Youmu was almost ready to leave; just a few more things were needed. Her own traveling bag was ready, but she wasn't entirely sure what Shannon and Chelsea would need. As a half-phantom, Youmu didn't need much food, but what about her two students? After a few minutes of thought, she simply decided to take the "Yuyuko" approach to the problem: Bringing far more food than they could ever need, because they will probably need it anyway. Her ghost half, Myon, was floating around collecting things they would need, so Youmu decided to take a short break and check on her students. Last she saw them, they were talking to Yuyuko. She walked back to the room she left them in, and saw that they were still doing that, but now Yuyuko was insisting on offering them food. "The way I see it, you need all the food you can get for your trip!"

"But I want to see the concert!"

"Oh, you're staying for the concert? Well, I guess you won't need this pork bun, then!" She promptly snatched the buns out of Chelsea's hands and swallowed them whole, while Shannon wisely backed away, knowing her food would be the next target. "Although, I'm not sure it would be a good idea for you to be there, you'll make the ghosts nervous. And of course, then there's the Prismriver's music. You noticed how it affected you, right? It's better if you're not there, and then there will be more food…" Her attention suddenly veered to the table next to her, and she started eating. Occasionally Chelri would fly over and try snatch something from her, grinning the whole time. Youmu walked into the room, getting their attention.

"Lady Yuyuko is right, Chelsea. It would be best if you didn't stay for the concert. Also, Lady Yuyuko, we are going to need those meat buns for the trip, so don't eat them." Yuyuko looked at Youmu, giving her best impression of a wounded puppy. "…alright, you can eat one more." Youmu shook herself. "Anyway, are you three ready?" Chelsea and Shannon nodded, while Chelri stopped dive-bombing Yuyuko's dinner to pay attention. "Then we will be leaving now."

Mystia finished her meal and laid down in her nest, content. "So, I'm sure you're feeling pretty good now, huh?"

Mystia, half-asleep by this point, just murmured,

"Yeah…"

"But you know, fairies aren't all that satisfying in the long run. But there is far tastier prey out there… like humans, for instance."

Mystia's eyes flew open.

"Humans? I can't eat those!"

"Yeah, I know, that shrine maiden Reimu tends to frown on that for some reason. So as delicious as they are, we youkai have to put humans off the menu. But… consider this. What if she wasn't around anymore? Then we could do whatever we want, right? What do you think of that?" The wisp floated over to Mystia's ear, as though it wanted to confide some dark secret. "I intend to create an army to destroy Reimu, and bring Gensokyo back to normal, where youkai can run free and do what they please. All I need is a few more volunteers, and my plan can begin. I know for a fact that Reimu has absolutely horrible night vision… your powers will make things much easier. What do you say, Mystia? Care to join me?"

Mystia floated up into the air, looking annoyed.

"No! It's not that I can't eat humans, I just don't want to!"

"Ok, who are you, and what did you do to the real Mystia Lorelei? I have seen you before, and you are definitely the human-eating sort of youkai. Granted, you seem to have some trouble telling humans and youkai apart, but you're young, you'll learn. Maybe you just think you don't want to eat humans. After all, they are hard to get, so giving up on it makes sense. But really think here. With Reimu out of the way, nothing will stop you."

"Don't you get it? I really don't want to! I've changed!"

"…Is that so? And tell me, what changed your mind?"

"Well, I met this boy…"

"Ugh, I see where this is going… you bumped into a stupid human boy and fell in love, I'm guessing."

"No! He's a youkai!"

"Really? What kind?"

"I don't know, actually… I just know he's one of Yukari's Shikigami." "What? Ah, you mean that boy, Andy… what did he tell you?"

"He told me why eating humans is a bad thing! He showed me all sorts of other things I can eat that won't try to kill me! If I started chasing humans again, he'd be so disappointed in me… he's my best friend, and I'm not going to betray him like that!"

