Maidens of the Kaleidoscope
~Beyond the Border~ => Rumia's Party Games => Mystia's Stored Games => Topic started by: Hello Purvis on August 17, 2010, 02:19:48 AM
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>You are Maribel Hearn, and the world is wrong. Or rather, you're in the wrong world!
>Having woken up in a strange room, you've discovered you are in the middle of a world called Gensokyo, and you've finally discovered another world that you've always knew existed
>You grew up in Japan, living a fairly normal life. Still, you always had a strong instinct that there was more to the world than you could see. You studied psychology in college, and met your best friend there, a woman named Renko. The two of you shared a passion for the supernatural (extranormal, Renko called it, to make it sound more legitimate). In pursuing that passion, the two of you followed your instincts and moved to small island nation called Gensokyo. From there, then memories of the past half year fuzzy. You remember running a modestly successful detective agency and numerous attempts to find supernatural activity. You remember a woman named Utsuho being a prominent influence on your life in the last few days before you woke up here, but you can't remember a lot about it. You remember, though, that she helped you prove the supernatural exists beyond the shadow of a doubt! Too bad you can only recall vague details about it.
>You have been wandering through Gensokyo! You've learned some of the basics of flight, danmaku, time-stopping and barrier magic, and you're on cloud nine! Reimu is very concerned you may easily end up a Youkai; Patchouli and Mystia seem to be all for it. Utsuho and Yuugi are in a doomed rivalry for Parsee's love, you have tried to nudge them toward Polyamory. You visited Komachi and got her back to work on Reimu's behalf! You have assisted Murasa at the underground clinic on Byakuren's behalf, which involved cleaning up vomit buckets and dealing with a racist old oni. Byakuren has agreed to consider enhancing your natural magical abilities if you gather the necessary ingredients. You have planted flowers for Yuka! You have been charged to find out where all the maids at Scarlet Devil Mansion have gone! You've been chased by a mob of faeries! You have befriend Tokiko, and are helping her get used to society and not eating animals raw. You have engaged in a few fact finding missions on Utsuho's behalf. There is still no sign of Renko.
>You are currently negotiating with a tengu guard to get access to their city.
>"How does one become a follower? That seems like something of a catch-22 situation if no new people can reach the shrine."
>"You may go if you're a new convert," she says.
> Contemplate dropping Utsuho's name in an attempt to get to Kanako.
>You could try this, but given you don't think this is Kanako, you have no idea if she would hear. Or care.
> If you can't negotiate your way out of this, get ready for a fight.
>Rather, politely withdraw, if we can't negotiate.
>You consider bursting your way through, but you get the feeling this tengu would rock your face.
>_
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> "If I may, can I ask who you are? I'm actually new in...the area, so I'm still learning things. I know you're a tengu, at least, but that's about it."
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> "If I may, can I ask who you are? I'm actually new in...the area, so I'm still learning things. I know you're a tengu, at least, but that's about it."
>"I am Momiji Inubashira," she says, bowing toward you. "This is your first time leaving the village, then?"
>_
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> "Why can't any outsiders enter, anyways? This is kind of a crucial matter for me."
> "Well, can you at least tell me if you've seen my friend Renko? Human with brown hair. Usually wears a white shirt, black hat, and a tie."
> "Actually, I'm kind of new to Gensokyo itself. I come from the outside world."
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> Do we recall an Inubashiri from the dream world that wasn't?
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> "Why can't any outsiders enter, anyways? This is kind of a crucial matter for me."
> "Well, can you at least tell me if you've seen my friend Renko? Human with brown hair. Usually wears a white shirt, black hat, and a tie."
> "Actually, I'm kind of new to Gensokyo itself. I come from the outside world."
>"It is the order of Lord Tenma," she says.
>"I've not seen any humans here, save the one Hatate meets at the base of the cliff." You think you catch a faint undercurrent of disgust when she mentions Hatate.
>"Really?" she asks, her right eyebrow raising.
> Do we recall an Inubashiri from the dream world that wasn't?
>You think about it, and it does sound familiar. Someone important...someone official...That's it! She was the sheriff.
>_
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> "Oh, yes, you're Sheriff Inubashiri! I recognize you now."
> "And yes, I am from the outside world. I don't know how I got here, but it was apparently a byproduct of that dream everyone had. I assume you had it too, given you were the town sheriff in it."
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>"And I take it that this one Hatate met doesn't match that description?"
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>"And I take it that this one Hatate met doesn't match that description?"
>She shakes her head. "No, not at all. It was an older man, on a...kappa vehicle of some kind."
> "Oh, yes, you're Sheriff Inubashiri! I recognize you now."
> "And yes, I am from the outside world. I don't know how I got here, but it was apparently a byproduct of that dream everyone had. I assume you had it too, given you were the town sheriff in it."
>Her eyes narrow, and she draws closer to you.
>"I've not told anyone about that. How did you know?" She asks, her voice practically a hiss.
>_
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>"The dream was a shared one, as I said. You were a fairly prominent person, there, so I remembered when I stopped to think about it. I very much doubt you remember me, though. Usami Investigations ring any bells? Detective agency?"
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> You know, maybe we should stop telling vicious combat youkai about their unshared dreams.
> "I know because everyone had that dream. I've done some asking around, and I've learned that...it wasn't actually a dream. It really happened. It's just been undone. There's a woman in the human village, Keine Kamishirasawa, that's told me about it. Apparently Kanako also knows about it - this was part of why I wanted to talk to her."
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>"The dream was a shared one, as I said. You were a fairly prominent person, there, so I remembered when I stopped to think about it. I very much doubt you remember me, though. Usami Investigations ring any bells? Detective agency?"
>She frowns. "No, I don't remember any specific details. And, I see... I hadn't heard of anyone who remembered me, or really, anyone else. You're the first in that regard."
> You know, maybe we should stop telling vicious combat youkai about their unshared dreams.
> "I know because everyone had that dream. I've done some asking around, and I've learned that...it wasn't actually a dream. It really happened. It's just been undone. There's a woman in the human village, Keine Kamishirasawa, that's told me about it. Apparently Kanako also knows about it - this was part of why I wanted to talk to her."
>Yeah, this is becoming habitual.
>Momiji's frown turns to a kind of grimace. "So, Lady Kanako does know more than she lets on..."
>_
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>"Yeah, some people's memories of events seem to be better than others. "
>"And... were you already suspecting that Kanako was holding something back?"
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>"Yeah, some people's memories of events seem to be better than others. "
>"And... were you already suspecting that Kanako was holding something back?"
>She nods. "So it seems."
>"Many have. When asked about it, her response was that it was a dream, and nothing more to worry about."
>_
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> "From what I understand, she had something of a...personal stake in that 'dream'. That may be why she's been hush-hush about it."
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>"That... may be true, in a pragmatic sense. And it might be best to think of it that way, since I've been assured that it cannot happen again. But I guess she doesn't feel comfortable to elaborate about what actually happened."
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> "From what I understand, she had something of a...personal stake in that 'dream'. That may be why she's been hush-hush about it."
>"Hmm, I see," says Momiji.
>"That... may be true, in a pragmatic sense. And it might be best to think of it that way, since I've been assured that it cannot happen again. But I guess she doesn't feel comfortable to elaborate about what actually happened."
>"And what were you planning to ask her about, then, if it is best left unremembered?"
>_
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> "I wanted to ask her if she could help me find Renko. They say she can read the wind, or something."
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> "Well, that dream carried me over, so I guess I want to know my options regarding whether it's possible to go back to the outside world, if I so choose. Granted, I'm not leaning in that direction but it's still important to have the option. Because I also don't want to selfishly decide to stay here when my friend might want to go back. Speaking of my friend, I'm also hoping Kanako can help me locate her so we can decide what to do from here. I also believe that another friend of mine wanted me to convey a message to Suwako and Kanako"
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> "This second friend was apparently another major player in this dream, and Kanako was very aware of this. I imagine Kanako will be curious to hear what she has to say, regardless of other personal feelings."
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> "I wanted to ask her if she could help me find Renko. They say she can read the wind, or something."
>She nods.
> "Well, that dream carried me over, so I guess I want to know my options regarding whether it's possible to go back to the outside world, if I so choose. Granted, I'm not leaning in that direction but it's still important to have the option. Because I also don't want to selfishly decide to stay here when my friend might want to go back. Speaking of my friend, I'm also hoping Kanako can help me locate her so we can decide what to do from here. I also believe that another friend of mine wanted me to convey a message to Suwako and Kanako"
>You elaborate a bit. "I am afraid I don't quite understand all of that, but I think I get the gist of it."
> "This second friend was apparently another major player in this dream, and Kanako was very aware of this. I imagine Kanako will be curious to hear what she has to say, regardless of other personal feelings."
>She nods. "All in all, it seems you have business with Lady Kanako. I think it will be alright to let you through to see her."
>_
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>While Momi's guard is slightly down, punch her in the face and run away
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>"Thank you very much. I don't suppose you could point me to where it is?"
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>While Momi's guard is slightly down, punch her in the face and run away
>She shanked you over a dozen posts ago, homigo/s]
>"Thank you very much. I don't suppose you could point me to where it is?"
>"It?" She gives you a look. "You mean Lady Kanako? She tends to be the Moriya Shrine, which is on the peak. But, lately she has taken to wandering town and speaking with people."
>_
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>"By 'it' I meant the shrine. But you think I might find her around town instead? What does she look like?"
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>"By 'it' I meant the shrine. But you think I might find her around town instead? What does she look like?"
>"She is very distinctive," says Momiji, "She is tall, her hair is blue and rather large. She wearings a shimenawa around her back. She favors darker red clothing."
>_
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>"Well, thank you for the help, Momiji, and for letting me pass."
>Fly off towards the peak, where the shrine is supposed to be
>Keep an eye out for people matching Kanako's description along the way, in case we see her elsewhere
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>"Well, thank you for the help, Momiji, and for letting me pass."
>Fly off towards the peak, where the shrine is supposed to be
>Keep an eye out for people matching Kanako's description along the way, in case we see her elsewhere
>Momiji flies along with you.
>"Wait," she says, "Please do not fly without need in the town. It is disrespectful. You won't get in trouble for it, but it will reflect poorly upon you."
>You are pretty sure you can see the shrine from here. It is a fairly large building on its own, at the summit of the mountain.
>_
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>Is there not a need to fly to reach the summit, then? There a path of some sort that's more navigable than the last one we were on? If so, may as well land and take it.
>"My apologies. I don't really know the rules of etiquette for that. I, uh... couldn't actually fly at all until this morning."
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>Is there not a need to fly to reach the summit, then? There a path of some sort that's more navigable than the last one we were on? If so, may as well land and take it.
>"My apologies. I don't really know the rules of etiquette for that. I, uh... couldn't actually fly at all until this morning."
>You don't have to, but it's certainly easier. It's not that path is unnavigable, just it's steep and unpleasant-looking.
>"You don't need to land just yet," says Momiji, "But when you get to the outskirts of town, you should. You see, flying makes it hard to see what someone is doing, or to talk with them, and it's also used for danmaku. So, when a stranger is flying around one's home, it's really quite rude, you see."
>_
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> "So that's why Yuuka and Shizuha got mad at me..."
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>On the other hand, Yuuka may have taken offense no matter how we entered her garden, given what people have said about her...
>"I suppose that makes sense. Thank you."
>Fly towards the shrine, and land a polite distance away from habitation, and cover the rest on foot.
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> "So that's why Yuuka and Shizuha got mad at me..."
>"Yuuka probably got mad at you because you were there, to be honest," says Momiji.
>On the other hand, Yuuka may have taken offense no matter how we entered her garden, given what people have said about her...
>"I suppose that makes sense. Thank you."
>Fly towards the shrine, and land a polite distance away from habitation, and cover the rest on foot.
>You decide Momiji has it.
>She nods. "Well, I did let you in, so I want you to behave youself."
>She lets you go. You land near the town, and walk the rest of the way, ascending a set of stone steps. The town itself is composed of a number of narrow, tall buildings, many bristling with balconies and such that seem to be made for an aerial people to use as needs be. Some of them are even connected by walkways between the balconies. You see a few tengu flying about, and more of them on the ground, going about their daily business. There are many birds here as well, especially crows and ravens. You can see a couple largish buildings about. Up ahead are the gates of the Shrine. Obvious exits are North, East, West, and South.
>_
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>Continue towards the shrine
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>Continue towards the shrine
>You continue toward the shrine. Along the way, a few of the kappa give you odd looks, but no one seems to bother you.
>Soon you reach the open gates of the shrine, and walk inside.
>Standing in stark contrast to the Hakurei Shrine, the Moriya shrine is in excellent condition. The building is in fine shape, both clean and well-maintained. It's obvious a lot of love has gone into it. It seems to lack the aura of age that the Hakurei shrine does, having instead a sort of clean dignity about it that you cannot really put into the words. A stone path leads to it, with several trees nearby ringed with shimenawa. You can see a little fortune-telling set near the shrine's porch, and there is stone basin of clean water near the gates. In the bank, you can see a pond, with several onbashira raising from it. Obvious exists are West, East 1, and East 2.
>You can see a woman with a blue skirt and green hair tending to one of the trees. She has a clip shaped like a frog in her hair, and a hair ornament shaped like a snake dangling from it.
>_
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>Walk up to the woman
>"Excuse me. I'm searching for a friend of mine, and I was told that Kanako might be able to help me locate her."
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>Walk up to the woman
>"Excuse me. I'm searching for a friend of mine, and I was told that Kanako might be able to help me locate her."
>She looks toward you as you approach. "I'm afraid Kanako-sama isn't in right now," she says. "Is there something I can help with, perhaps?"
>_
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>"I don't suppose you've seen or heard of another human female around this way? Around my age, brown hair. Her name is Renko."
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>"I don't suppose you've seen or heard of another human female around this way? Around my age, brown hair. Her name is Renko."
>She shakes her head. "It's honestly a little unusual to see any kind of human here, let alone any specific one. Mostly we have tengu and kappa here."
>_
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> Sigh.
> "Man, I have no idea where she could be, then...she really could be anywhere, but I feel like I've looked everywhere. Or maybe she didn't come into Gensokyo with me..."
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>"That's too bad, although I admit I'm getting used to that response. I've covered a lot of Gensokyo looking for her, now. I was told that Kanako can 'read the winds', and might be able to hint me in the right direction, at the least."
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> Sigh.
> "Man, I have no idea where she could be, then...she really could be anywhere, but I feel like I've looked everywhere. Or maybe she didn't come into Gensokyo with me..."
>She frowns. "Came to Gensokyo? So, you're from elsewhere?" She gives you a scrutinizing look.
>"That's too bad, although I admit I'm getting used to that response. I've covered a lot of Gensokyo looking for her, now. I was told that Kanako can 'read the winds', and might be able to hint me in the right direction, at the least."
>She frowns. "I'm sorry to hear that. Maybe she really isn't here with you. People coming from elsewhere is rare enough as it is. It might be she just didn't. But yes, Kanako-sama may be convinced to help you."
>_
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> "Yeah, I'm from what is apparently the 'outside'. I have no idea how it happened. One day I'm running Usami Investigations on Gensokyo Isle, the next, BAM, I'm here. It's a real mystery."
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>"I understand there's a possibility that she isn't here. But... we were really close, and I won't be satisfied until I feel that I've covered everything, you know?"
>"I would very much appreciate it if she could. Do you have any idea when she might be expected back?"
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> "Yeah, I'm from what is apparently the 'outside'. I have no idea how it happened. One day I'm running Usami Investigations on Gensokyo Isle, the next, BAM, I'm here. It's a real mystery."
>"Hm, really?" she says.
>"I understand there's a possibility that she isn't here. But... we were really close, and I won't be satisfied until I feel that I've covered everything, you know?"
>"I would very much appreciate it if she could. Do you have any idea when she might be expected back?"
>She nods. "I understand how you feel, I think. But I cannot tell you when Kanako-sama will be back. She's been quite active in the town the past couple days."
>_
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>"Ah, I see. Should I simply come back some other time, then?"
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>"Ah, I see. Should I simply come back some other time, then?"
>"If you wish," says the green-haired woman. "But, no one is chasing you away."
>_
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> "Well, in that case, I should probably at least introduce myself, after bugging you with a whole lot of my personal problems. I am Maribel Hearn."
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> "Well, in that case, I should probably at least introduce myself, after bugging you with a whole lot of my personal problems. I am Maribel Hearn."
>She nods deeply toward you. "I am Sanae Kochiya. It's a pleasure. And, don't feel too bad about that. It's part of my duties to listen to others."
>_
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>"Thanks, I appreciate it. It's... been a rather indescribable sort of day, today, as I'm sure you can imagine. But I'm still in one piece, so I think I'm doing okay."
>"Now that I think of it, what is a proper etiquette for addressing a goddess, anyway? I... can't say I've ever attempted to talk to one, before."
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> "Wait, you're Sanae? Then...uh. Oh dear. You said Kanako has taken a shine to the village...I assume you mean the village I past on the way here, not the human village back on sea level. Is she there right now?"
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What are we 'Oh dear'-ing about? And even if we're internalizing such things, why are we letting it slip to her?
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>"Thanks, I appreciate it. It's... been a rather indescribable sort of day, today, as I'm sure you can imagine. But I'm still in one piece, so I think I'm doing okay."
>"Now that I think of it, what is a proper etiquette for addressing a goddess, anyway? I... can't say I've ever attempted to talk to one, before."
>She nods. "If you're really new here, I can imagine."
>"Well, be on your best behavior, of course." she says, "Try to be humble without groveling. Don't make demands, of course. It's considered good manners to donate if she does grant you a boon. It's really not so bad, Kanako-sama is quite nice."
> "Wait, you're Sanae? Then...uh. Oh dear. You said Kanako has taken a shine to the village...I assume you mean the village I past on the way here, not the human village back on sea level. Is she there right now?"
>"Well, yes I am, is that a problem? And yes, she should be in the tengu town right now, unless she felt a need to leave."
>_
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>"That... doesn't sound so intimidating for a goddess, actually. I almost wondered whether it was presumptuous to attempt to even speak with her directly, or something."
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>"That... doesn't sound so intimidating for a goddess, actually. I almost wondered whether it was presumptuous to attempt to even speak with her directly, or something."
>"There are some that feel this way," she says. "But Kanako-sama is really quite kind. She would prefer to be with her followers, rather than remote and unknown. It is a little presumptuous, but I don't think she is offended as long as you don't barge in on her when she is busy without her permission. Should you find her around town, it shouldn't be a problem at all."
>_
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What are we 'Oh dear'-ing about? And even if we're internalizing such things, why are we letting it slip to her?
Just having fun playing the character.
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>"Ah, I see. Thank you. I think I may go have a little look around town in that case, if you don't mind. Have a pleasant day!"
>Head back towards town.
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>"Ah, I see. Thank you. I think I may go have a little look around town in that case, if you don't mind. Have a pleasant day!"
>Head back towards town.
>She nods. "I wish you luck."
>You return to town. Standing outside the gates, you can see a large, squarish building not far from here. Being one story and without decoration, you have the feeling it must be meant for some sort of public use, or has a specific designation that is not to be interfered with. To the south, you see a sizable street. Westward, the road leads out of town. Obvious exits are North, South, East, and West.
>_
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>Head south
>Keep an eye out for anyone matching Kanako's description
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>Head south
>Keep an eye out for anyone matching Kanako's description
>You head south, following the road, as it were to an intersection. In front of you is a large manner that reminds you of Yuugi's residence. In fact...it looks an awful lot like Yuugi's residence upon closer inspection. A street stretches to the East and west, where you see a number of tall tengu homes bunched together. Looking west, you see a tall-looking woman with a large length of rope around her back, kneeling in front of a tengu child; the latter of which is waving her hands wildly as she talks about something. A few tengu watch her from a respectable distance. There is a very pleasant breeze on this street.
>_
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>Head towards the woman, and watch/wait from a similar respectful distance as the other people seem to be doing until she appears to be finished
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>Head towards the woman, and watch/wait from a similar respectful distance as the other people seem to be doing until she appears to be finished
>You head toward her, and wait decent distance away. The child contains to excitedly tell her story, while the woman listens on with a smile. After a couple minutes, the child seems satisfied, and after a few words between them, trundles off. The woman then stands up, and looks at you with a calm expression.
>_
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>Approach her and bow our head respectfully.
>"Am I correct in assuming you're Kanako?"
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>Approach her and bow our head respectfully.
>"Am I correct in assuming you're Kanako?"
>"You do," she says. "And you wish to speak with me about something you feel is important. Shall we return to the shrine?"
>_
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>"Yes, I would appreciate that."
>Follow her
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>"Yes, I would appreciate that."
>Follow her
>You walk with her back to the Shrine.
>Along the way, you wonder whether or not she is really a goddess. Wardrobe aside, she seems rather...normal. She does have kind of a commanding presence, and a sort or regal air, but it's nothing spectacular. Really, you found Yuugi more intimidating and impressive. It's hard to believe she is what she claims to be.
>As you step through the gates, she looks at you again, saying nothing. Sanae, who was sitting on the porch, stands up and heads inside.
>_
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>"I came looking for you today because I'm hoping you may be able to help me find a friend of mine. I've been searching across Gensokyo for her, with no success, but I was told you may be able to help. Her name is Renko. She's about my age, brown hair, wears a black hat. Would be an unfamiliar face around here."
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>"I came looking for you today because I'm hoping you may be able to help me find a friend of mine. I've been searching across Gensokyo for her, with no success, but I was told you may be able to help. Her name is Renko. She's about my age, brown hair, wears a black hat. Would be an unfamiliar face around here."
>She frowns a little. "I am afraid I do not know of her offhand."
>_
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>"I didn't necessarily expect you would, but I was given the impression you could sense certain kinds of events from afar. She would have arrived from... outside Gesokyo, no more than a couple days ago."
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I have plans for the Utsuho part of the conversation, so please don't go too far into it without me. :V
(Also PLEASE don't just blow through Kanako without talking about Utsuho at all >_>)
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I admit that I'm a little hesitant to broach the topic with her at all at this point, although she may be able to eventually make the connection herself, anyway. Although I don't necessarily expect the reaction is likely, I'm worried our association might generate some hostility. But I didn't have any direction in particular to go with that, anyway, while you do, so....
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>"I didn't necessarily expect you would, but I was given the impression you could sense certain kinds of events from afar. She would have arrived from... outside Gesokyo, no more than a couple days ago."
>She nods. "I don't recognize her, I'm afraid. At the same time, I have not searched. The wind touches many things, you understand, and I do not pay attention to much of it. If you require it, I can try to find her when I preform my duties this evening."
>_
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>"If that would be possible, I would very much appreciate it."
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>"If that would be possible, I would very much appreciate it."
>"If it is necessary, I will do so," says Kanako.
>_
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>"Thank you for your help. I've been worried for her ever since I woke up here."
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I admit that I'm a little hesitant to broach the topic with her at all at this point, although she may be able to eventually make the connection herself, anyway. Although I don't necessarily expect the reaction is likely, I'm worried our association might generate some hostility. But I didn't have any direction in particular to go with that, anyway, while you do, so....
Given the litany of circumstances, I don't think Kanako is likely to get too upset with us.
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>"Thank you for your help. I've been worried for her ever since I woke up here."
>"You are welcome," she says. "However, is this really why you wished to be away from the public?"
>_
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> "No. There was something else I wished to discuss, on behalf of another friend, but from what I have heard, I understand it may be a sensitive issue for you, so I figured privacy was best. It also may be related to how I got here, since I'm not actually from Gensokyo and have yet to concretely figure out how I ended up here, and that's not something I really want to go around talking about in public areas."
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> "No. There was something else I wished to discuss, on behalf of another friend, but from what I have heard, I understand it may be a sensitive issue for you, so I figured privacy was best. It also may be related to how I got here, since I'm not actually from Gensokyo and have yet to concretely figure out how I ended up here, and that's not something I really want to go around talking about in public areas."
>She nods, and walks toward the Shrine, having a seat on the porch, and patting a spot next to her. It is not a very divine gesture at all. "No one will hear you here."
>_
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> Is Sanae still in the general vicinity? She may have a vested interest in what we're going to talk about.
> Have a seat where Kanako has indicated.
> Deep breath.
> "Okay. Before I begin, I must admit that...this is all fairly overwhelming, and pretty scary too. This whole Gensokyo thing. It's not every day in the outside world that we get to meet goddesses in the flesh. You have been nothing but gracious to me, as Sanae has said you would be, but it's still a little intimidating to be talking about this at all, given the apparent nature of the situation. Especially when I've only so little combat and magic training in my short time here."
> "I also wish to say that I do not know many of the details of what transpired recently. I realize the potential gravity of the situation, but little more. I am doing this for a friend because she is my friend, not because I wish to cast judgment on anyone involved."
> "That being said...the friend on whose behalf I wish to speak with you...is Utsuho Reiuzi."
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> Is Sanae still in the general vicinity? She may have a vested interest in what we're going to talk about.
> Have a seat where Kanako has indicated.
> Deep breath.
> "Okay. Before I begin, I must admit that...this is all fairly overwhelming, and pretty scary too. This whole Gensokyo thing. It's not every day in the outside world that we get to meet goddesses in the flesh. You have been nothing but gracious to me, as Sanae has said you would be, but it's still a little intimidating to be talking about this at all, given the apparent nature of the situation. Especially when I've only so little combat and magic training in my short time here."
> "I also wish to say that I do not know many of the details of what transpired recently. I realize the potential gravity of the situation, but little more. I am doing this for a friend because she is my friend, not because I wish to cast judgment on anyone involved."
> "That being said...the friend on whose behalf I wish to speak with you...is Utsuho Reiuzi."
>Sanae is not. She went inside when the two of you showed up, presumably for the purpose of allowing you some privacy.
>You sit down, and take a deep breath, then begin to explain yourself. As mention Utsuho''s name. You see no real chance in Kanako's composure, so either she isn't angry yet, or she is very good at hiding it. "Speak freely," she says, her face still calm. "If you are afraid I will attack you, rest easy. Harming you would do nothing to assuage or change anything. At the very worst, I will ask you to leave, and that will be only if you act like a fool, and persist in it."
>_
-
> Phew.
> "Well. She expressed remorse for several things, and acknowledged that there wasn't a lot she could really ask or ask about herself, because it would be hard to do so without coming across as gloating, so I imagine that she regrets something that happened between the two of you. She did express curiosity as to how you're holding up now."
-
> Phew.
> "Well. She expressed remorse for several things, and acknowledged that there wasn't a lot she could really ask or ask about herself, because it would be hard to do so without coming across as gloating, so I imagine that she regrets something that happened between the two of you. She did express curiosity as to how you're holding up now."
>"I would hope she would be remorseful," says Kanako. "And, I can understand her fears. I might be less patient with her. As for how I am? Well, I have seen my great work destroyed before my eyes, and I have witnessed my priestess' dreams go unfulfilled despite by best efforts. So if you must know, I feel rather awful at the moment."
>_
-
> "My sympathies. This sounds like a situation where not everyone could be satisfied, but that certainly doesn't trivialize the losses."
> "If it helps you feel better, she has goddesses angry at her, family members angry at her, and a powerful oni leader after the woman she loves. I presume you at least still have your whole family intact after all this; she doesn't even have that."
-
Just thought I'd throw it out there that it may be worth mentioning how Gensokyo's absence interrupted the flow of souls across the Higan, since Komachi basically gave us enough info to realize this, and I'm sure Kanako would be interested to hear it if she doesn't realize it already
-
Yeah, there's that, and there are Keine's words as well. They'll come into play eventually. It's not yet the time to launch into "this is why you were wrong", though.
-
That's actually one of the things that would have made the Kanako/Suwako vs. Utsuho fight easier, so it's good to bring up with Kanako at least. But, yeah, Kilga is right about not cutting to it and being "Wellp, Utsuho was still right, so NYAAA~!"
-
Oh, I know it's not the place for it, yet. Just tossing out a reminder in case it hadn't already been thought of.
-
> "My sympathies. This sounds like a situation where not everyone could be satisfied, but that certainly doesn't trivialize the losses."
> "If it helps you feel better, she has goddesses angry at her, family members angry at her, and a powerful oni leader after the woman she loves. I presume you at least still have your whole family intact after all this; she doesn't even have that."
>She nods. "You are right," she says. "But no, it does not make me feel better. I try not to engage in such things. It is not a good path for one such as I, you'll agree."
>_
-
> "Understandable, and apologies for making that assumption. I still have a lot to learn here."
> "You mentioned Sanae's dream. Utsuho mentioned this too, and was regretful that she never actually found out what it was, if that can be believed. Is it still at all possible for that dream to be fulfilled somehow?"
-
> "Understandable, and apologies for making that assumption. I still have a lot to learn here."
> "You mentioned Sanae's dream. Utsuho mentioned this too, and was regretful that she never actually found out what it was, if that can be believed. Is it still at all possible for that dream to be fulfilled somehow?"
>"No offense is taken," she says. "I understand you are simply new to thinking about these kinds of things."
>"Not fully, no," says Kanako. "Something approximating it my still be possible, but it would not be so for a long time. A great deal had to be done to make it workable at all."
>_
-
> "If I may ask, what was this dream?"
-
> "If I may ask, what was this dream?"
>"It is not my place to speak of it," says Kanako, "Any more than it is my place to tell Sanae of the concerns that ride upon your shoulders."
>_
-
> "All right, I understand."
> "There's...not a whole lot else I can think of that Utsuho wanted to say, so...well, I guess I should at least speak up for her, as my friend. You did your thing for your family, correct? Utsuho tells me that she did it for hers, and both she and Satori have told me that Satori is grateful she did whatever she did. I am sorry things had to come to a head and worked out the way they apparently did, but please don't be too mad at her. She was only doing what she thought best for someone that cares so much about her."
-
> "All right, I understand."
> "There's...not a whole lot else I can think of that Utsuho wanted to say, so...well, I guess I should at least speak up for her, as my friend. You did your thing for your family, correct? Utsuho tells me that she did it for hers, and both she and Satori have told me that Satori is grateful she did whatever she did. I am sorry things had to come to a head and worked out the way they apparently did, but please don't be too mad at her. She was only doing what she thought best for someone that cares so much about her."
>"These are easy words to say, but difficult to practice," Kanako says. "But assure her I have no intention of further aggression if she has none. That said, I would also prefer to have little to do with her."
>_
-
> "I will let her know. Thank you for your understanding."
> "Let's...get away from her for a while. I actually have a curiosity of my own, which I'm hoping you may be able to explain. This morning, I was asked by Reimu to tell a woman named Komachi to get back to work. Apparently she somehow knew Komachi was slacking off because of 'weird flowers', however that works. When I got to Komachi, she told me the reason she hadn't been doing her job was because a large chunk of this place had turned into an ocean, so she couldn't do it. Was that a result of whatever it was that you did? Something that large-scale surely must have taken a lot of power, and I seem to recall being on an island, so..."
-
> "I will let her know. Thank you for your understanding."
> "Let's...get away from her for a while. I actually have a curiosity of my own, which I'm hoping you may be able to explain. This morning, I was asked by Reimu to tell a woman named Komachi to get back to work. Apparently she somehow knew Komachi was slacking off because of 'weird flowers', however that works. When I got to Komachi, she told me the reason she hadn't been doing her job was because a large chunk of this place had turned into an ocean, so she couldn't do it. Was that a result of whatever it was that you did? Something that large-scale surely must have taken a lot of power, and I seem to recall being on an island, so..."
>She nods.
>"Suwako has domain over the earth, and myself over the skies," says Kanako. "We used this to more this shrine here to begin with. We were able to do the same with Gensokyo on a large scale, though we found it easier to move the displaced ocean to here than to simply disperse it. That was the ocean Komachi saw."
>_
-
> "I see. That's very impressive.
> "What exactly does Komachi do, anyway? She said she was a ferryman for the dead - how does that work? And if she ferried things for a living, why would an ocean stop her from doing her job? Couldn't she just go across it?"
-
> "I see. That's very impressive.
> "What exactly does Komachi do, anyway? She said she was a ferryman for the dead - how does that work? And if she ferried things for a living, why would an ocean stop her from doing her job? Couldn't she just go across it?"
>"The ocean should not have been a concern for her, but rather the river she always plies. And it is as you said, she carries the dead to Higan and prepares them for what is to come."
>_
-
>"She said something about how the souls couldn't move across the ocean or something. Caused a big backup. She ended up having to take a vacation for a month or two or something."
-
>"She said something about how the souls couldn't move across the ocean or something. Caused a big backup. She ended up having to take a vacation for a month or two or something."
>Kanako nods. "I see. Interesting."
>_
-
>"I admit I don't really know the details. They said they were trying to figure out how to fix it, somehow, but I don't know what that involves. At the time she said it, the ocean bit didn't even make a whole lot of sense to me."
-
>"I admit I don't really know the details. They said they were trying to figure out how to fix it, somehow, but I don't know what that involves. At the time she said it, the ocean bit didn't even make a whole lot of sense to me."
>She nods again. "I believe they could have fixed it in time. But, I suppose it would have been problematic."
>_
-
>"Another question, while I'm at it. Koishi was involved with you, when you did this, correct? I don't suppose you have any idea where I might be able to find her?"
-
>"Another question, while I'm at it. Koishi was involved with you, when you did this, correct? I don't suppose you have any idea where I might be able to find her?"
>"She is difficult to find, yes," says Kanako. "But I have watched for her. She was in the Forest of Magic this morning."
>_
-
>"She was? So was I, actually, although I've heard that doesn't necessarily mean a lot. Do you know if she's still there?"
-
>"Right now, I cannot tell you," says Kanako. "Likely, she has found something that captures her interest."
>_
-
>"Ah, I see. I'm not sure that I wish to, but do you know how I might be able to return to the outside world, should I choose to do so?"
-
>"Ah, I see. I'm not sure that I wish to, but do you know how I might be able to return to the outside world, should I choose to do so?"
>She looks at you for a moment, considering, then says, "I would recommend speaking with Yukari or Reimu. Though I would also warn you, if you were to leave, without the help of one such as Yukari, you likely would never be able to return."
>_
-
>"Ah, Yukari again. Reimu did say she was the best to talk to about that, although I've also been warned that getting involved with her can be... problematic. Since you say that you also transported yourself from the outside world into here, I didn't know if you also had the ability to send people back again."
-
>"Ah, Yukari again. Reimu did say she was the best to talk to about that, although I've also been warned that getting involved with her can be... problematic. Since you say that you also transported yourself from the outside world into here, I didn't know if you also had the ability to send people back again."
>"Perhaps," she says, "It would be a little difficult, and I would prefer not to do so idly. And, it would bear the same warning with the Hakurei Maiden's services. There would be no way I could bring you back, outside of remaining and waiting for a prearranged time."
>_
-
>"I understand. I'm not ready to leave yet, at any rate. I just wanted to know my options. There's still so much more to see and do, here. You see, I've searched for things like magic for a long time, and to actually find myself in a place like this.... well, it's all pretty incredible."
-
>"I understand. I'm not ready to leave yet, at any rate. I just wanted to know my options. There's still so much more to see and do, here. You see, I've searched for things like magic for a long time, and to actually find myself in a place like this.... well, it's all pretty incredible."
>She smiles. "I can feel the sincerity in your words. I don't think anyone would begrudge you to stay, if you desired it."
>_
-
>"It's an option I'll be seriously considering, I think. In any event, does your offer to look for some hint of Renko this evening still stand?"
-
>"It's an option I'll be seriously considering, I think. In any event, does your offer to look for some hint of Renko this evening still stand?"
>"Of course it does," says Kanako, "Regardless of whether you agree with my actions or not, I have said that I would do this for you."
>_
-
> "Well, like I said, I'm not here to judge. I don't know nearly enough about what happened to do so, even after all the things Keine told me. If I appear to have taken aside, it is because I trust my friend."
-
>"Thank you."
>"Forgive me if this is prying, but several people commented that you were traveling around town and speaking with people a great deal more than usual. I was curious... were you seeing how much they remembered of Gensoyko Isle?"
-
>"Thank you."
>"Forgive me if this is prying, but several people commented that you were traveling around town and speaking with people a great deal more than usual. I was curious... were you seeing how much they remembered of Gensoyko Isle?"
>She shakes her head. "Not as such. While I have heard many tales about it, in reality, I just wish to see my followers and be with them for now. It helps me feel better about what happened."
>_
-
>"I understand. I imagine there's been plenty of hurt feelings to go around about this issue on all sides, from the sounds of it. At least it doesn't seem to have had much fallout for most of the bystanders in the end. Most of the people I've met have been neither wistful nor disturbed by their recollections."
-
> "Well, like I said, I'm not here to judge. I don't know nearly enough about what happened to do so, even after all the things Keine told me. If I appear to have taken aside, it is because I trust my friend."
>She nods. "I understand."
>"I understand. I imagine there's been plenty of hurt feelings to go around about this issue on all sides, from the sounds of it. At least it doesn't seem to have had much fallout for most of the bystanders in the end. Most of the people I've met have been neither wistful nor disturbed by their recollections."
>"I would suggest not mentioning it around Suwako," says Kanako. "She may decide to try to avenge herself on a whim. And, I cannot speak for Koishi, but she too would be strongly affected. As for the others, I feel it would be best if they simply forgot. Though the Kappa seem determined to do otherwise..."
>_
-
>"I'll keep your warning in mind, but I have to wonder what kind of revenge she could get from someone like me? Simply because I'm friends with Utsuho? I knew no more about what occurred than any other random person until it was explained to me."
>"As for the kappa, if they were already mechanically inclined, I can't say that I can blame them for being inspired by what they saw. From their perspective, the outside world must be a treasure trove of amazing things in the same way that this place is for me.
-
>"I'll keep your warning in mind, but I have to wonder what kind of revenge she could get from someone like me? Simply because I'm friends with Utsuho? I knew no more about what occurred than any other random person until it was explained to me."
>"As for the kappa, if they were already mechanically inclined, I can't say that I can blame them for being inspired by what they saw. From their perspective, the outside world must be a treasure trove of amazing things in the same way that this place is for me.
>"I cannot spoke for Koishi," says Kanako. "But for Suwako just saying the wrong things can be enough if you put her in a mood. She might fee bad later and try to make up for it, but that would be after the fact."
>She nods. "Very true. I am slightly afraid they may hurt themselves, though."
>_
-
>"Well, hopefully they don't. Actually, I rather hope they succeed at some of what they're trying; as mundane as some of it may be, there's still things from outside I'd miss if I were to stay here. You came from outside originally, too, right? So I imagine you can understand that bit. But I guess they're working uphill given that there's so little infrastructure already here."
-
>"Well, hopefully they don't. Actually, I rather hope they succeed at some of what they're trying; as mundane as some of it may be, there's still things from outside I'd miss if I were to stay here. You came from outside originally, too, right? So I imagine you can understand that bit. But I guess they're working uphill given that there's so little infrastructure already here."
>She nods. "There may be some interesting results. I simply hope none are interesting enough others will have to intervene. I wouldn't let lack of infrastructure worry you, they can be quite creative regardless."
>_
-
>"Well, I've already learned that much of Gensokyo runs on powers that don't make much sense in the outside world. Nitori's already drafting plans for a ghost-powered air conditioner, for example...."
>"In any event, I've probably taken enough of your time. Thanks for being understanding, and thanks very much for your offer of assistance. I guess I should return later in the evening to see if you've discovered anything?"
-
>"Well, I've already learned that much of Gensokyo runs on powers that don't make much sense in the outside world. Nitori's already drafting plans for a ghost-powered air conditioner, for example...."
>"In any event, I've probably taken enough of your time. Thanks for being understanding, and thanks very much for your offer of assistance. I guess I should return later in the evening to see if you've discovered anything?"
>She frowns a bit as you mention Nitori's plans, but says nothing.
>She nods. "You man return as you wish. Should I find anything this evening, I will let you know."
>_
-
>"Thank you."
>Get up
>Can we see a donation box around, somewhere?
-
>"Thank you."
>Get up
>Can we see a donation box around, somewhere?
>"You are welcome," says Kanako as you stand. You can see a donation box not too far from the fortune draws.
>_
-
>Go and leave a reasonable donation before leaving
-
> Are we going to leave without talking to Sanae again?
-
If you want to go talk to her, be my guest.
-
>Go and leave a reasonable donation before leaving
>You don't really have any idea what is reasonable in the currency you have.
> Are we going to leave without talking to Sanae again?
>You could probably talk to her, if you wanted to.
