To Serve and Protect
Officer Nyoron sat alone at the front desk of the Gensokyo Peacekeeping Force's headquarters. Thanks to the events of the previous day, she had temporarily been taken off active duty and reassigned to desk work, specifically in the capacity of receptionist. Captain Sonozika had broken the news to her earlier that morning.
"Look, just so we're clear, this isn't a demotion," the Captain had said. "You've performed above and beyond your duty as far as I'm concerned, and you'll definitely be getting a commendation for this, if not a full promotion. But still…you've still…well, you've been through a rough time, and…"
Captain Sonozika had been convinced that Nyoron would take the news personally, causing her to dance around the topic of Nyoron's two deaths within a couple hours' time. However, Nyoron hadn't been offended. Quite the contrary, she had been downright relieved. While she enjoyed patrolling and actually doing something important, she really needed a break after the previous day. Constant deaths were a way of life for younger fairies, but they got tougher the older they got. Any more unfortunate incidents and she would probably be reduced to a gibbering mess.
Still, as peaceful and nonthreatening as she found receptionist work, it did come with certain disadvantages. For one, the chair was too big for her. Captain Sonozika had folded up some blankets and piled them onto the seat so she could reach the desk, but it still felt awkward. And for another, receptionist work was boring. People rarely came into the GPF headquarters of their own volition, and today things were downright dead. Three hours had passed since they had opened, and no one had come in through the doors beyond the building's staff and a weathered old rice farmer coming to complain about rat youkai eating his crops. Nyoron wished she had brought something to do. There were a couple of books, but while she could read well enough to handle official paperwork if she had to, following a printed story was too much of a headache.
Nyoron leaned back and stared at the ceiling, watching the blades of the fan go round and round. The day outside was beautiful, without a cloud to be seen. Nyoron's fairy instincts were screaming at her to get out into the open air.
This is stupid, she thought to herself. I should've told the Captain I'm fine. I'm going to go crazy if nothing-
The front door swung open. Nyoron jolted in surprise, nearly upsetting the blankets she was sitting on. She hastily righted herself.
"Hi, welcome to the main office of the Gensokyo Peacekeeping Force!" she said brightly. "How can I help you?"
Two people had just entered. One of them was a small fairy with long hair and a black dress. The second appeared to be a human girl in her mid-teens. She had golden hair that ended a few inches above her shoulders. She was wearing a long blue dress with short sleeves and decorated with frilly pink ribbons. But despite her seemingly youthful appearance, the look on her face was one of someone who was used to being taken seriously. Nyoron gulped when she realized why. Even though the girl looked human, she didn't feel human. There was a faint humming in the air, almost undetectable, but in the quiet of the office Nyoron was able to pick up on it. It was the sort usually given off by the energy fields generated by magician youkai.
But what would one be doing here? Youkai didn't much care for the GPF, and even if they did, magicians were notoriously self-reliant. It was possible that the girl had a bone to pick with one of the officers, but if that were the case, why was she coming in through the front door? Youkai preferred stealth, and magicians had a taste for trickery.
Nyoron was on her guard. If this was some kind of magician trick, then anything could happen. Though the headquarters had its fair share of magical defenses, Nyoron had yet to hear of a spell that couldn't be overcome.
Fortunately, the magician didn't look like she was here to start slinging spells, though she looked plenty annoyed. She turned her glare toward Nyoron and marched right up to the desk, the fairy following. That was when Nyoron got a bit of a surprise. The creature she had taken for a fellow fairy was made out of wood, with its eyes and other features painted on.
A doll? But who would need a flying doll to follow them around? Was it a familiar of some kind? Or a cleverly disguised bomb? Nyoron was starting to regret agreeing to take desk duty even more, though she had to acknowledge the twisted humor if she were to be killed here, in the GPF's lobby. Not that it would be much comfort though.
The magician glowered down at her. "My name is Alice Margatroid. I assume you know that name?"
Nyoron hesitated, and then she shook her head.
"Typical," Margatroid muttered. "Absolutely typical. What does one have to do to get some kind of…But never mind. I'm here because I wish to file a complaint."
"A…complaint?"
"Yes. One of your officers overstepped her bounds. In my home, no less. I expect something to be done about this."
So instead of dealing with some kind of sorcerous terrorist attack she instead had do something as routine as filing a complaint. This was such a downgrading that it took Nyoron's brain a full five seconds to catch up.
"Oh! O-of course!" Nyoron hastily pulled out the appropriate form from a nearby stack. She slid it over to Margatroid. "Here…just fill this out…"
"I will, thank you," Margatroid snapped as she snatched the form out of Nyoron's hand. She bent over the desk and started putting in information. "And I must say, for an organization that claims to be the protector of the people, I am not at all impressed with how you go about it."
"Yes, ma'am," Nyoron said automatically. Being ranted at by angry people was nothing new, so she adopted the SAI procedure for dealing with it: Smile at the complainer, Agree with everything they say, and Ignore the abuse. If nothing else it helped keep them sane.
"I mean, to arrest someone is one thing, but that? That was just plain despicable."
"I understand."
"Do you really?" Margatroid straightened up. "I truly doubt that. Because if you did, you wouldn't tolerate such a woman, much less have her as captain."
"Yes, I…Wait, what?"
Margatroid flapped the complaint form in Nyoron's face. "Your captain and your precious 'Founder', as I believe you call her, broke into my home last night and brutally beat down a friend of mine before dragging her off. Honestly, it was behavior I would expect from common thugs! And the charges were rather vague as well."
"I see," Nyoron said guardedly. "And who was your friend?"
"You don't know? Your organization's informational structure is severely lacking. I'm talking about the Human witch Marisa Kirisame."
Margatroid tossed the complaint onto the desk. "I expect this to be taken care of right away. Otherwise, I just may have to deal with this matter personally. Understand?"
"I understand, Miss Margatroid. And I will personally make sure this complaint goes where it needs to."
"See that you do," Margatroid said haughtily. Without another word, she turned and stormed out of the office.
Nyoron sat motionless for a full minute, holding Margatroid's complaint in her hand. When she was certain that the magician wasn't coming back, she slowly ripped the piece of paper into small pieces and dropped them in the trash.
…
At that moment, Kotohime Sonozika was in the headquarters' spacious gym/training room. All around her, other officers were lifting weights, sparring with one another, or participating in the self-defense class that took up one corner. Directly outside was a large field where those wishing to improve their danmaku and spellcard skills could duel one another. Originally that had been done inside the training room as well, but after Kotohime had been handed that month's repair bill that idea had been quickly dropped.
As for Kotohime herself, she was by herself in a corner with a red leather dummy with a tightly wound spring for a neck and was doing her best to make it bleed.
