Author Topic: A Touhou Fiction Novel ~ Beyond Border Gensokyo  (Read 9931 times)

Kitaen Silva

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A Touhou Fiction Novel ~ Beyond Border Gensokyo
« on: October 16, 2009, 04:28:55 PM »
[Just curiously, If I were to make a thread for the comments regarding Beyond Border Gensokyo (BBG) so that this thread could be reserved for a chapter per post, where would I put it? Please PM the response, if you would...]


A brief history of events that have occurred in the reality we know to exist, called ?Mercatia?:

Thirty-eight annuals ago, an 18-revolution-old girl named Kamihana Lirustoi disappeared from her home in the growing city of Desucire, in the western provinces of the Old State Unity of North America. The last of her family had died aboard a cruise ship while she was away at a summer school camp, and she had only just moved to her city a week before the trip. She had made no friends while at summer school, and didn?t know anyone in Desucire, so when she disappeared, nobody even noticed.
She hasn?t been seen since the day she returned from camp.

Nineteen annuals ago, a 13-revolution-old boy named Patil Russeh, and a 16-revolution-old girl named Hazel McKeon also disappeared. Patil?s family consisted of just Patil, his mother, and his stepfather. They were living on the western coast of the New State Unity of Europe in the Deeps of  Faunworth City. They had lived in the Deeps for so long, that none of them could clearly remember seeing the sun, or what the sun?s rays felt like on their skin. They were struggling financially, but they were happy as a family, and the three of them loved to do family activities together. Patil?s biological father had gone overseas on family business and wasn?t heard from again. Patil vanished during a school day. He had gotten up to go to his locker, telling his teacher that he felt something very strange, but he never came back, so his teacher called his mom about it. She called the authorities, and most of the people in the area of the Deeps he lived in gathered together to look for him. They searched high and low, but always wound up at the same conclusion; He vanished into thin air. Hazel, however, lived with her extensive family on their estate on the still-green countryside of Ireland at the outskirts of a small town called Tenenbaum. Hazel had been raised with everything handed to her on a silver platter, and she got anything she wanted, when she wanted it. She naturally had a terrible attitude because she was spoiled rotten, and she would complain or whine incessantly about everything if it wasn?t to her liking. She had a personal teacher, so she had never left the estate for any reason, and had no clue about the world outside of her home. As far as she knew, the sun and world revolved around her. When she disappeared, her parents gave all they could to find her, without putting their home and business in jeopardy. Everyone but her parents was convinced she had merely run away, and was living happily somewhere.
Neither Hazel nor Patil have been seen anywhere.

Twelve annuals ago, Patil was seen by his mom for exactly thirteen point seven seconds. His mom held onto him, and Patil spoke to her, saying, ?I miss you, though I can?t stay here with you. I wanted to let you know that I am happy where I am, and I am doing well. Do not worry, I have not died, I am just very very far away. I love you, and goodbye again.?. Patil?s mom later reported that ?It seemed that he hadn?t aged a day, though he should have been over twenty revolutions old. He spoke to us, and told us that he was not dead, and he was doing well. But then he turned around, and it seemed as though a dark rip in the air with bloodred ribbons on the ends appeared like a doorway in front of him! A little girl his age was standing in the rip and spoke to him in some foreign language, and he responded fluently in the same language, like he had known how to talk like that his whole life. She was blonde, and she wore a white cap with a red ribbon on it. She had on this beautiful blue and white dress, and this cute little umbrella. After my little Patil stepped into that rift, he and the girl smiled and waved at me before I could get back to my feet, and she closed the rip. That demon girl stole my Patil from me!? Needless to say, not a soul believed a word of it.

Eight annuals ago, a 19-revolution-old girl named Memory Sastul disappeared. She used to live on a steel and concrete man-made island city called Anterra, that drifted abroad in the ocean?s currents. Being the daughter of Anterra?s Chief Engineer, she had picked up knowledge on mechanical construction and engineering, mostly from being constantly surrounded by the technology her father, Anamne Sastul,  maintained. By the age of eight revolutions, she was able to quickly and efficiently dismantle any kind of engine or electronic unit found on Anterra and understand each component?s purpose. By the age of eleven, she could build multiple models of pneumatic, hydraulic, and even fossil-fuel motors and engines. By age twelve, she had produced a hydraulic system that put out a work force that was slightly over double than that of the most efficient system in the city. When she disappeared, she had been working on a new kind of motor that harnessed the energy of plasma, and directed it into a work output. Her father had been helping further the project by reseraching and developing a way of storing the energy harnessed from plasma. Anamne woke up one morning to get an early start on working with Memory on their corelated plasma projects to find that Memory had disappeared from her quarters, her bunk left untouched, her light on, and papers strewn in mid-study across her desk. Anamne met with Anterra?s mayor and officials, and everything stopped on Anterra for a solid week while everyone searched for Memory. A month later, Anamne resigned as Chief Engineer of Anterra, and took over Memory?s Plasma Engine Project, hoping to have made some headway by the time his daughter surely returned.
However, Memory hasn?t been seen or heard from since.

Seven annuals ago, people from another planet in Mercatia, called Serris, made contact with Earth, which is thought to be Mercatia?s centerpoint. Serris was inhabited by people from not only Serris, but from multiple other planets that had networked together, making Serris the hub. Humans soon traveled the stars to other worlds, and other races traveled to make Earth their home. Tirrix, Kitsuvi, and Boundwoulven all took a strong liking to Earth, even though the three races didn?t get along in much, they mingled peacefully on Earth. Tirrix, being humanoid in shape, with catlike features and reflexes, were thoroughly pleased with the distance from it?s homestar, giving Earth the ?perfect temperature?. Kitsuvi, similar to Tirrix, except foxlike in features and behaviour, were enthralled by the beauty, architecture, and wonders both posessed by Earth naturally, and created by Humans. Boundwolven, which the Humans called ?werewolves?, were appreciative of the ecosystem, amazed by the sheer number of edible plants and even creatures, and they all shared a strange fascination with the moon. There were many other races that made Earth their home, such as the Marr, Schironae, and Mandagoria. There were even rumors that the Licentia had a lab somewhere on Earth, and a couple subraces of Faeriekin had appeared, though nobody has been able to prove either of these things. 

[Please note that anything after THIS POINT is under heavy editing. It's all in the initial stage of writing, and hasn't gotten past 'Rough Draft'. The amount of detail will vary from time to time, and the first few chapters are a little difficult to identify who is speaking, but that's due to formatting and fonts used. The 'standard' version will be augmented to easily identify speakers and subjects without the use of fancy fonts and colors. The 'Special' version will be the same story, just made visually more impressive. In any case, enjoy!]


Four annuals ago,
[Undecided text here]
Nobody has heard from Csarci on any planet.

Two annuals ago, a 12-revolution-old girl named Phoebe Lunarisa, another 12-revolution-old girl named Kaeli Silverline, and an 11-revolution-old otherworlder boy named Desiderius Erasmus Roterodamus all disappeared simultaneously, though this time, a few clues were left behind as to what happened. The three friends had gone into a cordoned off library on a little adventure, and made it their little play spot. One day, after school, the three went there as usual, and tossed their backpacks aside. They had made castles and things from all the books there, and there were a few spots where the three would sit together and read for hours at a time. There was one book they all seemed to have taken a liking to, according to their school journals. They had started to record events and things that happened in the library, and particularly inside the book, into their journals. They also made a lot of little doodles of people and places inside the book. Two weeks after they began reading this book, the three disappeared, and haven?t been seen since.

A young otherworlder boy in the present time had done a small bit of research on this latest disappearance early in the revolution, and found that all three wrote excessively in their journals about this book. On several occasions, they had mentioned that they had to write everything that happened, because the book wouldn?t be the same the next time they read it, so they wanted to make sure they could read it over again when they wanted to. Desiderius commented that at one point, he read about a boy named Patil Russeh, who talked about visiting his parents with the help of his friend ?Yukari Yakumo, the Youkai of the Boundary?. Phoebe wrote a piece about Memory Sastul having gotten engaged to ?a mere human?. Kaeli wrote about Hana Lirus being ?the bridge between the borderjumpers? language?. This was all too much to consider coincidence, so the otherworlder boy looked into the matter. Though he didn?t understand what they were associated with in the story, he recognized the names of three other people who disappeared before from both the journals and his grandfather?s cold case notes and files. The boy considered on multiple occasions that he was just being stupid in thinking that this book would help find the missing people, but it was a lead, even if it was just a small one. If he could find out who created this book, maybe he could get at the very least a few more bits of information.
« Last Edit: October 16, 2009, 04:35:59 PM by Kitaen Silva »

Kitaen Silva

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Chapter One: Can't Have Coincidence Without Sugar
« Reply #1 on: October 16, 2009, 04:30:51 PM »

Following the Views of Machabel Derivitas and
Dais Waynhim

Present time Mercatia, in central Tael City, of the Old State Unity of North America, previously known as the state of Ohio:


  ?Ugh. Nothing! Dais! Would you PLEASE come in here and help me?? the otherworldly boy was in his grandfather?s study again, amidst a heaping pile of boxes and strewn papers. He had arranged all of his late grandfather?s notes and files in such a way that they could all be readily accessed. He accomplished this by setting them up into a sort of dome, with a hole in one side so that the boxes inside had the files facing inward, while the boxes on the outside faced outward. The boy was currently situated right in the ?doorway? of this dome, hiding behind stacks of paper that were almost level with his eyes as he sat on the floor. Nothing more than a mass of hair the color of dusty topsoil could be seen above the papers. That and a pair of massive ears the color of a newborn kitten?s nose that poked out from the top of his head. One of them was facing toward his friend in the other room.

 ?What for, Macha? I have no interest in your detective work. I came over to see if I could use your notes on our school science project, not help you find missing papers on missing people.? his friend Dais Waynhim replied. He was a human, but he had big dreams about traveling the stars to see the worlds where Macha had come from. Dais was actually a very simple boy, and Macha sometimes accused him of not being able to achieve even ocean travel, let alone aerospace travel. Macha meant it lightheartedly, and Dais took it as such. ?That, and I came over to play a bit of Touhou.?

 ?You always want to play Touhou when you come over- Wait? Reimu Hakurei??

 ?Yeah, what about her? You never play as Reimu. You always pick Marisa-?

 ?No no no? These journals mention a girl that sounds like her.? He flips through the journals for a moment, and finds what he was looking for in Kaeli?s journal. ?See here? ?-A girl with dark brown hair pulled back into a ponytail by a big red bow had been fussing over her offertory box, cleaning and polishing it. There were stains all over her red and white priestess? dress-?? Dais! These three must have been talking about Reimu!?

 ?Oh, please. The outfit that Reimu wears used to be common stuff. Common stuff for a Priestess, anyway? red and white seemed to be their colors, and they always wore outfits just like or similar to Reimu.?

 ?Yeah, but I think that Reimu fusses over her offertory box a lot. And not only that, but it goes on to say, ?-For earlier that week, a blonde girl in a black and white dress with a pointy witch?s hat and a flying broomstick had flown through her shrine. Followed by another blonde girl of an odd sort, what with wings made of crystals that looked like Christmas lights and a weird staff that seemed to bend and shift at will-? ? Dais, that HAS to be Marisa and Flandre.?

 ?Coincidence? Or maybe they were just reading a book about Touhou??

 ?If a Touhou novel existed, you or I would be one of the first to lay our hands on one.?

?True. But still. I think you?re making a rabbit trail. Maybe the person who wrote the book about those missing people was also a Touhou fan like us??

 ?Even if that were so, you or I would know about it, and would probably have a copy of this book that these three were reading. And if THAT were so, I would just simply go to the shelf and look at the author, and find out if he or she is still alive and well enough to sit and chat with me.?

 ?True again. OK, Macha. NOW you have my attention. Where is your crazy little mind going with this??

 ?Err, well, I seem to have a vague recollection of the previous disappearance victims all having a hobby for reading? I would like to talk to any and all living relatives of the victims to find out more. If all the disappearance victims all have a similar preference in reading, we may have a suspect as to who could have done something to them.?

 ?That?s going a bit out on a limb, Macha. First off, even IF you find that all the victims had a similar reading interest, that would be about the extent of what you find out. A similar reading interest.?

 ?True, but there?s still the possibility that we would uncover the title that these three were reading.?

 ?Macha.?

 ?What??

 ?Why waste your time with all of that, when you could just simply try to figure out where this library was at??

 ?? You know, Dais? sometimes I hate it when you have a better idea than I do. Because I had this nice plan all set up with going to the victim?s houses and stuff?. Wait, I?d still have to do that anyway, whether I find the book or not.?

 ?What for??

 ?To see if there are any similarities between the victims. Because the police most certainly haven?t connected all these disappearances. I have these journals, uh?  here, which mention several of the victims together. That makes the author of that book a possible suspect. And if all the victims had a shared interest of reading, then somehow, some way, that book is connected. It just has to be.?

 ?Okay, makes sense, I suppose. But then once you find out who the author is, what are YOU going to do about it??

 ?I?m going to play the role of a victim, only I?LL be prepared for the incident, if one occurs.?

 ?That sounds awful dangerous, Macha. Let me come too. I could be the one in the bushes with the radio, a cell-phone and a camera.?

 ?Okay, I guess. But we still have to find that library. And then we have to find that one book. And THEN we have to find that author.?

 ?I still say that sounds like shaky ground.?

 ?Yes, I agree, but it?s a lead of sorts.?

 ?Say? why are you so caught up with this, anyway??

 ??It?s a subject that interests me? Sounds like an adventure in the real world. You and I need a bit of real world.? He lied.

 ?Woah. Hey now. Where?s my friend Macha, and what have you done with him? He would rather die than have any dealings with the real world. What?s the real reason?? Dais wasn?t so easily fooled.

 ??Desiderius was a close friend of mine, one of the only Tirrix that I really cared about.?

 ?Wait? You actually KNEW Desiderius??

 ?Yes.? Macha suddenly poked his head above the stack of papers beside him and looked at his friend. His fuzzy features stared hard at Dais, though it was hard to take a boy with pink fur and odd eyes very seriously. ?But that is not relevant. Something? though? this part here REALLY grabs my attention?? Macha tossed Desiderius? journal over the stack of papers to Dais. ?Read the twelfth page.?

 ?? Five? Seven? okay. This bit about the victim Patil? ? Woah! ??Aided by his friend, Yukari Yakumo, the Youkai of the Boundary??! But? How??

 ?That?s what I want to know. Desiderius has no idea what Touhou even IS. He would have no clue that Yukari is the Youkai of the Boundary.?

 ?This is really weird. I?m in. Where do we start?? Dais asked, getting increasingly excited. Macha poked his head over the papers again.

 ?Tea.?

 ?What??

 ?What I said. Tea. That?s where we start. Spearmint and Chamomile with two cubes of sugar, if you would.?

 ?Please, you mean? Sure. Though kids our age generally don?t like tea.?

 ?Who said we fit under the category of ?generally???

 ?Right. Anyway? Where do we start, for real??

 ?Two annuals ago.?

Kitaen Silva

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Chapter Two - Pirates and Shrine Maidens
« Reply #2 on: October 16, 2009, 04:31:55 PM »


Two annuals ago, on the grounds of the Hakurei Shrine in the eastern side of Gensokyo:

?Suikaaa! My offertory box is not a treasure chest! Bring it back over here this instant!? A dark-haired priestess shouted and stormed across the grounds of Hakurei Shrine at a half-drunken oni girl wearing an eyepatch and a captain?s hat. She was apparently making ready to bury the offertory box with who knows what sort of ?pirate booty? she had come across through questionable ways that was contained within it.

 ?Yarr? um. No. ?tis MY precious booty! I?mma bury it where no one but me an? mah crew? er? me. No one but me will find it!? the little oni girl named Suika started digging with a bent spoon. The priestess stood in front of Suika for a moment, watching her dig a tiny hole in the shrine?s grounds with utter confusion, before grabbing her offertory box and taking it back to the front of the shrine again. Things rattled inside of it as she walked it back so when she set it down she peered inside. She named each item as she pulled it from the box.

 ?Suika?s gourd. Of course. And? one of Alice?s puppets? That?s a bit out of the ordinary. A stick. A jar of? insects? An egg? Aya?s fan?? Marisa?s hat?? What is this girl thinking? ?? She thought for a few moments, then in a childish bit of absentmindedness, she donned Marisa?s hat. Then she continued to list items. ?Several of Sakuya?s knives, a large rock, a withered flower, a boot, Cirno?s ribbon, Ran?s hat?? She paused again, then switched hats for a moment. Dissatisfied with the way the points on the kyuubi?s hat fell, she put Marisa?s hat back on. ?What is with this girl and hats? Yukari?s parasol? How in Gensokyo did she get this?? the now-entertained priestess opened the pretty umbrella and sat on the ground in front of her offertory box with it over her shoulder as she went through some more of the items in the box. ?Three of Patchy?s books, Nitori?s key, Chen?s pillow, A part to one of Flandre?s ghastly torture devices, one of Reisen?s pestles, Remilia?s spellcards, China?s spellcards, Patchy?s spectacles??? She equipped the Voile librarian?s eyewear, and about fell over. ?How does she read with these things!? I can?t even see my hand before my face!? She pulled them off and set them carefully with the rest of the items, just as a raven-haired girl alighted behind the priestess without her even noticing. This new appearance pulled a notepad out and started writing furiously. The priestess kept pulling items out and setting them neatly on the stones. ??A bottle of Minoriko?s wine, Tewi?s hammer, Suwako?s shoes, my wand? And?? She paused briefly, before pulling the next items out gingerly, ?A set of both Alice?s AND Marisa?s undergarments? I am not even going to ask. In any case? I suppose I had best return Suika?s ?precious booty?, before everyone gets angry.? She said, standing and dusting off her outfit.

