et3rnal.w1nt3r here.

I'm back with another chapter of The Rainbow Puppeteer and the Monochrome Witch! I thought chapter one was a little short, so I made chapter two longer to keep you entertained slightly longer~

Touhou and the characters in this story belong to ZUN/Team Shanghai Alice.


Chapter Two : Waking Up in Unfamiliar Surroundings

When Marisa woke up, she felt sore all over. She frowned, what happened yesterday night?

She remembered flying back to her house on her broom after annoying Reimu at the Hakurei Shrine. Around halfway through, it started raining heavily. It was dark and Marisa couldn't see anything. To make things worse, she encountered Rumia, the pesky small fry who claimed to be the master of darkness. She remembered trying to blast Rumia with her Master Spark but missed because she couldn't see well.

Marisa vaguely recalled trying to find a suitable place so she could turn around and fight Rumia, and suddenly Mystia turned up and ambushed her. Marisa knew she was at an disadvantage in the dark. Even so, she refused to run. After a brief but furious battle with the two youkai, Marisa emerged victorious. Although she won, it came with a price – she was injured all over and she could feel blood gushing out from her head wound.

'Not good,' Marisa remembered thinking to herself. She felt dizzy and knew she was going to pass out if she lost anymore blood. Taking her chance, she flew towards a house near her home in the Forest of Magic. She knew the sole occupant of the house only by reputation, but had never approached it for she heard that there was a mysterious and unsociable but powerful youkai living in there. Marisa was not scared, of course, she just did not want to do something boring like visiting a hikikomori*.

That was all Marisa remembered. Perhaps she passed out on her broom, and crashed near the youkai's house? Whatever, her head was throbbing rather painfully, she turned towards the warmth beside her and hugged it... – wait what?- Why was there someone beside her? She jumped up, and collapsed on to the bed again for the pain caused by moving so suddenly was too much.

She took a moment to collect her thoughts. 'Oh yeah, the youkai must've helped me. I'm probably in her house right now. I thought the Seven-coloured Puppeteer would look older.. and scarier. This innocent little girl looks like someone who can be beaten by Cirno, ze' She stared at the person beside her, unconsciously observing the puppeteer's face and committing it to memory. Marisa murmured to herself, ''What a beautiful person, even more attractive than Reimu herself, I dare say,'' she grinned mischieviously.

Marisa continued staring at the peaceful face of the sleeping girl beside her. After awhile, she got bored. She got up, careful not to cause herself too much pain again. Marisa was surprised but slightly amused when she found out she was naked. 'I was seen naked by this cute girl, huh?' Rather unsurprisingly, the human was not at all embarassed, though she did put on the clothes which she found on the table beside the bed.

'Was it morning already?' Marisa thought to herself. She crept towards the only window in the room and pulled the heavy curtains apart. She shielded her eyes with her hands when the rays of the sun hit her. Not morning, but noon! Marisa debated whether to wake her saviour or not. However, her choice was made for her when she heard a soft voice from the bed.

''Nnnn...Shanghai, close the curtains, will you?'' the person on the bed said sleepily. The request was immediately carried out by a red doll. Marisa stared in fascination at the doll. The person on the bed was indeed the youkai puppeteer.

Suddenly, the red doll turned towards her. At the same time, the sleepy person on the bed sat up with inhuman speed and opened her eyes wide, instantly awake. ''Shanghai!'' she shouted, and dozens of dolls flew towards Marisa, looking as threatening as it was possible for dolls.

''Um, I-I'm Marisa Kirisame, ze'' Marisa said, holding up her hands instinctively, while glancing nervously at the dolls glaring at her. 'Where is my mini-Hakkero*?' Her eyes darted around the room but she could not see it.

Alice paused for a moment, ''Oh, right. The person from yesterday. Forgive me for my rudeness, I am not used to having visitors and was surprised by your presence.'' After the sentence was finished, the dolls moved away from Marisa. ''Kirisame-san, right?'' the girl said, ''I'm Alice Margatroid, how are you feeling now?''

Alice could have harmed Marisa easily just now. Even so, she did not. Perhaps this was why the black-white decided to trust Alice whole-heartedly. Besides, the youkai would not have saved her if she did not care for humans, right? ''I've been worse, but I'm feeling pretty okay actually, thanks to Alice-chan!'' Marisa relaxed and replied cheerfully.

Alice blushed, why did this girl address her to casually? She decided to ignore it for the time being and concentrate on the matter at hand. She got up and walked towards Marisa, frowning. ''You're still injured, so please stay on the bed. I will have my dolls prepare something for us to eat.'' Alice practically dragged the reluctant black-white towards the bed.

'''What are you? Regenerative powers too slow for a youkai, yet too fast for a human. A half-youkai maybe?'' Alice said as she examined Marisa.

''Nah, I'm just a human magician. Being a youkai and living that long...probably won't suit me ze,'' replied Marisa.

''Makes sense I suppose. Magician or not, you still need rest. I only took care of the surface wounds, you must take care of the internal injuries yourself. I am not skilled in the field of healing, so you must forgive my sloppy work, '' Alice said.

