~Hakurei Shrine~ > Patchouli's Scarlet Library

A Touhou Fiction Novel ~ Beyond Border Gensokyo

(1/4) > >>

Kitaen Silva: [Just curiously, If I were to make a thread for the comments regarding Beyond Border Gensokyo (BBG) so that this thread could be reserved for a chapter per post, where would I put it? Please PM the response, if you would...] A brief history of events that have occurred in the reality we know to exist, called ?Mercatia?: Thirty-eight annuals ago, an 18-revolution-old girl named Kamihana Lirustoi disappeared from her home in the growing city of Desucire, in the western provinces of the Old State Unity of North America. The last of her family had died aboard a cruise ship while she was away at a summer school camp, and she had only just moved to her city a week before the trip. She had made no friends while at summer school, and didn?t know anyone in Desucire, so when she disappeared, nobody even noticed. She hasn?t been seen since the day she returned from camp. Nineteen annuals ago, a 13-revolution-old boy named Patil Russeh, and a 16-revolution-old girl named Hazel McKeon also disappeared. Patil?s family consisted of just Patil, his mother, and his stepfather. They were living on the western coast of the New State Unity of Europe in the Deeps of  Faunworth City. They had lived in the Deeps for so long, that none of them could clearly remember seeing the sun, or what the sun?s rays felt like on their skin. They were struggling financially, but they were happy as a family, and the three of them loved to do family activities together. Patil?s biological father had gone overseas on family business and wasn?t heard from again. Patil vanished during a school day. He had gotten up to go to his locker, telling his teacher that he felt something very strange, but he never came back, so his teacher called his mom about it. She called the authorities, and most of the people in the area of the Deeps he lived in gathered together to look for him. They searched high and low, but always wound up at the same conclusion; He vanished into thin air. Hazel, however, lived with her extensive family on their estate on the still-green countryside of Ireland at the outskirts of a small town called Tenenbaum. Hazel had been raised with everything handed to her on a silver platter, and she got anything she wanted, when she wanted it. She naturally had a terrible attitude because she was spoiled rotten, and she would complain or whine incessantly about everything if it wasn?t to her liking. She had a personal teacher, so she had never left the estate for any reason, and had no clue about the world outside of her home. As far as she knew, the sun and world revolved around her. When she disappeared, her parents gave all they could to find her, without putting their home and business in jeopardy. Everyone but her parents was convinced she had merely run away, and was living happily somewhere. Neither Hazel nor Patil have been seen anywhere. Twelve annuals ago, Patil was seen by his mom for exactly thirteen point seven seconds. His mom held onto him, and Patil spoke to her, saying, ?I miss you, though I can?t stay here with you. I wanted to let you know that I am happy where I am, and I am doing well. Do not worry, I have not died, I am just very very far away. I love you, and goodbye again.?. Patil?s mom later reported that ?It seemed that he hadn?t aged a day, though he should have been over twenty revolutions old. He spoke to us, and told us that he was not dead, and he was doing well. But then he turned around, and it seemed as though a dark rip in the air with bloodred ribbons on the ends appeared like a doorway in front of him! A little girl his age was standing in the rip and spoke to him in some foreign language, and he responded fluently in the same language, like he had known how to talk like that his whole life. She was blonde, and she wore a white cap with a red ribbon on it. She had on this beautiful blue and white dress, and this cute little umbrella. After my little Patil stepped into that rift, he and the girl smiled and waved at me before I could get back to my feet, and she closed the rip. That demon girl stole my Patil from me!? Needless to say, not a soul believed a word of it. Eight annuals ago, a 19-revolution-old girl named Memory Sastul disappeared. She used to live on a steel and concrete man-made island city called Anterra, that drifted abroad in the ocean?s currents. Being the daughter of Anterra?s Chief Engineer, she had picked up knowledge on mechanical construction and engineering, mostly from being constantly surrounded by the technology her father, Anamne Sastul,  maintained. By the age of eight revolutions, she was able to quickly and efficiently dismantle any kind of engine or electronic unit found on Anterra and understand each component?s purpose. By the age of eleven, she could build multiple models of pneumatic, hydraulic, and even fossil-fuel motors and engines. By age twelve, she had produced a hydraulic system that put out a work force that was slightly over double than that of the most efficient system in the city. When she disappeared, she had been working on a new kind of motor that harnessed the energy of plasma, and directed