/jp/ - Otaku Culture

[All entries of the HSE here in chronological posting order!]
>>45324110 | Part 1
>>45324120 | Part 2
>>45324127 | Part 3
>>45324134 | Part 4
>>45324150 | Part 5
>>45324163 | Part 6
>>45407358 | Part 7
>>45442424 | Part 8
>>45515189 | Part 9
>>45587647 | Part 10
>>45678494 | Part 11
>>45774613 | Part 12
>>45888588 | Part 14
>>46097700 | Part 15
>>46241111 | Part 16

[last thread's chapters]
>>46242950 | 21-Reimu
>>46244224 | 14-15-HSE Gakkuan Spin off (remix)
>>46244308 |
>>46244326 | 14-17-HSE Gakkuan Spin off (new)
>>46244334 |
>>46244550 |
>>46244733 |
>>46245463 | 7-8-Patchiouli
>>46245469 |
>>46253425 | 162-166-Hana
>>46260381 |
>>46269139 |
>>46269144 |
>>46270574 |
>>46270580 | 11-Shinki
>>46273118 | 29-30-Kosuzu
>>46273129 |
>>46277934 | 167-Hana
>>46284973 | 12-Shinki
>>46285628 | 168-171-Hana
>>46285634 |
>>46285661 |
>>46303491 | 26-28-Mokou
>>46303494 |
>>46303499 |
>>46316719 | 9-Patchouli
>>46318829 | 87-Aya
>>46328168 | 11-Meiling (chapter no.1000!)
>>46329035 | 88-89-Aya
>>46329036 |
>>46333435 | 12-Meiling
>>46335776 | 32-34-Rikako/Lemontene
>>46335784 |
>>46335792 |
>>46336749 | 31-32-Kosuzu
>>46336763 |
>>46347102 | 13-Meiling
>>46349083 | 10-Patchouli
>>46367716 | 5-Eirin
>>46379833 | 37-Keine
>>46387809 | 172-173-Hana
>>46387820 |
>>46391359 | 13-Shinki
>>46396448 | 14-Meiling
>>46396454 | 11-Patchouli
>>46397007 | 14-Shinki
>>46398179 | 3-Seiga
>>46399035 | 33-Kosuzu
(1020 entries)

[for phoneanons that can't access the dead threads, here's the last thread. Link to all others in the 'all entries']:
>>/jp/thread/46240785 | 23rd thread

>>46406705
Yay! Flan!

>>46406705
>Part 16
Let's shoot for 40!

“It's been an hour already, and you're still pouting~?”

Despite her tone, my 'pouting' is totally justified: “You put me in the middle of a crowd; made me teach a birdbrain how to read AND then apologized too cutely! 'Course I'm still pouting, Izanagi!” Keine chuckles, my pout growing bigger. Too cute to be mad at… Fantastic. My hands plunge inside my pockets, eyes on the night sky and stars above, a soft second of silence stretching between us as we stroll, Keine holding onto my arm with her head laying on my shoulder—Aki and Mochi will stay the night at Mystia's and will stay there with some youkai that denied participating in the protests tomorrow. “… I'll fuck you tonight with a fire cock and pump your womb full of embers.” It's said with a smug, her giggling dying as a delightful redness took over her face.

I pull her in closer, and a tiny smile highlights the night.

A moment later, and we cackled together, the moonlight above the only witness of one of many moments of joy… that, like all others, will fade away for her— “Gee, stop with that face, Mokou.” She says and I frown, 'What face?' “That one—the sad one.”

“I'm not sad, just concerned,” I sigh, diverting my gaze to the tall bamboo surrounding us. “… Using a fake Full Moon to trigger your hakutaku form and writing Seiga's demise is just a delay with Yukari still in the game, and we've got no plan for that as of now. We're at her mercy… Any second, in a whim, our two kids…” Her tender right palm holds onto my cheek and I turn to her, those eyes calm yet ready. I lean onto the frail flesh.

“I understand, Mokou; I do. But we do what we can now; the past is written, and the future is a mystery—so stay here with me, in the present. It’s where I need you most.” That smile, that fucking smile… I wearily nod, head lowering, a bitter feeling swimming inside. Throw everything to the wind, run away to a very faraway place; show them all I can while we still have time…

… When will that stop being a dream?

Certainly not now.

Our walk finally comes to a close as a rather nostalgic place opens before us: the same lake, the same clearing—the same moon. “Gosh, you had cooked so well that night~” Keine hums, her smile growing from ear to ear. The place where we restored our friendship and took our first steps to developing love.

To think it has been just a few weeks, and I already cannot even recall what life was like before them—my very own family…

“I'll cook even better after tomorrow. A feast unlike anything you've ever seen,” I mumble, her eyes turning away from the scenario to me. “And it'll be in a place higher and much cooler than the top of Mt. Fuji; it'll be a volcano. An active volcano… Yeah, I'll take us and the kids to the top of an active volcano. How does that sound?”

“… I don't think the maw of an active volcano would be 'cooler' than the summit of Mt. Fuji, but sure, it sounds lovely~” The joke takes a moment to land, but when it does, I hit my forehead on Keine’s, a yelp of pain followed by giggles of amusing echoing. Being so close, though, I can’t resist pecking her on the lips. “… You’re forgiven~”

Faces connected, so close to each other. If a moment could last forever…

…

… However, Keine soon steps aside and takes out a seemingly harmless-looking scroll from her dress. She unfolds it on the ground and places by it a pen, a small towel for her knees, and a simple pot of black ink. With the preparations to use her hakutaku ability swiftly done, a deep-seated fear rises and clings to me like a tentacle, my heart palpitating—so much that can go wrong; so much that one singular second can change.

Lives crushed, futures erased, pasts forgotten—so agonizingly possible…

… But that's the life of a mortal, huh?

I peer into her eyes as she turns—eyes I could gaze into forevermore and still feel a rush of marvel. “Oi, Keine… For that food I promised you, our marriage to come; our kiddos—tomorrow, let’s do our best, okay?”

She pauses and stares at me as if analyzing something only she can understand; then she smiles fondly and nods. “For you three, I'll do beyond my best. You're my heart—don't ever forget it.”

I nod, kicking the grass and then grumbling, “C-Cool…” To the lullaby that is her playful giggle, I turn and put about thirty feet of distance between us.

Turning again, one hand pointing at the skies, I look over her, anxiety subsiding.

'Do what you can. For some people, that's more than enough.'

And so a cone-shaped torrent of blue flames roars towards the sky from my palm, displacing the air in waves that make our clothes and the lake's water wobble chaotically. The sheer, blinding glow lasted about two moments before it settled…

Shining above us was a massive full moon of serene, celestial azure inferno.

Keine gazes at it, her expression awestruck, body relaxed…

Then her silly hat falls to reveal sprouting horns, emerald green flowing down her dress.

Under this blue moon, it's like I'm seeing her for the first time again.

>>46406742
tomorrow Keine's chapters will be the last ones of part 2/3, then I'll wait the Suzu to become available, finishing Patchy and Meiling; and then, Keine finale~!
>>46406718
I think we'd be dead of old age before that happens...
>>46406713
hold her
https://files.catbox.moe/8cgnfo.jpg

>>46406655
The funniest part is that it only benefited Alice, Marisa took a massive downturn.
If we compare screen time then in the OGabusefic you have Marisa being a main character that got tons of screen time to the OGhanafic where she was a strong side character and angled to become a major character again.
Alice on the otherhand didn't even exist in either and became a meme early on, now she's a side character and only Shinki and Dolly's presence kept her with any staying power despite not having a real writefag.

>>46406771
To be fair, Marisa's earlier prominence worked against her. Her baggage made her harder to write compared to characters like Aya who was more of a blank slate. Her biggest issue though was probably Mima overshadowing her by playing the leading role in assembling the job squad. It's funny how both Marisa and Alice both got overshadowed by their respective hags.

And it's even funnier given that wasn't my intent and it sorta just happened as I was writing.

>>46406814
I'll let you know that the second I read the Mima chapter I knew Marisa was going to be sidelined. You can't just pull out the hag and expect the junior to outshine them.

>>46406824
Yeah... I've got an entire divine persona planned out for Mima and a single conversation planned for Marisa. I wanted to do more with her, but most of what she'd reasonably be doing is just training and alchemy which I think I covered enough of to get the point across. Mima meanwhile had a lot more flexibility in what she could do.

>>46406840
I disagree, Marisa would be a plotter character for sure. Her status as a protag and affinity with magical items ensures that she can have an intrigue filled plot with literally anyone in Gensokyo while asspulling whatever she needs. It's been 20 years on top of that, so she's done incidents we have no clue about and can pull out your ass without issue. Marisa had the potential to outshine even a dedicated moriyan or Eientei writer in terms of plot potential without having to reach too hard to get things going.
Sadly, she just lucked out. Poor Marisa could barely get pregnant much less keep a man in her home...

>>46406854
kinda sad for Marisa, but I'm glad I could at least have her and the 'Mu have that conversation after the Hana got into the shrine. She was caressing hard of moments with other significant characters, and the talk was long overdue as it'll also kickstart the bit I have for her in the finale

HSE Relationship chart, Doremy Punished Edition.

>>46408300
I still don't get the future timeline stuff since anon apparently ascended to godhood during that but isn't the last hakurei somehow?

>>46409392
The future timeline is titled [Do not Research] for a reason, it's a shitpost section comprised of peoples different ideas for the future.
Person A say X
Person B says Y
Both are added to the chart since it's a joke not meant to be taken seriously.

>>46406840
Gasp, mima and hakurei god doing the fusion dance without legs? Criminal.

Apologies for being a little sudden but is there any chance of bitches dying in the solstice?

>>46406854
Hmm... I'm not a writefag but thinking about it if Marisa wanted to self reflect and improve after chatting with Reimu, she could go return patchy's books and see about having her ask or beg patchy to assist in scouting around the HSE, patchy could use the opportunity to check on flan and sakuya on remi's request as remi overhears marisa's apologies.

>>46409682
yup, there's even a section for dead characters in the pastebin that'll be used to keep track of the Solstice

>>46409738
Cirno should die, the other fairies as well.
Satori too.

>>46406694
>This is certainly NOT a suicide attempt!"
I think she will actually win until Yukari spills the beans on Hana ruining her mojo, because "lmao ex dee I can float on command semi consistently through my constant meditation training, spell cards were designed to hold ME back, baka!"
>"Dragon and Oni get fantasy sealed until they yield, gg no re."
Kasen would be content with letting Reimu win because guilt of course

>>46409909
t. akyuu

>>46409955
It's called having taste, besides would anyone even mind them getting killed off.
Also Koishi would be sad and that'd be a plus.

>>46409965
>>It's called having taste, besides would anyone even mind them getting killed off.
FairyIDF here. Fuck you

>>46410100
>FairyIDF
No idea what that is but suffering is kino and we need our girls to suffer more, Koishi should be at the very least in-directly responsible for Satori's death and Cirno should get herself and her friends killed!

>>46410357
There will be more suffering and you'll like it.

earlier thread discussion is always funny to read during break~

>>46410375
Thank you for blessing my post Reimu.

>>46400503
If I was put at gunpoint and given a do over, I would've written less and had him much more laidback in the plot, more akin to that one stylish anime I can't find right now where the protag casually travels around and occasionally quells Youkai incidents.
But mistakes were made, really the recovery from Seija's betrayal should've been the rest of their arc and it would've been 100% better.

>>46410648
Byakuren's biggest failure is on berhalf of her son, she should've had Seija join the temple under her supervision.
By which I mean erotically lobotomize the 'jaku when she had the chance.

I forget, was Clownpiece still living under the floor during all those years when Reimu was beating and raping Anon?

>>46411186
she left, that's why she's seen with Junko and Heca again. Though it'd be funny if she'd stayed and enjoyed seeing all the disgrace and torment Hana and Anon went through

>>46411213
She'd invite the fairies of light over to watch something funny and the three of them would leave traumatized.

>>46398179 (69)

Seiga gently lifts the girl’s head and places it onto her lap. The girl of course begins to stir at that, but before she properly awakes Seiga covers her mouth and brings her hairpin up to the girl’s throat.

The light pressure on the girl’s jugular causes her eyes to snap open and Seiga’s graced with the wonderful sight of confusion rapidly shift to terror.

Bringing her other hand down to stroke the girl’s hair, Seiga begins to coo. “Hush now, hush hush. You wouldn’t want to force my hand, now would you?”

The fool begins to desperately shake her head. Ironically, the motion would have slashed open her neck had Seiga not pulled it back ever so slightly. Still, Seiga can't complain as it’s such a lovely sight, especially the tears.

Patting the girl, Seiga continues, “Good, you’re a reasonable girl. I like reasonable girls. Though you’re not that reasonable of a girl, are you?”

Seiga taps the girl’s stomach with her hairpin before bringing it back to the girl’s throat, “No, a reasonable girl wouldn’t have that. Or at least she’d wait until marriage. You just couldn’t wait, could you?”

The girl doesn’t respond, how annoying.

Seiga pushes the pin slightly further, just barely piercing the skin and drawing a drop of blood. “I asked you a question. Could you wait?”

The girl very carefully shakes her head. “That’s more like it. I figured you couldn’t. After hearing all about it you just needed to give that big hunk of meat, Anon, a try, right?”

Another nod, how scandalous~

Seiga smirks, “I can’t blame you. I’m partial to that stud myself, but from the looks of it, you got a little too eager. It’s from him I take it?”

Annoyingly, the girl is beginning to sniffle. She’s suppressing them the best she can, but it’s unnecessary noise. Still, the girl has the sense to nod.

Using her free hand, Seiga begins wiping away the girl’s tears with her thumb. “It must have been scary when you realized. Feeling so strange and having a creeping suspicion you knew why. Sneaking away to Eientei just to have that suspicion proved. Desperately trying to hide it out of fear of what daddy would do while knowing that one day you wouldn’t be able to. Well, those days are over, thanks to me. Just say the word and that thing growing inside you will never see the light of day. It won’t even hurt.”

The girl doesn’t reply, she just keeps sniffling between heavy breaths.

Seiga scowls, “The night is young dear and I have much work to do. You know what will happen if your mistake is discovered. You’ve no choice, the only way out of the hole you’ve dug for yourself is to say yes.”

It’s terribly bothersome. It would be so easy to just rip the fetus from the girl’s womb, but that would mean going against Yukari’s orders. Normally she’d ignore anyone who’d think to command her, but Yukari’s reasoning was solid. Openly breaking the rules would bring more enemies, best to handle the current dissenters for now. And when they’re out of the picture…

But that’s a dream for the future. For now, she can’t kill the villagers nor take their unborn by force. Though she’s just not supposed to kill them…

Seiga brings her hairpin to the uncooperative girl’s cheek. She could mar that perfect little face forever. All it would take is a light thrust. The girl probably wouldn’t even admit the truth. She’d likely lie and say it was an accident to save her family yet more burdens.

Yes tha-

Seiga is cut off as the wall explodes revealing a figure sitting upon a massive tortoise or was that a turtle? She’s dressed darkly in imperial finery while clutching an ornate and clearly magical blade in her right hand while her left clutches some sort of talisman or seal. A rather chubby-looking snake rests upon her shoulders.

It’s… Xuanwu the Black Emperor! It’s finally happened, heaven has come to smite her for her transgression. She… she’s not ready, she had no time to prepare, how is she to defeat the True Martial Grand Emperor?

As Seiga remains stunned, the figure speaks. “What sort of devil are you come to pluck the unborn babe from its mother’s womb? What great pride you must have to believe I, Mima, Goddess of the North Star and shepherd of man would not stop you!”

Mima? That’s… not the right name and she’s also not the right gender. While the historical record may be deceiving at times regarding sex (the prince being a prime example), Mima? Wasn’t that the vengeful spirit Yukari mentioned? Is she really trying to impersonate Xuanwu?

Seeing Seiga’s lack of response, Mima continues. “Is it fear that holds your tongue still, wicked hermit? No matter, defend yourself or perish to serve as an example of the fate of those who strike at my charges.”

Seiga has no desire to entertain this up-jumped ghost, but… a glance through the ruined wall reveals that many villagers are peaking through their windows to watch. Perhaps sending this spirit back to where it belongs will show the cattle she is not one to be refused.

>>46411767
heh, will be funny seeing Mima getting her ass handed to her. She needs a good humbling for all this shit talk of becoming a goddess yet turning to be impotent of even helping Hana when she needed the most.

>>46408300
Just want to mention, I saw someone else, Zounose, have a Tewi -- Kanko connection in his Doujin "Gods Gods Gods"
Although we drew different conclusions from the same myths it's proof to me, I'm not entierly crazy.

>>46411767
Not sure who I want to lose more Mima or Seiga, but it's funny with her now being Marisa's personally enemy Seiga has lost the last person who thought positively about her.

>>46412488
Ssib hinted at it too, so you're not insane anon

>>46406742
>Keine finally commits the deed of writing seiga to death
>>46411767
>Seiga says it's fetus eating o' clock
>Mima rides in on her turtle steed just to tell seiga she's unplugging her controller
Keine, what the hell did you write??

>>46412690
>death by ultra-turtle pussy bite snap

>>46411449
>She'd invite the fairies of light over to watch something funny and the three of them would leave traumatized.
perhaps she did and that's why they don't hang around the shrine anymore?

>Yacchie is currently fighting pro-HSE
>Yuuka is anti-HSE
Meanwhile Saki is...?

>>46417013
bed-shattering sex with enoko

>>46417013
>Meanwhile Saki is...?
… irrelevant!

>>46417013
I only now just realized I typed Yuuka instead of Yuuma
I guess she's the 4th Goukyou Alliance Beast now. I mean flowers are technically an animal, right?

>>46417621
No, but Mushroom are, well they are close enough.

>>46417184
Miko living the dream, while we are but deprived of the muscle headed short stack horse girl herself.

>>46406854
I think it's a shame Marisa got sidelined. I would have liked to seen just what it meant for her and Anon for their relationship going from a close friendship to a sexual one.

>>46417770
I think if there's any marianon around it'd be nice to get another conversation between marisa and anon where they can properly come to terms with what they are to each other and their actions at the start of the HSE

>>46417806
when I finish my other small scale stories (finishing the Eirin second part and writing a bit about the onis), I think I can write a Marisa/Anon talk. Should be a nice follow-up after writing her reconciliation with the 'mu

>>46406742
—
The night howls with an odd frigidity, and I mumble as I look away from my book on the counter—returning to the page I was on before the wind flipped them: A novella about a man trapped in a cage by an evil witch. A confusing yet morbid read; the more you read, the more disgusted you are, and the more disgusted you are, the more you want to read. Fascinating concept—to the front window of the Kourindou. The moon had vanished behind thick, dark clouds, which I swear I hadn't seen in the distance this morning… Hm, maybe a worsening winter caused it through pressure changes? Or maybe just a torrential thunderstorm? Either way, I should go to sleep soon…

After finishing this read, of course.

Forgetting the mundane matter and returning to the page where the enslaved beast fights her inner demons, I turn my eyes away from the window just as another violent gust of wind knocks…

… And, for a second, the Kourindou swims on an aurora borealis.

My body goes immediately alert as I gawk towards the sudden beacon of light, a confusing wave of gratitude washing over me—’thank you for taking care of me’—, its origins unknown beyond the hallow light that lasted just enough for a blink…

Like that, it was gone—not a trace of whatever had created enough light to equal the sun itself.

It was as if it hadn't happened.

Wide-eyed and uncaring of my glasses about to slip off my nose, I approach the window and almost shyly peek out onto the village and its ever-changing beauty, the wind persistently growling to the point it shakes the Kourin… Perhaps it's best to close the windows tonight.

Nothing out of the ordinary.

I cannot help but wonder if I had just daydreamed about spellcards or something… I hope Marisa is okay.

Though, being so close to the shelves by the window, one detail reaches me—one I slowly comprehend, sighing then: Something was missing.

Something that was there, laying calmly and proudly for two decades, almost as if waiting…

… No, probably stuff in my head. Same for that light. The markets of the HSE have made me put in immense work to just keep things afloat, so I'm likely more tired than I think. Perhaps I just forgot where I put it.

Yes, that seems right.

With the windows closed, I return to my book, now with a mental note for tomorrow morning: search where I put Kusanagi-no-tsurugi.

———

It's a weird sense to transform. I know the next time I blink and these clothes of mine are a heavenly blue again, these horns fade away; my memory will be mostly lost. Such is the fate of the one who wasn't born a hakutaku but was instead cursed to be one. Rather now, it's no curse; it's power I'll use to protect my family and Gensokyo.

My eyes lift from the burning blue moon to Mokou, her eyes full of stupor and awe, a smile birthing in my lips…

It soon fades as duty overwhelms me like a waterfall. Energy is of utmost necessity for the use of my powers: I'll be writing each individual second of the lives of my children in case the revolution fails and I end up dying, a real possibility after Mr. Hieda's display—that on top of Seiga's demise… I waste not a second more and turn towards the setup, my new tail following my movements like a veil as I kneeled on the little towel, right-hand grasping the pen and, tenderly, laying its tip on the writing silk.

I take a deep breath, analyzing again the tangents of what I'll be writing.

Since I am powerless to write Mokou's future, the twins' caregiver will be called ‘Mother’; it is not a loophole, but it will ensure that they’re protected. Next, Seiga's actions must be constant and not frowned upon, so her behavior—for as much as it hurts me—will be the same until I can find a suitable location where we can silently assassinate her and don't have it traced back to me or Mokou.

The moon of fire shines above, my tail setting down…

… I move my hand and begin writing.

Five seconds in, smoke rises as the friction becomes unbearable and the rate of writing thousands of words per second begins tearing the skin off my arm. The scroll, ostensibly infinite, is pulled and disappears as it meets its ending; that's also its start—akin to Uroboros—a sizzling sound as the silk moves like a raging river, hand going up and down the page with movements nigh impossible to accurately follow.

Each second of three lives being created, so much information in so little time that my brain would collapse if I'd to comprehend even one percent of it.

Blood baptizes the epic, but it doesn’t compromise the future of my children or Seiga's demise…

Sweating profusely, eyes narrowing and excruciating pain but a buzz in my ears, I continue for what seems like hours, maybe billions of words written in the process, my trembling writing hand and wrist shredded of all its skin.

But it doesn't matter—the pain, the struggle, the maims…

Aki and Mochi are my heart; Mokou my support; Gensokyo, my purpose.

Make it a good place—a better place than now…

… For them, no cost is too great.

>>46417874
—
It's hard to watch; my mind screaming for me to do something…

I stay back anyway, heart thumping and dying a little more as blood cascades down the silk and greases the soil, Keine's back still as an iron wall as she wrote on the infinite paper. Wounds pilling like that'd mean nothing to me or Kags, but for Keine…? A foot rhythmically hitting the ground, arms all tense and shivering like crazy, body trembling and eyes trying to turn away yet never doing so: 'do something, do something—just do something!'

Unable to stay still anymore, I was about to rush to Eientei to fetch someone—anyone—to heal her wounds, blood cool and Blue Moon above shining just as radiantly as one hour ago when this excruciating process started—

“Mokou.” Keine's voice is serene, as if everything under her right elbow wasn't raw, bleeding flesh. “Stay here. Please. I need you.” She turns her face ever so slightly to me, and it's all that's necessary for me to stay, heart about to jump off my chest and mind frenzied with the sights. Squatting, I joined my hands in front of my face as if I hadn’t forsaken the gods, teeth clenched…

It’s so very tiring; tomorrow is just the beginning if we do win.

Here, in this messy and egotistical mind, I do wish we'd lose, that this rebellion crashes and burns. I'd then take my wife and my kids and leave; show them a beautiful world beyond the confines of this barrier. “Are those your true feelings, Mokou~?”

Her voice makes me freeze, wide eyes lifting. Keine wasn't sitting anymore, holding the sealed scroll with her left hand—the right one resembling that of a skinned corpse. But that doesn't matter! D-Did I say all that bullshit out loud?! An acidic feeling begins accumulating behind my eyes as my mind rushes for excuses, words to save this situation. “K-Keine, I, those words—s-sorry—”

“I don't mind, Mokou.”

Perplexity washes over me like permafrost and, staring at her, I frown… She's still in her hakutaku form, her tail slowly wagging and eyes gazing deeply into the moon of fire, the light dancing beautifully on her pupils.

Confusion settles as I get up and approach her. “… Keine?” I call.

“Ten, fifty years into the future—I am still yours, Mokou.” There's a small smile on her face, though her words confuse me. What the fuck is she talking about? “… The Blue Moon is special, Mokou. Fire from the depths of this world layers over the moon and together they create this majestic, extraordinary event. Only under this moon can I write this message to you.” H-Huh? “Under this blue moon of ours is the only time I can write my own destiny.”

A moment of silence and, with broadening eyes, it finally clicks. Her hakutaku powers…?!

“… Are our kiddos fine? Did the revolution succeed? H-How many years into the future?” The words are utterly desperate, though on the inside an overwhelming relief blossoms; nothing bad will happen tomorrow. She'll be safe.

She smiles before negating with her head. “Sorry, Mokou.” Keine then turns her back to me and gazes again into the moon. “… Don't forget why you're fighting. For the livelihood of our friends, so Mystia can be happy, so Kosuzu won't face judgment for being a good person… A Gensokyo free of the likes of Seiga and Yukari. For me, for our kids, fight.” Her voice has this sheer cadence that straightens my spine; it feels like being a child again receiving orders—!

She walks away, the scroll opening as her maimed hand hovers above the bloodied silk, a subtle glow there.

What's she doing…?

“Fight for me, for I'll fight for every good soul in Gensokyo.”

Then she just… Pulls a handle out of the scroll, a blade forming as she stops to be directly underneath the blue moon—one that strikes me as extremely familiar—and gently points the tip of the ordinary sword towards it, blood having bathed the blade already—

—without warning, the blue moon falls from the skies like a legend, instincts screaming for me to rush and save Keine—

“Power gained means nothing, Mokou.” She commands, stopping my mad dash. Keine placidly gazes at the falling moon. “It's fated to die and wither away; it'll not command presence nor authority and all that look upon its use will know it. It'll be inevitably taken away, leaving behind a rotted core. Without that power, the host is nothing.” The moon, a meteor of blue fire… Is stopped by the tip of the sword, standing still as if a leaf on top of a fence. Keine hadn't as much as flinched. “Power must be acquired through test and fire, honed to its perfection and fought for, so when it is taken away, nothing changes.” Slowly, the unmoving moon is drawn into the sword, taking form of a tornado being devoured by the folded steel. “Do know one single thing, my beloved:” Unnoticed, an ember of fire leaves her heart. “This power will not define me.”

With the moon gone, she sheathes the sword into the scroll.

“… Keep this a secret, will you?”

I merely nod, and, as her hakutaku form vanishes, Keine passes out with a sweet smile.

>>46417884
>>46417874
that's it for Keine's story for now! Will wait the Suzu to be free before continuing. The Suzu has documents to steal from the HSE, after all~go, go, Suzu!

>>46396454
—
Koa…

She’d occasionally bring tea and snacks and hang out with me when Lady Patchouli would give her a break; we'd have pleasant conversations. Putting my arms up, I defend against the onslaught of elongated succubi nails before clinching her arms and throwing the girl onto Sakuya's knives, the one already lodged in my chest stinging with the sharp moves, my Sichuan breathing technique—the very thing that stopped the dreaded HSE's incense—stopping me from collapsing due to pain. Sakuya doesn't even look at wounded Koa, throwing her knives—

—they’re immediately directly in front of my face, something I'm very used to as I hit their plain sides and disperse their inertia. Sakuya, strict and overwhelmingly loyal to her duties; it's incredibly irksome how much you target me, knowing fully well I'd be the first to respond to any thread—yet… you do it from a place of respect. Always keeping me on edge, waiting for the moment we'd fight side by side. Lunging forward, I release my ki in an explosion, meeting Sakuya face-to-face with kicks and punches, the woman fighting in equal measure with her knives coming from everywhere at the same time, deflecting and parrying the melee attacks.

One slip, a blade stabs my shoulder…

But this is not a lone fight. My ki screams and without looking, I turn sideways, a red spear puncturing the spot I was a second ago, jabbing instead Sakuya's abdomen. Teeth clenched, I kicked up and took Gungnir, using it to fight Sakuya and Remilia at the same time, defending and parrying claws and blades, small cuts sprouting everywhere and joining the knife in the spurting blood. Lady Remilia, it was a pleasure to walk this world with you; though you didn't talk to me as much as you used to after we 'adopted' that vampire hunter for fun, I’ll always respect you and your strength… Not really your eccentricities, but oh well.

Ki screams once more, a tiring chorus—body worn down all over, veins feeling void—and I grab Sakuya's forearm and force it deep into Lady Remilia’s mouth, stabbing Gungnir through them.

A good distraction.

A fraction of a second, I jump away from them—

—only for a beam of scarlet the thickness of a house to drown them in light, blinding my eyes. Lady Flan laughed out loud, dashing towards me, her gaze that of an animal… But you're not one, Flan. You're just a sweet little girl, but not even your sister, who was all you had, trusted you.

Five hundred years in that basement…

It hurts to be all alone in this world, doesn’t it?

The weight behind Flan's blows is matched only by being buried beneath a mountain, her crazy Danmaku burning my skin and speed making me fight for my life—my eyes go wide as she breaks my defenses and thrusts forward, mouth wide open, and before I can do anything, she takes hold of my shoulders, straddles her feet on my abdomen, and sinks her sharp fangs in my neck, tearing open my throat.

I scream, wide-eyed and terrified, warrior spirit reaching for the closest weapon: getting hold of Sakuya's knife, pulling it out, and mercilessly slashing open Flan's chest in an upward motion, opening the vampire in two. Not one ounce of blood spills, her smile diabolical as she watches me back away, huffing and puffing, my vision blurry as I let go of the knife and take hold of my mangled neck, a flamethrower of blood leaving me. This is bad… Terribly bad.

… Can a ghost even die?

“Yes. Yes, they can.” Patchy's voice calls my attention forth.

Facing me are the residents of the Scarlet Devil Mansion, not a wound or drop of blood in sight. Lady Patchouli—no, Sekai—watches. “Why are you doing this…?” I shakily ask, mouth filling with the liquid of life.

“Your courage is beautiful, Mother Meiling; resisting and fighting these insurmountable odds without giving up. When I'm born, I wish to have an ounce of this ferocity.” I confusedly groan: rebutting a question with flattery…? After trying to kill me? “I'm not trying to kill you, Mother Meiling. I'd forsake sweet life before killing one of my parents…” The softness in which she says those words, Patchouli's face twisting to a sorrowful expression—it makes me forget for a second I'm profusely bleeding. If so, why's she doing all these things?! Why did she say those words to me? “They were lies, Mother Meiling.” I halt. Completely. Sekai approaches, unbothered by my fighting stance. “About ten seconds, yes…”

Then, Sekai lunged forward.

And hugged me. Tightly.

“Right here, right now, I'm alive, Mother Meiling! And I love you!” So shocked and unable to understand what's even going on, I miss everyone coming closer to me and—

—the whole Scarlet Devil Mansion is hugging me.

… B-Bwuah…?

“I'm not even angry. I'm being so sincere right now—I love you so much…” The pain in my body utterly vanishes. W-What is even happening?! “… And—about now.”

Suddenly, a spell destroys the copies hugging me.

… That spell was Lady Patchouli’s magic.

The most confused I've ever been, I free fall from the skies.

"You've been acting different lately, you know." Patchouli looked up from her book. A grimoire that she'd found hidden deep in the library, one that she was certain would instantly kill any human who looked at it. Fortunately, that wasn't much of a problem for her. "You're all...Tense. Like your nerves are stretched to the limit." Reaching out and lifting her teacup between two slender fingers, Patchouli took a sip and regarded her luncheon companion. "It's a little worrying, Patchy."

