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The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya is owned by Nagaru Tanigawa. Touhou Project is owned by ZUN and Team Shanghai Alice. I own neither. This is a fan fiction of those works.
[This Chapter has been Remastered]
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The cat girl stared down at her master's master with a bit of curiosity. She wondered why anyone would sleep during the day and only come out at night, especially during the winter. It was cold, after all, with the shorter days. It was best to soak up the sun's warmth as much as one could, well, in the cat girl's eyes anyway.
She walked around their home, looking for something to do, wondering if she should redo the chores, and shook her head at such a silly idea. Her own master was out, busy doing something, something important. Possibly something fun. The girl was bored, already done with the chores given to her, and it was barely mid-day. She already had some trout for lunch, so she was just killing time, having to wait until...something.
Something. Need something to do. She wondered if this was what was called "Cabin Fever". She still wasn't used to human sayings.
Ever since she became a nekomata, the cat girl had been exploring the things around her with greater ease in her human form. It wasn't that she couldn't go back to her cat form, but she found it more interesting to be human. And she was always learning - her master kept teaching her, kept making sure she would grow as an individual. She could still remember when she was finally able to speak, it was a big surprise for herself.
Eventually, she found herself in the entryway of their home, staring at the door. Her master told her not to go out, but...it was just so darn boring inside. Though, if she does go out there, and get challenged...no, wait. Nobody ever wandered over there. Only the unlucky, or the ones who heard rumors of this place...they'd have to climb the mountain to get up here. Though compared to Youkai mountain, which was near the lake and the mansion of that vampire, it was just a hill. However, the empty village below...
She grabbed her spell cards from her room. She'd been practicing, and been able to prove herself to be very quick. She smiled. She actually hoped someone would challenge her so she could overwhelm them with her sheer speed.
She heard her master talk of trying times, of a large threat on the horizon, and the girl had secretly been training harder, making herself even faster, hoping to be of some use should anything happen... But if something didn't happen, an hour or so of playing in whatever warm sun there was, was a very good prospect. She knew, however, that the weather wasn't normal. She vaguely remembered the winter season being shorter when she was a normal cat. That, and didn't her master's master talk about it earlier?
Ah well, not her concern. She did all her chores, and it was time to go out there and have some fun!
[Imperfect Cherry Blossom]
[Episode 5]
["Charm"]
=Black Cat in the Village of Spirits=
"It wavered in the village in which people are not.
'MAYOHIGA', village of apparitions, has always refused humans."
-Touhou 7, Perfect Cherry Blossom - Stage 2
We kept walking, not wanting to lose daylight. Sakuya spent most of the time explaining, in a short version, what was going on with me. Reimu would occasionally ask us questions about one point or another, until it appeared she was satisfied.
"You're from the outside world." Reimu nodded to herself, understanding crossing her face. "Now your clothes make sense."
"That just a general term for things outside this place?" I mean, I guess it makes sense. Closed spaces are technically "inside" their own barrier. I suppose such things are relative. Like calling another country foreign while you yourself are foreign to that country.
Reimu nodded in response to my question, before returning her attention to Sakuya.
Reimu took the explanation of Haruhi pretty well, all things considered. Then again, this shrine maiden lives in a place where supernatural things happen all the time, so I suppose such things are somewhat normal for her. She deals with vampires, youkai, magicians, and time-stopping maids after all. And that's just what I know about her from Sakuya. Reimu nodded again after hearing Sakuya's explanation, turning to me.
"So you need to get home. And that vampire promised you she could get you there?"
Before I could say anything, Sakuya interjected, "Milady said she would see what she could do for the boy."
"Well, I don't know how she plans to open up the Hakurei border."
Reimu said that so casually, like I would know about that. So of course I had to respond. "The Hakurei border? What's that?" I mean, come on. You do know that I'm not from around here, right? It's kind of annoying when they talk of things I have no knowledge about.
Reimu smiled. "The border my family has maintained to keep Gensokyo hidden. We Hakurei help keep everything in, and keep everything out of here."
Maintainers of this closed space, if it is indeed one? I didn't ask her that.
"Occasionally the border falters," said Reimu, "And objects and people come in here. Though mostly, if people come in here, it's because of the cooking teams."
The what?
"Cooking teams?" Sakuya narrowed her eyes, confused. "How do you know-"
"Heh. Thought you'd know as well." Reimu had a half-smirk, half-grimace. "This winter has made quite a few beings desperate. One tried to attack me, spouting things such as the 'cooking teams not bringing back enough', and I managed to question it before disposal."
Should I ask what the cooking teams are?
"Red-White, he doesn't need to know about this."
Reimu gave Sakuya a scowl. "Oh, you're wrong, maid. He does. He needs to know the type of people he's living with. I mean, that's only fair, right?"
I had the feeling I was not going to like the explanation. Reimu's hostility towards Sakuya and the SDM was going to get her to reveal some sort of ugly truth to me.
Reimu stopped and turned to me. Her matter-of-fact tone and mannerisms had begun to unnerve me a bit. "Kyon, do you want to know why youkai are so troublesome? One of the reasons why I battle them is? Their diet. Oh, sure, they can eat normal food, but do you wanna know what their delicacy is?"
"He already knows that youkai eat humans," said Sakuya. "He was attacked by the one who controls the darkness when he came into Gensokyo."
"Really? The little blonde girl?" Reimu turned back to me after listening to the maid, eyebrows raised. "And you survived? Not bad, Kyon, especially since you can't engage in danmaku. Facing her in a match however is easy enough." Reimu gave me a genuine smile. "No, really, it's a big deal for a normal human to survive against a youkai. Not bad at all."
So I did things the hard way, right? Figures.
She stood there, mulling over something. "Ah, yes. The cooking teams. You see Kyon, there are humans in here, but they are strong, in a sense. Not everyone can engage in danmaku, but they have their ways of countering the youkai, and some of the youkai have gotten quite lazy. They prefer easy meals, which means that they send teams out of Gensokyo into your world. Cooking teams. At least, that's what that youkai told me before I disposed of it." She stepped up to me, with a knowing smile, but it wasn't a smile of enjoyment. It was kind of hard to read what it exactly was. "The homeless? The runaways? The people who seem to just disappear without a trace? They get 'spirited away' by the cooking teams, and brought here to be meals."
I couldn't help but blink a few times. Is she kidding me? How many people a year...I guess she saw my surprise, because her smile widened.
