I walked over to the writer, and took a seat, ?Well, in fact it?s what we came here for, so it?ll help to explain anyway.?

I spent the next half hour explaining the stories I?d heard involving the strange entity we saw to Akyu, who just listened thoroughly with a troubled face.

?...and before Yuka went off to hunt it, I told her we should come here first, so here we are.? I ended.

?I see... Well, I can?t help you in this case.? Akyu spoke quietly.

I spoke, probably sounding a tad too surprised that I should have, ?What, really?!?

?My knowledge may go back a good one thousand, two hundred and thirty two years, but in all of it I?ve not had anything to do with what you?ve described. There have been some minor possession incidents, but they were nothing of note since they only lasted a few seconds, this is unheard of.? Akyu stopped for a moment and thought, ?There?s only two things that could be the case then.?

?What are they?? I asked quickly.

?Either this strange being is a new resident of Gensokyo, much like you were two years ago, or it existed before I made my deal and somehow remained hidden since then.? Akyu answered, spinning her pen around.

?What deal?? I questioned.

Akyu gasped in surprise slightly, ?Oh, a deal I made with the Yama some time back.?

?Some time being roughly one and a quarter millennia ago?? I added.

?Yes, anyway, the deal was whenever I reincarnate I retain my memory of past lives, but my lifespan is cut short a fifth on each reincarnation.?

Akyu?s face suddenly turned to something of extreme sorrow, ?I probably only have a few years left, and then it?s another 130 years before I get reborn.?

?Well, why don?t you ask the Yama for a break in the chain, next time you see her?? Yuka interrupted, surprising me. ?It?s simple, break the deal and lose your memory but retain your ability to always remember, or reincarnate as a youkai, or even better, do both. With your ability and the records you?ve made, it wouldn?t be hard for you to artificially replace your memory.?

Akyu looked up at Yuka, ?That, that?s a good idea Miss Kazami, but, I do not know if I can simply do such a thing. I would have to ask the Yama and well, we?ll have to see.?

Slowly, a smile reappeared on Akyu?s face, ?I shall certainly try though, it would be great to be able to be free outside and do as I wish, rather than being imprisoned in progressively weaker bodies every time.? Akyu looked at us again, looking a bit more serious again, ?Anyway, I am sorry I can?t help you with the information you need, and I find it quite disturbing. If you, Miss Kazami, do not know, and I do not know, then there?s only one other person who has a chance of knowing, and I?ve not seen her for a good while.?

?Yukari...? I quietly guessed.

?Yes, that?s the only possible lead I can give you, I?m sorry.? Akyu bowed her head.

I looked at Yuka, ?Well, Yuka, what do you say we do now then??

The youkai shrugged, ?We?ll just see what comes along first, Yukari or the thing.?
?Well, I guess it?s time we left then, thank you Akyu, and I?ll see you around.? I said, as I got up from the chair, shortly followed by Yuka who left with a simple ?Farewell.?

?Goodbye, both of you, please be careful!? She shouted cheerfully as we left.

Outside of the building, I looked at Yuka, ?I didn?t expect you to come up with an idea like that to help Akyu.?

Yuka sneered slightly, ?It was a simple idea, common sense.?

?Do you think it would work?? I questioned.

Yuka held her hands out, ?Maybe, I?m not an expert in the underworld, I just send them there.? She ended with a grin. ?Anyway, let?s head towards the forest; see if we can find that creature.?

?What about Yukari?? I queried.

Yuka glared at me, ?Yes, because Yukari is an easy person to track down. Now come on, let?s get moving.? She ordered as she quickly linked arms again and pulled me along in the direction of the forest.
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (RiG2 completed!)
Post by: Mima on September 14, 2009, 09:25:33 PM: Chapter 8

As usual, the forest was dark and generally horrid, despite the summer coming to an end, the leaves still seemed to form a solid wall overhead preventing any light from coming in, and eventually Yuka nudged me to summon another ball of light with my free arm, youkai have some ability to see in the dark, but it?s more beneficial to just have light, and since I have the ability to do so, it?s a no-brainer.

?You know, this forest is a big place, we?re probably not gonna find that thing.? I commented after a few minutes of walking in silence.

?Oh stop being pessimistic.? Yuka nagged. ?You never know, besides, I think I can sense something close.?

After a brief moment, I decided to say my thoughts out, even if it was just for amusement, ?So, Yukari?s not been seen in a while, right?? I paused for a moment, ?So, what if those ghost thing was linked to her somehow??

Yuka looked amused at first, but her face slowly turned into thought, ?Well, the energies I sense are different from each other, but I suppose there?s always the possibility that her energies morphed after... whatever happened to her.? Yuka fell silent for a moment, most likely thinking, ?It?d be just like her to do this, messing around with people as she always does. Anyway, keep your eyes open.?

After just about a minute, I noticed something out the corner of my eye and looked quickly, but nothing was there.

?You see something, Haru?? Yuka asked.

?Thought I saw something purple.? I answered, still looking in that direction.

Yuka nodded, and headed in that direction, casually swinging her parasol in her hand, but in a way she could easily swing it up for an attack, but as we got there, it was clear nothing was here.

Just at that moment, I felt something touch my back, and so did Yuka since she spun around incredibly fast and fired a rather large laser in that direction, but strangely enough, nothing was there.

?You?re getting slow! May I borrow you for a while?? A voice teased behind us, one which I was never that pleased to hear.

Yukari.

Yuka swung around, fist ready to hit the source of the voice, when suddenly everything went dark.

?Yuka, you there?? I shouted out.

?Yes, I?m right next to you, stop shouting.? Yuka growled.

I quickly apologised, ?Oh, sorry. So I presume Yukari gapped us somewhere??

?Oh, looks like someone knows what?s going on!? Yukari?s voice echoed through the black void we were in.

?Just tell us where the hell we are, Yukari.? Yuka hissed.

Yuka continued to sound cheerful, ?Oh, just a temporary void in space, don?t worry, no way in, or out minus my gaps, so don?t waste your time trying anything! I just need to fish a few more people and drop them here and I?ll be with you, won?t be long!?

A single miniature sun-like object appeared in front of me, casting some light into the otherwise empty void, at least letting me see Yuka beside me.

?Any idea, Yuka?? I asked, hopelessly.

Yuka took a few steps forward towards the sun, and waved her parasol right through the sun. ?No, nothing.?

The void returned to silence for just a few seconds, before there was the sound of someone shouting and straight afterwards, Mima and Marisa dropped into the room, if you could call it that.

?W-what the hell is going on now?!? The evil spirit turned deity shouted in anger. ?It?s gotta be Yukari, and things were just getting peaceful without her.?

?Why, good afternoon there Mima, what a surprise it is to see you here.? Yuka spoke sarcastically, since Mima and Marisa were facing the other way and hadn?t yet noticed us.

The duo spun around to face us, ?Is it really you??

?Of course it is, do you want me to crush your little apprentice to prove it?? Yuka grinned devilishly.

?Let?s go then!? Marisa cockily taunted as she leapt forward, but jerked backwards as Mima grabbed the back of her clothes.

?Not so fast, it?s them alright.? Mima told Marisa. ?So, what are you doing here??

Yuka growled, ?Taking a walk, what do you think??

Mima quickly sounded more calming, ?Okay, okay, I get it, just thought you might have found out something.?

?We?ve been here for about 20 seconds longer then you.? I added to the conversation.

?I see... Yukari?? Mima asked.

I nodded.

?Did someone call?? The gap youkai?s unmistakably whimsical and odd voice echoed out, ?Wheeeee!?

As she shouted with joy, she slide down from above the sun as if she was on some invisible slide or something, before landing on her feet and stopping a few steps from us.

?Good afternoon everyone, how are you?? She asked cheerfully.

Yukari was wearing was could only figure as her winter clothes, in the summer she wore a bright purple dress with a large amount of ribbons and frills, but this time around, it was an incredibly elaborate pinkish-white dress, made with multiple layers of a frilly material, with a strip of purple and orange cloth down the middle with some various symbols on it. She held a pink parasol, rather like Yuka?s and on her head was a pink, poufy hat, with frills along the rim and a red ribbon, not to mention the collection of ribbons that decorated her dress and tied her hair together in multiple locations.

Yuka didn?t flinch at Yukari?s appearance, or move at all, but I knew she was stopped herself from lashing out. Marisa looked less bothered and was stood by Mima who was just frowning, waiting for answers.

?If I may, I?d like to borrow a moment of your time.? She asked, waving a fan in her hand.

Mima snapped at Yukari, ?Why the hell should we waste our time with you, after you?ve screwed us around for so long??

Obviously, Mima hadn?t forgotten our previous encounters, such as when Yukari turned Yuka and I into humans and send us to the human world, and only by chance did we get back to Gensokyo.

Yukari giggled in her slightly irritating, unpredictable way, ?Because if you don?t help me, then there?s a good possibility that Gensokyo might go kaput.?

?Wait, what?? Marisa shouted, like someone who hadn?t been playing attention.

?You heard me.? Yukari answered, ?Now, will you help me or not??

?Why haven?t you asked Reimu, she?s the usual one to deal with stuff like this!?? Marisa shouted again.

?If you care to enter this gap, I will explain everything.? Yukari looked at Mima, ?Everything.?

A large gap appeared where the sun was once sat, yet somehow the light still remained.

?After you.? Yukari smiled.

There was a standoff, where no one moved at all, not even their expressions.

After what felt like a minute Mima finally spoke up, ?Fine, one chance.? She slowly hovered over to the gap, loyally followed by her apprentice and entered the gap.

?Well, Yuka?? I quietly asked, noticing she?d remained quiet for the entire confrontation.

Yuka nodded slightly and spoke quietly, ?Let?s go.? She grabbed me and pulled me over to the gap, ?Must be better than being stuck in here, anyway.?

?That?s the spirit!? Yukari shouted happily.

As I entered the gap, there was no moment where things blacked out, instantly I found myself in what appeared to be a normal house.

The house looked like it couldn?t decide if it was of a western or eastern design, and it was highly decorated with ornaments and paintings, yet somehow managed to have a humble feeling to it.

The two magicians were a few steps ahead, looking around just as we were when Mima turned around, ?This must be her house.?

?Correct, you are!? Yukari?s ominously joyful voice shouted.

As soon as she had completely left the portal, Yukari quickly closed it and took a deep breath and exhaled.

Taking off her hat, she looked at us, devoid of her usual unpredictable and menacing look, ?Welcome to my humble abode, as they say.?

Yukari walked down a hall of the house and waved us to follow, we did so but as we followed her, Marisa spoke up, ?This isn?t your house; we?ve been to it in Mayohiga and it looks nothing like this!?

Yukari turned around with a smile, but once again there was no sign of the usual menace it held, ?No, Marisa, this is my real house.?

That line basically sent us reeling in a way; no one knew what she meant.

Yukari seemed to have noticed and began to speak, ?The house you know of, is a fake as such, not many people have even seen it, yet it?s widely known to be my residence, that?s a lie.?

Yukari?s voice almost seemed down-to-earth now, normal, maybe even with a hint of sorrow, either way, seeing Yukari acting as she was now was as creepy as she was normally.

We soon entered a dining room, it wasn?t dramatically sized for about 20 people around a large table, like the one in Yuka?s mansion, it was once again, fairly small and homely, with only four chairs at the table, Yukari noticed this and instantly gapped in a few more stacked chairs and moved them around. ?Please, take a seat.?

Yukari didn?t take a seat right away; instead she walked into another room and shouted, ?Won?t be a moment!?

The four of us that were sat down simply looked at each other, gob-smacked and confused. Yuka whispered, ?Is this another one of her games??

Mima replied, equally as quiet, ?She?s doing a good job of it this time.?

Yuka spoke up again, ?Well, be ready for anything, false sense of security and all that, she could be able to do anything.?

Cautiously, we sat and waited, trying to notice whatever trap Yukari had set.
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (RiG2 completed!)
Post by: Mima on September 14, 2009, 09:26:12 PM: Chapter 9

Not long after, Yukari re-entered with a small tray holding a teapot and coffeepot and a number of mugs, not the usual cups and saucers.

?I?d like to ask you that everything that takes place while you are here remains completely confidential, absolutely no one must know about this.? She looked serious for a moment, before smiling again, ?Tea anyone??

After a brief hesitation, Mima, Yuka and I pushed the mugs we?d been given forward, prompting Yukari to fill them up, a moment later she stood up and headed out the room again, ?Oops, forgot something.?

Marisa whispered, ?I think you?re right, something is up.?

Yukari quickly entered the room, holding a small jug of milk and a cup of sugar, ?Please, help yourselves.?

Moments of awkwardness passed as we slowly started to drink the beverages we had been given, until Yukari spoke up, ?You?re wondering what?s going on.?

?Of course.? Mima spoke over her drink.

?At the moment, not a great deal.? Yukari commented, over her own drink.

That was a slight sense of irritation in the room, when ran walked into the room, wearing her usual costume minus the hat showing off her fox ears, ?Yukari, when are we-? The nine-tailed Kitsune froze when she saw us, ?Yukari! What are they doing here?!?

?Relax, Ran, I brought them here.? Yukari calmly replied.

Ran nodded nervously, ?If... if that?s what you think is right.? After, she promptly left the room.

?What was that about? Ran?s never usually nervous when I come here.? Marisa asked.

?Like I said earlier, ?that? house is a fake, of sorts.? Yukari waved her arm as she spoke. ?The truth is, before a few minutes ago, the only people who had ever been inside this house was Ran, Chen and I. No-one else. How do I know? Because we?re not even in Gensokyo.?

There was yet another silent pause, as Yukari began to pick the red ribbons out of her hair and carelessly dump them on the table, straightening her hair as parts became free.

?This is our own space, a place where no one else can enter and annoy us, where I can get the peace I desire.? Yukari continued to talk peacefully when Ran poked her head around the corner again.

?Yukari, will they be staying for dinner? I can start preparing if you wish.? She asked.

Yukari shook her head, ?We?ll see, Ran. Besides, it?s my turn to cook tonight.?

Ran nodded slightly and disappeared again.

Suddenly, Mima rose from her seat, ?You?re not Yukari.?

Everyone looked at her, while Yukari simply remained in her timid state.

?It?s... you...? Mima suddenly sounded melancholic.

Yukari smiled slightly, and nodded.

?But why, Mura, what?s going on, tell me.? Mima suddenly sounded a lot more vulnerable, even upset.

Yukari rose from her seat, and walked a few paces and faced a wall, ?Didn?t you hear? Murasaki died in Gensokyo a few decades after you did.?

Murasaki... I know that name...

No... Wait... Murasaki was the name of the creator of Gensokyo, could it really be?

?She was only human after all, their life-spans are short, and over in the blink of an eye, or a youkai?s anyway.? Yukari continued to look away, talking to the wall still, ?And yet, this question arises, who is this person who stands in front of you??

All of us remained quiet, waiting for answers.

?In Gensokyo, this person is simply Yukari Yakumo, the ancient youkai who enjoys causing general trouble and irritation for the residents there.? Yukari opened her fan, ?And yet, who am I now? Outside of Gensokyo, in a location inaccessible by every single resident of Gensokyo??

?It?s obvious, you?re Murasaki Hakurei.? Mima answered. ?You mean to tell me, that for all this time, you?ve been playing an act??

Yukari waved her hand, ?Something like that.?

?But, why??

?Murasaki was a marvel, she was brilliant, she saved a good number of youkai from death and worse when she created Gensokyo all those years ago, how long has it been since then? How many youkai or even gods have saved themselves by entering Gensokyo since then? Countless, and what does that make Murasaki Hakurei? I?ll tell you... It makes her something along the lines of a god, a messiah.? Yukari finally turned around to face us, and placed her hands on the table. ?Had ?Murasaki? still been alive today, what would that have done to Gensokyo? If Murasaki still lived in Gensokyo, she?d be worshipped by almost everyone and what would happen to the other gods were they to receive no worship due to the monopoly caused by that? They would die, and then Gensokyo will have lost its purpose.?

I quietly spoke, ?So, you?ve simply used a false identify, simply to maintain Gensokyo??

?That?s exactly what I did.? She answered. ?As mentioned, the only place that Murasaki truly ?lives? now, is in this house, where no one can ever discover the truth. Of course, I hope you realise that I trust you all to not discuss with anyone when you return.?

Yuka spoke up, ?Stop with the attempts to get sympathy for a moment, how the hell do you explain what you?ve done to us in the past? The number of times you?ve screwed things up, annoyed people needlessly and even sent us to that damn human world.?

Yukari nodded, ?I understand your anger, Yuka, and minus the occasions where it was simply part of maintaining my character, I shall explain fully in a moment.? As she finished, she took a long drink from her mug.

This is just completely unreal.

?I?d like to tell you a story.? Yukari started again, ?Once upon a time, there was a young shrine maiden, she was a cheerful person who wielded the most spectacular power, she could do almost anything, and as well as that, unlike all the other humans of that time, she was friends with a large amount of youkai. Now, the youkai were sad, they were being left behind by the humans they co-existed with, killed by them, forgotten, and the shrine maiden didn?t like this, she wanted to help.?

Mima spoke again, ?So, the shrine maiden created Gensokyo.?

?Not just yet, first, she started to test the limit of her powers, she stretched it as much as she could, ignoring the warnings passed down by her family, and eventually, she managed to be able to tear gaps in reality itself, the thing she?d sought for, and with that, it was just a matter of time and planning before she created her own realm, yes, then she created Gensokyo.? Yukari stood up, and paced around the room, ?But what that shrine maiden didn?t realise, is that in her experiments regarding gap manipulation, she released something, something that was trapped inside the void of gaps itself. She didn?t notice it, and since nothing immediate appeared minus a bad feeling, she ignored it.?

?A couple of years later, the shrine maiden is living happily in Gensokyo, the humans are taking a while to adjust to their new magical home and were being generally hostile to all things that could use it, except the shrine maiden of course. Now, the shrine maiden suddenly recognises a horrible feeling, she senses something evil, the same evil she felt those years back during her experiments, but still, she had no idea what is actually was, but it was her job to destroy it, Gensokyo was a home for youkai and humans, but something of such evil was not welcome and was simply put, a threat.?

Yukari sighed, and walked over to some cupboards and took out a glass before filling it with water from a tap.

?Now, where was I? Ah, right. So, as a result of the human?s prejudice, the shrine maiden befriends a similar aged girl who was one of the first humans to being to wield magic in Gensokyo.?

Mima sighed, ?That would be me.?

?The shrine maiden was glad to have a close friend for once, rather than simply being looked up and so welcomed the company, but her friend seemed to be a magnet for trouble. Some horrifically tragic events took place, and eventually there was a meeting at the shrine.?

Mima whispered, ?Finally, the truth I?ve been waiting for, for all these years.?

?The girl arrived in a terrible state, an unstable mix of emotions and an appearance to match made her appear quite frightening, as one would expect in her situation, however, there was one more thing that only the shrine maiden knew of, that horrible evil was lurking in the area again. Was it her, her close friend after all this time? Was it her that caused the murder? The shrine maiden, unused to personally caring about people let her emotions cloud her judgement, and indescribably feeblemindedly, she killed her closest friend to save Gensokyo from that evil which had haunted her senses for so long.?

Yukari?s eyes almost appeared to be getting watery at this point, ?Her hopes was lifted slightly, when after her friend passed away, an evil spirit rose from her corpse and put up a truly vicious fight, killing two bystanders and fatally wounding another, fortunately, again the shrine maiden prevailed and banished the spirit into the realm from which she?d released it.?

Mima didn?t respond, she was simply resting her head on her linked hands, staring at the table.

?But something was wrong. Horribly wrong, the shrine maiden?s heart almost shattered to pieces.? I noticed Mima looked up slightly, ?The evil being was still present, and the friend she had just killed had been innocent all along, staining her hands with her trusting friend?s blood.?

?The shrine maiden knew there was only one other living being in the area, and suddenly everything made sense, it wasn?t the girl with the magic who was the trouble, it was the one who wanted her dead, the human who was currently lying against a tree, slowly succumbing to his mortal wounds.? Yukari cleared her throat and quickly took another gulp of water, ?The closer he was to death, the more the evil could be felt, and she realised that whatever this entity was, it was inside him, controlling him and since it?s host was close to death, it was going to abandon him to prevent itself from being dragged to the netherworld, as is the fate of living being?s souls.?

?Mima, Yuka, maybe you can answer a question for me. Mr Kirisame, your father...? She looked at the two in order as she spoke the titles, ?What was his eye colour??

There was a pause, ?Yellow, maybe green.? ?Purple? Yuka and Mima spoke at the same time.

Yukari nodded, ?Correct.?

?Which is correct?? Marisa asked.

?Green... and purple.? Yukari nodded, ?Yellow wasn?t an eye colour for the Kirisame family until the magic had fully sank into their blood, so to speak.?

Yuka held her head, ?I... I think I can remember purple for some reason as well.?

Yuka?s past... I bet she is hating every second of this...

?You may well have, it was probably the last thing you ever saw.?

Yuka sighed at that statement, ?Explain.?

?Well, this is just a theory since there?s no evidence or anything to check, but here it is, ?Some time before any of this occurred, your father-?

?He?s not my father.? Yuka slammed the table.

Yukari stared at Yuka, however as usual it wasn?t the tormenting, evil stare, ?One cannot change the past, else none of this would have happened, like it or not, that man was your father.?

?He was Haruka Kirisame?s father, I am Yuka Kazami.? Yuka hissed back.

?You shouldn?t deny your human heritage, were it not for that, you wouldn?t be what you are now.? She spoke quietly. Yuka just quietly growled as a response.

?As I was saying, one day I believe he was, by a case of bad luck, taken over by this being and then it slowly took control over him, possibly after an amount of time where it learnt his normal life and was therefore able to fit in.? Yukari looked at Mima, ?And then, of course, his grudge against magic began, he summoned groups of villagers to try and exterminate Mima like some animal, but no one cared, so he used another method, he framed her for a murder, the murder of his daughter, Haruka.?

?If he wasn?t such a weak pathetic human he could have resisted.? Yuka slammed the table again.

Yukari looked at Yuka, ?You don?t know that.?

?His plot worked, and brings us back to the previous scenario, this evil is finally about to present itself, but the shrine maiden is exhausted and powerless from her fight, unable to open another tear in reality, she grabbed the last talisman she had and cast it, Evil Sealing Circle. Fortunately for her, it worked and the spirits escape was prevented. She needed something to trap the spirit in, something less energy consuming, and then she saw it, a yin-yang orb from the previous fight, she could easily seal the spirit inside it as a make-shift prison, and so that?s what she did.?

Yukari stood up again and paced around the room, ?The sealing was a success, the yin-yang acted as a fine prison, so the next day, once the shrine maiden regained consciousness, she ventured to a desolate cave and placed it in there, sealing it away from the rest of the world.?

?That?s pretty careless, if you ask me.? Mima said.

?It was the safest option, if the spirit managed to do anything malicious like try to corrupt someone, there?s no one there.?

Mima nodded, unsurely.

?And so, peace returned to Gensokyo. Haunted by the past, the shrine maiden lived her life, had children and then mysteriously disappeared out of the blue one day.? Yukari stretched, ?And roughly 100 years later, a youkai known as Yukari Yakumo made herself known to Gensokyo.?

?But in reality, you were there for those 100 years, right?? Mima questioned.

Yukari smiled and nodded, ?Of course I was, but the last thing I wanted was to be recognised by my own daughter or her offspring, so I had the heartbreaking task of simply waiting for my own family to die before me, and when it was safe, I made myself known through various methods, visiting the shrine and befriending my current living relative or maybe something more sinister, like inducing a typical Gensokyo disaster.?

?Wait a minute, you caused all of them?!? Marisa shouted in her usual non-serious way.

?Not all of them, some of them happened by themselves, for example, the moon incident was caused entirely by Eientei, one reason I was so curious to go along with Reimu. But yes, I?ve caused more then I can count, even the incidents where Mima escaped from her prison was caused by me, and so Gensokyo never got boring and it kept the current shrine maiden at her best in case the worst case scenario happened, that spirit broke free.?

?Eight hundred years or so into this, I visited that yin-yang orb, and I was stunned by what I had saw, the orb was not longer its standard black and white, instead it was a stale browny-sand colour with a pinkish-purple field around it, not only that, but a visage of a girl appeared to be formed into the side of the orb, don?t know if this has something to do with the spirit?s past or what, but it was a frightening sight, but since the orb was still physically stable, I left it alone.?

Yukari smiled, ?And so, over a millennium passed peacefully, things went by without a problem until you could say I got careless.? Yukari?s expression changed to that of sorrow again, ?I was the first incident of a certain shrine maiden called Reimu Hakurei, one you might even be familiar with her.? She grinned slightly.

?Anyway, I instigated an incident for Reimu, it wasn?t too difficult, I allowed a fallen angel to enter Gensokyo and cause a bit of trouble, but I missed something, I had forgot that it was this year that was Mima?s time to escape, which didn?t turn out too problematic, since she fortunately got her senses back, didn?t you.?

?You could say that.? Mima commented.

?But another being in Gensokyo, an Astral Knight by the name of Konngara also decided to start a disaster, just as I allowed Sariel, the angel, access to Gensokyo, so I never noticed this second disaster, as I lurked around the former holy being waiting for Reimu?s arrival, Reimu actually went to resolve the second incident, which was coincidently located inside a certain cave, where there was a certain corrupted yin-yang orb, Reimu knew no better, the orb managed to manifest some types of projectiles I would guess and attacked her, which is exactly what she wanted, and she attacked back with...? Yukari paused.

?Another yin-yang orb.? Mima finished the line, ?I remember it well.?

?Correct, and it?s like it you throw a good apple at a rotten one, the rotten one exploded to smithereens, releasing the spirit, Reimu would have thought she had destroyed it, considering her age and abilities however, I felt the yin-yang orb?s disruption and the feeling of evil reappearing and quickly realised what had happened, I simply gapped the entire building that Sariel had holed up in and banished it to somewhere irrelevant, but it was too late to fix things, that entity had fled the scene and hid somewhere I?ve not been able to find it for all these years.?

?I needed a new plan, I needed to get rid of that being once and for all, but it was impossible to know where it was, or when it would reappear, so I increased the number of incidents in Gensokyo, training Reimu and eventually a certain witch...?

?Me!? Marisa shouted.

?...to be of their optimum strength, I also noticed that two people already linked to the spirit were still present, and so, I tried to involve them and get them as allies too, and here they are before me.?

?Can we wait a second, why am I here then? Mima, Marisa and Yuka are all insanely powerful, I?m not.? I asked.

Yukari smiled, ?I brought you here, because Yuka wouldn?t have liked it if I didn?t.?

Basically, Yukari just politely told me I?m here to keep Yuka happy.

?Finally, as you all know, youkai have started to be unpredictable at moments, and I believe you know that cloud-like being you saw once, and allow me to finish your doubts off, if there are any. What colour was the aggressive youkai?s eyes??

?They... were purple...? I replied.

Yukari nodded, ?And so, the being responsible for the death of two of you, and something that will threaten the fate of Gensokyo, has reappeared. It?s been, quite a heavy story I?ve just told you, and I don?t want to tell you much more for now, I?ll ask you a final question, and I?ll get your answer later on.?

?Will you help me??

With that, the four of us, the chairs we sat on and the table suddenly dropped into the dark room from before, and then the scenery flashed again and I found myself lying in the forest, next to Yuka, no Mima or Marisa in sight.

?Did... did that just happen?? I spoke out.
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (RiG2 completed!)
Post by: Mima on September 14, 2009, 09:26:38 PM: Chapter 10

Yuka and I picked ourselves up off the ground, ?So, I didn?t just imagine that, then?? I groaned.

?Yeah, you didn?t...? She said, distracted, after pausing for a moment, she simply began to walk away.

Quietly, I caught up with her and as normal, I walked beside her, summoning an orb of light as usual since we were still in quite a dark part of the forest.

?Thanks.? Yuka mumbled as I created the light source, still obviously replaying the previous conversation.

She just thanked me? She?s definitely not thinking properly.

The silence began to grate on me, and as I let the orb of light disperse due to lighter surroundings, I decided to try and strike up a conversation just to stop me going mad, ?Penny for your thoughts??

?Hmm... Hm? What?? Yuka said in a confused tone, losing her thoughts.

?I asked what you were thinking about.? I pressed.

?None of your business.? Yuka replied.

Not this attitude again.

?If it?s about what we?ve just been told, of course it is.? I replied.

?Why?? Yuka looked at me and asked.

I grinned, ?Why else? We?re a team, even Yukari thinks so if she brought me along to wherever that place was, with you.?

Even though I recall Yukari saying I was there to stop Yuka from misbehaving.

By now, we were exiting the forest and I noticed that Yuka was heading in the direction of the flower field.

?I see... Well... My head is a mess right now, so many... unwanted memories in my head...? Yuka growled before returning to her quiet state, ?I hate the past, I hate it.?

?I understand, Yuka, but it?s something you?ve got to face, or at least decide if you want to.? I spoke to her encouragingly.

Yuka nodded slightly, ?I know, I know. I just need to think about things for a while.?

?I understand.? I quietly answered.

We began to approach the flower field, and soon enough we began to wade through the ocean of colourful flowers.

Suddenly, Yuka froze, causing me to turn to look at her. Dropping her parasol on the floor, she held out of arms either side of her and then simply collapsed back onto a bed of flowers.

?You can?t be tired, surely.?

?Of course not, what did I just say? I?m thinking.? She replied unhappily. ?So shut up and let me concentrate or go away.?

With that, she simply rested her head back on some flowers and closed her eyes, looking very much asleep, after a surprisingly quick moment, even her breathing appeared to slow down to suggest so.

?So, are you asleep now?? I questioned, testing the situation.

No reply from the sleeping youkai.

I knew it.

Not feeling tired myself, nor wanting to hang around the field for what could be a few hours, I decided to leave the flower youkai alone and see if I could find anything interesting, making sure I steered well away from the forest for obvious reasons.

For a moment I considered flying over to the Scarlet Devil Mansion for no reason in particular except possibly trying to get into Voile to do some research, but in the end I decided that maybe I could do with trying to get my mind off the issue at hand.

Instead, I simply walked along the coast of the lake, actually heading in the direction of the bamboo forest, but I planned on not actually planning on going in there if I could help it.

The walk as actually quite peaceful, there weren?t even any stray fairies to be a nuisance on the route, that is until I heard a certain fairy?s voice, ?You liar!?

Oh great, now what?s going on.

Just by the wall of trees that marked an entrance into the forest, the unmistakable figure of Cirno the ice fairy stood, facing away and waving her arms by her side rather zealously while she shouted.

?I?m telling you! I know nothing about it!? Another voice shouted, who I recognised as one of her friends, Wriggle who, of course, we had previously encountered in the forest causing me to change the pace of my approach.

Slowly and quietly I made my way over to where Cirno was to see she was with her usual gang, Wriggle and three other friends, Rumia, a short blonde haired girl with a long black dress and a taste for humans, Mystia, a Night Sparrow recognisable by her burgundy clothes and hat, pink hair and purple bird like wings and finally there was Daiyousei who looked similar to Cirno, a fairy wearing a simple blue dress except Daiyousei had green hair to Cirno?s cyan.

Didn?t Mima say that Rumia was taken over too?

I quickly thought for the easiest method to check they?re safe and to make sure I wasn?t walking into a trap, fortunately an idea stuck.

Using my hand to cover the other, to prevent getting any early attention, I summoned a reasonable orb of light in my hand before propelling it into the air, a good distance above Cirno and her friends, as planned they all looked in my direction but also in the sky to see what it was, allowing me to see their eyes.

Red, gray, green, blue and blue. No purple, looks like its clear, for now.

?Who?s there!?? Cirno spun around and snapped out.

I grinned, ?Easy, Chilly.? I spoke with a bit more confidence than normal, simply because Cirno and the others were roughly around my skill level if a fight did start.

?Don?t call me Chilly!? She complained, ?And what are you doing here?!?

?I was having a walk, when I found you lot in the way.? I explained.

Cirno made a disapproving sound, ?Well, go on then.?

?It sounds like you?re not getting on well.? I commented.

Cirno shouted, ?Well when your friends attack you and then say they didn?t do it, it?s a good enough reason to fall out!?

?I see, they attacked you.? I wasn?t sure if Cirno was trying to hide the issue and accidently told me, or not. ?So, who attacked you??

?Wriggle and Rumia.? Cirno shouted unhappily again, which caused the two mentioned to look at each other sadly.

?And what did they say about it??

?That they can?t remember. I think it?s a bit funny if they both attacked me and they both say they don?t remember attacking me!? Cirno continued to complain.

?Well, maybe they?re telling the truth.? I answered. I wasn?t sure if Yukari wanted me to mention the strange entity to others, or just her secret identity, so I tried to be a bit vague. ?I heard some rumours that there?s a youkai or something that?s controlling other youkai, it could have been that.?

?Really?? Cirno asked inquisitively.

?Yes, I don?t suppose Wriggle or Rumia happened to have purple eyes when they attacked you did they?? I questioned.

Cirno thought for a moment, ?Uh, I think... maybe.?

I decided to take that as a yes to avoid lingering around in this conversation longer then needed, ?Well, there you go then, it wasn?t their fault at all, it was this... youkai I heard about.?