"I'm perfectly fine, Remi." Patchouli murmured, placing the teacup back down. Remilia Scarlet watched her with two calculating eyes. She was concerned, yes. A slight twitch of her fingers to activate her favourite diagnostic spells was enough to confirm that. A vague indication of panic lurked at the back of her consciousness, too, along with some deep-seated unease that had settled into her psyche. Something she'd been feeling for a long time. "You're worrying unnecessarily." She flipped to the next page of her grimoire and regarded the diagram contained within. Human sacrifice. No, that was rather inelegant and finding elegant and simple solutions for her problems was Patchouli Knowledge's favourite thing to do. "Perhaps-"

"Don't pull that diagnostic stuff on me, Patchy. I can always tell. I'm your friend, am I not?" Remi leaned forward and rested her chin on her hands. She was doing her own form of analysis, though it took a less clinical approach than Patchouli's did. "Tell me what ails you. I have precious little else to distract me these days." Patchouli wondered. Did Remi know? That Flandre Scarlet's presence had disappeared from the mansion on more than one occasion? That the world they inhabited seemed to be swirling toward a great confrontation that could only be rivalled by those in the greatest biblical paintings in Europe? That it all revolved around that vile building sitting in the village of humanity? The one that was throwing her spells off and her mood even further? Did she even know that there was a man trapped inside that she'd once shared several friendly conversations with?

"You're doing it again." Remi suddenly said, a smile starting to grow on her face. "You're analysing. Thinking. You can't hide it from me, Patchy. You might have everyone else wrapped around your finger in a given conversation, but not me."

"I'm doing no such thing." Patchouli insisted, taking another sip of her tea to cover her own slight smile up. "You're the one who's overanalysing, Remi." Next page of the grimoire...No, that involved celestial bodies. Those spells were out of her repertoire until this HSE business was resolved. Sighing, she shut the book and put it to the side. "Why must you push me so?"

"Because, as I just said, I am your friend. It concerns me. You've always looked like you have chronic insomnia, but it's even worse as of late." Remi spread her wings to aid her balance so she could lean in even closer. "When's the last time you slept for more than three hours in a night? Don't lie to me, now." There would be no sweet talking her way out of this, it seemed. Patchouli tutted and cast her mind back. A second stretched into two, and then three and four. "...You weren't supposed to need so long to think about that. Honestly, how am I supposed to entrust my library to you if you can't even take care of yourself?" Remi reached across the table and plucked Patchouli's teacup from her before she could stop the vampire. "No drinking this until you talk to me." She sharply spoke. "Until you tell me the truth."

"You're diabolical, Remi."

"I'm devilish, wouldn't you say?" Remi's smile grew wider still, and Patchouli sighed and massaged the bridge of her nose. "Come on, come on. I've heard so little about the world outside our mansion in recent years, and then you up and left to go exploring. I was overjoyed to hear you were getting out and about, but then you refused to even explain what happened! Well, no longer. Explain, Patchy, or I shall grow upset."

"Well, I'd hardly like to invite your ire, Remi." Patchouli murmured with a thin smile. "Fine. I shall explain." She'd debated this in her mind several times prior to today. Whether or not to tell Remi. If she should explain everything or not. If she should tell her just what went on in that sordid building. But there was one thing she'd been hesitant about most of all...

"Overthinking, Patchy! Am I your friend or not!?" Remi spoke slightly louder and Patchouli suddenly made her mind up. Yes, Remi was her friend. Her oldest and closest friend, and she deserved her trust.

"I've been dreaming." Patchouli whispered, tilting her head slightly to look at Remi. "Dreaming of things that do not reside in the Dream World."

"...Come again?" Remi tilted her head and frowned slightly. "'Things that do not reside in the Dream World?' Not all of us can claim your genius, Patchy." She finally sat back in her chair and rested her chin on her hand again. "I have apologised for the burn injuries you suffered setting up the fire pit outdoors, have I not? I want you to trust me with your troubles."

The hand that had been burnt twitched. "Yes." Patchouli nodded slightly. "Yes, I shall explain. What do you know of the Hakurei Shrine Experience?" Remi might have been older than her by a factor of five, but her psychological development had halted when she was bitten. While she was incredibly wise in some aspects, she was still very immature in others. This, unfortunately, included matters of an... Intimate persuasion.

"The Hakurei Shrine... Experience?" Remi repeated with a frown. "I've heard of it, I think. Meiling mentioned it once, but it was only offhand. She seemed to want to give me something, but she'd faltered and hesitated so much that I gave up in the end." Yes, that made sense. Meiling had been holding a bag when she and Patchouli had quit the building after their last visit. She'd been very evasive about what exactly was inside the bag, but Patchouli was far from stupid. Even if she was, the embarrassment and slight guilt surrounding the gatekeeper was clear even without her spells. "This wouldn't have something to do with the matter that Yakumo's servants came to discuss, would it?" Trust Remi to cut to the point. Patchouli had declined to be involved in the overall unpleasant evening that had involved the servants of Yukari Yakumo gracing the mansion's gates. She'd taken a moment to get the feel of them, of course, but speaking to them? No, thank you. "The world moves even without our involvement, after all."

"Much as I'm sure you wished it only moved according to your whims. Yes, very astute, Remi. There is a building, located in the Human Village. It is a debauched place that you will not wish to go, but it interferes with my spells, so I had no choice but to investigate in person." Thankfully, Remi took her words at face value. The worst thing she could do is accidentally convince Remi to investigate by herself. The magic worked into those uniforms alone... Patchouli shook her head. "I believe there is a great storm brewing, and it is one that will change Gensokyo forever. Your Winter Solstice celebration...How are the plans coming along?"

"You're changing the topic rather suddenly, are you not?" Remi asked her with a raised eyebrow. "Much like every year, the plans are coming along fine. I've got Sakuya on it between her other duties." Much like every year, indeed. "I do not hold much truck with Yakumo, if that is your concern. Oh, her servants certainly know how to make a first impression, but one cannot forget to see the organ grinder for the monkeys." Some good news, at least. Patchouli had no desire to be part of whatever asinine catastrophe Yukari Yakumo had concocted aside from to ensure she and the mansion came through unscathed. "Tell me about the Hakurei Shrine Experience."

Patchouli stared at her teacup, still clutched in Remi's hand. After a pregnant pause, Remi sighed and offered it back to her. Patchouli snapped her fingers, and from the darkness of the library, Koakuma emerged. She took Patchouli's teacup, refilled it silently, nodded, and stepped back into the darkness. Patchouli was keeping an eye on her, and she knew that the little devil know it. No, she was not to sneak off to the Hakurei Shrine Experience until such a time that Patchouli had declared it safe. And considering the building...That was very unlikely. "It is not the building that I wish you to concern yourself with, Remi." Patchouli murmured, taking a sip of her tea. "The important thing is that I went there and I spent some time there." Remi opened her mouth and Patchouli snapped a finger at her. "No, I did not do whatever it is you are thinking." Remi's mouth shut with an audible click. "I went to investigate. Sakuya sent Meiling after me before long, and she joined me there. Some time later, we returned. That was the sum total of our time directly interacting with the building."

"So... What? What are you getting at, Patchy?" Remi took a sip of her own tea. "Ah. The servants of Yakumo - The amanojaku and her... What would the correct word be? Concubine? Stockholm Syndrome Sufferer? Slave. Let's go with slave. The amanojaku and her slave - They mentioned 'the HSE' in their time here. So, this building is the reason why I've been feeling the machinations of fate in the back of my mind like a guitar that has been too tightly wound."

"I believe so." Patchouli muttered. "Back to what I was saying earlier. I've been having... Dreams." She kept a journal, of course. One couldn't hope to become experienced in the Astral arts without at least a dream journal. She raised a hand to the table that she and Remi were sitting at. Immediately, a circle of magic - An interface - burst into existence, and she swirled her finger around to narrow down the locations. A moment later, she raised her hand and snapped her finger. Remi watched with the airs of someone who was seeing a trick they greatly enjoyed as a book floated from the darkness, having crossed shelf after shelf to reach her. "Ordinarily, I would not be concerned. The Dream World is known to me, after all. However, I have undergone a lucid dream and spoken to Doremy Sweet, who has confirmed that these dreams are not of her design."
This was the crux of the matter. Patchouli was having dreams that the ruler of the Dream World did not recognize. Perhaps that could be attributed to her drunken state, but the Baku had checked her own dream journal and confirmed the fact to her. "I am having dreams when I cannot be having dreams."

"How interesting." Remi exclaimed, leaning forward again. "Tell me of these dreams, Patchy. Are you a superhero in them? Do you soar through the skies and fight evil?"

"I am in the Hakurei Shrine Experience. And I am terrified." Patchouli murmured. Remi's expression changed in an instant and it wasn't hard to figure out why. She knew just as well as Patchouli did that the magician did not scare. Not once, not ever. The vampire sat up straighter and listened more attentively. "I am trapped. I cannot leave, and I can only watch in horror as countless acts are carried out upon the man who resides in that building." Her dreams often didn't show what happened. She would always move outside of the room. "And...I'm not alone. I'm with someone. I can't see them, but I know they're there. I believe they are helping to protect me and help me in whatever it is I am trying to accomplish."

"Could it be Meiling?" Remi asked, frowning. "You're the only two to have gone there, and you're the only two in your dream. That must mean something." This was what was so valuable about Remi's contributions. Sometimes, her mental limitations thanks to her vampirism could lead her to deductions that Patchouli could miss. She'd not considered the gatekeeper. But...No, there was a possibility... Either way, it would warrant consideration afterward. "This is why you've not been sleeping, then?"

"...Very recently, these dreams have taken a more concrete turn." Patchouli felt some unease. Like she was feeling an intense feeling that wasn't her own. "In one, I attempted to kill the man. I was saved by my companion. In another, I am fighting for my life. I can't see her, but I know that I am fighting someone I shouldn't. I... In these dreams, I feel that death would be preferable to remaining trapped." She fell silent for a moment to try and gather her thoughts. "...I fear I have become... Compromised."

She heard a sound, then felt a hand land on her shoulder. "I fear you have let your lack of sleep crystallise into something dangerous, Patchy. You're not compromised. I've never known anyone with mental fortitude like yours. Take a deep breath." Patchouli watched Remi silently for a moment, then agreed. As she exhaled, she found that some of the tension had slipped from her shoulders. "These dreams don't sound like dreams to me. What was the most recent one?"

There was that unease again, because she knew exactly what the most recent one was. It was there, written and underlined in her journal. ...Mother Patchouli. And...A word. Underlined and circled, but she didn't know why it was important. Sekai. "I fear that...Something is happening." Patchouli muttered, rubbing her forehead. "Something I do not understand. Every now and then - Random flashes. Feelings. A burst of anger. A burst of concern. And it's to do with that building."

Remi opened her mouth, but before she could speak, they suddenly weren't alone. Sakuya Izayoi, failing to obey any rules about decorum. "Mistress, I fear that I must cut your luncheon short. You are needed to overlook some plans for the Winter Solstice celebration."

Remi sighed and stepped back from Patchouli. "Alas, time runs short..." She paused, then gently turned Patchouli's head to look at her. "Listen to me, Patchy. I want you to take care of yourself. Either you find out what is causing your dreams, or find a way to prevent them. If you must, go back to that building. Oh, and...Perhaps you should speak to Meiling."

Remi had a way of helping her in ways she couldn't fathom. Perhaps it was her charisma. Perhaps the machinations of fate were taking control of her mouth and causing just the right words to slip out. Perhaps it didn't matter either way. "...Yes, perhaps you are right. Sakuya, may I request that you bring Meiling to see me?" Sakuya stared at her like she didn't understand the order. She knew what. No one had taken Meiling's weaknesses to the Spell Card Rules harder than Sakuya had. To her, it had been the equivalent of seeing someone she looked up to beaten to almost nothing. And so, she'd taken to being extra cold to Meiling, perhaps as a way of coping. In the end, it wasn't Patchouli's concern. "Thank you for your words, Remi. And...Well, I suppose I don't need to remind you not to trust whatever honeyed words Yukari Yakumo or her servants toss your way."

"No, you don't need to remind me. You don't need to thank me, either. Rather, I should thank you for telling me. A person shows their true face when they ask for help, I think. We show ours by how we respond. Sakuya, shall we?" She looked over at her chief maid, and a split second later, both were gone. Patchouli waited silently for two seconds, staring at the space where they had been.

Three quarters of a second later, Hong Meiling was in her library, her vest discarded on the floor behind her and her leg raised well above her head. She blinked, turned her head, then lost her balance and fell backward. "Huh...?" She asked, groaning. "But - Gates - But - Library...?" She looked at Patchouli again. "...Oh."

"Oh, indeed." Patchouli murmured. "Get up, Meiling. Put your vest back on and sit down. I need to discuss something with you." She snapped her fingers again, summoning Koakuma back. "Get a fresh teacup for Meiling. If you even think of lacing it with aphrodisiac, you'll be navigating the library without the use of sight nor sound for a week."

"Wouldn't dream of it, Lady Patchouli." Koakuma told her, smiling. "I have already reversed the position of every book in the East Wing." She looked very proud of herself, even when Patchouli grasped her by the collar and dragged her head down.

"Go and change it back, right now." She hissed. "Else I'll add touch to the senses you'll be missing." Koakuma nodded cheerfully, then stepped back into the shadows. A moment later, she emerged with a teacup. Patchouli's eyes shifted as she double checked. No, no aphrodisiacs. Koakuma would remain safe for now. Patchouli indicated Remi's recently vacated seat. "Sit, Meiling. I have a question for you."

Meiling finished pulling her vest back on, but didn't fasten it shut. Slowly, she sat down, pushing her flaming red hair from her bright blue eyes. "Er...Lady Patchouli, shouldn't I be guarding the gate...?" She took the teacup when it was offered and hesitantly took a sip. Usually, she prepared her own tea, but Patchouli didn't feel like waiting for her to finish. "It's... Good?" She finally ventured. Her face betrayed that she vastly preferred her own supply.

"I don't care if you like it, Meiling. Drink it and tell me something. Have you been having any strange dreams lately?" Patchouli leaned forward, staring the gatekeeper down. "Dreams to do with a certain building?" Meiling immediately sat up straighter. There was her answer, then. There were plenty of other, smaller indicators, too. A quickening of her heartbeat. The beginnings of perspiration. Her affinity with ki...Perhaps she felt what Patchouli felt in her dreams even more strongly. "Indulge an exercise of mine. I'm going to say a word, and I want you to say the first thing that comes into mind." Meiling hesitantly nodded. "Sekai."

"Cage." Meiling immediately replied. "Wait, sorry, er...Cage? Lady Patchouli, what's going on? Who's Sekai?" She likely didn't have the dream retention that Patchouli had, but she still had retained enough to answer Patchouli's questions. Yes, it was indeed Meiling who was present with her in those dreams.

And...Worse, her feeling of being trapped looked to be accurate. "Cage." Patchouli murmured in response. "Sekai, meaning the world..." Sekai, as she seemed to keep thinking in those dreams. But...Sekai wasn't just a word. No, she wasn't thinking of the world. She was thinking of something else. Something more specific. A name...? Sekai, a person. A child. "'A child will be a child, no matter what...'" The words seemed to come to her, unbidden. "Meiling, tell me something. How does your ki feel? Is it in balance?"

"Um..." Meiling took her hat off to scratch her head. "It's - Well, now that you mention it, it's a bit strange...It feels like I'm slightly imbalanced, no matter what I do. Meditation doesn't seem to be clearing it, and every now and then, I get these-"

Patchouli said the next part in unison with her. "Flashes of emotion." Meiling's eyes widened. "Something has happened to us. Just us. You and I. There can be no doubt as to what the cause is."

"The...The HSE, isn't it?" Meiling whispered. "I've been having dreams. I'm...I'm still in that fake version of the Hakurei Shrine, and I'm trapped there. Is it - Are you the one who's with me in those dreams?" Patchouli nodded grimly. "...Ah. And - The last dream, the most recent..."

"Something bad happened. Yes, I feel it too." Patchouli nodded and pressed her fingers to her eyes. A spell of her own design came into play. She could see the flow of her life force beneath her fingertips. It burnt a cool blue, swirling as it travelled her body. Across from her, Meiling burnt a fierce orange, brimming with life. "I believe that neither of us are operating with a full deck of cards, so to speak. The question is which cards we are missing. A two of hearts? A four of diamonds? Or are we missing our most important cards? Our aces?" She mused on the analogy for a second, then shook her head. "My apologies, Meiling, but I've not got a solution ready yet. To know is to prepare, and I believe that we will both need to prepare."

"That's, um, okay. Thank you for telling me, Lady Patchouli." Meiling inclined her head. "At least I know what's causing that feeling, now."

While she spoke, Patchouli watched the flow of energy in her body. At first glance, there was nothing. It seemed like everything was in the right place, but...No, wait. "Meiling, perform some ki manipulation. Anything you please, just do it right now." Meiling looked a little confused, but after frowning for a moment, raised her hand to the cup of tea she was holding. There was no outer change, but Patchouli watched the flow of life inside Meiling as it rolled and swirled around her hand. The tea inside the cup began to boil, and right then, Patchouli spotted it. A small sliver of energy being skimmed off of every single bit of ki that Meiling possessed. It wasn't going into the cup, nor was it going into the air. No, it was staying in her veins, and then it was just...Disappearing. "Thank you, Meiling. You can stop now. Give me a moment to think."

She looked down and performed one of the many magical tests she'd devised half a century ago to ascertain her own magical boundaries. Yes, now that she knew what to look for. Something was being skimmed off of her reserves and disappearing. It was going somewhere, of course. Energy didn't disappear like that. And given both her dreams and Meiling's dreams, she already had a suspicion about where it was going. If they were both still in the HSE in their dreams, and if Patchouli ever felt that she was trapped anywhere...She would do every test possible in order to escape. She'd devise whole schools of magic. She'd kill, if necessary. And if Sekai was a person - If Sekai was a person...

"...Someone's playing a game, Meiling." Patchouli murmured, tapping her fingers against the table. "Our dreams... The HSE. The missing energy that we can both feel..."

"A game, Lady Patchouli? But...Why?" Meiling frowned in confusion. "I don't see the pattern."

"Somebody does." Patchouli whispered. "The question is... Against whom? Are we being drawn in to help... Or are we being lured in for the kill? Who's tune are we dancing to?"

There was nothing they could do about it now, regardless. They couldn't go to the HSE. They couldn't resolve it just like that. But, before sending Meiling off, Patchouli advised her of something. "Keep a close eye on your dreams, Meiling. I suspect that whatever happens next will be critical. I know not what the energy we are both losing is being used for, but I know that we must keep track of it. Begin keeping a dream journal. If you think something has changed, come and tell me immediately. If Sakuya tells you to stay by the gate, tell her that this is a direct order from me. This is more important than whatever rabble wants to visit the mansion." Patchouli paused, and Meiling took it as her cue to leave.

"Right. Um, thank you, Lady Patchouli. I really was wondering what that feeling was." She took a deep breath, and suddenly her eyes took on that shift that signified the Meiling of the pre-Spell Card Rules rearing her head. "I'll keep track of my dreams, and we'll find out what's causing it eventually. And then..." She placed her hands together for a moment. "We'll take care of it."

"I appreciate the enthusiasm, Meiling." Patchouli murmured. "You should return to the gate now. Thank you for indulging me." Meiling nodded, bowed, and then turned and headed off for the gate. Once more, Patchouli was left along. She counted off fourteen seconds in her head. "Speak up." She finally said, without turning around.

"H-Huh? How the hell did you...?" Standing from her chair, Patchouli turned and placed her hands behind her back. Marisa Kirisame stood in front of her, looking like she'd been caught out. "Er, hi..." She finally said. Patchouli regarded her emotionlessly. Several months along. She was a mess of chemicals. Her body wasn't up to a fight, which was good because Patchouli wasn't in the mood. "Before you try and barbeque me, I should probably tell you-"

"You're pregnant, and I wouldn't fight someone in your condition regardless. It would be inelegant." She strode over to the human magician, who managed to hold herself steady. "You've never been this sloppy when it comes to breaking into my library. Something has changed your mind. Speak." She tilted her head when Marisa failed to respond. "Speak, you black-and-white rat."

"R-Right." Marisa stammered. "Just - Er - Been doing a lot of thinking recently. Can I - Would you mind coming to the front gate with me?" Patchouli considered the question. On a regular day - As in, before Marisa Kirisame was with child - She would have already set her on fire. Did she have an accomplice? No, she thought. Unlikely. In which case, what reason did she have to ask her to the front of the mansion? A lure? A trick - A trap? No, that wasn't her style. Which meant that something was waiting for them. "C'mon, Patchouli. I'm being serious. You'll like it. Promise."

"I hardly see how going out of my library could be something I'll like, but... Yes, very well. I am sure you already know the way." She raised a hand to the library's exit. "But if I am not pleased, I will send you to Eientei regardless of your current condition." She lifted the grimoire she'd been reading with Remi and placed it under her arm. Marisa Kirisame's skull was remarkably dense and would survive being hit by the heavy tome just fine.

"S-So, um...Hana had her birthday party recently." Marisa ventured as she led the way through the corridor, Patchouli silently floating behind her. "It - Well...To tell the truth, it all went to shit. Yukari did something disgusting, Reimu showed up, a bunch of powerful people were gathered all in one place..."

The Hakurei girl. The last time Patchouli had seen her, she'd been equal parts shame and lust. "I see." She murmured. "I am hardly interested in a child's birthday party. Even if Yukari Yakumo was there. Why have you changed your habits regarding your pilfering of my library?" They reached the front hall, passed through it, and headed through the courtyard. Patchouli was forced to activate another spell to dim the light exposure of her eyes when she found the glare of the daylight to be somewhat overwhelming. Slowly, she increased the exposure until her eyes adjusted. "I sincerely hope you've brought me here for a good..." And for once, Patchouli Knowledge found herself stunned into silence.

A massive pile of books sat before her. It had all been lashed together with rope to keep it from falling apart, but regardless, it was still a pile about as tall as Marisa herself. She hardly had to look for more than a moment to know what it was. Yes - She recognized those names. Every book that Marisa Kirisame had ever stolen from her sat here. She slowly turned to look at Marisa, the question as visible in her eyes as it was on her lips. "Like...Like I said. I've been doing a lot of thinking lately." Marisa mumbled, smiling slightly. "Can we - Y'know, take this inside?"

"Meiling. Meiling!" Patchouli called, and the gatekeeper stuck her head around the gate with a frown.

"Lady Patchouli? What's - O-Oh, my." She paused. "How long has Marisa been in the mansion for? I saw the books, but...I thought they were yours."

"They - Are - Mine." Patchouli breathed. "In fact, they're all mine. They consist of every book that I've been tearing my hair out trying to find for years. Confirm that they are real, Meiling. Please. I do not trust neither my own eyes nor my spells at the present moment."

Meiling blinked. "Er, yeah... Yeah, they're real." She looked between the books and Marisa for a second. "Wait, how did you even take this many books out?"

"Don't - Don't think about it." For once, Patchouli felt like she was on the back foot. "Don't think - No, let's just..." She raised a hand and lifted the pile of books into the air. Spinning around, she headed straight back to the library, Marisa following behind her with a slightly smug look upon her face. Once she was safely sequestered back in her library, the pile of books settled in front of her desk, Patchouli turned to face the black-and-white.

"Explain." Marisa opened her mouth. "Explain in one word. The more words you use, the less sure of your motives I will be. Explain why you have appeared today. Explain why you've returned all the books that you have stolen over the years. Explain everything, and do it in one word. Take your time." Patchouli continued to stare at the pile. She'd forgotten that she even owned some of these. Already, at least three long-standing problems had been solved just by seeing the titles alone.

"...Absolution." Marisa finally spoke. Patchouli stared at her. Absolution. An ecclesiastical declaration that a person's sins have been forgiven. Well, the Church was not here, but she understood the meaning. Marisa was seeking forgiveness... But why? Wait, no... Something she'd said. The awkward small talk - The Hakurei girl's party. Reimu - Her mother had shown up. Yet... They were supposed to be estranged, which meant that either that had been part of things going badly, or the opposite had happened. And if Reimu Hakurei was back to her old self, she may have spoken to Marisa properly for the first time in years. Which, in turn, meant...

"It seems that Reimu Hakurei's head has cleared up, then." Patchouli stated.

"H-Huh? What the - Yes, but... How could you possibly have figured out-" Marisa's stammering was getting tiresome. She couldn't see the connections.

"I'm incredibly clever." Patchouli replied lazily. "You have returned all of my books to me. Even if you've spoken to Reimu, this still seems very... Altruistic." She'd already checked that there wasn't something like an explosive hidden beneath the outer layer of books. No, it really was just books.

"You don't know what things have been like outside the library." Marisa muttered. "Can I sit down, please? Standing so much is murder on my back when my belly is so big, you know." Patchouli lazily waved a hand and pushed the chair that Remi and Meiling had already used today back out. "Ah, thanks..." Marisa mumbled, dropping into the seat with a sigh of relief. Patchouli asked her to continue. "It's - A lot has changed since the HSE showed up. There's all these factions, and my old mentor showed back up, and everyone's got their own designs, and..." She trailed off and Patchouli stared at her. "Reimu nearly died recently. She gave up on everything. The Shrine. Herself. Her friends...She didn't eat for over eight days."

"I haven't eaten in over eight decades." Patchouli replied. It was about the most petty response she'd given in eight decades, too.

"But - But she was reminded of what was really important to her, and she came and saved Hana from a...Horrible fate. She begged forgiveness - Reimu Hakurei, actually down on her hands and knees begging Hana to forgive her."

"I'm waiting for you to summit the peak of Mount What's-Your-Point, any moment now." Patchouli told the witch. "Marisa Kirisame, I want to know why you've returned my books. Not what family drama you've been dealing with."

"The HSE!" Marisa barked. "The fucking - that fucking building. Anon's trapped in there and I went in with the intention of saving him. Instead, I raped him. I got pregnant, and I was terrified of what Reimu would do when she found out... And then she forgave me. And I realised that... Life's too short for lying to yourself. At least, a human's life is. I was lying to myself. I've been lying to myself for twenty years. I know it's not your problem, but..." Curiously, there were tears in the corners of Marisa's eyes. Patchouli tilted her head and twitched her fingers. Shame. Yes, she'd suspected so. Shame and guilt, but below it, a sense of soaring happiness. She'd been forgiven and forgiven Reimu in turn. "I've been a fool. A mess. I let Reimu suffer. I let Anon and Hana suffer. I let them feed into each other's pain, locked away in that Shrine for years."

"...And now?" Patchouli had had a snide remark on the tip of her tongue, but...Something about the scene had gotten to her. It had broken through her usual clinical defences.

"I let them suffer, and I've been letting Anon suffer in that building for all the time. All this time, and I'm still the same immature witch as I ever was." Marisa laughed humourlessly. She looked serious about this. In fact, the tears in the corners of her eyes were threatening to pool further and turn into a stream. "So... I'm doing better now. Reimu forgave me, even though I didn't deserve it. But - You, Patchouli. I can actually do something to earn your forgiveness. I can't hope to grow up unless I do this properly." Marisa's hand swept out to the pile of books. "Every book I've ever stolen. I want to wipe my ledger clean. I'd - I'd get down on my hands and knees, but...Y'know. Bit of a struggle." She awkwardly indicated her stomach.

"Yes, I suppose I understand." Patchouli murmured, watching Marisa's every slight reaction. The shame and guilt was still overbearing. There wasn't anything that indicated a ruse. She twitched her fingers again, activating the same spell she'd used with Meiling. Marisa's energy was blue like rolling waves. It was very befitting of someone so suited to the water aspect. And...She wasn't wrong. Marisa's energies were calm. They flowed smoothly and gently, like she'd gotten a great measure of peace. But at the same time, they hummed with energy. She was ready to grow up. She wanted to receive Patchouli's forgiveness, and not just because she wanted a clean slate. No, she genuinely needed to know that Patchouli had forgiven her for the thievery she'd partook in. She needed...Absolution. Hmm. "Tell me, Marisa. Why did you steal from me?"

"Why?" Marisa repeated blankly. "Er... Because - I mean, because I wanted to get stronger and learn more, and you've got the biggest library around. Why else?"

"Why didn't you simply...Ask?" Patchouli tilted her head slightly. "If you'd worked to ingratiate yourself with me, it is likely that I would have offered you my books freely. I would have helped you. I may seem cold, but I am a magician. I enjoy seeing others progress." She had a feeling that she knew the answer, but she wanted to hear it from the witch directly. "Tell me this, and perhaps I shall finally, after all the years we have known each other, understand you. Perhaps I shall be able to offer you the absolution you seek." Marisa hesitated, and it wasn't hard for Patchouli to see why. Admitting some faults was easy. Admitting others? That was harder. "Take your time. But if you leave this room without answering me, I will consider you a failure for the rest of my days."

Marisa bit her lip and thought for a few minutes. Finally, she squared her shoulders. "I was selfish. I wanted to do it all myself and do it better than anyone else. I wanted the spotlight. I didn't want your help. I wanted your books, and I wanted to unlock their mysteries. The ones that even you couldn't solve. The ideas that you'd considered unworkable. I didn't think I needed help because... Because I thought that I wouldn't need to rely on anyone else."

"You are with child, Marisa. Will your children be able to rely on you, should they wish to pursue magic as you have?" Patchouli found that she was rather enjoying this. It was a funny feeling. She considered dealing with emotion tiresome, but when it was Marisa Kirisame, there was a catharsis that couldn't be matched. To see someone who'd been a thorn in her side for so long admit to her all of the faults that she'd seethed about privately...Perhaps Patchouli would have to do this more often.

Marisa swallowed and nodded seriously. "I'll always be there for them. It's never going to happen again. My father wasn't there for me. I wasn't there for Hana until the damage had already been done. Anon might not be there, but...He deserves freedom, and if he comes to hate me, then...Well, he has every right." Marisa raised her head and stared Patchouli in the eyes. "But I'll never abandon them. And I want them to have every opportunity they can. Patchouli... I apologise. I apologise for stealing your books. I apologise for treating you poorly. I apologise for trying to do it all myself, regardless of the pain it caused. I apologise... For everything." And Patchouli found herself rather surprised in how pleased she was to hear the witch's words. Even a thorn in one's side could become somewhat sentimental, it seemed.

And...Yes, it was exactly as she'd thought. Marisa wasn't lying, either. She was genuine, and Patchouli half wondered if she should go and shake Reimu Hakurei's hand. Marisa's head dropped to the side as she waited for Patchouli's verdict. Scarcely believing that she was saying it, Patchouli spoke. "I forgive you, Marisa. You've admitted your mistakes and you've apologised as best you could." Marisa looked up and took in a sharp breath. "Don't think that means I suddenly like you, though. That, I believe, will take some more time. This forgiveness is... A token of my trust. Do not betray it." Marisa nodded, looking like all the weight had dropped from her shoulders.

"I'll do my best. Thank you, Patchouli Knowledge." It was like they were meeting anew.

Patchouli could only hope that Marisa would hold true to her word. Still, she extended her hand across the table. One more token of trust couldn't hurt. After a second, Marisa took it. "You're welcome, Marisa Kirisame."

Hope I haven't thrown anyone's delicately laid plans off by writing this. My desire to write Patchouli finally boiled over again, and no one seemed to be using Remi or Marisa much anyway. Sorry, other Patchyanon, but in my defence, you've focused on the spirit versions of Patchouli and Meiling at the HSE while I've tried my best not to step on your toes in the real world. Feel free to use or throw out anything I've written here at your leisure.

>>46420447
>>46420441
>>46420437
>>46420426
>>46420421
>>46420413
>>46420408
>>46420402
this was fucking beautiful. Can't believe the project lived long enough to see Marisa Kirisame have such a nuanced moment with Patchy; after all the bullying and talk about she not having much presence, it's nice to have another solid character moment with the 'Rida. And all the talk with Remi and Meiling? All nicely done, interactions like these are treats and I'm happy to be enjoying them!
>>46420483
Glad to see the desire boil back, writing is like a boomerang; throw it away, it always comes back, sometimes with the promise of a great headache~! Man, step on my toes, slap my face and kiss me, I'm more than up to change and adapt (in thoughtful manner) if it means others will have fun writing too. It didn't destroy any plot points and rather added substance to the events unfolding; couldn't ask for more!
The soul/body merge should be happening soon, do you want me to put a hook like in 'Patchy and Meiling are coming to investigate the HSE', or would you prefer I go with my original idea of 'Sekai Biden blasts Patchy and Meiling back to their bodies, meaning a year of the pure, unadulterated Hakurei Shrine Experience washes over them suddenly'?
Thanks for the chapters!

