Praying For a Miracle

Remilia Scarlet is dreaming.

It is a dream she had often, but never could fully recall upon wakening, save for the end. What she can remember the suffocating feeling of being locked into a tiny space. She can remember being surrounded by complete darkness and bitter cold. She can remember the overwhelming terror that rises up to envelop her as she screams and begs to be released.

Then someone takes her by the hand and squeezes it tightly. Remilia squeezes back. Though she can never see the other person, their presence does give her some measure of comfort, small as it may be, though at times she's unsure who is comforting who.

It doesn't last though, because that's when the monster arrives, a snarling, creeping thing. Just like her companion, it is impossible to see, save for the burning fires of its eyes. It slowly approaches, taking its time as it stalks through the black. It's crawling on all fours. She can hear its long and filthy fingernails scraping against the cold stones.

It's almost upon her now. Remilia and her companion try to move away from it, but there is nowhere to go. So they press themselves against the wall and clutch at each other tightly. The monster looks down at them, its red eyes gloating. Drool drips down as it opens its mouth and it speaks.

"Wake up, vampire."

Remilia jolted awake. Hard stone and ragged chill were replaced by the soft sheets and comforting warmth of her room. She sat up in bed, blinking as she tried to banish the clinging tendrils of the dream.

She peered through bleary eyes. There was someone hovering at the foot of her bed. Someone with green hair and a blue outfit…

"Mima?" she said. "What are you doing in my bedchamber?" She had of course seen the ghost dozens of times during her visits to Hakurei Shrine, but she couldn't fathom why Mima would appear in her bedroom.

Mima looked down at her, arms folded in displeasure. "Let's cut to the chase, shall we? Where is Marisa?"

The small vampire shook her head. Her mind was still fuzzy and, to tell the truth, she wasn't entirely sure if she was still dreaming or not. "Wait, what? Marisa…"

"Yes. Marisa. Marisa Kirisame. Where is she?"

"How should I know?" Remilia scowled. She kicked off her bedclothes and dropped to the rich red velvet carpet. "And you do realize that you're trespassing, don't you? I don't enjoy being woken-"

Mima held out a single finger and muttered a word. Remilia's eyes widened as an invisible force grabbed her and started to lift her off the ground.

She grimaced in frustration. Oh no, she wasn't going to take this again. Not in her own home. She mustered her own power, drawing strength from the mansion itself, and sent it outward.

Mima's eyes bulged. She made a small hrryk noise of surprise and was propelled back five feet before regaining control. Remilia landed in a crouch, fangs bared and crimson energy dancing around her hands.

"I don't know what your problem is," she spat. "But no one assaults me in my home, especially not in my bedchamber!"

"And I'm not interested in resorting to fisticuffs. I'll ask you again: where is Marisa?"

"I don't know where the witch is! Why would I know? That last time I saw her was when you two showed up earlier this week to harass my household!"

"Don't lie," Mima hissed. "Yukari told me…"

The ghost's voice trailed off. Her face was blank for a moment, and then she inhaled sharply as her eyes widened. "Oh, you sneaky bitch!" she whispered.

"I-I beg your pardon!" Remilia sputtered.

"Not you!" Mima said in a cross tone. She turned around, flicking her hand in a shooing gesture. "Wrong house. Go back to sleep."

She started to fade away. Remilia was more than happy to let her go. She turned around, intending to see if she could catch a few more minutes of sleep (though she seriously doubted it) but something suddenly struck her.

"Hey!" she called as she whirled back around. "Wait a minute."

By this point Mima was little more than an optical illusion. However, at Remilia's call she returned to full solidity.

"I'm sorry, did you just call me back?" Mima said, her voice laced with disbelief. "Don't you realize that most people would be on their knees thanking whatever gods they believed in if I were to simply leave without causing trouble?"

Remilia smiled her most disarming smile. "I've never been the sort to let an opportunity slip by. And I believe we have the opportunity to help each other."

"Don't try my patience, vampire. I have little enough as it is."

"Oh, I'm not. If I am to understand you correctly, you are currently having some friction with Yukari Yakumo, is that right?"

"That is my business. Go mind your own."

"Oh, but I am. You see, Yukari and I haven't exactly been getting along lately either. And if you also have reason to dislike her, then-"

"Wait, stop." Mima held up a hand, palm out. "What are you talking about? Yukari said that you offered your help and demanded that Marisa be arrested as payment, and she accepted."

Remilia growled from the back of her throat. "Oh, did she? How unsurprising. No, what happened is that I extended my offer of assistance and asked only that she do something about that witch's constant harassment in return, and she not only threw it back in my face but blackmailed me and my sister into helping out anyway!"

"Oh? That's interesting. If it's true, that is."

"Oh, it is, believe me it is. And if you're on the outs with her as well, then…" Remilia's smile returned "…I believe there is a great deal we can offer each other."

Mima unfortunately looked unimpressed. "Huh. So you said you'd chip in and got coerced instead. Why don't I believe that?"

"It's the truth!"

"Even if it were, you just admitted that you got suckered by Yukari and are at the end of your rope. Sorry, little corpse. I'm not interested in working with the incompetent."

Remilia opened her mouth to defend her skills at conspiracy, but it was pointless. Mima had already vanished. Remilia stared at the empty air as feeling of shock, anger and frustration welled up within her.

"Why," she said "doesn't anybody want to conspire with me? I'm a vampire, for Vlad's sake! Subterfuge and trickery are what I do! Just because I had one plan go awry doesn't mean-"

Then she leapt back with a cry of alarm, her wings instinctively folding around to cover her face. Mima had suddenly reappeared with a disgruntled look on her face.

The ghost massaged her forehead and glanced at Remilia. "Yukari blocked me from reentering her tower," she grumbled. "Clever girl. Oh, I am so making her life miserable for this."

With that, she vanished again, leaving Remilia alone in her room. The young vampire gaped as her brain tried to catch up. Several high-pitched squeaking noises came out of her open mouth, but none of it resembled articulate speech.

Then she shut her mouth and straightened up. So, the ghost wasn't taking her seriously either? Well, fine. She was still an incredibly powerful (not to mention wealthy) vampire with an entire mansion of resources at her disposal. She had Patchouli and her knowledge, Sakuya and her prowess, Hong Meiling and her strength, Flandre and her overwhelming power, hundreds of magical artifacts, more money than most gods, her own hereditary cunning, as well as numerous outside connections. She didn't need these self-important natives. She could solve this problem on her own if need be. She didn't need…

Remilia became aware of dampness forming around her eyes. She also became aware that her nostrils were starting to fill with snot.

She scowled and pulled out a handkerchief. Oh, for crying out loud, she thought as she dabbed at her eyes. This is just embarrassing.

There came a sudden knock at the door, startling her. "Lady Scarlet!" Sakuya shouted from the other side. "Are you all right? The wards detected an intruder! Please, is everything all right?"

Remilia sighed and blew her nose. "Ye-" she started to say, only to have her voice crack. She cleared her throat and tried again.

"Yes, yes, everything's fine," she said as she walked toward the door. "It was just that damned Mima working off some false information. Annoying, wouldn't you agree? She's gone now."

She gripped the cold metal of the handles and pulled the door open. Sakuya stood on the other side, knives held between the fingers of her right hand and a worried expression on her face.

"Mima?" Sakuya said. "She was here? What did she want?"

"I don't know. Yukari did something to Marisa and tried to pin it on us. Very annoying. Anyway, it's all been cleared up. She's gone now, so there's no problem."

"But…"

Remilia was already closing the door. "Thank you for your concern. Let me know if Patchouli finally comes through. You may leave now."

The door clicked shut.

Sakuya remained standing on the other side for several seconds afterward. Remilia could smell her, which was annoying. The maid's concern was commendable, but at that moment Remilia just wanted to be left alone.

Fortunately, Sakuya seemed to finally get the hint and walk away. Remilia sighed and returned to her bed. Sniffling, she wiggled herself under the covers and pulled them up over her head.

On the whole, she reflected, this week sucked.

…

Even though the Ringleader meeting had ended in the early afternoon, the Ruined City was still a long way from the Youkai Mountain. And given that this was Gensokyo, Reimu and her traveling companions had to deal with more than one roaming gang of hungry youkai and over-confident fairies. Of course, seeing how their party consisted of a physical god, a magician who might as well be a god and two professional youkai exterminators, they suffered little more than temporary inconvenience. Still, by the time their journey came to its end, the sun was starting to set.

Reimu felt a rush of relief when she saw the towering monolith of the Youkai Mountain appear on the horizon. It felt good to finally arrive. For one thing, it meant that she could finally stop flying and shooting down those foolish enough to attack them. Also, the Moriya Shrine was situated only a short distance from the Tengu Village. And Reimu just plain liked the Tengu Village. Among all the youkai, the Tengu, along with their closest neighbors the Kappa, were the friendliest to humans, which was ironic considering how much tension had existed between the two people back in the Outside World. And Reimu was one of the few who, despite her job as a youkai exterminator, was one of the few humans who was more comfortable associating with youkai. At least when she wasn't on duty. And unlike her own "people" back at the Human Village, the Tengu had no problem with her visiting either. In fact, on more than one occasion she had been told that, due to her skills in flight and refusal to take gruff from anyone, she would have made a good Tengu. She thought it safest to take it as a compliment.

