Maidens of the Kaleidoscope
~Hakurei Shrine~ => Patchouli's Scarlet Library => Topic started by: AMZYoshio on November 27, 2010, 09:33:04 AM
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"How many times do I have to tell you!? Keep that witch OUT OF THE MANSION!!!"
"I'm so sorry, Sakuya-san..."
"And what's more, you've been asleep on the job AGAIN. How many times does this need to happen before you get it through your thick skull?"
"I am deeply sorry, Sakuya-san."
"Quit it with that pathetic puppy face. Moping isn't going to stop intruders, now is it? Now get back out there and do your damn job, CORRECTLY this time."
"Yes, Sakuya-san."
Meiling walked back outside of the mansion to the guardhouse. She sat down and looked up at the setting sun in the crimson sky.
"I can't possibly live up to their expectations...I try harder and harder every day, but even still I fail Sakuya-san and the Mistress...The Mistress will wake soon, and it's only a matter of time before Sakuya tells her of my latest failures...I'll try as hard as I can, even harder than I have from now on. I won't fail them this time."
Meiling had said something along those lines countless times - She was never extremely good at being the Scarlet Devil Mansion's gatekeeper. Oh sure, she kept out some of the smaller pests, such as fairies or animals, but the real threats were almost always able to get past her, either through trickery or sheer force. One of the biggest problems was that Black-White witch, Marisa Kirisame. She was always trying to get into the mansion to make off with Patchouli's books and other assorted treasures, and almost always got in at the least. This meant that Meiling almost always was beaten at the gate by Marisa, and then almost always beaten mentally by Sakuya as she was reprimanded for her failures.
However, despite all of these downing situations, Meiling had a strong heart. She always put her superiors before her, and thought very highly of them. Despite the numerous times she had been berated by Sakuya, ignored by Remilia, or used as a test subject by Patchouli, Meiling always considered those who lived in the mansion to be first. Despite all of her abuse, Meiling always blamed it on herself instead.
"If I just train harder and longer each day, then maybe that witch won't get through next time...I'll get up an hour earlier and stop my daily training an hour later. That way, I'll be conditioned even further so I can protect the Mistress..."
Meiling looked up at the ceiling in the small guard house. She tried to fight back tears, but it was no use.
"I just...I really just wish I could do better..."
The girl turned over in her bed, and then realized she was already failing at her job, despite being reprimanded moments ago. She leaped to her feet and took a post in front of the gate, fighting her own tears back and attempting to survey the landscape before her through a blurred veil.
"For you, ojou-sama..."
Meiling, her scarlet hair flowing, stayed vigilant through the night, with silent tears of her inner failure threatening to destroy her very being.
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"Hey! HEY!!!"
Meiling felt a sharp pain as she was jolted awake.
"Don't make me throw this knife at you, China!!!"
"S...Sakuya-san...?"
"Get up!!! You fell asleep AGAIN. How many times do I have to tell you to STAY AWAKE?"
Meiling opened her eyes and looked around. It was midday, and she had no doubtedly fallen asleep some time during the night while trying to stay alert.
"Use your head, China! That witch is our primary concern right now, and she almost never comes during the night because she's HUMAN. Or did you forget that too?"
"I'm sorry, Sakuya-san. I'll be smarter next time, Sakuya-san."
"Don't just say it, do it." Sakuya walked off in a huff, putting a silver knife away.
Meiling slumped down in relief. She hadn't been stabbed this time, merely poked. Although she has survived many knives before, she still didn't like the pain. She was also relieved that nothing too important had happened while she was asleep - she hadn't failed her job yet. However, she still was slightly worried that Sakuya had picked up a certain habit as of late.
It had been nearly half a year since Sakuya had called Meiling by her real name - She had simply resorted to calling her "China". Meiling knew that this was an insult of sorts - she was usually proud of her Chinese heritage, but the way Sakuya said it made it certain that this term was used as a form of berating her. Meiling had thought of this not as Sakuya being mean, but as a punishment that she deserved.
"If I would do my job better, I would earn my name back..." Meiling would think to herself. She thought of her title as "China" to be somewhat of a status marker - she had been demoted in a way. It was her repeated failures to keep the security of the gate that had given her this name, and she was the only one to blame.
Meiling stood up and began to do her daily training. She moved in slow, elegant steps, controlling every movement of her body in a careful rhythm, making sure that no step was unintentional and that no breath was out of place. It was through this method of conditioning that Meiling hoped to strengthen her body and mind to help her do her job correctly. It also complimented her ability to control the Qi in her own body, which was her main selling point in her attacks and defenses. It was a long, rigorous, tiring ordeal, but Meiling persisted on anyway, training each day, long and harder than she ever wished to.
"It's...It's for them." She would say to herself.
Meiling, after her training, resumed her position at the front gate. She was tired, having a shoddy night's sleep and longer than average training, but still she stayed at the gate, watching for any signs of trouble. It was this sort of routine that had been going on for as long as she had been commisioned gatekeeper for the Scarlet Devil Mansion. However, never once did Meiling complain about her job - never once did it cross her mind that she should quit. Meiling was the gatekeeper out of her own free will, and wished only to be good at her job. Day after day, Meiling took her position at the gate, waiting for intruders, putting herself in harm's way in the name of her superiors.
And yet, she was ill-respected. Sakuya called her China and always critiqued her performances, Patchouli only viewed her as another test dummy, and Remilia called her "you" and treated her like an object. However, Meiling did not view all of these things as being mistreated - in her mind, she deserved it.
"I just wish I could keep Marisa out of the mansion...Anyone out, really. Fairies don't count, they aren't serious about anything. Anybody who wants into this mansion gets past me, no matter what I say. I may talk down on people as they try to gain entry, but the truth is, I'm a failure. I deserve what I'm getting, and it's because I'm terrible at my job."
Meiling looked up into the sky.
"I'd do anything to protect you guys...If only I could..."
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Damn girl won't stand up for herself.
Anyways, the writing is good, but the premise I see here is the old "Meiling being a lousy gate guard". Something should happen later that would set this apart.
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Meiling should invest in anti-air weaponry since the main problem she has is all the major threats to the mansion can simply fly over the gate. Either that or she should get a new job like a bodyguard or something.
Anyway, I look forward to see where this goes.
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It's a darn shame they don't have caffeine......
Great story. Instead of Meiling being a brawn-headed gatekeeper (MEILING SMASH), she's just like any other person wanting to do her job.
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When I first saw this, I was like, "Is Yoshio writing a new story?" And then I started reading and was like, "Yes! Yes! It's true!"
I like your writing and look forward to reading more.
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I'm personally not a fan of the "GRAH STUPID CHINA KNIFE TO THE HEAD" version of Sakuya, but I'm interested in seeing where you go with this. Keep it up.
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Sorry about the wait, writer's block + AP = no story.
Meiling sat and hummed to herself as she surveyed the landscape for intruders. This sort of situation was very common - the hours of her job were endless, and the amount of happenings were quite low compared to the sheer amount of time that passed between them. Still, Meiling didn't complain, and even took this time to enjoy the scenery around the Mansion. Of course, she was the one responsible for tending to the gardens in her spare time, but even then she admired her work. However, she was interrupted by something that wasn't too unusual.
"Oh, hey there. Don't mind me, I'm just passing by, da ze~"
Meiling knew that voice anywhere. She quickly turned to see Marisa lazily flying toward the mansion. Quickly swapping her mindset, she flew up and intercepted Marisa's flight path.
"No, I think not. Unless you have been invited by the Mistress, you aren't allowed entry here." Meiling firmly told her.
"Oh, come on China, everyone knows you can't keep me out, why not just go back to your flowers?" Marisa laughed a little and continued on her path, but was met with a forceful hand.
"I said no. Now please, go along before I make you."
"Oh, I didn't want to have to do anything today, I'm feeling lazy. Oh well, if that's the way you want it, fine by me, ze~" Marisa backed up and pulled out her Hakkero, readying it.
"Then I shall teach you the power of my ancient Chinese arts!!!" Meiling pulled back as well, taking a defensive pose, ready for anything. Marisa threw some lazy shots at her, clearly simply playing. However, Meiling dodged them effortlessly, and threw a formidable wave of Danmaku at Marisa.
"Woah, easy there, don't hurt yourself! You want to that way, do ya?" Marisa grinned and gripped her broom. Meiling stayed silent, waiting for the next attack.
"Magic Sign: Stardust Reverie!!!" Marisa called out, as copious amounts of stars began to fly in Meiling's direction. The gatekeeper dodged dutifully, with the thought of protecting the mansion as her primary goal. This overall drive made the Chinese girl extremely skillful - despite the fact that her own shots weren't as hard to dodge, her sheer tenacity and will made for a valuable asset.
After a bit of warming up, Meiling decided that it was enough time to end this farce. "Strike Sign: Roc's Fist!!!" Meiling called, as she quickly weaved through Marisa's danmaku and delievered a powerful blow straight to the witch's midsection. Marisa flew back and off of her broom, loosing her concentration on her spell and hitting the ground with a resounding thud. Meiling landed next to her, at the ready, for she knew that Marisa wasn't nearly done yet.
The witch got up after a second and rubbed her head. "Ow...jeez, you aint kidding around today. Fine, I guess I'll have to step it up a bit." She pulled her hat on a little tighter, then threw up her Hakkero.
"MASTER...." Meiling dug into the ground, bracing for the incoming attack.
Marisa caught her hakkero and pointed it toward her enemy. "...SPAAAAAAAAAAARK!!!!!"
An immensely huge multi-colored laser shot directly at Meiling with such force that it shook many of the trees around. Meiling quickly jumped up to avoid it, but barely had any time to think before another came flying at her. Meiling, not having time to get out of the way, braced herself and drew her Qi to her center, effectively reducing the area in which the Spark had to hit her. Despite this, however, she simply couldn't stand up to it - Meiling was sent flying, and hit the wall next to the gate that she so desperately was trying to defend.
"Game set." Marisa smirked as she put away her Hakkero. She picked up her broom and flew up a few feet. "See you later, China."
Meiling looked up through her dazed vision to see Marisa fly lazily right over her and over the wall. She slumped down and took a deep, painful breath. A million thoughts ran through her head, most notably "How could I have failed again...", "Sakuya is not going to be happy...", and "Where did Mairsa learn that name?"
Meiling picked herself up after a minute, and dusted off her clothes. "That witch...She's the source of most of these problems, I know it. Most other people who try to get in either fail or see it pointless to get in if they have to deal with me. However, not her...She's so headstrong, and has the power to back it up. All of my training is worthless when it comes to her...Why? Why me? Can't I stop her, even once...?" Meiling moved over to the guardhouse, went inside, and sat down in a chair. "The only times I've even been able to 'stop' her, she was only playing around and left because she was bored. Whenever she actually tries though, I'm just blown away in the end, every time."
Meiling looked up quckly as she heard a great crash come from inside the mansion. "And whatever's going on in there, I'm sure Sakuya, Patchouli, and the Mistress can handle it. But at the same time, that's not the point, is it? I'm the gate guard...I'm supposed to handle it so they don't have to. All of them are so busy as it is, they don't have time to be bothered with things like Marisa and trying to defend their rightfully owned things. It's my job to stop her before she becomes a problem, and I can't do it right ever when it comes to her."
Meiling looked up at the blue sky that was so beautiful a moment ago, and resented it. "Such a calm, trainquil sky, mocking me. Through all of this turmoil I go through, it stays, not helping in any way. Where is Lei Gong when I need him to create a storm? If such storms were to occur, Marisa probably wouldn't be out here to try to get in. Besides, the Mistress is weak to the sun, a bit of bad weather would probably be better for her anyway."
Another crash sounded from the Mansion, and Marisa came blazing over the wall, a bag of books in tow, leaving a trail of stars in her wake., followed by several knives and blasts of magic. Marisa zoomed off, laughing, over the horizon. Meiling watched her disappear, and then sighed.
"I'm in for it no-"
Just then, Sakuya appeared next to her, and grabbed her by the collar. "Get over here, we're going to talk." Sakuya harshly said, as she basically dragged her into the mansion. After dragging her into an off room, Sakuya threw Meiling into a chair, and then threw several knives at her, just barely missing her head every time. They stuck into the wall behind her, and Sakuya stood silently, staring at the poor girl.
"Sakuya-san, let me-" Meiling began to say, but she was only cut off.
"Shut up! I don't want to hear you right now. Girls who don't do their job don't deserve to talk. Do you realize the amount of stress you cause the Mistress and Lady Patchouli? The Mistress is tiring of having to replace broken furniture and windows from that damned witch, and Lady Patchouli is missing some very important tomes and grimoires from her library. And do you know why all of this is happening?" Sakuya got extremely close to Meiling, and stared her straight in the eye. "Because of you." She quietly, but cuttingly said.
"If I ran this mansion, you'd be out in the street." She continued on. "But the Mistress insists that you stay, saying you're the only one that hasn't died in the process so far. So, I ask you this. Do you think you DESERVE the Mistress's kindness? I think that her patience with you will run thin eventually, and then you'll be at her complete mercy. And I know you don't want to deal with THAT." Sakuya backed up from Meiling, who was shaking with fear by now. This wasn't a fear of pain, or a fear of losing her job, but more like a childish fear of seeing Sakuya so angry - the kind of fear one gets if they are reprimanded by their parents for dishonoring their family, and the fear of what other accusations are to come.
Meiling looked down to the ground and held her heart still. She couldn't let Sakuya see her like that - it wasn't very befitting of a gatekeeper. She was supposed to be solid, unmoving, stoic, unbreakable. But the truth was, Meiling was more like a child inside - all she wanted was to be praised for doing well, for such a situation had not happened in quite some time.
"Get out of my sight." Sakuya eventually said to her. "I'll tell the Mistress of your failings, and you better hope for your sake that she forgives you once again." Sakuya held up several playing cards, and then dissapeared from the small room, letting the cards flutter down to the ground harmlessly.
Meiling sat in silence, still attempting to hold her heart still. She watched the cards slowly hit the ground, and noted that they were all cards of royalty. "Such a fitting hand for Sakuya," she thought. "I'm more like a 2, the way this is going."
Meiling slowly stood up, and then put on a mask of confidence. She didn't want any of the other maids in the mansion to know anything bad had happened - she wanted to look as perfectly normal as possible. She strided out of the room and back outside, where she began to tend to the gardens.
However, despite the guise of happiness and confidence she wore, Meiling was silently crying to herself inside.
--
"Calm, Sakuya." Remilia said as she held a hand up.
"But My Lady-"
The Vampiress stood up from her chair and put her hand over Sakuya's mouth. "Not a word," She simply said.
The lady of the house slowly walked over to a window, and looked out into the sunset at first, but then down to the grounds, where she saw Meiling quietly tending to the flowers.
"Perhaps she isn't the best gatekeeper, but she keeps things interesting at least." Remilia said eventually after watching her. "She doesn't seem to let it get her down that she's such a failure, so why not let her just keep going? To be honest, there's not a lot of people who would be willing to sit outside for the entire day who COULD stop that Witch."
"My Lady, it's not just the witch-"
"I said enough." Remilia calmly, but firmly said as she turned around. "She stays. A tool that has not lost its usefulness would be foolish to abandon - think about it Sakuya, where are we to find a new gatekeeper? You know how useful faries are as maids, imagine them being our line of defense. No, I say let the girl stay - I quite enjoy watching her try so much anyway. It's entertaining to see her so confident in herself, then falling time and time again, just to get up and try again. Somewhat like a fairy, except with slightly more class." Remilia smiled.
"If that is what you wish, My Lady." Sakuya said as she bowed her head.
Nobody in the mansion really knew about Meiling, that she was so child-like on the inside. Despite the comical game of cat and mouse that seemed to go on at the mansion between her and Sakuya, things were much more serious than anybody cared to mention. Remilia looked upon Meiling once again, and saw her watching a butterfly, and thought that the events of today were already off of her mind. The young lady deemed her as a simpleton, only worried about the exact moment she was in.
If only she knew.
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I'm personally not a fan of the "GRAH STUPID CHINA KNIFE TO THE HEAD" version of Sakuya.
I second this.
I'd much rather have the two acting more like best friends or maybe beyond that. In a few other works, Meiling usually acts as the "strong big sister" type to Sakuya, even if being a little if not air-headed. As Squid, I'm not a fan of Sakuya "punishing" Meiling, even if for incompetence. Thinking on it, Remilia should be the one to do that. Sakuya is technically an employee and I find it a problem when an employee abuses an employee.
Plus, if you think about what Meiling's job entails, of course she'd fall asleep. And honestly, who COULD beat Marisa? The girl's insane. This is a reason why I don't like the "Raging Knife-Throwing Sakuya". Most people would understand the situation. This portrayal of Sakuya makes her seem heartless.
On another note, this is well written. A part of me hopes that there will be a bit of character improvement on Sakuya and Meiling's part, but I'm just a reader. You, the author, are in control of that.
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I really like this story. I feel so bad for Meiling, I just want to reach through my screen and give her big hug.
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This story is wonderful. Meiling is more dere than i expected, and Pad-maid is more tsun than i expected.
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The large grandfather clock struck 3. Patchouli looked up lazily from her book, noted the time, and returned to her reading.
"I should test this out..." She mumbled to herself.
Patchouli had been reading and researching all day, but this is nothing new. She was somewhat angry that Marisa had "borrowed" more books from her, but her current studies thankfully did not call for the tomes she had taken.
