Author's Notes: It seems like a short chapter, but I didn't want to have it drag on too long with the next segment, which is going to probably be about as long as this chapter was. I'll probably need a day or two to compare to the old story for the next chapter, so don't expect anything too soon.

Disclaimer: Touhou Project is owned by Team Shanghai Alice, whose sole member is ZUN. I only own the story, words, and concept.

I emerged from the forest on the morning of my seventh day in Gensokyo. There was no path away, so I had no choice but to start walking towards the village in the distance. It was fairly spread out, giving the illusion that it was larger than it really was. The trip took the better part of two hours, and the sun was hanging high in the sky by the time I had arrived.

I felt my face grow hot as the townspeople stopped in their activities to stare at me as I walked. I had attempted to smooth down my dress and walk a little more carefully, but it didn't deter the gawkers. I gave up after a few minutes, as my pace had slowed to the point of being uncomfortable; the young men (and in some cases, women) of the village were just going to get a show on that day.

Once in the village proper I had a chance to look around; as I said, it was more spread out than it was large, and there were at least two general stores to be seen, though one was definitely larger than the other. In the center was a plaza of some sort, used as a gathering place for the villagers; a building that looked like it may have been a place of government or something to that effect stood as the focus of the central part of the village.

I was preparing to turn a corner when I was suddenly ambushed; dozens of children had just charged out of a medium-sized building. Had I not recognized them for what they were, I might have attacked them; a tall woman with bluish silver hair, a deep blue dress, and a strange looking steepled hat with a red ribbon on top followed out after them. She started walking towards me with a concerned look on her face; as she drew close, she said, "Are you all right, Miss? I've not seen you before; you are new to the village?"

I nodded. "I'm not from this place; I suppose you could say that I'm a little lost." I then lowered my voice, saying, "Been lost for some time…"

She apparently heard me, however, as she moved to envelope me in a hug. She said, "You poor child; you've been alone for a long time, haven't you?" I couldn't deny it; having lived in the castle all my life, I'd not had a lot of interactions with anybody besides mother and Yumeko. She released me and said, "Come with me, let's see what can be done for you."

She led me into the building, which looked like nothing I'd ever seen before; there was something hanging on the wall with a green surface and words and diagrams drawn on it. At the front was a large wooden desk with several smaller individual desks and tables facing it throughout the room. My curiosity got the better of me and I asked, "What is it you do here?"

She chuckled at the question. "I suppose since you come from outside of the village, you've never seen a school before. I teach the small children up to a certain age, after which they start learning a trade of their choice; it's a system that's kept this village going for centuries, though finding people to teach the children has been difficult… I've been doing this for a few years, myself."

She continued to lead me further back into the building, which changed in appearance to that of a living space; she opened a door in the wall and stepped back, swinging an arm out and saying, "Let's start by getting you some better fitting clothes; take your pick of whatever you'd like from my closet and I'll go start making something for lunch. We're about the same height, so you shouldn't have any difficulties."

She left me alone in the room, giving me space and privacy to change; I was a little reluctant to accept her hospitality at first, considering I didn't even know her name yet, but I figured anyone that the village trusted their children too I could trust as well. I browsed her collection and found a couple of extra copies of the dress she was wearing, as well as a green variety of the same. Finally I managed to find one that was suitable; it was red, short sleeved, and the skirt went down to my ankles. A matching red ribbon tied it at the waist, securing the clothing in place; I removed my hair ribbon as it was almost destroyed and further no longer matched what I was wearing.

Once I was dressed, I retrieved my two dolls and key from my old clothes and wandered out of the room; a scent assaulted my nostrils, though it was not unwelcome. I hadn't experienced a real meal since running away and despite not actually feeling hungry I still desired to eat whatever it was she was cooking. Following my nose brought me into what could only be described as her kitchen; she appeared to be making a kind of a rice and vegetable dish.

She had just finished placing some on the second plate when she turned around and spotted me. She smiled and said, "Ah, I was just coming to get you. Lunch is ready; come, have a seat."

I sat down where she placed one of the plates and she across from me; I was a little restless to be dining with a stranger, so I decided to introduce myself. "Um… my name is Alice…" I paused, remembering something about humans typically having a second name; a surname, given to them as a symbol of who their parents were. This was something I lacked, but my brain was quick to adopt a name that I'm sure I had read somewhere in the past. "Margatoid. Alice Margatroid."

She looked a little surprised by my sudden introduction, but then smiled back and said, "I'm Keine Kamishirasawa; pleased to meet you, Alice." We then dug into our food. It was… palatable, though far from anything I'd had in the past. Perhaps I was spoiled by the more exotic meals that would be served in the castle, or perhaps she just wasn't a very good cook; I was raised to be polite and dignified, though, and wasn't about to say anything against her abilities.

Once we had finished eating, she led me into a small room that had a futon and not much else. She turned to me and said, "This will be your room; it's not much, but it's the best that I have available." I thanked her on her way out and proceeded to collect my thoughts; I had found a kind soul to take me in, but now I had to start thinking about my situation… I didn't want to impose on her for longer than I had to, but didn't have much else I could do at the moment.

