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"Yuyuko-chan…! Yuyuko…! Please open your eyes…!"
Yuyuko struggled against her heavy eyelids as she lay upon a futon, and slowly the image of a crying Yukari's face came into focus before her, her tears splashing down upon Yuyuko's cheeks.
"… Yukari…?" Yuyuko uttered weakly. Next to her, Yuyuko blurrily recognised Yukari's fox-eared servant, Yakumo Ran tending to her.
"Haah…! Thank goodness it worked…!" Yukari wiped her tears away, "I-I was at a loss on what to do! Thankfully, Ran suggested manipulating the boundaries so that your blood would be inside your body rather than out of it…" she explained.
"… I see… I was this close to leaving this world again…" Yuyuko gave a small ironic smile, "Yukari-chan…?" she asked, "Can I tell you… something now…? Before I truly go one day…?"
"No, Yuyuko! Don't speak like that! I-" but Yukari forcefully reigned in her emotions for Yuyuko's sake, "Haah… O-Of course you can tell me Yuyuko-chan… You must tell me!" demanded the tearful Yukari.
"Fufu… Thank you… Yukari-chan…" Yuyuko took in a deep breath.
"Yukari, I've always hated how Touhou Fans group me with you as one of the 'Old Hags', despite me being significantly younger than you."
…
"Are you ditching me, you stupid brat!?" Yukari gave the idiot ghost before her a hard punch, and blood with '0% regret' spewed forth from a smug Yuyuko's mouth.
"Please don't kill the person you're trying to save, Yukari-sama…" Ran commented dryly.
With Sakuya, Part 2: Love is like chocolate – A little bitter, plenty sweet, and vaporises when you CRANBERRY TRAP~!
"Youmu-san? Are you in there…?" It did not take long before Sakuya found the room Youmu had hidden in – her whimpers could be heard from within. "Youmu-san…?" she knocked upon the door, and immediately the whimpers were silenced with a small yelp.
"Um… I'm sorry for what happened back there," Sakuya apologised clearly, "I really went too far this time…" she took a respectful step back from the door.
A moment of quiet followed, before Youmu's muffled voice uncertainly asked, "R-Really…?"
"Yes," replied Sakuya, "I sincerely wish to make it up to you…" she said, "Will you let me? I-I promise I won't do anything bad! Honest!"
Reluctantly, the door opened, and from behind it gingerly emerged Youmu. "A-Alright…" muttered Youmu, "I'll follow whatever you say, since I'm Sakuya-senpai's wife today anyway…"
Sakuya gave a guiltily start, "Youmu-san…!" she hurriedly clasped Youmu's hands, "I'm not asking you to let me because you're supposed to be my wife or anything! I... I'm just asking for a chance to make amends, pretty please?" she squeezed Youmu's hands, her eyes attempting to make contact with Youmu's, "I-If you don't like it, you can just leave," she promised.
"Sakuya-senpai…" Youmu finally met Sakuya's gaze to the maid's relief, "That's… very nice of you, but even then, I can't leave Sakuya-senpai," she stated.
"Huh? Why is that, Youmu-san?" asked Sakuya, puzzled.
"Well… It's because this 'wife game' is Yuyuko-sama's orders…" as Youmu gave her reason, irritation pricked at Sakuya.
"What…?" Sakuya frowned, "Youmu-san, you don't have to-"
"I-It's not what you think!" Youmu said, "I'm not blindly following her instructions! It's just that…" Youmu glanced away to gather her thoughts, "Yuyuko-sama… She promised you, and Reimu-san and everyone else fantastic prizes for the raffle, but she was u-useless with them…" Youmu admitted sheepishly, "As the guardian of Hakugyokurou… As Yuyuko-sama's servant…! I must make it up to all of you! Sakuya-senpai…" Youmu stepped away as Sakuya watched poignantly, "It is my duty to serve you as wife as compensation for my master's incompetence," she bowed.
"Youmu-san…" This girl was forcing herself to do this for such reasons, and still I teased her badly…!?
"So don't worry, Sakuya-senpai," Youmu continued, "I- Hyah!?" Blood rushed to her cheeks as Sakuya threw herself around Youmu in a tight hug. "S-Sakuya-senpai!?" she stuttered.
"Haha… I'm very sorry, Youmu-san…" Sakuya pulled back from her embrace with a bittersweet smile, "In that case, I'll make it my duty to take care of care of this wonderful wife… Is that alright with you?" she asked of Youmu gently.
"A-Ah…! Well, i-it'll definitely be better than teasing me all the time…" replied Youmu embarrassedly.