 ?Wait? you mean that YOU aren?t the mysterious thief?? the raven-haired reporter said from behind her. The priestess whirled to face her.

 ?Huh? Oh, Aya.?

 ?Yes, me. So Suika took my fan? And everyone else?s things, too??

 ?Yes, though it seems she didn?t quite realize what she was doing.? The priestess and the reporter both peer over at Suika, who was attempting to stick her head in the hole she had dug, wailing something about ostriches and emu, but her horns kept getting in the way.

 ?Aww? And here I thought I was going to have a good story for the Bunbunmaru? Ah well.? Aya tore off what she had written, and stuck the papers in a pocket, while she stuffed the notebook back in its holster.

 ?Wait? so it would have only been a story if it had been ME who took these things?? the red-and-white clad girl glared at Aya.

 ?Well, of course. You?re a priestess. It would have been quite unusual for you to have stolen things from anyone.?

 ?And yet, you came to see me first, I?ll bet.?

 ?Yup. It would have been quite a story.?

 ?? Right. Here?s your fan, though. Sorry for the inconvenience.? The reporter happily took back her fan with a smile.

 ?It?s not that big a problem. Do you want any help getting those things back out to everyone??

 ?Sure. If you would take Suwako?s shoes up to her, with Nitori?s key and Minoriko?s wine, That?d be great. Oh, and Yukari?s parasol, Ran?s hat, and Chen?s ball. I?ll take care of business at Scarlet Mansion. The rest of it I?ll take care of as well.?

 ?Alright, then. Oh, wait around here for another few minutes or so. Alice and Marisa are on their way up here? they seem a bit embarrassed and moody, so watch what you say. Though a danmaku battle at Hakurei Shrine would be something to write on. One more thing, Reimu??

 ?Yes, Aya??

 ?Say ?strawberry?.?

 ?Strawberry?? Aya whipped a camera out and took a candid photograph of Reimu wearing Marisa?s hat, with Tewi?s hammer in one hand, and part of Flandre?s torture device in the other.

 ?Excellent. ?Priestess and Reporter Solve Mysterious Thief Case and Return Stolen Items?. Guess I?ll get a story after all.? With that, Aya flew off toward the mountain, leaving Reimu mentally cursing her and that camera.

 ?Huu~? Guess I?ll go and meet those two, and get rid of these garments. Oh? and can?t forget the puppet.? Reimu reaches for the puppet, and is shocked to find that it is struggling against the wires binding it.

 ?Hourai!? Is that you?? The puppet responds with a nod, and Reimu hurriedly untangles the poor living doll. Once freed, Hourai flies a quick circle around Reimu, and embraces the priestess? chest by throwing her arms across her.

 ?Alright, alright. Alice should be here any moment, and she?ll probably be happy to see you. I hear you?ve been missing for quite some time.?

 Hourai nods again, and takes on a very sad face.

 ?What?s wrong?? Reimu asks the tiny puppet. Hourai only tries to bury herself further into Reimu?s chest with a little squeal.

 ?You miss Alice?? Hourai shakes her head, but then blinks and corrects herself by nodding vigorously, then tries to explain something in charades.

 ?You have something to say? Hold on, and I?ll go get some paper and a pencil for you.?
 Instead of waiting, the puppet floats along behind Reimu, following her into the shrine.

Kitaen Silva

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Chapter Three - Charades
« Reply #3 on: October 16, 2009, 04:32:49 PM »

Alice and Marisa both show up exhausted at the top of the stairs leading to Hakurei Shrine just as Reimu goes inside, so they follow, as quickly as they dared, while holding their dresses close to their legs.

 ?Reimu!! Wait a moment! We have a question to ask you!?

 ?Slow down, Alice! I don?t like this breeze I get from running, ze.?

 ?Come on in, girls.?

 ?We planned on it.?

 ?Yeah. Oh, look, Alice. It?s Hourai.?

 ?HOURAI~!? Alice took off like a shot for her little puppet, forgetting all about holding her dress down.

 ?Alice! Hold your dress-gwahh~!? Marisa tried to say, but she was interrupted by a spurt of blood from her nose as she got a flower viewing of a different sort. Alice came to her senses a moment too late and turned around to find her friend sitting on the floor, bloodied and swirly-eyed. ?Such a pretty flower??

 ?Marisa!? A nice shade of red appeared across Alice?s cheeks as she realized what happened. ?You didn?t have to look, you pervert!?

 ?What are you two blibbering about out here? Come on? I have things for you.?

 ?Yeah, like my hat. Which happens to be perched upon your holy little melon.? Marisa said, standing up with Alice?s help as she recovered from her thoughts.

 ?And Hourai. Why do you have Hourai here??

 ?Suika tied her up-? Hourai popped out of the side room shaking her head to say otherwise, and indicating that the three should follow her. The puppet had already sat down with a pad of paper and a pencil, and had written and sketched out several things. Alice went to see what her doll had put down.

 ?She wrote; ?Gensokyo. Border. Trip.? and put a picture of herself falling into a hole of sorts.?

 ?So she went on a trip to see the border, here at Hakurei Shrine, and fell into a hole?? Marisa said, looking out the window at Suika, still digging her hole futilely with her bent spoon. Hourai shook her head and started writing again.

 ?But you can?t ?see? the border here? why would she come to see it??

 ?She writes? ?Hourai.?? ?Light.? ? ?Scared.? ? ?Book.?? and now she?s drawing a picture again.? Alice waits for a moment while her little puppet finishes the picture. ?It?s a picture of herself coming out of or falling into a book-? Hourai quickly draws a little arrow to show that she meant ?coming out of?, and Alice continues ?She drew herself coming out of a book.?

Hourai nodded, and started writing again.

 ?But that doesn?t make sense. How could Hourai come out of a book??

 ?Maybe? she had a nightmare about when she was born??

The puppet shook her head, and pointed to what she had written.

 ?She has ?Human. World.? followed by ?No. Bad. Dream.?. What about the human world, Hourai??

The puppet started writing again.

?Now it?s ?Hourai.?? ?Des?? um? What?s this word, Marisa?? Marisa sits next to her friend and the puppet, and reads over their shoulders.

 ?Maybe? ?Desiderius???

 ?Sounds like some other language. I haven?t taught Hourai any other languages. Maybe it?s someone?s name??

 Hourai was still writing, but she nodded.

 ?Desiderius is a person. Ok, she goes on to ?Book.? ?Magic.? ?Hourai.? ?Fake.? ? now ?Three.???Human.? ? ?Old.? ? ?Place.? ? and she?s drawing again.?

 ?So? Hourai sees three humans in an old place, and they have a magic book, where they make a fake Hourai??

 Hourai shakes her head vigorously.

 ?Wrong. Hmm??

 ?Three humans in an old place, Hourai??

 She nods.

 ?Is there a magic book??

 She nods again.

 ?But there?s no fake Hourai??

 She shakes her head, but taps on the picture she?s drawn. It shows three humans standing side by side, with Hourai before them. The three humans were looking at Hourai. The two females had their faces darkened, but they looked excited about Hourai. The boy in the middle didn?t look impressed, and he had a thought bubble above his head with the words ?Hourai.? and ?Fake.? in it. The two mystery girls had thought bubbles that had the words ?Hourai.? And ?Real.? In them. The boy looked similar to Chen, except that he only had one tail.

 ?The boy wanted to make a fake Hourai??

She shook her head.

 ?The boy thought that Hourai wasn?t real??

She nodded happily and clapped her little hands together, then wrote some more.

 ?Why am I always wrong??

 ?Is the boy?s name Desiderius??

Hourai nodded yes, and kept writing words.

 ?I?ve never seen Hourai willingly write so much.?

 ?Me either. That?s two things I?ve seen today that I will never forget.?

Alice blushed again, and gently hit Marisa on the arm as a small rivulet of blood coursed from Marisa?s nose. Alice laughed nervously and grabbed a tissue to dab it away.

 ?Stop thinking those sorts of things. It seems to be unhealthy for you.?

 ?Thinking what things?? Marisa said with an awkward grin as another rivulet spurted from the other side.

 ?Your mind is in the gutter. Take it out.?

 ?You?re the one that put it in. YOU take it out. Though you don?t have to be gentle about it.?

 ?None of that, now!? This time it was Alice who sprung a leak from her nose. They both giggled, while Reimu gave them both tissues with a look of worry. Hourai tapped the paper to show that she was done. Everyone gathered around the puppet again.

 ?It says; ?Desiderius.? ?Word.? ?No.? ?Same.? ?Hourai.? Followed by a small picture of Desiderius speaking scribbles to Hourai, and Hourai thinking a lot of question marks.?

 ?So, she couldn?t understand Desiderius? language??

The little doll nods again, fairly excited that she was being understood so well.

?Yes! I was right for once!?

 ?Where did you meet this nekomata named Desiderius?? Alice asked her puppet. Hourai thought for a moment before writing.

 ?She responds; ?Desiderius.? ? ?No.? ? ?Same.? ? ?Chen.? Followed by? another drawing of Chen next to Desiderius, with arrows pointing to all the differences. Now she?s writing again.?

 ?Hey Alice, are you sure I didn?t leave? er? something at your place??

 ?Yes, I?m sure. You sure you didn?t swipe mine??

 ?Positive. I don?t even know what they look like.? She leaned in close to Alice?s ear and whispered, ?But I like what they hide.?

 ?Didn?t I say ?None of that??? Alice whispered back with a heavy blush and a very brief flash of interest in her eye. Marisa?s nose had yet to cease its flow, but she still grinned from under the bloodied tissues poking from her face.

 ?Just being honest.?

Kitaen Silva

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Chapter Four - Cessation of Depiction
« Reply #4 on: October 16, 2009, 04:33:43 PM »

 ?You two wouldn?t happen to be missing undergarments, would you?? Reimu said bluntly, holding up both Alice and Marisa?s wear as though it were something she did every day. Both girls blushed heavily and practically overturned the little table in front of them to swipe them from Reimu.

 ?Where did you get these???

 ?Suika managed to hide them in my offertory box.?

 ?It must have been last-?

 ?Shush! I thought your door was locked??

 ?The door to my shop stays open, though. Never know when I might get a customer. Sorry! I didn?t think I?d have a snoop like Suika going through my home!?

 ?When rendering services to your favorite customer, you should at least have the decency to lock up!? Alice momentarily forgot she was sitting in front of Reimu, who was staring at the two of them very, very oddly.

 ?I promise I?ll lock up from now on!?

 ?I believe I am either misunderstanding things, or I have a slight lack of information.? A light blush had touched the priestess? cheeks, and a drop of blood was creeping it?s way out of her nose.

 ?Oh boy.?

 ?Err? um? It?s not what it sounds like! Honest! I came across a rare artifact in the woods, and we were bartering for a trade."

 ?Right. A trade that would allow a drunk-off-her-rocker Suika to stumble in, steal your undergarments, and make off with them??

 ?Okay, so I stayed the night afterward. It?s a long walk home, and it was late, Reimu.?

 ?Yeah, that?s right. And we stayed in separate rooms, too. I kinda figured that she slept ?freely? at night. And? we got a bit drunk? Hehee? Minoriko sure knows her stuff.?

 ?Uh-huh! Separate rooms. So I wouldn?t have any idea that Marisa sleeps with her hands across her thighs, or that she squeaks like a cute little mouse instead of snoring.?

 ?I squeak like a mouse??

 ?Yeah. It?s adorable! Wait? I mean??

 ?I think I get the picture? Not that I really wanted to.? Reimu said, and tried hard not to laugh, which would make her spray her own thoughts in a crimson mist from her nose. Hourai giggled loudly, making the task that much harder. Apparently she had finished her drawing some time ago, but was having fun watching Alice flounder.

 ?Yeah right, ze. You just like the idea of me and Alice sleeping together.?

 ?Shush, dammit!? Alice said, but had a hard time trying to keep from giggling as she saw Reimu?s eyes space out for a moment, and that bit of blood quietly rolled out, exposing what she had running through her mind. Reimu very quickly came back to reality and wiped her nose on her sleeve before thinking too much about it.

 ?See, I know she likes it. But with her being a priestess, she has to work hard at keeping a holy composure. I have fun making that job hard on her.?

 ?That?s not funny, Marisa!?

 ?Sure it is! You just need to loosen up a bit.?

 ??Loosen up? Hardly! You two just need to keep you personal ventures more private! Let?s get back to what Hourai has to say.?

 ?I agree. This is quite an embarrassing discussion. Things that should have stayed secret are probably going to be found out by all of Gensokyo because you forgot to lock your doors!?

 ?I?m sorry! I didn?t think that things would turn out the way they did, ze!? Marisa whined. Alice sighed irritatedly.

 ?As long as Reimu here keeps her mouth shut, we should be fine.?

 ?I won?t breathe a word of it. It?s none of my business. However, if you keep MAKING it my business, I?ll get word to Aya!? Reimu threatened, and both girls straightened.

 ?No! Don?t do that!?

 ?Please no! Anything but Aya!?

 ?Then keep quiet! Hourai has finished, and none of you are even paying attention!?

 ?Um? right. She says? ?Book.? ?Magic.? ?Yukari.? ?Magic.? ?Same.? ?Not.? ?Same.? And she drew a bunch of pictures. It seems that she fell into a hole of sorts on one side of a wall with the words ?Gensokyo.? and ?Border.? on it. There?s an arrow going to the next picture where Hourai is coming out of a large book next to another wall with the words ?Human.? ?World.? and ?Border.? on it. It seems that Desiderius and the two girls?? Hourai interrupted by writing something over the two girls. ?The two girls seem to be named ?Kaeli.?, and ?Phoebe.?.  It looks like they were waiting for Hourai.? The puppet interrupted again by holding her hand up to say ?wait?. She flew over to a bookshelf and grabbed a large book. She sat on the floor with it, and opened it like she was reading. Then she pantomimed something coming out of the book, and she dropped it, and ran away from it, pretending to be scared of it.

 ?They were scared when you came out of the book?? The puppet nodded again.

 ?I?d be scared too if things started coming out of books that I was reading.?

 ?Wait? Are you saying that this book has magic like Yukari?s, only not like it??

 The puppet nodded excitedly, and hovered near Reimu.

 ?And that it let you cross the Gensokyo Border??

 Hourai nodded again, getting more excited.

 ?Can you do it again??

 She shook her head, then started writing again.

 ?She says ?Accident.?. Do you remember about where it happened??

 Hourai thought for a moment, then showed that she wanted the three of them to follow her outside. Once they were all outside, she pointed at the oni, who had successfully installed her head into the topsoil, and was waving her legs about like she was on a bicycle.

 ?Suika made you cross the border?? Reimu asked.

 The puppet shook her head, and flew over to Suika. She pointed at approximately where Suika?s head would be.

 ?That hole? But? Suika just made that hole a few moments ago.?

 She thought for a moment, and indicated the hole again, but pointed toward the back of the shrine.

 ?A different one??

Kitaen Silva

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Chapter Five - The Onset of Disillusion
« Reply #5 on: October 16, 2009, 04:38:11 PM »


 She nodded hesitantly, and slowly flew in that direction as though she were unsure of herself. Just as she rounded the corner, a blinding flash of light exploded from all around the back of the shrine, followed by a ground-shaking noise that sounded like a mix between a camera flash and an explosion.

 ?Hourai!?? Alice yelled out, and made a dash for the corner.

 ?I don?t want to know what just happened to that poor doll?? Marisa said as she sat on the ground heavily. Surprisingly, Hourai came flying out from behind the shrine in a gust of wind from whatever happened, and she disappeared into Alice?s dress, just before Alice herself got bowled over. Luckily, she remembered to hold her dress down this time, for it surely would have flown over her head otherwise. Suika uprooted herself and looked about with an extremely muddy face. She was saying something, but it wasn?t anything coherent. Hourai removed herself from Alice?s dress with a look of fright, and made straight for Marisa.

 ?Oof! It?s alright, Hourai! What happened?? Marisa asked the little puppet just as it hit her back down to the ground. What happened next scared the life clear out of the witch, and caused Alice to fly up and rush at Marisa. The puppet screeched loudly and very eerily, and tried to become one with Marisa by curling up as small as she could and clawing at Marisa?s dress. Reimu was plugging her ears and running over to Marisa as well.