I left the schoolhouse and started walking around the village again; either the people didn't recognize me, or they no longer found me interesting since I was fully clothed. I tried to familiarize myself with everything I could find; I entered both the smaller general store, which seemed to have a wide selection of items from fresh fruits and vegetables to new tools, and the larger store which was named Kirisame Second-Hand Store. Within those walls were a variety of tools that appeared to have been broken and then fixed; the proprietor had eyed me warily, but what appeared to be his wife came in and greeted me, accusing him of treating me badly because I appeared to be the same age as someone named Marisa.

I excused myself, not wanting to cause any more problems for them; the sun was starting to set, and I decided to head back for the night. Keine was welcoming, though, and didn't seem to mind my staying; I remember thinking that she must not get many visitors closer to her age. I was weary of sleeping outside, and certainly didn't mind something softer, though it was nothing like the bed I had back home. I shuddered just thinking about it, though, and put it out of my mind so that I could get some kind of decent sleep.

I awoke the next morning feeling much more refreshed than I had in a week. Considering this was the first time I had awoken in a house of some sort that I didn't necessarily belong in, I wasn't sure what it was I should do first; remembering that I still had those old dolls from before, I decided to try my hand at animating them. I wasn't sure if I could still do it since my transformation; I had no idea if my own magic had changed with it. I gleefully found that I still had my old abilities, and wound up entertaining myself, losing track of the time in the process.

Keine walked in at some point without my realizing it and finally cleared her throat to get my attention. I looked up at her, feeling a little embarrassed for having been caught playing like a little school child; she must have seen my reaction, though, as she then said, "That's amazing. Have you always been able to do that?"

I let the connection go and said, "I learned a long time ago; I had almost forgotten that I had brought them with me, to be honest. I know it's not a very productive craft, but it's something I've always enjoyed."

Keine had seemed to be in deep thought after hearing that; she said, "Actually, I think it could be a productive craft… How would you like to help me? You seem to be quite intelligent for your age, so how would you like to be an assistant for me? During breaks you can entertain the children with your puppetry, as well."

It was certainly a generous offer, and it would allow me to help pay her back for letting me stay. I allowed myself to appear to be thinking it over, though I had honestly already decided to go along with it; after a few moments, I agreed and she brought me back out to the schoolroom proper to give me a full tour of it and explain what she was going to want me to do.

The arrangement was quite successful; I both enjoyed helping Keine as well as giving the children something to look forward to at school. Word of me apparently spread to the parents of the village, as one day after class the chief of the village paid us a visit.

We had just dismissed the children when he walked in said, "Greetings to you, Miss Keine; and to you as well, young Miss."

Keine bowed to him; I did the same after a short, confused delay. She replied, "Greetings, Chief; this is my new assistant Alice Margatroid. Her family used to live outside of the village, but due to an accident left her alone as a child; she wandered into town a couple of weeks ago."

He started nodding partway through her explanation; I had wondered if he was going to somehow know I had lied about my origin, but it seems he had nothing to say on that subject. "Yes, and I hear she's been doing an excellent job, if what I've heard from the parents is true. You know that the Spring Festival is coming in a couple of weeks; I've been asked to offer young Alice here the opportunity to provide the children's entertainment this year."

I couldn't believe what I was hearing; I hadn't been in the village but for a short time, and they were already asking something like this from me. To say I was speechless was an understatement. After a few moments of being unable to say anything, I finally managed, "I don't know if I'm capable of that…"

He seemed unperturbed by my reluctance. "If this is about compensation, don't worry, we fully intend to pay you for your efforts."

While it had nothing to do with that, I could not find it within me to refuse. I decided to look at it like a challenge, and I had no intention of backing down from any challenges that faced me. "All right," I said, "I'll do it."

He smiled and bowed. "On behalf of the entire village, I thank you Miss Alice; please meet with me in one week's time in order to go over your setup."

He turned and left the schoolroom; Keine walked over to me and placed a hand on my shoulder. "Congratulations; I'm sure you'll be fine."

My mind was swimming, though, since I only had two dolls; this was a festival, and I needed at least one more to put on a good show. Keine had returned to her desk in order to tidy it up; I turned to her and asked, "Do you know of anywhere I can go to get fabric and other crafting materials?"

Keine looked thoughtful for a moment before she said, "You should try the general store, though they tend to change what they're selling all the time." She frowned after saying that, then half smiled. "Tell you what; find what you can, and anything else you need, I'll see what I can do." She then reached into a drawer and pulled out a small pouch before tossing it to me. "You said you didn't have any money, so use this; don't complain about me giving it to you, you're doing this for the children, right?" I nodded. "Good, then I don't mind."

I thanked her and walked out the door, taking the most direct route I could find. I was surprised to find everything I needed, and then some, and even further surprised to find Keine had given me more than enough to purchase everything. I could barely hold the bags of merchandise, but fortunately made it back without dropping anything.

I spent the next week and a half not only creating a new doll to go along with the other two, but also fashioning some new clothes for myself; the workmanship of both was a little plain, but I was working under limitations that I didn't have back in Makai. The Village Chief was kind to show me where I would be performing that evening as well as give me a chance to try out the stage I was being given; it was much more that I could have asked for.

I spent the rest of the time I had left preparing a set of stories I was going to be able to act out that evening; but truth be told, nothing could prepare me for what was to come that evening…