/jp/ - Otaku Culture

Finally able to speak, I explained as quickly as I could that I'd been invited, along with the girl in my arms, to a meeting of youkai, and I was just now returning. "A meeting of youkai?" The maid repeated, slightly incredulously. "Do you have the slightest idea how ridiculous that sounds?" I nodded, then confirmed that I'd gone anyway. "They'll kill you." I shrugged and said that they'd been pretty nice, actually. "I feel the need to ask if you've been cursed, or otherwise suffered some breakdown of your cognitive ability." Not...to my knowledge, I eventually said. "Are you certain?" She asked again, slipping her knife into a strap around her thigh. Yes, I repeated. Pretty sure. She stared at me a moment longer, than sighed. "I should have figured you for a danger to yourself when you came here, by yourself, asking to see Lady Patchouli." That hadn't seemed that bad to me, but I supposed that I'd had a very sheltered world view at the time, so I couldn't say for sure.

"In case you didn't know, my name is Sakuya Izayoi. I'm the head maid of the Scarlet Devil Mansion. I tend to the needs of my lady, the Scarlet Devil herself, Remilia Scarlet." It sounded fairly impressive, so I introduced Yamame and myself. That said, I didn't have particularly good feelings toward vampires, and I only really knew Lady Patchouli out of the ones who lived there, so I didn't have much positive to say in response to her. "I'm here because my useless excuse for a gatekeeper has disappeared, as if she's earnt such a privilege as a night off, and here I spot a possible intruder at the front gates. They," She nodded toward the fairies manning the door, who had by now sat down against said door, tossed their spears to the side and were chatting with each other, "Are useless if the intruder has the slightest experience in danmaku, so I decided to check for myself." The fairies, to no real surprise, ignored her. "But here I find a human and a youkai. And in defiance of all that is logical, the human is carrying the youkai home." I was starting to get the impression that Sakuya Izayoi just wanted to complain about something, but was struggling to bring her speech around to it. Finally given an opportunity to speak, I said that Yamame had fallen asleep, so I was carrying her back home. "How noble." Sakuya replied, her tone falling back into the coldness she had started with. "Until she decides that she's feeling a little hungry, one day." I was starting to feel a little cold toward Sakuya myself, so I shortly said that I'd deal with that problem when it came to it. Not to mention, I felt that she was being a little unfair about Meiling. She seemed to be trying her best, and she had problems of her own that she wasn't dealing with. I knew what that was like.

"Now, I have a question that you will answer. Have you seen my gatekeeper?" And now, I had a quandary. I didn't think that Meiling deserved the punishment she would probably receive if I told Sakuya where she really was, and I also wasn't sure I could convincingly lie to her. I also didn't think that Sakuya deserved the truth if she was going to treat Meiling in the manner that she clearly was. This all went through my mind in the blink of an eye, and finally, I said that I had seen her, but she was busy with some family issues. "Meiling doesn't have any family." Sakuya coolly replied. "Try again." Clearly, Meiling didn't consider the head maid a friend, or anything close enough to tell her about her own family. "Could she perhaps be off in the human village, slacking off?" No, I replied sharply. "Why do you sound so sure? Are you protecting her?"

I thought that she just wanted a break. From the monotony, and the lack of praise, and the general disdain. And she'd found that break somewhere where she wasn't being judged for having a skillset that wasn't suited to danmaku duels. Out loud, I said that she was busy, and would likely be back in the morning. "Ah, I see..." Sakuya murmured, and I could tell immediately that she didn't believe me. "Well, I shall have to speak with her about this when she returns." Just as I was sure she could tell that I didn't believe her. She was probably going to punish Meiling.

"Run along, before a youkai besides the one in your arms decides to take a bite out of you. Or before I decide that my mistress requires an extra meal." I kept my face stoic and unbothered because I refused to let her intimidate me. I'd probably be back to visit Lady Patchouli, I said. "Of course." Said Sakuya. "As long as she welcomes you." And with that, she disappeared as if she'd never been there at all.