?Oh...? Cirno sounded a bit down. ?Sorry you two, if you really weren?t lying, that is.?

Rumia and Wriggle nodded, with smiles back on their faces, and I figured it wouldn?t be long before they were back to their normal, chaotic selves.

It didn?t take a genius to see an idea hit Cirno and as she opened her mouth to speak, I cut her off, knowing what she was going to say, ?And don?t try and beat that youkai up... Yuka?s got her name on it.?

For the first time since the conversation started someone other than Cirno and I spoke up, it was Daiyousei. ?Where is Miss Yuka anyway? She?s almost always with you, have you fallen out too??

I laughed slightly, ?Nah, we?re fine. She?s just asleep in her flower field, that?s why I decided to take a walk.?

A devilish grin hit Cirno?s face, ?Asleep, you say??

?Yeah, why?? I asked, wondering if she was going to say what I thought she was.

?The perfect chance to catch her off-guard!? Cirno shouted.

Yep, she said it.

Cirno then seemed to hesitate and looked at me, ?What do you think, do you think it?ll work??

?Quite possibly so, she?ll never know you?re coming.? I lied.

Bad Haru, looks like Yuka is being a bad influence on you after all.

?Okay! Don?t wish me luck, I don?t need it!? Cirno shouted as she flew at full speed towards the field.

Daiyousei made a nervous sound as Wriggle and the others simply looked amused, they knew what was going to happen, ?C-Cirno! Stop!? The fairy shouted as she chased after the other.

?Never!? Cirno shouted defiantly.

After the two fairies had left, I turned to the three sitting down and spoke to them, ?Wriggle, Rumia, were you telling the truth that you can?t remember anything about these... accidents then??

Wriggle nodded as Rumia spoke, ?Yep!?

?Can you remember anything that happened before the blind spot in your memory?? I asked again.

The two of them shook their heads negatively.

?Damn, well, thanks anyway. I?d better go and stop Yuka ripping out a certain fairy?s spine or whatever violent act she?s in the mood for at the moment.? With that said, I turned and walked at a quick pace towards the flower field which was a few minutes away.

So, Rumia and Wriggle got controlled, but they seem alright now, so at least that shows it can only control one person, still so many unknown facts though.

I noticed as I approached the field that a certain fairy-like object flew into the air upside-down before flying back down in what looked a painful way, a few seconds later the fairy flew several metres away from where she was before a large laser blasted through where she stood.

A few seconds later, a fairly limp looking Cirno could be seen being carried away by Daiyousei who was hovering through the air in my direction as we passed each other, Daiyousei muttered under her breath but loud enough for me to hear, ?She?ll never learn.? I took a quick final glimpse at the hanging Cirno who seemed to be out cold and couldn?t help but grin as I walked back to the field.

It didn?t take too long for me to spot where Yuka was, since she was now standing so I walked over to her and greeted her with, ?So, did you enjoy your wake-up call? Thought you might have wanted some stress relief.?

Yuka grinned, ?You mean you sent that innocent fairy to what could have been its death? That?s quite evil of you.? She looked back at what she was looking at before I approached which turned out to be several flowers covered in ice. ?Make yourself useful.?

?Huh??

?Sunlight, melt this ice, the fairy couldn?t aim if her life depended on it.? Yuka explained.

?Oh, right.? With that said, I began to focus some light onto the flowers that had suffered in the crossfire to try and warm them up a bit. ?So... are you done sleeping now??

Yuka shouted at me, ?I told you! I was not sleeping!?

I nodded, ?Sure.?

Yuka just stared at me.

?So, have you made your mind up then?? I queried the youkai.

?Yes, I have.? She answered in a short and simple fashion.

I sighed, ?Well??

?You really think I?m going to let someone who can say they?ve killed me live?? Yuka grinned unstably.

?Oh, of course.?

She came down to the decision with just that reason?

?Now, shall we go for some dinner?? Yuka asked.

I sighed once again, ?I thought you just told me to thaw these flowers.?

?They?re warm enough to survive now, they?ll be fine. Now come on.? She ordered.

Since she probably knew best when it came to flowers, I simply did was she said and stopped manipulating the light and followed Yuka.
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (RiG2 completed!)
Post by: Mima on September 14, 2009, 09:27:18 PM: Chapter 11

?So, I guess we just have to wait for Yukari to appear now?? I asked as we were walking down the path back towards the mansion.

The green haired youkai simply nodded in response.

A minute or so of walking later, I noticed we hasn?t reached the mansion yet, the longer walk this time around suggested that Yuka had something to say.

As I predicted, Yuka soon began to speak quietly, ?You know, Haru... You don?t have to come along if you don?t want to... I mean, it could be dangerous and you?re always avoiding fights for whatever reasons you have, so I won?t mind if you don?t want to come.?

I couldn?t help but grin, ?Forget it, I?m coming along.?

Yuka looked at me, half-disguising a look of surprise, ?Oh??

?Well, it?s not something you see every day, and someone?s got to make sure you don?t lose it.? I laughed.

Yuka scoffed, ?If you say so.?

As I continued to walk, hands in my jacket pockets, I looked up to the sky of this quasi-real world and noticed the sun was now started to descend from its high perch in the sky, bringing in its usual blanket of darkness.

Still looking in the air slightly, I noticed the looming figure of the mansion began to appear in my vision blocking the soon to be orange sky from my view, finally after a weird day; I was back to the safety I called home...

Or at least that?s what I thought, however as I reached for the door to open it for Yuka, there was a slightly familiar shape flash by before I was surrounded by darkness again.

I spoke up, ?It looks like Yukari found us a bit earlier then we?d planned.?

Yuka?s voice spoke out from where she was before we were suddenly moved to this empty void even though it was currently completely dark and made it impossible to see her, ?So it would seem, we could do with a light in here or something.? Yuka spoke up for the latter part of her sentence.

?Whoops!? Yukari?s voice ominously boomed around us, before that was a flash as the small sun from before appeared and began to emit some light.

Not even a few seconds later, Mima and Marisa rose out of the ground a few metres away, after their initial confusion that realised the situation, and us, and headed over to us, ?Back already?? Mima spoke up.

Neither of us got to reply since the surroundings flashed again and we were in the building we knew as Yukari?s real residence, where the strange youkai herself was stood.

?Welcome back, I hope I?ve given you enough time to make a decision, but things have had to move a bit faster then I planned.? Yukari said in her scary ?normal? tone, with a hint of fright in there.

?What do you mean?? Mima asked right away.

Yukari nodded slightly, ?I?ll explain in a moment, let?s go into the other room so we can sit down.? With that said she led us down the same hallway as before and took us into the same room where we all sat down, taking her hat off and untying her hair en-route.

Entering the dining room, I noticed right away that this time the lights were turned on, on the ceiling at the centre of the room was a fairly awe-inspiring chandelier while around the room there were lights that appears as candles, yet gave out a surprising amount of light.

Oh, were there windows here before? I never thought to look; I wonder what?s outside.

?So, would you care for a drink? We have practically anything you might want.? Yukari said cheerfully.

Yuka was first to speak, ?Wine. Red.?

I looked at Yuka, and then the expectant Yukari, ?What she?s having.?

As Yukari looked at Mima, the spirit simply gave a nod of agreement, taking her hat off afterwards and causing it to simply vanish in a tiny poof of smoke.

Yukari turned to the final guest, Marisa, but before she could say anything Mima interrupted, ?Orange juice, for the junior.?

?What?!? Marisa immediately complained.

?You?re under aged, aren?t you?? Mima said with a devilish grin.

Marisa hit the table lightly, ?You?ve let me drink all the time before!?

?Well...? Mima thought of a reason, ?Better late than never to start enforcing some rules.?

?This is stupid.? Marisa muttered as Mima giggled to herself.

Yukari laughed a little before she left for the kitchen or wherever she was going. In her absence I looked around the room noticing the odd contrast in age, some parts of the room seemed very old, for example there was a very ancient looking scroll of some sort sat curiously above the fireplace, while on the wall opposite there was a very odd looking modern art-esque sculpture mounted on the wall, and this odd pattern continued all around the room and something told me all around the house.

Yukari re-entered shortly after she left placing as requested, a glass of orange juice in front of the frowning young witch and then placed a tray on the table holding a bottle of wine and several glasses, ?Now, this wine is ancient, I saved it from a burning mansion I came across once.?

?You ?saved? it?? I asked.

?Oh, yes, a lot of the stuff here are things I?ve saved from various disasters that would have destroyed them, I prefer to not steal things from humans if I can help it.? Yukari explained.

?So noble of you, now give me that wine.? Yuka ordered.

Yukari smiled, ?Okay, okay.? She picked up the green bottle and began to tilt it towards one of the glasses to pour it, when I noticed the cork was still in the bottle. I was going to say something when I noticed a small flash and I saw a gap appear either side of the cork allowing the wine to flow normally.

?That?s quite sneaky.? I commented.

Yukari chuckled, ?My powers have their uses.? Straight after, the elder youkai filled the other wine glasses up and we all took one and began to drink in silence for a short amount of time.

?So, yes, as I mentioned earlier, I?m sorry but I need an answer now, I was planning on leaving this matter until tomorrow, but it seems our friend is more powerful then I had guessed, it managed to take control of Reisen Inaba for a brief moment earlier, I thought it was only able to take control of smaller beings at this moment, but it appears it?s much greater than that, which is why I need to set my plans into motion before tomorrow.? Yukari began to speak seriously.

Mima spoke up, ?We?re in, but I want to hear your plans, no, I want to know everything you know.?

Yukari nodded, ?And you??

Yuka simply nodded.

?I see. Thank you, all of you.?

There was a brief silence in the room as we all waited for Yukari to say something, ?So, I have two plans for tomorrow.?

?...Two?? Mima asked.

?Yes, the first should be the most effective, but it?s also a gambit. The second would get the result we want, but it?s far more dangerous and the cost would be potentially higher, something I want to avoid.?

The evil spirit brushed a hand through her hair, ?You had first start explaining.?

?Of course. The first place involves an observation I made earlier, I noticed that when the spirit moves to a new host, for the period of a few seconds the spirit is forced to become physical before it can enter the victim?s body. Another observation was that the stronger the victim was, the longer it would take for our little adversary to take them over. Therefore I theorise that if we bait the spirit out and allow it to possess someone, then the rest of us will destroy the spirit when we can. It should be safe, since I?ve noticed on more than one instance it?s seemingly forced to full possess someone before it moves on, Cirno and another fairy were together when the fairy got possessed, Cirno is far more powerful and tried to even pull the spirit off, but it didn?t care about it.

After Yukari?s long briefing, Mima spoke up, ?That?s a bit risky.?

?It?s also the only chance for us to attack it, it never becomes physical except at that moment, the only other method of getting rid of it is what?s in plan B.? Yukari replied.

?And what would that be?? Mima asked right away.

Yukari stretched, ?Well, this is going off my own experience, all that time ago... remember my tale earlier? I prevented the spirit was escaping Kirisame through the use of a Evil Sealing Circle, if we could get Reimu to cast one and then we kill the host, the spirit would be dragged with the victim?s soul to the Netherworld, if we do that, it?s as good as done.?

?That?s even more risky!? Marisa commented.

Yukari frowned, ?It is, that?s why I?d like to avoid it... It?d work though.? There was a pause, ?Anyway, leave that until tomorrow. Who wants some dinner? I?ve not eaten yet.?

?No thanks, we?ll be eating at home.? Yuka spoke up.

Yukari laughed, ?Oh, did I not mention this earlier? You?re not going home tonight.?

?What?? Yuka asked, deadly serious.

?Sometime tonight or tomorrow, I?m going to be messing around with Gensokyo, split it up, scatter it and hide it and all that.? Yukari commented uncaringly.

?Wait, you?re doing what?!? Mima practically shouted out, ?What the hell is that for?!?

Yukari looked straight at Mima and stared, ?In case things go wrong, our little friend escapes to Eientei, power to manipulate eternity, the scarlet mansion, power to manipulate fate, Moriya, it becomes a god. I?m splitting Gensokyo to prevent the worst case scenario of that it gets a power that lets it cause far more damage than just destroying Gensokyo.?

?I?m a goddess.? Mima added.

?You?re dead; a spirit can?t possess a spirit.? Yukari smiled back.

An odd silence fell upon the room, which I thought was weird and had expected someone to complain about such a plan, but after a while Yukari took a drink from her glass and gave out a satisfied sigh, ?So, anyway, do any of you have any preferences for dinner? I was thinking pizza myself.?

Yuka?s face moved a little, I knew she was hiding a grin and mumbled, ?Fine by me.? After our trip to the outside world two years ago the almighty youkai gained a fondness for pizza or all things.

Marisa shouted out, ?Pizza!? It appeared Marisa also liked it, having eaten some when she visited with Mima once, one of the rare events where Yuka isn?t chasing Marisa out of the mansion,

?Okay then, I guess that?s decided then.? Yukari said cheerfully as she got up and left the room.

A few seconds later, ?Don?t I get a say in it?? Mima complained quietly.

?Nope!? Marisa chirped as she poked her mentor.

Due to a lack of conversation, I decided to start one myself, ?What do you think about tomorrow then??

Mima looked at me, ?Well, it sounds a bit odd to me, I?m quite sure part of the first plan is so that Reimu doesn?t get involved, Yukari seems so bothered about not letting Reimu know, and I have no idea why.? Mima stopped for a couple of second, ?Other than that, I guess we have no choice. She seems serious, and with what has happened, I perhaps foolishly find myself believing her.?

Very little was said other than that, until suddenly several gaps appeared above the table and several pizzas, plates, cutlery dropped down neatly onto the table, all of this was shortly followed by Yukari who dropped into her chair.

Yukari clapped slightly and grinned, ?That?s better! I was going to cook myself, but that?s terribly rude when you have guests waiting, don?t you think? I decided it?d be much better if I just went and got some that were already done... Another benefit of my powers I guess.?

What? Pizza delivery?

?But please, help yourself!? Yukari ordered, and no one hesitated and began to eat.

While I ate, I began to wonder what my reaction would have been a few years ago had I imagined the situation of eating pizza with a evil spirit-turned-goddess, a witch and two youkai, one with the power to end reality and the other who is so powerful she can kill you with flowers, heck, in my head that sounds weird even now.
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (RiG2 completed!)
Post by: Mima on September 14, 2009, 09:27:34 PM: Chapter 12

After a rather good tasting meal, Yukari suddenly gapped away everything from the table minus the wine and glassware and then cheerfully announced, ?Well everyone, please make yourself at home, do as you want but... try not to make a mess if possible.? She ended with a giggle.

The four of us stood around awkwardly for a moment rather unsure on what to do in such an alien environment until finally Yukari noticed, ?Oh, right, I haven?t shown you around. Well, let?s just go to the living room for now.? With very little choice, we simply followed her.

Yukari took us down a hallway opposite the one we entered and as we walked I noticed the theme of the building still didn?t seem to be able to decide if it was new or old, with various antiques and artwork scattered around. That said, it didn?t seem out of place, it worked well, even the odd colour scheme which in this hall was an incredibly sickly bright purple, much like the summer dress Yukari wore, but much brighter.

Finally we entered a room that looked like what we were looking for, namely due to the two sofas and a couple of armchairs or something of the sort, this room had a much warmer theme, leaning towards a simple red-orange colour, I noticed the wall to the left, which the sofas and such were facing was a large curtain further increasing my curiosity on what is behind them.

?Oops, I forgot the wine bottle, back in a mo!? Yukari said cheerfully, it was still weird seeing her different to how she was as our nemesis since I arrived.

?Yahoo!? Marisa shouted as she practically belly-flopped onto one of the large sofas, after she shouted a victorious ?Mine!?

?Oh no, you don?t.? Mima ruled, as she flew over and began to try and force a spot for her on the same sofa, resulting in a small struggle.

?I guess they made themselves at home like Yukari asked.? I said quietly to Yuka.

?So it would seem, but if you try doing that I?ll just break your leg.? She giggled to herself as she walked over to the other sofa leaving me to wonder if she was serious, not that I was going to try it to find out.

As Yuka sat down, in a far more civilised fashion then her distant niece, I slowly inched over to the curtains to take a look when Yukari re-entered the room causing me to freeze, and begin to head over to and sit down next to Yuka.

As Yukari walked in, she sat in the armchair between the two sofas and let out a long sigh, ?Ah, nice to have a comfy sit-down once in a while don?t you think??

?Of course.? Yuka said between sips of her wine.

?Ah, before I start things up, you may or may not have wondered where we are right now, I know one of you at least, is curious.? Yukari smiled.

Typical.

Yukari groaned as she lifted herself out of the chair and walked over to the curtain, ?Well, actually, we move around a lot, we?ve not been here nor will we stay for that long, but here we are...?

Yukari threw the curtains open, revealing something that surprised me, it probably did the others too, but I didn?t notice.

?Is... is that Times Square?? I asked, looking at the brightly lit array of buildings.

?Yes, it is.? Yukari nodded, looking pleased with herself.

?So we?re flying?? I asked again.

?Indeed, and immaterial as well, can?t have humans crashing into us with their planes and such.

I hesitated for a moment, but questioned the youkai again, ?Have you always been in the human world.?

?Pretty much, I?m the only person in over a millennium with the power to move from Gensokyo to here, and vice versa, so I made the most of it, not to mention it lets me relax and be... normal, as you can see.? She laughed. ?Actually, we were meant to be at the Niagara Falls for a couple of weeks, but one of the household members was almost traumatised by all the water and such, I?ll leave you to guess. Either way, I just moved it here.?

?We should make the shrine look like that! It?d be way cooler to look at!? Marisa claimed, having always been one to enjoy colourful displays, as proved by some of her magic.

There was a peaceful moment where nothing happened apart from people admiring the view, minus Yukari who it was probably normal to, and Yuka who was trying to look uninterested.

?Well, I doubt just looking at that will entertain you for the night, so let?s make the most of what we have here!? From somewhere, Yukari obtained a remote of some sort, holding it with one hand and pressing a button with the other, there was a loud beep and suddenly the ceiling looked like it was moving. Part of it began to descend, beginning to cover the freshly unveiled window; it became clear after a few seconds that this object being lowered was in fact a television, quite a large one at that, but I wasn?t that surprised any more.

I knew that Yuka knew what it was that we were looking at, but I wasn?t sure if Mima or Marisa knew. Sure, Yuka soon got a functional television along with a computer after our journey to the outside world, but as far as I know Mima and her apprentice hasn?t been in the room to see it, let alone make it work.

?So, to start things off, would you like to watch a movie or play a game?? Yukari asked.

Instantly, Marisa shouted, ?Game!?

Yukari chuckled at Marisa?s eagerness, ?Well then, in that case, you?ll need to go and pick something out.? Yukari pointed at a door in the corner, ?You?ll find everything in there, I?m sure Haru here will know what you need for whatever you want, it saves disturbing Ran too.?

?Why Ran?? Mima questioned, ?Are you too lazy??

?No, no, it?s just that Ran is the technical one here, she?s the one who owns most of the stuff in there... I suppose Akyu was quite right on saying that computers are like shikigami for humans, since they seem to get on so well.? Yukari laughed.

I slowly stood up and followed Marisa slowly, I noticed that Yuka distantly trailed me, seemingly the lure of something that interested her was too much, Mima didn?t seem so concerned and lazily sat there drinking wine.

Following the witch into the room, it was much larger than I expected, I was quite surprised to see how much was actually in this room, at a glance it felt like every single computer-related thing was in the room, the walls were lined with shelves which in turn were full of various objects such as components, consoles, games, seemingly everything. Not only that, it also seemed to partly be a workshop, with a part of the room scattered with computer parts and such.

?Hey you!? The witch shouted, when I looked, she was looking at me.

?I have a name you know.? I complained.

Marisa shrugged, ?Yeah, yeah... Anyway, check this out!? She then went to pick up something and hold it in the air.

?Oh, I remember those.? I said as I walked over to her, what she was holding, is a plastic guitar, one of the special controllers for a music game. ?You basically play the game by pretending that you?re playing the instrument, it?s much easier, and better to just use a real guitar though.? I explained.

?Let?s do it anyway! There?s more!? Marisa shouted as she picked up more pieces of plastic.

I sighed, ?Do we really have to, I?m sure there?s much better things in here.?

?Well, it?s not like we don?t have time if we?re staying here, now give me a hand.? Marisa ordered.

Why have I suddenly been demoted from nameless nobody to servant.

As I grabbed a bunch of required items, Yuka walked up to me and spoke, ?Quite a nice collection they have here, by my experience.?

?Yeah, it?s quite amazing...? I quickly changed to topic to the more pressing matter, ?Are you gonna help me carry this? I could use a hand.?

?No.? Yuka turned away, before turning back, ?Just what is that anyway??

?Some music game, Marisa wants it.? I mumbled.

Yuka chuckled, ?Is it really? Do you use that guitar??

?Yeah.?

Yuka took it from me, ?I?ll take that then.?

?Not you too...? I lamented.

As Yuka walked off, I carefully balanced the large amount of equipment, and slowly made my back into the main room where the others were looking as me expectantly.

?You took your time.? Yuka said with an evil grin.

Carefully ignoring her comment, I went over to the gargantuan television and slowly managed to set everything, triumphantly I leant back and lied down only to receive a slight kick, coming from, as I?d guessed, the flower youkai who always treated me nicely.

?Move. You?re in the way.? She added.

With an unsatisfied groan, I picked myself up off the ground and dropped onto the sofa Yuka had now left free, while the others in the room were gathering around the machine.

Once again, there was an odd scene where a witch and 3 immensely powerful magical beings, all over a millennium old, were playing with plastic instruments and singing to play some game, I really did think I?d seen it all and wouldn?t think anything is strange ever again after my first few weeks in Gensokyo, but this has proved otherwise.

Fortunately, after sitting bored through various musical abominations and another glass of wine, the latest band sensation to hit Gensokyo split up after the lead guitarist Yuka decided she was too good for the group and quit. The youkai walked over and greeted me with a pleasant, ?Get up and help me find something else.? With little other choice, I followed her into the room and began to carry the increasingly large pile of things she picked out.

For many hours after that, the night consisted of pretty much the same thing, running in and out of that room, quite tiring really, but at least I eventually got to play along with them when it was relevant to my interests and didn?t involve beating up some plastic instrument. Something in my head however was bugging me, but I couldn?t figure out what it was, as though I?d worked out something important, but couldn?t remember it, but even as the night progressed I couldn?t figure out what it was.

Eventually, Yukari yawned and spoke up, ?Well, I think it?s time we all headed to bed, you all need to be ready for tomorrow. You might not expect it, but we do have some guest rooms, so you two can stay in one and you two in the other, I think Ran and Chen made the beds earlier so I?ll take you there now.

Just like she said, Yukari took Mima and Marisa to a room and then took us to another; it was a simple bedroom-looking-room, with two beds which got rid of a thought that Yukari might have only put one to see the fun that ensues.

After wishing the others good night and getting changed into clothes that had been left on the bed, I saw Yuka had already claimed a bed and was facing away, so I simply went to bed myself and called out, ?Good night, Yuka.? The youkai mumbled something back which I presumed was also good night. I quickly looked for the closest thing resembling a light switch and pressed it, fortunately doing the job desired and causing the room to fill with darkness.

What felt like hours later, I was still awake, unable to sleep with that irritating thought at the back of my head that I couldn?t quite reach. As the lack of being able to sleep began to get maddening, I decided I?d go for a walk or something.

Having snuck out of the room, I took an aimless wonder around, achieving very little and eventually I came back into the living room, with the television ascended once more, I took another look at the almost hypnotic light show down on the earth below. Taking a seat on the sofa again I simply watched the sight while thinking.

Was I nervous, scared or something about tomorrow? It didn?t sound that bad. More time passed, and then suddenly the thought hit me like a certain youkai?s kick to the head. A certain line that Yukari said earlier, ?...if we bait the spirit out and allow it to possess someone...? could that be the reason I?m really here? I?m by far the weakest so I?d be no good at actually shooting the spirit when it?s possessing someone, plus if it got someone like Yuka or Marisa, it?d be even more problematic, but if it got me, then we?d have the most firepower and if it didn?t work, well, I bet they could kill me easily enough.

Heck, maybe that?s why I?m a youkai after all, if Yukari saw Yuka found me tolerable when I was first in Gensokyo, she probably brought me back to Gensokyo as a youkai when I died so I could do what I?m most likely going to do tomorrow.

I shook and then held my head.

I?m thinking too much.

Suddenly, the sofa moved slightly causing me to jump slightly, it was then I noticed that Yuka had entered the room and sat down next to me, immediately, I questioned her, ?What are you doing here??

?I should ask you the same thing.? Yuka spoke, fully awake.

?Oh, you know, just not able to get to sleep.? I lied.

Yuka looked at me, ?That?s unlike you, you?re like me, you sleep easily...? Yuka paused for a moment, ?Remember when Flandre attacked you all that time ago??

?How could I forget?? I mumbled.

?You fell asleep easily enough after all that commotion and you nearly died then.? Yuka continued to push her point forward.

?Probably from exhaustion.? I answered.

Yuka laughed slightly, ?If you say so, anyway, something?s up with you.?

?No, really, nothing?s wrong, just not able to sleep.? I lied weakly, once more.

I had better not tell her my thoughts; best case is she thinks I?m an idiot. Worst case is she causes a riot in the house and goes after Yukari.

There was a moment of peace enter the room for a while, until suddenly something touched my shoulder, once again nearly making me jump, although the hair pressing against the side of my head made it obvious that Yuka was resting her head on it, a few seconds later Yuka spoke again, ?You know, I guess the humans can do some things right.?

?Huh??

?The lights you seemed to like so much earlier, they?re actually quite nice if you just simply look.? Yuka reminded me.

?Oh, yeah. I guess so.? I mumbled again.

Another couple of minutes of tranquillity went by, until I spoke again, ?Say, Yuka, what do you think will happen tomorrow??

?...?

?Yuka??

With a sigh, I noticed that it was useless waiting for a reply, since the youkai had dozed off, still resting on my shoulder, practically trapping me here until I wanted to risk waking her up.

With little to no options left, I was forced with either thinking more about tomorrow, or getting some sleep, sanely, I chose the latter option and tried to get some sleep. Why bother losing sleep now when everything would come clear in the morning?
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (RiG2 completed!)
Post by: Mima on September 14, 2009, 09:27:55 PM: Chapter 13

Suddenly I heard a click, followed by another, and then a whirring noise, quite an unusual thing to hear waking up.

The thing that fully made me wake up was the sound of giggling, not just ordinary giggling, giggling with a hint of mischievous intent, which was never a good thing, especially since I was the one in position to be the victim.

I opened my eyes to see the rather unpleasant sight of a camera lens, a small amount of eye refocusing due to the open window letting in a large amount of light; I saw that standing there was Yukari, Marisa and Mima.

Yukari spoke out in a mock-narrator voice, ?Haru, the one who tamed the most violent youkai in Gensokyo.? The group then giggled once again.

?Huh?? I spoke drowsily, I turned my head slightly and felt hair brush against my cheek, and then I remembered what, and noticed the weight on my shoulder.

She?s still asleep?

Yuka was still fast asleep, but it didn?t bother the others.

?You know... she?s not gonna be pleased when she wakes up and sees this.? I stated.

Mima grinned devilishly, ?If, she wakes up, she looks quite comfortable there.? She followed up with laughter.

Yukari giggled and speaking in a teasing voice, ?I wonder what pleasant thoughts she?s thinking of right now.?

?Mostly about how I?m going to kill you all.? Yuka said.

Wait, Yuka?

The same wave of horror and shock seemed to hit the three amateur photographers as Yuka?s eyes immediately opened.

There was a standoff where nothing happened for a moment, before Marisa yelled, ?Run!? which signalled the escape attempt by the dastardly trio, shortly followed by Yuka who bounded off the sofa to commence chase.

With a yawn, I picked myself up off the sofa, quite the opposite of the energy Yuka has just a moment ago and went and got changed while the chase, or fight or whatever took place.

Eventually, things calmed down, and slowly everyone began to assemble in the living room where I?ve been lying down waiting for everyone. Once everyone had arrived, Yukari cleared her throat and spoke up, ?Alright, we?re going to head off in about an hour, remember to be very careful and don?t hold back.?

Everyone nodded uncaringly as a response, but I could predict what was going to come next.

?Which brings us to a delicate matter, I hope you all recall the plans from yesterday, and you might notice something missing from the plan.?

There was an uneasy silence as the others noticed what they had overlooked, the silence continued until Mima speak up with an irritated, disheartened voice, ?If I could, I would have done it, typical that I?m the only one who can?t help.?

?It?s obvious, is it not?? I said out, causing everyone to look at me. ?I?m the one who should do it.?

Yuka immediately objected, ?Don?t be stupid Haru, you?re the weakest of everyone here.?

?And that?s why I?m perfect for the job; we get the maximum firepower on the spirit, and if things didn?t go as planned... well...? I stumbled over my own words, ?It?s not going to be hard to, like, kill me or anything.?

?This is ridiculous!? Yuka shouted, ?Yukari! I bet you planned this didn?t you! All along you knew Haru would be the one to do this.?

Yukari spoke up, ?Yuka, I did-?

?Shut up! You say you?re different, but you?re still just a manipulative coward!? Yuka pushed Yukari out off her way and stomped out of the room.

?Yuka!? Mima said as she floated after her, shortly followed by Marisa, leaving me with Yukari.

Yukari took a breath and spoke, ?I?m sorry, Haru-?

I interrupted her, ?Look, right now, I don?t really care. I?m gonna do what I?ve got to do. I?m the best person for the job, like I said, so I just want to get it done with.?

?...I see.?

I stopped for a moment, and a thought struck me, ?Can you answer one question for me, though??

?Of course.? Yukari nodded slightly.

?Did I come to Gensokyo naturally??

Yukari chuckled, ?Gensokyo is hardly ?natural? in that tense, but I know what you mean. Does it really matter??

?Well, sorta. I just want to know if I truly belong in Gensokyo, or I was artificially brought here for an, until now, ulterior reason.? I explained. ?You seemed to know where I had come from when you dropped Yuka and I back there not long after I returned to Gensokyo too... It just worries me, slightly.

Yukari hummed in thought, ?I guess I can see what you mean, and in that case, you?ll probably be pleased to hear that the only time I moved you around was when Yuka went with you. As for knowing where you came from, in which to send you and Yuka there, well... you may recall the unusual movements of a certain timepiece. That?s your answer.?

I sighed with relief; I?d probably never be able to tell if she was telling the truth or just saying it to maintain morale, but this time, I?d trust her. Yukari spoke up again, interrupting my thought, ?And now, I think you really should go and visit a certain someone.?

?...I guess so.? I answered, as I turned around and left the room.

It wasn?t long before I saw Mima and Marisa stood outside a door, talking to each other, as I approached they noticed me and struck up a conversation.

?Hey Haru!? Marisa started, ?If you?re lookin? for her, she?s in there.? She gestured towards the door she was leaning next to.

Mima added to the assistance, ?She?s in a... difficult mood; you might have more luck talking to her.?

I laughed slightly as I opened the door, ?Difficult mood? Nothing new then.?

As I pushed open the wooden door, I was surprised to find myself in a garden, considering the house was flying high above the earth, I didn?t really consider the possibility of such a thing, but it made a bit more sense that this was where Yuka had run off to.

By the looks of it, she was sat on the side of the garden, literally, legs hanging over the edge of the garden, which seemed to be the end of Yukari?s ?space?, it also made me wonder for a moment if that made her visible to those below.

?Hey, Yuka.? I tried to sound cheerful as I sat down next to her.

?... Hello.? Yuka spoke after a pause, not bothering to look at me.

I didn?t really know what to say, or what I was saying, so I just said things on the spot, ?So, how are you??

?Fine.? She continued the simply stare into the distance.

A moment of awkwardness passed, ?I guess you hate me then.?

?No.?

?Well, what?s the problem then? You don?t want me to go ahead with the plan??

?...? I noticed her look away slightly.

I sighed, ?Look Yuka, you may be worried about me, or something like that, but you need to trust me on this one.?

For a moment it looked like she was going to say something, but then reverted back to her silence self.

?I think you?re underestimating me, you?ve got to remember, I?m no ordinary two year old youkai, I?ve had a great? teacher for those two years, I?ve won some fights that other youkai wouldn?t have at this point of their life.? I looked at her, even if she wasn?t looking at me, ?Plus, I?m going to do this because it?s really the safest way. Like I said, if you, or Marisa were taken over, and we couldn?t destroy the spirit, then well, I?d probably die in the results, others could die as well, not to mention the firepower we have would be hindered... I trust you and the others that you?ll get rid of the spirit and then no one will have to get hurt.?

Yuka chuckled very lightly, ?You?re an idiot sometimes.?

I grinned, ?Is this where I say that sickly line, ?Yeah, but I?m your idiot???

Finally, a grin broke out on Yuka?s face, ?Such an idiot.? Yuka then began to move, ?Come on.?

Following what she said, I sat up and walked beside her, ?Oh, and Haru?? Yuka spoke before wrapping her arms around me and giving me a hug which, although it wasn?t the first time was still a surprising event, ?You had better be careful, okay? If you end up dead to me again, I?ll find you in Hakugyokurou and make you suffer.?