"How to make a person keep their focus..."
Patchouli had been researching things that concerned Meiling directly. She wished to hopefully create a spell that would force her to mantain focus and not let her be distracted. To Patchouli, Meiling's shortcomings were not in her ability - she knew that Meiling was strong to a point. The gatekeeper's fault, to Patchouli, was that she is was too free minded and distractable, that she is too whimsical to maintain her focus.
Patchouli continued to read. Koakuma came by her eventually and handed her a book - the very book that Patchouli had asked for. Thanking her, she placed her current tome on a large stack next to her, and opened up the new volume to a page.
"Ah..." Her eyes brightened slightly. "This is exactly what I need. Koakuma, deliver a message for me."
Patchouli placed the open book next to her, and brought out a piece of paper. Finding a quill and opening an ink well, she began to write. After a few sentences, she put the quill in the ink and folded the paper, giving it to her assistant. After she left, Patchouli brought out another paper and began to write much more complex things on it.
She was devising a spell.
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"Maybe you just suck."
"H-Hey!!!"
Meiling was attempting to vent a bit of her emotions to a fairy who was passing by, but this obviously wasn't helping.
"I don't SUCK, Marisa is just too good."
"Well, get better. I don't see why this is hard."
Meiling was beginning to get frustrated with this fairy.
"Whatever, just...fine. I'll get better. Don't you have something to do?"
"Do I...?" The fairy questioned, and began to think.
"...Yeah, you said something about...meeting up with your friend before you stopped to talk to me. Remember?" Meiling replied convincingly.
"Oh yeah! I didn't forget, I was thinking of something else. See ya!" The fairy flew off lazy away from the mansion.
"Stupid fairies..." Meiling knew that the fairy wouldn't remember what she had told her anyway, which is most of the reason on why she felt like it was a good choice to confide even a little bit of her frustration with Marisa to her. However, she misjudged the stupidity of her, and found out that being blunt makes perfect sense to somebody with the intellect of a 5 year old.
From the mansion, she heard the clock tower toll out 3 bells.
"Ah...3 o'clock. Sakuya should be by soon with some food...About time, I'm starving." Meiling sat down in the chair next to the guard house. Several seconds later, Sakuya walked up with a small box containing some food, and handed it to her.
"Here. Now make sure you do your job right today." Sakuya said loftily.
"Mkay~" Meiling replied cheerily, beginning to open the box.
Sakuya didn't give her a second look before she was gone. Meiling would have noted her cold nature more, but she was already beginning to enjoy the small bit of food she was given.
"Ah...~" She said with a smile. "I love Chinese dumplings~"
Several minutes later, as Meiling was finishing up, she noted Koakuma walking toward her.
"Oh hey, what's up?" Meiling greeted her with a smile.
"Just delivering a message from Lady Patchouli." Koakuma handed Meiling the paper, then promptly left.
Meiling was a bit suprised, but opened the paper up and read it anyway.
Make sure you're actually awake at 6pm. I will be meeting with you by the gate at that time.
-Patchouli
"Huh. I wonder what for?"
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"You what?"
"Just hold still."
Meiling was sitting in a chair, and Patchouli was in front of her, holding a book. She began to recite some strange words that Meiling didn't understand, though it was clear that she was casting some sort of spell. Meiling trusted her, however - everything she had done so far to her was with good intentions, even if things didn't always work out.
After a bit, Patchouli placed a hand on her, and then Meiling began to feel as if she was being imbued with massive amounts of energy. The world became sharper, and she felt much more lively. It was as if she could have taken on the world at that very moment - like she could accomplish anything.
Taking her hand off of Meiling, Patchouli closed her book.
"There. That should make you more alert. Now don't let the Mistress down."
The librarian walked away without another word, and re-entered the mansion.
"Thank you Lady Patchouli!!!" Meiling called after her. "Wow, I feel great! Whatever she did makes me feel like I can take on anything, even Marisa! Heh, I wish she'd come by right now so I could test this out!"
Meiling began to show off a bit to nobody, kicking at imaginary figures and jumping about. Her self-confidence was boosted immensely due to this spell cast on her, and she was able to perform like she never had before, even if it was in practice. She was surely ready for the world.
However, the world didn't come to her. Instead, for the next 14 hours, Meiling sat outside, alert, unable to sleep, and bored out of her mind. She attempted to tend to the gardens while the sun was still out, but she had already done so for the day, so it ended up with her simply looking at the flowers before noting that she should be getting back to watching the gate. For the entirety of the night, Meiling simply sat and watched the landscape. Although she had enhanced senses and could see in the dark slightly better than she usually could, nothing was coming that night. It was truly a boring ordeal.
When the clock struck 8 in the morning, Meiling was still awake. However, no amount of magic will solve one fundamental problem - sleep loss.
Sakuya came by with her breakfast, and saw what Meiling could only hope was a bad dream. The poor gateguard, although still feeling alert, looked absolutely horrid. Her face was gaunt, her hair was extremely messy, she was slightly pale, there were dark circles under her eyes, and she looked like she was going to keel over at any moment.
"Oh, good morning Sakuya-san. What do we have for breakfast today?" Meiling asked cherrily.
"...Just...Here." Sakuya gave the box of food to her slowly before walking away.
"...Weird. Ah well, I'm hungry~" Meiling opened up the box and began to eat. She was extremely hungry, and finished her food much faster than she anticipated - and was still hungry.
Brushing off the fact, Meiling began her daily training. However, she knew things were amiss when she fell over when attempting to balance on one foot - a feat that she had successfully done so many times before. This kind of failure bewildered her, so she tried it again. And fell.
When the clock struck 3, Sakuya was back to deliver Meiling her daily food, but was met with an even sicker-looking Meiling.
"H...hey...Sakuya-san..." Meiling attempted to smile.
--
"Apparently I need to revise the spell..."
"You think?"
Meiling was asleep, while Sakuya and Patchouli discussed her condition.
"You know, I tell Meiling to do her job correctly, but she can't if she's dead, now can she?"
"Mmm...Maybe if I just channel the energy like this..."
Neither Sakuya nor Patchouli seemed extremely concerned about how Meiling was feeling - Sakuya only cared about Meiling protecting the gate, and Patchouli was only taken by how her spell had failed.
"So, why did you curse her again?"
"I didn't curse her, Sakuya." Patchouli looked up from her books. "I simply attempted to inhance her abilities magically, mostly in the department of keeping her alert and at full capacity. However, it seems that it drained her of all of her energy, but did not let her rest due to keeping her alert. So, in essence, it threw her body into overdrive until she would eventually burn out."
"Don't try this kind of thing again. I doubt the Mistress would approve."
"Indeed. I'll continue my studies, and be sure to be correct about anything I test in the field."
"Good day then, Lady Patchouli."
Sakuya walked out of the room to continue on her daily maid-like activities. Patchouli simply continued to read.
And Meiling continued to sleep.
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It's a decent break from Meiling being punished by Sakuya without derailing anybody.
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"It's o-k if I just play here, no-bo-dy will mind a bit~"
The young vampire sang to herself as she wandered the halls of the Scarlet Devil Mansion. A fairy maid noticed her, and started to head toward the girl.
"I'm just walk-ing, please don't bo-ther, go a-way you li-ttle bug~"
Pieces of the fairy lined the hallway as the girl moved on.
"What's in here, oh how I won-der; May-be it is a big cake~"
The door to where Meiling was sleeping slowly opened, and the vampire strode over to her bedside.
"Hm? It's the gateguard...she's so nice! I wonder if she wants to play!"
She attempted to shake Meiling awake, but she was fast asleep.
"Come on, get up! Let's play Danmaku!!!"
But Meiling continued to sleep.
--
"I will defeat you, no matter what you say!!!"
"Ha, deplorable girl, do you think you are any match to me?"
"For the good of the mansion...Prepare for doom!"
Meiling stood brave and fought off wave after wave of dark minions, all heading for the Scarlet Devil Mansion. Valiantly destroying her assailants, the gatekeeper fought on. Eventually, after several hundred of the shadowy, faceless figures, a large presence presented itsself.
"Very well, I shall deal with you my self!"
The two clashed, Meiling not exactly sure of what she was fighting, but continuing on anyway. A burning desire ran through her heart; a desire to protect the mansion and those who lived within it. Hit after hit, Meiling doled out punishment, and block after block, she absorbed many blows. After a long, tiring battle, Meiling pulled back and struck one final time directly into the core of the monster - ending it's reign of terror.
Meiling landed on the ground, stood for a second, and then fell to her knees. She was extremely tired - more so than she had realized. She began to fall to the ground, but was caught at the last minute by a warm embrace. Looking up slowly, she was met with a familiar face.
"S..Sakuya-san...?"
"WAKE UP!!!"
--
Flandre threw a huge pillow at Meiling, causing her to jolt awake. As feathers in the room settled, Meiling became aware of her surroundings and looked at the girl before her.
"Oh...it's you. Nice to see you, Flandre-san." Meiling lazily said as she let a big yawn loose.
"It's about time, I've been trying to wake you up for an hour!!!" Flandre complained. It was, in reality, only about 5 minutes, but she was impatient.
"I'm sorry..." Meiling said before yawning again.
"Why're you so tired anyway?" Flandre asked innocently, forgetting her previous rage.
"I dunno...Just didn't sleep well last night I guess." Meiling looked outside, and noticed that it was dark. Looking at a nearby clock, she was extremely suprised to see that it said 1:13.
"It's night...was I asleep all day?"
"I dunno, but lets play!!!" Flandre span around in a circle with a smile, and then grabbed Meiling's hand and drug her out of the bed.
"Hold on, Flandre-san. Shouldn't you be in your room, like your sister asked?"
Flandre frowned. "But it's so boring in there...I wanted to come out and play today."
Meiling looked at the vampire's sad look, and couldn't stand that kind of pressure.
"Ok fine, it can't be THAT bad...Let's just try and not make too much noise, ok?"
"Yay! Thank you Meiling~" Flandre threw her arms around her. "Let's go play Danmaku!!!"
Fearing for her life, Meiling suggested that they play something a little quieter, to which after a bit of pouting, Flandre agreed. The two played together - First they wandered the halls of the Mansion and pretended that all of the fairy maids were out to get them, causing them to hide from sight and take strange detours to attempt to get places. Soon after that, they made their way to the library, and Meiling sat Flandre down in an off corner where Patchouli wouldn't notice them so she could tell her a story.
As Flandre listened to Meiling tell the story, her eyes shined up in admiration and wonder. She viewed Meiling as something of a big sister, for she was the only one who seemed to play with her. Fairies were ok, but they broke too quickly, and they didn't actually know her.
Before long, Meiling was in the middle of a sentence, but promptly stopped due to Flandre leaning her head against her, falling asleep. The gatekeeper looked at her and smiled, noting how cute she was. She closed the book quietly, set it down, and put an arm around Flandre.
"Good night, Flandre-san." Meiling said as she yawned, realizing that she was very tired as well. She started to lean her head against her as well, when she was awakened by a loud thud.
"Get up."
"Sakuya-san!" Meiling stood up quickly, waking Flandre in the process.
Sakuya was standing in front of the two, and a large book was at her feet - she obviously had dropped it to wake them up.
"Why are you here in the library with the young mistress instead of at the gate? And further more..." Sakuya turned to Flandre, "...Why are you out of your room?"
"Leave Meiling alone! She was just playing with me!" Flandre yelled.
"I'm sorry, Sakuya-san..." Meiling instictively responded.
"You know better than this, China. You should have led the young mistress to her room, as the mistress desires. Why do you continually disobey the rules of this mansion?" Sakuya scowled at her.
"It wasn't her fault, I wanted to play!" Flandre scowled in return.
"Flandre-san, this is between China and-"
"HER NAME IS NOT CHINA!!!!" Flandre screamed out before a large amount of books flew off the surrounding shelves, pages going everywhere.
"Flandre-san, please..." Meiling quietly told her. The young vampire was breathing heavily, almost growling, but refrained from destroying any more of the library.
"I've had enough of this. China, go back to where I left you to sleep. I want to have a word with you." Sakuya turned to Flandre. "Please come along, Miss Scarlet." Sakuya politely said.
"Fine...Be nice to Meiling though. She's nice to me." Flandre said innocently before following the maid out of the room.
Meiling started to walk out of the library, when she noticed a very angry looking Patchouli viewing the damages done to the library. Not wanting to stick around, she dashed out of there, heading back to the room in which she awoke. Sitting down on the comfortable bed, she took a deep breath.
"Sakuya did NOT sound happy..." She mumbled to herself.
"That's because I'm not." Sakuya said from across the room.
"AH! Sakuya-san, where did you-"
"Nevermind my abilities. I'm extremely concerned with you. Do you even think before you do ANYTHING? You know damn well that Flandre-san is not supposed to be out of her room, and you know damn well why. Just look at what she did to the library - There are no doubtedly countless books that are irreplacable that are now nothing but shreds!"
"Sakuya-san-"
"Shut up. Just shut up. I'm sick and tired of you making excuses for yourself, and I'm sick and tired of you not doing your job."
"Sakuya-san, Flandre-san was behaving well before you came into the library." Meiling stood up.
"That's not your concern, nor is it your place to try and predict what she will do. The mistress has given strict orders that Flandre-san stay in her room unless otherwise stated, and I don't know about you, but I didn't hear Remilia-sama saying anything about letting her out." Sakuya yelled.
"You're making it sound like I let her out-"
"What's to say you didn't?" Sakuya asked coldly.
Meiling stopped, and thought of Flandre. She thought of how the poor girl stays locked up in her room for so long, and how terribly bored and depressed she must be, being alone for years upon years on end. It was only recently that she began to attempt escapes on a semi-regular basis - before, it was only every few years, but now it seems to be every few months. Meiling thought that Flandre wasn't the monster that everyone makes her out to be, but simply a little girl, looking for a friend.
Meiling swallowed her pride, and submitted to her superior. "I'm sorry, Sakuya-san. It's my fault. I should have led her back into her room. I should have been smarter."
"Damn right you should have been smarter." Sakuya raised her hand, and had several silver knives in her grasp.
"Sakuya."
Instantly, Sakuya turned around and slipped her knives away. "M-My lady!"
"Step aside."
"Yes, my lady."
Sakuya took a few steps back, and Remilia strode into the room slowly, and then stood on the bed next to Meiling to get to eye level with her.
"Why are you so angry with her, Sakuya?" Remilia asked smoothly.
"My lady, she let the young mistress out of her room, which resulted in the destcrution of part of the Library." Sakuya hung her head and clasped her hands in submission - a completely different sight to what she was just a moment ago.
"Mmm, go on..." Remilia cued, eyeing the gatekeeper over.
"As you know, she was asleep due to over-exertion, however, according to Flandre-san, she has been awake for several hours, and thusly has not been guarding the gate either."
"It's night, not a lot of intruders wander in while a Vampire is awake and well."
"In addition, she has deliberately disobeyed your orders of which I have given her, even going so far as to argue them."
"Oh, it can't be that horrible, can it Sakuya?" Remilia smiled, jumping down from the bed. "Flandre wanted some fun, and it's not like the Witch doesn't destroy the library already." The vampired turned to Meiling suddenly. "Or, is that what you're wanting me to say, gatekeeper?"
Meiling's eyes widened and her heart raced.
"Umm..."
"Speak up, I can't hear you~" Remilia taunted, giving her a chilling smile.
"I-I wish only to serve and protect you, My Lady." Meiling replied.
"Mmm, then do so." Remilia stated, then turned and began to walk out of the room. Meiling sighed in relief - she'd been saved by this turn of fate.
"Sakuya."
"Yes, my lady?"
"Punish her for what she's done. But make sure she still works for today's shift."
"Yes, my lady."
Meiling's heart stopped, if but for a moment. What a cruel twist of fate.
"Well, China. You heard her." Sakuya glared before drawing out several knives.
Meiling's screams of pain could be heard from outside the mansion.
-
I repeat, I want to jump in and give a big ol' hug to Meiling. I really liked how this chapter started too. Meiling's dream was awesome.
-
Sakuya deserves a slap upside the head, preferably with a large bludgeoning device with several nails sticking out.
-
Please tell me something that isn't usual Meiling fare (like getting stabbed on the forehead, friends with Flandre, sleeps a lot, etc.) comes up later,,,
-
Please tell me something that isn't usual Meiling fare (like getting stabbed on the forehead, friends with Flandre, sleeps a lot, etc.) comes up later,,,
Oh just you wait, I was just setting it up to let people know how people's relationships are as of now.
-
Oh just you wait, I was just setting it up to let people know how people's relationships are as of now.
I suspected that. Well, that's a relief.
-
Ehhh...I still hate how Meiling is treated. Sakuya is turning out to be very unforgiving. It's like she doesn't even care...or listen for that matter.
I don't like the way the fandom runs with this. Just like how Meiling is viewed as a big sister to Flandre, I'd like to see something where Meiling and Sakuya act as friends (it's, unfortunately, very rare but exists).
Don't get me wrong. Your story is well written. I just cringe at the way Meiling is treated. And it didn't help having Remilia instigate the punishment either (you'd think she'd be more understanding).
-
I feel like I'm going to explode and give Meiling a hug, she needs one! :ohdear:
...And it didn't help having Remilia instigate the punishment either (you'd think she'd be more understanding).
Actually, I imagine Remilia to be a bit of a cold person...