Her taped fits slammed into its torso again and again, the rhythm of the punches almost in synch with her racing heart. She quickened her attack, sending a brief flurry at its midriff before going after the blank, red face. The dummy's head flew back with every blow only to bounce right back in time for the next. Admittedly, it wasn't her preferred method of working out, but this was her first bit of significant free time since yesterday and she really needed to hit something repeatedly. Especially considering what she had to go do in a few minutes.
Someone behind her cleared their throat. "Uh, Captain?"
"Just a sec," Kotohime grunted. She spun around and drove her heel into where the dummy's ear would be. The spring whirred as the head leapt back and forth, becoming a blur. Panting, Kotohime wiped the sweat from her forehead as she turned around.
Officer Blair was standing there, his full uniform in stark contrast to the loose grey shirt and sweatpants Kotohime was wearing. He saluted as Kotohime faced him.
"Sorry to bother you Ma'am, but it's almost twelve."
Kotohime grunted. "Thanks," she said, though she was far from thankful. "Go get your brother and meet me in the lobby. I'll be there shortly."
Blair saluted again and walked off. Kotohime grabbed a nearby towel and used it to wipe off her face and forearms. Then she sighed and made her way toward the showers.
Along the way there she kept being greeted by encouraging smiles, thumbs up and the occasional verbal congratulations. It had been that way all morning. Even though neither she nor Yukari had told anyone the full details of what had happened during Kirisame's arrest, somehow everyone seemed to know. Of course, Kirisame screaming at the top of her lungs until Yukari had lost her patience and sealed off her mouth probably had something to do with that.
Kotohime honestly had no idea how to feel about the unanimous show of approval. She had been expecting whispers, dirty looks, and the occasional show of disrespect. After all, she had pursued a fleeing suspect through the Forest of Magic without the required two additional officers backing her up, Yukari's own assistance being a non-issue. And then, after the suspect had been arrested, she had lost her temper and attacked Kirisame. That was two major violations of the very rules Kotohime had written up herself. Given that she had chewed out more than one officer for breaking those rules, it would only make sense that the others would resent her for her hypocrisy. But by her calculations, one third of the GPF wanted to buy her a drink, another third had offered to exchange high-fives, and everyone else was considering lifting her on their shoulders and leading the headquarters in a rousing rendition of "She's a Jolly Good Fellow". Granted, Marisa Kirisame had been a particularly annoying thorn in their side ever since the GPF's creation a few years ago, but still…
Kotohime shook her head. She couldn't afford this confusion, not now. Especially since her upcoming visit would probably provide her with more confusion than she needed.
After Kotohime had showered and changed into her uniform, she returned to her office. There, she opened the filing cabinet and took out a file that Yukari had given to her to pass on. On it was a large red X. Then made her way to the lobby (uncomfortably dodging more enthusiastic signs of support along the way). Blair and Kelso were already there, waiting for her. At her arrival, they stiffened to attention.
"At ease," she said. She nodded at Nyoron, took a deep breath and said, "Okay, let's get this over with."
Despite close associations with the Human Village, the Gensokyo Peacekeeping Force was an independent entity. Not even its Founder, Yukari Yakumo, had much to do with it besides provide funding and use them to remove the occasional pest. As such, their headquarters was located in the center of a large clearing, well outside the borders of all settlements. Kotohime had hoped that by doing so, it would discourage the nonhumans from considering it to be an oppressive Human organization and treating it as such.
Unfortunately, they still had a long way to go. The majority of the members were Humans, and Kotohime herself was the niece of the Leader of the Human Village. In addition, most of the demand for such an organization had come from the humans, with everyone else preferring to look after themselves or the chaos of the wilds. Even though Kotohime had gone to great lengths to ensure that the protection offered by the GPF would extend to everybody, Human or youkai alike, the fact remained that youkai simply did not need protection the same way Humans did. Granted, they had put a stop to a few fairy abuse cases and arrested a handful of wannabe youkai exterminators, but most of their cases were in the Humans' favor.
However, that didn't mean things were fine and dandy with Gensokyo's Human population either. Since the GPF did help nonhumans on occasion, that was enough cause for some of the most anti-youkai voices to loudly proclaim them to be traitors. And Kotohime's policy of hiring prospective fairies and youkai, few as they may be, did not win her any supporters with that crowd, nor did her refusal to locate the headquarters in the Human Village. And seeing how Master Sonozika, Kotohime's uncle, was among the most vocal of those voices, she was not looking forward to seeing him on Yukari's behalf. Kotohime and her uncle's relationship was not friendly, nor had it even been.
Still, she had a job to do, as unpleasant as it was. Kotohime wasn't about to let something as trivial as bad blood get in the way of her job, even though she knew the conversation she was about to have was not going to be fun.
Though the distance to the Human Village was not long, it was silent and uncomfortable.
In time the village's towering wall came into view, on which guards patrolled endlessly, ready to shoot down anyone and anything trying to enter without using the main gate. As Kotohime did not fancy entering as a flaming missile, her party touched earth about twenty feet from the wall and walked the rest of the way. The guards on duty recognized them and waved them through, though Kotohime could swear she saw a brief flash of resentment on their faces.
Once inside, Kotohime led the other two on a determined path toward Master Sonozika's home. Though she tried to keep her eyes forward, her eyes kept following the people they passed. It might have been her imagination, but it seemed like most people were quickly looking away, rolling their eyes, sneering or any other such expressions of contempt. She wondered if it was due to the usual dislike the GPF garnered from the anti-youkai squad, if word of the disaster at the Youkai Market had reached them already or if it was just her base insecurities at play.
Or maybe, as Kotohime glumly reminded herself, it had something to do with how, not too long ago, she had been the black sheep of the Sonozika family. A delusional madwoman that embarrassed everyone, who was now sane only by the intervention of a nonhuman that wasn't exactly popular around here.
"Um, is it just me, or do these people not look happy to see us?" Kelso whispered.
Well, that eliminated option three at least. "Ignore them," Kotohime said out of the side of her mouth.
"Yeah, but I know a lot of these people. Seriously, why are they-"
Blair elbowed him in the ribs. Kelso shut up.
In time they reached the Sonozika residence at the village's center. A U-shaped building with a garden between the arms, it had been where Kotohime had grown up, cared for by her aunt and uncle ever since she had joined the many, many children who had lost their parents to youkai attacks. Her life there had been all right, she supposed, even if she didn't particularly like the place. She didn't remember most of it, but that was probably due to her being insane at the time. Even so, she had never much cared for her uncle. Which was just as well, as he had never really cared for her as well, which her association with Yukari and current status as the GPF's head did nothing to alleviate.
She took a deep breath and lightly rapped her knuckles against the front door. A servant girl that Kotohime didn't recognize answered and, after being told that they were there to see Master Sonozika, bade them enter. The three officers slipped out of their shoes and entered.