Plus there was the village itself. While the Human Village was certainly a decent settlement in its own right, the Tengu had inhabited that mountain since the earliest days of Gensokyo, and therefore had more time to develop their civilization. And so by now their civilization was nothing short of impressive. The town, which sat on the gentle slope of the mountain peak, was so large that it could possibly be called a city. The buildings were thin but very, very tall; multi-tiered structures with pointed roofs that curled up at the edges. Ropes stretched across the buildings, holding up a variety of banners, signs, lights and other decorations. At the far end of the Tengu Village was the mansion of Boss Tenma, the Tengu leader. Before Kanako's arrival, he and his counterpart among the Kappa had sat among the Ringleaders in representation of their respective societies. However, once Kanako had established herself as the goddess of the Youkai Mountain, it was decided that she would represent both peoples. Neither leader had protested the decision, and reportedly Tenma had immediately declared an entire week of drinking and partying in celebration. Reimu had only met him on a couple of occasions, and had declared him to be friendly and jovial, even if he was rather full of himself and a little too fond of the bottle.

In fact, despite the seriousness of her reason for visiting, Reimu couldn't help but hope she would be able to spend at least a little time in the village afterward. There was this fantastic bathhouse Sanae had taken her to once…

Reimu's wistful musings were suddenly cut off when she saw several figures rise from the shadows and head upward to intercept the party. Reimu recognized them as members of the Tengu's Hanataka caste, identified by the long, bladed staffs and round shields they carried. Like all Tengu, they all wore tokin on their heads, small box-shaped hats with pointed tops. But while this might appear to be comical on any other species, the scowls on their faces and naked weapons in their hands sent a clear message that this group was not to be laughed at. Even though the Tengu were counted among the friendliest of the youkai races, they still didn't much care for unwanted visitors. And it was the Hanataka's job to discourage such people.

The leader of this specific patrol was a grim looking woman with short grey hair. Unlike her fellows, she had neglected to arm herself with a polearm in favor of a large scimitar, the blade of which was painted black, save for a the razor-sharp edge. Also noteworthy were her ears, which despite her humanoid appearance were large and pointed, like a wolf's.

Momiji Inubashiri bowed low. "Lady Kanako, praises unto your name. May your miracles forever be celebrated. And Lady Kochiya as well, I bid you welcome. Forgive us; we were not expecting you for another three days. Had we known you would be returning so soon, there would have been an honor guard waiting for you a mile ago."

"Don't worry about it," Kanako said. "The meeting ended much earlier than expected, thank faith."

Momiji nodded. "Indeed. I am glad you were spared further discomfort. I pray that your time was not wasted."

Kanako's face darkened ever so slightly. "Wasted? No, I wouldn't say that it was. But the news was…" She shook her head. "Never mind, I'll fill you in later. In the meantime, my…companions and I need to return to the shrine as quickly as possible."

"Of course. But my Lady, it would be wise if you-" Momiji's gaze finally flitted off of her god's face and caught glimpse of Reimu and Byakuren hovering toward the black. Her eyes narrowed to slits. Reimu wasn't paranoid, but she got the distinct impression that Momiji wasn't happy to see them. The two of them didn't exactly get off on the right foot during their first meeting, and while Momiji had never pressed the issue, passing her to enter the Tengu Village was always an awkward experience.

"Are these your guests, Lady Kanako?" Momiji asked. Though she tried to keep her voice neutral, there was still a hint of disapproval.

"Yes, I suppose the title applies," Kanako said. "Would you mind providing an escort?"

"Of course not! But, ah, I must suggest that you find a more…discrete road of travel. Going through the village now would be unwise."

"Unwise?" Sanae broke in. "Why's that? Is something wrong?"

Momiji shook her head. "No, nothing's wrong, per se, but you might still be inconvenienced. You see, that…reporter, Aya Shameimaru returned earlier today." The way she said the intrusive Tengu's name almost made it sound like a dirty word. "And, well, she was in one of her moods."

Reimu exchanged a look with Sanae and they both sighed. Kanako's shoulders slumped and she groaned out loud. Only Byakuren looked unconcerned.

"I take your point," Kanako said. "Can you lead us around so we don't wander into her warpath?"

"Of course!" Despite not having a solid beneath her, Momiji still managed to stand stiffly at attention. She snapped a salute. "Leave it to me! She'll never see us coming!"

Reimu rolled her eyes. "Good grief. We're evading the paparazzi, not going to war."

Sanae shot her a sidelong look. "Is there a difference? Look who's in the paparazzi."

Reimu considered this and conceded the point.

"Okay, but keep it down," Kanako told Momiji. "Your voice kind of carries."

Momiji saluted again. "Yes, my Lady!" She whirled around to face her men. "All right, you heard her!" she barked. "We're going in low, and we're going in quiet! So I don't want to hear aMMMPHH!"

Sanae had swooped up behind her and thrown her arm around Momiji's mouth. "Okay, now that?" she hissed. "That was the opposite of keeping it down."

"Mumphy," Momiji said by way of apology. Sanae released her.

Momiji and her patrol led them down out of sight and around the village, keeping to the shadows. Byakuren took the opportunity to sidle up to Reimu.

"Reimu, I know I'm still a little out of touch with the modern world," she said in a low voice that was not quite a whisper. "But isn't all this sneaking around a little…unnecessary? I mean, it's just a reporter. Granted she's an annoying one, but like you said, it's not like we're going to war."

Even though Reimu was the one she had addressed, it was Sanae who answered. "Trust me, reporters can be really scary," she said. "Back in the Outside World? They're like the last people you want to meet if you've done anything. People have actually been killed trying to get away from them."

"Besides," Reimu said. "Sanae's right. It's freaking Aya."

Byakuren pursed her lips, but she didn't object further.

The Moriya Shrine was located at the mountain's peak, about a mile north of the Tengu Village. It sat upon a small hump of land, with steps leading down to the path that would take people down to the village, provided they didn't just fly instead. Over the foot of the steps was a wooden rectangular gateway, from which hung a thick braided rope.

The four travelers and their Tengu escort touched down at the hill's foot. Of course, they could have simply went all the way to the shrine's doorway, but doing that just felt disrespectful to the god of the shrine, even if the god of the shrine happened to be one of the travelers.

Not for the first time, Reimu noted that certain aspects of her life were a bit strange.

Kanako brushed off the spare detritus gathered from their journey off of her dress. Then she turned to Momiji and her patrol.

"Thank you," she said. "You may return now."

Momiji and her comrades bowed low. "Yes, my Lady! I will inform Boss Tenma of your return immediately."

Kanako started to nod, but caught herself. "Oh. Ah, better let me take care of that. That man couldn't keep his mouth closed even if it were welded shut. And I really rather we didn't get any visitors tonight."

"B-but, my Lady!" Momiji protested. "I have to! It's my duty!"

"Momiji," Kanako chided gently.

Momiji shuddered but she didn't further object. "O-of course, my Lady. I apologize."

With that, she lifted into the air and soared off, her silent companions close behind. Reimu and the others watched them go.

Then Kanako sighed. "I really hope she doesn't go spill the beans," she said as she headed toward the steps. "She's great at what she does, but that girl can't tell a lie to save her life."

The other followed her up the steps, toward the shrine. Reimu wrapped her arms around herself, glad that they were almost there. Nights on top of the Youkai Mountain tended to be cold, and the last tinges of winter had yet to be dispelled from the air.

They reached the top. Kanako bypassed the main shrine building and headed right for one of the side-buildings, which acted as the home for her, Sanae, and her co-goddess Suwako. Sanae however quickly stole up the shrine's steps and peered into the ornately carved donation box that sat before the door.

A grin split her features. "Ha!" she said. "Even when we're gone, they still love us. Score!"

Reimu scowled. "Good for freaking you."

Sanae looked up to smile sweetly at her. "I'm sorry, what was that?"

"Go jump off a mountain."

"Girls…" Byakuren said in disapproval.

"Yeah, yeah," Reimu muttered. She put her head down stomped off after Kanako. Then she had to stop suddenly to avoid running right into the elder goddess' back. Kanako had stopped short and was staring at the shrine's living quarter with an expression that did not look much pleased.

The lights were on in the small building, which was to be expected. After all, Suwako was still home. However, rather than a single light from whatever room she was currently in, all the lights could be seen shining through the windows and on the porch. Inside, the sound of young voices could be heard talking and laughing, mixed in with some noises that sounded downright alien to Reimu's ear.

Sanae came up to stand next to them. Her jaw was open in disbelief. "Oh no," she said. "She didn't."

"She didn't what?" Reimu asked. "What's going on? It sounds like some sort of…weird dark magic ritual or something."

"Oh, she did," Kanako said. "I suppose I shouldn't be surprised, but even so: I'm still angry."

"Why?" Reimu said. "What's going on?"

Kanako turned to look at her. "It seems that Suwako was unaware that we would be returning early. And so she decided to throw a party."

"A…Wait, that's a party?" Reimu twisted her face into a frown. "Really? What're those strange sounds again?"

Sanae was gritting her teeth. "Music. My music. She got into my CDs again!"

"…music? Really? That noise is music?"

"Shut up, Reimu," Kanako said. "Sanae? Come with me please."

Reimu and Byakuren watched as the goddess of the Youkai Mountain and her green-haired shrine maiden marched into the Moriya Shrine's living quarters. The children's voices stopped immediately, though the music kept playing.

And then the shouting began.