"Then it's settled then!" Sakuya grasped Youmu's hands again, "Why don't I treat you to some dessert?" she suggested, "I'm pretty proud of those I make! You'll love them, I guarantee it! I can even teach you how to make them! Youmu-san's not really familiar with western pastries, right?" she grinned.
"Hey!" Youmu's pride was a little offended, "If I had the recipes, I could easily make western desserts just as good as yours!"
"Haha… It's a contest then?" Sakuya led Youmu by the hand as the two walked side by side to the kitchen.
Youmu flashed a grin, "I'll school you yet, Sakuya-senpai!"
"There you are~!" grinned Flandre Scarlet as she laid gleaming red eyes upon her displaced parasol. The closet doors that had so ineffectively protected Kogasa now lay in microns, the splinters of the ashes of the splinters splintered. "Oh…! Why did that stupid Sakuya tie you up like that?" pouted Flandre as she glanced over Kogasa's rope bindings, "Did she really hate you that much- Oh…" her eyes trailed over to the other girl tied up next to Kogasa. D-Dare she believe her eyes…?
"Marisa… onee-chan…" a brief puzzlement was crushed with wonder, which was devoured by glee. "Ma- Haah~!" Flandre tackled the fearful Marisa to the ground, "Marisa-onee-chan~! What are you doing here!?" the little vampire straddled across the helpless Marisa.
"H-Hi there ze!" Marisa smiled like her life depended on it. The girl atop her appeared in every way sweet and innocent – She wore a frilly white blouse and red skirt with a red child's vest and a white mob cap. Her long blonde hair was tied in a side-ponytail. However, her wings were much more sinister. They were pitch black, skeletal branches with vertebrae-shaped crystals featuring the colours of the rainbow dangling from them. These now glowed brightly, signifying Flandre's uncontainable excitement~!
"Why are you tied up like that!?" asked Flandre eagerly, "Could it be…? Is Marisa-onee-chan a- Kyu~! A-A present for me~!?" Her fingers clawed at Marisa's ropes, ready to 'open up' her most wonderful present~!
"No! W-Wait a minute, Flandre-chan!" Marisa desperately cut in, "Sakuya dumped me here!"
"Huh…?" at the mention of Sakuya, Flandre's joy dampened, "Mmmh! That Sakuya!" she took her hands off Marisa and looked away irately, "Why is she always touching my stuff!?" Flandre turned back to Marisa, but this time with an exquisitely gentle expression... which only worried Marisa more. She sadly caressed Marisa like a fond pet rabbit which had just died, "Oh~ Poor, poor Marisa-onee-chan~ How cruel of Sakuya to tie you up like this…!" and with a blink of her eye, the ropes around Marisa were atomized to quarks. A similar glance upon Kogasa too freed the karakasa-obake.
"Here! You're free now!" Flandre hopped off Marisa, snatched Kogasa to her side and, embracing her new parasol, looked at Marisa with anticipation.
Marisa wisely rewarded it. "T-Thank you, Flandre-chan! You really saved me ze!" she said with practiced gratitude.
"Haah~! I-I-It's nothing, Marisa-onee-chan…" Flandre flushed scarlet, "Come on! We can't stay here! Let's go find ourselves a room and have some tea!" she suggested spritely, "I-I haven't chatted with Marisa-onee-chan for a long while…" she demurely muttered.
"Ahaha…! S-Sounds good to me ze…!" Marisa, without options, followed her and Kogasa out of the closet. Flandre had her arm round Kogasa's while Kogasa was being made to hold her umbrella half above them both. So this is Kogasa's new use huh…? Thought Marisa nervously. That poor girl…
"So uh…" Marisa tried calming her nerves with talk, "What's with the girl-"
"Marisa-onee-chan~ It's a 'parasol', not a 'girl'~!" Flandre had no intention of letting her Marisa-onee-chan talk about some other 'girl'…
"Ah! O-Of course, how silly of me ze…!"Marisa stood corrected, "So um… what's with the new… 'parasol'?" she asked Flandre about Kogasa.
"H-Help me…" uttered Kogasa in a very small voice.
"Oh? Do you like it?" Flandre drew Kogasa to her side even tighter as she looked back at Marisa, "I found it yesterday together with some trashy rice cooker… It's rather unique, isn't it?" she asked brightly, "Although Sakuya disapproves… Hmph! What does Sakuya know?" she huffed. "Um… What does Marisa-onee-chan think?" Flandre suddenly turned around, "Does Marisa-onee-chan… want to try out this parasol with me?" she asked shyly.
Alarms went off in Marisa's head. Flandre's closing in…!