>_
-
> How much money do we have on us, again?
-
> How much money do we have on us, again?
>You have 125☼ at the moment.
-
> 30☼ should be enough to donate, so donate that much.
> Is it a custom to say a prayer at shrine's after donating? If so, pray for Renko's safety.
-
> Make sure to talk to Sanae before we leave.
-
> 30☼ should be enough to donate, so donate that much.
> Is it a custom to say a prayer at shrine's after donating? If so, pray for Renko's safety.
>You donate 30☼ to the Shrine.
>You have no idea what the customs are here, but you say a quick prayer for Renko's safety. Life sure is weird, you wouldn't have even really thought of doing something like this a couple days ago.
> Make sure to talk to Sanae before we leave.
>Yeah, you should probably get on that.
>_
-
> Turn to Kanako.
> "Um... If it isn't too much trouble, could I talk to Sanae?"
-
> Turn to Kanako.
> "Um... If it isn't too much trouble, could I talk to Sanae?"
>"It would be no trouble at all," says Kanako. She turns and calls "Sanae dear! Maribel would like to speak with you!"
>After a moment, the shrine doors open, and Sanae emerges, looks around, and focuses on you. "Yes?"
>Kanako quietly excuses herself and enters the shrine, close the door behind her.
>_
-
> "So...how much of what happened recently are you aware of?"
-
> "So...how much of what happened recently are you aware of?"
>"I am not certain what you mean? With the dream? I've not bothered about it much, really. Kanako-sama assured me it wasn't the harbinger of an incident."
>_
-
> "Ah, okay."
> Let's NOT tell her about the real nature of the dream. Kanako wouldn't keep it a secret from her without reason.
> "If I may ask, what happened in your dream?"
-
> "Ah, okay."
> Let's NOT tell her about the real nature of the dream. Kanako wouldn't keep it a secret from her without reason.
> "If I may ask, what happened in your dream?"
>"Well, like everyone else, I was in the outside world," she says. "I worked as a test pilot, you see, for experimental new jets. It felt so...glamorous, I suppose. I really thought I had put that kind of nonsense behind me when I came to Gensokyo. Also, we had the shrine on an island nation, but it wasn't like before. People came from all over to see it and pray there. People really believed, you see. And that let Kanako-sama and Suwako-sama live there happily. Many of my friends where there too, even though I didn't see all of them."
>She shakes her head. "You probably think this is a little childish."
>_
-
>"No, it doesn't really sound childish at all. And do... people here not really believe? I mean, you'd think belief would be easier to come by in a place where magic and divine power are so much more tangible."
>"Do you miss the outside world? I heard that you originally came from there, yourself."
-
>"No, it doesn't really sound childish at all. And do... people here not really believe? I mean, you'd think belief would be easier to come by in a place where magic and divine power are so much more tangible."
>"Do you miss the outside world? I heard that you originally came from there, yourself."
>"No, belief here is quite strong," says Sanae, "But outside, well, it's different."
>"Not really," she says. "One adapts remarkably fast. But there's always those little things, I suppose.."
>_
-
> "Believe me, I understand desires of the outside world. More than most in Gensokyo, I bet. I am a little curious, though - what is the difference between flying in a jet and simply flying by yourself, as you can probably do here? There must be something that makes the jet interesting to you..."
-
> "Believe me, I understand desires of the outside world. More than most in Gensokyo, I bet. I am a little curious, though - what is the difference between flying in a jet and simply flying by yourself, as you can probably do here? There must be something that makes the jet interesting to you..."
>She nods as you express your sympathy, then says, "I suppose it's the difference between a marathon runner and a rider. The latter is just more...romantic, don't you think?"
>_
-
>"I... think I may understand what you mean, a little. Of course, from my perspective, being able to fly under one's own power is... pretty incredible."
-
>"I... think I may understand what you mean, a little. Of course, from my perspective, being able to fly under one's own power is... pretty incredible."
>"Well, yes," she says, "But, there isn't the feeling of having a huge machine all around you'd, cushioned snugly inside it, having all of its speed and power at yous fingertips. No magic to hold you up, just engineering and cleverness... The feeling would be totally different."
>_
-
> "Hmm...the kappa have apparently been very busy lately. Busy with some outside world stuff, no less. I wonder if they'd be able to make a jet with the resources Gensokyo has..."
-
> "Hmm...the kappa have apparently been very busy lately. Busy with some outside world stuff, no less. I wonder if they'd be able to make a jet with the resources Gensokyo has..."
>"They might," says Sanae, "But I don't think it would interest them. Gensokyo doesn't have much need for a flying machine, or really any kind of large machine."
>_
-
>"Since when has needing something stopped inventors from tinkering? I wouldn't be surprised if some would like to try just to see if it could be done."
-
>"Since when has needing something stopped inventors from tinkering? I wouldn't be surprised if some would like to try just to see if it could be done."
>"Well, true," says Sanae. "But, the point is, flight in and of itself isn't much of an inspiration in Gensokyo. There's doubtless many more interesting things for them."
>_
-
>"This world and the outside world really are opposites in so many ways. The things that are mundane here are miraculous there, and the opposite also seems to be true."
-
>"This world and the outside world really are opposites in so many ways. The things that are mundane here are miraculous there, and the opposite also seems to be true."
>She nods. "It's really a nice place to be, once you get used to no microwaves and such."
>_
-
>"Yeah, I can imagine. I'm... not sure I want to go back, to be honest. I've always been looking for the kinds of supernatural things that this place seems to be full of. And to find that I'm actually capable of magic myself? Well... it's been pretty incredible."
-
>"Yeah, I can imagine. I'm... not sure I want to go back, to be honest. I've always been looking for the kinds of supernatural things that this place seems to be full of. And to find that I'm actually capable of magic myself? Well... it's been pretty incredible."
>"I suppose it must have been more of a shock for you." she says, "I've had my goddesses all my life to prepare me. I just didn't have a concept of the scale. Somewhat related to that...where have you looked for your friend?"
>_
-
>"I've searched the underground, I've asked at the human village, and at the Hakurei Shrine, with the people at the Scarlet Devil Mansion, with Nitori and Momiji. I suppose that leaves Eientei, and probably a few other places that I don't know."
-
> "I'm hoping Kanako can help me find her, she's offered to help me."
> "Otherwise, I may have to ask Yukari as a last resort. The rumors about her haven't been particularly kind, though."
-
>"I've searched the underground, I've asked at the human village, and at the Hakurei Shrine, with the people at the Scarlet Devil Mansion, with Nitori and Momiji. I suppose that leaves Eientei, and probably a few other places that I don't know."
>"Have you searched the Forest of Magic much?" Sanae says. "It's pretty big and easy to get lost in there. Or maybe north of the village?"
> "I'm hoping Kanako can help me find her, she's offered to help me."
> "Otherwise, I may have to ask Yukari as a last resort. The rumors about her haven't been particularly kind, though."
>"Well, in the best situation, you won't need her," says Sanae. "And...I've not really met Yukari for real, but I don't think she's that bad. Just kind of weird."
>"Actually, I've been wondering. This girl, is she that kind of friend? I thought she was at first, the way you were talking, but now I'm not so sure, if you're willing sit here and talk about jets and things."
>_
-
>"I've been to the Higan and the forest nearby, and to Yuka's garden, yes. I've been to a few places in the Forest of Magic, but I'm sure there's still other parts I haven't searched."
>"Well, I'm a little concerned for her, certainly. But I've run into a bunch of the supposedly scarier things here and managed alright. I wasn't really thinking she was in danger. It's just that I'd like to be able to find her, if she's really here, too."
-
>"I've been to the Higan and the forest nearby, and to Yuka's garden, yes. I've been to a few places in the Forest of Magic, but I'm sure there's still other parts I haven't searched."
>"Well, I'm a little concerned for her, certainly. But I've run into a bunch of the supposedly scarier things here and managed alright. I wasn't really thinking she was in danger. It's just that I'd like to be able to find her, if she's really here, too."
>She nods, then chuckles, "You're avoiding the question! How cute! You should go find her, then! I'll be here when you're done!"
>_
-
>Smile
>"Well, it's been nice talking to you. And thanks. Wish me luck!"
>Head back out of the city.
-
>Smile
>"Well, it's been nice talking to you. And thanks. Wish me luck!"
>Head back out of the city.
>"Good luck!" She says.
>You head back out to the city. It is pretty much unchanged. However, you notice a few tengu crowded near the large square building.
>_
-
>Take a peak to see what seems to have gathered them
-
>Take a peak to see what seems to have gathered them
>Taking a closer look, you see they seem to be buying something from a brown-haired woman with double ponytails and a purple plaid skirt. She smiles as they take her money, and walk off with...newspapers? "Thank you for supporting the Kakashi Spirit News!" she says loudly and cheerfully.
>_
-
>Walk closer, and see if we can tell how much they cost.
>Otherwise, inquire about this
-
>Walk closer, and see if we can tell how much they cost.
>Otherwise, inquire about this
>You can't really tell. She look at you, raises both eyebrows, then smiles and says, "They're 3☼ a piece, but I'll let you have one for free, if you let me get your picture."
>_
-
>"Why would you want a picture of me?"
-
>"Why would you want a picture of me?"
>She winks. "Deal's fluttering away~"
>_
-
>"No thank you. I'll buy one the regular way."
>Buy one
-
>"No thank you. I'll buy one the regular way."
>Buy one
>"Awwwww," she says, in a tone that suddenly makes you think of Nue, "Fine."
>You hand her the money, and receive a newspaper.
>You obtain: Kakashi Spirit News
>"Thank you for supporting the Kakashi Spirit News!" she says, somewhat more loudly than necessary.
>_
-
>Nod to her
>Walk some distance away
>Take a look at the newspaper for anything interesting
-
>Nod to her
>Walk some distance away
>Take a look at the newspaper for anything interesting
>You take a look at the newspaper. It's really more of a broadsheet or advertiser, there's only one sheet of paper folded in half to make four pages. Unfolding it, you note the front page story is: "Secret Meeting Exposed! Yuuka and Yukari: Friendly Chat or Incident in the Making?" You notice there is a picture of Yuuka, and a woman in a red robe and hakama sitting on rocks, talking over some sort of beverage.
>_
-
> Wait, wasn't that us?
-
>Ponder whether Yukari ever reads this paper
>Ponder how displeased Yuka would be to know that someone was lurking in her garden, snapping pictures of her
-
> Wait, wasn't that us?
>You are 99% certain that was you. Unless this Yukari person not only knows you exist, but has taken to wearing clothes like yours and following in your path.
>Ponder whether Yukari ever reads this paper
>Ponder how displeased Yuka would be to know that someone was lurking in her garden, snapping pictures of her
>You have no idea whether Yukari reads this or not.
>You have a very good idea how upset Yuka would be.
>_
-
>How visible are we in the picture? Does it seem likely that someone would recognize us, in this outfit, from the picture?
>Are there any other stories of interest? Or anything that might at all be related to Renko?
-
> Damn Tengu rumors, they spread like a wildfire in Australia.
>How visible are we in the picture? Does it seem likely that someone would recognize us, in this outfit, from the picture?
> We should probably change back into our old clothes, if that's the case. (Assuming we haven't, already)
-
>How visible are we in the picture? Does it seem likely that someone would recognize us, in this outfit, from the picture?
>Are there any other stories of interest? Or anything that might at all be related to Renko?
>You are fairly visible, but the picture quality isn't that great. It's in black and white, and kind of grainy. Really, it's surprising that there's photography at all.
>You check the other stories: "Faeries gathering in large numbers, antsy." "Hell of Blazing Fires at an All Time Low", "Forest Giant Sighting!?" and "Get to know: Shou Toramaru"
> Damn Tengu rumors, they spread like a wildfire in Australia.
> We should probably change back into our old clothes, if that's the case. (Assuming we haven't, already)
>You get the feeling some tengu are kind of gossipy.
>You are still wearing your borrowed clothes.
>_
-
>Ponder if the photo suddenly lost saturation between the time the robe in the picture was described as red, and the time the photo was described as black and white
>Consider that changing clothes probably won't help matters, if what people said about our outfit looking like Yukari's anyway, is true. At least this outfit could only possibly mean something to someone who read this
>Head back to Nitori's
-
>You decide changing clothes will solve nothing.
>You make your way back down the mountain, a rather nice flight, and soon land at Nitori's warehouse. She is more or less as you left her, tinkering away at that box.
>_
-
>"Hey, there. Did you have time to write that letter?"
-
>"Hey, there. Did you have time to write that letter?"
>"Sure did," says Nitori, not looking up and loosely gesturing toward and envelope on the table.
>_
-
>"Ok, I'll make sure she gets it."
>Pick up the letter.
>"Good luck with your project!"
>Head back towards the part of the forest the faeries were gathered earlier, in case what we were told about them eventually losing interest was true
-
> Quests
> Inventory
-
>"Ok, I'll make sure she gets it."
>Pick up the letter.
>"Good luck with your project!"
>Head back towards the part of the forest the faeries were gathered earlier, in case what we were told about them eventually losing interest was true
>"You better," says Nitori.
>You obtain: Nitori's Letter
>"Thanks! Good luck with what you're doing, too!"
>You take flight again, heading back to the Forest of Magic. You can't remember exactly where you saw the faerie gathering before, but you remember it was west of the lake. So you land there, instead.
>You are West of the Lake, in what Tokiko has described as faerie turf. A sizable strip of grassy land runs along the forest to the west, and the lake to the east. There is an old leanto by the lake. There appears to be no one around. Obvious exits are North, South, and West.
> Quests
> Inventory
>Your Quests are:
>Renko Quest
>Given Renko has been your long-term partner in crime, if you're stuck here, chances are she is too.
>Escape from Eastern Wonderland?
>At some point, you should probably try to go home. Right?
>Love is a Battlefield
>Your friend Utsuho in a bitter rivalry with Yuugi for the heart of Parsee Mizuhashi. You've managed to at least open Yuugi's heart to another idea; Utsuho has gone to investigate
>Maximum Charge Maribel Hearn
>Byakuren has offered to cast a spell to enhance your innate magic potential, if you gather the ingredients and prove yourself worthy.
>Clinic Catastophe
>Byakuren asked you to help Murasa run the clinic, and to make sure Murasa is doing her job. Kisume's bucket appeared there, but how?
>Bellow away!
>The town blacksmith's bellows are missing! She thinks they were stolen by faeries.
>Maid a Getaway
>The maids from Scarlet Devil Mansion are running away! Why is this? Apparently Daiyousei.
>Coy, is she?
>Utsuho has asked you to find Koishi, and try to help make amends.
.>Delivery Delving
>Nitori has asked you to carry a letter to Utsuho
>Your Inventory Contains
>Mop Hat (Worn as Hat)
>Red Robe (Worn as Clothing)
>White Hakama (Worn as Clothing)
>Branch
>Floating Stone
>Ingredient List
>Ring of Rhythm
>Striped Mushroom Potion of Enhancement
>Starlight Incantation Slip.
>Purple Messenger Bag
>Blue Silk Flower
>92☼
>Bottle of Irritated Bull Sake
>Emerald Necklace
>Star Armlet
>Purple Dress
>Wound Sign: Pain Flow Endlessly. (Captured)
>Kakashi Spirit News
>Nitori's Letter
>_
-
>Head cautiously west, keeping an eye out for faeries
-
> Kick ourselves for not dropping the jet idea on Nitori.
-
> Kick ourselves for not dropping the jet idea on Nitori.
>You wonder if she would have gone for it?
>Head cautiously west, keeping an eye out for faeries
>You head west, and push your way through the undergrowth, keeping your eyes open for faeries.
>You soon find them, hearing laughter and rhythmic clapping long before you see them. Coming up on the clearing from before, you see nearly a dozen faeries dancing together, whirling and twirling and flailing limbs all over the place, maybe half of them actually on the ground. another dozen or so form a loose ring around them, clapping and stomping and laughing. Were it not for the fact this mob chased you a little while ago, the scene would be disgustingly adorable. Even as it stands, it's somewhat infectious. You can hear some distant music, further west.
>_
-
>Given that they seem occupied, is there a way we could sneak around them, further west?
-
> Stay out of sight. No need to instigate anything further.
-
>Given that they seem occupied, is there a way we could sneak around them, further west?
>You aren't sure. There are an awful lot of them moving a lot, and you really aren't dressed to blend in.
> Stay out of sight. No need to instigate anything further.
>You stay back until you have a good plan.
>_
-
>Is it possible to move around the clearing entirely? Without leaving the trees?
-
>Is it possible to move around the clearing entirely? Without leaving the trees?
>You can't really see through the trees to know if the way is clear or not. But, you think you could feasibly circumnavigate the clearing. Realistically, at least from what you can see, there is a lot of underbrush and low branches that will give you problems.
>_
-
>Attempt to circumnavigate the clearing
>Try to keep as quiet as is feasible, and keep an eye on the gathering. Be ready to stop and try to blend if anyone seems to notice
-
>Attempt to circumnavigate the clearing
>Try to keep as quiet as is feasible, and keep an eye on the gathering. Be ready to stop and try to blend if anyone seems to notice
>You try to make your way through the clearing.
>This quickly becomes a trial as you stumble through bushes, dodge around and periodically hit branches, and in general make a lot of noise. You don't think you've attracted any attention yet, but it feels like only a matter of time.
>_
-
>Can we move further north or south, away from the clearing? And then circumnavigate it at a safe distance? Even if this puts us out of sight of the clearing itself for a while
-
>Can we move further north or south, away from the clearing? And then circumnavigate it at a safe distance? Even if this puts us out of sight of the clearing itself for a while
>You could, but then you are fairly sure that you run the risk of getting lost and missing whatever your goal actually is. You're getting a feeling the faeries pick where they gather for a reason.
>_
-
>Couldn't we use the source of the music as a directional aide, even if we had no idea where we were?
-
>Couldn't we use the source of the music as a directional aide, even if we had no idea where we were?
>If you're close enough to hear it.
>_
-
>Try putting some distance between us and the clearing, without making the music too faint to hear, and then attempt to go around it, using the music as a guide. If we get lost, we can always fly off and come back the old-fashioned way.
-
>Try putting some distance between us and the clearing, without making the music too faint to hear, and then attempt to go around it, using the music as a guide. If we get lost, we can always fly off and come back the old-fashioned way.
>You enact this plan, trying to keep an ear to the music as your guide. Now that you've gotten away from the noise of the faeries themselves, you can listen to it a little better. Though distant, you can discern a certain raucous quality to it that is most certainly faerie-like.
>You continue north for a while, slowly picking your way through the brush. Up ahead, you think you see something that looks suspiciously like that mushroom grove that Tokiko showed you. There is a rustling in the trees overhead; you look in time to see a globe of darkness about as large as you are tall crash down through the brush, and narrowly miss a tree. The darkness is somewhat translucent; you can see a blonde girl, looking no older that 12, inside of it, wearing dark clothes.
>"You better not be after my secrets!" she cries, giving you a look.
>_
-
>"No, not at all. I don't even know who you are, for that matter."
-
>"No, not at all. I don't even know who you are, for that matter."
>"I'm not buying for your trickster's blather!" she cries, straightening herself out and extending her arms to her sides, fingers upwards. "I know an ambush when I see one! And you're the bushiest ambusher."
>You notice her small size lets her maneuver about much more easily here than you do.
>_
-
>"I was actually trying to investigate what those faeries over there are doing, actually. I swear I wasn't looking for you, or anything of yours."
>"And wouldn't you be ambushing me if you were the one who suddenly appeared and surprised me?"
-
>"I was actually trying to investigate what those faeries over there are doing, actually. I swear I wasn't looking for you, or anything of yours."
>"And wouldn't you be ambushing me if you were the one who suddenly appeared and surprised me?"
>"Who cares about faeries? And you were waiting here! I sawed you do it! So I retro ambushed you, because I don't have time for that fuss! Imma bite you now."
>She hovers forward.
>_
-
>Back away.
>"Waiting? How could I have been waiting if I was walking? And why in the world do you want to bite me?"
>How easily could we take to the air from here? Try to look for a spot with less canopy cover and maneuver towards it
-
>You back away, but she definitively has the advantage. You nearly trip over a bush.
>"Because you're ambushier," she says, getting closer.
>Glancing upward, you think if you covered your head, you could get through the tree cover without too much difficulty or risk of injury.
>_
-
>Cover our head, and fly upwards, past the trees
>"I don't know why you won't believe me, but I'd rather not be bitten, thanks."
-
>Cover our head, and fly upwards, past the trees
>"I don't know why you won't believe me, but I'd rather not be bitten, thanks."
>You cover your head and zoom upwards. The branches whipping against you isn't pleasant, to say the least, but none of them hit hard enough to open any gashes that you can see.
>"You swindler!" the girl cries, and you hear some danmaku hiss past you. ...Was that a laser? That was most certainly a laser.
>_
-
>Get a bit more room for dodging
>"Swindler? What in the world could I have possibly swindled you out of?"
-
>Get a bit more room for dodging
>"Swindler? What in the world could I have possibly swindled you out of?"
>You continue upward. A couple more shots follow you, but you have more than enough room to dodge away from them.
>She doesn't reply to your statement. You wonder if she heard it. At least, there's no more shots coming at you for now.
>_
-
>Can we see the clearing where the faeries were from here? And if so, can we see even a hint of what might be beyond it?
-
>Can we see the clearing where the faeries were from here? And if so, can we see even a hint of what might be beyond it?
>You can see the clear fairly well. Which means, you think, that they could see you if they're paying attention. Beyond, there's another strip of forest, then...what looks like a place where the woods thin into a field, before giving way to bamboo. There's activity there, but you really can't make it out.
>_
-
>Try to bring our flight level down to just above the trees and flatten ourself out, so that we have the narrowest profile. At that angle, hopefully it will be impossible to see us from the clearing if we keep our distance.
>While keeping a distance from the first clearing, head towards the strip of forest and land down in it
-
>Try to bring our flight level down to just above the trees and flatten ourself out, so that we have the narrowest profile. At that angle, hopefully it will be impossible to see us from the clearing if we keep our distance.
>While keeping a distance from the first clearing, head towards the strip of forest and land down in it
>You fly over the treetops as best you can, trying not to get your hakama or the edges of your robe caught in the trees, and take a wide path around the clearing. You notice there is another one to the northwest of it, and fly between them. Luckily, the faeries seem too distracted to notice you when you're that close to the trees, and you're able to progress. Up ahead, you can see the strip of land somewhat well from your position, and seems to be teeming with faeries.
>_
-
>Teeming? As in more than just the couple dozen that were in the other areas?
>Can we get any idea what they're doing?
-
>Teeming? As in more than just the couple dozen that were in the other areas?
>Can we get any idea what they're doing?
>A few times more, at least. You can't easily estimate their numbers anymore.
>It seems they are doing much what the rest are, at least from this distance and angle.
>_
-
>Try landing among the trees below us, and creep a bit closer; see if we can get a better look from that angle.
-
>Try landing among the trees below us, and creep a bit closer; see if we can get a better look from that angle.
>You descend down into the trees. It is a some difficult process, as the branches are angled upwards against you. But you've put in a lot of practice today, and manage to slip through without hurting yourself or tearing your clothing. The forest floor is about as thick here as it is anywhere else, but you don't have to go nearly as far.
>You creep a bit closer, and see that your original instinct was correct. It's a dance party, enough to put every 80's movie you've seen to shame. Dozens, maybe hundreds of faeries twirling and shaking and prancing and in general having a big time (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7MB88-aprXI). None of them seem to be doing the same dance to the music, you think you even see one nearby doing the cabbage patch. In the distance, you see three women hovering over the fray, too tall and wingless to be faeries, providing the music.
>Another figure catches your eye, as well. She too is too tall and wingless to be be a faerie, standing head, shoulders, and a bit more over the other dancers. Clad in a sun dress splashed with every color of the rainbow and a few more on top, she looks like some sort of madwoman from a play. But you recognize her. You know that short brown hair, that face, and that fedora anywhere.
>_
-
> "RENKO!!" Go and tackle hug her.
-
> "RENKO!!" Go and tackle hug her.
>As happy as we are to see her, we might want to avoid dashing out of the forest into a cloud of potentially skittish faeries at a charge.
-
>Walk slowly towards Renko, avoid startling fairies.
-
> "RENKO!!" Go and tackle hug her.
>As happy as we are to see her, we might want to avoid dashing out of the forest into a cloud of potentially skittish faeries at a charge.
>You first instinct is to run out, or perhaps soar out, and tackle her with an excessive amount of force. But you realize this might end up causing a riot.
>Walk slowly towards Renko, avoid startling fairies.
>Instead you resolve to walk out slowly, like you belong there, and try not to startle anyone.
>You step onto the field, and realize it's going to be difficult to maneuver through. If nothing else, though, you have the advantage of mass on your side. A few faeries definitely notice you, but no one seems particularly alarmed.
>_
-
> How far out is Renko from our position?
> Raise our hand up high and call her name.
-
>Blend into the crowd by spinning around like we are dancing as we move towards Renko. (Mimic Hina)
-
> Mental note: Let's not use anything supernatural we've learned so far today. That can wait until we're separated from the cloud of fairies.
-
> How far out is Renko from our position?
> Raise our hand up high and call her name.
>She's some yards away. It's fairly chaotic, as faeries swarm to and fro, taking to the air and landing more or less at random, so distance is probably greater factor than normal.
>You raise up your hand and call for her. You don't think she heard you over the music and babble of voices, and she's probably too preoccupied with her dance partner to notice that kind of motion.
>Blend into the crowd by spinning around like we are dancing as we move towards Renko. (Mimic Hina)
>You decide to try to work your way in, twirling about like the woman you fought not too long ago. This seems to work alright, as the faeries continue not to raise and alarm. You find yourself trying to put you feet to the music as you do, but with the song going all over the place, it's rather difficult. Still, just moving forward, you make progress toward Renko. You think she would probably hear you now.
> Mental note: Let's not use anything supernatural we've learned so far today. That can wait until we're separated from the cloud of fairies.
>You decide not to try anything magical just yet.
>_
-
> Repeat hand-raising and Renko-calling
-
> Who is her dance partner?
-
> Repeat hand-raising and Renko-calling
>You find an empty spot among the dancers, doing your best not to get jostled, ran into, or smacked in midair. Waving and calling out, you definitely get her attention as she looks over suddenly, sending her dance partner stumbling from a spin into the ground. "Mary!" she shouts, as she makes her way toward you. "You made it! I've been worried sick!"
>As she draws into the closer range, you get a better look at her new dress. It's rather like an odd combination of tie-dye and camouflage print. It's...very much outside of Renko's usual style. She sizes you up as well, then giggles. "You look like a dope!"
> Who is her dance partner?
>You didn't get a good look at her; but it was a rather tall faerie with green hair and dragonfly-like wings.
>_
-
> Hug like the embrace of the north star
> "ME? Have you looked at yourself lately?"
> "Oh, it looks like your new friend just took a nasty fall."
-
> Hug like the embrace of the north star
> "ME? Have you looked at yourself lately?"
> "Oh, it looks like your new friend just took a nasty fall."
>You hug her fiercely. She returns the gesture with equal fervor, enough to make you ache a little bit.
>"What? No! This dress is awesome!" she replies.
>She looks back, "Oh, sorry!"
>You see the faerie shake a fist toward her in response as she picks herself up.
>_
-
> "So who is that? And how did you get in with the fairies like this?"
-
> "So who is that? And how did you get in with the fairies like this?"
>"That was Dai, she's been a good friend" says Renko. "And they've been friends they found me a couple days ago. But where've you been, and are we gonna dance or what?"
>_
-
> "Oh, I've been all over the place, looking for you! And I've met so many amazing people and seen so many amazing things! I wouldn't have believed- wait, did you say Dai?"
-
> "Oh, I've been all over the place, looking for you! And I've met so many amazing people and seen so many amazing things! I wouldn't have believed- wait, did you say Dai?"
>"I know!" says Renko, "Oh man, the things I've seen these past few days! I mean, just look at all this!"
>She gestures toward the crowd.
>"Oh, yeah, I did. I don't think it's her real name, but everyone calls her that."
>_
-
> DAMN YOU, HEAVEN. FROM HELL'S HEART, I STAB AT THEE.
> "Uh...um...hey, you said she's been good to you, right? So, when, uh, all this is over, or...whatever, can you get me an audience with her?"
-
> DAMN YOU, HEAVEN. FROM HELL'S HEART, I STAB AT THEE.
> "Uh...um...hey, you said she's been good to you, right? So, when, uh, all this is over, or...whatever, can you get me an audience with her?"
>You curse the heavens in your thoughts.
>"Oh sure, easy!" says Renko, "What's up?"
>_
-
> Smirk and raise eyebrows.
> "I'll tell you what's up, you little hideaway. You made me chase all over this place looking for you today. For all that, YOU...owe me a damn good dance."
> Bust some moves with Renko.
-
> Smirk and raise eyebrows.
> "I'll tell you what's up, you little hideaway. You made me chase all over this place looking for you today. For all that, YOU...owe me a damn good dance."
> Bust some moves with Renko.
>She grins. "You're on, woman." Renko grabs your hand and leads you a bit further into the crowd. You then proceed to make utter fools of yourselves. You'd like to think you're a passable dancer, but no one can really be expected to do much with this much when the tempo keeps changing, other musicians cut in at random, and sometimes the style of the song itself changes. You do your best to keep up, but it's a fool's errand. Renko, on the other hand, doesn't seem to even bother to try to follow the music beyond taking it as a basic suggestion. When she has the lead, which is something of a constant tug of war between the two of you, she seems to just do whatever pops into her head. At first it's kind of funny, but as time passes, it grows a little odd. Renko's usually the more reserved of the two of you when it comes to things like this. She has her times when she cuts loose, of course, but this is just a bit much. If nothing else, the faeries seem content to give the two of you room, if only if due to the fact that if either of you collided with a faerie, you're going to win.
>_
-
>Assuming we have enough breath: "Hey, Renko. What've you been up to these past couple days, anyway? Tell me what you've seen."
-
>You have some breath left, and take things more slowly.
>"Not a whole lot, yet," says Renko. "I've not been able to get away too much. Mostly the forest and the lake, the mansion from a distance. What about you, huh? Sounds like you've been all over."
>_
-
>"Yeah, I've been to the mansion, and the underground, and Youkai Mountain, and the human village, the Higan river, the Hakurei shrine, and I'm sure I'm missing a few things. I've been asking all over for you, actually. No one had seen even a hint of you."
>And what do you mean, 'not been able to get away'? Been too busy with the faeries?"
-
>"Yeah, I've been to the mansion, and the underground, and Youkai Mountain, and the human village, the Higan river, the Hakurei shrine, and I'm sure I'm missing a few things. I've been asking all over for you, actually. No one had seen even a hint of you."
>And what do you mean, 'not been able to get away'? Been too busy with the faeries?"
>"Oh wow, you've been busy!" says Renko. "And yeah, with the faeries and with trying to work things out. It's been a full couple days, I'll tell you!"
>_
-
>"So, have any success working things out?"
>"What the first thing you remember about arriving here, anyway?"
-
>"So, have any success working things out?"
>"What the first thing you remember about arriving here, anyway?"
>"Sort of," she says. "Turns out, you were pretty much completely right."
>"Oh, the first thing? Well...I woke up in a bush, with a couple of concerned faeries hovering over me. Surprised I didn't black right back out again."
>_
-
>"And the faeries just took you in, did they? They're.... a bit inscrutable, from what I've seen. I've had a bunch of them shooting at me already today."
>"And how come you didn't end up exploring around a little more, if you've been here a couple of days? I only woke up here this morning."
-
> "Wait, right about what?"
-
>"And the faeries just took you in, did they? They're.... a bit inscrutable, from what I've seen. I've had a bunch of them shooting at me already today."
>"And how come you didn't end up exploring around a little more, if you've been here a couple of days? I only woke up here this morning."
>"Oh, there's not bad at all," says Renko. "People just treat them like that because they're different."
>"Well, at first it was because I was kind of busy freaking out, you know?" She shakes her head. "Took a while to really calm down. Then I started working on meeting some people, figuring things out, and then in got drawn into things, I guess."
>_
-
>"Well, I wouldn't say they're bad, as such. But one kinda feels a little nervous approaching some of them sometimes if you've already been attacked for no sensible reason."
>"Who've you ended up meeting, then, anyway? Other than the faeries?"
-
> "Wait, completely right? About what?"
-
>"Well, I wouldn't say they're bad, as such. But one kinda feels a little nervous approaching some of them sometimes if you've already been attacked for no sensible reason."
>"Who've you ended up meeting, then, anyway? Other than the faeries?"
>"You probably just did something wrong. But don't worry, there's no hard feelings over it, even if you win.
>"Well, there's one youkai I met, but she kind of wants me to keep it on the lowdown..."
> "Wait, completely right? About what?"
>"Heh, I was wondering if you were gonna notice that or not," she says, grinning. "Pretty much everything, Maribel. I worried way too much about the logical, objective things. And turns out, they didn't even work anyways. It doesn't make sense, and I messed up trying to make it make sense." She shakes her head. "Wonder if we could have found this all out sooner if I didn't."
>_
-
>"That's... quite a change of heart. Although I suppose waking up and seeing all this could give you a bit of a different perspective on things."
>"And I don't suppose I can make a guess about that youkai? Was it Koishi?"
-
> "Hey, don't sell yourself short. We probably wouldn't even be here if you hadn't wanted to videotape that ghost cat, you know."
-
> "So, learned anything magical yet Renko? Cause I have. :3"
> Make sure we actually try for the kiity smile when we say the above.
-
>"That's... quite a change of heart. Although I suppose waking up and seeing all this could give you a bit of a different perspective on things."
>"And I don't suppose I can make a guess about that youkai? Was it Koishi?"
>"Yeah, kinda," she shrugs, "but can't deny the proof."
>"No, never heard of her," says Renko, shaking her head. "But really, even if you guess, I probably shouldn't tell you."
> "Hey, don't sell yourself short. We probably wouldn't even be here if you hadn't wanted to videotape that ghost cat, you know."
>"That was just luck, though. It wasn't even good science. Just, we got lucky and did the right thing at the right time."
> "So, learned anything magical yet Renko? Cause I have. :3"
> Make sure we actually try for the kiity smile when we say the above.
>You change the subject a bit, giving her your best cat grin. "Oh I bet you think you're such hot shit with it, too," she says. "Well as it turns out, I have, So nyeh!" She sticks her tongue out, then grins, "And they tell me I'm pretty good at it. Did you figure out how to fly?"
>_
-
>"Yeah, I can fly. Actually played aerial tag with some faeries over the lake earlier today. Isn't it amazing? What else can do you do? And who taught you, anyway?"
-
> Check status of dance party
-
> "I'm not bragging you goof, I just had to ask."
> "It starts with a Cat Ghost, then we end up here, and it turns out that some people are practicly Gods! As is, I don't even know if I want to go back home."
-
>"Yeah, I can fly. Actually played aerial tag with some faeries over the lake earlier today. Isn't it amazing? What else can do you do? And who taught you, anyway?"
>"My friend showed me," she says. "And isn't it? Man, I spent too much of yesterday doing that."
> Check status of dance party
>It's still going pretty strongly. The faeries are giving the two of you room, most of the time anyways.
> "I'm not bragging you goof, I just had to ask."
> "It starts with a Cat Ghost, then we end up here, and it turns out that some people are practicly Gods! As is, I don't even know if I want to go back home."
>"Yeah, that's what that grin said," she replies, giving you a playful poke on the nose.
>"Oh yeah...that cat ghost!" she says. "I was wondering what you were on about it. And yeah, I've got no plans to go back. Not much point in it."
>_
-
>"No interest at all? I'm... a little surprised at you. I mean, I don't know that I really want to leave, myself, yet. But, it sounds like you've already totally made up your mind."
>Given what we would have expected of Renko, would it have been normal for her to be less enthusiastic about staying here than us?
>"You want to go for a little walk around after this? Let me show you a few of the places I've been?"
-
>"No interest at all? I'm... a little surprised at you. I mean, I don't know that I really want to leave, myself, yet. But, it sounds like you've already totally made up your mind."
>Given what we would have expected of Renko, would it have been normal for her to be less enthusiastic about staying here than us?
>"You want to go for a little walk around after this? Let me show you a few of the places I've been?"
>"The whole thing outside's built on faulty premises," she says with a shrug. "I mean...here, we're pretty much disproved gravity, of all things. I guess there's some stuff, but I won't miss it too bad."
>It does seem a bit weird, really. You would have expected her to at least want to report her findings. She was all about putting that video on the internet, for instance.
>"Maybe a little one," says Renko. "But not too long. I need to keep this mess together, you know?"
>_
-
>"Keep this mess together?"
-
>"Keep this mess together?"
>She nods. "It's not easy keeping this many faeries together for long. They get distracted, you see, then lose interest. But Dai and I, we've done pretty good, don't you think?"
>_
-
>"You helped bring them all together? How? And also, why?"
-
>"You helped bring them all together? How? And also, why?"
>"Sure did," says Renko. "And, there's a trick to it. You have to keep them riled up just the right way. hold their interest. Keep them wanting to follow you. As for why, well, I suppose I can show you that."
>She starts working her way through the party, heading for a southern part of the field.
>_
-
>Follow her
-
>Follow her
>You follow her, working your way through the party. The faeries seem inclined to give Renko space, which makes the going fairly easy.
>Soon you reach the southern part of the field. There is a hill here, partially shrouded in trees. There are a few faeries here, dancing in the air, but nothing like the crowds before. Near the top, you can see a teepee, made from shafts of bamboo and what seems to be an appropriated comforter. "That's where I've been sleeping," says Renko. "It's pretty neat, really. Like camping."
>At the top of the ridge, you find you have a good view of the side of Scarlet Devil Manor, about a mile distant. Renko gestures toward it. "That's why."
>_
-
>"What's why? I don't understand."
-
>"What's why? I don't understand."
>"That mansion, right there," says Renko. "Don't get me wrong, it's kinda fun to live in a tent. But it'd be a lot more fun to living in a master bedroom, don't you think?"
>_
-
> "I'm not following. You're gathering up fairies to seize that mansion?"
-
>"Well, yes, I imagine. But what does that have to do with gathering a horde of faeries together?"
-
>"Well, yes, I imagine. But what does that have to do with gathering a horde of faeries together?"
>"This isn't difficult, Mary," says Renko.
> "I'm not following. You're gathering up fairies to seize that mansion?"
>She grins. "See, I told you it wasn't hard."
>_
-
>"That's...why? What gave you the idea to do that?"
> Can we at all detect if she's a youkai?
-
>"That... doesn't sound like you at all, Renko. Where'd you get that idea in your head in the first place? If you wanted a bed, somewhere, there's other places that would take you in. Heck, I have one already."
-
> "Or you could live with me in the mansion that took me in. The mansion you plan on seizing has a maid with skills that makes Dio Brando look like a pitiful fool, a libraian and magician who can use uber powerful magic that likely put Ultima and Flare to shame, a gate guard who could likely punch your head off, litterally, with ease, and the mistress is just... yikes."
-
> Wait, does this seem like something the Renko we know would do?
> If not, before all of the above, ask her something about us only she would know.
-
>"That's...why? What gave you the idea to do that?"
> Can we at all detect if she's a youkai?
>"Because why not?" she says. "Feels like the right thing to do."
>You have no real way to tell unless they have obviously inhuman features, like Mystia.
> Wait, does this seem like something the Renko we know would do?
> If not, before all of the above, ask her something about us only she would know.
>It really doesn't.
>You try to ask her some of the things in your room at the old detective agency. "What?" she says. "...Why are you asking this?"
>"That... doesn't sound like you at all, Renko. Where'd you get that idea in your head in the first place? If you wanted a bed, somewhere, there's other places that would take you in. Heck, I have one already."
>"I suppose it does sound a bit different. But don't you see? We've been so wrong and flipped around about everything. In the end, it's just comes down to doing what you feel. And I feel like a mansion and riches. Don't you?"
> "Or you could live with me in the mansion that took me in. The mansion you plan on seizing has a maid with skills that makes Dio Brando look like a pitiful fool, a libraian and magician who can use uber powerful magic that likely put Ultima and Flare to shame, a gate guard who could likely punch your head off, litterally, with ease, and the mistress is just... yikes."
>"And I've got the most underestimated army in the the world," says Renko. "In any world, I bet. Trust me, we're not the ones who are going to have anything to worry about."