Reimu winced as she heard Kanako explain in full detail her displeasure that Suwako had allowed such a social gathering to happen. As someone who had been orphaned at a fairly early age, Reimu did not have much experience with angry parent figures. And, as the goddess' tirade continued, she was somewhat glad about the fact.

"She's uh…" Reimu tried to find the right words. "She's really playing the whole 'angry god' thing to a hilt, isn't she?"

A small half-smile crept over Byakuren's lips. "That's one way of looking at it, though the deities in most sacred texts aren't usually shown scolding naughty children. Mostly, they eat them."

"I would guess-"

"Well, no. There was one I remember reading about. An Egyptian sect whose principle deity was fond of lengthy lectures. They weren't very particular about who they were directed to either. If I recall, the sect was eventually wiped out by its neighbors because their god was too annoying."

"Huh. No one told me Eiki Shiki had her own cult."

Byakuren slapped her hands across her mouth to keep from laughing. She quickly composed herself, cleared her throat and said, "Reimu, that was not very respe-" The rest of the sentence was cut off by an attack of giggles.

Reimu licked her finger and drew an imaginary one in the air. "And score one for the shrine maiden."

"Stop it," Byakuren snorted. "And you are not to tell anyone I laughed at that."

"Of course not."

"I'm serious here, Reimu."

Reimu bowed low. "As you wish, Youchrist."

Before Byakuren could fire back, the door to the living quarters opened and several young Tengu, Kappa and even a fairy or two rushed out as fast as their legs or wings could carry them. One little boy wolf Tengu wasn't watching where he was going and ran right into Reimu's legs.

"Ah!" he cried as he fell back over onto his rump. He shook his head and stared up at Reimu with terrified eyes.

"It wasn't my fault!" he wailed.

Reimu stared back. "Okay."

The boy didn't seem interested in pleading his case further, as he was on his feet and leaping into the air moments later.

Reimu watched the children go. She didn't know whether to be amused by their terror or irritated by the delay their party was going to cost her. She also couldn't help but note with a feeling of depression that the youngest of them was probably older than she and Sanae put together.

"Looks like that's over," she remarked. "Should we go in?"

Byakuren frowned. "I think they're still yelling at Suwako. We should probably-"

"No, too cold. And my back is starting to hurt. C'mon."

Reimu walked over to the small building. With a sigh, Byakuren followed.

…

Alice had been pacing back and forth for the last hour or so and showed no sign of stopping. She marched forward, fingertips pressed against her forehead, until she reached the end of the room. Then she would turn around and head back the other way, over and over again. Shanghai dutifully followed her master, remaining about half a foot behind Alice's shoulder.

"Fix, I need to fix this," Alice was muttering to herself. "Too far. She's gone too far this time. Come on, Alice. Think. Break her out myself? No, baaaaaaad idea. Really bad idea. File a complaint? Maybe. Would it work? Probably not. Get help? From whom?"

She paused near one of the walls. Her hands fell to her sides, where they clenched and unclenched in frustration.

"Gah, damn it!" she cursed. "Damn Yukari!"

"Be glad to. Why?"

Alice's heart almost stopped. She whirled around to see Marisa's ethereal one-time master hovering nearby, watching her.

Alice stared by. "Mima?" she cried. "What are you…What is it with people just barging in today?"

"Oh, has that been happening? Looks like I chose correctly."

"What?"

"Never mind. At any rate, I'm looking for Marisa, and it seems you may know something about that." Mima folded her arms and glowered down at Alice, her emerald eyes flashing with cold anger. "Please, do disclose."

…

The living room was an absolute wreck. Half-eaten food and their containers lay strewn around the furniture, mixing with several open books, pillows and blankets. Scraps of multi-colored paper were scattered everywhere, the purpose of which Reimu could only guess. Maybe the children had decided that no party should be without scraps of multi-colored paper.

At the far end of the room, opposite the couches was that large, flat rectangular…thing that Sanae and Kanako had brought with them from the Outside World. On it were moving illustrations of five girls playing some unusual instruments before a room filled with people. Reimu had always been suspicious of that thing, especially since Sanae explained to her that it did not work using magic.

Suwako herself was gone, having been banished to her room right after Reimu and Byakuren had entered the building. Reimu was still a little weirded out by that, especially considering that the girl was not only the shrine's original goddess but also Sanae's direct ancestor (how that worked, Reimu had never worked up the courage to ask). But as Kanako had put it, "If she's going to keep acting like a child, then she's going to be treated like one. Can't have it both ways".

At the moment, Kanako was standing and glowering at the mess while Sanae tiptoed her way toward another one of her Outside World toys, this one a medium-sized silver box with several buttons and a black screen at either end. The strange noises that Reimu had heard were coming from the box, and stopped as soon as Sanae pushed one of the buttons.

"I've told her once, I've told her twice, I've told her a million, billion times," Sanae grumbled. "Don't touch my CD's without permission. Don't touch my books without permission. Don't touch my manga without permission. Don't touch my DVDs without permission. Is that really so difficult?"

Reimu found an untouched cupcake and started munching on it. It was delicious. "'Parently," she mumbled around a mouthful of pastry. "An' why's them picter bookz cwalled manguh anyway? What that even mean?" She swallowed. "I mean, why not just call them picture books and be done with it."

Sanae stared at her. "Reimu, I like you and all, but you are about two seconds away from a very painful death." She picked up a small, flat, grey box and pointed it at the rectangular thing. She pressed a button and the animated illusions of girls playing music disappeared, replaced with a plain black surface. Then she started to pick up her scattered manga.

"Oh, leave it for Suwako," Kanako said crossly. "This is her mess, she can clean it up."

"I'm just getting my stuff out of the way. She can do the food and the confetti."

"Fair enough." Kanako glanced at Reimu and Byakuren and sighed. "Sorry you had to see that. It's an ongoing problem we have with her."

Reimu hastily finished the rest of her cupcake. "Uh, don't worry about it. You want we should get this out of the way so we can…get out of your way?"

"Yes, might as well." Kanako indicated the door to her room. "Follow me."

"And Sanae too," Reimu said.

"Fine, fine. Sanae, you too."

Reimu and Byakuren followed her inside, with a grumbling Sanae close behind. As would be expected, Kanako had the largest room of the three, with a large four-poster bed and several old and quite possibly very rare objects hanging from the walls and displayed on the dresser. Reimu wondered how many of them had been gifts and how many she had acquired through more forward means. Being a goddess did mean fighting the occasional battle. After all, she had acquired her shrine that way.

Kanako waved her hand at the bed. It shuddered once and then started to break apart into smaller pieces. These pieces elongated and formed themselves into dozens of snakes, all hissing and slithering over each other. Reimu shuddered and took an instinctive step backward.

The snakes twisted together at the center of the room, form a column that expanded outward at the top. Then they seemed to simply melt together, becoming a single-legged table with four chairs surrounding it.

"Show-off," Reimu muttered as she gingerly sat down on one of the chairs. To her relief it didn't move.

Kanako smirked but she didn't contradict her. "Well Reimu, and Byakuren too, I'd offer you all refreshments and the opportunity to clean yourselves up, but this strikes me as a matter of some urgency. And seeing how you insisted that we speak here instead of in Yukari's tower, I must assume that it concerns a matter that you don't want her learning about. And I generally do not like being involved in things that attract her ire. So Reimu, would you like to explain yourself?"

…

The Hakurei Shrine was empty, and Mima was growing frustrated.

She had begun her search with a wild-goose chase to the Scarlet Devil Mansion, which put her in a foul mood. Her next stop at Marisa's friend Alice's house had born more fruit, but the news had not been good. Yukari had suckered her and snatched up Marisa right under her nose. Not only that, she had been beaten down and arrested by Yukari herself and her pet human. And in Alice's own house, no less. That settled it. This had gone beyond revenge for a slight or paying off a cranky vampire. Yukari was up to something, and Mima was starting to think she had an idea what.

Unfortunately, she couldn't simply teleport in and whisk Marisa away. She had been taken into custody at the GPF headquarters, and they had suddenly been quarantined with the same blocking spell that had shrouded Yukari's citadel.

However, Mima was far from exhausting her options. Yukari had few real weaknesses. It was just Mima's good fortune that she so happened to live with one of the biggest ones.

Unfortunately, by the time Mima had materialized at Hakurei Shrine, Reimu had still yet to arrive. Of course it was a long way to travel, but even after waiting another two hours the shrine had still failed to show up.

Mima frowned. She floated back and forth over the grass in front of the primary shrine building, hands clasped behind her back. Something was keeping Reimu, and if it was Yukari then the elder youkai had definitely been thorough in cutting off Mima's options. Despite her irritation, Mima had to give her credit. Yukari was good at what she did.

Mima briefly wondered if she should go over to the other side. While Rin Satsuki or the Shadow Youkai (whichever so happened to be in control at the moment) were probably not reliable allies, there still was Yuuka. The flower youkai probably wouldn't object to having Mima on board, especially if Yukari were the target. But even Mima was wary of joining forces with Yuuka. In fact, she might be even more unreliable than the other two.

But that led to another thought, one more discouraging: Yuuka was likely to be very protective of that gang of stupid pranksters. And despite pissing off just about everyone who was so much as capable of being pissed off, Cirno and her friends still had their allies. And Yuuka would not be above using those connections for her own ends.

Especially since three of those connections so happened to live in the cherry tree grove that grew behind Hakurei Shrine.