it into a work output. Her father had been helping further the project by reseraching and developing a way of storing the energy harnessed from plasma. Anamne woke up one morning to get an early start on working with Memory on their corelated plasma projects to find that Memory had disappeared from her quarters, her bunk left untouched, her light on, and papers strewn in mid-study across her desk. Anamne met with Anterra?s mayor and officials, and everything stopped on Anterra for a solid week while everyone searched for Memory. A month later, Anamne resigned as Chief Engineer of Anterra, and took over Memory?s Plasma Engine Project, hoping to have made some headway by the time his daughter surely returned. However, Memory hasn?t been seen or heard from since. Seven annuals ago, people from another planet in Mercatia, called Serris, made contact with Earth, which is thought to be Mercatia?s centerpoint. Serris was inhabited by people from not only Serris, but from multiple other planets that had networked together, making Serris the hub. Humans soon traveled the stars to other worlds, and other races traveled to make Earth their home. Tirrix, Kitsuvi, and Boundwoulven all took a strong liking to Earth, even though the three races didn?t get along in much, they mingled peacefully on Earth. Tirrix, being humanoid in shape, with catlike features and reflexes, were thoroughly pleased with the distance from it?s homestar, giving Earth the ?perfect temperature?. Kitsuvi, similar to Tirrix, except foxlike in features and behaviour, were enthralled by the beauty, architecture, and wonders both posessed by Earth naturally, and created by Humans. Boundwolven, which the Humans called ?werewolves?, were appreciative of the ecosystem, amazed by the sheer number of edible plants and even creatures, and they all shared a strange fascination with the moon. There were many other races that made Earth their home, such as the Marr, Schironae, and Mandagoria. There were even rumors that the Licentia had a lab somewhere on Earth, and a couple subraces of Faeriekin had appeared, though nobody has been able to prove either of these things.  [Please note that anything after THIS POINT is under heavy editing. It's all in the initial stage of writing, and hasn't gotten past 'Rough Draft'. The amount of detail will vary from time to time, and the first few chapters are a little difficult to identify who is speaking, but that's due to formatting and fonts used. The 'standard' version will be augmented to easily identify speakers and subjects without the use of fancy fonts and colors. The 'Special' version will be the same story, just made visually more impressive. In any case, enjoy!] Four annuals ago, [Undecided text here] Nobody has heard from Csarci on any planet. Two annuals ago, a 12-revolution-old girl named Phoebe Lunarisa, another 12-revolution-old girl named Kaeli Silverline, and an 11-revolution-old otherworlder boy named Desiderius Erasmus Roterodamus all disappeared simultaneously, though this time, a few clues were left behind as to what happened. The three friends had gone into a cordoned off library on a little adventure, and made it their little play spot. One day, after school, the three went there as usual, and tossed their backpacks aside. They had made castles and things from all the books there, and there were a few spots where the three would sit together and read for hours at a time. There was one book they all seemed to have taken a liking to, according to their school journals. They had started to record events and things that happened in the library, and particularly inside the book, into their journals. They also made a lot of little doodles of people and places inside the book. Two weeks after they began reading this book, the three disappeared, and haven?t been seen since. A young otherworlder boy in the present time had done a small bit of research on this latest disappearance early in the revolution, and found that all three wrote excessively in their journals about this book. On several occasions, they had mentioned that they had to write everything that happened, because the book wouldn?t be the same the next time they read it, so they wanted to make sure they could read it over again when they wanted to. Desiderius commented that at one point, he read about a boy named Patil Russeh, who talked about visiting his parents with the help of his friend ?Yukari Yakumo, the Youkai of the Boundary?. Phoebe wrote a piece about Memory Sastul having gotten engaged to ?a mere human?. Kaeli wrote about Hana Lirus being ?the bridge between the borderjumpers? language?. This was all too much to consider coincidence, so the otherworlder boy looked into the matter. Though he didn?t understand what they were associated with in the story, he recognized the names of three other people who disappeared before from both the journals and his grandfather?s cold case notes and files. The boy considered on multiple occasions that he was just being stupid in thinking that this book would help find the missing people, but it was a lead, even if it was just a small one. If he could find out who created this book, maybe he could get at the very least a few more bits of information.