?I get it.? I answered; returning the hug slightly until I heard a click, followed by another, and then a whirring sound... identical to the one from earlier, and it appeared I wasn?t the only one who was hit by that realisation.

Yuka?s head shot straight into the direction of the sound, where a certain evil spirit and her apprentice were stood with giant grins on their face and armed with a camera.

?You... Get here now!? Yuka shouted as she dashed at them, while the mischievous duo ran around the corner giggling like schoolchildren.

I sighed with mixed feelings, positive with cheering Yuka up, and the event that just occurred, but there was also the fact my ordeal was fast approaching, it was made worse by the fact I had no idea what to expect, but I tried to think positively, Yuka would do everything in her power to make sure nothing happened to me, so I guess it?s a good thing she?s considered one of the most powerful beings in existence.

With my mind starting to fog over with ideas of the imminent trial, I slowly made my way back to the living room part of the house, still hearing the giggling, and roaring, of the chase going on.
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (RiG2 completed!)
Post by: Mima on September 14, 2009, 09:28:13 PM: Chapter 14

Walking back into the living room, I noticed Yukari was still in this, although she was now sat down in one of the chairs, facing the window, ?I see you succeeded.? She spoke as I approached.

?In what?? I asked, unsure.

?Why, cheering Miss Kazami up back there.? She replied.

I laughed sheepishly, ?I didn?t do much.?

As I walked around to sit down, Yukari looked at me, ?You should stop underestimating yourself.? She nagged, ?With Yuka with you, you have a lot of potential, a good team-mate, a good power, you just need to have faith in yourself.?

Unsure whether Yukari was joking or not, I just sat down on the same sofa as last night and waited for the on-going pursuit to end.

After a while, a voice called, ?Haru.?

Turning my head, I noticed Yuka approaching with a slight grin, ?Catch.? As she said it, she threw something at me, which turned out to be a camera, or rather the camera. ?Please get rid of whatever is on it.?

?Oh, alright then.? I mumbled.

?You can do that later.? Yukari interrupted, ?It?s time.?

Standing up, Yukari made a slight motion with her arm causing Mima and Marisa to drop into the room.

?Now listen up, as I mentioned, Gensokyo is in fragments right now, scattered in several planes and whatnot and only I know, or maybe, can comprehend, where they are. The major exception is that there?s two that are in close proximity, and in fact, haven?t moved at all.? Yukari opened a gap, which let us see an aerial view of some land, ?This section is the central field of Gensokyo, and the Hakurei shrine, I chose them for a large area to work in, since there?s the forest in between as well.?

Everyone simply nodded to affirm this.

?Now, of course, our little friend is also there, floating around, doing whatever it does, it?s currently inside the body of a fairy, which is far too weak for anything we need to do.?

Yukari turned around to look outside through the window, ?Now, this is what we shall do. First of all, Haru will go ahead of everyone, I?ll gap him in away from the fairy to cause no suspicion, and then Haru will simply defeat the fairy, no problems. Then, things will begin, the spirit will start to go after you, which you need to pretend to avoid but ultimately allow.? Yukari turned around and held her arm slightly pointing with one finger, before slamming her arm to the side, ?That?s will be our cue! At the instance that spirit makes contact with Haru, it will become physical! We will jump through the gap I?ll make and we?ll destroy the spirit, job done, back here for dinner.?

?So, you mean we just annihilate it with sheer firepower?? Mima asked.

?Correct, of course, Haru may suffer from some? friendly fire, but this is why he?s doing it and not the fairy. I know he can hold through it, unlike the current host.? Yukari smiled.

There was a small pause where everyone took in the instructions that were giving, and then I stood up, ?Well then, let?s do this.?

?Do your best.? Yukari nodded.

?Good luck.? Mima added.

?Yeah, good luck!? Marisa parroted her mentor.

Yuka simply nodded to me.

?Well, I?m in your hands now, see you in a few minutes.? I said back to them, as I spoke, another gap opened by me, and I jumped through.

When I came to my senses, I noticed that I was in part of the forest, not very deep in however, since a few metres away the light from the sun was highly visible, because it was the best idea I had, I headed in that direction.

In the open, it finally dawned on me where I was; I was currently in the field that was between the human village and Yuka?s sunflower field, which I noticed ended suddenly a few metres before the portal to Mugenkan, obviously this was the end of the fragment Yukari spoke of.

Immediately, I scanned the air for anything and as I expected, a few hundred metres away and equally high was a single fairy, it already knew I was here since it was heading in my direction.

I allowed it to approach to a reasonably close distance and noticed it began to fire some projectiles at me, but since it was simply an ordinary fairy, it wasn?t threatening at all, nor was the winged being very resilient; after firing just a few orbs of focused light, the fairy vanished in a little poof of elemental energy, soon to reincarnation, as is the nature of a fairy.

However, in the fairy?s place was, as expected, that sinister looking purple cloud, which shot towards me. Leaning and firing back, I hurled several more orbs at it, which simply phased right through it, seemingly ineffective as I expected. The speed difference between us was all too clear as the spirit?s shape morphed to a much thinner shape as it almost lunged at me, even faster than before. With such a speed, there was no avoiding it.

The instance it connected, my mind immediately began to ring, my senses were being completely assaulted, by vision starting to cloud over with the spirit?s pinkish-purple colour, my ears were ringing with a constant high pitched squeal and my body was starting to become unresponsive. Through the trauma I managed to spot that my backup had indeed arrived and had begun their assault.

?Go! Attack now!? Someone?s voice, though I couldn?t make out whose, cried.

Even though I was being hit by an immense amount of firepower for some of the most powerful beings in Gensokyo, I felt none of it as a result of the attack the spirit was leading, the pain inside my mind was getting to the point where I felt I was going to go insane.

?This must be damaging it! Use more firepower!? Someone ordered.

With my senses now fading rapidly, I managed to see that Yukari was nearby, firing an immense amount of bullets, orbs and other objects through the use of a gap while the others fired from the side.

After what felt like an eternity of agony, my loss of senses was now becoming more and more noticeable, and I felt my mind slowly start to shut down.

?What the hell!?? I thought I heard someone shout.

?Hurry up and destroy it!? A voice shouted again, my senses now at the point where I couldn?t make out who was shouting completely.

More sounds of firepower boomed through my mind alongside the piercing screams, and however reluctant, I found myself being pulled towards the warm painless state of unconsciousness.

?You idiot! Stop h-?

?

?

?
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (RiG2 completed!)
Post by: Mima on September 14, 2009, 09:29:01 PM: Chapter 15

I first realised my consciousness via the sensation of pain, which cascaded through my entire body, on the bright side, it strongly suggested I was still amongst the living, but the non-responsive nature of my body suggested otherwise.

Memories of what just happened played in my memory, not that there was much to remember, just pain, and that spirit.

My head throbbed again, just from thinking.

What the hell is up with me? I haven?t felt this bad since I was human? What happened?

Seemingly paralysed, I, after some meaningless thinking, went back to sleep, it was the option with the least pain, at least.

?

The pulsating pain greeted me back to the world of the awake, and once again, with little other options, I simply replayed the past events to myself.

As I thought, I began to be aware of my surroundings, I was lying on something pleasantly comfy and I was fairly sure that someone else was nearby.

As curiosity began to make itself know, I tried to force myself to move, which intensified the pain writhing through my body. After an internal struggle against the reaction to avoid pain I finally felt myself move slightly, this was my chance.

Slowly, I began to open my eyes, which was easier than I thought, since I had pre-empted some sunlight to cause pain, but it appeared I was in a darker environment.

With my eyes open, all I saw for a moment was blurred objects, but as I vision returned, I found myself face to face with Yuka, ?Hey, Yuka...? I groaned before pain racked through my head as an image of Yuka looking at me when I first woke up in Gensokyo. As the d?j? vu passed, I realised something different to the last time, my head was on its side, and she was asleep in a chair beside me.

With my eyes open, I began to concentrate on the next part of my recovery, to move more parts of my body. After a while, I managed to make myself sit up and at the same time, I started to notice the youkai next to me being more active and soon enough, she opened her eyes.

Dozily, she said out, ?You? you?re awake??

?So it would appear.?I answered with the obvious.

The youkai wiped her eyes and yawned, ?I? wasn?t sure if you were going to wake up.?

I replied confused, ?Huh, why??

Yuka sat up in her chair, ?Well, you?ve been unconscious for almost 3 days and your physical wounds healed before even a day passed, so I began to? worry that something bad had happened.?

?I see? Three days, huh?? I mumbled. ?Why?s it so dark??

?Because it usually is at night.? Yuka replied.

Nice to see she hasn?t lost her sarcasm.

As I was wondering what to ask next, another voice spoke up, ?You talking to yourself again, Yuka?? A few seconds later, the spirit Mima flew into the room, it took a few seconds for her to notice me awake, ?Ah! You?re finally awake.?

?Yeah? I am.? I paused for a moment, and a question hit me, ?Wait, where am I??

?My shrine, of course!? Mima announced proudly, as always.

There was a pause where nothing happened, minus Mima flying from the doorway over to by Yuka.

?So, are you two going to explain what happened?? I asked.

Mima spoke up first, ?How much do you remember??

I tried to recall back, but failed to recall anything new, ?Nothing but my senses in agony.?

?So, that?s what it did to you then.? Mima spoke quietly.

?What do you mean??

?Never mind, we?ll get to that later.? Mima hastily brushed the question aside.

Yuka stood up, ?Haru, can you walk??

?Give me a moment, and I?ll try, I guess.? I hesitated for a moment, ?Why??

Yuka half turned away and smiled, ?You?ll see.?

Can?t say I?m looking forward to it.

Slowly, I struggled to pick myself up, and noticing that neither of the two elders in the room were offering any support, I found myself having to try and readjust to the pain and stand unaided. Fortunately, I managed to do so and slowly wobbled after Yuka, who began to move after she saw I was mobile.

I continued to follow Yuka as she led me out of the room, followed by Mima, into the front room of the shrine which was equally poorly lit. Fortunately, the more I walked, the more I felt my strength return, although it still didn?t get rid of the horrific headache I had.

Yuka reached the sliding door and spoke out, ?This might help to explain.?

With a light kick from the side, the door slid open. At first, I didn?t notice anything, but as I got a bit closer, I noticed what was indeed, wrong.

The night sky wasn?t completely a night sky, with a minor orange rift down the centre; the sky was split with night on one side, and day on the other. I then looked down, and noticed the weather was behaving similarly with rain covering an area, and not the other, as I looked, I saw more of these freak anomalies.

?Well?? I knew almost instantly what had happened, ?It?s either that the spirit has possessed Gensokyo, which is impossible, or it has taken over a certain someone.?

Mima spoke from behind, ?Correct.? She then flew past me and outside, and looked up, ?Things are in quite a mess.?

?So? what happened?? I asked after some time passed.

The spirit spoke up first, ?Well, you probably don?t remember, like you said, but as we began to attack the spirit, as planned, we were able to hit it with our firepower; however we simply couldn?t do enough as we were.?

Mima settled down to the ground and looked back, ?That?s when we rushed in closer and decided to go all out, it was better to hurt you severely and let you heal rather than be taken over and as a result killed, obviously.?

?I? I can recall someone flying close.? My head throbbed as I thought back.

?Yukari flew in extremely close, as part of her theory and began to bombard it heavily, which fortunately began to make a visible effect, but then a major flaw in her plan occurred, and that?s when things began to go to Makai.? Mima frowned, ?The spirit wasn?t stuck in a process or anything, once Yukari was close enough, the spirit grabbed hold of her too rendering her as useless as you were at that point.?

?So much for being the oldest, most powerful youkai, eh?? The flower youkai commented.

Mima looked up to the sky, ?I can only guess that in fact, we had walked into the spirit?s trap, because, as you can guess, once it disabled you, it fully infested Yukari and took control who then within seconds opened a gap and retreated.?

Yuka finally began to explain something, ?We dragged you to the shrine and tried to sort something out, but we?re stuck in this fragment of Gensokyo with just the five of us, and even our little friend hasn?t reappeared with its new host yet.?

Mima spoke up once again, ?I?m beginning to wonder if these occurrences are due to the spirit learning its new abilities or whether it?s just Gensokyo beginning to deteriorate and fall apart as a result of the split? But we just have no idea what to do, not even Reimu knows this time.?

Yuka wore in incredibly large grin that just told she was enjoying something about this, and spoke up, ?I know one thing we can do which may or may not fix things.?

?What?s that?? Mima asked.

?Kill Yukari Yakumo.? She replied far too happily.
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (RiG2 completed!)
Post by: Mima on September 14, 2009, 09:29:22 PM: Chapter 16

?Are you serious?? I asked instantly.

Yuka looked at me cynically, ?Of course I am, who do you take me for?? Yuka grinned, ?I?m sure we can take down ?Yukari? who doesn?t have knowledge on her powers, hell, I bet I could take her down myself.?

?Let?s not get too overconfident Yuka, you don?t know that.? Mima interrupted Yuka?s zeal with a serious tone.

?Of course I do, we?ve fought it before, and it had Wriggle under control, yet could do nothing to control the insects.? Yuka grinned and looked at me, ?Right, Haru.?

I nodded, ?Well, that?s true, but we sh-?

?There you go then! Plus, it?s what Yukari probably wants.? Yuka added.

?What?? Mima asked, confused slightly.

Yuka?s zealous grin returned, ?Her second plan! We need to kill the current host while Reimu does something.?

?An evil sealing circle I think she said.? Mima thought back. ?We?ll need to ask Reimu about that then? after some sleep, it?s still early in the morning you know.?

Yuka tutted, ?Whatever, but it doesn?t sound like you have any objections to the general plan.? She smiled slyly.

?I don?t know what to think any more.? Mima moaned.

?Me neither, plus my head is still killing me.? I complained.

Yuka tutted once more, ?Weakling, go back to bed then, but you have better be fit for fighting later, you never know when Yukari and ?it? might turn up.?

?Yeah, yeah, see you tomorrow, or later, whatever.? I slurred as I slowly trailed back to bed, it didn?t take long to fall back asleep, not just to tiredness but also to the promise of less pain.

?

?

I felt consciousness soon seep back into my mind, and I began to become aware of the world around me once again. Opening my eyes, I noticed that it was sunny this time around, and I pondered on how that worked, since earlier the sky was made of light and darkness, yet appeared dark but now it?s the opposite, was it the position of the split in the sky? I wasn?t sure, but decided not to lose too much sleep over it.

At that moment I noticed that thankfully, my headache had dramatically settled down, I almost felt like I had my senses back in control, with just a small, sharp pain in my head that throbbed every now and then. As I got out of bed, I found myself able to stand and move a lot easier too.

As I entered the other room, everyone else was in there talking, Reimu, Marisa, Mima and Yuka, noticing me first, as always, Yuka spoke up, ?Finally awake, eh? I didn?t think you were going to wake up.?

?Huh? What time is it?? I asked.

Yuka grabbed her pocket watch and looked at it, ?Quarter to two, so you?ve been out for about another 10 hours.?

?That?ll explain why I feel so much better then.?

Yuka gave an evil smirk ?If it means you?ll be less of a weakling, I guess that?s good news.?

Mima interrupted, giving an amused giggle, ?Stop teasing him so much, you?ll hurt his feelings.?

?Don?t worry, he?s past that stage.? Yuka brushed the comment away. ?Besides, he knows better than to go into a depression or something, because he knows I?ll beat the hell out of him.?

?I suppose that?s one way of training someone.? Mima mumbled, ?Marisa had it a bit easier than that.?

Reimu, who I had neglected to register in my mind, sighed and interrupted the casual conversation, ?Can we get back to things now?? Mima looked at her and nodded her head slightly, allowing her to continue, as she did, I moved over to Yuka and sat down. ?So, you want me to trap Yukari with an Evil Sealing Circle, and then let you lot kill her??

Mima nodded, ?As morbid as it sounds, yes.?

?That?s impossible.? Reimu mumbled as she took a sip of tea, one of her most regular pastimes.

?Eh, what are you talking ?bout Reimu?? Marisa raised her voice.

Reimu sighed, ?First of all, in case you haven?t noticed, Evil Sealing Circles boundaries neutralise almost anything, so even if I got Yukari in there and prevented her from gapping away, unless you were in there with her, you?re not going to be able to hurt her.? Her explanation was interrupted by another drink of tea, ?Not to mention, if you were in there, you?d have less than a metre to move around.?

Mima looked back at her shrine maiden, ?That?s no good.?

?What about using more seals?? Yuka spoke up.

Reimu froze for a moment, probably thinking it out in her head, ?Well, in theory if I made a large border made of seals and activated them all, it would form a much larger field which you could manoeuvre around in freely but to handle that much energy would make me useless??

Mima raised an eyebrow, ?What do you mean??

?If there?s going to be that many seals used, and if you want them to be maintained and not fall apart in a few seconds, I?m going to have to try and keep them stable, but I?m going to be in a useless state, like a trance, so I can?t help.?

?I suppose we have no choice.? Mima mumbled.

Mima scanned through everyone, silently asking for any objections of which she received none. Taking a breath, she spoke up, ?Alright, we have no choice then, when, or if, Yukari reappears in Gensokyo, we?ll do the following. First, we?ll try and lure her over to the area we?ve planned, we?ll conceal Reimu with some magic or something and as she enters the area? WHAM! We?ll trap her in, along with us.?

?If we do that, then it?s just a case of beating her in combat? and bringing ourselves to finish it.? Mima hesitated at the end, quite surprising since Yukari was her arch-nemesis until yesterday.

Yuka spoke up, ?If you?re going to be that weak, I?ll finish her myself, I don?t care.?

Mima looked down, but smiled, ?Fine, if that happens, then you can do it.?

?Oh don?t worry, I was planning to anyway.? Yuka returned the smile.

?It?s a rather basic plan.? I commented.

Mima looked at me, ?Sometimes, simple is better, with thing like this, you never know what might happen, and if you start getting complicated, things can fall apart easier.?

If you say so.

?So, now we just gotta wait?? Marisa asked.

?Pretty much.? Mima yawned, as everyone stood up to walk off.

Reimu spoke up, ?Oh no you don?t, you?re helping me.?

?Huh?? We all stopped in our tracks.

?I?ve got a load of seals to make now, and since you want them, all of you can help me!? Reimu ordered.

Slowly, we trailed after the Shrine Maiden who went through the process of throwing various things at us and showing us what we needed to do in order to make a seal for her, which we then spent the new few painful hours doing.

?We could have done with having the Oni here; she?s good for mass production works?? Mima muttered under her breath at one point.

Slowly, the time passed by, and finally we had created a good amount of seals which Reimu seemed satisfied with, not a moment after we?d done, she had grabbed them all and wondered off.

?Oi, where are you going now?? The blue and white witch shouted after her.

Reimu sighed, ?To place these seals, what else??

?Lemme come!? Marisa shouted as she ran after her, while Reimu simply walked away muttering something.

Soon enough, it was late in the afternoon and everyone had devolved back to the state of lying around idly, until everyone was shaken by a large tearing noise which echoed around the building.

?That her?? Mima questioned as she sprung up.

Yuka was next to get up, and walked over to the window, ?It?s her, the skies changing again.?

?Quick, we need to get Reimu down to the seals and hide her before the spirit notices.? Mima ordered as the rest of us quickly got up and shuffled around.

?I guess this is it, good luck everyone.? Reimu spoke as we were leaving the shrine.

I nodded, ?Yeah, good luck.?

As we left the shrine, I was quite sure that I could see the figure of Yukari holding her parasol quite high in the sky, hopefully she hadn?t noticed us yet, and we needed that advantage, but there was no denying that the fight for the fate of Gensokyo had probably just begun.
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (RiG2 completed!)
Post by: Mima on September 14, 2009, 09:29:35 PM: Chapter 17

With little idea on what was going on, I simply followed the group who ended up leading me to the large field in the centre of Gensokyo, the site where I had been possessed not that long ago. Mima and Reimu were talking quickly to each other and pointing out locations until Reimu flew down closer to the small patch of sunflowers that were actually in this shard of Gensokyo.

?Yuka!? Mima shouted, catching the green-haired youkai?s attention and making her fly over.

Some more dialog was exchanged briefly resulting in Yuka nodding and Reimu sitting down in the flowers, a few seconds later some of the sunflowers moved slightly, concealing Reimu rather well, following that, Mima spun her staff a few times causing the immediate area of flowers, and Reimu to pretty much disappear from sight, knowing Mima it would most likely mask her power?s energy too to prevent the spirit from homing in on that.

With Reimu taken care of, it was just a case of getting Yukari into the right area for Reimu to activate the trap which it appeared Yuka had already taken into her own hands, by firing a multitude of projectiles in the general direction of the possessed youkai which seemed to work well enough, since she began to move in our direction.

Her approach was quite ominous, since Yuka didn?t need to lure her over with any more firepower, nor did the approaching entity do anything, she remained perfectly motionless as she slowly moved through the air towards us.

?Back off a bit, make sure she?s in the area.? Mima whispered, and was an order we all followed promptly.

Just as planned, once Yukari had emptily entered the area, Marisa shouted the signal, ?Now!?

At that moment, a large blue ethereal wall rose around us, trapping us in a fairly large sized area, rising higher than even my youkai-enhanced eyes could see.

?So? You?ve used a trap??

I double-took when I released who spoke, the voice being a slightly warped version of Yukari?s.

?So, what, you?re going to try and kill me now?? The youkai began to laugh in an unstable manner unlike the original host. ?I?ll take pleasure in destroying you all before destroying this world!?

Mima spoke up, ?Silence, I don?t know who you are, but I won?t let you harm anyone! As the deity of the Hakurei Shrine I will destroy you!?

The horrible, grating laughing started again, ?A deity now, are you? I wonder how different you really are, I remember when you were that lonely depressed coward who cried to her friend and ended up being coldly murdered by her, what a coincidence that these hands will defeat you once more, and this time, I?ll make you suffer more then you could possibly imagine.? I began to feel repulsed by the entity, who was becoming more and more unstable as proved by the deterioration of her laughing.

Without warning, Yuka dived forward and launched a series of projectiles at Yukari before closing in for a few strikes but was foiled by a border being created in front of her target which simply vaporised the incoming attacks and made Yuka freeze in her tracks.

?And you. I recognise your energy? somehow?? The possessed turned its back to Yuka, ?You were such an insignificant existence, a weakling who put up no fight whatsoever while I killed you, and this time will be no different.? As usual, laughter followed.

?Don?t relate me with that? human!? Yuka screamed as she once again lunged at her tormenter, this time catching her off-guard and delivering a punch square in the cheek sending the youkai recoiling for a moment.

?So, yes, as I said, insignificant weakling.? Yukari looked at me and then Marisa, ?And you two, you?re barely worth my time, a human and a young youkai, you honestly think you can even inflict the smallest degree of pain upon me??

I was actually quite surprised that the being was delivering such language, I?d considered it to be a mindless maniac to this point, or is it a result of possessing Yukari?

Suddenly, without warning, Yukari reeled back and clutched her head while emitting an absolutely terrible, ear-piercing shriek which caused me to flinch slightly. As the screamed died down, it slowly started to turn into the same laughter from a moment ago, and eventually the possessed youkai lifted its reeled head and looked at us.

?Your little nemesis just tried to take back control, she?s supposedly the most powerful being in existence and only puts up that much of a fight? Your deaths will be quick.?

Again, the way she spoke reminded me partly of Yukari?s charade, which made me strongly begin to think that the spirit was beginning to take things from Yukari?s mind in some way.

Yukari then held her head once more except this time there seemed to be no internal struggle with Yukari, as though she was remembering something, which I was quite sure was similar to what was actually happening.

?I see?? The youkai grinned devilishly, before reaching into the folds of her frilly dress and pulling something out, a series of spell cards, which she then fanned out. Picking one from the group and replacing the others in a pocket, she lifted it to the air.

?Balance of Motion and Stillness!? She announced.

Yuka grinned, ?Easy, we know her cards; if we just exhaust them then she?ll be a sitting duck? If I?ve not killed her first.? Following that, she dived forward towards Yukari, dodging the large blue orb which flew straight for her and unleashing a series of smaller orbs at her opponent.

As the orb flew by, a symbol appeared close to Mima, Marisa and I which was our signal to move as a few seconds later, the symbol began to spew a spiral of bright blue bullets out.

As we headed towards Yuka and Yukari, I saw that Yuka seemed to be enjoying herself, flying in every direction around the border youkai avoiding the orbs and symbols effortlessly, no matter how fast or dense they were thrown at her. From a distance, we supplied some extra firepower at Yukari, hoping to break the energy of the spell card.

Noticing the extra firepower, Yukari spun around and began to aim her spell in our direction, but unfortunately for her, as the orbs were a metre or so away there was an explosion in her hand as the energy in the card shattered, causing all of the projectiles generated by it to disperse into the air.

Looking at the blackened out card, the spirit growled slightly and discarded the worthless item before holding a hand to her head once more. Quickly she jumped back through the air and pulled out another card instantly.

?Mesh of Light and Darkness!? The spirit shouted out, as soon as she spoke the final word, bright lights appeared either side of us.

Yuka looked back, ?Haru, stay sharp, don?t get trapped.? Thankfully she was thoughtful enough to tell me about the attacks, I was the only one in our little group who hadn?t fought Yukari.

Not even a couple of seconds later, the bright lights intensified before strange small lines formed all around us.

?Stay away from them.? One of my teammates said, causing me to fly back a bit since a few lines were passing through me.

Only about a second after I had moved, the lines suddenly screamed as the lines increased in size dramatically and blasted as a full powered laser, all of them, creating a huge maze around us.

As I was flying backwards, away from my almost-death trap, a searing pain raged through my back, I only realised too late that I had dodged right into another laser.

Desperately, I pushed myself forward, back into the small space without any lasers and before I could do anything, Yuka was shouting at me once again, ?Haru, watch out, incoming!?

Ugh, what now?

It was easier said than done to make out anything through the maze of red and blue lasers that were now decorated around the sky like a coloured web, but to my dismay I eventually made out a large series of bullets, also coloured red and blue heading straight at me.

As desperately as I could, I dodged the swarm of approaching coloured balls, almost flying face first into another face, but fortunately this time I saw it coming and corrected myself.

Suddenly, the mesh of beams around us disappeared and with that, I allowed myself a sigh of relief while the other three advanced forward hurling wave upon wave of lasers, flowers and various other spells. Since youkai heal at quite a marvellously fast speed, I refrained from joining in the barrage and gave myself a few seconds rest, which was ended prematurely by a shout from Marisa, ?Heads up, here we go again!?

On that signal, the lights intensified once more and a split-second later, another, different mesh had formed, followed by another wave of disguised bullets.

Luckily, I was ready for it this time and managed to find myself a much more comfortable space in the labyrinth of lasers which allowed me to dodge the bullet-swarm with ease.

As the lasers disappeared, I flew closer to assist in the counter, but it appeared I was too late, as Mima and Marisa were in front of Yukari and fired what appeared to be a Master Spark each at her propelling her backwards, right into the path of Yuka who delivered a sharp kick downwards, sending the possessed elder youkai in that direction, crashing into the ground with such force that a small amount of debris was lifted off the ground. Left behind in the air was another blackened out spell card, the one Yukari had just used, that slowly floated in the wind before vaporising as it hit the ground.

The trio laughed to themselves for a moment, only to be interrupted by a voice, it wasn?t hard to guess whose. ?Why won?t you just accept your fates and die??

?What do you think I-? Mima shouted back before being interrupted.

Yuka shouted over her confidently and taunted, ?What?s the matter? Getting scared? Running out of ideas??

?On the contrary.? The dust settled enough around Yukari to make her visible again, where she was stood with a large grin on her face, and holding her head in recollection. ?Suffer.?

The spirit?s host threw an arm in front of her causing a gap to open beside her while the grin only continued to grow more psychotic in appearance, slamming her arm into the gap we all naturally dodged in case she was trying to attack one of us, but strangely enough, she didn?t appear to be doing so.

As the four of us regrouped, Mima muttered under her breath, ?What is she up to? Stay sharp.?

Yukari cackled as she pulled her arm out from the gap and to everyone?s shock we saw she was holding none other than Remilia Scarlet by the neck who seemed rather motionless.

A steady red flow appeared to move from Remilia to Yukari, who then used her other hand to reach into a pocket once more and produce a spell card, as she held it in the air the red energies began to converge on the card, surrounding it with a slowly building red glow.

Yuka struggled to make out something, ?That card it?s? it?s? Human and Youkai.?

It didn?t take long for the building red energy to reach a white-hot intensity before there was a flash, revealing what even I could make out as a different card.

With a sneer, Yukari discarded the vampire back into the gap from which she came and shouted out, ?The brink of fate and free-will!?
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (RiG2 completed!)
Post by: Mima on September 14, 2009, 09:29:49 PM: Chapter 18

Mima growled, ?Yukari, you got it all wrong??

?W-What are you talking about?? I asked cautiously.

?She told me that the spirit?s ability was to manipulate others, how could I have been so damn foolish?!? Mima shouted.

?And that means?? I pressed further.

Mima looked at me, ?It?s a spirit, most spirits can possess others, I planned on doing so in my plan all those years back, from what we?ve seen, it?s obvious it has the ability to absorb the abilities of others.?

Before I could answer, a large high-pitched noise rung out as a circle appeared around the four of us; the circle itself emitted an evil blood-red glow and simply spun around slowly.

?I recognise this!? Marisa shouted, as normal. ?It?s just like Human and Youkai!?

Suddenly, from all directions, rows of bullets began to criss-cross towards us, fortunately their slow movements combined with a fairly light density made it easy to dodge everything.

?It?s still the same, we?ll start moving soon.?

?We?ll wha-?

I was cut off, as the ominous, blurred red circle around us suddenly jerked and began to move away from us, which obviously meant the other side was getting closer, forcing us to move around with the circle. Although things were made harder, it was still tolerable, especially with Yuka and the others whose movements I could follow.

?Now, we just wait for the spell to collapse in on itself.? Marisa grinned. ?Not so bad after-?

The witch was stopped dead by a huge crack, as everyone turned around, we found ourselves face to face with a large wall of energy.

?This is new.? Mima said in a worried tone.

Marisa grinned, ?Least we?re moving away.?

Nice of you to jinx us.

Suddenly, the circle stopped, and bullets began to bombard us from all directions, at a much faster speed and far more ferocious then before.

?Dammit! Is this Remilia?s power?? Mima growled.

?Got any ideas, Yuka?? I asked in a panic, dodging for my life.

Yuka snapped at me, ?I?m thinking!?

Just when the bullets were about to overwhelm us, there was a click and suddenly everything ceased, in fact it felt like the entire spell had simply stopped dead.

Another odd click, something was happening.

?We?re on the move again.? Mima spoke up calmly, ?Towards that wall.?

?What, we?re trapped??

Mima shrugged, ?Possibly. The spell might give up just before, or we might just go straight into it.?

A moment of uneasiness went by as we slowly closed in towards the wall, for some reason I felt like I was the most worried of the group, even though it was clear no one had any ideas.

What was the spell card again? Fate and Free-will?

?Ah.? I said out loud without noticing.

Yuka looked at me, ?You have an idea??

?Well, just a hunch, it?s of Fate and Free-will, right? What if this circle is the fate part, since we have to do what the circle does?? I explained as I thought up the idea.

?So, you?re saying we need to get out of this, easier said than done.? Mima complained.

Yuka spoke up, ?I wouldn?t be so sure. Take a closer look at our little prison.?

The two magicians flew up close to the edge and looked, ?Ah, I see.? Mima stated, after a few seconds.

?See what? ? I asked, I don?t see anything, just a red blur.

Mima grinned at me, ?I guess your eyes haven?t adjusted to things moving at high speeds yet. Anyway, there?s a fairly large gap in the circle as it spins around.?

Even so, surely if I can?t see it, there?s no chance I can get through.

Since the wall was only a couple of metres away now, Marisa and Mima both flew straight into the circle and emerged on the other side unscathed.

?That worked.? Mima commented.

?Our turn now.? Yuka said, aimed at me.

I hesitated, the reason obvious, how could I dodge through a gap I couldn?t even see.

Yuka sighed, ?Come here.?

I slinked over to Yuka who was facing the wall, after I reached her, she put her arm around my shoulder, ?Alright then, on three.?

?One? Two??

Here goes.

?Three!?

Yuka jumped forward, taking me with her, as the red field got closer and closer I found the temptation to close my eyes too much and did so, it was only after a couple of seconds that I opened them again to find that we had both got through untouched.

Yuka looked at me with a grin, ?What?s up, didn?t you trust me??

?What? No! It was just a? natural reflex.?

Yuka sneered, ?I see, a reflex I?ll have to beat out of you when this is over.?

Oh great, that?s more pain to look forward to.

Turning around, we saw the final few moments as the circle we were imprisoned in collide with the wall, not only would the energy field probably have disintegrated us, but the resulting explosion would definitely have finished us off, however that explosion also signified the end of the spell card?s energy, and the explosion eventually dispersed into the air.

?Woo, we made it.? I said with a sigh of relief.

Mima put her hand over her mouth, ?I wonder what she has planned next.?

From the dispersed explosion, the possessed Yukari emerged and flew towards us and growled, ?Accept your fate and die!?

Stopping suddenly, the spirit seemed to follow the same routine as last time, opening a gap and reaching for something.

