This happens because the doujinshi "Magic of Isolation" by Zounouse burrows into my mind until I write this.
Anyway I don't own both Touhou or Magic of Isolation.
Clank. Clank.
"Black-white witch…"
It was the same dreams she had been getting for days. Maybe ever since she drunk that bland tea at Reimu's place?
That day was a surprise, she had always been complaining about the tea constantly. But just that once, she was glad. The bland tea was nostalgic, and she was happy when Reimu was there.
There might be that confusion when she was looking at her hands, and intense revulsion when holding her hakkero (it was now lying in the drawer, she couldn't bring herself to put it too far away from her) but she was fine… right?
Still, it was no time to be lying around on bed. The sun's shining strong and it might be good idea to go back to Hakurei shrine for a bit of check… (Reimu'sfine).
"Can't leave the Hakkero…" Even if it was unnerving her, and there was a small constant side of her that seemed to view everything as powers she could grab. It would be so easy, wouldn't it? Just start with something small...
No. What was she thinking?
She couldn't do that, that was a line she shouldn't…
Urgh, maybe instead of Reimu she could disturb Alice?
...
There was a sense of unease still within her, but well, what would be the harm? Turning her broom slightly, she turned around and away from the Shrine. It felt like she was being a coward, but it made her heart calm down slightly.
Alice was a known quantity after all, the same as Patchouli. Maybe Byakuren could too, but-
No, while she was a magician, she wasn't that first and foremost…
Wait, where did she got that information from?
She wasn't even close to Byakuren to know something like that, so why?
"The one on the wrong path wasn't magicians. It was Gensokyo itself."
What?
What kind of discussion that could even lead to that. Her head hurts, it felt like it was going to burst, her body felt wrong.
Her power should be stronger.
The chains' rattle that plagued her in dreams felt like it was ringing in her ears. The clink-clank of chains, connected to her hakkero…
But when she looked down, there was nothing. No chain, only her hakkero and her broom.
Is she losing her mind?
Well, even with all those thoughts swirling in her mind, at least she managed to arrive at Alice's place safely. Knocking hard on the door, she pushed it open.
"Alice~!" She called out, a wide grin on her mouth when she saw Alice and Shanghai with huge amount of material on the table in front of them. "What are you making?"
That familiar frown on Alice's face as she turned to glare at her was nice. It was certainly better than… than what? Marisa blinked slowly, one second there was chains on Alice's hand to Shanghai. The next second… nothing.
"Marisa, how many times I told you to not barge in like that…" Alice muttered before she put down her tools. "I guess it's time to rest up Shanghai." She called up to the doll and Shanghai seemed to brighten for a moment.
Her words and movements were good to ground her thoughts, and yet at the same time her very sight… Marisa gripped her hakkero tighter. There was a roar in her ears.
Clink. Clank.
It was not Alice she had to face. This idyllic scene felt all wrong and right at the same time. This peace.
"Hey… Alice, do you ever felt like everything's wrong?" Her voice was small, the hakkero's side digging into her fingers. She didn't want to lift it up but it felt natural to do so.
So much magic…
"You enjoyed it too, didn't you? For a human to use that power, to overwhelm gods and youkai one after the other. Congrats!"
Any answer Alice might be giving was drowning in her ears, everything felt wrong. Her body was too weak and-
Something slammed into her and everything went dark.
When she came to, it was still daylight with Alice looking at her as if she had grown second head. Well… maybe she did? Wait she was sure she wasn't.
"Are you going to tell me?" Alice's eyes bore into mine, but this time the roar from before had quietened.
Marisa felt like her mind was finally clear after a while of being drowned, and so the first thing to do would be… "Tell you what? Sorry about before, I didn't hurt you, did I?" She told the other with a grin.
That was a wrong answer.
Alice's eyes blazed in anger. "Marisa… I like to believe I know you quite well, and that wasn't a normal behavior for you at all. Do I need to drag you to Patchouli and have her investigate you, hmm?"
Oops. Definitely wrong answer. "Um, yeah. No, no, it's okay. Sorry, you know how I am." Marisa told the other, trying to placate her with a smile. "It's just… everything felt wrong, the current condition of Gensokyo felt like something's wrong, and even my own body felt wrong. At times… I can hear the sound of chains, clinking, rattling…"
Once she started, it was hard to even think of stopping as she told Alice of how the hakkero itself at times repulsed her, at times comforted her. The sounds that plagued her mind, the words that seemed to be seared into her thoughts, some of the knowledge she seemed to know without knowing how she got it.
"... and that was how I end up here. And… sorry again for what I did. Everything still felt jumbled to me but that was no excuse." She muttered, looking down. It felt weird to not have the hakkero near her, but with Alice holding it, she didn't dare to ask it back.
"That's… definitely not something I even consider… Seems we are meeting Patchouli after all, Marisa."
The flight was uneventful, but as the Scarlet Devil's Mansion loomed closer, she felt unease intensified across her. The hakkero was a comfort as Alice flew in silence. She didn't want to break the ice, but this… felt like it was familiar.
"Are we doing the right thing?"