>_
-
>"We may have been wrong about a few things, but don't you think it's also wrong to take someone else's things, just because you'd like to have them?"
>What kind of crowds are around us, now?
-
> "You don't seem like yourself. I'm sure you can appreciate that given how magical this world is, it's entirely possible someone is playing with me. I've been asking about you all over Gensokyo, and I conveniently find you here. You must admit I'm a little suspicious at this point given the behavior differences. If you are Renko, then you should have no issues answering the question, and from there we can talk about your plans. Fair enough?"
To other voices: We're pushing too hard. She still thinks we can be compelled to her side. At this point we want to keep it that way until we get what's happening.
-
> "Have you even been over to that mansion and spoken with those that live there?"
> "Moreover, why haven't you even left the lake? This is Gensokyo Renko, the real one! I've been exploring all day and I haven't even seen everything! Why not come around and explore! Y'know, meet all the different youkai around here and see their amazing skills! Utsuho's here too, I'm sure she'd love to see that you're doing alright."
> Oh god we're going to have to fight Renko aren't we?
-
>"We may have been wrong about a few things, but don't you think it's also wrong to take someone else's things, just because you'd like to have them?"
>What kind of crowds are around us, now?
>"The way I hear it, they're huge pains in the ass for everyone involved, and they abuse faeries anyways. So who cares what they think."
> "You don't seem like yourself. I'm sure you can appreciate that given how magical this world is, it's entirely possible someone is playing with me. I've been asking about you all over Gensokyo, and I conveniently find you here. You must admit I'm a little suspicious at this point given the behavior differences. If you are Renko, then you should have no issues answering the question, and from there we can talk about your plans. Fair enough?"
>"...That hurts," Renko says, frowning at you. "That hurts a lot, you know. I finally find you, and you think I'm some kind of fake? Is that really what you have to say to me? After all we've been through, you trust me that little?"
> "Have you even been over to that mansion and spoken with those that live there?"
> "Moreover, why haven't you even left the lake? This is Gensokyo Renko, the real one! I've been exploring all day and I haven't even seen everything! Why not come around and explore! Y'know, meet all the different youkai around here and see their amazing skills! Utsuho's here too, I'm sure she'd love to see that you're doing alright."
> Oh god we're going to have to fight Renko aren't we?
>You try to change the subject.
>"I've heard enough from the people who worked there."
>"I've been busy, Mary, just like I said. I'll explore in good time. But I've got ambitions, too! Striking while the iron is hot and all that, you know? And she it? Great!"
>You really hope not...
>_
-
>"Out of curiosity, how much of this was you idea, and how much of it was Dai's?"
>"Is that what you've spent most of the past couple days doing, then? Gathering faeries up? Anything else notable happen?"
-
> "I know you've been busy, but do you think you'd be able to get away, even for a few minutes? It's been really crazy for me since I arrived, and I'm sure it has for you, so do you think we can go somewhere else for a while?"
-
>"Out of curiosity, how much of this was you idea, and how much of it was Dai's?"
>"Is that what you've spent most of the past couple days doing, then? Gathering faeries up? Anything else notable happen?"
>"It was mine," says Renko. "But Dai's all for it, too."
>"Well, that, learning the basics about things, figuring out magic and stuff. Also helping the faeries learn how to really work together."
>"And does this mean you're dropping that whole I'm a fake thing? Because, for real, that hurt a lot, Mary."
>_
-
Note how she's evading the question. I don't know how to pursue it without making her more offended though.
-
> "Sorry, it's just a little hard to swallow all of a sudden. Back home, you never would have just thrown up your hands so quickly at investigating, and I never would have thought that you would organize something like this. Renko, you must have seen something absolutely incredible in order to change yourself so much and so quickly, what was it? It couldn't have just been sitting around with fairies for a few days, what was it?"
-
>"I don't mean to hurt you. You know that. But you're really acting oddly, even for someone who just woke up here one morning. I mean, can you imagine the you of a couple days ago planning, or even wanting to do something like this?"
-
> "You know, mansion wise, you could just live where I'm living as is. It's a mansion, I think it has King or Queen sized beds, with adorable animals like kittens living their, Utsuho lives their too, and they would welcome you in, no doubt."
> "Sorry for doubting you Renko."
> Give Renko a hug
-
> "No, I don't think you're a fake. I think someone else is putting you up to this."
-
>Consider the chances of the fairy army taking over the mansion. Although, I suppose it'd be rather hard to tell, since we only really know much about Sakuya.
>Oh, and come to think of it, well... the fairies wouldn't really stick to holding guard over the mansion forever, would they? After they go, Renko would be dead meat, even if her war plan did work at first.
-
> "Sorry, it's just a little hard to swallow all of a sudden. Back home, you never would have just thrown up your hands so quickly at investigating, and I never would have thought that you would organize something like this. Renko, you must have seen something absolutely incredible in order to change yourself so much and so quickly, what was it? It couldn't have just been sitting around with fairies for a few days, what was it?"
>"Well, when you say it like that... And, yeah, I have seen something incredible. Look around us. We don't need to really investigate anymore, do we? No more waiting for the right time and hoping for the best. It's all right here. We can do it any time we want! You see?"
>"I don't mean to hurt you. You know that. But you're really acting oddly, even for someone who just woke up here one morning. I mean, can you imagine the you of a couple days ago planning, or even wanting to do something like this?"
>"I've always kinda wanted to do it," she says. "Haven't you ever wanted to be insanely, opulently rich? The kind you can only luck into?"
> "No, I don't think you're a fake. I think someone else is putting you up to this."
>"No, it's just me," she says, giving a grin. "Just Renko seizing the day."
> "You know, mansion wise, you could just live where I'm living as is. It's a mansion, I think it has King or Queen sized beds, with adorable animals like kittens living their, Utsuho lives their too, and they would welcome you in, no doubt."
> "Sorry for doubting you Renko."
> Give Renko a hug
>"That sounds nice," she says, "But I don't just want to live in one. I want to have one. We could have our own king-sized bed! But, I'd be all too happy to visit afterward."
>You apologize for doubting her, and give her a hug. She returns it. "It's okay, Maribel, it's okay. Things have been crazy, haven't they?"
>Consider the chances of the fairy army taking over the mansion. Although, I suppose it'd be rather hard to tell, since we only really know much about Sakuya.
>Oh, and come to think of it, well... the fairies wouldn't really stick to holding guard over the mansion forever, would they? After they go, Renko would be dead meat, even if her war plan did work at first.
>You really have no idea. Although it would be a sight to see.
>Yeah, holding it would definitely be an issue, too...
>_
-
> "Things really have been crazy, yeah. And to think, this all started because met Utsuho, way back. What a trivial task we needed her for. Do you remember it?"
-
> "So, let me see if I have this right. You woke up and were taken in by the fairies. Dai mentioned that the fairies working at that house were being mistreated, and since you've always wanted a house like that, you two concocted a plan to free the fairies and claim the house as revenge. Does that sound about right?"
> "When would you be staging this siege?"
-
>"Oh, and uh, about that plan of taking it over with fairies; I'm a bit worried about that. Let's say you won, and got the mansion. The previous residents would probably really want to get it back... and while a swarming mass of fairies might be able to take the mansion, I really, really don't think they'd be as good to defend it; especially once they lost interest as fairies do, even if that takes a few months."
>Do we know anything about the residents of the mansion, past that Patchouli the magician exists and about Sakuya the time-stopping, knife-wielding chief maid?
-
> "Things really have been crazy, yeah. And to think, this all started because met Utsuho, way back. What a trivial task we needed her for. Do you remember it?"
>"Yeah, I know. And, wasn't the air conditi-Hey wait a minute! God damn it, Mary! What the hell?" She just stares at you now. "What the hell? Fine! If you don't believe me, just go, I guess. I...after everything...and then you do this. Maybe you've got something wrong with you! You ever think about that?"
> "So, let me see if I have this right. You woke up and were taken in by the fairies. Dai mentioned that the fairies working at that house were being mistreated, and since you've always wanted a house like that, you two concocted a plan to free the fairies and claim the house as revenge. Does that sound about right?"
> "When would you be staging this siege?"
>"Oh, and uh, about that plan of taking it over with fairies; I'm a bit worried about that. Let's say you won, and got the mansion. The previous residents would probably really want to get it back... and while a swarming mass of fairies might be able to take the mansion, I really, really don't think they'd be as good to defend it; especially once they lost interest as fairies do, even if that takes a few months."
>Do we know anything about the residents of the mansion, past that Patchouli the magician exists and about Sakuya the time-stopping, knife-wielding chief maid?
>You start to ask these things, but the look she gives you stops you cold.
>_
-
>"Renko... you know that if our positions were reversed, and you were asking me the same things, I'd be willing to answer you... Do you have any idea how hurtful it is to see you react this way to me, too?"
-
>"Renko... you know that if our positions were reversed, and you were asking me the same things, I'd be willing to answer you... Do you have any idea how hurtful it is to see you react this way to me, too?"
>"And if you forgave me for it, and I went and did it again, like I thought were were some stupid clone?" she asks, her voice hard. "After all we've both been through, and you can't even trust me that much? I didn't even ask you to do anything! I wasn't going to wrap you up in it if you didn't want to be! God!" She throws her hands up. "Sorry!"
>_
-
>"I'm sorry, too. For all for all of this. Would you... like me to leave you alone, now?"
-
> "Renko, I'm sorry, truly, I just don't want any fighting, I don't want to see you hurt... I'm sorry..." start crying, and mean it.
-
Oh, by the way, it's possible she thinks this is a really vivid dream, hence why she's unconcerned with such morally base behavior. It's a long shot, but something to consider.
-
I still strongly suspect Koishi is involved in one way or another. I can think of at least a couple ways how.
-
>"I'm sorry, too. For all for all of this. Would you... like me to leave you alone, now?"
>She sighs. "...Not really. I just want you to stop acting like I'm some horrible monster who's gonna bite you head off... I mean, I can understand maybe being a little put off, but to go so far as to act like I'm not even really me... What's gotten into you?"
> "Renko, I'm sorry, truly, I just don't want any fighting, I don't want to see you hurt... I'm sorry..." start crying, and mean it.
>You break down into tears. Damn it...
>She frowns and approaches you. "Don't worry about me, Mary. I'm a big girl, I'll handle myself." She puts an arm around you. "There there, just let it out, okay?"
>_
-
>"I just... even if you can take care of yourself, a lot of other people could end up hurt if this happens."
-
> When we've regained composure
> "So, I assume you are serious about this?"
> If so
> "OK, first, I'm going to say this is probably a bad idea, but I don't think I would be doing you justice to just leave it at that. I'd like to know if there's any way to dissuade you from this course of action?"
> If there's no way to dissuade her
> "Alright, then what about the faeries' abilities has inspired confidence in them from you? As I said, I've been to the mansion. There are some high level people there. As you've said before, a lot of the things we know are wrong. If you think that sheer numbers are their strength, then that's the first place you'll go wrong. One person CAN defeat an army here."
-
>"I just... even if you can take care of yourself, a lot of other people could end up hurt if this happens."
>"Naw, that's not how danmaku and stuff work," says Renko, patting you on the back as you let the last of your tears out. "It'll be okay."
> When we've regained composure
> "So, I assume you are serious about this?"
> If so
> "OK, first, I'm going to say this is probably a bad idea, but I don't think I would be doing you justice to just leave it at that. I'd like to know if there's any way to dissuade you from this course of action?"
> If there's no way to dissuade her
> "Alright, then what about the faeries' abilities has inspired confidence in them from you? As I said, I've been to the mansion. There are some high level people there. As you've said before, a lot of the things we know are wrong. If you think that sheer numbers are their strength, then that's the first place you'll go wrong. One person CAN defeat an army here."
>You feel a bit better. Renko doesn't seem to give any indication of removing that arm, though.
>"I'm too deep into this to quit, even if I wanted to," says Renko.
>"From what I've picked up, no one's seen a real army, here." says Renko. "They've seen faerie swarms, but on their own, those aren't worth much. But the thing is, when you get them coordinated? They pretty much unstoppable. There's just a few of them, but there's hundreds of us. And, faeries get better when they're defeated anyways. It's not just numbers, Mary, it's planning. It's exploiting openings. Hell, a lucky faerie can take out the Hakurei Maiden. It's even happened before."
>_
-
>"And what do you expect to do with the mansion when you take it? How long can you realistically expect to keep it? You know the owners aren't going to be too happy with you about it."
-
>"And what do you expect to do with the mansion when you take it? How long can you realistically expect to keep it? You know the owners aren't going to be too happy with you about it."
>"Normally, I'd agree with you," says Renko. "But there's a trick to it. A system of honor, kind of. Have they told you about how the duels work? About, how once you beat, no matter how much power you have left, that's it, you're done? All we have to do is win once. Especially against them, from what I hear. They care so much about their pride they wouldn't think about trying to break the system. And after that, no one cares. They don't have any real allies, because they're so isolated out here."
>She hug you close with her arm around your shoulder. "We're gonna do it, Mary. We're gonna make that mansion ours."
>_
-
>"Does invading with an entire army really count as a dual, though?
-
>"Does invading with an entire army really count as a dual, though?
>"It's stretching them, just a tad," says Renko, "But it counts. There's been two on one, three on one...and cases of more than that. You remember Orin? Word has it she has a small squad of ghosts with her."
>_
-
>"What's to stop them from challenging you to a dual again at some later date, though? After this fight is settled, and all. Surely the rules don't prevent two people from ever fighting more than once."
>"And where'd you hear that about Orin, anyway?"
-
>"I don't think that's exactly how the system works. They can probably just fight you again in a day or so; I bet what you said is so people don't get hurt, not that they can't fight you again ever."
>"Although, it'd be better to ask someone like Reimu about that, not me..."
dammit draco
-
>"What's to stop them from challenging you to a dual again at some later date, though? After this fight is settled, and all. Surely the rules don't prevent two people from ever fighting more than once."
>"And where'd you hear that about Orin, anyway?"
>"I don't think that's exactly how the system works. They can probably just fight you again in a day or so; I bet what you said is so people don't get hurt, not that they can't fight you again ever."
>"Although, it'd be better to ask someone like Reimu about that, not me..."
>"From what I can tell, it's really frowned upon to do it over the same thing twice," says Renko. "And, well, the house Mistress, she's the sort who won't have people frowning on her."
>"From my benefactor," she says. "Don't worry, she knows her stuff."
>_
-
>It's gotta be Koishi. But it's a waste to try and say anything about that to Renko. We need to find that girl, but how...
-
>"Your benefactor? I know you said you don't want to say who she is, but what did she do that makes her your benefactor?"
-
>It's gotta be Koishi. But it's a waste to try and say anything about that to Renko. We need to find that girl, but how...
>It really does sound like it. Finding her would be difficult, though...
>"Your benefactor? I know you said you don't want to say who she is, but what did she do that makes her your benefactor?"
>"She helped me figure out how to fly and how danmaku works," says Renko. "And she's going to be backing us up when it's time to make the attack. She doesn't want me to say anything, though, because she doesn't know who's listening, and when. I think she's paranoid, but you never know, I guess."
>_
-
>"When are you planning to pull this off, anyway?"
-
> Mental note: Koishi may be warping Renko's mind.
> Further mental note: we're going to end up needing that powerup, aren't we.
-
>"When are you planning to pull this off, anyway?"
>"We're ready any time," says Renko, "We're just waiting on her to finish up something."
>"You really don't want any part of it, do you?"
> Mental note: Koishi may be warping Renko's mind.
> Further mental note: we're going to end up needing that powerup, aren't we.
>It certainly seems plausible.
>That depends on what you plan to do, really.
>_
-
>"I don't think it's right to try taking someone else's home like this. I've met the people inside. They don't seem like bad people to me."
>"You have any idea what she's waiting to finish up?"
-
>"I don't think it's right to try taking someone else's home like this. I've met the people inside. They don't seem like bad people to me."
>"You have any idea what she's waiting to finish up?"
>Renko nods. "Well, okay. If you don't want in on it, I won't bother you about it. I did kind hope you did, I liked the idea of us leading a conquest side by side...
>"Some kind of secret weapon," she says. "I'm not sure what it is. I'm wondering if it's not a bit much, but it doesn't hurt to be prepared."
>_
-
>"And so I guess the order of the day is party until she gets back, then?"
-
>"And so I guess the order of the day is party until she gets back, then?"
>"Not the whole day," says Renko, "Just enough to keep the faeries interest...and maybe a little bit more."
>_
-
>"What do you think you'll do after this is all over with?"
-
>"What do you think you'll do after this is all over with?"
>"Well, I intend to live it up in my new mansion," says Renko. "After that, who knows? The sky's the limit."
>_
-
>"It certainly is quite the world, isn't it?"
>"Anyway, I'm sorry we got off on the wrong foot here, Renko. It's nice to see you again."
>"I probably should go now, though. I have a letter I promised to deliver for someone, and I don't want to keep them waiting."
>We can see part of the SDM from here, right? Can we see the gate? If we went the long way, would anyone see us walking in?
-
>"It certainly is quite the world, isn't it?"
>"Anyway, I'm sorry we got off on the wrong foot here, Renko. It's nice to see you again."
>"I probably should go now, though. I have a letter I promised to deliver for someone, and I don't want to keep them waiting."
>We can see part of the SDM from here, right? Can we see the gate? If we went the long way, would anyone see us walking in?
>"Yep," she says. "And...you're leaving already? But you just got here..."
>You can kind of see the gate, but from this distance, you don't think anyone could identify you.
>_
-
>"I know, I know. But I was on my way when I found this place in the first place. Neither of us is going anywhere. I'll be back, I promise."
-
> "I did, but a fairy party really isn't my kind of scene, and I do have other business to attend to, but I'll return later. I promise, I'll be back before your siege starts."
> One last hug.
> "Oh, do you think you could let the fairies know not to hassle me as much? I've been chased by them more times than I can count today."
-
>"I know, I know. But I was on my way when I found this place in the first place. Neither of us is going anywhere. I'll be back, I promise."
> "I did, but a fairy party really isn't my kind of scene, and I do have other business to attend to, but I'll return later. I promise, I'll be back before your siege starts."
> One last hug.
> "Oh, do you think you could let the fairies know not to hassle me as much? I've been chased by them more times than I can count today."
>"I guess if it's that important, I won't stop you. ...You're not just running off because of the whole plan thing, right?"
>You give her another hug.
>"I'll see what I can do, but I can't promise too much. It's a balancing act, making just enough demands from them without seeming like too much.
>_
-
> Consider warning the SDM.
-
> Consider warning the SDM.
>You certainly could warn them. You don't know what the odds are, but it'd certainly put them more in the Mansion's favor. But at the same time, wouldn't that be betraying Renko's confidence?
>_
-
> How do we feel about confidences when it will harm someone else?
-
>"Yeah, I understand. Faeries are... flighty, if nothing else. Hasn't taken me long to pick up on that part. I'll see you again, soon."
>Fly off back to the road. Make it clear that we're not flying at all in the direction of the SDM.
>You certainly could warn them. You don't know what the odds are, but it'd certainly put them more in the Mansion's favor. But at the same time, wouldn't that be betraying Renko's confidence?
>On the other hand, we did make a promise to investigate what the faeries were up to and report back if we learned anything....
-
>Also consider talking to Reimu. If Koishi is going around brainwashing people, that's really bad. Renko isn't anyone's meatpuppet...! ;_; Who knows if Koishi will continue messing with her if the mansion thieving scheme fails? Or even if it succeeds?
-
> How do we feel about confidences when it will harm someone else?
>How do you feel about it?
>Then again, you're pretty sure it would be the sort of thing she'd hold against you for a long time, if she really wants it as bad as she says.
>"Yeah, I understand. Faeries are... flighty, if nothing else. Hasn't taken me long to pick up on that part. I'll see you again, soon."
>Fly off back to the road. Make it clear that we're not flying at all in the direction of the SDM.
>On the other hand, we did make a promise to investigate what the faeries were up to and report back if we learned anything....
>"Alright. I'll be waiting for you to come back," says Renko.
>You make your way westward, which is not toward the mansion to the southwest.
>And this is true. You'll have to decide which is more important.
>Also consider talking to Reimu. If Koishi is going around brainwashing people, that's really bad. Renko isn't anyone's meatpuppet...! ;_; Who knows if Koishi will continue messing with her if the mansion thieving scheme fails? Or even if it succeeds?
>If Koishi really is behind this, it would be a serious problem. But it does beg the question of why...
>_
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>Mental note: Kanako so far has proved to be the only person capable of locating Koishi. If something important is up, she may be willing to take the time to find her
>Mental note: Utsuho would probably like to know about this. Both for Koishi's involvement, and what seems to have happened to Renko. Her and Satori might even have a better idea what to do about it
>Head towards the underground
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> Maybe find a way to warn the SDM without implicating Renko?
> Why would Koishi have anything against the SDM though? It seems that those responsible for tearing down the dream were just Utsuho and Keine, so why would Koishi want to bring down the SDM?
-
> Is she really worthwhile as a friend if she'd hold the fact I tried to stop her from robbing innocent people on a large scale against me?
> It'd suck to lose her, but if those are her true colors, did we ever really know her?
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>Do you even know if Koishi is doing this?
-
> Is she really worthwhile as a friend if she'd hold the fact I tried to stop her from robbing innocent people on a large scale against me?
> It'd suck to lose her, but if those are her true colors, did we ever really know her?
True, but maybe it's just something like living out a fantasy or something. (can't think of the proper word.) It seems unlikely this is how Renko really is.
> We have no grudge or hate to the Mansion, but if it's them or Renko getting beat up, it should be them.
> If we tell the Mansion anything about the fairies, it should only be something like that we got close enough to see them having a party. If we even tell anything that is, nothing is making us tell anything.
Warning - while you were typing 3 new replies have been posted. You may wish to review your post. Jeez guys
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>Mental note: Kanako so far has proved to be the only person capable of locating Koishi. If something important is up, she may be willing to take the time to find her
>Mental note: Utsuho would probably like to know about this. Both for Koishi's involvement, and what seems to have happened to Renko. Her and Satori might even have a better idea what to do about it
>Head towards the underground
>Kanako may be willing to help you find Koishi.
>Utsuho would probably be very interested.
>You fly toward the entrance to the Underground.
> Maybe find a way to warn the SDM without implicating Renko?
> Why would Koishi have anything against the SDM though? It seems that those responsible for tearing down the dream were just Utsuho and Keine, so why would Koishi want to bring down the SDM?
>This might work in the short run, but Renko would probably still be in deep trouble against a forewarned Scarlet Devil Mansion.
>You have no idea why Koishi would have beef against anything involved with the mansion.
> We have no grudge or hate to the Mansion, but if it's them or Renko getting beat up, it should be them.
> If we tell the Mansion anything about the fairies, it should only be something like that we got close enough to see them having a party. If we even tell anything that is, nothing is making us tell anything.
>The people at the mansion have been fairly nice to you on one hand. On the other hand, Renko...
>Perhaps you could mislead the Mansion people with a half truth?
>_
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>If Koishi is ultimately involved in messing with Renko's head, just stopping this invasion is immaterial. Koishi herself is the more important problem.
>Continue to the underground
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> Is she really worthwhile as a friend if she'd hold the fact I tried to stop her from robbing innocent people on a large scale against me?
> It'd suck to lose her, but if those are her true colors, did we ever really know her?
>!!
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> Is she really worthwhile as a friend if she'd hold the fact I tried to stop her from robbing innocent people on a large scale against me?
> It'd suck to lose her, but if those are her true colors, did we ever really know her?
>These are also considerations. Is Renko really like that? And...would she be worth having as a friend if she did? You've been with her for a couple years now, and you'd like to think you knew her... Maybe you didn't?
>If Koishi is ultimately involved in messing with Renko's head, just stopping this invasion is immaterial. Koishi herself is the more important problem.
>Continue to the underground
>This too is true.
>You reach the entrance to the Underground. Stepping inside, you seem Yamame clinging to the walls of near the entrance. "Hey buddy!" she says.
>_
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>!!
>I highly doubt that's how Renko really is. Especially with Koishi having been spotted in the Forest of Magic, Renko's "benefactor" wanting to be secret, well, it just seems so much like her doing. She could just be doing it for fun, or attention, or have some currently unseeable ulterior motive in mind, or perhaps just wanting to vent for having lost Gensokyo Isle. There' s all sorts of understandable possibilities.
-
Well, of course, Serela. But if it's truly what she herself desires, then she's not really worthwhile as a friend. And if it's NOT something she desires, it will be resolved as the incident is resolved. Course, resolving the incident will come down to us anyway.
-
>"Hey to you, too!"
>Wave to Yamame and continue onward
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> "Been having any good business or luck while I was gone?"
> Come on, we gotta cheer up and hope for the best, and that it will turn out fine. Smile Maribel, smile. Renko is safe and seems to be having fun.
-
>I highly doubt that's how Renko really is. Especially with Koishi having been spotted in the Forest of Magic, Renko's "benefactor" wanting to be secret, well, it just seems so much like her doing. She could just be doing it for fun, or attention, or have some currently unseeable ulterior motive in mind, or perhaps just wanting to vent for having lost Gensokyo Isle. There' s all sorts of understandable possibilities.
>You really want to believe someone else is at fault... But, well, Renko has always kind of liked money, now that you think of it. You're pretty sure she's not a thief, she's had the opportunity in the past...
>"Hey to you, too!"
>Wave to Yamame and continue onward
> "Been having any good business or luck while I was gone?"
> Come on, we gotta cheer up and hope for the best, and that it will turn out fine. Smile Maribel, smile. Renko is safe and seems to be having fun.
>You wave to your spidery friend, and continue onwards.
>"Been taking it easy, pal!" she says as you make your way past.
>You do your best to cheer up. If nothing else, at least Renko's safe, and really does seem to be enjoying herself.
>True to her word, Kisume doesn't try to mug you again on the way back. You think you get a peek of a bucket dangling from the corner of the chamber with the fissures, though.
>Soon, you return to the bridge. You see Parsee there, doing something with the railing.
>_
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>Walk up her
>"Hello, Parsee. Do you know where Utsuho is, now? I need to talk with her about something important."
>"And before you say anything, sorry about last time. Crazy day, worried, not thinking things through all the way, and so on. I'd just as soon let it slide if you will."
-
>Walk up her
>"Hello, Parsee. Do you know where Utsuho is, now? I need to talk with her about something important."
>"And before you say anything, sorry about last time. Crazy day, worried, not thinking things through all the way, and so on. I'd just as soon let it slide if you will."
>"Oh, hey voyeur," says Parsee as you approach. "Too late to peak, I'm afraid. Maybe later you'll get lucky." There isn't any real hostility you can hear in her tone, but maybe she's doing that on purpose..
>"I think she went home to crash," says Parsee. "Yuugi's out busting heads, she's got to catch up and all."
>You ask for bygones to be bygones. "Well...okay," she says. "I won't tease you about it anymore, since you meant well."
>_
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>"Well, I'm glad that everyone walked away in one piece, at the very least."
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>"Well, I'm glad that everyone walked away in one piece, at the very least."
>"Yeah, it doesn't mean things won't flare up again, but I'm kinda hopeful, you know?"
>_
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>"Me, too. One day at a time and all that. It seems like a step in the right direction. Anyway, I'm afraid I'm in something of a hurry, so I probably should go try to catch Utsuho. Be well!"
>Head towards the Palace of the Earth Spirits
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>What was the time of day when you could last tell the time of day?
-
>"Me, too. One day at a time and all that. It seems like a step in the right direction. Anyway, I'm afraid I'm in something of a hurry, so I probably should go try to catch Utsuho. Be well!"
>Head towards the Palace of the Earth Spirits
>What was the time of day when you could last tell the time of day?
>"Yeah, good luck with whatever."
>You head toward the Palace of the Earth Spirits. The streets aren't so busy right now, and the music is kind of quiet. You wonder if this is sleeping time for the oni? It was sidling into mid afternoon when you entered.
>You reach the Palace of the Earth Spirits to find it more or less the same as ever.
>_
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>Enter the palace
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>Enter the palace
>You walk inside, and find the entry hall empty, save for a couple of cats chasing each other.
>_
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>Look around for Utsuho, or anyone else, for that matter.
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>Look around for Utsuho, or anyone else, for that matter.
>You look around a bit, taking a door to the left and finding a kitchen. It's in fairly good condition, if a bit dusty around the corners, and has quite a few feeding dishes out. A fat black cat sits on the counter and meows at you incessantly until you leave. Looking the to right of the hall, you see an barracks style room you imagine was used for servants. There's quite a few animals curled up here.
>You press onward to the sitting room, and find Utsuho collapsed on a couch. It is very interesting to see someone with wings and her ornaments sprawled out like that. "Huh?" she says, looking over toward you. "Oh, hey Maribel."
>_
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>"Hey, there! How're things? I'm glad you still seem to be in one piece."
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> "I got Nitori's reply for you."
> Hand her the letter.
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>"Hey, there! How're things? I'm glad you still seem to be in one piece."
>"Kinda weird," says Utsuho. "But good, I guess. How about you?"
> "I got Nitori's reply for you."
> Hand her the letter.
>"What letter?"
>She takes it and opens it. "Oh, I see! Thanks!"
>she starts to read, then chuckles a bit. "Oh Nitori..."
>_
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>"She asking for help with that air-conditioner project of hers?"
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> "I also managed to find Renko."
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>"She asking for help with that air-conditioner project of hers?"
>"Yep. And she doesn't even the micro controllers she's going to need. It'll be interesting to see her get around that. Probably have to rig up some old analogue system."
>She chuckles. "Thanks."
> "I also managed to find Renko."
>"Great! I guess she'd doing okay? Kinda surprised she isn't tagging along with you."
>_
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>"I found Renko under very strange circumstances..."
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>"Actually, Renko's why I'm here. I... could be wrong, but I have serious reason to believe that Koishi did something to her head."
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> Explain the situation (and our dilemma) to Utsuho.
> "From what I can gather, I think Koishi's been screwing with Renko's mind. Her "benefactor" knew of Orin, and is apparently paranoid. I just have no idea what Koishi would have to gain by doing this..."
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> "Also, Renko is literally going to help an army of faeries take over the SDM."
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> "Also, Renko is literally going to help an army of faeries take over the SDM."
>"With the help of said benefactor and her "secret weapon"."
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>"I found Renko under very strange circumstances..."
>She folds the letter against her chest. "I hate the sound of that so much..."
>"Actually, Renko's why I'm here. I... could be wrong, but I have serious reason to believe that Koishi did something to her head."
>"What."
> Explain the situation (and our dilemma) to Utsuho.
> "From what I can gather, I think Koishi's been screwing with Renko's mind. Her "benefactor" knew of Orin, and is apparently paranoid. I just have no idea what Koishi would have to gain by doing this..."
> "Also, Renko is literally going to help an army of faeries take over the SDM."
>"With the help of said benefactor and her "secret weapon"."
>You quickly summarize the situation with Renko and the upcoming invasion.
>"Well...she could have. It want to think she wouldn't do that. But admittedly, Koishi's done a whole lot of stuff lately, so what I think about her isn't worth a lot."
>"Maybe I could offer another possibility?" She quirks her lips a bit. "Maybe Renko just, um, went a bit power mad and flipped her lid. It does happen, you know..."
>_
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>"Then how do we explain this 'benefactor'? She showed up, doesn't want to be found or talked about, is described as paranoid, knew Orin pretty well. And Kanako said that she sensed Koishi in that area this morning."
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> Consider the possibility Utsuho suggested.
> Consider inviting Satori over to your next meeting with Renko, which might enlighten things ... but, well, would that be a breach of Renko's trust?
-
>"Then how do we explain this 'benefactor'? She showed up, doesn't want to be found or talked about, is described as paranoid, knew Orin pretty well. And Kanako said that she sensed Koishi in that area this morning."
>"Maybe the benefactor is someone with something to gain?" says Utsuho. "I'm not too up and up on the way things work topside, but I can imagine there's gotta be someone who'd gain from the Scarlet Devil Mansion changing hands."
> Consider the possibility Utsuho suggested.
> Consider inviting Satori over to your next meeting with Renko, which might enlighten things ... but, well, would that be a breach of Renko's trust?
>You honestly don't know how Renko would react to suddenly having magic. Utsuho may be right.
>You are pretty sure Renko would hate that if she learned about it. You know you would. Then again, getting Satori to the surface may be a challenge.
>_
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>"It's just, well... Renko didn't seem like herself, at all. She acted like all of her usual ways of thinking about things were foolish and unnecessary, and that there was no point in not just doing whatever it was you felt like at the moment. I mean, she said that she was the one who came up with the idea of gathering a faerie army to take over the mansion. That... doesn't sound like the Renko I know at all. And it scares me a bit, to be honest."
-
>"It's just, well... Renko didn't seem like herself, at all. She acted like all of her usual ways of thinking about things were foolish and unnecessary, and that there was no point in not just doing whatever it was you felt like at the moment. I mean, she said that she was the one who came up with the idea of gathering a faerie army to take over the mansion. That... doesn't sound like the Renko I know at all. And it scares me a bit, to be honest."
>"Well," says Utsuho. "I can see some glimmerings of her in there. That's certainly pretty creative, I gotta admit. And that sounds like her, trying to probe at the problem using a way people don't think of. And, I'll be the first to admit, if someone could organize the faeries into an army anything like the outside ones, they'd be pretty vicious. I mean, don't tell Orin I said this, but she's worse than I am when it comes to a fight, all told."
>She sighs. "Maybe I just want to defend Koishi. Maybe I'm thinking about the past too much, but maybe...she's just lost it? I mean, she's a scientist, right? And Gensokyo is a scientist's nightmare. Mix in a taste of power, and...welp. I mean, if it isn't Koishi, what then?"
>_
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>"I... don't know. If this is well and truly Renko's own doing.... I don't want to accept that. But... I can't support her."
>"And I promised Patchouli and Sakuya to look into their vanishing faerie problem, and now that I've found the answer.... unless this situation can be defused, I have to betray one trust or another. I mean, Renko's my close friend, but given that she's trying to steal the home of people she's never even met....."
>"I agree, there's still a lot of the regular Renko in there, but... well, Koishi can manipulate the subconscious, right? I'm not saying she's controlling her, or anything, but what if she just nudged a few things. Changed Renko's priorities a little. Is there any way to tell? If Satori could see her, would she be able to detect anything?"
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>"I... don't know. If this is well and truly Renko's own doing.... I don't want to accept that. But... I can't support her."
>"And I promised Patchouli and Sakuya to look into their vanishing faerie problem, and now that I've found the answer.... unless this situation can be defused, I have to betray one trust or another. I mean, Renko's my close friend, but given that she's trying to steal the home of people she's never even met....."
>"I agree, there's still a lot of the regular Renko in there, but... well, Koishi can manipulate the subconscious, right? I'm not saying she's controlling her, or anything, but what if she just nudged a few things. Changed Renko's priorities a little. Is there any way to tell? If Satori could see her, would she be able to detect anything?"
>"You don't have to back her up to support her," says Utsuho. "But, if it really is her and not something else, she probably needs you, or someone, really badly before she does something dumb."
>"I dunno if Satori could find it or not," says Utsuho. "As far as I understand, they work on different levels, though. Aside from that, you'd know her better than anyone."
>_
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>"I just came here because you know Koishi. Or at least knew her. She was near there this morning, either way, Kanako said. I don't really know what I was expecting from you, I just didn't know what to do. I still don't; it all feels wrong."
-
>"I just came here because you know Koishi. Or at least knew her. She was near there this morning, either way, Kanako said. I don't really know what I was expecting from you, I just didn't know what to do. I still don't; it all feels wrong."
>She nods. "Kanako, huh? So what's she up to?"
>_
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>"Not much. Spending time walking the village, talking to her followers. She... feels pretty miserable about what happened, and none too happy with you about it, although she said you don't need to worry about her directing hostility towards you. She'd just rather not have anything to do with you right now. I imagine the feeling is fairly mutual at the moment?"
>"It seems she never told Sanae what happened, and Sanae doesn't remember. She just told Sanae that her dream was nothing to worry about. I wonder if she was trying to protect her feelings?"
-
> "Officially, she won't hold direct hostilities if you don't, but she wants little to do with you right now, and possibly for a good, long time. Unofficially, that may change, though I don't think she knows it."
> "I think I've discovered what Sanae's dream was. She talked a lot about flying a jet and how great it was being a test pilot. Called it "romantic" in comparison to being able to simply fly on her own. If you're remotely interested in making some sort of amends with Kanako, that might be a place to start - she seemed more devastated at not being able to fulfill Sanae's dream than anything else."
> "Oh, and also officially...don't go near Suwako."
-
>"Not much. Spending time walking the village, talking to her followers. She... feels pretty miserable about what happened, and none too happy with you about it, although she said you don't need to worry about her directing hostility towards you. She'd just rather not have anything to do with you right now. I imagine the feeling is fairly mutual at the moment?"
>"It seems she never told Sanae what happened, and Sanae doesn't remember. She just told Sanae that her dream was nothing to worry about. I wonder if she was trying to protect her feelings?"
> "Officially, she won't hold direct hostilities if you don't, but she wants little to do with you right now, and possibly for a good, long time. Unofficially, that may change, though I don't think she knows it."
> "I think I've discovered what Sanae's dream was. She talked a lot about flying a jet and how great it was being a test pilot. Called it "romantic" in comparison to being able to simply fly on her own. If you're remotely interested in making some sort of amends with Kanako, that might be a place to start - she seemed more devastated at not being able to fulfill Sanae's dream than anything else."
> "Oh, and also officially...don't go near Suwako."
>"Well, can't blame her for being miserable," says Utsuho. "She did get called out, then beat down. Probably still believes in what she did. And yeah, I'd be happier not having to deal with her at the moment. Good to hear she doesn't seem to have plans, though."
>"She didn't tell Sanae? That's kind of awful, don't you think? She was in the middle of the whole problem. Wonder if she's just trying to save face?"
>Utsuho nods. "Huh. So, that was it? Weird. And yeah, that sounds like Kanako. She pretty much told me, even if nothing else would have been improved, she would have still done it for Sanae. Minoriko tried to explain that the connection between god and priest can get pretty deep sometimes. I guess it's pretty much a parent wanting the best for her daughter?"
>"Oh hell, I am not going near Suwako except maybe to strangle her. Had more than my fill of that uppity little-...anyways..."
>_
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>"So... do you have any advice on what I can do now? I mean, if Koishi's involved, how am I supposed to fix things? Hell, I don't even know how I'd fix things without that. But let's just assume for the moment that she is being manipulated. Any ideas?"
-
> "Near as I can tell, both of you did what you did for the sake of your family, the people that you love more than anything else. Hold whatever else against Kanako that you like, I guess, but you shouldn't begrudge her that."
> "Anyway, I'm guessing that's a 'no' on the jet thing? I really think you could do it, if you all tried. Kanako's good with the sky, you're good with power, and the kappa are in an inventing frenzy right now. Surely a combination of all of you could make something."
-
> "Near as I can tell, both of you did what you did for the sake of your family, the people that you love more than anything else. Hold whatever else against Kanako that you like, I guess, but you shouldn't begrudge her that."
> "Anyway, I'm guessing that's a 'no' on the jet thing? I really think you could do it, if you all tried. Kanako's good with the sky, you're good with power, and the kappa are in an inventing frenzy right now. Surely a combination of all of you could make something."
>She nods. "Yeah, that really made some of the final parts hard, realizing that. I try not to, just..."she gestures with her hand. "she did so much, you know? Don't feel like getting into it."
>"Sounds like a recipe for disaster. I might give it a shot, though..."
>"So... do you have any advice on what I can do now? I mean, if Koishi's involved, how am I supposed to fix things? Hell, I don't even know how I'd fix things without that. But let's just assume for the moment that she is being manipulated. Any ideas?"
>"If Koishi's involved, you have an uphill battle. I have no idea how strong her manipulation, or if you can fight it at all. But, I'd bet anything it'd be harder for Koishi if Renko had help."
>"And, if it's not Koishi, well, uh, let me speak from experience. She'll need a friend to bring her back down to earth. She might need someone to kick her ass a couple times to set her straight. You might have to sabotage her. Maybe all three. Just, whatever you do, be there for her, telling her the right thing. Especially when she comes to her senses, because she'll feel like shit."
>_
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>"I... thank you. I can't say how much I don't want to have to do that, though. I mean... look, if Koishi's not involved, I'm sorry for mentioning her. I hope you can't blame me for wanting this to not be Renko's fault. I just hope I can somehow convince her to listen to me. I already tried, and didn't get anywhere. I really don't want to have to fight her, but if I have to...."