?Don?t just stand there! Stop her!? Mima ordered, prompting a barrage of attacks from the four of us.

Magical light, flowers, lasers and stars struck the controlled youkai to very little effect, almost as though she had lost the ability to feel pain or was just so determined she persisted, either way, it didn?t stop her from producing the still body of Kaguya Houraisan from the gap and also a spell card.

?Zen Temple, I wonder how that could get worse?? Yuka grinned, ?It?s not exactly powerful.?

Rainbow-coloured energy began to be absorbed by Yukari and once again it converged on the spell card causing it to glow brightly, once enough of what was probably Kaguya?s ability had entered the card, there was a flash to signify the change?s finality allowing Yukari to announce it.

?The edge of beginning and eternity!?
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (RiG2 completed!)
Post by: Mima on September 14, 2009, 09:30:18 PM: Chapter 19

I groaned, ?Here we go again.? As my speech ended, there was a loud crack as once again, a circle appeared.

This time however, the circle was much larger in circumference covering much more than just the four of us, in this circle, Yukari was actually visible and in the circle, from a quick glance she looked to be around the middle of it, regardless the team opened fire on here with as much firepower as we could muster, better to do things now than before we?re having to dodge god knows what.

A charging sound echoed around us and suddenly a rather large laser, reaching all the way to the circle?s edge blasted from near Yukari and remained there. I began to move back, firing some projectiles at Yukari but waiting for the obvious trap that was about to occur, which soon triggered.

The laser slowly began to move towards us which caused the other three to blast backwards reaching where I was.

?Let?s move.? Mima proposed, which I thought was a good idea and started to back away from the slowly looming laser.

As we moved away, we continued to try and hit Yukari with whatever attacks we could, to mixed success, which was made worse when Yukari began to laugh and threw out several symbols which moved around different areas of the circle. Fortunately, we all knew what they were going to do beforehand and acted appropriately, and were rewarded in the fact that when they began to spew bullets against the direction we were flying, towards the laser, we were able to dodge easily.

This cycle continued to carry on as we were forced to fly in circles, while the bullet traffic was getting slowly more and more dense and less chances to attack the source of the spell, as we continued to fly, I noticed something new, another laser appeared to be forming, it was cycling around Yukari much slower than the other one, and was much shorter, but upon each cycle it seemed to be growing and growing.

At that point I realised that we were in something that could resemble a clock, with the lasers being the hands and the bullets being an optional bonus.

?Get ready, we?re going to have to start flying over that other laser!? Mima shouted back, while Yuka was happily firing another barrage of flowers towards the gap youkai.

Following Mima?s obvious advice, we quickly flew over the laser before lowering again to reduce the distance we had the fly, but as predicted, the next time the laser was higher, and then higher again, and with the ever-increased bullets flying against us, I was starting to struggle, as were we all.

?Wait a second, when?s this spell gonna end?? Marisa spoke up, it took a few seconds for me to register what she meant, but then I realised it, with the laser ever growing, soon we wouldn?t be able to fly over it, and we?d be effectively crushed between the two.

?Quickly, get Yukari!? Mima ordered with a hint of desperation, but I simply couldn?t do so, the amount of dodging for my level of skill was just too much, so I decided to make things a bit easier and drop back to fly behind the others, at least then I could just follow their movements while I helped to supply some firepower.

Thankfully, this actually worked, and minus a few close grazes and Marisa shouting slightly as a bullet hit her, following by Mima shouting to check up on her only for her to be dismissed.

?Hey, Haru!? Yuka shouted.

?Yeah??

?Hurry up, this one is going to be close!? She shouted back.

As everyone picked up the pace, I saw why, there was barely any room whatsoever between the wall and the laser, Yuka cleared it, followed by Marisa, and then Mima, my turn.

The agony that racked through my arm told me that I?d cleared the gap, but only just and catching my arm in the laser in the process, but I was through, and now wasn?t the time to worry about my arm being burnt, it?d heal eventually, the important fact was getting away and cancelling this spell before I burnt up completely.

?Just get round to the other side of the laser again!? Mima issued yet another order, which we followed; dodging through the bullets as the fastest speed we could in hope finally reaching the almost-stationary laser. That was our cue to begin our all or nothing attack, we began to hit Yukari once more, sure that she surely had to be close to running out of spell power on the card soon.

?That laser is closing in pretty quick.? Someone commented, but I tried to ignore it.

A few seconds later, the fact became impossible to ignore since it was only a couple of metres away.

?Hurry up!?

I could only hope for the best as I fired as many bullets as I could possibly muster as the laser inched towards us.

And it paid off, there was a loud crack, and the laser hit us, but fortunately in the process of dispersing, making it harmless to us, I allowed myself a moment to catch my breath and evaluate my arm, it didn?t look that bad, either I healed quick or I caught it less then I thought, only the sleeve of my shirt was particularly burnt up suggesting the latter.

To my annoyance, my moment of rest was brought to an abrupt end by Yukari who shrieked at us, ?Why do you refuse to die after all of this? Why!??

Everyone remained oddly silent.

?Fine, don?t cooperate.? Yukari moved oddly, but despite her plan, it was too obvious to see what she was doing. She had created a small gap and placed her hand in, unlike the previous times, and there was only one reason for her to be so discreet.

In a flash, Yuka flipped up and over an arm that tried to snatch her from behind and before the arm could retract, she used the hook of her parasol to pull the arm out more, causing Yukari to stumble before delivering a vicious kick to the arm, more than visibly breaking it.

Yukari yelled in pain and stared at us for a moment before speaking, ?Fine, this is it. I grow tired of this.? Yukari?s head rolled back and began to cackle, ?Embrace your death! Embrace it!?

The three others rushed at Yukari in order to stop her next card, but were promptly foiled as they ran into a barrier, as they desperately tried to break it down, which I quickly joined in to assist; we could only watch as Yukari once more dug into a gap and reached for her next victim and we all froze when we saw the hand drawn for this attack, it was too good to be luck, she had planned this.

Yuyuko Saigyouji, and Danmaku Bounded Field.

Yukari took no time at all to drain the mixture of black and pink energy from the unconscious Yuyuko and imbued the spell card with said energy causing it to shift once more.

This was the worst case scenario now, we were facing death itself and when facing Danmaku Bounded Field, or more accurate, a mutated version of it, things looked quite grim.

?Chin up, Haru.? Yuka looked at me, ?There?s always a way.?

The former Hakurei Shrine Maiden faded to a translucent form and simply grinned as she held the spell card up and shouted proudly, ?Danmaku Bounded Death.?

The customary crack occurred, marking the start of the spell card as what looked like 6 symbol familiars shot out from Yukari and began to circle us.

They simply did nothing for a moment, just circled us as though they were waiting for something, but without any signal, they began to spew out a horrid looking purple-pink colour, quite likely resembling the colour of the spirit?s glow, but my mind was in too much of a panic to clearly remember, as the bullets began to appear, Yukari turned back into a physical state and simply waved at us, but the wall that had already formed blocked our access completely.

The symbols continued to spin around and around making more and more bullets which remained stationary, looming in every direction around us.

What felt like a minute passed, and the bullets still hadn?t moved, and were still building in number, even Mima was holding her head, ?There?s no pattern to these bullets, it's just a mess.?

?I wouldn?t say that.? Yuka added, ?There?s probably a pattern to cover every single bit of area between the bullets and us.?

?Don?t say stuff like that.? Mima snapped back. ?I can?t take a hit. If my physical form?s destroyed then Reimu?s spell will go.?

There was a pause.

?Master Spark!? Marisa yelled, as she fired her stolen-from-Yuka spell towards a group of the bullets completely enveloping them, ?We?ll just blast our way out, the best way!?

Or so she thought, as the Hakkero in her hand cooled down and the gigantic laser faded from existence, Marisa was taken back to see the bullets hadn?t done much at all, especially in the way of disappearing.

?Damn. Damn. Damn.?

A few seconds later, that cracking noise of bullets coming into existence stopped, and the sight was, in a way, quite awe-inspiring, there wasn?t a single gap in the bullets, if we didn?t know better than one could have well said that we were singly inside a purple gap caused by Yukari, but that wasn?t the case, these were bullets waiting to strike, ready to invoke death on impact.

?Is this all you can do?!? Yuka shouted out, looking around. ?You?ve accepted you can?t defeat us, and you?re having to resemble to such cowardly spells to end this?!?

?Just die.? The voice called out from Yuka?s side.

?With pleasure.? Yuka grinned as she turned towards the voice and shot forwards towards the wall.

?Yuka!?? I shouted in puzzlement.

Mima shouted after me, ?What the hell are you doing??

Yuka, flying at full speed towards the wall grabbed her parasol and opened it in front of her, before shockingly slamming into the solid wall of bullets.

My initial fear of her just vanishing or a similar thing were false, as she flew straight throw, discarding her parasol towards the end and eventually breaking out and then out of view, behind the wall.

Just like that, every single surrounding projectile vanished into the air, letting us see behind the scenes as Yuka was brutally beating up her opponent, delivering a series of punches at every part of her; the spell had already been broken but Yuka was in for the victory and following an odd twitch, she performed a backwards kick to the rear of Yukari?s head slamming her head forward, followed by her delivering her knee to the gap youkai?s face sending her rotating backwards again leaving her almost horizontal.

Rising slightly, Yuka raised her leg and slammed her heel down onto Yukari?s throat causing her to spin uncontrollably downwards on a fall that was probably around a hundred metres. Unhappy with that, Yuka flew down to the falling youkai and delivered a final punch to her chest which sent the former Hakurei Maiden at a tremendous speed to the ground which, on impact caused an explosion of dust and rubble to rise; finally, it looked like the tides had turned.

As we approached the triumphant Yuka, she turned around to look at us, and smiled slightly before she seemed to lean to one side and then fell from the sky lifelessly.
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (RiG2 completed!)
Post by: Mima on September 14, 2009, 09:30:58 PM: Chapter 20

?Y-Yuka!? I shouted as I dived forward towards her shortly followed by the similar cries of Mima and Marisa.

Flying down as fast as I could, I couldn?t focus on anything except the falling youkai, forget Yukari, this was more important.

Finally I caught up with her and gently caught her so she was lying in my arms.

?Yuka? Come on Yuka.?

Nothing. I started to panic.

?Yuka! Come on! Can you hear me?! Hold on!?

?Haru?? Mima spoke quietly behind me.

I knew what she wanted to say, but the feeling of denial was just too much.

?Come on! The fight?s not over yet! You?re not going to just let her kill you again are you??

The lack of a reply still began to scramble my mind.

The last thing I needed to hear right then, was laughter, her laughter.

?Well, well, well!? More laughter, ?One down, three to go? How foolish of her to do that, just letting herself die like that.?

?Shut up! I?ll take you down myself, for Yuka!? I found myself shouting.

Yukari gloated, ?You wish, you?re nothing. Weak and useless, I don?t even why you?re here. You?ve been hit while the others have not, it?s obvious you?re just hindering everyone, that you?re the one whose fault it was for driving your love to suicide to protect you.?

?Shut the hell up!? I paused, ?That?s not true??

Who am I kidding? It probably is?

The possessed youkai laughed, ?Allow me to end your misery.?

Finally leaving the smoke screen that was the dust cloud and into view, Yukari sneered as a large gap opened behind her leaving the sky full of symbol familiars that began to spew bullets at us; it wasn?t as bad as what we?d faced before but suddenly I?d lost the will to dodge.

?Marisa, let?s go for it.? Mima spoke in a commanding voice.

Marisa asked back, ?For what??

?That spell we theorised, you know the one.? Mima spoke confidently.

?Oh! That one!? Marisa shouted happily, quite the opposite of me right now. ?Let?s go for it!?

?Right, move those two out of the way.? Mima asked. A few seconds later I felt Marisa grab the back of my shirt and pull me a good distance away, the motionless Yuka still in my arms.

Actually facing Mima now, I could see the grin on her face as she sprouted the wings you saw her have on occasion, but they continued to grow and became the colour of pitch black, and continued to grow and grow until they started to form out of control, eventually just making an impossibly large black void behind Mima and her apprentice.

There was a loud hum as even I could sense the pure energy begin to charge from the black void until suddenly, Marisa shouted, ?Here we go!? and fired a Master Spark into the brightening black void.

The charging seemed to stop for a second, before there was a loud explosion, followed by another one, and another one, almost like popcorn being cooked, the explosions started to sound more and more, seemingly from the energy behind Mima.

?Move out the way, Marisa!? Mima shouted.

Marisa hastily followed the order, ?Gotcha!?

?Here we go!? Mima slammed her arms out to the side, causing the huge exploding space behind her to practically explode in an unstable form, almost like a liquid in the direction of Yukari. As it fired, it began to solidify once more in a strange, lumped, alien shape presumably with Yukari trapped in it.

?And finally?? Mima clicked her finger causing the solidified magic energy to begin exploding all over, resulting in flashes so bright I found myself wanting to cover my eyes at times.

Eventually, the explosions began to calm down, with not much of the solidified energy remaining just a very small chunk, which then glowed white-hot before exploding in such a dramatic fashion involving light and sound that I knew Marisa was pleased.

As the various colours as a result of the final explosion subsided, I could make out the figure of Yukari blasting away to the ground from the force, Marisa and Mima noticed this too by the looks of it, since they blasted after her, I remained back, still holding the youkai who had helped me so much.

More explosions occurred afterwards, this time just from the firepower of Marisa and Mima?s ordinary magic, nothing spectacular compared to the pure obliteration of the last spell card, but Mima and Marisa knew how to use their magic well.

?M-muh, ah.?

I jumped, started by a voice in close proximity.

?I?m? I?m not done?yet.? The voice said weakly again.

The realisation hit me, ?Yuka!??

?Ah, stop shouting.? She complained, awake in my arms.

?Oh? sorry? It?s just-? I slurred before being interrupted.

Yuka spoke over me, ?Don?t bother, the end result?s?? Yuka coughed slightly, ??Not going to change.?

?What do you mean?? I asked, wanting to know the situation for myself.

Yuka gave a tired sigh, ?Just then, I was? sleeping.?

?What? Sleeping??

?Haru, face it. You know I?m dying, the instance I hit that first bullet I had death invoked upon me? It?s just a matter of time.? The weak youkai took a few breaths, wheezing slightly. ?Useless body? Anyway, as you know we youkai regenerate quickly? while we sleep??

?So you wanted to see if you could beat death by staying asleep?? I answered for her.

Yuka simply smiled and nodded.

?I presume it didn?t work then.? I mumbled.

Yuka finally managed one of her usual grins, ?Oh? it worked, I?m officially strong enough to resist death itself? but the cost would be too much.?

?Eh???

?Put it like this? I?d be sleeping for? maybe a year and a half just for? a day?s time awake?? Yuka?s face lost its grin, ?That wouldn?t be fair for me, or you.?

?So you?re just gonna die!?? I uncontrollably shouted, causing Mima and Marisa to notice us and blast over to us.

Yuka grinned once more, ?Not just yet, I have one more thing left to do.?

Mima spoke up as she arrived, ?Not ready for dying yet, Miss Kazami??

Yuka laughed, ?Not quite.? She then looked up at me, ?Haru, help me up.?

As I lifted her up and held her, making sure she could fly by herself, Mima questioned the situation once more, ?Just what do you have planned??

?It?s okay Haru, I can fly.? I let go of her and she turned to Mima, ?Do you two remember what I got from Shinki as my prize all that time ago??

?You got the ?Ultimate Magic????

Yuka grinned, ?And that is what I shall be using.?

Marisa spoke up in concern, ?Wait! You can?t use that, Shinki said it will-?

?Kill me? I?m already going that way, and I don?t know about you, but I want to go out with a bang.?

The two of them were speechless for a moment; even Mima looked quite startled, ?I see? I guess, this is goodbye then??

?I guess it is.? Yuka spoke without a hint of concern, ?Such an odd atmosphere? Oh look, our friend is coming back.?

It became apparent she was referring to the ever-persistent spirit possessing Yukari, who was flying towards us while shouting, ?Why are you still alive! You should be dead! You should all be dead!?

?Haru, take my hand.? Yuka said quietly, facing me.

?Huh, what??

?You can help me, don?t worry, you won?t die if that?s what you?re scared off.? Yuka laughed.

I linked hands with her, and as she did, I somehow felt like I knew exactly what to do next.

Is this a part of the spell?

With one hand linked, we spun around so that the approaching Yukari was to our side, and at the same time we threw our other hand out towards her.

?Creation sign! Garden of the Sun!? We shouted in unison.

The spell took no time to begin working as hordes of flowers came into existence and were controlled by Yuka who caused them to spiral around collecting more and more flowers, I on the other hand generated beams of light which I started to target the flowers created by Yuka with.

The torrent of flowers was building at what could only be described as in insane rate, within about 10 seconds I could easily say there were probably more flowers now then all the sunflowers in Yuka?s field, and there seemed to be no stop. The light I was creating was beginning to form in the centre of the spiral with the flowers orbiting around it until a mighty crash caused the light and flowers to combine in a flash leaving a rather impressive sight.

All of the flowers now appeared to contain the light energy themselves, and most even appeared to be transformed by it, a lot of the flowers were now gigantic while others radiated various colours, regardless it didn?t stop Yuka from causing the flowers to begin moving in the direction of the approaching lunatic.

As the flowers were close to impact, they seemingly activated, as some flowers began to explode, some flowers had their petals transform into beams of light, others exploded into smaller flowers which continued to attack Yukari and after just a few seconds the sheer amount of flowers made it impossible to see what was going on.

The flowers continued to mercilessly attack Yukari for another minute or so before the flowers began to slow down and rest on Yukari, who now in a weak state, was desperately trying to get them off her and failing miserably.

Once the majority of the flowers were resting on them, I noticed they began to all glow the same colour, pure white which got more and more bright until there was an enormous blast of light once again blasting Yukari to the ground, at a force even more formidable then the hybrid spark that was performed just a moment earlier. As a result, millions of flower petals were blasted into the air and slowly drifted across the sky like snow as far as you could see, but considering the sheer mass of petals, that wasn?t that far.

As I watched in awe at the aftermath, I heard Yuka say something, but it was only when I felt the weight of her hand disappear did I register what she said.

?Goodbye, Haru.?
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (RiG2 completed!)
Post by: Mima on September 14, 2009, 09:31:23 PM: Chapter 21

She was gone. I knew it this time, she wasn?t just going to wake up again, she had vanished, dispersed into the air and I couldn?t help but feel that cold, empty feeling return to my body, even if I knew this was going to happen.

?Haru? please?? Mima spoke behind me, ?Get a hold of yourself, let us all finish this, and then we can mourn.?

She was right, I had to do something, but could I anymore? I was starting to feel lethargic, and even Mima and Marisa who hadn?t suffered any direct hits were starting to look exhausted, and it?s no like a fairy tale ending is going to occur where I powered up from love and sorrow of the event just now, I was in a near-useless state.

Until we saw our opponent.

As she crawled desperately from the latest dent in the earth she had unwontedly created, it was apparent of the damage of Yuka?s final attack on her, she was now extremely battered and bruised, so to speak, parts of her clothing were cut, her arms and face were decorated with cuts and blood and all around her was an all too familiar purple-pink aura, the spirit.

?W-what is this! Why can?t I?? She shrieked into the air, in desperation. It appeared she finally learnt the nature of the trap she was in, she was scared and planned to leave her current host, but she couldn?t, and with that, it meant it was nearly over.

?Why? I? You? We? Must?? The injured youkai slurred distantly before holding her head and screaming, much like when we first encountered her.

She picked herself off the ground, ?What is it? stopping me? must not??

?It?s time you accepted your fate, spirit. You?ve endangered Gensokyo, you?ve killed my friend, you caused my death. It?s time for you to go to hell and pay!? Mima shouted, wielding her staff in an offensive stance.

?Cannot? happen, I will find-? The youkai stopped mid-speech and grinned her terrifying grin, her head to the side, staring at something.

Oh hell.

Either Yuka?s final attack, or just her death in general appeared to have physically altered the flower field somewhat, and the spirit had noticed so, since Yuka and Mima?s concealment spell still remained in place, causing a group of flowers to stand in the middle of nowhere, the edges were cut off and it obviously looked like a missing piece, and the spirit had noticed too.

The spirit burst into laughter, ?Hiding someone! I can?t? believe you nearly won through that.?

?We have won.? Mima emphasised.

?No. No no no. No no no no no no.? The spirit burst into laughter, ?I?m not finished yet.?

The spirit somehow summoned the strength to open a gap and jump in, appearing above us, ?Take this!? She pulled a spell card out of her pocket.

?Border? of Life? and Death!?

?Come on, let?s end this.? Mima said gently, as she charged forward.

The spell took no time to activate and was soon enough spewing multiple waves of bullets out at the same time.

Marisa shouted out, ?The bullets have come a pretty long way! They might end up arriving in lines so just stay between ?em!?

Ready, I braced myself for dodging, I wasn?t going to let Yuka down and get hit by another death-inducing bullet.

But it never happened.

Mima was the first to notice what happened, and almost cried in panic, ?Reimu!?

?What?? I turned from Mima to look at the bullets, and there was a large gap there between us and the bullets. ?Oh? no way??

Flipping around, my fears were confirmed as I watched the entire wave of bullets re-emerging from a second gap, behind us and thus heading right for the standing out patch of flowers that were Reimu.

?Hurry! Fly around! Stop her!? Mima pleaded as she flew along the gap to get to Yukari.

?Quick! Go! We don?t have long!? I shouted alongside her.

?Way ahead of ya.? Marisa said, finally with a tone of seriousness as she blasted after her teacher on her broom.

As we raced around, desperately trying to beat the bullets approaching Reimu, Mima and Marisa began to charge energy and opened fire as soon as they were in sight of Yukari, resulting in two more spectacular explosions.

?It didn?t work!? Marisa lamented.

Mima blasted at the gap youkai with a growl, ?It can?t end this way!?

Swinging her staff, she hit the unstable Yukari on the top of her head, causing Yukari to hold her head in pain. ?Yuk- Murasaki! Get a hold of yourself! Reimu is going to die, the Hakurei bloodline is going to die!? she followed up with another swipe at her.

Before the swing could connect with the target, Yukari opened another gap and dived in.

Mima screamed, ?No! Now what!?

?Down there!?Marisa shouted suddenly, ?By Reimu!?

I looked down, and as Marisa said, Yukari was stood by Reimu; however, the unexpected fact was that she was facing the other way, towards the bullets. With no time left, she placed both hands in front of her and cast a Quadruple Barrier, which blocked the bullets as they approached.

?Yukari did it.? I mumbled.

?For now.? Mima was quick to correct, ?Remember, she could switch at any moment. Let?s go.?

Ready to end this, the three of us rushed back down to the scene, where the last of the bullets were emerging and hitting the barrier, as we approached, I heard Yukari talk.

?Reimu, were you struck at all?? She said, in a caring, weary voice.

There was a pause that was uneasy for us all for a moment, ?No, I?m fine.? We let out a sigh of relief.

?Then, we shall? end this.? Yukari said slowly, as she pulled her hands away from the barrier, allowed the absolute final bullet to hit herself in the chest.

Yukari giggled very slightly for some unknown reason before holding her hand up and then clicking her fingers, ?Death.?

After she announced that word, there was nothing, no one moved, no one spoke, there was just perfect silence, whether it be from shock or respect, I wasn?t even sure what I felt any more.

Finally, the silence was broken by Yukari herself, the purple haze around her had almost disappeared now, ?Well, it?s over now?? She quickly and easily dispersed the spell around Reimu and sat down beside her, and they began talking, we couldn?t hear what they were talking about, but neither Mima nor Marisa seemed to be in any hurry to secure Yukari or eavesdrop, so I did the same.

About a minute later, Yukari visibly shook as she struggled to pick herself up, ?Well, what do you say?? We could hear her once more.

??I guess so.? Reimu said back to her in a half-caring tone.

?Thank you, Reimu.? Yukari smiled, and started to walk over towards us. As she was closer, she began to hover off the floor, to cover the 5 or so metres distance between us and the ground, but only a metre or so up, her power seemed to fail her and she hit the ground soon after with a yelp, it was a sorry sight.

Second time lucky, Yukari lifted off the ground and managed to stay in front of us, albeit wobbling.

?I? cannot describe how sorry I am right now, Mima, Marisa, Haru. My mistakes have put you through so much, and of course? Yuka?? She hesitated for a moment, ?There?s one last thing I have to do now.?

Flying back slightly, Yukari opened roughly 6 or so gaps and reached in, her movements suggesting she was moving things around, and as she removed her hands from the gaps and closed, them, miraculously, all around us, the pieces of Gensokyo simply appeared and slid into place, with no earthquakes or such, they just smoothly restored themselves.

?I wish I could bring her back. I really do, but it?s impossible now, I?m so sorry.? She apologized, which just made me hurt even more.

Yukari looked at the Hakurei Deity in front of her, ?And Mima, I?m sorry, all this happened since I killed you, I stole the life you cherished so much.?

?No, I forgive you.? Mima interrupted, ?I?ve enjoyed this afterlife far more than a simple human life could ever have done.?

Yukari smiled lightly, ?Still, I took your life, its only right you do the same for myself. Help yourself, leave me alone and let me suffer a painful slow death, spark me, whatever you wish.?

?You know, there?s one thing above all others that specialises in harming youkai. History.? Mima spoke in a voice that mimicked that of Akyu?s, as she reached into a robe and produced a knife.

Yukari?s eyes widened, ?Is that really???

Mima nodded, ?I?ve held onto it since then.?

?So, you?ve always planned to kill me then?? Yukari smiled.

Mima grinned, ?Something like that.?

There was a warm soundless moment, a surreal end to the hatred of the fight that just ensued, ending with Yukari twitching slightly and grimacing in pain.

Mima took a deep breath, ?Well then? Murasaki Hakurei? I relieve you of your duty to the Hakurei Shrine.?

In a flash, Mima moved and faced away from Yukari, who at the same time began to vanish into thin air as very slightly, blood began to pour from her throat where Mima had struck, and in several seconds, she was gone.

?It?s? over? at last?? I uttered, letting myself slowly drop to the ground. ?But, what now??

?Mima.? Reimu spoke from behind us, ?What you called Yukari? was that? real??

Mima hesitated for a moment, ?It was, and she was a close friend of mine.?

?I see??

An atmosphere of sorrow brushed through the field, eventually prompting Mima to speak, ?It?s over now, Gensokyo is restored, we should return to the shrine.?

I could hear the footsteps of the two humans walking away, no doubt with Mima, when she called sympathetically, ?Haru? if you need anything, you know where to find us??

I nodded slightly, and then listened as the footsteps slowly faded into the distance.
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (RiG2 completed!)
Post by: Mima on September 14, 2009, 09:31:55 PM: Chapter 22

I felt odd to finally have some peace, a bitter peace at that, I wasn't sure if I liked it, at least there was previously a danger to keep distracted about, but now there was nothing but a painful silence, and no one around other then myself, and it hurt.

?What do I do now??

I slowly walked aimlessly around the former battlefield, bruised and cratered by the impacts and attacks.

?Heh? Typical that the incident I'm involved in doesn't end happily... just my luck.?

Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed something familiar, and so changed my course to head in its direction.

?Ah, this is...? I spoke to myself as I picked the half-buried object up from the ground. ?I'm surprised that this even still exists, it sure lives up to its reputation.?

I brushed the dirt off the object, and then opened it, presenting Yuka's parasol to the world in its full glory.

?The flower that never wilts, huh??

The next thought came to me naturally; it just clicked as the right thing to do. I walked over to what was, by far the largest crater and coincidently the one I believed was caused by Yuka's final display of flowery death, and jumped in.

Walking to the centre of the crater, I opened the parasol once more and slammed it into the ground, handle first.

?Well, Yuka. That's all I can do right now.?

I simply stood there for a few minutes, unable to do anything except replay the events that passed in my mind, more specifically the moment that hit me the hardest, and the more I thought, the worse I felt.

?Why did you do it, Yuka? Surely you knew you were going to die...?

?Isn't it obvious?? Another voice spoke out, one that wasn't so familiar, and that caused me to jump in surprise.

I was surprised to see, that looming over the edge of the crater, was the Judge of the Dead herself, Sikieiki Yamaxanadu, and from the silence that ensued, I found myself shouting at her, ?What's the matter? Here to gloat over Yuka finally dying??

?As if I would do such a thing.? Sikieiki frowned at me. ?I am... here to apologize.?

I was confused slightly, ?About what??

?My behaviour towards you and Yuka... I have always believed Yuka to be a selfish, uncaring youkai who simply attacked other with no rewarding merits, she lived for an extraordinarily long time, but my thoughts were that she did not deserve such for her actions.? Sikieiki continued her lecture, ?Not once, did I think she would not only fight for the fate of Gensokyo, but also throw away her life to not only save those she cared for and loved, but also Gensokyo.?

Sikieiki paused for a moment, ?I guess, to cut it short, what I am saying is that I am sorry.? She quickly added something extra, ?Of course, I should thank you as well. You also helped to save this land.?

?I didn't do much, really.?

?I wouldn't say that, I doubt Yuka's final spell would have done so well without your power supplementing it.? Sikieiki smiled. ?Really, thank you, there are a lot of realms worse than Gensokyo, and had it been destroyed, I would have missed it dearly.?

?So, wait, you saw the entire fight? How? I thought Yukari split Gensokyo apart.? I asked.

?There are other means, particularly those available to those in my field of work.? The judge smiled once more, ?I could go into more detail, but I feel it's not appropriate at this moment.?

There was a pause, and it felt like the conversation could have ended then, but I wasn't ready just yet, ?I wonder, do you know who it was that we were fighting, that spirit? What it wanted and all that??

Sikieiki shook her head, ?At this moment, we've been unable to discover anything but with that said, for her actions and crimes through history, she's been issued to a court with more authority then what I have, and I am sure they'll dig the past up eventually.? She looked at me again, ?If you want, I'll come and tell you when I've found out, and also her fate in court.?

?Sure, I guess.? I answered. ?What about Yuka??

Sikieiki quickly added after, ?I shall inform you about her too, currently, she's needed for the case against this spirit along with Yukari, so I cannot judge them yet.?

?Thanks, I don't know what good it'll do me, but I kinda want to know what happens to her.?

?It's no surprise you do, really.? She stated.

Sikieiki turned away, ?Well, it is time I left now, things on my end are rather delicate, with what just happened and the damage that could have been done, events at the courts are quite busy. So until we meet again, take care, and remember that Yuka isn't suffering or anything, she's content if not a little irritated over the lack of a physical form to start any fights.?

Sikieiki began to walk away before vanishing, once more leaving me by myself.

I turned around and looked at the flower parasol again, ?Well, Yuka, I'm going now. See you around.?

From where I was, it barely took any more than a couple of minutes to reach the flower field which was still reduced slightly from the events earlier, although most of it was still intact, since it wasn't in Gensokyo at the time.

I was quite surprised to find that the portal to Mugenkan was still open, there was a feeling in the back of my mind that it would have vanished with Yuka, since it was originally created by her, but apparently not, and fortunately that meant I wasn't sleeping on a flower bed tonight.

It was beginning to get late now, and as one would expect, the effects of the battle were starting to take their toll and my mind was starting to slow down so I drifted into the portal and down the short path to the mansion, threw myself onto my bed and fell asleep almost instantly from exhaustion, talking to the others could wait a bit.
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (RiG2 completed!)
Post by: Mima on September 14, 2009, 09:32:18 PM: Epilogue ? Former Half

I woke up the next morning feeling empty, I slowly followed my usual routine which went by normally, just the lack of that someone else made it feel completely different. As I ate breakfast, I wondered if the fairies knew what had happened, they weren't visibly acting any different, but something told me they did, maybe my pessimism.

After sitting around uselessly for an hour or so, I decided it'd probably be better for me if I left, even if it was just to visit Yuka's grave.

As she was last night, Elly was nowhere to be seen as I walked down the, once again, short path to the portal.

The sun was shinning happily down on Gensokyo who probably for the most part, had no idea what happened last night, unfortunately, I wasn't one of those, blind to the truth, I had to live with it, and it was hurting.

As I approached the large crater that contained Yuka's parasol, I was somewhat surprised to see Mima was there.

?Morning.? I said, as I jumped in the crater and walked up to her and the grave marker.

?Oh! You're here. I was just about to come and find you.?

?Oh, right...? I answered weakly.

Mima sighed, ?How are you today??

?Alive, that's something I guess.? I mumbled.

Mima once again sighed, ?I know it's tough, but you gotta pull yourself together, you can't live like this forever, you know Yuka was my best friend, you know Murasaki was too, but we have to move on, the rest of the past we've left behind, we just need to leave this now, and continue with life.?

?It's just...? I tried to speak.

?I know... I know...? Mima spoke lightly, ?You've just got to accept it.?

I remained silent, I couldn't think of anything to say.

?Well, the other reason I wanted to see you... Gensokyo is slowly starting to learn what happened with the help of manipulating that Tengu slightly...? Mima spoke up again, ?As a result we're going to be holding a party at the shrine tonight, to celebrate our victory and to remember Yuka and Yukari, I want you to come if you can, for Yuka.?

?We'll see.? I mumbled again.

?Well, I'll leave you now, we hope you'll come later.? The spirit lifted off the ground and flew back in the direction of the shrine.

