A Shadow over Gensokyo Part 3
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The inside of the shop was a disaster, just as Reimu expected of anywhere her Blonde friend was a constant visitor of, and sighed to herself, holding her forehead as she took in the damage.
several expensive-looking devices littered the floor, some in pieces, others luckily intact, though one was smoking dangerously. Up against a wall were several sharp items, thankfully untouched, but one was bent at a strange angle. Reimu doubted that was caused by her friend, though she didn't rule it out.
Standing in the middle of the shop, looking rather proud of herself was Marisa, along with Letty and Cirno, the older girl keeping a tight grip on both girl's hands to prevent any further damage, while a white-haired man wandered around the room, casually cleaning.
"Oh God Rinnosuke-san, I am so sorry for my friend," Reimu announced, causing all eyes to turn to her in surprise, "I can't let that girl go anywhere without causing a mess."
"Hey!" Marisa cried, but was silenced by a look from Letty.
"Relax Hakurei-San, it's fine," The shopkeeper replied, waving off the girl's concern, "I'm used to dealing with Marisa, and most of these things are relatively inexpensive to repair. I keep all of the most important and breakable items in the back, for just such an occasion."
"Oh thank god," Reimu sighed, while Cirno began to laugh. Youmu stepped forward while her friend was occupied, and caught the attention of the shopkeeper, gesturing for him to come with her, and leading him over to a corner of the room while Reimu approached her friends, leaving the business to the younger but more experienced girl, "So what happened to waiting for me?"
"I apologize Reimu-Chan, but Marisa-Chan was becoming impatient, and it rubbed off on Cirno-Imouto, so we decided to continue up the street without you, figuring that you would simply catch up when your business was concluded," Letty explained.
"Yeah, you have any idea how boring it is to stand out there, doing nothing?" Marisa asked, "since Kourin's place is just down the street, we figured it was fine."
"I should be insulted that you couldn't wait five minutes for me," "Hah, as if we waited that long," "Quiet Marisa-Chan," "But really, I've come to expect this from you Marisa," Reimu said with a sigh.
"Hey, don't be acting like you know me so well, I still have a few secrets up my sleeves," Marisa shouted back indignantly.
"I don't want to know about the secrets in your sleeves," Reimu replied, "who knows what horrible things you have packed away in there." Cirno began laughing again at that comment, while Marisa squawked indignantly.
"You trying to pick a fight with me, Reimu?" Marisa asked, pulling her hand away from Letty, and glaring up at her taller friend. Reimu simply smiled down at the girl, and slurred out "Maybe."
Marisa most likely would have jumped at the girl, if Youmu's phone hadn't suddenly gone off, causing everyone's eyes to snap over to the girl, and making Reimu's blood run cold.
"Hey, how did the sun go down so fast?" Cirno suddenly asked, "We couldn't have been in here all that long."
Turning to look, Reimu was startled to see the windows blacked out, almost like it was night time, except for the lack of moonlight bathing the street. Everything was simply pitch black.
"Youmu-chan?" Reimu said, her voice cracking at the end from her nerves.
"Morichika-san, might I suggest you show Letty-san, Marisa-san, and Cirno-san to the back," The younger girl suggested.
"Good idea," The man agreed, and hurried over to the other girls, "C'mon Marisa, I know you've been dying to see the back room, just promise not to touch anything."
"Sure, sure," The blonde replied, though Reimu could see the girl had her fingers crossed behind her back. Sighing in obvious understanding of the girl's lack of sincerity, the tall man gestured for them to follow, until Letty turned back to the two girls.
"Are you two coming?" Letty asked the pair, but received twin head shakes.
"No, we are going to look around out here a bit more," Reimu lied, "I have a feeling what I was hoping to find might be closer than we thought."
"Yes, and I also have something I've been looking for here," Youmu added.
Letty looked ready to begin arguing, but instead shrugged and followed after her sister and troublemaking best friend, leaving the Tenshi partners.
"I think I might know who the Youkai is that's causing this strange darkness," Reimu announced, but was stopped as Youmu replied, "It's Rumia-chan," Flatly.
"Kourin tell you that?" Reimu asked, and received a nod.
"I explained to him about that story you found in the book, and about the girl coming away without any injuries the other day, and he had some ideas. He also claimed to have seen a strange blonde girl stumbling down the street with her arms stretched out, looking quite sickly."
"I also heard from Cirno-chan that she came to school yesterday looking sick, and I thought I'd seen her after school along with a withered tree," Reimu added, "What do you think?"
"She has a powerful Youkai heritage, her powers awoke unexpectedly, and she is unable to control them," Youmu summarized.
"Think we can beat her?"
"I do not know."
"Well no point in waiting to find out!" Reimu cried, pulling out her spell card and releasing her powers. Youmu copied the motion, and the two girls hurried outside.