>"Anyway, I think I might like to go ask Satori a couple of questions. Is she around?"
-
>"I... thank you. I can't say how much I don't want to have to do that, though. I mean... look, if Koishi's not involved, I'm sorry for mentioning her. I hope you can't blame me for wanting this to not be Renko's fault. I just hope I can somehow convince her to listen to me. I already tried, and didn't get anywhere. I really don't want to have to fight her, but if I have to...."
>"Anyway, I think I might like to go ask Satori a couple of questions. Is she around?"
>"I understand," says Utsuho. "If worse comes to worst, remember that danmaku's not like throwing punches. It's more civilized. Friendlier. As for convincing her, well...just don't back down when the time comes. Don't shut her out, that makes it easier for her to write you off and it probably will kill what you got. Just don't back down on what's right.
>"Oh sure, she's fussing over...um...the pigeon's nest in the guess room. It'll be at the end of the hall where we put you. Oh! Speaking of your room, Orin put a couple of her old dresses in there, if you want more changes of clothes."
>_
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>"Thanks. And yeah, the change of clothes mightn't be a bad idea. Look at this."
>Show her the newspaper
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>"Thanks. And yeah, the change of clothes mightn't be a bad idea. Look at this."
>Show her the newspaper
>She takes the newspaper and looks at it. Then she laughs. "Wow! This is great!" She laughs again. "You made the news already!"
>_
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>"Actually, if is kinda funny. I'm just wondering what Yukari will think if she reads this. Or Yuka, for that matter. Actually, I think I know what Yuka would think about the photo, and I can't say I'd be eager to be there to see it."
-
>"Actually, if is kinda funny. I'm just wondering what Yukari will think if she reads this. Or Yuka, for that matter. Actually, I think I know what Yuka would think about the photo, and I can't say I'd be eager to be there to see it."
>"Well, I can't say, as far as Yukari goes," Utsuho says, "But as for Yuka, it is the Kakashi Spirit News. Hatate doesn't take her own pictures. She just...find 'em. I don't know how it works."
>_
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> "So somebody was spying on us? That's pretty unnerving, I wonder who it could be..."
-
>"You mean someone else took the picture? I'm not sure Yuka would much care who it was lurking among her flowers, to be honest."
-
> "So somebody was spying on us? That's pretty unnerving, I wonder who it could be..."
>"You mean someone else took the picture? I'm not sure Yuka would much care who it was lurking among her flowers, to be honest."
>"I don't think it's spying," says Utsuho. "It's more like...i dunno, she finds a moment in time, and there's already a picture of it? A tengu tried to explain it to me once, and it didn't make any sense, really."
>_
-
>"Oh, I see. Or, rather, I don't. But it's probably no more strange than anything else here. In any case, I think I'll go speak with Satori for a moment, now. Thanks again."
>Head off to where Utsuho said Satori'd be
-
>"Oh, I see. Or, rather, I don't. But it's probably no more strange than anything else here. In any case, I think I'll go speak with Satori for a moment, now. Thanks again."
>Head off to where Utsuho said Satori'd be
>She nods. "Alright. Let me finish up this paper before you take it back."
>You return to the second floor, where first week up, and find the furtherest door is open. "Don't worry, they said that they won't bother you. They wouldn't lie to me."
>You approach and find Satori kneeling on the floor near the bed, where the pigeon from before is still nesting, peeking away at a bowl of seed. "Ah, hello again, Maribel," she says.
>_
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>"Hello, Satori. I... wanted to talk to you about something that's weighing pretty heavily on my mind. It involves... or may involve, anyway, Koishi. I... guess I don't know how much of this you already know by now."
-
>"Hello, Satori. I... wanted to talk to you about something that's weighing pretty heavily on my mind. It involves... or may involve, anyway, Koishi. I... guess I don't know how much of this you already know by now."
>She is quiet for a moment, then says, "I see. That is a difficult situation. To be frank, I don't wish to spy on your friend. I am not sure if I could find any of Koishi's work, in any event. She operates at a different part of the mind than I do."
>She sighs. "That said...I'll be willing to try, if you find me some concrete evidence. And, it would be nice to lure her down here."
>_
-
>"What kind of concrete evidence do you think I could find, other than seeing Koishi herself? Which... probably isn't likely to happen unless she chooses it. I know all I've got so far is circumstantial, but it's a lot of circumstantial evidence."
>"I may be able to convince her to drop by, though. She knew Utsuho, too, after all. Although it seems she hasn't wanted to wander too far away from the faeries at all for the last couple days, so I don't know..."
-
>"What kind of concrete evidence do you think I could find, other than seeing Koishi herself? Which... probably isn't likely to happen unless she chooses it. I know all I've got so far is circumstantial, but it's a lot of circumstantial evidence."
>"I may be able to convince her to drop by, though. She knew Utsuho, too, after all. Although it seems she hasn't wanted to wander too far away from the faeries at all for the last couple days, so I don't know..."
>"Well, alright," says Satori, shaking her head. "I suppose I spoke hastily. If you can bring her here, I'll see what I can do. But...understand I have no intention of revealing anything else to you. It would be a grievous abuse of her trust."
>_
-
> "Of course. I wouldn't be able to live with myself if I asked for more."
-
> "Of course. I wouldn't be able to live with myself if I asked for more."
>She nods.
>"That said, I would recommend you try other things first."
>_
-
>She nods.
>"That said, I would recommend you try other things first."
>_
>"What kind of things?"
-
>"What kind of things?"
>"I wouldn't presume she's being manipulated," says Satori. "But...ah, it seems Okuu told you all this already."
>_
-
>"I just have a hard time seeing how being able to fly and shoot danmaku leads to you thinking that kicking people out of their own homes is an okay thing. I mean, one's sensibility can't be that easily affected, can it? I don't feel much different at all from the me of a couple of days ago, at least in terms of what I think is right and wrong."
>"And if Renko really does think that's okay, well.... maybe she wasn't the friend I thought she was in the first place."
-
>"I just have a hard time seeing how being able to fly and shoot danmaku leads to you thinking that kicking people out of their own homes is an okay thing. I mean, one's sensibility can't be that easily affected, can it? I don't feel much different at all from the me of a couple of days ago, at least in terms of what I think is right and wrong."
>"And if Renko really does think that's okay, well.... maybe she wasn't the friend I thought she was in the first place."
>"Or maybe you were much better suited for dealing with it in the first place," says Satori. "Please understand, sudden power can change a person. Okuu once had ambitions to unleash nuclear devastation on the surface simply because she could."
>_
-
>"What!?"
-
>"What!?"
>The pigeon flaps her wings, cooing in a manner you can only describe as startled. "Shhhh, shhhh... it's alright," says Satori, reaching out and smoothing the birds feathers. "Please, not so loud, Maribel," she says, looking at you with a frown. "She has eggs."
>"And yes, it's completely true."
>_
-
> "But...she's always seemed so well-adjusted to me. What happened?"
-
> "But... How? From what I've seen, Utsuho would never think of doing that. Was there any underlying reason? What happened?"
> "I'm kind of more worried about if Renko would ever forgive me if I openly opposed her plan and took action against it. She might hold a grudge which could destroy our friendship."
-
> "But...she's always seemed so well-adjusted to me. What happened?"
> "But... How? From what I've seen, Utsuho would never think of doing that. Was there any underlying reason? What happened?"
> "I'm kind of more worried about if Renko would ever forgive me if I openly opposed her plan and took action against it. She might hold a grudge which could destroy our friendship."
>"She devoured a certain corpse," says Satori. "Then Kanako gifted her with that equipment to control the power she unlocked. But, well, it rather went to her head. It took Reimu to knock some sense back into her, and I am fairly certain she was thinking it again when Marisa came later."
>"Maybe," says Satori. "But, I think that kind of thing can be forgiven. Just, don't forget her feelings too, even though you are right."
>_
-
> "She ate a dead body? Eww!"
> Oh, uh, try to keep that down.
> "Um...maybe this IS what happened, then. Whatever the situation is, though, it seems all roads are leading to the same destination, so...wait, I have a thought. How can one tell a human from a humanoid youkai, short of physical features?"
-
> "She ate a dead body? Eww!"
> Oh, uh, try to keep that down.
> "Um...maybe this IS what happened, then. Whatever the situation is, though, it seems all roads are leading to the same destination, so...wait, I have a thought. How can one tell a human from a humanoid youkai, short of physical features?"
>That is so gross!
>You try not to exclaim that too loud.
>"You just can," says Satori. "I'm sure you'll get the knack for it, soon."
>_
-
>"I don't suppose you could give me any advice for dealing with Koishi, if I do find her?"
-
>"I don't suppose you could give me any advice for dealing with Koishi, if I do find her?"
>"She tends to act more cheerful than she is," says Satori. "She really doesn't like confrontation at all. Getting angry, at least when she is still trying to maintain good cheer, has a decent chance of driving her off, if she's not in a combative mood."
>_
-
> "Oh, if it turns out she's not responsible...please don't tell her I thought she was."
-
> "Oh, if it turns out she's not responsible...please don't tell her I thought she was."
>"I won't," says Satori. "But she may read it from my heart anyways."
>_
-
>"Well, I'll make sure to hold my temper, if it comes to that. Although I think a person can hardly be faulted for being upset if she really is messing with a friend's mind."
>"You said she can't read minds like you, though, right? Do you even know how reading one's subconscious works? Can it still trip her off to things I'm aware of, somehow?"
-
>"Well, I'll make sure to hold my temper, if it comes to that. Although I think a person can hardly be faulted for being upset if she really is messing with a friend's mind."
>"You said she can't read minds like you, though, right? Do you even know how reading one's subconscious works? Can it still trip her off to things I'm aware of, somehow?"
>She nods. "I know. If it is true, I will be upset myself."
>"I am afraid I can't tell you much. She reads motivations rather than thoughts, I believe. Perhaps more."
>_
-
>"Then I guess, as ever, I have to hope for the best where she's concerned. In the meantime, I should probably head back and see if I can figure out some way to deal with this. Please... wish me well. I hope that mine and Renko's friendship and several other things end up surviving this."
-
>"Then I guess, as ever, I have to hope for the best where she's concerned. In the meantime, I should probably head back and see if I can figure out some way to deal with this. Please... wish me well. I hope that mine and Renko's friendship and several other things end up surviving this."
>"If you care as much about Renko as you claim, then I think it'll work out in the end."
>_
-
>"I hope so. Thanks again."
>Head back to Utsuho
-
>She nods.
>You return back to the sitting room, and find Utsuho reading the last page of the paper.
>_
-
>"Well, I guess I'm going to have to go off and figure out how to deal with this, now. For all I know, they've already started. Any last words of wisdom before I leave?"
-
> Debate asking how it went with Yuugi and Parsee.
-
> Yeah, let's ask.
> "Um, if it isn't too much to ask, how'd it go with Yuugi? Did you manage to get off her... list?"
-
>"Well, I guess I'm going to have to go off and figure out how to deal with this, now. For all I know, they've already started. Any last words of wisdom before I leave?"
>"Um...well," says Utsuho. "Try to figure out what she really wants. Maybe it's not really the mansion? Oh, I'm done with your paper. Here you go."
>She returns your Kakashi Spirit News.
> Debate asking how it went with Yuugi and Parsee.
> Yeah, let's ask.
> "Um, if it isn't too much to ask, how'd it go with Yuugi? Did you manage to get off her... list?"
>What a quick debate!
>"Oh, well..." says Utsuho. "Sorta. We're gonna give it a shot. Trying to alternate with her every other day, as far as alone time goes. She's insisting, though, that me and Yuugi go do things too. That's going to be...interesting. Probably cruising around town beating up oni for whatever reason..."
>_
-
> Shift eyes.
> "Well, if you need something to do, there's always that jet project..."
-
> Shift eyes.
> "Well, if you need something to do, there's always that jet project..."
>She laughs. "Maybe, maybe. We'll see what comes of it."
>_
-
>"Anyway, wish me luck. And I hope I have good news the next time I'm back here."
>Head back to the surface
-
>"Anyway, wish me luck. And I hope I have good news the next time I'm back here."
>Head back to the surface
>"Good luck, Maribel," Okuu says.
>You head back toward the surface. The city is still relatively quiet, and you find Parsee hard at work adding water seal or stain or something to a part of the bridge. The trip through the tunnel is also unremarkable; you do not pass by Yamame this time, though you find a fresh web over the door that reads "Eat at Eri's!"
>_
-
>Head towards the SDM. Keep an eye out for errant faeries
-
>Head towards the SDM. Keep an eye out for errant faeries
>You fly toward Scarlet Devil Mansion. Along the way, you can see a few faeries here and there. No large groups, though.
>_
-
>Keep going
-
> Can we enter discreetly? We don't want to alert Renko or any fairies.
> Damnit why didn't we change our clothes before we left.
-
> Are we really going to warn them?
-
> Are we really going to warn them?
>And the alternative is to allow them to succeed at something they obviously shouldn't be trying? If we can stop them before they attack, the warning will go unnoticed, either way. And if we don't, we can't just let it happen, can we?
-
> Well, we could take Renko one-on-one. It sounds like beating sense into her is a legitimate approach at this point.
-
> Well, we could take Renko one-on-one. It sounds like beating sense into her is a legitimate approach at this point.
>It might be, but does the warning hurt if it doesn't work? We don't know how powerful she is, or whether beating her would even stop it
-
> How close are we to the Underground?
> About how long would it take for us to fly back and change our clothes?
-
> She seems intent on playing by the rules, though. Cut off the snake's head, and the body dies. I think we CAN take her one-on-one, really, and I'd rather her be the aggressor so we end up winning the moral victory as well as the physical one. As suicidal as it may sound, let her betray us, not the other way around.
-
> We'd probably want Byakuren's powerup in that case though. Better to be prepared in case Renko did in fact become the bee's knees at this stuff.
-
> Byakuren's power-up is out of the question at this point, it would knock us out for far too long. This may not be an immediate pressing matter, but it IS time sensitive.
> Also, a thought occurs.
>You've always had a curious sense for knowing where one sphere of influence ends and another begins.
> Do we think we could use this to detect if Renko is being influenced by someone else, should we meet her again?
-
I'm not sure I see it as a betrayal, considering we said that we couldn't support her, and didn't approve of what she was doing. And is attacking her directly really less aggressive? I see warning the SDM as backup, in a sense. If we stop her, it doesn't matter. And if we don't, they deserve to have the best chance they can get.
-
>Keep going
>You continue on.
> Can we enter discreetly? We don't want to alert Renko or any fairies.
> Damnit why didn't we change our clothes before we left.
>You think the presence of a guard suggests entering discretely doesn't happen.
>That might have thrown some faeries off...
> Are we really going to warn them?
>And the alternative is to allow them to succeed at something they obviously shouldn't be trying? If we can stop them before they attack, the warning will go unnoticed, either way. And if we don't, we can't just let it happen, can we?
> Well, we could take Renko one-on-one. It sounds like beating sense into her is a legitimate approach at this point.
>It might be, but does the warning hurt if it doesn't work? We don't know how powerful she is, or whether beating her would even stop it
> She seems intent on playing by the rules, though. Cut off the snake's head, and the body dies. I think we CAN take her one-on-one, really, and I'd rather her be the aggressor so we end up winning the moral victory as well as the physical one. As suicidal as it may sound, let her betray us, not the other way around.
I'm not sure I see it as a betrayal, considering we said that we couldn't support her, and didn't approve of what she was doing. And is attacking her directly really less aggressive? I see warning the SDM as backup, in a sense. If we stop her, it doesn't matter. And if we don't, they deserve to have the best chance they can get.
> Byakuren's power-up is out of the question at this point, it would knock us out for far too long. This may not be an immediate pressing matter, but it IS time sensitive.
> Also, a thought occurs.
> Do we think we could use this to detect if Renko is being influenced by someone else, should we meet her again?
>Conflict! Do you sell out your friend, or try something riskier?
>You have never ever tried that before. You have no idea if it can even begin to work like that.
> How close are we to the Underground?
> About how long would it take for us to fly back and change our clothes?
>Not too far.
>Just to the entrance? Five minutes at most.
-
Yeah, the fact that it'll knock us out for too long is the only issue. Unless there's a way to advert or bypass it for a temporary amount of time. Renko's benefactor does have a secret weapon, and Renko doesn't strike me as the type to walk into a suicide mission. There has to be something that's being hidden from us.
-
I don't want to attack her directly. I want to get in her way and make sure she takes the first shot.
Looking back at the conversation, though, if you think you can argue that warning the mansion was not betraying her trust, then go for it.
-
I think that nearly any way we interfere is going to cause relationship issues, and we're going to have to accept that, unless we honestly want to let her succeed at this. Unless, of course, we really can expose and nullify Koishi before any of this happens. I guess, I figure that if we avert the situation, our warning won't have hurt anything in the end, and if we don't avert it, we'll still be trying to interfere directly, and will be causing problems, anyway, so the warning would also not really make it a lot worse
-
I expect relationship issues short of direct outside influence, yes, but we can minimize the damage by forcing Renko to make the first move, because we will have done nothing but defend ourselves. The most important thing to get across is that we never stopped caring. If Renko is the one that breaks the bond of friendship and we repair it by forgiving her post-battle, I think things will be okay. If we break it, no matter who is in the right, we'll need Renko to fix it, and she will be in no mood to do so.
I think this is the lesson Utsuho Quest was supposed to teach us. Not everything is black and white, and the more we simply barge in with our own ideals and dickwave our might the harder things will be, both during AND after the fight. Look at how those that remember treat Utsuho now, because she didn't stop and think about the long-term ramifications.
-
If we let her make the first move, how can we also be defending ourselves, unless we're actually at the SDM at the time, which is tantamount to taking their side in the first place. What are you proposing?
And I don't think it's a fair equivalent to compare this to the issue in Okuu Quest. There, Kanako actually had some good points. But what about Renko's plan to take over someone's house just because it's shiny and because she can is even remotely justifiable?
-
It doesn't matter whether or not Renko's plan is justifiable, because she's our friend, and she can use that to her advantage to wreck us post-battle should we be the aggressor. Ideally, what I would do is wait for her to start her planned march and then just physically insert ourselves between her and the mansion at whatever distance the two of us happen to be. We're not going to attack, but we're not going to move, either. Force her to make the choice between her mansion and her friend. The latter would solve everything, and the former puts the tools to repair the broken friendship in our hands, not hers.
I was thinking about this while brushing my teeth. I think we can get away with warning the SDM if we do our best to play it like we didn't after it's done. Straight-up deny it if ever asked, and feed Meiling a story that she can reproduce if ever questioned - something like "The Scarlet Devil Mansion is always on the alert!" or something equally full of bravado. Set it up so the only way Renko would ever find out we warned them is if Koishi told her, and if Koishi is indeed behind everything then all bets are off anyway so we don't have to care about who throws the first punch.
-
E mouse2000: Also: Just forward this message to the debate. "Don't fuck this up, you clunks."
Parser's Note: There are multiple solutions planned with multiple levels of satisfaction for various parties. Always presume this~
-
I guess we just have a difference of opinion whether the justifiable-ness of the plan matters or not. I personally feel that, friend or not, her actions justify our response. A person can't be let to get away with things just because they're a friend. But it mightn't matter in the end.
I don't see how putting ourself physically in her way will matter, though. Couldn't they just simply move around us? Remember, there'll be hundreds of them. And even if she does nothing to us, the faeries just might.
-
Right now I don't care if the rest of the world hates us after all is said and done, Priority One for me is salvaging this friendship. I don't want a repeat of Utsuho/Koishi. >_>
EDIT: The fairies won't go on the move if she doesn't tell them to. She's proud of this army and she wants to lead it. And I get the sneaking suspicion that she wouldn't trust the fairies to do the job all by themselves anyway. Too many variables: no guarantee they succeed, no guarantee they even all make it there without getting distracted by the latest shiny passing by, and no guarantee they'll just hand the mansion over to her once she's done with us.
The thing about how much justifiability matters is that it's all well and good for us maybe but it's not going to stop someone else that thinks what they did was justified. Utsuho felt all her actions were justified and acted accordingly, and she has a broken family and a couple of angry goddesses to show for it. Do you really want to risk losing Renko for who-knows-how-long just because we're hellbent on "proving" moral superiority? (Because we did just a marvelous job proving moral superiority in Utsuho Quest. >_>)
-
I didn't mean the faeries would march ahead without her, but that they might just try to attack us for being in the way, and she mightn't be able to stop them.
I guess I feel that Renko is much more wrong here than Suwako and Kanako were in Okuu Quest. And I guess that, as much as I wouldn't like it, if the choice came down to supporting Renko in this, or losing her friendship, I'd be forced to choose the latter. And sometimes people just won't listen when you try to tell them you're not justified. You can't allow people to do whatever they want just because they might be angry if you tried to stop them. It's not about 'proving' moral superiority or anything else to her. It's about stopping something we (or at least I) feel is wrong.
-
E mouse2000: The ultimate thing to look for would be alternative solutions that satisfy the underlying motives/desires of everyone/as-many-as-possible involved without hurting too many others. I don't know enough about the circumstances to really say more, but...
E mouse2000: Ask why someone wants what they say they do...
-
We can stop that wrong without costing us her friendship, though. I'm certainly not saying we should let her run roughshod over the SDM. That definitely needs to be stopped. if we're the aggressor in that situation, though, it will cost us that friendship, whereas if she's the aggressor, it won't. She will have been the one to take the anti-friendship action, and we can forgive that after all is said and done, because either she went nuts with power (which we've been told is not uncommon and have heard directly from a victim of such that she appreciated what was done for her) or because someone was manipulating her. In either case, it wasn't really her doing all this.
I'm not afraid of the fairy army going after us. Renko will want to talk things out with us; our being there at all presents her another opportunity to win us over to her side. If the fairies ignore her and assault us anyway, then either she comes to our rescue, which confirms the friendship (or at least turns her against the fairy army once it becomes obvious they'll be taking the mansion for themselves and not her), or she goes on without us, which would be enough of a gesture that I'd consider it the opening move.
EDIT: You know, I wonder if Lemon Drop is a part of this army. So much for "no good squads".
EDIT 2: On the subject of "asking someone why they want something", I don't trust Renko to give us any sort of straight answer, I don't trust the fairies to give us any sort of sensible answer, and we don't have easy access to the mysterious benefactor, so.
-
I think you consider what will cost us the friendship too binary. I don't think taking the first action is guaranteed to cost us the friendship. (Actually I don't think it's even considerably more likely than some variants of taking second-action) If she does indeed regret her actions later (following the pattern explained to us), she will probably understand why we tried to stop her. Utsuho even suggested that she might be grateful for that.
As for the motivations point that E-mouse mentions:
Well, Renko says she wants this both as a combination of: 'it's a nice house and it would be cool to live there', and 'look at what I can do'. Whether there's something deeper down there.... I don't know.
Koisihi's motivations, if she's indeed involved, seem pretty inscrutable to me, other than 'it seemed interesting'. It will probably be hard to find out more without actually speaking with her.
I'm not sure what to do about satisfying either of those directly, though, to be honest
-
I might think that way too, but Utsuho/Koishi is staring us in the face as a counterexample.
If you really think we should strike first, then do it, but I simply cannot condone such an action.
-
Just do what Orin did for Utsuho, it seems to have worked for her.
-
Keep in mind that Koishi was estranged from them even before Okuu quest.
I'm not really planning to strike first, unless you count warning the SDM as striking first. I certainly don't intend to go up and shoot her or something.
As for taking action, I'd like to explore the Koishi possibility before anything else (other than possibly that warning).
-
Koishi was estranged, but she still cared about them. (Theoretically.)
I've already stated my piece on warning the SDM (http://www.shrinemaiden.org/forum/index.php/topic,6900.msg415048.html#msg415048).
-
You know, it might not be Koishi at all, you don't really need to manipulate the sub-conscious to manipulate someone. Maybe it's some other Mysterious (http://touhou.wikia.com/wiki/Yukari_Yakumo) Benefactor (http://touhou.wikia.com/wiki/Mima).
-
I just wish we had some idea how much time we have to be running around before this happens....
As for your remarks about giving that warning, I'm not sure I understand the bit about giving Meiling a cover story. (And I'd like to make sure I get it, in case I end up being the one to try it) We've already told Renko that we'd been to the mansion, so just because Meiling recognizes us, or admits we were there doesn't blow any sort of cover. And whatever preparations the SDM crew make for stopping this aren't likely to involve extra people waiting by the gate, anyway. Just maybe Patchy will have appropriate spells prepared, Flandre will be safely sequestered away where she can't do any harm, Sakuya not busy with other tasks, etc. None of which should be obvious to Renko
-
I mean give her a cover story so Meiling doesn't go "We've been expecting you! Maribel told us you might be coming!" We don't want anyone at the SDM letting it slip that we warned them, so we should give them an alternate explanation for why they're prepared for war.
-
I figured either Patchy or Sakuya is the better one to explain that to, anyway. Both seem quite capable of discretion, and probably already know how to manage Meiling.
-
references to "Okuu Quest," which I basically ignored
*facedesk* And I thought this was convoluted. I am fucking outta here at the first sign that this gets even worse.
-
So anyone taking my suggestions?
-
So anyone taking my suggestions?
Well, what Orin did for Utsuho was essentially get other people to go beat her up. Warning the SDM is essentially similar to this.
And I realize that Koishi may not be involved, but I'm not sure what we can do differently if someone else is involved. Either Renko has her own mind, in which case she needs to be shown the error of her ways, or she doesn't, in which case the person doing the manipulation needs to be straightened out. If people are manipulating her without magic, it's still essentially case 1, here.
-
I go for the warning, we can't exactly let her do something she'll regret later, especially when the SDM retaliates if she succeeds.
-
> Fly back towards the Underground for now.
> If we have our Purple Dress, change into that. The less recognizable we are to the fairies the better.
> If we don't have our Purple Dress, quickly move back to the Palace and change into one of Orin's old dresses.
-
If Renko is so confident that her fairy army can overtake the mansion, no matter who's inside, then why not tell her that we warned the mansion straight out, and feed her some line about how it'll give her a chance to really prove her might since "anyone can win a sneak attack, but to go into a battle with your enemy expecting you and still prevail shows supreme skill" or something.
Then you might be able to get her to hold off on the siege until the next day. Or hell, even if we don't tell her about the warning, say she should wait until the next day anyway, since then the vampires will be asleep and significantly less powered than at night. That way we'd have a free night and can undergo the power boost, since Byakuren said one night would be sufficient.
Also, we need to tell Kanako at some point that we no longer need to look for Renko. Also, considering that Kanako just worked with Koishi, she should hae a good grasp about what Koishi is capable of and whether or not this seems like something she would do. Total long shot, but we might get her to look for Koishi for us like she would for Renko.
-
I'm kinda liking Vic Viper's idea here. it is risky, but it could work for us, pending on how much Renko wants to show her skills compared to wanting the Manion. Risky, but can work.
-
It's an interesting idea, but I'm still dubious about telling Renko directly. She's probably see it as antagonism, even if she's still confident enough to try. And I doubt it'll get them to hold off, considering that she seems to think time is of the essence, in terms of holding the faeries together, and I suspect they'll go when their benefactor gets back with their secret weapon, in either case. I don't know that we could convince her to wait for anything, actually. The entire point of telling her, from how to explain it, is to delay their attack, correct?
I do, however, think that asking Kanako is a good idea, and was one of a couple angles for exposing Koishi that I was planning to explore.
-
I think there are a few advantages to taking that sort of action. Namely, I think it'll give better insight to who is behind it. If Renko is actually mad with power, and concocted the plan herself, we should be able to pitch it in such a way to get her to go along with it, and maybe get her to grant permission to inform the SDM. OR! In pitching the idea of waiting, seeing how she reacts. If she refuses to bend or adapt her plans, or to even consider changing them, then it should be more obvious that someone else is behind it. If it's her idea, she should be more open to at least considering other things.
Far as the fairies losing interest, we can cross that bridge later. Maybe giving them another activity in the meantime, like a recruitment drive or constructing a pointless fortress in the forest. Not sure, but just throwing that out there.
More importantly, we need to ditch the miko outfit and either try to pass off as Yukari or take a different dress. Personally, I think an old dress of Orin's should be the best choice.
-
I agree about the dress changing. Or, rather, I wish I hadn't forgotten to do that before we left. I wish I knew how much time we have to mess around with now, and whether we can afford to go back and still cover all our other bases.
We MAY actually be able to argue that the SDM was already aware, and pitch it as us warning Renko about that they already knew. After all, it's not an exaggeration to say that they noticed the absence of faeries, and were planning to investigate (they just hadn't, due to lack of manpower).
-
> Fly back towards the Underground for now.
> If we have our Purple Dress, change into that. The less recognizable we are to the fairies the better.
> If we don't have our Purple Dress, quickly move back to the Palace and change into one of Orin's old dresses.
Quoting since it may have been lost on the other page, and we apparently are not that far from the entrance to the Underground.
-
Oh God, daring her to do something is probably the worst possible thing we can do if we want to ever be her friend again.
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Oh God, daring her to do something is probably the worst possible thing we can do if we want to ever be her friend again.
How in the would did you get daring out of that? The objective is to get under her skin and have her make a destructive decision leading to her own downfall, leaving Maribel completely out of it.
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How are you not getting daring out of "hey I just told the SDM you were coming let's see you take them now"?
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How in the would did you get daring out of that? The objective is to get under her skin and have her make a destructive decision leading to her own downfall, leaving Maribel completely out of it.
If Renko is so confident that her fairy army can overtake the mansion, no matter who's inside, then why not tell her that we warned the mansion straight out, and feed her some line about how it'll give her a chance to really prove her might since "anyone can win a sneak attack, but to go into a battle with your enemy expecting you and still prevail shows supreme skill" or something.
I think that counts as daring someone to do something, pretty directly. I think the only way we could tell her to any potential advantage is to say that we noticed them preparing, while we were there (say, to drop off the pocketwatch from Okuu, for example, which is close to true), and wanted to warn Renko about it. Assuming we think we could bluff that far.
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How are you not getting daring out of "hey I just told the SDM you were coming let's see you take them now"?
Because that's not the purpose following the intent. As an example, we could have told her that, but the focus of the plan is to let Renko's megalomaniac out and have her run into a battle with a prepared SDM. It doesn't matter when the SDM is told so long as Renko is headstrong about her ability to win. While I'd normally be all for taking her on face-to-face or one-on-one, the concensus seems to be avoiding it. So inspire her to get overconfident about her abilities and the abilities of the fairies and let her fight it out with an SDM that could wipe the floor with her.
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Where are you getting that consensus? I want a one-on-one pretty badly. I think us taking her down in such a duel is a key part of the best plan of action.
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I really think we shouldn't lie to Renko if we want to keep the friendship, espeically if Koishi is really the secret benefactor....
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Well, Koishi being the secret benefactor would toss everything out the window and give us full license to do pretty much whatever we wanted. Most of my ideas are stemming from the potential that Renko is doing this without outside influence.
Warning the SDM is fine, but after that, I think it would be better to find out who is responsible for this before charging into a fight, because knowing who is responsible will drastically change up our tactics.
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Where are you getting that consensus? I want a one-on-one pretty badly. I think us taking her down in such a duel is a key part of the best plan of action.
Great, then we need to go to Kanako and find out what we can about Koishi/get her to start the search then go to Byakuren and power-up so we can rest as soon as possible. You talked about maintaining the friendship, and the two seem mutually exclusive at this juncture, but the point is that we have no idea how Renko will react to a defeat yet. She may thank us for slapping some sense into her.
Still, action is key
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Maintaining the friendship and stopping the invasion are not at all mutually exclusive I've talked about this at least twice ajhrioeshifohgihernoiehase
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Ok, how does this seem like for a rough plan of actions for the moment:
-go warn SDM, letting them know how much discretion is necessary (Sakuya is probably the best to discuss that with)
-go talk to Kanako, see if she can help
-go talk to Renko
Any substantive objections?
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Maintaining the friendship and stopping the invasion are not at all mutually exclusive I've talked about this at least twice ajhrioeshifohgihernoiehase
I've got plans that go either way! I really don't care as long as we win! We just need to make a decision quickly since we have no idea when the assault will begin! I just think it's better to pitch something to Renko to stave off the invasion until a time when we're fully ready.
EDIT:
I think the best action is to tell Sakuya something about the fairies gathering in the woods and it seems like Dai has plans for all of them. Short, sweet and ambiguous
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Ok, how does this seem like for a rough plan of actions for the moment:
-go warn SDM, letting them know how much discretion is necessary (Sakuya is probably the best to discuss that with)
-go talk to Kanako, see if she can help
-go talk to Renko
Any substantive objections?
No
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That works.
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So we're not getting changed?
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Purvis isn't online right now, but we probably should get changed first.
> Go back Underground to get changed.
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> Fly back towards the Underground for now.
> If we have our Purple Dress, change into that. The less recognizable we are to the fairies the better.
> If we don't have our Purple Dress, quickly move back to the Palace and change into one of Orin's old dresses.
>You decide, if nothing else, being less recognizable to the faeries is a good thing.
>You make a quick loop back to the Underground, and seeing the entrance is still empty quickly change back into your Purple Dress.
>_
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> Start back towards the SDM, being wary of fairies.
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> Start back towards the SDM, being wary of fairies.
>You make your way back toward the mansion. Thankfully no groups of faeries have manifested, and none of individuals or pairs you met seem all that interested in bothering you.
>The gates of the mansion come into sight without incident.
>_
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Gonna say now, keeping Renko as our friend is part of our win con. You'd all do well to remember that.
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> Head for the gate.
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> Head for the gate.
>You land near the gate. Meiling is there, currently stretched out across the path and watching the clouds. She glances over at you. "Hey, you're becoming a real popular face around here."
>_
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>"Hey, there. Yeah, I've been running all around today. Just need to speak to Sakuya again for a bit."
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>"Hey, there. Yeah, I've been running all around today. Just need to speak to Sakuya again for a bit."
>"Go right ahead," says Meiling.
>_
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>"Thanks."
>Enter the Mansion.
>If there's no sign of Sakuya, try heading towards the kitchen again. You never know.
-
>"Thanks."
>Enter the Mansion.
>If there's no sign of Sakuya, try heading towards the kitchen again. You never know.
>You step over Meiling, and head toward the mansion.
>Entering the foyer, you see no sign of Sakuya or anyone else. You head toward the west wing kitchen, and find Sakuya sweeping the hall leading there. Noticing you come in, she nods. "Welcome back, Maribel," she says.
>_
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>"Hello, again. I need to speak with you about something important which concerns everyone here, and... which requires a great deal of discretion. I assume I can trust you on that latter part?"
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>"Hello, again. I need to speak with you about something important which concerns everyone here, and... which requires a great deal of discretion. I assume I can trust you on that latter part?"
>"What sort of discretion?" asks Sakuya.
>_
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>Is the hallway empty at the moment?
>If so: "No one outside can know that I told you this."
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> Deep breath.
> "The faeries, including the ones that left the mansion, are planning to stage an all-out assault on the Mansion in order to take it over."
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> Deep breath.
> "The faeries, including the ones that left the mansion, are planning to stage an all-out assault on the Mansion in order to take it over."
>Don't say that yet. Might need more privacy.
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>Don't say that yet. Might need more privacy.
> Okay.
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>If Sakuya suggests that we have the privacy already, THEN say it.
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>Is the hallway empty at the moment?
>If so: "No one outside can know that I told you this."
>It is pretty empty.
>"I should be able to do this," says Sakuya, her mouth a thin line.
> Deep breath.
> "The faeries, including the ones that left the mansion, are planning to stage an all-out assault on the Mansion in order to take it over."
>"Oh," says Sakuya. "That might be a small problem, our own forces are a little low. Regardless, Meiling, Patchouli, and I should be able to handle this without bothering the mistress."
>_
-
>"No, I think it's rather larger than that. There are many hundreds of them, and they're being organized by a human into a coherent army, somehow. And some other unknown youkai is involved, apparently preparing a secret weapon. I don't know what it is."
-
> "They're basically aiming to expel you from the mansion if they manage to win. I'm not sure if they'll be able to, but they have the force of numbers on their side."
-
>"No, I think it's rather larger than that. There are many hundreds of them, and they're being organized by a human into a coherent army, somehow. And some other unknown youkai is involved, apparently preparing a secret weapon. I don't know what it is."
> "They're basically aiming to expel you from the mansion if they manage to win. I'm not sure if they'll be able to, but they have the force of numbers on their side."
>She frowns. "That...could be problematic. What else have you found? And, how did you learn of all this?"
>_
-
>"That's... the part that requires descretion. I found my friend from the outside world I was looking for. And... she's the one organizing this. I don't know why, and she doesn't even seem like herself. She wouldn't listen to me when I tried to stop her. I don't want her to know that I'm warning you. I... have reason to believe the Koishi may be the youkai involved in this, and that she may be manipulating her. I have no proof, but there's a fair bit of circumstantial evidence."
-
>"That's... the part that requires descretion. I found my friend from the outside world I was looking for. And... she's the one organizing this. I don't know why, and she doesn't even seem like herself. She wouldn't listen to me when I tried to stop her. I don't want her to know that I'm warning you. I... have reason to believe the Koishi may be the youkai involved in this, and that she may be manipulating her. I have no proof, but there's a fair bit of circumstantial evidence."
>"Then I feel very sorry for your friend, should she try it." says Sakuya."I am afraid, though, I know nothing of this Koishi."
>_
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>"Do you know of Satori? She's her sister. She has the power to read and manipulate people's subconscious. Apparently she can use this to remain entirely invisible, even when you're looking right at her. Marisa and Reimu have encountered her, but even they apparently can't really find her unless she chooses to be found. I don't know that she's aggressive, but I think she can be dangerous."
-
>"Do you know of Satori? She's her sister. She has the power to read and manipulate people's subconscious. Apparently she can use this to remain entirely invisible, even when you're looking right at her. Marisa and Reimu have encountered her, but even they apparently can't really find her unless she chooses to be found. I don't know that she's aggressive, but I think she can be dangerous."
>"I've heard a story or two about this Satori," says Sakuya. "Hm. Well, if this is the case, it may be a little harder to plan a proper defense. Is there anything else you have to share?"
>_
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> "Well, I'm hoping I can defuse the situation before it comes to you all needing to defend yourselves, but I figure it's better not to rely on just one thing in such a situation"
-
>"That's about all I know at the time. I'm going to try to find Koishi, if she really is involved. And continue to try to convince Renko to call it off. I still don't think she's herself, you see?"
>"She seems to think that if she succeeded in taking over the mansion, the dueling rules would prevent you taking it back. Is she at all correct about that?"
-
> "I don't know how you all prepare for battle, but my friend believes you are dedicated to maintaining honor above all else. She is actually planning on using this against you. Now, that being said, I have...heard around this house about the 'Young Mistress' present here, and what she can do..."
-
> "Well, I'm hoping I can defuse the situation before it comes to you all needing to defend yourselves, but I figure it's better not to rely on just one thing in such a situation"
>She nods. "I would be very appreciative if you could do that. To be honest, I simply do not need to have to repel an attack today. I had hoped this had come to an end when Marisa stopped stealing books. Is there something that we could do to assist?"
>"That's about all I know at the time. I'm going to try to find Koishi, if she really is involved. And continue to try to convince Renko to call it off. I still don't think she's herself, you see?"
>"She seems to think that if she succeeded in taking over the mansion, the dueling rules would prevent you taking it back. Is she at all correct about that?"
>She nods as you lay out your hopes.
>"That is...hard to say," says Sakuya. "Were she to win properly, which would involve defeating all of us, it would be considered extremely gauche on our part to push the issue in that way. Mistress likely would not hear of it. But depending on events, she may find another way to press the issue, or see another solution altogether."
> "I don't know how you all prepare for battle, but my friend believes you are dedicated to maintaining honor above all else. She is actually planning on using this against you. Now, that being said, I have...heard around this house about the 'Young Mistress' present here, and what she can do..."
>"She is correct in this," says Sakuya. "Mistress values her good name above all else. That said, that and being honorable can be very different things. I would not feel compelled to deny myself any clever ideas I could come up with in such an event. As for the young mistress, that is Flandre. She would not be involved. We do not use her as a weapon."
>_
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> "Would you really be 'using her as a weapon' if she were defending her home, though?"
