/jp/ - Otaku Culture

Later that night, after Reimu had fallen asleep and Tenshi had said that she should probably go and find out if Marisa was being forced to work for the yamawaro or the kappa as a prisoner of war, since one would involve significantly more drowning than the other, Yamame and I stepped outside to sit on the veranda in the chilly almost-Winter air. Since it was so cold, I managed to extract my coat from Reimu and had Yamame sit on my lap, then draped the coat over us like a blanket.

I heard light steps coming from the side, and I turned to see Ran approaching, her arms buried in her sleeves as usual. “Since Reimu’s gone to sleep, we’ll stop work for tonight and resume tomorrow.” She told me. “I’ve replaced the majority of the damaged storm shutters, and I’ll look into the kotatsu and see if I can source a replacement. The tatami mats will have to wait until Reimu doesn’t need use of the room. Can you relay all of this to her?” I nodded and told Ran that I would make sure she knew. “My thanks.” Ran bowed deeply, then turned from me to Yamame. “And – Miss Yamame, I would just like to thank you once more for spending time with my Chen. Her duties keep her busy, especially during the Winter months, so it makes me happy that she was about to talk to someone besides the cats in Mayohiga.”

“Oh, um, you’re welcome. I wasn’t joking when I said that I’d love to teach her more. She’s a good girl.” Yamame said with a warm smile. “I hope she’s happy with the little addition we made.”

“She loves it.” Ran said, smiling back. I couldn’t imagine this happening with Hearn. When Hearn had kidnapped Yamame and I to Australia, Ran had been entirely expressionless. “I think, perhaps, you have gained an admirer for life.” Yamame looked very flattered at that. “We shall take our leave for now, then.” With another bow, Ran opened a gap behind her and stepped backward into it. Through it, I caught a glimpse of what looked to be a house. Perhaps that was where Hearn lived. Just before it shut, I spotted Chen inside, waving at us, but the gap closed before we could respond.

I looked over at Yamame and rested my head against her, breathing in the scent of her hair. She smelled like vanilla. Once I was satisfied that she wasn't going to freeze again, I asked her how working with Tenshi had been. Then, she told me about the conversation she had engaged in with Tenshi on the roof of the Hakurei Shrine.


"Miss Tenshi!" Yamame called as she jogged over to the Shrine, leaving her human with Ran, the shikigami of that Hearn woman who had kidnapped them in the past. It was a little worrying, but he seemed to trust her enough. Although, her human had the uncanny ability to make friends with just about anything, so even if she did hate him, she would probably be polite enough to hide it.

"Whazzat!?" She heard the ex-celestial shout, her head poking over the edge of the Hakurei Shrine's rooftop. "What'd you want?" She asked, frowning down at her. Yamame hadn't gotten much of a chance to talk to her yet, aside from a frosty conversation at her front door and a few exchanged words of greeting when she'd arrived at the Shrine just a little bit earlier. Yamame looked up at her and then had to shield her eyes from the sun. Being primarily an underground youkai, Yamame didn't find herself looking into the sun too often, and it really was rather bright.

"I'd like to help!" Yamame called up, cupping a hand around her mouth. She jumped, using just a tiny bit of flight to rich the ceiling of the veranda, which she latched onto by the tips of her fingers thanks to her spider aspect. Swinging herself into a flip and using some more slight flight, she landed on the edge of the roof next to the blue-haired girl, who looked at her with a frown.

"Er, I think I can handle it myself." Tenshi told her, frowning. "Done it before, even. It's like the whole building's just too stubborn to stay in pristine shape, though, because the whole place starts breaking apart way too fast for my craftsmanship." Tenshi cast an eye up and down Yamame, who put her hands on her hips and frowned slightly. "Are you sure you can help?" She asked, her tone equal parts curious and slightly dismissive.

"I've got plenty of experience with construction!" Yamame insisted, trying to keep her tone polite. She'd learnt enough of Tenshi Hinanawi from her human to know that she was quite dismissive and rude to people she thought to be beneath her, but being kind to her was a good way to start getting into her good books. Of course, her human could make friends with just about anyone, but she wasn't about to give up. "Besides," She tried, "I wanted to see the construction techniques of a celestial." Yamame doubted that they were as vaunted as Tenshi claimed them to be. There was a reason that nearly every youkai came to her and her sisters for construction purposes, after all.

>>44055316
You can't make me join your dumb club. I will not have friends.