Everything around them was darkness. Except for the light coming out through the window of Kourindou, the rest of the street was endless shadow, as far as the eye could see (not far), and standing in the middle of the street was their target.
Rumia stood with her arms stretched out to her sides, and her head hanging down, though Reimu thought she could see a single red eye glowing beneath her bangs, and a pair of sharp claws at the end of each finger, which made her nervous.
"Rumia-chan," Reimu began, hoping it possible to diffuse the situation, "If you can hear me it's going to be okay. Just return the sunlight, and we'll take you to someone who can help you."
Both girls shivered as the girl spoke to them, "is that so?"
"I-I don't think she's listening Reimu-chan," Youmu said with a gulp, reaching up to grab the handle of her sword.
Unfortunately the silver-haired girl didn't get the chance to grab her blade, as Rumia rushed the Samurai, and sent her flying with a single attack, Youmu disappearing from view into the darkness, and making Reimu swallow nervously.
"Well Crap..." The girl muttered, as she stood ready to face off with the crazy girl. Rumia didn't give her much of a chance, launching herself at the shrine maiden and going for a horizontal swipe of her sharp claws, which Reimu knew she did not want to meet the end of.
Ducking underneath the attack, Reimu launched a handful of Ofuda at point blank range into the small girls stomach, thankfully causing her to stagger backwards, and giving Reimu some breathing room.
"Rumia, I really don't want to hurt you, since you're friends with Cirno-chan, please don't make me do this to you," Reimu pleaded, though she summoned three Yin-Yang orbs in case her pleas fell on deaf ears.
"Is that so?" The girl asked, and charged again, throwing Reimu on the defensive as she tried her best to dodge all of the girls attacks.
Thankfully the girl's amazing intuition managed to help her dodge most of the berserker swipes from the Youkai, and Reimu managed to find enough focus to detonate one of her Yin-Yang orbs in the blonde's face, blinding both girls momentarily, and getting a pained cry from Rumia.
Attempting to jump away from the melee fighter while Rumia was blinded, Reimu shouted as pain blossomed in her torso, as sharp claws shredded through her clothing and skin like paper, and drew first blood.
Stumbling as she landed, Reimu gasped as she brought a hand down to her stomach, and was thankful to find the wound was fairly shallow, weeping out blood, but not any real threat for the moment. This also proved a valuable lesson: She needed to be more careful with this Youkai.
Thankfully Youmu seemed to be back in the fight, as she charged out of the darkness, and engaged the Shadow Youkai in close-quarter-combat, managing to hold her own for the moment.
"Be careful Youmu-chan, those claws aren't just for show!" Reimu warned, trying to catch her breath and rethink her attacks now that her partner was back in the fight.
"As I learned Reimu-sempai," Youmu replied, and Reimu noticed the younger girl's arm was bleeding.
Tossing out three handfuls of Ofuda at the creature to try and slow it down, Reimu was pleased when two found their marks, and stunned Rumia long enough for Youmu to get in a few strikes, drawing blood.
This seemed to do little to slow down the Shadow Youkai, who suddenly vanished into the darkness that surrounded the pair, and caused the hair on the back of the girls necks to stand up.
Rejoining her sempai, Youmu caught her breath as they waited for Rumia to make a move, until Reimu got an idea.
"I'm not sure how many I can summon, but let's try this," Reimu announced, before closing her eyes for focus, and summoning five Yin-Yang orbs, which circled the pair of girls slowly. Turning to her partner, Reimu warned, "You might want to close your eyes, getting these point blank hurts."
Youmu took the advise to heart, and shut her eyes tightly, just as Reimu closed her fist, igniting all five orbs, and shrouding the pair in a dome of light. A loud screech alerted the girl to a successful attack, and Reimu smirked.
That is, until a long claw came flying at her, and Reimu was just barely able to dodge, though she was punished by a grazing strike to her leg that made her stumble. "D-damnit."
"This is not going well," Youmu said, "should we call in back-up?"
"N-not yet, we've at least been able to injure and slow her down, so maybe we aren't nearly as outmatched as we'd thought," Reimu gasped out.
"If we do intend to incapacitate her, then we will need to come up with a plan," Youmu warned.
"I may have one, but I need a moment," Reimu replied, and received a nod from her partner.
"Is that so?" Both girls gasped as Rumia appeared between them, and barely managed to dodge her claws, unfortunately this forced distance between them, and with Reimu injured, the Youkai's instincts sent Rumia after her first.
Forced back into dodging, Reimu was thankful for her reflexes yet again, which helped her keep away from the claws, even with her injured leg, though she knew that she wouldn't last long at this.
Youmu to the rescue once again, flying in with a downward strike that knocked away the younger girl, and making her stumble, though Youmu also appeared off-balance.