-
>"I understand that my friend is in the wrong here, but if the attack does happen, can you try to be merciful to her? I still don't think she's in her right mind."
>"Moveover, can you please ensure that word of my warning you doesn't reach her? Some pretext of why you might have been prepared for the attack, in any case? I'm still hoping to end this as peacefully as possible."
-
> "Would you really be 'using her as a weapon' if she were defending her home, though?"
>"We prefer not to entertain thoughts of putting the young mistress in danger," says Sakuya. "It is best for everyone involved."
>"I understand that my friend is in the wrong here, but if the attack does happen, can you try to be merciful to her? I still don't think she's in her right mind."
>"Moveover, can you please ensure that word of my warning you doesn't reach her? Some pretext of why you might have been prepared for the attack, in any case? I'm still hoping to end this as peacefully as possible."
>"I'll give her exactly as much mercy as she warrants," says Sakuya. "And, I believe I can come up with a a suitable excuse to cover your actions."
>_
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>"Thank you. I hope I can manage to resolve this before it boils over. I think I may go talk to Patchouli and see if she has any ideas that might help locate Koishi."
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>"Thank you. I hope I can manage to resolve this before it boils over. I think I may go talk to Patchouli and see if she has any ideas that might help locate Koishi."
>She nods. "Patchouli might be good for this."
>_
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>"Well, I'll take my leave of you, then."
>Head to the library
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>"Well, I'll take my leave of you, then."
>Head to the library
>Sakuya nods, and resumes her sweeping.
>You leave the west wing and enter the library. You notice the bat-winged girl flying overhead with an armload of books; and nearly get clocked in the head by a book flying through the air to reshelve itself. You find Patchouli in her originally seat, writing something with a quill. She does not look up at you, or seem to acknowledge your presence.
>_
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>"Excuse me Patchouli, but I have a rather important question that I'm wondering if you may be able to help with."
>"First of all, does the name Koishi mean anything to you?"
-
>"Excuse me Patchouli, but I have a rather important question that I'm wondering if you may be able to help with."
>"First of all, does the name Koishi mean anything to you?"
>"I have knowledge of her, yes." says Patchouli, as she dips her quill into the inkwell.
>_
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>"Do you know of any magic or other technique that may be able to locate her? It's of quite some importance and rather time-sensitive."
-
>"Do you know of any magic or other technique that may be able to locate her? It's of quite some importance and rather time-sensitive."
>"Potentially," says Patchouli. "But why would I want to?"
>_
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>Try to get close enough that Koakuma probably can't overhear us
>Quietly: "Because I have reason to suspect she's plotting something against the mansion, and I'm already involved."
-
>Try to get close enough that Koakuma probably can't overhear us
>Quietly: "Because I have reason to suspect she's plotting something against the mansion, and I'm already involved."
>You close in, hoping that the bat-winged girl doesn't have supernaturally good hearing.
>"I presume you have some proof of this, and are not acting on a presumption?" says Patchouli, still not looking up.
>_
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>"The evidence is circumstantial, but more than sufficient for me to be concerned. I've already spoken with Sakuya about this. But this is why I want to find her, so that I can either confirm or deny her involvement, or better still, put an end to it."
-
>She sighs, then puts down the quill. "Very well. I presume, then, you have some hair or skin of hers, or a precious object of hers that I can use to trace her?"
>_
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>"Um, no I don't. Remember, I don't know how any of this works, or if what I was asking about is even possible. I can try to get something, though."
-
>"Um, no I don't. Remember, I don't know how any of this works, or if what I was asking about is even possible. I can try to get something, though."
>"It's only logical," says Patchouli, picking up her quill again. "Let me know when you do."
>_
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>"Ok, thank you."
>Leave the mansion
>Ponder whether Patchouli expects rather too much understanding from someone who only learned magic exists this morning
-
>"Ok, thank you."
>Leave the mansion
>Ponder whether Patchouli expects rather too much understanding from someone who only learned magic exists this morning
>She nods, as you depart.
>You really hope she's expecting too much, you don't want to be too dim about these things...
>Leaving the Mansion, you find Meiling where you left her, but doing sit-ups now.
>_
-
>Wave as we pass, and head back to the Moriya Shrine
-
>Wave as we pass, and head back to the Moriya Shrine
>You wave as you pass Meiling, who waves back, and begin the trip to the Moriya Shrine.
>Thankfully the faeries do not seem to be very active on your way out of the forest, and Shizuha doesn't come after you this time as you make your back up the mountain. Momiji doesn't hassle you this time on your way up the mountainside, and you land outside the tengu town without trouble. You notice the woman selling newspapers seems to have moved on. You come to the gates of the Moriya shrine, and find Sanae on the front porch, drinking something.
>_
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>"Hello, Sanae. Is Kanako around? I'm sorry to ask something of her again so soon, but something urgent has come up."
-
> "What's that you're drinking, by the way?"
-
>"Hello, Sanae. Is Kanako around? I'm sorry to ask something of her again so soon, but something urgent has come up."
>"Oh, she's inside. I don't think she'll mind if you come inside. I think she's in the sitting room, first door on your left."
> "What's that you're drinking, by the way?"
>"I found a packet of hot cocoa mix lurking in the cupboard while looking for the tea," she says, grinning. "While you're here, did you find your friend?"
>_
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>"I did, yes. I'm afraid it wasn't quite the reunion I expected. It's why I'm here, in fact. I think someone may have been messing with her head. I can tell you more later, but for the moment I think I may be short on time."
>Go into the sitting room as indicated
-
> Breaking News: I think we should refrain from directly accusing Koishi from this point forward, starting with Kanako. Finding her should still be a high priority, as she is likely to help us put the puzzle together, but I am no longer any sort of sure she's the mysterious benefactor.
-
I don't think we've said to anyone that we have anything more than circumstantial evidence. But in the absence of any other obvious leads...
-
>"I did, yes. I'm afraid it wasn't quite the reunion I expected. It's why I'm here, in fact. I think someone may have been messing with her head. I can tell you more later, but for the moment I think I may be short on time."
>Go into the sitting room as indicated
>"Oh...well, alright," she says, as she scoots aside so you can get to the door more easily.
>You head inside, and find yourself in a hallway with wooden floors and plain paper walls. You can see the rafters above pretty plainly, but they only seem to add to the simple, understated effect of the building. There is a hall running along the side and several doors up ahead. You follow Sanae's directions and go through the first door on the left.
>You enter a simple sitting room. A few wall scrolls in pale ink offer a splash of color to the otherwise plain room. There is a shelf of books in the corner, and a low table in the middle of the room. Kanako sits there on a large and cushy-looking mat, reading the paper. It is a little hard to believe she is a goddess. She looks up at you and says, "Welcome back, Maribel."
>_
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I don't think we've said to anyone that we have anything more than circumstantial evidence. But in the absence of any other obvious leads...
I think she's still important, and that we do want to meet her, but now I want to meet her to ask her for information, not to accuse her of messing with Renko. If we go around telling as many people as we can that we think she did it, she's less likely to want to help us.
Maribel might not be able to think of an alternate suspect like I have (even if that guess is wrong), but she has seen and heard enough to come to the conclusion that Koishi may not actually be responsible after all.
-
Do you think it's wrong to voice our suspicions to Kanako, though? I can make it clear that we're not certain, just worried
-
I think we can get the info we want from Kanako without expressing suspicion of Koishi, or, at worst, saying that we initially suspected her but now we're not so sure.
-
And the harm of expressing our worries to Kanako is...? She seems like she can be trusted not to spread it around. What other reason would we have to even ask her to do so on short notice?
-
It's not Kanako I'm worried about, it's Koishi. We don't know what she'll be able to read off of us.
I'm not sure I understand the nature of the question. If you're looking for a reason for Kanako to help, well, she was willing to offer up finding Renko for free.
-
Well, as far as I see it, if Koishi can read us, she'll already know that we have suspected her, whether we changed our minds or not. So I think it's too late to avoid that bit, now. Because until we find out for certain, one way or the other, I'm pretty sure we'll still have doubts in our heart, etc.
Anyway, here's what I had typed. Feel free to object, if you wish.
>"Hello, again, Kanako."
>"I'm sorry to come seeking a favor again so soon, but something has come up that I'm very concerned about. I managed to locate my friend, and... well... she doesn't seem herself, in a number of ways. She's organizing a giant fairy army to take over the Scarlet Devil Mansion, and seems convinced that this is a perfectly normal sort of thing to do, just because it interests her at the moment. She won't really listen to me."
>"I feel bad about suggesting this, considering that I have no proof, but... I'm concerned that Koshi may be involved with her, somehow. It's extremely circumstantial, but... you said that you spotted her in a very similar location earlier this morning, Renko spoke about a mysterious youkai who's been working with her, but who doesn't want to be identified or described to anyone else. She said she was a bit paranoid, she was also familiar with Orin. And Renko really doesn't seem herself."
>"You said that you can sometimes find her, if you try. Would you be willing to try for me? I want to be able to confirm or deny her involvement, and try to stop all of this before it goes too far."
-
I wouldn't mind too much if Koishi reads us and finds out we did suspect her but have since started doubting that feeling.
What you've written should work. The one change I might make is "Koishi may be involved with her, or at least know something, somehow".
-
>"Hello, again, Kanako."
>"I'm sorry to come seeking a favor again so soon, but something has come up that I'm very concerned about. I managed to locate my friend, and... well... she doesn't seem herself, in a number of ways. She's organizing a giant fairy army to take over the Scarlet Devil Mansion, and seems convinced that this is a perfectly normal sort of thing to do, just because it interests her at the moment. She won't really listen to me."
>"I feel bad about suggesting this, considering that I have no proof, but... I'm concerned that Koshi may be involved with her, somehow. It's extremely circumstantial, but... you said that you spotted her in a very similar location earlier this morning, Renko spoke about a mysterious youkai who's been working with her, but who doesn't want to be identified or described to anyone else. She said she was a bit paranoid, she was also familiar with Orin. And Renko really doesn't seem herself."
>"You said that you can sometimes find her, if you try. Would you be willing to try for me? I want to be able to confirm or deny her involvement, and try to stop all of this before it goes too far."
>Kanako listens to you, nodding slightly from time to time. "So you would rather that I find Koishi now? Very well. I shall do that instead.."
>_
-
> "Thank you so much. Again, I'm sorry for having asked so much of you today."
-
> "Thank you so much. Again, I'm sorry for having asked so much of you today."
>"It is nothing." she says. "Return this evening, and I will share what I've found."
>_
-
>"I mean no presumption, but I'm concerned that their attack on the mansion will already have begun by the evening. I want to try to avert it before anyone gets hurt in the process."
>Around what time is it now, anyway?
-
> "On an unrelated note, I also have...an idea, a venture you may be interested in pursuing, concerning Sanae."
> "I talked to her for a little while earlier, and I learned about her love for jets. She talked about what she remembered in the dream, and how being a test pilot was a lot of fun. Now, given the kappa are in an inventing frenzy, I am wondering if it may be possible to make a jet here, in Gensokyo."
-
>"I mean no presumption, but I'm concerned that their attack on the mansion will already have begun by the evening. I want to try to avert it before anyone gets hurt in the process."
>Around what time is it now, anyway?
>"I would not worry so much about it," says Kanako.
>It's pretty firmly into midafternoon.
> "On an unrelated note, I also have...an idea, a venture you may be interested in pursuing, concerning Sanae."
> "I talked to her for a little while earlier, and I learned about her love for jets. She talked about what she remembered in the dream, and how being a test pilot was a lot of fun. Now, given the kappa are in an inventing frenzy, I am wondering if it may be possible to make a jet here, in Gensokyo."
>She chuckles. "So I see. Sanae would enjoy that. But, I've learned over time that it is a little difficult to get the kappa to design exactly what you want. That said, it's possible."
>_
-
>"And why do you think I shouldn't worry about it? I have a friend of mine plotting to take over someone else's home just because it's there, and she may just have the resources to do it, too. There are hundreds of organized faeries, and some other mysterious youkai arranging for a secret weapon, whatever that means. It's... very disturbing to see someone you're so close to suddenly acting in a way that you can't understand, and can't condone."
-
>"And why do you think I shouldn't worry about it? I have a friend of mine plotting to take over someone else's home just because it's there, and she may just have the resources to do it, too. There are hundreds of organized faeries, and some other mysterious youkai arranging for a secret weapon, whatever that means. It's... very disturbing to see someone you're so close to suddenly acting in a way that you can't understand, and can't condone."
>She nods. "Perhaps you should say this to her?'"
>_
-
>"I did. She... doesn't seem to want to listen. Is convinced that all of the ways she used to think and reason are wrong and useless. 'What the point in being rational,' she says. 'Just do whatever you feel like.' I know that waking up in Gensokyo could change your perspective, but... it just seems a little much, you know?"
-
Guess it's schizophrenia time.
> "I've heard from elsewhere that the jet is possible, yes. Now, what I am about to suggest in that regard, I will admit I don't know the entire scope of the situation, but based on what I have seen and heard, I really think it could work, and it could be good for everyone involved."
> "The reason I had asked you previous about Sanae's dream...is because Utsuho wanted to know. I have told her of this jet idea, and she has expressed some interest in helping. Maybe as an apology to Sanae, maybe as a way to at least try to bury the hatchet with you, maybe both. I cannot say for sure. I know you said you want little to do with her, but she's in good with Nitori, at least, and if she's willing to help, well, Utsuho's good with power, you work with the sky, Nitori might be up to it if Utsuho is...surely something could be made of all this? It might not redo all your work, but at least it would help fulfill Sanae's dream"
-
>"I did. She... doesn't seem to want to listen. Is convinced that all of the ways she used to think and reason are wrong and useless. 'What the point in being rational,' she says. 'Just do whatever you feel like.' I know that waking up in Gensokyo could change your perspective, but... it just seems a little much, you know?"
>"That could be Koishi's work," says Kanako, "But it seems strange for her to do something like that, in my experience. Perhaps, if you are worried about time, you should try to obtain more of it."
> "I've heard from elsewhere that the jet is possible, yes. Now, what I am about to suggest in that regard, I will admit I don't know the entire scope of the situation, but based on what I have seen and heard, I really think it could work, and it could be good for everyone involved."
> "The reason I had asked you previous about Sanae's dream...is because Utsuho wanted to know. I have told her of this jet idea, and she has expressed some interest in helping. Maybe as an apology to Sanae, maybe as a way to at least try to bury the hatchet with you, maybe both. I cannot say for sure. I know you said you want little to do with her, but she's in good with Nitori, at least, and if she's willing to help, well, Utsuho's good with power, you work with the sky, Nitori might be up to it if Utsuho is...surely something could be made of all this? It might not redo all your work, but at least it would help fulfill Sanae's dream"
>You decide to go back to the prior subject while digesting that.
>"Perhaps there is something to look into," says Kanako. "You do make an interesting proposal, at least..."
>_
-
>"I don't mean to say that it has to be Koishi or anything. I just... I guess I don't want to think that maybe I never really knew Renko after all, you know? It's a very unsettling situation."
>"And as for time... well, she said that she's just waiting for her benefactor to return with their secret weapon. I get the impression even she doesn't know how long it will take."
-
> Wait until the Renko part of the conversation has concluded before resuming jet-related activities. Be sure to NOT just leave Kanako after Renko-related discussion is done, however.
-
>"I don't mean to say that it has to be Koishi or anything. I just... I guess I don't want to think that maybe I never really knew Renko after all, you know? It's a very unsettling situation."
>"And as for time... well, she said that she's just waiting for her benefactor to return with their secret weapon. I get the impression even she doesn't know how long it will take."
>Having had a little time to digest that thought, you continue. "I cannot speak for someone I don't know, in the end," says Kanako. "If I should find anything while you are away, I shall send Sanae to find you."
> Wait until the Renko part of the conversation has concluded before resuming jet-related activities. Be sure to NOT just leave Kanako after Renko-related discussion is done, however.
>Don't want to walk off in the middle of things.
>_
-
>"Thank you. I... hope I can fix all this. I don't want anyone to be hurt, and I don't want to lose a friend. And I... I want to believe it's possible to accomplish both."
-
>"Thank you. I... hope I can fix all this. I don't want anyone to be hurt, and I don't want to lose a friend. And I... I want to believe it's possible to accomplish both."
>She nods. "Do what you feel is right."
>_
-
>"I will. As best I can."
Your go. I've got nothing else at the moment that I can think of
-
> "And I do hope you decide to give the jet idea a go. I realize it won't redo all the work you did for your shrine maiden, but at least it will give her something very dear to her, and it will have come from you. In addition, I understand Utsuho's gear came from you, so I imagine you two have a history beyond what happened on Gensokyo Isle. Surely life is better lived with more acquaintances you can live with, and fewer acquaintances you want nothing to do with."
> "Utsuho is a good friend of mine, and you've been willing to help me without asking anything in return; I would love to be able to return your favor as well as help her out, and I believe this idea could do just that."
-
> "And I do hope you decide to give the jet idea a go. I realize it won't redo all the work you did for your shrine maiden, but at least it will give her something very dear to her, and it will have come from you. In addition, I understand Utsuho's gear came from you, so I imagine you two have a history beyond what happened on Gensokyo Isle. Surely life is better lived with more acquaintances you can live with, and fewer acquaintances you want nothing to do with."
> "Utsuho is a good friend of mine, and you've been willing to help me without asking anything in return; I would love to be able to return your favor as well as help her out, and I believe this idea could do just that."
>She nods. "If you would convince them to do so, I'd be willing to offer my assistance. And...I'd be grateful."
>_
-
> "I'll talk to Nitori at some point to see if she'd be willing to pitch in. How much of what happened is she aware of?"
-
> "I'll talk to Nitori at some point to see if she'd be willing to pitch in. How much of what happened is she aware of?"
>"I do not know how much Nitori remembers," says Kanako.
>From what you recall, she had a pretty decent recollection.
>_
-
> "I know you have been telling your followers that Gensokyo Isle was just a dream. Would you prefer I not tell Nitori what really happened, unless absolutely necessary?"
-
> "I know you have been telling your followers that Gensokyo Isle was just a dream. Would you prefer I not tell Nitori what really happened, unless absolutely necessary?"
>"It would be best forgotten," says Kanako. "What she does not remember, leave as such."
>_
-
> "All right, thank you. I will take my leave now, to see what I can do for my friend. I appreciate your efforts on my behalf, and I will be watching for Sanae."
> "Oh, and this probably goes without saying, but I don't plan on telling Sanae about the jet plan. I imagine you don't either."
> Assuming Kanako does not attempt to stop us, exit the shrine.
-
> "All right, thank you. I will take my leave now, to see what I can do for my friend. I appreciate your efforts on my behalf, and I will be watching for Sanae."
> "Oh, and this probably goes without saying, but I don't plan on telling Sanae about the jet plan. I imagine you don't either."
> Assuming Kanako does not attempt to stop us, exit the shrine.
>"It will be a surprise," she says.
>You make your way from the Shrine. Sanae seems to still be enjoying her drink.
>_
-
> "That must be some good cocoa you have going there."
-
> "That must be some good cocoa you have going there."
>"It's kind of rare," she says. "Normally you can only find it when it shows up at Kourindou. How's your friend?"
>_
-
>"She's... well, she seems... different than the Renko I remember. And she's planning to do something incredibly stupid and wrong, and... I'm going to somehow have to find a way to stop her without hopefully making her hate me for it."
-
>"She's... well, she seems... different than the Renko I remember. And she's planning to do something incredibly stupid and wrong, and... I'm going to somehow have to find a way to stop her without hopefully making her hate me for it."
>"Then what are you doing here?" she asks. "Don't you love her? Go!"
>_
-
>"Well, I had to ask Kanako something that I felt was important about this. I'm heading back now. I just hope I can wake up tomorrow and feel that it all went ok."
>Head back to Renko.
-
>"Well, I had to ask Kanako something that I felt was important about this. I'm heading back now. I just hope I can wake up tomorrow and feel that it all went ok."
>Head back to Renko.
>She nods. "Good luck with that!"
>You make your way back toward the western portion of the Forest of Magic. You're getting used it to the lay of the land, now, that you don't have to make so many course corrections anymore.
>You are able to fly over the first clearing without any problems, and find yourself back in the strip of forest where the faeries were partying. Things are a lot more calm now; many of the faeries are passed out asleep on the grass. Others are gathered in circles or flying about in the air, talking and playing among themselves. You see Renko, exceedingly easy to spot in her colorful dress, moving between the groups, chatting with various faeries.
>_
-
>Fly down to her.
>"Hey, again! How're things?"
-
>Fly down to her.
>"Hey, again! How're things?"
>"Hey Mary," says Renko as you land near her. "It's resting time now. Just making sure everyone's in good spirits. How'd the trip underground go?"
>_
-
>"I never said I was going underground..."
-
Um, yeah we did. We said we had to see Utsuho.
-
We said we had to deliver a letter to someone. We never said who or where. I double-checked.
-
Yeah, just checked myself. How disturbing.
-
>Please ignore all database errors involve locations. It is an unfortunate but understandable oversight. The responsible parties have been sacked.
>Fly down to her.
>"Hey, again! How're things?"
>"Hey Mary," says Renko as you land near her. "It's resting time now. Just making sure everyone's in good spirits. How'd your thing go?"
>_
-
>"Oh, pretty good. You heard anything back from that youkai friend of yours?"
-
>"Oh, pretty good. You heard anything back from that youkai friend of yours?"
>"Not yet," says Renko. "I'm due to meet up with her soon, then. But if she's still working, nothing much is going to come of it. If she doesn't get done soon, we'll have to save it for tomorrow..." She shakes her head.
>_
-
(we should probably try to convince her to at least hold it off until tomorrow. it shouldn't be hard convincing her to fight vampires in the day instead of at night.)
-
>That would be good, we'd get to do our powerup first then. Although, Patchy said, if we do something like this we want the most out of it... so we need to talk to Byakuren again. Hmms.
And yeah, I agree with headcrabsninja.
-
>"Do you even know what she's doing? Or what it's taking her this long?"
-
>That would be good, we'd get to do our powerup first then. Although, Patchy said, if we do something like this we want the most out of it... so we need to talk to Byakuren again. Hmms.
>This could be worked to your advantage.
>"Do you even know what she's doing? Or what it's taking her this long?"
>"In a very general sense," she says. "But not enough to know what the delay is about."
>_
-
>"Is that private, too? I'm curious, you know."
-
>"Is that private, too? I'm curious, you know."
>She nods. "Sorry, but she's says its something she's kinda known for, so telling you would be a dead giveaway. Wish I could, though, what she does is really neat. Worse comes to worst, I'll introduce you afterward."
>
-
>"Why'd she decide to help with this plan of yours, anyway? Do you know?"
-
You know, I just thought of something, what if it's Rumia?
-
>"Why'd she decide to help with this plan of yours, anyway? Do you know?"
>She ponders for a moment. "Nope...didn't say anything about that. She wants a share of the loot."
>_
-
>"Actually, can you fill me in a little more about what happened since you woke up here? There were some faeries around, and... then what? When'd this other youkai find you and teach you how to fly? When'd you come up with this plan of yours, anyway?"
-
You know, I just thought of something, what if it's Rumia?
Yeah, that in particular doesn't sound quite like Koishi. Hmm. Although I dunno about it being RUMIA though... I don't think even she'd be trying something like this. Although, she has expressed a surprising amount of competence with The Felt and such...
-
>"Actually, can you fill me in a little more about what happened since you woke up here? There were some faeries around, and... then what? When'd this other youkai find you and teach you how to fly? When'd you come up with this plan of yours, anyway?"
>"Sure, okay," says Renko, and she starts walking toward the southern part of the field. "I don't remember exactly where it was," says Renko. She gestures broadly toward the north. "Over that way, somewhere. I woke up and there were a couple faeries hovering over me. I figured I must be dreaming, and said so. So one, Ficus Blossom, poured the jug of water she was carrying on me face. That got my attention, I'll tell you! Then I kinda freaked out, because, you know, faeries. Then we got to talking. And I'd ask good science questions and they'd just laugh at me and so. Then I saw someone flying overhead, you know? And...well, that pretty much told me we got it completely wrong. So, I just tried to relax a bit, you know? Go with it. Really, the faeries have everything figured out. We got to talking about how things are here, and how no one respects them, and I thought that was pretty wrong. Then we got hungry, and came up here looking for some wild onions to go with the tofu they had. I saw this mansion, got them to tell me a bit about it, and I decided I might as well. I talked with them about it, and they thought it was a good idea. Then they took me to see, well, you know. She and I got to talking, and she thought it was an interesting idea, said I had talent with faeries, if you can believe it. So she took me under her wing, taught me some basics, and we got to planning. Things just sort of built up after that."
-
>"So, you really haven't had much contact with anyone outside the faeries here, then? You know, Gensokyo isn't all non-sciencey, by any means. The Kappa are busy trying to build a university at this very moment. Nitori's working on an air conditioner. There's some pretty dedicated research types with libraries, and all. The fairy perspective is... something of a unique one, even here."
-
>"So, you really haven't had much contact with anyone outside the faeries here, then? You know, Gensokyo isn't all non-sciencey, by any means. The Kappa are busy trying to build a university at this very moment. Nitori's working on an air conditioner. There's some pretty dedicated research types with libraries, and all. The fairy perspective is... something of a unique one, even here."
>"No, but I picked up a lot from my benefactor," says Renko. "She's been all over. Had a lot of stories to tell. And...it's not that there isn't engineering, Mary. It's that pretty much everything I've studied just...doesn't really apply or mean anything. We had it so wrong it hurts. About the only thing I've not seen broken is friction, and it's just a matter of time..."
>_
-
>"What do you mean by that, really? Even magic has rules it abides by. It's not like physics stopped being relevant entirely. I mean, think of this way, there might be just that much more to document and experiment with and understand. I'd have figured that would be the first thing you'd try to do."
-
>"What do you mean by that, really? Even magic has rules it abides by. It's not like physics stopped being relevant entirely. I mean, think of this way, there might be just that much more to document and experiment with and understand. I'd have figured that would be the first thing you'd try to do."
>"Where do you even start, when pretty much everything has a huge set of exceptions, Mary?" Renko asks, as the two of you reach the hill. "It's not like we thought it was, when you could at least record some basics and have a decent framework to move from, then go back and double check. You can't even make step one anymore. And, that's how it's supposed to be. Much as I hate to say it, there's no point in fighting it."
>_
-
>"I... don't think this means that everything you knew was wrong, Renko. I really don't. Even after seeing this place. Sure, things exist that we didn't know existed. But... I don't think it makes everything that we've done up to now a waste."
-
> You know, maybe THIS is why she snapped. Her entire reality came crashing down on her all at once.
-
>"I... don't think this means that everything you knew was wrong, Renko. I really don't. Even after seeing this place. Sure, things exist that we didn't know existed. But... I don't think it makes everything that we've done up to now a waste."
>"Everything we've done? No. But as any kind of physics goes, or biology? Might as well forget about. I don't even want to figure out what it means for chemistry. So, I'm just not going to worry about it."
> You know, maybe THIS is why she snapped. Her entire reality came crashing down on her all at once.
>You start to wonder if Satori was right, and you really were just better adjusted.
>_
-
> Or maybe we were just prepared better for it? She was always rooted in science, while we always had that odd ability...
> Wait, border detection! Try to sense any "spheres of influence" in or around Renko.
-
>"It... bothers you, doesn't it? I know you want to make the best of it, just the same, but.... "
>Put a hand on her shoulder
>"I really hadn't thought of it from quite the same perspective."
-
> Or maybe we were just prepared better for it? She was always rooted in science, while we always had that odd ability...
> Wait, border detection! Try to sense any "spheres of influence" in or around Renko.
>That's also possible.
>You try to get a sense of borders around here. You don't feel anything odd around Renko, but you can tell you're in the middle of land ceded to the faeries.
>"It... bothers you, doesn't it? I know you want to make the best of it, just the same, but.... "
>Put a hand on her shoulder
>"I really hadn't thought of it from quite the same perspective."
>You put a hand on her shoulder express sympathy. She heaves a tired sigh, then smiles at you. "It used to. But not anymore, I've just decided to put it out of my mind. Science is broke. It's a shame, but no use crying over it."
>_
-
>"Our own world didn't go anywhere, you know. Science still works just as well as it always did. The things here are no more real than those."
-
>"Well, even with science broken, there's still stuff that remains unknown... for example, magic, it's got to come from somewhere, or exist in some manner, or something like that, you know? Someone, I think Reimu, said what we've learned to do here probably wouldn't even work in the outside world. So there must be some difference, some reason. It'd be like... a different kind of science, I guess? Although, I don't blame you if you don't want to try and figure it out, it really does seem like a difficult task... from what I heard, no one here knows, although I'm not sure if they've tried to find out, either."
>"I wonder, even, if magic and science could work together. Not like that strange stuff the kappa try to make, like ghost-powered air conditioners, but a sophisticated kind!"
>Sigh.
>"Gensokyo doesn't have the outside world science to even begin to try anything like that, though. And the outside world doesn't have Gensokyo's magic. I wonder if there's anywhere with both, or if there ever was?"
-
>"Our own world didn't go anywhere, you know. Science still works just as well as it always did. The things here are no more real than those."
>"It works, except for when it doesn't." says Renko.
>She hovers into the air. It's...a jarring sight, really, to watch someone you know fly like that.
>"Gravity works, except when it doesn't. It's proof that pretty much all our underlying assumptions are wrong, Mary. That it's worked at all is just a coincidence. I mean, looking back now, do you have any idea how lucky we are those coincidences lasted as long as they did?"
>"Well, even with science broken, there's still stuff that remains unknown... for example, magic, it's got to come from somewhere, or exist in some manner, or something like that, you know? Someone, I think Reimu, said what we've learned to do here probably wouldn't even work in the outside world. So there must be some difference, some reason. It'd be like... a different kind of science, I guess? Although, I don't blame you if you don't want to try and figure it out, it really does seem like a difficult task... from what I heard, no one here knows, although I'm not sure if they've tried to find out, either."
>"I wonder, even, if magic and science could work together. Not like that strange stuff the kappa try to make, like ghost-powered air conditioners, but a sophisticated kind!"
>Sigh.
>"Gensokyo doesn't have the outside world science to even begin to try anything like that, though. And the outside world doesn't have Gensokyo's magic. I wonder if there's anywhere with both, or if there ever was?"
>She nods. "And that's the problem. Magic breaks...everything really. And there's really no way to measure it, or predict it or anything. It's like if someone took quantum level stuff, said "Okay, you're making too much sense," then make it a macroscopic effect. And from what I've heard? That barrier wasn't always there. This used to be part of our world. So what changed? Even if you take magic out of the equation, it's still proof that we've had it wrong the whole time. So...there's just no point worrying about it, so I won't."
>_
>_
-
>"But that's how science evolves. You think you have a set of rules that works, and then you find something that doesn't fit. Then you go back to the drawing board and figure out new rules that account for the thing that broke the old rules. That's how it's been since the beginning. Magic can't do just whatever it pleases. I'm sure a lot of mages wish they could, but their power is also bounded by rules, and limited in terms of how much it can bend the law of physics that we're used to working with. Our old physics may not be entirely right, but it's also not entirely wrong. I'm certain of it."
-
>"But that's how science evolves. You think you have a set of rules that works, and then you find something that doesn't fit. Then you go back to the drawing board and figure out new rules that account for the thing that broke the old rules. That's how it's been since the beginning. Magic can't do just whatever it pleases. I'm sure a lot of mages wish they could, but their power is also bounded by rules, and limited in terms of how much it can bend the law of physics that we're used to working with. Our old physics may not be entirely right, but it's also not entirely wrong. I'm certain of it."
>"And when you break all of 'em? And there's no real way to account for the breaking?" Renko asks. "Really, the only think you can do is say "It works, except when it doesn't, and we have no idea when that'll be," and paste it over pretty much the whole textbook. We pretty much can't trust it anymore. It's just not worth worrying about."
>_
-
>"I'm sorry Renko. Really, I am. And is that where this plan of yours started forming? After you figured that it was best to just stop trying to think too hard about things, and go with the flow?"
-
>"I'm sorry Renko. Really, I am. And is that where this plan of yours started forming? After you figured that it was best to just stop trying to think too hard about things, and go with the flow?"
>"Yeah. I mean...that's a problem I can solve. And get a lot out of it."
>_
-
>"And you've certainly done a pretty impressive job so far. I can't imagine anyone's seen the likes of this before. I frankly don't know how you managed to get the faeries all on the same page. It was enough for me to make sense of them, half the time."
>"Anyway, you want to go for a little walk? Maybe say hi to Utsuho? I'm sure she'd be happy to see your face, again. The faeries will be able to last a few minutes without you. Just tell them you're going on reconnaissance or something."
-
>"And you've certainly done a pretty impressive job so far. I can't imagine anyone's seen the likes of this before. I frankly don't know how you managed to get the faeries all on the same page. It was enough for me to make sense of them, half the time."
>"Anyway, you want to go for a little walk? Maybe say hi to Utsuho? I'm sure she'd be happy to see your face, again. The faeries will be able to last a few minutes without you. Just tell them you're going on reconnaissance or something."
>"Heh, thanks. And to be fair, I had Dai's help. Wouldn't have gotten nearly this far without her."
>"How far?" asks Renko. "I still have that meeting and stuff."
>_
-
>"Oh yeah. How much time until that, anyway?"
>How long would it take us to get to the Palace of the Earth Spirits from here?
-
>"Oh yeah. How much time until that, anyway?"
>How long would it take us to get to the Palace of the Earth Spirits from here?
>"Not too long, now," says Renko.
>You estimate it would take you about twenty to thirty minutes to get there from here.
>_
-
>"Don't know for sure? And were you supposed to meet her here, or somewhere else, anyway?"
-
>"Don't know for sure? And were you supposed to meet her here, or somewhere else, anyway?"
>"Well, it's a general sort of time, not an exact one," says Renko. "Haven't seen much in the way of clocks around here, I don't think people worry about exact times much. And I'm going to go meet her."
>_
-
>"Well, I suppose you could always tag along with me until you feel that it's too late, if it really does take us that long. Gensokyo's a pretty small place, all things told."
-
> "Or you could leave a message with a fairy for your benefactor, letting her know where you've gone, and that you'll be back soon."
-
>"Well, I suppose you could always tag along with me until you feel that it's too late, if it really does take us that long. Gensokyo's a pretty small place, all things told."
>"I guess I could go part of the way, at least," says Renko. "Give me a minute to set things up."
>She walks off before you can really reply, and disappears among the gathering of faeries.
>_
-
> Oh. Well. Okay then.
> 'Part of the way', huh? Glad to know Renko has her friends vs. mansion priorities straight.
> Sad face. Keep it on while waiting for her to come back.
-
> Can we sense if Renko's still a human or not? Satori did say it should come naturally to us...
> We should probably try to convince Renko to hold off the siege until tomorrow, if possible. We need to buy us some more time.
-
> Oh. Well. Okay then.
> 'Part of the way', huh? Glad to know Renko has her friends vs. mansion priorities straight.
> Sad face. Keep it on while waiting for her to come back.
>The faeries are starting to rouse, you notice, talking excitedly among themselves.
>She comes back after a couple minutes. "Okay," she says with a bit of a grin, "Dai's bought me some time. If it becomes really necessary, she can even do the meeting, but I'd rather not have it that way, our ally kinda doesn't want to have to deal with the faerie side of things more than she has to."
> Can we sense if Renko's still a human or not? Satori did say it should come naturally to us...
> We should probably try to convince Renko to hold off the siege until tomorrow, if possible. We need to buy us some more time.
>You think she's human, but you really don't have any innate sense for that. It would be kind of weird if she was a youkai and you didn't know it.
>This seems like a good idea.
>_
-
> Huh. Maybe we were wrong. Then again, she didn't notice sad face...
> Whatever. At least she's coming along.
> "Excellent. You all ready, then?"
-
>Lead on towards the palace
>"Dai sounds like she's been a pretty staunch ally, there. And I guess it helps that she was already more or less the faeries boss. How'd you two end up hooking up?"
-
> Huh. Maybe we were wrong. Then again, she didn't notice sad face...
> Whatever. At least she's coming along.
> "Excellent. You all ready, then?"
>Maybe she did notice it and didn't comment?
>"Yeah, lead the way."
>Lead on towards the palace
>"Dai sounds like she's been a pretty staunch ally, there. And I guess it helps that she was already more or less the faeries boss. How'd you two end up hooking up?"
>You take to the air, and she follows along, keeping by your side.
>"Yeah, Dai's the best, you don't even know," says Renko. "Back when I was afraid you didn't make it, and was all worried that I was alone here, she kept me from flipping out. And the faeries that found me, Ficus Blossom and Sudden Shower, introduced me to her not long after I woke up. She even goes to the school up in the village, so she's smarter than the average faerie, too. Part of why I'm confident in the plan."
>_
-
>"Interesting. I wouldn't mind talking to her sometime. I've already been to the school, actually, and spent a little bit of time talking with the teacher there."
>"Where'd you get that dress, anyway?"
-
> She goes to the school? I bet Keine would love to hear about one of her students orchestrating this plan.
-
>"Interesting. I wouldn't mind talking to her sometime. I've already been to the school, actually, and spent a little bit of time talking with the teacher there."
>"Where'd you get that dress, anyway?"
>"The faeries made it for me last night," says Renko. "I kinda needed a change of clothes really badly, and mentioned it, and off Sullen Plummet's squad went. I wrote 'em off as deserters, when they came back with it two hours later. Isn't it great?"
> She goes to the school? I bet Keine would love to hear about one of her students orchestrating this plan.
>You can only imagine Keine's response...actually, you can't. You've never seen a one room schoolhouse in action, and have no idea how she keeps people's attention.
>_
-
>"It's certainly... colorful. No idea where they got it? Or do faeries actually have enough infrastructure to make clothes like that themselves?"
-
>"It's certainly... colorful. No idea where they got it? Or do faeries actually have enough infrastructure to make clothes like that themselves?"
>"I know, it's great! And, it's hard to tell about how they got it," says Renko. "You wouldn't know by looking at it? But there's faerie houses hidden all over the place in this forest. And a few that aren't even a little hidden. I'm not sure how much they make themselves, how much they salvage, and how much they steal. So it could go either way."
>_
-
>"I saw one or two of their houses. Talked to Lemon Drop by hers earlier when I was exploring the place."
-
>"I saw one or two of their houses. Talked to Lemon Drop by hers earlier when I was exploring the place."
>"Don't know Lemon Drop," says Renko. "Though I think I've heard the name once or twice. But really, you try to remember a few hundred names in this amount of time."
>_
-
>"Oh, I hear you. I can probably only remember her's because I've only heard one or two others today."
>"Hey, have you picked up any tricks here other than flying and danmaku, anyway?"
-
>"Oh, I hear you. I can probably only remember her's because I've only heard one or two others today."
>"Hey, have you picked up any tricks here other than flying and danmaku, anyway?"
>"Not really," says Renko. "I've been told I might be able to do something with Star-related Magic, but there's been no time to do anything with it. Really, there's been no time. But I'm pretty confident in my danmaku; I can take down most faeries pretty well, though some of them are absolute beasts. You wouldn't think someone so little could conjure up dozens of bullets like that."
>She sighs. "God, I'm glad you made it."
>_
-
>"What do you mean?"
-
>"What do you mean?"
>"Did I say something weird? I said I'm glad you made it. I was afraid I ended up leaving you behind forever."
>_
-
>"Oh, sorry, I think I misheard you. I'm glad I found you, too, Renko. And you... really never wanted to go back home, even for a moment?"
-
> "Oh, right, sorry. Lost in thought. You aren't the only one that's been busy today."
> "Yes, I'm glad you made it too. I'd been looking everywhere for you for most of the day, even while running around doing other things. Even had a raging moral dilemma regarding what to do with myself depending on how I found you. Lots of people had their input on that one."
EDIT: Never mind, I guess, previous post completely kills where this one was going.
-
>"Oh, sorry, I think I misheard you. I'm glad I found you, too, Renko. And you... really never wanted to go back home, even for a moment?"
>"Not really," she says. "First I was too amazed. Then, there's really no reason for it, is there? The whole thing's built on a sham."
>_
-
> Wait, Renko's been here for two days? Didn't we just wake up this morning?
> "Well, I ask, because I was having a moral dilemma about it all day. Science or no science, we left people behind. Can we really abandon them so easily?"
