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Chapter 10: Emotions

Two young witches sat about opposite each other about a large, heavy reading table, the surrounded by the vast dimness that was the Scarlet Devil Mansion's library and its silence. Nothing stirred save for the regular flipping of pages. Sakuya had taken leave. Remilia, surprisingly considerate, had left them alone. Koakuma knew not to disturb when guests were being entertained, and had retreated far away to her work in a distant corner of the library.

Nothing stirred. Except the hand of Alice Margatroid, flipping pages she was looking at but not reading. Except Patchouli Knowledge, hand completely still upon her unread book, heart thumping hard in her chest.

S-Suddenly… The opportunity I had been looking for… Wh-Why so suddenly? ! Patchouli was screaming mentally in her head. Me, alone with Alice…! No… Th-This is strange! This feeling is strange! ! I had never had a problem with being alone with Alice before…!

But… But then I wasn't in love with her either…

"Patchouli…?"

"Hii! !" Patchouli let out a squeal of surprise, made the mistake of looking at the doll-like girl before her straight in her pretty green eyes, and clamped her mouth more to prevent her heart from leaping out than to stifle another squeal.

Alice's eyebrows furrowed. "Hmm… I knew something was off about you…"

"N-No! Nothing's off-"

"It is!" Alice got up and walked over to Patchouli's side. Laying a hand on Patchouli's forehead (It was all Patchouli could do to stop from Royal-Flaring), she asked concernedly, "Patchouli, are you unwell?"

"Ah… Aha… No… I'm fine, really," Patchouli felt her anxiety melt away suddenly, and she smiled appreciatively as she gently pushed away Alice's hand. Alice… Alice is her same sweet, kind self. Heh… I really am such an idiot to be so uneasy…

But…

Alice grinned in response, but just as she was about to return to her seat, Patchouli stopped her by gripping on to her wrist.

"Eh? Patchouli-"

"But what about you?" Patchouli inquired, "Are you troubled by something?"

"A-Alice…?"

"I-I'm sorry for intruding on you so suddenly like this… Mind if I stay here and do some reading for awhile…?"

"…"

"You didn't even bring your dolls with you."

"I- Patchouli… Patchouli, I'm fine."

"Alice, please, if there is anything, you can tell me-"

"Patchouli, I said I'm fine," Alice quickly snapped her wrist back from Patchouli's grip, "Really, don't worry about me," she added with an apologetic look as she returned to her seat.

Patchouli studied Alice's expression for a little longer while Alice was painfully obviously trying to avert her eyes. After awhile, Patchouli sighed. It seems like I'm not as close to her as I would like to be… "Alright… I won't probe if you don't want me to… but… I-I'm here, just so you know…" Patchouli offered, before retreating to her book. Not that she could really read it, what with her mind troubled by the issue of what was troubling Alice…

Unbeknownst to Patchouli, Alice was watching her curiously, almost (Patchouli would have fainted if she knew) longingly. She had so many things that she wanted to confide to… to someone…! And it was certain that she had come here hoping that her good friend Patchouli could be that someone… But…

"H-Hey… Patchouli…?"

Patchouli looked up expectedly. "What is it?" she asked Alice, who had apparently returned to reading her book.

Flipping a page as nonchalantly as she could, Alice said, "… I've heard some pretty… interesting going-ons in Gensokyo recently…" Alice nearly kicked herself. 'Going-ons'…? Is that how I'm choosing to describe what happened…?

Urk... It's obvious this is what's troubling you, Alice… Patchouli sighed mentally, but decided for the sake of the dear girl to play along, "Really? What's happened then?" she asked conversationally.

"Erm… Word is…" 'Word is'…? "Word is that Marisa…"

Alice's tongue got caught on itself. Patchouli's thoughts froze. Why is she bringing up Marisa…?

"Word is that Marisa has a crush on someone, did you know that? Giggle… Imagine that! Our silly Marisa, actually capable of being a maiden!" Alice was bludgeoning herself in the heart over and over with each giggle she gave. Wh-Why am I telling all these lies…? !