Mima turned and floated toward the grove. The fairy Sunny Milk and her two friends were coming and going at all hours, and since it had been long made clear that being allowed to take residence in the cherry tree grove would come with certain conditions, foremost being that mischief making directed toward the Hakurei Shrine and its inhabitants would be severely frowned upon, the three fairies had displayed greater common sense than Cirno and took their troublemaking elsewhere. While it did mean that things were more peaceful around the shrine, it did make the odds of actually finding them at home in the rare instance of needing them diminish significantly.

And it appeared that tonight would be no exception. The tree that the fairies had made their home in was empty.

Mima scowled as she rapped her knuckles against the crude wood door once again. "Hey!" she shouted. "Come on out!" No answer.

Sighing, she turned to the grove at large. She muttered a quick vocal amplification spell under her breath. Then she began to shout.

"ATTENTION LITTLE FAIRIES! SUNNY, IF YOU AND YOUR PARTNERS IN CRIME ARE WITHIN THE SOUND OF MY VOICE, THEN GET YOUR ASSES OVER HER IMMEDIATELY! OTHERWISE, THIS VERY FINE TREE HERE JUST MIGHT MEET WITH AN UNFORTUNATE ACCIDENT! AND WE WOULDN'T WANT THAT TO HAPPEN, NOW WOULD-"

"Death and damnation! Confound it all, woman! What's all this racket? Some of us are tryin' to sleep!"

Mima looked down to see the weathered form of Genji grumpily floating toward her. The elderly reptile settled down on the ground about five feet away.

Mima's relationship with Genji had always been a weird one. When she and Reimu had finally buried the hatchet, she had expected him to protest her presence. After all, Mima and Hakurei Shrine had been mortal enemies for generations, and he had been there for every battle. All things considered, he should have considered her to be an irredeemable monster.

But to her surprise, he not only did not bear her any ill will, he seemed to be rather fond of her. When she had finally gotten around to asking him about it, his answer had surprised her.

"Are you kiddin'?" he had said. "You were the best trainin' source a mentor could ask for! Some of the best shrine maidens got tough by fightin' you all the time! Hell, I'm almost sorry you're switchin' sides, means I gotta find some new why to knock 'em into shape!"

At any rate, he didn't seem to object to her being around all the time, though upon her appointment as Hakurei Shrine's official representative he had snorted and called the whole thing "One big load of shrimpshit, but better you than me". She still wasn't sure how to react to that.

Mima started to speak. "OH, LOOK WHO-" Then she grimaced and flicked her throat.

"Right, try this again. Oh, look who just woke up. So sorry, was my bellowing too loud?"

Genji, who was still wincing, said, "Gee, yah think? What're doing lookin' for those fools anyway? They done cleared out hours ago!"

"Really?" Mima sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose. "And where did they go?"

"Don't know, don't care. All I'm concerned 'bout right now is some smartass spirit bein' bound and determined to strip these here trees of their leaves with the power of her voice alone!"

"Well, sorry, but I have too many problems to worry about a cranky old lizard who's up past his bedtime."

A heavy silence fell between them, during which Genji just stared up at the ghost. Then a deep rumbling sound came from within his shell. The color of his eyes changed, going from a rheumy yellow to an almost crimson fire. "Young lady," he said, his voice even lower and gravellier than before. "Call me a lizard again and you'll be taught better matters. Instantly. Got it?"

Mima's nostrils flared and her eyes widened. She reflexively floated back a foot. Even if it was for just a second, she sensed an incredible amount of power radiating from the ancient turtle.

"I…" Mima considered her next words and decided to go with caution. "…apologize. I've just been a little stressed."

Genji snorted. With that, the terrifying creature's shadow that Mima had sensed was gone, and he was back to being the grumpy old keeper of Hakurei Shrine's lore. "Yeah, you'd better. And what the hell are you even doin' back, anyways? Thought those piss-parties usually went on for weeks. And why ain't Reimu with you?"

Mima shook her head. Her mind was still reeling. "Uh, Reimu and I left separately," she said. "I was actually hoping to find her, but I guess she's not back yet. And Yukari ended this meeting early."

"Oh?" Genji's eyes began to gleam again, only this time it was with craftiness. "And why's that?"

Doing the best she could, Mima summarized the events of the last few days, starting with their arrival at the Ruined City and ending with her returning to the shrine and waiting for Reimu. While she talked, Genji listened without interrupting, though the cunning look in his eyes only grew stronger.

"Huh," he said when she finished. "Now ain't that interesting. Yukari's up to her old shenanigans again, I see. And that Yuuka…Even if I live for another century, I'll still not understand why in the hells Yukari let that…creature into Gensokyo."

"An opinion shared by many," Mima said diplomatically. She never thought she would ask advice from the old turtle, but their prior confrontation made her revise her opinion of Genji. "I don't suppose you have-"

Genji snorted. "Yeah, figure that one out on your own. If you ask me, that damned witch shoulda got clamped in irons years ago."

Mima stifled the protest she felt rising. "You…may be right, and if this was just human justice I probably wouldn't care." A lie, of course, but a small one. "But Yukari wants her for a reason. Such things rarely turn out well."

Even with the massive shell on his back Genji still managed to shrug. "You're tellin' me. Girl knows her job…sorta, but she can get a mite crazy about doing it right." Then he slowly turned his body and started to plod back to the lake. "Still, this ain't no bother of mine, so as far as I'm concerned, little witchy is just gonna have'ta work this out herself."

Mima's eyes narrowed. "I…see."

"Still, if it's Reimu you're lookin' for…" Genji paused. He turned his body just enough to look at her in the eye. "You're right, she shoulda been back by now. Which means that either somethin' happened to her on the way back, which is hogwash. I woulda known instantly. Or she decided to go somewhere else instead. Now, think Mima. Where's the one place Reimu would be likely to go in a time like this, if it ain't here?"

…

"Right. Okay, let's see." Reimu took a deep breath and did her best to put her thoughts in order. Making articulate arguments before an audience had never been a strength of hers. One-on-one arguments, sure, but in those she was usually taking a position she felt more comfortable with. Besides, she much preferred making her point through aggressive action. Unfortunately, that method would probably not work here.

"Well, it's like this," she said. "Last night, someone visited me in my room, one of the guys from Eientei. Reisen Udongein."

Kanako frowned. "That would be Eirin Yagokoro's assistant, right? The rabbit girl that spent the whole meeting looking like she was about to soil herself?"

"Yeah, that's her."

"Nervous girl. I was wondering why Eirin decided to bring her along. I suppose she had a message from the doctor for you. And for us, by proxy."

Byakuren said, "If so, I wish she had just asked us in person. People do way too much sneaking around, if you ask me."

Reimu shook her head. "No, I don't think Eirin had anything to do with it. It was all Reisen."

"Uh, what?" Sanae said.

Kanako raised an eyebrow. "Excuse me? Reimu, explain."

"Okay. See, here's the thing. She told me that despite everything…" Reimu involuntarily glanced over her shoulder, even if it was a pointless gesture. She lowered her voice. "…everything that Yukari said, Rin Satsuki's more of a victim than a monster. Apparently they were really close back in the day. And she said that we should be trying to help her instead of kill her. And…I think she may be right."

Byakuren smiled.

The Moriya Shrine residents were less than pleased, however. Sanae was staring at Reimu with her eyes bulging out and jaw hanging open. In contrast, Kanako's face was like a stone slab. She leaned back in her chair and crossed her legs.

"Wh-whaaaaat?" Sanae gaped. "Wait, huh? Help…her? Okay, sorry, but I heard all the speeches, yours included I might add. And as far as I can tell, majority vote has it that Rin Satsuki is a menace! I mean, come on Reimu! She almost killed you! And Yukari, and Marisa, and Suika, and a bunch of rabbits. Oh, and did you forget the part where she ate the Moon Princess girl, Kaguya Houraisan? And that other girl, forget her name…"

"Mokou," Kanako said. Her cold eyes were locked upon Reimu's. "Fujiwara no Mokou."

"Right! I mean, what's next? A…Gendo Ikari Was Framed movement?"

"I, uh, don't know who that is," Reimu said.

"I don't care!" Sanae shouted. "He was bad, Rin Satsuki is bad, so why the hell should we be helping her?"

"Sanae, that's enough," Kanako said evenly. "Control yourself."

Sanae shut her mouth and slumped back, through her eyes still smoldered.

Kanako leaned forward. She put her elbows on the table and spread her arms. "Reimu, I do believe I asked you not to waste my time. Do you remember me saying that?"

Reimu scowled. "Hey, I'm not-"

"I am still speaking. Now, please understand that I do know where this is coming from. Even when filtered through…the very heavy biases of those I've been listening to for the last two days, it is obvious that Satsuki has ended up with the short end of the stick. Perhaps the word 'victim' would apply. But the same could be said for just about every other monster in history. There are literally thousands of swindlers, murderers, rapists, tyrants, despots and other such scum who have experienced nothing but misery. Unfortunately, that doesn't make them any less of a monster. The same applies to Satsuki. And she is not any less of a threat. So tell me, Reimu. Why should she be treated any differently?"

Reimu grimaced. This was the problem with taking up a position she was not used to. Usually she would be in full support of taking Rin Satsuki down. But of course, Reisen had to show up all teary-eyed and make her actually start to use her conscience. While she was now committed, it did leave her without a rational argument, at least one she could confidently argue.