The place was much as Kotohime remembered; elegant in design but surprisingly bare of decoration. Maybe that was one of the reasons Kotohime had always felt uncomfortable there. It just felt too empty. She had tried to make up for it by collecting whatever strange odds and ends she could find to decorate her own room, but her uncle had always been angry when he caught her in the act, berating her for bringing trash into his home. It didn't make much sense to her then, and even though she was now fixed she still didn't understand what the big deal was. One would think that the home of the leader of an entire race would look at least a little pretty.
"Please wait here," the serving girl said, indicating the next room. "I'll go inform Master Sonozika of your arrival."
She bowed to them and they dipped their heads in response. Then they walked into the room. Then Kotohime got her first pleasant surprise of the day. There were two people in the room, both sitting at a table and poring over a scroll. One of them was a middle-aged woman with exceptionally long white hair. The other was a frail-looking girl in her very early teens whose purple hair sat in an awkward bob on her head. Both were wearing pale green kimonos and seemed to be in deep conversation. As the officers entered they automatically looked up. A surprised but very pleased smile appeared on the face of the older woman.
"Miss Keine!" Kotohime blurted out at seeing her childhood tutor. Then she remembered herself and quickly said, "I…I meant Teacher Kamishirasawa, I wasn't expecting-"
She never got to finish, as Keine Kamishirasawa had jumped to her feet and thrown her arms around Kotohime.
"Kotohime!" Keine cried. "My gods, I didn't know you would be coming today!"
Feeling very awkward and completely aware that Blair and Kelso were watching, Kotohime gingerly returned the hug. "Right. I'm, uh, glad to see you too."
Grinning widely, Keine pulled back. "Hold still, let me look at you." She quickly glanced up and door. "Wow, my goodness. You've certainly become…"
"Embarrassed?" the young girl suggested.
"Actually I was going to say impressive. I mean, look at you! Captain of the first decent law enforcement this country has seen. Seems like just yesterday you were running around in that oversized purple robe of yours, getting it all muddy and bringing me shiny rocks from the river."
Kotohime heard snickering. She glared over her shoulder at the brothers, who were doing a piss-poor job of standing innocently at attention. She rolled her eyes.
"Wait a minute," Keine said. She frowned and looked closer at Kotohime's face. "What…Kotohime, what happened?"
"What?" Kotohime said in confusion. Then she remembered the bruises sustained when Yuuka's sunflower had smashed her face against the ground the day before.
"Oh, those. Had a rough day yesterday. We all did." She indicated Blair and Kelso's similarly bruised faces. "But we're fine."
Keine did not look "Are you sure?"
"Yes, yes, happens all the time," Kotohime said quickly. To change the subject, she said, "Well, I guess introductions are in order," she said. She stepped aside and motioned with her hand. "Teacher Kamishirasawa, these are Blair and Kelso Kida, two of my-"
"Oh don't worry," Keine said. "We've met." She clasped her hands in front of her waist and bowed. "Gentlemen, it's good to see you again."
"The same, Teacher," Kelso said as they bowed in return. "Likewise," Blair said.
"Their children are among my students," Keine explained to Kotohime. "Kelso's son Shinra is in my middle-school class, and Blair's daughters are nearly ready to graduate."
"Oh," Kotohime said, feeling stupid for not realizing this before. "Of course."
"Don't beat yourself up too much, Kotohime," the young girl murmured as she rose to her feet. "With everything that's going on, it's okay to forget a few small things."
"Especially if one doesn't have a photographic memory," Kotohime noted. "And it looks like I'm not the only one who's grown. You couldn't have been much more than seven the last time I saw you."
"Nine and three months," Hieda no Akyuu corrected. "Physically, at least."
Among the many strange people Kotohime had met in her life, Hieda no Akyuu was certainly unique. She was the Human Village's official record keeper, and had been so for a very long time. Known as the Child of Miare (whoever that was), she had lived several lives, dying only to be reborn anew once a century had gone by, with her memories and personality intact. No one was quite certain how she pulled it off, but there was no denying that she was handy to have around. Personally Kotohime had always felt uneasy about the whole arrangement. Not about the reincarnations themselves, but because each lifespan never lasted much longer than a couple decades, just long enough to update her records and, at the end of it all, die once again. It seemed to be a raw deal in her opinion, not to mention incredibly disturbing, but Akyuu herself seemed to be fine with it. Some people just really seemed to enjoy childhood. Over and over.
"Of course, I highly doubt your reason for being here has anything to do with comparing our respective progress," Akyuu continued. "Would I be correct in assuming that it has something to do the attack on Eientei?"
Kotohime's shoulders sagged. Behind her, Kelso could be heard to groan out loud. "You've, uh, heard about that, huh?"
"I believe everyone has," Akyuu said. "Rumors have a way of spreading." She picked up a folded newspaper off a nearby chair. "Of course, when it's in print it tends to spread even faster."
Kotohime raised an eyebrow. Wordlessly she took the paper from Akyuu and looked at the front page story.
A Bounty is Placed Upon Strange New Monster
Yukari Yakumo possibly involved?
At approximately 12:15 yesterday afternoon, I became aware of a commotion taking place within the Youkai Market. Upon investigation, I discovered that the source was the ice-fairy, Cirno, and her gang.
Cirno's Gang is well-known in Gensokyo for playing pranks and causing trouble. However, in this case their reason for causing a commotion was not to cause mischief, but to rescue one of their own.
According to Cirno, one of her friends was devoured by a strange amorphous creature, which then proceeded to assault Eientei in the Bamboo Forest of the Lost. It is Cirno's belief that this creature might have been created by the residents of Eientei and attacked them out of revenge, or perhaps preemptive self-defense.
"They really weren't making much sense," Cirno states. "And they kept yelling at each other and me. But yeah, they definitely had something to do with it. I think they fought it before and tried to hush it up, because they didn't want anyone knowing. And now my friend's in trouble because of it!"
Cirno of course was quick to run for help, seeking the aide of the shrine maiden Reimu Hakurei. Reimu went to investigate, taking with her a posse composed of some odd names, such as Suika Ibuki, Yukari Yakumo and, perhaps most distressing, the ghost known only as Mima.
"Seriously, why does Reimu keep her around?" wonders Mystia Lorelei, member of Cirno's Gang and owner of the renowned Lorelei's Lampreys. "I thought she was supposed to be a bad guy!"
Reimu and her associates soon engaged the monster, but were unable to defeat it, suggesting that it is unusually powerful. It eventually escaped and is presumed to be loose in Gensokyo.
Interestingly enough, Cirno encountered the monster a second time, in which it had taken on a form that closely resembled her friend Rumia. This may indicate that it is some kind of reverse-chameleon, changing its shape to resemble those it has devoured.