Kitaen Silva: Following the Views of Machabel Derivitas and Dais Waynhim Present time Mercatia, in central Tael City, of the Old State Unity of North America, previously known as the state of Ohio:   ?Ugh. Nothing! Dais! Would you PLEASE come in here and help me?? the otherworldly boy was in his grandfather?s study again, amidst a heaping pile of boxes and strewn papers. He had arranged all of his late grandfather?s notes and files in such a way that they could all be readily accessed. He accomplished this by setting them up into a sort of dome, with a hole in one side so that the boxes inside had the files facing inward, while the boxes on the outside faced outward. The boy was currently situated right in the ?doorway? of this dome, hiding behind stacks of paper that were almost level with his eyes as he sat on the floor. Nothing more than a mass of hair the color of dusty topsoil could be seen above the papers. That and a pair of massive ears the color of a newborn kitten?s nose that poked out from the top of his head. One of them was facing toward his friend in the other room.  ?What for, Macha? I have no interest in your detective work. I came over to see if I could use your notes on our school science project, not help you find missing papers on missing people.? his friend Dais Waynhim replied. He was a human, but he had big dreams about traveling the stars to see the worlds where Macha had come from. Dais was actually a very simple boy, and Macha sometimes accused him of not being able to achieve even ocean travel, let alone aerospace travel. Macha meant it lightheartedly, and Dais took it as such. ?That, and I came over to play a bit of Touhou.?  ?You always want to play Touhou when you come over- Wait? Reimu Hakurei??  ?Yeah, what about her? You never play as Reimu. You always pick Marisa-?  ?No no no? These journals mention a girl that sounds like her.? He flips through the journals for a moment, and finds what he was looking for in Kaeli?s journal. ?See here? ?-A girl with dark brown hair pulled back into a ponytail by a big red bow had been fussing over her offertory box, cleaning and polishing it. There were stains all over her red and white priestess? dress-?? Dais! These three must have been talking about Reimu!?  ?Oh, please. The outfit that Reimu wears used to be common stuff. Common stuff for a Priestess, anyway? red and white seemed to be their colors, and they always wore outfits just like or similar to Reimu.?  ?Yeah, but I think that Reimu fusses over her offertory box a lot. And not only that, but it goes on to say, ?-For earlier that week, a blonde girl in a black and white dress with a pointy witch?s hat and a flying broomstick had flown through her shrine. Followed by another blonde girl of an odd sort, what with wings made of crystals that looked like Christmas lights and a weird staff that seemed to bend and shift at will-? ? Dais, that HAS to be Marisa and Flandre.?  ?Coincidence? Or maybe they were just reading a book about Touhou??  ?If a Touhou novel existed, you or I would be one of the first to lay our hands on one.? ?True. But still. I think you?re making a rabbit trail. Maybe the person who wrote the book about those missing people was also a Touhou fan like us??  ?Even if that were so, you or I would know about it, and would probably have a copy of this book that these three were reading. And if THAT were so, I would just simply go to the shelf and look at the author, and find out if he or she is still alive and well enough to sit and chat with me.?  ?True again. OK, Macha. NOW you have my attention. Where is your crazy little mind going with this??  ?Err, well, I seem to have a vague recollection of the previous disappearance victims all having a hobby for reading? I would like to talk to any and all living relatives of the victims to find out more. If all the disappearance victims all have a similar preference in reading, we may have a suspect as to who could have done something to them.?  ?That?s going a bit out on a limb, Macha. First off, even IF you find that all the victims had a similar reading interest, that would be about the extent of what you find out. A similar reading interest.?  ?True, but there?s still the possibility that we would uncover the title that these three were reading.?  ?Macha.?  ?What??  ?Why waste your time with all of that, when you could just simply try to figure out where this library was at??  ?? You know, Dais? sometimes I hate it when you have a better idea than I do. Because I had this nice plan all set up with going to the victim?s houses and stuff?. Wait, I?d still have to do that anyway, whether I find the book or not.?  ?What for??  ?To see if there are any similarities between the victims. Because the police most certainly haven?t connected all these disappearances. I have these journals, uh?  here, which mention several of the victims together. That makes the author of that book a possible suspect. And if all the victims had a shared interest of reading, then somehow, some way, that book is connected. It just has to be.?  ?Okay, makes sense, I suppose. But then once you find out who the author is, what are YOU going to do about it??  ?I?m going to play the role of a victim, only I?LL be prepared for the incident, if one occurs.?  ?That sounds awful dangerous, Macha. Let me come too. I could be the one in the bushes with the radio, a cell-phone and a camera.?  ?Okay, I guess. But we still have to find that library. And then we have to find that one book. And THEN we have to find that author.?  ?I still say that sounds like shaky ground.?  ?Yes, I agree, but it?s a lead of sorts.?  ?Say? why are you so caught up with this, anyway??  ??It?s a subject that interests me? Sounds like an adventure in the real world. You and I need a bit of real world.? He lied.  ?Woah. Hey now. Where?s my friend Macha, and what have you done with him? He would rather die than have any dealings with the real world. What?s the real reason?? Dais wasn?t so easily fooled.  ??Desiderius was a close friend of mine, one of the only Tirrix that I really cared about.?  ?Wait? You actually KNEW Desiderius??  ?Yes.? Macha suddenly poked his head above the stack of papers beside him and looked at his friend. His fuzzy features stared hard at Dais, though it was hard to take a boy with pink fur and odd eyes very seriously. ?But that is not relevant. Something? though? this part here REALLY grabs my attention?? Macha tossed Desiderius? journal over the stack of papers to Dais. ?Read the twelfth page.?  ?? Five? Seven? okay. This bit about the victim Patil? ? Woah! ??Aided by his friend, Yukari Yakumo, the Youkai of the Boundary??! But? How??  ?That?s what I want to know. Desiderius has no idea what Touhou even IS. He would have no clue that Yukari is the Youkai of the Boundary.?  ?This is really weird. I?m in. Where do we start?? Dais asked, getting increasingly excited. Macha poked his head over the papers again.  ?Tea.?  ?What??  ?What I said. Tea. That?s where we start. Spearmint and Chamomile with two cubes of sugar, if you would.?  ?Please, you mean? Sure. Though kids our age generally don?t like tea.?  ?Who said we fit under the category of ?generally???  ?Right. Anyway? Where do we start, for real??  ?Two annuals ago.?

Kitaen Silva: Two annuals ago, on the grounds of the Hakurei Shrine in the eastern side of Gensokyo: ?Suikaaa! My offertory box is not a treasure chest! Bring it back over here this instant!? A dark-haired priestess shouted and stormed across the grounds of Hakurei Shrine at a half-drunken oni girl wearing an eyepatch and a captain?s hat. She was apparently making ready to bury the offertory box with who knows what sort of ?pirate booty? she had come across through questionable ways that was contained within it.  ?Yarr? um. No. ?tis MY precious booty! I?mma bury it where no one but me an? mah crew? er? me. No one but me will find it!? the little oni girl named Suika started digging with a bent spoon. The priestess stood in front of Suika for a moment, watching her dig a tiny hole in the shrine?s grounds with utter confusion, before grabbing her offertory box and taking it back to the front of the shrine again. Things rattled inside of it as she walked it back so when she set it down she peered inside. She named each item as she pulled it from the box.  ?Suika?s gourd. Of course. And? one of Alice?s puppets? That?s a bit out of the ordinary. A stick. A jar of? insects? An egg? Aya?s fan?? Marisa?s hat?? What is this girl thinking? ?? She thought for a few moments, then in a childish bit of absentmindedness, she donned Marisa?s hat. Then she continued to list items. ?Several of Sakuya?s knives, a large rock, a withered flower, a boot, Cirno?s ribbon, Ran?s hat?? She paused again, then switched hats for a moment. Dissatisfied with the way the points on the kyuubi?s hat fell, she put Marisa?s hat back on. ?What is with this girl and hats? Yukari?s parasol? How in Gensokyo did she get this?? the now-entertained priestess opened the pretty umbrella and sat on the ground in front of her offertory box with it over her shoulder as she went through some more of the items in the box. ?Three of Patchy?s books, Nitori?s key, Chen?s pillow, A part to one of Flandre?s ghastly torture devices, one of Reisen?s pestles, Remilia?s spellcards, China?s spellcards, Patchy?s spectacles??? She equipped the Voile librarian?s eyewear, and about fell over. ?How does she read with these things!? I can?t even see my hand before my face!? She pulled them off and set them carefully with the rest of the items, just as a raven-haired girl alighted behind the priestess without her even noticing. This new appearance pulled a notepad out and started writing furiously. The priestess kept pulling items out and setting them neatly on the stones. ??A bottle of Minoriko?s wine, Tewi?s hammer, Suwako?s shoes, my wand? And?? She paused briefly, before pulling the next items out gingerly, ?A set of both Alice?s AND Marisa?s undergarments? I am not even going to ask. In any case? I suppose I had best return Suika?s ?precious booty?, before everyone gets angry.? She said, standing and dusting off her outfit.  ?Wait? you mean that YOU aren?t the mysterious thief?? the raven-haired reporter said from behind her. The priestess whirled to face her.  ?Huh? Oh, Aya.?  ?Yes, me. So Suika took my fan? And everyone else?s things, too??  ?Yes, though it seems she didn?t quite realize what she was doing.? The priestess and the reporter both peer over at Suika, who was attempting to stick her head in the hole she had dug, wailing something about ostriches and emu, but her horns kept getting in the way.  ?Aww? And here I thought I was going to have a good story for the Bunbunmaru? Ah well.? Aya tore off what she had written, and stuck the papers in a pocket, while she stuffed the notebook back in its holster.  ?Wait? so it would have only been a story if it had been ME who took these things?? the red-and-white clad girl glared at Aya.  ?Well, of course. You?re a priestess. It would have been quite unusual for you to have stolen things from anyone.?  ?And yet, you came to see me first, I?ll bet.?  ?Yup. It would have been quite a story.?  ?? Right. Here?s your fan, though. Sorry for the inconvenience.? The reporter happily took back her fan with a smile.  ?It?s not that big a problem. Do you want any help getting those things back out to everyone??  ?Sure. If you would take Suwako?s shoes up to her, with Nitori?s key and Minoriko?s wine, That?d be great. Oh, and Yukari?s parasol, Ran?s hat, and Chen?s ball. I?ll take care of business at Scarlet Mansion. The rest of it I?ll take care of as well.?  ?Alright, then. Oh, wait around here for another few minutes or so. Alice and Marisa are on their way up here? they seem a bit embarrassed and moody, so watch what you say. Though a danmaku battle at Hakurei Shrine would be something to write on. One more thing, Reimu??  ?Yes, Aya??  ?Say ?strawberry?.?  ?Strawberry?? Aya whipped a camera out and took a candid photograph of Reimu wearing Marisa?s hat, with Tewi?s hammer in one hand, and part of Flandre?s torture device in the other.  ?Excellent. ?Priestess and Reporter Solve Mysterious Thief Case and Return Stolen Items?. Guess I?ll get a story after all.? With that, Aya flew off toward the mountain, leaving Reimu mentally cursing her and that camera.  ?Huu~? Guess I?ll go and meet those two, and get rid of these garments. Oh? and can?t forget the puppet.? Reimu reaches for the puppet, and is shocked to find that it is struggling against the wires binding it.  ?Hourai!? Is that you?? The puppet responds with a nod, and Reimu hurriedly untangles the poor living doll. Once freed, Hourai flies a quick circle around Reimu, and embraces the priestess? chest by throwing her arms across her.  ?Alright, alright. Alice should be here any moment, and she?ll probably be happy to see you. I hear you?ve been missing for quite some time.?  Hourai nods again, and takes on a very sad face.  ?What?s wrong?? Reimu asks the tiny puppet. Hourai only tries to bury herself further into Reimu?s chest with a little squeal.  ?You miss Alice?? Hourai shakes her head, but then blinks and corrects herself by nodding vigorously, then tries to explain something in charades.  ?You have something to say? Hold on, and I?ll go get some paper and a pencil for you.?  Instead of waiting, the puppet floats along behind Reimu, following her into the shrine.