Fortunately, she had brought along someone who could pick up the slack for her. "Actually," Byakuren said. "I agree with the shrine maiden."

Kanako's eyelids dipped down. "Excuse me, I believe I was talking to Reimu."

"And I am answering for her. Kanako, I sat through that same meeting. And I heard all of the same arguments. And while I agree that Rin is too dangerous to be left alone, I don't think she is quite the monster you've made her out to be."

"Oh really?"

"Yes."

"Is that so?"

"Yes."

"All right then, Byakuren." Kanako leaded back in her chair and spread her hands. "Enlighten us."

"Of course," Byakuren said. "Now, according what I've been able to gather, Rin's actions aren't driven by maliciousness. They're driven by desperation. If you'll recall, she only snapped the first time around when she was offered the possibility of release from an elongated period of horribly unnatural isolation. Which, while still terrible, is quite understandable. And if you'll remember Eirin Yagokoro's testimony, she seemed like she was actually about to surrender only to change her mind after being ambushed, making her second 'rampage', for lack of a better word, the result of a massive misunderstanding."

Reimu winced. "Hey, uh, thought you were supposed to be helping me here. That ambush wasn't my-"

"If Rin were truly evil, as you seem to be suggesting, she would have continued her attack until Eientei were destroyed and all were dead," Byakuren continued. "Instead, she only responded to force with force and fled at the earliest available opportunity. To me, that speaks not of a crazed killer, but a desperate child who has no idea what to do."

Kanako glowered. "I never said she was evil, I said she was dangerous. Child she may be, but she has entirely too much power of the wrong variety, and all it will take is for the wrong person to stumble across her for her to commit her first act of murder. And given the things she's endured and reports of her apparently having a changing personality, it doesn't take much of a stretch to believe her to be deranged. I'm sorry for what happened to her, but I'd rather end her life and give her the peace of death than allow for someone else to be hurt due to hesitation."

Which was almost exactly the same argument that Reimu had given Reisen. Again she wondered if she was on the right side.

Byakuren, however, was not about to be deterred. "That's a lot of speculation, Kanako. Too much to execute a little girl on."

"Byakuren, please spare me the heartstring plucking. You and I both know that it's not going to work. If I could simply wave my hand and make her all better, I would. But I can't. You can't. Even Yukari can't. And you're forgetting this 'Shadow Youkai' of Yukari's. I think we can all agree that she, at least, is a complete monster. Who's to say that she isn't influencing Satsuki's actions?"

"True," Byakuren said. "The Shadow Youkai is a problem. But to my mind that's all the more reason to help her, to bring her out of Rumia of the Darkness's influence. Attacking her will likely just cause her to retreat further and further into the Shadow Youkai's grasp."

Reimu leapt upon that instantly. "There! There, that's right! I mean, she's invulnerable, invincible, and a whole bunch of other words that start right with 'in'. So trying to kill her will probably just make her angrier, right? And if Evil Rumia's…uh, sorry. Brain fart. Uh, if Evil Rumia's whispering into her…head and all, pissing her off is just going to be what Evil Rumia wants, right?"

Despite her lack of oratory skills, Reimu felt that she was making some good points. In fact, upon finishing, she allowed herself a little flush of pride. Even though she kept tripping over her words like an idiot, she had managed to make a decent case.

Kanako, however, did not agree. "All the more reason to eliminate them both as quickly as possible. Her immortality is a problem, yes, but I hardly think that it is beyond the collected power of Gensokyo's best."

Byakuren leaned back in her chair and folded her hands in her lap. "And what of her captives? Disintegrating her will likely kill them as well. I for one don't care for murdering a fellow…do I really have to use the name 'Ringleader'? It seems a little silly."

"Keep to your point, please," Kanako said evenly.

"My point? I think I just made it. The method you're suggesting will almost certainly result in the death of Kaguya Houraisan. Her status as a Hourai Immortal may preserve her life under normal circumstances, but we have no way of knowing if the same still holds in her present condition. And in addition to the ethical problems of callously murdering one of our number, it runs the risk of alienating Eientei and the rest of the Bamboo Forest against us. She is popular among the rabbit tribes and acknowledged as the representative of their interests. Killing her will likely turn them against us, resulting in a civil war. And then there's the additional problem of the Lunarians. Relations with them are strained as it is. And while Kaguya is no longer really considered part of the Royal Family, it's possible that they will use her death as an excuse to reopen hostilities."

Kanako frowned. "Okay, so you may have a point there. I suppose it would be logical to take Satsuki alive to begin with. But afterward-"

"But if we're going to take her alive anyway, why not just restrain her until a cure can be found?" Reimu said. "I mean, we can't take her out on the battlefield, right? So we capture her, flush out Kaguya Houraisan, and I guess Fujiwara no Mokou as well, wipe out the Shadow Youkai and keep Rin contained until, uh, we figure something out."

"That doesn't fill me with confidence, Reimu," Kanako said. "Satsuki has already slipped away from confinement numerous times. And even with all of us working together-"

"It's not impossible," Byakuren said softly. "After all, this isn't the first time this land has seen an incident like this. This isn't the first time a foolish young girl has been driven mad by being shoved into power."

Kanako reacted as if she had been slapped. "Byakuren, what exactly are you implying? Those were…this is entirely different."

"Was it? A naïve girl is convinced by and older and wiser being to agree to something incredibly dangerous, and as a result she undergoes a drastic power increase."

"Stop it," Kanako whispered.

"But while the reason for the change may have been driven by good intentions, it turns out to be more than she can handle, and she loses her sanity as a result.

"Byakuren, that's enough."

"Soon, Gensokyo itself is threatened when she starts to lash out at the world. Some believe she is too much of a threat to handle, and decide that she should be killed."

"I said that's enough."

"But others, those who knew her and loved her, turned to outside help out of desperation, even though they knew it would probably get them into trouble. Because they didn't want to see the one they cared about come to-"

"ENOUGH!" Kanako shouted. She slammed her palms against the table as she leapt to her feet. Her face was a crimson mixture of emotions: outrage, fury and, surprisingly enough, regret.

Sanae was on her feet as well. "Lady Kanako!" she cried as she rushed to her god's side. "Are you okay?" She turned to Byakuren. "Where do you get off bringing that up, you bitch? Don't you think she's suffered enough over that incident? I don't care how important you are, you have no right-"

"Sanae," Kanako said in a throaty growl. "Sit down."

"But I-" Sanae caught the look in Kanako's eyes. "Okay." She quickly returned to her seat and sat with her face down and her hands folded in her lap.

A heavy silence descended on the room. Kanako stood where she was, staring across the table at Byakuren, who calmly returned the gaze. For her part, Reimu was quite taken back. She had expected that there would be fireworks during this discussion, but nothing like this. She couldn't help but feel that Byakuren had gone too far, that she had reopened a very painful wound.

Then again, Reimu did have a very good idea as to which incident Byakuren was referring to. Much like the one they found themselves in, that one had also threatened the lives of thousands. Reimu herself had been deeply involved, and for a moment it seemed like the world really was about to end. But things had turned out all right in the end. The confused girl had been shown the error of her ways, and a peaceful resolution had been achieved. Of course, Reimu and Marisa had to spend the next day or so in Yukari's care as she had given them a highly thorough detoxification, a task that the elder youkai had seemed to enjoy entirely too much, but it was miles better than death by radiation sickness. At least she hoped it was.

Still, Kanako had a point too. As much as a victim as Rin Satsuki was, that did not mean her life was worth more than anyone else's. And if it came to a choice between hers and some innocent who was unlucky enough to cross her path, it wouldn't be right to sacrifice them to save her. Reimu sincerely hoped it that such a choice would never present itself.

That was when Kanako spoke. "I only did what I thought was right. You are in no position to judge me. After all, you weren't even there."

"I was," Reimu said. "Right in the thick of it. And yeah, it sucked beyond the telling of it and sometimes I felt like my skin was going to start melting, but we still managed to fix that problem and save the crazy girl at the same time."

"I'm not judging you, Kanako," Byakuren said. "What happened, happened. Sometimes the best of intentions can result in the most grievous of harm. No one understands that better than me. But I do wish to point out that cases similar to Rin's have happened before, and in those cases the child with too much power was saved. It is not impossible."

Kanako's eyes dipped down. She said nothing.

"Kanako," Byakuren said softly. "What if it was Sanae?"

The eyes of the shrine maiden in question bulged out. "Um, what?" she said. "Why are we talking about me now?"

Kanako's head snapped up. Her pupils narrowed, and small but strong sparks of power could be seen flashing in her eyes. "What was that?" she hissed.

"What if it was Sanae who had been forced to become a monstrous creature? What if it was her that was loose in Gensokyo, frightened and alone, in possession of a horrible power with no one so much as willing to try to help her?"

Sanae grimaced. "You know, this is really making me feel uncomfortable. Can we not bring me into this?"

Kanako seemed to agree. "How dare you, Byakuren?" she whispered. "How dare you?"

Byakuren's eyes remained steady. "And everyone was ready to end her life without a second thought. How would you feel then, Kanako?"

"Okay, seriously!" Sanae shouted. "This has nothing to do with me, so stop-"

"Sanae," Kanako said. There was no anger in her voice, no implied threat. But the authority was there. Sanae stopped talking immediately but she continued to stare daggers at Byakuren.

"Byakuren, there is persuasion, and there is cruelty," Kanako said in a low, even voice. "Bringing Sanae into this was cruelty. Despite our status as competitors, I had thought better of you, I really did."