"And who does she have a crush on?" Patchouli asked coolly. Alice met Patchouli's brilliantly violet eyes and gasped. She could feel her façade slowly melt underneath their glare…

"W-Well… You wouldn't have won anything even if you guessed it… Haha…" Alice made one last ditch attempt at passing this off as gossip, "It's no surprise, seeing how they've been together for so long…"

"… Who?"

"… I-It really is no surprise-"

"Who?"

"… Reimu…" Alice could hardly stand to look up, "It's Reimu…"

"… And how do you feel about it, Alice?"

Alice's head sank lower. "H-" Oh… My throat's dry… "H-How do I f-feel about this…?" she said in a quivering voice, not that she was aware of it, "I… I…!" Alice looked up with a determinedly forced smile, "It's about Marisa, Patchouli… It's about my good friend… And she's found love, so I'm happy she's happy-"

"Then why are you crying? !"

"Haa…!" tears flowed past the corners of her smile, following in the streams made by those long left upon Alice's face ever since she first started talking about Marisa. She just did not know…

"You've been crying this whole time! !"

…That she had been crying.

"Alice…" Patchouli was still on her feet after having first yelled at Alice, "You like her, don't you?" she confronted shakily, "It's painfully obvious-"

"What… What are you so angry about-"

"Alice! I'm… I'm angry because of what you've chosen to do!" Patchouli said exasperatedly.

"What… What I've chosen to do? Patchouli what do you-"

"Alice…! You… You plan on supporting her, don't you? !" Patchouli grew more agitated, "You plan on supporting Marisa…"

A moment of silence. "Yes…" Alice admitted after awhile, "Yes, I plan to support her-"

"Even though you like her yourself? Despite that, you'll push yourself away-"

"You weren't there, Patchouli!" now Alice was standing eye to eye with the purple clad magician, looking just as furious, "You didn't see how pure Marisa's love for Reimu was! I… I've never seen Marisa so happy, or so loving in my life! I… What are you so worked up about anyway? !" Alice accused Patchouli, "This doesn't concern you!" she threw a low one.

And immediately regretted it.

"… Doesn't concern? ! … D-" Patchouli looked down, mumbling to herself.

"Patchouli… Patchouli I'm sorry…" Alice began shakily, "Patchouli, I'm sorry… I'm sorry! You're my friend, and I…"

"I… I don't mind…" Patchouli murmured.

"P-Patchouli…?"

"Because I love you," Patchouli looked up, smiling sadly.

Time froze.

"L-Lov- P-Patchouli…? !"

"That's right… I really like you, Alice…" Patchouli let out a sigh, as if a great weight had been removed from her chest with the confession.

"And that's why I don't like the sight of you tormenting yourself like that! !" she glared seriously at her crush.

Alice remained wordlessly seated in her chair, her flushed face, partially hidden by her bangs, a conflict of emotions.

"I don't get it… You like Marisa so much, so why do this to yourself? !" Patchouli gritted her teeth.

A giggle.

"H-Huh…? A-Alice! I'm being serious-"

"Haha… Isn't that what you're doing?" Alice looked up at Patchouli with an embarrassed grin.

"Eh…?"

"No… It's not… You're worse…" Alice could only bite down on the silly smile on her face, "You just confessed to me, yet immediately you're rooting for me to be with Marisa… Haha… Who does that…?" Alice's hands tightened on her skirt, her head dipping between her shoulders as she felt her face become more heated with embarrassment.

Patchouli stood before Alice, suddenly aware of her own mistaken actions, "I… I… Th-That's because I…!"

"But I'm glad you feel the same way I do…" Alice peeked at Patchouli sheepishly through the fringe of her golden hair.

Patchouli reeled backwards, momentarily unarmed, but quickly regained her posture, "But! But you won't be happy!"

"And you?" Alice shot straight through Patchouli's heart.