At any rate, Yukari Yakumo has already taken steps to cover up this incident, going as far as threaten Cirno with physical harm and possibly cannibalism. This may have something to do with Princess Kaguya's recent acknowledgement as the official regent of the Bamboo Forest of the Lost. Perhaps Yukari does not want someone she has openly supported to be disgraced so quickly. When questioned, several attendees of the Youkai Market expressed similar sentiments, believing that Yukari may be abusing the authority she holds. The establishment of a strictly Human-biased "Gensokyo Peacekeeping Force" only a few years ago and her tolerance of Mima's close proximity to the Hakurei Shrine are other such signs.
Yukari Yakumo, along with nearly everyone else involved in the incident, were unavailable for comment.
In the meantime, Cirno Gang has earnestly sought help in rescuing their friend, whom Cirno insists is still alive. A sizeable bounty of twenty-five million yen has been offered to anyone who can capture the monster.
Kotohime's eyes narrowed as she put the paper down. "Well, isn't that just great," she muttered. "The one-woman paparazzi's treating Cirno as a reliable source and running her mouth off about stuff she doesn't even understand."
"'Human-biased'?" Blair said. "Come on! We've been trying to recruit more nonhumans from day one! Heck, we've got a fairy doing receptionist duty and a panther youkai as our self-defense instructor!"
"Well, at least she doesn't know all that crap about Yuuka Kazami," Kelso said. "Though knowing our luck, it'll probably pop up in the late edition."
Kotohime whirled around. "Kelso!"
He blinked in confusion. "What?"
It was too late. Keine gasped and took a step back while Akyuu's head perked up in interest.
"What," Keine said slowly. "Stuff about Yuuka Kazami?"
"Good going," Blair hissed at his brother. "Way to make things better."
"It's nothing!" Kotohime said. "Nothing you need to worry about, seriously! Yukari's looking into it personally, should be taken care of pretty soon, so…"
"Captain," Blair muttered under his breath. Kotohime fell silent. The serving girl had reappeared at the room's entrance. Giving no indication that she had heard the conversation, the girl bowed low.
"I apologize for the wait," she said. "Master Sonozika will see you now. However, he expressed his desire to speak with the Captain of the Gensokyo Peacekeeping Force alone."
"Not surprising," Kotohime muttered. To the brothers, she said, "All right, you two wait here. And please try not to induce mass panic while I'm gone."
"Sorry," Kelso muttered. Blair rolled his eyes.
The serving girl led Kotohime to Master Sonozika's private study, where she left her at the door. Kotohime took a deep breath and walked in.
Her uncle sat cross-legged behind a low desk made from a rich red wood. His robe, open to his thickly muscled chest, was so black that light seemed to fall into it. The top of his head was bald, save for a long tail held in place by a series of silver beads. A thin goatee sat upon his perpetually frowning face. And, despite being indoors, he was wearing a pair of thick sunglasses.
Once Kotohime had found her uncle intimidating. However, in the last few years (particularly yesterday afternoon), she had learned what truly intimidating people looked like. Now he just looked like he was trying too hard.
At the moment, her uncle was signing his way through a series of papers, no doubt intending to give off the impression that he was too busy to bother greeting her immediately. Kotohime stood at attention and waited.
Finally he glanced up at her. "Kotohime."
"Uncle," she said with a nod.
His scowl deepened. "I believe you mean 'Master Sonozika'."
"Of course. In which case I must insist that you call me 'Captain'."
"Insolence," he snorted. "I know for a fact that I taught you better manners."
Kotohime bowed her head. "Your forgiveness, Master Sonozika. The last few days have been hard."
He made a noise that was not entirely unlike a growl. "What are you doing here, Kotohime?"
"Yukari Yakumo sent me."
Her uncle's face twisted in disgust, as if he had eaten something bitter.
"Of course she did," he said.
Kotohime pressed on. "There was an emergency meeting of Gensokyo's leaders the day before yesterday. You weren't there. Yukari wishes to know the reason."
"What business is that of yours? Or…that creature's?"
"The meeting revolved around information that might be vital to the Human Village's survival. Surely your…strained relations with Yukari would not get in the way of that."
Her uncle unfolded his legs and stood to his full height. Kotohime was not a short woman, but her uncle towered a half-a-foot over her. Irritated, she returned his glare and waited.
"I had things I needed to do," he said. "More important than indulging the delusions of authority of a mad youkai woman."
Kotohime resisted angry remark that danced down her tongue. "More important than the safety of the Human Village?"
He crossed his arms. "I've been to exactly two of those meetings. The first time I had to endure weary four days as youkai and self-stylized gods shouted at each other. The second time…" He made that not-quite-a-growl noise again. "The second time that thing you just love so much appointed that monster Mima as the head of Hakurei Shrine! One of the worst enemies humankind has ever know, and Yukari thinks she can just wave her hand and make it all right?"
Kotohime actually winced at that. To be truthful, she also did not understand why Mima had been so easily forgiven. She assumed that Yukari had her reasons, but she for one could not see what they were. Still, that was an issue for another day.
"Perhaps," she said evenly. "However, in this case there was an actual emergency, one which may require all of Gensokyo's cooperation."
"All the more reason not to go," her uncle said with a shrug. "Her problems are not mine, but if I were there she would probably force me to become involved."
"Then you don't know what happened at Eientei earlier this week. Or yesterday at the Youkai Market."
"Those are two places that I make a habit of having absolutely nothing to do with."
"Keine Kamishirasawa and Hieda no Akyuu knew what I was talking about, when I spoke to them."
He shrugged again. "They're historians and record-keepers. It's their job, not mine."
Kotohime felt like rolling her eyes. She refrained. "Well, fortunately that was my other reason for coming. To bring you up to speed."
"I do not care," her uncle said. He turned away from her and walked to the other end of the room. "Yukari can go hang herself for all I care. In fact, go tell her to do just that."
Oh, you don't, do you? Kotohime allowed herself a half-smirk. All right, tough guy. Try this one on for size.
"Six days ago, Eientei was destroyed," Kotohime said.
Her uncle paused. He glanced at her over his shoulder.
Kotohime continued. "The attacker was some kind of new monster, a genetically engineered youkai that can adapt to, absorb and even turn back virtually any attack. Also, apparently it can absorb people and add their power abilities to its own. It managed to fight off the Eientei Guard, the Hakurei Shrine maiden, the oni Suika Ibuki, Mi…a couple others and even Yukari herself before fleeing, leaving everyone injured and the place in ruins."
"Witnessed this yourself, did you?" her uncle said.
"I saw the devastation," Kotohime replied. "My people are assisting in the recovery efforts, and I went there in person to supervise. I was also shown records of the monster's creation. Everything matches up."
"So you say. Or rather, so Yukari says. And of course, you believe her unconditionally."