I looked at the flower in the centre of the crater, and immediately I felt even worse.

?I should go somewhere else, staying here isn't going to do me any good.? I muttered to myself, and flew out of the crater, ?But where to go??

With little idea at first, I headed in the general direction of the village, but as I few, I decided that a visit to the village wouldn't be a terrible idea.

Of course, the human village seemed to have no idea of what had happened, the villagers were up to their usual activities and Keine was at the school teaching, so I decided that I'd go and visit Akyu, if she didn't know already then she'd probably appreciate being told what happened.

At the residence, I knocked on the door, prompting Akyu to shout in her usual cheerful voice, ?Come in!? to which I did.

Inside, Akyu was at her usual spot, writing something down, as I walked in, she looked up, saw me and smiled, ?Hello Haru!?

?Hey there, Akyu.? I said, trying to hide my depression.

?What can I do for you today?? Akyu asked.

I shrugged, ?Nothing really, just wandering around, thought I'd come to see how you are. What are you working on??

Akyu grinned enthusiastically, ?This? Oh, this is about the event that occurred yesterday. I don't know if you saw it or not.?

?Which event?? I questioned.

?You make it sound like there was more then one. I mean the fact Gensokyo got separated and no one could leave the village for the entire day.? Akyu grinned.

I sat down on a chair and lay back slightly, ?I'm afraid there's a bit more to the story then that.?

?What, really? Do you know about it??

I grinned, ?I hope you've got enough ink, since this story isn't exactly short.?

Time passed as I explained everything to an eager Akyu who noted down every detail, I told everything, Mima, Yuka and Yukari's past, the spirit, how the spirit was released and everything that happened in the last few days, as I got towards the end of my story, Akyu's expression darkened as she heard the less fortunate details.

?And so, when she died, she effectively carried the spirit with her to the afterlife, where it's harmless. We split up and went home, and that was it.?

Akyu jotted down the final words and looked up at me, ?Haru, forgive me for asking but... was that, is that all true??

?Every word.?

?I am so sorry.? Akyu apologised sympathetically. ?I had no idea, you must be-?

?Please, I'm trying to keep my mind off it.? I told her frankly.

?I... I understand.? She said quietly.

I stood up, ?I'll take my leave now, there's a party regarding yesterday's events soon and I'm expected to be there.?

?I understand, I'll try to come too, to pay my respects.? Akyu spoke up, seeing me stand.

?Alright then, I'll maybe see you later then.? I nodded as I headed to leave the house.

As I approached the door, a voice shouted out from the other side, ?Extra! Extra!? Followed by the door opening at a rapid speed, through the open doorway, as I expected, was the news reporter Aya Shameimaru.

?Secret fight for Gensokyo's fate revea... led.? Her enthusiastic and fast voice slowed down as she saw me, ?Oh, it's you.?

I spoke to her as I walked past her, ?No interview today, I'm not in the mood.?

As I continued to walk, I heard Aya make say some form of acknowledgement, and I went back to my state of wandering.

The couple of hours I had spent talking to Akyu combined with my late departure from Mugenkan meant that the sky was already losing it's light which I took as a signal to began to move over to the shrine sooner rather then later.

A slow walk through the forest blocking my way from the village to the shrine didn't help much to clear my head, every time I finally seemed to have cleared my head, the cloud of sorrow would descend once more, torturing me.

Without any haste, I ascended the hill up to the shrine, near the top, I turned around and looked around, observing Gensokyo, the land that was at so much risk.

I couldn't help but laugh slightly when I saw the part in the forest nearby which was bald of trees, stemming back to that fight that took place on my first arrival, possibly the first time I got to see the sheer power that Yuka had as she managed to hold off Suika who was wielding trees for weapons.

With a melancholic sigh, I turned around and continued up the short distance remaining between me and the shrine.

Once the shrine was in my view, I saw that there was already a small number of people there, around ten, I could see Reimu, Marisa and Mima were all grouped around the front of the shrine as they usually are, with the Scarlet Devil Mansion gang on one side, and Yuyuko and Youmu from the Netherworld currently hanging around the available food, nothing new there.

As I approached, feeling rather awkward by being by myself, I saw Marisa was waving at me as she noticed me, ?Hey Haru! Come here!?

Doing as she said, I slowly made my way over to them, Mima turned to me as I approached, ?Ah, you did come after all. I wondered if you would.?

?Yeah, I thought I ought to.? I commented.

?Well, help yourself to anything, I expect more people will begin to arrive soon.? Mima said, to which I replied with a nod.

Time passed, and as Mima predicted, more people began to arrive and live in a usual party fashion, eventually, almost everyone I had met in Gensokyo was here, as I sat by those I fought with, a question entered my head, ?Hey, Remilia, Kaguya, Yuyuko, do they know what happened to them??

?I wouldn't be too surprised if they did, if they were with anyone at the time, they'd certainly have known, but it's not like there's any effects from what happened to them.? Mima lectured.

The party went by, I did very little but drink the closest alcohol and watch the events going on, which weren't much of really.

Eventually, Mima stood up and called for attention, ?Hey, everyone! Shut up for a while!? Fortunately for Mima, pretty much everyone did so. ?Now, I'm taking a little guess you all know what this party is for, but let me...?

Mima went into her usual speech mode that she does during party's at the shrine and started talking about how we fought for Gensokyo and then got onto the issue of the two who lost their lives in the progress, one thing I did note was that Mima actually addressed her as Yukari and not Murasaki, but it's not like it made much difference.

As I expected, the shrine grounds went completely silent as the last part was mentioned and a lot of awkward stares took place, but I just couldn't seem to care any more.

Once her speech was over, the mood remained light and cheerful, if not a little less than what it was before.

Nothing else happened after that for another hour or so, it was getting quite late in the evening now, but you hardly noticed due to the bright lighting of the grounds, but what broke the tedious, uneventful pattern was the appearance of Sikieiki once again.

?Haru, could I speak with you?? She asked as she approached.

?Sure, why not.? I answered.

Sikieiki looked around and motioned down the shrine path, away from most of the party, ?Can we talk over there??

?I guess so.? I mumbled as I picked myself up for where I was sat, and walked after her.

?You probably know why I am here.? Sikieiki stated once we had gained a reasonable distance from the shrine.

?I have an idea.? I answered.

Sikieiki nodded, ?It's also the reason I'm late here, the trial for your... adversary just took place, her story was found, all of it.?

?You're going to tell me it?? I asked.

She nodded, ?I promised I would, if you want to hear it, that is.?

?Of course, I want to know what I was fighting.?

?Very well then.?
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (RiG2 completed!)
Post by: Mima on September 14, 2009, 09:32:35 PM: Epilogue ? Latter Half

The story begins roughly 1500 years ago, before Gensokyo, before Murasaki Hakurei, Mima and Haruka Kirisame were even born. The main events took place in a reasonably small town located in Japan, which isn't a surprise really. Now, the village was quite ordinary, the villagers worked to sustain themselves, while there was also a family there who were significantly richer then the rest of the village, they didn't quite own the village, but one would make that mistake, but either way, the family was respected, and got on well with the other villagers.

The friendliness between the rich and poor was signified no more then by a certain girl named Kikuri who was a member of the higher-up family, but that didn't stop her from spending most of her time with the other villagers, helping in their work and such and up until about the age of 19, life remained as that.

However, as with everything good, it comes to an end, and the horrible, unfortunate fate that fell upon Kikuri was an illness that attacked her sensory system, due to the slow rate in which is took effect, followed by the fact it only worsened caused the family to believe she was possessed by some sort of spirit, priests came and went without success and it was only through the family's riches that Kikuri was kept alive.

Kikuri was kept alive, but unable to do anything, even talk, so no one could know of the pain she suffered and of her wishes to remain alive, but despite spending over a year in that state, she remained stable and... sane, for the lack of a better word.

Suddenly, one day, against impossible odds, Kikuri somehow developed a power, even unknown to her until the moment that someone touched her, at that instance, her sight returned, she could breath easier, her senses were back and then something shocked her, she saw her deteriorated body in front of her and she reeled back in shock, and as she did so, her senses faded again, it didn't take her long to realise what just happened.

The maid who had just touched her seemed to not realise what happened just then, and shortly afterwards, she did exactly the same, this time, Kikuri kept herself in control, and kept a hand on her body and alerted her family members.

As you'd expect, there was denial and doubt at first, but as Kikuri put forward more and more facts only she would know, the family finally recognised the truth and actually accepted it.

In a... rather unethical move, the family used their riches to hire another worker, whose fate was simply to be a puppet for Kikuri. Since the hosts never suffered and went under the effects of sleeping, Kikuri had some part of her life restored, she couldn't move around due to the physical link that needed to be maintained, but she could talk, she could take in sights and generally live again.

Time passed once more, and Kikuri eventually accepted her odd life, but once again, good things end, and sometimes human beings can do terrible things...

It was getting quite late one night, Kikuri's assistant had left for the night leaving her by herself just like any other evening when, without warning, Kikuri felt herself move violently suddenly, there were no similar things after that, but soon enough, she suddenly felt her mind numbing, her thoughts slowly fading away.

The blast of regaining her senses hit her as a maid, in a panic, grabbed her, and from that, Kikuri saw the cause behind her problems, an arrow protruding from her stomach, more clues made themselves known, a smashed window, screams, fire in the distance, it was a bandit attack.

Then, the major problem happened, Kikuri died, or rather her body did but since her soul was absent from her body, it was not carried away, instead the bonds that kept her to her body were broken, and she was able to move away from her body. That freedom for her was short-lived however, since as she ran outside, she witnessed the true barbaric acts that were going on and soon enough she was confronted by the raiders, and cut down, she finally suffered death.

But that wasn't the end, as her host's life expired, her soul uncontrollably left from the body and merged with another, she was cut down once more, and again, and again, and again, she suffered countless deaths that day, and not only that but they were also the deaths of those she loved and knew and even once that was over, her soul merged with the bandits and in belief it was a malicious entity, they ended up slaughtering each other.

On that day, Kikuri witnessed her life be destroyed and suffered well over a hundred deaths, she was left in the body of the final bandit, but the trauma was too much, it had broken her mind and she gained the view that she should destroy humans so that massacre would never repeat.

There were several reports of a couple of local villages being wiped out completely, caused by none-other then Kikuri, whose state was deteriorating with every death she went though, until one day, she was confronted.

It was a member of the Hakurei bloodline, who had been tracking down the magical being that had wiped out several villages, and after a rather short fight due to Kikuri's lack of offensive capabilities, her body died, but her trick didn't work to possess her opponent, instead, said adversary opened a gap in reality and trapped her spiritual form, her soul, inside there.

This also makes sense with a statement from Yukari, who was told not to open any gaps, of course, if a member of the Hakurei trapped the spirit in there, then such advice would definitely be passed down.

?

?I believe you know the rest of the story from there.? Sikieiki finished her story.

I nodded, ?I certainly do, a tale I won't be forgetting.?

?Well, as I mentioned, the trial is over for Kikuri and the verdict was passed down.? Sikieiki adjusted her hat.

I paused a moment before asking, ?What was it??

?She was excused from the sins she committed.?

?What!?? I practically shouted.

The judge closed her eyes, ?In the end, it was the right decision, theoretically, and closest to the truth, you could say that Kikuri died the moment her body did, when she lost her sanity, she had no control over herself, no conscience, she was just an insane killing machine. It wasn't a representation of her true personality, which was the loving, caring part of the story.?

?I... see...? I mumbled, ?So she's got away for Yuka's death??

?If you want to view it that way, then yes.? Sikieiki paused, speaking of which, her trial also took place today.?

?What, Yuka's?? I asked quickly.

The judge nodded, ?Yes, her significantly shorter trial was held while the decision for Kikuri's trial was being decided, at that same court.?

?And??

?The start of the trial didn't go so well, the other judges watched her human life and then 1300 years of her attacking various humans and youkai, and since she was mentally sound, it was by her own will that she resorted to such violence.? Sikieiki began talking once more, ?The judges did note that she got better as time passed, and rather quickly she mainly only attacked those who intruded in her territory?

?I kinda figured Yuka would be frowned upon for her eagerness to fight.? I smiled slightly.

?They then got to see the other parts of her life, which showed she wasn't a truly evil person, she befriended a number of people and even adopted and cared for a certain human turned youkai.? She smiled towards the end of the sentence.

?I wonder who that was?? I asked in a sarcastic manner.

?Of course, then the end came, Yuka's notable effort to fight for Gensokyo's fate, and not only that, when the end looked imminent, when loss was the only possible outcome, she threw herself against the odds and rescued not only those she cared for and loved, but also as a result, all of Gensokyo at the cost of her own life.?

I sighed, ?Yeah, I'm too familiar with that bit.?

?That point completely reversed the case, she was regarded a hero and commended by the judges, as was Yukari who was watching, even though Yuka tried to deny such a fact. Such acts are regarded as one of the greatest deeds you could do, to throw away one's own existance willingly to save another, but it was more then that, it was an entire world.?

?And what came after that??

Sikieiki looked at me, ?In a strange, almost unseen turn of events, the top judges requested a private conversation with Yuka, which took place, followed by a talk with Yukari, which was especially unusual since it wasn't even her trial. But finally, after a reasonably long wait even after the two had returned, the judges re-entered the court and stated they were ready to announce Yuka's course of afterlife.?

?Well? What was it??

?Well, it was...? Sikieiki paused for a few seconds, which about killed me.

Someone tapped me on the back, causing me to turn around, and as I did I was jumped on by a head of green hair, and the flash of red clothing.

?Haru!? The person shouted, in such a familiar voice.

?An instant reincarnation of her choice.? Sikieiki finished.

I don't know about Kikuri in the story, but I think my mind just broke too.

?Did you miss me?? The youkai looked at me, it was her alright, maybe a year or two younger, but there was no mistaking it, and I couldn't really believe it, neither could the rest of the attendants at the party, due to the fact it was almost silent.

?Well, yes, of course!? I replied.

Yuka laughed, ?I bet you did.?

Sikieiki spoke up, ?She was quite modest really, she had the choice to be anything even a god and even own her own realm or world, but she insisted that she just wanted to restart the life she had as a youkai.?

Yuka grumbled, ?I can't even fly yet, so that means you've got to carry me for once, alright??

?Maybe.? I spoke.

?What do you mean 'maybe'!? You better well do it!? Yuka shouted at me, unable to hide her grin.

I grinned back, ?We'll see.?

Once again, Sikieiki interrupted, ?Of course, there's one more issue to attend to.?

?Huh? What?? I asked, while Yuka unwrapped her arms from around me, and instead just around one of my arms and clung onto me.

?Oh yeah.? Yuka remembered something. ?Almost forgot about it.?

Sikieiki frowned for a moment before she looked past us and shouted, ?Komachi! What are you doing helping yourself to alcohol while you're working!??

?Sorry... boss!? The shinigami shouted back between gulps of sake.

Sikieiki shouted back, ?Where is she!?? To that question, Komachi just shrugged, which caused the judge to get flustered and began to look around.

I couldn't help but look around too, and a few seconds later something caught my eye behind a tree behind Sikieiki. ?Huh? Who's that??

?Oh?? Sikieiki turned around and looked, ?Ah! There you are! Can you come here please and introduce yourself??

From behind the tree, a girl appeared, one that I couldn't recognise, she had rather long sand-coloured hair and wearing a pair of glasses, her clothes were rather odd, they resembled simple robes at the top, but more like an elegant dress at the bottom, all a bright purple.

As she stood in front of me, I couldn't help but be puzzled, she didn't look so happy either, more scared than anything.

It's can't be Murasaki could it?

?I... I...?

This isn't going anywhere fast.

?I-I-I...?

I felt the urge to just sigh, but managed to resist.

?I... I'm Kikuri, please forgive me for what I did!? I begged in a tone that sounded close to tears.

What.

I couldn't deny that at that moment, I was stunned at the fact the merciless spirit I had fought the day before, that took Yuka's life, was now in front of me, begging for forgiveness, but then, Sikieiki said she wasn't herself, is she aware of what she did?

As my mind suddenly went into a boggle, Yuka spoke up, ?Of course he forgives you! Don't you!?

?Uh, yeah...? I found myself saying.

?T-thank you...? Kikuri murmured quietly.

Sikieiki spoke up yet again, ?It would turn out, that when Yuka was taken to talk with the judges, she was told of her reincarnation offer at that time, the thing that made it one hundred percent sure is that she insisted that Kikuri was also given the same opportunity since her life was stolen too.?

Yuka cut in and tried to cover the story, ?Nah, it's just that she's killed me twice now, so I want to be able to fight such a worthy opponent again.?

?I see.? I said, unsurprised at the willingness to fight.

?She'll be staying with us at Mugenkan.? Yuka announced.

I tried to map out the mansion in my mind, ?What, whereabouts??

?Have you gone dumb or something? She can stay in a house near Elly, it's my realm, remember??

?Oh yeah.? I mumbled.

?And so, that is it.? Sikieiki announced. ?Hopefully the events from all that time ago are fully over now.?

I stopped Sikieiki, ?Hold on a second, there's one more thing.?

?Oh?? The judge looked puzzled.

?What about Yukari?? I asked, since her fate hadn't been told yet.

Sikieiki nodded her head in realisation, ?Oh yes, well, she's right here now.?

?What? Really?? I asked, confused.

She smiled, ?Yes. Look over at Yuyuko.? I did so, ?See that large ghost flying suspiciously close to the sake? That's her.?

?Wait, she wasn't reincarnated?? I asked.

?She was offered it, but she refused It saying she had done enough in the last 1300 years and just wanted to relax and forget about it now.?

I nodded, ?I guess that's understandable.?

For the first time in a couple of days, a pleasant peaceful silence descended around me.

?Hey, Haru.? Yuka said, still beside me.

?Yea-? I was cut off as Yuka jumped and quickly kissed me.

She laughed afterwards, ?Ha! Got you!? Before she went to run away.

Let's try it, I'm sure Sikieiki will be nice enough to resurrect me if this backfires miserably.

I reached out and grabbed the fleeing flower youkai's arm and pulled her back, causing her to give a playful yelp and once she was in my grasp, I returned the kiss she just gave me.

?Don't get yourself killed again, alright? Things were horrible without you.? I said quietly with a smile.

?I don't plan on it.? She smiled back.

?Hey! Stop making out in front of my shrine, you lousy good-fer-nothing youkai!? A ever-so-slightly intoxicated Reimu yelled.

Yuka grinned her usual menacing grin and turned around, ?What's the matter, jealous because no one likes a grumpy, gold digging shrine maiden??

?Why you little...? Reimu jumped up, and a good number of seals appeared around her, ready to attack with.

Yuka laughed and ran, dragging me with her, ?Come on Haru! This party is for me, so let's make the most of it!?

As I was pulled away from the raging Shrine Maiden, it finally dawned on me that things were finally turning back to normal. Fine, Yuka was powerless for now, but I doubt that'd stay that way for long. Also, Yukari was gone, but also her need to watch over Gensokyo was gone, or more accurately, was now a youkai with renewed sanity. I hoped that finally all the trouble was over, but then again, knowing Gensokyo's nature even without Yukari, there would continue to be freak incidents caused by residents of Gensokyo somewhere, I just planned on not getting involved if possible and to just enjoy life again.
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (RiG3 Reposted!)
Post by: Esifex on September 18, 2009, 03:58:17 AM: This is an excellent story. I'm not going to bother embellishing my praise beyond that; it doesn't need anything as superfluous as rampant toe-kissing.

It's very refreshing to see Yuka given some characterization, and making the narrator such a humble person was the perfect touch. His wit when dealing with his predicaments with Yuka - especially when he could've just walked away at any time, early on - are entertaining enough. The only complaint has been raised already; the run-on sentences make the flow of conversation just a little bit tricky to follow. However, after having read it from the beginning, you start to pick up on it and it resumes a normal flow.

Final verdict? Not perfect, but definitely - definitely - worth devoting time to reading.
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (RiG3 Reposted!)
Post by: Mima on September 20, 2009, 12:41:28 AM: Here we go. RiG4. the title may change in the future and the first chapter isn't too long but who cares? The former prologue I posted on the old forums is now... retconned as such. It's now more of a preview since the plot is still very much the same as it told.

---

Reminiscence in Gensokyo

Chapter 1

Consciousness seeped into my mind, signalling the beginning of another day just like the thousands before it. Comfy where I lay, I was unwilling for move immediately or do anything at all for that matter.

As my mind began to work off the sleep, my senses began to become more functional. I opened my eyes and went to wipe them when something caught my attention; only one arm had reached my face.

What the hell?

It became clear that I had no feeling in my arm and that I couldn?t move it which made my mind begin to ponder the answer; simply because I was too lazy to roll my head to the side and actually look at my arm.

Did my arm get ripped off or something? I don?t recall any close calls with lasers or anything.

Finally, too curious to be lazy any longer I turned to my side and smiled as I saw the cause of my arm?s numbness. Where my arm disappeared from sight, there began a pile of pink cloth and also visible were a few loose strands of a light green hair. The fact the ?mystery? thing was moving gently to the rhythm of quiet breathing removed any doubt anyone would have.

Regardless, my arm was still trapped and it was beginning to get quite uncomfortable so I was given little choice but to gently prod the sleeping youkai whilst hoping that she wouldn?t get too mad at having her beloved slumber disturbed.

?Yuka?? Hey, Yuka??

Yuka grumbling unwillingly. ?Muh? eh?? Exhaling, she seemed to show no sign of moving.

?Come on, Yuka. You?re lying on my arm, can you? you know? not lie on it??

Grumbling again, Yuka sighed slightly and appeared weak as she picked herself up slowly, allowing me to grab my numb arm and pull it from under Yuka.

Falling to my side, I returned to lying on my back and decided to remain so for a while until I could move my arm again and as soon as I could, I?d be ready to get out of bed.

?Muh?? Yuka mumbled as she dropped back down. Somehow she had spun over and was now slumped over me with her head resting on my chest, pink nightcap practically poking me in the face.

I sighed. ?Oh come on Yuka. I want to get up.?

No response.

?Fine, be like that.?

Deciding there was no real rush, I lay my head back and decided that due to the unforeseen consequences, a bit more sleep wouldn?t be that bad of a thing.

?

?

A series of thuds accompanied by the sound of glass shattering caused me to stir from my light slumber. Fortunately it didn?t take me long to remember what had happened not long ago and when I looked I noticed there was a distinct lack of Yuka lying by me.

I should have guessed it was her making all the noise.

Unenthusiastically, I pulled myself up from the bed and leapt out into the space-like void that was Yuka?s bedroom. Thankfully, the invisible floor that exists stopped me from falling any further than I needed too, allowing me to watch the rather therapeutic scenes of the astrological surroundings as I headed to the door.

Leaving through the bedroom door, I was faced with the main hall of the Kazami Mansion. Looking over the balcony that was in front of me, I couldn?t see any sign of Yuka or anything else that could have caused the noise I heard a moment ago.

The mansion hadn?t really changed over the years, the walls and carpets were still almost-sickeningly bright and often were decorated with the square pattern that Yuka sported on her dresses. A few new rooms had magically appeared for storage purposes and other random uses but nothing majorly important. With its ever-present staff of fairy maids, the mansion continued to exist in a good condition as proven by a lone fairy that was cleaning one of the two large windows that overlooked the main hall. That window was also notably the most often broken window in the house due to a number of people using it as an entrance or exit and a breakage rate of what felt like once-a-week. I commend the fairies for their ability to replace them.

?Looking for me?? A voice spoke from behind me, causing me to jump slightly in surprise.

Turning around, I found myself face to face with an irritated looking Yuka Kazami.

?Ah, good morning Yuka.? I spoke in a cheerful tone in contrast to her expression.

Yuka sneered. ?Decided to wake up at last, have you??

?I woke up before you. But then you decided to fall asleep on me.? I corrected her.

?No excuses. Anyway, while you?ve been lying there doing nothing but sleep, that television decided to break.? Yuka was quick to change the topic to what was bugging her.

?Now, the question is? did it break by itself or was the sound I heard a moment ago the sound of you breaking it.? I continued to press the youkai, knowing her personality well by now.

?Both, it stopped working so I finished it off.? Yuka grinned slightly.

I sighed at her answer. ?So basically instead of leaving it alone with what could have been an easy-to-fix problem you caused even more damage and probably made it irrepairable??

?Sounds about right, Sherlock.? The youkai replied, her voice heavy with sarcasm.

Nothing was said for a while with just the two of us staring at each other.

?What? Are you expecting me to try and fix it or something?? I complained.

Yuka turned to face the direction of the room that contained most of the electrical equipment looted from various parts of Gensokyo. ?It wouldn?t hurt, would it?? I could tell that she was grinning a grin that said she had planned this from the beginning. ?But make yourself look presentable first.?

Obviously she was referring to the fact I was still wearing the green pyjamas that were just the same as the ones that I wore when I first lived in the mansion and so with a nod I turned to walk in the opposite direction; to head to my old room and get changed.
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (RiG3 Reposted!)
Post by: Esifex on September 20, 2009, 07:04:32 AM: Oh my. You're not done with the storyline, yet?
I love you. Please, continue; I'm lookin forward to this.
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (RiG4 has begun!)
Post by: Mima on September 24, 2009, 02:20:24 AM: Chapter 2

A quarter of an hour or so later, I plodded back to where I had spoken with Yuka earlier though this time I was wearing my usual garb. As always, I wore a long-sleeved white shirt covered by a short-sleeved blue jacket and trousers of the same colour. Thankfully, Yuka never tried to make me wear a cravat like she did a long time ago, the closest it would get is a yellow tie but that was only if she was in the mood to torment me. Of course, when you take into account the slight similarities in our outfits as well as the matching square pattern that Yuka is associated with; it does show us to be a team? or a couple depending on who you ask.

As I had expected, Yuka hadn?t waited around for me. Presuming she had gone to massacre the TV once more, I decided to head in that direction. During my short walk, I began to think back to the events that happened in the past. Some terrific and amazing things have happened and yet this year had been very? boring so far, for lack of a better word. Of course, the greatest thing about Gensokyo is the peacefulness and paradise-like nature but the yearly disasters helped to spice things up a bit and yet the latest event is far overdue.

The fun thing about disasters is that they?re ultimately more beneficial than destructive to the world, the disaster is easily resolved and the instigators slowly merge into everyday life in Gensokyo. There was one exception however, namely a certain event that claimed the life of Yuka and also of another, the guardian and creator of Gensokyo, Yukari Yakumo. Fortunately, through some unexpected heroism from Yuka, she was granted a second life by the Court of the Dead which would explain why I?m currently in this situation involving a broken television.

Of course, that event was a long, long thirty years ago now and since then so many things have changed. People have lived, died, reincarnated, transformed and who knows what else as a result of Gensokyo transitioning to its next generation and yet despite all that my life is very much the same life I lived before Yuka was killed and yet I wouldn?t change it for the world. As a youkai, thirty years is but a small fraction of my lifespan and yet such a boon also has its downsides; particularly that of interacting with humans. A close friend, Hieda no Akyu, a girl who literally lived to record the events and inhabitants of Gensokyo passed away many years back and at a terribly young age due to a deal she made to retain her memory between lives. I hope that she takes the advice Yuka gave her once and changes the deal with the Yamas so she can live a long, full live as she wanted. Maybe we?ll meet again one day.

A voice snapped me out of my thoughts. ?Are you going to just stand around brainlessly or do something useful??

?Oh, hi Yuka. I was just thinking about the past if you must know.? I mumbled.

?The past is done with, it can?t be changed. Stop worrying about it.? Yuka nagged at me momentarily before grabbed my collar and dragging me into the room she had emerged from; the room containing the problem device. It was almost amusing how little Yuka had changed despite dying and almost facing a complete reincarnation.

Instantly I found myself speaking when I saw the TV. ?There?s no chance in hell that I can fix that.?

It wasn?t an overstatement to say that Yuka had massacred the television, which was now sitting in roughly four parts, separated in ways that aren?t meant to happen. Although more capable of handling electronics than Yuka, the concept of repairing that was far beyond me.

?We?re going to have to find a replacement, maybe Kourindou has one. There?s possibly even a chance the Kappa got managed to make some working ones now.? I proposed.

Yuka sneered unhappily. ?How useless, I don?t even know why I keep you around.?

?Because despite pretending you don?t, you enjoy the companionship?? I grinned.

?Don?t be foolish.? She brushed the matter away. ?You do get some stupid ideas sometimes-?

Yuka was cut off by the sound of the mansion?s doorbell. One thing that had changed in Yuka is that she was far more open to visitors whether she?ll admit it or not. I even went as far as talking with the mansion?s gate guard, Elly about it and she agreed that she was allowing far more people to stop by. Also evidence supporting the theory is the fact that she?d allowed two additional people to live in this dream world named Mugenkan, one of them being myself, in the last half-century. Due to the increase in visitors, I suggested the idea of a doorbell to at least try and stop people entering as they please but that doesn?t work as much as you hope with Gensokyo?s residents.

The doorbell only rung out once before there was nothing but silence as the two of us waited. After half a minute I spoke up. ?Kikuri.?

?Yes, so it is. I wonder what she wants.? Yuka pondered out loud as she walked by, leaving the room.

Kikuri is the latest person to make Mugenkan her home. The terms in which we originally met were far from pleasant since it was her who killed Yuka thirty years ago, during her attempt to destroy all of mankind? or something; We never really knew what she was trying to do but she was ready to kill anyone in her way and the fact her powers let her control anyone, including Yukari Yakumo, only made it easier. When Yuka faced the Yamas she learnt the truth of Kikuri?s story; she was once a happy and kind girl from a rich family who lived in a village or small town, friendly to all and always willing to help those in need of it. As time progressed she developed a strange debilitating illness that left her paralysed and blind but that only caused her powers to develop and she was able to live through those who touched her. The story only got worse though; when bandits attacked the town she was slain by a stray arrow and her soul, which was currently in another?s body, anchored itself there only for her to be slain again, and again, and again. The hundreds of deaths she suffered as well as seeing those she loved killed warped her, turning her into the mass of hatred and evil that we fought.

Through means that I don?t know and probably only those in the underworld know, when her soul was forced into the underworld it seemed to have been cleansed and her former personality returned. When Yuka was told about it, she personally requested that Kikuri be given the same second chance at life as her, a request that was surprisingly granted. As a result, a few minutes after reuniting with Yuka, I was faced with the one who had killed her and nearly killed me.

For someone who nearly destroyed Gensokyo, the true Kikuri is incredibly shy and reserved and especially apologetic around Yuka and I. Yuka tells her to stop being like it and be herself but I think that?s just how she is. Either way, she?s an incredibly cautious person which is why the two of us knew it was her at the door; there was only one ring of the doorbell. Quite an odd thing to notice really? but what isn?t odd in Gensokyo?

Opening the front door, Yuka came face to face with a concerned looking Kikuri. With long, sand coloured hair that flowed down to her hips and elegant pinkish-purple clothing that resembled a mixture of a dress and some robes, Kikuri stood out from some of the most colourful characters I?ve met in Gensokyo. Sitting in front of her purple-pink eyes were a pair of round glasses that seemed almost out of place; I?m not even sure why she wears them other than the fact she was wearing them when we first met and as a youkai she won?t have bad eyesight to need them.

?Miss Kazami! Miss Kazami!? She cried out in a panicky tone.

?Call me Yuka.? The green haired youkai replied, saying that one line for what must be the millionth time now.

?Miss Yuka! You?ve got to come and see Gensokyo!? Kikuri continued to shout.

Yuka scratched her head. ?Why? What could possibly be going on that could interest me??

?It?s? It?s an incident!? Kikuri shouted once more.

A malicious smirk appeared on Yuka?s face, instantly wiping away any traces of her bad mood. ?I see.?

I was quick to jump into the conversation. ?Never mind, I?m sure the shrine maidens are fixing the problem right now. It?ll be solved soon.? I was lying, but it?s better than having Yuka drag me around to get shot at by the other residents of Gensokyo.

?That?s not true!? Kikuri yelled, having still not calmed down. I knew she was about to say what I didn?t want her to say, not that it mattered, I?m sure Yuka remembers all too well anyway. ?The shrine maidens are on holiday, remember??

I quickly tried to cover my tracks. ?Oh? Er, yes. How inconvenient.?

?Well then, there?s only one option left.? Yuka spoke up.

?We?ll have to resolve the incident!? Yuka and I said out simultaneously, my voice sounding a lot more depressed than hers.

?Y-you?re going to go out there?? Kikuri stammered.

Yuka?s grin only grew. ?Certainly. It?ll be fun. You?re coming too.?

?What!? I am?!? Kikuri physically jumped back in fright.

?Of course. It?ll be fine.? Yuka was set on doing this now. I wasn?t going to do anything to stop her since it?d just result in pain.

Reaching past me, Yuka grabbed her usual pink parasol from its rack and marched past Kikuri, out of the front door.

?Come along now, we have work to do.? She cheerfully spoke out as she walked away, leaving me and Kikuri to hesitantly follow.

As we walked, I silently cursed the timing of things, particularly the absence of the usual guardians of Gensokyo. All of them.