 ?Hourai!! Hourai, It?s me! Alice! Calm down!? The little doll calmed down only slightly, but did something else that made the three standing around her fall down and stare at the puppet, or in Marisa?s case, freak out even further.

 ?Houraiiii!! Hourai scaaared!! Scared!! Scared scared scared!!! Mommyyy!!? she wailed, and reached for Alice. All three of them were too stunned to speak. The puppet had never spoken before. Marisa?s jaw dropped, and nearly smashed into Hourai?s head, though the doll was in too much of a panic to notice, writhing about like a frightened ferret and wailing with an incredible voice. All Reimu could do was stare stupidly.

 ?M-mommy? Did you just call me ?mommy???

 ?Mommy!! Help Houraiii!! Scared! Light!! Scared!! Marisa!! Help Hourai!! Help Hourai!!?

 ?What?s wrong, Hourai!? Tell mommy!? Alice crawled over and took the puppet from off of Marisa, cradling it as though it really were her child.

 ?Tell Marisa, too!? the witch said, regaining her composure and trying to help Alice with Hourai all at once.

 ?Border! Border!? the frightened doll shouted. ?Phoebe! Border! Book magic! Book magic!?

 ?Something about Phoebe crossing the border?? The puppet nodded crazily, and a tear flew from Hourai?s face and landed on Alice?s.

 ?Phoebe stuck! Accident!?

 ?Phoebe is here?? Hourai nodded again, and Reimu got up and ran around to the back of the shrine.

 ?Alice! Marisa!! Come help me get this girl into the shrine! She?s hurt!?

 ?What!??

 ?Mommy!?

 ?I thought that this was just a nightmare that Hourai had!?

 ?Not bad dream! Real! Real! Marisa! Real! Help Phoebe! Mommy help!? the doll was so scared that she couldn?t fly straight, but she still went to help Reimu. Alice couldn?t go anywhere, she was still completely stunned by Hourai.

 ?She called me ?mommy???

 ?She sure did, Alice. Guess that makes me the father??

 ?What??? Alice snapped back to reality and glared at her friend.

 ?I thought that would bring you around. Come on!?

 ?Oh! Right!? Alice got up quickly with Marisa?s help, and they both went around to the back of the shrine to find Reimu coming out of the storage building with a ladder.

 ?What?s that for??

 ?Phoebe stuck! Accident!? Hourai explained, and pointed at a mass of torn fabric and flesh hanging upside-down from the shrine?s roof by a belt and a shoe. Phoebe?s long laser yellow hair had crimson streaks in it from the blood running down her.

 ?Holy mushrooms!?

 ?What happened!??

 ?Book magic! Human world! Gensokyo! Jump! Book magic!? Hourai tried to explain, using her hands to show that Phoebe came from the ?human world? to Gensokyo. ?Jump wrong??

 ?Phoebe must have crossed the border and landed like this. But that doesn?t matter right now. Let?s just get her down.?

 ?I?ll stand down here to keep her from hitting the ground. Alice, you fly up and help Reimu get her un-stuck.?

 ?Got it.? Alice flew up like suggested, and lifted the bloodied girl?s body up while Reimu loosened the belt from around her ankle. ?Ooh? She?s heavy.?

 ?Okay, she?s free.? Reimu said, and started climbing down the ladder, leaving the belt attached to one of the roof timbers.

 ?Help me out a bit, Marisa. This girl?s heavy.?

 ?Dead weight generally is heavy.?

 ?Don?t talk like that, Marisa!?

 ?I?m just saying??

 ?I know what you meant. Just watch the way you say things like that.?

 ?Phoebe hurt bad. Border jump wrong. Hourai help??

 ?Yes, Hourai, you can help. Do what Reimu needs you to inside.?

 ?Come on, Hourai. Let?s go set up a pad and some water for Phoebe.?

 ?Hourai help Reimu help Phoebe! Come come! Hourai scared!? She said as she went into the shrine through an open window.

 ?Such an interesting little child we?ve made, hmm Alice??

 ?What???

 ?Nothing. I?m just rambling.?

 ?Yeah right. Stop slacking and let?s get this girl inside.?

 ?Yes, mommy.? Marisa adjusted her grip on Phoebe, and started climbing the front steps slowly.

 ?Knock it off. Only Hourai can call me mommy.? Alice followed up the stairs, raising the girl up to keep her somewhat level.

 ?Who?s Hourai?s daddy, then? She?ll want to know that someday.?

 ?Err? I never thought about that??

 ?My ?father? ability seems to have just become available for thirty skill points. You have eighty-one available to spend. Interested??

 ?Huh?? What are you getting at??

 ?I?m trying to say that I wanna be Hourai?s daddy. She already calls you mommy, so that?s all that?s left!?

 ?Oh. Umm? okay, I suppose??

 ?Yes!? she said excitedly, ?Then it?s settled. We?re moving in together.?

 ?Wait, what!? Slow down a bit!?

 ?Yeah, you?re right? We should take it slow at first??

 ?No, I mean slow down! You?re going to make me fall.?

 ?Oh! Sorry! I just got a bit excited.?

 ?I?ll say. It doesn?t take much to get you excited.?

 ?Stop dawdling, you two! Hurry up and get her in here!? Reimu poked her head out and shouted at them. Hourai had to add her two cents.

 ?Hurry hurry, mommy!?

 ?We?re coming! Hold the door open for us, Hourai, please.?

 ?Yes mommy!?

 ?Awww! So obedient!?

 ?Unlike someone I know.?

 ?What? Who??

 ?A certain witch in black.? They went through the door, then Hourai shut it and went to help them lay Phoebe down on the pad.

 ?Hourai know! Marisa! Marisa! Witch black! Heehee! Not listen mommy!?

 ?Oh. Hey! That?s not funny.?

 ?Sorry. Hourai, do try to be nice to Marisa, okay? Mommy needs to be nicer too.?

 ?Yes mommy.? Alice giggles, trying to lighten the mood a little bit.

Kitaen Silva

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Chapter Six - Opprobrious Works
« Reply #6 on: October 16, 2009, 04:39:13 PM »


 Reimu runs back into the room and starts wiping the girl?s face off gently. There weren?t any injuries on her face. In fact, they couldn?t see any wounds at all.

 ?That?s weird. There?s an awful lot of blood, but I don?t see any wounds. I could have sworn that she had at least a dozen deep wounds??

 ?What if? it?s not hers? What if the wounds were just an illusion??

 ?Who?s would it possibly be? And to what purpose would fake wounds be??

 ?She might have killed someone on her side of the border before jumping!?

 ?Scared! Scared! Phoebe hurt human? Scared!?

 ?I don?t want to house a murderer, but she isn?t conscious, so we have to assume that she really is hurt.?

 ?Hourai jump, tired, sleep. Hourai not want sleep. Phoebe jump, tired, sleep? Not want??

 ?That could be, I suppose? If the jump makes you fall asleep, maybe Phoebe is just sleeping.?

Marisa makes to slap the girl?s cheeks and wake her up, but Alice stops her.

 ?What if there?s a reason you fall asleep when you jump? I say we let her wake up when she?s supposed to, but keep an eye on her. And as much as I hate to say this, we should probably get Aya down here. Do you mind if we turn this room into a temporary holding cell, Reimu??

 ?I don?t care. I?m quite curious myself. And my shrine does seem to be the only option at the moment. But who will go for Aya??

 ?Someone calling for me?? The raven-haired reporter poked her head in through the open window. ?I stopped by to let you know that I can?t find anyone on the mountain. Minoriko, Nitori, and Suwako are all gone. Same with Sanae and Kanako? Not only that, but I have no idea where Yukari and her bunch lives. I brought their things back here, thinking that I would just spread the word that it was all here, and they could come and pick them up at their convenience. Hey, what?s this?? Aya slipped in through the window and landed quietly next to Phoebe.

 ?Well, I guess we don?t have to go looking for you now.?

 ?Nope. I?m here. Got a story for me, I bet. This girl here is screaming ?big scoop?!? She said, and indicated Phoebe. Alice had an idea.

 ?Yes, we have a story for you. But you have to do us a favor, first.?

 ?A favor, you say??

 ?Yes.?

 ?What is it??

 ?Really? what is it, Alice??

 ?Aya, can we ask you to fetch Eirin, and also ask Remilia if we can borrow Meiling and Sakuya? Tell Eirin that we require her medicinal expertise. She can bring Reisen and Tewi if she likes.?

 ?Oh! And tell Remi that we have several things that Suika took from them and we would like to return them. Reisen and Tewi, as well.?

 ?Sure thing! Though I want photographs!?

 ?Fine. Just please hurry!?

 ?Alright then! I?ll be back in just a moment!? and with that, Aya flew back out the window in a flash. Alice glared at Reimu.

 ?She better not have any idea. I?ll make your life miserable if she finds out.?

 ?She doesn?t know. But keep your mouth shut. When she says ?just a moment?, that?s what she means.?

 ?Huh??

 ?I?m baack!? Aya flew back into the window and landed just behind Alice.

 ?Wahaah! Scared me out of three years of my life! You didn?t tell anyone to come, did you??

 ?Yes I did. You promised a story in exchange for a message delivery. That?s a pretty good deal to me.?

 ?What did they say, Aya??

 ?Eirin?s on her way, but Reisen and Tewi are out gathering materials for her, so they aren?t coming. She should be here in about four minutes, she says. She?s got to get her equipment ready. Remilia said she?s coming herself. So you have the whole Scarlet group coming. Including Patches, surprisingly. Patchouli seemed rather upset about her missing spectacles. I didn?t know she had eyesight problems??

 ?How do we know you?re telling the truth??

 ?Um? Wait five minutes? Eirin should be here by then.?

 ?Fine. We?ll start telling you details after five minutes, and only if Eirin shows up.?

 ?Alright, then. Hey Reimu. Can I get a bit of tea??

 ?Sure. You know where it?s at. Can you make some for me, too??

 ?Yeah. What do you want? Peppermint with Chamomile and two cubes of sugar??

 ?Yes, please.? Not even half a moment passed after Aya rounded the corner, and Marisa started to talk like she had been waiting for the reporter to leave.

 ?Hey Reimu. You get along with Aya pretty well.?

 ?There?s nothing wrong with Aya. We?re actually good friends.?

 ?She?s nosy!?

 ?She tells bad stories about people!?

 ?Yeah! And you never know when she?s watching you!?

 ?I?m sure you must be exaggerating.?

 ?She took photos of Reisen in the bath and sold the pictures to a magazine!?

 ?That can?t be true.?

 ?She writes stories about you all the time! Though they?re pretty boring? mostly about your daily routine. You?re one of the lucky ones.?

 ?We?re friends. I guess I?m happy that she writes about me a lot.?

 ?You? don?t read the Bunbunmaru newsprints, do you??

 ?Nope. Not a single page.?

 ?And you call yourself Aya?s friend? You won?t even read her columns that she works soo hard to write??

 ?Well when you put it that way? Where can I find a newsprint??

 ?That?s what I thought. And you have to subscribe. Aya herself will deliver them to you.?

 ?That?s nice of her. You two should really be more considerate of Aya. She goes through so much trouble to gather and deliver news for everyone.?

 ?Yeah, news that YOU don?t even read.?

 ?I?ll ask Aya about a subscription when she comes back.?

 ?Be sure to read her columns. If you and her are such good friends like you think, perhaps you are Gensokyo?s only hope in getting her to write the truth.?

 ?And to write accurately, on those occasions where she is close to the truth.?

 ?And maybe write on things that are somewhat important.?

 ?Alright, alright! I get the idea. When I get a few newsprints, I?ll talk to her about the matter. I?ve heard a few complaints before, but I didn?t think anything about them.?

 ?Thank you, Reimu! You really are a godsend. Just make sure you don?t say anything about me and Alice.?

 ?What?s going on about you and Alice?? Both Alice and Marisa turned stiff as planks as Aya came back in the room with hers and Reimu?s tea.

 ?Nothing! Nothing at all!?

 ?Just a rare mushroom!?

 ?That I found in the woods! She wants it!?

 ?A rare mushroom? Sounds interesting. Is it a new kind, or an old one that?s just hard to find??

 ?New!?

 ?Old!?

 ?I mean, It?s a new mushroom of an old kind that?s hard to find!?

 ?Yeah! That?s it!?

 ?Can I get a photograph??

 ?No! It?s err...?

 ?It?s highly photosensitive!?

 ?Oh! Well I have special lenses that make that no problem at all. And I can turn off my flash.?

 ?It doesn?t like having it?s picture taken!?

 ?Right! It shrivels up and dies if someone catches it on film!?

 ?Hmm? Can I just get a sketch, then??

 ?We don?t want to risk anything! That might bee too similar to catching it on film!? Marisa leans in close to Alice.

 ?Nice call. I was drawing a blank for that.?

 ?Marisa says that the mushroom needs to be kept secret, because there are people out there that would kill her to take it and use it for evil!?

 ?Okay? Now you?re going a bit far.?

 ?So she doesn?t want to see one word about a secret rare mushroom in your paper!?

 ?Um? Okay? I?ll forget I even heard about it. My lips are sealed.? Aya couldn?t help but think ?weirdoes? as she handed Reimu her hot tea.

 ?Sorry, Aya. They don?t normally act like that.? Reimu said as Hourai floated over and got comfortable in the priestess? lap.

 ?It?s fine? They always act like that around me. I must be scary or something.?

 ?Aya scared mommy? Aya scared Marisa??

 ?Phaw! As IF!? Marisa snorted.

 ?Yeah right!? Alice snapped.

 ?Whatever. In any case, Eirin should be here any minute.?

 ?You better hope it?s less than that, because you won?t get a story, otherwise.?

Kitaen Silva

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Chapter Seven - Vermilion Aggregation
« Reply #7 on: October 16, 2009, 04:40:22 PM »


 ?Hello? Reimu? Aya said there was a possible emergency here at the Shrine!?

 ?Eirin! In here, if you would!?

 ?Right!? The tall medicine opened the door and strode into the room. ?What do we have??

 ?This girl ?Phoebe? crossed the Gensokyo border from the human world covered in blood, but we don?t know if it?s hers, or even if she?s hurt. She appeared at the back of the shrine, hanging upside-down from the roof by her ankle, caught by her belt and shoe.? Aya had procured her notebook again, and was scribbling madly away.

 ?Hanging by belt and shoe from Hakurei Shrine roof.?

 ?There are severe abrasions around the ankle, as well as both knees and her left elbow. She also appears to have a head injury?? Eirin holds open Phoebe?s eye and takes a wide black stick, and places it just over the eye for a second, then removes it and looks at her eye. ?? It looks likely that she has a minor concussion. Nothing too terribly serious that I can see just yet. Excuse me for a moment, Reimu. I?m going to have a more thorough look.? Eirin checks the girl?s extremities for broken bones, and then looks at her torso for a wound that may have been the source for all the blood. ?No injuries beyond the abrasions and concussion, as far as I can tell. If I may stay here for a while longer to keep a steady check on the girl??

 ?That?s fine, Eirin. Thank you. You can stay as long as you need. We have a minor suspicion of her, though, so at some point we may have to move you out of the room.?

 ?Alright, miss Hakurei. I?m going to draw a bit of blood, and run a test to see if this is her blood or not.?

 ?Okay. I think someone is here, so I?ll be right back.?

 ?Reimu! Are you here? Lady Remilia has come to visit. Aya claims that you need mine and Meiling?s services.?

 ?Coming, Sakuya!? Reimu called as she opened the door and left to greet her guests.

 ?Ahh, it?s been a while since I?ve been out during the day. Stow my parasol, Sakuya.  Thank you. How have you been, Reimu??

 ?I?ve been alright, I suppose. Suika took these from you.? Reimu apologized as she returned Remilia?s spellcards to her. ?And these, from you, Sakuya.? She handed the knives to the maid, who took them with a light smile. ?Sorry for any inconvenience she?s caused.?

 ?Oh, it?s fine. In fact, I didn?t even know they were missing until Aya said that Suika had taken them!? The devil laughed cheerily. Flandre walked up the front steps of the shrine, looking like she was in a rather foul mood, with Meiling holding a bloodred parasol to keep the sun from shining on the vampire.

 ?Stupid oni, taking a vital part to my torture rack! I have half a mind to put HER on the rack.?

 ?Now now, Flandre, she didn?t know what she was doing. Alice is here, though, if you want to go see her.?

 ?Alice?! Meiling, hold onto my parasol, please.?

 ?Yes, mistress.? Meiling collapsed the umbrella, and stood there.

?Alice!! Where are you!??

 ?Flandre?! I?m in here!?

 ?Yaay!? The little vampire squealed and ran toward Alice just as she came out of the room. Marisa came out and ruffled Flandre?s hat and hair from over Alice?s shoulder. ?And Marisa, too! I missed you!?

 ?We missed you too, Flandre! How come you never come to visit us??

 ?Patchouli has me holed up in that dumb library of hers, trying to learn me things that I?ll never need, like arithmetic and reading. I liked her better when she didn?t know that I liked her.?
 