This time Kotohime did roll her eyes. "Contrary to popular belief, Yukari does not-"
"Spare me. I know that woman better than you ever could."
"I doubt that. But that's beside the point. I've brought along with me" Kotohime placed the file she was carrying on the table "a fully detailed report on the monster. All of Gensokyo's leaders are getting a copy. Apparently, the monster was created by Eientei as an experimental defense, but the experiment went horribly wrong. As I understand it, they created it some decades ago but it was subdued and imprisoned. Unfortunately, it was accidentally set loose earlier this week and, well, revenge ensued."
Her uncle turned back around to face her. "Now that I can believe. And it only goes to prove my point. These are the sort of people you associate with and defend. Creators of monsters!"
"Oh?" Kotohime idly scratched her face. "And what about those things created and set loose by Rika Asakura a few years back. I don't remember you having much of a problem with them. Was it because she set them loose on Hakurei Shrine, in youkai territory?"
"Watch your tongue, girl," he snapped. "I don't care what sort of youkai-loving organization you're running, you will remember who you are speaking to."
Kotohime folded her arms. "The GPF keeps people safe, human and youkai alike. And as I recall, you were loudly clamoring for such an organization to be established for years. Are we not doing a good enough job, uncle? Youkai-related deaths are down forty percent ever since we began patrolling!"
"Is that right? And what of those boys you personally arrested last Thursday?"
"Boys?" Kotohime said with a blank stare.
Her uncle gestured impatiently. "Yes. Last Thursday you abused your so-called power and had the gall to arrest two human adolescents for an incredibly flimsy reason."
Now Kotohime remembered. "They were trapping newborn fairies and pulling off their wings!"
"And?"
Kotohime had to close her eyes and count to ten before responding. "I believe my point is self-explanatory. Besides, I'm not here to debate the GPF's procedures. I'm here to make sure you're up-to-date on the current situation."
"A situation caused by your youkai friends!" her uncle exploded.
A heavy silence passed between them, as both niece and uncle glowered at each other. Kotohime was not at all surprised at the direction the conversation had taken. It seemed that ever since she had been cured and given the reins of the GPF, she couldn't even see her uncle without him launching into another tirade about her supposed loyalties. While she could understand on some level why he was distrustful of youkai, sometimes it seemed like he cared for nothing else but his pro-Human campaign. It was wearying.
At any rate, getting into another argument wasn't going to accomplish anything. "Like I was saying," Kotohime said. "The creature can absorb people and use their abilities along with its own. So far we know of at least three people that have been devoured. One of them is Kaguya Houraisan, the Princess of Eientei."
Her uncle's eyebrows rose high over the frames of his sunglasses. "Princess Kaguya?"
The same," Kotohime said with a nod. "We have reason to believe that the creature is now in possession of her immortality, which will likely complicate further attempts to bring it down."
"Wait, say that again. Kaguya is gone?"
Kotohime blinked. "Yes. She is gone, which you would already know if you had attended the meeting."
"Watch it," her uncle warned.
Kotohime ignored him. "In addition to Kaguya, the monster also took her rival, Fujiwara no Mokou. We don't know if that means their respective regenerative abilities will stack, but it's best not to take chance. But they're secondary compared to the third person it has acquired."
"Please tell me that it's Yukari herself."
"If it had been, then she wouldn't be calling meetings or sending me to go see you, now would she?" Without waiting for an answer, Kotohime plowed on. "No, the person in question was Rumia of the Darkness."
"Is that name supposed to mean something to me?"
Kotohime decided to refrain from mentioning her uncle's previous encounters with Rumia and her now former friends, specifically one instance that had resulted in their heads being emancipated from their necks. "You probably know her better as the Shadow Youkai."
Her uncle shook his head. "Again, that name means nothing."
Kotohime raised an eyebrow. "Seriously?"
"I can't be expected-"
"The genocidal maniac who cut a bloody swatch across Gensokyo sixty years ago until Yukari brought it down and sealed it up?"
"It seems she didn't do an adequate job of that, if it's loose again," her uncle snapped.
"Perhaps," Kotohime said in an even tone. "But even I knew about it, back when I was…unstable. Kids used to try to scare me with stories."
"And you expect me to listen to children's stories?"
Kotohime felt a massive headache developing. "Anyway! Like I was saying, the same creature that destroyed Eientei also managed to find and absorb the Shadow Youkai."
"Of course," her uncle said. "More youkai terrors. It's always youkai terrorizing us, hunting us, frightening us and eating us."
Well, there he went again. Kotohime took a deep breath and said, "I understand-"
"No. No you don't," her uncle interrupted. "Or you wouldn't be working for those monsters."
"Not all youkai are man-eaters," Kotohime said, drawn back into the argument despite herself. "And I don't work for them!"
"You work for their Queen. It's the same thing."
"Yukari isn't their-" Kotohime stopped herself. She forced the anger back down. "If you want to piss on me for my life choices, feel free to make an appointment at my office. But that doesn't change the fact that there is an extremely dangerous monster on the loose. At this moment, there is an operation underway to bring it down. If you don't wish to participate, that's your decision. But you still need to prepare and protect your people."
"So they're not your people anymore?"
Kotohime's eyes narrowed. "I am doing my part. I am simply suggesting that you forget your petty grudges and-"
"Petty!" her uncle roared.
Kotohime stopped talking. Her uncle had passed from irritated and disproving to outright furious. Provoking him further would probably be a bad idea, so Kotohime remained silent and waited.
When her uncle spoke again, his voice was low and dangerous. "Petty. They murdered your father. Your mother! I led the expedition to go find them, only to discover the torn up remains of my brother and his wife. Those are the things you're defending.
"Uncle, they're not-"
"Do you know what the ones that killed them did after we drove them off? Do you the sort of things they were calling at us, the taunts? They mocked their death!"
Kotohime angrily chewed the inside of her mouth. The problem was that there literally was nothing she could say that would change his mind. She had tried to explain on many occasions that while there were bad youkai out there, there were just as many decent ones as well. She had tried to cite the ones she worked with, but it had all fallen on deaf ears.
And really, could she truly blame him? When her parents had been killed, she had been too young to understand. But if she had been older, it was entirely possible that she would have developed the deep seething hatred for nonhumans that her uncle had. It made it difficult to work up any kind of righteous anger.
"I truly thought you would understand," her uncle said. To make things worse, he didn't sound angry anymore. He just sounded disappointed.
"Unc…Master Sonozika, you already know my reasons," Kotohime said. "I have explained them to you many times, and if need be, I'll be more than happy to explain them again."
Her uncle snorted.
Kotohime continued. "But not now. Neither of us have the time to debate this. I came to warn you of danger. What you do now with that information is up to you."
Her uncle glowered at her. Then he wordlessly picked up the file.
