Chapter 1 Moonlight upon Borders of Life and Death
The pale light of the blue full moon shined down upon the Forest of Magic, illuminating it in its pale glow. The Youkai of the dark forest all slept peacefully in the holes, caves, and crevices that they called home. Even the ones who normally came out at night found themselves staying inside. No one saw the figure on the tallest branch of the tree, looking out over the Dragon Gods entire realm. The very place she had assisted in separating from the outside world so long ago.
Yukari Yakumo was aware that soon another Incident would begin, and as she looked across to the mist covered lake on the edge of the forest and the mansion beyond it, she knew it lay at the center of the building storm. She couldn't help but smirk as she knew if she told others, they would believe she could see into the future. Yukari was no seer, she simply remained in tune with Gensokyo to keep it safe and protected from beings who would spell its destruction. Sometimes though, even the Border Youkai found herself hitting the first domino and wanting to see just how far this trail lead before it reached the end of the table. She could have prevented previous incidents, yet she did nothing. Because if she worked to prevent these Incidents, how would any of the beings of Gensokyo learn of the mistakes other Youkai have made? She also knew people would think this 'prediction' as they would call it referred to Remilia Scarlet, the owner of the Scarlet Mansion. Oh yes, It had to do with a Scarlet, but it was the one locked deep below the mansion. But also another, one who lived near the mansion but was not a resident, nor welcome. After all, why would one welcome the former Angel of Death of Makai into their home?
Yukari chuckled quietly; she was the only one she knew of truly aware of Cirno's former self, even the small ice fairy could not unlock those memories of a former life brought to a crashing end by the Red-White of Hakurei. She wondered how many others knew of the ice fairy's true self, for even she did not know all who knew. The Yama did, for she was the one who had sentenced the Seraph Sariel to being reborn as she is now. Yet even the Yama could not remove the powers and memories of someone as powerful as Sariel, and simply sealed them into the fairy's body. Yet even without knowing her original state, other Youkai felt uneasy around her or just simply found her annoying. To say the girl was lonely would be a lie however; she had found friends among a small group of weaker Youkai like herself. It was simply by luck that the Darkness Youkai that had become the former angels companion, yet they shared a seal on their true selves. Yukari wondered if the small Keeper of Darkness would have a role in the coming storm; The Border Youkai had certain events planned but knew not how large the waves her ripples would become.
Even the Shrine Maiden herself responsible for Sariels fall did not recognize the small creature as one of the first powerful opponents she had faced those many years ago. Yukari knew the lack of memories of the Shrine Maidens earliest battles were her fault, she had sealed them along with the gateway to Makai. She had felt it was a necessary step then, as Makai had slowly grown more and more unstable after Shinki had disappeared, and its violent energies had begun to force themselves into Gensokyo. Now though, she wondered if sealing those memories had truly been the best action. She had not completely erased Makai from existence however, for some of its residents were now living in Gensokyo. Many of those residents were hidden, but some were in plain sight. She stared off to the Doll Makers home, did that girl have any memories of her life as Shinki's daughter, or did she simply remember her life as Alice Margatroid, the human-turned-Youkai Doll Maker? Yukari did not know if even her powers were powerful enough to tear apart the bond of family, no matter how many barriers she erected between those memories and the conscious mind.
Her gaze drifted to the sunflower field where she knew the Flower Youkai had made her new home after her first run in with the Red-White Shrine Maiden and Black-White Witch. Was the flower Youkai awake or asleep on this night? Yukari did not know, for she was one of the few beings Yukari left to her own devices. Some would call her a fool for not keeping an eye on such a powerful and old Youkai, but only fools would risk the wrath of Yuuka Kazami. Even with all her strength, Yuuka could not hope to harm Yukari, yet she could still harm the few beings Yukari considered close. She would not risk that the Flower Youkai using Yukari's intrusions as an excuse for 'fun.' She also knew that for all of the Flower Youkai's jests, she would not cause an Incident like she did long ago.
The Border Youkai smiled as she felt another presence appear near her, she had wondered how long it would take her Shikigami to find her. She knew that Ran would not ask Yukari to return home, she allowed her mistress to do as she pleased. She also knew speaking back to her would simply lead to Yukari ignoring her words of warning, or punishing the Kitsune for speaking out of term. Yukari smiled as she saw what she had been waiting the entire night for, a movement near the edge of the mist covered lake. She knew the Ice Fairy's door was opening, and she would soon step out into the night that would change her life for all eternity. She watched as Cirno quickly flew out onto the lake, and rushed towards the mansion at its center. The fairy was clearly excited at something, and Yukari wondered just what the fairy had picked out of the letter to become so filled with energy.
Yukari wondered who would be the one to settle this Incident, or if by the end of it if she herself will be forced to step in to end the coming chaos and turmoil. She looked to the Black-Whites shop, and the Red-Whites Shrine. But she knew that while they very well might try, there were others who could stand against what was coming. The Maid would certainly do so, and if it was needed Yuyuko might send her Gardener to assist the others. Deep down Yukari wondered if by the end of this anyone would be able to stop this but the ones causing the events themselves.
As Yukari stood up on the branch she was sitting on, smiling silently to herself. She turned her head and her eyes settled upon Ran, the kitsune perched upon a branch of a tree near the one she sat upon.
"Come along, Ran. The pieces are set, and now we should watch the show." Yukari said, unable to hide the amusement in her voice as she opened a Gap, giving a final look at the Scarlet Devil Mansion before stepping through it on the journey home. She will watch the coming storm and as the pieces on the board moved, she would do her part in her slowly growing plan. Ran followed and the Gap shut behind the master and servant, leaving no trace. As she walked through the darkness, Yukari silently wondered why she was doing all of this.
Was there truly a mistake that other Youkai could learn from this, or was she simply doing this for fun? There were many factors, but as Yukari thought of the ones whose memory she had taken, and the one who had lost it in death, she knew exactly why she was doing this. Yukari knew that as these events unfolded, others from the time of Makai would appear once more. Yukari was hoping for this, as the best way for ones to remember even the deepest, darkest memories, would be to drag back to the forefront of their minds by making them reality once more.
"Everyone needed to know who they truly were and still are." Yukari spoke the whisper to herself, the words that had filled her thoughts and that had subconsciously had her body write the letter that had appeared to Cirno. With the letter the dominos had begun their fall on the table, and maybe even continue onto ones lined on the floor into infinity. In the end she knew, someone would have to stand in the way and stop the never ending trail.
A/N: So, I finally decided to sit down and start another Fic. I already have a number of chapters ready and you can plan on seeing them being uploaded over the next few days. To anyone wondering about Dark Sorrows, I lost interest in it long ago, but will upload the 3rd chapter I have later on.
Update: Fixed my run on sentences and have given chapters 1 and two a rewrite. I will be revising and reloading chapter 3 soon. Special Thanks to Wolfsbane706 for pointing out my large errors.