 ?I heard that, you little demon. I?m giving you extra courses in arithmetic and reading, just for that comment.? The Voile librarian huffed her way up the Hakurei shrine?s steps long after everyone else, apparently having been spent on the trip. ?Why I bothered to come along is beyond me? I could have just asked Sakuya to bring my spectacles and books to me.?
 
 ?See what I mean! I swear I?ll never torture anyone ever again, if you?ll make her leave my poor brain alone!?

 ?Reimu, What did you need Meiling and Sakuya for??

 ?Actually?? Reimu started, and Aya appeared next to her, ready to write some more. ?I was wondering if they could watch over a newcomer to Gensokyo with us. She appeared hanging from the roof of my shrine here. Hourai was telling Alice, Marisa and myself about how she had accidentally crossed the border and met three humans on the other side named Desiderius, Kaeli? and Phoebe. This girl in the room here?? Reimu said as they came to the room that Phoebe was in, Remilia receiving the story, Aya writing it, with Meiling and Sakuya listening attentively since it pertained to them somehow. ?Her name is Phoebe. When she appeared, it sounded like a very loud version of Aya?s camera flash, and white light exploded out from all around the back of my shrine. It scared poor Hourai so bad that-?

 ?Remilia! Pretty! Hourai want dress too!?

 ?? She actually started speaking.? Reimu smiled as the puppet whizzed by her and hovered in front of the devil of Gensokyo. Remilia raised her hands up as though she wanted to touch Hourai, but didn?t actually make contact.

 ?Incredible. I never once in my wildest dreams thought that Alice?s creations would actually be capable of speech!?

 ?Mommy good! Hourai special!?

 ?Mommy??

 ?Yes! Marisa papa!?

 ?Marisa??? Meiling started sniggering, and Sakuya cuffed her on the ear. ?Ouch! What was that for??

 ?Remilia brother? Flandre sister? Sakuya cousin? China cousin??

 ?Oh!? Remilia looked at Reimu for input. Reimu just nodded, telling Remilia and the other three that they should simply say yes. ?Of course! We?ll be your siblings! How cute, Reimu.?

 ?Reimu uncle! Aya aunt??

 ?Now wait just a moment??

 ?I think that?d be cool, Hourai! And that kinda makes all of us related, in a way! Now that?s a story for the Bunbunmaru! ?Puppet Makes Unique Family?!? She makes a quick little note about it on the side of her notebook.

 ?But having me as the uncle??

 ?Why not??

 ?Well? because? it makes me sound old.?

 ?As though you aren?t??

 ?Eh? true. But I like to think that I?m young. It matches my appearance.?

 ?Priestess Hakurei! The girl is coming to!?

Kitaen Silva

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Chapter Eight - Perdendosi Felicity
« Reply #8 on: October 16, 2009, 04:44:00 PM »


Everyone in the shrine at that instant went storming toward Eirin?s voice, just as a new and very strange voice was heard.

[Note: Phoebe is using an unrecognized font to speak at this point, and can't change it to one that shows what it says. I can't remember exactly what it says, so I'll edit it when I get the chance.]

?? ??

Everyone stared at Phoebe with a tilted head, each thinking they heard a bunch of gibberish.  Hourai flew over to her and hovered nearby.

 ?Phoebe in Gensokyo!?

 ?Ge-n-so-ki-yo??

 ?Right!?

 ? Gensokyo?    Mercatia Border Enchuridion? .?

?What a strange language??

?I can?t understand any of it.?

?Me either? Patchy??

?It?s nothing I?ve ever heard of. But I might have something she can understand in Voile. Shall we go and see, once we?re certain she is well??

 ?I?m OK with that idea.?

 ??? ?.?

 ?Hourai? Think you could explain to her with pictures??

 <Maybe. . . they can?t understand me? What am I to do. . .? Am I alone?>

 ?Hourai try pictures??

 ?Explain that we?re taking her to Patchy?s library to see if we can find anything she can understand. We?re going to see if we can learn a way to understand each other. Maybe we can find out why she?s here.?

 ?Hourai try pictures.? The little puppet took the paper she was doodling with a moment ago, and turned it over, immediately starting some more doodles.

 ?Hourai, you?ll have to try and do it without words this time.?

 ?Yes, mommy. No words.?

 Phoebe was distracted with watching Eirin test the blood that was on her. Hourai was drawing up several pictures telling a small story of what?s taking place. Alice, Flandre, and Marisa were entertaining each other and telling stories, though Alice was trying to concentrate on what her puppet was drawing. Sakuya had started to chase Meiling around the shrine, threatening bodily harm with the knives that Reimu had just returned. Remilia was enthralled by Hourai, watching her every little life-filled move with wonder and awe, even finding the way she held the pencil with both hands to be completely adorable. Suika stumbled in and was leaning on Reimu with her mud-caked head, starting to drift into a drunken slumber. Patchouli had retrieved her spectacles from Reimu just as Hourai got up with her paper and floated over to Phoebe and started trying to narrate her pictures with names, gestures, and charades. Everyone went silent and watched Hourai attempt to communicate with the strange girl. Hourai then went around the room and introduced everyone. Phoebe imitated the names to make sure she had them right.

 ?Remilia? Sa? Sa-ku-ya? Mei-ling? Flan-dre??

Hourai moved to the next four.

 ?Patch-ou-li? A-ya? Ma-ri-sa? Alice??

Hourai continued to the last few, and said their names.

 ?Rei-mu? Su-i-ka? E-i-rin? Hou-rai?? Gensokyo.?

 Everyone acknowledged their name was correct, and Hourai had an idea.

 ?Mommy? Hourai use words? Teach Phoebe? Like mommy teach Hourai??

 ?Great idea!?

 ?I don?t know if this is anything? noteworthy, but I noticed that she could say Lady Remilia?s name and Alice?s name much easier than everyone else?s names. And we know that Alice and Remilia are names from a different language? Does that help any??

 ?Not at all, you dolt!? Sakuya said, and reprimanded the green-clothed guard harshly.

 ?Actually, it helped more on a psychological level. With the fact that ?Alice? is indeed a name in a different language, as well as ?Remilia?, and even my own name, ?Patchouli?, we are now sure that knowledge exists of her language.? Patchouli looked over at Hourai, who had already started teaching Phoebe all of her vocabulary. Surprisingly, Phoebe was catching on to the language of Gensokyo very quickly. Reimu had vacated the room to fetch a new basin of water and a clean wash towel.

 ?Yes, name Phoebe.?

 ?Yaay! Phoebe good!?

 ?Patchouli??

 ?Yes, my name is Patchouli.?

 ?No. Phoebe? have? Phoebe have question.?

 ?Oh. Ask me what you can.? Phoebe clearly didn?t understand what she had said, but knew what she meant.

 ?Help Phoebe learn Gensokyo? Help Phoebe leave. Want home. Mommy.?

 ?Yes, Patchouli, Remilia, Sakuya, Reimu? Help Phoebe learn Gensokyo.?

 ?Alice, Flandre, Marisa? Meiling, Eirin, Aya? Suika? Hourai??

 ?Yes.? Patchouli was not fond of teaching, nor people with a miniscule vocabulary, but she took a liking to this Phoebe girl, because she seemed highly intelligent. And she was a quick learner, which meant that if she was taught something, it was likely that it didn't have to be repeated. Not only that, but there was much to be learned from this strange girl. Phoebe still seemed slightly distressed, however.

 ?Phoebe want home? Patchouli help??

 ?Err??

 ?What ?err???

 ?Well, not that you can understand me, but I don?t really know if we can get you home. We don?t know where you?re from. And personally, I was hoping to learn a bit about where you came from before you left.?

 ?Hourai try pictures. Hourai think Phoebe understand pictures.?

 ?Good. Eirin, how much longer do you need before we can be on our way to the Scarlet Devil Mansion??

 ?Hard to say. I don?t usually do tests on human blood.?

 ?Hey Eirin??

 ?No, Flandre. You cannot have this blood. The things I?m testing it with might make you sick or even kill you.?

 ?Awww? What about the leftovers??

 ?Fine. If there?s any left over, you can have it.?

 Phoebe seemed to have just noticed the wings on the Scarlet sisters, and the way Flandre was eyeing the phials of blood that Eirin had collected, and she was trying to back away without being seen.

 ?Gensokyo !??

Flandre looked at the human girl as she was backing away, and giggled.

 ?Phoebe?s acting funny!? Phoebe spotted one of Flandre?s fangs sticking out when she laughed, and tried to escape. Meiling intercepted her at the door, and held her still.

 ?No escaping now, little girl. Nothing?s going to happen to you.?

 ?Flandre, have you no shame? Stow that fang! That?s incredibly unladylike.?

 ?I don?t wanna act ladylike. That?s your job, sister.?

 ?Stow it, or I break it!?

 ?Now who?s being unladylike, sister?!?

 ?Calm down, you two. I don?t want a fight breaking out in my shrine.?

 ?I don?t wanna fight, either. I just like my fang poking out. It feels funny.? The eccentric little vampire opened her mouth, stuck a finger to the offending fang, and squeaked it back and forth along the pure white incisor.

 ?I often wonder how you could be my sister?? Aya happened to walk back into the room at this time. Nobody even noticed that she had left in the first place, so she startled Patchouli, Marisa, and Alice when she came back in.

 ?Hey? That sounds like another story! I could do a bit of research on the subject. What if? ?Scarlet Family Tree Shows Flandre Not Related!?? Wouldn?t that be interesting? I?d just have to find birth certificates and ancestry papers??

 Aya had only been thinking aloud over her tea, but everyone went silent and glared at her. Even Phoebe, like she knew what had happened. Patchouli made note of that, and would bring it up later. Tears welled up in the little vampire?s eyes upon hearing what Aya had on her mind.

 ?What?s everyone looking at me like that for??

 ?N-not related? Remi isn?t my sister!? That can?t be true!?

  ?It?s not true, Flandre! Don?t listen to Aya?s ramblings!? Alice said, scooping her up into her arms just as the tears started to flow. Flandre gripped Alice in an emotional cling, hiding her face in Alice?s shoulder.

 ?Yeah, little Flan. Aya doesn?t know anything. She only wants a story for her stupid paper.? Marisa said to her, walking over and taking off the vampire?s cap to pet her head.

 ?Flandre sister Hourai!? the puppet stated simply, as she sat upon Flandre, patting a little tuft of flaxen hair away from Flandre?s eye so she could peer into it and try to comfort her.

 ?Ha ha? Look at you two. Making me out to be the bad guy.? Aya evidently didn?t understand that she had said something terrible in front of Flandre. She didn?t know that she had even said anything at all.

 ?You ARE the bad guy, Aya. You do a lot of villainous things! You write even more evil things in your paper! Your treachery is unbearable!? Aya looked more crestfallen with each sentence, as though daggers were being stuck into her.

 ?Treachery? Un? unbearable? I? just write the news?? she said sadly.

 ?Your ?news? is usually offensive! You can?t keep a secret, not even if your life depended on it! That?s why nobody wants you around!?

 ?Nobody? wants me around, you say? I kinda felt that were so? but always hoped it weren?t true??

 ?Aya?? Reimu said, not liking to see her friend getting hurt.

 ?In that case? Since I?m such a bother? I?ll just leave-? Aya said, turning to walk out the door as she was interrupted.

 ?Yeah, of course. Leaving doesn?t solve anything, it?s the coward?s way out. But hey, it solves our problems.?

 ?Well maybe I AM a coward! I?m scared of a lot of things! I?m scared of bugs! I?m scared of wrinkly old people! I?m scared of deadlines! I?m scared of the dark! I?m scared of the woods! I?m scared of weird houses! I?m scared, most of all, of being alone! But since nobody wants me around, I guess I better get used to being alone! I?m leaving now, to do just that!!?

 ?Aya, wait!? Reimu called, but Aya was ignoring her, and was walking furiously off the shrine grounds, straight toward the forest behind the shrine. ?Aya!!?

 Everyone except for Eirin and Phoebe walked outside of the shrine into the setting sun and watched her leave, expecting her to take off in flight toward Youkai Mountain, where she usually frequented. After several moments, Remilia spoke.

 ?She?s? not flying.?

 ??Flying makes her happy.?

 ?She?s? walking the wrong way? the mountain is in the other direction??

 ?She?s going into the woods??

 ?She?s still not flying??

 ?Aya has always been scared of the woods?? nobody noticed that Reimu was actually starting to cry.

 ?She?ll be fine. She?ll manage to write her way out of it.? Alice said irritatedly, turning to leave with Flandre still in her arms. Marisa left with her.

 ?I didn?t like her very much either? she always took compromising pictures of me.?

 ?That?s because you?re always in a compromising situation, dummy. But I?m not sticking up for her either.?

 ?Aya is scared of the dark??

 ?Ha ha ha! Everyone should be scared of the dark. My kind rule the night.?

 ?Lady Remilia, that?s not helping matters at all.?

 ?The sun is setting? Aya is scared of the dark??

 ?-hic- Reimu-chan is fond of Aya. They?re -hic- ? um. They?re good friends. Gyuuu~?? Suika said solemnly, even though she wasn?t nearly sober. She then toppled over on the wooden walkway, out like a light.

 ?Dark? Woods? Alone? More than just bugs?? Reimu said with the last of her calm, before finally sitting on the grass to cry over her friend?s shattered feelings. ?How could Alice say such things???

?Because you don?t read the Bunbunmaru. I say that she had it coming.? Sakuya said with indifference, and turned to get back to the entire reason she was here to begin with.

 ?I do wish things had been better? She could be nice when she wasn?t writing or taking pictures of me? and she was always willing to help.? China followed Sakuya inside after her own comment.

 Patchouli stood silently, quietly debating on whether to add her own two cents or try and comfort. Finally, she left without a word, not really caring to express her opinion of the tengu. She wasn?t the sentimental type, anyway. Suika just started snoring quietly. Remilia moved to stand by the priestess, who was hurt and broken by what everyone had said about her friend.

 ?Priestess?? Remilia said, putting a hand on the girl?s back. The Devil of Gensokyo chose her words carefully and wisely. ?I can?t really pretend to know how you?re feeling right now, but I must tell you this. She must not only get over some of her childish fears, but come to realize that the problems she has with making friends, doesn?t lie in the people she?s trying to be friends with, but in herself. She has to realize that she?s not treating her ?friends? with respect. She violates her ?friends? privacy, and indeed, cannot keep a secret. She cannot be confided in, cannot be trusted, and worst of all, cannot tell the truth in writing, and often the same in speech. I?m not her ?friend? either, but I tolerate her, and even what she writes about me, because I believe I know what the problem is. She?s constantly trying to impress everyone, so they?ll all be friends with her. She feels that she has nothing impressive about herself, so she uses her talent as a writer to tell stories about what?s going on around her. Everything that?s going on around her, pertains to her ?friends?. So she writes about them. What she writes at first probably seems very boring to her, so she ?spices it up? a little, because she?s out to impress her friends. This is where things get lost in translation and the truth can get quite distorted. I think she?d make a wonderful fiction novelist, but for the time being, she?s a terrible reporter. Either she works on and fixes the problems with her ?reporting?, or she quits the Bunbunmaru and tries to publish stories that aren?t meant to be true.?

 Remilia turned away.

 ?I guess? I want to be friends with that silly tengu. But I want to make sure she knows how to be a good friend before I would do for her the things that I do for my friends. I can see her good side. She doesn?t need to work on that. She just needs to get rid of the bad habits she?s built up. However? I fear that she has no intentions of returning to her home, nor to see any of us again. And for that, I am filled with regret. I?m torn between chasing after her, and letting her be to learn her lesson. I know she needs to learn, but I want to believe? that there?s a better way.?

 Reimu listened carefully through her constant flow of tears, but never moved, even after Remilia had turned and gone back inside to try and convince Phoebe that vampires weren?t evil, just hungry sometimes. And perhaps try to demonstrate on someone. Reimu remained still, even after the sun had set. Quite some time later, Remilia came back outside to check on Reimu.

 ?Priestess? Come inside. Sakuya and Marisa have made an interesting pork and mushroom stew.? She said merrily. She received no response.

 Remilia stepped out further.

 ?Priestess Hakurei??

 Suika let out a loud snore. Reimu was nowhere to be seen. Remilia quickly went back inside.

 ?Reimu has gone after Aya! Into the EASTERN forest!?

 ?But? That?s beyond the border!?

 ?Wait? Aya went into the eastern forest? Why in the world would she do that?!?

 ?I don?t know, but I?m going after them, to make sure they?re fine! You hard-hearted fools do what you like!? Remilia turned and vanished into the night sky.

?Sister???

?Aya?s the hard-hearted one. I say that whatever happens to Aya out there is well deserved.?

 ?That may be so, Alice? but Reimu is out there too. I don?t want to regret never leaving her a donation if she runs into trouble.?

 ?Hourai miss aunt Aya??

  ?Fine. We?ll go.?

 ?We?re taking my broom! It?s faster.?

 ?Ohhh dear. You know I don?t like flying with you.?
 