"I-I'm not saying we should walk underneath it together!" Flandre was coyly denying, "I-I'm just saying that maybe… you know-"
"Ah! Toilet!" Marisa resorted to the most clichéd excuse ever, "I need to use the toilet really urgently!" she hopped about and pulled down on her skirt dramatically, "Sorry, Flandre-chan! I'll catch up with you later!" and down a corridor she vanished.
"Wait! Where are you going? The toilet's not that… way…" Dejected, Flandre's grip on Kogasa became an ice-cold shackle, and the karakasa whimpered. Because even Kogasa could tell Marisa was lying…
"Fufu… Fufufu… I see~!" Flandre, positive as ever, decided to take it as an opportunity~, "Marisa-onee-chan is playing hard to get~!" Flandre turned cheerily to Kogasa, "Hey~ What sort of reward will Marisa-onee-chan give me for chasing her, I wonder~?"she asked.
Kogasa gulped, "I-I don't know…?" she croaked.
"That's right~! We don't know~!" gleefully exclaimed Flandre, "That's because it's Marisa-onee-chan's wonderful surprise~! Hahaha… Kyahahahaha…!" Flandre, giggling her mind off, began hunting for her 'present' with a terrified Kogasa in tow.
Marisa dashed through the corridors of Scarlet Devil Mansion, fear gripping her heart. Her mind was made a wretched blank by the ominous echoes of Flandre's laughter. Where to…? Where to…!? She frantically turned from corner to another, and eventually came to the main grand staircase. The front door was right there…!
But so was Flandre's laughter, and it sounded terrifyingly close! No…! If I ran straight out the front door, she'll easily catch me on the mansion grounds! Reasoned Marisa's panicked mind. I need another route, someplace she'll not think to check- …! I-I got it! Swiftly, Marisa bounded down the stairs and immediately made a u-turn deeper into the mansion. The kitchen had big open windows that she could easily jump out of, and it led to a side garden too! I can escape from there! Sprinting for freedom, Marisa burst through the kitchen's door and…
Pompf!
… And ran headlong into Izayoi Sakuya's bosom. Marisa took in a deep breath only to confirm her fears. Yep… Crap, this smell's definitely Sakuya's boobs ze…
"…!? M-Marisa-san!? How shameless of you!" came Youmu's muffled exclamation from beyond the marshmallow softness as she dropped the baking tray she was holding back onto the kitchen table.
Sakuya, however, took it in her stride, "Ara~ Back for more punishment, Marisa-kun~?" she embraced Marisa's cold-sweating head to her chest, a devilish smile emerging on her lips, "I had thought the results of our last skirmish… conclusive, Marisa-kun… How did you even escape-"
"Now's not the time ze!" Marisa interrupted as she attempted to pry herself from Sakuya's mounds, "Sakuya! I'll settle things with you another day, I swear! But right now I just want to leave this place!" she struggled to break free.
But Sakuya was sceptical of the witch's intentions, "Do you really think I'll buy that, Marisa-kun?" she smirked-
"No seriously! Let go of me!" Sakuya's smirk was cut off as Marisa yelled at her, "You don't understand what's at stake here!" she startled the maid.
"Ah… Hehh~? So Marisa-kun is in trouble huh~?" but the ever elegant Sakuya did not like having her composure thrown off one bit, "Too bad~!" she sneered as shoved Marisa's face deeper into her breasts, frustrating the witch further, "I won't let you-"
"Sakuya!?"
Sakuya jumped in shock while Marisa petrified. At the doorway stood an enraged Flandre, Kogasa half-dead in her arms. Reflexively, she pushed Marisa away like an incriminating affair.
"Sakuya…! So… that's how it is…!" Flandre marched in, Kogasa dragged along, murderous intent aching throughout her tiny little body.
"Flandre-ojou-sama!?" Sakuya assumed the tone of governess to try to regain her poise, "A-Ahem…! What are you doing here-"
"You take away my new parasol… and now you lay your dirty hands on my Marisa-onee-chan…!" Flandre stopped precisely within six inches of Sakuya's heart, "Haah… I-I'm so ashamed, Marisa-onee-chan~!" Flandre's voice suddenly changed for a sweetly worse as she apologised to Marisa, "I had thought you were running away from Flandre… But of course you wouldn't do such a mean thing, would you~?" her loving gaze to Marisa returned to Sakuya as a terrific glare, "No… Of course not…! You were taken away from me by this filthy, filthy maid!" she spat.
"…!? Flandre-ojou-sama!" Sakuya fought back indignantly, "I would never-"
"Then what were you doing molesting Marisa-onee-chan like that!?" demanded Flandre, her irises reduced to glowing, scarlet slits. Sakuya, sensing Flandre's intense bloodlust, secretly reached for her knives as a tense standoff ensured. At this rate, I might have to stop time and lock Flandre-ojou-sama back in the basement… I'm sure Remilia-ojou-sama will understand…!