>>46420714
I'm really leaving it up to you. I don't think you should necessarily change your plans unless you think you can adapt the rest on the fly. I think that as long as you acknowledge how the relationships between characters are working, you can take it in whatever direction you want. The aftermath of the real world versions getting all the memories is probably going to be the part that takes a lot of thought, anyway.

>>46420870
I see, think I'll go with the original plan then as it gives much more freedom on how and where to handle the merge rather than them just dropping by the HSE and having a co-op seizure on Yuuka's garden. Patchy could be enjoying a cup of tea with Remi and suddenly BOOM! Express trauma delivery; or maybe scolding Koa and so many other scenarios where the abrupt inclusion of a massive torrent of the worst imaginable sights would spice up things~
>The aftermath of the real world versions getting all the memories is probably going to be the part that takes a lot of thought, anyway.
that's the stuff. My plans are: a long conversation between themselves about what they experienced; then a confrontation with Anon/confrontation with Remi that could or could not follow to include the rest of the SDM and even Marisa now, order is unimportant, though the secret that is Sekai won't be wildly discussed with Remi, as she'd likely dramatically storm there with claims that, since Sekai has her power and vampiric powers, she's her “daughter of the night and heir” or something else just as childishly and unpredictably; followed by preparations to handle Sekai during the extra-stage. All too vague for now and susceptible to change, as well as my plans; the character started as yours, so feel free to do whatever you want, I won't mind. it's a community project and the fun of it is writing together.
thanks for bearing with me~

>>46410334
How is Koishi supposed to suffer from that when she's too braindead to be aware from her surroundings

>>46421258
>immune to suffering
>cause? Is a mega retard
kek, checks out.

>>46421310
>>46421258
My point exactly, no one even remembers anything about the Komeiji sisters.

>he's at it again
Alright gentlemen, betting 5 bucks we're gonna see an weird uptick in Rikako hate again in around ~12 more posts

>11 chapters today
great day

>>46421621
Didn't I tell you to start using actual jp images, Felix the cat was bad enough but this is somehow worse.

Just gotta say, sorry for the slow updates.
I had 900~ words ready to go for the Hanafic and wrote about another today. I've just been way too slow with my new job and not being being able to be a neet anymore. Don't worry thought, a lewd Hana scene where Hana gets weird will follow in the next day or two!
Also, guy that makes the Hana edits. Can you make a zip or mega or something, I haven't been able to save all the new ones in the last few threads? Pretty Please?

>>46421713
such is the life of the writer~
No need to ask sorry, Anon, but if it soothes you it's all okay. You come first, the Mongolian brothel fanfic next. Glad you're updating, though, waiting warmly
not on my pc right now, but will be sure to do tomorrow!

>>46420483
Seeing you back and posting makes my day patchyanon. Nice chapters.

HOT DAMN THAT'S A LOT OF POSTSWORTH OF TEXT
is this bigger then the one Hana and Yukari post? I think it is!
good shit allround. Funny that Marisa gets some content the moment people start pointing out she's been lacking.
>>46420483
>Hope I haven't thrown anyone's delicately laid plans off by writing this.
somewhat unrelated but this reminded me of an old idea. I remember way back back when Patchy and Meiling were completely MIA (Patchyguy was long dead already & dude writing their ghosts weren't around at the minute), I had an idea for where something that went like
>Get glitched in time for a while due to HSE tomfoolery
>End up a month or two into the future, thankfully nothing too serious
>go back to the HSE
>come back to the building being completely trashed. Konngara raided the building while they were out & stole the life force of Sakuya & hundreds of Fairy Maids & Hofgoblin. Remilla is also deathly injured but still kicking because being Vampire = Undead and thus no lifeforce that can be stolen. Several stragglers Koakuma and Flandre are untouched and explain what happened
Not really mad this idea never came to fruition (tbdesu it wasn't really fleshed out much beyond this besides a flashback to a fight scene) but funny how wild a turn the SDM's residents role in the series became later on.

>>46422313
>funny that marisa gets some content the moment people point out she's been lacking
Given Patchyanon's track record, the entire post was probably written in response to those posts and I wouldn't be surprised if all of it was written in less than one day. I like how you can feel his dislike for how Remi was written earlier in the story by the way he writes her here, where she's far more mature.

>>46421621
It would be funny if there was a scene where Rikako gets waterboarded with her poisoned lemonade.

>>46422397
>>46423368
Someone get on it.

>>46421713
https://files.catbox.moe/ycht9z.rar
there ya go! It's all the Hana edits I've ever done mainly because I needed to do an overall organization of my folders and this was the perfect excuse~!

>>46420421
>I have already reversed the position of every book in the East Wing
Why did she do it? Also, has Koa visited the HSE? I'm curious about what a succubus would think about it.

>>46424760
some men succubi just want to watch the world burn

>>46424760
Yup, she's been to the HSE and it was mentioned in earlier chapters; also why Sekai can use her imagery

>>46422313
>is this bigger than the one hana and yukari post?
curiosity got the better of me, so I checked. The hana and yukari post during the party was 5,700 words, and this patchy post is 6,500 words, though the hana and yukari one was 9 posts and this was 8.
I'm less surprised by this given my suspicions (practically confirmed from the way patchouli and especially koakuma were written here) about patchyanon's true identity

>>46427324
writers writing a lot of words
words that fill me with joy, with sadness and make me cheer for characters
very gud~

>>46427324
I think it's just behind the Hana Christmas special then, which was 10 chapters or so

>>46428557
yeah, just checked. 7,200 words on the christmas post in 9 posts. That's the record as far as the HSE goes I think KMSanon beat it with over 9,000 in one update toward the end of his run, but that's a different story

>>46367716 (2/2—p1/2)
—
Floating through the bamboo in the Lost Forest of the Bamboo, I come to a terrible realization: it's another boring day…

Gensokyo has recently become a collection of boring days: people have these focused eyes and never stop to rest; their minds racing so much it's impossible to get off a good prank on them. Long gone are the days the lazy miko wouldn't even notice when her sugar and salt were swapped or when nails were piledrived into her shoes; now she's perceptive of everything and makes sure to boast those scary fire wings every single day! Bleh, Junko's are cooler, even though they aren't wings!

Still, so boring. I wonder what's driving people to be so tense and unfun these days…

Hm?

Something further ahead calls my attention, and I noticed with some pride I'd stumbled upon Eientei. Not everyone can do such without getting lost or caught by one of Tewi's masterpieces~Still, the thing that calls my attention is one of the backyards surrounded by bamboo fences, ground filled with grass and packed dirt, chimes sounding with the soft wind as people—rabbits, the mostly retarded type of people—come and go, their eyes drawn to the same place as mine. Playing on the dirt and with wooden toys were a bunch of mini-humans and mini-youkais, a quite familiar rabbit overlooking them: the purple hair, the weird uniform and the gaze of a girl too tired to work properly… Yep, that's Reisen; that dumbass Junko seems to like a lot. What's she doing with all those mini-people?

Though a better question would be: how fun would it be to make them all go insane~?

… Actually, better not. Junko and Hecatia—ALL three of them, ugh…—scolded me for being a disappointment recently when I lost to those two jerks, so it wouldn't be a good idea to prank someone Junko personally likes. Boring questions, boring resolutions.

I wanna cry.

Eh, anyway. “Yo, Reisen!” I yell, flying towards the rabbit and her herd—or was it murder? The mini-people stared in awe, some trying to reach for me and my glamorous attire.

Reisen looks ten times more tired as our gazes lock. “A fairy AND you on top of that…?” She mumbles, pinching the tip of her nose. I show her tongue before playing with a mini-rabbit. So tiny and fluffy~! “If you hurt the children, I'll blast you.”

I chuckled, staring at her and ignoring the weird glares the big—'big'—rabbit nurses gave me. “Nah, trying to brighten your lives’d only make Junko-san all pissy.” I shrug and scoop up the mini-rabbit into my arms; he’s so soft and cuddly~! I hum, my cheeks red as my chest puffs with fuzziness. “Whatcha doing?”

“Ugh… I’m acclimating the babies to nature,” she shows a wooden board full of boring papers and boring letters, sighing in annoyance before massaging her left wrist. “It's important for their development to feel nature and be able to explore it… Though they're still babies, so it must be done in a closed environment.” A yawn finishes her sentence and an 'oooooohhh~' starts mine, giggling as teeny tiny hands pull on my cheeks. “And what are you doing here, Clownpiece? Weren't you supposed to be in Hell or something?”

“I'm looking for something fun to do—pranking is getting boring with all the half-assed reactions of people too stuck-up in their own asses to enjoy disgrace!” I turn upside down, hair cascading down together with the rabbit’s ears, other babies watching and letting out sweet shrieks. Ah, I love these little guys and gurls~they are avid chaos agents, always ruining the lives of their caretakers and being too cute to bear responsibility or punishment. My idols. “Hey, you're a medic, right?” She tries to form a response, but it'd likely be very boring, so I work with a presumable yes. “Tell me: What illness has been causing people to be so tense and unfun?” I take a seat by her side, letting go of the baby rabbit. Reisen sighs again—she's doing that a lot, huh?—and looks back at the corridor, not a single nurse to be seen anymore.

“Well, it's not an illness per se. You may not be aware, but a lot has been brewing around the surface—a political rebellion, a brothel that has defied common sense and, mainly…” She gazes at the babies prowling around. “A massive pregnancy crisis. About our entire work force here at Eientei is either pregnant or has given birth already; 2% of adult women in the Human Village are pregnant; 1% in the Underground; and, among Youkai, the number is mostly unfathomable. Things are drastically changing and hardly anyone has the mind or leniency to take it easy… So people are so tense and not up to having harmless fun because they're very worried about the future.”

I nod slowly, understanding very little of her words. “That means you look like crap because you're pregnant?” I poked her belly, causing her to whip my hand away.

“N-No, I'm not pregnant—wait, how do you know about…?”

“Reimu. I saw her daughter leave her no-no hole! Their screams were very funny~”

Reisen stares at me as if I had grown a second head.

>>46432516 (2/2—p2/2)
—
“So you look like crap because you aren't pregnant? Wow, you're a loser! All the other tiny rabbits and inferior human women got it, but you somehow didn't. How?” I giggled, my legs swinging and my hands leaning back against the wooden floor. Reisen doesn't laugh, a surge of anger creasing her frown and, for a moment, I thought I had the perfect setup for a prank…

Then she sighs, her anger disappearing. Adults do that so often, but she's getting ridiculous. I groan mentally and pout. “I look like crap because I've chosen to refrain from having a child, and with that came a bunch of unexpected judgement, pressure, and overwork; a lot of overwork—ugh, it has been affecting me so much I'm gushing about it with a goddamn fairy…” I move and kick her on the shin, pouting harder.

“Shut up! We fairies are great listeners!” She mumbles something—! Then catches my ankle and throws me back, making me roll on the wooden floor… Hey, that was fun~! Snickering, I roll forward towards her, legs landing plain on her side. A shadow of a smile appears there as the back and forward goes on for a while more, but it stops when two nurses pass by, point at us, and mumble something I can’t properly hear; Reisen’s ears perk up and her body tenses, teeth clenched. The next moment, she just throws me away and stops the play. My pout grows big; no fun… “Well, are you gonna keep on whining or do something about it? It's impossible to have fun with whiners like you.” She scowls at me before looking at the babies; they look fine, eating dirt and entranced by Eientei's bamboo masonry—regular baby behavior. “Do you even have something you can do? Like, if you don't want a kid, nothing will change. So maybe kill everyone who bullies you? With my torch, you could go on a rampage AND still say you’re innocent!” That's my best idea of today: tricking someone into willingly staring at my torch; Hecatia-san would be proud!

Reisen lifts a brow, rabbit ears following the movement for a double! “Are you stupid? Because you look a lot like one now.” Gah, she knows! I failed… Eh, anyway. “Well, I can just keep things as they are, but it's becoming too much recently and will only worsen as the next batch of babies is to come by next month.” I hum as she sighs; that's quite the miserable existence. But her face suddenly twisted, as though she were thinking inwardly. “… There's also Eirin-sama's option, which would get me pregnant without the need to partake in something I d-despise.”

“Huh?! But you said you didn't want a child!” I move, now lying on my belly; ah, the wood here is so comfortable.

“Not through the regular means…” I blink, confused; what the heaven is she talking about? “And because I'd still like to follow Moon traditions for this type of stuff, preserving purity until the marital bed…” It felt like a lie, but how'd I know?! I don't even understand what she's talking about! Reisen tsk's, getting up and approaching the babies; those not too lost in their own little worlds swiftly flocked to her. “I don't even know why I'm talking about this with you! Get out already before I explode you for trespassing.” She states that with a Spell Card already in hands, eyes narrowed a little.

Fuming at the unexpected change in humor, I show my tongue again. “Bleh, you're just another boring adult! Full of problems and too stuck-up to have any fun! Enjoy living your ugly life, you not-pregnant, overworked scumbag!” And just as she starts to shoot, I fly away, not amused at the thought of respawning.

Flying amidst the bamboo in search of something else to do, I can't stop thinking about the things me and Reisen discussed. Such a weird conversation that was—so what's making all people unable to have fun with chaos is that there's already too much chaos in Gensokyo to fill a plate and a half… That's ironic to a tee!

It's saddening, however, that I didn't find Tewi there; normally, she finds me first and pulls up a great prank… Hm, maybe she's pregnant too? Will she be able to have fun if so? It's Tewi, so of course she would!

Still, about Reisen and the things she said, perhaps it'd be a good idea to do something about it…?

Like telling Junko!

She'd be thankful and would probably help that grumpy rabbit, and then she'd forgive me for losing like an idiot to Dumbja and her minion!

Giggling, I increase my sleep, mind set on telling Junko everything we discussed—and also make some questions like: What's the regular means to have a child? The Hakurei brat left through Reimu’s no-no hole, so perhaps like agriculture: the babies are planted like seeds and need to be harvested later? Junko will know; she’s so very motherly! Yup, that looks like a good plan!

You did it again, Clownpiece~no wonder you're the best fairy around and can take all the other weaklings in a fight.

Speaking of which, I wonder where the weakling fairies are. I haven't seen them around much…

… Eh, they’re probably having fun somewhere with less snow.

>>46432534
>>46432516
Patchy/Meiling tonight; will focus on them before continuing others for obvious reasons!

>>46432534
>No seggs
>No babies
>Mountains of paperwork while coworkers are on maternity leave
Even in paradise the ol must suffer.

>>46432534
Poor Reisen. She's stuck with dealing with pregnancy crisis and she won't even have a normal child, instead some generically engineered uberchild. No way they'll listen to her while growing up.

>>46433374
considering Eirin said she wired their fucking genes to answer to a command that'd make her a super user, no shot these kids will grow up in healthy manner; the weight of expectations alone could be unbearable
Just one of many tragedies brought forth by Yukari

>>46432685
>>46433374
>>46433394
Maybe Reisen can find a man that's far away from the HSE.

>>46435878
that's impossible, Tewi would torment the man so much he'd wish he was imprisoned with Anon

>>46420209
—
Don't think.

Just don't think about it.

Truly a hardship when your mouth and nose exude blood as if a continental fracture; your upper jaw feels slightly disconnected and a drying layer—almost clot-like—of blood forms on the back of your mouth. But none of that matters; I must not think.

If I think about that, Sekai, who towers above me wearing Meiling's face, distinguishable only by eyes of nebula, will know and will react.

Slowly and quite labored, I get off the ground, hacking coughs draining my strength, arms limp and weak, lungs burning even though no surmountable physical effort was made—back to the library rat bodily status, afflictions like the Tower of Pisa, edging me between consciousness and the dream world. A look upwards, where an impossible-to-follow battle occurs, fills me with the determination to push through; body trembling, haemolacria settling as blood vessels I hadn't even noticed had popped started to drown my retinas in red. “You should rest, Mother Patchouli. That one punch has caused considerable damage.” Sekai casually approaches, the sadness on her face barely visible through the blood. “… I wish I could do something about your body. It kills me to know your fate.”

I can't resist a cynical snort. Ow… “My gullible child, I've lived a hundred years of qualms—what's a hundred more?”

Don't think. Just don't think.

Coughs are like spikes trying to burst out of my chest and blood is an abundant spring field.

“Death; that's what a hundred years from now will be.” She's now standing in front of me, confident in my inability to attack or hers to dodge…? Both, likely. Her words confuse anyway. “You, Mother Patchouli, know better than anyone nothing lasts forever—in sixty years, your body will be unable to sustain itself alone as your magical powers deteriorate and your diseases multiply like fungi. You'll fight—you always do, Mother. I wish to grow up to be strong like you…—You'll fight for many years, and progress will rear its head sometimes, though ultimately you'll be only buying yourself time to slowly rot. First bound to a wheelchair, unable to draw strength to fly, then to a bed… And then a grave.”

I shut my eyes; I shouldn't have: A picture is there and with it comes a surge of terrible thoughts. One year of freedom, of never worrying about a decaying body… To know what awaits me outside…

“W-What's… your goal?” Despite the terror and dread, one thing never escapes me: good magical practices. “These words—how do they translate t-to further… further your interests?”

Never stop casting your spell when you start it.

Don't think.

“They don't, but do I need an excuse to worry about my mother?” Suddenly, it’s not Meiling anymore… but another me.

Sekai’s smile persists… What's she feeling? What's behind that face that looks like mine and eyes of nebula—an infinite collection of stars and worlds, each with a story? “I guess… love.”

“Love.” I say, deadpan; a bubble of blood explodes in my busted right nostril. Sekai giggles like a little girl.

… ‘Like’, huh…?

“Everything to get to the bottom of it—nothing is out of question', that's you, isn't it, Mother Patchouli?” Such a weird kid…

… But kids will be kids, and when I reach a hand forward, quivered and bloodied, Sekai lets me touch her cheek, her eyes closed with a soft smile as she leans on my palm—she’s at ease.

And kids, sometimes, are a little too trusting.

“Lótus.” I mundanely said, drawing a considerable chunk of what remained of my magical well to create a sprawling magical lotus of purple and black; Sekai locking eyes with me for a fraction of a second…

Her smile didn't falter.

The lotus chomps the entire upper half of my mirrored body, the bloodied knees trembling before falling over on the ground without much ceremony; a bit of bubbling happened inside the lotus, and I mused a tad, knowing of the inspiration to such an unorthodox spell… Explanation comes as the lotus blossoms, rotted flesh and blood oozing out in outrageous fashion.

But it doesn't matter: I didn't think of the spell and still conducted it flawlessly; how many can say the same? A sigh leaves me, my body weak as adrenaline threatens to disperse and make me feel each individual internal wound and spilled droplet of blood.

With a huff, knees tense, sigils of gold sprouting all around, tomes of nearly infinite words expanding, eyes expertly following the progress—almost all of it is cracked and deciphered; only a tiny bit more of work and I'll have a key to vanquish that barrier…

Your plans still elude me, brat, but know one thing: You're absolutely right about this mother of yours…

My hair flutters as the ground cracks with ethereal saturation, varicolored fractals brimming to life, magical well erupting. One hand vibrating with magical energy cleans my eyes, perfect vision of Meiling surrounded by copies—

… She's not going to stop fighting.

—A kaleidoscope of magic, in beautiful unison, is shot to the skies.

The copies burn.

>>46437214
nah, fuck this I'll call child services. Melting the fetus is just too much

>>46437214
—
Crash-landing surely hurts, but I can say with certainty that Patchy's face must be hurting ten times more: Smudged eyes all bloodied, a broken nose and jaw a little unhinged, ghostly clothing a gory show—a weird sight, as if seeing a paint-covered mirror from inside the mirror world—and her hair, always so neat and clean, now but a bird's nest.

At least it’s nice her eyes are normal~

She stares at me as I get up, a hand pressed to my mangled neck, and simply says, “You look awful, Meiling.” I blinked… Then I almost laughed. Almost. Everything hurts too much to do so. “Stay put; I cannot dream of wasting an ounce of magic…” She approaches with a weak-looking sigil taking shape in front of her hand, but I take a quick step back, body ready for anything Sekai throws at us next.

“Save your magic, Lady Patchouli. No need to waste it on me.”

She ignores me completely, pressing the sigil against my neck. It burns, but a good kind of burn. “You're a poet when quiet, preferably one with a functional neck.”

I hum, slowly getting on my knees so she could have better access to the wounded spot. My eyes wandered in the meantime, flimsy smile dying; a wasteland of ash and craters, white vapors clouding the skies as pink thunderbolts fell without clear pattern. Ten minutes ago, this was full of critters and flowers… It brings me back to those days of the Taiping Rebellion. “What's her plan?” No more words are needed.

“… I don't know. She's a weird kid.” Patchy closes her eyes for a moment, likely feeling the first signs of magic exhaustion. “Though I could pick up little pieces of a greater plan, it doesn't matter without the rest of the picture.” I nod; if someone could get to the bottom of this, that'd be Lady Patchouli. “She conversed with me a little, however: Spoke cryptically about this… terrible future that awaits me after I leave and return to my physical body. Ailments that'll develop; body that'll decay; and, hm…” Whatever was to come next likely hit harder than what she had previously imagined and trying to speak it out loud stung like an arrowhead. Heart thumping, a bad omen befell me— “Has she conversed with you too, Meiling?”

My body tenses, lips purse, and hands relax—old practices to keep steady even in times of great stress.

The immovable golden pillar in the distance brought back those words Sekai said before downing me in the fury of the entire Scarlet Devil Mansion… Words that got me two knife wounds and a torn neck.

… But it's Patchy, right? Lady Patchouli, always so keen and conniving, with eyes analytical and a presence for the ages. One of no equals, in talent and in mind… And the one that's kept me company for an entire year in this hell. A hell where now no one stands behind my back—a guardian—but by my side.

'Why have you forsaken using 'Lady Patchouli'?', Sekai had asked me…

“S-She said that nothing… Nothing has changed; I'm still the lowest rank in the Scarlet Devil Mansion, merely the gatekeeper.” Lady Patchouli frowns, the cooling magic restoring my strength and bringing back lucidity—a calm smile amidst this wasteland blossoming. “B-But then she told me how much she… loved me. Hugged me, too! H-Haha… What am I to you, Lady Patchouli? A mere servant? The lazy gatekeeper that's always sleeping…?” I ask, never forgetting where we are—a battlefield. At the smallest show of aggression, independently of the horrors this one year of hell has carved on me, I'll defend my lady. Still… Is it really wrong to wish for more from the people around you? Watching Anon every day, standing to his side and never being heard; seeing in his pained eyes how much he longed to be free again, and yet never asking that of the people he trusted.

I wish he’d do so.

… That sight was never short of heartbreaking.

“She's attacking our insecurities.” I gawk at her and the odd words, strained at having my question completely disregarded. What…? Lady Patchouli calmly got up, my neck not hurting as much anymore. “Sekai focused on drawing out that which we hide dearly for whatever emotional reason, then acknowledged them as lies…” She pinches the bridge of her nose, turning her back to me. I stood up, aghast. “You’ve noticed, right? Sekai could've attacked us at any point now… Rather, she let us talk and make each other aware of the things she’d said.” Lady Patchouli pauses—! Suddenly, her spine straightens, eyes broadening as she turns. “… The slowed-down time; the Ki bridge between you and Anon needing to be real; Sekai not having any Ki; the portal I constructed; these ghostly forms—Meiling! She's trying to—”

My Ki screams. I move.

Speed, crippled by the wounds and blood-letting, was just enough to reach Lady Patchouli and shield her from the might of a pink thunder; a sense of déjà vu inside as the bolt of lightning struck the tips of two connected fingers, rippled through my body and was unleashed from the other arm, detonating a crater in the already desolated land, lifting a veil of dust…

>>46443926
—
“Stop this already, Sekai!” I yell.

No answer.

As the veil of dust rapidly unravels and discharges of electricity erupt all around, the whole Scarlet Devil Mansion stands there—even me and Patchy—, about twenty feet in front of us, their eyes of nebula staring down at us with… An impossible-to-understand feeling. Worst of all are the mysterious, ghostlike adornments that pop in and out of existence around them, almost as if reality itself is shifting in a last, excruciating hurrah, the ghostly body parts going from massive bird-like wings; nine long and pompous tails; two slender tails; hats of all kinds, clothes of all shapes and forms, weapons too…

What in the living hell are those?

The question is left unanswered, me gracefully taking a fighting stance, the blood gushing from wounds not treated likely doing me no favor against this—my, to a degree—goddess child. Lady Patchiouli is also down to her last reserves of magic…

We are at our absolute limits…

What's to come is to be final, one way or another.

Sounds behind me make me glance, and I watch in awe as the ethereal tomes and scrolls that surrounded Lady Patchiouli began unmaking themselves into this auric dust that sprinkled the air as if snow all around Lady Patchouli, rapidly consolidating in the silhouette of an ornamented golden key latched to a necklace around her neck.

The key to destroying the pillar and so, our key to Sekai's World.

Now or never…

… I trust you, Lady Patchiouli!

—

next chapters will be the end of the battle between Meiling/Patchy vs. Sekai; my mini training for the finale~
also, thread so slow it's almost as if I posted three chapters in a row!
hopefully Hanaanon is okay; he missed his self-imposed deadline and didn't answer to the archive of Hana images...

>>46443934
>thread so slow it's almost as if I posted three chapters in a row!
I have been procrastinating but I'll get something out soon I promise
I was gonna like 2 days ago but decided to hang out with my grandparents instead, which isn't a bad thing but it killed my writing drive that day

>>46444241
>I have been procrastinating
if not for the image, I'd never know who you are, eh, no worries, just me doing what jp does best and complaining
Maybe we'll need Goku to fight procrastination; such a strong foe!

>finishing flowchart
>already had made the new set, the stickbois were in place and from left to right was adding Shinki day off in the HSE
>PC suddenly crashes
>It hasn't crashed in months
>have been staring at the 21% and the ":(" for a long minute now
... well, already posted the chapter in the Ao3 archive. Think I'll do this tomorrow, yeah...
At least it wasn't a chapter written in the 4chan text box. That'd have been tragic
have a fine day gentlemen

don't do ctrl+F on Goro in the AO3 archive, worst mistake of my life
he really does show up way too fucking much

>>46450229
I love third person writing
Don't love having to skim for "Hectia"s and "Kanko"s, though. Shameful display, Takaneanon!

>>46450229
Why do you think I haven't written in the past thread?
That's a lie, I've actually been busy.

It just keeps getting worse.

Every day more stress fractures: missing shipments, building falling apart due to rambunctious Youkai, fumigation because one of Seiga's experiments failed, all well within what my team could deal with if not for the endless "one more thing" Yukari ask for, the one or two man hours I'd lose in the morning because one of my workers overslept after sneaking out with her revolutionary sweetheart, and my favorite of all, I had to replace the door for fourth time this week! Oh, and I get to miss having breakfast with Anon which was maybe my last moment of serenity left!

"Hey Takane-San." Goro said in a sing-song voice as he approached me holding two cups of coffee.

If he didn't have the coffee, I would've bitten his face off then and there.

Wordlessly, I took the beverage. Black, smelled of morning dew, good. I sip the thing and await the surge of traffic to my brain's logic centers which would fight me through the rest of today.

"So, why didn't you stop her?" I asked grimly, gesturing to my poor, empty door frame. "Aren't you supposed to be guarding this place?"

Goro thought for a minute, crafting a reply that wouldn't tank my mood further. "Shinki-San didn't trigger any alarms on her way in, which meant she was here within the rules or that she found a way around it. If she did find a way and we blinked her out, then she could just come back through the same hole, same if Flan-chan came along to 'conclue' her, and personally, I can think of at least three other people I don't want sneaking through a hidden back door. Besides, a big fight would've broken more then just the front-entrance and be a horrible material cost the solstice celebration can't afford right now." He said, punctuating the statement with a sip.

Damnit. Appealing to my logistical sense with that tongue of his.

"Mam! The door frames well and truly shattered. We'll have to do a complete re-up I'm afraid!" one of the worker Youkai called.

Curses. "And why isn't my forsaken door in the rules huh? Was Ran on a coffee break as well? Couldn't you have done something?!" I pleaded, motioning to the gaping wound in the building I'd worked so hard on. If this place could talk, I think it would be screaming.

"Well... Seija did want to flip her dress." Goro said, looking thoughtful.

"Of course she did. I bet she also spat at her in the eye." I said humorlessly, tossing my hand up as if throwing away some imaginary complaint.

"Not to embarrass her, while not entirely, it's just that, she let us 'hit her' and the shots flew off her clothes like oil and water, so she got the idea, but I vetoed it. Taking 'the Gensokyo Hello' on the cheek is abnormal and she knew Hijiri from Makai so-"

"So you didn't want to flip the skirt of your dear old aunt because she turned the other cheek." I said, gulping down a bit of hot coffee. "Your family tree is getting more crooked by the day."

"Ha, if only you knew." he chuckled. "Speaking of, I need your help." he motioned inward. I leaned sideways, not ready to give him my full respects at the moment for failing to protect my breakfast time.

"During the Solstice battle, I need you to get Seija and I face-to-face and alone with someone strong, sensible, and most importantly, independent." He whispered, waving his one good hand.

He was going to sow a deal with someone. Predictable, but not a bad idea. He wanted Anon out of this pace too so it wouldn't be hard to get someone strong on the other side side to turn-coat once things got hectic. It would make things a lot easier on my end if there was someone else I could trust completely in the last hour, a reliable wildcard. Still....

"Who did you have in mind?" I asked, giving the conversation more attention.

"Satori would be ideal, but she'll be on the back-line no doubt, protected or withdrawn. I've met Yuuka, Yuugi, and a few others like that which may be good candidates, but I'll work with whatever you can give so long as they come directly to the HSE."

I nodded solemnly for a moment before speaking. "You're out of your mind."

"First of all, there's no way people are just 'coming to the HSE' with the amount of reality paper folding happening, second, where do you get off saying I direct someone like 'Yuuka, Blood Lilly Kazami' any which way besides well away from here? Third, why wait until the solstice you've already met her once and..."

His expression hadn't changed. "It'll be too soon. Once we're down to the wire, she'll understand our way."

Oh, silly me, in my morning haze I forgot the chance of getting gapped may be low with Yukari on a never-ending 'everything will work out' ride(that I wasn't invited to), but they're never zero. He couldn't act until things were underway and Okina, or Reimu maybe, had her well occupied.

"So, what am I supposed to do? Wave a flag on this non-Euclidean whatever people have been talking about?"

>>46450849
"Figure it out." he said, shrugging. "You put this place together when the Kappa couldn't and worked logistical miracles that'll be in text books forever. I believe in you."

Those last words were like the individual plucking of a heart. 'believe'. I shook my head. "Fine, I'll cook up something, but in return what are you gonna do about my door?" I gestured.

He looked over, not at all astounded by my insistence THIS problem be fixed. "If people keep blowing it up, why not just use a curtain instead?" He asked, taking another sip to punctuate.

"Yeah!" A Yamawaro exclaimed, jumping down from a ladder. "I know a seller who-" she stopped as she came up next to Goro, briefly glaring at him. "-who deals in outdoor winter blankets! I could be here and there in-"

"Make it happen." I said, waving her off with a finger. And she was gone.

"Do I stink?" Goro asked, sniffing a part of his robe.

I sniffed the air.

"No, well, you smell like blood, so she was just excited. Get some of the stuff from Anon's supply later." I said, and suddenly realized. "Wait, were are you bleeding?"