"What is the right thing? To let her be? We have to continue."
Urgh, the voices again… If she was alone, this would be the time when she would turn back and leave. But Alice was with her, and she knew that if she fled this time, Alice wouldn't be afraid to use all of those dolls to drag her there-
For a moment, Marisa felt like the blue sky turned to black, with three moons shining down.
That was wrong, completely wrong. It's still day, the sun shining down. Breathing slowly, she focused her hands on her broom and hakkero, the slight pain from the grip helping to ground her thoughts.
The silence stretched out.
Usually, she would plunder the Mansion's books and have left by now. But Alice held her down, Sakuya stayed close, Patchouli's eyes seeming to freeze her, and the last person she didn't expect to be there, Remilia's scarlet eyes were even worse.
It was hard to start it before, but this time was easier. What was harder was keeping the broiling feeling of nausea in her stomach to settle down. The tea brought by Sakuya helped, the slightly bitter taste...
"As I thought… Patchouli, I'm taking her out of your hands. This is my domain." Remilia's voice cut in the middle of her talk as she stood up. "Follow me, Marisa. And you two… Some things are better left alone."
"H-hey-" Remilia's actions weren't exactly out of bounds, and from the way her eyes stared down at her the whole time she was talking… "Did you know something?"
"Yes, but not in front of Patchouli and Alice." Her walk was fast, the wings seeming to twitch nervously at times. "Sakuya, ensure there's no interruption."
"Of course, Ojou-sama."
"Holy- don't surprise me like that, Sakuya!"
The maid merely gave her a small smile in return as she gave her a slight bow. "My apologies, Marisa. But I shall need to take my leave now, my orders await." And with that, the other left her alone.
Ahh, too bad. Sakuya was good to lower the tension she had been feeling all day. This talk with Remilia… she had nothing but bad feelings all over it. Not to count that it felt like…
Clink.
"Don't keep digging your memories like that, you don't have the same power as mine, the price will become too high." The voice was sharp, and it pierced through the soft haze that was slowly filling her vision.
Huh? What?
"We are almost in my room and I'll explain there. For now just focus on something else. Don't let yourself get swallowed by your own power… or are you not as strong as you boasted you are?"
...
Well, with that kind of challenge, how could she not accept?
Grinning, "Hah! You underestimated me. I'm Kirisame Marisa, and I'll show you my power!"
Although saying all of those didn't exactly help her with containing what she had felt (it'ssteadilybecomingstronger), that challenge was a good hook she needed to keep her thoughts steady.
After all, where would she be without that focus?
Remilia's room was dark, with a window facing outside… the moon? It was already dark?
Swish.
It was a split second difference, but Marisa knew if she didn't dodge that, she would be dead. That attack was aiming straight at her neck.
"Tch, dodged huh…" Remilia's face didn't show any remorse at all. But at the same time…
"Wait what are you doing?! I thought you brought me here because you are going to explain!" She growled out, her hand automatically brought the hakkero out.
"I will, but that doesn't mean I don't want to see how you reacted first." Her eyes seemed to glow brighter for a moment… "Shall we continue?"
She didn't want to, to be honest. The chains felt like it was enclosing, and to fight meant she needed to use the hakkero. The roar felt like it would drown her if she fought now.
"Destiny 「Miserable Fate」"
Chains exploded out of Remilia and Marisa found herself already flying with her broom through the corridors, intent on dodging them and the explosions that followed.
"Come on, Marisa! Show me your conviction! Use that hakkero!" Remilia was fast, faster than she thought.
But to use the hakkero-
Clink. Clank.
"Grr. I see. I guess I'm wrong about you then. Midnight King… 「Dracula Cradle」" Red aura flared all across Remilia as she shot forward. Her eyes weren't afraid at all-
So why should she?
"Love Sign… 「Master Spark」" The hakkero fired, the rainbow laser blazing across as it hit Remilia straight on.
Nothing bad happened. Remilia survived the barrage without much wounds... The moon shone down on them, it was one, it was three… The chains felt like it was coming closer as she stared at the other.
But.
But she had to face these, or her name wasn't Kirisame Marisa, was it?
"Finally! That's a good face! Let's go, our last bout. Divine Spear 「Spear the Gungnir」"
No time to think except to fight! "Magicannon 「Final Spark」"
The flare as the two's spells hit each other was so bright- but at the same time, the moon stayed as one this time...
The lecture that came straight after the fight was long and boring. But this time, she felt… better. The sounds of chains still can be heard some times, but it was faint, on the edge of her thoughts instead of the omnipresence feelings it were before.
Remilia definitely didn't even have a look of remorse though.
"Ow… I'm hurting all over because of you. Do you need to be that aggressive?"
"Isn't it good? That other fate… Don't dig too deep into that one. I have seen what happened. To Gensokyo and everyone else..."
It was unsaid, but Marisa understood what the other meant.
"No matter what happened…Remilia, if it seems I'm falling into it again, you are free to do this to me.."
"Heh… I'll take you up to it."
"It's too bad."
"Indeed, but it would be boring if it followed the same path, wouldn't it?"