Kitaen Silva: Alice and Marisa both show up exhausted at the top of the stairs leading to Hakurei Shrine just as Reimu goes inside, so they follow, as quickly as they dared, while holding their dresses close to their legs.  ?Reimu!! Wait a moment! We have a question to ask you!?  ?Slow down, Alice! I don?t like this breeze I get from running, ze.?  ?Come on in, girls.?  ?We planned on it.?  ?Yeah. Oh, look, Alice. It?s Hourai.?  ?HOURAI~!? Alice took off like a shot for her little puppet, forgetting all about holding her dress down.  ?Alice! Hold your dress-gwahh~!? Marisa tried to say, but she was interrupted by a spurt of blood from her nose as she got a flower viewing of a different sort. Alice came to her senses a moment too late and turned around to find her friend sitting on the floor, bloodied and swirly-eyed. ?Such a pretty flower??  ?Marisa!? A nice shade of red appeared across Alice?s cheeks as she realized what happened. ?You didn?t have to look, you pervert!?  ?What are you two blibbering about out here? Come on? I have things for you.?  ?Yeah, like my hat. Which happens to be perched upon your holy little melon.? Marisa said, standing up with Alice?s help as she recovered from her thoughts.  ?And Hourai. Why do you have Hourai here??  ?Suika tied her up-? Hourai popped out of the side room shaking her head to say otherwise, and indicating that the three should follow her. The puppet had already sat down with a pad of paper and a pencil, and had written and sketched out several things. Alice went to see what her doll had put down.  ?She wrote; ?Gensokyo. Border. Trip.? and put a picture of herself falling into a hole of sorts.?  ?So she went on a trip to see the border, here at Hakurei Shrine, and fell into a hole?? Marisa said, looking out the window at Suika, still digging her hole futilely with her bent spoon. Hourai shook her head and started writing again.  ?But you can?t ?see? the border here? why would she come to see it??  ?She writes? ?Hourai.?? ?Light.? ? ?Scared.? ? ?Book.?? and now she?s drawing a picture again.? Alice waits for a moment while her little puppet finishes the picture. ?It?s a picture of herself coming out of or falling into a book-? Hourai quickly draws a little arrow to show that she meant ?coming out of?, and Alice continues ?She drew herself coming out of a book.? Hourai nodded, and started writing again.  ?But that doesn?t make sense. How could Hourai come out of a book??  ?Maybe? she had a nightmare about when she was born?? The puppet shook her head, and pointed to what she had written.  ?She has ?Human. World.? followed by ?No. Bad. Dream.?. What about the human world, Hourai?? The puppet started writing again. ?Now it?s ?Hourai.?? ?Des?? um? What?s this word, Marisa?? Marisa sits next to her friend and the puppet, and reads over their shoulders.  ?Maybe? ?Desiderius???  ?Sounds like some other language. I haven?t taught Hourai any other languages. Maybe it?s someone?s name??  Hourai was still writing, but she nodded.  ?Desiderius is a person. Ok, she goes on to ?Book.? ?Magic.? ?Hourai.? ?Fake.? ? now ?Three.???Human.? ? ?Old.? ? ?Place.? ? and she?s drawing again.?  ?So? Hourai sees three humans in an old place, and they have a magic book, where they make a fake Hourai??  Hourai shakes her head vigorously.  ?Wrong. Hmm??  ?Three humans in an old place, Hourai??  She nods.  ?Is there a magic book??  She nods again.  ?But there?s no fake Hourai??  She shakes her head, but taps on the picture she?s drawn. It shows three humans standing side by side, with Hourai before them. The three humans were looking at Hourai. The two females had their faces darkened, but they looked excited about Hourai. The boy in the middle didn?t look impressed, and he had a thought bubble above his head with the words ?Hourai.? and ?Fake.? in it. The two mystery girls had thought bubbles that had the words ?Hourai.? And ?Real.? In them. The boy looked similar to Chen, except that he only had one tail.  ?The boy wanted to make a fake Hourai?? She shook her head.  ?The boy thought that Hourai wasn?t real?? She nodded happily and clapped her little hands together, then wrote some more.  ?Why am I always wrong??  ?Is the boy?s name Desiderius?? Hourai nodded yes, and kept writing words.  ?I?ve never seen Hourai willingly write so much.?  ?Me either. That?s two things I?ve seen today that I will never forget.? Alice blushed again, and gently hit Marisa on the arm as a small rivulet of blood coursed from Marisa?s nose. Alice laughed nervously and grabbed a tissue to dab it away.  ?Stop thinking those sorts of things. It seems to be unhealthy for you.?  ?Thinking what things?? Marisa said with an awkward grin as another rivulet spurted from the other side.  ?Your mind is in the gutter. Take it out.?  ?You?re the one that put it in. YOU take it out. Though you don?t have to be gentle about it.?  ?None of that, now!? This time it was Alice who sprung a leak from her nose. They both giggled, while Reimu gave them both tissues with a look of worry. Hourai tapped the paper to show that she was done. Everyone gathered around the puppet again.  ?It says; ?Desiderius.? ?Word.? ?No.? ?Same.? ?Hourai.? Followed by a small picture of Desiderius speaking scribbles to Hourai, and Hourai thinking a lot of question marks.?  ?So, she couldn?t understand Desiderius? language?? The little doll nods again, fairly excited that she was being understood so well. ?Yes! I was right for once!?  ?Where did you meet this nekomata named Desiderius?? Alice asked her puppet. Hourai thought for a moment before writing.  ?She responds; ?Desiderius.? ? ?No.? ? ?Same.? ? ?Chen.? Followed by? another drawing of Chen next to Desiderius, with arrows pointing to all the differences. Now she?s writing again.?  ?Hey Alice, are you sure I didn?t leave? er? something at your place??  ?Yes, I?m sure. You sure you didn?t swipe mine??  ?Positive. I don?t even know what they look like.? She leaned in close to Alice?s ear and whispered, ?But I like what they hide.?  ?Didn?t I say ?None of that??? Alice whispered back with a heavy blush and a very brief flash of interest in her eye. Marisa?s nose had yet to cease its flow, but she still grinned from under the bloodied tissues poking from her face.  ?Just being honest.?

Kitaen Silva:  ?You two wouldn?t happen to be missing undergarments, would you?? Reimu said bluntly, holding up both Alice and Marisa?s wear as though it were something she did every day. Both girls blushed heavily and practically overturned the little table in front of them to swipe them from Reimu.  ?Where did you get these???  ?Suika managed to hide them in my offertory box.?  ?It must have been last-?  ?Shush! I thought your door was locked??  ?The door to my shop stays open, though. Never know when I might get a customer. Sorry! I didn?t think I?d have a snoop like Suika going through my home!?  ?When rendering services to your favorite customer, you should at least have the decency to lock up!? Alice momentarily forgot she was sitting in front of Reimu, who was staring at the two of them very, very oddly.  ?I promise I?ll lock up from now on!?  ?I believe I am either misunderstanding things, or I have a slight lack of information.? A light blush had touched the priestess? cheeks, and a drop of blood was creeping it?s way out of her nose.  ?Oh boy.?  ?Err? um? It?s not what it sounds like! Honest! I came across a rare artifact in the woods, and we were bartering for a trade."  ?Right. A trade that would allow a drunk-off-her-rocker Suika to stumble in, steal your undergarments, and make off with them??  ?Okay, so I stayed the night afterward. It?s a long walk home, and it was late, Reimu.?  ?Yeah, that?s right. And we stayed in separate rooms, too. I kinda figured that she slept ?freely? at night. And? we got a bit drunk? Hehee? Minoriko sure knows her stuff.?  ?Uh-huh! Separate rooms. So I wouldn?t have any idea that Marisa sleeps with her hands across her thighs, or that she squeaks like a cute little mouse instead of snoring.?  ?I squeak like a mouse??  ?Yeah. It?s adorable! Wait? I mean??  ?I think I get the picture? Not that I really wanted to.? Reimu said, and tried hard not to laugh, which would make her spray her own thoughts in a crimson mist from her nose. Hourai giggled loudly, making the task that much harder. Apparently she had finished her drawing some time ago, but was having fun watching Alice flounder.  ?Yeah right, ze. You just like the idea of me and Alice sleeping together.?  ?Shush, dammit!? Alice said, but had a hard time trying to keep from giggling as she saw Reimu?s eyes space out for a moment, and that bit of blood quietly rolled out, exposing what she had running through her mind. Reimu very quickly came back to reality and wiped her nose on her sleeve before thinking too much about it.  ?See, I know she likes it. But with her being a priestess, she has to work hard at keeping a holy composure. I have fun making that job hard on her.?  ?That?s not funny, Marisa!?  ?Sure it is! You just need to loosen up a bit.?  ??Loosen up? Hardly! You two just need to keep you personal ventures more private! Let?s get back to what Hourai has to say.?  ?I agree. This is quite an embarrassing discussion. Things that should have stayed secret are probably going to be found out by all of Gensokyo because you forgot to lock your doors!?  ?I?m sorry! I didn?t think that things would turn out the way they did, ze!? Marisa whined. Alice sighed irritatedly.  ?As long as Reimu here keeps her mouth shut, we should be fine.?  ?I won?t breathe a word of it. It?s none of my business. However, if you keep MAKING it my business, I?ll get word to Aya!? Reimu threatened, and both girls straightened.  ?No! Don?t do that!?  ?Please no! Anything but Aya!?  ?Then keep quiet! Hourai has finished, and none of you are even paying attention!?  ?Um? right. She says? ?Book.? ?Magic.? ?Yukari.? ?Magic.? ?Same.? ?Not.? ?Same.? And she drew a bunch of pictures. It seems that she fell into a hole of sorts on one side of a wall with the words ?Gensokyo.? and ?Border.? on it. There?s an arrow going to the next picture where Hourai is coming out of a large book next to another wall with the words ?Human.? ?World.? and ?Border.? on it. It seems that Desiderius and the two girls?? Hourai interrupted by writing something over the two girls. ?The two girls seem to be named ?Kaeli.?, and ?Phoebe.?.  It looks like they were waiting for Hourai.? The puppet interrupted again by holding her hand up to say ?wait?. She flew over to a bookshelf and grabbed a large book. She sat on the floor with it, and opened it like she was reading. Then she pantomimed something coming out of the book, and she dropped it, and ran away from it, pretending to be scared of it.  ?They were scared when you came out of the book?? The puppet nodded again.  ?I?d be scared too if things started coming out of books that I was reading.?  ?Wait? Are you saying that this book has magic like Yukari?s, only not like it??  The puppet nodded excitedly, and hovered near Reimu.  ?And that it let you cross the Gensokyo Border??  Hourai nodded again, getting more excited.  ?Can you do it again??  She shook her head, then started writing again.  ?She says ?Accident.?. Do you remember about where it happened??  Hourai thought for a moment, then showed that she wanted the three of them to follow her outside. Once they were all outside, she pointed at the oni, who had successfully installed her head into the topsoil, and was waving her legs about like she was on a bicycle.  ?Suika made you cross the border?? Reimu asked.  The puppet shook her head, and flew over to Suika. She pointed at approximately where Suika?s head would be.  ?That hole? But? Suika just made that hole a few moments ago.?  She thought for a moment, and indicated the hole again, but pointed toward the back of the shrine.  ?A different one??

Navigation

 Message Index

Next page

Go to full version