Sensing that the conversation was over, Kotohime bowed. "Farewell, Master Sonozika," she said. She turned on her heel and walked toward the door.
And then she remembered something. "Oh, I almost forgot," she said, turning back around.
Her uncle's lips curled at the edges. "What? Another message from your beloved youkai queen?"
"The opposite, actually. Yuuka Kazami has also become involved, with the intent of sabotaging any efforts to contain Eientei's monster. At the same time, she has also sponsored a large bounty on the creature. We believe the contradictory behavior is simply to cause as much chaos as possible for her own…" She paused when she saw that her uncle's face had gone completely expressionless. "Master Sonozika, you do know who she is at least?"
Her uncle didn't immediately respond. When he did, his voice was very, very small. "Yuuka Kazami? Are you sure?"
Kotohime nodded. "Yes. Yesterday she captured me and the two officers I came in with, along with one other, and tortured us with the intention of sending Yukari a message. So I am very certain." There was another pause, and then Kotohime said, "I trust I don't have to tell you to avoid attracting her attention at all costs?"
Her uncle didn't say anything. He just gave one weak nod.
"Good. Please, prepare the village as soon as possible. My office is always open should you need assistance." With that, Kotohime left the room.
Kelso and Blair were still waiting for her in the other room. From the look of things they were in the middle of a conversation with Keine and Akyuu. Kotohime hoped they hadn't spilled anything they shouldn't have, but at that moment she was too tired to care.
As she entered the room, the brothers stood up immediately.
"Captain!" Kelso said. He snapped off a quick salute. "How'd to go?"
"We're leaving now," was all Kotohime said.
Kelso winced. "Wow. That ba-ouch!" He jumped away from his brother, who had decided that now was not the time to question their Captain and had expressed his decision through driving his boot onto Kelso's toes.
Kotohime ignored them. She nodded to the two historians. "Teacher Kamishirasawa. Recorder Hieda. Good day."
"What happened?" Keine asked. "What did he do?"
"Nothing," Kotohime said. "I informed him of the situation, as I was sent to do."
"Don't worry," Akyuu said. She clearly wasn't buying Kotohime's evasiveness. "We'll make sure he doesn't screw this up."
"Of course." Kotohime turned toward the door. "Now, if you'll excuse me."
"Wait!" Keine said suddenly.
Kotohime started to turn, but Keine wasn't interested in waiting. She leapt up and grabbed Kotohime by the sleeve and dragged her to the far corner of the room. Confused, Kotohime stared at her former tutor.
"Kotohime, this…thing that attacked Eientei," Keine said. "Are the rumors true? Did it take Fujiwara no Mokou as well?"
Kotohime blinked. Why would she be bringing that up? "Yes, it did. Do you know her?"
"We've…met," Keine said vaguely. "You are going to rescue her, right?"
Kotohime considered questioning her further about her concern, but decided against it. in the end, it was none of her business. "Rescuing all the victims devoured by the creature is one of our top priorities," she said diplomatically. "Fujiwara no Mokou is among their number. So…yes."
Right," Keine said. She sounded relieved. "Thank you."
Kotohime studied Keine's face for a moment longer. Then she shrugged. "You're…welcome."
She nodded toward the brothers, who were watching them curiously. "All right, let's go. We've got a lot of work to do."
The way back, while not long, was almost as uncomfortable as the trip there. Kotohime kept running the argument with her uncle over and over in her head, wondering if there was something else she should have said. She also kept coming back to Keine's strange question. What did she have to do with an isolated renegade?
Such was Kotohime's confusion that she didn't notice that there was someone waiting for her in her office until she had collapsed into her leather chair and wearily rubbed her face. Then she opened her eyes and jerked back in shock.
"Hello Captain," Yukari Yakumo said. "I apologize for surprising you, but something has just come up, so my time is short. I would like to speak to the prisoner now."
…
The worst part about being in jail, Marisa decided, was not the humiliation. It was not the lack of freedom. It wasn't even the bare cell with the too-thin mattress and the cold floor and the loud drunk in the next cell over who, by the smell of things, was suffering from a severe gastric problems.
No, the worse thing was the nothing. The hour after hour of absolutely nothing happening and an inability to break up the nothing by doing something. All of her equipment had been taken from her and anti-bullet manacles had been placed on her wrists, so she couldn't blast her way out. She was shackled to the cot, so she couldn't move. And to add insult to injury, Yukari had sealed her mouth shut, so she couldn't even amuse herself by messing with the guards' minds.
And to top it off, her embarrassing fight with Kotohime had loosened a tooth that had fallen out about an hour ago. It was now sitting on the bottom of her mouth with no way to dispose of it save for swallowing. Also, her nose was running.
Marisa wondered how long she would have to stay here. She wasn't about to bet on Yukari just letting her go, and there was probably no chance of bail. Maybe someone would break her out, like Mima. Or Alice. Or even Reimu. Maybe a combination of the three. If that were the case, Marisa wished that they would hurry up, because if she had to sit on a hard cot trying to breathe through a stuffy nose while playing with her own tooth with her tongue for another minute, she was going to lose what little sanity she had left.
There was a rattling of keys. Marisa looked up. Her eyes narrowed. That crazy police-girl was there. From the look of things, Kotohime was also having a bad day. Good.
Kotohime unlocked the cell and opened the door. Seeing how she couldn't talk, Marisa just sat and glowered, conveying the high number of violent things she wanted to wreak upon the bitch through her eyes alone.
And then Kotohime stepped aside, allowing for someone else to enter. Someone very tall with blond hair, golden eyes and carrying a suitcase. Marisa let out a muffled roar and tried to leap at the newcomer, only to be jerked back by the chains.
"Thank you, Captain," Yukari said. "Now, some privacy please."
"Ma'am…" Kotohime said, clearly uncomfortable with leaving Yukari alone with Marisa.
"It's okay. Honestly, what is she going to do to me?"
Kotohime reluctantly left the cell, closing and locking the door behind her. As soon as she was gone, Yukari said, "Well now, Kirisame. Would you just look at yourself. This could have all been avoided, you know."
The noises Marisa made expressed her disagreement.
Yukari put the suitcase down on the floor. Then she held her hand in the air, index finger and thumb pressed together, as if she were holding something. She made a sudden swiping motion, and Marisa felt the skin of her mouth part. Marisa spat out the tooth, along with a considerable amount of phlegm, and shouted, "You stupid fucking bitch! When I get my hands on you, I'm gonna tear out you-"
Yukari swiped her hand the other way. Marisa's mouth closed up again.
"Got it?" Yukari said. Marisa's eyes shot daggers, but she nodded.
"Good." With that, Yukari reopened Marisa's mouth.
The young witch opened and closed her mouth, moving the jaw around and stretching her muscles. When she was satisfied that everything was in working order, she said, "What the hell do you want, Yukari?"