-
I feel like I'm going to explode and give Meiling a hug, she needs one! :ohdear:
Actually, I imagine Remilia to be a bit of a cold person...
Welcome Azzy!
I share that thought of Remilia too. So I don't really mind of this Remilia. Its just Sakuya thats being a turn off. So cruel. Pity for Meiling.
-
I don't like the way the fandom runs with this.
You'd think she'd suffered head damage or have died by now.
And I don't think Meling and Sakuya being friends is all that uncommon. Although I don't look at very much fanworks anyways.
-
Pain was all she could think of. Sakuya surely spared no expense when it came to punishment, and although Remilia's orders were followed, keeping the post at the gate was an extremely taxing ordeal. Meiling simply sat in a chair and wished that nobody would come by, because she knew that she would not be able to fend them off if they did. Every minute that passed seemed like an hour, for the soreness of Meiling's body was a force to be reckoned with.
"You ok?" A voice asked the gatekeeper suddenly. Meiling looked up quickly, attempting to be alert, and noticed that it was Alice. Looking up so quickly hurt, however, so she quickly sank back into her chair.
"Yeah...Just...Lady Patchouli doesn't mind you coming in, so go ahead." She replied before closing her eyes.
"You sure? Marisa didn't do this to you, did she?" Alice asked, with a bit of worry in her voice.
"No, just go. It's none of your business." Meiling replied a bit more coldly than she was intending.
"Fine, whatever you say." Alice entered the gate of the mansion and was on her way.
"Owwww...." Meiling sat, and any major movement she made was met with searing pain. She would most definitely not be able to do much today.
However, the real trouble was not from intruders on the outside, but turmoil on the inside, for at that very moment, a table flew through one of the upper floor windows. Meiling would have done something about it, but seeing how she knew Alice was heading to the library, she decided not to, as Alice was doubtfully the culprit.
--
"Miss Flandre, please!!!"
"Flandre, get back here!!!"
"MAKE ME!!!"
Remilia and Sakuya were confronted with an enraged Flandre, who continued to destroy countless objects within the large room.
"Flandre, I swear I'm going to kill you!!!" Remilia charged a bit of energy, then created a large Gungnir in her hand, She took aim and hurled it at her sister, who tossed a cabinet in the way to diffuse the energy. Simply becoming angrier, Remilia dashed after her in attempts to deal with her physically - however, Flandre met her bluff with a blow of her own, sending Remilia flying backwards and creating a large crack in the wall.
"THE WORLD!!!" Sakuya called out, sick of these games. Before Flandre had time to react, Sakuya had her by the collar, and was sure that while Flandre was angry, she at least would not majorly harm her.
"Miss Flandre, why are you so angry?" Sakuya asked firmly. Flandre attempted to struggle free, and did for a moment - however, Sakuya simply caught her again within seconds. Finally giving in a bit, Flandre stopped struggling.
"Why'd you hurt Meiling? I told you to be nice!!!" Flandre screamed out, tearing up slightly.
"It was an order from the Mistress; your sister. Besides, China deserved i-" Sakuya started.
"Her name is NOT CHINA!!!" Flandre scramed, as she spun around and delivered a powerful kick to Sakuya's stomach, sending her flying into the opposite wall. "IT'S MEILING!"
Remilia, regrouped from her previous defeat, confronted her sister. "If you're so worried about that gatekeeper, confront me about it. Sakuya is right, she was only listening." Remilia said cooly, attempting to distract her insane sister's attention off the maid. Remilia knew that although Sakuya was powerful, she was not nearly as strong as a vampire and could become easily hurt or killed in this situation.
"So you told Sakuya to make it so Meiling would scream that loud? Why would you do that, Onee-chan!?" Flandre screamed out, tears of rage beginning to flow down her face.
"I simply told her to make sure she was punished, and that she could continue to work. She seems to be out there right now, and no intruders have entered, so does it matter?" Remilia asked, attempting to diffuse the situation with logic.
"I don't care about that!!! You treat her worse than you treat me!!!" Flandre yelled as she took an offensive position once again. She was so caught up in her emotions that she was beginning to lose all rational thought, even as such to begin to disrespect her sister.
"I keep you safe!!! I make sure nothing bad happens to you!!! All of the countless dangers in this world, all of the people and animals that can harm you, all of the troubles and worries of maintaining a mansion - I do it so you don't have to! I keep you in that room for your own good! Just look at yourself, you wouldn't be this worked up and upset if you would have just listened to me!!!" Remilia screamed back, beginning to break her own charisma. Although the vampire was cool to everybody else, dealing with her sister seemed to strike a nerve with her.
"All you do is abuse people! Why can't I ever play outside, or with Meiling!? Why do you treat us all like dirt!?" Flandre just screamed back, not really listening to her sister.
"If I was abusing everybody, Sakuya and the gatekeeper would have left long ago, and you would not have what you do! I keep you fed, keep you in a warm bed, with clean clothes, everything!!! And you know the sun is dangerous, don't be an idiot!!!"
The two sisters yelled at eachother for a good chunk of time while Sakuya was regaining her senses. After standing up finally, she saw how heated the situation was becoming again, as Flandre was screaming at the top of her lungs with tears streaming hot down her face, and Remilia was screaming just as angrily back, clenching her fists tightly. Seeing this situation, she decided to intervene.
"Please, mistresses!!! Stop!!!" Sakuya yelled out between them. The two vampires looked over to Sakuya quickly, both looking extremely angry.
Sakuya was a bit unnerved, but continued on anyway. "If you want to settle this, how about a duel? You would get farther than simply destroying the mansion..." The maid suggested.
Remilia looked her sister in the eye, who returned the stare. They both nodded, then flew out of the broken window, leaving Sakuya to clean the mess they had made.
"If I win, you have to treat Meiling and the rest of us fairly!!! Stop telling Sakuya to hurt her!!!" Flandre screamed out at her sister.
"Mmm, and if I win?" Remilia asked, not entirely sure of what she would want other than Flandre to simply stop.
"If you win...If you win, I'll do whatever you say without question for 100 years!!!" The young vampire replied. She knew what kind of sentence this was, but she was absolutely positive that she could beat her sister at a duel. Despite being older, Flandre was more powerful afterall.
However, although being slightly weaker, Remilia was more cunning and charasmatic, knowing how to effectively fight without straining herself too much. The two began to exchange waves of Danmaku and powerful blows - Remilia throwing Gungnirs and slashing at Flandre, while she was met with swipes of the L?vateinn from Flandre, as well as several crushing physical blows.
The battle was extremely heated, and each sister knew the other well enough to anticipate eachother's moves. However, neither of them could anticipate what was going to happen next.
"I have to stop them!!!" Meiling yelled, standing up. She was still in pain, but she simply clenched her jaw and seethed through it using her ability to control her Qi. Meiling saw the two sisters battling so fiercely, and thought that not only would they both end up very hurt, but that the mansion would end up being damaged as well. Also, more importantly to her, she couldn't stand to see the two sisters fight - she admired and respected both immensely.
Jumping up, she took flight over the wall and headed to where the two sisters were dueling. However, unbeknownst to her, this was a DUEL. Meiling believed the two were simply fighting - after all, a table had been thrown through a window, and plenty of yelling was going on as far as she could tell. Not having any direct plan, Meiling simply did what she hoped would end the fight - she aimed a powerful blow right for both sisters just as the two came into contact.
The force of the resulting reaction sent all 3 of the girls flying in different directions. Meiling was plowed into the ground, and lay in immense pain. The two vampires, however, were simply angered - the wanted to know who would interrupt their duel. Flandre came upon the gatekeeper first, and then suddenly realized what she thought had happened.
"Meiling tried to help me..." Flandre smiled, then turned around. "I WON THE DUEL, ONEE-CHAN!!!" She yelled out. Remilia flew over to where Flandre was and landed on the ground next to Meiling as well.
"You did not, the stupid gatekeeper interfered!" The older sister retaliated.
"You're just jealous that I won!!! Now stop calling her stupid, you promised!"
"You CHEATED is what you did. And besides, I'm not even through all my spellcards!"
"Want me to end that right now!?"
"My lady...Flandre-san..." Meiling said finally, beginning to sit up. "Please stop fighting..."
"It's called a duel, of course we're going to fight." Remilia replied.
"Yeah, a duel that I WON." Flandre snarked back to her sister.
"Duel...?" Meiling questioned, but then instantly realized her mistake.
"Yes, a duel. Are your ears broken? And if I remember correctly, you broke the spellcard rules by intervening with a formal duel."
"This duel was as much hers as it is ours, and you know it."
"Maybe you two should just comprimise, if I may say so?" Meiling suggested innocently, attempting to refrain from being hurt more. The two sisters looked at eachother, then at Meiling. Meiling smiled nervously, and could only wonder what the two were thinking.
"Yes...A comprimise." Remilia smiled with her usual charismatic smile. "I'll stop 'mistreating' Meiling."
"Good! Looks like I won then!" Flandre smiled confidently.
"Now hold on, a comprimise means I get something as well." Remilia turned to Meiling. "I want to have a meeting, gatekeeper. I have a task for you."
"Yes, my lady." Meiling said shakily.
--
"You called, ojou-sama?"
"Yes Sakuya, come have a seat."
The five main tenants of the Scarlet Devil Mansion all sat at a large table. Patchouli was reading a book as normal, and Flandre was sitting closely to Meiling, paranoid that Remilia was going to do something drastic. Remilia sat at the head of the table with Sakuya taking her seat at her right.
"Now, as you all no doubtedly know, there has been turmoil within the walls of this Mansion." Remilia began, speaking to the group. "Much of this turmoil has not come from our staff of fairy maids like it normally does, but instead from what I believe to be torn relationships. You." Remilia gently pointed a finger.
"Yes, my lady?" Meiling spoke up.
"You seem to be the center of much of these recent problems. While I will not blame you directly as being the source, almost all of the recent disasters in this mansion can be linked back to you. You have repeatedly failed your job at keeping intruders out of the mansion, and while I understand Marisa is a powerful foe, she makes it in time and time again without so much as a scratch on her." Remilia paused a moment to sip from her teacup, then continued. "It is as such that I have decided to send you on a journey to strengthen your skills."
"A journey?" Meiling asked.
"Indeed. Patchouli here is in need of research, and sadly the library lacks the information needed. Since you fail to keep Marisa out of the library, she has no doubtedly stolen what Patchouli needs. What I require you to do is not obtain the books back, but instead write a new one."
"I am in the need of knowing about a particular location in Gensokyo that I have not researched to my fullest potential." Patchouli said as she put her book down. "As I am busy with other duties, I will not be going myself. You're going to go for me, and you're going to take this book and document what you see." Patchouli slides a leather bound book across the table to Meiling.
Meiling opened the book and flipped through a few pages. "As you can see," Patchouli continued on, "I have labled out things of which I require you to write about. All you have to do is go there, and fill in the blanks. I have also left a number of blank pages at the back for any additional notes you think would be interesting."
"Excuse me for asking, Patchouli-san, but where are you asking me to go? I don't think you've told me." Meiling asked poiltely.
"She requires you to travel to Makai." Remilia answered for her friend. Both Meiling and Flandre's eyes widened, while Sakuya smiled.
"Isn't Makai really really scary and dangerous!?" Flandre yelled out.
"Mind your tounge, Flandre. We're trying to have a civil meeting here." Remilia cautioned.
"Besides, this will teach China a valuable lesson." Sakuya added.
Flandre glared at Sakuya. "I thought I told you that her name is not China..."
"Mmm, yes, why DO you call her that?" Remilia turned to the maid. Sakuya was slightly taken back, not expecting Remilia to side with Flandre.
"My lady, with all due respect, she is hardly worthy of mention, being of little use that she is. Is it not ok to call the rest of the maids in this household simply 'maid' or 'fairy'?"
"While you're correct about the fairies..." Remilia paused again for another sip of tea.
"I do have to say that Flandre has a point in being angry. You forget Sakuya - no matter what you may think of Flandre, she is still my sister, which means she is your superior. So, by that logic, recieving an order from her, as long as it does not overrule mine, should be taken as obediently as if it were I that said it. Don't you think?" The vampire smiled and took another sip from her cup.
"Yeah, that's right Sakuya!" Flandre cut in. "And I got a good idea!!!"
"Oh, do tell." Remilia added.
"Meiling shouldn't go alone. Sakuya should go with her, and learn a lesson too!"
Sakuya's expression changed from one of calm to a bit of fear, while Meiling's turned to one of shock.
"Oh no, no, Flandre-san, that's very nice of you, but..." Meiling began.
"Actually, I think that's a wonderful idea." Remilia decided. "Sakuya is overworked anyway, isn't that right?"
"M...My lady...!" Sakuya stuttered.
"Mmm, is there something you wish to tell me?"
"I simply cannot leave, there is so much work to be done, and the fairy maids hardly get anything done, and with-"
"Are you saying that your idea is better?"
"N-no, I wouldn't ev-"
"Then it's decided." Remilia put her tea cup down and turnd to face Meiling. "You shall be accompanied by Sakuya. Sakuya, since you are so critical upon this poor girl, perhaps you can find a way to teach her how to improve herself that doesn't include simply punishment after punishment. I believe that she can also teach you as much as you teach her, if you keep your mind and heart open." Remilia smiled at the group she had before her.
"...Yes, my lady." Sakuya grudgingly said.
"I will do my best for you and Lady Patchouli, my lady." Meiling affirmed with a smile.
"Then be gone - the sooner you two get back, the sooner Patchouli and I can resume our daily lives. Do not dissapoint us." Remilia stood up from the table and left the room.
"Good luck Sakuya and Meiling!!!" Flandre said cheerily. She gave each of the girls a hug, then followed after her sister.
"Ladies." Patchouli simply said before getting up and departing for the library.
Sakuya and Meiling stood in the room looking at eachother for what seemed like an eternity, but was in reality but a brief moment. The ticking of the clock in the room seemed to coincide with each of their heartbeats, and it was getting louder and louder to Meiling as time passed on. As Sakuya stared at her, she could only think of the things that would be going through her head - one thing was for certain though: she definitely did not look pleased.
"Well then, let's go." Sakuya said before leaving the room.
Meiling followed after her, and the two were seen leaving the mansion gates from a high window.
"I hope they stay safe..." Flandre said as she watched the two walk down the path away from the mansion.
"Oh, they'll be fine, Flan." Remilia assured her. "It's more of a matter of if they can stand eachother. That's what I'm not as sure about."
-
MEILING & SAKUYA: PARTNERS IN CRIME
-
Ah, dear Flan. I'm glad you're defending Meiling.
(Also, Sakuya and Meiling make a great team...you know, when "punishments" are left out.)
-
Makai? heard it's lovely there this time of the year.
I could just imagine Flandre with a smirk on her face implying 'ouch'.
-
Interesting to think about what they'd find in Makai...
(R> Chibi Sariel)
-
The two ladies walked down the path away from the mansion in silence. The summer air was nice, yet there was an extremely uncomfortable stagnant atmosphere about. Sakuya simply looked ahead at the path, walking at a steady pace, a nearly blank look on her face. However, Meiling could tell that she was anything but pleased - the way she reacted to Remilia's order was not what she would reguard as a willing action. The gatekeeper looked around as she walked, and noted several butterflies fluttering by.
"I love butterflies~" Meiling broke the silence. Sakuya, however, did not pay her any mind. Meiling thought that she'd try to lighten the mood - after all, if the two were going to be traveling for a bit, they might as well get along.
"Do you like butterflies, Sakuya-san?" Meiling asked curiously.
"Be quiet." Sakuya replied. "If you don't stay focused on your job, you're bound to fail. Let that be your first lesson."
Meiling looked at the ground as she walked. "Sorry, Sakuya-san."
It bewildered her, how Sakuya was so curt with her as of late. The two used to be on slightly better terms in years past - they weren't exactly best friends, but Sakuya would at least smile to her. However, those were years before the Scarlet Mist incident - before the frequency of Marisa's visits. Meiling knew that due to Marisa, her rate of keeping the gate secure had dropped dramatically, and thusly she wasn't too suprised that Sakuya was mad at her. However, it still was puzzling to think that Sakuya could be mad even at that moment - the sun was shining, it was a bright and early morning, birds were singing, the trees were green, the air was fresh. It was truly a beautiful day, a day that one reads about in story books and is sheer perfection in itsself. Yet, despite all of this, the maid looked on ahead, and didn't pay attention to any of the nice surroundings. All she was intent on doing was getting this job done as quickly as possible, Meiling determined. And apparently that meant that small talk was out of the question.
Maybe it's her job as a maid... The gatekeeper thought to herself. Maybe since she's so used to serving on a whim instantly without question, she doesn't want to mess around at all on this journey. Still...it wouldn't kill her to be a little nicer.
Then, Meiling's expression changed. No, what am I thinking? Sakuya is the correct one here - she's most likely trying to teach me something, like she already said. To be focused would be to be successful, to not waver in your will for perfection in your goals is to persevere. Sakuya knows how to do that, and apparently I don't enough. She's the one correct here...
"Snap out of it."
Meiling did so, and looked at Sakuya, who had stopped in the middle of the path.
"You're extremely distracted. Did I not tell you to focus? I am your superior, do not forget that. You must do as I say, as well as obey the orders of the mistress. We're to go to Makai, and you're to write out observations in that book. We're not here to look at trees, or play with birds, or frolic in flowers." The head maid glared at Meiling for a moment, then turned back and continued on her way.