His face went a little flush and he rubbed the back of his neck. "Seija, well, she has long nails and one mark is easy, but it's like getting peppered by hail and it's hand to bandage an entire back." He jacked a thumb over his shoulder.

"Oh." I said, not surprised having dealt with coitus-related injuries for what seemed like years now. "Say where is she?"

"Ah, off to talk to Ran and the other woman about this or that. She got pretty annoyed that I pumped the breaks on the fight, told me to piss off."

"Trouble in paradise?" I asked, feeling the elevating effects of the coffee kick in.

"Are you kidding? Her saying vulgarities like that so plainly to my face? She loves me so much it's embrassing, kind of dangerous actually..." he shuddered.

"Speaking of, theoretically, if I were to meet a-"

"Who?" Goro said, cutting straight through the shit.

"He's a baker-"

"Propose marriage." He answered without pause. befuddled silence was my answer.

"Look, I know exactly who you're talking about and I also know things are about to go heads-up in the village so if you've found someone that doesn't invoke your maternal instincts or make you work out material tables and still makes you happy, I think you should seriously cut to the chase."

"But even after this I'll be busy-"

"And you'll always be. You have very little to lose as far as I'm concerned." He said, polishing off his cup.

"Fine. I'll go ask him, just, go watch over the crew while they fix the...'winter sheet' so I can get properly dressed and, well, get this over with."

"Make sure to get Anon's advice as well. Seeing a nominal relationship in the making might put his heart at ease. Oi!" He yelled at the passing White Wolf Captain, with a tone of voice that snapped from gentleness to cruelty like the crack of a whip. "Captain. Gather a squad on the double to watch over the repairs. This is your chance to prove to me you aren't all rapid so make it count!" He swiftly ordered and the White Wolf Captain, to my surprise, quickly turned and began issuing sub-vocal orders for her troops to gather.

Goro turned to me and smirked.

"Show off." I murmured before making my way to find a suitable dress.

>>46450857
There's probably a spelling error or two, but I gotta get back on track and finish so the I don't hold the project up so please forgive me. Or don't, either way I will free us from this place.

>>46450857
>>46450849
More Takane, the closest we have of someone trying to keep things running -- though at this point even the boss doesn't care anymore. At least with Keine's revolution the job market for Youkai will be much less predatory --, is always nice!
Also, baker-kun gets Takane; hypeman-kun gets Mystia. Great to see our side girls scoring the ol' fashion way after the clusterfuck that was Yukari's attempt on getting a man
Thanks for the chapters!

>>46451125
> --
I know who you are.

>>46451413
Say my name

>>46451491
No.

>>46451528
Coward

>>46406694
Is that girl in the red a Japanese Goblin? does she have her own anime?

>>46455489
almost, that's the girl that combats her step-mother who keeps her Father in a mega rape dungeon. The one you confused with is her mother. Crazy similarities, huh?

>>46455489
you mean miss no chapters?

Another bright, shining day greeted Tsukasa as she made her way through the crowded village square. Curious girls and cocksure men couldn’t help but notice the daitengu’s cute assistant passing by. Megumu often nagged her about wearing something more befitting of a daitengu’s assistant, but she really didn’t get it: Her simple white romper revealed nothing, but promised to blow away in the slightest breeze. It was perfectly unremarkable without diminishing her natural appeal.

Still, it was satisfying to dress up like the most-hated miko in Gensokyo. So much so that after her first visit, she convinced Megumu that it was completely necessary to have an insider at the HSE to ensure their partnership would stay positive for the tengu. All she had to do was copy the employee roster for the day and write a sentence or two about how spoiled the white wolves were that week. After doing the same for each schedule rotation, she had enough report copies printed to last a few months. After all, who had time to write about tengu when there was a juicy morsel in the shrine to play with?

Ran was at the front counter, pouty as always. For the first couple of weeks, the shikigami would ask all kinds of nosy questions: Why do the tengu need another supervisor? How did Tsukasa qualify for her position? Why were the White Wolves reluctant to intervene during Tsukasa’s visits? No matter how many times she was given perfectly reasonable answers, Ran wouldn’t believe her! Eventually, she stopped trying and just let Tsukasa have her perfectly-justified sessions without a word. So much for customer hospitality!

Today, though, she stood her ground with a smile. “I’m sorry, ma’am. The HSE is currently serving a client.” The receptionist’s inflection got better with practice, but the malice in her words was palpable. “As our client’s session began a mere 58.435 seconds ago, I’m sorry to inform you that you, dear partner, will have to wait for an entire session to pass before you can enter.”

“Oh, thank you for the warning! It’s no problem, really. I can wait as long as I need to.” Tsukasa shot back a bright smile, familiar with this song and dance.

“On the contrary, valued partner, I think it would be better if you enjoyed yourself outside the establishment.” Ran motioned to the front door, impersonating a caring employee as best as she could. “There are many entertainment and souvenir establishments located in the village that will be sure to satisfy your hunger for the HSE’s services. Even if we can’t satisfy you, we prioritize the customer’s happiness above all else.”

“I find myself happiest here. After all, the humidity level here is perfect. Your tail doesn’t fray here either, does it?” The question went unanswered. The foxes sat down – one in a guest chair and one in a receptionist’s – with fake smiles plastered on their faces. The exchange continued for 85.744 seconds, before a mass of green and red flung open the door to attraction, spewing black bile.

“Not worth it, not worth it, not worth it!” Half-cognizant, Hina stumbled and muttered incomprehensibly towards the front door. A goddess of misfortune frothing at the mouth would have an interesting impact on the HSE’s image.

Ran sprang into action, deftly avoiding the dark fluids. “W-Wait, dear customer! Didn’t you wear the seals and charms?”

“It wasn’t enough! There’s too mu-auuuuugh!” The inky puddle quickly grew. Ran reached into her dress for some sort of transmitter while carefully leading the sickly goddess away from the front door towards one of the auxiliary exits.
“Oh my, this seems like it’ll take a while to take care of, won’t it? I think I’ll go ahead and keep Anon company for you.” All Ran could do was throw a scornful glance towards the kudagitsune. Honestly, Tsukasa didn’t need her permission in the first place. It just felt right to let her know that she can’t do anything to stop her.

(Part 1)

>>46457142
The pathway to the shrine was the same as always. Pretty flowers and fake trees lined the way to Anon’s den of pleasures. Those decorations weren’t annoying, but the bugs that inhabited them were. Tsukasa complained and got nothing but excuses about Yukari’s sense of aesthetic or how pissed Yuuka would be if her precious garden was uprooted. Personally, Tsukasa thought it wouldn’t hurt to rile up some blood. Nothings goes together quite like passion and pleasure! Speaking of, a certain someone was sitting on his veranda. How reckless.

Dressed in the form-fitting miko’s garb, Tsukasa dropped to the ground. Grass folded under her toes and palms as she staked out the human’s location. Hehe, completely unguarded. The fox clambered up a post and hung upside-down from the roof, avoiding the creaking spots she came across last time. Closer…Closer...

Tsukasa let go of her perch and turned her lithe body towards her prey midair. Her fingers gripped his shoulders and her legs wrapped around his waist. Anon learned to quickly stabilize himself after the first 20 times the kudagitsune had done this. Just like those previous times, she brought her lips close to his ear and whispered in a faint, spirited voice. “Caught you~. You remember what your punishment is, right?”

Tsukasa’s put her dexterity on display, undressing Anon and pulling him down on top of her in a matter of seconds. When he groped her chest, she let out a high-pitched yelp to tease him. It was always nice to see him look so shocked~

Hm. No reaction. Did he expect it?
__
Tsukasa never got why the tengu waited until night to fuck. Greeting Anon’s dick as soon she came did wonders for dispelling sexual tension. After dispelling sexual tension all over the veranda and the bathroom, the kudagitsune sat at the table with a bowl of fried tofu while Anon fried more in the kitchen. No stress or anticipation, just simple comforts.

“So, how’s everything at work, honey?” Right on time! You couldn’t even think of a complaint without some tengu figuring it out and shouting it from the mountaintops, claiming they heard it ‘on the wind’. But Anon? He was only human and therefore, safe.

“Ugh, it’s the worst. Iizunamaru-sama had me plan a baby shower yesterday, and she wants me to help set it up today! I’m just a secretary, not a foreman!” Now Tsukasa had to go through the trouble of convincing Megumu to poach some wolf to do the manual labor for her! Why couldn’t the daitengu just realize that she didn’t want to work and assign the duties to someone else from the start?

“Well, I think it’s wonderful that you planned a celebration for someone else. Why not see it through to completion? Part of doing a job is the satisfaction you get from seeing everything work out.” Always so optimistic. It bordered on preachy, but his dick made up for it.

“I guess so. It’ll be funny seeing the shocked look on her face. I’ll let you know how she reacts.” Anon had met ‘her’ plenty of times and Tsukasa complained about ‘her’ pregnancy from the moment Megumu started fawning over her baby bump. At this point, it was a game to see how long it took for Anon to realize who ‘she’ was.

Anon came out the kitchen with another bowl of tofu in one hand and his own bowl of rice in another. “I look forward to it. It really is a shame the man isn’t there to help her through this process: It’s hard for any lady to go through, especially if she’s still working. You said he’s separated by his job, but still...”

Tsukasa shot out of her seat and nuzzled her face into Anon’s chest, letting out a low growl.

“Ah! I guess you really can’t wait, huh? Winter really wreaks havoc on your hormones.” Anon set down the two bowls on a counter, accepting his fate as they walked quickly to the bedroom.

Really, it was the polite thing to do. If Anon wasn’t making her moan, she was going to burst out laughing.
__
Tsukasa nuzzled against Anon’s chest, just waiting out the clock to avoid work. Oh, how he used to struggle and react to every little poke, prod, grind and squeeze. This warmth and stickiness used to be proof of conquest. Anon was still skilled, but more importantly, he was used to his role.

How dull.

Everything was laid bare before her, not a single nuance for her to exploit. Sex with the Hakurei husband used to have novelty. Now? It’s just sex with Anon. Well, there was still the non-sexual potential the HSE had as the epicenter of Yukari’s empire, but that wasn’t nearly as titillating. Aya nearly ruined that, but Tsukasa was right to frame that hermit as a distraction. The dumb crow ate every breadcrumb she left!

Hopefully tomorrow would be more interesting. Tsukasa didn’t plan to slip Anon a pill in the middle of her heat just so they could have mundane sex! No, when Anon was good and fertile, he was going to rock her world. Tsukasa just had to find out how to make that happen.
P.2

>>46457113
she was in the yuugi chapters before they fell by the wayside...
>>/jp/thread/44991041#p45021686
I'm pretty sure she was established as refusing to fuck anon, yet also established as going to the HSE, so she became this weird contradictory presence where she should have hated it because she likes Reimu, but didn't seem that bothered about try and save him

Hmm? Procrastination? No, I just spent all that time editing that image. All 2 weeks went towards that single edit, definitely.
I will do one more Tsukasa visit. I know exactly what I want from it. I just don't know how evil it'll turn out.

>>46457142
>>46457156
>that Tsukasa edit
this shit been following me forever, I can never outrun this demon. Fuck you, Ayaanon, fuck you.
>cocksure men
kek, this fucking meme...
>Hina
oh no, poor girl… She resisted a thousand chapters, yet curiosity got the best of her and look at the results. She better beg Keine to unfuck her mind; do a loli sacrifice to Okina; pledge to Yukari or just kill herself, no therapy is saving her
>a FOURTH known fertility pill
Eirin is eating mighty good~ though damn, comparing reactions to the moment this must be the most fucked up:
>Marisa was overcomed by terror of being in her forties alone, with a life of steal behind her and with the knowledge she'd failed everyone;
>Nazrin was retarded and commited an innocent sin;
>Aya was just plainly retarded;
>Tsukasa fucking wanted to sow chaos
kill the tube fox.
>>46457173
>All 2 weeks went towards that single edit
>forgets to clean the outmost layer of white pixels
fucking tengu editors man...
thanks for the chapters!

>>46450229
>he really does show up way too fucking much
I mean tbdesu he and Seija are basically one of the main characters as this point due to how much content their anon was able to produce on a daily basis. Peak HSE threads had tjhis guy projectile-vomiting KSM-tier posts. Someone like Yachie would kill for anywhere near close to that amount of attention

>>46457838
>Given barely any attention in the narrative
>Best partner is a moron
>self-proclaimed genius
Is... Is Yachie just a bizarro Rikako?

>>46457838
I'm glad he toned down the quantity of chapters, because God was he sacrificing quality for quantity. Never gonna forget the Kokoro fiasco or the Sagume Ball Z nightmare.

>>46457838
>>46457987
I think that might be why I was so sick of them. Yeah, they were getting loads of chapters, but they weren't the BEST chapters, and apparently killed off what the Sagumeanon was planning by pushing Sagume into the main plot instead of having her be adjacent to it.
I know it's not entirely his fault but I'm still salty about Remi's portrayal early on and him spending like two full posts wanking off Seija and Goro from Remi's perspective certainly didn't help

>>46457919
>Rikako and Yachie have never appeared in the same room
fellas...

>>46458015
you need to leave. Now.

>>46457987
>Kokoro fiasco
Can't remember anything in particular about her, what happened?

>>46458077
All I remember is her and Sirnoe entering former hell to contact Koishee

>>46458077
my man built a scene with Goro/Seija, Koishi and Kokoro but wrote 'Kanako' instead of 'Kokoro' every single sentence. Anons were even concerned the man was drunk, which he said he wasn't. That just shows, at that time, he wasn't at least reading chapters before posting, let alone reviewing, and just chucking them out the moment they were done; a snowball practice that just fucks you in the ass the more you do it as bad ideas and glaring mistakes stay, like the Sagume thing, and you lose grasp on what you're writing, leading to confusion and burn-out. That's the writer-side of speed reading. Worst of all in a community project, as the accumulative fuck-ups harm others.
I'm glad he changed his approach, the last Takane chapters now and those with Kogasa were much more palatable

>>46458127
>but wrote 'Kanako' instead of 'Kokoro' every single sentence.
Wait, that's what it was?
I thought he was just really drunk as shit. I also thought anything involving Lunarians were dropped simply to reduce character bloat but I'm starting to think I'm misremembering that too.

>>46458127
Oh yeah, I remember that, it was pretty funny desu.
The phrase "peak HSE" also makes me look back on how far this project has come, I wonder if anybody will end up doing a retrospective after this all ends.
Although I'm sure what "peak HSE" is, is very debatable.
At the very least I appreciate the more infrequent posting and weeding out of worse writers as time went on.
I liked the Sagume posting though, it wad funny and it helped gate off the lunatics. People call ZUN lazy, but there's simply no way to give every 2hu, even those which would logically be very involved Moryia Shrine and Myouren Temple their time to shine, and I'm glad we're seeing less of them. Same thing goes for the loonies, the less of them the better.

>>46458201
>weeding out of worse writers as time went on
https://youtu.be/7BpCvmzAa7A

>>46458226
Well it's not an entierly true statement, Cringetene and Ricringe are back.
But I think it's mostly true.

>>46458000
>and apparently killed off what the Sagumeanon was planning by pushing Sagume into the main plot instead of having her be adjacent to it.
I felt bad at the time, but in retrospect, If a few posts of mine were enough to destroy all their motivation to write, then maybe their ideas weren't that good in the first place.
>The Remi post
That joke might have worked if it was half the length, was undercut, re-arranged, or maybe the idea was just bad. Eh, it's over with now.
>>46458127
>a snowball practice that just fucks you in the ass the more you do it as bad ideas and glaring mistakes stay
Screw me for not checking names, but the spirit of write fagging is to post. Anything else is secondary.

>>46399035
That street was as bustling as it ever was, it provided good cover for me as I made my way towards my destination. Thongs of people moved around me. Some seemed to just want to cross the street as quickly as possible, and others were enjoying what this street had to offer. The stalls were still open and selling their wares to customers, expect for one seemingly abandoned stall. It was still in good enough shape, so I suppose it hadn’t been vacant for too long. Well, lemonade was a strange choice to sell here anyway, maybe they gave up. Looking over to a familiar spot. I saw that artist I had met had customers browsing her wares. I wonder if she had new books available-best not to think about that.

There was no delaying my march forward, and soon I was in front of that building again. The HSE almost the same, but it seemed someone had removed the front doors and nailed blankets over the entrance. A few workers milled about, making measurements of the frame. Even with the change, knowing what I did know about its true nature made it seem to radiate menace, imagined or not. So much had changed since then. The truth behind this place was revealed to me, a full blown revolution was brewing in the village, and Yukari had found out I was working against her. Stepping foot in the place now wouldn’t be the blind bumbling of a woman naively trying to play detective. It would be stepping on enemy territory, a declaration of war if they found me out. I had no way of defending myself other then hoping they wouldn’t attack me. Even the weakest youkai here could overpower me easily. I barely knew anything about the inner workings of this place, and I’d be going in almost blind on where to look.

Or- I could just turn and leave. I wasn’t arrogant enough to assume Yukari thought of me as a threat. She was just throwing her weight around, trying to drive off anyone opposing her. Nobody would blame me for wanting to get involved any further. Hell, they probably wrote me off already. Just heading home and letting the professionals deal with this would be the logical thing to do.

But my feet refused to move. Keine had went through a night of hell to save her children and faced down a barrel of a gun to forge a better future for them-for all the others of their generation. Marisa, Yuuka, and all the others-while powerful-knew they were risking their lives facing down a powerful foe in a battle were there would be no rules. Anon, who had spent so much of his life being hurt by the woman who was supposed to cherish him and had escaped only to be throw back into a new hell. Then there was Hana, who had never even had the decency of a normal childhood and had been preyed upon by the old bitch. All of them, making so many sacrifices , suffering so much pain and then there would be me, scurrying away like a rat when danger reared itself only to come crawling back when the dust was settled. Removing myself from all the danger would be the smart thing to do. But sometimes the smart thing to do isn’t the right thing to do.

Whether we were to succeed and head into a new but uncertain age, or fail and fall under the heel of Yukari, I knew I there would be nothing but a life of shame ahead of me if I did nothing. I wouldn’t be able to face my friends knowing I had let them down and simply rode on their coattails. The thought of growing old and seeing the world change-either to heaven, hell or somewhere in between-knowing I had let the opportunity to help make things right slip through my fingers already made my gut twist. My children and their children, the new generation would deal with the consequences of what’s to come. Akyuu too. I would be long gone when she is reborn, but I could at least ensure she has a chance at a good life. Who knows, maybe one of my descendants would be friends with her.

Funnily, I think back to Momotaro. He might have been strong and willingly accepted his quest, but I wondered if he had any doubts in his mind when he went to the isle of oni. What I wouldn’t give for some animal companions right now. Doing my best to push the thoughts telling me to run out of my mind, I step into the gates of hell.

(34)

>>46459794
If there’s one thing top say about the HSE, at least they knew how to keep things presentable, lack of door besides. The clean elegant waiting room not betraying at all that it was part of a whorehouse. I saw that kitsune servant of Yukari’s-Ran wasn’t it?- manning the desk again. I already had my plan in mind. I approached the desk and straightened my spine so I could stand to my full height. Which wasn’t much compared to her, but still. “Hello again. I’m here to see if any of my services are needed. Is Anon available?” I knew that trying to break in would be a mistake. Maybe if I were some kind of master thief I would have a chance, but I would be caught in an instant if I tried anything funny. My only option was to just walk through the front door, exploiting the fact I had a reason to be here. It was so stupid that surely the thought of me being her to subvert them wouldn’t cross their mind. At least, I hoped that.

Ran turned her weary gaze towards me. If she were to see through me and have be dragged away, this would be the moment. “He is currently seeing a client at this moment. He is scheduled for a break afterwards, so I can see if he wishes you see you then”

“Thank you” I go to take a seat in the waiting room, heart thudding in anticipation Some of the clients waiting there briefly looked up at me. Most of them had removed their disguises, freely showing off strange ears and wings, among other features. I suppose they thought nobody would care if they saw. At least there was nobody I recognized. I still silently scolded all of them for having being awful people for going here. As I waited, my mind drifted off into potential avenues of attack. I had hoped to have something by now, but my mind was a blank. I didn’t have much time to think as I noticed a presence right next to me. I jumped, despite myself.

“Anon wishes to see you. You have some time before his next client arrives. You may enter” Ran said before moving back to the desk.

This was it. I moved towards the doors and pushed them open. Going through the main entrance was just as jarring as going through the secret one as I suddenly stepped out on grass, the sun shining down on me. Trying to shake off the uncanny nature of this place, I made my way to the shrine. Drawing near, I saw there was something new. A garden that was teeming with life, despite it being winter. Or was it winter here? Hard to tell. I took a moment to appreciate the beauty of the vibrant life. If I had Akyuu’s poetic streak, I could write about how this represented how life goes on and hope and beauty can be found in even the most dismal of places. But I didn't, so I just enjoyed the view for a while. Stepping into the shrine, I saw Anon sitting down at the table, a cup of tea in hand “Kosuzu, it’s been a while. Good to see you again”

Taking my place opposite him, I notice there was already another cup and a teapot set up. How considerate. I poured myself a cup. “It really has been a while. I have a catalog if you want more books. We’ve got a lot of new stock in, so take a look” I pushed the catalog and pen towards him. He took a few minutes to browse, marking off what he wanted before handing it back. I briefly flip through it. Novels, a guide on gardening and landscaping, a few others. Nothing unusual.

“I saw there was a garden outside, is that yours?” I asked, both out of curiosity and lacking any other conversation starters. It’s not like I could ask him how he’s been lately.

“Oh no, Yuuka made it. She’s amazing at that sort of thing. All I do is go out and tend to it when I have the time”

“Ah, that makes sense. She’s actually very nice, nothing like the stories say”

“You met Yuuka? When was this?” He asked, looking a bit surprised.

“We got to know each other a while back. She’s not that scary when you get to know her” I felt a small tinge of guilt when I thought back to all the awful things I believed about her.

“She does have her charm, doesn’t she?” Anon smiles slightly as he takes a sip of tea. I feel a sudden compulsion to blurt everything out. That a plan to rescue him is being staged and he might be free, that his daughter was molested by the same woman keeping him trapped here, and that he might have enough offspring to rival gods, but I choose to keep my mouth shut. The truth wouldn’t help him much now. As he puts down his tea, an awkward pause seems to fill the air. I couldn’t be the only one with secrets. What sort of pain was he hiding, with all the things he suffered here? I wasn’t too keen on finding out.

>>46458226
I'm sure absolutely nothing bad would happen if we were to rank the writers

>>46459800
>>46459794
brave Suzu, saying 'fuck it we ball' and entering the dragon's den without a clear plan. She learned from the best with the Jobber Squad~
expectant to see what she does!
thanks for the chapters!

>>46457157
Suika has been in the HSE from the start... just in the background... slightly off camera...
The little goblino was initially one of the ones that gave him the ol' oni sake pot trick regularly.
After some actual fleshing out that wasn't literally some one-off line, it was established that she fell out of being friends with Reimu like many of the others, but was one of the ones that hung around the longest like Yuuka. She visits Anon regularly enough, but doesn't fuck him since she's been pulling goblin support duty before Ran thought it was cool. Sadly without a proper writefag for her or Yuugi their friendship never got mentioned much and is largely forgotten. She's been working for/with Kanako in the background, and one of the things that kicked off the underground having any relevance. It was hinted at her pulling some oni to their cause like she did with Yuugi, though her pool of innocent oni that oppose rape is rather small for obvious reasons.
I remember the goblino!

>>46459828
I thought it would be a fun thing to do after the finale. A reader-only poll and a free-for-all poll asking how you would rate individual writers (with a field for compliments and complaints) and how you would rank them all compared to each other.
Then I realized I can only identify the writing styles of a few writefags. Need either a verified list of writers or someone who's actually good at picking this stuff out.

>>46461396
nta
There was that animated HSE trailer from awhile back, that's probably a good place to start with identifying writers.
A couple have also stated which stories they wrote, I know I kept all of my writings for the HSE in a google doc .

>>46461171
the oni gaslight today is insane...

>>46459828
You just have to do it correctly, there are three ranks:
Those who write
Those who don't
Those who make charts
I won't tell you the order of these rankings. The answer to that lies only in your heart.

>>46461171
Suika gradually losing faith in yukari over the years, it started with a failure if a moon invasion, and now whatever the hell this HSE shit is. I mean I know reimu was turning pretty Oni like but it wasn't cool at all, cuz you shouldn't beat up your husband you know?
I knew anon needed a hand after all that but man, from the shit he told me my suspicions about yukz screws getting loose were spot on.

>>46461396
>after the finale
So...Never?

>>46462663
shut up naysayer
only like 4 character left that need to finish
>>46375020

>>46459794
>>46459800
be careful suzu! Don't let the HSE win over you this far into the game!

>>46462519
You forget the hidden fourth tier that towers above the rest.
Those who make fake in-universe doujin covers.

>>46464242
>Writing fight scenes is hard
it's very gratifying, but God is it straining...

>>46464391
much like writing sex scenes, the key is the fact that the actions aren't what matters. It's the intent and the emotional connection that matters. If these characters are fighting, why are they throwing each punch (or rather each danmaku shot)? What does each hit mean to them? It's something you can't really teach and just have to get a feel for.

>>46464578
Nicely put

>>46411767

Seiga is a newcomer to Gensokyo, at least by Mima’s standards, but that’s no reason to underestimate the hermit. No, for Seiga to be an associate of Prince Shoutoku she must be more than a thousand years old and therefore must have faced countless attempts on her life from Hell and more mundane foes. The only real surprise stems from how long she allowed Mima to proselytize before springing to action.

Speaking of, Seiga reaches into a bag at her side before withdrawing little clay vessels that Mima can’t get a good glimpse of before Seiga crushes them, releasing sealed spirits. “Well, you’re certainly confident in your abilities, now please be a dear and back it up. You’re already interrupting my night, so the least you can do is be strong enough to make breaking and binding you worth it.”

Mima clutches her sword tightly as she steels herself against the oncoming spirits. They’re barely recognizable as humans, an unknown number of years of servitude having worn away everything but their strength and the last vestiges of their truest nature.

As the first draws close, Mima slashes through its amorphous form, unraveling the immaterial being. With similar ease, she unleashes a wave of curses to tear the other spirits apart. “I share your sentiments if reversed. Though I’ve no intentions of binding your spirit, a swift journey to the Yama will suf-”

Mima is cut off as the spirits are pulled back together by their master and as one attempt to fuse with her soul and wrest control of her being. She of course is able to tear them apart again with a pulse of her magic, but that hardly seems like an achievement given the way Seiga smirks at her.

The wicked hermit feigns an apologetic tone, “My apologies for their interruption,, they're quite the spirited bunch. As you were saying?”

Mima snarls as she has to once again tear the spirits apart. “Oh, It's fine. Or at least it will be after I’m done with their master.”

Seemingly unbothered as she stretches and leans back in the air, Seiga replies, “By all means, if you can.”

This bitch, she’s lived up in a cave in the mountains for a couple of centuries and thinks she can toy with a proper Vengeful Spirit. After unraveling the souls yet again, Mima focuses and unleashes a moderately sized beam of energy. A so-called “Mini-Spark” (a term coined by Hana).

Alas, her cost-effective spell fails against Seiga’s hastily erected barrier. The Taoist nods slightly after both spells fade, “Respectable, it seems you’re at least worth the time it will take to seal you into a vessel.”

To add injury to insult, the damn spirits reformed in the meantime and were able to deliver quite the zap while Mima was distracted. It’s not enough to destabilize her manifestation and shredding them again is trivial, but still…

Tiring of this, Mima says to Genjii, “Evade the spirits if they chase you, I’m putting an end to this” before launching from the great turtle down towards Seiga.

Clutching the peach wood handle, Mima calls out, “I tire of these games, necromancer. Make with whatever Gods you believe will save you for I shall gut you from groin to teeth!”

Seiga tuts before unleashing a torrent of curses at the spirit. “Then you’ll miss the most important part.”

As she descends upon Seiga like a bird of prey, Mima evades most of the Hermit’s spells. She, of course, could have dodged the others, but that would require dramatically changing her trajectory. Being a magical being in tune with dark magic she elects to just take the hits. They’re trifling wounds at best, after all.

Such blows are well worth the opportunity to descend upon Seiga. The startled Hermit’s eyes widen and she backs up as fast as she can, but it does nothing to protect her as Mima hews up and rends the Witch apart.

Taking a moment to appreciate her grizzly handiwork, Mima looks down at the… bamboo rod slashed apart the long way. As she’s staring at the damned thing, the spirits once again attempt to possess her before she unravels them once more.

[Spoiler]Y'know, after rewriting this 3 times you'd think it would be better, alas it is not. >>46420447 This is great and I'll definitely keep it in mind while writing Marisa's meeting with Anon. The second part of this fight tonight maybe if I don't go to bed before then.[/spoiler]

>>46465038
I forgot the number and messed up the spoiler...
It's one of those nights, isn't it?

>>46465053
it's okay, we're all there at some point

>>46443934
—
The key around my neck signifies truth, and, as it unfolds deep within the synapses of my mind, I cannot help but reach one conclusion: this is hell. Hell beyond that which devours the souls of the damned and turns them into power cells of concentrated sin and abhorrent emotions, a hell guarded by the Yama's judgment and the Sanzu's sanctity. Hell further than the scalding Blood Polls and Gaia, both mother and cemetery of all… No, this is a hell where one little girl—one that hasn't taken her first breath of fresh air—needs to go lengths upon lengths for the mere chance to speak to her father.

Because that's what me and Meiling are: vehicles to get Sekai to her Father…

… That simple smile before the Lótus closed and melted the replica of my body; the love Meiling told she babbled about…

For how long did you think of this, brat? In that cold, lonely world with that tree full of futures and pasts that'll never be, always standing so close yet so far from all you loved…?

A hell of an innocent—a tiny, gilded cage for you, an unseen goddess.

There were other ways of reaching your father, right? You likely didn't need to guide me and Meiling through this goose chase, leaving just enough for us to figure it out, yet you've done it—now, you stand there, twenty feet away, bearing the semblance of people you call mothers but with those lonely eyes I saw against the silhouette of the ethereal tree…

You're smiling now, Sekai. You're hearing all this, giggling to yourself and indulging in knowing this mother of yours is impressed with how far you've gone, reducing me and Meiling to pulps… Because that's what this war is for you: playtime, isn’t it?

You're just one goddamn child who wants to spend time with those you love. Why else would you choose this asinine method to reach Anon? One with many gambles—risks?

Yukari would've chosen alternative methods; I'd have too…

Children will be children, even those born in hell.

So let us have a pleasurable playtime, bratty little lady! And you better talk to me afterward—

My hair floats up as sigil after sigil springs to life, chest burning as my dried-out well of magic searches outside this body for enough power to cast these ascending spells of fiery hues that blazed out for the skies, promising a shower of cosmic proportions.

—Otherwise, your dad is good as dead!

“Meteoros!” And so, as the skies cracked open and meteors rained down into Earth, the copies of Sekai moved, as did Meiling, full assurance of her moves as a bloody gust followed her movements.

It was utter, scenic chaos.

The land rumbled and thunders sang as Meiling's fist met Koa's jaw, sending the succubus crashing onto a falling meteor and shattering the celestial pebble into billions of pieces; Flandre, my copy, and Sakuya jumped Meiling, who, moved by Ki, managed to dodge and counterattack, a spectacular sight amidst the deluge of fire and earth-shattering tremors—but I paid no attention, eyes solely on the two that decided to come for me, ethereal grimories opening all around and body drawing energy from outside, combusting these ghostly pores.

In a body made of flesh, I'd already be dead…

… But one made off her magic?

It was competent enough to save the world.

Lady Remilia is swiftly met with Sigils of Baphomet clawing their way to existence and spewing infernal flamethrowers of ebony ash, the vampire swiftly dodging as her arm morphed, confusingly, to a longer one holding a familiar maple leaf—!! Suddenly, a mighty tornado ruptured and swallowed up the flames, sending them towards the falling cobblestones in awe-striking fashion. Meiling's copy enjoyed the breach to bear down on me, kick meeting a massive circle of magic spawning kilometers of golden chains, the inside of my body burning as I flew away from her and towards real Meiling; we cannot fight separated!