"That does seem to be the question," Yukari agreed. "Let me turn that around on you. Why do you think you're here?"
"The hell is that supposed to mean?" Marisa snarled. "I'm here because you and that stupid-ass wannabe cop threw me in here, ze."
"That's the method, dear. Not the reason."
"What, are you talking about those charges Kotohime rattled off at me? Fine." Marisa sniggered. "Theft, aggravated assault, public nuisance, endangering Gensokyo through recklessness, violently resisting arrest and murdering a GPF officer. And to be honest, that last one kinda scared me, until I found out she was talking about a fairy, ze. I mean, come on. Mothers squish them when they're doing their spring cleaning, for Chrissakes."
Yukari folded her arms. She smirked.
"Except that's not the real reason I'm here, is it?" Marisa said. "That's just the excuse."
"Only partially. Though you have to admit, it makes for a good one."
"This is about that Remilia Scarlet thing, ain't it? Yeah, that's right," Marisa said with a cocky smile. "Mima told me all about it. You want Princess Fangsalot to help out, and she says she'll only do that if you bust my ass."
"Not quite," Yukari said. "It's true that Remilia did offer her assistance in exchange for your incarceration, but I was planning on doing it anyway. It just made for a convenient story to tell Mima. Though obviously that backfired."
"Huh?" Marisa twisted up her face in confusion. "Then what am I doing here then?"
Yukari walked closer to the fettered witch, so that she was standing directly over her. "Because I don't like you," she said.
Marisa grinned. "Well, hey. At least you're honest. Fuck you too."
Yukari rolled her eyes. "Well, maybe that was the wrong way to put it. Let me put it like this: I am trying to organize a seek-and-destroy operation targeting an unholy conglomeration of two of the most deadliest creatures I have ever had the misfortune of meeting. The people I have to work with cannot discuss the weather without breaking into open war, the target in question is gifted with the ability to kill anything while being unkillable itself, there is a myriad of political and personal grudges threatening to tear my little team apart at any second, and it seems I can't even use the bathroom without running into yet another insanely overpowered person wanting to settle some sort of score with me."
"And yer point was…?"
"And in the middle of that, there's you. Brash, cocky, reckless, completely unable to take orders from anything save for Mima, likely to lose your patience and blow the whole operation, and given Rin Satsuki's adaptability, completely and utterly useless."
"Hey!" Marisa protested in indignation. "What's that about? Me and Mima were the only ones to actually beat the thing, ze!"
Yukari flicked a stray strand of hair out of her face. "And there is nothing you can do that others can't do as well, only more effectively. And your impulsiveness makes you not so much of an ally as a loose cannon. Now, I have no problems with loose cannons, most of the time at least. Most, if not all, of my friends are loose cannons. And I'll admit, I spend a great deal of time as a loose cannon. It's fun. But when a situation like this pops up, where my country is threatened…well, let's just say it stops being endearing."
Marisa snorted. "Fine, you don't want me screwing shit up and wanted me out of the way. Why didn't you just tell me to take a hike then?"
"Two reasons," Yukari said. She held up a single finger. "One, it wouldn't do any good, especially since you have a grudge against Satsuki." A second finger rose up. "Second, those charges Kotohime gave you are actually quire valid. We are in this mess thanks to your kleptomania. You needed to be taught a lesson."
"Hey, I didn't know what was in that box!" Marisa shouted.
"Really? Really, Marisa? Really? It's a magically sealed box that you found in a secret room belonging to a highly accomplished sorceress. What were you expecting it to hold?"
"I dunno," Marisa said with a shrug. "I was kinda hoping for pornography."
Yukari blinked. "Wait…porn…huh?"
"Hey, it's where I would keep it."
"I…" Yukari shook her head. "I really don't want to talk about that. But the bottom line is, your recklessness is endangering Gensokyo. I can't have that."
"What? People do that all the time!" Marisa yelled. "Hell, your buddy Yuyuko almost deep-froze the place a couple years back, and you were helping her!
"That wasn't exactly intentional," Yukari said sullenly. "I was half-asleep at the time. And she made up for it."
"So? And I don't recall you slapping Utsuho Reiuji in chains."
"Had she persisted after having sense knocked back into her, I would have done worse. But incidents of foolishness, carelessness or mental instability aren't the issue here. When you factor in an openly malicious creature like the Shadow Youkai, things stop being annoying and become a little more…serious."
"Fine, whatever," Marisa said. She rolled her eyes. "I screwed up, so you beat me down and locked me up. Lesson learned. Can I go now?"
"No."
"Okay, whatever. I'll stay here until you finish up with Satsuki and the Shadow Youkai. Try to hurry up, will you?"
Yukari shook her head. "Marisa, you and I know that isn't going to work. I've got a rap sheet on you as large as your ego."
"Ha!"
"You were arrested for legitimate reasons. I'm not going to let you go just like that."
Marisa snorted. "Oh, give me a friggin' break. The GPF ain't a real law enforcement whatever, they're over-glorified park rangers. They've got no real power except to keep people from killing each other out on the roads. You've got nothing."
"That would be where you're wrong," Yukari said. "The GPF may not be part of any official government or community, but neither are you. So I highly doubt I'll hear much complaining should you conveniently disappear."
Marisa started to feel a little less sure of herself.
"And I should mention that while your constant thieving was not my main reason for locking you up, Remilia Scarlet still does have a valid complaint against you. As does Eientei, for that matter. And probably a half-a-dozen more. Should they decide to press the matter, well, I might have no choice but to release you into their hands."
Marisa was starting to feel a lot less sure of herself.
"However, there is an alternative. A way to get out of facing their ideas of justice and walking away from all of this."
"Yeah?" Marisa said suspiciously. "And what's that?"
"I would be willing to let the matter go and let you walk free, no string attached, in exchange for some community service."
Marisa was baffled. "Community service? What? You want me to clean up parks or work at the homeless shelter?"
"No, nothing so ordinary. I want you to kill someone for me."
For a brief moment Marisa thought that Yukari was joking. It was such a ridiculous notion that she literally had no way to respond. And then she said, "Wait, wait wait wait wait. Hold up, Gappy. Did…did you just say you want me to kill somebody?"
"Yes," Yukari said.
"Are you kidding?"
"No," Yukari said. "You left the meeting too soon. After you left, I received word that a new player had entered the game, with the intention of fouling everything up. I need this person removed, and unlike the situation with Satsuki, you just might have a chance of pulling it off."
"Yeah right! Look Gappy, I may be a little crazy, sure. And okay, so maybe I'm not much of a saint either. But I sure as hell ain't no murderer, ze! I'm not just gonna kill someone just to get out of jail! And how the hell does that equal community service anyway?"