"Can I have a spell-card?" Reimu asked, and Youmu quickly handed over a blank card. Looking down at it a moment, Reimu basked in the thought of just how much power such a small card could hold, and a plan quickly came to mind, something she had read as she skimmed the pages of the book she'd borrowed from Suzunaan.
"I think that I can seal away her powers into a spell-card, I just need to be able to get in close enough without her cutting me down," Reimu announced. Youmu didn't look all that convinced at the thought of her partner putting herself in danger.
"I don't know about this Reimu-Sempai, you are already wounded," The girl warned honestly, but Reimu shook her head.
"All I need is for you to keep her focus, and give me the chance to prepare, okay Youmu-chan?" Reimu asked, giving the girl a smile for incentive, that made her kouhai's cheeks flare.
"H-hai..." Youmu stuttered, reaching down and drawing her short sword, as her Ghostly familiar began to circle around her.
Jumping in to re-engage the younger girl, Youmu fought with a new burst of ferocity, parrying and countering every swipe Rumia attempted, and slowly pushing back the girl, showing her true skills with a blade before Reimu's eyes.
Snapping out of her gawking, Reimu began to focus on the spell-card, and also summoned four Yin-Yang orbs to circle her head as a backup, just in case she needed a quick retreat or a stunner, and waited for the right moment.
Finally she saw it, as Youmu parried one of the girl's attacks and staggered the blonde, and Reimu charged in as fast as she could manage. Youmu spotted the girl out of the corner of her eye, and jumped out of the way, moving to Rumia's other side and pushing forward with her advantage, trying to move her closer to the shrine maiden.
Rumia didn't see as Reimu approached her, and continued trying to fight with Youmu, and was thus startled when Reimu slammed the spell-card to the back of her head, which began to glow with a bright light, blinding all three girls once more.
Trying to blink spots from her eyes, Reimu took in what had happened, and her heart dropped into her stomach. "Oh..."
Surrounding Rumia was an orb of darkness, pure black, pulsing ferociously like a heart, and both girls noticed the wind picking up around them dangerously, almost as if they were standing in a tornado.
Youmu jumped to her side and regarded the situation, "The spell-card doesn't seem to be taking effect, like she is fighting it's sealing powers."
"Yeah, and it looks like her powers are going out of control," Reimu added flatly, groaning.
A sudden blast of wind almost knocked the pair off of their feet, but they managed to regain their balance, and began to think of a new plan.
"C'mon Youmu-chan, one final attack," Reimu stated, summoning a pair of Yin-Yang orbs, and ofuda in both hands.
"If we can overwhelm her barrier, and interrupt her focus, we should be able to give the spell card time to activate," Youmu realized, and readied her weapons.
Both girls took the unneeded signal, and jumped at the barrier, Reimu getting the opening strike by launching a single Yin-Yang orb at the shield, but frowning as it bounced off harmlessly.
Youmu's swords had no more effect, none of her strikes even doing more than making the young girl within flinch slightly.
The wind picked up again, and this time both girls were all but launched off of their feet, Groaning as they hit the ground, and Reimu crying out in pain as her ankle bent unnaturally.
"W-we need to get that barrier down now, before this wind gets any worse, or we're going to start seeing property damage," Reimu said, having to shout to be heard over the roaring wind.
"I cannot believe you can still joke like this Reimu-chan," Youmu replied, but nodded, charging in once more, while Reimu launched three Yin-Yang orb from a distance, which all bounced off of the barrier.
"Youmu, close your eyes!" Reimu warned, before detonating the three orbs, the swordswoman barely given enough time to avoid the flash.
This had slightly more effect, as the barrier rippled from the point of impact, and Youmu, with her trained eye, took the advantage.
thrusting forward with her blade, Youmu was rewarded as she pierced the barrier at last, and it shattered around the Youkai girl.
Attempting to slash at the intruder, Rumia's claws were bathed in pure darkness, while Youmu went for a stunning blow, hoping her speed was faster than the darkness Youkai.
Feeling the claws dig into her shoulder, Youmu bit back her cry of pain, but pushed on regardless, and smacked the Youkai over the head with the broad side of her sword, hard enough to break her concentration.
A burst of bright light flashed in front of the pair, and Youmu jumped away as all of the darkness suddenly retracted around them, being sucked back towards it's creator, and up into the card that floated over her head.
Youmu panted as she held her bleeding shoulder, and watched until the last of the night slipped inside of the card, before it blinked white twice, and turned into a small white orb.
The two girls watched in surprise as the orb spun around the blonde-haired girl's head, before it settled among her hair, and shifted form again, turning into a small red bow. The young girl immediately fell to the ground, unconscious.
"H-ha..." Reimu gasped, "We managed to beat a 10,000 year old Youkai," She was grinning stupidly over at her partner.