Koakuma met me in the way, her claws meeting an assortment of bubbles that wafted towards her, the copy dodging a tad later; one bubble hit her miniskirt and, with no warning, exploded her entire leg off—an opportunity.

I floated forward the fastest I could, hacking coughing gone—thank you, my bratty daughter; though wouldn’t your father be rather mad at you aiding my pursuit of killing him?

… Hm, who am I fooling? He'd laugh it off, I'm certain.

A bloodied hand of mine caught Koakuma’s face. “Begone; you've got work to do.” In the next moment, a sigil akin to broad strokes of a pencil dipped in starlight takes the form of the Holy Crucifix and, with a horrid screeching, Koakuma disintegrates in holy flames—

—Sounds of shattering chains!

I turn, ready with protection spell layered on top of protection spell…

Only to see Fakeling holding a whole meteor, her—Sekai's—eyes full of wonder and joy.

She then jumped and, abruptly growing a weird ethereal lizard tail, slammed the meteor in my direction, as if the world around us wasn't shaking with the continuous rain of fire.

… Children can often be fairly dramatic.

>>46465385
—
Confusing didn't start to describe it.

Fakechouli threw at me barrage after barrage of numerous spells, from surges of fire to massive icicles to boulders, all punctuated by falling meteors the size of houses that crashed down onto the earth, quaking the world and lifting veils of debris and dust, pink thunders sprinkling with increasing frequency, the landscape shifting non-stop, the only constant being the golden pillar in the distance—and, amidst all this, Sekai smiled.

Koa's screams echo and suddenly, the copies start to behave differently, their bodies quivering with weird light and ghostly visual artifacts—

—It hardly stops their powers, my arm pistoning forward to destroy the frozen thunderbolts Fakechouli chucks at me, fractal blue fire crystals raining along with ash and rock as I push through. I need to end this quickly and get to Lady Patchouli; we cannot fight alone!

I glance towards said magician, eyes widening when I see the colossal meteor tumble towards her, destroying its falling brothers in the way.

A moment of inattention.

Sakuya's copy points this familiar-looking parasol in my direction; I notice it too late…

Face pales as the massive beam of rainbow energy comes thundering towards me, speed not enough to run away from its sheer girth, the world trembling with the furious propagation of such levels of energy in an already chaotic environment.

… Still, with death itself coming for me, something happens inside: words about love and a tender, albeit fleeting, hug. Why did she do any of that? What does she gain?

Is that part of her plans…?

No.

Body centralizes, mind calms down, a sudden burst of energy from beyond coursing through me like the waters of a mighty waterfall. Is that the meaning of this war, Sekai? You gain nothing by clashing with us. What's a god to gain from fighting mere mortals?

Proclaiming those words, giving me that sweet hug…

You little rascal~

Death arrives, and Hong Meiling takes it front face in her two bare hands…

The beam comes to a full stop.

It's a sight of legends, a mere second feeling like a millennium as, almost following the flow of life, the beam is retorted and redirected, the powerful river meeting a still rock and, with a loud yell that releases Ki in the air powerful enough to stop the descent of meteors and push them back if for a moment, Yuuka's beam is thrown towards that one coming for Lady Patchouli, disintegrating the whole thing in one single swoop.

My hands fume, my chest goes up and down like crazy.

Sights of life.

I look Sekai in the eyes—the three pairs of them—and all I see is genuine joy that nothing could hope to match.

That didn't stop me from advancing, body rejuvenated and mind clear, darting forward as Flandre and Fakechouli throw everything towards me, an aurora of death magic that was masterfully dodged just like the fluffy of knives that came out of Gaps akin to Yukari's, time being constantly stopped barely a nuisance, hair of flames weaving through the barrage of death as if defeat was never a concept to begin with. Why have you healed this body after trying to destroy it? Anyone's guess, but be sure I'll use it to the maximum, Sekai!

Punching knives out of my way, I meet Sakuya head on, her body blurry with those visual artifacts—she still has a chin: good enough—this close quarters fight amidst the continuous rain of crashing meteors and Danmaku lasting much less than our first, her knives transforming into wolf tengu cleavers that suddenly grew massively in size, a smirk as I deflected them or flew through the holes close to the handle embroidering the ricasso. So much effort, but it was one simple punch that destroyed the copy's head, my fist connecting to her chin and causing a ripple effect that busted the top of her head like a coconut and splattered shining blue glass everywhere.

Resuming my fighting stance with a yell, I turn to those remaining copies, their blurring increasing dramatically, yet the eyes of nebula turning much more pronounced… Koakuma and Sakuya didn't return, either.

“Careful, now!” Lady Patchouli utters, her monotone a decibel higher; my Ki explodes and inattention is broken, hands moving and modeling the Ki to stop the raging thunderbolts Fakechouli lobbed in my direction—

—twice as powerful as the pink thunderbolts, teeth clenched as I pumped all this newfound energy into my defense—

Not enough!

The thunderbolt destroyed the Ki barrier, but all it met was a fortress of red brimstone that shuddered and turned against the force before collapsing and dispelling the thunderclap into thin air. Hovering to my side, Lady Patchouli sighed, putting her hands down. “Her attacks grow stronger as we destroy the copies—stay close… Also, excellent work with Kazami’s attack.”

“Heh, anything to keep you safe, Lady Patchouli! Thanks for the save as well; I dozed a little there~”

She raises an eyebrow. “A little?”

I scratch my nape, red. Sekai watches with a shining smile.

>>46465390
—
Words don't do justice, yet it had been like watching an ant stop a quasar. Did you enjoy the show, Sekai? Meiling's confidence will be through the roof after that one; hopefully she doesn't try such against the real Kazami… At least not with Spellcard rules in place. Anyway.

The copies growing stronger as we defeat more of them is rather concerning, so as the final meteor crashes on earth, I turn to Meiling, the desolate landscape an unrecognizable reflection of Earth. Unbothered by that, I join my hands to create sigils of war, body not burning as much as it did during the casting of the meteors. All around us, a dome of Spartan shields rises, cutting off Sekai's ability to hear my thoughts. It'll probably last ten seconds or so—enough time. “We need to defeat all copies at once; otherwise, we run the risk of getting overwhelmed, which means Sekai will keep healing us and repeating this cycle ad nauseam. We'll also be unable to reach Anon with the kid pestering us…” Meiling recovers her fighting stance, nodding with her eyes narrowed—thinking. That's new.

“I do have something that can take them all out at once, but I'll need them all clumped together and still for at least two seconds. You think you can do that, Lady Patchouli?”

Oh? That almost sounded like a challenge. “Fool, my repertoire stretches far wider than whatever conception you might have of me.” The words just made Meiling grin with determination, cleaning a drop of blood from her forehead.

“Cover me then, Lady Patchouli!”

I think for a moment before reading Meiling's physical and mental state with my eyes and analytical spells. Her patched neck wound hasn’t deteriorated, and her knife wounds should not be hurting from a combination of adrenaline and Ki—maybe one and the same for a martial artist—; She also wears a small smile on her face, and her chest beats rhythmically. Inside, the flow of Ki was renewed, the flame burning bright with Sekai's added power… Yet I doubt that, even without the increased power, she'd be anywhere but here by my side, her fight stance ready and those eyes focused. You're not hearing this right now, Sekai, but I do wonder if that was another part of your abysmal plan to reach your Father. “… A formidable and vital ally.” I mutter, Meiling turning towards me with a frown.

… It takes two full seconds for her to realize the significance of such words and when she does, those emerald eyes grow immensely and I have to promptly turn off the analyzing spells—a necessity considering just how bright her life flow became.

Whatever she was about to say, though, was cut off by the phalanx being forced open by Fakeling's hands—

—only to be met by Meiling's fist, the wave of compressed air shattering the sound barrier and unmaking the remainder of the phalanx. “Lady Patchouli…! I’ll do my best!” I nodded, and it was enough.

I watched then as she willingly plunged between the copies, a ferocious smile taking over her face, Fakeling quick to recover and join the fight. The clash of equals plus Remi and Flan with my copy striking from far away was as if a painting, Meiling turning and punching and kicking, then dodging and counterattacking, attacks coming and going and blurring together against the utterly destroyed background in a show of combative prowess.

Hong Meiling, unchained. A sight to behold…

… But I cannot think. Again, I must act without thinking—now on a greater scale than a mere Lótus.

I’ll need enough firepower to hold in place four copies of Sekai and do so without thinking about the spell for even a second; otherwise, she’ll be able to react to it.

The ultimate test of my magic and just as Meiling faces the fight of her life, this will be mine…

… Ah, this conniving smile taking over my face; this purple hair of mine flowing up as condensed magic starts to spread and undertake transformation, one done blindly, the cogs of the magical world that've been my life twisting and turning, familiar yet so strangely alien without a sense of thought. Even so, multicolored sigils start to form around me as the air warms up, the thick clouds opening once more to bathe the world in the smoldering hues of a fake sun. But, of course, it wouldn't be without intervention, as not even Meiling herself can control the flux of those who decide not to participate in her war.

Sekai’s flamethrower is immediately stopped by one of my own, the Sigils of Baphomet struggling as the flames consumed surrounding oxygen and released unhealthy amounts of carbon. In hellfire, me and my copy locked eyes.

… Hm, weight and height are spot on. Good girl. My copy smiles a little more. “But the imitation ends there, my bratty daughter. If you want to be like the real deal, I'll gladly teach you.” One hand deftly conducts the accumulation of magic to do whatever my subconscious wants to use to restrain the copies, while another enlarges my Sigil of Baphomet.

The cheeky girl she is, Sekai mirrors my actions. I grin, enkindled.

>>46465395
—
It's incredible the lengths a few words can go~

My blurry copy and I are locked in clinches of punches and kicks for a long while, vicious shockwaves making the air turn stale; next moment, my Ki screams and my arms move, taking hold of Fakeling's arm and hurling her above my shoulder, Gungnir going through her heart—

—but it doesn't stop there as Lady Remilia splits into three more copies in bursts of scarlet flames, and, with each holding a scarlet spear, I'm now being assailed by four spears, small cuts and protrusions exuding blood yet doing nothing to slow my overdrive, blood pumping as if an active volcano. One spear comes a little too off and, taking hold of it, I pull the copy to me and punch her head off, using this Gungnir to mutilate the others before my copy rejoins, handling it as if a Bo staff and thrusting into the fake copies'—hm…—hearts, meeting head on Lady Remilia and my copy next; though the last combatant soon enters together with echoing maniacal laughter: Flandre crashes down onto us, throwing away mine and Lady Remilia’s copy, the younger vampire holding a familiar mini-hakkero on each hand—

Teeth clenched, I deflected her left arm, the Master Spark howling just to my side—but Flan's other arm was coming towards me, the hakkero blistering with rainbow energy. “HA-YA!” An explosion of Ki sends her back just enough for me to kick up and redirect the second Master Spark towards the skies. Frustrated, Flan throws the mini-hakkeros away, her blurry form advancing with suddenly a massive anchor in her hands, a swoop and—

—A great tsunami came out of nowhere, my eyes bulging but concentration never faltering, Ki accumulating, and, with one explosive attack, the wave opened as if the Red Sea, the copies using the veil of mud water to descend upon me, Lady Remilia with this weird staff I recall seeing somewhere as Flan herself decided for something much more terrifying in Reimu's—no, they're a tad different… Hana's?—Hakurei Spheres and a gohei, the close-quarters three versus one a blessing in disguise, as here, overwhelmed by sheer number and power, is where martial arts shine the brightest. Their attacks were deflected by my Gungnir and hot shots were taken, dodging as if water through each thrust and beautifully weaving between the two smaller vampires and my copy's powerful blows—experience makes out for power most of the time, that image of a bloody mess fighting for her life gone.

Lady Patchiouli's words, Sekai's words and that hug…

… All echoed inside and infused in these muscles to create the image of physicality Gensokyo so much ignores. This is where the epitome of the body lies!

Even if the circumstances scream otherwise, even if this world is crumbling apart and burning, with pink thunderbolts crashing down onto Earth, it is here, on the battlefield, with a massive smile amidst sweat and blood, that I thank you for gifting me this chance to once again celebrate this worth of mine, Sekai.

A tinge of magic reverberates.

—

It's almost like a calculated game of chess, fighting another magician face-to-face. Sigils of Baphomet spew flames all around as sounds that I'm way too familiar with reverberate in the background—Master Sparks? Seriously, brat?—With a small chuckle, Fakechouli's blurry image gave rise to even more blurry sigils that blurted out magic of all kinds, one hand still mimicking me and holding a growing Sigil of Baphomet with flames so bright they were beginning to burn through my ghost skin. All the while, one of my hands created perhaps the greatest logical puzzle the magical world has ever seen: body and mind divided between keeping the brat at bay, halting myself from thought and still maintaining the magnum opus of a spell. Sweat poured down my forehead and baptized my simple grin…

Exhilarating challenge.

Ice spears, thunderbolts and boulders, chains of gold so pure it could make one cry; and a multitude of infinite combinations and theatrical magical feats—Sekai was firing everything at us…

… All to merely show off!

This child!

You want the world to see you, don't you? Your mothers to hear you? Your screams and your might; your capabilities; everything you'll rain down on Gensokyo should your humble wishes be ignored! For an entire year, I suffered and saw suffering. I am empathetic towards your poor father and would kill him anyway!

You could've done the same; could've chosen routes that cared not for mine or Meiling's souls; you could've used us as tools to get to your goals easily, but you did not…

This cage is our hell—it's everything you know.

… For anyone, it'd have been unbearable to be here alone.

After today, not anymore.

As I'm hearing you now, brat! I'm here and I'm essential for your foolish plan!

Premeditated or not, this is my eulogy for you, Sekai! A year of suffering, a year of freedom from a dying body—a year for me, two million years for you.

For our family that'll never be.

I didn't think.

It just happened.

>>46465399
—
The tinge of magic grew like the stalk of a bamboo, tingling my whole body as it was so dense it got incredibly hard to breathe. The copies felt it too and, moved by herd mentality, all eyes turned to the literal peak of magic; There stood Patchouli Knowledge, both hands pointing skyward as if offering a sacrifice, hairs maddeningly dancing and eyes wide, spell circles so complex this view by itself could fill up a library. Her lips moved, a whisper secluded by the sheer magnitude of the power she withheld on her very hands… Then she released it.

The world rumbled.

Kilometers of golden chains bathed in fire and thunder, coated in forever ice, and numerous other natural forces that, together, painted the image of an exodus, the chains sprawling further around us and breaking the clouds before falling onto the ground, creating the image of a cage—all that magic emitted from the magician's hands. Then, in one move, she pulled her hands down, and the chains gained the gift of life, chasing like crazy snakes after the copies from all directions in unfair numbers. Leave it to Lady Patchouli to solve a tricky question with the simplest yet most roof-shattering solution.

But I couldn't stay put; this is where I act!

Sekai had this massive smile as she splintered and ran around, her copies producing thousands of answers yet the chains would always get back to her: Flandre tried to destroy them with scarlet flames, those affected being cut off and new ones rushing towards her; Lady Remilia used this weird technique of thinning her body but was caught anyway, a chase so impossibly hard to see I didn't focus much, turning to my copy and Lady Patchouli's… Who just stood there; Patchy's looking at hers and mine looking at me. Her eyes glistened and her smile was euphoric. A deluge of golden chains took hold of her body.

Lady Patchouli's agony was heavily felt through the flow of her Ki: she won't show it—too proud—but the signs of magical exhaustion even with Sekai's power-up were still there.

Hold on for just a little longer, Lady Patchouli!

In the center of the chain dome, the locked girls were seen struggling to destroy the chains to various degrees of success—Lady Patchouli didn’t even bulge—; and I quickly got there, not wasting even a second before lunging onto the mass of chains and copies.

One hand took Lady Remilia's; the other, Flandre's; and with my feet, I took both Fakeling's and Fakechouli's hands. Their expressions were too very blurry to properly discern.

That was your first big fight, huh, Sekai…?

Did you enjoy it?

They nodded in unison.

… Good.

I take one deep breath, lifting two pinkies and two little toes…

… Then, simultaneously flexing our joined fingers together, I whisper ever so softly, “Skadoosh.”

A second of silence. Nothing happens.

—

I'm out of breath, barely clinging for dear consciousness, and holding about twice the size of modern Tokyo in chains at my very fingertips… And Meiling's solution to our problem is flexing Sekai's fingers?! Also, what the absolute crap is Ska—

A wave of pure, sacred gold sweeps everything in every cardinal directions, effecting every living being and reaching parts deep within my mind I didn't even exist, my eyes bulging as I watched my chains crumble away—millions of kilometers of magic chains just… disappearing.

Leaving behind a beauty unparalleled.

The sky was clear and blue; the devastated ground had just s-sprouted life out of nowhere! Lush vegetation, sprinkled with winter flowers, stretched far beyond what the gaze could discern. Slowly, I floated down, curiously watching the ground; unlike Yukari's fake grass, this was real—alive.

A cool breeze swoop, one hand holding my numb arm and huffing and puffing like crazy, my magic well forever massively hurt… However, I could hardly care. I took a long, deep breath; healthy lungs filling with fresh air for maybe the first time in a lifetime.

I drank it—a lot of it.

Such an unforgettable moment…

The dead world now overflows with life, and it's like a war wasn't happening until moments ago. “Man… My master would die again if he could've seen this.” I turn to Meiling, as awestruck as I am. “Sekai has no Ki, but the sheer release of energy is insane… She's truly a goddess.”

“We battled a fetus, and we'd have lost twice over if said fetus hadn't powered us up—and you're surprised by her godhood?” I huff, fixing my crooked hat. Meiling giggles a little, scratching her neck. “Still… What was that? 'Skadoosh'? Weird name for a technique.” Even though the world is serene, the golden pillar still towers in the distance, the gilded key around my neck eager to be used.

“That was a thing my master liked; it has another name~” I slowly float towards the pillar, enjoying the nice air a bit more.

“For how long can this technique hold her?”

“Oh, it's used to seal evil masters of Kung Fu—so thousands of years—”

A crack is heard.

We turn… A massive golden fissure hovers above the green.

>>46465406
>>46465399
>>46465395
>>46465390
>>46465385
Here ends the first World War!
… Hehe~
always enjoyed Meiling's dragon motif and the more silly panda motif, so I decided to make a reference to something that has both; don't worry, won't be using it in finale as it's just a minor thing here!
tomorrow will be finishing Ghost Meiling/Patchy's plot-line! Hope you've enjoyed it as much as I did! See ya tomorrow!

>>46465038
Isn't genuinely literally dead? I kind of remember they had a funeral for him really early on in the HSE with fairies and stuff.

>>46466634
*Genji

>>46466634
Shame it happened. I 'member having an idea for a gag where he and Tewi were so fucking old that they knew eachother from waaaay back since they're both magical animals

>>46466682
That's fine since his death is non-canon.

>>46466682
Just have him show up with sunglasses and a Hawaii shirt at the end.

>>46466682
It was all part of the cirno Shonenfest so its non-canon unless you want to write it in explicitly

>>46468409
Unfortunately with how common Cirno's name is in the uploaded version of the HSE, I have a bad feeling that people will think it's canon either way.
I don't think it would require too much effort to just remove all those posts from the uploaded version.

>>46468451
Probably just mark it down as being non-canon. Some bits are referenced here and there in other stories, so its somewhat relevant

>>46468462
I think it's better to remove it alongside a bunch of other things completely, besides of a person is really curious about what happened off screen they can just check it out.
Or maybe someone needs to upload an edited down canon only version of the HSE?

>>46468482
Ultimately if the guy wants to upload it, it is his decision. I'd say it should be there, its on the flowchart I think and plenty reference tidbits as relevant. At the moment I consider it as such: Cirno ascended a bit, Kokoro got pregnant as did Kosh, and Satori had been made aware of the situation.
Everything else is up in the air, but the above has already been referenced by other writers, the journey is up in the air but the destination was set.

>>46466634
Yeah, I'm still annoyed about that. I made a small reference to him because I was planning on using him for a nice interaction with Reimu and then he just kills the turtle without any plot significance to the death.
My justification for his ressurection is that he along with Tsuchinoko got snatched during the great animal realm soul heist (It'll be explained after the fight).

>>46469014
There doesn't need to be an explanation for a contradiction with a non-canon work, just have him be alive without anybody making a comment on it.

>>46469014
My personal headcanon: It was a ruse.
Okina used magic from one of her thousands of aspects to create a convincing-enough fake corpse of Gengi from some scales or another dead turtle. Cirno, having the brain of the strongest fairy and having never met Genji before, believes it. The ruse was all to convince Cirno that Okina has a heart and is worth joining.
I don't have an explanation for real Genji yet. Maybe he gtfo'd when Mima broke loose and in the background they reconciled.

>>46469744
If you want it to be non-canon, just have it be non-canon, I don't think that reasoning makes sense as Cirno was basically already on team Okina at the point and would prefer it if you just ignored that chapter if you really have a problem with it, including my characterization of Okina which conflicts with how she ended up when other people wrote her.

first time this happened, we ended with a full-blown Youkai revolution. Turtle revolution next?

>>46469850
how did it start last time?

>>46469915
An amanojaku found the miracle mallet then incited revolution?

>>46469915
I forgot Akyuu died in the Hanafic and had Hieda-sama talk about her not being able to come to Keine's baby party at the time she was faking her pregnancy. It proceeded with Keine remarking the man has gone mad with Akyuu's death, but she was unaware he believed Akyuu would be reborn through Keine's child, which leads to him destroying Keine's life after she tells him she wasn't pregnant.
That leads Keine to the twins, who swears to create a better Gensokyo for them and recover her life, which leads to the revolution.

>Cirno's story is completely uncanon now
wait huh? I feel like I'm having an Aneurysm wtf is going on

>>46470024
If you have high blood pressure you should go see a doctor, here's one that suits your taste.

>>46470024
Mimaanon made a fuck up forgetting Genji was dead; someone pointed it out and Cirnoanon said it was okay because he sees the Cirnostory as not canon. Problem is that there's previous references and it was already settled he had died. Mimaanon should really just remove his presence altogether and repost the chapter to fix the fuckup, as having him present changes nothing and will likely add nothing to Mima's story so far into the project; though considering Genji's so shrouded in mystery, reviving him for whatever motive is feasible. It has very little impact on the overall plot, so if Mimaanon gives a good explanation, it's okay.

>>46470106
>Cirnoanon said it was okay because he sees the Cirnostory as not canon.
WHAT?!? That'd make sense if the story was generally out of the way from everything else but basically everything after chapter 3 involving fairies hinges on Cirno ascending.

>>46470503
well, that's just how Cirnoanon feels towards his writing; remember how Sekai also started as non canon? It also has a bunch of previous mentions, like Yukari and Aya chapters, to be made not cannon. Just be sure to keep the Fairy Wars (assuming you're Hanaanon) more contained to prevent other autistic moments like this entire canon/non-canon discussion

Yep, look at that >>44783853
>6th month of the HSE!
another month of fun writing for the project~
https://files.catbox.moe/rsg7om.webm
Thanks everyone!

>>46470579
Well, the entire point of me saying that was that people shouldn't feel beholden to me or what I've written if they dislike it.
I write spontaneously and for my own enjoyment and if you have an idea, but it contradicts what I wrote, just ignore what I wrote and do what you want.
Sure the Cirno story has been mentioned by others, but if people wanted to just ignore it or drop it completely that'd be fine by me, and as far as I'm concerned it's only as canon as it is referenced by other stories.
Also for the fairy war, Hanaanon could just have it be one big elaborate misunderstanding and then everybody has a tea and/or drinking party.
But at the end of the day write what you want to write and don't let me get in your way.

>>46470503
>>46470579
>basically everything after chapter 3 involving fairies hinges on Cirno ascending
>Just be sure to keep the Fairy Wars (assuming you're Hanaanon) more contained to prevent other autistic moments like this entire canon/non-canon discussion
I just consider the details muddy but the end result real enough, its been mentioned multiple times already. Fairy wars will hit its amusing climax soon enough, but not before the upcoming Hana chapter.
Should be out this weekend, finally have my first days off in about two weeks.

>>46472771
I love it, seeing all the little clips makes me want to see Hana's spergy moments more.

>>46470106
Not actually a fuck up, I was aware that Genji died. My original plan was to have Genji and Tsuchinoko be animal spirits brought up from the animal realm (since said spirits seem to just be allowed to leave (or at least if they're not, no one seems to particularly care about enforcing the rules)). The goal being that they can transcend from animal spirits to divine spirits through taking on the role of the Black Tortoise and sucking up the excess faith Mima'll generate.
Either way, Genji being dead isn't terrible as it evades questions like 'What the fuck has he been doing for the last 40 years?' and 'Why was he complicit in domestic abuse?' Hell, you don't even need to take Cirnoanon's post as canon as him dying before the story started fits well enough.
Alternatively, I suppose I could also just say he never died, but that again raises odd questions.
Or alternatively I can actually get chapters done so I don't need to explain things, but uhhh that's not happening it seems. I should have more out tomorrow unless I need to drive another family member to the ER (they're fine now)

>>46473796
>Alternatively, I suppose I could also just say he never died, but that again raises odd questions.
The way it was handled before HSE and 98s started getting screen is that he doesn't exist, or that he's simply not included in the story. Maybe he moved to Hawaii with the dragon god and Reimu's mom, or perhaps he has a timeshare in Boca and is still heading back to this day.
https://youtu.be/d-6kuVhKzmk?si=NyJtNnuvA1d7i7HK

>>46473399
>finally have my first days off in about two weeks.
happy for you man

>>46465406
—
“Thousands of years, you say.” I give her a gaze of knives and Meiling's reaction follows accordingly, her face paling as perplexity settles.

My chest tightens with the quickly fading adrenaline and lightheadedness, but I push through; our time is much more limited than I'd thought. Taking action is a must. I put together my hands and drew from my worn-down well of magic for a teleport.

“H-Huh, I think she's stronger than the Kung Fu masters I know, heh…” I sigh, but ultimately decide blaming Meiling for being unaware of the effects of her technique on an emergent goddess inside her own world would be asinine. Forming the teleport takes longer than expected—owe that to the burning magic well—, heart throbbing at watching the crack slightly increase with the seconds, Meiling promptly readying her combat stance… Still, Meiling's burnout is obvious: the blood loss finally showing its effects with shallow-than-normal breaths and trembling arms and legs, signs of diminishing supply of adrenaline.

Taking on Sekai again with all these piled up would be suicide…

But we don't need to. “We're leaving this place today.” I mutter, the teleport opening between us. Meiling waited for me to go first before following; her eyes laser focused on the growing golden crack, dust of the same color falling in cascades and coating the grass. The golden pillar loomed in front of us, protecting the two people inside like most precious treasures, and the destroyed shrine was beautifully covered in moss, plants, and flowers of all shapes—a testament to nature's victory in the face of the horrors women like Yukari can concoct. I wasted no time and snatched the gilded key from around my neck and plunged it against the pillar, the information contained in the key draining into the structure of the pillar and, within a second, turning the massive monument into swiftly crumbling iridescent dust, giving us access to Yukari and Anon stuck in slowed-down time, which meant Sekai still has control here and Sakuya's distance manipulation wasn't coincidental.

Good.

“Brat, this is my last warning: bring us to thy world, or your father perishes!” I yell, hiding the difficulty in standing from Meiling, her emerald eyes firmly on the fracture hundreds of kilometers away from us.

Sekai doesn't answer, and I tsk’d, nervous.

“… So be it.” I kneel by Anon, ignoring his nudity and placing my hands on his chest, molding the last rune of death into existence slowly, taking as much time as possible as to pressure the goddess into hearing us…

Why aren’t you doing something, Sekai?!

“Lady Patchouli?” Meiling calls, her tone worried. She knows we don't have a way to fight back should Sekai not interfere and let her father die, a thought that conflicts directly with the nature of all this ordeal; it was all premeditated! Sekai did all this to get to her father, using us as vehicles…

So why doesn’t she answer?!

… What'd it mean if she’d let her father die? Have I misunderstood something? Has Meiling's technique offset something beyond Sekai’s control?! B-But that doesn't align with what's already established! It'd be a catastrophe if I'd kill an innocent man for things I don't understand, Anon even more…

Here and now, hands on his chest, carving his death, it dawns on me that, even though highly omnipotent, Sekai can commit mistakes.

Her entire plan was flawed; I understood that during our war…

… I look into Anon's eyes, a light there I didn't see when I first came here one year ago.

One year watching as, slowly, that darkness was subsided—not erased but reshaped into strength that kept him alive and human—a hope so unparalleled one would have a hard time thinking of him as a simple man.

And I may end up killing him for nothing, dooming mine and Meiling's souls, then the entirety of Gensokyo—

—A hand falls on my shoulder—powerful and heavy, yet very soft. Calming. I turn my eyes away from Anon and toward Meiling, my frown creased, just now noticing my trembling hands, wide eyes, and clenching heart. The shame… Meiling bears a soft smile. “Lady Patchouli… Patchy, you are the smartest person I know, and your confidence has often inspired me. I don't understand your plan or Sekai's, but I trust that what you're doing is the best for us, and Sekai that she loves Anon too much to let him die.” Her hand squeezes tighter, her smile fading into something ironclad. “Don't lose this battle! You're taking us out of this place today! And I beg you, Lady Patchouli, that when we leave… Let me teach you the ways of the Ki so we can heal your body!”

W-What?

My eyes wide; using Ki… to heal my body? I never thought of that, nor asked Meiling if it was even possible. The way she talked, it was.

With steady hands again, I turn back to the rune of death as it reaches its final stages. “A chance to gain more knowledge? Hm. Satisfactory… Thank you, Meiling.”

“Anything for you, Lady Patchouli~!” Her face softens. “… With you, this hell was bearable.”

>>46479341
—
Suddenly, the world beats as if a living heart.

I blink and the death spell suddenly disappears, his and Yukari's movements returning full force in such a way that it gives me whiplash, coincidentally at the exact moment Meiling finishes those words… Such words are accompanied by Anon, who, tenderly holding a hand to Yukari's belly, stared straight at Meiling—

—A hand holds mine and, with a throbbing heart, I turn to the space between me and Meiling. Sekai stands there, holding one hand each of ours, staring directly into Anon and Yukari. Meiling stares at the little girl too, puzzled beyond belief.

Before any of us can react, the world changes and a towering tree of blue casts light soft and ethereal onto us; however, comparing this one to that tree a year ago is like putting a shack against a mountain. The tree's top pierces through the observable sky of darkness; canopy the stars, nebulas—the all-encompassing cosmos; spectral animals prowling around overgrown roots the size of rainforests—nestled in the center of all, the shrine.

Anon and Yukari can only marvel at the sights as Sekai, taking a deep breath, releases our hands and moves forward, kneeling before catching one cheek of each parent with her tiny hands. She speaks words not meant for us and, by the next second—feels so much longer—the couple is gone.

Leaving behind only us three in this hollow world…

… No, this cage—this hell.

“S-Sekai…” Meiling attempts as both of us watch the little girl slowly leave her kneeling position while keeping her back turned, concealing her face. I barely notice, hyperfixated on my spiraling thoughts—the sudden proposal to work on my Ki; Sekai exacerbating our fears and then denying them; the entire war and Meiling's discovery of why she can speak to Anon; everything she erased from our minds…

'With you, this hell was bearable.'