"Best friend, sure… come now, wouldn't it be nice to go see him, have a nice dinner, don't tell him it's human, of course, and he'll be delighted with how well you made it. No betrayal, just wonderful food, and a romantic evening for the two of you. That can be yours, and all you have to do is help me!" Seeing Mystia's defiant expression, the wisp sighed. "I see your mind is made up… Honestly, if he keeps causing problems like this… no, a silly, weak human like him isn't worth the effort of killing. Of course, he'll get what's coming to him, in the end."

What are you talking about? Andy isn't human. And what do you mean, 'get what's coming to him'?"

"Just keep telling yourself that… as for what I meant, don't worry, I'm not going to hurt him… much." The wisp disappeared, and Mystia flew off, panicking.

"If this person is trying to hurt Andy, then I have to warn him! And Reimu, too… " With that in mind, she flew off to the Hakurei Shrine.

Another wisp appeared in a field of purple flowers, chuckling to herself. "Oh, Mystia, you poor girl. Even if you're not working for me, I still have a use for you. Go on, tell Reimu I'm coming, no need for it to be a surprise… now then, this doll youkai should be here somewhere…"As she floated through the fields, a purple mist slowly filled the air. "Ah, she knows I'm here. Poison won't work on me, Medicine! I want to talk with you!"

A small girl walked out of the poison flowers, staring at the wisp warily. A tiny doll accompanied her, floating next to her head.

"Who are you? Miss Lily should have paralyzed you by now."

"Your poisons don't work on me because I'm a spirit, there's nothing in me to poison. As for who I am, I've come here to offer you something, Medicine. You see, I intend to kill the Hakurei shrine maiden and conquer Gensokyo. Oh, and probably wipe out the humans, too."

"I'm listening."

"Good. Now Medi- can I call you Medi? Your poison would be very helpful to my plan. What do you say?"

"So I get to kill humans?"

"Yes."

"Then it sounds like a good plan to me! And then the doll liberation will begin!"

"Excellent. When the time comes to strike, I'll let you know." The wisp vanished, and Medicine turned her attention back to her beloved flowers.

"Did you hear that, Miss Lily? Soon we'll be stronger than ever, and humans will know our power! Oh, I can't wait!"

The white-haired celestial stared at Tenshi's mother, trying to understand the situation. "So, what you're saying is that this spirit has your daughter hostage, and wants us to surrender to her and establish this fairy ally of hers as our queen?"

Lady Hinanawi nodded.

"Yes, that seems to be the case." The white-haired one nodded in understanding, and all the other celestials started muttering to themselves. Hundreds were here, and this was only a fraction of the celestials themselves, but these were the only ones Lady Hinanawi could find that would listen. "I'm of the opinion that we should give in to their demands."

"Yes, I agree… Tenshi is your daughter, and one of our own. She has caused trouble in the past, but she's a nice enough girl… when she wants to be. What do the rest of you say?" The other celestials muttered to themselves for a minute, and then one of them stepped up to speak on their behalf.

"Although we do feel sorry about what happened to your daughter, we think it would be best not to give into these demands."

Lady Hinanawi, outraged, ran over to the celestial and grabbed him by his shirt.

"How can you say that? Tenshi has been kidnapped, and she could die if we don't give in to this spirit's demands!"

"Yes, and if it were anyone else, I would agree with you. But Tenshi isn't one of us. She didn't earn her place in Heaven. Like you and the rest of your family, she only made it because of your services in Gensokyo, controlling earthquakes. You didn't have to struggle and train to make it here! Besides, that girl has caused us enough trouble. I say we let the spirit take her."

"Oh really? You think that?" Everyone jumped at the sound of the wisp's voice. "No, you couldn't." She floated over to the celestial, as though to look him in the eye. "Surely you wouldn't abandon one of your own kind. Can you really condemn this innocent girl to death? Oh, don't tell me that, tell it to her." The wisp glowed and widened into a circle shape, showing Tenshi inside. She seemed to be talking with someone, but there was nothing else there but her keystone. Noticing everyone else, she looked at them, smiling.