"A-Ahh! What are these~? They look really delicious ze~! Aha… ahaha…!"
Everyone looked over to see Marisa inspecting some unbaked tarts from the tray Youmu was handling with forced interest.
"Marisa-kun…?" What is she doing at a time like this…!? Wondered an incredulous Sakuya.
"Marisa-onee-chan…?" But whatever Marisa was planning was working, for she now had Flandre's undivided, if confused, attention.
Marisa bit into one of the tarts and beamed a sticky grin, "Mmm~! The -cough- suet dough is well made da ze~!" she proclaimed through a gummed up mouth, "This is going to be a great pastry, I can tell it~!"
"What…?" Youmu expression dried over, "Marisa-san… The tarts aren't even baked yet-"
"No, seriously Youmu-san, these are going to be great!" Marisa grabbed Youmu's hands as if they were diamonds, "Did you make them?" she rammed through the conversation.
"Uh, yeah… I did but…" What is Marisa-san doing? Wondered Youmu flatly.
"Hmph… Do you really like that woman's baking that much, Marisa-onee-chan…?" behind Marisa, Flandre had wandered up to her side. She looked irritated, though now her jealousy was devoid of bloodthirstiness. Indeed, Flandre was looking a little insecure…
"Ahaha~! Sorry, sorry~!" Marisa turned to her and apologised profusely, "Actually Flandre-chan, Marisa-onee-chan was on her way to the toilet when she got distracted by the delicious smells from here~! I-I'm such a glutton, aren't I~?" Marisa gave a hearty dose of self-deprecating laughter, "S-Sweets just make me so happy da ze! Aha… Ahahaha…!"
"Ah… I-Is that so…?" Flandre glanced between Youmu and Sakuya sadly, "I see… That's why Marisa-onee-chan was hugging Sakuya like that... Hey, Kogasa-chan," she turned to her near lifeless Kogasa like an upset girl to a worn teddy bear, "Sakuya's dessert must have been so delicious, Marisa-onee-chan could not contain her emotions…" she shed a disheartened tear, "Marisa-onee-chan -hic- just loves women that can cook, doesn't she? And Flandre… sob… Flandre can't please her…!" she began weeping in earnest.
How do you make such a connection!? Mentally gagged Sakuya and Youmu.
When am I going to be let free…? Kogasa cried on the inside.
Marisa, seeing Flandre cry, could not help but feel sorry for the little vampire. This might be going against my better instinct, but… "Hey um… Flandre-chan?" Marisa laid a concerned hand upon Flandre's shoulder, startling her, "I uh… I'm no good at making sweets either so… I-If you want, why don't we learn how to do them together ze?" she suggested kindly.
Everyone else's jaws dropped. Just who does Marisa think she's courting!?
"Huh…? To… ge… ther~?" Flandre looked up voraciously.
Regret was hitting Marisa so hard right now. "Ah…! O-On second thought, why don't we just-" But there would be no recourse for Marisa… Her actions must be met with consequence!
"Haah…! Yes, Marisa-onee-chan!" Flandre flung herself around Marisa with all the love in the world, "F-F-Flandre's not really good at this kind of thing, b-but Flandre will try her best for you!" she cried out as she and Marisa twirled about the spot, Kogasa orbiting around them by the arm.
"T-That's great, Flandre-chan…!" Marisa felt sick.
"Save me…" Kogasa was going to sick.
Flandre spun herself into Marisa's arms as she embraced the witch's side affectionately, "Sakuya!" she stared down her maid with determined eyes, "I don't know how good a dessert you made that made Marisa-onee-chan so happy she'd want to plant her head between your breasts, but I'm going to beat that!" she declared, "And then Marisa-onee-chan will want to plant her head between my breasts!" fantasised the little vampire.
Yours are too small for that… noted Marisa uneasily. But obviously she could not say it out loud…
"… Hmph…! Challenge accepted, Flandre-ojou-sama…" Sakuya responded, honestly happy about it. This is a much better resolution than having to fight Flandre-ojou-sama, and she'll get to learn new things at the same time too… "Youmu-san? Would you mind announcing the start of our baking challenge then?" she asked Youmu.
… How did it come to this…? Deadpanned Youmu, but she did as asked anyway.
"Um… then… L-Let the 'Scarlet Devil Mansion Bake-Off' begin!" she awkwardly declared.
Chapter End
Youmu: And hang on a minute! This chapter wasn't about me at all!