-
>"I don't see how the outside world is any less real or more fake than this one. They both have things about them that are wondrous and miraculous to people from the other side. Our technology and their magic are both amazing things to those who aren't used to them. I'm sure there are people here who would be just as excited to find themselves suddenly in the outside world."
-
> Wait, Renko's been here for two days? Didn't we just wake up this morning?
> "Well, I ask, because I was having a moral dilemma about it all day. Science or no science, we left people behind. Can we really abandon them so easily?"
>...Hey, that's right!
>She shrugs. "Sad as it is to say, I think I'd miss this more than I'd miss them. Then again, my family really didn't care for me dropping everything to become a detective."
>"I don't see how the outside world is any less real or more fake than this one. They both have things about them that are wondrous and miraculous to people from the other side. Our technology and their magic are both amazing things to those who aren't used to them. I'm sure there are people here who would be just as excited to find themselves suddenly in the outside world."
>"I meant, the stuff the outside is built up on is a sham. We've know there's been more to the world than that for years, and now that we've ripped the cover off of it, why go back to pretending none of the things we've seen there exist? I'd rather embrace it and live with the truth, wouldn't you?"
>_
-
> "I really don't know, to be honest..."
> I do know, however, that I'd rather NOT live here as a might-makes-right personality.
> Do we have any sort of attachment to our previous life? Family, friends, etc?
-
> "I really don't know, to be honest..."
> I do know, however, that I'd rather NOT live here as a might-makes-right personality.
> Do we have any sort of attachment to our previous life? Family, friends, etc?
>"Well, I hope you decide to stay with me," she says. "That's about the only attachment I have outside that I care much about."
>As for outside attachments, you do have family. It's kind of a dysfunctional family, insomuch as divorces and such go, but they've been good to you. You didn't have many friends since going to college, you met Renko, started the Sealing Club, and the rest is history. Some of you old high school friends you kept track of online. Upon arriving at Gensokyo Isle, you made some acquaintances, but you little time to really pursue anything; detective work, getting the store/home spruced up, searching for paranormal stuff, and the like ate up most of your time.
>_
-
>"Honestly, if I could choose, I'd like to be able to travel freely between both worlds. I think there's a lot of value in both of them. But... I realize that I don't really have that option."
-
>"Honestly, if I could choose, I'd like to be able to travel freely between both worlds. I think there's a lot of value in both of them. But... I realize that I don't really have that option."
>"It's pretty much designed so that can't happen, yeah," says Renko. "Not that I blame them. The way I hear it, if the barrier went down, this place would pretty much go kaput."
>_
-
> What was Renko's family like?
-
>"People can get out, though. I've been told of at least one person who can do it. And I think it's possible to get back under very specific circumstances. I... hadn't really made up my mind about what I was going to end up doing. I'm certainly not leaving for a while, yet. But, long term... it feels like a bit much to make that commitment yet, you know? But if you're already set on it..."
>How close are we to the entrance to the underground, anyway?
-
> What was Renko's family like?
>You don't know. The topic has never really been given any real discussion. You know they exist, but aside from that.
>"People can get out, though. I've been told of at least one person who can do it. And I think it's possible to get back under very specific circumstances. I... hadn't really made up my mind about what I was going to end up doing. I'm certainly not leaving for a while, yet. But, long term... it feels like a bit much to make that commitment yet, you know? But if you're already set on it..."
>How close are we to the entrance to the underground, anyway?
>"Yeah, I don't think I'm going back," she says. "Maybe visit. Maybe. But definitely not going back."
>You can see it up ahead now.
>_
-
>"So, did you say you ended up getting into some danmaku duels with the faeries?"
-
>"So, did you say you ended up getting into some danmaku duels with the faeries?"
>"Yeah, for fun, and to get used to it," she says.
>_
-
>"I've had a couple myself, although in my case, each of them pretty much involved just being attacked out of the blue."
-
>"I've had a couple myself, although in my case, each of them pretty much involved just being attacked out of the blue."
>"Did you win?"
>_
-
>"Yeah, all of them, somehow or another. Might have been more fun if they didn't just come off as random acts of aggression."
-
>"Yeah, all of them, somehow or another. Might have been more fun if they didn't just come off as random acts of aggression."
>"Well, that's not too bad, then," says Renko. "What happened?"
>You land at the mouth of the cavern leading Underground. Renko peers into it with obvious interest.
>_
-
>"Yeah, her place is down this way."
>Walk on
>"And yeah, the first time was some faeries who thought I was being to the shrine maiden for... some reason or other. Another time, someone got mad at me for flying over the forest that she'd grown without appreciating it properly. Next time, it was someone who's job it is to keep humans from traveling to Youkai Mountain. For their protection, evidently. She wasn't actually angry with me, unlike the other ones. Just wanted to test me, I think. But I passed, so that's good."
-
>"Yeah, her place is down this way."
>Walk on
>"And yeah, the first time was some faeries who thought I was being to the shrine maiden for... some reason or other. Another time, someone got mad at me for flying over the forest that she'd grown without appreciating it properly. Next time, it was someone who's job it is to keep humans from traveling to Youkai Mountain. For their protection, evidently. She wasn't actually angry with me, unlike the other ones. Just wanted to test me, I think. But I passed, so that's good."
>You head onward, Renko following alongside of you, trying to look in every direction at once.
>"Oh! I bet know who that is. Plum Flower? Yeah, she fell head over heels for the shrine maiden a couple weeks ago, from what I hear. It's kinda cute, but I don't think anything is going to come of it."
>_
-
>"Yeah, that's the one. She warned me not to be mean to her on the way in. I invited her along to make sure I behaved myself, but she said the shrine maiden would just stomp her if she saw her. But when I came back, she assumed that I'd been mean anyway, and well..."
-
>"Yeah, that's the one. She warned me not to be mean to her on the way in. I invited her along to make sure I behaved myself, but she said the shrine maiden would just stomp her if she saw her. But when I came back, she assumed that I'd been mean anyway, and well..."
>"Yeah, that sounds about right. She probably thought you were trying to romance the Shrine Maiden out from under her. You weren't, right?"
>You descend down into the chamber where you met Yamame. The youkai doesn't seem to be here. but Renko seems happy enough to marvel at the web with the advertisement on it.
>_
-
>"Of course not. ....although, I suppose she did make me take a bath while talking to her. But that had more to do with the fact that I'd had bats in my hair not very long before that and wasn't smelling all that hot at the time. And before you worry, you're not going to run into any down this way. I just took a serious wrong turn my first time out. I've been up and down a few times since then without incident."
-
>"Of course not. ....although, I suppose she did make me take a bath while talking to her. But that had more to do with the fact that I'd had bats in my hair not very long before that and wasn't smelling all that hot at the time. And before you worry, you're not going to run into any down this way. I just took a serious wrong turn my first time out. I've been up and down a few times since then without incident."
>"I can't stand bats," says Renko, shaking her head. "There was this time we got one in the house when I was a kid, and...yeech. So what's down here, anyways?"
>_
-
>"There's a whole city, just a little further down here. It's where Utsuho and her family lives, among other people, mostly oni."
-
>"There's a whole city, just a little further down here. It's where Utsuho and her family lives, among other people, mostly oni."
>"Oh, so that's where it is," says Renko, as you reach the point where the tunnels branch. "...There's a bucket up there."
>_
-
>Wow, she actually spotted it ahead of time? How come we could never do that?
>"Hey, Kisume! No mugging friends either, ok?"
-
>Wow, she actually spotted it ahead of time? How come we could never do that?
>"Hey, Kisume! No mugging friends either, ok?"
>Maybe Kisume's not hiding as well this time? Or maybe Renko is just better at it than you are?
>"I ain't doin' nothing!" the bucket says back.
>"Oh..." says Renko.
>_
-
>"Well, have a nice day!"
>Carry on
>At a reasonable distance: "In case you're wondering, there IS a person in that bucket. I don't know that even Gensokyo has talking buckets."
-
>"Well, have a nice day!"
>Carry on
>At a reasonable distance: "In case you're wondering, there IS a person in that bucket. I don't know that even Gensokyo has talking buckets."
>"Yeah, you too," Kisume says.
>As you enter the fissure chamber, you tell Renko there was someone in that bucket. "I thought so," she says, "But really, I wouldn't be surprised to meet a talking bucket."
>_
-
>"Maybe not. I haven't met anything that can talk yet, that isn't humanoid. Although I've seen books that appear to fly under their own power."
-
>"Maybe not. I haven't met anything that can talk yet, that isn't humanoid. Although I've seen books that appear to fly under their own power."
>"The mansion's library, right?" asks Renko. "The faeries from there told me all about that."
>_
-
>"Yeah, there. What did they tell you, anyway?"
-
>"Yeah, there. What did they tell you, anyway?"
>"About the library?" Renko says. She purses her lips as she starts to float over the fissure-laden floor. "Less than I wanted. It's full of all sorts of books, a lot of them about magic. Apparently it's also got some spell on it that pretty much banishes humidity perfectly. There's a secret room somewhere. The librarian is pretty powerful in her own right, has some kind of demon for a familiar. They couldn't tell me too much, maids weren't even allowed into it until last year."
>_
-
>"They weren't? I wonder why. And I've talked to Patchouli a couple times. She gave me a hand with finding something, earlier. She's a bit curt, but not really a bad sort, I don't think."
-
>"They weren't? I wonder why. And I've talked to Patchouli a couple times. She gave me a hand with finding something, earlier. She's a bit curt, but not really a bad sort, I don't think."
>"What were you doing in there, anyways?" Renko asks, her tone curious rather than confrontational.
-
>"Well, I spent a fair bit of the morning traveling around to different mages and trying to pick up a few tricks. I was directed to her because she was apparently the person to ask about a certain spell component someone else asked me to collect. Lots of traveling and errands and exploring today, I'll tell you."
-
ACTUAL COMMAND:
>"What was life like for the fairies while they were there, anyway?"
BABBLE:
>"It's pretty much designed so that can't happen, yeah," says Renko. "Not that I blame them. The way I hear it, if the barrier went down, this place would pretty much go kaput."
If this is not common knowledge, it's pretty damning evidence that Renko's benefactor is Yukari. Who else would know that? Though she'd seem more the sort to go after the SDM for revenge against Sakuya than for looting...
Perhaps I should go on a treatise regarding this!
----
What we know about Renko's benefactor:
- She either doesn't like the SDM or likes to steal, loot, and live in luxury (possibly both) - if they don't like the SDM, they were likely on the wrong end of the PCB, IN, IaMP, and/or SWR incidents, particularly PCB and IN as those were largely unilateral.
- Alternatively, she's turning Renko into an incident for her own amusement and/or to aggravate Maribel.
- She's subtle and manipulative
- She's secretive and somewhat paranoid
- She doesn't like/care about fairies very much
- She knows about Orin and her fairy brigade
- She has a 'secret weapon' she's working on or preparing for the battle
- She's a youkai (unless Renko is mistaken, but at least not human and probably not a fairy)
- She's 'known for' something
- She might be a magician if she could measure Renko's abilities so easily
- She might be morally loose or ruthless
- She knows about the nature of Gensokyo and she's 'been all over'
So, who fits these criteria? Koishi fits some. Yukari fits some. Suwako might fit some, but owes Patchouli too much (Z-machine) to dream of attacking the SDM, unless something terrible happened in Okuu Quest.
But thinking about it some more? Alice fits the most of those criteria - she's the sneaky sort, not very sociable, known for puppeteering, a magician, was beaten by Sakuya in PCB, saw Orin in action through Marisa in SA, and we saw her playing with a giant doll earlier which might be considered a 'secret weapon,' at least moreso than whatever magic others might be taking time to conjure up.
Of course, Mary doesn't know that, does she? Whoopsies~
(much more feeble crack theory: Flandre being subtle about wanting out)
-----
In other news,
(3:03:13 AM) E mouse2000: Of course, we can always just be sneaky and distract the fairies with shiny things, ruining the plot entirely...
Making a spellcard or two might serve just as well as getting Byakuren's power boost, especially if Patchouli's right about the permanency and sub-optimal nature of the enchantment she's probably offering; while we should probably get Renko back in her right mind before asking again about whether to stay or what to become, I think Mary has relatively little reason to go back at this point. We might as well do the youkai thing properly if we go down that route. Of course, snapping Renko out of her megalomania comes first. Then we can find out what she really wants.
(2:39:36 AM) E mouse2000: "I'm not fighting to defend the mansion, Renko. I'm not fighting because I hate you. I'm fighting because I want to keep my best friend from doing something she'll regret. This is going to hurt both of us, but... let's begin."
Renko lost it because all the rules she relied on were broken the moment she woke up in Gensokyo. Or rather, all the physical rules. Right now, she's overgeneralizing that to disregarding moral 'rules' as well, which she'll need to be reminded of. This may have to be done by force, with a gentle hand, as that is what she understands right now. Bringing up the difficulties of keeping the mansion and fairies afterward is a valid argument and might actually make her hesitate, but I can't think of any argument she'd readily accept as invalidating her position entirely, especially surrounded by fairies as she is. I wonder if she (accidentally?) killed any of them yet.
The main thing is to guarantee we're facing Renko on even ground. Her benefactor and the fairies are quite willing to bend the rules alongside her as it is. Dividing them up would be a tremendous help. After that? We have flexibility, a little practice, and Marisa's potion to tilt the odds in our favor. But we need to distract or divert Renko's benefactor and the fairies first.
... I wonder. What if we asked the SDM to set up something benign and interesting (boardgames?) at the mansion as a distraction from fairies trying to attack and loot the place, and/or act as a trap for if they decide to anyway? Still, betrayal of trust...
-----
... there are two or three main reasons/motivations Renko's claiming as justification for the raid. First, the rights and treatment of the fairies, especially at the Manor. Second, chasing out some pompous, mean, unlikeable, stuck-up rich bastards hiding away in their mansion. Finally, getting to be a pompous, mean, unlikeable, stuck-up rich bastard herself. These are of varying validity and 'justness' - fairy rights is downright noble, the SDM being filled with jerks is ambiguous, and robbery is at the core of Mary's objections.
So, let's separate those issues, shall we? If the fairies seriously want more recognition, respect, and rights out of this - which Dai, at least, might be clever enough to wrap her mind around and represent - then invading the SDM is not strictly necessary. Odds are good that it's more a lashing out and show of strength to get attention so that they're listened to or an act of perceived revenge than a specific desire. So what if you skipped the step of acting up to get that attention and respect and brought in someone willing to show it already, neatly removing that as a valid motivation? Like, say, Byakuren, and perhaps someone from the SDM for labor negotiations? If successful, this would expose the true nature of Renko's motivations, so she can no longer hide behind that justification... not that she seems to be doing it much anyway...
Showing whether the SDM is full of jerks can be readily tested by actually talking with them and seeing how bad they really are. But, uh, they might still be jerks, so no guarantees there. Sakuya or Remilia being willing to sit down and talk with the fairies civilly would go a long way toward dispelling this perception, especially if the fairies weren't treated that badly in the first place (but we haven't seen much of that yet).
It sounds increasingly like grand theft is Renko's core motivation, but she doesn't seem to realize the implications of that. If you strip away her other justifications before pointing that out... that's how cognitive dissonance would hit her hardest, and odds are best of her realizing her mistake. Pointing out that overgeneralization of physical rules being shattered to disregarding moral rules would be most effective then. She may realize it. She may not. But we don't do it until we're ready to fight her if we have to. For now? We get information to pick apart her motives with so we can corner her later, and prepare to tilt the odds if necessary.
-
We need to get it into her head that magic does not equal broken science, I mean, look at dark matter, scientists couldn't explain what's with the funky gravity so made up dark matter. Maybe we should try finding Rikako, she could probably help, being a scientist in Gensokyo. Actually...
> Do we know anyone named Rikako?
-
We need to get it into her head that magic does not equal broken science, I mean, look at dark matter, scientists couldn't explain what's with the funky gravity so made up dark matter. Maybe we should try finding Rikako, she could probably help, being a scientist in Gensokyo. Actually...
> Do we know anyone named Rikako?
No, we don't.
And I don't think fixing her understanding of science is going to work until she understands that this world DOES still have rules. Until then, she's going to do whatever the piss she wants.
Though, a valid point would be that even if she doesn't have any foundation to work from, she could still get a start on understanding the mechanics behind magic. The ancient greeks didn't have too much to work with, but they got a few good things started, and physics runs into a lot of exceptions as well (especially when theories and understanding are incomplete).
-
Yeah, I pegged Alice about 2 hours before you posted that. Didn't really want to talk about it much, though, since it sort of ruins the dramatic flair if it's correct. :V
-
>"Well, I spent a fair bit of the morning traveling around to different mages and trying to pick up a few tricks. I was directed to her because she was apparently the person to ask about a certain spell component someone else asked me to collect. Lots of traveling and errands and exploring today, I'll tell you."
>She nods, as the two of you pass through the fissure chambers. "Notice anything I ought to kno- Sorry,forget I asked. Habit."
>"What was life like for the fairies while they were there, anyway?"
>"The way they describe it, it sounds a lot like the army. But more arbitrary. The head maid's a real witch, from what I gather, and the vampire treats 'em like they're not even there."
>_
-
> Based on the sun's position, what time was it before we entered the underground with Renko?
-
> "That's kind of surprising. I talked to a fairy that had stuck around in the mansion, and not only was she still doing her job, she hated her fellow fairies for abandoning her. Even asked me to punch some of them for her, if I remember right. There were no discernible thoughts of leaving, no apparent distaste for the other residents of the mansion. She actually seemed...happy to be there. Aside from having an increased workload, of course, but everyone got hit with that."
-
> Based on the sun's position, what time was it before we entered the underground with Renko?
>Midafternoon.
> "That's kind of surprising. I talked to a fairy that had stuck around in the mansion, and not only was she still doing her job, she hated her fellow fairies for abandoning her. Even asked me to punch some of them for her, if I remember right. There were no discernible thoughts of leaving, no apparent distaste for the other residents of the mansion. She actually seemed...happy to be there. Aside from having an increased workload, of course, but everyone got hit with that."
>She nods. "Yeah, some faeries can get crazy loyal about things, enough they'll stick around no matter what. I'd expect those ones get treated better, anyways. Or just don't care how they're treated."
>_
-
> "You know, I wonder if some simple negotiations with the people there now about the rights and values of fairies would solve a lot of the conflict the fairies have with them. The mass exodus was felt all the way through that house. I ended up getting enlisted by the head maid to help dry dishes. Surely they've felt the sting enough at this point that they'd be willing to listen, at least."
-
> "You know, I wonder if some simple negotiations with the people there now about the rights and values of fairies would solve a lot of the conflict the fairies have with them. The mass exodus was felt all the way through that house. I ended up getting enlisted by the head maid to help dry dishes. Surely they've felt the sting enough at this point that they'd be willing to listen, at least."
>Renko shrugs. "I doubt it. They don't respect the faeries, no one does. That's what makes this so great, Mary, using their own arrogance against them and beating them the way they least expect it!"
>_
-
> "They respect them enough to use them as gate guards when Meiling is needed to run errands, though."
-
> "They respect them enough to use them as gate guards when Meiling is needed to run errands, though."
>"That's not really respect, I don't think. That's more 'here slow up the invaders until we get there'. Cannon fodder, I think they call it?"
>_
-
> "No, there's definitely more to it than that. They take their gate guarding system very seriously, with the guard shack and the intercom and everything. They need someone there that knows what they're doing. It's not all defending-the-castle and cannon fodder, it's knowing who to let in and who to keep out. I don't think they would have someone dedicated to the task if they didn't take it seriously."
-
> "No, there's definitely more to it than that. They take their gate guarding system very seriously, with the guard shack and the intercom and everything. They need someone there that knows what they're doing. It's not all defending-the-castle and cannon fodder, it's knowing who to let in and who to keep out. I don't think they would have someone dedicated to the task if they didn't take it seriously."
>Renko frowns. "Even if that's the case, doesn't that just make all the rest of it worse?"
>_
-
> "I...don't know what you mean? I'll admit that sure, maybe there is fairy abuse going on here, but in the time I was there, I learned that the fairies are trusted enough to guard the gate, I saw the other residents of the mansion buckle down and deal with the workload just as much, and I didn't actually see any instance of abuse. Maybe the lifestyle of a maid just doesn't gel well with a fairy's regular outlook on life? They seem rather simple and carefree to me, and having a job as a maid could easily conflict with that, to the point of feeling like abuse."
-
> "I...don't know what you mean? I'll admit that sure, maybe there is fairy abuse going on here, but in the time I was there, I learned that the fairies are trusted enough to guard the gate, I saw the other residents of the mansion buckle down and deal with the workload just as much, and I didn't actually see any instance of abuse. Maybe the lifestyle of a maid just doesn't gel well with a fairy's regular outlook on life? They seem rather simple and carefree to me, and having a job as a maid could easily conflict with that, to the point of feeling like abuse."
>"So why do they use them, then, if it's so bad for them? I mean, you're saying they respect them, then treat them like they do? Isn't that worse than not respecting them and treating them like they do?"
>_
-
> "Because it does work for some of them, apparently, like the one I talked to. I don't know anything about their application process, though, so it could really go either way. Maybe they really are monsters. Maybe the fairies that run away were once happy to sign up and just didn't understand what they were getting themselves into at the time. It's just that...based on the things you've told me, and based on the things I've observed myself, I don't know enough about the situation to reach what I feel is a solid conclusion."
-
>"From what I heard while I was there, there's usually a few fairies who leave every month, and some who come; I don't believe they're being kept there against their will, in other words. If they really dislike it, they'd leave and do something else. It was never a problem for the mansion until the huge desertion now, and from the one I talked to, at least some fairies certainly seem to like being there. Maybe you should get the viewpoint of some of the fairies who like being there?"
bluh I always get ninjaed
-
> "Because it does work for some of them, apparently, like the one I talked to. I don't know anything about their application process, though, so it could really go either way. Maybe they really are monsters. Maybe the fairies that run away were once happy to sign up and just didn't understand what they were getting themselves into at the time. It's just that...based on the things you've told me, and based on the things I've observed myself, I don't know enough about the situation to reach what I feel is a solid conclusion."
>"From what I heard while I was there, there's usually a few fairies who leave every month, and some who come; I don't believe they're being kept there against their will, in other words. If they really dislike it, they'd leave and do something else. It was never a problem for the mansion until the huge desertion now, and from the one I talked to, at least some fairies certainly seem to like being there. Maybe you should get the viewpoint of some of the fairies who like being there?"
>"Mmm, maybe," says Renko, as the two of you enter the chamber of rocky shelves, just before the bridge.
>_
-
>"I've never met the vampire, so I can't speak for her. But the head maid didn't seem like someone I would necessarily describe as a witch, either. She's cool and efficient, and not the warmest person, necessarily, but doesn't seem cruel. I wonder if it's just that a lot of faeries have a hard time seeing any structure where there's someone giving them duties and instructions on a regular basis as anything other than overly controlling? You know yourself how adverse to permanent organization most faeries seem to be. But they're free to come and leave as they please. Sakuya didn't even seem to mind this as such; it's just an inevitable part about working with faeries in the first place."
-
>"I've never met the vampire, so I can't speak for her. But the head maid didn't seem like someone I would necessarily describe as a witch, either. She's cool and efficient, and not the warmest person, necessarily, but doesn't seem cruel. I wonder if it's just that a lot of faeries have a hard time seeing any structure where there's someone giving them duties and instructions on a regular basis as anything other than overly controlling? You know yourself how adverse to permanent organization most faeries seem to be. But they're free to come and leave as they please. Sakuya didn't even seem to mind this as such; it's just an inevitable part about working with faeries in the first place."
>"Maybe," Renko says, as you make your way down the shelf.
>_
-
> Let's let this go, until at least after we meet up with Utsuho.
> Look around for anyone we know, like Parsee.
-
>"How well do you remember Gensokyo Isle, anyway? I know my memories of it were pretty fuzzy when I woke up here, first."
-
> Let's let this go, until at least after we meet up with Utsuho.
> Look around for anyone we know, like Parsee.
>You decide to drop it.
>As you descend the shelves, you can see Parsee up ahead on the bridge, or rather, beside the bridge, floating in the air and tapping it with a hammer.
>"How well do you remember Gensokyo Isle, anyway? I know my memories of it were pretty fuzzy when I woke up here, first."
>"Distantly," says Renko. "It's like trying to remember what it was like when I was six. I have the general bits, and a few important parts. But all in all, I don't remember it that well. A lot of the little details are just gone. I remember our office well enough, but...I don't remember what was next door very well. A street?"
>_
-
>Tell her what was next door
>"How much do you remember about the last few days there? I'm honestly curious. As far as most of Gensokyo is concerned, the isle is all a shared dream. Some people seem to be able to remember it better than others. And five people, at the very least, remember it just as well as you would expect to remember any event that took place a couple days ago."
-
>Tell her what was next door
>"How much do you remember about the last few days there? I'm honestly curious. As far as most of Gensokyo is concerned, the isle is all a shared dream. Some people seem to be able to remember it better than others. And five people, at the very least, remember it just as well as you would expect to remember any event that took place a couple days ago."
>"Oh, an offramp. I was kind of right."
>"Um, some things. I remember the cat stuff pretty well, and Utsuho and Par-" she looks toward the bridge, and raises an eyebrow. "-...see. Well huh."
>_
-
>"Yeah, that's her."
>Wave
>"Hey, Parsee!"
-
> "Funny how these things work out, huh?"
-
>"Yeah, that's her."
>Wave
>"Hey, Parsee!"
> "Funny how these things work out, huh?"
>"You set me up." she mutters, then chuckles.
>You wave and call out Parsee's name. She looks over and waves back. "If it isn't the glitter girls."
>_
-
>"How's it going? Just thought I'd show Renko around the place a little; drop in on Utsuho and all."
-
>"How's it going? Just thought I'd show Renko around the place a little; drop in on Utsuho and all."
>"About the same as the last time you passed through," says Parsee. "And sure, go on through."
>_
-
>"Have a good one!"
>Carry on towards the city
-
>"Have a good one!"
>Carry on towards the city
>"You too!" Parsee says.
>"Wow," Renko says as you cross the bridge, "She's pretty chipper."
>_
-
>"Well, I think she's got reason to be a lot more hopeful about a few things than she was yesterday."
-
>"Well, I think she's got reason to be a lot more hopeful about a few things than she was yesterday."
>Renko nods. Then takes to staring at the city ahead as you enter it.
>_
-
>"And here it is: the Ancient City. More oni than you can shake a stick at. Not that I'd suggest ever doing that if you value your health. They're kind of brusk, very direct, apparently faultlessly honest. Career drinkers."
-
>"And here it is: the Ancient City. More oni than you can shake a stick at. Not that I'd suggest ever doing that if you value your health. They're kind of brusk, very direct, apparently faultlessly honest. Career drinkers."
>She nods mutely, trying to look in every direction at once.
>_
-
>Smile and let her take in the scenery
>Continue towards the palace
-
>The trip is...about as peaceful as you would except for escorting a starry-eyed newcomer through a city full of oni. Renko's smart enough not to stare much, or brim over with possibly rude questions, but you can tell she would if she could. It's hard to blame her, it's difficult not to marvel at some things yourself even after several trips through here. She also moves a bit to the music as you walk, which is unusual for her. The oni, for their part, aren't very numerous. You see a lot of the shops have closed down for the day. Glance toward the tavern-lined street, you see those are still pretty busy.
>You reach the Palace of the Earth Spirits without incident. Renko pauses to admire it's ivy-covered walls. "This place looks ancient," she says.
>_
-
>"I actually have no idea how long it's been here. Or even how old Utsuho and them really are, now that I think of it.... I kinda don't think youkai age the same way we do."
>Enter the palace
-
>"I actually have no idea how long it's been here. Or even how old Utsuho and them really are, now that I think of it.... I kinda don't think youkai age the same way we do."
>Enter the palace
>Renko nods as you enter.
>The front hall is empty at the moment. Renko looks at the paintings, then stares up at the ceiling, apparently looking at the columns.
>_
-
> "Oh yeah, who was the band at the party earlier? They definitely weren't fairies."
-
>Continue down the hallway
-
> "Oh yeah, who was the band at the party earlier? They definitely weren't fairies."
>Continue down the hallway
>"Those were the Prismrivers," says Renko. "They're a group of poltergeists musicians. I dunno where the faeries found 'em. But they were happy to do a set for 100☼, so I wasn't going to complain."
>You head down the hallway, and find yourself outside the sitting room. A tabby seems to manifest out of nowhere and begins to rub against your legs. Looking into the sitting room, you see Satori is there with her needlework, while Utsuho us stretched out on the couch, a few cats perched on her and apparently asleep.
>_
-
>Walk into the room
>"Hey, guys."
-
> Be sure to keep our voice relatively low.
> Think Satori, I'm no longer sure this is Koishi's doing, but can you check to make sure?
-
>Walk into the room
>"Hey, guys."
>You walk in. "Ah, hello Maribel. And Renko, I believe?"
>Renko looks around the room, while you try not to trip over your feline stalker. Then she stares at Utsuho "...She's got wings. When did that happen?" She glances away quickly.
>"No, it should be alright to look," says Satori to her. "Okuu would understand you're very shocked. Just don't be rude."
>Renko gives Satori a look now.
> Be sure to keep our voice relatively low.
> Think Satori, I'm no longer sure this is Koishi's doing, but can you check to make sure?
>Satori glances toward you, then to Renko. "It's alright, my child."
>_
-
>Oh, so Utsuho is the one asleep, and not just the cats on her? Blasted misreading things...
>"And I wouldn't say 'when did that happen' so much as 'that's how it always was until a little while ago'. A lot of people around Gensokyo Isle weren't really human. Or at least weren't supposed to be. It was a change imposed from outside. When things reverted, they returned to how they always were before Gensokyo Isle existed."
-
>Oh, so Utsuho is the one asleep, and not just the cats on her? Blasted misreading things...
>"And I wouldn't say 'when did that happen' so much as 'that's how it always was until a little while ago'. A lot of people around Gensokyo Isle weren't really human. Or at least weren't supposed to be. It was a change imposed from outside. When things reverted, they returned to how they always were before Gensokyo Isle existed."
>Renko nods. "Wow. She looks good with 'em."
>Then she looks at Satori. "And, how'd you know what I was thinking?"
>Satori frowns. "I was hoping Maribel would be kind enough to tell you, I can read thoughts. No, I can't step. I apologize. But please don't be embarrassed, I've read worse than yours."
>_
-
>"Oh, sorry Renko! I completely forgot..."
>Satori frowns. "I was hoping Maribel would be kind enough to tell you, I can read thoughts. No, I can't step.
So she's not only got stubby arms, she's no good at dancing either? And I thought that was only Minoriko.
-
> "Oh, God, and before you ask, no, she is not going to tell me who your benefactor is. That is too much of a breach of trust."
-
>"Oh, sorry about that, Renko. I was a bit distracted mulling things over on our way here. This is Satori. She's Utsuho's... well, I'm not even sure the proper term, really. Guardian, you said? She saved me from being kidnapped by an oni shortly after I woke up here this morning."
-
>"Oh, sorry Renko! I completely forgot..."
>"That's some thing to forget, isn't it?" says Renko, giving you a lot.
"> "Oh, God, and before you ask, no, she is not going to tell me who your benefactor is. That is too much of a breach of trust."
>"Wait...Crap!" Renko looks to Satori with wide eyes.
>"I won't tell a soul," says Satori. "If I did that kind of thing, the oni wouldn't have put up with me anyways. Though...maybe you should be a bit more forward about somethings?"
>Renko sighs and grumbles. "Okay, fine."
>"Oh, sorry about that, Renko. I was a bit distracted mulling things over on our way here. This is Satori. She's Utsuho's... well, I'm not even sure the proper term, really. Guardian, you said? She saved me from being kidnapped by an oni shortly after I woke up here this morning."
>"I guess it's okay," says Renko, as she sits down on a couch opposite of Utsuho. "Not like it would have changed anything..."
>"You're thinking astrolabe, Renko."
>"...You're good."
>"And yes, Guardian is the best word. And, really, it only went as well as it did because Maribel tricked the oni into a good position."
>_
-
>"Well, you know... I think it was equal parts thinking and blind panic at the time, to be honest. But it was one hell of a thing to wake up to. Speaking of which, it's too bad Utsuho's nodded off. Although I suppose I can't blame her, after what's been going on."
-
>"Well, you know... I think it was equal parts thinking and blind panic at the time, to be honest. But it was one hell of a thing to wake up to. Speaking of which, it's too bad Utsuho's nodded off. Although I suppose I can't blame her, after what's been going on."
>"Well, it did save a prolonged fight I wasn't certain I could win," says Satori. "So I'll be happy to say that it was a cunning strategy on your part. And, yes. But, she's not been sleeping well the past couple days, so it is nice for her to get some rest."
>Renko looks between the two of you, while a gray cat jumps onto her lap.
>_
-
> To Satori: "Ah, not to add to her workload too much, but when she wakes up, can you tell her that Kanako has also shown interest in the jet project, and, in fact, would be 'grateful' for the help? If Utsuho decides it interests her enough to do, she'll probably need to talk to Nitori in order to secure kappa help."
> To Renko: "Looks like you've made another new friend."
-
>"Parsee actually seemed downright cheerful when we passed her earlier. I like to think the future's hopeful on that score."
-
> To Satori: "Ah, not to add to her workload too much, but when she wakes up, can you tell her that Kanako has also shown interest in the jet project, and, in fact, would be 'grateful' for the help? If Utsuho decides it interests her enough to do, she'll probably need to talk to Nitori in order to secure kappa help."
> To Renko: "Looks like you've made another new friend."
>Satori nods. "I'll explain it to her as well as I can."
>Renko nods, as she pets the fuzzy interloper. "Yeah. Nice little guy."
>Satori gives you a quick, questioning glance, while Renko is distracted.
>_
-
> Look back at Satori.
> Think At this point, even if it is Koishi, I don't want you to tell me. I really don't think it is anymore anyway. I don't know who it would be instead, but...I can't think of a motive for her, and everything else surrounding her situation could easily be explained by things I've heard about her.
-
> Look back at Satori.
> Think At this point, even if it is Koishi, I don't want you to tell me. I really don't think it is anymore anyway. I don't know who it would be instead, but...I can't think of a motive for her, and everything else surrounding her situation could easily be explained by things I've heard about her.
>Wait, why would we NOT want to know if it was Koishi, even if that seems unlikely, now? Why refuse any piece of information?
-
> Because Renkotrust.
-
I don't think it's a trust violation to be told if someone's messing with her head. Satori already said she wouldn't tell us anything more than that
-
Okay, let's modify it then.
> Think At this point, even if it is Koishi, I don't want you to tell me. I really don't think it is anymore anyway. I don't know who it would be instead, but...I can't think of a motive for her, and everything else surrounding her situation could easily be explained by things I've heard about her.
> Nix this.
> Think At this point, even if it is Koishi, I don't want you to tell me, unless she is directly interfering with Renko's thoughts. I really don't think it is anymore anyway. I don't know who it would be instead, but...I can't think of a motive for her, and everything else surrounding her situation could easily be explained by things I've heard about her.
-
> Nix this.
> Think At this point, even if it is Koishi, I don't want you to tell me, unless she is directly interfering with Renko's thoughts. I really don't think it is anymore anyway. I don't know who it would be instead, but...I can't think of a motive for her, and everything else surrounding her situation could easily be explained by things I've heard about her.
>Satori nods, once.
>"Have you enjoyed yourself here, Miss Usami?" Satori says.
>"Oh yeah." Renko nods. "Most enlightening couple days of my life!"
>_
-
>"Yeah, it's pretty incredible, isn't it?"
-
>"Yeah, it's pretty incredible, isn't it?"
Satori nods, then stands. "You'll have to excuse me now. I need to feed the animals, then get started on dinner."
>_
-
>"Sure."
>To Renko: "Well, ought to let her sleep. Here, we can go somewhere where we won't wake her."
>Lead her towards the guest room where we're staying
-
>"Sure."
>To Renko: "Well, ought to let her sleep. Here, we can go somewhere where we won't wake her."
>Lead her towards the guest room where we're staying
>Satori makes her way out, and most of the cats follow, including Renko's companion. They must be well aware that it's feeding time.
>"Sure thing," says Renko.
>You lead her to the guest room you woke up in. She has a look around, "Kinda downscale, but not bad."
>_
-
>Make out
-
>"Well, it's a comfortable enough place to crash, anyway. This room is actually where I woke up to Gensokyo. Satori was the first person I met here."
>"Did anyone tell you what really happened? With Gensokyo Isle, I mean. Most people don't really know, but I don't know what you're heard."
-
>Make out
>Satori did say to be more honest
>"Well, it's a comfortable enough place to crash, anyway. This room is actually where I woke up to Gensokyo. Satori was the first person I met here."
>"Did anyone tell you what really happened? With Gensokyo Isle, I mean. Most people don't really know, but I don't know what you're heard."
>She sits on the bed. "Well, it's better than having a bush digging into your back when you woke up."
>"Not really, no. I've kinda pieced together the two places are connected, though. But it's gotta be more complex than that."
>_
-
> "...You know, that reminds me...you said you got here yesterday?"
-
>"I don't know everything, and I certainly don't know the mechanism by which it was achieved, but in a nutshell: Someone transported Gensokyo into the outside world, and sealed away the powers, memories, and non-human characteristics of nearly everyone here. They made it a real place in the outside. And then, eventually, Utsuho managed to restore it to its original location. We somehow got dragged along with it."
-
> "...You know, that reminds me...you said you got here yesterday?"
>"Woke up two days ago, actually," says Renko.
>"I don't know everything, and I certainly don't know the mechanism by which it was achieved, but in a nutshell: Someone transported Gensokyo into the outside world, and sealed away the powers, memories, and non-human characteristics of nearly everyone here. They made it a real place in the outside. And then, eventually, Utsuho managed to restore it to its original location. We somehow got dragged along with it."
>"Huh..." she says. "Well, I guess it makes some sense."
>_
-
>"I wonder why you ended up here two days before me, though? Or how you even could, even we were just dragged back along with this place."
-
>"I wonder why you ended up here two days before me, though? Or how you even could, even we were just dragged back along with this place."
>"I dunno," says Renko. "I'm not sure why, either. Have any ideas? You know what happened better than I do."
>_
-
>"I don't really know, actually. Keine, the person who was most in charge of fixing this said she wasn't sure how I ended up here at all. Apparently Gensokyo Isle was undone in a such a way that, by and large, it never really happened. She could only speculate that I came along for the ride because I had such aspirations to find this kind of place in the first place."
-
>Quests
>Inventory
-
>"I don't really know, actually. Keine, the person who was most in charge of fixing this said she wasn't sure how I ended up here at all. Apparently Gensokyo Isle was undone in a such a way that, by and large, it never really happened. She could only speculate that I came along for the ride because I had such aspirations to find this kind of place in the first place."
>"What'd she do?" Renko asks."The way it sounds, she messed with time..."
>_
-
No commands, but a recommendation: We want to talk to Orin about how she helped Utsuho get over her megalomania.
-
>"I think she said it had something to do with history. I don't know the details."
No commands, but a recommendation: We want to talk to Orin about how she helped Utsuho get over her megalomania.
While this sounds sensible, no one actually mentioned that Orin was involved with that incident, unfortunately. Just Reimu and Marisa.
-
>"I think she said it had something to do with history. I don't know the details."
>Renko chuckles. "See, not even time's immune." She falls back on the bed at stares at the ceiling. "So, what's this about oni chases?"
>_
-
>"Well, Satori took me out to show me some of the city, and some oni came out of nowhere and tried to kidnap me. Apparently it's just something they do to humans. I think the gist of it, in the end, is that they get you plastered, make you do their housework, and drag you to a party you're never allowed to leave. Of course, I wasn't really thinking this when you've got someone swinging a sword around and shooting waves of bullets with it. To be fair, she didn't actually fire any at ME, as far as I can tell. Satori tried to defend me, but I don't think she would have won on her own. It helps that she could read the oni's mind, but she just wasn't fast enough to keep up, anyway. So, I ended up baiting the oni away, and running through an alleyway, and a bar, complete with overturned tables and all, before I managed to drag her back to Satori, who got a shot in on her when she was distracted with me."
>"Funny thing is, after we won, the oni 'claimed' me, and told the rest of the oni on her turf that they're not allowed to touch me, so it's been pretty calm out there since."