"Red-White-"
Before Sakuya could say whatever it was she wanted to say, Reimu turned to her, an accusatory finger pointing at the maid. "And I know for a fact that your master deals with those cooking teams as well, maid. She does need her blood after all."
I couldn't help but stare at the maid for a bit. She's a part of that?
The miko glanced at me with a raised eyebrow and a small look of disgust. "I hope you haven't tried any of the cakes or desserts that Remilia eats. Because those 'red fillings' aren't strawberries."
Oh my God.
At that point, I regretted wanting some the previous night. I mean, it looked so good when Remilia ate it, the fluffy whipped cream, the strawberry, and the red filling looked so...good...oh man. I'm glad I stuck with my stone cold meal. Otherwise I would have had someone's blood for dessert!
Reimu motioned to Sakuya. "Why don't you ask the maid what the special ingredient is? I bet you'd love to hear it."
No I wouldn't.
Reimu shrugged, backing away from us. "Just thought you should know the type of people you are asking for help, eh?" Reimu's eyes fell on Sakuya, waiting to see how she would respond.
I knew what Reimu was doing here. At the very least, she wanted me to know exactly what was going on. At the most, she possibly wanted to turn me against the SDM. Part of me resented that way of thinking, because it was a way for Reimu to strike at the SDM by turning a possible ally. On the other hand… I appreciated the honesty. I mean, what did I expect? Remilia flat out drank my blood in front of me. Would that have really been the only blood she had to consume?
That's one thing people don't tell you, that even in fantasy lands there is darkness. For a vampire to exist, they needed blood, which means victims.
Sakuya's head lowered a bit, her jaw clenching. "...My...Milady has special tastes and needs. I do need to accommodate them. I don't apologize for that."
I silently gulped, the pit of my stomach rising a bit.
Satisfied with our reactions, Reimu turned away and continued to walk towards where the cherry blossoms were coming from. I felt my blood drain from my face as I stared at the maid.
"Sakuya, is this true?" That was a rhetorical question more than anything. I already understood the situation.
"...As I said, I make no apologies for it."
Well, she is a servant of a vampire...but… An idea crossed my mind as I stared at Sakuya that made me not want to go down this line of thought any longer. Does she actually prepare those meals or... Do I really want to know?
"And what about for my blood in a wine bottle? Do you make apologies for that? I'd say that I'd like to know if you had a hand in filling that, but part of me doesn't even want to know. And what about the tea? It was colored red!"
"Those are just the flowers I use to flavor and color the tea. The ones we ran out of."
Well that's a relief. I rather enjoyed the tea. "And the wine bottle? Was that… you?" Because somebody had to put it there, and I don't think Remilia did it herself. Did you bleed me?
Sakuya looked down again, not answering. I swallowed hard, a sick knot tying into my stomach. I thought...well, what did I think? She does works for a vampire. A vampire who was blunt about drinking my blood. I decided not to press the issue if she was the one who put my blood in that bottle. I think I'll file it under "things I'd rather not know". I couldn't dwell on it. I had to work with her for that excursion, and mulling it over would have only been detrimental.
Besides, if the SDM wanted me dead, I would have been dead already. I should be grateful for that. However, if Remilia fed on me directly, then there was something I needed to know. "So...how does one turn into a vampire then?"
"Simple." Sakuya perked up, glad to be off the previous topic. "A vampire drains you completely."
Complete drainage… so there are rules to this. "Huh. I always thought it was due to a single bite. So a vampire has to drink all of your blood in one sitting then?" I'll be honest – it would be pretty cool to be a vampire, I suppose, but I doubt I could live my normal life if I were one. Haruhi would be impressed for sure, and quite possibly Asahina, too, if it didn't scare her. I mean, don't girls like vampires? However, I don't know how Nagato would react. As for Koizumi, well, I don't care. He'd probably give me some thirty-minute lecture or something on how to deal with it.
Ugh. Just for that alone, it wouldn't be worth it.
"Yes, but you wouldn't have to worry about that at all. Milady has a light appetite. She rarely turns people, if at all - I've never personally seen her turn anyone, but she only takes a bit. Not enough to kill nor enough to turn." She was describing her master's blood feeding habits proudly, like a mother would do for a child's accomplishments.
That's a new one on me then, and one thing I should be grateful for, I guess. I mean, it's nothing major right? Just that someone filled a bottle of wine with my blood like some vintage what the hell.
The entirety of the situation came down on me at that point. I was spirited away to some fantasy land. I had been gone from my friends and family for months. Remilia had my blood on tap, and had it in a wine bottle for her drinking pleasure. People were brought into Gensokyo to be meals. And the memory of the little girl youkai was still fresh in my mind. I want to go home! Someone get me out of this crazy place! It took me a while to keep myself from screaming!
To think I was angry just a day before for people not telling me all this. I had to take a deep breath, the cold air filling my lungs. I stared up at the snowy sky, unsure if I had what it took to push myself through whatever the day would bring. Just what I had been told already was absolutely insane. I really do need to do what I can to get out of here.
Reimu called back to us as I was having a mental fit. "This place is indeed beautiful, but it's also dangerous, harsh, insane, and cold. Now let's do something about that last part."
The fox woman still didn't like it. Leading them to her home with the cherry blossoms. They were still attracted to the boy, but they had to go that way, as foretold. Thing is, if they directly followed, they would have skipped the next part. Her master made it so that the blossoms were being directed elsewhere from the time they dealt with the yuki-onna, until past midday, and the woman was leading them, trickling from the large pouch she had. She'd run out soon, but they'd make it, and face off against her cat girl servant. The nekomata servant couldn't win, sadly, not at her skill level.
Soon...soon she could stop leading them, and allow them to continue following the blossoms, getting to the real goal. The woman just felt that the whole charade was a stupid waste of time. Ah, well, couldn't disobey orders. Stay out of sight, make sure they survive...
The fox woman noticed her servant was outside. The woman would have to be careful not to be seen by both parties there...three, if one counted the witch following from a distance...
...Wait, there's four - four...
Five? Who were these two new ones?!
Sakuya had remained quiet as we continued to walk, eyeing Reimu. As for the miko, she wasn't flaunting her little victory over Sakuya for telling me what she did. Reimu was solely focused on following the cherry blossoms to our destination.
"I always have a hard time imagining what it's like for people who come into Gensokyo to find out what it's like." Reimu spoke up out of nowhere, quietly saying that to me while keeping her gaze ahead of us.