[Note: I am unable to post the remainder until later. Please bear with me, okay?]
« Last Edit: October 16, 2009, 05:37:33 PM by Kitaen Silva »

Kitaen Silva

  • SNOWBALLED
  • Motivate yourself to make that fake game.
    • Retro Fox Studios Online
Chapter Nine - Erloschend Marchen
« Reply #9 on: October 16, 2009, 05:39:11 PM »


Following the view of Marisa Kirisame and Alice Margatroid

Marisa and Alice were flying together just over the treetops while keeping watch for any sign of Reimu. Neither was looking for Aya. Alice was feeling extremely skittish, being so very close to the border, flying so close to treetops in the dark, and being on a broom.

 ?Are you sure she said she went into the eastern forest? She could have meant southern.?

 ?Yes, she said eastern. Now I wish you wouldn?t try to cleave me in two with your scissor grip around my waist. I need that lower half so you can have your way with me-oomph!? Alice apparently wasn?t in the mood for spicy chatter, for she released her grip momentarily, only to drive both hands forcefully into Marisa?s gut. ?Now what in the world was that for?!?

 ?I?m on a broom, flying inches over the tops of trees in the dark, while the Hakurei Border lies dangerously close to here! We could get sucked out of Gensokyo at any moment! That doesn?t
worry you??

 ?Nope. Not really. As long you take me with you to wherever we get sucked to, I don?t care. Not only that, but Reimu is out here somewhere, which means that we should be fine.?

 ?What if we passed over Reimu? We could have completely missed her, and  then what? We could have even passed the border! If we pass the border, we?re screwed! We can?t get back through, and you know it!?

 ?Stop worrying, Alice. If we had passed over the border, we would have known it.?

 ?No, we might not have! Nobody?s crossed the border and come back to tell about it! So what if you don?t know when you?ve crossed the border??

 ?The border has wards. Keeps out what?s meant to be kept out, and keeps in what we want kept in. You?d have to really want to cross the border to actually do it. Since we don?t want to cross the border, we won?t be crossing the border. That simple.?

 ?How do you know that??

 ?Reimu maintains the wards. That?s the whole reason she?s here. Why we?re here.?

 ?What if the wards fail? Then what??

 ?Reimu has backup wards placed all over her shrine. If something happens to the wards on the border, we had better get to the Hakurei Shrine as fast as we can. At the border, there are four main wards placed each at North, East, South, and West. They are meant to seal out whatever is supposed to be sealed out. There are four more main wards placed each at the exact point in the center between two of the first four. Northeast, Southeast, Southwest, and Northwest. These four keep in those who desire to remain safe within, diverting those who might stray too close by accident. Sixteen scrolls with spells written on them are placed in miniature shrines, and those shrines are located at the same place as the Eight Wards, as well as the places between each of them. There are smaller wards for various purposes spread out equally between all eight of those main wards. Most pertain to supporting the Eight Wards and Sixteen Scrolls, like at points where stress has occurred, or where someone has exited the border. That?s why when someone leaves Gensokyo, it must be prearranged with Reimu. She?ll determine when and where you would exit, prepare a ward, and guide you there. Once you leave, she erects the ward, and blesses your journey, praying for safe travels.?

 ?I?ve never heard any of this? How do YOU know?? Alice had forgotten most of her fears of flying on the broom, and was listening intently to what her closest friend was telling her, placing her chin gently on Marisa?s shoulder.

 ?I?ve been around Reimu enough to know things like that. She used to ask me to help her trek to each of the wards when they needed replacement. The rest I learned from books that I borrowed from Patchy.?

 ?So? why would someone want to leave Gensokyo??

 ?Who knows. I only know that they never come back. Humans aren?t supposed to pass through the border? They usually die or suffer severe illnesses right before they pass through. Youkai, however, make a tremendous sacrifice to pass through. They must take on a human form if they aren?t naturally humanlike, and they relenquish every ounce of their powers, leaving them unconscious. Reimu will prepare them to pass through by suppressing all of their memories of Gensokyo, placing several wards on their person, and carrying them to the border, where she performs a traditional passing over for them.?

 ?The way you say it makes it sound like she?s having their bodies disposed of after death.?

 ?In a way, they have died. They must give up everything to pass through the border.?

 ?What are the Scrolls for??

 ?I?m not entirely certain? but I think they keep Gensokyo hidden. From what, I don?t know. I?ve always wondered if there?s more to the world beyond border Gensokyo.?

 ?Why would we need to keep Gensokyo hidden? And seriously, how did you know all of this serious stuff? Why did you never tell me? Who else knows this??

 ?I don?t know why we need Gensokyo to remain hidden. I?ve heard fables of other worlds out there, and ours is kept secret from them. And nobody but myself and Reimu know this information.?

 ?Like other planets??

 ?I would suppose? But my guess is that it?s more like other dimensions. Reimu?s job is to protect Gensokyo from those other worlds. I just kinda, jumped on the bandwagon, and do the same.?

 ?I?ve never seen this side of you, before? You sound pretty heroic to me. I like it.?

 ?What?s this? Are you coming onto me? Without being drunk??

 ?Maybe. You just sounded so smart, and protective, when you were talking just now. It makes me feel safe around you."

 ?That?s exactly what I go for. I want to keep Gensokyo safe from whatever isn?t Gensokyo.?

 ?So what else do you know??

 ?Well? I?ve read somewhere that one of the two worlds is called Mercatia. It?s supposedly a place populated only by humans.?

 ?Only humans? But how do they survive??

 ?It said they were very resourceful, and self-sufficient. They farmed and harvested their own food. Built their own homes. There used to be youkai, and demons, and even a few angels, and a lot of extremely powerful gods.?

 ?Used to be??

 ?Yeah. It didn?t say how or why, but they all just vanished. The story said that the humans had become so many, that they spread across an entire planet, and even into the vacuum outside of the planet. It said that they were spreading like a virus, without youkai to keep their levels from increasing so rapidly. The story theorized that perhaps a single god and a group of angels that followed him had stayed behind, and a single youkai with a group of demons stood to oppose him and keep balance.?

 ?Wow. This all makes me wonder about things.?

 ?Like what??

 ?Well, why would this one god want to stay behind??

 ?The story mentioned a book called ?Holy Bible?, but I can?t find a copy of it anywhere. Supposedly, that book tells all about it. Something about how this god wanted to create a heaven for humans or something along those lines, but the youkai that stood to keep balance and oppose him had to stop that from being entirely successful. This race of humans is incredibly indecisive, constantly warring and killing each other. This is the negative end of ?balance? for Mercatia. But they also love easily, and are usually intelligent by nature. This is part of the positive end.?

 ?So there are still youkai and demons there. It?s not ONLY humans.?

 ?Ah, but that?s the weird part. It IS inhabited only by humans. Somehow, this god, this youkai, and all of the demons and angels supposedly are never seen. Ever. By anyone. They go about somehow, without actually being part of the world. Like they?re watching Mercatia in a fishbowl, from outside of it. They can influence Mercatia, without actually being there.?

 ?That?s scary! I?d hate to live in a world where I?m always being watched!?

 ?Me too. Wanna know something else? Mercatia can?t have real danmaku festivals. They fight wars with swords. Important and rich people order poor people to get together in huge groups, and then run at each other while screaming, until the groups crash together like waves, and humans are hacking other humans to bits over stupid little things. That?s how the ?big arguments? are settled. Whoever is stronger is right.?

 ?That?s all very disturbing, on so many levels! Why would any human want to kill another human!? That?s like me chopping you in half!? Alice actually shed a tear at the thought of having to chop Marisa in half. ?If we leave Gensokyo, then we probably wind up in Mercatia! And since we don?t have any money, we?d be poor! But since we?re poor, we?d have to be ordered around by these rich people! What if we have to fight each other, Marisa!? I don?t wanna chop you in half!? Alice gripped Marisa tightly, crying into the witch?s back. Marisa took Alice?s hand and held it close to her.

 ?If that happens, we won?t fight. We?ll hug each other, ok??

 ?But they must use some powerful magic to order all those humans to kill each other just to decide something! I know the humans here in Gensokyo would never kill one another! They would never!?

 ?I? never thought of that? That?s pretty scary, Alice?  I don?t want to have to kill you, either! They might use my magic to make you explode!? Marisa held Alice?s hand tighter, and searched for her other hand.

 ?But Mari! We lose our powers when we cross the border! You couldn?t make me explode. They?d make you cut me into pieces!? Alice started crying again, and crossed her arms in front of Marisa. They flew on in silence for a few moments, cheek to cheek.

 ?Hey! Is that Remilia?? Alice pointed over Marisa?s other shoulder, at a pallid object flying away from them.

 ?Looks like it. Keep your eyes open for Reimu now. She could be anywhere.?

 ?Alright, I will.?

 They had nearly caught up to Remilia after a moment. Alice called out to her.

 ?Hey! Lady Remilia!! We?re here to help you look for Reimu now!?

 ?What??

 ?We?re here to help!?

  ?Look for Reimu, correct??

 ?Right!

 ?I?m not looking for Reimu! I?m looking for Reimu and Aya!?

 ?Who cares about Aya!? We need Reimu! Aya?s just a twisted reporter!?

 ?Shut up, you! Aya is Reimu?s best friend! She?s the entire reason that Reimu is out here in the middle of the night! And the reason that Aya is out here, probably terrified clear out of her mind, is because you were being an insensitive jerk! What you displayed back at the shrine was worse than anything that poor tengu could write! If you?re not here to look for Aya too, then get out of here! Don?t go back to the shrine, go home! You?ll do not one bit of good out here!?

 ?What do you want me to do!??

 ?Apologize! You were completely in the wrong! Nobody else may have noticed, because they harbor similar feelings toward the girl, but have any of you stopped for even a moment, just once, to think about how she feels!? She cares about you people! She cares enough to want to write about you, and make you people out to be much more exciting than you really are!?

 ?So now she thinks we?re boring?!?

 ?Not at all! She wants other people to be impressed by you! She wants to make you important! People love reading about us! Whether it?s true or not doesn?t matter! What she wants, is important friends, so even if they don?t like her, she can feel like she?s wanted! None of you bothered to notice, not even I did until moments ago, but Aya always wrote the truth about Reimu! And Reimu was mentioned at least once in every paper! That?s because Reimu actually wanted her around. If all you did was take some time to appreciate her, she most likely wouldn?t be half as bothersome, and would probably write the truth about you! Think about it, if her goal is to make her friends important, what better way is there, than to be an important friend!? Reimu could do it for her, why can?t we?!?

 ?Alice? She?s right. None of us have ever treated her nicely, so why should she treat us any better? I know the first thing I?m going to do when I see Aya again??

 ?If you two are going to help, then help! If not, go home! I?ll make sure that I stay out here until I find both of them, and bring them back to the shrine! Even if I have to stay out here after the sun rises! Because Aya is my friend too!? Remilia took off like a shot further toward the east.

 ?Remilia??

 ?I?ve never seen her so angry and upset in my life! Not even when we raided her house over that scarlet mist incident!?

 ?I never thought I?d say something like this? but? Let?s go find Aya!?

 ?There we go! That?s the spirit we need! Let?s go and fix this!? Marisa poured magic into her broom to follow after Remilia.

 ?Woaah! That didn?t mean that I liked riding this broom any more than before!!? Alice howled, tightening her grip around Marisa. Marisa just laughed wildly. That is, until Alice abruptly stopped moving forward with Marisa and the broom. Alice still had a grip on Marisa when it happened, and it ripped Marisa clear away from her broom, which flew in an erratic spiral before plummeting into the trees. Marisa herself flew from Alice?s grasp from the momentum, and they both plummeted earthward. Alice remembered she could fly, just before she hit the ground, but not before she was nearly impaled on the tip of a dead tree stump. It tore a nasty gash into her dress and  side, and blood sprayed high into the air as she spun wildly toward the ground, where she righted herself and came to a hover mere inches above the ground. Marisa didn?t have the luck of such an ability. Her mode of flight just vanished into the trees about a kilometer away, so she took a heavy tumble and crash through the trees, before she smashed sickeningly upon the ground just after Alice connected with the dead tree. Her pointy hat slowly spun down and landed neatly nearby, as if to mock Marisa?s landing in a disturbing way. Alice immediately rushed to aid her best friend, blinded with pain from the deep wound in her left side, but was blocked by some unseen force.

 ?Oh no!! Marisa!!! Marisa! Say something!!? Alice shouted to her, but to no avail. Marisa wasn?t moving. Alice began to weep, and continued to call out to Marisa. Something was in the sky, just beyond Marisa.

 ?Remilia! REMILIA!!!! HELP!!!? Alice started screaming, and then flew into the air against the invisible wall to wave her arms and try to get the Devil?s attention. After several minutes of wasting a lot of energy, Remilia turned around and saw Alice.


 ?Remilia!! Marisa is hurt, and I can?t reach her!! Help me!!? Remilia stopped and looked at Alice like she couldn?t understand. But she looked to where Alice was indicating, and saw Marisa. Remilia flew to Marisa without any problem, but Alice was still trapped behind the invisible wall.

 ?Remilia! I don?t know what happened! We were following you, and she was laughing, and suddenly I stopped moving, but she kept going! There?s some kind of bar-? OHMIGOD!? Alice quickly came to realize that Marisa had passed through the border of Gensokyo, while she had not been permitted to. ?The border! This is the border!! NO! Marisa!!? Alice tried to pound on the barrier, but Remilia wasn?t paying any attention to her. The vampire was trying to pick up Marisa, and was getting ready to take off when she finally spotted Alice making a fuss. Remilia said something to Alice, but the sound never reached her. Alice noticed this, and wrote in the sand where Remilia could see it: ?You and Marisa are on the other side of the Gensokyo Border! I can?t get through! Help me!?

 Remilia looked astonished and put Marisa down gently. Then she tried to walk toward Alice with her arms stretched forward. The vampire?s hands met the invisible wall about a foot away from Alice?s hands. Remilia bent to write a response in the sand.

 ?This is bad. Aya must have wanted to leave Gensokyo! Reimu and I wanted to find Aya, so we probably were able to pass through the border! Marisa, too!? Alice took a moment to read Remilia?s scrawlings, before writing her own.

 ?Of course it?s bad! If Reimu is over there, everyone in Gensokyo is probably doomed! What do I do!??

 ?Go and warn everyone at Hakurei Shrine! If Reimu hasn?t passed over the border yet, it?s inevitable, because she?s bent on finding Aya! The four of us will probably never see Gensokyo again??

 ?NO! I have to get back my Maris-? Alice wiped it away, and started writing again. ?I want to apologize to Aya! And it?s my fault that Marisa is over there! This is all my fault!? Alice?s writing got more and more sloppy, as she collapsed into the sand and started to lament and weep over all that had transpired.

 ?Alice! Listen! You must take over Aya?s second duty! You have to alert everyone and get them to Hakurei Shrine! Even those who don?t want anything to do with it, you must convince them to go! This was Aya?s job, because she was the fastest in all of Gensokyo! But now you?re the only one that knows about this! Don?t ask me why, just do it!?

 Alice didn?t need to ask why. She already knew why. Everyone had to get to Reimu?s shrine, because the backup wards were there. Which meant that the Scrolls and Wards were going to be broken at some point. Remilia erased what she had written, and started writing again.

 ?Once everyone is at the shrine, keep them there! Because I don?t know what will happen to the barrier once Reimu herself leaves it! If it shrinks, everyone inside of Gensokyo will be crushed into nothingness as it collapses! You will need Sakuya! Tell her to expand space inside of Hakurei Shrine. You will also need Meiling, to keep people from getting out of line! Patchouli knows the whereabouts of nearly everyone, as well as how many people are in Gensokyo.?

Remilia ran out of space. She waited a few moments until Alice nodded with a face full of tears before erasing and starting again.

 ?Yukari might be able to help sustain the border with her magic, even if it only slows it down, that?s more time that we can figure out a way to fix this. Keep this in mind: You have NO WAY of knowing if the border is shrinking! It?s invisible, and it only affects those with a will! Since it doesn?t affect things like trees and houses, you can?t afford to waste time, or let people linger in their houses! If someone is caught in their house when the border passes through it, it will kill them, unless they have a desire to leave Gensokyo! Those who are outside will be pushed inward by the border,?

She ran out of space again. Alice nodded grimly, and wrote some details down in her grimoire to help her remember what to say to people.

 ?until the border collapses in on itself like a giant compressor. Every living being caught in it will be forced and smashed together until they explode and die, where the border will then pass over the remains and disappear! DO NOT LET THAT HAPPEN!?

 Alice covered her mouth in horror, and scribbled back.

?I won?t! Please bring Marisa back to me!? And then she ran through the woods as fast as she could to do what she had to do. She was much too upset to fly. She cried all the way back to the shrine, where people were still partying and laughing. Alice was terrified. She was suddenly very claustrophobic. She hated having to actually be trapped in Gensokyo. What scared her most was the fact that she did NOT want to leave Gensokyo.

 She wondered who to tell first, and how they would take it.