-
>"Well, Satori took me out to show me some of the city, and some oni came out of nowhere and tried to kidnap me. Apparently it's just something they do to humans. I think the gist of it, in the end, is that they get you plastered, make you do their housework, and drag you to a party you're never allowed to leave. Of course, I wasn't really thinking this when you've got someone swinging a sword around and shooting waves of bullets with it. To be fair, she didn't actually fire any at ME, as far as I can tell. Satori tried to defend me, but I don't think she would have won on her own. It helps that she could read the oni's mind, but she just wasn't fast enough to keep up, anyway. So, I ended up baiting the oni away, and running through an alleyway, and a bar, complete with overturned tables and all, before I managed to drag her back to Satori, who got a shot in on her when she was distracted with me."
>"Funny thing is, after we won, the oni 'claimed' me, and told the rest of the oni on her turf that they're not allowed to touch me, so it's been pretty calm out there since."
>She chuckles, "Well, that oni has good taste, if nothing else. Now I'm kinda insulted that they didn't take a shot at me. You didn't get hurt, right?"
>_
>_
-
>"No, not really. Although, I was kind of panicking at the time. I mean, how do you think you'd have been in my place? And I honestly wouldn't be insulted. You're probably better off with them not caring. Or maybe guests of me are also off limits? Who knows."
-
>"No, not really. Although, I was kind of panicking at the time. I mean, how do you think you'd have been in my place? And I honestly wouldn't be insulted. You're probably better off with them not caring. Or maybe guests of me are also off limits? Who knows."
>She nods. "Yeah, I probably would, too. And maybe I'm off limits too? I dunno. Oni are weird."
>_
-
>"Yeah, they're a bit strange, at least from our point of view. But I think they have a pretty internally consistent code of behavior. I can't say I know what all the rules are, though."
-
>"Yeah, they're a bit strange, at least from our point of view. But I think they have a pretty internally consistent code of behavior. I can't say I know what all the rules are, though."
>She nods, the gesture a bit muted by her laying down. "I should probably go."
>_
-
>Sit down next to her, if we aren't already.
>"Look, Renko, before you do, I just want to ask you again. Why are you really doing this? The thing with the mansion, I mean? Beyond the interesting challenge, and wanting a nice house."
-
>Sit down next to her, if we aren't already.
>"Look, Renko, before you do, I just want to ask you again. Why are you really doing this? The thing with the mansion, I mean? Beyond the interesting challenge, and wanting a nice house."
>You have a seat next to her. "It's not just an interesting challenge..." she says softly. "It'll work."
>_
-
>"Still, it could be dangerous... I don't want you to get yourself hurt, Renko."
>Grin a little.
>"Though, if the oni decide to show some more good taste on your way out, I'd be glad to bail you out."
"Good taste" is telling. It's a wonder her impulsiveness hasn't led to any making out yet.
Valid point to bring up - Remilia will be stronger in the evening/night. If Renko wants an easy fight, she might want to wait until midday tomorrow. If she wants to prove her strength, then issuing a more open challenge rather than a surprise attack would make her more legitimate. Either way, bringing up that Remilia would be stronger can lead into an explanation from her, show concern, and perhaps let us give an excuse to delay the attack. Ze plans!
Of course, that relies on knowing that Remilia is a vampire, and I'm not 100% certain of that.
-
>"It might just work, yeah. But you didn't answer my question."
I don't think Maribel even knows Remilia's name. But Renko already mentioned a 'vampire' in the house.
-
>"Still, it could be dangerous... I don't want you to get yourself hurt, Renko."
>Grin a little.
>"Though, if the oni decide to show some more good taste on your way out, I'd be glad to bail you out."
>"It doesn't last too long, even if I do," says Renko. "That's the point of it."
>You grin and offer her support. "Knew I could count on you," says Renko.
>"It might just work, yeah. But you didn't answer my question."
>"Well, I suppose you have it, then." She says. "I'm doing it because it'll work, and I'll win big. Enough to really get me started out here."
>_
-
> "Get started? What are you going to do from there?"
-
>"Get started doing what? I know you said 'the sky's the limit' before, but surely you have some idea of an eventual goal?"
-
Note: Satori would know who helped Utsuho recover, if it hasn't been mentioned already - or even how it was done. Worth asking on the way out.
Also, we need to talk to Byakuren. She has some interest in showing the fairies respect, if sending Ichirin to hang out with them in the winter is any indication. And even if Lemon Drop is a limited representation, the fairies do seem to care about that to an extent, even without attacking the SDM. If anyone would lend a sympathetic (or distracting) ear it would be her group. Of course, we don't have to let her 'official' explanation for showing up being hearing about/diverting the attack, but a wandering girl hearing that one or two of the fairies wanted respect and that there was a large group of them in the forests there, soooo... Stealth modus. <3
While risky, talking to the SDM about showing a little more sympathy for the fairies and/or confusing the shit out of them by presenting a softer side in response to the attack instead of striking immediately could throw expectations out of whack. It's doubtful that they'd buy it, though - it's clear Remi cares about her reputation, but not necessarily being nice about it. It might be worth suggesting as long as we aren't pushy about it, though.
-
> "Get started? What are you going to do from there?"
>"Get started doing what? I know you said 'the sky's the limit' before, but surely you have some idea of an eventual goal?"
>"Don't know yet," she says, still looking at the ceiling. "But whatever it is, we'll have a good start."
>_
-
>"It'd be awfully difficult to maintain, though. It's a big place. I'm not sure how much you'll need it, in the end."
-
>"It'd be awfully difficult to maintain, though. It's a big place. I'm not sure how much you'll need it, in the end."
>"I'll think of something," she says, then chuckles. "Besides, I could do with some rich people problems instead of the other kind."
>_
-
>"Yeah, I suppose that would be something of a change of pace. Not that we haven't both had a lifetime's worth of those just in the last couple days. But, you know, when I think of it, I'm not sure money's worth the same here as it is outside. There seems to be a shortage of places to even spend it, at least beyond the basics."
-
>"Yeah, I suppose that would be something of a change of pace. Not that we haven't both had a lifetime's worth of those just in the last couple days. But, you know, when I think of it, I'm not sure money's worth the same here as it is outside. There seems to be a shortage of places to even spend it, at least beyond the basics."
>"We'll find something to do with it," says Renko. "It's gotta be used for something, otherwise my friend wouldn't want her share."
>_
-
'Loot' doesn't necessarily imply money. And Patchouli's library is quite a treasure. A splittable one, at that.
>"What about the fairies?"
-
I'm aware there are non-monetary things other people might want from there. But that's not the impression I was getting from Renko about what she was personally interested in. And I'm pretty sure, in her case, the books aren't it.
>"Share of what? Whatever expensive portable stuff you can find in there?"
-
I'm aware there are non-monetary things other people might want from there. But that's not the impression I was getting from Renko about what she was personally interested in. And I'm pretty sure, in her case, the books aren't it.
I don't think it's even money - it's power. Money is an easy way to represent that power, especially in 'our' world, but that seems like what she wants. To be the strongest. The ruler. The master. The ki...queen.
-
>"What about the fairies?"
>"They get the pantry," says Renko. "And I tend to give them a half of what I get."
>"Share of what? Whatever expensive portable stuff you can find in there?"
>"Yeah," Renko says, "But she gets half of the money, too. In the end, it'll be 50/50"
>_
-
>So the fairies do want in on this for selfish reasons as well, eh... damn.
>"How would you plan to split the mansion itself, then?"
-
>So the fairies do want in on this for selfish reasons as well, eh... damn.
>"How would you plan to split the mansion itself, then?"
>Annoyance.
>"She doesn't care about it. The faeries don't, either. Aside from visiting."
>_
-
>"After succesfully claiming the mansion, what'll you do to the current inhabitants?"
-
>"After succesfully claiming the mansion, what'll you do to the current inhabitants?"
>"Probably kick 'em out." says Renko. "Can't just let them hang around after taking over."
>_
-
> We know the owner is a vampire, right?
> Do you really think you can beat a vampire, though? You may have an army, but you're still only human. The owner must be really powerful if they manage to have a mansion that big. I don't want you to get hurt..."
-
> We know the owner is a vampire, right?
> Do you really think you can beat a vampire, though? You may have an army, but you're still only human. The owner must be really powerful if they manage to have a mansion that big. I don't want you to get hurt..."
>You're heard it a couple times.
>"That's the thing, I'm not going to be fighting her alone. I don't care how powerful she is, she's not going to be happy with an army firing on her at all angles. Even my partner agrees with that, and she's got all kinds of experience. Besides, I'm not even going to think about charging into that at night, so no worries there."
>_
-
>How long is it until night now, then? As best we can tell
-
>How long is it until night now, then? As best we can tell
>You are underground. You have no real idea. But, you think it s probably going to be a few hours yet, four to six.
>_
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>"She might still be stronger than usual in the evening, especially if the fight drags on... I think it'd be safer to hold off the main assault until daytime tomorrow, if you can manage it. More time to fine-tune that secret weapon and make sure you have the advantage."
>And for us to have time to get the advantage against you. Oh god, this is going to hurt...
-
Are you still opposed to mentioning (at this juncture) the obvious moral dubiousness of teaming up with a stranger to divide someone else's possessions among yourselves?
-
>"She might still be stronger than usual in the evening, especially if the fight drags on... I think it'd be safer to hold off the main assault until daytime tomorrow, if you can manage it. More time to fine-tune that secret weapon and make sure you have the advantage."
>And for us to have time to get the advantage against you. Oh god, this is going to hurt...
>"Maybe. It depends how long she's going to take. I want to do it today, but...yeah, it's looking less likely, isn't it?"
>It may hurt indeed. Especially if that course costs you your humanity.
>_
-
> "Yeah, I was thinking that you'd probably have better chances if you attacked them early on tomorrow, instead of tonight. It would also allow the fairies to rest up and prepare for it, haven't they been partying and dancing a lot today? They might get tired."
-
> "Yeah, I was thinking that you'd probably have better chances if you attacked them early on tomorrow, instead of tonight. It would also allow the fairies to rest up and prepare for it, haven't they been partying and dancing a lot today? They might get tired."
>"Might do, might do..." She sits up and looks at you, frowning slightly. "And, why are you interested, all of a sudden? I thought you didn't want anything to do with it."
>_
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Personally, if we're looking at the angle to best preserve our friendship after this is all over, I think pretending to be on her side (to gather information and delay her, ect.) until the moment we try to stop her is more likely to be seen as a betrayal of trust than simply being up front about the fact that we don't approve. At this point, she's about to return, anyway, so we don't need to worry about 'driving her off' by us pointing about the whole moral issue again.
-
Suggestion:
"I don't want you hurt, Renko. And while I... I honestly don't think I approve of what you're planning to do, it's not my right to tell you to stop. It sounds like your mind is made up."
Stopping you because you're not yourself at the moment, on the other hand...
-
Isn't that lying? You do know there be consequences if she isn't under an influence if you lie to her right?
How about this:
> "Renko..I..I really don't approve of what your doing but I also don't want you to get hurt, this is why I'm telling you this, you could get really hurt you know" Sad face.
-
I don't think we can go with the 'you might get hurt' angle, since she's repeatedly demonstrated that she'd certain it will work. And it quite possibly might. Rather the issue is that, whether it would work or not, it's wrong. My personal thought is something more like this:
>"Renko, you know how much you mean to me, but... no matter how much you think the rules have changed here, I still don't think it's right to take someone else's property and home like this. Those people are still people; that much hasn't changed, even in Gensokyo. Are you sure you want to do this to them?"
-
I think Draco wins this one.
-
In addition to the above ideas, how about:
> "Besides, we just got here. If you intend on staying here, do you really want to introduce yourself to the rest of Gensokyo by kicking someone out of their house and claiming it for your own? That's not going to make you very many friends or earn you a lot of trust."
-
I think Draco wins this one.
Yeah, but still add the sad face to the end of Draco's speech.
-
In addition to the above ideas, how about:
> "Besides, we just got here. If you intend on staying here, do you really want to introduce yourself to the rest of Gensokyo by kicking someone out of their house and claiming it for your own? That's not going to make you very many friends or earn you a lot of trust."
>She'll probably respond that she's got the fairies, but still do this.
-
>She'll probably respond that she's got the fairies, but still do this.
It isn't going to earn the fairies many friends, either.
-
>"Renko, you know how much you mean to me, but... no matter how much you think the rules have changed here, I still don't think it's right to take someone else's property and home like this. Those people are still people; that much hasn't changed, even in Gensokyo. Are you sure you want to do this to them?"
> "Besides, we just got here. If you intend on staying here, do you really want to introduce yourself to the rest of Gensokyo by kicking someone out of their house and claiming it for your own? That's not going to make you very many friends or earn you a lot of trust."
>Her face falters a little. "Does...it really bother you that much? Why?"
>_
-
>"For exactly the reason I said, Renko. A few days ago, would you have broken into someone's house with a gang, and taken all their stuff? This isn't really much different."
-
>"Well, how would you feel if someone you didn't even know suddenly tried to steal YOUR house just because they felt like it? It doesn't help that some of the people living there can't even go in the sunlight, a normal house would leave them cooped up in a room all day. And Patchouli would lose her library, and they'd lose all or at least many of their other belongings as well..."
>Shake your head sadly. "It's simply not right."
-
>Hold for a moment instead. Think about how to phrase this.
I don't think she's going to accept "it's wrong" or pleas for sympathy that easily. We need a more valid angle about why this is wrong for her own interests, and the fairies'.
-
Do we? It's not about practical benefit or detriment. It's about right and wrong. Arguing for the first does not say anything about the latter.
And I agree, she probably won't accept that it's 'wrong', but that lack of acceptance is itself important in the end. It's asking her point-blank about her principles, or lack thereof.
Even if we convince her of anything with the other angle, it's no real victory. Getting her to stop because it's 'impractical' isn't good enough.
-
Oh boy quad ninja by philosophy. I bet this is going to get ripped to shreds, but I'll throw it out there anyway.
> "In the short time I've been here, I've been all over Gensokyo, talking to so many different people, learning so many different things. There are a lot of really good people here, Renko, including some that have spent time with, have earned the respect of, and even sympathize with fairies. I could even introduce you to some pretty easily. I've done things for various people, and they've done things for me, sometimes without even asking me for anything in return. It's been really great. It's...home, I would even say. You don't need to knock over a house to have fun and live a good life here. Gensokyo is ripe for rewarding altruism. We can be good people and mean something here."
> "If you went ahead with this plan, though? Sure, you might gain a mansion, but you'd be losing your opportunity at all that. It's not going to take long for the rest of Gensokyo to want nothing to do with you, either out of disgust, or out of fear. Is that the kind of person you want to be? I...I know I can't be that person, not after seeing how rewarding my path can be, and I don't want to see you become that kind of person, either. I don't want you to take all I know you could do...all we could do and just throw it away. Is this really what you want? For the rest of Gensokyo to see you as a thief and a bully, as someone worthy of derision and scorn instead of friendship and trust?"
-
Do we? It's not about practical benefit or detriment. It's about right and wrong. Arguing for the first does not say anything about the latter.
She's thinking in those selfish terms right now. If we can express it that way, it'd work best. Purvis will probably hate me for bringing up evolutionary psychology (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Evolution_of_morality), but there's traces of something to work with along those lines. Something like being on good terms with the SDM's residents possibly/ultimately being better for her and the fairies than driving them out, if only in the long run.
Grand theft - all war's good for.
And I agree, she probably won't accept that it's 'wrong', but that lack of acceptance is itself important in the end. It's asking her point-blank about her principles, or lack thereof.
Even if we convince her of anything with the other angle, it's no real victory. Getting her to stop because it's 'impractical' isn't good enough.
This is a valid point, but bringing up the faults in her actions in more subtle ways to inspire doubt and thought before properly confronting about it might work better - it could put our argument in a better position, even in her mind. On the other hand, we covered that much on the way down, to a certain extent.
What we haven't touched on yet is how she might be manipulating the fairies to her own ends herself, which isn't much different from the SDM... but let's save that until it's reasonably relevant. Oh, and she's getting biased accounts if she's only been speaking with the fairies and her benefactor. Again, even if physics is broke, the scientific method might not be. And they've both worked with that.
Will edit after reading Kilga's suggestion properly Which covers the most of this quite handily.
-
What we haven't touched on yet is how she might be manipulating the fairies to her own ends herself, which isn't much different from the SDM... but let's save that until it's reasonably relevant.
This is true but the obvious response is "I have every intention of treating them better than the mansion people treat them" which we can't really argue and is quite possibly true anyway. A better approach might be calling her benefactor's stance on fairies into question, as she's on record as not wanting to deal with them if she can avoid it.
-
>"For exactly the reason I said, Renko. A few days ago, would you have broken into someone's house with a gang, and taken all their stuff? This isn't really much different."
>"The whole world's different, Mary," she says.
>"Well, how would you feel if someone you didn't even know suddenly tried to steal YOUR house just because they felt like it? It doesn't help that some of the people living there can't even go in the sunlight, a normal house would leave them cooped up in a room all day. And Patchouli would lose her library, and they'd lose all or at least many of their other belongings as well..."
>Shake your head sadly. "It's simply not right."
>She doesn't say anything.
>Hold for a moment instead. Think about how to phrase this.
>You pause for a moment. It is a painful silence.
> "In the short time I've been here, I've been all over Gensokyo, talking to so many different people, learning so many different things. There are a lot of really good people here, Renko, including some that have spent time with, have earned the respect of, and even sympathize with fairies. I could even introduce you to some pretty easily. I've done things for various people, and they've done things for me, sometimes without even asking me for anything in return. It's been really great. It's...home, I would even say. You don't need to knock over a house to have fun and live a good life here. Gensokyo is ripe for rewarding altruism. We can be good people and mean something here."
> "If you went ahead with this plan, though? Sure, you might gain a mansion, but you'd be losing your opportunity at all that. It's not going to take long for the rest of Gensokyo to want nothing to do with you, either out of disgust, or out of fear. Is that the kind of person you want to be? I...I know I can't be that person, not after seeing how rewarding my path can be, and I don't want to see you become that kind of person, either. I don't want you to take all I know you could do...all we could do and just throw it away. Is this really what you want? For the rest of Gensokyo to see you as a thief and a bully, as someone worthy of derision and scorn instead of friendship and trust?"
>"To be honest?" she says, "Conquering a mansion is nothing. You know the vampire in there? She tried to cause a nuclear winter once, because she didn't like the sunlight. I don't think people are going to hold it against me for long. Gensokyo's forgiven a lot more than me. I have to do this, Mary. I have to make it work. And it will work. Even if I lose it the next day, no one can take that from me."
>_
-
> "And what about this world being different means common decency no longer applies?"
>Might want to hold this. She seems a little upset already.
>"Then why DO you have to do this, Renko? I'm not sure I understand."
-
why did Renko's latest response have to make so much fucking sense ):
-
Yeah, I deleted it for that reason. What about this instead?
> "So...you only want to knock this mansion over so you can say you did? Surely there's something less...malevolent you can do to make a name for yourself?"
-
>"Then why DO you have to do this, Renko? I'm not sure I understand."
>"Because it will work," she says. "Because no one believes it will. No one's tried it. But it'll work!"
> "So...you only want to knock this mansion over so you can say you did? Surely there's something less...malevolent you can do to make a name for yourself?"
>"What's malevolent about it? This is a place where people shoot each other every day. I even saw a couple of oni fighting in the street out there. It's a place where people treat faeries like target practice. This isn't malevolent, it's...elegant."
>_
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Just because you CAN be forgiven doesn't mean that you should make it necessary. Especially if that forgiveness requires changing the behavior that had to be forgiven anyway - defeating the point. Or not everyone forgives you, or a lot has to be done to make up for it.
Suggestions:
"I don't think it's the fighting or danmaku that I'm upset about, Renko. It's that something so big is on the line for it, with lasting destructive consequences should you succeed. Maybe even if you fail, if the mansion's residents take it out on the fairies for a long time."
"I... I just think there may be a better way to go about this. To prove yourself, to show the strength of fairies, to get fairies respect... I don't think you have to attack the mansion to do those things."
"Given that we can see the sun, I get the impression that the vampire ultimately failed. Do you think she would have been forgiven if she succeeded?"
-
I actually have a little bit of a different idea on what to say. Give me a moment to type it up.
EDIT: Though the third thing is good to point out. People were only forgiven if they failed.
-
>"You could try... attacking the mansion but NOT taking it over if you win, maybe?"
-
I think that the third option is definitely worth mentioning.
I also think it's worth asking why she's trying so hard to prove that it can be done. I suspect we already know the answer to that, but it's good for her to actually hear herself say it.
-
How about this, then.
"From what experience are you speaking, here? I've met plenty of people that wanted to talk to me instead of shoot at me. The conflicts I've seen? I'm sure you've heard of Yuuka, right? She didn't shoot at me for invading her air space, she had me plant some flowers, and then she paid me handsomely for it and served me some tea. Kanako and Utsuho were really not fans of each other after whatever happened in Gensokyo Isle between them, but I went to both of them with an idea they could work together on, and both of them seem to have taken to it. Neither shot at me or decided they needed to go off and shoot at the other. Utsuho and Yuugi were the same way; major conflict that was resolved without a fight. When I went to the mansion? Meiling didn't shoot at me, even though I had no business there as far as she knew. When I went to the Moriya Shrine? The tengu guard didn't shoot at me, and let me pass after I explained my business. Hina only shot at me as a test; she was doing it for my benefit."
"Shizuha shot at me, yes, but she was apparently in a bad mood, and she gave up very quickly anyway. To be honest, most of the random shootings I've experienced today have come from fairies, like when I came back from the Hakurei Shrine, or when Mystia pointed out that their money wasn't actually money. The youkai here don't want to fight as much as you might think. Given all the shops and small businesses I've seen around, I actually think they rather enjoy the peaceful life, wherever they can get it."
-
I'm fine with Kilga's post (in addition to the earlier stuff I mentioned)
How about something like this, in addition?
"Renko... I know that you feel like so many of the things you studied and knew are meaningless now. Is... is this about proving that the things you know and the things you can do still mean something here? That you can still accomplish something other people here can't?"
Too strong?
-
I'll think about how much of that card we want to play. That has crossed my mind, yes.
>"From what experience are you speaking, here? I've met plenty of people that wanted to talk to me instead of shoot at me. The conflicts I've seen? I'm sure you've heard of Yuuka, right? She didn't shoot at me for invading her air space, she had me plant some flowers, and then she paid me handsomely for it and served me some tea. Kanako and Utsuho were really not fans of each other after whatever happened in Gensokyo Isle between them, but I went to both of them with an idea they could work together on, and both of them seem to have taken to it. Neither shot at me or decided they needed to go off and shoot at the other. Utsuho and Yuugi were the same way; major conflict that was resolved without a fight. When I went to the mansion? Meiling didn't shoot at me, even though I had no business there as far as she knew. When I went to the Moriya Shrine? The tengu guard didn't shoot at me, and let me pass after I explained my business. Hina only shot at me as a test; she was doing it for my benefit."
>"Shizuha shot at me, yes, but she was apparently in a bad mood, and she gave up very quickly anyway. To be honest, most of the random shootings I've experienced today have come from fairies, like when I came back from the Hakurei Shrine, or when Mystia pointed out that their money wasn't actually money. The youkai here don't want to fight as much as you might think. Given all the shops and small businesses I've seen around, I actually think they rather enjoy the peaceful life, wherever they can get it."
-
The right idea Draco, but we might as well ask her to say it herself rather than presume things and let her get defensive. More like:
>"Renko, I want to make sure I have this perfectly clear - what is it that you're making work? What are you doing with all this?"
-
The right idea Draco, but we might as well ask her to say it herself rather than presume things and let her get defensive. More like:
>"Renko, I want to make sure I have this perfectly clear - what is it that you're making work? What are you doing with all this?"
I was just concerned she'd pass it off as something more frivolous unless we confront her with it directly. But I suppose that's something that can wait until we've given her a chance to give an answer that we don't really believe, first. Alternately, it may be that she honestly doesn't yet realize what's really driving her to do this, under it all. There's the obvious external reasons, and then the underlying ones. So it mightn't hurt to give her that to think about.
-
>"From what experience are you speaking, here? I've met plenty of people that wanted to talk to me instead of shoot at me. The conflicts I've seen? I'm sure you've heard of Yuuka, right? She didn't shoot at me for invading her air space, she had me plant some flowers, and then she paid me handsomely for it and served me some tea. Kanako and Utsuho were really not fans of each other after whatever happened in Gensokyo Isle between them, but I went to both of them with an idea they could work together on, and both of them seem to have taken to it. Neither shot at me or decided they needed to go off and shoot at the other. Utsuho and Yuugi were the same way; major conflict that was resolved without a fight. When I went to the mansion? Meiling didn't shoot at me, even though I had no business there as far as she knew. When I went to the Moriya Shrine? The tengu guard didn't shoot at me, and let me pass after I explained my business. Hina only shot at me as a test; she was doing it for my benefit."
>"Shizuha shot at me, yes, but she was apparently in a bad mood, and she gave up very quickly anyway. To be honest, most of the random shootings I've experienced today have come from fairies, like when I came back from the Hakurei Shrine, or when Mystia pointed out that their money wasn't actually money. The youkai here don't want to fight as much as you might think. Given all the shops and small businesses I've seen around, I actually think they rather enjoy the peaceful life, wherever they can get it."
>"Yeah, but that's just one day," says Renko, frowning. "And, it's just you. Maybe you were just lucky? Maybe it's because they don't want to get in trouble with that one shrine maiden. Maybe you're just too nice to shoot at. I dunno, I wasn't there for most of that. As for the faeries, of course it's going to happen a bit more. They're all excited. And if you're running all over the place, you're gonna meet more than normal."
>"You could try... attacking the mansion but NOT taking it over if you win, maybe?"
>She says nothing, looking downward a bit.
>"Renko, I want to make sure I have this perfectly clear - what is it that you're making work? What are you doing with all this?"
"I don't even know what you're asking..."
>_
-
> "I'm asking...why do you need to do this? Why does it need to work? Why is it so important that no one else has done it?"
-
> "I'm asking...why do you need to do this? Why does it need to work? Why is it so important that no one else has done it?"
>She shrugs. "Why was it important when someone sailed around the world?"
>_
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> "So...it's just to show that something can be done? Is there really any pride, any sense of accomplishment in beating an opponent when you outnumber them thirty to one?"
-
>Don't bring up the outnumber bit. Even Renko knows that the faeries are incredibly wimpy in comparison to the people she's going up against. The pride is just to win with faeries in ANY number.
And frankly, I can see her point in it being an accomplishment, even if they threw literally every fairy in Gensokyo at the SDM. Keeping them together for long enough to do it ALONE is an accomplishment. But that's a bit beside the point
-
> She's researched the rules, though, and she's aware of Reimu losing to fairies before. Fairies may be weaker individually, sure, but it's not at all impossible for them to win fights, as they've shown in the past.
Renko's not doing anything that hasn't already been accomplished by Cirno, really. If the point is to mass them and get them moving in a single direction, there are better ends toward which they can work.
-
>"Because it was the first person to make an outstanding achievement, I think. But why this?"
-
Oh, I agree. But I really think presenting that argument to her weakens it, from her point of view. It doesn't matter if WE think it's the accomplishment she thinks it is
-
Very well.
> "So...it's just to show that something can be done? Is there really any pride, any sense of accomplishment in beating an opponent when you outnumber them thirty to one?"
> Strike this.
-
Well, shit, I have to go to bed, because I need to work tomorrow. I trust you guys to do what needs to be done in this conversation, but I'm going to put my additional thoughts on the table anyway.
At this point I think it's very important to get her to admit what's really important: demonstrating the fact that fairies can be coordinated at all and deserve more respect than they're given, or the fact that she took a bunch of fairies and brought them together into a cohesive unit. If the fairies are more important, point out that her benefactor clearly doesn't care about them, as demonstrated by her desire for "half the loot" (when just the accomplishment is all that's important to Renko) and distaste with the idea of interacting with them instead of her. If her accomplishment is more important, call her on not actually caring about the fairies and ask about all the previous instances where she tried to convince us fairy retribution was the important part, because she was essentially lying to our face.
-
>"Because it was the first person to make an outstanding achievement, I think. But why this?"
>"Because I can, Mary," she says. "It'll work! Just...can't you see? It'll work!"
>_
-
Also possibly worth consideration is the idea that the benefactor is blackmailing Renko somehow. She's dodged enough questions, including flat-out not answering the "why not just conquer the mansion and then leave it" question, that it's worth considering. We could get away with asking Satori about this ("I don't want to know who it is, but can you tell me if they're threatening or blackmailing Renko at all?") because no one's trust is being broken in that instance, and we could also use it to keep showing Renko that we do care about her.
-
Oh, well, that setup works.
> "No, I can see it. It's important because you want to show the world you could do something no one else had done, right? But then, what of the fairies themselves? What about the times you told me it was important because the mansion deserved the retribution for their poor fairy treatment, which neither of us can even say for sure was the case? Did that ever really matter?"
-
> "No, I can see it. It's important because you want to show the world you could do something no one else had done, right? But then, what of the fairies themselves? What about the times you told me it was important because the mansion deserved the retribution for their poor fairy treatment, which neither of us can even say for sure was the case? Did that ever really matter?"
>"...Why are you saying that, of course they matter!" says Renko, looking rather upset.
>_
-
At this point I think it's very important to get her to admit what's really important: demonstrating the fact that fairies can be coordinated at all and deserve more respect than they're given, or the fact that she took a bunch of fairies and brought them together into a cohesive unit. If the fairies are more important, point out that her benefactor clearly doesn't care about them, as demonstrated by her desire for "half the loot" (when just the accomplishment is all that's important to Renko) and distaste with the idea of interacting with them instead of her.
I don't know if Renko will particularly care about her benefactor not being too fond of fairies - as long as she's helping Renko prove what the fairies can do, Renko might not mind unless she actively attacks or undermines them.
On the other hand, there might be more constructive things that could be done with a mob of fairies, leading back into the part about whether this is the best way to go about proving their value and getting them respect - something that I think Mary might be willing/able to help with, for that matter. I wonder if Byakuren has any constructive projects they might be willing to undertake?
Also, it may be that BOTH are important to her. They're not mutually exclusive. Which I think we just walked into.
---
Suggestions:
"... alright. You DO care. You've been among them a lot more than I have, anyway... I'm sorry for assuming that about your priorities, Renko."
"It's just... I'm not sure that's the best way to go about it, you know? The people in the mansion are already suffering from the extra workload right now. They're getting punished in small ways already. If that's enough to convince them to treat fairies a little better, or stop relying on them as maids, then why would they need to be chased away, and everything in the mansion stolen? I can't guarantee that'd happen, but... it might be worth a shot, before doing something you'd have to be forgiven for."
(repeats of the point about Remi being forgiven after failing)
-
Popped back up because I thought of something else, but now I can't remember what it was. Might as well clean up my mess while I'm here, though.
> "I say that because you've been sending me mixed messages. First it was important because the fairies deserve retribution, then it was important because you wanted to show it could be done. I didn't know which it was...I'm sorry for thinking it was just one or the other."
> "Surely there's something more constructive you could do with them, though? Something that would gain them respect, and at the same time, something you could point at and go 'look at what I motivated them to do'? Something less destructive than beating people up and then looting them? I can think of a couple of places where they would be very useful, if you really could wrangle them into a cohesive unit."
-
A fairy-constructed jetplane would be so totally fucked up.
Just sayin'.
-
That was it, yeah. Renko could work on that jet if she's that worried about a personal accomplishment.
It's not the only option available to us, though. Byakuren comes to mind, as you pointed out, and she'll have Ichirin with her, which is an added bonus.
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> "I say that because you've been sending me mixed messages. First it was important because the fairies deserve retribution, then it was important because you wanted to show it could be done. I didn't know which it was...I'm sorry for thinking it was just one or the other."
> "Surely there's something more constructive you could do with them, though? Something that would gain them respect, and at the same time, something you could point at and go 'look at what I motivated them to do'? Something less destructive than beating people up and then looting them? I can think of a couple of places where they would be very useful, if you really could wrangle them into a cohesive unit."
>"Alright, just...that hurt." She frowns. "It's both things. And...I don't know. The trick is that they have to want to do it. They have to find it fun. That have to be really excited for it, you know, to get that many of them together. What've you got in mind?"
>_
-
I actually think rushing the jet could be a bad idea; given Gensokyo's current tech level, a faulty jet is likely without several years' preparation. A faulty jet is likely to fail. A dead Sanae makes no one happy, and magical safety measures to make up for it could ruin the (figurative) magic of it for her. Unless there's a way to set up Sanae's miracles to only kick in if something goes terribly wrong? It might be worth asking Kanako. Not to mention the issues of getting the right materials and having to develop a plan for it before making it, which fairies aren't exactly known for.
Also, it isn't an immediate goal, which would be necessary to divert the SDM invasion plan.
Maybe proving they're better than the SDM by making an even bigger mansion?
-
> "Well...I have a few ideas."
> "Number one is that there always seems to be some sort of construction going on at Byakuren's place. A woman named Ichirin is there, and she spent a long time with fairies. She's very sympathetic to them. They'd probably be excited to help out some place that benefits her."
> "Number two...we could ask a rabbit woman named Reisen if she has any ideas. From what Ichirin has told me, she has truly earned their respect somehow. This one's kind of roundabout, though; we'd need the help of a woman named Mokou to even reach her place, but I understand we could use Keine's help to get Mokou's help, and I bet Keine would be willing to help Dai if the ends were constructive enough."
> "Number three is the crazy one. You know the conflict between Utsuho and Kanako I mentioned? Kanako, at least, is willing to put aside their differences to built a jet plane for Sanae, Kanako's shrine maiden, and Utsuho has also shown some interest in that project. Asking fairies to help build a jet is, well...I don't even know if there are words for it. But can you imagine what their reactions would be when they got to see it go flying around, especially when you told them there was no magic involved? We can fly, sure, but we sure don't fly at jet speeds. Granted, this would take some time, and resources may be an issue, but it would be hella fun, if nothing else."
If you want to submit the "even bigger mansion" idea, go ahead.
-
> "Well...I have a few ideas."
> "Number one is that there always seems to be some sort of construction going on at Byakuren's place. A woman named Ichirin is there, and she spent a long time with fairies. She's very sympathetic to them. They'd probably be excited to help out some place that benefits her."
> "Number two...we could ask a rabbit woman named Reisen if she has any ideas. From what Ichirin has told me, she has truly earned their respect somehow. This one's kind of roundabout, though; we'd need the help of a woman named Mokou to even reach her place, but I understand we could use Keine's help to get Mokou's help, and I bet Keine would be willing to help Dai if the ends were constructive enough."
> "Number three is the crazy one. You know the conflict between Utsuho and Kanako I mentioned? Kanako, at least, is willing to put aside their differences to built a jet plane for Sanae, Kanako's shrine maiden, and Utsuho has also shown some interest in that project. Asking fairies to help build a jet is, well...I don't even know if there are words for it. But can you imagine what their reactions would be when they got to see it go flying around, especially when you told them there was no magic involved? We can fly, sure, but we sure don't fly at jet speeds. Granted, this would take some time, and resources may be an issue, but it would be hella fun, if nothing else."
>She nods along. then says. "Well, a temple...isn't much. Even if the faeries cared, it's not much of an accomplishment, really. I don't know if it would be safe, either. And, I guess we could ask this Reisen person, but, I don't think I could hold them together for that. And that third plan, that's ambitious, you might even be able to rile them up for a little while. But, to be honest? I would not want to be anywhere near it when it takes off."
>_
-
>Laugh a little.
>"I wouldn't blame you for that, Renko. I'd be pretty careful around it, too. But it might be worth a shot, even if it ends up useless. We'll just want to be careful about whether anyone's actually inside."
>"Another idea - while it's not as interesting, if you want to humble the people in that mansion, too, then making a fairy mansion that's even bigger and fancier than theirs might work."
>"Or... maybe instead of making something, you could arrange some sort of special event for people to enjoy? I'm not sure I have any bright ideas, since I'm not sure what places would be happy about having lots of fairies show up, but... having a day of fairies running around delivering flowers all over the place, or something, could be pleasant for everyone. Or maybe giving out free hugs? Hmm..."
-
oh god why am i still here
> "The act of building the temple may not be much, but what it represents would mean a lot. Humans and youkai alike would be in and out of there every day, seeking spiritual advice. Maybe even some fairies too, who knows. Both you and the fairies could point at that and take pride in it. You will all have helped build a place that helps everyone that comes through its doors, regardless of species."
> "Though...I guess I can see why that wouldn't register so high on the "this is what I can do" meter...maybe you could use the temple for garnering respect for the fairies, and help work on the jet yourself? I'll let you know right now, as far as the kappa go, when it comes to reproducing outside-world technology, all of science's rules apply once again. Well, most of them, anyway. I guess there's no defending the ghost-powered air conditioner." Smirk a bit at this. "Still, though, for this jet in particular, as little magical influence as possible is desired."
> "If you don't think construction in general is going to do it, though...what else interests them? They have to have some sort of major hobby."
-
>Laugh a little.
>"I wouldn't blame you for that, Renko. I'd be pretty careful around it, too. But it might be worth a shot, even if it ends up useless. We'll just want to be careful about whether anyone's actually inside."
>"Another idea - while it's not as interesting, if you want to humble the people in that mansion, too, then making a fairy mansion that's even bigger and fancier than theirs might work."
>"Or... maybe instead of making something, you could arrange some sort of special event for people to enjoy? I'm not sure I have any bright ideas, since I'm not sure what places would be happy about having lots of fairies show up, but... having a day of fairies running around delivering flowers all over the place, or something, could be pleasant for everyone. Or maybe giving out free hugs? Hmm..."
>"I don't know about a mansion. That'd interest them, but it'd a long time, and I don't think I could keep them together that long. And...it'd have to be their style. Hmmm. Don't know if it would be as impressive, though."
>"An event isn't much, I don't think. Faeries get together and do things from time to time as it is."
> "The act of building the temple may not be much, but what it represents would mean a lot. Humans and youkai alike would be in and out of there every day, seeking spiritual advice. Maybe even some fairies too, who knows. Both you and the fairies could point at that and take pride in it. You will all have helped build a place that helps everyone that comes through its doors, regardless of species."
> "Though...I guess I can see why that wouldn't register so high on the "this is what I can do" meter...maybe you could use the temple for garnering respect for the fairies, and help work on the jet yourself? I'll let you know right now, as far as the kappa go, when it comes to reproducing outside-world technology, all of science's rules apply once again. Well, most of them, anyway. I guess there's no defending the ghost-powered air conditioner." Smirk a bit at this. "Still, though, for this jet in particular, as little magical influence as possible is desired."
> "If you don't think construction in general is going to do it, though...what else interests them? They have to have some sort of major hobby."
>"If it's not big and flashy, I don't think the faeries themselves would care, outside a couple little groups."
>"You're really into this jet idea? I...wouldn't even trust one anyone, to be honest."
>"Major hobby? That's like asking what humans' major hobby is. In general, though, they like to have fun.
>_
-
Okay, I'm tired, I got nothin'. If we can just come up with something to catch her interest...!
Suggestion:
"But how many of them get together for these events? I have no idea how big they might be, but you've assembled quite a big group of fairies. You might be able to pull off something really special."
Flashy, semi-short-term project, fun... preferably lasting and physical results... A really tall tower? A hand-made river? Carving "RENKO WUZ HERE" into the side of Youkai Mountain? Repainting the SDM, with or without permission? Blazing a new trail for people to use? Roadside shelters for travelers of varying degrees of absurdity? Decorated paths in general? The University probably wouldn't work... A radio tower for the kappa...?
What sorts of things could be done with the resources in Gensokyo, and what would be useful for the place while still being fun to make/cause?
-
The essential problem with a great many project ideas we could propose is that they'd take too much time to complete. And those that wouldn't just aren't big or impressive enough to count in her mind. An invasion like this takes a day at most (once they set out to do it). Building anything with enough size and wow-factor will take substantially longer than that (a mansion is on the scale of months, at the very least, and some of the others are still weeks). Beyond a short time, even Renko won't be able to keep them together.
I wish I had something constructive to add, but I don't really have any good ideas at the moment, either. Maybe after I sleep for a bit... >.>
-
> "I'm very into the jet idea. Not just because it will serve as a way to make Kanako and Utsuho not want to strangle each other anymore, but because, from what I understand of the kappa, they have the brains and the willpower to pull it off. The things the kappa do might seem mundane by our standards, but it really blows their minds, so who are we to step on their fun? It would still be something huge by Gensokyo's standards."
