Went full-on hyper yesterday and today to pull a new chapter out of my butt. I feel nice about this one; it's still a little rushed, yeah, but I feel like I did decent with it.

In other news, Mr PM finally came back! I missed you~ And about Damion, I actually never thought of the black/white connection between him and Hollow Ichigo, to be honest. I just thought it'd make for an interesting fridge concept - is light good and dark evil, or is light evil and dark good? These two are meant to show things can be a little more than you'd think they'd normally be.

Also, thanks for pointing me to the NieR OST, it is simply fantastic. Definitely squeezing them in for the final battles. The Pandora's Box concept, too. How did I not think of that!? As for Yukari and Reimu... well, almost everything that gap hag does has something to do with the well-being of Gensokyo. Her and playing up Reimu isn't exactly an exception to that. You know what I mean. And Karin and Wildcard, I can't say for either. Critical plot details - I'll PM you back on those ones.

Whew, long answer. Anyways, on with the story! As always, please R&R! (Pretty please)

– TOUHOU –

They found her at the gates of Makai. Sanae touched down and ran the last few steps to her. "Reimu-san? I found them."

The miko frowned, arms crossed. "Took you long enough." She spun on her heel and began marching away at a brisk pace. "We're going to the outside world."

Sanae jogged to keep up with her, Byakuren and Darius right behind her. "Reimu-san, what's going on? You didn't give me any details. I can't help you if you don't–"

Reimu wheeled back around. "Kochiya, I just found out the laws I established were literally destroyed by one of the people who helped me make them – part of her, at least," she hissed. "I'm not in the mood." A bit of the fire faded from her eyes, and she sighed. "Sorry. It's just that the youkai are acting up again."

"What do you mean?" Darius asked.

She glanced at him and began walking again; this time slowly enough for them follow her pace. "The youkai here have been bound by the spell card rules. They know that they're enforced by me and Y-Yukari, so they'd never try their hand at revolt. The biggest problem here is that only me and her can actually remove those rules. For the feral youkai…"

Byakuren gasped softly as she understood. "They'll start a war."

Reimu nodded. "That Karin girl knows her stuff. Some of them have sided with humans, like Keine and Mokou (obviously) and the Scarlet Devil Mansion."

"Remi-san?" Darius looked at her. "That doesn't seem like something she'd do…"

"It would raise her profile and give her a bargaining chip," explained Reimu. "She's still a vampire, so she needs to feed. This would give her leverage against the human village."

"We've talked," added Sanae. "Even though our shrine is on Youkai Mountain, Kanako-sama has allowed me to assist the human side. But she won't participate personally… She still wants some faith from the mountain, too."

"Gensokyan politics? For real?"

Apparently, Reimu got the joke. A brief breath that might've passed for a half-laugh escaped her. "Oh hell no. That'd be a disaster." Sliding open the back door to her shrine, she beckoned the others inside. "By the way, there's someone else here. He wants to talk to you – never mind, he's sleeping…"

Darius peeked in and saw – surprise, surprise – Goukei passed out, limply hanging from the ceiling with a bottle of whisky in hand. "This should surprise me, but for some reason, it doesn't."

That, said Damion, is what happens when the madness finally gets to you.

He rolled his eyes and ducked under the sleeping oni, sitting at the low table in the middle of the room. Reimu excused herself, muttering something about tea. Sanae and Byakuren seated themselves next to him, leaving the last 'corner' open for Reimu to sit down at. She came back a few minutes later, toting four teacups and a teapot.

Darius reached out and accepted his cup. "Thanks for the tea, Reimu-san."

"Now, let's get down to business." The shrine maiden smiled thinly. "Now, this oni here–" She waved at the sleeping Goukei. "– told me that we'll need to be back in the outside world to catch the new gap youkai. Normally, I'd doubt his sources, but I'd rather take the initiative this time."

"What? Reimu taking an incident without being bribed?" Darius felt a grin coming to his face. "How could this possibly – oof!"

The miko lowered her gohei. "This is serious, so don't joke around."

Rubbing his head, he nodded. In that same head, he could hear Damion's snickers. "Oh, laugh it up, you…"

Ignoring him, Reimu went on. "He says her first play would be in New York; USA. I might be able to arrange a flight."