She didn't look at me at all, but she was waiting for me to respond, it seemed. "It… is a bit of a culture shock, to say it lightly."
"This is the life I know. I deal with these things. And I fight these things. Everybody just wants to live their lives."
I shot a glance back at Sakuya, who looked away from me. The way she avoided my gaze made me suspect that she really was the one who bled me for that bottle. Yeah, well, I have to deal with it. She's not bleeding me now… but does that make it okay? Again, I had to shut that thought down. I needed her out there, as I couldn't defend myself.
I didn't know what to think, or what to dwell on. All I could do was force myself to focus on the task at hand.
That being said I wish I had some sort of transportation. Walking for hours in the snowy wilderness was tiring. Marching through snow drains one's stamina.
It wasn't long until we came across what appeared to be an empty village. There was a huge red gate in front, and a couple of houses. It just felt weird to be there. It's difficult to describe...As if I felt disoriented just by being near this place. It's where the blossoms were leading us, so we had no choice.
Reimu stopped. "Feel that?" Reimu extended her arm and gohei in front of us, keeping us from continuing.
Sakuya's eyes narrowed as she stared out at the village."What? You mean that weird feeling?"
"Yes. A little bit of confusion, disorientation. I think I've heard of this place."
The S.O.S. Brigade club room? I would have liked to say that, but I didn't. Would have flown over their heads.
She took a few steps forward. "Mayohiga."
That got my attention. Good Lord. Mayohiga actually exists? "Mayohiga? Like that folktale?" I stared out at it, the simple village. It was actually quite small. Could this actually exist? But in the folktale, it's supposed to be just a house in another world...another world. I shook my head. Gensokyo was quite amazing, making such things real. So what was next, Atlantis or something?
Reimu nodded to what I said. "This village is on the edge of the Hakurei border. It's actually pretty weak at this point. This could be the area where the cooking teams make their entrances or exits, or another point where people from the outside world wander through." She rolled the gohei in between her fingertips as she chewed on her lower lip. "If I could increase the power of the barrier here, I could starve off the youkai, except they would go after the human village. Hmmm."
Sakuya slowly shook her head, frowning. "And you call Milady a monster."
Stop fighting. I'm almost at my limit of sanity here, and I don't want you two fighting with each other. "Girls, please."
Reimu stroked her chin, appearing to have a light bulb go off in her head. "Isn't it said that if you take something home from Mayohiga, you'll have great luck?"
I furrowed my brow, thinking back to when I heard of Mayohiga when I was a kid. How did it go? "The Mysterious Mansion, 'Mayohiga.' Inside are various utensils and livestock. It is said that everyone who has taken one home was always soon after blessed with great happiness." At least, I think that's how it went. "I...I think so. Been a while since I've heard the tale, but yeah. That should be the case."
Reimu grinned, her eyes not on us, but on the village. "Well now. Looks like I'll just have to help myself here."
Gensokyo is just one giant version of Haruhi!
Sakuya's eyes widened. "You're not actually going to steal from here, are you?"
"Well, it depends if it really is Mayohiga," Reimu said rather unapologetically. "I'll need confirmation. But it could be just folklore. And besides," Reimu turned to Sakuya. "If it's true, why don't you take home a trinket for your master? I'm sure she'd appreciate it."
As much as I wanted to berate Reimu for thinking like that, part of me considered it. I mean, who doesn't want good luck? I could find a nice trinket for myself, carry it with me, and see what happened.
Besides, I needed all the luck I could get when dealing with Haruhi.
"Eye found you!"
We whipped around, recognizing that voice. I couldn't help but bring my palm to my face.
Cirno was back.
Oh this is just what I needed right now. Just add to everything that's been piled on me in the past few minutes why don't you?
"Ah! And Eye found the miko as well! Today just got better! Eye told ya Eye'd get you back someday, Miko!"
Scoffing, Sakuya stepped forward. "What's the matter, small fry? I thou-"
"That's the matter! You don't take us fairies seriously! But Eye'll prove ya wrong!" Cirno then smirked at us. "Or actually, my friends'll prove ya wrong!"
They came from behind the trees. Fairies. Dozens...if not hundreds, of them. I couldn't help but take a few steps back as they seemed to block out the sun.
Reimu let out a little sigh, but it didn't match that steel gaze that had come back. "Oh boy. Little Ice Fairy, you sure you want to be responsible for all of them getting hurt?"
All of them getting hurt? They clearly outnumber us!
Cirno clenched her fists and her teeth, barely containing her rage."Eye'll show you the power of Fairies! Eye'll show you you can't push us around! Eye'll show you all!" She pointed at us. "Get them!"
They dove right at us, firing danmaku. The sky filled with the different colors of light from all the fairies. It was pretty impressive, except that these were a lot of enemies, and I was scared as hell. Reimu and Sakuya calmly stepped forward, looking up at the incoming barrage. They both reached for a spell card.
[SPELL CARD: DREAM SIGN "EVIL SEALING CIRCLE"]
A red barrier, different from mine, extended from Reimu, dissipating the danmaku fired by the fairies, and pretty much annihilating the ones that made contact with it.
"What! That's cheating! Eye won't stand for-"
[SPELL CARD: ILLUSION SIGN "KILLING DOLL"]
A barrage of knives appeared behind Sakuya, spinning. The maid made sweeping motions with her arms, and with each one, waves of knives were flung. They then honed in on the other fairies that weren't affected by Reimu's spell card. And that was that. These two...this maid and this miko just wiped out an army of angry fairies, with almost no effort.
Out of nowhere, a second wave appeared, coming right for us. We all tensed-
[SPELL CARD: ILLUSION GOD "DESCENT OF IZUNA GONGEN"]
From behind us, the direction of the cherry blossoms, a massive amount of danmaku in various shapes, sizes, and colors went right for this new wave. I was stunned. It literally filled the sky, the patterns dense, and the colors of the magical shots bathed us in light. It was like some light show.
"Who-?"
We turned, seeing nobody. But one by one, the fairies fell, hitting trees, bushes, or snow piles. The war cry made by the fairies a few seconds ago was replaced by whimpering and crying.
All the fairies went down, save for one. Cirno hovered there in the air, her shoulders slumped in defeat. Her lip was quivering, and she was obviously on the verge of tears. She was shaking her head at what just happened, that we got help from somebody.
"You...Eye...this isn't...this isn't right! It's not fair!"
What's not fair is that you got a whole army to go against us. Even though you failed. Again.