Kitaen Silva

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Chapter Ten - Message in a Body
« Reply #10 on: October 16, 2009, 05:40:15 PM »


When she had left Marisa with Remilia, Alice had been terrified beyond belief. Terrified mostly that she had just lost Marisa, whom she loved more than anything. Terrified that she was now overaware of the fact that she, and everyone in Gensokyo, were all trapped inside of a giant invisible bubble that could crush them all into soup at any moment. Terrified that nobody would listen to her, when she told them what was happening. That she would be left, curled up all alone in a blood-splattered little ball in the middle of Reimu?s shrine, while all the friends she knew were literally painting the outer walls with their own entrails. This was a nightmare that has haunted her for years and she never knew why, or what it could mean until tonight, and was now intensified by all the information she had received tonight. Her worst nightmare has now been confirmed to be something that could actually happen. At any time now, no less. As she ran back to the shrine, she worked on bolstering her spirits. By the time she made it to the shrine, she had managed to upgrade her thoughts, and was only suffering from a severe case of claustrophobia brought on by the bubble idea. She had convinced herself that she could take care of things. Mostly;

 ?I will get my Marisa back!? she repeated to herself several times before starting to run across the grounds of Reimu?s shrine. Flandre saw her first, and went flying to meet her halfway.

 ?Yaaay, Alice is back! Where?s Marisa? And sister?? The cute little vampire asked innocently with a grin. But it was this simple question that made Alice break down again. Flandre started to cry with her, terribly hurt to see her best friend in tears. ?What?s wrong, Alice? Why are you crying? Please don?t cry!?  Alice dropped to her knees, and everyone came running out of the shrine at the sight of Alice staggering.

 ?What happened out there, Alice? Why have you returned alone?? Sakuya asked, spotting the gash in Alice?s side, something that Flandre somehow missed completely. The maid decided to keep quiet about it for the time being.

 ?Marisa is with Remilia?? Alice responded, hanging her head dismally.

 ?And where is my mistress?? Sakuya pressed, concerned for her mistress? safety. ?I should have gone after her!?

 ?Lady Remilia? crossed the border while looking for Aya and Reimu.? It seemed as though time stopped when that sentence was uttered. And with Sakuya being present, that may well have been possible. The maid?s face contorted in rage and disappointment in herself.

 ?Impossible. The border can?t be crossed, unless you want to cross it.? Patchouli said in disbelief.

 ?Aya wanted to leave Gensokyo. Because of me. Reimu wanted to reach Aya, so Reimu passed through as well. Lady Remilia wanted to find Reimu and Aya, so she was permitted to pass as well??

 ?And Marisa?? Sakuya finally said, though she was unaware of the thin ice around anything to do with Marisa in regards to Alice.

 ?I don?t know why she was permitted through, but not me? I was flying with her on her broom, when I was tore away from the broom by the border. Marisa fell off of her broom on the other side of the border! She fell, and hit the ground, and wouldn?t move! I?m scared!! I want to know that Marisa is okay!!? Alice wailed, drifting into hysterics, trying to curl up and disappear into herself. ?Please don?t die! Please wait for me! Please, Marisa!?

 ?What a terrible night? I knew we should have never left the mansion.? Patchouli said, turning to walk inside the mansion and find a place to get comfortable, then changing her mind to see if there was more to the story. She stood with her back to the crowd.

 ?We have to get my sister back! Remi-chan is my sister!! My sister!? Flandre finally got over her shock, and her emotions shattered. Both her and Alice huddled together and grieved over their lost loved ones. ?Remi-chan is my only family! She?s all I have left of my family! We have to save my sister?? she wailed in unison with Alice, and the whole scene was upsetting everyone present.

 ?We must find a way to get Lady Remilia back into Gensokyo.? China said resolutely. ?This is my chance to show my worth!? Sakuya just eyed the redheaded guard with a look that spoke volumes about how ridiculous the statement was.

 ?Remilia gone over border? Marisa, Reimu, and Aya?? Phoebe said with her ever-increasing vocabulary. She had only been in the realm mere hours, and she had already studied enough to join conversations. Hourai made an excellent teacher to a certain point, and then Patchouli took over the vocabulary lessons and left Hourai for the artistry. Hourai even picked up on a few new words. But everyone?s mood had shifted from having fun with Phoebe, to being upset over Alice coming back alone. Phoebe didn?t let even that tiny detail escape her grasp.

 ?Yes, Phoebe?? Sakuya said, trying to keep her voice calm, but an edge of her emotions had tinged her words with sharp daggers.

 ?Phoebe have idea.? She said with confidence, despite Sakuya?s turmoil. Everyone?s attention turned to the strange human girl, even Alice and Flandre made an incredible effort to calm down just enough to hear what Phoebe had to say. However, Eirin chose this exact moment to burst out of the shrine and announce her findings.

 ?I have news! Phoebe is not human! Well? not entirely.? The medicine said matter-of-factly. Phoebe?s face instantly twisted in pure rage, and everyone took a step away from the girl. Even Sakuya quailed when she noticed.

 ?Not now, Eirin!? Sakuya pleaded, not at all curious to see this strange girl?s capabilities. Phoebe tried to take a deep breath and relax, but not before a large wound tore across her forearm. She quickly covered it before anyone noticed, and took three sharp breaths, then lifted her hand to inspect her wound.

 ?Phoebe has an idea on how to get everyone back into Gensokyo.? Patchouli said calmly. She was oddly calm through all of this, but if one were to look at the librarian?s eyes, you could tell that she was thinking hard and very rapidly. Patchouli had written theories on what would happen to the border if the one that maintained it were to step outside of it. She had discussed these at length with Remilia, and they both came to the conclusion that the most plausible theories were that the border would either shrink in on itself, or it would simply disappear, and Gensokyo would be scattered across multiple realms.

 ?What? Who left Gensokyo?? Eirin asked in shock.

 ?Remilia, Aya, Reimu, and Marisa have all crossed the border!? China told her. Eirin looked beyond the guard at the two girls huddled on the ground in despondency.

 ?Where have you been all this time, Eirin??? Sakuya asked her rhetorically. Eirin strode out to join the rest of the group and listen in on what she could. Then oddly, she turned and went back inside like she had forgotten something.

 ?Phoebe, tell us your idea, please.? The maid stated, with a nod to the foreign girl. Phoebe nodded back after quickly confirming that her recent wound had already healed.

 ?Magic book! ?Hakurei Border Enchuridion?!? She said proudly with a smile. Everyone stood or sat in silence, expecting more.

 ?What??? Sakuya asked for all of them. Hourai poked her head from behind Phoebe?s neck.

 ?Same book bring Hourai back Gensokyo! Bring Remilia back?? the puppet explained.

 ?Book bring me, Desiderius, and Kaeli! Gensokyo!? Phoebe confirmed Hourai?s explanation.

 ?Desiderius and Kaeli are both in Gensokyo too?? Sakuya asked. Flandre sniffled and hugged Alice.

 ?Phoebe think yes??

 ?None of that really matters, because we have no way of telling them about the book!? Meiling said, dashing everyone?s hopes to pieces. Flandre started to cry again, bringing attention back to Alice.

 ?Sakuya? Remilia said? She said that we have to get everyone in Gensokyo into the Hakurei Shrine. And? we have to? do it as fast as we? can! She says the border? will collapse!? Alice said, her voice laden with strain. Flandre pulled her hand away from Alice?s side because she felt something wet, and spotted the blood on her hand.

 ?Alice!! You?re hurt!!? Another fresh stream of tears came from Flandre?s eyes.

 ?Yes, Little Flan? but this time it?s much too deep? for you to fix. Eirin?s? going to have to work on me? for this one?? she said with a wan smile as Flandre stared at her hands, which were dripping with a crimson stain. It wasn?t the blood on the vampire?s hands that was unusual, because that was a common sight, rather it was the expression of pure sadness that the vampire had in reaction to that specific blood. ?Waste not, want not, right?? Alice said, trying to smile again, thinking about her tastes. Hourai panicked and flew to Alice.

?Mommy!! Mommy hurt!!?

?Hourai? Mommy is proud? of you? My one-of-a-kind? living treasure?? Alice winced in pain, and turned back to Flandre. ?Have Eirin save what blood she can? I want you to have it for in an emergency, okay??

 ?Alice? No. I don?t like to see your blood. It means more to me when it?s inside of you, so don?t lose it!? Flandre said tearfully, grabbing the puppeteer?s shoulders. ?I don?t want it! Keep it! Keep it all, Alice!?

 ?Aww! You?re?. Such?. A cutie?.? Alice said slowly, and she blacked out while trying to raise her hands up to hold the vampire close to her. Alice?s body fell between the vampire and the puppet, and Eirin came back out at this moment.

?What is it with you people? I can?t even leave to tend to my equipment for a moment and someone else gets hurt!? She had seen Alice fall, and quickly went to see what was the matter. ?This isn?t good at all! She has a massive laceration on her left side! It might be too late for me to do anything! She?s lost far too much blood!? Eirin rattled off, inspecting the wound. ?It looks like she was impaled on a tree! There are leaves and splinters all along the inner walls of the gash?? Flandre completely freaked out. Both Sakuya and China had to get a grip on the miniscule vampire to keep her from attacking the doctor.

 ?You have to do something!! I refuse to lose my sister and my two best friends! Save my friend, Eirin!? she screamed at the silver-haired medic. Hourai was screaming and crying by Alice?s face.

 ?I will do my best, but I can?t guarantee anything!? Eirin immediately went to work stopping the blood. ?Sakuya, Meiling, I need you two to go and get Reimu?s ladder, and place a plank on the rungs so we can get Alice indoors! I think she usually keeps it in the storage shed!?

 Patchouli went indoor herself to get away from all the screaming and yelling for a moment, so she could think. Alice had mentioned that everyone needed to get to Hakurei Shrine as soon as possible, and Patchouli intended to investigate the reasoning behind this claim. Remilia had been the one to tell her to gather everyone, but why in Hakurei Shrine? There wasn?t nearly enough space in the shrine to house every person in Gensokyo. The logical choice would have been Scarlet Devil Mansion. There would have been space to put all of Gensokyo in a single room of the mansion. Did Remilia know something about this shrine? Or was it Alice that knew something the rest of them didn?t? Sakuya and China huffed by her as she walked into the shrine. A moment later they ran back to the doctor with the makeshift stretcher. Eirin instructed the other three girls to gently lift Alice onto it, while Patchouli wandered along the front walkway of the shrine, inspecting the paper doors and the posts. She stopped when she noticed all the charms hanging from the lip of the roof, and that there was a spiritual ward placed on every post. She spoke quietly to herself.

 ?If all these wards are here? that means that? the border will actually collapse, and these wards are designed as a failsafe to the ones on the border. But will they work, even though that Reimu has left Gensokyo? How long do we have to act? We need to not only gather the people of Gensokyo, but supplies, as well. With Alice down, that leaves just myself, Sakuya, China, Hourai, and Flandre. Phoebe might be able to help, but I intend to have her stick with me. Hourai too. They don?t know much about the lands of Gensokyo, and would get lost quickly.? Eirin and Sakuya ran by with Alice between them on the ladder. China, Flandre, and Hourai were right behind them. ?The faster we act, the safer we will be.?

Kitaen Silva

  • SNOWBALLED
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    • Retro Fox Studios Online
Chapter Eleven - Pursuit of Sable Plume and Prayer Paper
« Reply #11 on: October 16, 2009, 05:41:52 PM »

 Remilia didn?t linger when Alice turned and ran toward Hakurei Shrine. But she was worried that Alice wouldn?t make it back, and if she did, she wouldn?t live much longer, unless Eirin performed some kind of medical miracle on that puppeteer. Remilia fancied she could smell and taste the blood as soon as she saw the bright crimson stain on the side of that sky blue dress. Now she had an even bigger problem. Several, in fact. Firstly, she had to keep Marisa with her. Then she had to find Reimu and Aya. Now she was hungry. There was also the problem that Marisa?s pulse was fading. If she didn?t get medical attention, she would surely die. That fall from her broom had done some serious damage, and Remilia could tell even without being a doctor that four ribs had been broken, both her left arm and leg had broken, and she had a massive knot forming on the side of her head. Marisa had surely sustained equally serious internal injuries to match her external ones. The knot practically glued the pointy hat of hers in place once Remilia had retrieved it and placed it on her head. Remilia used her broom as a splint for her leg, and she took care not to upset the witch?s position as she flew over the trees and kept an eye out for Reimu. She was relieved to see a flash of red and white about four kilometers ahead of her, but now that she had found Reimu, there was the question of where Aya could be. But Remilia stopped for a moment, when she heard something rustling in the trees just below her. She listened closely, and pinpointed where it was coming from.

 ?Aya! I?ve found you! Hurry! We have to catch up to Reimu! Now is NOT the time to split apart!?

 ?Remilia!? Is that you!? Wait?  Why are you here!?? Aya?s terrified voice hesitantly called out to the vampire.

 ?Not the time for questions! Let?s go! Reimu is several kilometers ahead of us!?

 ?Why!? Why are you and Reimu out here!? I left Gensokyo!!? Aya?s voice quivered sadly as she stepped out into a moonlit clearing on the forest floor and peered up at Remilia?s silhouette.

 ?We came after you! Reimu is worried to tears over you! And I?m not going to let a friend wander the woods alone in the dark! Now let?s go! Reimu is looking for you, and has no idea that she?s passed you!?

 ?Remilia?? Aya murmured. Remilia could tell that she was crying, even from the distance she was at. ?Thank you, Remilia Scarlet! I?ll never forget that you called me your friend! And I?m terribly sorry that you crossed the border just because of me!?

 ?Yeah yeah, come on!? Remilia urged the tengu. Aya took a moment to wipe her face on her sleeve.

 ?Right!? Aya brightened and leapt into the air to join Remilia, but was nearly startled back out of the sky when she saw that Marisa was held in the vampire?s arms. She continued to follow Remilia through the air toward Reimu. ?Marisa! What happened to her??

 ?She apparently came searching for you too, and brought Alice with her. But something happened at the border, and Alice wasn?t able to pass through, while Marisa could. Marisa fell from her broom and was nearly killed when she hit the ground, while Alice suffered a possibly fatal wound to her side. I sent Alice back to the shrine to warn the others that Reimu has passed through the border and cannot maintain it.?

 ?What!? Wait! What?s going to happen since Reimu can?t maintain the border anymore!??

 ?I?m not really certain, but Patchouli had a few theories-? Remilia started to explain, but Marisa struggled and coughed, then spoke.

 ?The border? will collapse. Everyone inside? will die. Hakurei Shrine? is the only? safe place in Gensokyo. Everyone? will die.? She said grimly, as tears flowed freely from her closed eyes. ?I?m sorry? Alice? I should? have told you sooner.? She finished, exhaling with the last of her strength and falling infirm again. Remilia had been about to try and quiet her, to save strength, but was a bit late. Aya stopped flying.

 ?This can?t be? I can?t believe this! I won?t believe it! Why should everyone have to die just because Reimu went through the border!??

 ?It?s not that they have to, it?s just that Reimu is no longer able to maintain the Wards in Gensokyo. When they deteriorate, it seems that the border will collapse, and crush everyone inside, just as Patchouli theorized. The only way that they wouldn?t be crushed, is if they wanted to leave Gensokyo, just like you did. Then the border would simply pass over them. But they don?t know that the border is dying, and therefore want to live in Gensokyo. Alice is our only hope to warn them about all of this?? Remilia said, a hint of sadness appearing in her own voice. Aya started flying again, and kept pace with Remilia.

 ?What good would it do to simply warn people??

 ?Hakurei Shrine has backup wards placed on and around it, just in case of an event like this. Alice is to warn everyone to flee to Hakurei Shrine. She is to have Sakuya expand space inside of the shrine, and Yukari try to slow the border. Once everyone is at the shrine, they must decide on their own that they want to leave. Once they decide that they want to leave Gensokyo, they can?t be harmed by the border. That?s the plan, based on theory, anyway.?

 ?It?s a good plan? but why do we even have the border in the first place, if we have all this land around us? What?s the point of sealing us in a bubble like that??

 ?I couldn?t begin to tell you. Reimu would know the answer to that.?

 ?Speaking of which? where is Reimu? You said that you had seen her.?

 ?She?s?? Remilia scanned where she had been watching earlier, and saw no sign of the priestess. ?Gone.? Remilia looked harder.

 ?What?! Gone!??

 ?You ask a lot of useless questions, for a reporter! I said gone! I don?t see her anymore!?

 ?I?m not a reporter anymore! I have no newspaper, I have no notepad, and I apparently am a terrible writer anyway! I?m nothing. Just? I want to find Reimu now, ok??

 ?Whatever. Help me look, then.?

 ?You?re a mean friend.?

 ?I?m sorry. I?m just a little stressed out at the fact that I?ll never see my home again. Plus, I?m stranded outside of the border without an umbrella, and no idea if I?ll even see a house to rest in again! I?m a vampire, Aya. Sun spells death for me. And out here, there?s nowhere to get away from it, so come morning, I?ll most likely be a pile of ashes! But I?m not giving up on Reimu! She might have a trick or two to save all of us.?