"...Why can't we do both?"
Sakuya stopped once more. she clenched her fist, then took a deep breath, and eased her grip. "Fine, do whatever you want. I'm getting this job done. I'll just tell the mistress that you'd rather sunbathe than listen to her."
"I'm sorry, Sakuya-san, but I meant why can't I enjoy the scenery as I walk?" Meiling asked with a childlike curiosity.
"Because, China, delaying your duties is not unlike telling the mistress that you'd rather do something later. Now let's get going." Sakuya continued to walk.
Meiling followed her and looked down at the ground. She didn't want to enjoy the day anymore - she'd feel too guilty.
--
"So...you just crack it open like this...and...KYA!!!"
"Are you having trouble, Remilia-san?"
"Oh...Sakuya used to do this for me, and she was so good at it."
"Are you regretting sending the two?"
Remilia was standing over a stove in the lavish kitchen of the Scarlet Devil Mansion, and she had egg all over her dress. Patchouli was in the room as well, for she thought that she'd at least attempt to help out around the estate now that Sakuya was gone.
"I don't regret anything I do." Remilia replied casually. "Regrets only diminish will. I learn from the mistake."
"So you're saying it was a mistake to send them?" The librarian asked, picking at the vampire's brain.
"No, I think it was a mistake to hire fairies in place of maids. They're so useless..." Remilia took a nearby cloth and wiped herself down.
"Maybe we can have something simpler then. Until they return." Patchouli suggested.
"Indeed. Eggs are disgusting before you cook them." Remilia agreed as she wiped as much of the sticky whites off of her as she could. "I wonder how the two are doing, anyway."
"Sakuya has probably already done her fair share of yelling, no doubt about that." Patchouli casually said as she turned a page in the book she was reading.
"Most likely. The gatekeeper probably is acting too cheerful for her tastes." Remilia hopped off the chair she was standing on and wandered over to a nearby cabinet and opened it, looking for something else to eat.
"Indeed. Sakuya is a bit touchy with her."
"Mm, yes." The vampire looked around in the cabinet, but then noticed a fairy maid enter the kitchen. "You there, make us something to eat. I don't care what you were doing before." She commanded. The fairy nodded then went around, looking for things to cook. "It has been worrying me, how much Sakuya has taken a turn in her personality. She's always been loyal to me, but she seems to have had less and less patience with others, especially the gateguard."
"Perhaps she simply cares about the mansion." Another page flipped.
"It's possible. However, I think Sakuya doesn't have to act so rashly in any case."
"Why did you not simply command her to be nicer? If she is so loyal, it would make sense that she would obey you." Patchouli looked up from her book and into the vampire's eyes.
"Sakuya would take the order with a grain of salt." Remilia replied as she and Patchouli walked out of the kitchen and into the dining room. "I know that she would try to act more appropriate, but in reality she would simply wish she could punish the gatekeeper all the same." The two sat down in the fancy chairs around the large dining table. "I hoped that by sending them on this quest of sorts that they would learn to work with eachother, if even a bit better."
"Mmmmm, that sounds like a plausible plan." Patchouli noted as she put down her book. The fairy whom Remilia commanded earlier came out of the kitchen holding two plates and placed them in front of the girls before bowing and leaving off into the mansion. Remilia looked at her plate and saw that she had been served shoddily cooked eggs. They were slightly burned, and hardly seasoned at all.
"Ehhh..." Remilia groaned slightly.
"At least you got your eggs." Patchouli smiled.
"Stupid fairies..." Remilia mumbled as she forced herself to eat.
--
Sakuya and Meiling had arrived at the Hakurei Shrine, for they both knew that the resident Shrine Maiden, of all people, would know where the entrance to Makai is.
"Mmmm, sounds like your problem." Reimu said casually as she swept the front of her shrine. "And besides, I don't know why you'd want to go to Makai anyway. There's nothing but trouble there."
"We've bee-" Meiling started, but then she was cut off but a harsh glare from Sakuya.
"My mistress has sent us there on personal business. It is none of your concern. However, we would be grateful if you would show us to the entrance, or at least give us the correct directions." The maid told Reimu politely.
"Well, as long as you're not going to release demons or anything, I guess it can't hurt anything." Reimu said casually. "Besides, whatever you end up doing will hurt you as much as it will hurt everyone else, so at least I'll have a target to go after."
Meiling looked around her while the two were conversing and noted how the Shrine looked so peaceful, but then remembered what Sakuya had said and looked back down at the ground. However, when she did, she saw a small black cat with large green eyes staring back at her.
"Oh...hi there." Meiling said to the cat before bending down to pet it. The cat began to purr and rub it's head into her hand. "You're a nice kitty, aren't you?" The gatekeeper smiled. "What's its name, Reimu-san?"
Sakuya and Reimu looked over, Sakuya with annoyance and Reimu with indifference.
"I dunno. I guess I never bothered to name it. Why would you name a tool anyway?" Reimu looked at Meiling as if she were supposed to know something.
"China, we're trying to get to Makai, not play with cats." Sakuya said before turning back to Reimu. "So, a one spellcard duel? If I win, you will tell us where Makai is, and if you win, we have to return to the mansion empty handed?"
"Yes." Reimu confirmed. "Although, I will put a limit on the duel - don't use your strongest cards."
"Fair enough." Sakuya stated. As she began to reach a hand for her knives, however, she stopped due to an unforseen event.
"I'll duel her! You don't need to strain yourself anyway, Sakuya-san." Meiling stated confidently as she walked up next to her.
"Please, just play with your cat." Sakuya brushed her off.
"Not like she can." Reimu smiled. She raised her gohei and swung it down in a swift motion, which caused the cat to polymorph into a pair of Ying-yang orbs, which flew to Reimu and began to circle her. "Now, which one of you will it be?"
Sakuya simply looked at Meiling, who's expression showed no fear. "How about this, shrine maiden - If the gatekeeper beats you, you take us personally. If she fails, I'll duel you, and if I beat you, you'll tell us the directions. You can have two cards, we have one each."
"Fair enough." Reimu smiled, before taking to the air.
"I won't fail you this time, Sakuya-san!" Meiling announced with confidence as she took to the air as well.
"Sure." Sakuya remarked as Meiling flew off, already condemning herself to the fact that she'll have to make up for Meiling's loss.
Meiling looked over her opponent and began to collect her Qi. She attempted to read everything she could from her adversary, trying to figure out what to be ready for. Reimu, on the other hand, was hardly thinking about any of that - she was just going to go with the flow, for she saw Meiling as not much of a threat.
"I won't fail, Sakuya-san..." Meiling repeated to herself quietly. Reimu, getting bored of waiting, decided to make the first move.
"Duplex Barrier!!!" Reimu declared, as a large amount of danmaku began to flow from her. As the danmaku began to fly toward Meiling, she prepared to dodge - however, it seemed to dissapear, and fly out and different angles from completely different places. Confused, Meiling decided the best course of action would to be to get inside the invisible barrier that caused the change in direction of danmaku. Weaving through the field, the gatekeeper began to close in on her target, who did nothing more than thicken the field with even more shots.
"Fluttering Petals and Falling Leaves!!!" Meiling declared out, as she began to send powerful kicks in Remiu's direction. With every kick, even if it was a miss, danmaku flew out and laced the area thickly, causing Reimu to have to be on guard as well.
As the two duelled it out, Sakuya watched on from the ground. "I'm suprised she hasn't been defeated yet..." She commented. "Then again, it doesn't look like Reimu is trying that hard."
In fact, Reimu was indeed not serious about this duel. She had been casting the easier version of her spell, for her losing did not mean much. However, just as she was beginning to truly enjoy herself, she was struck in the side by one of Meiling's kicks - causing her to break her concentration on the spell.
Reimu flew back a bit, but caught herself midair, and faced Meiling. The gatekeeper was at the ready yet again, with a very determined look on her face.
"Ah...you don't play nice, do you?" Reimu asked casually. "I'll return the favor." She smiled.
"Fantasy seal!!!" She yelled out, as many colorful orbs flew out and circled her, before flying at Meiling at high speeds. Meiling dodged the first wave, but came extremely close to a second wave. Reimu smirked and set loose yet another barrage of danmaku, which the gatekeeper just barely avoided by delivering a high-powered kick to one of the large orbs, diffusing the energy. Meiling charged at Reimu, seeing this as her only chance to strike.
Sakuya was watching the duel with a knife in hand, for Meiling came crashing down at her side, having taken a full blow to her direct center. However, right as Sakuya was about to take flight, Reimu landed in front of her, and was laughing.
"Oh, I haven't had such a kick out of seeing someone think they can win in a looooong time!!!" Reimu continued to laugh. Sakuya kept a knife at the ready, just in case, but it seemed that the Shrine Maiden was being genuine.
"Here, here, I'll just say you beat me maid. Here's how you get to the entrance to Makai..."
Meiling lay dazed on the ground, somewhat aware of what was going on, but mostly disoriented.
-
Gee, Sakuya needs to lighten up...
And woo for Meiling! Great job! :D
-
Meiling and Sakuya stood in front of a large cave. The scenery in Gensokyo is normally lush, but in a gradual radius around the entrance, things seemed to die out and wither away, until at the mouth of the large opening there was not a single plant growing. In fact, inside the cave, it looked as if there was an immense chasm that had no end.
"Well, this is where Reimu said the entrance to Makai would be." Sakuya noted. "Let's go."
Meiling looked into the cave with a bit of fear at first, but then quickly dropped the thought as she realized that she must continue on her mission for the Mistress. However, she then remembered the book.
"Oh, wait Sakuya-san! Maybe I should look to see if there's a place to write about the entrance in this book here." Meiling pulled out the book and began to thumb through it. Sakuya simply continued to look into the cave and around a bit.
Indeed, there was a page about gaining entry to Makai, and about the surrounding terrain. Meiling pulled out a pen from the small bag she was given to hold the book, and began to write.
"Let's seeeee....The entrance to Makai is in a big cave where everything dies around it. It looks like there is a huge pit inside the cave, so flying is a must if one is trying to get in. There, I'll leave it at that for now." Meiling smiled and put the book and pen away. "Alright, Sakuya-san, let's go!" Meiling said before entering the cave.
Sakuya was silent and let Meiling go first, trailing behind cautiously. Although she was confident, she saw her self as smarter than Meiling, and being on guard in a strange new place was a much better idea than going in head first to her.
After a small bit of flying inward, the two came across what looked like a sort of magical portal. It was surrounded by floating candles, and the design floating in the air was an obvious denotation of a magical seal. The air around the place seemed to glow, and there was an eerie feeling about the air.
"You two - stop!" A voice suddenly called out. A girl wearing a red dress with white sleeves, complete with pink eyes and hair, flew into the way of the two.
"You're not allowed entry into this land!" She said with confidence.
"We simply wish to do some sight-seeing, and we'll be gone before you know it." Sakuya cooly said, holding several knives behind her back.
"I have told you already, you are not allowed entry!" The girl proclaimed again.
"What's your name?" Meiling asked out of the blue.
"...wait, what? It's Sara, wh-" She was suddenly cut off by a knife being thrown to just barely miss her head.
"Sara...Ok." Meiling continued to write in the book. "You'll meet a gatekeeper named Sara, and she will deny you entry no matter your purpose."
"Hey!!! Don't make me beat you out of here!!!" Sara yelled out in retaliation to Sakuya's attack.
"Go ahead and try." Sakuya smirked.
"Despite all of her confidence, however..." Meiling continued to write. She looked up from the book just in time to see Sakuya dissapear into the air, with several dozen knives appearing around the portal's guardian an instant later. "...She is easliy defeated in combat." Meiling closed the book once more and put it away.
Sara began to fall into the chasm, but caught herself in midair. She slowly floated back up to the portal, and faced the two yet again.
"F...fine, you may pass...but only because I can't...go on..." Sara managed out, obviously wounded from Sakuya's overpowering attack. She then seemed to dissapear from the area, leaving Sakuya and Meiling alone once again.
"She didn't look that powerful, Sakuya-san, why did you go all out on her like that?" Meiling asked.
"Never let your guard down. If you knew that, you wouldn't be such a failure as a gatekeeper, like Sara here." Sakuya bitterly said as she approached the seal.
Meiling followed her, her previous good mood yet again crushed by the maid. The two floated above the seal, and the area began to glow brighter and brighter until the light was almost blinding. As the light faded, the two were in what looked like outer space - there were bits of light falling everywhere, as well as chunks of what appeared to be ice. It was dark everywhere, however, they could see a definite light in the distance. Without a word, Sakuya began to fly toward the light, and Meiling followed suit.
Even to other people's gatekeepers... Meiling thought as she flew alongside Sakuya. She noticed how Sakuya didn't have a single bit of happiness on her face - even after the brutally quick defeat of Makai's guard, she didn't seem confident, happy, amused, anything - all she seemed to be feeling was annoyance. To Meiling, Sakuya's expression was one of somebody grudgingly doing something against their will, as if she simply did not want to be there. It worried the gatekeeper, because she really did care about Sakuya. If Sakuya wasn't happy with what she was doing, then she would only be more stressed, which Meiling did not like the thought of.
"Nice job dealing with that Sara girl, Sakuya-san." Meiling said after a bit of flying.
"You're losing your focus again, China." Sakuya replied without even looking at her.
"Sakuya-san, there's nothing here to focus on."
"So says the gatekeeper who can't keep anything out."
Meiling sighed. It was impossible to try and talk to her - Sakuya was simply too intent of being shut off from her. Meiling once again tried to rationalize why Sakuya would be acting so cold, as to save the image of the perfect and elegant maid in her own mind. However, she noticed that it was becoming harder to do so - Without the veil of puppy-like obedience that Meiling had to her, Sakuya was being a real bitch.
--
Flandre sat in the darkness of the basement, the only light available being the moonlight shining in from a high window. She could have had a few candles lit, like it is normally when she is awake, however she felt like she needed the darkness tonight. The vampire sat on her bed quietly and looked out the window up at the moon.
"I miss Sakuya and Meiling..." Flandre quietly whispered. She saw the silent stature of the moon - that object she would never be able to reach. And yet, she liked it so much. She was never allowed to try to make it there - her sister had been there, as had Sakuya, that much she was sure of. The futility of staying in her room frustrated her, and yet she held her sister in high reguards, and reasoned that she probably knew what was best, despite what she wanted to say.
"The food is terrible..." She whispered yet again, noting at a half-eaten tray of badly-cooked pastries. She missed Sakuya for she had had daily contact with her, if but for a moment, nearly every day since she was put in her room. Sakuya was also the one to make her food, and she always made it just the way she liked it. Flandre sighed and curled her knees up to her chin, wrapping her arms around them.
"Poor Meiling...I hope Sakuya is nice to her..." Flandre buried her head into her knees. Although she had absolutely no control over the matter, it really bothered her that Sakuya was so mean to Meiling. Despite Remilia, she knew this very well - Flandre and Meiling had spent time together quite a lot, or at least a lot as far as being locked away for about 500 years goes. When spending time with her, Flandre would sometimes ask where Meiling would get some of her scars or cuts - the answer was almost always that Sakuya had punished her. But Meiling was always sure to tell Flandre not to worry, because to Meiling it was always her own fault.
Flandre stretched out on the bed and looked outside. She really did like the moon, and wondered if the stories from her sister were true, about the rabbits and the lunar capital. How the young vampire's mind wandered, from subject to subject, but it always fell back to Meiling and Sakuya.
"If Sakuya and Meiling were to be nice to each other, I bet they would be great friends. And then we could all play together~"
Flandre sighed and rolled over in her bed. She was bored. Just then, she heard some noise outside her door, so she ran quickly over to it and decided to listen to what it was.
"...and I bet she's not even gonna come back." She heard a voice say.
"Yeah, that stupid girl is probably gonna screw up everywhere and make the head maid kill her or something." Another said. Flandre didn't know who these people were, but she instantly didn't like them.
"Hey, I'm just glad they're gone - we can just do nothing and the head maid can't yell at us!" A third voice said.
Flandre's eyes narrowed and she began to wear a sour frown.
"Yeah, we're a lot luckier than that idiot gatekeeper. What did the boss call her? China?"
Her fist clenched.
"Yeah, China~"
Her teeth gritted.
"Stupid Chinese idiot, can't do anything right~"
Her hand raised.
"China! China! Chi-" Suddenly, the fairy maid stopped in mid sentence and a look of shock spead over her face.
"...Rain?" One of the fairies asked cautiously.
The remaining two ran for their lives as their friend became the new wallpaper and the horrors of the last look on her face was etched into their minds. Flandre grinned a sinister smile and laughed.
"No more fairy~" She said to herself, reveling at her work.
--
Sakuya and Meiling flew along the brand-new landscape they found themselves at. The ground all around was red, and there seemed to be an extreme magical aura about - so much so that it was almost choking, and yet extremely empowering. Meiling seemed to be able to make due in standing the change in surrounding, but as she looked to her side, Sakuya had a different inflection. She was breathing heavily, but somewhat restrictively, and she seemed to be struggling to keep her flight sustained.
"Sakuya-san?" Meiling began to ask, worried about her.
"Be..Quiet...Just keep going..." Sakuya said between breaths of air. Sakuya then began to drop slightly, but caught herself in midair shakily.
"Sakuya-san, maybe we should stop for a minute..." Meiling suggested, becoming more and more concerned as the seconds passed.