''No, no, you did an excellent work, Alice-chan. I feel great ze!'' Marisa stretched her hands to prove her point. ''Ow!'' Marisa quickly stopped exerting herself when she felt a stab of pain in her back. Alice smiled gently and rested a gentle yet firm hand on Marisa's shoulders, shaking her head slightly.

''I feel fine, really! There's no need for me to rest anymore!'' protested Marisa when Alice pushed her down on to the bed slowly until the witch was lying down. But her protests went unheeded as Alice stared Marisa down, eyebrows raised.

Alice's motherly demeanor and brilliant blue eyes captivated Marisa. 'Well, I suppose getting pampered once in a while is not that bad.'

Marisa lay in bed while Alice went downstairs to get breakfast and brew some tea. She took the chance to look around the room. It was quite simple, actually. But somehow, it still managed to look comfortable and cozy. There was a wooden wardrobe in the corner near the door. A dressing table, also made of wood, with a mirror on top and a chair was just opposite the bed. The bed was located at the furthest corner of the room from the door, a little table was beside it. The rest of the room were filled with either dolls or books.

'Wow.. she plays with dolls, which makes her look rather childish. But, she also reads a lot of books, which gives the impression that she is more mature than she looks. What an interesting person..' Marisa thought, unconsciously grinning to herself.

After a few minutes, Alice reappeared, holding a bowl of okayu*. Her dolls were behind her, a yellow one was carrying a pot of tea, a blue one was carrying two cups. ''Shanghai, set those down on the table beside the bed.'' They obeyed, and flew out of the room.

Marisa sat up slowly, aware of the pain she could cause herself if she was not careful. ''Um, are all your dolls named Shanghai? How do they know which doll are you referring to?'' Marisa asked, head cocked to one side questioningly.

Alice blushed, ''Well, they are already programmed to do what they are supposed to do, but I can override it.'' After seeing Marisa's quizzical expression, she explained more.

''It's like, if I leave them alone, they would do whatever they were instructed to do, but I can take over and make them do whatever I want whenever I want. So there is actually no need for me to talk to them. I-it's just well... uhh...'' the puppeteer stammered, trying to find the right words without sounding pitiful. At last she gave up and simply said softly, ''It's lonely here, you know...and I'm not really good at interacting with others...'' Alice lowered her head, eyes downcast, too embarassed by her confession to face her guest.

Instead, Marisa's reply was one the youkai magician had not expected. ''I don't think you're bad at interacting at all! So far, all I've seen about you is really nice. You definitely need more confidence in yourself, Alice-chan!'' the black-white said with a huge grin on her face. ''If that won't work... Well then, I'll come here to keep you company from now on 'kay?''

''I-idiot, don't make promises you can't keep!'' Alice said, flustered. ''Though, I wouldn't mind you visiting me once in a while..'' she added softly after a brief pause.

''Then it's settled! Now how about that bowl of okayu? I'm starving, ze!'' Marisa said while hungrily eyeing the okayu in Alice's hand. ''Besides, aren't you uncomfortable standing like that, ze? I'd drag that chair over here for you but...'' the witch continued and gestured helplessly at her injured body.

''Oh, I'm so sorry! I got distracted by the conversation, I didn't mean to keep you waiting!'' Alice quickly put the bowl down on the small table beside Marisa and took the chair from the dressing table. She sat down and poured two cups of tea. She handed one to Marisa and took one herself.

After downing her tea in one go, Marisa stared expectantly at the puppeteer. ''I thought I was going to be pampered. Aren't you going to feed me?'' the witch teased her with an idiotic smile on her face.

Unfortunately, or fortunately, depending on how you look at it, Alice took her seriously. She picked up the bowl quietly and fed the surprised Marisa. 'I can't decide whether she's messing with me or really being kind. I gotta admit though, I don't think I've ever met such a kind-hearted youkai. Whatever, I'll just enjoy this while it lasts.' Marisa thought, smiling.

''Wow da ze! This-is-so-awesome! Like, the best okayu I've ever eaten!'' the black-white said with a happy grin on her face after having a spoonful of Alice's cooking.

''R-really? It's nothing. It's probably just because you're hungry, though I give my thanks for the compliment.'' Alice said shyly. Deep down inside, the magician was glowing. Nobody had ever praised her like this. Most of her visitors rarely conversed with her. Though, it might have something to do with her being too shy and pretending to be busy with research and leaving them alone.

And so that was how the afternoon passed in Alice's house. How Alice met Marisa was, indeed one of the most important thing that happened in that small humble cottage of the magician youkai in the Forest of Magic.


*Hikikomori - Japanese term to refer to the phenomenon of reclusive people who have chosen to withdraw from social life.

*mini-Hakkero – Marisa's most precious item. Despite its small size, it is a potent source of magical energy and has the firepower to burn down a mountain.

*Okayu- The type of congee eaten in Japan. In Japan, okayu is popularly known as a food served to the ill.

And that's the end of chapter two! But seriously though, I spent so long trying to think up of a logical explanation for how Alice controls her dolls. I hope the explanation I provided made sense. Next week I'll give you all an explanation on how Marisa's magic works in my fanfic. So expect me to stare at touhou wiki until a hole in my screen appears XD Hope you enjoyed this chapter too ^_^