 ?Well? I think I see something flying over the trees about a few kilometers to our left?? Aya said, pointing at what she had spotted. Remilia peered at the object.

 ?Nice work. That?s Reimu that you?ve found. Let?s meet up with her and find out what?s next.?
 
 Apparently Reimu had spotted them as well, for a few dozen amulets whizzed by the two of them with the purpose of gathering their attention. It only took a moment and they had regrouped. Reimu went straight for Aya, embracing the still terrified tengu, who returned the favor with no intention to let go. Reimu didn?t mind this at all.

 ?Remilia? Why are you out here? And what happened to Marisa??

 ?Long story. Let?s make plans, first. The sun is going to rise soon, and we all need to rest.?

 ?Well, believe it or not, I found a dilapidated hut further east, so we can rest there.?

 ?That?s great, but we can?t live out here. We?ll perish of starvation.?

 ?We?ll starve before you will, Remilia.? Reimu said pointedly.

 ?I have no intention of taking blood from friends. That?s something I?ve picked up from my younger sister, it just so happens.? Remilia said, then frowned, remembering that she?d never see her sister again.

 ?I?m sorry again? I didn?t want you to follow me beyond the border!?

 ?If we hadn?t, we wouldn?t be real friends!?

 ?But what about Marisa? She and Alice hated me! And I thought nobody wanted me around!?

 ?Well, they must have been worried enough to come after you and risk passing through the border. I?d call that a friend, even if they practically hated me.?

 ?Let?s find that hut again. Like Remilia says, the sun will rise soon. We don?t want to lose our dear friend, now, do we??

 ?No! But I don?t think I?ll be able to rest? After all, It?s my fault that we?re all stuck out here??

 ?Aya, we?re out here because we chose to come after you.? Remilia said, and carefully adjusted her grip on Marisa. ?Not one of us would survive out here alone, so we have to stick together and fight our way through this. We might be able to go back to where Alice fell, and write messages in the sand to talk to our friends and family. And they can bring us food and supplies, because things like that can pass through the border.?

 ?That sounds logical. We could build a shelter near there.?

 ?And we could use staged danmaku in the sky to gather attention of someone at the shrine.?

 ?Right! Let?s do it!  We need to get attention while it?s still dark out so everyone at the shrine will see the light. Reimu, you?ll have to use your spellcards, because little pieces of paper flying around aren?t going to be seen from that far away.?

 ?No, but I can try to aim them at the shrine. If a few land near the shrine, someone is bound to notice. Remilia, I?ll lead you to the hut, so you have shelter from the sun, ok??

 ?Fine. Marisa will stay with me. I?ll keep watch over her.?

 ?Wait! Don?t leave me alone out here!? Aya screeched, clinging to Reimu?s sleeve and staying close to her.

 ?You?re not allowed to be left alone anymore. You get in trouble when you?re left alone.?

 ?That?s right! I cause a lot of trouble when I?m left alone! I start blowing things up and shredding the countryside with my laserbeams-" Aya bluffed.

 ?And taking pictures of vampires in half-transformation.? Remilia interrupted with a raised brow.

 ?Err? I tossed my camera aside as I was walking? no more pictures. I?m sorry.? Aya said remorsefully. Remilia looked surprised.

 ?You threw away your father?s photograph device??

 ?Don?t make me miss it, Remi! It was a very hard thing to do! Now let?s go about or plan! Let?s get you and Mari to this hut, while me and Reimu fly back to the border and gather attention.? Aya stated with a mock tough countenance while tears rolled freely down her cheeks.

 ?Right? Follow me.? Reimu said, and led the small group a few kilometers north of their current position. Not one of them spoke a word during the time it took for them to locate the domicile. But when they did find it, Aya stopped in mid-flight to add her two cents.

 ?Wow, it really is falling apart. Just look at those walls! It looks like even a light fog could knock them over!? Aya said. They flew down to it anyway, and found that it was sturdier than it appeared. There was a large chunk of thatching that had collapsed into the hut, but it was better than nothing.

 ?Guess this is home for now?? Remilia said dismally as she landed and stepped into the construction. ?I?ve never even seen such low-grade housing? Even Hakurei Shrine is like a castle by comparison.? She continued as she lay Marisa ever-so-gently on the worn pad that furnished the interior of the humble dwelling.

 ?Hey! I resent that comment, Remilia!?

 ?Why? It?s not like you can use that shrine anymore.?

 ?I??

 ?Forget about it. That shrine is unowned.?

 ?Suika could??

 ?Could what? Run the shrine? That oni can?t even take care of herself, much less a shrine.?

 ?Alright! Fine! I?m just a rogue priestess now! I have no shrine! I?ll make an excellent part of this team! I?ll exorcise trees! Here, let me make you an amulet out of a leaf!?

 ?Now, Reimu, you know I didn?t mean things like that.?

 ?No, of course not! You?re just as lost as the rest of us! Your precious mansion is on the inside of a gigantic invisible bubble! The only thing for you to feed on is us, and squirrels!?

 ?Stop this, you two!! We need to make this work, not start fighting each other!? Aya shouted over their bickering. They both stopped with a cold stare at each other until Remilia went and tended to Marisa. ?Come on, Reimu. Let?s go set up our communication.?

Kitaen Silva

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Chapter Twelve - Raven's Heart and Miko's Charm
« Reply #12 on: October 16, 2009, 05:42:52 PM »

Aya found the border first, however, her method of location was rather unorthodox.

 ?Aya, I think in this occasion, you should have had sense to not fly headfirst.? The priestess said to Aya, who had just suffered bloody nose, a lump on her head and a severe loss in dignity by ramming into the border with her face.

 ?Not my fault. Someone put a border in my way.? Aya mumbled. Reimu just giggled and retrieved the tengu?s odd hat. But not before putting it on her own head with a look of curiosity. ?Give. Me. That!? Aya said, and swiped it from the priestess? head without moving a hair on it. In the same motion she had managed to place it back where it belonged.

 ?What? I just wanted to try it on.?

 ?What is it with you and hats? You had on Marisa?s hat yesterday, even Ran?s strange hat, and now mine?? Aya inquired as she fine tuned the pinnacle upon her head.

 ?I have no idea. But I do know that now we have to find where Alice and Marisa were separated. Remilia said they were writing in sand, and I?m assuming that it?s south of here. So all we have to do is fly along the border until we see sand, and investigate.? Reimu was explaining, but Aya was already several meters away, gliding southward with her hand touching the border while she stared hard at the ground, which was lit only by moonlight. ?Aya! Wait up!?

 ?I don?t like being in the woods, Reimu. I want to get something built that we can live in. I want things to seem somewhat normal again. Even just a little bit. If we can get a house built, I?m certain that we?ll feel a little better about being on this side of the border.?

 ?You may be right about that, Aya. I have hopes that we may be able to return to Gensokyo somehow, though.?

 ?You can return to Gensokyo if you want? But I have no reason to go back. Nobody liked me.?

 ?So I?m nobody? Remilia, she?s nobody??

 ?That?s not what I mean. I?m saying that nobody likes me. And because you?re my friend, people say things about you because of it. They think that you?ve ?become desperate for companionship because she?s stooping so low as to be friends with Aya?. And I know that Alice and Marisa share a bit more than just a friendship. I?m not stupid. It?s just that I didn?t want to attract that kind of attention to them? On top of that, I don?t even think the two of them are sure of it themselves. I know that I wouldn?t want something like that to be written about me? I won?t write what I wouldn?t want to see written about me in such cases. I have dirty little secrets like that too. If I can?t keep their secret ? which they?re doing a terrible job of, mind you ? How could I possibly hope to keep my own?? Aya rambled as she searched diligently for sand at the border. Reimu couldn?t search, because she was listening to Aya open her heart up to her. She was more than glad to listen to anything Aya had to say.

 ?Aya? I like you. I don?t care what they think about me for choosing you as my friend. Their opinions are not important to me. They shouldn?t matter to you, either. And honestly, it?s not you that people don?t like. Merely seeing themselves from someone else?s view. They don?t like what they see in themselves through your eyes. I bet that if you had chosen to be a florist, everyone would love you!? Reimu told her, trying to pay attention to searching, but was too distracted by Aya to care much. She was pretty much following Aya just for the sake of following Aya.

 ?? You think?? the ex-reporter said, looking over her shoulder at the optimistic priestess.

 ?I do.? Reimu confirmed. Aya?s raven hair flashed in the moonlight as she whirled to face Reimu. She grasped Reimu?s hands and looked the priestess square in the eyes.

 ?Reimu?? Aya said quietly, forgetting all about the darkness. Forgetting that she was deep in the woods. She was one-hundred percent focused on the priestess in red hovering before her. She felt little more than Reimu?s hands in her own, and the warmth radiating from the priestess.

 ??Aya??? Reimu said, and a heavy blush sprung to the tengu?s cheeks. This, in turn, caused Reimu to blush and become very aware of Aya?s touch.

 ?Reimu? I want to know?? she started timidly, fidgeting her feet as the two of them hovered in the moonlight. ?I wanna know what you think?? Aya blushed even further, getting nervous. Reimu had an idea about where this was going, and also got very nervous. She then thought about it, and suddenly didn?t care. They were stranded, all alone on the other side of the barrier. She wasn?t sure if she was prepared at all, but she thought that she wouldn?t mind much. There wasn?t anyone who could say anything about it, not anymore. Reimu?s mind raced with her heart, and she wondered which would explode first. Her grip on the tengu?s hands became moist, and she held tighter, unintentionally drawing them closer.

 ?Aya?? the priestess managed to murmur quietly.

 ?I want to know? what you would love to see me do for a profession! There! I said it!? Aya blurted, averting her gaze and closing her eyes. Reimu blinked several times, completely dazed and confused.

 ?P-profession?? She said, disbelieving. She had gotten all worked up over a simple request for an opinion? ?I? I don?t know.?

 ?Aww, there must be something I could do for work that would make you happy!?

 ?Aya.?

 ??Huh??

 ?We?re stranded on the other side of the barrier.?

 ??Oh. Right.?

 ?You were making me happy a minute ago, but you had to go and ruin the moment??

 ?I-I was? How??

 ?I said ?the moment?. That was a hint.? Reimu said simply. Aya thought for a few seconds, then her cheeks brightened again in pure embarrassment. ?Yeah, there you go. I knew you?d figure it out.?

 ?It was a moment! Our moment! And me, I?m such an idiot!? She withdrew from Reimu and started scolding herself in frustration. ?Stupid stupid! I ruined it!! I?ve been waiting to have a moment for years! And with Reimu, of all people! Why did I have to go and ruin it!?? Aya revealed something she didn?t mean to, but was far too flustered to notice.

 ?Years?? Me? ?Of all people?? Wait? Aya???

 ?Wut?? Aya said, pausing her tirade against herself in a strange position to look and see what Reimu wanted. Reimu took on a silly tone.

 ?Have you been waiting all these years for a moment with me?? Aya straightened and blushed even harder than she ever had before, with her face turning a brilliant pink. Reimu knew what that meant. She dropped the silly tone, for now she meant everything she was saying. ?Aya? that makes me happy.?

 ?It-it does!?? Aya looked like she was about to explode with excitement. ?No way! You?re just picking on me, aren?t you??

 ?No. I?m not picking on you. Do you like me the way that Alice likes Marisa? I don?t mind if you do?? Reimu asked, drifting toward the tengu again, but she couldn?t hide her own blush, not even in the darkness. Aya noticed it and seemed to be lulled into a trance of being attracted to the priestess, and seemed to become magnetized to her as she floated toward Reimu.

 ?I?I might? But what about you? Do you care about me the same way that Marisa cares for Alice? I? won?t mind at all if you do?? Aya returned quietly to the priestess as they joined hands again. Reimu pulled Aya much closer, and the tengu noticed that Reimu was warmer than before. Aya didn?t resist at all, when Reimu drew her the rest of the way into a romantic embrace. She only smiled, and her eyes sparkled in the brightening morning sky.

 ?It?s possible, Aya??

 ?I believe it?? the tengu said hurriedly. She noticed how little the distance was between the priestess? delicate lips and her own, and desires that she had kept locked away because of embarrassment now had a bright fire lit beneath them. She wanted so much to touch those delicate lips of Reimu?s to her own? and was amazed to find herself doing just that. Aya held her kiss with Reimu for as long as she dared before pulling away. ?Reimu??

 ?Quiet?? Reimu interrupted, and moved to return the favor to the ex-reporter. Aya?s eyes slammed shut, and she held onto the priestess as tightly as she dared, pressing their warm bodies against each other. Aya?s desires were running wild through her mind, drifting into very dangerous places. When Reimu pulled away, she was highly disappointed, and craved more.

 ?Reimu? I have been waiting far too long for this? Please don?t let this end? I love you, Reimu!? Aya confessed through tears of joy.

 ?I know, Aya. I don?t want to end this, either? But we have Remilia and especially Marisa to worry about out here? we promised to gather attention and set up communication with someone, so we must get back to searching.? Reimu said, and took Aya?s hand in her own.

 ?So we did?? she replied, part of her regretful, part of her in a hurry to get back to searching. They went back to looking, but this time they flew hand in hand. After several moments, Aya spoke again. ?And to think that I was going to let myself die out here. Every reason I had for living came chasing after me, and even made my dreams come true!?

 ?Hehe~! Stop it, you?re gonna make me blush.?

 ?As if you aren?t still blushing!?
 
 ?So? You?ll make it worse.?

 ?It can?t get any worse, silly. We?re both grinning and blushing like little girls should on their first kiss. I certainly feel a lot differently about you, though? It?s now more of a huge flame of desire. I crave you. Haha~!?

 ?Hehehe~! Seriously, Aya. No more. That was a bit cheesy.?

?It?s true though! I have waited ages to simply work up enough nerve to sit closer to you? and suddenly I?m walking through borders and kissing you. What happened to me??

 ?Whatever it was, I?m not giving it up.?

 ?Hahaha~! Now you?re gonna make me blush!?

 ?You can?t possibly blush any harder than you already are! Hehehe~!?

 ?Well? you might make it last longer! Haha~! Hey look, Reimu! There?s sand with writing in it.?

 ?Yeah, looks like our fun and games are over. Time to go up a ways and start making a fuss.?

 ?I get to make all sorts of fancy fireworks danmaku. I?ll celebrate our first kiss with some hearts and stuff, ?kay??

 ?Sure! I just have to throw a few hundred amulets at my own shrine, and hope someone notices.?

 ?Let?s do this.? Aya said cheerily, and flew skyward. Reimu followed closely behind.

Kitaen Silva

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Chapter Thirteen - The Ensanguine Power
« Reply #13 on: October 16, 2009, 05:45:33 PM »
[Note: Phoebe is learning the language of Gensokyo very quickly, however, her grammar skills still leave something to be desired. This makes it easy to identify when she's speaking, at the cost of being harder to understand sometimes.]

 Phoebe had stood outside after Eirin and the others took Alice inside. Phoebe had this strange feeling like she just knew that she could do something special as soon as she saw Alice?s blood. The same feeling she had whenever her skin broke and blood poured out of her. Everyone told her that it was a disgusting disease, and that she wasn?t human for having survived with it this long. They always said she wasn?t human because no matter how badly hurt she had gotten, it never took her more than an hour to completely heal. They always said she wasn?t human because her eyes were strange and frightening. Her adoptive parents back home even thought she was a freak, but her adoptive mother accepted her for who she was, not what she looked like. But she still constantly worried about all the bloodstains Phoebe left behind everywhere. For a while, it made them angry when she would bleed, and they always accused her of being an emophiliac and a liar. Then they found out that she would bleed whenever she felt a strong emotion other than happiness, and things went back to normal. But she didn?t miss Mercatia, as these people in Gensokyo called her world. In fact, she felt more at home here in Gensokyo than she had anywhere else. There was something about this place that made her feel like she belonged. Maybe it was the stars. They were different here than at home. They were brighter, and they were in different places. But it was still a familiar starry sky. The only thing she missed in Mercatia was her mother, and school. She loved to hear the lessons at school. But there was more to learn here in Gensokyo. She looked down the path that led up to the shrine, and wondered where her two friends could be. She wondered how they were faring in this world.

 <I promise to find you, Kaeli and Desi. Alice says that this world is collapsing around us. We have some pretty bad timing, don?t we? I mean? it?s not like we meant to come here? right?>

 Patchouli silently came up beside Phoebe without her realizing, and joined her to look up at the stars. Patchouli was about to speak when she saw something happening to the girl?s arm. It seemed to split open on it?s own and start pouring blood on the stones at her feet.

 ?Phoebe.? The blood sprayed from her arm and two fresh wounds appeared as she whirled to face Patchouli.

 ?Patchouli!? Phoebe quickly covered her arm. ?Phoebe not know Patchouli there! Patchouli scare Phoebe bad!?