> "This is quite the interesting conundrum. I wonder...what do you think the fairies are more interested in? Having fun or gaining the respect of other races here?"
> "...Not to say they don't want both! Just...which one is a higher priority for them?"
-
> "I'm very into the jet idea. Not just because it will serve as a way to make Kanako and Utsuho not want to strangle each other anymore, but because, from what I understand of the kappa, they have the brains and the willpower to pull it off. The things the kappa do might seem mundane by our standards, but it really blows their minds, so who are we to step on their fun? It would still be something huge by Gensokyo's standards."
> "This is quite the interesting conundrum. I wonder...what do you think the fairies are more interested in? Having fun or gaining the respect of other races here?"
> "...Not to say they don't want both! Just...which one is a higher priority for them?"
>"Actually," says Renko, frowning. "given how many people around here fly, I don't think people in general would care much about it. Not to say that the other things aren't good, though."
>"And which?" She chuckles. "Depends on when you ask them."
>_
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> "It's not about the flight, it's about the speed, and the lack of magic involved. I know it sounds silly, but Gensokyo doesn't seem to know a whole lot about the outside world, so technology we take for granted amazes them. Nitori's pretty hell-bent on making her air conditioner, for one, and the kappa on the whole are already planning a university despite not having many teachers for it."
> "...Actually, maybe THAT could be something for you! You could be a professor at the kappa university! With your knowledge of the outer world's science, you'd be a big hit there, I'm sure."
-
> "It's not about the flight, it's about the speed, and the lack of magic involved. I know it sounds silly, but Gensokyo doesn't seem to know a whole lot about the outside world, so technology we take for granted amazes them. Nitori's pretty hell-bent on making her air conditioner, for one, and the kappa on the whole are already planning a university despite not having many teachers for it."
> "...Actually, maybe THAT could be something for you! You could be a professor at the kappa university! With your knowledge of the outer world's science, you'd be a big hit there, I'm sure."
>She nods. "I can see where you're coming from, but it's still not, you know...impressive. I mean, the faeries wouldn't even be doing that much other than grunt work. At least with my idea, they're actually doing the thing that's supposed to be meaningful."
>She shakes her head when you suggest being a teacher. "If I'm going to teach a sham, I'd train con men."
>_
-
>"Hey, the science of the outside world isn't a sham, you know that. Computers and refrigerators and stuff like that... it wouldn't stop working in Gensokyo. Err, I don't think they would, at least. Magic doesn't trump EVERYTHING that science can do. Although, at least it tends to be more eco-friendly."
-
> "But it's not a sham to them! Think about it! If science was really that unimportant here in the face of magic, why would an entire species be absolutely fascinated by it, with the rest of the area at least curious? Look at us, and how we're amazed at all the things we can do with magic. They're the same way! They're amazed at all the things they can do without it! If you led them into their very own industrial revolution, they'd probably revere you forever!"
> This is meant to be spoken with a tone of excitement, rather than simply shouting it.
-
>"Hey, the science of the outside world isn't a sham, you know that. Computers and refrigerators and stuff like that... it wouldn't stop working in Gensokyo. Err, I don't think they would, at least. Magic doesn't trump EVERYTHING that science can do. Although, at least it tends to be more eco-friendly."
>"Yeah, but the only reason it hasn't stopped working is just dumb luck," says Renko. "We're just lucky, severely lucky, being wrong hasn't bitten us yet, and this place is proof that we've gotten pretty much all of it wrong. It's not that magic trumps everything, its that magic proves there's so many exceptions to the axioms we build the whole thing on that it's just useless."
> "But it's not a sham to them! Think about it! If science was really that unimportant here in the face of magic, why would an entire species be absolutely fascinated by it, with the rest of the area at least curious? Look at us, and how we're amazed at all the things we can do with magic. They're the same way! They're amazed at all the things they can do without it! If you led them into their very own industrial revolution, they'd probably revere you forever!"
> This is meant to be spoken with a tone of excitement, rather than simply shouting it.
>She shakes her head. "At least until physics takes a vacation for some reason I don't understand and someone gets killed. Or a lot of someones in the case of that jet. You can't use them anymore, Maribel they don't really work. And what does it do for the faeries, anyways?"
>_
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> "Agh, I really wish you could meet some of these kappa, just so you can see for yourself how much it means to them. I'm willing to bet, though, that physics hasn't taken too many vacations on them yet, if they're still going at it with such gusto."
> "But okay, the fairies, yes. I've been thinking on that, and I'm not actually sure your plan will get them the respect you want it to. Bear with a bit on this, I'm going somewhere with it. You said that the shrine maiden has lost fairy fights before, right?"
-
>"I think you're thinking about this the wrong way. Physics doesn't just like, disappear out of nowhere and suddenly technology stops working. That stuff only happens when someone uses magic to PURPOSEFULLY do something that normally isn't possible. You don't just randomly start floating into the air because gravity decided to take a break, you only do it when you use magic to fly. And the world outside Gensokyo, from what I've heard here, doesn't HAVE any magic, or at least not enough to use, so physics and such never doesn't work, because there's no magic to stop it with."
-
>"I don't think exceptions make a rule useless. I mean, look at the progress of the science we know. Some of Newton's laws are technically wrong, because they fail to account for relativity, but on the scale the people normally operate on, they're right enough that it doesn't make a difference. You can't call the vast, vast majority of the world a 'fluke', just because there's some exceptions here. If anything, Gensokyo is the fluke. What we see here may enhance our understanding of how the universe operates, but it doesn't render all that humanity has done wrong, mishanded, or useless."
-
> "Agh, I really wish you could meet some of these kappa, just so you can see for yourself how much it means to them. I'm willing to bet, though, that physics hasn't taken too many vacations on them yet, if they're still going at it with such gusto."
> "But okay, the fairies, yes. I've been thinking on that, and I'm not actually sure your plan will get them the respect you want it to. Bear with a bit on this, I'm going somewhere with it. You said that the shrine maiden has lost fairy fights before, right?"
>"It's rare, but it can happen, yeah."
>"I think you're thinking about this the wrong way. Physics doesn't just like, disappear out of nowhere and suddenly technology stops working. That stuff only happens when someone uses magic to PURPOSEFULLY do something that normally isn't possible. You don't just randomly start floating into the air because gravity decided to take a break, you only do it when you use magic to fly. And the world outside Gensokyo, from what I've heard here, doesn't HAVE any magic, or at least not enough to use, so physics and such never doesn't work, because there's no magic to stop it with."
>"I don't think exceptions make a rule useless. I mean, look at the progress of the science we know. Some of Newton's laws are technically wrong, because they fail to account for relativity, but on the scale the people normally operate on, they're right enough that it doesn't make a difference. You can't call the vast, vast majority of the world a 'fluke', just because there's some exceptions here. If anything, Gensokyo is the fluke. What we see here may enhance our understanding of how the universe operates, but it doesn't render all that humanity has done wrong, mishanded, or useless."
>"Newton's physics only fall apart when you go down to a quantum level, or when you start to factor the speed of light into things. The only reason we hadn't gotten in trouble over that was because we couldn't do anything with it. This is different, Maribel. This is literally gravity deciding it's not going to work. It's Biology deciding it's going to toss aside evolution and pretty much everything else. This is entropy quietly bowing out. Maribel, everything we knew is wrong to the point there's pretty much no way it can be effectively salvaged. Science is dead. There's point in even worrying about it. If the kappa want to do things, well...fine for them."
>_
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>"Renko, when we went searching for this kind of stuff together, what were you really hoping to find, then? Weren't we looking for things that weren't explainable by science as we currently understood it? Wasn't that the whole point?"
>"And how is flying 'gravity deciding not to work'? Why can't it be some sort of repulsive force that counteracts it? There's a lot about the true nature of gravity that we don't understand as it is. Perhaps there's some way to directly interact and affect it, and the ability to fly here is just a manifestation of the manipulation of that force? Saying that flying MUST be 'gravity not working' seems really premature...."
-
> "And the fairy fight. Right. It's rare, but it can happen. I think the phrase you used was 'got lucky'? Let's say you fight this mansion and win. People will be in one of two minds about it. Some will just think the fairies got lucky again, and some will give you the credit for organizing them. If you keep hold of the mansion through assault after assault? If you go all megalomania and destroy places in Gensokyo one by one? All that will do is swing people thinking they were lucky over to giving you credit. Either way, no one is going to give them any credit. It's all going to go to you, or get lost in the black hole of 'luck'. The fairies themselves won't gain any respect, because they won't be the ones doing the unexpected, you will."
-
> She couldn't have just decided that science was wrong when she learned of magic, that mysterious benefactor must have done something to change her world view like that.
> "Also the gravity isn't working doesn't make sense, this place does not act like outer space you know."
-
>"Renko, when we went searching for this kind of stuff together, what were you really hoping to find, then? Weren't we looking for things that weren't explainable by science as we currently understood it? Wasn't that the whole point?"
>"And how is flying 'gravity deciding not to work'? Why can't it be some sort of repulsive force that counteracts it? There's a lot about the true nature of gravity that we don't understand as it is. Perhaps there's some way to directly interact and affect it, and the ability to fly here is just a manifestation of the manipulation of that force? Saying that flying MUST be 'gravity not working' seems really premature...."
>She looks back toward the ground and sighs. "Yeah, but I didn't think we'd end up disproving the whole thing pretty much irrevocably..."
>"If it were just that, I might agree with you," says Renko. "But you know there's a whole other land floating up there above the clouds? It's optional, Mary. The whole thing is."
> "And the fairy fight. Right. It's rare, but it can happen. I think the phrase you used was 'got lucky'? Let's say you fight this mansion and win. People will be in one of two minds about it. Some will just think the fairies got lucky again, and some will give you the credit for organizing them. If you keep hold of the mansion through assault after assault? If you go all megalomania and destroy places in Gensokyo one by one? All that will do is swing people thinking they were lucky over to giving you credit. Either way, no one is going to give them any credit. It's all going to go to you, or get lost in the black hole of 'luck'. The fairies themselves won't gain any respect, because they won't be the ones doing the unexpected, you will."
>"The reason no one gives them any credit is because it doesn't really do anything," says Renko. "The Shrine Maiden still solves the problem, and so on. That's what's different here. This time, we're going to make a difference. Not just a single fluke, but a whole series of victories."
> She couldn't have just decided that science was wrong when she learned of magic, that mysterious benefactor must have done something to change her world view like that.
> "Also the gravity isn't working doesn't make sense, this place does not act like outer space you know."
>It's possible.
>Renko chuckles. "Now you're just approaching it wrong from both ways."
>_
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> "A whole series of victories? What happened to 'we could lose the mansion tomorrow and it wouldn't matter'?"
-
>"If it were just that, I might agree with you," says Renko. "But you know there's a whole other land floating up there above the clouds? It's optional, Mary. The whole thing is."
IT'S TENSHI ISN'T IT
that makes SO MUCH SENSE
too bad Maribel doesn't know who the hell that is
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> "A whole series of victories? What happened to 'we could lose the mansion tomorrow and it wouldn't matter'?"
>"Because we still won, Mary," says Renko. "We still did it. We still beat them all, drove them out, and won."
>_
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> "But that's not the 'whole series of victories' that would get the fairies any respect. You drive them out, then get kicked out yourself the next day, and people go back to thinking what they always did about fairies, because it was just another fluke. They'd probably forget about you, too, to be honest."
-
IT'S TENSHI ISN'T IT
that makes SO MUCH SENSE
too bad Maribel doesn't know who the hell that is
That makes so much sense.
-
> "But that's not the 'whole series of victories' that would get the fairies any respect. You drive them out, then get kicked out yourself the next day, and people go back to thinking what they always did about fairies, because it was just another fluke. They'd probably forget about you, too, to be honest."
>"You can't say it's just another "fluke" when there's more like a dozen of them in rapid succession," Renko says. "It isn't just getting lucky against a powerful foe once. It's taking down several of them, practically at the same time. People are gonna notice!"
>_
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>"Ok, so people notice. And then what? Why is it so important that people notice in the first place?"
-
Actually, Tenshi does sound very plausible, now that I think about it.
> "Are...are you even aware of what you're saying at this point? You're not even staying internally consistent. You said it would be okay even if you lost the next day, as long as you won that once. That would be it. No more victories, just you getting booted out of the mansion. How does that get the fairies any respect, when you tell me you need the series of victories for that to happen?"
-
>"Ok, so people notice. And then what? Why is it so important that people notice in the first place?"
>"Because they'll know, they'll know it worked!"
> "Are...are you even aware of what you're saying at this point? You're not even staying internally consistent. You said it would be okay even if you lost the next day, as long as you won that once. That would be it. No more victories, just you getting booted out of the mansion. How does that get the fairies any respect, when you tell me you need the series of victories for that to happen?"
>"No, you're just not thinking about what I said. Just taking the mansion would be a series of victories. It isn't just going to be move in and it's done. It's going to be taking down a bunch of powerful people the one way they didn't think could happen, that no one thought would happen!"
>_
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> "But major fairy victory has been done before, by your own admission. To Reimu, no less. Of course people don't expect a bunch of fairies to rise up as one, because they won't, not even after this. It won't have been the fairies getting together to form an army of their own volition, it will have been you gathering them together. Your doing, not theirs. Still all the respect for you and none of it for them."
-
>"I get it. They'll know it worked. And why's that important?"
>"And what was that about a whole other land in the clouds, anyway?"
-
> "But major fairy victory has been done before, by your own admission. To Reimu, no less. Of course people don't expect a bunch of fairies to rise up as one, because they won't, not even after this. It won't have been the fairies getting together to form an army of their own volition, it will have been you gathering them together. Your doing, not theirs. Still all the respect for you and none of it for them."
>"You're missing the point. What you're talking about really didn't affect anything. Most people don't even know about it. This will. No one will be able to ignore it."
>"I get it. They'll know it worked. And why's that important?"
>"And what was that about a whole other land in the clouds, anyway?"
>"Just like I said before, why was it important when someone sailed around the world, or first climbed Mount Everest?"
>"I don't know much about it, really. It's some place that's way up in the sky. It's apparently too high up to fly to. But it floats, that's the important part."
-
> "That doesn't change the fact that the credit's not going to go to the fairies just because they were involved. If the fairies want respect, they'll need to get it by acting of their own accord. Rising up as one by themselves and taking out that mansion by themselves. No leadership and organization from you, no secret weapon from your friend. Nothing but fairy work toward a fairy goal. Otherwise, it's just them doing grunt work for you and your friend."
-
>"Well, they were exploring. They were discovering things that no one before them had seen or known. And neither of their exploits hinged on harming others. Not all things that can be done should be done, no matter what kind of mark they'd leave."
>"Look, Renko... is this about proving that the things you know and the things you can do still mean something here? That you can still accomplish something other people here can't?"
-
Oh God I want to trigger Godwin's Law so bad right now ;_;
I wonder if Stalin is an acceptable substitute.
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> "That doesn't change the fact that the credit's not going to go to the fairies just because they were involved. If the fairies want respect, they'll need to get it by acting of their own accord. Rising up as one by themselves and taking out that mansion by themselves. No leadership and organization from you, no secret weapon from your friend. Nothing but fairy work toward a fairy goal. Otherwise, it's just them doing grunt work for you and your friend."
>"Following that line of thought, the only person who matters at all in an military victory is a general," says Renko. "But, I'm pretty sure everyone gets credit for the victories an army does."
>"Well, they were exploring. They were discovering things that no one before them had seen or known. And neither of their exploits hinged on harming others. Not all things that can be done should be done, no matter what kind of mark they'd leave."
>"Look, Renko... is this about proving that the things you know and the things you can do still mean something here? That you can still accomplish something other people here can't?"
>"I'm not a history, but I'm pretty sure the did hurt a lot of people along the way."
>"...I don't get what you're asking."
>_
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>"People got hurt trying to do those things, sure, but that wasn't the POINT of what they were doing. They tried to keep people from getting hurt, as best they could. It would have been an even greater achievement if no one at all had gotten hurt."
>"You say you want to do this because people will notice, and that it'll prove something to them. But beyond simply proving that it's possible, what are you getting at? Why does it matter so much to you to prove this point?"
-
fairy stalin
And yeah uh, knowing about the celestials kind of narrows it down a lot.
-
Tenshi owns a bar in the human village, so it's possible more people know about her than just who was in SWR (and Alice was in SWR anyway).
-
>"People got hurt trying to do those things, sure, but that wasn't the POINT of what they were doing. They tried to keep people from getting hurt, as best they could. It would have been an even greater achievement if no one at all had gotten hurt."
>"You say you want to do this because people will notice, and that it'll prove something to them. But beyond simply proving that it's possible, what are you getting at? Why does it matter so much to you to prove this point?"
>"Maybe so...I never paid enough attention to know that for sure. But given all the stuff that followed, I do think it was that benign."
>"Because it will work, Mary! Can't you see? People think it's impossible, that it can't happen. But it'll work!"
>_
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Oh yeah, we have talked to Tenshi. But I don't think we know her by name, and I'm positive we don't know she's a celestial.
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> "It may work, sure! Why is it working so important?"
-
> "It may work, sure! Why is it working so important?"
>We really don't need to say this, oh my god she's only told us the answer a million times including the very last thing she said.
-
Yeah, we didn't get her name. Keine said she knew of a celestial, though. Problem is, Maribel probably wouldn't assume that people living in the place floating the clouds were even called celestials.
And honestly, Renko is just talking in circles about why she wants to do this, at this point...
-
We need to get Renko to at least hold it off until tomorrow. We're not going to be able to talk sense into her, we're probably going to have to beat it into her.
-
Yeah, what headcrabs said. At this point, I actually have absolutely no problem with her attacking the mansion, but we need to stop her from looting or taking it over in the case of her winning. So we'll need to beat her up.
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> "It may work, sure! Why is it working so important?"
>We really don't need to say this, oh my god she's only told us the answer a million times including the very last thing she said.
>Silence reigns as you consider your next words carefully.
>She puts a hand on your shoulder. "It'll be okay, Mary."
>_
-
Okay, enough arguing about this.
> Bury face in hands.
> Oh God, she's really gone off the deep end, hasn't she.
-
> Bury face in hands.
> Oh God, she's really gone off the deep end, hasn't she.
>You bury your face in your hands. Has she really lost it?
>"Don't...don't do that..."
>_
-
>At least she still cares a little, anyway...
>Don't say anything, though. Maybe she'll feel a little guilty
-
Oh, she definitely cares. She wouldn't have given us this much time or be open to the idea of alternate solutions if she didn't.
I don't want to milk this, though, I'd feel bad about it. Our friend is worth more than a forged sympathy play. I'm only going this route because it's what I think Maribel would actually do in this situation.
-
I don't think it's a ploy. I agree this is a legitimate reaction, here. I just don't want someone to spring off of Renko's reaction into arguing again... >.>
-
Well, I meant that more as a response to the "Let's not say anything so she feels guilty" idea.
Actually, I think I may have something. Give me a minute...
-
> Sniff.
> "...I...I don't know what to do...everything you...you ever loved...all gone...all taken away...and now you...you want this...you want...to fight someone...and just take everything...why...why did this happen to you...why did this happen to us...what did we do to deserve this?"
-
>At least she still cares a little, anyway...
>Don't say anything, though. Maybe she'll feel a little guilty
>It seems that way.
>You don't say anything. She just sighs and squeezes your shoulder. "Mary..."
> Sniff.
> "...I...I don't know what to do...everything you...you ever loved...all gone...all taken away...and now you...you want this...you want...to fight someone...and just take everything...why...why did this happen to you...why did this happen to us...what did we do to deserve this?"
>She hugs you. "...Mary, just...nothing's right. Nothing works like it should."
>_
-
(Like hell I'm letting some stupid power outage get in the way of this.)
> Are we getting teary-eyed? That would be helpful if so.
> Look into Renko's eyes, as best we can. Try not to break the hug.
-
> Are we getting teary-eyed? That would be helpful if so.
> Look into Renko's eyes, as best we can. Try not to break the hug.
>You certainly are at this point. You look into her eyes. She looks back. "It'll work...let me make something work..."
>_
-
> "...I..."
> Quickly pull ourselves forward toward Renko so we're face to face, and surprise her with a long, passionate kiss.
-
> "...I..."
> Quickly pull ourselves forward toward Renko so we're face to face, and surprise her with a long, passionate kiss.
>Holy crap what.
>...
>DO IT, MAN. MAKE THIS HAPPEN. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/TV_Tropes)
-
> "...I..."
> Quickly pull ourselves forward toward Renko so we're face to face, and surprise her with a long, passionate kiss.
>You name a completely unrelated organ in your obvious confusion, then quickly move in and surprise her with a kiss. ...No, she's not that surprised, given how quickly she returns it and pulls you closer. And...that is very nice. Wow, she is good at this! Perhaps it was a good idea to subtly shift things to a private room.
>_
-
> Oh God yes.
> That's it. This is our Renko. No Koishi, no megalomania. Just Renko. Renko who is confused and heartbroken and disillusioned and perhaps a bit delusional and possibly even a little bit scared, but our Renko nonetheless.
> Keep on goin'.
-
> Oh God yes.
> That's it. This is our Renko. No Koishi, no megalomania. Just Renko. Renko who is confused and heartbroken and disillusioned and perhaps a bit delusional and possibly even a little bit scared, but our Renko nonetheless.
> Keep on goin'.
>You sum your reaction to this situation as best you coherently can while Renko is running her hands up and down your back.
>This has to be the real deal. Not one can impersonate this well.
>You keep going. After a couple minutes, Renko breaks away for a moment. "You're cheating," she murmurs.
>_
-
Dammit I should've known you guys would make this happen.
> "How so?"
> Thank the Gods that no one walked in.
-
Dammit I should've known you guys would make this happen.
Is it possible for this forum to have Maribel and Renko in one place without an x between them?
No. :3
-
> "How so?"
> No. For the love of GOD do not say this. It will kill the mood like crazy.
-
> "You WILL make something work, Renko. I know you will. I want you to. Nothing would make me happier than to see you get something to hang your hat on, something where you can stand on top of the highest mountain and go 'Look at me, world, look at what I did'. You want it. I want it. Nothing's going to stop it. No force in this land is going to get in the way of our wills. Not magic, not science, not anything."
> "You will make something work. We will find something. Something better. Better for you, better for this land. Better for everyone. I won't rest until we've found something. Something you can look back on and truly be proud of."
-
> "How so?"
> Thank the Gods that no one walked in.
> No. For the love of GOD do not say this. It will kill the mood like crazy.
>It may be to your advantage that this is a guest room in a place that seems larger than the inhabitants that can actually open doors actually need.
> "You WILL make something work, Renko. I know you will. I want you to. Nothing would make me happier than to see you get something to hang your hat on, something where you can stand on top of the highest mountain and go 'Look at me, world, look at what I did'. You want it. I want it. Nothing's going to stop it. No force in this land is going to get in the way of our wills. Not magic, not science, not anything."
> "You will make something work. We will find something. Something better. Better for you, better for this land. Better for everyone. I won't rest until we've found something. Something you can look back on and truly be proud of."
>"You better," she says, hugging you tight.
>_
-
> Return hug.
> "I'll do this or die trying, and I have no intention of seeing what's on the other side of that river."
> "Just remember, whatever happens, whatever we go through, everything I do...I do because I love you. Everything. Everything I...oh...oh God..."
> Uh oh, here come the tears again.
> "Renko, I'm so sorry...all those things I said...all those mean things...I...I'm so sorry...I was so scared...so scared that..."
-
> Return hug.
> "I'll do this or die trying, and I have no intention of seeing what's on the other side of that river."
> "Just remember, whatever happens, whatever we go through, everything I do...I do because I love you. Everything. Everything I...oh...oh God..."
> Uh oh, here come the tears again.
> "Renko, I'm so sorry...all those things I said...all those mean things...I...I'm so sorry...I was so scared...so scared that..."
>You return her hug.
>She smooths your hair as you start to cry. "Don't worry. It's all forgotten. It's just...well, I guess I've made my choice. Don't cry, its alright."
>_
-
> Sniff.
> "You...you mean...?"
-
> Sniff.
> "You...you mean...?"
>She nods. "Yeah, I guess so," then gives a little smile. "But you cheated."
>_
-
> Allow our own small smile.
> "Yeah, well, the rules apply, except when they don't."
> Stick out our tongue in a playful manner, before pulling it back and resuming hug.
> "I love you so much, Renko...I won't let you down about this. I'll run myself ragged, I'll go to hell and back if need be. I will do everything to make sure you don't regret this."
-
> Allow our own small smile.
> "Yeah, well, the rules apply, except when they don't."
> Stick out our tongue in a playful manner, before pulling it back and resuming hug.
> "I love you so much, Renko...I won't let you down about this. I'll run myself ragged, I'll go to hell and back if need be. I will do everything to make sure you don't regret this."
>"I don't even have anything pretty to say like that," Renko says, "But I'll do my best. And...nobody told you you had to stop cheating, you know."
>_
-
> "Well, I figured you'd dealt with enough rules getting broken over the last couple of days that you could use the rest."
> Smirk and raise eyebrows.
> "But, if you insist, I'm sure I can dig up some more."
> We have a lot of 'cheating' to do. Let's get back to it.
-
> "Well, I figured you'd dealt with enough rules getting broken over the last couple of days that you could use the rest."
> Smirk and raise eyebrows.
> "But, if you insist, I'm sure I can dig up some more."
> We have a lot of 'cheating' to do. Let's get back to it.
>"A little more wouldn't hurt," she says.
>You get back to it, reflecting taking her up here was a much better decision than taking outside. If nothing else, you're quite certain that you make Renko late to her meeting. But, you don't think she minds. You do learn, however ridiculous her dress may look, you have to admit it doesn't put up much of a fight when getting it off. You've had some good times in Gensokyo, so far, but you think you have a new favorite.
>You've lost track of time. You're tired. You could use another dip in Reimu's pond. But you feel wonderful. Renko rests beside you, smiling. "Well...now what?" she says.
>_
-
> "Wow. I can't believe we didn't think of this until today."
> "Well...we have the whole land open to us, and plenty of time. I dunno...I guess we should probably visit Ichirin at some point. She's as good a starting point as any."
-
> "Wow. I can't believe we didn't think of this until today."
> "Well...we have the whole land open to us, and plenty of time. I dunno...I guess we should probably visit Ichirin at some point. She's as good a starting point as any."
>"I think we did..." says Renko, tracing her fingers along your side. "Just there's a difference between conceiving and enacting..."
>"Time...right," she says. "How am I gonna explain this to Alice?"
>_
-
> "Alice? Do you mean Alice Margatroid? Byakuren told me about her. Said she'd be a good teacher if I could get her interest. Huh, small world."
-
Aww. It wasn't Tenshi after all.
Oh. THAT'S the secret weapon. Of course! We even saw the secret weapon, but we didn't know...
How much did Byakuren tell us about Alice, again?
-
Technically, Keine was the one who mentioned her, not Byakuren
-
"You may want to try Alice Margatroid, who also lives in the Forest. Her magic is color-based, though I am not certain that that means. She is also a first class enchanter. That said, she is a youkai, and may not take interest in you. But she would be a good teacher if you could capture her interest.
And yes, THAT is the secret weapon.
-
Oh, shit.
> "Alice? Do you mean Alice Margatroid? Byakuren told me about her. Said she'd be a good teacher if I could get her interest. Huh, small world."
> Change "Byakuren" to "Keine".
> Apologies for the confusion. The playtester responsible for this error has been sacked.
-
> "Alice? Do you mean Alice Margatroid? Byakuren told me about her. Said she'd be a good teacher if I could get her interest. Huh, small world."
> Change "Byakuren" to "Keine".
> Apologies for the confusion. The playtester responsible for this error has been sacked.
>"Yeah, her," says Renko, drawing her fingertips across your stomach. "And she is. Taught me a lot of what I know. It kind of sucks to let her down, now."
>_
-
...
You people.
> Or we could just play it off as in-character confusion! We have a reason not to be thinking too clearly at the moment, after all.bluh bluh, too late.
> Giggle. "Sorry, Renko ... it's just ..."
> Shake head. Grin.
-
Would it be okay if we let Renko and Alice do the whole fairy army thing as long as they didn't take it over if they won, so it's just like a friendly little skirmish? (sorta)
We might even end up having to team up with Renko to beat Alice if she tries to do it anyway :P
Actually, we might need to do that either way, if Alice takes things into her own hands.
-
> Giggle. "Sorry, Renko ... it's just ..."
> Shake head. Grin.
>She chuckles a bit, too. Why? Maybe it's just infectious.
>_
-
Apologies, I am not well-versed in Mahou Shoujo Physics-Chan pillow talk. :V
> "Well, if Keine recommended her, I'm sure she's a reasonable person..."
> "Do you want me to go with you, to help explain? Or do you think that would make her mad?"
-
> "Well, if Keine recommended her, I'm sure she's a reasonable person..."
> "Do you want me to go with you, to help explain? Or do you think that would make her mad?"
>"I think," she says, "We're gonna make her mad, no matter what."
>_
-
>"Do you think, she'd get the fairies to do everything without you?"
-
>"Do you think, she'd get the fairies to do everything without you?"
>"Not a chance," says Renko. "She's way too chilly for them. Faeries don't mind calm people, but the cold types just rub them the wrong way."
>_
-
> "Hmm...do you think we could ask a Gensokyo native to accompany us?"
-
> "Hmm...do you think we could ask a Gensokyo native to accompany us?"
>"I dunno," says Renko, running her finger along your ribs now. "I don't think she'd like it at all."
>_
-
> Idly stroke Renko's hair.
> "Hmm...maybe we can just talk to one, then. Ask for advice on how to deal with an angry Alice."
-
> Idly stroke Renko's hair.
> "Hmm...maybe we can just talk to one, then. Ask for advice on how to deal with an angry Alice."
>You stroke Renko's hair. It's a little frazzled.
>"That could work," she says. "I know she has some friends... Still, not looking forward to it at all."
>_
-
> Chuckle a little bit.
> "Sounds like I have a vow to you to start fulfilling, then, huh?"
> "I wonder...Keine said Alice lives in the Forest. I know a Marisa that lives in the Forest. She's nice, but...well, you have to see her to believe her. Maybe they know each other."
-
> Chuckle a little bit.
> "Sounds like I have a vow to you to start fulfilling, then, huh?"
> "I wonder...Keine said Alice lives in the Forest. I know a Marisa that lives in the Forest. She's nice, but...well, you have to see her to believe her. Maybe they know each other."
>"No, I'll have to be there too," says Renko, running her fingers down your side again. "But, having you to lean on would be really nice."
>"Marisa? I think they're friends. At least, that's what Dai said."
>_
-
> Ooh.
> "You couldn't keep me away if you wanted to."
> "Sounds like Marisa is the one to talk too, then. Though I'll leave how much to say up to you, since, well..."
-
> Ooh.
> "You couldn't keep me away if you wanted to."
> "Sounds like Marisa is the one to talk too, then. Though I'll leave how much to say up to you, since, well..."
>She nods. "Sounds like a plan."
>_
-
> "Great. I think I'd like to enjoy this moment a little longer, though, if that's okay."
-
> "Great. I think I'd like to enjoy this moment a little longer, though, if that's okay."
>"You read my mind," says Renko, as she runs her fingers along your hip.
>A bit more time passes in a peaceful silence. Your afterglow starts to turn to restlessness.
>_
-
kilga you so crazy
so crazy it actually worked
bluh
> Did Renko fall asleep?
-
> Did Renko fall asleep?
>Not as of yet, you don't think, but if you leave her alone a little bit she probably will.
>_
-
Given the reactions it received both in the thread and on IRC, if people remind me in postgame about this, I'll be glad to explain my thoughts process for that whole sequence.
For the record, it was not "GOTTA SHIP GOTTA SHIP GOTTA SHIP".
> "Mmm...I think I'm about ready to head out. What about you?"
-
> "Mmm...I think I'm about ready to head out. What about you?"
>"Yeah, alright..." Renko mumbles.
>_
-
Given the reactions it received both in the thread and on IRC, if people remind me in postgame about this, I'll be glad to explain my thoughts process for that whole sequence.
For the record, it was not "GOTTA SHIP GOTTA SHIP GOTTA SHIP".
I figured, yeah. it worked well too.
-
> Get up out of bed.
> What options do we have for clothes in here?
> "Hey, you feelin' all right? Or you just tired?"
-
> Get up out of bed.
> What options do we have for clothes in here?
> "Hey, you feelin' all right? Or you just tired?"
>You get out of bed. You know...being undressed, you really are noticing it's not all that cold down here, despite being underground and far away from the sun. Huh.
>You have your Purple Dress, which is presently tossed over the back of a chair. You have the Red Robe and Hakama combo in your Messenger Bag, and according to Utsuho, some of Orin's spare clothes are in the wardrobe.
>"Just resting," she says softly.
>_
-
> Let's check out that wardrobe.
-
> Let's check out that wardrobe.
>You open the wardrobe!
>Inside are a couple of long-sleeve black dresses with green frills at the bottom of the skirt, the ends of the sleeves, and the neck. Prints of blue flowers and green ivies try to add some brightness to them, but don't really succeed. They seem to be your size, at least.
>_
-
> Hmm. Not too shabby. Let's try one on.
-
> Hmm. Not too shabby. Let's try one on.
>You try it on!
>It fits fairly well, though a bit loose around the shoulders and being knee length it is shorter than what you customarily wear. Looking in the mirror, it doesn't look bad, save that it will probably clash with your hat. It's also a lot darker than what you usually wear.
>_
-
> Fashion is important, lets take off that hat.
-
> But only if there's a place in the dress to stash it.
-
> Fashion is important, lets take off that hat.
>You decide to leave you hat off for now.
> But only if there's a place in the dress to stash it.
>The dress does not seem to have pockets, but you do have your messenger bag.
>Renko begins to extricate herself from bed and get dressed.
>_
-
>Watch with a smile.
>Stash the hat for now. The less we look like Yukari, the better. Usually, at least.
>Wonder what Satori is going to think of this.
-
>Watch with a smile.
>Stash the hat for now. The less we look like Yukari, the better. Usually, at least.
>Wonder what Satori is going to think of this.
>You smile and watch, it really is a pleasing sight. "You like this sort of thing, huh?" says Renko, grinning back, "I'll remember that."
>You put your Mop Hat away.
>...That is going to be interesting to find out, isn't it? Well, she said she's seen worse, so it shouldn't be too bad.
>_
-
>With a grin, "I'm not sure you have to ask whether I'd enjoy seeing you, like that or not."
>stretch a little
>inventory
-
>With a grin, "I'm not sure you have to ask whether I'd enjoy seeing you, like that or not."
>stretch a little
>inventory
>"Never hurts to be sure, for later," she says.
>You have a nice stretch. That does wonders to work out a few of the little lingering aches.
>Your Inventory Contains
>Mop Hat
>Red Robe
>White Hakama
>Branch
>Floating Stone
>Ingredient List
>Ring of Rhythm
>Striped Mushroom Potion of Enhancement
>Starlight Incantation Slip.
>Purple Messenger Bag
>Blue Silk Flower
>92☼
>Bottle of Irritated Bull Sake
>Emerald Necklace
>Star Armlet
>Purple Dress
>Wound Sign: Pain Flow Endlessly. (Captured)
>Kakashi Spirit News
>Frilly Dark Dress (Worn as Clothing)
>_
-
Going to bed early tonight. Few thoughts running through my head, for those that will play on for the next couple of hours.
- Try to check in on Utsuho. If she's awake, she'll likely appreciate an update on the situation, especially since Renko is in her house. It might also be nice for her to hear the jet thing straight from us, just in case she has any questions.
- Be SURE to check in on Satori before leaving, if only to think a very large Thank you! to her. That entire sequence would not have happened if not for her.
- Barring unforseen disaster situations, Marisa is likely our best choice for next stop, now that Alice's Wrath is our most pressing issue. However, it might be nice to Renko to offer her the option of seeing Ichirin first if she wants to.
- Do not just blab Renko's story to anyone. Let her tell people as much as she feels comfortable telling. This applies double to Marisa, given what we'll be asking of her.
- DO NOT GO TO THE SDM. We have no idea who is going to thoughtlessly blurt out "Oh hey, is that your friend that you warned us about?" and that could very well ruin everything. I trust Sakuya and Patchouli to have some semblance of tact but everyone else is fair game to be stupid and we'd have to wade through the unknowns to get to them. We have no idea who Sakuya has told at this point, but I'd be amazed if she kept it a secret from everyone.
- Respect Renko's mindset right now; she's still quite delicate. Remember, her perspective on Gensokyo currently consists of (a) vengeful fairy babble and (b) Alice's surely-calculated "wisdom". It's possible she still retains the SDM conquest idea as a possibility. Do not try to stamp it out of existence, merely continue to downplay it as the need arises. Once a suitable alternative has been found, THEN we can squish it once and for all.
-
> "Here, you might find this enjoyable."
> Toss Renko the Kakashi news.
-
> "Here, you might find this enjoyable."
> Toss Renko the Kakashi news.
>You hand her the newspaper after she finishes slipping on her dress. She takes it and looks at it curiously, then starts laughing. "You made the paper already?! I'm so jealous!"
>_
-
> Laugh a bit ourselves.
> "Believe me, you don't want the kind of fame I'm getting."
> Ponder how the Emerald Necklace and the Star Armlet would look on either ourselves or Renko right now.
-
> Laugh a bit ourselves.
> "Believe me, you don't want the kind of fame I'm getting."
> Ponder how the Emerald Necklace and the Star Armlet would look on either ourselves or Renko right now.
>"Maybe, maybe. So, this is the infamous Yuka..."
>The Emerald Necklace would work with your current dress. If there were no sleeves, the Star Armlet would be perfect for it. The Emerald Necklace would be lost on Renko's psychedelic sundress. The Star Armlet would clash, but at least she could wear it well.
>_
-
> "Yeah. The fairies seem terrified of her, but she's actually not that bad."
-
> "Yeah. The fairies seem terrified of her, but she's actually not that bad."
>"Really? I've not heard them say anything but good about her," says Renko, as she picks up and dons her hat. "Alice, though, she warned me."
>_
-
> "At the same time she has this aura of intimidation. I certainly wouldn't want to piss her off at any rate."
-
> "They're probably too terrified of her to do anything but sing her praises. When I was out planting flowers for her, I was impeded by a fairy conflict, but when I told them who I was working for they bolted faster than I thought possible."
> "It's not just fairies, though. Everyone I've meet has told me not to piss her off. And after meeting her...yeah, I can see why. She's a very intimidating individual. Perfectly capable of civility, but still intimidating."
-
> "At the same time she has this aura of intimidation. I certainly wouldn't want to piss her off at any rate."
>"I will take your word on it," Renko says, "And just try to avoid her entirely."
> "They're probably too terrified of her to do anything but sing her praises. When I was out planting flowers for her, I was impeded by a fairy conflict, but when I told them who I was working for they bolted faster than I thought possible."
> "It's not just fairies, though. Everyone I've meet has told me not to piss her off. And after meeting her...yeah, I can see why. She's a very intimidating individual. Perfectly capable of civility, but still intimidating."
>"Really?" says Renko. "I've not seen them do that. I mean, if they don't like something, and aren't in immediate danger from it, they have no problem venting about it. I'll have to ask about that."
>_
-
> "Yuuka told me she and they have 'an understanding'. They do their thing, she does hers. Maybe that's why they don't vent about her. As long as they stay out of each other's way, she poses no threat to them."
-
> "Yuuka told me she and they have 'an understanding'. They do their thing, she does hers. Maybe that's why they don't vent about her. As long as they stay out of each other's way, she poses no threat to them."
>"I'll ask Dai about it."
>She walks over and gives you a quick peck on the cheek. "So, what now?"
>_
-
> "Well I prepare to get shanked, I don't know about you."
> "What was your meeting with Alice supposed to cover anyway?"
-
> "Well I prepare to get shanked, I don't know about you."
> "What was your meeting with Alice supposed to cover anyway?"
>"Just sharpening my knife."
>"A bunch of things. Progress on her secret weapon, picking up a few items, giving her some things she wanted and finalizing the plans."
>_
-
> Give a genuinely happy smile. Business may be business, but we can't be that cold for our Renko.
-
> Also shank Parsee and Yuuka before they shank either of us.
-
>You and Renko are both skewered by a spear from behind. "Surprise, motherfuckers," says Shou. "Should have read that article."
-
> FUCK