"Mom, is that you?"

"Yes, it's her. And several other celestials, as well. I want you to focus on the one standing next to her with red hair. He just told me that he wouldn't give into my demands, that he would rather see you die. Well, I'll give him the benefit of the doubt. Maybe he was just trying to trick me or something. But that ends now. Boy, tell me again, would you really let me kill her? Think carefully, this may the last time you see her…" The celestial stared at Tenshi, and her at him. "I'm waiting…"

"You can kill her."

"Ha! I knew you'd come around my way of-" The wisp paused. "Did you just say… you'd really let her die? …Oh, I see what you're doing! You're trying to make me think she is a worthless hostage so I will give her back anyway. Well, your little bluff won't work."

"No, I meant it. I don't care if she dies."

"…I see. And they say I belong in Hell… Fine. If she really does mean nothing to you, then I hope you don't mind if I kill her slowly. I can control her every action, if I wanted to. Observe." Tenshi screamed as her hands moved of their own accord, grabbing her sword and pointing it at her own chest. Without hesitation, the sword plunged into her gut, coming out of her back. She gasped, briefly, and fell over. She was still breathing, but just barely. The celestials looked away, horrified. "The next slice will be through her head. So, I will ask again, and this will be the last time. Will you surrender?"

The celestial stared at Tenshi, and muttered,

"Yes. We surrender."

"Good, good. I assure you, Tenshi will be returned to Heaven perfectly safe… now then, I'll go tell that ice fairy the good news…"

The voice cut her connection with the celestials. "Well, that's part one…"

Tenshi tried to stand up.

"Are they gone?"

"Yes. I can't believe that one said he'd let me kill you… anyway, don't move much, I have to heal you. First, pull the sword out." Tenshi did, and gasped in pain as the blood started flowing out of her again. The voice's keystone glowed red, and the flow slowly stopped. The wound healed up, and leaving nothing behind except a hole in Tenshi's shirt. "Good, you're safe. Now, we'd better get the sword cleaned off…"Tenshi walked over to a nearby stream and put the sword in. After she pulled it out, there was still a red smear. Deciding that her dress was ruined anyway, Tenshi used it to remove the smear and dry off her sword.

"I have to admit, that was kind of fun! It was a nice prank, at least until you 'forced' me to stab myself."

"It had to be authentic, or that idiot boy wouldn't have cared. The bit about making you do it to yourself was rather brilliant, if you don't mind me saying. And you preformed your part very well."

"And that fairy won't really be running things, will she?"

"Technically, yes. But Cirno isn't smart enough or powerful enough to make them do anything. As long as it's just her up there, there won't be any problems. All I have to do is convince the other fairies to leave, make sure I'm on their good side, and all of Gensokyo's fairies will be working for me. Ah, I love it when a plan comes together…" The voice paused, considering something. "Tenshi… You can leave, if you want."

Tenshi blinked in confusion, wondering if she misheard.

"Huh?"

"Oh, I might need your help to oust Konngara, but after that… well, the coming battle will be pretty dangerous. My forces will storm the Hakurei Shrine, and we will either be victorious, or Reimu's going to seal us all away, maybe forever. If that's what happens, then I don't want you to suffer that as well. So I'm telling you that you should go home. I'm sure you won't have any problems getting rid of Cirno, if that's what you want."

"You… you just want me to go? No strings attached?"

"None. I understand why you wouldn't trust me, but I'm telling you the truth. You're one of the few people I've ever been absolutely truthful to. So, just go."

Tenshi shook her head.

"I think I'll stick around a bit longer, actually. I can tell you've been honest with me, and you've made things really interesting for me so far, so I think I'll stay."

"That's not a very good idea… this could be dangerous for you."

"Since when did you care about that? This isn't any more dangerous than going to Makai or talking with Flandre, is it? Oh, and speaking of Flandre… what did you intend to do to her?"