"I understand," Byakuren said softly. "And I can only hope you'll forgive me. But maybe now you'll see things differently, that there are people who care for Rin like you do for Sanae. And that pain you feel, the pain my words elicited? They are drowning in it."

Kanako didn't answer her. Instead, she straightened up and walked briskly out of the room, slamming the door behind her.

As soon as she was gone, Sanae erupted. "The fuck is wrong with you?" she screeched. "I thought we were on the same side!"

"Hey, we are!" Reimu said. "It's not like-"

"Shut up, I'm not talking to you!" Sanae swung a trembling finger at Byakuren's face. "Look, I don't care how important you are, how popular you are or how wonderful people think you are, you don't come to my shrine and insult my goddess in my house! We invited you in as guests and this is how you repay us?"

"You're right," Byakuren said. "And I must admit, I do not have an answer for you, beyond the fact that I-"

"Stop," Sanae growled. "Don't you dare pull that 'Did what I had to' shit. Because I am two seconds away from throwing your overrated ass out of here."

Reimu rolled her eyes. "Oh, for the gods' sake, calm down Sanae! It's not like-"

"I told you to shut up," Sanae said to her. "I mean, what's wrong with you two? Don't you get what's it's like, to sit there and listen to my freaking goddess get talked down to? I'm a shrine maiden, for goodness sake! Don't you have any idea how much that means to me?"

"Uh, yes?" Reimu said. "I'm one too?"

Sanae's fingers curled into shaking claws. "Oh yeah? And who's your god, Reimu? What deity does Hakurei Shrine have to its name?"

Reimu was struck speechless. Sanae's words had felt like she had just been slapped. Certainly, her shrine's lack of a patron deity was unusual, but since it acted as the gateway and capstone of the Barrier, she had been satisfied with its importance in the scheme of things. But Sanae's accusation had struck deeper than she would have thought.

"Sanae, I know you're angry, but please direct that anger toward me," Byakuren said, half-raising to her feet. "It was my words that upset Kanako, not-"

"That's Lady Kanako to you," Sanae hissed. Without another word she stormed from the room, much as her goddess had a short moment ago.

Reimu stared at the closed door. She was at a loss, which was not something she was used to.

"Reimu, I'm sorry, I took it too far," Byakuren apologized. "I just meant to upset her bit. I had no idea that-"

"No, no, it's okay." Reimu shook her head. "I mean, it's not like you knew they would flip out."

Byakuren shot her a long look. "Yes, I did. Just not at you."

Reimu shrugged. "Yeah, well. Occupational hazard. Can't go around hanging out with gods and demons all the time and not expect to get hit by a few lightning bolts."

Byakuren smiled, but it didn't last. She straightened fully. "I'll go talk to them," she declared as she started toward the door. "Apologize for my words. Maybe we can start this thing over fresh."

Reimu quickly grabbed her by the sleeve. "Uh, no. Really bad idea. Just leave them alone for awhile."

"Are you sure?" Byakuren bit her lip as she looked at the door.

"Byakuren, I know you're kinda super powerful yourself, but we're in Kanako's place of power. Piss her off more and she's likely to go all angry god on your ass. And mine too."

Byakuren raised a single eyebrow. "I have to hand it to you, Reimu. Your colorful ways of describing things never ceases to impress."

"Yeah, yeah."

"Would that be how you, ahem, ran out of your other two cheeks?"

Reimu scowled. "Shut up, Youchrist."

…

Sanae stormed out of the small house into the chill of the night. The gravel of the pathway crunched under feet as she stomped away from the house. After a hundred feet she realized that she had left both her shoes and her jacket in the house. And as her home was on a mountaintop and it was very early spring, it was freezing outside. The sharp stones were biting into her bare feet and her breath was clearly visible.

She didn't care. She was too angry.

Shaking her head, Sanae wrapped her arms around herself and kept walking. She still couldn't believe that Byakuren had brought up that subject. Lady Kanako's involvement in that incident was known only to a select few, and there had been an agreement not to bring it up. Yes, Lady Kanako had made a mistake, no one was denying that. But her intentions had been good, the problem had been fixed without anyone being hurt (at least not too badly), Kanako had been clearly remorseful and had done what she could to make reparations to the Underground, so why bring it up again to hurt her? Even those who lived at the shrine and were closest to her knew better not to remind her about it.

And then to go and use Lady Kanako's relationship with Sanae against her! Now that had just been low. Sanae had been under the impression that there had been an unwritten rule about using one's family against them. Okay granted, she and Lady Kanako weren't exactly blood relation. Heck, even her relation to Suwako was ridiculously long. But they were still part of the same household. Kanako had helped raised her, eventually taking over as full parent after Sanae had lost her parents some years ago. And then later on she had learned about Suwako, who had provided the single strangest relationship Sanae ever had. But strange or not, blood related or not, she loved her goddesses dearly, both the one she served and the one she was descended from, and she knew they loved her back. That made them family as far as she was concerned.

And then, to watch as Byakuren took advantage of that bond and use it to manipulate Lady Kanako, all to save a lunatic who would kill them all given the chance…Sanae's trembling fingers clenched and unclenched as she wondered how Byakuren's neck would feel between them.

Rugged gravel was replaced by smooth stone as Sanae realized she had wandered right to the steps of the shrine itself. That really wasn't surprising, considering that it was the first place she went to every day. So it made sense that her wandering feet would instinctively take her there.

Just as well. She often came to the shrine when she was feeling upset. She found the ancient structure with all of its quiet dignity to be soothing. Maybe it was the familiarity, maybe it was the knowledge that it had stood watching shrine maiden after shrine go through their own problems and yet still endured, but she always found that it was the place to go when she needed to be by herself and pray.

It was a strange thing, she knew, that she even prayed after all. After all, she not only was on speaking terms with her deity, she lived with her. If she ever had a request to bring before her goddess, all she had to do was walk into the living room and ask her. But even so, she still liked to pray when she felt the need, if for no other reason than to remind herself that Kanako was so much more than a roommate. Of course, her prayers weren't exactly ritualistic in nature, but Kanako had told her long ago that she didn't mind. In fact, she much preferred that Sanae didn't keep saying the same thing over and over again. So even before she finished climbing the steps Sanae was already silently praying.

"My Lady Kanako, praise be unto your name," she thought. "May your miracles forever be celebrated. I pray for your strength and patience, for without them I just may strangle somebody. I also ask for forgiveness for lashing out in anger against your…guests, and therefore misrepresenting your shrine. I pray that-"

"Goodness gracious child, are you sure it's my 'strength and patience' you want?" a wry voice answered. "After all, I stormed out first."

Sanae started in surprise. Kanako was there, standing within the shrine. But rather than being in her usual position, that is, sitting crossed-legged on the slightly raised platform in the middle of the room, she was standing near the far wall. The interior walls of the Moriya Shrine were covered with line after line after line of text, all in a dialect no longer commonly practiced. Though she was looking over her shoulder to smile in amusement at Sanae, Kanako's body was facing the wall, with her hand light brushing over the endless inscriptions, suggesting that Sanae had interrupted her while she was reading them.

More than one person had mistaken the words for sacred doctrine or important history. While they got the history part right, the truth was much simpler. The rows of text were a list, a list of names. Every shrine maiden to have served the goddess of the shrine had her name etched upon the wall, all the way back to when it had been Suwako's shrine. She had started recording their names as a way to remember her family and honor them, and Kanako had continued the tradition. One day, Sanae knew, when she was gone and her daughter serving in her place, her own name would join that of her ancestors, forever a part of the shrine's history. She sometimes wondered if people would know that she had been the first shrine maiden to serve the goddess in Gensokyo. Probably, if Kanako had anything to say about it, which she obviously did.

Slightly chagrined to have interrupted her goddess in what appeared to be a private moment, Sanae flushed scarlet and bowed down low. "Lady Kanako, forgive me. I did not know you were here."

"Where else would I be?" Kanako said. "But there is no offense. Come here."

Sanae straightened and walked to Kanako's side.

"So," Kanako said as her fingers brushed over the names of those long dead. "It seems you lost your temper."

Sanae couldn't meet her gaze. "Yes, I'm sorry. I just got so angry. It won't happen-"

"Calm down, Sanae, it wasn't an accusation." Kanako shrugged. "Okay, if you had blown your top at a worshipper or something I'd probably chew you out. But like I said, I did angrily storm out first, and I do not prefer a 'Do as I say, not as I do' way of running things. Also, that was a meeting of equals over a very sensitive topic. There's no shame in expressing your opinion."

"Equals, huh?" Sanae said. The distaste was evident on her voice.

Kanako's smile quirked up again. She looked back to the rows of names on the wall. "Yes, Byakuren did go for the jugular there. I'll have to remember not to underestimate her in the future."

Sanae's cheeks were burning. "She was wrong, Lady Kanako. I'm sorry. She was wrong to have brought that up."

"Was she? It certainly was less than polite. But was she wrong? Ah, that is the question."

"My Lady?"

"Do you know why I forbid you to become involved in that little incident, Sanae? Why I did not permit you to go after the Hell Raven?"