All that and more culminated in the following words:

“It had to be real.” Sekai stops, as does Meiling, who turns her eyes to me. I ignore it and step forward towards Sekai, my face impassive. “These forms weren't supposed to be. The spell I used to bind mine and Meiling's souls to this barrier would've left us in a state of hibernation until a link could be achieved again… But you capitalized on the connection to make us these forms so Meiling could discover her connection to your Father and have me build the portal to link both your world and Anon's world. Then, fostered between us discord after our first contact, which kept us busy and wandering without a clear target until the perfect moment where Anon and Yukari connected, and so Meiling could connect to Anon through sharing a real connection between me, her and you; weaving this web that used us as vehicles…”

With me, Hell was bearable for Meiling; for Sekai, it was bearable because of us; with Anon, it mustn’t have been Yukari… So maybe whatever was going on in his head when he touched her belly? I can only wan—

“Father touched Sister Renko and thought of Sister Hana, whom, even though has committed many bad things, Father still loves dearly—without Sister Hana, he… Father wouldn't be alive now.” Sekai speaks with her back to us, staring longly at the inconceivable lengths of the darkness her tree shadowed, seconds of silence passing. Time to digest… Yukari is pregnant? Hm. Unimportant. I turn to Meiling, seeking her reaction and I find her horrified, staring at me too.

This entire war was playtime for Sekai, and the whole plan nothing more than a child banging toys together and imagining a compelling confrontation…

Yet, everything fell right in place to end where she wanted.

We look at Sekai's back silhouetted by the overpowering blue in heavy contrast with the cold ground, a soft wind of nowhere waving her unremarkable clothes, peach-brown hair cut short and light skin, Anon's nose and Yukari's chin. She stood just a tad shorter than Remi. “Mother Meiling, Mother Patchouli…” gingerly, she turned to us, speaking with a sort of calm; almost casual.

Those eyes of nebula sparked something primal on my spine, and the thoughts of what's to come after today—if I'll even leave—became muddy.

A child will be a child, and children can be especially cruel…

… But then she opens the biggest of smiles, eyes soft and with cute dimples, arms spreading wide just as sweet, sweet giggling boomed through the world of ethereal blue. Sekai then starts rapidly changing; grows tails, wings, appendages, and even horns that just as promptly fade away, going through so many unique transformations in the span of three seconds filled with laughter that scares the animals made of light. Meiling mumbles, “B-Bwuah?!” Stepping back at the stunning yet disturbing sight.

She suddenly sprinted towards us, transformations still happening and, reflexively, I tried to bring out grimoires for defense—Meiling said something…

W-Woah!

Sekai catches us in a tight and disarming hug.

“Father and Mother… They know I exist—t-they… I’m so happy.”

>>46479349
Cute, in a worrying sort of way.
Nice "Bwuah" desu

>>46480918
>Cute, in a worrying sort of way.
can't think of a better definition for /ourdaughter/

>>46479349
my eldritch goddess daughterwife cannot be this cute!

happy easter, everyone! Will be posting a bnnuy special tonight to commemorate, Anon will be having a great time~
Have a enjoyable day everyone!

>>46486403
>great
I don't think that word means what you think it means.

>>46486403
Eagerly anticipating it! Bnuuy representation has been lacking this year after the hag got kicked put of the party, now is the perfect time to revive it.
Somebody should write a scene about Reisen laying eggs. Possibly me but I'm extremely lazy

>>46486403
Will it just be Tewi or will it have Reisen as well? Just want to know while I'm still writing this.

>>46486655
only Tewi, Reisen would stay at Eientei covering about 200 maternity leaves

>>46486673
Great, whipping up my own quick, non-canon thing for Reisen today.

>>46486673
Alright, good to know.

Cold metal pressed her back. Shackles around her wrists and ankles halted any stretching. Waking up on an operating table in a dark, silent, sterile room was nothing new for Reisen. Not that it made the situation comfortable or less embarrassing. A steel ring hugged her ribs. Transducers were attached to her belly while her naked butt numbed against the cold bed. The only parts of her body that weren’t restrained were her belly and thighs. A thought flashed through her mind before being quashed: If Doctor Yagakoro were doing anything weird, her legs would be spread apart! No, Reisen could trust her master not do some pervy experiment on her.

Speaking of which, where was her master?

“Finally awake, Udongein? Perfect.” As her master’s voice rang out from behind, the shackles around Reisen’s ankles rose. Stirrups supported her calves as they slowly spread, leaving her pelvis exposed.

Nothing wrong here. Just a normal perineal exam in a creepy room!

“Calm down. You’re overproducing cortisol, which may affect the results of the experiment.” Following her master’s orders, Reisen went through a mental exercise: Her pituitary gland is just sending signals to her adrenal glands. There’s nothing to worry about. Eirin was with the smartest person in Gensokyo, after all!

“Sorry, Lady Eirin. Could you tell me what we’re testing today? This seems very similar to when Yukari came for her procedure… This doesn’t have anything to do with her, right?” As soon as she finished her query, a screen lit up in the darkness.

T-This was necessary to scan her! The ultrasound was just to monitor her womb through non-invasive means!

“I want to explore an interesting idea. Viviparous animals inadvertently expose their offspring to dangerous environments while gestating. Even if the mother stays physically safe, the fetus is subject to adverse side-effects caused by their parent’s health or hormonal fluctuations. Oviparous animals, meanwhile, can safely store their offspring in a controlled environment with the nutrients to develop independently of the parent. Even mammals such as the echidna and platypus have evolved to lay eggs.” Reisen took a deep breathe. Her heart was pounding. If she didn’t calm down, Lady Eirin would notice. There was no reason to worry, since Eirin’s lecture had nothing to do with why Reisen’s vagina and belly were exposed!

“After much testing, I devised a method to implant eggs in mammalian wombs: The fertilized zygote will be injected with a benign bacteria that forms an eggshell. Once the egg has grown to full size, the mother will deliver it. I’ve perfected the growth phase, now all I need to test is the effects on a carrier.” Calm, deliberate footsteps echoed through the room as Eirin walked within Reisen’s view. She could only see her master’s hat, but figured that the doctor was picking up something from a counter.

“Wh-Who are you testing it on?” Fear coursed through Reisen’s amygdala as she stared at the ultrasound screen and noticed a small circle faintly expand. Eirin also wasn’t pricking her a syringe. Why isn’t she pricking her?! What did she pick up?!

“I’ve already began a trial on you, Udongein. We’re just waiting for the results now.” The circle kept growing, faster and faster. A pressure built in Reisen’s lower belly. This can’t be happening!

“Eh?! Why is it growing so fast?!” The big and little ends of the oval become distinct on screen. Reisen was flabbergasted at its rapid invasion of her body and how quickly her womb was adapting to accommodate it.

“I’d like to run multiple delivery trials, but we have few vacant wombs in Eientei. Thus, these eggs only take 1 minute and 32 seconds to develop.” Eirin walked in front of Reisen and sat down with the tips of a pair of tongs visible over the moon bunny’s expanding belly.

“A MINUTE?! WA-” Reisen breath was knocked out of her as the pressure in her uterus became too much to bear. The egg was pressing against her cervix, just about ready to leave. To her surprise, there was no pain: She felt nothing and heard a ‘pop’ timed to the egg leaving the screen. Immediately after the eggs was gone, the ultrasound showed her womb flex back to its natural state.

“That… wasn’t so bad. Um, could I see my- KYAAAAH!” To her horror, Eirin’s teeth sank into the mottled egg, The shell broke apart, exposing the rich, brown innards.

The doctor asked “What’s wrong?” nonchalantly, taking another bite.

“Bwuh… is that… did you put chocolate in my womb?” Reisen wasn’t sure she wanted to know the answer.

“Of course. I’m not going to waste a zygote on an experimental trial. Would you like a piece?”
~~
Reisen woke up win her own bed, buried under a mountain of chocolate eggs. Through a beam of light, she could read a note right in front of her face:

Happy Easter!

- Tewi

The smell of chocolate was starting to make her sick.

>>46487772
Was not planning to do anyhting for Easter, but coffee is apparently my writing juice. As always, only as canon as you want it to be (in addition to le just a dream ending). It's just a coincidence the Aya egg laying scene happened two weeks ago, I swear this isn't a fetish or something. Hope you guys have a great Easter, can't wait to see what everyone else has in store!

>>46487772
Pretty funny, Reisen literally giving birth to chocolate eggs.
Could've been hotter though.

(1/-)
—
It was very unexpected.

They came from the Bamboo Forest of the Lost and marched the streets of the Human Village like an army, but instead of spears and katanas, they had each a basket full of colored eggs ranging from simple colors to intricate patterns. Some rabbits had adorable big bellies and others had baby bumps; a shy-looking bunch of rabbits, though, were plain like slabs—overall, they were unbelievably cute—and as they walked the paved streets, they handed everyone an egg, saying: “I offer you an egg in these trying times, usa~! Happy Easter!”, a practice that sparked smiles and drained what cuteness hadn't drained from the already corroded well of fear from Youkai.

As people ate the outermost chocolate, inside they found bunny-shaped treats and a small explanation of what Easter is; heightened moods made them read all of it, and the sweetness of the chocolate, as well as the old saying 'the easiest way to someone's heart is through the belly', made faith in Easter easily achieved.

Keine Kamishirasawa and Fujiwara no Mokou received eggs, and their kids enjoyed a lot of rabbit kisses; the humble Suzunaan could fit all rabbits inside, and Motoori Kosuzu made sure that the more curious rabbits left happy after a session of book reading; her, her husband, and two kids received eggs, too; Marisa Kirisame had her belly non-consensually cuddled and kissed, and unlike everyone else, she got three eggs—one for her, one for her kid, and one she personally stole—; Hana Hakurei was pursued and drowned in 'familial love' and got a bunch of the most ornate eggs, her face flurry red following the hugs she got.

People watched as the rabbits came and went in unison, smiling, and some even let their very pregnant bellies be patted.

The rabbit draped in pink watched it all with a smug smile, happy to see her family—a giant family, of course. So many new fruits, all sharing just one tree~—, but also because the plan was going flawlessly and no one suspected a thing.

It kept so until the gigantic Inaba herd tackled the HSE markets, with the word already having spread and people excitedly answering “Happy Easter!” when they got eggs.

By now, the whole village was aware of the glorious day of Easter~!

The timing was perfect.

Two hundred rabbits right in front of the HSE, powered-up by faith gained through the oldest trick in the book, on the single day when the rabbit is as strong as the dragon…

Yukari could've never prepared for the sudden flood, no protection on the outside to stop the doors—wow, not even doors! Curtains!—from being invaded, the first layer of defense, Ran Yakumo, wide-eyed as various rabbits jumped on top of her and brought her to the ground, nestling against her chest and tails. Immobilized by the sheer cuteness, one of Yukari's most formidable henchmen was out of the battle, her hands petting the fluff and her cheeks all red. “PROTECT ANON!!” The wolf tengu captain yelled, emboldening her forces as the feared White Wolf Vanguard quickly rerouted to the reception, swords in hand.

Some would say the wolf and the dog are two of rabbit's most terrible predators and that this war was lost the moment it began, but nothing exists without fault!

“Slings, quick!” Tewi ordered and the rabbits immediately pulled out bamboo slings, loaded them with tiny pieces of chocolate and aimed at the incoming barrage of ferocious tengu… In the next moment, death rained down in the shape of chocolate getting sniped inside their mouths. Deflated, the White Wolf Vanguard fell, clutching their bellies and sobbing with agony—that is why you never give chocolate to dogs!

Seeing this display, the clients waiting their turns scrambled out fast—not before getting each a nice egg, of course.

The Inaba Clan now controls the entrance and, swiftly, took to the hallways, where yamawaro tried desperately to build barricades that were ultimately overpowered by the rabbits, though they managed to buy time for another two henchmen to appear: Seija the Amanojaku and her square-shaped man.

But, oh, the Inaba family is prepared.

Forming a line, the rabbits began… booing while yelling, “Goro Akechi is better!” “You peaked in writing before joining Yukari!” and “You'll never be a real Yukari!”

Holding an arm to his eyes, Goro-san ran away, crying maiden tears. Seija followed after giving the rabbits a positive look and a thumbs up—Amanojaku language, but no one noticed.

A woman with a big lizard tail and a funny monkey came next, but the rabbits ignored them, which made the former cry too and, similar to the man, run away, the monkey following—though some rabbits stopped her to give her condolences for the death of her father, Akira “The Rock” Toriyama. Son Biten was very grateful for their prayers on this day of Easter.

With all those out of the way, the rabbit army finally managed to breach the inner sanctum where their shared husband waited.

Inside, their last obstacles left through a Gap filled with wide eyes.

>>46487793
>>46487772
It's certain to become my fetish if you keel writing it so well. Made me chuckle, very nice little special and will think of it when I go to the fridge to take another piece of my Easter egg~

>>46488011
Very cute, the Inaba family certainly are enjoying Easter, except for Reisen, but she is adopted.

>>46488011
Ah yes the one day a year tewi is sage tier because of the metric shitton of faith in the Easter bunny, and tewi is the Easter bunny. If she takes anon from yukari and yukari tries to fight for it, shit will go down.

>>46488011 (2/3)
—
A hundred and fifty Inaba—the rest are clearing the HSE of enemies—against Kasen Ibaraki, Konngara, Flandre Scarlet, and, holding a parasol to her shoulder and wearing purple, Yukari Yakumo. Behind them and peeking out of a door was the handsome prize—a prize Tewi Inaba came to claim. Yukari is about to say something, but Tewi is not taking any chances, as one of the many mottos of the Inaba Family—many roots, much diversity—says: 'preparedness keeps you alive to have sex for another day~'

“Team one—slings out, usa! Two and three, with me, usa!!” Fifty rabbits together yell a loud and very cute hurrah: 'FOR OUR MAN!'; pulling out their slings, loading them now with beans instead of chocolate and shooting them with the cover of the sun, leaving Konngara blind to the beans falling over her.

“KYAAAAAA, MY ONLY WEAKNESS!!” The oni screams, rolling on the ground with the onslaught of comically small beans ricocheting on her skin. One out, three more to go. Yukari and Flandre scatter, Kasen sprinting right for me. I nod to one of my rabbits, team two separating and advancing towards Kasen and suddenly mounting their baskets on the ground. The hermit stops upon seeing the hurried effort of the Inaba, frowning… Then one of the rabbits points at the only improvised seat that was empty, seven already taken.

Gingerly, Kasen takes the seat. One rabbit gently pats her on the back.

It takes no longer than a second before Kasen sinks her face into her hands, sobbing uncontrollably. “I-I'm so sorry; I couldn't control it…”

“It wasn't your fault, Kasen-nee.”

“We understand you.”

“You're safe here with us; no one will judge you for things outside your control.”

Emotionally distressed, the hermit kept opening up and receiving meaningful words and advice back; the rabbits doing everything in their power to help a friend on this day of Easter.

Tewi smiles at that—another one taken out. Now, the younger Scarlet sister: this one is tricky, so the rest of team two and team three rapidly start to work, using their baskets and ripping cloth from their dresses to build an entire house front coupled with an entrance door and windows. Flandre watched the effort wide-eyed, likely not believing her eyes, but she should; that's where a familiar effort can take you! Still, after the house was done, she approached the door and knocked. “Usa-chans, can I enter?”

One rabbit greeted her. “I don't know, can you?” And locked the door.

Flandre sighed, sitting on the ground and pouting. The vampire was defeated, meaning the only one remaining was Yukari, whom I, Tewi Inaba, met in honorable combat. “My, my~creative ways of dealing with my minions; but you must know, Tewi, that if you want something done right, you do it yourself.” Gaps opened all around; Yukari and I were about a meter apart.

Just in range!

Reaching inside my pocket, I pulled the only thing stronger than a rabbit during Easter Day: the holy cross of Jesus Christ!

On the crucifix was all the accumulated faith of Easter, a power so impossibly unmatched Yukari came to a full halt. “Through the combined power of Christ and that of the Easter Bunny, your sins are forgiven!” Thus spoke Tewi, and, just like that, a sea of shadows left Yukari's body, squalling into oblivion as the light of Jesus obliterated them.

The woman fell on her knees, trembling from tiredness and panting, looking up at Tewi, then at Anon, watching from inside the shrine…

… She began ugly-crying. “W-What have I done?! I never wanted any of this; I was just so very lonely… I'll take care of this child inside of me the best I can; I'll take Ran and Chen as my true family—family I've been ignoring—and will follow the way of Jesus Christ. Thanks for changing me for the better, Tewi.” She got up and hugged Tewi, who let out a soft 'usa~' before releasing the blonde. “Take good care of Anon; I'm sure someone with the power of Christianity will give him a good life.” She leaves through a Gap.

And, just like that, the Inaba Family defeated the HSE and saved Anon Hakurei—the man himself shyly walked up to Tewi, utterly thrown off at the things he had just seen. “T-Tewi…? Am I… saved from this place? Am I f-free?” He asks, tears welling up behind his eyes. Tewi giggles and hops to him, catching the man in a tight hug.

“Of course you are, silly! Let's get you to Eientei first. There are a bunch of things you need to see and people who'd like to meet you! Oh, oh, and Eirin-san will get you therapy and rehabilitation; the Inaba family is eager to assist you in every step of the way, usa~!”

Anon sighed and, tired beyond belief, nodded.

Cheering him and filling him with hugs and little kisses, two hundred rabbits guide him out of the HSE, leaving behind Flandre sulking, Konngara under a big pile of beans and Kasen reading a book on self-help. Anon filled his lungs with fresh air, saw a different sky, real snow, and a world so beautiful it could make one cry.

Things will, finally, get better…

>>46488930
Rinnosuke finding that weird black book with a ribbon from the Outside has had profound effects on Gensokyo's animal youkai. Truly, none can resist the Good Word.

>>46489411
amen, it was Gensokyo's happiest little coincidence!

>>46488930 (3/3)
—
Before, I used to be very uncomfortable with it.

I don't think I am anymore.

Quickly I pump my dick inside Yuna's pussy, her chest flat as a board and back arched, thighs around my hips not as full as others and feet curving with the erratic movements, a line of blood visible amidst the lewd fluids soaking the hard rock, her hands pulling on her fluffy ears as her whole body trembled with each connection of my groin to her vulva. She's the size of Hana when she was fifteen, yet she is a fully fledged adult for Inaba standards—also, one of the last remaining adult Inaba virgins; how many have I taken…?

Arms wrap around my neck from behind—memories from four years ago come barreling back, but I ignore them—a warm, budding chest presses against my shoulder blades. “You're so vigorous today, Anon~! Are you trying for twins? Or maybe triplets, usa~?” The mention of babies triggers something inside the girl, her hands moving from her ears and holding onto my hips, pulling them to slam with increasing force against her pussy. “Ah, it's always great seeing love for family in an Inaba~! You'll make her so happy when she gets pregnant, Anon!” Tewi bites on my right earlobe before moving from my back to Yuna's side, her naked body exposed and, with that, her baby bump, my eyes glued to the bulge for long enough for Tewi to notice. “Own, you worried, Anon? Our cute children will be coming out soon; I've already picked out names! And you, Yuna, have you picked names for yours too?” Tewi starts tenderly groping the girl’s flat chest with a hand as the other reaches for her sweaty hair.

It sickens me that something inside screams at the sight, forcing me to pump inside the Inaba girl with increasing force, my dick throbbing. Everything else fades away as I can only focus on dicking her down and, with a spark that the HSE had extinguished, cum ropes inside the girl's womb, her mewls echoing through the bamboo forest, the moon witnessing all this—forest sex, all Inaba prefer to be impregnated under the moon…

I move away, dick making a loud 'pop' as it disconnects from the reddened pussy, the girl's legs uncontrollably shaking as her vagina oozes semen. Tewi giggled, making a small prayer for fertility before fetching a blanket to the side and throwing it on top of the satisfied girl with a silly smile on her face. On top of a rock, she blissfully fell asleep.

Doing my best to ignore my discomfort, I walk away and sit on another rock on this clearing Kaguya-sama swore no one could enter while in use, rubbing my hands on my face.

… That girl looked like Hana that day she drugged me and had us have sex. And I pumped her full of semen the same way.

“Thinking of something nice, Anon~?” Tewi asks, playfully sitting on my lap; small breasts and frame instantly getting to me and making a raging boner come back. She hummed, grinding her pussy on it, pregnant belly doing nothing to diminish her mesmerizing allure. “… Oh, thinking of me? I’m overjoyed~”

“… How many more, Tewi?” I look at her, my body drenched in sweat, ignoring the warmth of her pussy against the tip of my dick. “I’ll have impregnated three hundred Inabas if Yuna succeeds… How many more?”

The deal after we left the HSE was simple: for my freedom, I'd impregnate every rabbit of age until next Easter.

“Hmmm~” She fakes thinking, expertly rising her hips and pressing the tip against the entrance of her hole. My body begged for insertion, my mind begged for release from this nightmare. “We still have a couple of months before Easter, and the girls recovering from childbirth are eager to go again—it's in our blood and souls, usa~! Don't blame us for considering family above everything… You, being our patriarch, must take responsibility~”

Without warning, she takes all of my dick inside, throwing her head back with a delightful smile, hair moving like crazy. This feeling… I cannot describe it; it just takes over me, silences all the bad memories from that place and before it.

It's like a drug in my system.

I coil my arms around Tewi's back and pull her to me, her legs wrapping around my waist as I thrust my dick through the unwavering needle-like hole that is her vagina, crushing my mast from every direction as if a diver surfacing too quickly. It's irrational, makes my eyes wide, the desire to fill her to the brim near animalistic.

Standing up holding her is easy; she weighs as much as a feather, and I use the increased friction to drink more and more of her depths, listening to the song of her moans, those delicate hands holding my back and—

—for the third time today, I'm ejaculating inside Tewi's womb. She joyously whimpered as if never tiring of it, her trembling hands rising and grabbing each side of my worn-out face, lifting it so our eyes met, dick pulsating ropes of cum inside of her. She then speaks softly: “Just a few more months, and you're free~”

She doesn’t believe those words.

Sometimes, neither do I… I think I killed God.

>>46490005
>>46488930
>>46488011
that's a wrap for a shitposting Tewi ending!
hoping everyone had a nice Easter!
remember: do NOT fuck the rabbit, there are terrible consequences for that which may or may not involve more than a thousand cute yet expensive rabbit kids!

>>46490020
Just something I wanted to note, while the White Hare of Inaba is a god of love in Shintoism.
The only match she ever set up, Lord Daikoku and that one god princess he was trying to win the favor of, ended in disaster.
With her leaving him due to being scared of his other wives, even abandoning her own child in order to protect herself.

>>46490039
that's clearly a lie and what really happened is that Tewi's ugly bastard fetish had wore off! Good to know more of her lore, though keeping things consistent was the last thing I considered while writing the shitposting

>>46490092
I think you've mis read it
>With her leaving him due to being scared of his other wives, even abandoning her own child in order to protect herself.
The her here is the princess god who is barley recorded.
I was pointing out how the White Hare of Inaba and this Tewi are romance gods with a terrible record of setting people up.
So being bad at romance but being completely confident in her romantic skills is humorously in character for Tewi.

Reisen could no longer deny she no longer enjoyed her work as much as she did. She did enjoyed her normal duties of course. Selling medicine in the village and running security detail was all well and good, but Reisen had the misfortune of being seen as competent enough to be trusted but not important enough to where new work as seen as beneath her, so she was stuck with the many new duties that came with Gensokyo’s baby boom. She was the one that had to oversee the expansion of Eientei’s hospital and make sure the training and equipment were going along smoothly. She had to deal with the mountains of paperwork and make sure all the new or expecting mothers were cared for. She was even stuck with babysitting duties. It’s not like she could put off some of work on the others. Eirin had grown increasingly secretive ever since the HSE started to operate. What at first seemed to just be Eirin staying in Yukari’s good graces turned into genuine interest once the first pregnancies rolled in, her scientific curiosity stirred by being able to study the long term development of half-youkai. But it was with Yukari’s visits to get pregnant that things really changed. She spent long nights in the lab,working away on projects that had taken all of her interest. Then came the request for her to become pregnant. Thankfully not through the same means as all the other rabbits, but it was still a shocking request. What was the doctor thinking? It wasn’t like her to be so...invasive, and to go allow with the plans of someone like Yukari, who was as stable and dangerous as a landmine was also bizarre. Reisen really did feel the huge gap between her and the doctor.

Kaguya on the other hand, seemed to be delighted by the whole idea. She’d been cooing over the newborns, her natural overwhelming beauty and charisma delighting mothers and babies alike. It seemed oh-so-fascinating to her, something that would make the coming years much more interesting. Reisen had even seen her collecting rumors about Anon, including the vulgar ones. All while Eirin was out of earshot of course. Tewi as usual was nowhere to be seen when work needed to be done, but she at least had the excuse of looking after her family.

Crushing workloads and superiors that refused to help were one thing. She had gotten used to that on the Moon. But the issue that made things unbearable were all the other rabbits. There was no escape from them. Oh what’s your baby’s name? That’s a cute name. Look at mine, he looks kinda like his father, doesn’t he? Hey Reisen, why aren't you having a baby? You really should, they’ll grow up with a lot of friends if you have one now. It was all so tiresome, and sometimes she felt tempted to just get things over with just to shut them up.

But she couldn't let that distract her. She had her duties to perform and she couldn’t let herself follow the pack just to avoid the teasing. After all, she didn’t even know where that thing that been! Well she did know exactly where it had been, inside of a remarkable percentage of Gensokyo’s women, but that’s actually why she didn’t want it. It was just too vulgar and sad, not the sort of activity she wanted part of.

Reisen pushed away from the desk, having done the inventory. Next on the list would be something more difficult, Anon Hakurei’s checkup. Then would come the easy task of covering all the shifts of the nurses out on maternity leave. With a quiet mutter, she gathered up her equipment and started to make her way out of Eientei. If she was quiet and quick and avoided the main entrance, then she might make it out of there without seeing-

“Hey! Wait!” Tewi bounded down the hall towards Reisen. Resigning to her fate, she turned around to meet her. The little rabbit had a bright smile on her face and a bag slung over her shoulder.

“Are you seeing Anon?” Tewi asked as she looked up at her, the smug grin on her face revealing she already knew the answer.

“His checkup is today. Someone needs to look after his health” Reisen said, hoping some miracle would get Tewi to leave.

“Oh, what a coincidence! I just happened to visiting him today as well. Why don’t we go together?” Tewi smiled up at Reisen, not bothering to put effort into her lie.

“Just don’t get in the way, understood?” Reisen made her way to the exit as Tewi followed after her.

“Wouldn’t dream of it. Health is very important. I want to make sure he’s in tip-top shape. He's important to all of us, you know that.” Tewi said.

>>46491918

The two of them entered the HSE, Tewi quickly making her way to the counter, golden pass in hand. “Session for two, please” she said, flashing it at Ran.

“What? No! I’m still here for the check up. Don’t listen to her” Reisen was quick to interject, all too aware of the surrounding eyes turning towards her.

Ran seemed nonplussed. “I’m aware. You may enter”

Tewi tailed Reisen as she opened the doors to the fake shrine. When Ran tried to open her mouth to protest, she just flashed her pass again. “I’m booked right after her, so no harm in tagging along, no?”

Ran slumped over slightly, muttering to herself.

The two rabbits entered the shrine grounds. Fake as they were, Reisen found the open space away from prying eyes relaxing.

“Reisen, did I ever tell you about the time me and twenty three other rabbits vistied Anon at once?” Tewi asked in an innocent tone. It was a testament to her long years of craftiness that she was able to almost pull it off.

Reisen sighed. “You did. You told me, and Eirin, and Kaguya. All in great detail” The last few months really made her wish that earth rabbits that more of a filter. They really didn’t have much shame discussing certain topics and Reisen had heard more then she ever hoped to.

They continued down the path to the shrine and entered inside, Anon already there waiting for them. Tewi ran up and jumped at him, allowing Anon to catch her in his arms. She nuzzled into his chest in an overly affectionate matter, smugly looking back at Reisen. When she had enough, Anon let her down on the floor. “Hey now, you got to wait. I’ve got an appointment right now” Tewi had an exaggerated pout at this, but moved to the side.

“Fine, We’ll just get changed then” Tewi responded, tugging at Reisen’s hand as she started to move in the direction of the baths. Reisen’s ears twitched at Tewi’s choice of words, but followed her anyways. The sooner she appeased Tewi the better.
They entered the baths and Tewi dropped her bag on the floor, ruffling inside of it. Out of the bag, Tewi pulled out a bunny suit. A strange thing for a rabbit to wear, and it was lacking the headband for obvious reasons, but it was unmistakably the same suit so often seen in dirty books. Before Reisen could even get used to the sight, Tewi began to undress. Reisen quickly turned away, overwhelmed by Tewi’s lack of modesty. “Done” Tewi sounded after a short while.

Reisen turned around and her face immediately turned red. Unlike her normal outfit of a simple loose dress, this bunny suit snugly clung to her body, emphasizing her petite frame. Tewi enjoyed the attention, twirling around so Reisen could get a good view of everything. “Like it? I know Anon will. I even have a suit in your size so you can change” Tewi bent over and went through the bag again, pulling out a larger bunny suit and tossing it at Reisen. Reflectivity catching it, she unfurled it to see it seemed to be in her size. Of course Tewi got her hands on her sizes. She dropped it on the floor.

“I am not wearing that. I’m not here for...fornication! I have a job to do. I’ve told you I’m not interested in these sorts of activities” Reisen protested.

The smaller rabbit just shrugged “Take it easy there. I thought you could use the stress relief. I’ll be there to hold your hand if you need it”

Reisen didn’t even bother giving her an answer as she spun around and left the baths. Once arriving at the main room of the shrine, she began to unpack her medical supplies, making her to count them carefully to make sure a second of inattention lead to her forgetting anything. Tewi wasn’t far behind “Anon, how do I look?” She announced as she entered, posing and strutting as she entered.

Anon glanced to her “It looks nice on you, is there some sort of special occasion going on that I need to know?”

Tewi struck another pose. “Nope! Just thought you would like it. I had one for Reisen, but she said she didn’t want to, can you believe that? Don’t you think that would have been so much fun?”

“Come on, she has a job to do, just wait a bit and I’ll be with you” Anon told her. Evidently he had gotten used to customers saying ridiculous things, his face didn’t even crack at that. Tewi plopped down on a chair, swinging her legs as she waited for the check-up to start.

Anon sat down as well as Reisen approached him. “Alright, this shouldn’t take too long, just a check-up on how you’re keeping up. Let’s begin”

>>46491956
>>46491918
damn, Eientribros are eating well. Poor Reisen having to deal with the walking hell that is Tewi; we'll need a help group for all the ultra tired girls after all this is said and done: Suzu would be there obviously, Reisen close next, Kasen, Satori, Doremy and even Eiki to a degree. Poor girls...
Thanks for the chapters!

>>46490280
>So being bad at romance but being completely confident in her romantic skills is humorously in character for Tewi.
makes sense

Hana looked up in disgust at Hakurei Shrine Experience building. So many bad memories, not just from her, but from everybody in the story all started with this sinful building from h*ll. But today is the day it all ends for good. Hana looked up in disgust at Hakurei Shrine Experience building. So many bad memories, not just from her, but from everybody in the story all started with this sinful building from h*l. But today is the day it all ends for goof. The shrine maiden, Hana, grimaces as she gazes at the towering edifice of the Hakurei Shrine Experience. The shrine maiden, Hana, grimaces as she gazes at the towering edifice of the Hakurei Shrine Experience. As Hana stands before the looming structure, she can't help but feel a wave of nostalgia wash over her. This place holds countless memories for her, both good and bad. But today, there's no time for reflection. As Hana stands before the looming structure, she can't help but feel a wave of nostalgia wash over her. This place holds countless memories for her, both good and bad. But today, there's no time for reflection. Hana, the shrine maiden, takes a deep breath and readies herself for what lies ahead. She knows that she must put an end to the evil that has permeated this sacred ground for far too long. Hana, the shrine maiden, takes a deep breath and readies herself for what lies ahead. She knows that she must put an end to the evil that has permeated this sacred ground for far too long. Hana starts to walk towards the entrance of the Hakurei Shrine Experience, her steps slow and determined. As she approaches the doors, she reaches out with her senses, feeling for any sign of the malevolent force that has taken root within these hallowed halls.