"That's takes a lot of cash." Sanae narrowed her eyes. "Who have you been giving favours to?"

"After you solve a few incidents, you get a few frequent worshippers," she shrugged. "As for my other funds… well, you don't want to know." She clapped her hands together, wringing them conspiratorially. "Some of us will need to stay in Gensokyo to try and cool the upcoming war. Byakuren-san, can I trust you on this?"

She nodded. "I'll do everything I can."

Reimu nodded back. "Thank you. Darius-kun, you speak English, right?"

"As well as anyone else."

"If you say so. If we can find her, Marisa might be able to help, and probably a few others. Sanae, do me a favour and send a few letters."

"To who?" Sanae listened as Reimu whispered the addresses in her ear. "For real?"

"She's a menace, but she's one of our best shots." Reimu thought for a second. "Eirin-san would probably help out, too."

"The doctor?" Darius glanced over. "Why her?"

"She passed centuries learning every language on Earth; plus, she doesn't want Gensokyo burning any more than we do – if they're forced out, the moon emissaries might catch up to them." The miko got up and opened a cabinet, outside-world clothes filched from Kourindou spilling out onto the floor. "Now, who wants to see the Big Apple?"

– TOUHOU –

Byakuren tugged at her sleeves. "Do we really need to wear these?"

"Unless you want to look like you just came out of Anime North 2013, yes." Darius leaned against the wall.

Say it, Damion egged him. Say it, say it, say it…

"It does look nice on you, though. You should wear it more often"

Her face reddened. "T-thanks."

Actually, it did look very nice on her. Dark purple belted coat with a seemingly endless supply of pockets, with a white shirt underneath and a pair of denim jeans, along with a scarf in exchange for her cape, she both could have stood out of a crowd and blended in perfectly – her gradient hair probably helped. She refused to dye it.

Sanae bopped Darius over the head. "Stop eyeing her."

"I'm not!" He protested as he gave her a light nudge back. "C'mon, now."

"And don't look at me like that, either." The wind priestess waved her own gohei around menacingly. "I'm warning you!"

Even dressed in a sleeved version of her regular outfit (the add-ons weren't hard to find), the modest skirt that extended past her knees, and, of all things, a Hello Kitty bracelet, Sanae could definitely pull threatening look. Unlike Byakuren, they had forcibly dyed her hair to a more believable dark brown – walking around with green hair was just too bizarre for the modern world.

The gunslinger backed away, holding up his hands. "Whoa now, take it easy." Unlike the others, he made it out without needing any big changes – though he had swiped an interesting hat out of the mix. Something like Marisa's beloved witch hat, but instead of circular at the base, it was triangular, two points behind him, the third drooping slightly over his left eye. A weather black belt was strapped around the top of it for whatever reason. Reimu admitted to it belonging to Marisa when she wanted to try out new hats. He took it anyways. "I don't want to walk into the airport with a collapsed skull!"

"Customs aren't worth crap." Reimu continued drinking her tea. Opposite to everyone else, she had steadfastly refused to take any modifications to her clothes at all. No, not even the casual mention of armpit lovers deterred her. "Just try and get a demon binding seal through them." Drinking the last bits of it as quickly as possible, she set aside the teacup and got up again. "Now, are you all done gearing up?"

Byakuren tugged at her scarf. "Reimu-san, I can understand needing Sanae-san dressed up, but why me?"

"My shrine has an outside world equivalent," said the miko. "It also happens to be the main entrance through the Great Hakurei Barrier. We need someone to stay there, just in case."

"That still doesn't explain it…"

"We're going to pop out in the middle of an urban city." Reimu deadpanned. She looked at the ceiling again, where Goukei was apparently still sleeping it off. "We should probably bring him along, too. Just get rid of his cloak."

"Nnn…" The ex-shinigami rolled over. "But… why is the rum gone… I don't want yer dirt jar…!"

– TOUHOU –

Darius clutched his head, groaning softly. "I hate planes on so many levels…"

Reimu glared at a few passersby who were ogling her. "Maybe I should have worn the other outfit after all…"

He glanced over. "Gee, ya think?"

She reached over and smacked him lightly.

"Ow…"

Sanae smirked from the window seat. Reaching into the bag at her feet, she brought out an aspirin and tossed it at the gunslinger.