"The situation at hand threatens any number of communities," Yukari said calmly. "And this person wishes to escalate it. So eliminating her would be a service to those communities."
Marisa laughed. "Grandma, you are one twisted bitch, anyone ever tell you that? No deal. Get lost and do it yourself, ze. Oh, and tell this other person that I'm rooting for them, okay?"
"You don't even know who it is," Yukari pointed out.
"Like there's anyone worse than you!"
"Not even Yuuka Kazami?"
Marisa sucked her teeth. That was not an answer she had been expecting.
"Wait," she said. "Y-Yuuka? Really?"
"Yes. Really."
"What does she want?"
"I told you, to screw things up for her own enjoyment. She has fallen in league with Cirno's gang-"
"Bwaaahhh?"
"-and is using them as a way to stir up chaos. At this moment, they've posted a bounty on Satsuki, one that leaves out a great deal of information and potentially endangers the lives of the bounty hunters. And I have it on good authority that she killed at least three Humans and blew up two youkai yesterday, presumably without cause. Furthermore, she has hurt one of my Shikigami, possessed the other to taunt me, and challenged me to a duel to the death." Yukari's eyes narrowed. "At another time, I might take her up on it. But even if I were to win, it would both weaken and distract me too much from bringing the Satsuki and the Shadow Youkai down. So I've decided to invest in a little backup."
"But…but why me? I mean, sure I've fought her before, but I'm pretty sure she was just messing. I'm nowhere on the level-"
"I never said you would be alone," Yukari said. "I am assembling a team of individuals who specialize in doing incredible amounts of damage in a short amount of time. You will operate as a part of this team and work together to bring her down before she can hurt anyone else. And I will also be doing most of the work. You'll just be there to tip the odds in my favor in a big way."
"Yeah, but still…I mean, I'm only Human…"
The edge of Yukari's lip perked up. "Self-deprecation? From you? Still, human you may be, you are a human with an incredible talent for quickly mastering offensive spells and absolutely no trepidation for using them. And speaking of which…"
Yukari held up one hand. Behind her, the suitcase lifted off the floor and floated around so that it was hovering directly in front of her. Yukari undid the clasps and opened it up. From within, she extracted several small objects and held them up.
"Do you know what these are?" she said.
Marisa squinted. "Black…spellcards?"
"Yes. To be exact, these are the spellcards that I had created specifically for emergencies such as these. They operate under the same principles of normal spellcards, but the effect they have…Well, let's just say that in a normal duel calling them cheating would be a gross understatement."
"Yeah?" Marisa said, her interest perking up. "And are you saying I'll get to play with those babies?"
"Don't get too excited. They'll be modified for use against Yuuka and that renegade Shinigami she has as a servant alone. And of course I'll be taking back whatever ones are left afterward. But yes, you will get to play with some very, very powerful spells. So how about it, Marisa?" Yukari reached into the suitcase again and pulled out another object. Marisa's eyes went wide when she saw what it was.
It was Marisa's hat.
Yukari held the hat out to her. "Are you in?"
"Huh." Marisa's eyes narrowed as she thought. It was a crazy offer, not to mention insanely dangerous, but she had to admit that participating in a throw-down of this level was much more appealing them spending an indefinite amount of time in this hellhole. And while she was definitely not comfortable with the idea of killing anybody, Yuuka Kazami was someone who might just deserve it.
And speaking of which, when they did win, that would mean all those enchantments she had put over the Garden of the Sun would collapse. And her mansion would be then be empty and unguarded. Marisa had already profited from one trip there, though she had to fight for her life to get out. And if Yuuka was no longer a problem…
Marisa's lips parted in a wide smile. "So let me get this straight: I join your little deathsquad and shoot shoot shoot those things at her, and I go free afterward?"
"Yes," Yukari said.
"No strings attached?"
"No strings attached. You will be released to continue your incredibly annoying crime-filled life." Then Yukari scowled. "Though I should point out that this only extends to the current set of charges. If you get caught by anyone else again, I will look the other way while they teach you better manners. And if you step over the line, then I will be there. Count on it."
"Eh, that's no big," Marisa said with a shrug. "I can deal. And hey, just so we're clear, ze. You said Yuuka had already killed people, right?"
"At least three Humans that we know about," Yukari confirmed. "Apparently she wanted their hotel room."
"Yeah, that sounds like her. And just out of curiosity, what happens if I say no?"
Yukari shrugged. "Then I find someone else. I don't see that being a problem. You, on the other hand, will have to get used to prison gruel."
"I see," Marisa murmured. She thought about it a moment longer. Then she said, "You know, you have just asked."
"I could have," Yukari agreed.
"Yeah, I bet." Then with a grin, Marisa took the hat from Yukari's hands and put it on her head. She then shot off a mocking salute. "Well, guess I don't have much of a choice here. When do we start?"
…
Unown300? You still there, buddy? :(
Anyway, it's kind of amazing how important (relatively speaking) the whole Kotohime and the GPF thing has become, because they originally weren't going to be in the story at all. The GPF was only made up so that Kotohime would have some actual authority rather than being the lone crazy person she is in PoDD. Kotohime herself was only introduced because she's the closest thing the games have to a cop character, and I needed one for the "Marisa Gets Arrested" plot. And that was thought up at the last second while writing Bits and Pieces so that Yukari's promise to Cirno that she would deal with Marisa wouldn't be empty words. Funny how a story can go in new directions unexpectedly. Kind of makes me excited to see what other unplanned things will happen.
That being said though, I still really, really hate this chapter. Okay, so maybe that's overstating things a bit, but I'm still not at all fond of it. It's not so much a quality issue (though it is somewhat shorter and much less exciting than the previous updates) or a case of disliking the characters or direction. Rather, I don't think any of the chapters, up to and including ten and thirteen, have given me this much trouble. The Kotohime part was especially difficult, in that it wanted to fight me at every turn. The scene in the gym ended up being scrapped and rewritten entirely, while the conversation with Master Sonozika was one pain in the ass. I guess the main problem was that I realized that there were so many issues in regards to culture, family history, and so on that it was difficult to figure out how those two characters would react to each other. The first draft had Kotohime being much snarkier, but that just didn't feel right. I also had planned to have Kotohime's eccentric cousin make an appearance, but he annoyed me and felt unnecessary, so that whole bit got cut entirely. Plus, there was the whole going over information that the reader already knows, which I've already expressed a dislike for, even if it's necessary story-wise. Factor in random bouts of writer's block and an unfortunate amount of procrastination, and you get me averaging maybe about half-a-page a night. Maybe in a few weeks I'll look back on this chapter more fondly, as I have with chapter ten, but for now I'm just glad to get it done.
Though weirdly enough, I got the Marisa and Yukari bit knocked out in a couple of days. Go figure.
Until next time, everyone!