Sakuya brought out a single real knife, twirling it in her hands. She gave the fairy a smirk. "So, you ready for round two, little fairy?"
Cirno's eyes widened, and then flew off again, crying. She didn't smack herself on something during her retreat this time, thankfully.
Reimu shook her head, as she watched the retreating fairy. "I got to give her credit. That little ice fairy doesn't give up. Then again, it's possible she's too stupid to know when to give up. But she doesn't give up, nonetheless."
My eyes wandered to a fairy lying in the snow, who held her head. "Reimu, should we help those fairies?"
I turned to the miko as I said that, noticing that the intense look on her face was gone.
"Hmm? Nah, they'll be fine. Fairies are a lot tougher than they look even if they're defeated easily. But what I wanna know is...who helped us right now?"
The maid sheathed her knife as she spoke. "Whoever it was is strong. The density of their patterns look as if they could overwhelm Milady's."
We stared toward the village. Someone in there was very powerful, it seemed, even impressing these two.
We walked into the village - the cherry blossoms were leading us there anyways. At the far end, there was a mountain, or at the least a very big hill, with an intimidating staircase that had to reach all the way to the top. I hoped that wasn't our destination. You'd think that with all of my trips up to North High, I'd be up to it, but I just didn't feel like doing that again.
"Well, Kyon, you can't fly, though..."
Reimu had her hand on my shoulder as another bunch of blossoms came in, activating the barrier. It surrounded her as well. She took a step back, looking herself over, eyes widening a bit. The miko was slightly amazed at this, and didn't finish what she was going to say. "Hmmm. Interesting," the miko said. "Very powerful, very...very holy. This definitely didn't come from the vampire."
"We told you that already, Red-White!"
Reimu ignored Sakuya snapping at her. "...And it heals too? But...I'm not cold anymore." Reimu rubbed her bare shoulders. "I mean, the parts of my body that were getting cold aren't cold."
I stopped, wanting to slap myself in the head. Why didn't I notice this before? No wonder the cold isn't bothering me for too long!
"It resets the body heat. Restores a bit of body fatigue." Reimu appeared a bit fascinated with the barrier, and it showed in her voice. "Heals, and gives a small recharge in energy. Very interesting indeed. That barrier is beyond useful, it seems. This 'God' of yours, Kyon, is quite useful. I'll have to learn her name someday."
About time she's useful in a way that I see immediate benefits, actually. Sakuya was taking notes, which caused Reimu to cross her arms.
"And just what are you doing, maid?"
"Lady Patchouli asked me to record anything about the barrier for her research."
Reimu smirked as she tilted her head. "Ah, the vampire wants to recreate it, and challenge me with an invincible barrier, right?" Sakuya looked up, as she tried not to show annoyance, but she did. Reimu's smirk widened. "The look on your face tells me I'm right."
The miko smiled and continued her walk. I had to give her credit. She knew Remilia right on the button. And I guessed Reimu and Remilia had a much deeper rivalry than I had thought. If Reimu is this bad with Remilia's servant, how is she with Remilia herself?
"Okay, if this isn't Mayohiga, then what village is this?" The miko looked around, scratching her head. "Why so empty? Why so out in the wilderness?"
She paused a bit before resuming. I suppose Meiling was right when she said that no humans have mapped out Gensokyo.
"Why are there houses in a place like this?"
"Hey, don't ask me," I said. "I'm not even from here, remember?"
"This is the end for you!"
A cat girl with brown eyes and short brown hair, wearing a red and pink dress with gold trimming and a green cap, stood on the roof of one of the buildings. The sunlight shone off of a single gold earring she had on her left cat ear. Her two tails swayed behind her.
She was adorable. No, beyond adorable. Even though she appeared to be hostile towards us even being in the village, she was just so cute. An extremely cute cat girl.
Reimu scratched her head with her gohei as she floated up to roof level to meet with her. "Huh? End?"
"A nekomata," Sakuya whispered to me., eyes wide. "I never thought I'd ever see one."
A nekomata. A two-tailed cat youkai. An actual nekomata. And I thought Shamisen talking was weird. But there's an actual nekomata right here! And I couldn't get over how adorable she was!
The cat girl tried to be intimidating, but her childish side took over. She immediately lost her initial aggressive stance. "Well, anyways, welcome to Mayohiga."
I had thought Asahina was the best at melting your heart, but the cat girl easily took that title!
The miko's eyebrows rose, looking somewhat amused. "So, the end of what?"
The cat girl shook her head, as if she was shaking herself out of her non-aggressiveness. She then pointed directly at Reimu with one of her long red fingernails. "The end of wanderers like you! You can't leave once you wander in!"
"Is that so? By the way, I hear that Mayohiga's items give you good fortune if you take them home..."
"Yeah, that's true."
Reimu grinned as she looked back at us. I can't believe she's still thinking about that!
"Then let the plundering begin!"
This place has to be a product of Haruhi! I know it!
It took the cat girl a while to process this. "Uh...what?" Upon realizing that Reimu's intentions were to take something from there, the cat girl's two tails extended straight, her teeth clenching. She was ready for a fight. Even when she was angry she was cute! "This is our home! Get out of here now!"
"So what happened to 'You can't leave once you wander in'?"
Sakuya and Reimu like to antagonize, don't they? Sakuya placed her hand on my shoulder and led me further away from the two in the air. It didn't take a genius to know that I was about to witness another danmaku battle. I was interesting in how Reimu was going to fight, as she was supposed to be the one to come up with the game.
In response to Reimu's words, the cat girl swarmed danmaku all around her, hiding behind a layer of it, before sending it spinning towards Reimu. The miko just floated there, merely sidestepping (side-floatstepping? Ah, never mind. That's not even a word!) when it got too close to her. She didn't even fire anything at the cat. Again, that steel gaze had come back. Is that her battle face?
The cat girl started to do somersaults in the air, and fast moving danmaku went right at Reimu, who had to dodge. The cat was quickly gaining speed in her attacks. Reimu finally started to attack with paper amulets and needles, and threw out two yin yang orbs that floated alongside her. They fired amulets as well when she attacked. The amulets appeared to be homing attacks, as they tracked the cat, yet, because the little girl was moving too quickly, they were instead colliding with each other. Reimu did a double take when that happened.
[SPELL CARD: SHIKIGAMI SIGN "PENTAGRAM FLIGHT"]
A circle surrounded the cat girl, who immediately started to do more somersaults in the air. She was quicker than one could blink their eye! Seriously – the cat girl was speedy! She formed a pattern of a star within the circle, leaving an explosion of danmaku at each star's point, which rained down towards their target.