"No, we're.....we...." Sakuya trailed off slightly, then began to fall from the air. Acting quickly with a shock of horror, Meiling flew under the maid and caught her just in time to have her avoid hitting the ground - they weren't that far up, after all. The gatekeeper landed with Sakuya in her arms, and quickly looked around. She noticed a large rock formation, and decided to lay Sakuya up against it.
"Sakuya-san...Sakuya-san...!" Meiling called out to her. "Oh great...Sakuya-san...Please..."
The maid lay motionless, barely breathing.
-
Communism strikes again
-
Why do I feel no sympathy at all for Sakuya? :V
I silently hope that Meiling snaps and puts her in her place...
-
Why do I feel no sympathy at all for Sakuya? :V
You shouldn't. Sakuya is an unusually stone cold bitch.
I silently hope that Meiling snaps and puts her in her place...
Don't we all? :V
-
Meiling was frantically trying to think of a way to wake Sakuya up. For all she knew, the maid was dying. It bewildered her on why she would suddenly drop from the air like that and loose consciousness - Sakuya wasn't one to simply pass out. Nonetheless, there lied Sakuya, breathing shallowly and not moving a bit.
"Sakuya-san...Oh, please Sakuya..."
Then she got an idea. She had heard before of a way to resuscitate a person by breathing air into them, but she wasn't exactly sure of how to do it. Can't be that hard... she thought to herself. She bent down next to the maid and took a deep breath. She slowly moved toward Sakuya, pressing her mouth against hers. Meiling's heart was racing, nervous of what might happen. She breathed into Sakuya's mouth, and then pulled back slowly to let Sakuya breathe out. Still at the edge of her nerves, Meiling repeated the action when she saw that Sakuya had no response. However, halfway through the next breath, the maid twitched and began to cough, causing Meiling to pull back quickly.
"W..what are you doing...!?" Sakuya coughed out.
"Sakuya-san, you're ok!!!" Meiling exclaimed excitedly.
"We're here to...To follow the orders of the mistress...not to...to try and come onto me!!!" Sakuya stood up and began to reach for a knife, but stumbled and fell back down.
"Sakuya-san, please sit down! You're in no condition to be up and about!" Meiling rushed to her side.
"Get..." The maid coughed a few more times. "Get away from me."
"Sakuya-san...." Meiling began to retract back, but then took a deep breath. "...no."
Sakuya looked up and couldn't believe what she had heard. "What did you say to me?"
"I said no, Sakuya-san." Meiling said a bit shakily. "You're weak, you need to rest. You shouldn't push yourself like this."
Knowing that Meiling was right, Sakuya adjusted to a more comfortable position. However, she wasn't about to give in.
"Don't you ever talk back to me, China. I know myself better than you ever will, and you should keep it that way." The maid barked out. She coughed several times again, with the last sounding extremely painful. "This air...It's not normal."
"I'm a Youkai, so maybe that's why it doesn't affect me as much, but I see what you mean..." Meiling replied, feeling the the difference in the way she was breathing as well. "If you're this badly off, how did Reimu and Marisa get through here, I wonder...?"
"Reimu is a shrine maiden, she probably had some god help her..." Sakuya said, pacing her breath. "Marisa...she lives in the forest, her lungs are probably bombarded with weird spores and whatnot anyway, she's most likely used to it."
"Mmm, makes sense..." Meiling stretched her legs out and began to kick her feet a little. It was nice to rest like this - Sakuya had been driving them all day.
"Just what exactly were you attempting to do in the first place China?" Sakuya bitterly asked after a moment of catching her breath.
"What?"
"When you were over me. What kind of thought crossed through that empty head of yours would spur you onto doing THAT at a time like this?" Sakuya eyed the gatekeeper over angrily.
"S-Sakuya-san! It's not like that...!" Meiling quickly defended herself.
"I don't care what you might have been thinking, but keep your hands off me, China." Sakuya glared at her. "And never try anything like that EVER again."
Not wanting to anger her further, Meiling simply looked down into her lap and bowed her head. "It won't happen again Sakuya-san. I'm sorry."
The two sat in silence for a moment, with Sakuya attempting to adjust to the semi-toxic miasma filled atmosphere. Meiling, already adjusted, sat in thought however.
I potentially saved her life, and all she does is yell at me...I know she has a reason to be mad at me most of the time, but this time I'm not really sure. She couldn't possibly be simply mad at me for being me though...can she? Look at her...She's struggling to breathe, you'd think she'd be a little more thankful for my saving of her.
Meiling took a huge breath and sighed. Sakuya didn't notice at all - she was too busy with her own problems.
I can't think of her like that. Sakuya-san is just hardworking is all. She's so stressed all the time I bet, what with all the cleaning, cooking, and tending to the mansion - it's like a consistent encounter with Marisa for her, no wonder she's stressed. I can't think lower of her for that, she just needs some time to rest is all. That, and I need to be more competent, so her job is easier.
The two sat like that for another few minutes - sad thing is, Meiling was not right at all. The poor gatekeeper was too nice to Sakuya, even in her own mind, and yet could this be pointed out as a fault? It was a strange predicament that she had gotten herself into - the maid obviously had some fault with her, but she simply held her in high regards anyway, never daring to think badly of Sakuya. It's sad, however, that she was so taken advantage of and treated poorly...
"Let's go." Sakuya finally broke the silence. "I'll be fine now."
Before Meiling could say anything, Sakuya was to her feet again, and already taking flight. Following suit, Meiling took up her position beside her.
"I hope you wrote in that book while I was out." Sakuya noted after a few seconds.
"uhh...Yeah. Yeah, of course I did, Sakuya-san!" Meiling said quickly. She thought that Makai was such a memorable place already that she would barely have to write anything, at least not yet - she'd just do it later, once they stopped to rest again. Simply shaking her head, Sakuya turned ahead once again.
"Heeeeeeeeeey~! Where you guys going~?" A voice called out. Sakuya turned instantly to the sound, a hand near her knives.
A cheery looking girl with blonde hair and a white dress came to meet them with a smile on their face. She stopped in front of the pair and tilted her head to the side.
"I don't think I've ever seen you two around here before." She noted immediately. "Judging by the way maid-y over there is breathing, you're from the human world, aren't you?"
"Show some respect, ingrate." Sakuya said cuttingly. "Is this how you always treat travelers?"
"Easy there doggy, no need to be mad~" The girl smiled and teased. "Then again, I'd be mad too if I had to be a servant my entire life."
Sakuya's eyes narrowed, but refrained from making any more insulting comments. Who knows what could happen in Makai, after all.
"We wanna learn about this place is all." Meiling said nicely to the girl.
"Well here's here and there's there!" The stranger laughed. "There's not much more to know~"
Meiling laughed casually with her as well, but then quieted down as Sakuya's glare cut her off.
"Miss, if you would to be so kind as to point us in the direction of a library or some other kind of informational house, we would be grateful." Sakuya said, holding her desire to strike the annoyance down where she floated.
"Mm, I dunno about libraries around here - people are already smart enough, they don't need something like that."
"Maybe someone smart then?" Meiling asked.
"Well I guess the smartest person around would be Shinki-sama. She lives in a castle off that way." The strange girl pointed in a direction.
"Thank you very much miss, we will be on our way. Come, China." Sakuya began to fly off.
"Ohhh, China? What a terrible name, your parents must have a sense of humor." The girl laughed, unknowingly cutting into Meiling's self-esteem more than she could ever realize.
The strange girl left them, laughing and waving, and Meiling followed Sakuya pitifully.
"You shouldn't be so sociable with these people." Sakuya said out of nowhere. "That girl could have been an assassin sent to kill us or something. Not that I couldn't have taken her on, but you on the other hand? You'd be dead in a minute."
"Yes, Sakuya-san." Meiling said with a hint of sadness in her voice. Once again, her cheery position was shot down by the Scarlet Devil Mansion's head maid, and Meiling didn't have the gall to stand up for it. However, how could she? Sakuya had more authority than she did in the Mansion, being the closest to Remilia. That, and even if Meiling could match or exceed Sakuya's combat abilities, her heart wouldn't let her react to Sakuya like that - she simply held too much respect for her.
I just wish she wouldn't act so mean sometimes... Meiling finally brought herself to think. It really goes to show how much control Sakuya had over Meiling if she could hardly bring herself to THINK about such things, let alone say them. Like a trained dog, Meiling couldn't ever think badly about her superiors - things were always her fault in the end.
The two flew in silence for about a half hour. They flew past many people who looked at them strangely - many demons, youkai, fairies, and a whole assortment of other creatures. None of them attacked or spoke to them, though - the sight of Sakuya's menacing concentration mixed with Meiling's larger, physically threatening figure made for a sight that nobody quite wanted to mess with.
The landscape they traveled across turned from red to a crystalline forest of sorts - The previously red theme was changed out to what looked like a frozen wasteland of sorts, but in reality was a beautiful crystal lake with strange formations billowing out of the surface. The sheen on the substance made it seem as if nobody had laid a finger on it - it was as beautifully finished as if a team of maids had kept it under constant polishing for years. The sight was breathtaking, Meiling thought, and she could hardly believe how the landscape that had once looked so toxic and dead now looked so mystical and arcane. Meiling dared not say anything, however - she still had the memory of her comments about Gensokyo's landscape and what that warrented her.
Before long, the two came upon a giant crystal castle. It seemed to shine even more than the landscape, and was quite the sight of breathtaking beauty.
"Try not to screw up this time." Sakuya said before they entered the door. Meiling was surprised to see that there wasn't a guard at the gate, or anyone at all for that matter. In fact, the two had hardly met or talked to anybody since entering that cave, except for Sara and...whoever that girl was. This was confusing - for hearing such scary rumors about the land of demons and monsters, not a lot of scary things were happening.
The two entered the palace, into the unknown darkness that lie ahead.
--
"My lady, they're entering as we speak."
"Mmhmmm, and have they been bothered at all?"
"Only by the messenger we went to casually send them in this way. Oh, and by Sara, of course."
"Silly Sara, she'll never be able to stop taking her job so seriously. She needs to lighten up once in a while."
"My lady, excuse me for asking so, but why exactly do you want these two to come in here so eagerly?"
"Why, are you scared?"
"Of course not, but you don't even know this pair - they could be coming to try and defeat you, or cause havoc and gain the attention of that Shrine Maiden again. The last thing we need is a lot of confusion and chaos, like we experienced back then."
"Oh stop your worrying, I know what I'm doing. Besides, haven't you been itching to have someone to force out lately?"
"You invited intruders on purpose!? You don't even want to speak to them!?"
"Hee hee, guess I did."
-
My god. (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/ShipTease)
Also, Sakuya is unusually paranoid...
-
"We're here to...To follow the orders of the mistress...not to...to try and come onto me!!!"
*double facepalm* Oh my god this girl is an idiot...
"Not that I couldn't have taken her on, but you on the other hand? You'd be dead in a minute."
Yes, Sakuya you could have taken her on...WHILE YOU'RE SUFFERING FROM MIASMA POISONING!! HELLO!!! And you're underestimating Meiling a bit much.
From Perfect Memento:
"You should refrain from breaking through the gate,
or sneaking through while she's sleeping. She'll attack
you without mercy in that case."
-
Methinks you're taking this story a wee bit too seriously. >_>
-
"I think that girl lied to us.."
"Shut up and stay alert."
The two wandered the halls of the crystal palace, and were very surprised to see absolutely nobody within its halls. For an establisment so large, a lot of people would be required to maintain it, or so Meiling thought. Ever since she had gotten into Makai nothing really made any sense, but she had been pressing on anyway, always having her goals in mind - completing her mission to please those who are above her.
The sound of the pair's footsteeps echoed eerily around as the crystal palace's unnatural chill radiated from every facet of the beautfully formed hallways. With each step, Meiling expected somebody to jump out at them - Sakuya's repeated warnings had made her very paranoid. However, the two walked on, exploring around, without event.
However, after a bit, the two entered a long hallway with a figure standing at the end of it. Sakuya stopped on point, causing Meiling to freeze as well.
"Shouldn't we-" Meiling started.
"Shh." Sakuya quickly hushed her.
As the two stood in their place, the figure began to walk toward them at a casual pace. As it grew closer, Meiling could make out that the person they face was a girl wearing a maid's dress not unlike Sakuya's, however its main theme was red instead of blue. Also, this girl had golden yellow hair, and uncanny red eyes that seemed to peirce into the soul of anything she looked at. However, as she approached further still, her eyes seemed to fade into the same golden color of her hair, and became more calm.
"Welcome to Pand?monium ladies. May I ask what your business is here?" The girl asked the pair.
Sakuya took the initiative and answered before Meiling could have the chance to. "We are here to speak to one named 'Shinki'."
"My mistress is a very busy lady, may I ask why you require to see her?" The blonde haired maid asked, eying the pair over.
"We have questions!!!" Meiling quickly piped in with a smile.
"Questions, hm? Well, I'm afraid my mistress cannot be bothered with such trifle matters." The maid began to turn around and walk away, dismissing the pair.
"Please? It will only take a second!!!" Meiling called after her.
"Shut up China, she obviously doesn't want us in here."
"But the Mistress told us to-"
"I said shut up!!!" Sakuya held up a silver knife, and Meiling winced.
"My, my, aren't you the quaint couple." The other maid chimed in casually, causing Sakuya to turn towards her. "Did I hear that you two were under orders from your own mistress?"
"It's none of your business." Sakuya coldly replied.
"My, you aren't a very good maid, are you~" The blonde maid laughed slightly. "I'll tell you what - I hold sympathy for your predicament, being a maid myself. I will allow you to take quarters in this palace overnight, if you promise to be gone by morning. I will talk with my mistress about answering your questions then, but for now it is late, you surely know that."
Meiling at that moment realized how tired she was - it must have been 9 or 10 at night, and she had been up since about 6 that morning.
"We would much appreciate it, miss." Sakuya said through her teeth a little - being called a bad maid didn't exactly suit her tastes.
"Mm, this way then." The maid led a very cautious Sakuya and a very grateful Meiling down a hallway to a very well furnished room. "You two will stay in this room. Please try not to make much noise, and excuse me for being rude in saying so, but we will not be serving you tonight, nor will we be providing anything besides what has been put in this room. Good night." The maid walked out of the room abruptly and closed the door.
"Well that was...weird." Meiling noted, seeing how the previously nice maid had suddenly become so apathetic toward her guests.
"What's weird is that I don't remember telling you that you could talk." Sakuya said, glaring at Meiling now that they were alone.
"But Sakuya-san..." Meiling started, not realizing how serious Sakuya actually was.
"We don't know who that maid is! She could have done a number of things, think about it!!! We were trespassing in her mistress's home, and judging by the size of this place, I'd say that her mistress has power comparable to ours, especially since this is Makai!" Sakuya yelled at her companion. "People here aren't your average youkai who like to play fun and games - they're demons and monsters! There's a reason people say Makai is extremely dangerous - because it is!!!"
Meiling didn't think this was right at all. "Sakuya-san, we're fine, aren't we? Maybe people here are just misunderstood..."
"China, you idiot, for all you know they're leading you into a false sense of security with that sort of thinking." Sakuya walked toward the gatekeeper. "You don't get it, do you? For a gatekeeper, you have an absolutely terrible sense of security. No wonder everybody gets past you, you don't take anything seriously!" Sakuya turned and walked across the room. "Just go to bed. It's not like you'll be useful."
Meiling wanted to say something, but she just couldn't find words. All she did was sit on the comfortable bed and open up the small bag that had been given to her at the Mansion. She pulled out a pair of small boxes, and set them on the bed. Closing the bag, she picked one up and opened it. Inside were Chinese dumplings - one of Meiling's favorite foods.
She looked at it for a second, then looked at Sakuya, who wasn't paying attention to her, but instead looking around the room. Meiling closed the box and opened the other to find a plain looking sandwich inside. Closing the box, she stopped to think.
Sakuya made these, didn't she...? Meiling pondered. She always makes me these dumplings, but why would she give herself such a half-done meal?
"Thank you, Sakuya-san." Meiling said out loud. Sakuya looked over, and noticed that she was holding the box containing the sandwich. She then looked back at what she was doing.
"The dumplings are yours." She simply replied.
Meilings thoughts were confirmed - Sakuya had short changed herself with the meals. But why?
It doesn't matter, I guess. Meiling concluded. After all, I get my dumplings, and Sakuya would be most likely mad if I said otherwise.
Not thinking further of it, Meiling enjoyed her dumplings - however, she felt strangely uncomfortable, as Sakuya did nothing except check every facet of the room.
"Whatcha looking for, Sakuya-san?" Meiling asked whilst enjoying her meal.
"Anything." She replied. "You never know what could be in here."
"It's late, shouldn't you rest up for tomorrow?"
"Shouldn't you keep your place?"
Meiling looked down into her lap as her self-confidence was once again crushed. She hated it when Sakuya would snap at her like that, but she reasoned that most of the time the maid was right. Then again, she'd also been down this same track of mind countless times, and hasn't exactly enjoyed the results. However, there was not much she could do, so she simply finished her meal in silence.
About an hour passed, and Meiling tried to stay awake to 'watch out for anything', as Sakuya put it. Sakuya had told her that the maid of the house could have been tricking them, just waiting for the two to go to sleep. However, Sakuya soon grew tired as well, and decided that she was perhaps wrong, as there was zero activity coming from anywhere in the crystal palace. However, the two quickly ran into their next problem.
"There's one bed, Sakuya-san."