 ?My apologies. Can Phoebe tell Patchouli about Phoebe?s arm?? the librarian said, pointing at the area of interest. Phoebe first looked angry, then apprehensive about responding. ?Not to worry. Patchouli just curious.? Patchouli felt awkward lowering her vocabulary level to that of the strange girl?s, but it was necessary for communication.

 ?Phoebe have? bad sick.?

 ?A disease??

 ?Do that word mean for bad sick, never go away??

 ?Yes, Phoebe.?

 ?Yes. Phoebe have disease.?

 ?Phoebe, use the word ?I? in place of ?Phoebe? when Phoebe speaks.? The librarian said, giving a quick grammar lesson that was immediately put into effect. ?Does Phoebe?s disease make Phoebe lose blood??

 ?Yes? I lose much blood when I not happy.?

 ?You lose a lot of blood when you aren?t happy?? Patchouli said, disconcerted that such an ailment existed. Phoebe made another observation from this simple question, and brought attention to it.

 ?Do ?you? be word for when I talk to Patchouli about Patchouli? Or when Patchouli talk to I about I??

 ?Correct, Phoebe. You learn things very easily.?

 ??Correct?? Do word mean ?Yes???

 ?Yes, Phoebe. This time?

 ?I learn easy from you. You look? like I know you before.?

 ?I don?t think we have met before, Phoebe. And the word is ?familiar?.?

 ?I familiar Gensokyo, too.?

 ?That time you meant ?recognize?. So you recognize me, and Gensokyo??

 ?Correct. I recognize stars, too? Do word ?me? mean when I talk about I, and when you talk about you??

 ?Yes. ?Me? is used for talking about you. ?My? is used for talking about a thing you have.?

 ?Like? ?I know my name???

 ?Very good. Phoebe? Do you think you are from Gensokyo??

 ?? Yes. I think me from here before. Like, I not think me not here before.? Phoebe stopped to think. ?I not know word. Like. I can know my name. That easy for me to know. But even much time pass, and I still know my name easy.?

 ?Do you mean ?remember?? As in, you know your name now, then you not think about your name for some time, and know it again??

 ?Yes. I remember from here before. But I not remember from here before. When I fall on shiny floor inside, I touch Remilia, then I fast recognize Remilia, only small. Then I try after short time and touch you, then I fast remember you when you small too. And me. But I know I never see you or Remilia before. I fast remember you and Remilia play with me much.?

 ?You recognize us from when we were little??

 ? Do ?little? mean ?small???

 ?Yes. Phoebe, think hard. Do you remember a big house from when you recognize me??

 ?Do ?a? mean? ?one?? I do remember? a? very big house? Always dark inside. I remember you always with books, and Remilia always play with dresses. I remember I can not go to basement, only Remilia. Scary cry from basement? sound just like Flandre cry?? A thought struck Phoebe, and she put voice to it. ?Wait? Flandre and Remilia sisters! Flandre stuck in basement!??

 ?Yes, Phoebe? Flandre was stuck in the basement for near 500 years. I can?t remember being around you when I was little? And Remilia didn?t seem to recognize you either? Maybe Reimu had everyone forget when you left Gensokyo, and that?s why some of us don?t remember parts of our childhood.?

 ?Do ?forget? mean ?not remember??? Phoebe inquired. Patchouli nodded. ?I remember more when I think more. When I see more Gensokyo, I remember things.? Phoebe stared at her bloodstained hands. ?I remember how I heal fast. I remember my blood, too. Remilia take my blood when Remilia go to basement. Do Remilia give my blood to Flandre? For drink? What word for one that drink blood??

 ??Vampire?, Phoebe? This means that you are from Gensokyo. Nobody remembers, because when a person leaves Gensokyo, Reimu has to make everyone forget everything about that person, and makes that person forget everything about Gensokyo.?

 ?I see. I never feel like home in Mercatia? but Gensokyo feel like home. I have not a want to leave Gensokyo anymore.?

 ?One more thing. Your disease does not exist in Gensokyo. Do you get disease from Mercatia??

 ?No? all people in Mercatia who work like Eirin say my disease has never happen before.?

 ?Then perhaps?? Patchouli went over the possibilities. Phoebe waited patiently. ?Phoebe, why do you always have your eyes closed??

 ?Everyone say my eyes scary. Not human. I close them, but I can still see??

 ?Can you open them for me? I am curious to see.?

 ?You sure? Everyone not like my eyes. Scare other kids. I not have people that like me because my eyes different.?

 ?Yes, I am sure.?

 ?I will, then.? Phoebe said, and opened her clandestine eyes. Patchouli took a step back. She remembered those eyes. Nothing beyond that, but she remembered those eyes full of laughter and happiness.  They were large and bright. They also had the shape of a vampire?s eyes. However, instead of having a vampire?s crimson eyes, her left eye was like liquid candle-flame with splattered flecks of neon orange, and her right was like icy cobalt with rays of sapphire. Both irises eerily dominated her eyes, leaving very little white in the corners. Instead of having circular pupils, there were thin ellipses that went from the top of her irises to the bottom. They were unmistakably the eyes of a youkai, and this girl hadn?t the slightest clue of her true nature. Patchouli was surprised, even after making this very prediction based on what she had heard from Phoebe.

 ?Phoebe, do you know what you are??

 ?What ?are? mean??

 ??Are? is used for ?be right now?.?

 ?I are human.?

 ?Do you know what your mother and father are??

 ?I not know them. I are human. Like everyone else.?

 ?Phoebe, you are not human. I mean that.? Patchouli said carefully, remembering Phoebe?s rage at Eirin simply mentioning the possibility that Phoebe wasn?t human. But Phoebe still took offense to Patchouli?s statement.

 ?How are I different from you!? My blood make me different from you?!? Phoebe questioned, raising her voice. Her previously ?frightening? appearance that was brought on with her rage paled in comparison to her current state of ?terrifying?. With Phoebe being angry while having her eyes open as they were made Patchouli shake. She actually wanted to turn tail and run.

 ?No. You and I are the same. I am not human, Phoebe.? Patchouli managed to say calmly, but she took a step back.

 ?I? confused. You look human to me. You vampire?? Phoebe now turned to face Patchouli directly, her intimidating gaze piercing the librarian like a laser.

 ?No, I?m not a vampire. But I am not human.? Patchouli took another step back, retreating toward the shrine, suddenly scared to be in Phoebe?s presence.

 ?What are you then?? Phoebe said as she took a step toward the librarian, maintaining the exact distance between their eyes.

 ?I am a youkai. Demon.? A slight waver forced it?s way into Patchouli?s voice as she replied.

 ??Youkai?? ?Demon??? Phoebe?s head tilted eerily as she took another step.

 ?Humans think you and I are not real. You and I are things from human stories. Like how Remilia and Flandre are vampires.? Patchouli made no effort to hide the fact that she was now backing away from Phoebe.

 ?I do not drink blood.? Phoebe was getting angry again, and it was all the librarian could do to keep herself from running into the shrine and hiding somewhere. The fabric on the girl?s shoulders tore as blood flew forth from them into the skies, creating the illusion of blood rain

 ?I don?t drink blood too.? Patchouli practically wanted to slap herself for such atrocious grammar, even though she was scared out of her wits. Her white gown and cap was quickly being stained crimson, and the half-moon on the front of her cap shone like a tainted ruby instead of a golden swash of light.

 ?I? confused. What are I?? Her flow had calmed to a boil like what Patchouli has seen through her filtered telescope when looking at the surface of the sun, with arches and flares of blood flying across her body as though she were ablaze.

 ?You are a Youkai. You have a power of some kind.? Patchouli was able to stop retreating now, and even guess at what Phoebe?s power could be, watching the way the girl?s blood flew from her in spectacular flares, arches, and showers.

 ?Power? Like? fly?? Phoebe had now calmed down at a regular rate, and she was dripping as though she had just stepped out of a crimson rain torrent.

 ?Well? All youkai can fly. But you have a power that is unique to you.?

 ?Unique??

 ?Sorry. I say that you have a power that belongs only to you.?

 ?I can heal fast.? She said, which was something that she happened to be doing as she spoke.

 ?Most youkai heal fast? what else can you do that is unusual?? Patchouli said, but she was not without awe at the rate of healing that Phoebe was displaying. It was most assuredly unmatched in all of Gensokyo, and from the sounds of it, all of Mercatia as well.

 ??Unusual? mean ?special???

 ?Yes. What is something special you can do??

 ?Nothing? really. I only lose blood.? Phoebe looked at Patchouli in such a way that told the librarian to stop toying with her.

 ?Maybe? your power uses your blood?? Patchouli quickly responded, not ignoring that look in the least. Any look from Phoebe was scary, really. If Phoebe wasn?t placid or happy, she was very frightening.

 ?Uses my blood? I need my blood, I can?t use it for my power.? Phoebe?s irritation with the conversation was quite evident, but she paused to allow Patchouli to try and explain her hypothesis.

 ?If your power uses blood, you don?t run out.? Patchouli said, which was actually an educated guess derived from observation.

 ?What could I do with my blood, Patchouli?? Phoebe was getting more irritated.

 ?That?s entirely up to you. You do what you like with your blood. If it?s your power, you can do what you like with it.? Phoebe stared at her hands again. She was wondering about this concept Patchouli was talking about.

 ?Do what I like?? She flexed her fingers, and dropped her hands back to her sides to stare at Patchouli.

 ?That is my guess. I would assume that you could use your blood to defend yourself.?

 ??Assume?? ?Defend???

 ?You could keep yourself from getting hurt bad by using blood. Assume means ?guess?.?

 ?You not make sense. I have to get hurt to keep from getting hurt?? Phoebe was about done with this conversation.

 ?That may be. But you may get more powerful the more you lose blood.?

 ?That sound bad. I do not like.? Phoebe stood back a bit.

 ?A youkai?s power can be very dangerous, whether it be to the user or to others.?

 ?I am a youkai? And I have a power? I can fly?? Phoebe went through the concept, not really believing it.

 ?I assume, but I do not know for sure.? Patchouli said, unaware of Phoebe?s doubts.

 ?I see. How do you fly, Patchouli?? Phoebe inquired, looking for a way to test the idea. Patchouli thought for a moment on how to answer, but didn?t really have one to offer. There wasn?t really any way to tell Phoebe how to fly? that would be like teaching her heart to beat.

 ?It? happens naturally. It?s like raising your hand. You just? know how to do it.? She said.

 ?Like what?? Phoebe looked up from the blood on the ground at Patchouli questioningly. Patchouli raised her hand up.

 ?Like moving your hand up to greet me. You can just do it. It?s not something I can teach you. You will know how to do it when it happens.?

 ?I will know?? But I do not know.?

 ?Do you know how to make your heart beat??

 ?No??

 ?Does your heart beat??

 ?Yes.?

 ?Flying is just like your heartbeat, or breathing.?

 ?What about Marisa? She can fly using magic broom? I want to try that.?

 ?She would have to teach you how to do that. Unfortunately, Marisa is not in Gensokyo anymore.?

 ?Marisa will be back. I can learn from her then.?

 ?I hope you?re right.?

 ?I not hope. I know. My body say it so.?

 ?Phoebe? that was a very odd thing to say.?

 ?Odd? Should I not say those words in that order??

 ?You could, but some people might take it differently from how you mean it.?

 ?I see.? Phoebe said, and thought about what she had said. A red piece of paper flashed between Phoebe and the librarian, catching the attention of both. They looked at the paper, and recognized it as one of Reimu?s amulets.

 ?Phoebe! That?s-?

 ?Paper from Reimu! Reimu not cross border??

 ?I?ll go get the others! You wait here!? Patchouli hopped into the air and quickly drifted into the shrine. Phoebe blinked and stared at her as she flew through the air.

 ?Patchouli not human?? She said in disbelief, then she stared at her hands again. Patchouli was back outside in a moment, followed immediately by Sakuya and Meiling. The others had chosen to stay inside and tend to Alice. ?Patchouli! You fly!?

 ?Of course I can fly. So can Sakuya and Meiling.? Phoebe was dumbfounded by this. But Sakuya wasn?t having any chitchat.

 ?This is one of Reimu?s amulets for sure. She left a mess of them in the mansion and I had to clean them all up. I?d recognize one of these blasted things anywhere. Which direction did it come from?? The maid confirmed Reimu?s amulet to be genuine. But no more had her question left her lips than a shower of several more amulets flashed by them, landing in various places on the shrine grounds. All four of them whirled to look at where they had come from and spotted something very strange.

 ?Do I see???

 ?Hearts? Fireworks in the shape of hearts??

 ?No! That?s danmaku! Someone?s trying to get our attention from over there!?

 ?But Sakuya? Why would they shoot hearts??

 ?Who knows. Look, exclamation marks. Thy want our attention, so I say we see what the fuss is about. Stay close to me-?

 ?I come! Marisa over there, and I want Marisa teach me to fly with magic broom! Take me!? Phoebe insisted. Her eyes had closed again at some point before Sakuya and Meiling had come outside, but there was no mistaking her determination.

 ?Right. Don?t fall too far behind, Phoebe. We won?t have to move very fast, because it?ll seem like we?ll appear in front of them before they can shoot another spellcard.? Sakuya said.

 ?Wait! We should let them shoot one more off, and then take off, so it?ll stay in the sky and we have something to follow while in your time-warp.? Meiling interjected.

 ?Good call, Meiling. Patchouli, you seem to know what you?re doing with Phoebe, so please take responsibility for her while I focus on the time stop.?

 ?It seems I have already taken responsibility of her lessons, so why not? Phoebe, we must stay near Sakuya. She will stop time around us, so we will reach Marisa and Reimu in no time.?

 ?Yes, Patchouli. I stay near Sakuya.?

 ?Let?s go.?

Kitaen Silva

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Chapter Fourteen - Resurrection of Communication
« Reply #14 on: October 16, 2009, 05:47:14 PM »
Aya and Reimu were tiring just as fast as the sun was rising. Reimu had thrown several thousand amulets in the direction of her own shrine, and Aya was on her last few spellcards.

"Y'know, Reimu... I'm getting pretty good at making hearts with my danmaku." The ex-reporter said optimistically through her sweat as they stopped to rest for a moment.

"Well... I have one spellcard left. Let's make it count-" Reimu started.

"Wait!" Remilia shouted as she flew up from behind them and stopped between the two.

"Remilia! What are you doing here?!" Reimu said, upset at her vampire friend's recklessness at this particular hour.

"How many people are going to ask me that tonight? I'm doing the same thing you are. Coming to get someone's attention." she replied.

"You should have stayed with Marisa! The sun is coming up!" Reimu said heatedly.

"I came because I had an idea. It's a one-shot deal, but worth a try."Remilia said. At this point, Aya piped up with a grin.

"Is it the one... the one Patchouli mentioned before?" she asked.

"The Spellcard Collaborative Combination." Remilia confirmed for the tengu. Reimu looked confused, but Aya was ecstatic.

"What is it... exactly?" Reimu asked, putting voice to the reason for her confusion. Remilia could see that Aya plainly wanted to speak.

"Care to explain, Aya?" she said.

"Of course! Um, the basic concept is that we combine the powers of our spellcards into one spellcard. this is done by tapping the power in a spellcard and vocalizing the combo preparation, then all participants casting the spell as one. Remilia knows more about the casting and combining, but that's the idea." Aya explained.

"And that's... the Spellcard Collaborative Combination?" Reimu asked hesitantly.

"Yes. Well, in theory." Remilia said.

"In theory?" Reimu raised an eyebrow.

"It's never been tried before. Patchouli and Remilia were going to test it over Misty Lake in a week, but... well, I think it's fairly safe to say that's not going to happen now that the border's in the way. Didn't you ever read my papers?" Aya said.

"Ehe... yeah... about that..." Reimu said, caught.

"This is as good a time as any to test this. Better than standing here babling about newspapers and subscriptions, right?" Remilia said, saving Reimu a problem.

"Right!" Aya said excitedly.

"I suppose so..." Reimu agreed, a bit more hesitantly. Remilia pulled out one of her favorite spellcards


(At this point, I have come to a standstill in my work. I have a large writer's block in regards to continuing with the rest of the chapter. Also, I'm kinda preoccupied with Ally's constant pressure as well as several smaller touhou things. Like successfully installing Touhou into my local library with a large Cirno cieling hangar.)
« Last Edit: October 31, 2009, 04:53:24 PM by Kitaen Silva »

Kitaen Silva

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Chaper Fifteen - Twilight of the Kismet Effluvium
« Reply #15 on: October 16, 2009, 05:48:38 PM »
[Note: This chapter has a mental concept, but has not been written yet. Chapter title is subject to change, as well.]

Kitaen Silva

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Chapter (undefined)
« Reply #16 on: October 16, 2009, 05:56:32 PM »
Expected Future Chapter Titles:

Cellphones and Youkai
Air Guitar

Kitaen Silva

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  • Motivate yourself to make that fake game.
    • Retro Fox Studios Online
Re: A Touhou Fiction Novel ~ Beyond Border Gensokyo
« Reply #17 on: October 31, 2009, 04:54:03 PM »
Chapter fourteen augmented.