Reimu Yakumo, once called Reimu Hakurei, was one of the greatest shrine maidens to watch over Gensokyo. After the final battle with Kikuri, a dying Yukari asked her to take over her role as guardian of Gensokyo and so about fifteen years ago Reimu Hakurei magically disappeared and a new youkai with powers similar, if not beyond Yukari?s appeared. At first she tried to make people believe she was a separate entity but that was short lived and she eventually admitted she was the same Reimu. In her place as Shrine Maiden of the Hakurei Shrine was her daughter, Murasaki; which happened to be also Yukari?s human name.

The other shrine maiden that was around during Kikuri?s attack was a girl named Sanae Kotiya of the Moriya Shrine; she eventually had twins named Ishi and Misora who assisted Murasaki to protect Gensokyo. Personally I think that she utilised her ability to manipulate miracles to have the twins in order to keep both of the gods at the shrine happy and not fighting for possession all of the time.

Of course, with three shrine maidens, an extremely powerful youkai and also the Hakurei Shrine?s goddess and her pupil actively resolving incidents, you?d expect at least someone to be on call to take care of this incident? but this isn?t the case unfortunately. A few days ago, Reimu decided it would be a good idea to take all of them and herself on holiday to an unspecified location in the human world for a week or so and knowing Reimu?s laziness she?s not going to bother checking to see if anything is going wrong in Gensokyo.

?Will you stop daydreaming? What the hell is up with you today?!? I was snapped out of my brooding by Yuka who was nagging at me once again.

?I?m fine. I?m just? wondering in anticipation what fun and enjoyment we?ll encounter in Gensokyo.? I quietly laughed. ?That?s a point. You know Kikuri, what?s actually going on??

?I-I think you had better look for yourself.? She replied quietly.

Having already walked down on the pathway from the mansion, lined with endless fields of flowers either side and also past Elly?s house. We were now face to face with the portal. The single exit out of Mugenkan, allowing us into the main part of Gensokyo.

?Well then, no time like the present.? Yuka mused cheerfully as she calmly stepped through the portal.

Kikuri quickly followed her leaving me to manage a sigh before going through myself.

The problem with Gensokyo struck me straight away, a couple of times it took me a long time to realise an incident was going on but it definitely wasn?t the case this time.

Gensokyo was void of colour. Everything was black and white.
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (RiG4 has begun!)
Post by: Satori Komeiji on September 24, 2009, 04:21:05 AM: great to see your back at it
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (RiG4 has begun!)
Post by: Dizzy H. "Muffin" Muffin on September 24, 2009, 05:43:47 AM: Hmm. Interesting. :o
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (RiG4 has begun!)
Post by: Jana on September 24, 2009, 05:44:50 AM: ...I want to read this, but I left off at some point in the old forum... I'll stop by this weekend and see how far I can get.
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (RiG4 has begun!)
Post by: Esifex on September 25, 2009, 04:58:24 AM: Oh my. How does one perceive in black-and-white?

This is interesting. (They've stepped into the pages of a doujin! :O)
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (RiG4 has begun!)
Post by: Firestorm29 on September 25, 2009, 11:57:40 AM: Wow, this is starting to remind me of Magic Pengel. :)
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (RiG4 has begun!)
Post by: Dizzy H. "Muffin" Muffin on September 25, 2009, 03:00:48 PM: I'm gonna guess that out of the forbidden template, the answer is C. Yukari is fooling ar-- ... wait.
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (RiG4 has begun!)
Post by: Bias Bus on September 25, 2009, 06:12:45 PM: Quote from: Esifex on September 25, 2009, 04:58:24 AM
(They've stepped into the pages of a doujin! :O)
Big Bad is going to be a crazed youkai manga artist

Also, I'm glad to see that what is one of my favorite stories back in action~
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (RiG4 has begun!)
Post by: Mima on September 28, 2009, 08:21:19 PM: Chapter 3

?Well, this is different.? I mused out loud. ?I think the three of us are the only things with colour in Gensokyo.?

?You sure are stating the obvious today.? Yuka commented.

?Apparently I am.? I dryly replied. ?So, do you have a plan on what to do??

Yuka turned to look at me. ?No. I don?t. But I?m sure a lead will appear soon enough. They always do.?

I shrugged. ?If you insist.? Turning at Kikuri, it was obvious she had nothing to contribute since she was more preoccupied with poking a black and white sunflower.

?I wonder if other people in Gensokyo are in colour or if it?s just us since we weren?t technically in Gensokyo?? I queried out loud.

Yuka looked at me for a few seconds before shrugging. ?Does it really matter??

?Well, yes. If we?re the only ones in colour then it means we?ll be a prime target for any other vigilantes trying to solve things.? I explained my concerns to Yuka.

Yuka chuckled menacingly. ?You make that sound like it?s a bad thing.?

Oh yeah, of course. Should have expected that.

I looked around, still rather amused at the lack of colour. There was a sense of irony that the Scarlet Devil Mansion was currently the Gray Devil Mansion. Judging by the appearance of things, it certainly wasn?t a repeat offender behind the incident since there?s no one who has the ability that could do something like this; not that I could think of anyway.

A few minutes passed where the three of us did very little but stand around waiting for something to happen to no success.

?So about that lead, Yuka?? I dryly remarked. ?I?ve not seen it yet.?

Yuka turned to look at me. ?If you know what?s best for you, you?ll shut up.?

?Yes, Miss.? I mumbled, enjoying my almost-exclusive ability to be able to wind up Yuka and remain alive.

?Maybe? maybe we should go to the shrine or something...?? Kikuri quietly suggested.

?Why should we do that?? Yuka queried, turning to face her former murderer.

Kikuri quickly stepped back in a panic and shrugged. ?I don?t know! I was just an idea? I thought we might find someone else there who had some information.?

?Stop acting so pitiful, I?m not going to hurt you. Have some confidence.? Yuka nagged.

?Yes Miss Kazam- Miss Yuka.? Kikuri stammered causing Yuka to turn around with a frustrated sigh.

?Surely it can?t hurt to just fly around a bit anyway?? I considered it my turn to put forward an idea. ?If we?re the only people in colour then everyone is going to see us standing out and like you said, they?re going to attack us. You can beat them up and then we?ll get some leads on who could be behind it.?

Thirty two years experience says she?ll go for the idea.

Yuka rubbed her chin with her free hand. ?I suppose of all the options we?re faced with right now, this would be the best option.?

Ding ding ding, success!

?Shall we head towards the shrine like Kikuri suggested then?? I asked.

Yuka took to the air and turned around. ?I believe that might be for the best, we cover a lot of distance and we?ll go past a good number of places where we might be spotted. Now hurry up.?

Making sure Kikuri was following Yuka; I hovered up and followed the two on whatever journey Yuka had planned.

Not only to Yuka?s disapproval but also mine, the trip was amazingly uneventful. The highlight of the journey was when we spotted a black and white Keine leading her group of students through the village. Though we stayed at a distance, she noticed us and waved. Soon afterwards she shrugged, signalling her idea of what was going on. Yuka was more annoyed in the fact that Keine didn?t seem to care that we were in colour and that she went back to her work.

?This has to be one of the most boring disasters to have even occurred in Gensokyo.? I commented out loud.

?It must be bad if you?re moaning about it being uneventful.? Yuka sneered. ?Anyway, it?s not as bad as you think.?

?What do you mean?? I asked, noticing Kikuri gain some interest too.

Yuka didn?t bother turning around to explain, she only continued to fly forward.?We?re being followed. Don?t bother turning to look, let them follow. It was only that Night Sparrow and insect at first, but there are a fair number of them following us now, even that irritating Tengu.?

?What? Really?? Kikuri was quick to speak up. ?I don?t want them to surprise me??

?Relax. If they have half a brain cell then they?ll follow us to see what we?re doing first.? Yuka spoke out with an air of superiority.

I sighed. ?Ever thought that everyone might not be? a tactical genius like you??

?Well, they also know better than to try and sneak up on me. They?ll know what will happen to them.? Yuka giggled slightly as she finished.

Fortunately, the one advantage of having an eventless journey was that we were already approaching the shrine, although after discreetly looking back a few times I noticed that there was a number, at least ten, of people following us. Extra trouble was really the last thing we needed.

The shrine was clearly abandoned as we approached, a large lock was sitting on the main door into the shrine, all the lights were out and there was no one sitting at the front drinking tea. The fact there was no movement at all made me suspect that our initial plan was wrong, there was no one else here trying to solve the incident to get information from.

?Hey, Yuka. There?s no one here to talk to. Not wanting to rush you but shouldn?t we keep moving, we don?t really what that crowd bothering us.? I queried the youkai.

?You?re getting worried as well?? Yuka sighed. ?I thought I brought you up to be a bit braver??

What.... Am I a kid now?

Landing near the building?s donation box, Yuka walked up to the shrine itself. ?Let?s have a break now. I?m sure there?ll be some tea around here somewhere.?

?I believe the shrine is locked to state ?No entry?.? I commented.

Yuka grabbed the lock and ripped it clean off the floor, turning around she gave an apathetic noise before carelessly discarding the broken object.

?Well well, ?Colourful Culprits try to ambush Shrine Maiden!? Well you?re too late, she?s not here!? A new voice called out causing the three of us to look at its source.

Oh great, her.

Standing on top of a nearby tree was Aya Shameimaru, rogue journalist of Gensokyo. Well known for her newspaper, the Bunbunmaru, and her fabrications, she lives her life annoying Gensokyo?s residents while seeking something new to write about.

?We know she?s not here, they went on holiday.? I shouted back.

?Colourful Culprits attempt to loot abandoned shrine!? Obviously the Tengu had misinterpreted the facts as usual and was trying to get her latest scoop.

?If you?re looking for the ones who have taken all of the colour, we?re not the ones you?re after; we?re looking for them too.? I shouted back.

Aya laughed. ?A likely story! You still have colour, not only does it incriminate you as the cause but it also removes the main reason for you to want to get involved.?

?Or it could just be that I?m with Yuka and she?ll take any excuse to fight anyone.? I countered.

Aya paused for a moment. ?I?ll give you that one however it?s still most likely you?re the cause, so give me one good reason I shouldn?t take you down right now!?

Why does she care that much? She was mostly black and white anyway.

?We don?t have to tell you anything, crow.? Yuka snapped out.

?I beg to differ. There are a good number of us here that want Gensokyo back in colour, and we?ll happily walk over all three of you if there?s the chance we can get it back.? Aya laughed somewhat as a few more youkai revealed themselves such as Rumia, Nitori and even Cirno and her friend Daiyousei.

Yuka grinned menacingly. ?Small fry, huh? Bring it.?

?Strength in numbers, Miss Kazami, strength in numbers?? Aya mocked.

Yuka quickly grabbed my shoulder and leap high into the air, giving us a good vantage of how many there really were. Guessing there was at least forty youkai and other various magical creatures hidden amongst the trees and behind various objects, I began to feel a little overwhelmed. Fine, Yuka was one of the single most powerful beings in existence, but she lost all of that when she was reborn, and thirty years of power isn?t much compared to the one and a half millennia worth of power she once had. I was even worse than that, Yuka had a much better head for fighting and my offensive power was really rather useless. Fortunately, my ability to manipulate light helps to supplement Yuka?s manipulation of flowers, and the fact I?ve lived with her since I became a youkai has unintentionally allowed me to dodge projectiles rather well.

?A forty versus two battle, huh?? I mumbled. ?This really isn?t going to go well, you know??

?Stop being so pessimistic, we can do this.? Yuka lightly hit me.

I was surprised to see that Kikuri was flying up to us with a worried expression. ?Can we not fight for once??? She asked quietly.

?Sorry Kikuri, but none of these are going to take the peaceful approach.?

Kikuri nervously muttered and began looking around whilst Yuka threw her parasol into the air. As the object left her hand, she threw her arms forward and summoned a torrent of large sunflowers that spiralled down to the ground, accompanied by a large amount of petals, effectively creating a smoke screen between us and everyone on the ground.

A few yells of pain had emerged already from a single attack, which gave me some relief since it means some of our opponents weren?t skilled at all but the fact a large barrage of various bullets including shards of ice began to narrowly miss us made sure that the fight was far from over.

?That?s the best you?ve got?? Aya shouted as a large tornado appeared below us, sucking all of the petals out of the air and wiping them from existence leaving us in plain sight.

Oh yeah, manipulation of wind. Not the best thing to be going against in these conditions.

As Yuka and the attackers traded another volley of projectiles, I looked around for Kikuri who was still dodging. I was quite surprised that Kikuri had flown up to join us; usually she avoids fighting at all costs despite potentially being one of the most powerful beings in Gensokyo. Her ability is the ability to manipulate others, which worked fine for her was she was in a disabled state and also when she as a spirit, but now she?s mobile and fit for fighting it can prove as a hindrance; she has to maintain physical contact to control them and she became even more traumatised by fighting after manipulating Mokou Fujiwara into using Fujiwara Volcano and taking herself out in the same explosion.

?Miss Yuka? Haru?? She said quietly after a few seconds.

?What is it, Kikuri? We?re kind of busy.? I replied, barely missing an extremely fast red projectile fired by Aya.

Kikuri continued to speak quietly and slowly, which was really the last thing I wanted. ?There?s? there?s colour in the side of that mountain over there.?

?There?s what!?? Yuka shouted.

?Look over there, in the side of the mountain there?s a cave or something, and the entrance around the cave is in colour.? Kikuri explained.

Diving backwards, Yuka risked a look. ?So there is. I wonder if that?s where they are then.?

?It-? I formed a barrier of light to temporarily block an unavoidable storm of bullets. ?It could well be. Shame we?re too busy.?

?But if everyone fights here, no one will be able to take care of the real villain?? Kikuri mumbled.

?Maybe so. That?s how it?s gonna be, I guess.?

?Hmm?? I heard Kikuri mumble something in thought. ?I know??

Whatever Kikuri was mumbling, I didn?t make out since Yuka and I had noticed Aya charging towards us at a ridiculous speed.

?Ready for this?! Wind God! Storm Day!? Aya yelled with a large grin as she drew a spell card.

Point blank? With other people attacking too? Not good.

What I hadn?t expected to happen however was for Kikuri to suddenly plummet down towards Aya.

I heard Yuka speak beside me. ?I knew she?d do it.?

Knew, or hoped?

Aya?s face obviously showed that she was taken by surprise by Kikuri?s sudden movement, who continued to calmly plummet down with her long sandy hair almost looking like a cape.

Unable to activate her card in time, Kikuri held her arm out to the side and made contact as she flew past.

There we go.

Of course, with Kikuri?s problems in combat, it came down to Yuka and I to find a solution to the problem. In the end, we discovered she could use her ability effectively manipulate them to ?lend? their powers. Effectively, she gains the same powers and skills they do, temporarily anyway.

?How?s this for a scoop? Reputed reporter blown away by her own magic?!? Kikuri?s voice yelled, sounding more arrogant that usual. That was the side-effect of her ability, when she borrows someone?s power she always seemed to have her personality affected too.

Aya quickly stopped her charge towards us to look down at the rapidly approaching Kikuri, unfortunately for the fastest Tengu in Gensokyo she wasn?t fast enough this time and as Kikuri blasted by once more, she was sent spinning out of control.

The suddenly-confident youkai stopped in front of Yuka and I and winked. "Looks like I?ve had to save you, you owe me one! I?ll take care of these; you get around to ending this incident!?

?Don?t be stupid, I?m fighting too.? Yuka nagged.

?Not this time, Yuka. You need to be ready to take down whoever is causing this!? Kikuri for once was telling Yuka what to do, which was amusing in its own way.

Kikuri began to spin faster and faster, visibly causing wind to appear around her and continuing to build up. Once the wind was practically roaring around her she suddenly stopped, facing us, she pointed her hand at us and suddenly we found ourselves being blown backwards at an unreal speed.

As we were flying backwards in the direction of the mountain there was a patch of colour at, we watched as Kikuri arrogantly dodged a few volleys of bullets before diving back into the fray, sure it was a good distraction move, but I wasn?t that confident on her chances to win. Regardless she had given us a chance to get things sorted so I was sure to make to most of it.
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (RiG4 has begun!)
Post by: Destructiox on September 28, 2009, 08:29:39 PM: Humourous to start, interesting finish, waiting patiently to see how this new storyline pans out in the future.
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (RiG4 has begun!)
Post by: Dizzy H. "Muffin" Muffin on September 29, 2009, 02:21:16 AM: Heh. I'm amused by Haru's JUST AS PLANNED moments ...
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (RiG4 has begun!)
Post by: Esifex on September 30, 2009, 05:41:54 PM: Reputed Reporter Ruined by Reflected Reactions of Reincarnated SOMETHING THAT STARTS WITH R
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (RiG4 has begun!)
Post by: Mima on October 01, 2009, 02:13:20 AM: Chapter 4

It was as Kikuri said. The entrance to the cave was definitely in colour. It was difficult to make out since the colour only started a metre or so away from where the darkness reigned but there was certainly colour present.

?I suppose we?ve gotta go in there?? I asked Yuka, even though the answer was really quite obvious.

?I would say so. Yes.? Yuka commented as she stared at the entrance to the cave.

No sarcasm or anything? That makes a change.

?Of course, we can?t do anything until you light the way.? Yuka quietly commented.

If I didn?t know better, I?d say she could read my mind.

With a click of my fingers, small orbs of concentrated light began to gather above my outstretched hand, conveniently giving me a make-shift lamp to explore the cave with.

Leading the way forward and making sure Yuka was following me as she let her parasol down, I began to slowly make my way through the darkness. The caverns didn?t appear to have been used a great deal, nor were they newly burrowed into the side of the mountain; the various cobwebs that kept attacking my face were evidence of that. The tunnel we were following also didn?t seem too habitable due to the ever-lowering roof that forced me lower and lower as we progressed.

?Well, if this decline continues and we don?t find something soon then there?s no one here or they?re very very small?? I commented.

Yuka poked me with the handle of her parasol. ?Keep going and we?ll find out.?

About half a minute later, the ceiling had dropped to the point where I?d have to crawl to get any further.

?Surely not. We can?t go any further.? I complained.

?Off you go, keep going. Until your face hits a face we?re not done.? Yuka ordered as she continued to poke me with her accessory.

I sighed at the predicament. ?While you wait here, I presume??

?Of course, I?d just hold things up and get dirty. ? Yuka replied in a bitter-sweet voice.

Grumbling, I got on my hands and knees and slowly pulled myself through the tunnel whilst hoping I would find the end quickly so I could get out of this uncomfortable place.

Only a few seconds after I had first entered the tunnel, Yuka shouted. ?See anything yet??

?No, dear. I don?t see anything at all.? I shouted back, my voice filled with more sarcasm than usual. ?Look, the tunnel takes a corner here. If there?s nothing around here then I?m coming out.?

I continued to struggle down the passage and around the corner when I saw something that surprised me. ?Whoa! Hey, Yuka!?

?What? What is it?? Yuka shouted back excitedly.

?There?s a room, a huge room!? I shouted again as I picked myself up from the floor and looked around.

I wondered what Yuka would do when she shouted back. ?Alright, I?m coming through!?

Through the wall or something?

I waited patiently, almost bracing for the potential shattering of the wall as Yuka barged through it but was pleasantly surprised to see a head of green hair appear from the crevice I had just travelled through.

?My, my. That?s awfully undignified for you, Yuka.? I sneered, trying to hide my grin.

?It?s only a little dirt. You were probably expecting me to blow the wall down, in which case the roof would have collapsed and then there?d be a little more than ?a little dirt?.? She sneered back.

I shrugged. ?If you insist.?

Yuka took a few steps forwards and looked around. ?This is certainly a better sign. The chances of finding someone just increased.?

Walking beside Yuka, I nodded. ?Yeah, if you look over there there seems to be a passage. Looks to be the only way out though.?

?I see. Well let?s head over there then.? The flower youkai said as she began marching.

As we continued through the spacious room, I began to notice something strange. One of a youkai?s abilities is being able to detect others, or rather their power, and for some reason I was sensing the energies of two people instead of the usual one.

?We?re being followed again.? Yuka whispered.

I turned around quickly and looked. ?We?re not. There?s no one there.?

Yuka shook her head. ?Don?t believe your eyes. There?s definitely someone th-?

?Freeze, pals. You ain?t going no further.? A third voice spoke from behind you.

Yuka looked to the side slightly. ?Manipulating colours, invisible.?

?You?re pretty quick, ain?t ya?? The mystery attacker laughed. ?Never thought the famous shrine maiden intuition was this quick.?

?Shrine? maiden??? I whispered to Yuka, who simply shrugged at me.

?Gotta stop ya here though. Can?t afford having you wander round and stir things up and I don?t like losing either.? The unknown adversary laughed confidently.

?You think that? I dare you.? Yuka grinned before lunging around, parasol in hand, swiping at whoever was talking.

?Whoa, you?re a feisty one! Don?t remember the last one being this vicious!? The girl?s voice grew more distant, suggesting she had leapt back.

Yuka cackled maniacally as she left back and up into the air, brandishing her parasol and unleashed her infamous Master Spark, causing a gigantic laser to roar across the room towards the voice?s source. Since there were no yells of pain I noticed Yuka began to erratically wave the spark around in hope of catching her.

?Such a coward, hiding from sight so she won?t get hurt. Sickening.? Yuka spat, unhappy with her failure of an attack.

Flying behind Yuka so we were back to back, I waited for a moment before noticing a series of pink orbs flying from our direction, a distinct ?vwoop? noise accompanying each one as they appeared. Grabbing Yuka, I flew to the right causing the projectiles to barely miss Yuka.

?You had better be glad they missed me.? Yuka growled.

?Let?s concentrate on taking down whoever this is before turning on me, shall we?!? I shouted in a panic. ?She?s over there, the bullets came from there!?

Summoning a swarm of flowers, Yuka slammed them forwards like a wall of daggers causing them to slam into the ground and yet again there was no sign of a hit.

?How do we hit something we can?t see!?? I continued to panic slightly. Holding my hand into the air, I summoned another orb of light causing the room to lighten slightly.

?Got you!? Yuka yelled as she bombarded towards the ground and threw her fist forwards, visibly hitting something.

Seeing a small amount of dust rise from where the invisible attacker had hit the wall, said person cried out. ?Ow! That really really hurt! Watch it!?

Yuka giggled evilly. ?Do that again, Haru.?

?Do what? You hit her, not me.? I commented.

?No, make the room lighter.? She nodded confidently.

Gathering another orb of light and throwing it into the air, I watched as Yuka threw a series of projectiles in a random direction and saw what she meant.

Every time the colours of the room changed, our unknown attacker had to adjust to the new colour and the delay on that change was enough for her to stand out for a few seconds allowing Yuka to aim her attacks.

There was another cry of pain. ?Ow! What the hell!? Why do flowers hurt so much?!?

It only took another cycle of changing the light and Yuka launching a large laser at the silhouette before the unknown adversary yelled in frustration. ?This is stupid! It?s unfair! I?m off?! Hey? Wait a second??

There was an awkward pause as she looked at us.

?I can see you now; you aren?t the shrine maiden and her boyfriend... Oh god? you?re... Oh man this isn?t good!?

Obviously, the darkness of the cave was also a hindrance for our attacker and she?d mistaken us for someone else and was now panicking having realised who we were.

Yuka?s reputation must be pretty bad if new youkai recognise and fear her.

Interrupting the brief calm, Yuka yelled out an order. ?Quick, again Haru!? Yuka nudged me, prompting me to once again manipulate the light and thus showing the silhouette making a run for the passage I had spotted earlier.

Yuka summoned a ridiculously large sunflower and threw it towards the passage causing a shriek of fear from our attacker and causing her to dive into the passageway. Gradually I felt her energy grow weaker suggested that we weren?t at the end of this cave yet.

?Damn. I missed.? Yuka mused out loud before landing. ?Come on now Haru, time to wrap things up.?

?Right.? Noting that despite the amount of urgency that had just taken place, Yuka was walking at her normal, casual speed towards the passage.

?I?m kind of surprised really.? I said out loud as we walked through the tighter corridor. ?Solving incidents is kind of easy.?

?Don?t get too over-confident. We?re not done yet.? Yuka spoke with a hint of seriousness to her voice. ?There?s still at least one more to go.?

?How can you tell?? I asked, wondering what she was thinking.

Yuka looked at me for a moment. ?The things she said and how she said them. She was hiding something and seemed to be quite worried. I believe there?s still one more person to go through, at least. Also, there?s something bugging me and I don?t know what.?

Nodding in acknowledgement, I walked beside Yuka for a minute or so through the winding passage until we turned a final, tight corner and stopped in amazement.

Gone was the normal brown and gray rock that decorated the rest of the mountain. This room looked like something out of a movie; filled with various electrical equipment ranging from a couple of computers to a swarm of flashing lights and panels on the walls.

Please don?t be an apocalyptic robot youkai. That would be painful.

?Well. This is most unexpected. I hadn?t predicted things to turn out this way.? Another new voice called out, almost familiar.

?We haven?t even started our incident yet and here you are to stop us, and yet you?re not who we expected to stop us. We expected the usual tradition of a shrine maiden coming to save the day, not? you two.? The new, formal voice explained, the source sitting in a large chair that obstructed all view of the speaker.

?You two?? I hope that?s not an insult.

?Maybe it was fate. Maybe it was? magic.? The voice laughed slightly. ?Does it really matter??

There was a pause of confusion and silence.

?Ah, who cares??? The voice laughed before the chair spun around to face us, allowing us to see who was addressing us.

No? way?

Stood in front of us, red cape somehow blowing to the side was the red dress wearing, red-haired scientist herself. Yumemi Okazaki.

?Long time, no see.?
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (RiG4 has begun!)
Post by: Dizzy H. "Muffin" Muffin on October 01, 2009, 02:29:27 AM: I think my favorite line is "Why do flowers hurt so much!?"

Also, oh dear, the humans have discovered optical camoflage. :<
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (RiG4 has begun!)
Post by: Esifex on October 01, 2009, 04:48:13 AM: Oh my. She must be in her mid-50s to early 70s (like that huge ballpark figure? I'm good at math hur hur)

But why is she draining color from Gensokyo? Does she need another 256 colors for her magic research computer? :O
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (RiG4 has begun!)
Post by: Polaris on October 01, 2009, 05:19:54 AM: Quote from: Esifex on September 30, 2009, 05:41:54 PM
Reputed Reporter Ruined by Reflected Reactions of Reincarnated SOMETHING THAT STARTS WITH R

Uh... Recreant :P
(which can mean "coward", though Kikuri doesn't seem too cowardly)

I was expecting Yumemi and Chiyuri to come out sooner or later, but I hadn't expected them to be the perpetrators of this incident.

In the words of Haru,
?This has to be one of the most boring disasters to have ever occurred in Gensokyo.?
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (RiG4 has begun!)
Post by: Dizzy H. "Muffin" Muffin on October 01, 2009, 05:22:35 AM: Now I'm imagining Haru looking like Kyon.
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (RiG4 has begun!)
Post by: Bias Bus on October 01, 2009, 05:37:04 AM: Quote from: KimikoMuffin on October 01, 2009, 05:22:35 AM
Now I'm imagining Haru looking like Kyon.
I always thought he was something of a Kyon, given the method of narration and all.
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (RiG4 has begun!)
Post by: Nine West on October 01, 2009, 05:38:57 AM: Quote
Yumemi again

Now I've got to read this fic.
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (RiG4 has begun!)
Post by: Paul Debrion on October 02, 2009, 04:55:04 PM: Just got done reading everything from start to current chapter.

Love the sense of humor and resourceful use of characters.

I haven't seen fanfiction this good in quite a while.
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (RiG4 has begun!)
Post by: Esifex on October 02, 2009, 11:09:39 PM: Quote from: paul1290 on October 02, 2009, 04:55:04 PM
Just got done reading everything from start to current chapter.

Love the sense of humor and resourceful use of characters.

I haven't seen fanfiction this good in quite a while.

I second that. Definite support for this one.
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (RiG4 has begun!)
Post by: Esifex on October 20, 2009, 02:16:53 AM: Two weeks gone by without an update or a comment. For shame, people! A story this well-thought-out needs more circulation.

Forum Sign - Bump!
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (RiG4 has begun!)
Post by: Mima on October 20, 2009, 11:16:00 AM: Thanks for the bump. It's always sad to see your own topic descend through the pages and hacing no content to update it with. I've in somewhat of a block at the moment and trying to get back into it. Since I have some free time, I thought I'd just talk about the story in general for a while.

RiG4 is, as currently planned, actually two stories. The first story is, as you've possibly predicted, coming to a close. 4 chapters max and it's done. After that, the second story will start and take place a few months later the current events.

Fun facts

Yuka was originally going to be Yukari. Yukari was the main character in many stories at that time so I went for someone a lot less known, cue Yuka and I've never looked back since.

RiG1 originally had no ending.

That goes for most of RiG1, little to nothing was planned and was made up at the time of writing.

When the ending to the first was planned, Haru was just gonna die and end the story. Got too attached to the story and went for the more appropriate ending and thus sequels.

Chiyuri and Yumemi weren't going to be in RiG2 until very late in. I had a more violent story planned where one of Yuka's walkabouts got her in trouble with a bad gang ending up in Haru 'returning the favour' of being protected from Flandre by saving Yuka and getting injured (most likely a stab wound) in the process. The end bit woulda been the same, last bit of strength to get Yuka her power back, fall etc.

It took a while to give RiG3's antagonist an identity. While strongly considering commiting the sin of making an OC, I was flicked through PC-98 characters and saww Kikuri or rather that purple shadow around her, instantly she was chosen to be remade.

Yukari was always set to be doomed, bye bye.

Yuka was iffy, I changed my mind many times over whether to do it or not.

In the end I went for the middle ground, she was originally going to stay dead for ~35 years but I felt a much sooner resurrection would make the ending much nicer, after all, RiG3 had been dark enough already.

The release of UFO set back my plans for RiG4 causing some details to require rethinking.

Kurumi still hasn't appeared, maybe Haru hasn't even met her yet but geographically I have her placed on an island to the left of the portal if you're leaving Mugenkan so he walks by her house every time he enters/exits Mugenkan.

I did actually wonder whether to give an excuse at some point by making Kurumi a vampire unable to go out in daylight and is afraid of the dark thus her lack of appearance, never went through with it.

Yeah, I don't know why I did this but what the hell. least it shows I haven't vanished. :V
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (RiG4 has begun!)
Post by: Esifex on October 20, 2009, 04:19:40 PM: Writing for the sake of writing always has its place. The act of creating and shaping a story, with the intent of entertaining others, is never a shameful act. There aren't enough literate writers around, ones capable of producing worth-while material. That's why I'm prowling this board and encouraging everyone who has a decent story to continue, and why I'm trying to improve my writing skills. World needs more literature, and less Michael Bay Special Effects Marathons.
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (RiG4 has begun!)
Post by: Kasu on October 20, 2009, 09:04:23 PM: Quote from: Esifex on October 20, 2009, 02:16:53 AM
Two weeks gone by without an update or a comment. For shame, people! A story this well-thought-out needs more circulation.

Forum Sign - Bump!
DX

Its not that I didn't want to comment, I was just waiting until the next chapter and/or post.

Anyways, I like this series a lot. =D
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (RiG4 has begun!)
Post by: Mima on December 02, 2009, 02:29:35 AM: Chapter 5

I was shocked. Shocked to the point where I couldn?t find myself able to speak for a moment. Stood in front of me, looking younger than when I last saw her despite that being over thirty years ago, was Yumemi Okazaki: The scientist who helped Yuka and I escape from the human world when we were trapped there as humans as a result of one of Yukari Yakumo?s games.

?You look like you?ve never seen a human-turned-youkai before.? Yumemi spoke out with a triumphant grin. ?Is it really that much of a shock??

?Well?? I managed. ?Well, I just wasn?t expecting it to be you? behind the incident.?

Yumemi chortled. ?Of course. You really think I?d enter Gensokyo without a bang? I did it last time.?

?Well, yes. It?s more the fact I wasn?t exactly expecting you to?? I hesitated for some reason.

?Die? Well, yes. There were some? minor problems, one thing led to another and here I am.?

Shrugging, I answered back. ?Minor problems??

?I?ll tell you another time. It?d kill the mood.? She grinned.

Finally, Yuka spoke out with some signs of amusement in her voice. ?Is your friend going to appear now, or is she going to keep hiding??

?Eh!? The now-familiar voice of our previous attacker shouted out as she slowly appeared due to her camouflage fading. ?You knew I was here all along??

Yuka sighed. ?You?re using your powers to be invisible. It doesn?t take much to be able to sense your there.?

?Bah.? The girl muttered.

?I have a question for you two.? Yumemi spoke out.

I nodded. ?Go ahead.?

?Why are you here?? She looked at us curiously.

Confused, I looked at Yuka who just shrugged, leaving us in an awkward silence.

?I mean, I heard that the Hakurei Shrine Maidens were good at sensing disasters but? we haven?t even started yet.?

We continued to do nothing, unsure of what to say until Yumemi spoke again. ?You mean? something did happen??

I nodded. ?Yeah, that?s why we?re here. All of Gensokyo is in black and white.?

Yumemi?s face suddenly turned serious. ?What??

?Like I said. Everything and everyone is black and white.? I answered cautiously.

Yumemi?s voice was practically a growl. ?My power isn?t to manipulate colour. That?s??

As the red scientist?s head craned around to look at her assistant, Chiyuri?s face lost its colour, and not through the use of her ability. ?I, uh? Oh yeah?. I hadn?t noticed that I'd had triggered my power.? She laughed nervously as she clicked her fingers. ?There we go? all fixed... sorry?.?