"I'm fully aware."
The two argued a bit about who should get the bed - there were no other reasonable places to sleep in the room. However, the argument was extremely one-sided, due to Sakuya's influence over Meiling. Still, despite this, Sakuya did agree eventually that both of them would have to be fit for tomorrow - therefore they agreed to share it, after much reluctance on Sakuya's part.
"Just stay on THAT side of the bed." Sakuya warned, laying down underneath the large blanket.
"I will, Sakuya-san. All I plan to do is sleep." Meiling replied, remembering how mad Sakuya was at the implications of pressing their mouths together.
The maid extinguished the last candle that had been lighting the room, and all was quiet. Meiling sat in the darkness, knowing how close Sakuya was, and how much responsibility she had on her shoulders at the moment. Sakuya was trusting her enough to sleep in the same bed as her, even if it was with a grain of salt - this kind of trust hasn't been something that Meiling hasn't had for a long time from Sakuya. As she lay next to the maid, a certain warmness began to rush over her - to think, Sakuya was laying next to her, soon to be sleeping, and she was the one that was trusted with this moment. It was pitiful to think about from a normal perspective, but Meiling was strangely excited about this, and she couldn't fully explain why to herself. Nonetheless, she enjoyed the thought, and fell asleep with a smile on her face.
--
"Are you sure about this, my lady?"
"Mmm, do I sense fear again?"
"My lady, you know I am not fearful. I just..."
"Mmm? Do tell."
"That one in green - there's something about her."
"Something that I can't handle?"
"Of course not, it's just...I dunno, I think that she has a lot of pent up emotion. I could see it in her eyes. That sort of passion could prove to be a problem."
"Oh, you worry too much, Yumeko."
"That, and the maid she was with - she looked as if she had a few holed up problems as well. The two also seemed to know more than they appeared to - I just think you're taking this ordeal a little more lightly than you should, my lady."
"Oh come off it - Think about who we're going to be up against. A little girl? Yes, she's a vampire, but honestly, she simply doesn't have enough experience to handle what we're going to dish out."
"Why exactly do you want to achieve this again, my lady?"
"I have a score to settle with a certain Shrine Maiden. The second she sees what we've done, she'll come rushing to us no doubtedly."
"As you wish, my lady."
"My, we're lucky that these people came to us when they did. From what I hear, they're the main defense. This shall be easy~"
"If you say so, my lady."
-
Methinks you're taking this story a wee bit too seriously. >_>
Just getting into the mood xD
-
Sakuya deserves a slap to the face, and if Meiling doesn't do it I WILL... well you know what I mean... :ohdear:
-
And the ship tease is at it again. (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/ThereIsOnlyOneBed)
-
And the ship tease is at it again. (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/ThereIsOnlyOneBed)
Dammit, you made me lose two hours.
-
Mmm, breaks are nice to take, especially when Christmas and my birthday happens in them. That, and over 2mil exp in assorted skills on Runescape. But that's a different story.
Meiling slowly awoke in the comfortable bed. She was extremely warm, and the bed felt absolutely amazing. She was attempting to grasp assorted thoughts in her head, but being stuck on the border of dreams and reality made her memory extremely fuzzy. She felt good all around, however, and tried to open her eyes. It was lazily at first, as she was still very much so asleep. She yawned a great yawn and slowly opened her eyes. She saw a white object extremely fuzzily through her eyelashes and still-focusing vision, and buried her face into it.
Soft...strange pillow though... She thought lazily. Wait....
Meiling's eyes shot open extremely quickly as she realized the object she was resting her head against was Sakuya's head of hair. However, as she quickly looked over the situation, she realized that the maid was still asleep. Furthermore, she wasn't simply unaware of Meiling's action - she was facing the gatekeeper, with an arm around her.
The chinese gatekeeper sat still, frozen in shock as she quickly tried to decide what she should do.
Do I get her arm off me? That'd wake her up...Do I just go with it? Maybe...Maybe I should pretend that I'm asleep too...She'll wake up soon, and if she doesn't think I did it on purpose either...
Meiling didn't know exactly where she was going with that thought. However, she knew one thing - having Sakuya sleep like that next to her made her feel a strange kind of good that she hadn't ever felt before. Just thinking that she could feel the warmth of the maid without it being some sort of strike or choke made it feel almost right. She couldn't quite explain it, but if she could just capture this moment in time and have Sakuya hold her like this for eternity...
Sakuya...
Meiling closed her eyes and nestled back into the maid's silvery hair.
It won't hurt her...
Meiling heaved a slow, but big sigh. She hadn't felt this relaxed in quite some time, and for the first time in what seemed like an eternity, felt happier than she could ever remember. Finally resting without a care in the world, finally being able to protect her superiors without being reprimanded.
This train of thought quickly ended, however, as Meiling's heavy sigh caused Sakuya to tighten her eyes. Meiling feigned sleep and innocence at once, but kept a careful ear out to try and find out what the maid was doing.
Sakuya opened her eyes slowly, then quickly froze in shock. She looked around feverishly, then sat up, giving Meiling reason to "wake up". The maid quickly exited the bed and dressed herself, seemingly before Meiling could even open her eyes. The gatekeeper yawned and sat up, stretching her arms.
"Good morning, Sakuya-san." She lazily said. "Your face is all red. What's wrong?"
Sakuya looked at her quickly and and calmed herself. "We...We've woken up too late. It's unbecoming of us to take too much advantage of the lady of this house's hospitality, as well as our Mistress's patience."
Meiling smiled to herself, knowing why Sakuya was truly flustered. Getting out of bed, she dressed herself as well, and the two left the room promptly, after Sakuya had cleaned up the area a bit.
"We have to find this lady 'Shinki' as soon as possible, and then get back to the mansion. We probably shouldn't have even taken more than a day, the mistress will be most displeased..." Sakuya rambled somewhat to herself. Meiling simply followed the maid's quick pace as they headed back toward the room from which they originally met the strange blonde maid.
Seeing nobody in the long hallway, the two pressed on to the end. They entered a large chamber with a large crystalline throne in the center back. However, there was absolutely nobody in the room.
"That's odd..You'd think she'd be in here." Meiling noted.
"Or anyone." Sakuya added, reaching for her knives. However, even as Sakuya paused, waiting for anything, ready for anyone - nothing happened. The room was quiet, the air was stagnant.
"Maybe nobody's here." Meiling said eventually.
"It would seem so..." Sakuya cautiously agreed as she slowly let go of a knife. "Let's go." The maid turned around and walked out of the room. Following orders, Meiling trailed the maid.
"Where do we go now then?" Meiling asked her companion.
"Back outside. We were probably tricked by that blonde commoner." Sakuya replied. "For all we know, this is a carved out hollow in the crystals that some fairies built and there really is no Shinki. That maid could have just been a fake, which is why she was so unhospitable to us."
Meiling thought that was a silly thought, seeing how intricately created this crystalline palace was. If it were simply fairies, the craftsmanship of the place would be extremely shoddy - however, she dared not argue with Sakuya. The two turned to leave, and as Sakuya walked out the door, Meiling noticed a small slip of paper posted to the wall near the door.
"To the silver-haired maid and the chinese girl:
We're terribly sorry, but we have rooted through your possessions while you slept. We are at your mistress's Mansion right now, and it would be highly advisable if you did not interfere.
-Shinki"
"Sakuya!!! I think you need to look at this!!!" Meiling quickly called out to the maid. Sakuya came quickly back and took the paper from Meiling's hand. After a second of reading it, she threw it down to the ground and turned toward the door.
"We're leaving. Now." Sakuya said curtly as she began to run out the door.
"Sakuya, wait!!!" Meiling yelled after the maid, who was now sparing no expense in hurrying out of the palace.
"The mistress is in trouble, there's no time to wait!!!" Sakuya yelled angrily back, and then dissapeared from in front of Meiling. The maid re-appeared nearly instantly several dozen feet away, and then promptly phazed out of sight again, only to appear farther away still. Time-warping in such a manner led her extremely quickly out of Meiling's sight, leaving the gatekeeper to run alone.
"Goddamnit, why do I have to be so useless!?" Meiling yelled out, beginning to feel a bit worked up. "Sakuya-san is so much better than I am, and when I finally get back to the mansion, the mistress is going to be nothing but mad with me!!!" Meiling began to run faster, then jumped in the air and began to take flight as she saw the door to outside of the crystal palace. She flew swiftly, but still saw absolutely no sign of the maid.
"I can't give up though...Not for anything. I have a job to do..." Meiling said to herself while sailing through the air. "...and people to protect."
Interestingly enough, Meiling was not stopped by a single person while attempting to find her way out of Makai. Several creatures did eye her, but a strange energy eminating from her kept them from even attempting to bother the gatekeeper - it was an energy of pure distress, yet pure, unbridled passion. However, Meiling didn't notice a single one of these people - she was too intent on finding her way out of the strange land.
She found herself back in the area where the land was red, which was a good sign. Flying generally where she saw settlements, for she had remembered seeing a few houses or other such buildings on their way to the crystal palace, Meiling felt that she was getting closer to the exit of Makai. Eventually, she found the rift in space that she and Sakuya had entered from, and quickly dived through it. Flying through the border space, she burst through the seal and back into Gensokyo. The sudden rush of clean air was a bit shocking at first to her, but Meiling quickly adapted, as this atmosphere was definitely better than the miasma filled Makai.
Not even bothering to see if Sara was around, Meiling dashed out of the cave and into the bright sun - a thing she had not seen since she had entered into Makai. Shielding her eyes for a moment, Meiling staggered in blindness. Makai was lit somehow, but not nearly as well as a nice cloudless day in Gensokyo. Regaining her senses, Meiling took to the air, and flew high above the treeline, into the cloudless blue sky. Breathing in deeply, Meiling felt revitalized with energy, and took off with a new zeal toward the Scarlet Devil Mansion.
"Sakuya's probably already there, and she's probably already solved the problem..." Meiling noted, despite her determination to return to the mansion.
However, things simply were not so.
-
Hehe... Sakuya in bed.
-
A long blade flew past Sakuya's face as she just barely dodged the attack. Several smaller blades flung past Yumeko's sides as she weaved her way through a barrage.
"What have you done with the mistress!?" Sakuya yelled out angrily, fighting her opponent with fierce hostility.
"It's none of your business, maid!" Yumeko yelled back, drawing another round of short swords to use as danmaku.
The two dueled with extreme skill and power - however, Sakuya was at a disadvantage. Not only was she being somewhat blinded by her own rage and passion, but she was still weak from over-exertion on her part - using her powers in Makai to stop time so frequently whilst attempting to return to the mansion had taken a lot out of her, and even the clean air of Gensokyo hasn't had time to restore her completely. As the two fought, both of them could see that Sakuya was having trouble - and Yumeko wasn't about to falter in her dedication to her lady.
--
Meiling neared the mansion at last. As she approached the estate, she noticed that two figures were battling harshly by the gate - there were large amounts of danmaku and energy being given off in every direction from the front of the mansion. Hastening herself, the gatekeeper quickly dashed to cover her primary directive - protecting the gate.
Closing in on the Scarlet Devil Mansion, Meiling saw just who the two figures were, and gasped in horror at what the outcome of this battle was. Meiling gathered herself and powered a large, flying kick directly in to the blonde maid who was holding a blodied sword. As she flew back, Meiling landed on the ground and quickly took Sakuya up in her arms, noting the large gash she had down her arm.
"Sakuya-san...!" Meiling gasped out, almost tearing up from seeing the maid in such a condition. However, she couldn't stay emotional for long - Sakuya's assailant was already back for more.
"Chinese girl, leave this place at once!!!" Yumeko yelled out, holding the very sword out that had stricken Sakuya.
"Never!!! This mansion belongs to Remilia Scarlet, and I am in charge of keeping the gate secure!!!" Meiling yelled out with angry pride. "Nobody, and I mean NOBODY, is allowed to hurt anybody inside without getting through me first!!!"
"Well you're a bit too late for that, girl." The blonde maid cooly said. "My mistress is already inside, and I am filling your position you could say."
Meiling gently put Sakuya down, then stood up and dug her feet into the ground, facing her opponent.
"When I defeat you, you and your mistress must leave at once!!!" Meiling yelled out.
"You're just like her, you think it's all fun and games, don't you?" Yumeko laughed back. "In Makai, we don't 'duel' people like you're used to. We fight for real." Yumeko drew another sword and held it in her off hand. "So the only way my mistress is going to be ousted is over my dead body."
"So be it..." Meiling growled under her breath as she began to draw out her inner energy. With a colorful flair, Meiling jumped into the air and drove a spinning kick straight to where her opponent was standing. Expecting as much, Yumeko dodged quickly and attempted to slash at the gateguard, who kicked the blade away. Both taking their distance, Meiling fired a thick field of general danmaku, which was quickly returned with interest. Both girls being limited in movement, Yumeko saw this as a perfect opportunity to lace the area with a few razor sharp swords.
Being caught slightly off guard by this vicious attack, Meiling's sleeve was grazed by a blade. Noting that this strange maid means business, she expelled a large qi blast that negated the energy of a large amount of Danmaku, giving Meiling a clear way to attack. Seizing the opportunity, Meiling reared a large fist full of energy backward, and delivered a bone cracking blow straight to Yumeko's stomach, causing her to lose concentration on her spells and flight. However, she quickly recovered and tossed several more swords up toward her opponent, grazing Meiling's leg with a well-aimed shot.
Screaming out in pain, blood now beginning to run hot down her and dripping off of her shoe, Meiling struggled to maintain flight, but ended up crashing into the ground. She attempted to stand back up, but the pain was unbearable - the cut in her leg ran far. As Yumeko approached her, however, Meiling wasn't through - She expelled a large blast at the maid, causing her to fly back and hit the outer wall of the mansion. However, she quickly recovered and was upon Meiling once more, who was desperately trying to get up.
"Give up girl, this is not your fight!" Yumeko threatened, holding a blade to Meiling's throat.
Meiling slumped on the ground, knowing it was useless to attempt to stand. She cringed in pain as her leg was lying in the dirt, bleeding out bit by bit. Knowing enough about her body, she knew that if she continued to try and strain it, she might lose it.
"Why are you doing this..." Meiling asked the maid.
"It's not my decision. My lady has business with yours, and until that business is complete, I am to not allow anybody to interfere."
"What has your lady done with my mistress?"
"She's GOING to end up harming her more than she may have already if you continue to poke around, girl." Yumeko threatened.
"My name's...not 'girl'..." Meiling seethed out, having a new shot of pain go up her leg.
"Fine. Your mistress will be harmed if you don't leave CHINA." Yumeko cuttingly corrected herself, remembering Sakuya's comment in Makai.
Upon hearing this name, however, Meiling's eyes narrowed. She tightned a fist, and drew her qi to her center, effectively forgetting her leg. As Yumeko began to lower her blade, Meiling forced her energy into the ground, causing her to fly up a couple feet, and threw an extremely powerful punch directly at the maid. However, Yumeko was expecting Meiling to act up - she dodged swiftly, and as Meiling fell back to the ground, she drove the hilt of her sword directly into the back of Meiling's head, causing her to black out.
"Yumeko!"
The blonde haired maid swiftly turned around and bowed her head. "Yes, my lady?" She asked with utmost respect.
"Who are these two?" Shinki said as she floated lazily over the wall of the Scarlet Devil Mansion, landing next to her maid.
"They appear to be the gate guard and the head maid of this mansion, Lady Shinki." Yumeko said, eyeing the two over.
"Mmmm, interesting. And just as they have come up in my conversation with the lady of this house." Shinki laughed to herself quietly. "Bring them inside."
"My lady, are you sure that this is the wisest choice? They seem quite powerful, I had a bit of trouble with-"
"Yumeko, the vampire sisters of this mansion are far more powerful than you can realize. And I seem to have taken care of them well, haven't I? Bring them inside."
"Yes, My lady."
--
Meiling slowly awoke with a splitting headache and a very sore leg. As she fuzzily attempted to regain her senses, she realized that her hands were tied behind her with what felt like rope, as well as a second pair of hands and a large post. As she looked around, Meiling determined that she was in an off closet of the Scarlet Devil Mansion - one of the assorted supply closets placed around for Sakuya and the staff of maids. Any objects of use were placed convienently out of reach, and Meiling's splitting headache and hurting leg didn't help matters. However, she noticed that her leg was wrapped in a bandage - whoever had put her in this room had dressed her wounds.
"Hey...Hey!" Meiling spoke up after a minute of sitting in silence. "Hey, who am I tied to?"
There was no response.
"Hey!!!" Meiling tried again, beginning to shake her hands around, attempting to get the second person's attention.
After several seconds of this shaking, her work paid off - the second person began to come to as well.
"Wh...where..." A familiar voice began to say.
"Sakuya!?" Meiling gasped in disbelief and excitement at the same time.
"What's ha...AHHHH...!!!" Sakuya screamed out in pain, and Meiling could feel her hands begin to tighten and pull on the ropes extremely hard.
"Sakuya-san, are you ok?" Meiling called out with worry, and attempted to struggle against the ropes. However, the rope, despite Meiling's strength, did not give way even a bit. This caused Meiling to think that it was enchanted, or made out of a strange material that she'd never heard of.
"That...that bitch maid...!" Sakuya seethed out, struggling against the ropes more and more, trying to break free.
"Sakuya-san, please don't strain yourself - you're hurt..." Meiling pleaded, genuinely caring about her safety.