Sanae faltered. Given all that had happened during that incident and Kanako's own involvement in starting it, Sanae had been given to understand that one simply did not Bring It Up. She had strictly adhered to this rule, and on more than one occasion had gone out of her way to make sure others did not Bring It Up. Which had been one reason she had been so furious at Byakuren for Bringing It Up. But now, Kanako herself was Bringing It Up and asking her about it. This formed a paradox in her mind, one that threatened to make her brain start hemorrhaging.

Kanako noticed. "Sanae, there's no one here but us, and we both know what happened. It's okay to answer the question. Believe me, my honor is not at stake."

"Oh, uh…" Sanae struggled to wrap her tongue around the subject. "Well…I always just, uh, assumed that, you know, that I wasn't ready yet. Since, you know, we had only been in Gensokyo for a few months, and my training wasn't finished yet, and…yeah."

Kanako nodded. "That's part of the reason. But there are others. What do you think they are?"

"Er…" She grimaced. Shit. "I…thought that…you didn't want me to see what had happened that you were…" Sanae's voice trailed off.

"That I was too ashamed?" Kanako finished for her.

Sanae couldn't meet her eyes. "Yeah, I guess."

"I see. Well, that's actually pretty accurate, though not entirely. I actually didn't want you involved because I didn't want you to encounter that girl and see what I had turned her into. I didn't want you to think that I may one day do the same to you."

Sanae's head snapped up. "Wait, say what?" she gasped. "My Lady, I-I'd never think that! I know you didn't mean for all that to happen, and I never even so much as thought that you'd do anything to hurt me, I swear!"

"I know, I know," Kanako said with a small laugh. "But still, the fear was there. Yes, even gods can feel fear at times. I was afraid, then, afraid that you would start to distrust me." At Sanae's shocked look she added, "Foolishness, I know, but it was there. And when Byakuren brought you up back there? It brought it all rushing back."

"That bitch," Sanae muttered. "I should've hit her harder when me and Reimu and Marisa when after her. And come to think of it, I should've hit Reimu for bringing her too."

Kanako gave her a look. "Oh, don't you start thinking like that. Starting a wrestling match with those two won't accomplish anything."

"Sure it would. It would make me feel a whole lot better."

"Sanae…" Kanako said in that exasperated tone that said that she wasn't mad but Sanae should still stop teasing. Sanae obeyed.

"Anyway," Kanako continued. "As much as I hate to admit it, Byakuren's word did get me thinking if the same mistake was about to be made again."

Sanae blinked. "Wait a minute, you're not…Lady Kanako, are you saying that they were right? But what about all that stuff about Rin Satsuki being dangerous and the Shadow Youkai and protecting innocent people and stuff?"

"Oh, that part still hasn't changed. But still, I can't help but wonder if I'm becoming too used to taking the practical road. As you know, I've always prided myself as a realist, but maybe I've lost a little too much idealism. After all, aren't gods supposed to help the downtrodden and save the wicked from themselves?"

Sanae wasn't sure if those questions were rhetorical or not, so she didn't answer.

"Maybe it's time to try to save the unsaveable, to see if we can work a little miracle. What do you think?"

"Me?" Sanae gulped. "Well, uh, you know. Whatever you decide, you know I'll be happy to-"

"Sanae, that's not what I asked. I asked what you thought."

"B-but it doesn't matter what I think! I'm your shrine maiden. I exist to serve you! My life is yours, now and…" Sanae's throat constricted. She turned away so Kanako couldn't see the tears forming in her eyes.

Kanako smiled. She gently put her arms around Sanae and drew her in close. "You're a good girl, Sanae," she murmured as she stroked the girl's hair.

Unable to speak, Sanae just nodded and allowed Kanako to hold her. Not for the first time, she reflected on how lucky she was. There were many people who talked of finding comfort in the arms of whatever god they served, but she was one of the few who could do it literally.

"I promise you, I'm not going to allow anyone to get hurt," Kanako said. "Not you, not anyone else. And I'm definitely not going to turn into a bleeding heart hippy like Byakuren, so you don't have to worry about that either."

Sanae had to let out a hiccupping laugh at that.

"Come on," Kanako said as she slowly released Sanae. She took the shrine maiden by the hand. "I think our guests deserve their answer.

…

Reimu sat in Kanako's room. Her upper body was sprawled over the table and her head was impatiently lolling back and forth. Byakuren sat across from her. Neither of them was feeling especially comfortable at the moment.

With a sigh Reimu straightened up. "So," she said, breaking the heavy silence that had been sitting upon the room. "How are things?"

Byakuren started in surprise. "Excuse me?"

"Come on, I haven't really seen you for months. What's been happening?"

"Small talk? At a time like this?"

"I. Am. Bored!"

Byakuren eye's rolled up. She ran her fingertips through her hair. "Good point. Well, things are all right, I suppose. The temple's doing well. We've been receiving a lot of support from the Human Village. And we've started a program to reach out to the local youkai tribes. That…still has a few kinks to work out, but I think we can-"

"Uh-huh, that's great. What about your buddies?"

A ghost of a smile curled Byakuren's lip. "Oh, fine. Let's not talk about my little projects. And they're fine as well. Well, mostly. Shou's unfortunately taken ill, which is why she didn't accompany me. To tell the truth, I didn't much care to leave her, but she insisted that I go. Something about not giving Yukari a reason to visit."

"Huh. I didn't think youkai got sick."

"Most of them don't, but those that came from animals can still catch diseases unique to their species. It's nothing serious though, just a nasty cold. Nazrin and Kyouko are taking care of her, though I don't think they're enjoying it. In Nazrin's own words, 'I never knew one cat could produce so much snot'."

"Ew, that's disgusting. What about the others?"

"Not much to report. Murasa started to get restless so she and her crew went out adventuring earlier this week. Oh, and Nue and Mamizou disappeared a few days ago."

"They what?" Reimu sat up straight in her chair. "What do you mean, 'disappeared'?"

Byakuren pursed her lips. "Well, perhaps 'disappeared' is a poor choice of words. Went out without telling anyone would be closer. They does it all the time though, wanders away and comes back after a week or so. I think they just get bored."

"Oh." Reimu's concern started to wane. "Well, just so long as they doesn't try to start trouble I don't have a problem with-"

The door to the room opened and Kanako entered with Sanae close behind. Reimu shut up immediately.

Both the goddess and her shrine maiden looked grim. Also, Sanae's eyes were red and puffy. Reimu frowned. "The hell happened to y-ow!" she squeaked as Byakuren kicked her under the table.

Kanako ignored the comment. She looked from one guest to the other. She took in a deep breath and slowly let it out. "All right, let's get one thing straight: I am not willing to place anyone's life at risk for this endeavor. If I must end Satsuki's life to protect another, I will do it without hesitation. And if she does cross over from victim to murderer, then I will support her execution. Oh, and if either of you mouth off to me again, then you will experience a long line of unhappy coincidences. Are we clear?"

"Clear," Byakuren said. She started to smile.

Reimu was grinning as well. "So you're in?"

Kanako eyes lingered on Reimu's own. "Provisionally. Don't expect me to hold up a sign at any 'Leave Rin Satsuki Alone!' rallies. And understand that if I meet her on the battlefield, I will shoot first and worry about putting hers back together later. But if you think a miracle can be accomplished, then I suppose I can pitch in."

"Really? For real for real?"

Kanako's lips stretched in a thin line. "Please don't make me think twice about this."

"That's close enough. Great! So now all we gotta do is figure out…" Reimu frowned. "Uh, wow. Okay, so I really didn't think much past this point."

"I can answer that for you," Mima said. The shadows in the far corner of the room shivered and fled, revealing the Evil Spirit of Hakurei Shrine.

Everyone reacted instantly. Kanako's eyes hardened to steel as powerful energy surrounded her hands. A sound like distant thunder began to rumble. At her side, Sanae gasped in surprise. She immediately reached for her ofuda charms, but they slipped from her trembling fingers, spilling all over the floor. She grimaced and hastily gathered them up. Byakuren stood sharply to her feet, the muscles in her face tensing up.

For her part, Reimu just raised her eyebrows. "Mima?" she said. "What the hell are you doing here?"

"Looking for you, actually. You never showed up at the shrine."

"That's because I went here! What are you, my mom or something?"

Mima sniffed. "Hardly. But there are still things I need to discuss with you. And hunting you down was rather inconvenient, let me tell you. Oh, hello there Kanako, Sanae. And long time no see, Byakuren. I meant to say hi at the meeting, but never got the chance."

"Mima, how long were you hiding there?" Kanako asked.

"Long enough." Mima's eyes flitted from one person to the next. If she was concerned about being outnumbered should violence erupt she didn't show it. "And I have to say, seeing the four of you working together and acting so altruistic toward something that could rip out your hearts without a second thought is oh so very sweet." A cruel smile spread over her face. "I love it."

At her goddess' side, Sanae's face had gone pale. "Y-you're not going to tell Yukari that we were sneaking around behind her back, are you? I mean it's not like we were doing anything wrong, we were just trying to-"

"Sanae!" Reimu, Kanako and Byakuren snapped in unison.

"Tell Yukari?" Mima said. She laughed. "You mean, turn you in? Oh, no, no, no. Even if she did care, I wouldn't bother. Go have a teaparty with the Shadow Youkai for I all care."

Reimu frowned. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"It means that Yukari and I are not exactly on the best of terms at the moment. There have been some interesting developments since you four left Yukari's citadel. And if you are planning to plot against Yukari's wishes, you should probably know a few things." Mima leaned in closer. "Marisa Kirisame has been arrested."