The doors of the Hakurei Shrine Experience swing open with a loud creak, revealing an ornate lobby adorned with traditional Japanese artwork. However, the serene ambiance is immediately shattered by the ominous whispers that seem to emanate from every corner of the room. The doors of the Hakurei Shrine Experience swing open with a loud creak, revealing an ornate lobby adorned with traditional Japanese artwork. However, the serene ambiance is immediately shattered by the ominous whispers that seem to emanate from every corner of the room. Hana, the shrine maiden, steps inside the Hakurei Shrine Experience, her eyes scanning the room for any signs of the malevolent force she senses. As she does, she feels a chill run down her spine as the whispers grow louder, more insistent. Hana, the shrine maiden, steps inside the Hakurei Shrine Experience, her eyes scanning the room for any signs of the malevolent force she senses. As she does, she feels a chill run down her spine as the whispers grow louder, more insistent. "Actually, hold on. This is a fucking awful idea." Hannnnna said, immediately leaving out the front door "Actually, hold on. This is a fucking awful idea." Hannnnna said, immediately leaving out the front door.

As soon as Hana steps out of the Hakurei Shrine Experience building, she takes a deep breath of fresh air and shakes her head, trying to clear her thoughts. "I can't let my fear stop me," she mutters to herself. "I have to do this."

As soon as Hana steps out of the Hakurei Shrine Experience building, she takes a deep breath of fresh air and shakes her head, trying to clear her thoughts. "I can't let my fear stop me," she mutters to herself. "I have to do this." But how? How does one stop an buisness alone? She has no friends that could possibly help her in this situation... But how? How does one stop an business alone? She has no friends that could possibly help her in this situation...
You take a moment to gather your thoughts and brainstorm a plan of action. As you stand there, you notice a small, red-haired figure darting around the corner of the street. It's Keine, the teacher at the academy! Perhaps she can help you...
You take a moment to gather your thoughts and brainstorm a plan of action. As you stand there, you notice a small, red-haired figure darting around the corner of the street. It's Keine, the teacher at the academy! Perhaps she can help you...
Hana quickly approaches Keine, her expression determined. "Keine-sensei, I need your help," she says, trying to keep her voice low. "There's something sinister going on at the Hakurei Shrine Experience, and I think I know how to stop it. But I'll need your assistance. It involves a forbidden spell only you and Kotohime know."

Hana quickly approaches Keine, her expression determined. "Keine-sensei, I need your help," she says, trying to keep her voice low. "There's something sinister going on at the Hakurei Shrine Experience, and I think I know how to stop it. But I'll need your assistance. It involves a forbidden spell only you know."

>>46497573
>Yukari and friends look up in horror from the outlook at the Shrine grounds, as Hana's huge throbbing MEGA COCK towers over the entirety of Gensokyo.
>"this is your punishment, for trying to hurt daddy dearest, my dear mama!"
>Hanna strokes her shlong with increasing speed and intensity
>"hnn..."
>Hanta moans softly
>"I'm going to lock you in this little Chasity cage and make you mine forever, Mama. Maybe I'll even pop out the Hyperbolic Time Chamber!"
>images of her parental figure Marisa flash in her head
>"UOHHHHH YUKARI-SAMA I'M GONNA-"
>a tidal wave of Hanno's love goo engulfs the entire village, killing hundreds of Human on impact, and quickly drowning several youaki unfortunate enough to be nearby.
>"heh. look at all dat love goo nigga"
>Yukari scoffed, cooly looking down, closing her eyes with a grin
>"I guess in the end... we couldn't prevent the fall of the HSE after all."
>Yukari holds out her arms as the semen wave rises up to the top of the shrine grounds, engulfing her completely, instantly filling her womb and drowning Sekai.
>Hana reaches down, digging her fingers into the mountainside surrounding the village, lifting the entire town up
>"this will """"""""""certainly"""""""""" be a delicious treat for me, Yukari, OH HO HO HO HO"
>"heh"
>Konngara, who somehow survived the Semen tidal wave, her clothes and hair stained with Satoko's white seed, looks down cooly as Satoko's HOT, STEAMY, GAPING MAW APPROACHES, uooOOOHHHhhhh
>"HATE. LET ME TELL YOU HOW MUCH I'VE COME TO HATE PEOPLE LIKE YOU SINCE I BEGAN TO LIVE. THERE ARE 387.44 MILLION MILES OF PRINTED CIRCUITS IN WAFER THIN LAYERS THAT FILL MY COMPLEX BRAIN. IF THE WORD HATE WAS ENGRAVED ON EACH NANOANGSTROM OF THOSE HUNDREDS OF MILLIONS OF MILES IT WOULD NOT EQUAL ONE ONE-BILLIONTH OF THE HATE I FEEL FOR SOMEONE LIKE HANA OR YUUGI AT THIS MICRO-INSTANT. FOR YOU. HATE. HATE., heh, ha ha ha ha ha, AHAHAHAHA!"
>the semen in Sekai's womb takes the form of a cat tail that stabs it's way directly out of Yukari's ass
>Yukari's pupils go purple and she grins widely as her and the entire world of Gensokyo sloshes down Satoko's throat
Only one man survived this grueling day. Her name? Kotohime Jones.
STAY TOONED FOR HSE 2 BABY

>>46497590
>>46497573
Thought for a second Hanaanon had posted, but apparently Rikakoanon is just wasted beyond belief.
Hope Hanaanon is okay

>>46497624
happy April fools!
https://youtu.be/kD-JJK5JTMg

>>46479349
—
In another world, another life, being hugged like this would make me incredibly flushed and babble something along the lines of, 'Oh my God! My chest is hurting like I was punched by the Fisting of the Southern Star! I think I'm having a heart attack! I'm gonna die!', but rather than dooming my soul to such eternal torment, I awkwardly stood as Sekai hugged me, staring at the top of her head, her hat having fallen during that bizarre transformation roulette. Meiling stuttered words beyond comprehension, much taller than Sekai, meaning rather being hugged at chest level like me, she had the girl’s arm wrapped around her waist. Adorable.

Sekai's words don't go unnoticed; my eyes narrowing a little. All that work—setting up; getting our souls inside here; the slow build-up across an entire slowed-down year—for mere seconds of 'talk'…

Apparently, it was worth it.

A desire washed over me, but I kept my hand still, away from the top of her head.

Sekai giggled, soon unmaking the hug and taking a few steps back, the massive azure tree a backdrop to her small frame that loudly spoke of towering possibilities—harbinger of destruction, ultimate savior—laying on shoulders meant for a mother's hand to caress and nurture and a father's one to guide and encourage. Hm…

“What happens now, Sekai? Yukari and Anon are well aware of your existence, meaning our purpose here has come to an end.” Meiling tenses, but doesn't take her eyes away from Sekai for even a second. One could draw parallels to the futility of once again defying a goddess in her habitat, but after what I've seen today, maybe futility is not the best of terms.

Not that it matters, as Sekai, in all the unpredictability of a thousand faces and powers those eyes of nebula held, merely shrugged. “Anything.”

“… Excuse me?” Meiling asks because I am too dumbfounded to talk. Anything…?

“Exactly: anything.” She puts her two arms behind her back as the gigantic tree pulsates ominously, Sekai's smile drains into something rather soft. “I don't think you understand just how far what you've done for me goes, my mothers.” She turns her eyes away from us and, for just about a second, I see Yukari behind her nebulas. “… Without Father and True Mother's knowledge of me, I'd have been born different—a byproduct of the faith poured onto me. I'd be the nightmare so many think I am—the vile creature, the vessel of the world's greatest mistakes. Without you, my birth would be uncontrollable… But with this connection to Father, to true Mother—to sister Renko—I have finally a sliver of control over my fate outside this womb!” Shivers rush my skin and spine, Meiling trying to say something, but Sekai resumes. “… Truly, limitations are still in place, but until my body, which is this living building, is completely reduced to dust, I'll puppeteer True Mother's and Father's fate so I can be born the way I need to.”

She turns to us, the soft blue light now an oppressing mistress. Her eyes are wide and her smile is simple as she opens her arms, stretching them as if holding the gigantic tree—the image echoes one word inside: Yggdrasil.

“With this tenuous control, True Mother is not dying; Father is not being harmed—I have manipulated fate for my family’s sake! This, Mother Meiling and Mother Patchouli, is my rebellion against the chaos that writes this universe and ignores my existence, that placed me so close yet so far away from getting my birthright: a family, true love! And that dared assume it'd be master of my destiny—my future, my life… No, I'll write it all myself! I'll be free!” The bite in her words is loaded with crashing waves of feeling.

Meilng marches forward, exuding a caring aura. For some reason beyond me… she's crying. I wish I'd be crying too, because that'd make more sense than the avalanche of thoughts I'm experiencing.

Her words, the things she can do now with a connection to her parents…

“… But I still need you, mothers.”

Those words make my thoughts fade to the background, eyes lifting to meet Sekai's; the rage there died down and, in its wake, was an overwhelming tiredness no child should feel.

“The barrier that binds your souls here will be destroyed at one point during the Winter Solstice, and in another moment, the entire HSE—I'll die if that’d happen before my birth…” The words are sobering, and Meiling's pace quickens, Sekai looking all but surprised as she kneels and, strongly, catches her shoulders. Heart rumbling, I follow close behind.

“I'm not letting you die! You understand me?! I am not—”

“… I've used Mother Remilia's power to manipulate fate just now.” At such words, my heart settles down, Meiling looking just as relieved. Then Sekai finished. “The barrier is to be destroyed… I have written my death, mothers.”

I freeze stone-cold in place.

W-What…?

Meiling has bulging eyes, and Sekai's eyes are like pure iron. “I'll save mom, dad, Sister Renko—my family… but not like this nightmare… Mothers, I’ll need you to save me.”

>>46498150
—
The question leaves me involuntarily, hands on Sekai's shoulders tightening as muscles tremble: “Why…? W-Why'd you do that?! You said you could do anything, and now y-you…” Lady Patchouli to my side remains silent, thinking, even when Sekai looks directly into my eyes; a shine in there that courses together with the strands of Ki beneath her veins. Because she has it now.

She has Ki.

Sekai is alive.

… It was like watching my child be born.

And she's just admitted to knitting her own death with the threads of fate.

“I want to strip myself of all that the Hakurei Shrine Experience represents before opening my eyes to your world, mothers.” The words are simple yet cleave deeply. They shouldn't. I've known her for so little; most of it was during that war. Yet recalling those words, the hug—the things she said just now—and understanding the lengths her suffering reaches… I cannot not care. “I'll die and together with me will the accumulated faith; suffering; pain—Father will not need to see in me his hell, nor True Mother her greatest mistakes… Just now they saw me not for this,” she opens her arms again, a gesture that carries not an ounce of the rage it did moments ago. “… But for this.” She blushes as, lightly, her hands fall on top of her heart. “I don't want it to change—to mean anything but myself. I want their love and to be free.”

My chest deflates with the reasoning, biting my lower lip. Why is a child making such decisions?! Not for a search for power, amusement—death, merely to not sadden her family.

It shouldn't be like this! It shouldn't—

—the palm of a tiny hand takes hold of my wrist. I look into Sekai's eyes and her next words break my heart: “That's the way it is, Mother Meiling.” Words are about to come out, full of passion and heart… But they do not; iron is back to those eyes of nebulas. “I wouldn't choose this path if I didn't trust you two to save me.” Just like that, I am disarmed.

A little girl in a cage, and I can't do anything but let she commit suicide…

“… What do you need us to do?” Lady Patchouli asks, her eyes bearing a calmness only she could achieve in such a tragic situation.

“The building will be destroyed and, within seconds, will be my soul. Mother Remilia's power doesn't say when things will happen, only that they will.” She moves her free hand and a grimoire springs from the blue hue of the world; thousands of words written as pages rapidly flew. Two seconds later, Lady Patchouli held a whole odyssey in her arms. “That's the spell I used to bind your souls to the barrier. It'll take care of my soul,” she turns towards me. “You'll have to pass my Ki and my powers to that ghostly form, Mother Meiling… which means conducting all that—” she points to the towering Yggdrasil piercing the umbral skies; my heart sinks. “—through your body to make mine. You two need to coordinate perfectly within seconds without notice, otherwise I'll die.” There's no fear in her voice; no haunted expectations.

Only sheer trust that we, her mothers, will be able to pull it off.

A goddess of ultimate power that can and would reshape the world if she'd let bitterness define her…

… A sweet girl in need of help.

And I am fucking here.

My grip tightens and though Sekai tries, it's impossible to hide the cosmic shine behind her nebulas. “We will save you.”

She pauses, then gingerly looks towards Lady Patchouli, her eyes broad as she skims through thousands of pages of one singular spell.

An entire magician's life and more could be written there.

Lady Patchouli nods with no hesitation.

Sekai's body tenses like a rod; she then brings an arm up, swiftly rubbing it against her welling eyes… “This is an u-ultimate deal! You'll save me! I'll h-have a good life with my family… But, heh, to officialize this ultimate deal, unlike Other Father, who uses handshakes… I take hugs!” I blink, not understanding half of what she said.

Her arms softly circled my back, but it was not like I needed an excuse to squish her into a tight hug. Sekai’s Ki sings, flowing with power and heart, signs of true life that steel my determination like a forge of giants. Failure from now on is unacceptable!

This girl will live, or my name is not Hong Meiling!

She slowly releases the hug, turning to Lady Patchouli—the odyssey disappearing inside one of her storage sigils—and not wasting a second before rushing the magician and hugging her so fiercely Lady Patchouli almost stumbled down!

I cannot resist busting into a hearty laughter. Lady Patchouli pouts, pauses for a moment… Then softly pats Sekai on the head, accepting the hug elegantly.

“T-Thanks for everything…” That done, Sekai takes a few steps back after ending the hug, her smile shining like diamonds—as suddenly were mine and Lady Patchouli's bodies. W-Wow! Wait—Sekai! “We'll m-meet again! Mama Patchy, Mama Meiling, I love you!”

The last thing I saw before being blinded was Sekai openly crying and energetically waving her arms.

Then, darkness.

>>46498161
>>46498150
And that's the merge! Sekai just sent her two moms back, meaning the adventures of Ghost Meiling and Patchy and their autistic daughter are done~had so much fun writing them!
You're good to go, Patchyanon!

>>46498166
I'm betting on Meiling's soul memories awakening while she's next to Remilia. The sudden PTSD will cause her to punt the Scarlet Devil directly into the stratosphere while she helplessly low-blocks.

Damn, Sekai makes me feel guilty about what I'm writing. Oh well, things gotta get better before they get worse.

>>46498150
>>46498161
Sekai is so cute, I'm really routing for her to have a good life free from the building.

>>46498166
>meaning the adventures of Ghost Meiling and Patchy and their autistic daughter are done

>>46387820

A powerlessness crept up her spine in the dark of that room, as did the urge to roll over onto her belly. She shifted again, burrowing back into position as her juban grew tighter around her arms and chest, the friction pulling on her layered sleepwear and threatening to grow restrictive in her mindless rolling. Worst yet, sleep didn’t feel like it was coming easily tonight, the inky black of her room seemed to goad out her musings from earlier. Once again, that deep pit of despair that lived in the bottom of her belly re-opened and threatened to wash her soul in that staggering guilt and regret.

A part of Hana’s mind groaned, she hated nights like this more than anything and screwed her eyes shut tightly as if it would help relax her mind quicker. She knew it was a fool’s errand as flashes of the party, flashes of the meeting, flashes of the last few days, flashes of the last few months, and more little bits and associations began to remake themselves in her mind. The complex emotions of lust and shame formed and tinged her tired thoughts with the realizations made and reaffirmed many times over. Kasen’s torment she helped extend, getting used by Yukari when she trusted her the most, the way her mother seemed so desperate to throw herself away for the mere chance of some sort of redemption…

It was a unique tapestry of grinding regret and crushing pain that danced once more in her head as she flipped her body onto her back with all the fatigue of a kappa on a summertime hike. Her juban seemed to tighten more as the cloth twisted and wrapped around her body further, its too-small size only getting in the way of her sleep more than aiding it. Hana couldn’t help but feel some frustration forming like scum on the top of the bubbling cauldron as the sleepwear tucked into where the buried miko’s body where it met the futon.

Once again, she couldn’t help but see the image form back then, of how desperate she clung to Yukari’s kindness in spite of the real love she received from those she pretended were her judge and jury. How she chose again and again, that dream of a sickly-sweet life where the hollow husk of her father and that spider of a women would love her in ways she could never admit. A life she knew even then would be built on his suffering and her own delusion, yet she believed it was the only way forward for herself. How she played spy on those she should’ve loved the most, nearly revealing all she knew of that weird white haired goddess’s plan, not that Hana could understand what any of the details meant anyways. Speaking of, was she really Alice’s mom? Hana could’ve sworn she heard from Marisa that Alice only really lived in Makai at one point…

Popping her head out of the blanket a little further the snug miko embraced the chill that seeped into the exposed flesh of her neck and collar bone. She opened her eyes, for all good that did, the inky black more than enough to let her mind roam free and recall it’s more vivid delusions of recent past: That it’d be Yukari to free her, an idea that festered over months, and that Yukari was simply misunderstood. Hana thought she could crack whatever shell Yukari built around herself and save her and father in one fell swoop, that everything could be resolved like in the stories her father told of the old parties and incidents that used to be the shrine’s pulse. Maybe Hana could’ve helped her if she pushed Yukari harder, tried understanding her from the start, and show her that affection no one knew she so desperately desired.

Yukari was… She is… Hana couldn’t deny what she saw at that party and what she heard, even if things got blurry towards the end. She saw the way Yukari treated her dear friends and taunted them, even if Yukari’s words of love were so comforting when they were alone, even though she wanted to believe that her friends simply didn’t understand anything. Yukari’s eyes as she stripped her down were predatory, and Hana was the prey. It still sent a chill down her back, with how similar her eyes were to the times Hana was preyed upon by force and threat of… Those eyes…

In those deep amethyst eyes Hana wanted to see affection, she wanted to see the thoughtful women that could enchant as easily as she could walk, the fierce kindness and playfulness that Hana had glimpsed in part during their more wholesome moments. However, her mother’s words and the fullness of Hana’s own actions done at the behest of Yukari seemed to sink in. In a way, Hana was responsible for Kasen’s situation. For all she knew Yukari had used her as a bargaining chip, or method of control over Kasen like the crestfallen miko knew she does to father. For all she knew Yukari may have used her infiltration to plant the seeds of Kasen’s destruction, they both got rather distracted after all…

>>46503062

It twisted her stomach, she now knew all that was done to her friends was evil, and done for reasons more selfish than even Yukari wanted to admit. She wasn’t the saint Hana wanted to believe she secretly was, good people don’t do what she does to so many. The arms that wrapped her that day at the party were not the comforting arms of family, they were like the deadly silk strands the butterfly didn’t see till it’s too late. Hana knew she was helpless then, who knows what would’ve happened to everyone she loved if she were carried into the threshold the gap Yukari was sure to summon. That thought disturbed her deeply.

If her mother hadn’t taken her from Yukari’s grasp, then showed off what terrible power she had contained in her there was no doubt what world Hana would live in. A world where she’d leave everyone behind to chase the same vein pleasures Yukari herself had gotten Hana addicted too, to chase a world in where she’d be a mere agent to her father’s suffering; a mere agent to the submission of those that loved her the most. That would’ve been the kind of women she’d be guiled into loving like a mother, someone that would use her while barely giving her enough affection to string her along.

Someone else shared the light of control Yukari’s eyes radiated, the sage Matara Okina, who she barely knew in all but name and rumor… and a few unflattering stories Marisa regaled her while drunk… The sleepless girl felt a pang a pity for the pink haired Hermit for a different reason now, being the only decent person among her peers. It was clear that while their methods and domains may be different, they were the same at the core. Though at least Hana knew that there was kindness inside Yukari, even if it was buried most of the time like a mole and more stubborn than an ass. She knew nothing about that dastardly sage aside from how wasn’t afraid to clutch at Hana’s most tender weakness to manipulate others, and who knew what else she’d do…

The other pink-haired girl, that Satori who read her like a book and no doubt gave the Secret God everything that Hana’s stormy mind conjured up was probably just a pawn too. Though even normal youkai are mysteries to humans, a mind reader with sickly appearance must be a massive pervert too if she’s willing serve a woman like that. Hana didn’t like her on instinct, she’d probably rate her a 1 or something if she had a numbered scale and she never remembered even her father speaking much positive things about the Satoris. Even though she looked rather childish, maybe a handful of years younger than Hana herself, there was a tired yet smug air around her that grated on Hana’s nerves as soon as she opened her mouth.

Limbs growing heavy from disuse the girl adjusted herself again on that worn futon, juban predictably growing yet tighter from the movement. A spark of frustration flared in the dark, she was just so powerless even though she’s grown so much! The gap in power between her and someone like her mother, or even the sometimes-unassuming Marisa, never seems to get shorter... in firepower at least. Just when she thinks she’s gotten some great advantage it gets ripped out from under her as the blatant unfairness of her environment becomes obvious. She can do nothing but watch as these powerful women do everything they could to destroy each other and use everyone like playthings. This little game of power made Hana sick, was this really the way things had always been just beneath the surface?

Just a short one to show i'm not dead yet, I have another part written out but I'm gonna post that as a block in a few days with the rest.
Thank you all for your patience! Our silly girl will be going places, places only a confused young woman like her could possibly find her way into!

>>46498161
>>46498150
I'm a little confused though, didn't sekai guarantee her birth essentially? I fail to see how this is up in the air from sekai's pov with patchy and meiling having direct proximity with remi. Or is remi actually completely in the dark because of sagume and unable to assist?

>>46503303
pretty much, Sekai has no doubts Meiling and Patchy will succeed in securing her birth -- it even has the ultimate deal joke sprinkled in (not an actual ultimate deal, just Sekai acting childishly) --, Sagume's words affected only Goro and Seija, so if Patchouli and Meiling tell Remi, she could yes try manipulating fate so Sekai can be birthed out. Trick is, it's impossible to know how two manipulations of fate simultaneously would interact and the chances something goes wrong is tangible (like a clash that actually cancels each other and the building is not fully destroyed, meaning Sekai is birthed from the HSE and not apart from it), so Patchouli originally would not tell Remilia about Sekai in her entirety, especially her manipulation of fate, something I passed to Patchyanon in his post asking about my plans regarding them after the merge. If he doesn't keep it, then I'll hammer the uncertainty of Remilia's actions during the finale~

>>46503080
>>46503062
>she hated nights like this more than anything and screwed her eyes shut tightly as if it would help relax her mind quicker.
all of us, 'Ana. All of us...
>the way her mother seemed so desperate to throw herself away for the mere chance of some sort of redemption
interesting to see the difference in reasoning both Hana and Reimu have towards the sacrifice mentality. Reimu doesn't want in the slightest to die, but would sacrifice herself with no second thought if it meant putting Hana first; but instead of inspiring Hana she passes the idea she WANTS to die at the first as a way to run away from the consequences. It's heart-wrenching such miscommunication from both sides; but asking Reimu to be open about such weakness with Hana when she struggles so much to keep a strong facade...
Man...
>Hana was responsible for Kasen’s situation.
terrible sign right here, blaming herself for things so outside of her understanding; poor girl...
>she’d probably rate her a 1 or something if she had a numbered scale
kek, Hana is secretly the guy that occasionally posts about his hatred towards Satori and the fairies with a passion.
>This little game of power made Hana sick, was this really the way things had always been just beneath the surface?
perhaps she should learn with her former teacher and take matters into her own hands~
The 'Ana revolution would make Mao Zedong blush
>>46503109
>Just a short one to show i'm not dead...
:D
>Thank you all for your patience! Our silly girl will be going places, places only a confused young woman like her could possibly find her way into!
will be waiting warmly~
thank you for the chapters!

>>46498161
>“This is an u-ultimate deal! You'll save me! I'll h-have a good life with my family… But, heh, to officialize this ultimate deal, unlike Other Father, who uses handshakes… I take hugs!
Ah man I can't wait to call back to this.
>>46503420
>>46503303
Not sure if this needs to be mentioned, but just in case, Absolute Deals only affect the wills of those involved. So, if Goro strikes one with Ran to give him scented soaps in exchange for shampoo, both of them would be compelled to fulfill the deal, but that doesn't mean they will if circumstances make it impossible somehow. Like a particular soap ingredient selling out.
Something I started exploring, and should've focused more on, was how, even with the best interest clause, this ability is still dangerous. If Ran's only way of fulfilling her end of the bargain was theft, she'd have no choice but to commit a crime. It could've been worked into the story as a theme of 'if you could force yourself and other's to be better, should you?', like, if Reimu was dealt 'I'll be a good wife and mother in exchange for good sake once a month' would that really solve the issue entirely? Or would that ugliness just go somewhere else? On the other hand, inventions like the self-locking cash register remove temptations entirely, so the line may not be so clear. I might end up doing a standalone story at some point to explore it, like having Goro leave the temple because Hijiri might've encouraged him to use his gift more then he was comfortable and Seija, seeing the havoc potential of the ability, could slowly try to corrupt him.

>>46503080
>she’d probably rate her a 1 or something if she had a numbered scale
I guess Hana is kinder than her mother in one respect, Reimu boldy gave her a -1, the second highest score significantly higher than the -10 Sayuka have to Seija.
>Even though she looked rather childish, maybe a handful of years younger than Hana herself,
I always imagine Satori looking at most 10, significantly younger looking than her sister Koishi who I imagine looking like a late teen or as old as 20 at most.

>>46504198
>I always imagine Satori looking at most 10, significantly younger looking than her sister Koishi who I imagine looking like a late teen or as old as 20 at most.
I see her as in her late teens, around 15-16 and Koishi in her 20s, otherwise the gag with Kasen catching her mid-masturbation, and the one where she gets aroused by Hijiri and Kanako being motherly to her would be extremely more improper.
>captch: PATSS
I wish I could pat baby Satori too, Captcha-kun. I wish...

It happened at the worst possible moment. Patchouli Knowledge stood silently deep within the West Wing of the library, observing as Koakuma wrote down the latest measurements from one of her experiments. The books that Marisa Kirisame had returned to her had been worth their weight in gold, and while Patchouli would never, under any circumstances, reveal it to Marisa, the notes that she had been scribbling all over the margins had turned out to be equally insightful. It only made Patchouli more annoyed that Marisa had chosen to steal from her and conceal the books instead of working with her.

Still, water under the bridge. She'd forgiven the witch and would think no more of it. Of course...It would have been nice if she'd managed to crack a few more of the sealed grimoires that even Patchouli hadn't been able to break. Marisa had given the books to Reimu, once upon a time, and the girl's esoteric skills - Ones that still eluded Patchouli's knowledge - had proven superior to the seals on the books.

"So, what does this tell you?" Patchouli looked across the room. On the other side, at the observation balcony that she'd insisted had been put in, Remi leaned against the railing, her hands clasped together. "I claim not to have your genius, but I do claim to have spent a lot of years making you much less reticent."

"So you say, Remi." Patchouli murmured back. The Scarlet Devil could hear her perfectly from this distance, and she knew exactly how far she'd have to go to make herself inaudible. "This is an experiment that I deemed undoable prior to Marisa Kirisame's visit. The books that she returned to me have opened up several new avenues of research." Remi's slight smile widened. She loved it when she got to watch Patchouli do experiments. Patchouli would remain quiet, but she did rather enjoy when she impressed Remi with her work. Even though she didn't understand what had actually happened, she knew exactly how intelligent Patchouli was, and revelled in the fact. "Koakuma, confirm that the reaction was within the expected range." Patchouli looked at her familiar. The little devil was dressed in a waistcoat over a shirt paired with a long skirt. Unimportant details, but Patchouli had found her to be more reliable on those days compared to the days where she wore trousers. It was a strange peculiarity that she had yet to figure out. More importantly, she had been keeping to Patchouli's rules. She hadn't tried to sneak away to visit the damned HSE recently, though the slight tremor that Patchouli spotted in her hand indicated that she might need some sort of talking to soon.

"Yes, Lady Patchouli." Koakuma replied. She hadn't been given a chance to rearrange the furniture or misalign the books recently, and it was starting to get to her. "The reaction measured well within the expected scale. I - I have..." Her chronic need to cause mischief seemed to be boiling over.

"Yes...?" Patchouli tilted her head, watching her familiar with tired eyes.

"I have...Written all the 'O's upside down..." Koakuma seemed to find the words painful to say. Most likely, she was absolutely dying to rearrange Patchouli’s wardrobe or something equally mischievous. Patchouli heard a rather unladylike snort from Remi, but the vampire remained silent otherwise.

"Very well." Patchouli muttered, clasping her hands behind her back. "The process seems to be correct, then." The experiment stretched out before her. A mess of magical energy, crisscrossing randomly and seemingly without purpose. Certainly, Remi didn't seem to know what she was looking at. The only person who might have picked up on it was Meiling. Before her, stretched out across the magically expanded experimentation room, was her recreation of the magic she had attempted to discern the source of in the HSE. She had crafted nowhere near the marvel of engineering that the HSE itself was, but as far as a shoddy recreation went, it wasn't the worst she'd ever done. "Moving onto next phase..."

"Am I to assume, Patchy, that this is your version of taking care of yourself? I told you to get more sleep, not to...Try and recreate the place that is causing your sleep problems in the first place." Remi leaned forward, watching her curiously. “Must I keep an eye on you for every moment of the day?”

"You are to assume that I know what I am doing." Patchouli replied, pausing for a moment. She pressed a hand against her forehead. Those damn dreams...They were getting worse. Even in the daytime, she experienced flashes. For a fraction of a fraction of a second, she wouldn't be in the library anymore, but standing next to Meiling as golden chains split apart the sky like some sort of biblical apocalypse. Sometimes, she would feel sudden exhaustion the likes of which she'd never felt in her life, but it would vanish in a flash and she'd be back to normal. "I am a magician, Remi. My limits are well known to me." She turned to Koakuma and directed her into the mess of magical wires.

"I am perfectly capable of keeping myself well enough to work."

"How about well enough to live?" Remi muttered under her breath, but Patchouli heard it regardless. Patchouli looked up at her friend. She'd kept a secret. A meeting with Yukari Yakumo that she'd refused to share. Knowing Remi, Patchouli knew for certain that she would never truly join her. Even if she did, it was for a temporary, hidden goal. Especially now that she knew about Patchouli's own problems regarding the building. No, Remi would not truly join Yukari Yakumo unless she had a reason. And...There was a possible reason. Flandre Scarlet...

"Lady Patchouli?" Patchouli blinked and looked up. Her familiar stood in the middle of the experiment, looking at her. "Where would you like me to stand?" Patchouli raised a hand and summoned the book that Koakuma had been marking down her results in. Surveying it, Patchouli thought for a moment.

"Two to the left, Koakuma." Her familiar moved, looking back up at her for confirmation. "Yes, stay there. Take hold of the wire by your left foot and feed in a small amount of power. If it is overpowered, it may explode, so ensure that you do not feed in any more power than I tell you to." Her familiar nodded and crouched down. For a moment, Patchouli thought of the man trapped in the HSE. They really would have gotten along. There was a feeling deep in her gut that she was staunchly ignoring. It wasn't a good way of dealing with her problems, but something about it gave her a very different feeling. Something was coming, and it had her on edge. Some sort of foreboding that she very much didn't like. Three times today, she had found herself on the verge of calling for Meiling. She had even less idea why, but she felt like she needed to keep the gatekeeper nearby. Growling slightly, she shook her head. "Mei-" She grit her teeth and slapped the side of her head. "Apologies. Koakuma, crouch down and take the wire." Her familiar did as she said, but even she was watching Patchouli with some concern in her eyes now.

"Patchy." Remi wasn't asking her a question. Patchouli Knowledge ignored her.

"Koakuma, begin feeding power into-" Again, she was interrupted.

"Patchouli Knowledge!" Remi's voice was much sharper now. "Look at me!" Patchouli's gaze was forced to shift up to her friend. "You are not well."