"Shut up, China!!!" Sakuya lashed out, pausing her in struggle to break free. "It's your damn fault we're here in the first place!!! If you wouldn't have failed as a person to begin with and done your job correctly and kept Marisa out, then the mistress wouldn't have had to send us on this damn mission!"
Meiling sat in silence, absorbing the maid's words of hatred.
"And ever since we LEFT, you've been nothing but distracted and a liability! You should be glad that I've put up with you for as long as I have, because if I had it my way, you'd be DEAD!!!" Sakuya screamed out, clearly losing her composure. She then seethed over in pain, as all the yelling has taxed her, and having a wound on the arm is never a good thing to have whilst taxing onesself.
"I try so damn hard to keep this mansion in order..." Sakuya started again, her voice a bit shaky. "I try so GODDAMN HARD....To please the mistress...To just make sure everything runs smoothly...And YOU have to go and FUCK EVERYTHING UP!!!" Sakuya's voice choked up for a second. Meiling couldn't see her, but she could feel that through the tone of her voice, Sakuya was beginning to cry.
"Sakuya-san..." Meiling started, her voice becoming shaky as well.
"Just shut up..." Sakuya commanded. "I don't want to hear you speak ever again, China. You sicken me."
Meiling looked down into her lap, and watched as the tears slowly fell and splashed onto her legs. She tried to stay strong and hold the emotion back, but the sheer overwhemling power of Sakuya's words had stricken deeply into her heart and shattered it. To have Sakuya - somebody that she looked up to so much, that she lived to protect and please, Sakuya Izayoi - to have such a torrent of pure hatred and malice be given to Meiling by her was simply too much for her to bear. All Meiling has ever wanted from the beginning was to please her, to gain the respect and kindness that she deserved, and yet all of that seemed extremely hopeless at that moment.
Both of the girls sat in that dark room, heavily and unevenly breathing, both wishing that Meiling was dead.
-
;_;
-
I wish Meiling would stick up for herself. :derp:
-
She should quit. If no one appreciates her then good riddance.
-
Time, although a thing that Sakuya is normally able to control, took its toll on both of the girls sitting in that room. Time had taught Meiling true grief as she turned Sakuya's words around in her mind. Time had taught Sakuya true pain as she suffered from her wounds and the thought of Remilia being in trouble. Time, cruel time, had degraded both of the usually proud and fearless ladies to shaking children.
Yet time was their savoir.
"Sakuya-san..." Meiling mumbled after what seemed like an eternity of hot tears running down her face; after picking up the pieces of her shattered confidence and heart and fruitlessly attempting to piece them back together.
"I said...I said I didn't want another word out of you..." Sakuya weakly mumbled back, being extremely tired from her struggle to escape as well as stay awake.
"Sakuya-san, I want you to know...I just want you to know that I try too." Meiling said between heavy breaths, trying to control herself.
"That so?" Sakuya replied sarcastically, with a bitter edge in her tone.
"All I've ever tried to do with my life...All I've ever wanted is to protect the mansion." Meiling admitted. "To just know that you were all safe...It's a good feeling, you know?"
"Then why do you continue to fail us?" Sakuya bit back.
"Because I'm not perfect, Sakuya-san." Meiling replied frankly. "Marisa...I don't know what's up with her, but she's very powerful obviously. I just can't stop her...Not like this."
"What do you mean 'not like this'?" Sakuya asked, becoming more interested in what Meiling had to say.
"Well...Defending the gate isn't all about power." Meiling explained. "You have to...have a strong mind. And heart." Meiling seethed slightly as the pain in her leg began to act up again, but she held fast and waited it out.
"Passion doesn't stop a witch." Sakuya coldly replied.
"Then why are you so loyal to the mistress?" Meiling asked without thinking.
"Well, it's much more of a start than YOU have." Sakuya growled back. "I live to serve the mistress, and it's my duty to do as she wishes and prevent any harm from befalling her. Do I even have to explain that?"
"Just as I live to protect her, as well as to protect you." Meiling countered, with a beautiful idea in her mind. "It's that, Sakuya-san. That inner passion that you have to have, and you just told me that you have it as well."
"What of it? Are you saying that you don't WANT to guard the gate?" Sakuya attacked once more.
"It's not that..." Meiling sighed, with her idea fading as Sakuya was twisting her words. "It's...It's just hard to keep going on when I have to..."
"Have to what." Sakuya said with baited breath.
"...well...I guess it'd be less what I have, so much as it would be what I don't have." Meiling replied somewhat sadly, thinking over how she could word her sentences to avoid misunderstanding.
"There's plenty of things I could think of that you DON'T have, China." Sakuya added.
Meiling sat in silence for a moment, trying to gather the courage for what she was about to say.
"Apparently a full thought is one of them." Sakuya sighed. "You're just wasting our time, I have to go help the mistress, whether you want to or not..." Sakuya weakly pulled at the ropes once more, but to no avail.
"...Reciprocation." Meiling finally said.
"What?" Sakuya asked, confused as to what the gatekeeper might mean.
"It's not that I want to leave. It's that nobody would mind if I did. Especially..." Meiling paused, and took a deep breath.
"...especially you."
Sakuya sat in silence and took in those two words. The tone in which Meiling had said that sentence was filled with such bitter sadness, it was amazing that Sakuya could have ever not realized this before.
"Sakuya-san, you hate me and I know it. But I still care about you..." Meiling continued on. "It's just...It's just really hard to continue to protect the gate when I know that nobody would care if I died doing it." Meiling began to feel a hot tear slip slowly down her face, and her voice began to become extremely shaky.
"I put my heart and soul into protecting you, I lay my life on the line, and you continue to hate me..." Meiling took in a sharp breath. "...but I know that I haven't done the best job, so maybe you have the right."
Sakuya continued to sit and listen to her words, not daring to say anything.
"But I think that I shouldn't just give up and leave...No, I could never do that." Meiling closed her eyes tightly and tried to fight back the tears that were slowly beginning to fall one by one. "I'm going to prove to the mistress...To Lady Patchouli, Flandre...I'm going to prove that I still care." Meiling opened her eyes and stared at the wall she faced.
"But most of all...I'm going to prove it to you."
Sakuya looked down into her own lap, and felt a lone tear fall slowly down her cheek, stop for a moment on her chin, and watched it drop down onto her leg. She closed her eyes and attempted to calm herself, but it wasn't really any use. However, she was snapped out of it as she felt Meiling grab onto her hands, interlacing their fingers.
"Wh-what are you doing!?" Sakuya yelled out, suprised at this sudden turn of events.
"Just go with it." Meiling replied.
The gatekeeper cleared her mind and sat with Sakuya's hands in her own. She began to gather all of her energy toward her center, effectively forgetting all of her pain. All emotion was lost, the world lost color to her. When not a single bit more of energy could possibly be gathered, Meiling held onto it for a moment. It was then that Sakuya began to catch on to what Meiling was hoping to do. Feeling a strange transfer of energy between the two's hands, Sakuya began to feel her strength be drained all but for a moment. As Meiling slowly led her and Sakuya's qi to her arms, she took a deep breath, and then made a sharp movement outwards with her arms.
In a mighty blow of superhuman strength, the ropes were broken.
Meiling stood up, weakly at first, but gained her balance. Her leg was still in pain, but she could at least walk on it now. She walked around the post that the two were tied against, and saw Sakuya for the first time since they had been in that room. Her hair was an absolute mess, her dress was torn in several places. There was a large wrapping bandage around her arm, but she looked pale either way - Sakuya definitely looked as if she was in no condition to be fighting. Meiling extended an arm and offered it to the maid.
"Come on, Sakuya-san. We're going to go save the mistress."
Sakuya sat and stared up at Meiling for a moment. The gatekeeper's blue eyes shone with her tears, but burned with passion and confidence. Meiling didn't look too well off to be fighting either, but Sakuya could tell that she wasn't about to give up, and that the sheer emotion and will that must be burning inside of her must be immense. The maid slowly reached up and took Meiling's hand, who helped her to her feet.
"I suspect that you don't have any knives on you...This will be a hard battle." Meiling commented, helping Sakuya up and making sure she was ok to stand on her own.
Meiling tried the door to the closet, but it was, expectedly, locked.
"Stand back, Sakuya-san." Meiling said as she took a powerful stance before the door. Despite the pain that began to shoot through her leg, Meiling gathered her energy and delivered a strong punch to the wooden door - causing it to explode outward into several pieces.
"Come on, before they find us!" Meiling yelled before dashing out of the room shakily.
Sakuya, without a word, swallowed her pride and obeyed the gatekeeper.
-
YEAH! GO MEILING! I can totally see them epically burst in a room and say "YO GET YOUR BITCH-ASS HANDS OFF MY MISTRESS, PUNK!"
-
I'm expecting Yumeko to get China Punched into a pile of knives :D
-
Meiling and Sakuya quietly ran through the halls of the Scarlet Devil Mansion, attempting to locate Remilia, or anybody rather. After they had broken out of the small room they were in, they determined that they were closest to the library - and it was there that they started.
"Lady Patchouli? Are you here?"
Of course, Meiling got no answer from the deserted library. The musty air was stagnant and strange - but then again, this was normal for the library. However, knowing that Patchouli was not in the library was more than a bit concerning - the pair had no idea how long they had been passed out, and any number of things could have happened in their down time.
Leaving the ancient library, Meiling decided that it would be possibly a good idea to see if Flandre was still in her basement. She reasoned that having her on their side would be a definite plus if they were to get into any sort of battles, especially if Yumeko's master was more powerful than she was. However, just as with the library, they found the basement of the Scarlet Devil Mansion to be completely empty and devoid of life.
"This is strange...There's not even a single fairy maid about." Meiling noted. "You'd think that SOMEBODY would have gone into hiding, or been looking for us, or SOMETHING..."
Sakuya had no comment on this, nor had she on any part of Meiling's plans - she had been oddly quiet ever since they had left the small closet. The pair made their way up the stairs of the mansion nonetheless, heading toward Remilia's bedchamber and balcony. If the mistress were to be anywhere, it would be there, seeing how it was still day, and she would have been asleep no doubtedly when Shinki made her way to the mansion.
However, as Meiling and Sakuya neared the grandiose double doors leading to their mistress's room, a chilling fear spread over them both. This fear wasn't anything that could be explained, except for the fact that both ladies felt as if beyond those doors lied what could be only described as their ultimate destiny.
"Come on, Sakuya-san. We're gonna get this over with." Meiling affirmatively said.
She tried the door, and it was strangely open. Slowly opening the door, the gatekeeper peeked inside, and was set upon quite an awful scene.
"Ah, the gatekeeper. You and your maid, come, take a seat."
Sitting delightfully in the center of the room was a woman with long, white hair, wearing robes of red. Standing next to her was the blonde maid that Meiling and Sakuya had dueled earlier, looking over the two as they entered with extreme caution.
"My name is Shinki, but you probably already knew that~" Shinki said with a cheerful smile. "And I've heard that you met my maid, Yumeko."
As Meiling looked around, she saw that Remilia and Flandre were tied up on the balcony, sitting in the direct sun - something that couldn't be great for the vampires. Patchouli was bound as well next to them, and a fairy was standing next to her with what looked like a feather duster.
"It's funny," Shinki started, seeing the shock on Meiling's face, "how such powerful people can be taken care of with such simple solutions, like sunlight or dust." The demon goddess laughed heartily, and Yumeko let off a small smirk.
"Why are you doing this?" Meiling asked forcefully, clearly sick of Shinki's games. "We've done nothing to you, and what do you hope to gain from this savage assault!?"
"Mmm, it's none of your business. Now, you can be a good girl and cooperate with me, or you can end up like your mistress over there." Shinki smiled again, clearly not taking Meiling seriously at all.
Both Meiling and Sakuya looked at eachother, and Sakuya nodded at Meiling, confirming her thoughts.
"How about THIS plan, Shinki." Meiling barked, beginning to take an offensive stance. "You leave this place at once, and I WON'T break every bone in your body." Sakuya stood behind the gatekeeper, silently, but ready as ever.
"Mmm, somehow I knew it would come to this. Yumeko, put them back in their room. And make sure to double tie their ropes this time." Shinki casually said, picking up a cup of tea and beginning to sip from it.
Without a word, the blonde haired maid drew two short swords and flew at the pair extremely quickly. However, Meiling was ready for this move, and stepped out of the way swiftly. Sakuya jumped up into the air and out of the way, and attempted to drive a kick into Yumeko's back. This move was quickly dodged, but met with a powerful punch by Meiling, sending the blonde maid back several feet. Standing back up, Yumeko saw the two standing in front of her, ready for more.
With a smirk, Yumeko began to toss out her swords, and mysteriously draw more from seemingly nowhere. Dodging out of the way, Meiling and Sakuya parted in separate ways, but kept an eye out on purpose - Yumeko could not keep track of them both at the same time. Running to her enemy's left, Meiling attempted to flank Yumeko and drive her to the ground - a move that was met with a powerful kick to Meiling's center. However, while her back was turned, Sakuya grabbed the other maid from behind, putting her into a submission hold. When Meiling quickly sprung back up, she noticed what Sakuya was attempting, and quickly dashed over to the two to take advantage of the situation.
"You fight for real, huh? Well, how real is this?" Meiling ragefully said, before delivering an extremely powerful blow directly to Yumeko's stomach.
With all of the wind knocked out of her, the blonde maid fell to the ground as Sakuya let go of her. Picking up a sword, Sakuya pointed it at Yumeko and glared directly into her eyes, causing a fear that Yumeko had never felt before.
"You done?" Meiling asked rhetorically, ready to dish out more punishment to the blonde maid.
Yumeko looked at the gatekeeper, and then up the blade of her own sword to Sakuya.
"Oh come Yumeko, show some honor." Shinki casually said, beginning to stand up. "They're clearly sparing you your life, show gratitude to the ladies."
The blonde maid looked at her mistress, then closed her eyes and looked downward.
"I admit defeat. You've won." She grudgingly said.
"And quite quickly too, I might add." Shinki disappointingly added in. "You've lost your touch Yumeko, I'm not happy with you."
"I'm sorry, ojou-sama..." Yumeko groveled.
Sakuya lowered the blade, confident that Yumeko would not get up again - maids never disobey their mistresses. The pair turned their attention to Shinki, now standing above Yumeko, and did not know what to expect from this strange woman. To them, she could be anybody - she was from Makai, and somehow held power over the already powerful Yumeko. A scary thought.
"Now then, about your mistress..." Shinki began to spread her arms. "...I'm afraid I can't let you save her. You see, I need her as a bargaining chip of sorts."
"And it's my job to protect her." Meiling retorted, taking another powerful stance. "I'm afraid I can't let you stay here - the mistress would be most displeased."
"Oh, all this talk coming from a little China girl? How amusing." Shinki laughed as she began to rise up into the air. "Just because I need that vampire, doesn't mean I need a worthless gatekeeper like you."
--
Remilia, Flandre and Patchouli all watched the spectacle from outside. The vampire sisters felt extremely weak and devoid of power due to the sun, and Patchouli had her own personal fairy to aggrivate her athsma if she attempted to act up.
"Onee-chan...Is Meiling going to be ok?" Flandre innocently asked, having lost all hope of escaping her current situation long ago.
"I don't know, Flandre..." Remilia replied, currently suffering a break in her usually immense charisma. "That Shinki lady is really strong..."
"I think...th.." Patchouli paused to let off a large sneeze, to which the fairy laughed. "...I think that it really depends." She finally managed to say.
"On what?" Remilia asked back.
"Sakuya." The librarian simply replied.
All three of the girls knew that Patchouli was most likely right, and they all had their assorted thoughts about the direness of the situation. The three looked back into the room just in time to see Shinki sprout a pair of purple and red wings - clearly a sign of the start of a very powerful battle.
--
"Come, with all your might!!!" Shinki declared out before sending out an extremely large wave of powerful danmaku. Unlike most danmaku in Gensokyo, however, these bullets weren't made to simply tag an opponent out of a spellcard - they were made to deliver extreme pain to the target; made to deliver death.
Quickly reacting, Meiling and Sakuya dodged their separate ways as they had done with Yumeko - they hoped to double team Shinki in a like manner. However, Shinki was more skillful than her maid, and saw this move coming - she locked Sakuya in an extremely thick wave of danmaku, causing her to dodge and graze, which impeded her progress. Whilst Sakuya was busy with that, Shinki turned her attention to Meiling, and caught her off guard - causing the gatekeeper to fly backwards and hit a wall forcefully.
The three ladies battled fiercely for what seemed to be an eternity - Meiling and Sakuya fought their hardest, but it seemed that Shinki had no weak points, as they weren't able to land a single hit on her. They were also having their previous injuries take their tolls - Meiling, despite her qi training, was becoming wobbly on her feet, and Sakuya's arm was acting up immensely. Shinki saw this, and knew that the end of the battle must be near.
After deflecting yet another attack, Shinki used a wave of energy to push the pair back onto their knees, and ceased her attacks for but a moment.
"Come now ladies, as Yumeko had said before, this is not your fight!" Shinki smiled. "If you surrender now, I will not harm you any further."
Meiling and Sakuya stood kneeling, both breathing heavily, both wounded heavily. Meiling had taken the brunt of most attacks, however, and was only continuing to fight off of her qi - under normal circumstances, she would have collapsed long ago. As the gatekeeper kneeled, she stared at the ground and watched as her sweat and blood mixed together painfully and dripped to the floor. She looked to her side and saw Sakuya doing much the same, still looking somewhat pale.