"What?" Sanae squeaked.

"I don't understand, what do you mean 'arrested'?" Byakuren asked.

Reimu didn't say anything at all. Her mind was dealing with the opposing reactions of "Wait, she did what?" and "Well, that was inevitable" and really didn't know how to reconcile them.

"Exactly what I said. I spoke with Alice Margatroid a few hours ago. She apparently witnessed the whole thing. Marisa's being confined at the Gensokyo Peacekeeping Force headquarters right now."

"Interesting," Kanako mused. "What are the charges?"

"It doesn't matter. What does matter is that Yukari now, for all intents and purposes, owns Marisa. And this has got me rather upset. But that's not all. Apparently Remilia Scarlet has also been convinced to, ahem, assist Yukari as well. And by convinced I mean blackmailed, by the way."

"Remilia?" Reimu said. "What?"

"Exactly. And to top it off, I noticed that Yukari had been speaking to Satori Komejii in private as well. So now girls, pop quiz. What do Remilia and Satori have in common?"

The four conspirators exchanged a look. "Uh, they've got really creepy mansions?" Sanae suggested.

"And their food sucks," Reimu put in.

"Power," Byakuren whispered. "They both control beings of incredible power."

"That was going to be my next guess."

All the blood left Kanako's face. "No," she whispered.

"Precisely. A gold star for you," Mima said. "And Marisa would make a third. So now, let's sum things up: Marisa Kirisame. Flandre Scarlet. Utsuho Reiuji. All of them in possession of overwhelming destructive power. Is it a coincidence that they've fallen into her lap? Maybe, but considering the timing and the great lengths Yukari went through to acquire Marisa, I highly doubt it."

"But what could she want them for?" Byakuren asked. "I thought it was established that such beings are useless against Rin Satsuki?"

"Precisely. Another gold star for you. Which got me wondering: if she wasn't gathering these flying powerhouses together for the purpose of bringing poor little Rin down, what does she want them for?" Then Mima's smile widened, though there was no humor in it. "Then I realized that the answer was quite obvious."

"Yuuka," Kanako said. Her eyes widened in realization. "That's what she was talking about at the meeting. That's how she's going to stop Yuuka Kazami. She's not planning on fighting her herself, she's making others do it for her. She's going to use them as assassins."

Reimu's heart leapt into her throat. "Wait, what?" she squealed. "She's doing what?"

Byakuren closed her eyes. She swayed slightly on her feet. "Oh no, not this."

"Um, excuse me? 'Not this'? What do you mean, 'not this'? Because I'm really not liking the sound of that 'not this'!"

"Um, excuse me?"

Everyone's eyes turned to focus on Sanae, who was looking both confused by the conversation an uncomfortable with the attention. She cleared her throat.

"I…know I'm still kind of new around here, but I'm not getting why this is such a bad thing. I mean, I've heard that Yuuka Kazami is bad and all, but is she really that bad? And you know, Marisa specialized in blowing things up, Utsuho Reiuji is a flying nuclear arsenal, and while I really don't know much about Flandre Scarlet, everyone tells me that she can disintegrate things just by looking at them. So surely they'll be able to take Yuuka Kazami out without any problem, right?" She spread her hands. "Sorry, I just don't see why everyone is so worried."

Byakuren shook her head. She walked off toward one of the corners, her eyes closed and one hand pinching the bridge of her nose.

Mima answered, "The problem is that yes, Yuuka Kazami really is that bad. Maybe even worse than popular opinion, if my theories about her are correct. And while Yukari's makeshift hit squad is incredibly powerful, Yuuka will not go quietly. And as powerful as Marisa is, she is still a mortal. So you can understand why I'm a bit upset right now."

The ghost floated over to the table. Everyone instinctively moved away from the piece of furniture. Mima placed her hands on the table's surface and leaned over it to glower at those assembled.

"And if you're wondering what this has to do with you, then you're not thinking hard enough. At the moment, Yukari is at her most ruthless. She wasted no time bringing Marisa down, despite Marisa's close ties to both me and Reimu. She also didn't hesitate to blackmail an extremely powerful creature of the night, despite the fact that Remilia will likely seek revenge after all this is over. And now the possibility exists of her unleashing both Flandre Scarlet and Utsuho Reiuji?" Mima shook her head. "Kanako, Reimu and Sanae, I know you haven't known her all that long, but I have, both as an ally and as an enemy. And Byakuren also knew back in the old days. We've both seen her do this sort of thing before. Yukari may prefer to deal with problems personally, but she isn't above using others to solve them for her. And it's been my experience that once she's reached that stage, she doesn't take well to people getting in her way. So let me ask you something: seeing how she's dead set on killing Rin Satsuki, will this little mission of mercy get in her way?"

Nobody had an answer.

"I see. Well then, you'll be needing all the help you can get then."

"Excuse me," Byakuren said. Her voice was low and cautious. "Did you just offer to…help us?"

Mima shrugged. "Well, I was thinking of kidnapping Reimu and using her as leverage to get Marisa released-"

"What?" everyone shouted with one voice.

"-but that's a stupid idea, so I decided not to. Calm down, shrine maiden. I have no interest in reigniting that feud. Besides, I've just stumbled upon a ready-made conspiracy, which is much more useful." Mima floated about three feet into the air so that she was towering over everyone. She folded her arms over her chest. "So here's the deal, ladies. You help me get Marisa out of this pickle alive, and I'll see what I can do about Rin Satsuki's unfortunate condition."

"Really?" Reimu said. "You'll do that?"

"No reason why not. Sure, she pasted me and Marisa in the face, but we smacked her down for it. I bear her no ill will. As far as I'm concerned, our score is settled. However, I'm afraid you will have to come to a decision quickly, because Yukari is going to move quickly to crush Yuuka." Mima's eyes glittered and the room seemed to darken. "And if I know anything about Yuuka, it won't be long before she starts to move as well."

…

Ran Yakumo stood at the far end of a wide, open field. The sun had nearly set, casting long shadows from the surrounding forest. A cold breeze was blowing, causing the tall grass to wave back and forth.

The field was mostly empty, save for a tree the size of a small castle set in its center. Its branches were spread far and wide, and numerous twinkling lights could be seen within. Even from her place at the field's edge, Ran could hear the babble of several voices, carried by the wind.

According to her sources, this was where Cirno and her gang were now. This was where she was going to find Chen.

And Yuuka.

Taking a deep breath, Ran set off.

…

You know, if this keeps up, then Suwako's going to rival Hong Meiling as the character who has the most mentions without actually appearing onscreen.

Anyway, before I get into anything else, I've got some bad news. Unfortunately, since the fall semester is coming to a close, the time has come for all my school projects to be due. As such, I'm going to have to put Imperfect Metamorphosis on a temporary hiatus to concentrate on school. It won't be very long, only about a month-and-a-half or so, but don't expect any new chapters until January. I'll try to get something out in the meantime though.

On a lighter note, I see with great pleasure that Usually Dead's Touhou Ibunshu has gotten its own TV Tropes article (or rather, it's had one for some months now I'm only just getting around to mentioning it). Seeing how Ibunshu is not only the best Touhou fanfic I've ever read but a fantastic story period, this makes me all kinds of happy. So yeah, if you're a troper and have read Ibunshu, then go find that article and pimp that sucker (already added a few tropes myself)! If you are a troper and haven't read Ibunshu, then google Usually Dead and look it up for yourself. Oh hell, what am I saying? Everyone go check out Ibunshu. Seriously, it's awesome.

And speaking of TV Tropes, Imperfect Metamorphosis has also gotten some positive attention. Looks like the recommendation has grown quite a bit (thank you Sect and A Guy You Met Online!), and the Suika vs. Rin fight was mentioned in the CMoA: Fanfic page! Thank you too, mystery editor person! Happy TakerFoxx is happy. ^_^

Oh, and just to let you guys know, this site does have its own Touhou forum, which is fairly active. Granted, we only got maybe around 5-7 regular members, but we're always looking for new faces! And said members include Willie GR of the Sukima series and occasionally Heraklinios of Human of the Other Side, which are names that some of you are probably familiar with. Also, it's the best place to go to keep in the loop on when to expect the next chapter as well as receive little previews while it's in progress. So…yeah! Just go to Forums-Games-Touhou-Let's Danmaku! and say hi!

Also, to answer some points that were brought up in the reviews:

Anonymous NEET: Heh, believe it or not, I'm not too fond of the Ringleader name either. That was a result of me being completely unable to think of a cool sounding name and finally going "Screw it, this is a series that has names like 'The Human Village' and 'The Youkai Mountain'." Still, it did always strike me as kind of cheesy, which is why I keep having the characters make fun of it. One little point though: it actually wasn't to set up the circus thing. More of the other way around, as all the talk of Yukari being the leader of the Ringleaders gave me the image of her in a Ringmaster outfit, which I just had to use.

And in regards to the unnamed review after that: actually, Marisa does have the Master Spark in Embodiment of the Scarlet Devil. It's the bomb-type for her B-Shot. Also, by then it's long after her first encounter with Yuuka, whom she stole the spell from. The way I figure, Cirno and Daiyousei jumped Reimu and Marisa for the heck of it only for Dai to get taken out pretty quickly. Cirno then got mad and started mouthing the girls off, only for Marisa to get annoyed and pull out her hakkero and…Yeah, you know the rest. Obviously, Cirno's built up more of a resistance since then.

Until next time, everyone!