Patchouli sat back down. Flustered, frustrated and unable to properly word her emotions, her hands instinctively reached for her shield that was her book, and she began to read the contents of the content page in earnest, as if studying it was the most important thing she had ever done. Alice's eyes lingered on Patchouli for awhile, and a small, guilty smile adorning her lips, before she too returned to her books.

Silence ensued, and at a glance from a distance, it would seem to an observer that the two were merely sharing a reading table like always, with no evidence of anything having happened in the last few moments.

"You know… I'm really am glad you told me all that, that you didn't keep it to yourself…" Alice remarked serenely a few minutes later, a finger aimlessly tracing about on the page she was on.

"Oh…?" Patchouli's cheeks tinted red, but she too otherwise remained casual.

"I'd have never had the courage to confess my true feelings like that…" Oh…! That silly grin of mine just won't go away…!

Patchouli's eyes looked up, "What really happened, Alice?"

"I didn't hear about Marisa's crush on Reimu, I…" Alice returned Patchouli's gaze for a bit before glancing away.

"… I saw it."

Patchouli's lips parted slightly, "Was she…"

"It was mutual," Alice now had her cheek propped on an arm, her gaze directed at the library walls and far beyond it. Catching sight of Patchouli's difficult expression from the corner of her eye, Alice turned back to her with a chuckle, "Sigh… Oh, I thought it was the sweetest thing I had seen in awhile…"

Patchouli shook her head with a sigh of her own, "… Alice…"

"Yukari tried to interfere though," added Alice.

Patchouli startled a little, "What…? !" What is with this sort of development…?

"They stood up against her," Alice reclined back into her seat, with her eyes closed, "Haa… I swear… You just came out with your feelings like that, and Marisa just crossed words with that Gap Youkai… Everyone seems to have the courage to do their own thing…"

"… Alice…" a small smile sprouted. "Heh… So you would prefer it to be you next to Marisa instead of Reimu, right?" Patchouli grinned knowingly.

Alice's eyes widened before she looked away, pouting, "And what of it…? You say you want me to seek Marisa for my happiness, but you would prefer me to choose you, right?"

"Yup," came Patchouli's straightforward answer. A second later her poker face was smashed to bits, "Oh I can't believe just how much of my feelings I've shared with you!" she exclaimed as she had her burning face buried within her hands, "If Remi sees this, I'm so dead…! !"

"Y-Yeah… I never expected that we can be so calm, talking about things like this…" Alice scratched her cheek sheepishly, "So… Why do you like me?" Alice leaned forward, smiling.

"Hii…! W-Well… You're pretty, and you're kind and gentle, and composed and refined and…" Patchouli's murmurings grew less and less audible as her embarrassment grew more and more.

"Hmm… Why is 'pretty' the first trait that comes to mind?" Alice raised an eyebrow, "Not that I'm displeased about it," she giggled as Patchouli gave another yip.

"Hmph! So what about you? Why Marisa?" Patchouli asked in retaliation.

"… She's an interesting character," Alice's other cheek was now propped on her other arm in thought, "She's loud and reckless and silly, but she's bright and cheery and surprisingly caring… Ah… Just hear me go on like this…!" Alice looked away awkwardly, "And to think that just yesterday, I thought of her as nothing but a good friend…"

Patchouli startled, "J-Just yesterday? !"

"Aha… Yeah, it's rather sudden, isn't it…?" Alice shrugged her shoulders, blushing, "Oh, I'm so confused...!"

"N-No…! I… I only started having feelings for you recently too so… so I know how that feels…" Patchouli admitted, red faced as well. The two glanced at each other before quickly turning away, the awkwardness between them becoming unbearable.

"… Ah!"

…! The two young magicians looked up, and their jaws hit the table. Up there, close to the ceiling, next to an open window, fighting to regain her balance on a broom was without a doubt…

"M-Marisa…? !" "Marisa…"

"I… Um… H-Hey guys…"

… Was one very, very shocked looking Kirisame Marisa.

Chapter End