"Wow, little girl," Reimu shouted as she twirled and twisted her body in the air to avoid the girls' attacks. "You're fast!"
"I have a name! It's Chen Yakumo! Don't you forget it!"
The second time the girl, Chen, made a star, she made a sudden move, and the danmaku changed direction in mid-flight. Reimu almost flew smack dab into one, escaping it by knocking it away with her gohei at the last second.
Sakuya gasped. "That cat's so quick!"
The spell card depleted Chen then caused another explosion of danmaku, this time homing in on Reimu. Reimu threw even more amulets at her, but to no avail. Chen then landed on the roof, pouncing at her target with her nails. Reimu barely managed to dodge, but Chen ripped through one of Reimu's sleeves. Chen got back up into the air, and prepared to fire another volley.
Reimu glanced at her torn sleeve, grit her teeth and brought out a spell card. "You're gonna pay for that one, cat!"
[SPELL CARD: SPIRIT SIGN "FANTASY SEAL ~ CONCENTRATE"]
Reimu extended her arms, an aura of light forming around her body. A flurry of bright, colorful energy balls emitted from around Reimu, going right for Chen, homing in on their target. Chen out-ran them, literally. She dropped out of flight to the rooftops, and was bounding from roof to roof with, well, catlike speed and agility, Reimu's danmaku colliding with the roofs instead of their intended target.
"What," Sakuya gasped. "I've never seen anybody completely dodge that! That attack took us all down!"
Should… we be worried then, if this cat girl avoided Reimu's signature attack?
As soon as Reimu's attack was over (and Reimu blatantly surprised that her spell card failed to hit her target), Chen got back up in the air and used another spell card. It was just so crazy how fast that cat was!
[SPELL CARD: HEAVEN SIGN "IMMORTAL SAGE'S RUMBLING"]
Chen started to do even more somersaults, this time all over the village. Reimu had a hard time just keeping Chen in her sight; the nekomata was obviously giving her something to worry about. The cat girl left a trail of slow moving danmaku that floated above Reimu - eventually. It covered the whole sky over the village.
Ah yeah, that's intimidating.
Reimu turned to us, her eyes wide. "Get under cover," she shouted. "Now!"
Chen stopped, snapped her fingers, and each danmaku split in two, gravity taking over for them. Sakuya grabbed my hand and we ran towards a porch. We weren't going to make-
The gray world again. Thank you, Sakuya! I glanced up, everything had stopped, and I couldn't help but smile. This is so cool.
We got under cover, and the world went back to full color. Reimu descended and flew near the ground, narrowly avoiding the shots, and hitting the ones she wouldn't be able to avoid with the gohei. It looked like she was dodging rain, which she pretty much was. The danmaku hit the ground, impacting the snow and creating craters. If all that connected with me, I'd be knocked out for sure.
I doubt I could ever "play" danmaku. Besides, it reminded me too much of those "bullet-hell" video games. I hate those.
A few more cherry blossoms had flown in, and when Reimu saw my barrier activate, she quickly came up to me, and made contact, getting the barrier going for her.
Reimu's quick to adapt and take advantage. Her movements weren't as graceful or showy like Sakuya's - they were efficient, focused. Reimu played this game to win.
Which was good, because she got hit a few seconds later. However, it got her directly under Chen, who had to stop to snap her fingers for another rain-down. The miko fired another one of her amulets.
[SPELL CARD: WIZARD SIGN "INCARNATE IMMORTAL SAGE"]
The last amulet grazed the girl, tearing her dress on one side, so Chen held up that spell card. Hissing like a kitten, she went into yet another somersault barrage, this time making dense peanut-shaped patterns of danmaku, and flinging them at Reimu. The miko simply used another card as she flew straight up at Chen.
[SPELL CARD: SPIRIT SIGN "FANTASY SEAL ~ SPREAD"]
That card sent out a bunch of danmaku in different, random directions. I guess Chen panicked a bit when she saw Reimu use it spell card (it initially looked exactly like the other spell card Reimu used beforehand), because she moved quickly out from in front of the miko...right into the path of one of the random danmaku. It was a direct hit.
Chen yowled as she collapsed onto the roof, and into a pile of snow next to the building, Reimu just watching.
A small smirk crept on the miko's face. "I guess that's it... Better go loot some stuff now."
Reimu, you'd make an excellent stooge of Haruhi, with that attitude. Also, you're not a nice person, are you?
Sakuya and I went over to the cat girl, who slowly climbed out of the snow, and shook it off of her. She held her head as Reimu came down to her, tapping her gohei on her shoulder, smiling in victory.
"Amazing speed, little nekomata. But you need some discipline." Reimu stretched, already looking away. "Now, if you'll excuse me." And with that, Reimu walked off to a house across the street.
Chen just hung her head and closed her eyes.
"You okay?"
Chen looked up at me, her face red. "No...no, I lost. I guess I'm not strong enough for danmaku yet."
Sakuya approached the cat, and put a hand on her shoulder. "Hey, don't get too worried about it. Took me some getting used to when I got beat by her."
"Oh? And what was that back in the forest?"
Sakuya gave me a quick nasty look before she turned back to Chen. Hey, you were the one who tried to attack her with that unfair advantage.
"But your speed is incredible. You made Red-White use up two spell cards in such a short time. I couldn't even do that." Her hand went from Chen's shoulder to her head, where Sakuya was scratching her under the cap.
Chen began to purr.
My heart melted again. I just wanted to shout "CHEEEEEEEEN!" and hug her. Although...wouldn't that make me a weirdo?
Chen left soon after, and we then joined Reimu in the house. At least the door wasn't forced open.
"Uhm, should we be barging in," I asked. "Breaking and entering?" Though should I ask that at all when I already entered?
Sakuya had taken this opportunity to use my lighter to start a fire in a stove and prepare our lunch in the kitchen of the house, as it was a bit past mid-day. She spoke as she prepared.
"Didn't stop you from doing so to that...who was it?" Sakuya paused, thinking. "The computer, you called it? Yeah, the computer club president? His place?"
Please don't be throwing back my past actions in my face. Besides, I didn't really know what was going down. "Well, at that time we were being ordered around by a bossy..."
Reimu raised an eyebrow at me, with a "I just fought in a battle, but I can still go" look. Yeah, this girl would wipe the floor with me and make it look easy. Hell, I know both of them would.