"To be honest, I had no idea. I sort of figured that if I kept her around long enough, she might warm up to me, you know? We could have been… friends, I suppose. But I didn't intend to control her forever, just until I didn't need her anymore, and then I'd let her go. It's not like she can kill me if she doesn't know where I am… but stop trying to change the subject. I don't think you should be in this fight."

"Well, if I have a choice in it, it doesn't matter what you think, does it? I'm staying, and if you're worried about my safety, then you should have thought of that before you dragged me into all this."

"…Fair enough. If that's what you want, I'm not going to argue about it. Care to tell me why you want to stay?"

"Well, I'd be lying if I said I hated this adventure of ours, and no matter what happens, it has to be better than staying in Heaven with all those other celestials. You saw what they're like. So, what do we do now?"

"Well… I suppose there's not much we can do right now, except… yeah, there's that oni hiding behind that building over there. Come out, I can see you!"

A laugh rang through the air as Yuugi Hoshiguma walked out of hiding.

"So you knew I was there the whole time?"

"Yes. Tell me, why were you spying on us? Wait… you look familiar… Yuugi, is that you?"

Yuugi grinned.

"Oh, so you finally recognize me?"

"Ha! It's been a long time I was down here, what do you expect? It's good to see you, anyway. Maybe we can have a drink sometime. But first, seriously, why were you spying on us?"

"I was just wandering what kind of evil plan you came up with this time. Can I join in?"

"For this part, I suppose. I'm going to destroy this shrine here, with the help of Satori."

"She's involved in this too? Wow, this is a bit more complicated than I thought…"

"Believe me, you have no idea. I'll try to explain it all to you…"

Patchouli closed the last book with a decisive snap. They were surprisingly short, no doubt because Shinki wanted her to finish them quickly and get revenge for her. "Koakuma, can you watch the library while I'm gone?"

Koakuma looked confused.

"Where are you going, Miss Patchouli?"

"To look for that voice. I need you to take care of things while I'm gone."

"O-of course. But… are you sure you don't want me to come with you?"

"No, I need you here. Don't worry, I will be fine." The magician walked out of the library, and headed to the basement, where she'd heard Remilia was teaching her sister. She knocked on the door, and to her surprise, it was Flandre who answered it.

"Oh, hi Patchy! Please, come in!" Patchouli walked down the now-lit stairs to the basement, where Remilia was sitting at a small table. Another chair was across from hers, obviously Flandre's, and there was a chess set on the table. Apparently Patchouli caught them in the middle of a game. Flandre was about to sit down, but then she looked at Patchouli and flew off into a unlit part of the basement. A second later she came back with another chair, gesturing for Patchouli to sit down. The seat was painted red, but even that couldn't hide the blood stains on it. "Sorry about the mess…"

"It's fine, Flandre." She sat down and looked at Remilia. "So, I see your doing well, Remi…"

Remilia smiled.

"Yes, I've been teaching my sister how to play chess, now that I know she can be well behaved. She's been a surprisingly good opponent." That's a lie, Patchouli thought. Flandre had only taken two of Remilia's pieces, while at least seven of hers were gone. But maybe that's what Remilia meant- that she could play the game at all. She was certainly acting better… She reflected on all the times she had stopped Flandre from destroying the mansion, or just after they met, from eating her and Sakuya. She was distracted from her musings by Remilia's voice. "Anyway, what do you want, Patchy? I thought you were reading those books Shinki gave you."

"I was, but I I'm done with them. I wanted to tell you that I'm leaving the mansion to find that voice. With my new spells, I'm sure I could defeat it. If I am wrong, then I will simply teleport back here." Noting the vampire's surprise, she added, "That's one of the spells I learned. In any case, I'm starting my search in the Forest of Magic. Is there anything you need from me before I go?"

"No, there isn't. Good luck, Patchouli."

"Thank you." Patchouli stood up and flew out of the basement. The two sisters watched her leave, then turned back to their game.