"Well?" Shinki inquired after a moment of ceasefire.
The gatekeeper looked back at the ground for a moment, then looked up at Shinki.
"Lady...Lady Shinki. You are powerful, I do admit." She began. "However, I told you before..." Meiling stood up slowly, then took an offensive pose once again. "...It's my job to protect the mistress."
Behind her, Sakuya struggled to her feet as well, and then looked up at her nemesis with her tired, blue eyes.
"It's my duty to ensure her safety..." Meiling continued, then looked back at Sakuya. Meiling smiled weakly as she saw what she was starting to do. Looking back at Shinki, Meiling smirked.
"...And it's high time you left."
Sakuya continued to stare at Shinki, with her fiery, red eyes.
Before anybody could react, Sakuya was behind the Demon Goddess, and had one of Yumeko's short swords pointed at her back. Seeing this opportunity, Meiling pushed the limits of her body and flew up into the air, returning quickly with a colorful, qi-powered kick aimed directly at Shinki's stomach. Shinki, being confused at the extremely sudden movement of Sakuya and Meiling, hesitated for but a moment, ensuring Meiling to 100% accuracy.
Shinki flew to the side and crashed through a large shelf, landing on the ground in a resounding thud. She picked herself up after a moment, and looked at the pair who landed in front of her, taking fighting poses once again.
"...Fools." Shinki glared at first, but then she slowly bared an evil grin. The pair were confused at first, but at that moment, Meiling sharply screamed and fell to the ground as blood spurted to the ground. Sakuya quickly looked behind her, seeing Yumeko with a dark look in her eye holding a bloodied sword, and beginning to turn to the maid. Becoming equally as angry, Sakuya swung the sword she held and barely missed hitting her target, grazing a bit of Yumeko's sleeve.
As Shinki regained her senses, and as the two maids dueled with their blades, Meiling laid on the ground, holding her arm in pain. With two limbs harboring major wounds, things were not looking up for the gatekeeper. As she lay on the ground, slowly bleeding out, she closed her eyes tightly, and many thoughts went through her head. She wondered if she would ever get out of this situation alive, or if the mistress was going to be ok. She wondered if Shinki would take over the Mansion, or if she was even going to live to see any of these answers.
But then, one more question crossed her mind. Meiling decided that this was the most important question yet, and decided that she must ensure a good outcome in its favor.
Gathering what little strength she had left, Meiling got back to her feet just as Shinki began to re-cast her main spells. Seething through the pain, Meiling looked at Shinki with a dark look in her eye.
"Back for more, China girl?" Shinki smirked as she readied more danmaku to throw at her.
"My...name...isn't...China!!!" Meiling yelled out angrily. With one powerful move, Meiling dashed forward with all of her might, moving at speeds comparable to a tengu. Catching Shinki off guard, Meiling placed a powerful palm into her center, and passed right on by, stopping several feet behind the Goddess.
Shinki stopped and looked down slowly to her stomach, which was building more and more with an extremely powerful energy. A colorful aura began to glow out of her, and before she knew it, this energy exploded into a mass of qi energy, being fed upon from both hers and Meiling's. The resulting blast knocked Sakuya and Yumeko to the ground, and caused the glass on the large door to the balcony to shatter, as well as every window in the room. Shinki flew high into the air, straight through the ceiling, and fell back only after several seconds of sustained flight. The impact knocked the Goddess out cold immediately, and left a sizable crack in the floor.
Yumeko viewed this spectacle with shock and fear, and Sakuya took advantage of this pause to quickly take two swipes at both of her arms - causing Yumeko to drop the swords that she was holding and scream out in terrible pain. Dropping to her knees, Yumeko was met with a bloody sword tip in her face, as well as a less than happy glare. Without a word, Sakuya swiftly kicked the blonde maid with a sharp heel, causing her to black out, as well as leaving a sizable cut down her cheek.
Meiling, after hearing her target impact with the floor, fell to her knees harshly. Pain throbbed all throughout her body, and every bit of her existence simply hurt. She was completely out of strength, as that last blow had literally taken all of the energy out of her. The blood loss that she suffered from her open wounds caused her to feel light headed, and feeling the sweat she had worked up over the course of the battle mix into her cuts didn't help matters. However, despite all of her pain, only one thing was on her mind.
Meiling wondered whether or not Sakuya would be proud of her.
"Meiling!!!!" Flandre yelled after being untied by Sakuya. She ran as fast as she could over to the gatekeeper, and looked at Meiling's motionless figure lying on the ground, then quickly looked back. "Sakuya, do something!!!" She frantically yelled, her eyes tearing up immensely.
Remilia came quickly behind, and Patchouli walked slowly to the scene. Whilst Remilia attempted to calm Flandre, Patchouli looked back when she noticed that Sakuya was not following them.
"Sakuya-san?" Patchouli inquired, as if to ask why she was hesitating.
The silver haired maid looked down at the ground and clenched her fist. Being in much pain herself, Sakuya stood there as Patchouli, and eventually Remilia and Flandre, looked upon her. Her legs shook, her arms felt like jelly, and every muscle in her body was on fire. However, it was not these symptoms that were bothering the perfect and elegant maid.
With everybody watching, Sakuya walked slowly over to Meiling, and saw her lying on the ground. Face down, Meiling's clothes were torn, and blood was still slowly streaming out of her wounds. Sakuya saw her, Meiling, and having suffered through the same battle as her, felt an emotion that she had never felt toward the gatekeeper.
A small tear hit the ground.
-
Amazing battle scene. Sakuya and Meiling sure make a great team.
-
where is the red and white , when you need her
-
ADMIT SAKUYA, YOU ENVY MEILING, SHE IS MUCH BETTER THAN YOU!
-
Five Point Palm: Exploding heart? :V
The battle scene was in one word 'superb'!
-
The aftermath of the battle was dealt with bitterly. Not too long after Shinki and her maid were defeated, Reimu herself showed up at the mansion, albeit a bit too late. Reimu reasoned that she had sensed a large expulsion of energy coming from the mansion and decided to investigate, and although her motives were true enough, that didn't stop her from being yelled at by a very angry Flandre. Fortunately for the shrine maiden, the sun was still taking its toll on the vampire, so a bloody battle was avoided. To help calm the girl, Reimu helped clean up the area after taking Shinki and Yumeko back to Makai, as well as holding a formal duel with the Goddess some days later to help quell her thirst for trouble.
Both Sakuya and Meiling were put under the care of anybody who was able - which equated out to mostly Remilia and Patchouli. The maid was back on her feet safely within 2 days, and was able to help around the mansion again in 3, although slightly against Remilia's judgement - she feared that Sakuya was going to hurt herself. The maid prevailed, however, and continued to serve her mistress dutifully, although perhaps a bit carefully.
However, as the days ticked on by, Meiling showed little signs of recovery. Her immense blood loss and overexertion caused numerous complications with the healing process that Patchouli attempted upon her, and as a few days turned into a week and a half, the tenants of the Scarlet Devil Mansion began to lose hope. The gatekeeper had not been concious since her battle with Shinki, and had only been kept alive through intensive care. Remilia herself, after the 6th day, was beginning to have her doubts, and by the 8th decided that it might be best to begin to think that Meiling would never be waking up.
A great wave of sadness began to seep across the Scarlet Devil Mansion as on the 9th day, Remilia decided to make a speech to the ladies of her mansion. Remilia sat at the head of a long table, with Sakuya at her side. Any and all who were important in the Mansion, along with assorted fairy maids who were curious, were present to hear their mistress speak.
"My friends..." Remilia started out, "...servants and advisors alike. We all know of the incident that has happened nine days past. I must once again congratulate Sakuya for her help in defending our mansion. However, I must also bring up our gatekeeper. Whilst some of you may have thought of her as incompetent or a slacker, I must admit to you all that I hold respect for her, as it was with her help that this mansion was defended successfully against our assailants. However, our gatekeeper has suffered terrible wounds from her fight to ensure our safety, as some of you may know, and she unfortunately has not shown any signs of recovery." The vampire paused and closed her eyes, gathering herself.
"It is with immense regret that I must say that Meiling may no longer be with us in days to come."
Flandre sat with Patchouli near Remilia, and at that point, buried her face into the librarian's arm and began to cry. Patchouli herself also bowed her head solemnly in regret.
"I thank you, Patchouli, for your efforts to keep our gatekeeper alive as long as you have. We shall continue to monitor her, however, things are anything but hopeful for our dear Meiling. I ask that you all think of her fondly, for without her, we may not be here today." The elder vampire sister sat down in her chair and closed her eyes, bowing her head ever so slightly.
Sakuya sat to Remilia's right with a blank look on her face. Not moving or showing any emotion, she simply sat and absorbed Remilia's words.
--
Things were dark. Everything was in a confusing swirl, and no sense of direction could be made. There was a light. The light was so welcoming, so inviting. It drew her in, it called to her.
No, She thought. I can't leave. I have a duty to fufill.
The light was abandoned. But where to go? All was dark. Nothing.
But suddenly, red. A red tint began to rise upon the area, and objects began to form.
Meiling slowly stirred at last, opening her eyes for the first time in days. She heard a shuffling of objects, then quickly a gasp, and footsteps hurrying to where she was. Meiling opened her eyes fully and gained her bearings to find Sakuya looking into her eyes with a shocked, yet relieved look on her face.
"S...Sakuya-san...?" Meiling asked slowly. She coughed several times and cringed in pain, but continued to look at the maid.
"You're alive!!!" Sakuya exclaimed excitedly, genuinely suprised at her recovery.
"Did...did we win...?" Meiling asked weakly.
"You need your rest, don't strain yourself." Sakuya warned the gatekeeper.
"How long have I been out...?" Meiling asked wearily, beginning to sit up. Sakuya attempted to get her to lay down once more, but Meiling sat up nonetheless.
"For eleven days." The maid replied.
"Days?" Meiling said with a shock.
"Yes...I suppose your wounds may have healed enough by that time for you to move a bit." Sakuya rationalized for letting Meiling stay sitting up in her bed.
"How was I out for DAYS? I should be..." Meiling began to trail off.
"Dead. I know." Sakuya finished the gatekeeper's sentence. "Lady Patchouli and the Mistress personally attended to you for slightly over a week to attempt to nurse you back to health."
"Attempt...?" Meiling inquired.
"Yes...After the ninth day, the mistress lost hope for you, and after the tenth, Patchouli deemed you a lost cause. You showed absolutely no signs of recovery, even up to before you woke up just now."
"Then how am I alive?" Meiling asked, still confused about the entire matter.
Sakuya stayed silent and looked down at the ground and held a tray vertically in front of her, in the true fashion of a maid. She stayed like that for a moment, causing Meiling to begin to wonder what the situation could be.
"Sakuya-san...?"
The maid looked back up slowly at the gatekeeper. "After Lady Patchouli left you for the last time, I entered here to tidy the room." Sakuya placed the tray on a table next to the bed. "I...." Sakuya paused and attempted to find the correct words.
"She stayed in here all night with you."
"Lady Patchouli!!!" Sakuya quickly turned to the door to the room, where Patchouli was standing.
"You see, I don't think Sakuya wanted to give up on you." Patchouli slowly walked over to the small table and picked up a book, then held it at her side. "She wouldn't leave this room for anything." The librarian slowly strode back out of the room, but then paused at the doorway.
"...It's good to see you again, Meiling." Patchouli wore a small smile as she said those words, then was off to the library once more.
Meiling looked at Sakuya, who was still looking at the door from which Patchouli had left. Her cheeks began to turn a shade of red, and then she simply looked at the floor again.
"Is that true, Sakuya-san?" Meiling asked, being extremely suprised at this new information.
Sakuya stared at the floor for a minute longer, and then sat on the bed next to Meiling softly.
"I just...After the fight, I've been meaning to tell you something." Sakuya hesitantly said. Meiling wondered what it might have been, but before she could ask, Sakuya threw her arms around the gatekeeper and leaned her head into Meiling's shoulder.
"Thank you...Meiling...For everything you've done."
Meiling sat, with Sakuya hugging her willingly for the first time in what seemed to be an eternity. In fact, Meiling actually could never think of a time when she had at all. The wave of emotion that poured over the chinese girl's heart and mind was absolutely intoxicating - not only was Sakuya thanking her for all of her hard work, but she had called her by her real name.
It was at that moment that Meiling hugged Sakuya back and lost herself in her joy, letting tears of sheer happiness begin to trickle down her cheeks. She embraced the warmth and kindness that Sakuya had finally given to her, and almost felt completely overwhelmed by the sensation. And, for the first time since the two had known eachother, the feeling was mutual. Sakuya herself felt guilty for mistreating Meiling, and was glad that her coldness was not treated with anger, but instead unconditional love and devotion.
The two sat embraced, basking in their own tears and joy, for quite some time. Neither of them cared one bit though, for any and all awkwardness was forgiven and forgotten due to the newfound bond that the two had developed over their trial.
It was on that day that Meiling had officially reclaimed her rightful respect.
However, there was one more matter to attend to...
--
"I'll just be sneaking by, da ze~"
"Hold it right there, Marisa!!!"
Meiling stood firmly in front of the gate, facing a smiling and headstrong Marisa.
"Oh come on, how many times do I have to do this before you'll just start letting me in?" Marisa smirked, lazily pulling out her hakkero. "No matter, using my sparks actually feels good. Well, for me at least, ze~"
Meiling gathered her qi and stood ready for any attack. However, as she gathered herself, she felt a newfound energy that she had never felt before. She knew that everybody in the mansion was now actually proud of her, and as childish as this thought is to some, it gave Meiling an extra edge.
"MASTER SPAAAAARK!!!!" Marisa declared out before a large multicolored laser flew at Meiling, destroying patches of the grass on the ground in its wake.
However, Meiling placed a powerful palm out and split the energy apart, diffusing it and even sending bits of it flying back at Marisa. Marisa dodged out of the way with a suprised look on her face, but then was met with a large kick to the side, which sent her flying and broke her concentration on her spell.
"Wh...what!?" The blonde witch screamed, clearly confused about the situation. "Fine, I'll play hardball!"
Marisa pulled her hat on tightly, then hopped on her broom and zoomed at extremely high speeds directly at the gatekeeper. Meiling dodged switftly, and sent some danmaku to trail her, which Marisa grazed skillfully. Coming in for a second pass, Marisa laced the area with mutlicolored stars trailing in her wake. However, seeing through this quick attack, Meiling stood directly in the way of her trajectory with a fist at the ready. As Marisa neared, Meiling reared back and delivered a powerful wave of energy directly at the witch, knocking her clean off of her broom and ending her chaotic dash.
Marisa stood up shakily, and saw Meiling, who did not have a scratch on her.
"Heh...I see you've been actually training this time. Well, I'm anything but done." Marisa smirked as she regained her balance. "This is personal now, I can't be beaten by stupid old China."
"Her name is Meiling." A voice from behind the witch coldly announced. Marisa turned around quickly and saw Sakuya standing with several knives in her hand, ready to strike.
"Come on now, you have to wait your turn. Didn't Remilia teach her dog that?" Marisa smirked.
"This is a matter of you violating her rules, and I have been instructed to keep order around the mansion." Sakuya cooly retorted.
"And so if you don't leave, we'll be forced to make you." Meiling backed her up, walking over to Sakuya and standing next to her.
Marisa looked at both the ladies, then picked up her broom. "Sheesh, lighten up guys! It's not like I-" She was suddenly cut off by a knife knocking her hat off and pinning it to a tree, followed by a laugh by Meiling.
"Jeez, fine, I'll go! Patch is running out of good books anyway." Marisa took her hat and hopped on her broom, then continued to lazily fly in the direction of the shrine.
"Thanks Sakuya-san." Meiling smiled as Marisa flew out of view.
"Well, don't get too used to it, I'm busy too. Here's your lunch." Sakuya handed the gatekeeper a small box. "It's Chinese dumplings."
"You're the best, Sakuya-san." Meiling thanked the maid. She really did enjoy those dumplings, and knowing that Sakuya had made them just for her made them all that much better.
"You're welcome. Good day, Meiling." Sakuya bowed and returned into the mansion to continue her daily work.
The gatekeeper opened up her box and began to enjoy her lunch.
"The sun is bright, there's not a cloud in the sky~" Meiling reveled at the good weather. "Ah, how I love life~"
And this time, she meant it.
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*sniff* It's....so BEAUTIFUL!! I only wish my own work was this quality!
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After seeing everything Meiling has gone through, the happy ending is all the more beautiful ;w;
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EXTRA
STAGE MINI-CHAPTER:
"So, Meiling, where's that book that you were writing out?"
The book lay in the midst of Makai, with only the first page filled.
"Uh...."
"Don't tell me you didn't do it."
"....I'm sorry?"
"...I guess I could write out a new one for her. A place like that is hard to forget."
"That'd probably be the best idea. Thanks for not getting mad, Sakuya-san."
The maid smiled at the gatekeeper.
"Don't worry about it."
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*applaud*
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Great story! *tearfull applause*
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I wasn't a big fan of MeilingxSakuya, but I really love how the story goes.
After all that abuse, a phrase and a break is what Meiling needed from Sakuya.
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I'm happy for Meiling but now I am sad. :qq:
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There are no words.
This is beautiful. Please teach me ;)
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Great story.
Meirin <3