"...Yeah I'm not going to finish that sentence."
It was Sakuya's turn to raise an eyebrow. "You said Milady reminds you of that girl you just called 'bossy'."
Ah hell. I gritted my teeth as Reimu just smiled at me. All I could do was shrug at the maid. Well, isn't Remilia bossy?
Of course, I had to be careful with offending these two. They were pretty ruthless in battle. I'd hate to be on the receiving end of their ire.
Reimu went back to searching. There was plenty of stuff, but I guess she was looking for something really special. Exploring around the small house and its few rooms, I found it to be empty. It had all the usual comforts of a simple home, I suppose, though it had vast amounts of trinkets here and there. The house was in a very distinct Edo style. Didn't they say that Gensokyo closed off about a hundred years or so ago? That would put it around the Edo era. Or at the very least just after. Entering the house felt like going back in time, or would have, if it didn't have an insane number of little things all over the place. I studied a little obsidian nekomata figure, before asking Reimu what just popped in my mind.
"Hey, where are all the people here?"
Reimu studied at a trinket and put it back down before picking up another one. "Well, if this is a staging area for the cooking teams to exit and enter Gensokyo, then I'd assume that everyone who lived here is long since steak well-done." The miko paused as she stared out a window. "Of course, this is an alluring place. As I said before, the border is weak out there. If people do wander in through here, their first instinct would be to stay in one of the houses. Then the cooking teams come, and they already have a human in their trap, no hassle. This place is actually perfect for them. At least that's what I think."
"So uh, should we be worried about these teams? Because I wouldn't want to meet them." Under no circumstances would I ever want to meet them.
"Mmm, from what I understand, they only work at night under cover of darkness once a month. Maid?"
"...Why are you asking me?" Sakuya called from the kitchen area.
Reimu smirked. "...Thought you might know. With who you serve and all."
Sakuya sighed as she prepared the tea. With all their clashes going on, I had to make sure something didn't happen, should Sakuya get mad enough. "Hey, Sakuya, if you're going to poison a cup, make sure it's not mine." I didn't even mean to say that aloud.
Sakuya actually responded with a chuckle. "She's still an ally to my mistress. So I wouldn't."
But weren't you about to stab her back in the forest?
At the end of that thought, I heard Reimu talking to herself, musing over the trinkets. "No...not this one...maybe...no..."
I moved next to her, to see what she was going over. "So, uh, why are you so intent on finding a good luck charm?"
"Well, it's not for me, per se. I just want to do anything I can to increase donations to my shrine. And if a little luck brings them in, then I'll take all I can get." Reimu studied a unicorn-looking thing, before putting it back.
Sakuya called out to the miko, still focused on her cooking duties. "What, Red-White, incident resolving not paying the bills?"
"It actually doesn't. Nobody comes up to me and offers me big bucks to rid an area of youkai. Well, not often enough anyways. Although removing minor curses does provide a small income. Usually though I just resolve incidents, and people out of pure appreciation donate to keep me going, because they don't like youkai. It's my job. It's how I make a living." She turned, crossed her arms, and glared at Sakuya, her attitude going from reflective to aggressive. "Which is why I don't appreciate it when you and your mistress arrive at my shrine unannounced, maid. I know for sure you two scared away a few of my contributors. And I don't even want to think about what they said back at the village. 'Hakurei hangs out with youkai!' That would be very bad for my donation box."
So that's why you're really hostile towards the SDM. They may have screwed up your means of getting paid. I was beginning to understand why Reimu was acting the way she was earlier towards Sakuya. I didn't condone the open hostility, but I understood it.
Done with that little rant, the miko sighed, closing her eyes, leaning against a wall. "I mean, the whole reason why my ancestors came out here was to quell the youkai, not become friends with them...it's my bloodline. It's expected of me to do this - resolve any incidents they cause."
I crossed my arms, getting a bit annoyed with her. Yeah, she's talking of duty, but stealing? "Is stealing from youkai part of that expectation?"
She opened her eyes and had that unapologetic smile again. "Well, this is different."
Haruhi-logic right there. The more time I spend in this place, the more and more I am certain it is a product of Haruhi. Reimu was quite the girl. She seemed to have steel focus at times, yet she was unapologetically selfish. Though at the same time she was concerned for my well being. It made it kind of difficult to read her, despite how straightforward she carried herself.
Sakuya looked up at me as she started to pour the tea for us, her brow furrowing. "Hey, did the door just open?"
I was going to ask why she asked that, but I had felt a sudden drop in temperature. We all went to the entryway.
Sakuya couldn't help but sigh, and neither could I. It was that stupid ice fairy. She stood there, her hands balled up into fists, obviously pissed off.
"Eye am gonna get payback now! You don't play fair, Eye won't play fair!"
Why won't she go away?
Reimu cracked her knuckles, getting ready. "We don't have time to play with you, fairy!"
The two of them readied a barrage, and fired as Cirno used a spell card.
[SPELL CARD: PERFECT FREEZE]
"Eye am the strongest!"
The temperature in the house dropped even lower, frost forming on every surface. The danmaku that Sakuya and Reimu fired at the fairy instantly froze, fell, and shattered on the ground.
"What the-!"
I cry foul again!
All three of us were knocked back by ice fired by the fairy. And man, did it hurt. These were chunks of ice coming at us, the size of baseballs. Cirno just didn't stop. She kept firing it at us as we were knocked back into the wall. It was surrounding us, encasing us in real ice. We were unable to move, and just kept getting hit. Every time I tried to struggle, a chunk would hit my body, adding to my current prison.
The fairy was going to kill us, freeze us to death!
"Eye got you! Eye got you all! Eye told you Eye'd get you all back! Nobody is stronger than me!"
The crazed look in her eyes told the tale. Cirno had completely lost it, and we were at her mercy.
[SPELL CARD: ILLUSION SIGN "KILLING DOLL"]
Again, knives appeared around Sakuya, aimed at the fairy, but they were quickly frozen and shattered. "...No!"
"Sakuya! Reimu! Please," I shouted. "Do...something!"
"I...can't...!" Reimu tried to speak, but the ice then covered her face.
Oh, God, we're going to die here! We're going to- The ice had completely covered me, encasing me against the wall. I could only hear my own heartbeat, unable to breathe. Cirno started to laugh loudly, but it was muffled in my prison. My life had started to flash before my eyes there! And wouldn't you know it, I got to the part where Asakura froze me in place.