Yumemi took a step towards Chiyuri who began to back off. ?Hey, come on boss. We can still do the disaster you had planned. Treat that was a warning signal. We didn?t even get the shrine maiden like you wanted.? More nervous laughing filled the room as I felt the rage from Yumemi building rapidly.

Tendrils of electricity sparked from Yumemi?s hands momentarily before a large panel from a computer besides me creaked from an unknown force before tearing itself off the wall and flying towards Yumemi. A few seconds later, another panel flew to her other hand.

?Hey, hey, hey? Hey!? Chiyuri panicked as she started to run. ?I?m sorry, okay? I did-? She was cut short as Yumemi slammed the panels into her assistant, seemingly knocking her out.

Yumemi laughed weakly as she turned around and leant back against a wall. Slowly sliding down to a sitting position, she sighed. ?That felt good. It?s a shame that my debut isn?t going to be what I wanted.?

Memo to self. Don?t get on Yumemi?s bad side... especially now she has powers.

?If it?s any consolation. The whole black and white thing has really caused some havoc out there. We?re kinda lucky to even be here. Being the only coloured people in Gensokyo made us prime targets for the wrath of the other residents.? I explained quietly.

Yumemi made a humming sound. ?Maybe so. It just wasn?t how I had planned it. Even you being here is undesired, no offence. I just wanted to fight the Hakurei Shrine Maiden like everyone else does by tradition.?

?You?d have a job. She?s not even here.? Yuka replied in a rather harsh tone.

?What do you mean?? Yumemi asked curiously.

Yuka grinned, almost as if she was enjoying the misery that Yumemi was going through.

Then again, it?s Yuka. She probably is enjoying it after all.

?While you?ve been messing around for however long you?ve been here, the Shrine Maidens have gone to the outside world on holiday.? Yuka explained.

Yumemi let out a long sigh. ?Typical.? She laughed solemnly for a moment. ?I guess I?ll have to make do then. ?

?How do you mean?? I asked.

?The incident occurred. My assistant has been defeated. Those seeking to end the incident are here. It?s time to end this incident properly.? Yumemi managed a small grin as she finished speaking.

Yuka stepped forward. ?Good choice. I?m glad someone here has a spine?. Unlike your companion who wouldn?t even show herself even after she failed to ambush us.?

?Oh? believe me. I don?t need to hide; my powers are far more formidable than Chiyuri?s. I have the power to manipulate magnetism!? As Yumemi yelled the final sentence, the tendrils of lightning sparked once more, except this time the entire room began to shake.

?Do you see? Do you see why I wanted the incident to go as I wanted? Imagine what I could have done with this power? I could have gone as low a prank and making all metal attract to each other, make everything unable to go near each other?. I could have reversed the poles of Gensokyo... that would have been fun!? Yumemi yelled.

Memo to self number 2: Never give a scientist a science-based power, they get ambitious.

Every single piece of metal equipment began attracted to Yumemi and began to orbit around her as she flew up from the ground.

Noticing I was slowing being dragged towards her, it took me a moment o notice that even the pocket watch that Yuka once gave to me was being affected by the powers at hand. Taking it out of my pocket and holding it in my hand, I turned to Yuka. ?Ready??

?When am I not ready for a fight?? She sarcastically replied.

I nodded. ?Good point. I guess its go-? I was cut short as I was forced to move to the side as a shard of metal embedded itself in the wall between Yuka and I.

How polite.

Noticing that Yuka had already jumped to the air and was wielding her parasol offensively I jumped up to join her.

?Just because I?ve only been in Gensokyo a few days doesn?t mean I?m going to be a pushover. I?ve done my research; I?ve had a trial run. This is it.? Yumemi grinned. ?Let?s end this.?

Yuka grinned as she flew forward. ?With pleasure.? With little other option, I followed my partner into battle.

---

If my writer's block won't go by itself. I will force it to.
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (RiG4 has begun!)
Post by: Dizzy H. "Muffin" Muffin on December 02, 2009, 02:51:24 AM: Yumemagneto? :O

....

Hang on, Gensokyo has poles? :o
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (RiG4 has begun!)
Post by: zonron on December 02, 2009, 03:17:52 PM: this will be interesting! can't wait to read more ;D
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (RiG4 has begun!)
Post by: Kasu on December 03, 2009, 12:09:15 AM: =D

The wait was worth it.
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (RiG4 has begun!)
Post by: Mima on December 25, 2009, 02:27:12 AM: Merry Mima-mas

---

Chapter 6

For someone who hadn?t long been alive as a youkai, Yumemi was a rather intimidating sight. The shards and panels of metal that erratically orbited around her looked painful enough as they were; I really didn?t want to find out how it was physically.

As anyone would expect, Yuka was the first to move, immediately leaning to the side in an attempt to flank Yumemi. Taking the advantage, I flew in the opposite direction so we had her surrounded but it didn?t work out as well as I thought, those shields were, as logic would tell, as erratic as they were from the front: making it almost impossible to get a hit in.

Yuka didn?t seem to care as much as I did and took no time in unleashing her magic upon Yumemi; had her power been that which she had before she died, Yumemi would have had no chance whether she had barriers or not. Luckily for Yumemi, Yuka hadn?t grown in power to anywhere close to what she once was and so most of her projectiles were falling victim to Yumemi?s barrier.

Regardless of the amount of projectiles that failed to achieve anything, Yuka was more than happy to deliver more as she weaved furiously around Yumemi.

Eventually, Yuka?s movement placed her close by. ?I have an idea, get ready to rush her.?

Nodding in affirmation, Yuka flew a couple of metres away from me before I set my plan into motion. Placing my hand forward towards the anticipating Yumemi I began to summon a ball of light in front of me.

Thankfully, Yumemi was curious enough to want to see what I was doing and not forming a shield around her which allowed me to move to the next part of my plan; making the light formed in my hand explode, causing an immensely bright blast of light which caught Yumemi off-guard and blinded her.

I had to grin as, like I had planned, Yumemi threw all of her defences in front of her to block anything I might thrown while she was disabled but that only left her rear vulnerable which was pointed out when Yuka swooped around and delivered a sharp kick in the general direction of Yumemi?s head sending her plummeting sideways into the wall.

?You okay boss?? I heard Chiyuri yell. It seems she had woken up and was stood in the doorway we entered through, probably in case she needed to flee.

?I?m? fine?? Yumemi groaned as she picked herself up. ?I just let my guard down for a moment, nothing major.?

?If you say so.? Her assistant casually shouted back.

Pushing herself forward from the wall and straightening her jacket quickly, Yumemi recreated her barrier around her but kept them stationary.

Moving towards us slightly, the red scientist grinned. ?Well, I guess it?s time to show off my first magic card.?

?Spell card.? I corrected.

?Yes, yes, that.? Yumemi reached into her pocket before throwing her arm into the air holding a spell card which was, to no one?s surprise, coloured red.

?Dipolarity! Antipodal Disstasis!? The scientist yelled, looking truly happy as she did so.

Anti? podal? what? Are they even real words?

?Well.? Yuka coughed. ?She has the hang of naming her spell cards at least.?

Yumemi held her arms out to her sides causing an array of metallic panels that were lying on their sides to line up in an arc around her.

?Those panels look kinda sharp. This is going to hurt, isn?t it?? I mumbled to Yuka.

Yuka sneered. ?Only if you?re a weakling.?

?That?s fine for you to say. You can fight better than me.? I complained.

Yuka gave a smarmy grin. ?And whose fault is that??

With no reply, I turned my attention back towards the main threat, silver metallic panels of which some were starting to glow a cyan-like colour and accompanied with a humming noise that was getting gradually louder.

As the humming reached its peak, Yumemi clicked her fingers causing the lit up panels to blast towards us at a rather rapid speed. Thankfully I?d anticipated it and managed to dodge with some ease.

At the same time the metal objects slammed into the wall behind us, another assortment of panels in front of Yumemi began to charge up and blow the same cyan colour.

This doesn?t seem to be too bad, she telegraphs her attacks early enough.

Before Yumemi fired her next wave, I was comfortably placed in the gap between where two panels were about to fire and as before, at the peak of the charging sound, the panels crashed forwards. What I hadn?t expected was a force hitting me from the side and as I fell to the side I saw a panel from the previous wave slam backwards to Yumemi where I was just floating.

Obviously, it was Yuka who was my saviour once again but when I looked at her I was greeted by a quick head butt to the forehead. ?Idiot. What the hell are you doing??

?Getting saved by you?? I answered quickly.

??Yes, you are and I?d rather not have to. I thought you were more competent than falling for some newcomer?s tricks.? Yuka growled.

I sighed and mumbled my reply. ?Yes, Yuka. Sorry, Yuka.?

It?s not like I do any proper fighting anyway, she knows she?s the one who does the winning.

Yuka sneered before discarding me through the means of pushing me slightly and turned back to Yumemi who had already charged her next magnetic wave and fired it at us. Eager to not cause Yuka to lose her temper again, I made sure I weaved between the metallic panels as they passed each other.

As Yumemi got the hang of her magic, the waves of metal that was flying to and fro began to speed up and coming from different angles which only made things more fun to dodge.

Fun? I?m actually having fun doing this now? She really is a bad influence.

All good things come to an end though; this time around it was in the form of Yuka showing off. As one of the panels shot back from the wall towards Yumemi, Yuka hooked onto it with her parasol and as a result was dragged towards Yumemi at such a rate that I dread to think how much the following kick to the face hurt Yumemi. To no surprise, such an impact shattered the spell and also the wall which Yumemi had become embedded into.

Just how strong is that parasol? It?s unreal.

?Ah?? Yumemi coughed from the dust that had appeared due to her disturbance. ?I think that?s a minor flaw in my spell card.?

?Yes, only a minor one.? Yuka commented, voice saturated with sarcasm.

The scientist looked speechless for a moment before fumbling around her pockets. ?Where did I put my other cards???

Yuka and I just exchanged confused looks as we waited.

?Ah ha! Here they are!? Suddenly all of Yumemi?s zeal had returned. ?Let?s see, which one to choose??

Yumemi began to fumble around with the card and then began checking her pockets, confusing the two of us even more.

?You mean I only have two spell cards?! I thought I did more?!? Yumemi yelled in shock.

Chiyuri poked her head around the doorway again. ?Sounds about right, boss. You were too excited to work on them for long.?

?Bah!? Yumemi flicked her cape dramatically. ?I?ll just have to take you down with this!?

?Electromagnetism? Rail Gun!?

Oh boy.

It was fine that I could actually understand this spell card?s name but because of that I knew that there was a high chance of pain ahead in Yumemi?s finale.
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (RiG4 has begun!)
Post by: Esifex on December 25, 2009, 06:01:11 AM: Happy Mimamas to you too, Mima.
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (RiG4 has begun!)
Post by: Kasu on December 25, 2009, 10:04:45 PM: Oh God yes.

Gotta love Rail guns.
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (RiG4 has begun!)
Post by: Mima on January 07, 2010, 02:41:44 AM: Chapter 7

?I presume you know what a rail gun is, Yuka?? I asked Yuka as I hovered beside her.

?Yes. I do. Though I doubt they blow people to pieces like they do in those petty human games.? Yuka muttered towards the end.

Yumemi pulled up a metre-wide square piece of metal and turned it horizontal before effortlessly using her power to roll it up into a cylinder.

?Well then?.? Yumemi held both arms forward in the direction of Yuka and I. ?I expect this may hurt a bit? but I bet you?re used to it by now.? I noticed Yumemi was looking towards me as she ended her sentence.

It?s like she already knows that Yuka likes to use me as a target every now and then.

More electricity began to crackle between her arms, particularly aimed at the metal pipe between them which began to start shining a bright blue.

Oh boy.

?I don?t need any fancy patterns to trick you with this. All I need is science!? Yumemi yelled as the electricity got more and more wild, obviously an omen of ever-impending danger.

?Hey, Haru. Let?s go down to the ground.? Yuka spoke out. ?Obviously this is a case of reaction time and we can dodge faster if we have a solid surface to jump off.?

Nodding, I descended with the youkai leaving us looking up at the caped youkai crackling with sparks.

It was impossible to tell when the shot was actually going to fire so it was just a case of guessing? or hoping that Yumemi would foolishly telegraph her attack.

As if she heard my thought, Yumemi shouted out joyfully. ?Are you ready? Round one, fire!?

I noticed Yumemi quickly adjust her aim towards Yuka and as the lightning explodedI suddenly found my instincts taking over and I leapt to my left, towards Yuka.

Gotta save Yuka.

There was a slight problem with my heroic move.

She?s already moved and now I?m in front of things.

That nostalgic feeling of slowed down time returned to me as the shot from the rail gun was just a few inches from my chest leaving me helpless to dodge.

At least this won?t be fatal? It?s just gonna hurt a lot.

Time began to return to normal and immediately I threw my hands forward to attempt to grab the incoming metal. One thing was that I managed to grab it but being able to slow it down was another. The result was the unpleasant sensation of being impaled and thrown backwards into a wall where I was left suspended a little bit above the floor.

Ow.

Yuka groaned and held her head in shame. ?You fool.?

?Ha?? I coughed. ?Sorry about that.

Yuka sneered before circling around Yumemi, presumably to make sure I didn?t get hit by any stray fire. Apart from the fact I had a large makeshift pipe lodged in my chest, it was quite peaceful to hang back in a dark corner and watch Yuka effortlessly dodge more shots from Yumemi.

?Are you okay?? A quiet voice asked out of the blue.

?Huh?? Yeah?.? I moaned, still uncomfortable due to obvious reasons.

The mystery voice whispered once more. ?Good, hang tight.?

Was that meant to be a pun?

Focusing my eyes, I noticed that moving in the darkness of shadows was? even more darkness. It was hard to explain but I could just make out a patch of darkness that was darker than the natural shadow of the cave. I was beginning to wonder if it was just the trauma messing my head up.

I watched pensively as the darkness made its way around the edge of the cave until it was behind Yumemi where it began to approach her.

Heh? Looks like someone is about to get a shock.

Just as the orb of darkness was a couple of metres away the artificial shade disappeared revealing who it was, just as she poked Yumemi?s back.

?Tag!? Kikuri yelled as a bright light enveloped her and Yumemi jumped in fright.

Spinning around, Yumemi was shocked at the new face. ?W-what?! Who the hell are you? What did you just do to me??

Kikuri grinned. ?Well, my friend. What I just did was duplicate a tiny fragment of your power and take it as my own. I then replicated it as much as I possibly could so that my potential power was fulfilled by this effectively replacing my power with yours, for a certain timeframe anyway. Oh, and my name is Kikuri, a friend of Yuka?s. Since Haru has been? incapacitated I shall join in his stead.?

?W-what?!? Yumemi stuttered. Skilfully, she dragged up a piece of metal and placed it between herself and Kikuri. To her dismay however, the metal shot away in the direction it came from placing her face-to-face with Kikuri again, now grinning.

?See? Manipulation of magnetism, what a fascinating power.? Kikuri complemented.

?That?s not very fair!? Yumemi complained.

Kikuri giggled. ?Oh, I assure you its perfectly fair.? The newcomer, replicating Yumemi, pulled a sheet of metal towards her and flung it towards the scientist.

Yumemi pushed both her arms forwards creating a field in front of her, effectively catching the sheet. ?No... I won?t have you stealing my powers!? As she yelled the sheet of metal launched towards Kikuri who tried to do the same as what Yumemi had done, this time the results were different; the sheet lashed by Kikuri?s head before crashing into the wall and falling to the ground in a heap.

That was close, nearly had a headless youkai to look after.

Kikuri wasn?t entirely unscathed however, a small amount of blood began to trickle down her face, starting at her right cheekbone. As Yumemi noticed this, she burst into laughter. ?Haha! Brilliant! The copies are never as good as the original!?

Calling another slab of metal in front of her, Yumemi began to roll it up once more as the lightning was pre-emptively arcing around her. ?Well then, it looks like Rail Gun will be claiming two victories today!? A loud crash signalled that the shot had been fired causing me to look away rather than seeing Kikuri get impaled.

Instead of hearing any victorious shouts from Yumemi or a cry from Kikuri, I could only hear the sound of a struggle causing me to look again. ?Let it go? copycat? admit you?re weaker than me?.? Yumemi spoke through her teeth. The apparent struggle was between Yumemi and Kikuri, over the projectile between them that was being bombarded by an enormous amount of magnetic energy, both fighters trying to push it away from them.

It only took a few seconds for a shift to take place in the stalemate as the projectile slowly started creeping towards Kikuri. ?See?? The genuine deal is always the strongest. Say good night, my dear.?

Kikuri did seem to be in a lot of difficulty repelling the metal. ?You?re forgetting something? my friend??

Yumemi looked cynical. ?What??

?Heh?.? The purple youkai grinned. ?There?s two of us.?

Yumemi?s face filled with panic as she immediately knew what was about to happen; which was that Yuka?s foot was about to hit her in the face from a sneak attack. Unable to do anything about it lest she lost her force behind the rail gun, she was left wide open for the blow which knocked her away and broke her concentration, allowing Kikuri to control the shot from Yumemi?s spell card, though notably turning the projectile in mid-air causing the original owner?s head to be struck by the blunt side, rather than impaled by the much sharper edge.

The battle?s end was signalled by the series of thuds that came from Yumemi hitting the wall and then falling to the ground and remaining motionless. A few seconds later, Chiyuri emerged from her cover and ran towards her.

?Boss! Are you alright?? She yelled with a hint of hysteria.

?She?s fine, she?ll come around eventually?. Thus is the nature of a youkai, we live through these things.? Yuka remarked as she walked towards me.

As she reached me, she leant in close and started whispering. ?That was a rather foolish thing for you to do.?

?Yeah?. I thought I?d save you but it turns out you didn?t need it.? I explained.

?Indeed. Still? I guess it?s the thought that counts.? She smiled genuinely.

Yuka looked behind her towards the fallen scientist and her assistant. ?She?ll be out for a few hours. If you want to rest and recover then now is a good time.?

?Yeah? I guess that would be a good idea?? The thrill of battle was leaving me now, the fact I still had the remnants of a rail gun impaling me to a wall was starting to make he feel a bit lethargic.

? Oh, and Haru?? Yuka whispered even softer.

?Yeah??

?Thanks.? Yuka ended the sentence with a kiss while at the same time grabbing the shard of metal and removing it in one swift tug.

Catching me before I fell, I felt her gently lower me to the floor and not a few seconds after I?d reached the floor had the final remains of my conscious vanished.

---

Shorter than expected but dragged out fights aren't my style.
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (RiG4 has begun!)
Post by: Dizzy H. "Muffin" Muffin on January 07, 2010, 04:04:45 AM: *applause*

Jolly good, jolly good!
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (RiG4 has begun!)
Post by: Esifex on January 07, 2010, 04:21:19 AM: I'm sure theres something on TVTropes to define a psychokinetic tug-o-war battle between two combatants. And if there is, I bet it has a bit in it about it being hard to successfully pull off in a story (since nearly all tropes have this little disclaimer).

You have succeeded, though, in that Kikuri-with-powers-and-confidence is a lot of fun to imagine.
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (RiG4 has begun!)
Post by: Dizzy H. "Muffin" Muffin on January 07, 2010, 06:49:33 PM: Hmm. Surprisingly, there doesn't seem to be one. I mean, there's "Beam-O-War," but that's ... not quite the same thing.
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (RiG4 has begun!)
Post by: Esifex on January 09, 2010, 07:12:25 AM: Why am I not surprised that Kimiko was the one to answer on that, and why am I further not surprised that you actually checked?
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (RiG4 has begun!)
Post by: Dizzy H. "Muffin" Muffin on January 09, 2010, 05:56:43 PM: Because my site has code for generating a TVTropes link with a "TV Tropes Will Ruin Your Life" disclaimer. |3
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (RiG4 has begun!)
Post by: Esifex on January 09, 2010, 06:59:27 PM: And it really has, too. ?3

Eagerly awaiting more RiG.
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (RiG4 has begun!)
Post by: zonron on January 20, 2010, 05:16:03 AM: what a great update! I enjoy this series more than i do any physical book i have. No joke or sarcasm here, it be the truth. good work as always! :D
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (RiG4 has begun!)
Post by: AhKi on January 24, 2010, 09:34:38 AM: Finally catching up. SUCCESS
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (RiG4 has begun!)
Post by: Mima on January 26, 2010, 07:54:40 PM: Another chapter that's turned out bigger than planned, looks like the first half of RiG4 will last one more chapter.

---

Chapter 8

?.

??I believe we can agree to that.? I overheard.

Oh, I?m back in the world of the living?. Joy.

It didn?t take long for me to full remember the events that had passed and reaching my hand up to my chest I could feel that I had fully recovered.

?Oh, it appears that my victim has awoken.? I recognised the voice now as Yumemi. ?Good morning, Haru. Enjoy your sleep?? She asked mockingly.

?Sure. As much as being impaled lets you sleep.? I groaned as I sat up. Sensing someone behind me, I spun myself around to see Yuka stood over me. I flinched for a moment, instinctively thinking she was going to beat me for getting knocked out or something along those lines, but was mildly surprised when she held a hand out and upon taking it, she pulled me to my feet.

Yuka being pleasant in the presence of others? What a nice dream this is.

?So? what?s up, Yuka?? I asked as she looked at me.

?Nothing much, we?re leaving. Let?s go.? She said abruptly.

I turned to look at Yumemi and spotted Chiyuri sat next to her. ?What about Chiyuri and Yumemi? We haven?t even talked yet.?

?Correction, you haven?t talked to them yet. I have, for several hours in fact. Besides, we?ll be seeing them tomorrow so you can catch up with them then.? Yuka coldly replied.

?Well, uh. Bye? I guess.? I mumbled as Yuka turned to leave.

Yumemi laughed. ?See you around, Haru.?

?Yeah, see ya!? Chiyuri yelled right after.

I followed Yuka through the cave, noting she was going in the wrong direction but decided to keep quiet about it. Fortunately, my silence was rewarded when we ended up at a different entrance to the cave; a much more accessible one compared to the tight fit on the way.

?Ah, sunlight. So much more pleasant than being stuck in some dank cave like some kind of? freak.? Yuka happily chirped as she left the cave.

I also gave a sigh of relief upon entering the light, my domain and thought about what Yuka just said. ?You know, after making friends with Yumemi and Chiyuri, it?s not nice calling them freaks.?

?Maybe if you weren?t unconscious for so long, you?d have caught on to our conversation.? Yuka lectured as she took to the air.

?And what conversation would that be, dear Yuka??

?I just stated my dissatisfaction for the fact they resorted to living in a cave and then suddenly the red one starts complaining about it not being her choice and it?s all they could find while being discreet.? Yuka sighed.

Now beside her, I shrugged. ?I guess that?s true. It?s not like there?s a youkai hostel in Gensokyo. Well, you might be able to count Byakuren?s shrine but other than that? nothing.?

The incline of the mountain began to get steeper prompting Yuka and I to take to the air. Few things woke you up better than a flight across Gensokyo and this time was no different. ?I guess I was lucky. I didn?t have that problem thanks to you taking me in as your slave? pet? guest?.?

Yuka laughed lightly and grabbed my hand. I expected the unpleasant sensation of having every bone in my hand broken but such a thing never occurred, to my surprise once more.

Maybe she is mellowing out over the years?

?Yes, that?s right, so I offered the same to those two.? Yuka chirped.

?You what?? I blurted out.

Yuka didn?t react to my outburst, she just continued talking as normal. ?They helped us in the past; I?m just repaying the favour.?

I guess she really is.

?Looks like the mighty Yuka Kazami is growing timid.? I teased her. ?You spent so long happy by yourself and now in less than half a century you?ve let four other people live with you. Heck, maybe you let Elly live in Mugenkan in the last half-century too, she?s the only one that has out-stayed me.?

Yuka sneered. ?She?s been there longer than that, and you missed someone. She went missing a few years before you arrived though.?

?Really? Who??

?It?s not relevant anymore; you wouldn?t know her even if I told you her name.? Yuka mused.

I managed a sigh. ?If you say so.?

As always, I enjoyed the flight over Gensokyo and processed the events of the days in my head.

?That?s a point?. Where?s Kikuri?? I asked, having just remembered her.

?Huh? Oh. She went back to Mugenkan earlier. She kept saying she was tired and wanted to go to bed, so I sent her home.? Yuka replied.

?Fair enough.? I commented.

A moment of respite passed as the flower field finally began to creep closer, the product of the silence was a yawn from myself.

I groaned slightly. ?I sleep for god knows how many hours while you talk and I?m still tired.?

Yuka made an apathetic noise. ?You?re weak, it happens.?

Ignoring Yuka?s pleasant sounding attack, I thought to what I had just said. ?What have you been talking about anyway? Did you find how they died or something??

?They mentioned it slightly. Something about an energy source based on their magic readings and things went bad. Died saving Yumemi?s kid or something.? Yuka said with no sign of emotion.

?Wait? what? Yumemi had a kid?? I queried.

Yuka shrugged once more. ?Apparently. The kid isn?t in Gensokyo though so there?s a good chance she?s still alive.?

?I guess?.? I mumbled. ?That?s just a bit sad though?. But then again, can?t she get Reimu to let her go and see him or her??

?Yumemi said she doesn?t want to go back to the human world. Something about not wanting her kid to be chasing ghost stories like she spent her life? if she?s in the state to do so anyway.? Yuka continued to retell what she had heard, now with a bit more emotion flowing into her words. ?Still, Yumemi could have been in a much worse state. She had a lot of questions to ask about Gensokyo... maybe to get her mind off it.?

I paused for a moment before speaking. ?There isn?t anything we can do except help her adjust to Gensokyo and if they?re living in Mugenkan then it?ll make life a bit easier. What are you thinking anyway? Another house like Kikuri?s??

?They wanted a laboratory. I figured I?d leave it near the portal so they can get in and out easily. Maybe underground too, the last thing I need is my flowers being damaged. I?ve already warned them that if one flower gets damaged then they?ll get damaged.? Yuka grinned.

Ah, the old Yuka is shining through once more.

?Still.? Yuka started again. ?I don?t know about you, but I?m quite exhausted after today?s events. I think a nice lie down in front of television for an hour before going to bed will be quite lovely.?

?The television is still broken.? I reminded her.

?Oh! Yes!? Yuka proclaimed sarcastically. ?Such a shame that two people are coming tomorrow who can repair a thing like that effortlessly.?

?Wait a second? You mean you had planned for that all along?? I yelled.

?Maybe it was an idea that floated in my head at one point. I?m sure they?ll have no problem with doing the job when I ask them, once they?ve settled in their new home of course.? Yuka chuckled ominously.

I couldn?t help but sigh. ?You?re a crafty one when you want to be.?

Yuka repeated her laugh. ?I know. I know.?

Our discussion came to a halt as we landed in the flower field and entered the portal to Mugenkan. Light was beginning to fade on both sides of the portal and it seemed that Elly had taken that as a signal to resign from her duties for the night, as signified by her outdoor chair being empty.

The rest of the night was uneventful and apart from the lack of a TV, the night went as Yuka had planned. Tomorrow would be interesting though; having two more faces in Mugenkan always helps to spice up life a bit, especially when they?re borderline mad scientists. Not to mention there?s going to be the mess of explaining what happened to the shrine maidens and deities who have missed this disaster, though something told me that Yuka would take more pleasure in that deed than myself.
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (RiG4 has begun!)
Post by: Dizzy H. "Muffin" Muffin on January 26, 2010, 08:48:13 PM: Hmm, more PC-98s moving in with Kazamin! Still as good as ever.
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (RiG4 has begun!)
Post by: Esifex on January 27, 2010, 12:46:09 AM: Awww, poor Yumemi :C

Yey update :D

Lol smileys at the end of every sentence :O
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (RiG4 has begun!)
Post by: zonron on February 25, 2010, 01:42:39 PM: bump, also i just read threw the series to this point again. never gets old :D
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (RiG4 has begun!)
Post by: Mima on March 06, 2010, 03:52:59 AM: Chapter 9

Just like the previous morning, I found myself encumbered with a sleepy youkai. As a result I was forced to wait for said creature to stir from her slumber before I was able to get out of bed.

Since attempting to talk to Yuka just after she?s woken up is a futile act, I decided to go and get changed now and leave Yuka alone to let her mind start up, so to speak. Reluctantly, I peeled the clingy youkai off me and left the star filled bedroom to get changed.

For once I managed to beat Yuka to the dining room and took no hesitation in giving one of the servant fairies my order. I never did discover whether these fairies are real or just part of Yuka?s dream world; I often tell myself to ask Yuka but never remember to.

While waiting for my breakfast, my mind drifted back to yesterday; the people we met, the events that occurred, the memories that was stirred up. I began to ponder about what Yumemi and Chiyuri had been doing in the time since they?d saved us long ago. Unfortunately my daydreaming was cut short by another presence in the room, approaching me from behind.

?Good morning, Haru!? Yuka said cheerfully as she wrapped her arms around me for a hug.

Now is she just cheerful or have I just not done anything today that can be considered ?weak? yet?

?Good morning, Yuka.? I reached behind me and stroked her hair since she seemed in an affectionate mood. ?What?s up??

?Oh, nothing.? The youkai let go of me and sat down in the seat beside me. Once seated she nodded at a fairy which caused it to nod back in recognition and leave towards the kitchen. ?Oh, Haru. Can you do me a favour??

?Sure. What is it?? I asked curiously.

Yuka wiped a bit of sleep out of her eyes. ?I?m sure I don?t need to remind you what is happening today but they still don?t have anywhere to actually live.?

I nodded. ?And the point is??

?I just want you to go and pick them up without me. I?ll stay here and get the house built for them.? Yuka smiled.

?That sounds fine. When do you want me to pick them up?? I quizzed Yuka.

Yuka shrugged. ?I don?t know. You could head off after breakfast if you wanted, they never said any specific times.?

?Alright then. The earlier they get here, the more time they have to settle down.? I commented.

Yuka nodded in agreement before turning to face the kitchen to see two fairies, each carrying a plate stacked with food flying towards us.

Flawlessly, the maids did their jobs, bowed and fluttered away carelessly leaving Yuka and I to enjoy our breakfast.

A little while into our meal, Yuka spoke up again. ?You can take Elly with you if you want.?

?Why so?? I asked.

?There might be too much for you three to carry if they want to bring all of their belongings. Plus I think it?s time to let Elly out for a while.?

?You make her sounds like a dog.? I laughed.

Yuka chuckled. ?With how she acts sometimes she?s about as useful as one.?

?Well, I guess I can take her along if there?s the chance we won?t have to make a second trip.? I grinned.

Yuka lightly hit my head. ?You shouldn?t be so lazy.?

I returned the strike to Yuka. ?Neither should you.?

The youkai simply smiled and returned to eating her breakfast prompting myself to do the same.

After breakfast, Yuka and I made our way out of the mansion and down towards the portal. As we approached Elly?s house I noticed her asleep in her usual chair besides the path. I was about to shout out to her when Yuka poked me and motioned with her hand for me to be silent.

Quietly marching up to the sleeping guard, Yuka placed her foot on the side of the chair and applied a little force causing the obvious; Elly falling backwards, off her chair and rolling across the ground before leaping to her feet frantically.

?Stop! Who?s that! No ent-? Oh. It?s you Miss Yuka, and Haru too?. How are you two today?? Elly stuttered, her voice trying to sound professional despite obviously having just woke up.

?We?re fine. Looks like you?re having a nice time too.? Yuka spoke, her voice void of emotion.

Elly stepped back once and quickly grabbed her scythe. ?I wasn?t asleep, I swear! I only just sat down!?

?So? you?re saying you were late for your duty.? Yuka replied, her voice still as fear-inducing as ever.

?No! No! No! I didn?t!? It was becoming clear that Elly feared for her safety now. ?Please! Believe me!?

?Okay.? Yuka said flat out, suddenly back to her cheerful self.

?Eh??Elly shouted in surprise.

Yuka frowned. ?I said okay. Okay??

You know, I really wish I knew what was going on in Yuka?s head sometimes, other than how can I terrorise so and so.

?Yes! Yes! Okay!? Elly saluted.

Yuka turned to look at me and spoke quietly. ?Are you really sure you want to take her along with you??

I paused for a moment. ?I guess?? I answered with a shrug.

Yuka tilted her head slightly. ?Your loss.?

Turning back to Elly, Yuka put on a sweet smile. ?Since you?ve obviously been working hard lately, I?ve decided to give you the day off.?

?Wow! Really!? The blonde haired gatekeeper sprung to her feet. ?This is the first day off in? ever??

Yuka turned back to face me whilst waving her hand. ?On one condition though. I want you to go into Gensokyo with Haru and pick up some friends and their belongings.?

Elly nodded enthusiastically. ?That sounds fine. What for though, may I ask??

Yuka began to walk down the path towards the portal, causing Elly and I to follow. ?Isn?t it obvious? They?re going to be living here.?

?What? Really?? Elly yelled. ?You?ve really been taking a lot of people in lately.?

?More people for you to talk to, at least.? I finally contributed to the conversation.

Elly clapped her hands. ?That?s a good point!?

?Well, let?s make a move on shall we? We?ll leave Yuka to her work and pick up Yumemi and Chiyuri.? I insisted.