"H-Hai," Youmu replied, before both girls fell over, out cold as well.
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When she came to, Reimu was surprised to find herself in a room not her own, instead of out on the street where she last recalled being. She checked and was thankful to find herself back in her street clothes, her spell card safely tucked away in her pocket.
Taking a quick look around, she finally noticed Youmu beside her, cuddling up against her side with a small smile, also back in her street clothes, with her Kendo sword laying up next to the bed. Reimu didn't have the heart to disturb the girl, and instead wrapped her arm around her comfortingly before laying back down.
She planned to try and get more sleep, as her sleep-addled brain didn't ask where she actually was, until a familiar Fox-Youkai stepped into the room, startling her into complete consciousness and making her sit upright suddenly.
This unfortunately roused Youmu, who began to rub her eye adorably as she looked around, "Reimu-sempai, what's up?"
"Reimu-san, Youmu-san, it's good to see that you are both mostly well," The elderly Youkai greeted, gaining Youmu's attention and making her sit upright as well.
"Hello Ran-sama," Both girls were quick to say now that their superior had their full attention.
"Yukari-sama wishes to forward her congratulations on defeating such a powerful Youkai without any backup, but also would like me to remind you both not to take such risks in the future," The Fox stated, making both girls blush, "You are very lucky that Rumia-san was in a weakened state from fighting off the bloodlust of her Youkai heritage."
"Sorry Ran-sama, we should have immediately alerted a superior when we engaged Rumia-san," Youmu was quick to apologize, but Ran shook her head.
"You both did the right thing, since Rumia-san's powers were quickly going out of control, and she could have easily gone on another rampage and killed everyone in the shopping district, including your friends," Ran stated bluntly, causing Reimu to freeze up, "As it stands, you still put very many people in danger with your recklessness, and I do hope that this will not occur in the future."
"Hai!" Both girls cried, before Reimu remembered something, "What happened to Rumia-chan?"
Finally the rough Youkai's visage broke into a small smile, and Ran tilted her head, "While Rinnosuke-san took care of you, Kamishirasawa-sensei and Kazami-sensei retrieved the new darkness Youkai, and have brought her to the school. her wounds will be taken care of, and she will then be paired up with a senior Tenshi, to have her powers trained."
"Trained?" Reimu asked, "I thought that Youkai were either terminated or bound?"
"Yes, usually," Ran said, with a hint of annoyance, "But in this case someone got the bright idea to use a spell card to bind the girl's power, so she now operates under the rules of the Tenshi, and will be trained as one."
Reimu had the sense to look sheepish, until Ran smiled again, "It was a good plan, to be honest girls, We have never considered using a spell card to seal a Youkai's power before, and this opens up a whole new method of dealing with Youkai for the future, as well as expanding our own ranks."
"Do you believe it will work for every Youkai though?" Reimu asked curiously, and was disheartened as Ran shook her head, "Doubtful, Rumia-San was a very special case, even with her massive abilities, her powers were still very freshly awakened so there was a window of opportunity to bind her powers. It will not work for mature Youkai, as many of them have already passed that window."
Reimu's shoulders slumped slightly, but she did have to feel a little happy that they had discovered a way to help some Youkai. She might have ruthlessly killed that Vampire, but it was obvious he had no intent of being redeemed.
"What about Reimu-sempai's friends?" Youmu suddenly asked, "I know that Rinnosuke-san was entertaining them, but if he had come to collect us, then where are they?"
"Do not worry, we have that matter covered, though I will warn you that Kirisame-san will be slightly indignant the next time you see her," Ran stated mysteriously, "With your debriefing, I will bid the both of you good night," The Blonde Youkai bowed to the pair, before leaving the room, gently closing the door behind her.
Reimu fell back onto the mattress with a sigh of relief once Ran was gone, "Whew, quite the day, eh Youmu-chan?"
"Yes, I cannot believe we managed to defeat such an ancient Youkai through sheer luck, and also saved Rumia-chan, but I am happy we didn't have to take her life," Youmu admitted, laying down with her sempai.
Reimu yawned and stretched her arms up, before grabbing the younger girl and pulling her into a one-armed hug, "Think Morichika-san would mind us bunking here for the night?"
"Perhaps we ought to ask him before..." Youmu stopped as she realized her partner had already fallen asleep, breathing slowly as she half-cuddled with her kouhai.
Blushing at the closeness, Youmu sighed in mock annoyance, before pulling her sempai close enough to complete the cuddle, and closing her eyes, muttered into the girl's shoulder, "Good night Reimu-chan."
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A Shadow over Gensokyo complete
Any feedback regarding the first real battle of this series, and what could be changed to improve the experience for the readers would be incredibly appreciated.
Stay tuned for Chapter 11