"I think it's your move, Flandre." Flandre stared at the board intently, but she couldn't focus.

"Patchy's gonna be ok, right sis?"

Remilia tried to smile reassuringly.

"Don't worry, Flan, she will be just fine…"

Andy swept the dust off the floors, while Para tried to clean the walls with a duster. Chen focused on the ceiling, and Sanae, for her part, decided to take advantage of the situation and "supervise" the cleaning. "Andy, I think you missed a spot there. Para, that painting still looks kind of dusty…"

Para examined the painting, and shrugged.

"If you say so. Who made this, anyway? I can't tell what it is."

"Well, after Lady Kanako took over the shrine from Suwako, she didn't have much to do. Suwako tried painting, but she gave up when she realized she wasn't very good at it. Now she just wonders all over Gensokyo."

"Speaking of her," Andy interjected, "Since we know she's here at the shrine, can I talk to her?"

Sanae considered this.

"Well… I guess you can see her… after you're done with this hall." Andy grumbled and swept faster.

When he was done, Sanae led them out of the shrine, to the lake next to it. Suwako was sitting on the lake's edge, seemingly oblivious to their presence, but suddenly her hat spun around so that it was facing them.

It reported,

"Suwako, you have visitors… can I eat them?"

Suwako laughed and turned around.

"Oh, you can't eat them, hat. That's my dear sweet Sanae, and those other people Yukari sent. How are you liking the shrine?" Andy was about to say something, but Suwako hopped over next to him. "I heard you talking with Yukari before she saw Kanako… you should be grateful she was so lenient, it's not like her… but anyway, that doesn't matter now. How are you?"

Andy backed up slightly, saying,

"I'm fine. The shrine seems rather dusty so far, and I have a message for you, Lady Suwako."

"Oh? And what does Yukari want from me?"

Annoyed, Andy said,

"Just because I work for her doesn't make me her mouthpiece. This is a message from Yuuka Ka-"

He was interrupted by Suwako's hat screaming in rage, babbling,

"He works for Yuuka! He must die!" It flew off of Suwako's head, sprouting fangs along its rim. Suwako grabbed the hat, holding it back. Her smile had faded, and she looked at Andy was though he was something disgusting that she threw away.

"Hat, we should at least hear him out. Speak now."

Andy stared at the hat, which was struggling against her grip and trying to bite him, and finally said,

"Yuuka wanted me to tell you that she's sorry for everything."

Suwako blinked in surprise, and the hat stopped struggling to break free.

"She… she said she's sorry?"

"Um… yes." He wasn't sure where this was going, but anything that avoided being mauled by a hat had to be good.

"She's apologizing? That doesn't sound like her, I've never known Yuuka to regret anything…" The hat's teeth retracted, and she put it back on. "Well, then…" She pointed a finger at Andy, making him flinch. "You can tell Yuuka that I want her to prove she's sorry. I want to see she's sincere. Tell her to meet me here at the lake so we can talk about this." She looked back over the lake again, as though they weren't there.

Realizing she wasn't going to say anything, Andy asked,

"So… why are you mad at her? What did she do?"

"If she didn't tell you, then I don't see why I should bother." Andy was about to say something else, but Para grabbed him by the shoulder.

"Remember what Yukari said about curiosity getting us in trouble? I think we should leave her alone…" Andy was about to argue with her, but he knew she was probably right. He walked over to Sanae and said,

"So, what should we do next?" Sanae didn't answer at first, she was staring at Suwako, looking worried. "Um, Miss Sanae?"

She blinked in surprise.

"Huh? Oh, yeah. I guess we should go… anyway, I think we should a break and get something to eat, and then it's back to cleaning."

Andy groaned.

"More cleaning? Don't you have anything else we could be doing?"

Sanae smiled cheerfully.

"Yes, but you still haven't dusted the rest of the shrine, and I'm looking forward to not doing it…"