?Yes! Okay then!? Elly shouted. I wondered if she was excited for having new neighbours or at the concept of her ?day off?.?

?See you soon, Yuka,? I said as I walked by her.

Yuka grinned. ?Don?t mess up too much.?

She says that to me when Elly is stood next to me.

Elly soon followed suit and we began to make our way towards the scientists? dwellings.

The journey was oddly silent. With someone like Elly with me I expected myself to be bombarded with conversations and questions from the social youkai but instead she seemed to be deep in thought.

It was nice to see that Gensokyo was covered in colour this time on our trip there, though the sight of seeing everything in black and white was something I wouldn?t be forgetting any time soon.

?Yumemi and Chiyuri?.? Elly said out loud. ?Have I heard those names before??

She?s been thinking about that for this long?!

?Yes? they?re the ones who saved Yuka and I from the human world back when I first got here.? I replied dryly.

Then again, I guess she?s done well to remember the names considering she wasn?t really involved.

As I led Elly though the air towards our destination, I finally thought of a topic to talk about. ?Hey, Elly. Can I ask you a question??

?Sure.? She chirped back.

?How on earth did you end up as Yuka?s gate guard?? I queried.

Elly laughed. ?By being in the right place at the right time.?

?And by that you mean??? I urged her for more answers.

Elly?s trademark circular scythe swapped hands. ?I was wondering around Gensokyo like the old vagrant youkai I was and found myself in a flower field when suddenly Yuka appears and challenges me to a fight.?

?That sounds like her.? I commented.

?Yup. So I was dodging for my life since she wasn?t exactly holding back and eventually she became distracted by something and started yelling at someone else.? Elly giggled. ?Turns out some fairies had entered Mugenkan and were flying off with her belongings.?

Brave fairies.

?Thinking she might have wanted some help. I threw my scythe at them and took them all out in a single throw.? She gave an accompanying spin of her scythe as an example. ?Yuka must have been impressed since she stopped attacking me immediately and asked me where I was from. When she learnt that I didn?t have a home she asked if I wanted a house of my own in return for guarding Mugenkan. I accepted and I?m still here today!?

?Sounds like you got a pretty good deal.? I commented.

Elly nodded. ?I really do enjoy living in Mugenkan. It just used to get a bit? how can I say it? lonely at times. I?m usually stuck in Mugenkan and Yuka was always out. It?s nice to have you and Kikuri around to talk to; having more people in there just makes my life more fun.?

?Yeah, I can see what you mean. I wonder if I can persuade Yuka to give you more days off.?

Elly hummed. ?That?d be nice. I?d love to have some free time to go exploring? but if she says no just go with that. I don?t want you to fall out with Yuka.?

?I?ll see what she says about it.? I noticed the mountain was right in front of us now. ?Anyway, here we are.?

Elly looked puzzled. ?They?re living in this mountain??

?They are; and Yuka wasn?t too happy about it. That?s one of the reasons she invited them to Mugenkan, I guess.?

Once we had landed, I was sure to go to the more accessible entrance this time rather than the cramped route we took before.

We had only just set foot inside the cave when Chiyuri?s voice called out. ?Oh! You?re here already!? A few seconds later, Chiyuri poked her head around a corner in the distance and waved.

?Oh, are we too early for you?? I shouted back.

?Nah. We probably could have come along last night, really. We didn?t have anything to pack after all, and all our electrical equipment was fried by Yumemi?s powers.? Chiyuri laughed despite the issue sounding serious. ?Boss was asleep last time I saw her. She?s still a bit? affected by dying; she?s not been able to sleep and all that.?

?You mean because of her kid?? I asked.

Chiyuri nodded. ?I guess Yuka told you. Yeah. I think the worst bit for her is that she doesn?t know if she survived or not. I mean Viy, and Yumemi and I for that matter, got caught in an explosion of scientifically-replicated magical energy. That stuff is real nasty. The chance of surviving is? really low, like, nigh-impossible.?

?Drop it. Chiyuri.? Yumemi?s voice mumbled as she came into view, her voice suggested that she was asleep as her assistant had stated. ?I just want to forget about it.?

Elly and I just remained silent. It was hard to describe Elly?s expression at this point; it partly said she didn?t want to be here and partly that she didn?t know what the hell was going on. Both thoughts were suitable in this case.

Yumemi covered her mouth as she yawned. ?Chiyuri, are we ready to go now??

?I reckon so, boss. Just gotta pick up our stuff.? With that said, Chiyuri vanished around the corner she originally emerged from and some odd rummaging sounds began to echo through the tunnel.

In the mean time, Yumemi walked up to us, or rather Elly. ?Ah, where are our manners. I am Yumemi Okazaki, a youkai of science. That?s my assistant, Chiyuri Kitashirakawa. I?m sorry to have exposed you to such a depressing mood?

?Ah, that?s, um, no problem. I?m Elly? just Elly.? The gate guard scratched her head. ?I?m not sure if I had a second name? Maybe I just forgot it.?

Yumemi gave an odd look. ?Okay? Well, I presume you?re an associate of Yuka Kazami??

?Oh? yeah. I?m the gate guard, so I?ll be the one making sure no one trespasses into your property.?

?I? see?? Yumemi paused. ?Well, I have the upmost faith in your ability then. Miss Elly.?

Elly managed a grin. ?Just Elly is fine.?

All of a sudden, the red-haired scientist yelled out. ?Chiyuri! Are you ready yet??

?Yes! As a matter of fact? I am!? The blonde scientist proclaimed and she leapt from the corner holding two briefcases, not unlike the ones they used so many years ago. ?It?s not much, but everything?s in here.?

Nodding in satisfaction, Yumemi then turned to us and bowed slightly. ?Alright then. Haru, Elly, please lead the way.?

?Do you want me to carry your stuff?? I quickly asked before we began to leave.

?No, no, it?s okay. Chiyuri is used to being a pack mule.?

Chiyuri gave the thumbs up. ?Yup. Years of slavery under the tyranny of Okazaki.?

The tyrant in question pointed at the rebel threatening before turning her attention back to us. ?Anyway, yes. Let?s go.?

With the scientists ready to go, Elly and I wasted no more time standing around in the miserable, dank cave and quickly led them back outside for the flight to their new home.
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (RiG4 has begun!)
Post by: Esifex on March 07, 2010, 01:23:01 AM: I came home from work, logged into MotK, and saw that this had a recent psot by Mima.

I squealed like a little girl. My brother is even more afraid of these forums now.
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (RiG4 has begun!)
Post by: zonron on March 13, 2010, 09:46:36 AM: awesome another update ^^
I have comments but i want to see where this chapter is leading first :D
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (RiG4 has begun!)
Post by: Mima on April 03, 2010, 01:22:24 AM: Chapter 10

?Yeah, and that over there is the Human Village. Self-explanatory really, most of the humans in Gensokyo live there, particularly the ones without any power. There are a few shops there which have some half-decent stuff and there?s a rising number of youkai who inhabit the village now as well. I guess it won?t be called the Human Village for much longer if it keeps on like this.? I explained to the two scientists as we flew by the settlement, as part of my guided tour to Gensokyo.

?So? the stores there are more general?? Chiyuri asked.

I nodded. ?Yeah. After all, what need of magical artefacts and outside items do helpless peasants need? All that stuff is found in Kourindou, the shop we flew by a couple of minutes ago.?

?Can?t we go in there for a look?? Chiyuri asked.

?Kourindou?? I laughed weakly. ?I would have, but I?m kinda? banned from there currently.?

Grins appeared on the scientists? faces. ?Come on then, let?s hear how.?

I chuckled. ?Well, I was browsing around Kourindou for anything interesting and what do you know, I managed to find an old games console. God knows how it got into Gensokyo but I knew Yuka would love it. So I picked-?

?Wait a second, Yuka likes video games?? Yumemi shouted out without thinking. ?The same Yuka that supposedly enjoys genocide??

?Well, when you look at some games the two go hand in hand, don?t they? Anyway, you can blame Yukari for introducing her to them.? I recalled the night before the fight for Gensokyo in my mind and the headache caused by the plastic instrument wielding band consisting of two youkai, a ghost and a magician.

?True.? Yumemi nodded her head, satisfied by the answer.

?So yeah, I go to the counter to buy it and the owner, Rinnosuke, is nowhere to be seen. Curiously there were some sheets of paper on the desk with drawings on, so naturally I picked them up and had a look.?

I coughed slightly before starting my next sentence. ?What I wasn?t expecting them to be were? pictures containing scenes of Rinnosuke and various female youkai doing? lewd things. Things got even better when he walked in on me having found his handiworks and he didn?t look too happy about it.?

?He tried to blabber out some excuse about the images but I just laughed and told him to relax, I wouldn?t tell anyone. The main problem was when I threw the papers back onto his desk; my eyes caught the final page of the pile which contained none other than Yuka.? I laughed out loud. ?He knew I?d seen the image and his face filled with fear as he knew what was coming. Unfortunately he didn?t have enough time to react before my fist landed square in his face, propelling him through the back wall of his shop.?

Elly burst out into laughter as I finished speaking which made me remember I never actually told her about this story. ?But yeah, I walked off with the console after that and next time I went he claimed I?d been influenced by Yuka?s violent nature too much and banned me. Funny how that ban seems to vanish whenever I go there with Yuka though?. Not like the ban means anything though.?

Yumemi laughed. ?I guess you really do care for Yuka then.?

I laughed weakly. ?Yeah. Considering I killed myself for a chance to be back with her and have spent almost 40 years with her? I guess you can say that.?

?I see. Well, Yuka certainly seems to care for you. She was constantly checking up on you while you were unconscious, and that was after I?d woken up.? Yumemi commented.

?She does. She just only shows it when it?s convenient for her.? I laughed. ?Anyway, we can talk about this when we get back. We?re not far now.?

?One more question related to Yuka, please.? Yumemi pleaded. ?I don?t know if she was joking or what, but Yuka said she had died not long ago. Can you? elaborate? She didn?t look like a spirit or anything.?

?Oh, she never told you? Yeah, she died a few years after we met you.?

?What? How?? Chiyuri asked clueless.

?She died saving Gensokyo from what was possibly the biggest threat to it ever.? I continued melancholically, reliving those moments. ?It was heartbreaking for me.?

?Who or what could possibly kill her?? Yumemi asked.

?Kikuri.? I answered. ?With the stolen body of Yukari Yakumo.?

Yumemi and Chiyuri exchanged confused looks before bursting into laughter.

?G? good one!? Yumemi said between bursts of laughter. ?You?re saying that shy girl killed Yuka??

?Yes. She did. She wasn?t always that way you know. I?m sure we?ll tell you the story one day.? I grinned weakly.

The scientists nodded. ?I?d certainly like to hear about it.?

?Wait a second.? Chiyuri objected. ?Does that mean Yuka is dead now??

?Oh, right. No, she?s alive again. It was our prize for saving Gensokyo, I guess you could say.?

The blonde scientist nodded in confirmation and a quiet spell fell over us. It wasn?t very pleasant considering I was reliving that terrible fight but it?s something I?ve become used to over time.

As we flew past it, I presented the forest of magic to them and explained to them what and who you can find in there, following it up with the neighbouring bamboo forest.

?Sounds like this Yagokoro could get us some interesting chemicals to play around with.? Chiyuri commented.

?Interesting to say the least.? I mumbled, thinking back to the time when Reisen was turned into a sentient blob of goo.

At this point in my journey to Mugenkan, I would usually be concentrating on the swaying sea of yellow caused by the sunflowers but this time was different, someone was flying above it towards the forest; someone who shouldn?t be here.

What the hell is she doing here?

?Hey, you two. Stay completely still.? I ordered as I cast a spell on them. ?I?ve hidden you with my power; let?s see if we can give someone a surprise.?

Flying a bit closer to the figure, I shouted out to catch her attention. ?Hey! Mima!?

Instantly the spirit turned and noticed me and began flying over to us.

?Ah, Haru. How are you?? Mima nodded. ?And you?re with? Elly. Don?t say you?ve broken up with Yuka.?

I laughed weakly. ?I wouldn?t dare to. She?d probably gouge my eyes out.?

?That?s a valid point.? Mima agreed.

?So, what are you doing here? Aren?t you meant to be on some tropical island in the outside world?? I queried.

?Well, yes. But I thought I had better spend a few hours checking my? domain to see if anything had gone wrong. Apparently there has.? Mima scratched her head in confusion. ?Do you know anything about it??

?As a matter of fact. Yes. We resolved the incident.?

?What! Really?? Mima practically screamed.

?Yep. Someone stole Gensokyo?s colour, so Yuka and I went to get it back.? I explained.

Mima nodded. ?I see. Who was behind it??

?Ah, no one you?d know.? I shrugged, clicking my fingers and cancelling the spell I?d cast.

Mima hummed. ?I see. That?s a shame, I was won-? Her sudden pause broadcasted that she?d just seen the two newcomers.

?My, oh my.? Mima mused. ?I wasn?t expecting to see you two here so early.

?Neither did we, but what?s done is done.? Yumemi commented.

The scientists and Mima exchanged some small talk briefly before Mima spoke up again. ?However much I?d really love to talk, I have a better idea. Reimu is coming to pick me up any minute now to go back to wherever we are on holiday, so drop by the shrine when we get back and we?ll have a huge party to celebrate, okay??

?That sounds awesome!? Chiyuri yelled.

?Well then, sounds like a plan. I?ll see you then.? Mima laughed as she flew off towards the shrine.

Not long afterwards the sunflower field was well in sight prompting Elly to speak out. ?Well, here we are! Home sweet home!?

As we landed in the border of the field, I held out my arm to command the scientists to stop. ?Let me warn you now. Whatever you do, do not damage the flowers. If you do? well, even I won?t be able to save you.?

Yumemi and Chiyuri exchanged nervous looks. ?All the flowers?? One of them asked.

?Any of them.? I spoke back, trying to sound as serious as possible.

??Understood. I think I?ll fly into the field from now on.? Chiyuri muttered.

Elly laughed. ?It?s not too bad! Miss Yuka?s flowers are top quality! They?re practically indestructible!?

?They are? That sounds unlikely.?Yumemi probed.

?Sure! Watch this!? Elly yelled as she spun her scythe into action and threw it, promptly decapitating a number of flowers.

All I could do to stop myself from laughing was sigh. ?How do you want your funeral, Elly??

Elly was completely pale. ?Please don?t tell her! Please!?

?I bet she already knows.? I commented. It wasn?t encouraging but it was the truth.

Elly looked around nervously. ?I think? I? I think I left something back at Yumemi?s cave! I?m going to go back and look for it! I?ll be back later!? In a nervous wreck, Elly quickly took to the sky and flew away as fast as she could.

An awkward minute went by before Chiyuri broke the silence again. ?So, where do we live in this sunflower field? I coulda sworn Yuka said we would have a house but I sure can?t see one.?

?Good question.? I quickly took them to the portal which was, as ever, camouflaged in plain sight. ?It?s in here.?

?Ooo. A magic portal!? Yumemi?s eyes filled with interest. ?We must get readings for this!?

Her assistant jumped forward, equally as enthusiastically. ?Sure thing, boss!?

?Can this wait until later? You have all the time in the world, you know? Plus I bet Yuka is waiting for us.? I sighed.

Yumemi nodded. ?Of course. Wouldn?t want to make someone like her wait for longer than necessary, would we??

?Alright, just go through the portal into Mugenkan, I?ll be with you in a second.? I grinned.

Yumemi nodded and walked through, followed by Chiyuri. Once I was sure they were both in, I turned around and cancelled the light manipulation I had cast on the flowers that Elly had attacked earlier leaving them in their true state; perfectly unharmed. Laughing to myself, I entered the portal myself to catch up with the scientists.

Yeah, Rinnosuke, I think you were right. She has influenced me, not that that is a bad thing?.

In the few seconds it took for me to cancel my spell and enter the portal, Yuka had already approached the scientific duo and began conversing with them.

Upon noticing me approach, Yuka spoke up. ?Ah, there you are. I wonder where you?d gone to.?

?I was just checking something.? I grinned.

Yuka sneered. ?If you say so.? She looked back to the scientists before motioning towards the new structure that I noticed was sitting close to Mugenkan?s portal. ?This will be your new home. I expect you?ll find it suitable, I?ve designed it with certain? themes in mind.?

I can only wonder what themes she?s talking about?

?Well then? let?s go and have a look shall we?? Yuka grinned.

?Sure thing!? Chiyuri shouted as she ran for the door.

I honestly wondered what I was going to see behind the door but was quite surprised to see that it was quite ordinary, not quite as formal as the Kazami mansion but certainly well-kept, something along the lines of an upper-class human house.

?This is really nice, Miss Kazami.? Yumemi bowed. ?I can?t thank you enough for this, it?s wonderful.?

?Yeah, thanks.? Chiyuri added.

Yuka chuckled enigmatically. ?This isn?t the best bit. I assure you.?

Oh god. What is?

Yuka led us through the house until we reached a strange metal cupboard. Effortlessly the green haired youkai opened it and I realized what it actually was.

A lift? Seriously? Please say she didn?t.

Ushering us in, Yuka made the lift go down to wherever the destination was. One thing I did note is that her previous anxiety of lifts from years ago was gone. I couldn?t make my mind up if it was because she was a youkai now or if it?s because she made the lift, but hey, trying to figure out what is going on in Yuka?s head is an impossible task in itself.

The lift made a little tune signalling our arrival and the sight I saw was nothing less than impressive, even if it was ridiculous.

What Yuka had created underground was literally a secret lab, her ?themes? were without a doubt old spy flicks that we had watched through the years. All that the place needed was nameless people in brightly coloured uniforms and it would have been identical.

?I figured you?d want a laboratory of some sort, so I thought I?d make it a little more? fun.? Yuka grinned.

Chiyuri squealed and ran off down one of the corridors while Yumemi stood there in awe.

?I? I don?t know what to say, Yuka.? Yumemi managed. ?I can?t possibly repay you for this.?

Yuka shrugged. ?It?s nothing big. I?m repaying the help you gave us back in the human world.?

I was beginning to wonder where Chiyuri had disappeared to when Yuka spoke once more. ?Anyway, I think we had better leave these two to explore their new home. Feel free to come to the mansion later for dinner.?

?Okay, thank you.? The scientist thanked once more.

?Come on Haru, let?s go. Now you can fix that TV for me.? She grinned.

I sighed. ?I told you, that?s gone for good.?

?Fixing a TV is no problem. Just bring it here and we?ll sort it. Hell, we could probably even make a new one with this lab!? Yumemi boasted.

?Okay then, I might take you up on that offer.? Yuka turned around and re-entered the lift, shortly followed by myself. ?We?ll see you two later.?

The lift doors closed and Yuka turned around, her face smirking.

As she wrapped her arms around one of mine, I grinned back. ?I guess that means your plan worked.?

?You doubted that it wouldn?t?? The youkai asked.

?No, I didn?t actually. I just had to see it for myself.? I chuckled weakly.

The rest of the day went smoothly. Yumemi and Chiyuri came to the mansion and learnt about Mugenkan as well as general life in Gensokyo including me renting out a copy of the Gensokyo Chronicle much like I was lent one in the past.

Hours turned to days, days to weeks and weeks to months. Before long it felt like Yumemi and Chiyuri had been in Gensokyo for years; their place earned in Mugenkan multiple times by their works even topping the creations by the leading Kappa groups.

However, this wasn?t the only event to take place this year. It turned out that someone from another realm had other plans for us.
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (RiG4 has begun!)
Post by: Dizzy H. "Muffin" Muffin on April 03, 2010, 01:55:31 AM: Hee, cute.
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (RiG4 has begun!)
Post by: Kasu on April 03, 2010, 02:12:19 AM: Oh snap cliffhanger.

The best part was the Rinnosuke thing though. XD
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (RiG4 has begun!)
Post by: Esifex on April 03, 2010, 02:14:20 AM: Haru-PUNCH.

Nice. We need to get someone to sketch up Haru for us, so we have someone to envision. As it is, I keep picturing Kyon from Melancholy.
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (RiG4 has begun!)
Post by: Kasu on April 03, 2010, 02:15:14 AM: Quote from: Internet Carebear on April 03, 2010, 02:14:20 AM
Haru-PUNCH.

Nice. We need to get someone to sketch up Haru for us, so we have someone to envision. As it is, I keep picturing Kyon from Melancholy.
Wow. I just realized how well that fits...
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (RiG4 has begun!)
Post by: Esifex on April 03, 2010, 02:29:18 AM: Quote from: Miko Miko Kasu on April 03, 2010, 02:15:14 AM
Wow. I just realized how well that fits...
It was mentioned earlier in this very story. That's where I got the inspiration.
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (RiG4 has begun!)
Post by: Blackraptor on April 07, 2010, 05:40:04 AM: Quote from: Miko Miko Kasu on April 03, 2010, 02:15:14 AM
Wow. I just realized how well that fits...
The Madness of Yuka Kazami?
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (RiG4 has begun!)
Post by: Mima on April 09, 2010, 01:25:18 AM: Chapter 11

?Haru??

The familiar sleepy voice of Yuka brought me back into the world of the conscious.

?Haru? Wake up??

I struggled to wake myself up and was forced to use all of my willpower to open my eyes. Upon doing so I was greeted by the, for lack of a better word, adorable face of Yuka having just woke up herself.

?What? what?s the matter, Yuka?? I mumbled.

?There?s someone here?? She sleepily slurred. ?It?s? it?s??

?It?s what?? I sighed.

?I can?t remember?? Yuka fell back onto her pillow, prompting me to do the same.

?No? no? We need to get up!? Yuka weakly pushed me.

I dragged myself up, discard the youkai that was, as usual, hanging off me. ?This had better be worth it.? I ended with a yawn.

Yuka nodded and flew out of bed. Not that I blame her, she?s not very stable at all when she first wakes up and would have probably just fell on the floor face first; not that there?s a floor to fall on in this empty, star filled room per se.

I drifted out of the bedroom leaving Yuka behind and headed towards my old room to get changed; my mind barely functioning and trying to guess who she meant had arrived, presumably in Mugenkan.

It didn?t take me long to get changed and by the time I had left my room I could overhear Yuka and someone else, someone who I had never heard before talking casually.

Unfortunately by the time I had walked down the corridor and made it to the stairs the conversation had already ended and Yuka was shutting the door as the mystery guest was walking away. The only things I could make out of her was that she had blonde hair, an ordinary pink summer hat, equally coloured clothes and a purple neck scarf loosely wrapped around her neck.

?She?s gone already? Who was that?? I called down the stairs to Yuka, who was just turned around to look at me.

?Oh, she?s just an old acquaintance.? She shrugged; her personality back to normal. ?She was here to deliver a letter.?

?That?s it? You woke me up and made me get dressed so we could get a letter?? I sighed.

Yuka tapped her foot. ?I didn?t know, did I? Anyway, the content of the letter was worth waking up for.?

?Well, what does it say?? I asked, eagerly.

Yuka grinned. ?In short? We?re going on holiday.?

?W-what?? I stuttered. ?Where? Was she sent by Reimu or something??

Yuka shook her head. ?No, no. She?s a demon. Anyway, have a read for yourself.?

Taking the letter from the youkai, I quickly scanned through the letter.

Dear Yuka.

How are you? We?re doing great here in Makai, we?ve just finished a refurbishment project that?s been going since I saw you last, at that party. My apologies for not visiting you since then, I felt so guilty leaving you after you lost your pet human like you did but the gateway between Gensokyo and Makai has had to be sealed for all this time for dimensional stability. Ah, the worries of being a goddess of my own realm!

Anyway, now that work is done and traffic in and out of Makai is back to normal, I?d love for you to come along and stay in Makai for a while so we can catch up on old times and maybe even have that rematch we said we?d have! Bring along a friend if you want, (or have any! Hahaha!) but don?t ask the others because they?ll have received this letter too.

Oh yes, I should also add that the entryway to Makai has had to be moved. We now have a proper entrance rather than that silly little magic circle located underground, just east of a place the locals call the Palace of the Earth Spirits, I presume you know where that is.

I hope to see you really soon.

Love from your dear friend.

Shinki.

?Shinki??? I commented. ?She was that silver haired woman, right? Alice?s mother I think??

Yuka nodded. ?Good memory. Yes. We?ve only met a few times but she?s a good friend.?

?So, she?s the goddess of Makai? I presume you beat her in a fight then by the sounds of this rematch??

Yuka nodded and walked past me towards one of the stairways. ?Oh yes. Not that we had a chance of losing, it was Reimu, Marisa, Mima and more importantly myself all against her.? She bragged.

?Sounds a bit odd that it?s taken over thirty years to do some ?refurbishment??? I asked.

Yuka sneered. ?She said refurbishment but she meant that she pretty much destroyed Makai from her own firepower. She?s probably had to remake the entire world or something.?

?Sounds like it was a pretty crazy fight?? I mumbled.

?Oh, it was quite fun.? Yuka chirped.

Yuka hopped up half the stairs and turned to face me. ?But this time, we can call it a holiday! Go and pack your stuff, I want to leave soon.?

?You?re eager.? I thought out loud. ?Do I have a suitcase or what??

?It?s already in your room!? The youkai sung as she finished climbing the stairs and vanished from sight.

With a sigh I made my way upstairs and back into the room I had just emerged from. Curiously, a small blue plaid suitcase, which looked very similar to my clothing, was sat on my old bed.

Let me guess, Yuka has a suitcase identical to this except red?

Fortunately it didn?t take me long to throw a few sets of clothing into the case and return back into the main hall where already, predictably, Yuka was stood waiting.

I will never discover how she is so fast.

Since it was the winter months, Yuka?s hair was trailing down behind her back compared to her usual shoulder length hair as well as her winter outfit which is pretty much identical to the normal one except that she traded her dress for trousers. Sat next to her, much to my surprise, was a red plaid suitcase.

Oh no, the shock. I never saw that coming.

?All ready?? The youkai chirped.

?As much as I?ll ever be.? I sighed again.

Yuka tapped her foot. ?Stop sounding so depressed.?

?Alright.? I sighed once more in defiance.

Yuka stared at me for a few seconds before picking up her case and opening the door. ?Well then, let?s go.?

I walked alongside Yuka as we marched down the flowery path. I wondered how long it?d take Yuka to pass me her case and tell me to start carrying it since it was inevitably going to happen at one point or another.

Yuka hummed in thought. ?I?d better tell Kikuri we?re going. She?ll get herself worked up in worry if we vanished.?

?How considerate.? I commented causing another piercing stare from the youkai.

Yuka lightly knocked on the door and a few seconds later Kikuri opened the door, wearing her usual purple clothes. ?Oh, good morning Miss Kazami and Haru! How can I help you??

?We?re just passing by to say we?re going on holiday for a few days, don?t get too panicky when we?re not around.? Yuka explained.

?Oh that sounds lovely! Have a nice time you two! Do you need anything doing while you?re away?? Kikuri smiled.

Yuka shrugged. ?You could make sure Elly is doing her job properly, otherwise the fairies will handle everything else.?

?I see?? Kikuri paused for a moment. ?Miss Kazami could I??

Yuka raised an eyebrow and nodded her head to try and force the rest of the sentence.

?Could I? please go into the mansion and use the games room while you?re gone? I mean if you don?t want me to then I won?t I just wondered if I could beca-? Kikuri started rambling.

As of late, Kikuri had gained quite a fascination with the various gadgets we had gained from the human world, it never seemed to have crossed her mind to get any of her own though.

?Stop talking.? Yuka ordered. ?Of course you can go in. Just water all my flowers and you can spend as much time in there as you want.?

?Oh? O-okay?? Kikuri stuttered before recouping. ?Well, please have a lovely time! I?d love to hear about it when you get back.?

I laughed slightly. ?Sure thing, Kikuri. See you later.?

Yuka and Kikuri traded similar farewells and we made our way further down the path. It wasn?t much longer before we approached Elly who was lying on the grass sunbathing, her scythe sitting close by. Yuka continued walking by as she spoke. ?We?re going on holiday for a few days; make sure no one burns the place down.?

?Sure thing, Miss Yuka. Have fun.? Elly casually replied, not exerting any energy more than necessary.

Of course, there was one more house between Elly?s and the portal and that was the scientists? house. Yuka was just about to knock on the door when a loud explosion crashed from the building.

?I think we?ll just leave them to it.? Yuka commented as she made for the portal.

?I can?t say I blame you.? I said, quickly following her.

As we left through the portal into Gensokyo I tried to map out a route in my head. From what I could figure we had quite a journey to go on, the underground entrance wasn?t too far away from the shrine and the Palace of the Earth Spirits was quite a distance from there. We?ll probably need a holiday just from all the travelling we?ll be doing but at least it would be worth it, I?m curious to see what Makai looks like.
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (RiG4 has begun!)
Post by: Esifex on April 09, 2010, 02:48:51 AM: Quote from: Mima on April 09, 2010, 01:25:18 AM
Of course, there was one more house between Elly?s and the portal and that was the scientists? house. Yuka was just about to knock on the door when a loud explosion crashed from the building.

Stand back!
I'm going to try...

SCIENCE!
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (RiG4 has begun!)
Post by: Blackraptor on April 09, 2010, 03:38:33 AM: I anticipate an All-Star Danmaku fest soon. Also looking forward to finally see how Reimu's little girl turned out and if Reimu now looks anything like her mom Sendai as shown here (http://img530.imageshack.us/img530/9793/1270769586063.jpg).

[ruro]Read the stickies, broski, images bigger than 640x480 pixels have to be linked to or thumbnailed.[/ruro]
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (RiG4 has begun!)
Post by: Kasu on April 09, 2010, 10:20:21 PM: Sweetness. Can't wait to see how you do the Underground.
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (RiG4 has begun!)
Post by: zonron on April 11, 2010, 06:07:51 AM: today sucked, work was long and boring, then i came here and seen two updates!

... i guess today wasn't that bad ^^
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (RiG4 has begun!)
Post by: Thata no Guykoro on April 14, 2010, 03:57:46 PM: Well looks like this story's been cancelled. >_>
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (RiG4 has begun!)
Post by: Firestorm29 on April 14, 2010, 04:14:58 PM: I doubt that, most likely relocated. I'd ask him myself but I have no idea how to get in touch with him at the moment...
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (RiG4 has begun!)
Post by: Alfred F. Jones on April 14, 2010, 10:39:23 PM: Regarding where RiG will be moving: I've spoken to Mima just now, and Usually Dead has agreed to host RiG on his site, usuallydead.com. No ETA on a nice, pretty version of it, but he plans to throw up a rough, low-detail HTML copy in a week, and make it look nice later.

So fear not, RiG fans. The work will continue. This thread will remain free and viewable for all of the readers to see, though I ask that you refrain from commenting on the reasons why this fiction piece will no longer continue here.
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (RiG4 has begun!)
Post by: Kasu on April 14, 2010, 10:54:32 PM: Quote from: Keine Kamishiraruro on April 14, 2010, 10:39:23 PM
Regarding where RiG will be moving: I've spoken to Mima just now, and Usually Dead has agreed to host RiG on his site, usuallydead.com. No ETA on a nice, pretty version of it, but he plans to throw up a rough, low-detail HTML copy in a week, and make it look nice later.

So fear not, RiG fans. The work will continue. This thread will remain free and viewable for all of the readers to see, though I ask that you refrain from commenting on the reasons why this fiction piece will no longer continue here.
Ah~. Thank you. That's a really big relief.
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (RiG4 has begun!)
Post by: Esifex on April 15, 2010, 12:03:54 AM: For the sake of not having to stalk ~~Ruro~~ anyone and corner ~~Ruro~~ them to find out what happened, since my story is an extension of RiGs universe, could I get someone to PM me a slight explanation?

{Edit} Whoa now. Just got buried under a pile of private messages. Thanks for all the offers to help, I'm getting the relevant information from the necessary parties.
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (RiG4 has begun!)
Post by: zonron on April 17, 2010, 08:27:41 AM: wow i must have missed something, the rig has been moved? crazy. lol don't mind me I'm almost never in the loop ^^
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (RiG4 has begun!)
Post by: Esifex on April 17, 2010, 12:07:43 PM: Quote from: zonron on April 17, 2010, 08:27:41 AM
wow i must have missed something, the rig has been moved? crazy. lol don't mind me I'm almost never in the loop ^^
Unprecedented Serious Affair! Evil spirit's conflicting opinion is destroyed Wonderful Paradise peace! Girls are setting up, please watch warmly.

Things are going on. Stay tuned for details.
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (RiG4 has begun!)
Post by: Alfred F. Jones on April 25, 2010, 12:06:42 AM: After talking to Mima, I come to you RiG readers with another update.

Reborn in Gensokyo now has a new home over at www.usuallydead.com/mima (http://www.usuallydead.com/mima). It's still only in basic form, but he's got a massive site rehaul partway done already for his part of the site, namely: enabling comments from readers. Please watch warmly for further details and such.
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (RiG4 has begun!)
Post by: zonron on April 26, 2010, 09:01:36 AM: yay, its up (kind of) : D
Title: Re: Reborn in Gensokyo series (RiG4 has begun!)
Post by: Esifex on April 26, 2010, 11:15:35 PM: Odds are, I'll take it upon myself to either report when updates have been made, or simply post them to this thread myself. Further discussion with Mima is required before anything solid is hashed out.