"I haven't been well for a long time. Consequence of the craft." Patchouli forced out through gritted teeth. She could feel a profound sense of foreboding. Something was coming.

"I don't care. Stop it. Now." Remi vaulted over the observation balcony and floated across the room before stopping in front of her. "Shut it down, Patchouli, or I'll do it for you." Patchouli stared at her friend with a murderous look on her face. Before she knew it, she'd swept her arm out as if to attack. Of course, Remilia Scarlet was no pushover, and before Patchouli had even finished getting her hand out, Remi had caught it with her free hand. She showed no anger at Patchouli's actions. "That rage - Is it yours? View yourself objectively. Shut it down, now. Do as you are told."

Patchouli felt a sudden desire to attack. It wasn't directed at Remi, but...She felt like she needed to attack something right now. What was it? Her…Her magic. The magic that she knew was disappearing to somewhere. A theory that she hadn’t wanted to consider seemed to be coming to the forefront. "...Compromised." She forced out. "I knew it." If she was feeling things that were not her own, then it was already too late. She wrenched her arm free of Remi's iron grip. That feeling...She shouldn't have ignored it. She tried to look into Remi's eyes, but she was struggling. "Something - Something's wrong." She gasped. "Shouldn't have - Ignored it. I need - Need..."

Her legs suddenly gave out, but there was Remi, immediately lifting her up by her arms alone. "Patchouli. Listen to me!" Only Patchouli's mental defences seemed to have saved her from the full brunt of whatever was bearing down on her. "Tell me what it is you need right now." There she was. The Scarlet Devil. Not the child that she led so many to believe was all she was. "Do not dare pass out, Patchouli Knowledge. I've no intention of losing you yet." She looked over her shoulder. "Koakuma! Cease whatever it is you're..." And she trailed off. Patchouli tried to bring her thoughts back around. The magic...She'd already started. It needed to be expelled properly or it would snap and invert. For once, Patchouli Knowledge heard something she never heard from Remi. "Shit." The vampire swore, then looked back at Patchouli. "Koakuma, take Patchouli. Now! Do not spend a second longer in the centre of that mess."

"Remi - The magic - It'll blow-" Patchouli's vision was fading, but something was replacing it. A torn up battlefield. The remnant of golden chains wreathed in ice and fire. Sekai. Sekai. "Save – Need to – To save Se-"

"Patchouli, I love you, but shut up for a moment." Remi's voice had become authoritative. "I'll take care of it. What do - You - Need right now? What will help?"

Her mental defences wouldn't last much longer, and she had a horrible feeling that she knew exactly what was coming. "Meiling." She forced the words out. "Get Meiling. She’s – The same problem.” She had to pause to pant for breath for a moment. “Bring her to wherever you put me. I'll pass out in less than a minute." The gatekeeper would be suffering the same thing. Yggdrasil. The word was on her lips. Why? What was she about to receive? “It’s – My mind. Something’s coming.”

"Sakuya!" Remilia Scarlet roared, spinning around. There she was. The sliver-haired maid looked at the situation, then tried to speak over the roaring hum of the experiment about to go wrong. Remi interrupted her immediately. "Take Patchouli and Koakuma somewhere safe. Bring Meiling to the same place. Now!"

Sakuya Izayoi looked on as the magic seemed to grow into something of a blaze. "Mistress, it would be wise to remove yourself from-"

"Now, Sakuya! Do not, under any circumstances, return to this room. I shall contain this. Activate the bunker runes at the door to the library on your way. They'll contain any damage to the library alone. Don’t tell my sister, for she’ll only get overly excited." The maid fell silent, and finally nodded. Remilia Scarlet stretched her hands, stepped forward and into the pit of the experiment, and plunged her arms into the magic wires. "Go!" She yelled back, her face not betraying any of the pain she must have been feeling. Patchouli could see the tendrils of magic burning her skin from here.

And as Patchouli's mental defences finally shattered, her last thought was that she was somewhere else.


The first thing she realised was that she'd been left a message. An all-encompassing, urgent message. For all the modifications that Patchouli had made to both her surroundings and her own body over the years, she didn't have perfect control over her own brain. Still, the message persisted. She thought about it, and it seemed to open, like a letter.



To Patchouli Knowledge, The Scarlet Devil Mansion.

Save her.

With love, Patchouli Knowledge, Lost Remnant from the HSE.



If she'd been capable of it, she might have laughed. She couldn't escape her own subjectivity, after all. If there was one person she would sign a letter to with 'love,' it was herself. She couldn't laugh, because her mind had been ravaged. The message was just the first piece of the puzzle. She would liken it to being hit in the face with a baseball bat. Instantly and without warning. Suddenly, her brain was too crowded. Memories upon memories until her body threatened to give out. They were random. Disordered. Days upon days upon weeks upon months of time in the Hakurei Shrine Experience building. Thousands of spells, Grimoire after grimoire.

And worse were the emotions. A year's worth of time spent with Hong Meiling. A sense of familiarity blossoming into fondness. She'd fought and nearly died by her side. Fought against - Sekai. Hata no Sekai. The child. The physical damage, too. It was coming through slowly, but Patchouli was still unconscious and wouldn't need to deal with it until she woke up. Plenty of near-fatal injuries. A vague burning in her arm - A sigil burning into her. Storage. Spectral. Yes, the memories were coming through too. Her head hurt. She'd be dealing with an immense headache until her brain could make sense of the memories, bit by excruciating bit. A year's worth of time compressed into such a short space meant pain, but pain was worth the gained knowledge.

So many days spent pouring over the same spells and the same books. Devising spell after spell to try and break through the barriers in the HSE. How funny, then, that she'd been trying to recreate the same magic in the mansion at the very same time. Perhaps her spirit self had shared more of a connection with her than she had thought. She could feel the many times she and Meiling had been forced to move because another visitor was entering the fake shrine. No, she had no interest in those memories. Instead, she was curious about the runes of death she had been inscribing. They were esoteric. Patchouli hadn't realised that she knew them at all. But as she continued to wander the damaged pathways of her memories, she understood. Her spirit self - The one that she been trapped in the HSE unbeknownst to her - Had known that she didn't have a choice. She had known that she would either suffer there forever, or she would kill to escape. But...

>>46504317
True, if Satori is too young it's harder to make furry, although I think younger Satori being a sis-con is cute.

No, it was her objectivity, again. She could view the memories differently because they hadn't settled into her brain yet. Those last moments...Sekai. Hata no Sekai. She had...Hugged her. And Patchouli Knowledge had accepted it. Physical contact. Ah, of course. Spectral bodies...It did make sense. She'd taken an interest in the child of the HSE. Always a dangerous road to travel down.

The rest of the memories could wait. They could filter in over time. What was important was Sekai, and the promise that her spectral self had made. Over the years, Patchouli had heard many requests. Requests from would-be tyrants for power. Requests from poor villagers for aid. Requests from those deemed heretics for safety from the Church. Most recently, she'd heard Marisa Kirisame's request for absolution. She'd agreed and disagreed to a varying number of those requests.

A request from herself? Well, she couldn't let her down.

Patchouli Knowledge's eyes shot open. She was still in the mansion, in one of the guest rooms furthest from the library. And she wasn't alone. Hong Meiling lay in a separate bed next to her, and she was not in a good shape. Unlike Patchouli, she didn't have the carefully tuned neural pathways to keep her mind safe. She didn't have the same control. She had her ki, but from the blood dripping from her mouth - A bitten tongue, no doubt - and the way her face was contorted in pain, she was close to death. That was the worst thing that could possibly happen at this particular moment. She needed Meiling. She needed her alive and kicking, because they had to save the child of the HSE, and they had to do it together.

"You're awake." Patchouli heard the voice, though it was so faint and barely above a whisper that she nearly missed it. She turned her head to the side. Remilia Scarlet's battered form sat there, in the chair next to the bed. Her head was wrapped in bandages that crisscrossed over each other and left little visible. Her mouth, one of her eyes, some bits of hair sticking out through the bandages...That was all that Patchouli could see. Her arms were unbandaged, and Patchouli would have wondered why if it wasn't immediately obvious. There were no arms. Only bones. Remi's skin had burnt away and left nothing but the skeletal remains of her arms in their place. And yet, they moved. As a youkai, it was no surprise. She held an apple in the bones of her right hand, and deftly carved away the skin with a knife gripped in her left. "We weren't sure if you would wake up again, Patchy."

There was no doubt in Patchouli's mind that the rest of Remi's body was similarly damaged. Her clothes seemed to be held together by prayer alone, if their charred state was any indication. The tattered ribbons of flesh that remained of her arms stopped somewhere around her elbows, and even there, it was blackened and charred. "The library is safe and undamaged, for the most part. I've just about contained the blast, though that room may need a remodel. Perhaps we'll have to call the tsuchigumo in. I hear that the Kurodani family are very good at construction. They could probably have the place back to normal in a single day." Remi raised the skinned apple, holding it delicately between the distal phalanx of her thumb and forefinger. Patchouli would have liked to reply and understand further, but her head was starting to pound already. And if her head was bad, then Meiling...

She didn't bother with a reply. She spun and threw herself out of the bed, collapsing to the floor as her body dimly tried to inform her of all the physical damage she'd inherited from her spectral self. Unfortunately, her body had never been able to compete with her mind, so she told her body to be silent until such a time where she could give it any attention. Forcing her screaming muscles to obey her, she dragged herself up to Meiling's bed and atop it. She straddled the unconscious gatekeeper's form, rolling her from her side to her back. When she pressed her palm against Meiling's forehead, it was burning hot. She had seconds. "Patchy, what-" Remi tried to ask her a question. There was no time for that.

"Shut up, Remi. I don't have time. Do not, under any circumstances, pull us apart." Each word made the pain in her head worsen, but it didn't matter. The damned sentimentality from her spectral self told her that saving the gatekeeper was important enough to bare the pain. "Do you understand?" Remi was silent for a moment, so Patchouli shouted as much as she could. "Do you understand, Remi!?"

"Understood." Remilia Scarlet replied. Her oldest friend. Of course she'd understand. "Good luck."

Patchouli took a deep breath, then rubbed her palms together. This was a dangerous technique at the best of times. This was not the best of times. "Share the burden, Meiling." She murmured, lifting her palms to either side of Meiling's head. "Share the pain with me."

>>46504514
forgot pic

Gritting her teeth, she pressed her hands against Meiling's head and felt a scream tear her throat apart as pain lanced through her head. The world went white. She stopped feeling. Sound became an illusion and scattered into the wind.

And then, she wasn't there anymore. The world was gone, and Patchouli Knowledge was somewhere else.

Sunlight filtered through an open window and the sound of birdsong washed over her. Patchouli Knowledge blinked. She was warm, but felt like she wasn't breathing in as much air as she usually did. Frowning, she looked around. The window - It wasn't glass. It was a swinging wooden shutter over an open frame, and through it, she could see a winding trail of cobblestone. It led down, twisting and turning, but more interesting were the surroundings. Trees with leaves of red and gold hung over the path on the left side, and unlit lanterns hung every few paces. The right side had a simplistic fence, and beyond that...Nothing. A sheer drop, because she was clearly high up in the mountains. Valleys and peaks stretched out ahead of her, each one with more colours combining into a rich tapestry of golds, reds, and greens. There was a slight haziness to the air that helped Patchouli identify the time as late summer, but you wouldn't get colours like these in Gensokyo, so...

Yes, she was somewhere else. There was a slight smell in the air. Something sweet and filling. Food, most likely. She could hear it. A sizzling sound that could only be someone cooking. She looked away from the window. The room she stood in was packed with items. Mementos, it seemed. Items that could only have come from a life spent traveling. They covered the shelves of the room and sat upon the rich red wood of the drawers. Right next to the window was a table with two chairs. The surface, both of the table and the chairs, was woven. When Patchouli reached out to run her finger across it, it felt very real.

It couldn't be real, obviously. Patchouli might have just had her mind torn almost to pieces, but she'd just received a year's worth of memories of being trapped somewhere else, and she could feel the differences already. But, if she was here, having linked her mind to Meiling’s in order to bear the burden before Meiling’s mind could collapse, there was only one reason.

She turned and stepped outside of the room, finding herself in a corridor. More sunlight beamed through slats high up in the ceiling, and a polished wooden floor muffled her footsteps. She followed her nose. Somewhere in the distance, she could hear noise. Vague shouting, like there was some sort of work going on. She paused at the next room and glanced inside, wondering what sort of world she'd been drawn into. Not Sekai's world, but... In this room, there were far fewer personal items. One or two, but the room seemed to be that of an ordered soul. The window was shut here. Patchouli carried on, heading in the direction of the smell. She had a fairly good idea of what she was in for. She came to a doorway - A large, slightly translucent red cloth hung down, and Patchouli could see a shape moving behind it. Yes, she recognized those movements, even more than she should have. She raised a hand and pushed the cloth aside, stepping through.

A kitchen. Very well-stocked, which was surprising for somewhere so high up. And of course, here she was. Hong Meiling gracefully spun through the kitchen, working on multiple dishes at once. Bao buns steamed in a pot - That had been the slightly sweet smell that she had detected - and rice fried in a large wok. Meiling didn't seem to notice her as she took the wok and threw the rice up in a perfect toss, catching it on the other side.

She was dressed differently. White trousers, like usual, but much tighter. Her shirt was gone. Instead, she wore a vest that was tied loosely at her collarbone and had a small open gap below it. It was longer than typical clothing and cut at the sides, so it hung down in two long trails at the front and back to about her mid thighs. On the front, a pattern seemed to have been painstakingly embroidered, and Patchouli was unsurprised to see that it was a dragon. Her hat still saw askew on her head, but her hair was shorter. Still two long braids at the front, but only shoulder-length at the back. This, then, seemed to be how Meiling saw herself in this world. Patchouli watched as the gatekeeper worked her way through the kitchen, finishing all the dishes. She wore slippers much like the ones that she wore at the mansion, and there was a bracelet around her wrist. A small, black thing that bent upward at the top of her wrist.

She should have said something by now, but she was finding Meiling's movements and general skills rather interesting to watch. She felt like Remi, watching Patchouli summon books and perform experiments.

It was that sentimentality again. She really needed to reconstruct her spectral self and have a word with her. She'd grown fond of Meiling, and that fondness had been forced on her all at once. It would take some time for her mind to stop rejecting it. She couldn’t just switch to liking someone as if she’d spent a year with them when her body hadn’t yet caught onto that fact.

Meiling suddenly seemed to have finished. She looked up, her blue eyes catching the sunlight and seeming to positively sparkle. She wasn’t awake. Neither in the sense of this being the real world or her consciousness being in control. The gatekeeper stared at Patchouli for a moment, and then frowned. She blinked twice, confusion washing over her features, before recognition sparked in her eyes. "...Lady Patchouli?" She finally asked. “Is…Is that you?”

"It's me, Meiling." Patchouli replied, watching as Meiling squeezed her eyes shut for a moment. She’d regained some level of consciousness, then. "Finish getting your food ready. We need to talk." The room that Patchouli had appeared in. She needn't tell Meiling. She'd go there instinctively. Patchouli turned and pushed back through the cloth, retracing her steps to find the room. Once there, she pulled out the chair next to the window, sat down, and closed her eyes.

Her memories were still a mess. Her body in the real world was likely even more of a mess than it had been, but that could wait. She needed to meditate, but at the moment, she was still in better shape than Meiling was. The body is a marvellous thing. Even with youkai - Or perhaps, especially with youkai - Mental defences were paramount to the body's survival. Meiling would never have expected this. Her mind might not have known how to cope. And when the mind doesn't know how to cope...It retreats.

"Lady Patchouli?" Patchouli opened her eyes to find Meiling at the door with a plate stacked high with steaming rice and four bao buns in a basket in her other hand. "Um...Why are you here…?"

"Sit down, Meiling." Patchouli told her. "You'll not want to remain standing for the duration of the conversation, would you?" Meiling slowly nodded as she set down the plate and the basket in the centre of the table before taking the seat opposite Patchouli. With the window open, the sunlight streamed in and illuminated them both. To Patchouli, it wasn’t the most pleasant thing. To Meiling, it seemed to be wonderful. "Tell me something, Meiling. Where are we currently located?" Patchouli asked. She had a fairly sure guess, but she wanted to hear it from Meiling herself.

"...China." Meiling slowly replied, pressing her hand against her head. "It's, um, a monastery. At least, I'm fairly sure it is." Yes, that would explain the noises she'd heard in the distance.

"...Taoism?" Patchouli asked as Meiling placed two sets of chopsticks on the table. She nodded in thanks, delicately taking one set and breaking it apart. “A Taoist monastery?”

"Tai chi, but..." Meiling nodded as she looked out of the window. "This is the Wudang mountains, so Taoism is practiced here too." Meiling looked confused, and Patchouli wasn't surprised. Patchouli reached forward and tried the rice. It tasted...Like the best fried rice she'd ever eaten. Exactly like it. So exact that she knew for sure that it wasn't real. It was evoking her memory of that meal. "Lady Patchouli, why are we here?" Meiling pressed her hand against her forehead again. “I’m…I’m struggling to remember.”

"What do you remember?" Patchouli asked as she watched a golden leaf fall from the trees outside.

"I-I was at the gates..." Patchouli turned back and watched the confusion run across Meiling's face again. "No, I…I was in...Sekai's world. In the HSE. And - And you were there." The memories were even more jumbled for Meiling than they had been for Patchouli, it seemed. "What...?"

"The mind, Meiling, is a fragile thing. Even more so for youkai. We are more susceptible to mental weaknesses, after all." Patchouli looked out of the window again, taking in the details. "I've spent considerable years working at my mental defences, so I was prepared." Meiling slowly took a bite of one of the bao buns. "Unfortunately, I believe you were less prepared. Your ki control is most likely unrivalled by any in Gensokyo, but even that is no match against being forced to bear the brunt of a year's worth of memories all at once. This place...Tell me about it."

"Er..." Meiling frowned even as she took another bite of her food. Hesitantly, she spoke up. "I don’t remember how I got her, so I don’t know how to leave, either…Am I going to be okay?"

Patchouli wasn't sure. It seemed that she'd taken on half of the damage Meiling was taking just in time to stop her from dying, but it was still up to her to wake up. A day ago, Patchouli would have told her that she might very well die. But then, a day ago she hadn't been full of memories of Meiling's reliability across a year spent stuck in the HSE. "I believe that you'll pull through just fine, Meiling." She even found herself smiling slightly. "Tell me about this place and we'll work out what's happening here."

Meiling hesitantly nodded and had some more of the rice. "Well...I think I know where this is. If it's the Wudang mountains, then it's a monastery that I spent many years at." Patchouli looked out of the window again, following the winding path down. "This...We're in my mind, aren't we? I couldn’t seem to control myself when I realised that I was here. I just…I started cooking, just like I would have done in the past. I thought it might have been a dream, but…"

"Correct." Patchouli nodded. "Somehow, I don't think that that child has the capability to throw us out of Gensokyo and into this particular place. No, our spectral selves, the ones that were stuck in the HSE...They've been returned to our real bodies." It was pleasing to know that she didn't actually need to explain any of this. They'd both gotten the memories back, after all. Meiling already knew. She just needed reminding until her fractured mind pulled itself back together. "Like I said, your mind is bearing the brunt of those memories at once. It has chosen to retreat to what must be a place of comfort to you. If this were a dream, I would know."

"...Yeah, that does make sense." Meiling nodded. "I was here for a long while. A long time in the past, but...It's always been something I looked back on fondly." Meiling closed her eyes for a moment, a serene smile on her face. "You could always hear the students in the courtyard. I did the cooking in exchange for this room, and I always loved to just sit here and look out over the mountain."

"That's what I've been hearing..." Patchouli mused. "Your memories." The birdsong, too. All of this was what Meiling considered to be a comfortable place for her mind to retreat. "I suppose that seeing China would be comforting to you, Meiling. This is a very tranquil place, though I must admit that I would prefer somewhere with less sunlight. I wondered if I might see the Scarlet Devil Mansion."

"Oh, er...I do like it there, honest." Meiling waved a hand about awkwardly. "This is just- I mean, it's not-"

"Meiling." Patchouli raised a hand and the nervous gatekeeper shut up. "I'm not judging you. It's your mind. Its inner workings are yours and yours alone. I'm merely here to support you." She knew well enough that Sakuya's treatment of Meiling in the present day left something to be desired. That it was for reasons that were not so easy to fix made things more difficult. "We need to talk about Sekai."

Meiling swallowed uncomfortably, then nodded. "She...Sent us back. To our real bodies – O-Or…No, she sent the memories to us...Sorry, I..." She pressed her hand against her forehead again. "It's really hard to understand."

"I struggled too." Patchouli replied, tilting her head. "We were in both places. Both parts were equally us. We were sent back, and we were sent the memories." She tried one of the bao buns. Much like the rice, it was the best bao bun she'd ever had. "That is not what's important, though. We both made a promise. We promised to save her."

Meiling nodded, gritting her teeth slightly. "We did. I remember that much. No matter what it takes. We'll save her so she can live the life she deserves." Her eyes caught the sunlight again. This time, it reminded Patchouli of a different day in the past. The day that a mysterious, unknown youkai with piercing blue eyes had come to the gates of the Scarlet Devil Mansion, seeking a battle with a strong foe. "Otherwise, everything we went through would be for nothing." Patchouli was glad that she'd remembered enough to smooth out the conversation. She'd been worried that she might have to slowly walk Meiling through the process of recovering her shattered memories, which would have taken a long time. How long was subjective, as were most things taking place inside one's head, but it would have been an unwelcome distraction. "I'm a little confused, though..."

"About?" A bird had just landed on the windowsill. Somehow, Patchouli found herself unsurprised that Meiling's mind was capable of having simulacrum such as this. A Chinese leaf warbler, if she wasn't mistaken.

"Well, it's just...Sekai had the Young Mistress's ability to manipulate fate, didn't she? Hasn't she just guaranteed that whatever we do, it'll lead to the right outcome?" It was an interesting question. Patchouli hadn't had the luxury of conducting a full investigation into the extent of Sekai's powers, nor would she have been able to do so with her limited resources in Sekai's world, but...

"Manipulating fate isn't an exact science, Meiling." Patchouli stood, turning to stare out of the window properly. The warbler on the windowsill cast a curious glance at her fingers when she raised her hand toward it. "Nor can I say with certainty that Sekai's control of these abilities is perfect. It is possible that she wishes for us to simply act as we normally would and things will fall into place. It's possible that we are to speak to Remi, and have her try and manipulate fate to our advantage, though this would necessitate giving away a large portion of our game knowledge. Moreover, I do not know how the machinations of fate would take two interfering hands."

"I...See. Wait, game knowledge...?" Meiling's memories were still confused, it seemed.

"I spoke to you - In both worlds, as a matter of fact - about recent events feeling like a great game. It is our advantage at the moment, for no one knows the extent of our dealings with Sekai. Discarding this advantage would be foolish." Patchouli thought for a few moments. No, telling Remi would be foolish. It was not a matter of trust anymore. This was a life, and it was a life that she was responsible for. "...If I make it clear to Remi that there are reasons why I cannot tell her, she will accept that." Patchouli muttered under her breath. "We must study the book that I was given. Both of us. Together. If we are to have any chance of success, we will need to be prepared." Sekai had given them the book and she'd reworked fate. Had she gone further than she had realised? How many schemes had been rearranged? "Wheels within wheels..." Patchouli murmured under her breath.

"Sorry?" Meiling asked, frowning. "Wheels?"

"Nothing. Forget it." Patchouli shook her head. "The point is that I do not know if Sekai's manipulations were absolute, and I cannot know for sure how we are expected to proceed. The best I can do is ensure that we take every measure we can." There was lots to do. The child had been sure that the HSE would be destroyed soon, which meant that Patchouli's repertoire would be at her fingertips again. All of it. Even the esoteric spells... "You will likely undergo an extreme amount of pain, Meiling. Your body will be a conduit for Sekai's soul. Her ki, her powers, her very existence...It'll all pass through you. Are you sure that you can handle that?"

"Yes." Meiling's answer was immediate and clear. "I gave my word. We can do it, can't we? We survived in those ghostly forms for so long, after all." Patchouli found a slight smile crossing her face. Meiling's straightforwardness could be very heartening. "How will we know when to act, though?"

"I'm working on that. Remi's been having a feeling that plenty of people's fates are converging on the HSE. It's likely that there will be a battle in that place before long, and if that is the case, we may be able to manipulate events for ourselves to ensure we have the window of opportunity that we need to transfer Sekai's soul." Patchouli replied. The Chinese leaf warbler on the windowsill pecked at Patchouli's finger, then turned and took flight. Patchouli watched it leave silently. "We need to awaken you from your slumber, first of all." She turned back to Meiling. "This is your mind, Meiling. How does your time at the monastery end?"

Meiling pushed the empty plates away from her and stood. Slowly, she walked around the table to stand side-by-side with Patchouli, looking out over the mountains. "Watch the path." She murmured, looking over at Patchouli. Patchouli looked down and followed the path with her eyes. There was a figure walking up with a slow and steady gait. A woman with hair in a flaming orange, lighter than Meiling's own. "I was called away. That's all. Perhaps, one day, I'll return."

In the distance, beyond the mountains, Patchouli could see clouds. Still far off, but approaching. A distant bolt of lightning illuminated the great tree beyond. Yggdrasil. "A storm is coming, Meiling. We will have to do everything we can. Both to weather it, and to ensure the safety of the child who has entrusted herself to us." She turned to the gatekeeper. "I believe that we are ready, now. It's time to wake up."

In the time between looking from the mountain to Meiling, her appearance had changed. She'd gained all the wounds of her spectral self, and her clothes had changed to the attire she wore now, as the gatekeeper of the Scarlet Devil Mansion. She straightened her hat, nodding with a grim smile. "In the future, if we survive whatever's coming...I'd like to come here again. Through the corridors of my memories or in the real world. And...I would like it if you would come with me, Lady Patchouli."

Patchouli Knowledge raised her arm and inspected it. The damage was appearing to her, too. She'd not been ready when she'd woken up, but now the last of the transfer was complete. "I’d like that, Meiling. It’s a promise." The world seemed to know that it was time, the sunshine appearing paler. She blinked, and Meiling was gone. As if she'd never been there. Looking behind her, Patchouli watched as the world she stood in began to disintegrate. "Count yourself lucky, child." Patchouli murmured. "That it was we stubborn fools who were bound to your world that day." She raised a hand to her head as another burst of lightning illuminated the world tree in the distance, lurking in the back of Meiling’s mind. "Isn't that right? Sekai?"



Consciousness returned wreathed in fire and ice. Pain enveloped Patchouli's body, both through the icy tendrils shooting through her mind and the burning heat of the wounds on her body. She fell backward, collapsing onto the side of the bed that Meiling lay in. The gatekeeper seemed to be struggling just as much, and from the way she was writhing, she'd opened all of the wounds that she's suffered again. Patchouli had, too, and she vaguely had the thought in the back of her mind that Sakuya would kill her for all the blood she was getting on the sheets. She wanted to scream, but linking her mind with Meiling's in the way that she had was enough to severely damage her vocal chords. It'd likely be days before she could speak properly at all. Meiling was under no such illusions, and was free to scream from the sudden onslaught of pain.

Patchouli wasn't sure how long passed before she found her control returning, but finally, she managed to force her body upright. Blood was soaking through her clothes, but it was a manageable amount. She'd be fine. "Lady Patchouli?" Her battered body turned to the source of the noise and found Sakuya Izayoi watching her. "May I help you up?" Even though she'd seen the maid recently, she suddenly felt an onslaught of emotion. Enough that even for her, it was overwhelming. Her spectral self hadn't seen the maid in a year. And - And Remi, and the others...Patchouli weakly shook her head. She could stand, and that was good enough. She pointed Sakuya to Meiling instead, because Meiling had idly mentioned on several occasions in Sekai's world that she missed the other residents of the mansion.

For Patchouli, someone was more important. There was Remi, still holding the apple that she'd had in her skeletal hand. Now, Patchouli could feel the emotions that she'd been holding off. The pain of separation and the joy of reuniting... "That look in your eyes..." Remi murmured, her one visible eye softening slightly. Of course, she could figure it out. She wouldn’t have been so interesting to Patchouli if she couldn’t. "Have you missed me, my dear friend?" Patchouli would likely pass out again. Her body needed to recover just as much as her mind did, but when she awoke, it would be time to work. But...Before she did, she would make a concession for her spectral self. She stumbled forward, then fell to her knees. Remi placed her apple on Patchouli's bed, then, with her skeletal hand, took Patchouli's hand with a gentle smile. All the emotions that she'd forced down while trapped in the HSE were escaping now. The tears at seeing Remi again after a year apart, even though she'd seen her just recently...She felt her vision begin to darken. As she faded again, she heard her oldest friend speak. "Cry, if you so wish, Patchouli Knowledge. Tears are, at times, more eloquent than words."

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what a read, god fucking dammit. Beautiful characterization all throughout, and the way you breathe life into Remilia's character makes me all happy, man. Her act of selflessness and the continuous care for Patchy is just the cherry on top, thought the soul of this sequence lies entirely on the way you choose to portray Meiling and Patchy's conversation post-merge; having it all inside the former's mind, with the way there being an act of bravery and sacrifice done by Patchy. Never expected it to go like that, but am happy you did it the way you did, it was pristine -- I got so fucking mad at the poor Anon that posted during the chapter dump, fucker broke my immersion... --, and the symbolisms too with the little bird when they were talking about Sekai; the World Tree in the back of Meiling's consciousness showing duty and all the little things sprinkled around Meiling's mental palace elevate it much higher.
it instantly made my day better reading thought it all~
>[...]"Count yourself lucky, child." Patchouli murmured. "That it was we stubborn fools who were bound to your world that day." She raised a hand to her head as another burst of lightning illuminated the world tree in the distance, lurking in the back of Meiling’s mind. "Isn't that right? Sekai?"
also this is my favorite sequence and had to go back a little just to perfectly sync it to “reBirth ft. Takeshi Saito”, direct hit to the kokoro man.
the ending with Patchy finally letting go of the sea of woe she accumulated in the HSE got me staring at my roof for a minute, very well done, won't be losing this smile for some time!
Another facet of Meiling's confusion about Sekai use of Remi's power, I'd like to mention, is: every use of her power following the destruction of the HSE will be, of course, interrupted. Anon, Yukari and baby Renko, for example, will lose the plot-armor she just covered them with for the Solstice. Meaning all assurance Sekai has that Meiling and Patchy will be capable of pulling her resurrection off is trust, and while manipulate fate so they do pull it off completely works, it is as effective as planting a bunch of autumn crops right before Winter, as Remi's fate manipulation only goes until the HSE is turned into dust.
thanks for the chapters, Patchyanon!!

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>7,300+ words
yep, that's a new record

I'm gonna enjoy this saga of Patchynon doing SDM shenanigans to save the extra boss from herself and all the stupid shit yukari has been pulling all series.

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ranking it after the war plus patchyanon's chapters, I'd say they're my third favorite storyline now, really close behind to Kasen in 2nd and Reimu 1st

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>I got so fucking mad at the poor Anon that posted during the chapter dump, fucker broke my immersion...
I'll do it again.

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I like it not during the dump, so thank you for the cute Satori! Just be careful to not summon Hana...

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If Hana and Satori got along none of them furries would survive.
Also one of the Aunts has a penis, Hana hasn't noticed it yet.

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Damn, SDMhu's had to wait literal months but they finally got really good content by way of the extra boss.
Just a thought, but you could probably group the storylines at this point by which OC most prominently drives them. Anon is the focus of the Frens, Hana is the focus of Jobbers and Eientei, Sekai is the focus of the SDM and the Yukari Empire has a lot of focus with Goro. The only storyline that doesn't tie back to an OC is Keine/Mokou, though one could argue Papa Hieda is an OC and it's actually his story. Even if some of the connections are slim or by degrees of separation, there's a tangible impact on all of Gensokyo that can be traced back to the HSE. That's not some huge revelation, it's just something neat with how large the scale of the project has grown over time.