He caught it just before it hit the ground. "Holy – stop that!"

"Just take it." Sanae pulled out a pair of headphones and watched the clouds roll by underneath them. Reimu went back to her book. Darius just watched the back of the seat in front of him, but not really seeing it.

Fuck you, Alexa. And of course Damion and Alexa were still fighting. You think you know what's best for him? I am him, I know more than you ever could!

Why would you even bother? Alexa shot back. Last time I checked, you wanted his body!

Yeah? Well, when I collect his debt to me, I'd rather not take control of a corpse! If he bites the dust, so do I! So you can take your fucking revolver and shove it up your–!

Whap.

Alexa lowered her arm shakily. Fuck you too, Damion. Unlike you, I actually care about the person in that body right now, so you can take a back seat like you always do and shut it!

You want a fight? Damion picked himself up easily, hands clenched into fists. I'll wreck you any day, and you know it!

They still hadn't noticed him, but they were approaching critical mass – again. He closed his eyes and leaned back in his seat. "Goukei-kun, you there?"

The oni on the other side of the aisle turned his head so fast it cracked. "… The fuck do you want?"

"I'll be napping for a bit. Mind if we switch seats?"

"Wanker." Even so, he got up and took Darius' seat, allowing the gunslinger his own seat in return. He'd been in a foul mood ever since he was pulled over in the airport and caught carrying enough alcohol to pass for anesthetic. "Tell me to get up again, and I'll kick your ass."

"Yeah, whatever," said Darius. He knew Goukei wouldn't try anything – not surrounded by ordinary humans, several thousand feet in the air above an ocean. "G'night."

He huffed, glaring daggers as Darius tilted his hat down to cover his eyes. Like Reimu had said, all he had done was take off his cloak, mostly because it would just be too strange a sight.

The ex-shinigami cast a furtive glance around and reached into his pants pocket, stealthily pulling out a tiny bottle of tequila. "One shot never hurt anyone…"

– TOUHOU –

"Guys?"

Alexa fell to the ground, rolling out of the way as Damion leapt after her like a wild animal. "Holy – get away from me!"

"You picked this fight in the first place!" The demon slammed a hand against the surface of the water and submerged his hand up to the wrist. A quick slash of the arm, and the living weapon vaulted to the side again as a wave of white water roared by. "Thought you were gonna teach me a lesson, huh? HUH!?"

Darius took a half-step. "Uh, guys…?"

Alexa's hands glowed, revolver appearing in hand. Pointing it, she yelled, "Acerbatus!"

"Oh, I see how it is," growled Damion. His coat glowed as he grabbed it, sweeping it off his shoulders and around, batting aside the curse spell with a solid wall of light. "I'll kill you so fucking dead that you won't have anything to regenerate from!" He sprinted forward, a stream of white light following his movement–

Bang! Bang!

Darius lowered the revolver and sighed. These two kept trying to kill each other, all the time…!

Alexa blinked. "Darius-sama, you're back?"

The demon on the floor chuckled. "I was starting to think you'd never notice." He got off the ground slowly, blood trickling from the bullet wounds in his head. With a sound of sizzling, two warped bullets fell out of their respective wounds, his skull rapidly regenerating. "So, what you back in town for?"

"That – my bullets – you just–" Darius threw his hands in the air. "I give up. I give up!"

His counterpart snickered as he watched the gunslinger rant to thin air. "Always works. But really, whaddya need?"

Darius took a deep breath. He glanced at Alexa, who had returned to the futuristic steel table. "How does that even work? The keyboard, I mean."

She glanced at him before returning her attention to the screen. "Just a handy mental shortcut – I could control it by thinking, but this is easier. More importantly… I think I have the answer to the Muyoka Incident." She looked at his confused expression. "Well, it's worth being called an incident, doesn't it?"

Darius rolled his eyes. "Sure, why not. What do you mean, Alexa-san?"

"You remember that I'm not a single soul, right?" Even as she talked, her fingers flew, the screen changing from static to a simple blue screen, several windows opening on it. "God, why do you have a Mac interface – anyways, I'm pretty much a composite between you and another. Seems I've got a few of her memories, too. Let's see, a few more clicks and…!"

The blip signified her success. A 3D schematic blinked to life, spinning slowly as a green wireframe. It seemed to be an extremely decorated storage chest, like a pirate would use to store his treasures.