I thought I saw the door open. Cirno turned around, raising her arms to attack, but-
[SPELL CARD: LOVE SIGN "MASTER SPARK"]
A bright light had appeared where Cirno was, and when it was gone, so was the fairy. A figure wearing a black hat and a black dress stepped into the room. It looked like a witch. Upon truly seeing us, it ran to me, and I could see her more clearly through my ice prison.
It was a teenage girl, about the same age as Reimu and I. Long blonde hair, golden eyes, with a braid down one side of her face. It was a witch's hat she was wearing, black, and a purple bow on it. She was sporting a white petticoat and a black dress. "Witch" clearly defined how this pretty girl dressed.
She knocked on my ice encasement for a bit, shrugged, and simply yanked it off the wall, throwing me to the ground where it shattered. It hurt, but I was free enough to breathe again. She did the same to Reimu and Sakuya.
The girl, who had to be the Black-White Sakuya was talking about, stood over us with her hands on her hips. Reimu looked up and was greeted.
"Yo, Reimu," the witch said. "Seems like I can't leave you alone on an incident, can I, ze?"
"Mah...Marisa!" Reimu struggled to get free of the ice still covering her body, which the witch helped with. "What are you doing here?! ...Not that I'm complaining about the save."
"Oh, you know how it is. Bored at home, ze. Go up in the air, fly around, follow Sakuya and this boy from a distance to somewhere fun." She said that as she finished freeing Reimu (enough for Reimu to start working on breaking herself out) and started to break up the ice surrounding the maid. Yeah, we were free from being suffocated, but we were still stuck in the chunks of ice.
Sakuya finished gasping for air, looking up at the witch, Marisa. "You've been following us?"
"Yeah, winter is fun and all, but two extra months of it?" Marisa rolled her eyes." I'm getting tired of starting snowball fights and making snowmen, ze! That, and most mushrooms don't grow in the winter. So imagine my wonder when I saw some cherry blossoms stuck to the windows of the Scarlet Devil mansion!"
What's with her saying "ze" every now and then?She have a verbal tic or something? Though I really shouldn't have been questioning things about our savior.
It wasn't lost on me on what almost happened. I would have suffocated.
Sakuya dusted the ice off of herself after being helped up by Marisa, but the maid frowned at her. "You were there to steal more of Lady Patchouli's books again, weren't you?"
"Oh, please, I'm just borrowing them - when I die, you can just collect them all back, ze! But anyways, I figure that I should follow those things, because where there are cherry blossoms, there is spring! I also managed to get a few of them a few days ago, and do a few experiments. They have some sort of power, but I lack the means of extracting the magic from them."
Marisa turned to me as she helped Reimu get rid of the final pieces of ice around her. I was still a little unsure of this person. I mean, who goes around stealing things and states "you'll get them back when I die"? Still, she did just save our lives, so I'll give her that. The witch nodded at me.
"And by watching what happens to you, it seems you don't have any problems doing just that!"
Sakuya was breaking the ice around me as she turned to the witch. "But Lady Remilia said that they were just ordinary cherry blossoms."
"Sorry, Sakuya, with all due respect to the vampiress, she doesn't know magic like I do, ze. And if Patchy there couldn't figure them out, then I'm afraid the Scarlet Devil Mansion's scientists are way behind. It's kinda like magic, but not really. Very difficult to describe because I don't know what's exactly behind it."
Reimu smiled as she was helped up by Marisa. "Then again, they don't have to worry about blowing up that mansion. You just do all of your experiments out in the wild where it won't hurt anyone."
Wait, she blows things up?
Marisa graced us with a toothy grin, a sparkle shining in her eye. She looked like she was a wild, mischievous girl. At least, that's what the smile told me. Reminded me of Tsuruya's, in a way. "Yep, that's one of the best things about being able to have no restraints!"
She helped me up. I was face to face with this girl. Unlike Reimu, who was obviously full-Japanese, Marisa appeared to have a mix about her. I stared into those golden eyes, a bit mesmerized by the witch. Not at all what you'd think a traditional witch would be like, according to the stories you'd read as a kid. But I guess it depends on who's telling the story and their take on witches in general, doesn't it? But wow, was she a pretty girl.
"Those cherry blossoms are indeed attracted to you. I will give Remilia credit, ze. She knows how to use her resources." Marisa patted me on the shoulder. "Beacon boy, or whatever. If we simply get you to be the beacon, we can follow the cherry blossoms right to their source, bring spring back to Gensokyo and finally end this winter!"
A groan came from the wall opposite the door Marisa came through. Sakuya immediately brought out one of her silver knives, her eyes becoming intense.
Ah that's right. The fairy.
Cirno was crying, whimpering, and shaking on the floor against the wall, most of her skin bright red. Steam was coming from her body, her clothes all charred, hair and ribbon singed. The wall right above her was burned to a crisp, part of it on fire, the silhouette of the fairy was the only remaining normal part of the wall.
Damn. The witch really messed her up.
The four of us gathered over her, that fairy who had murderous intentions, and stared down at the pitiful body. Cirno looked up at us with tear-filled eyes. All she could do was let out another whimper. Sakuya took a deep breath.
"I know killing small fries is pointless," the maid said as she twirled a knife in her hand. "...But this one just keeps getting in the way."
Cirno's eyes teared up even more, and she began to sob. She wasn't shaking from the pain anymore, but out of fear. I know she tried to kill us just now, but looking at this child-like person, it was heart wrenching. Yet she did try to kill us. But she looks so...innocent now. I nervously shifted.
"What should we do with her?" I had to ask that, because Reimu and Sakuya seriously looked like they were ready to put an end to the fairy.
Marisa knelt down to the fairy. "Hey. Hey, fairy. You know you broke the rules of danmaku. You tried to kill a human. Breaking the rules is a serious offense, ze. Reimu is obliged to do you in right here, but maybe we can do a little trade."
Cirno's mouth quivered. "...W...what...tra...ade?"
"Well, how about you lend us your spell cards? That way, you can't attack anymore. We'll just hang on to them until we bring spring back, ze. And we'll just leave you alone."
Cirno's eyes lowered, before closing. "...F...fine."
And she just laid there, shaking, as Marisa looted the spell cards from Cirno. Marisa stood up smiling. "Whelp, I'm hungry! It's time for lunch!"
"Don't tell me we're going to eat the fairy." Marisa gave me a weird look as I turned to Reimu who was still dusting off the ice. "So...good luck charm, huh?"