Alexa smiled. "This is something once called Pandora's Box. Three guesses what it does?"

"The ultimate in porn stashing?" Both Darius and Alexa turned to glare at the speaker. Damion laughed. "What? For all you know, it could be!"

Darius looked at her. "Idiot," he muttered.

"Total idiot," she agreed. "Now, as I was saying, Pandora's Box is – well, aside from having the least original name ever – an unbreakable chest with so many enchantments it'd give you a stroke trying to comprehend it. No, seriously, I nearly had an aneurysm trying to figure it out."

"Well, how does this help us?"

Alexa grinned as several graphs appeared onscreen. To the others, they made no sense, but she explained it quickly. "It doesn't matter how strong whatever's contained in it is – it can't get out. Ever. The original Pandora's Box was a jar filled with a thousand plagues – whoever did this was trying to achieve the same effect. And damn, she came close."

Damion narrowed his eyes at the chest. "How much force would be needed to break it open?"

"From the outside? Like, one stick of dynamite." Alexa watched his face for a moment. "I'm kidding, I'm kidding. Well, I'm not, actually, it only takes one stick to blast it open, but only to open it! To completely shatter it, you'd probably need the big guy upstairs to lend a hand – most gods don't even have enough power to so much as scratch its surface."

"Damn, that's strong," said Darius. "So, this would hold Karin?"

"Are you fucking kidding me?" Damion snorted. "Of course it would! Look at those charms, right there on the corner." Darius didn't understand, but he looked anyways. "Prevent any and all distortions inside the box, temporal, spatial, whatever. If we get our hands on this, then goodbye gap hags." His smile dropped a little. "The question is where the fuck do we get one of these?"

Alexa was waiting for the command – the tap of a single button, and the window closed, replaced by a map of the Earth. "We don't have many options, really. One of them would be to dig up the original Pandora's Box in Greece, another would be to just build our own."

"Build Pandora's Box?" Darius asked. "I'm pretty sure we'd need gods to do that."

"You need gods? We've got gods. The Moriya Shrine, for instance. Plus, Reimu can supply all the charms we need, and Eirin once put the entire Earth in a pot to hide it from the moon."

"W-wait, she did what?"

"Never mind. My point," she pressed before he spoke again, "is that we have a weapon Karin will never see coming. It'll spare her life, but seal her consciousness – she'll just about be sleeping. So long as Pandora's Box isn't opened…"

Damion's razor-sharp grin was back as he finished for her. "… The evils inside won't escape."

Alexa nodded. "Nice to see we agree on something for a change."

As he watched them begin talking about potential for getting the sealing chest – tickets to Greece, museums it might be hidden in, people they needed to contact, the works – Darius wasn't really listening. He turned away from them, watching the many little yin-yang orbs spin through the sky idly.

He murmured to himself, too quietly for them to hear. "Is she really an evil…?"

– TOUHOU –

"Wake up. Darius, wake up."

The gunslinger opened his eyes blearily, blinking the sleep away. "Whuz happen?"

Reimu frowned. "We're here. Welcome to the USA."

That was when he first noticed she was speaking English – and he was still speaking in Japanese. That earned him a few weird looks, along with Reimu's miko outfit. He got up and stretched as much as he could without hitting his head. When he spoke again, it was also in English. "Where are we?"

"Weren't you listening?" Sanae, like Reimu, knew English, though hers had a heavy accent to it. "It's New York!"

Darius tilted back his new hat and looked out the window. "Nice. By any chance, would this Big Apple be a Bad Apple?"

– TOUHOU –

*rimshot*

It shouldn't surprise you that Reimu and Sanae know English. The former leaves Gensokyo a lot, the latter is an outsider, draw your own conclusions!

Pandora's Box... does anyone remember the original Greek myth? When Pandora opened the box, all the evils spilled out into the world in the form of spirits, which became plagues and illnesses and diseases. She closed the lid just before the last spirit could escape, however. Anyone who knows the tale of Pandora's Box should have a rough grasp of where this plan will end... Please leave your thoughts in the review section.

Oh, and don't worry about the Makai timer. He'll come back, eventually...

And Darius' fancy new hat is actually Marisa's from Koumajou Densetsu, aka Touhouvania. Look it up!