The nasty look she gave didn't faze me. The day was just getting weirder and weirder. I longed for Haruhi to be wasting my time again as opposed to this. At least the stuff I did with the Brigade didn't have me nearly suffocated.
I stopped, smelling what Sakuya was cooking. It was the two lunches, but she was splitting it four ways. Leftover boar meat, but it smelled amazing.
Maybe if I get some food in me I'll relax a little bit…. It was then I realized the fight had scattered the figurines all over the place, most of them broken, making a complete mess of ice and broken figures. That wasn't lost on Reimu, who stared at the carnage. The two of us stared at each other.
"...Maybe we should leave before whoever put all these here comes back?"
Reimu was silent for a moment, before her shoulders rose and sagged. "Yeah, I think you're right. Don't wanna be blamed…" She eyed what Sakuya was doing. "But after lunch."
She got Chen back home, and after seeing what almost happened, the fox woman was cursing herself. She should have been watching over them, and the fairy went in there and tried to kill all of them. Thankfully the witch saved them. But she should have been there, not concerned with her defeated servant.
But the fairy, she was different. Altered, more powerful. Something about that fairy...but the alteration was gone. Weird. As if the spell card wiped it away.
It was unexpected, but it worked for her.
Ah well, since she was close enough to home, she'd grab some lunch herself before continuing her vigilance, hoping she wouldn't have to use another spell card to defend them. After this was over, she would have to have a talk with Chen about her battle. Her servant was actually more developed than she thought, her speed matching that of a tengu.
She'd have to be careful from there on out. The fox woman noticed that someone else was following them all. The fourth party was the fairy. The fifth...
Speaking of tengus...that's not who was following them, right?
The night sparrow youkai, wearing her white and brown dress along with her work apron, stretched her wings a bit, and put her cap back on after smoothing over her short pink hair and washing her hands. Wriggle sat there shivering, right next to the grill.
"Don't get any funny ideas, Mysti."
"As if. You know youkai don't eat other youkai. And besides, fireflies are too bitter for my tastes anyway. Even when grilled."
Wriggle slowly turned her head towards her, her expression a mixture of anger and disgust. "This is why I have a problem with you. I can't tell if you're joking about stuff like that or not!"
Mystia smirked. "Well, I wouldn't eat you. I'm actually not joking, you see. You fireflies taste terrible."
Wriggle shook her head in pure disgust. Daiyousei dropped Wriggle off, saying that the bug's house was destroyed, and that Wriggle needed to stay warm. Daiyousei then took off, telling Wriggle she'd just wait for Cirno to come home. Mystia didn't know what was going on, but Wriggle was quite frosted coming in.
Now, Mystia didn't have any problem with the firefly, nor would she ever eat her. Even if she wanted to, she wouldn't - there was Gensokyo's policy for no youkai cannibalism. It was just that the night sparrow couldn't help reminding Wriggle that Mystia was higher up in the food chain.
And it was true, after all...fireflies didn't taste good. "Wriggle, normally I'd ask you to get ready to get out of my stand on a moment's notice."
"And why is that?"
"Well, I do have to run a business here. And my human customers won't like to see a bug right next to the grill, especially a youkai one. I don't have anything against you, it's just that I got a stand to run. Just saying, you know? Girl's gotta make a living."
Wriggle rolled her eyes, her voice dripping in sarcasm. "Yeah, thanks, Mysti."
Mystia sighed, looking outside the stand again, a little peeved with the whole combined situation. Either way, up or down the path, there was clearly no one coming. She got some of the lamprey she was making for lunch off the grill and skewered them for her and her companion. "Look, Wriggle, I'm sorry, alright? It's just this damn winter. Nobody wants to come down this path anymore, cause they're too afraid the storm'll pick up out of nowhere again, which is obviously affecting my business. I don't know what the hell is wrong with spring not coming back."
"Heh, maybe someone should wake up Lilly White," Wriggle chuckled. "And tell her she overslept."
Mystia raised an eyebrow at Wriggle as she handed her lunch. "That children's tale? That spring fairy doesn't exist."
"I saw her last year."
Mystia scoffed at that. "Bull. The very idea that a single fairy can change a season is just stupid. Sure I've seen fairies bring a little life to the area they're in just with their presence, but to end winter?"
"I'm telling you, Mysti, I saw her. She came around where I lived, and the snow started to melt right away. The cherry blossoms bloomed almost instantly. Most amazing thing I've ever seen since becoming a youkai. And she made it warm, which is why I loved the whole thing." Wriggle took a bite out of her lamprey, and slowly chewed, looking into the flames of the grill.
"So, what are you going to do now?" Mystia asked. "Got any place to stay?"
"I dunno."
"Wriggle, drop the tough-girl act. You lost your home, and you need a place to crash. You're staying with me."
Wriggle looked as if she was going to say something, but instead thought better of it. "Fine. But only until spring comes."
The firefly youkai continued to sit there, looking at the fire, not saying anything else. The night sparrow sighed, knowing that Wriggle's pride was quite large. Mystia took a bite out of her lunch as she stared out into the falling snow, hoping that the winter would end so business could pick back up. She couldn't even bring in new customers during the night, as people no longer wanted to chance the snowstorms in the dark. And frankly, she didn't want to risk it either.
"Seriously, Mysti," Wriggle said. "You haven't noticed that in Gensokyo it's winter one minute and spring the next? You've been here longer than me, and I can't believe you haven't noticed that."
Mystia's eyes narrowed, trying to remember last year, and the years before that. It was that way, wasn't it? She never paid it too much attention.
Though if it's that way, what does it mean then?
Does Lilly White exist? Is there an actual fairy that can control the beginning of a season? Is that what this was all about? A mere fairy?
-begin-
Attempting to take steps to ensure Subject [NAME REDACTED] "KYON" lives.
Please hold.
-end-
-update-
Unable to.
-end-
CHEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEN!
That's kind of a meme that Touhou fans have - yet it's a touchy one. Some love that meme, others hate it.
Man, I love Chen's music.
In my opinion, Embodiment of Scarlet Devil is the best game of the series, but Perfect Cherry Blossom has the best music, and as you'll see, well...you'll see about the story surrounding it.
What is a nekomata? When a cat goes past the age of 10, again, with the Japanese belief that if something lives a long time, it can gain power, well, the concept of a nekomata is of a cat pretty much doing that. The cat gets a second tail, and becomes a nekomata, developing magic powers such as necromancy and shamanism. They also can shape shift into humans.