Gensokyo Tea Time

by permafrost13

After engaging in a deal with a certain youkai, strange things started to happen to the light music club, eventually leading them to explore a never-before-seen world.

2. Disclosures

Chapter 2 : Disclosures

---

The club room was empty, except for the music club's keyboardist and the ancient youkai of boundaries.

Tsumugi was standing by the window, staring outside in deep thought while the gap youkai was seated comfortably on a chair with a cup of tea in her hand. Her mind was still set on how she would explain the truth to the others and how she should prepare for the torrent of possible questions that follows. After some 'classified' negotiations with the hospital management, the guitarist was discharged without the notice of her other friends and pretended that she was going to be transferred to a better hospital to save their friend. She couldn't think of a better excuse but it proved to be the most sensible one since it was not far from the truth. The only thing she couldn't answer in her friends' questions was about the exact whereabouts of Yui. Of course, saying that her friend was currently in a mystical land filled with youkai would make things out of hand. Let alone those who would actually believe her.

The following days were harder as she already anticipated. Ui, being the most affected among them, was frantic about her sister. She kept asking Tsumugi during breaks in school about Yui as she wanted to see her sister as soon as possible. Tsumugi couldn't blame her for worrying so much, not to mention that she witnessed the incident firsthand. She couldn't help to wonder if Ui was doing fine with the absence the only person she hoped that would enter their home with a welcoming hug. Ui, compared to her ditzy older sister, was mature and could probably apprehend things way better than any of them but, could she continue onward for long without the motivation that she constantly received from her beloved sister? The strength that prevented hindrances from slowing her down? Tsumugi didn't want to know the answer as she would likely to stab herself first with a knife or just use a simple decapitating spell instead for quick measure.

But she couldn't blame herself either as it was very clear that Yui would be gone without any actions from her part.

Suspicions and doubts also aroused as time passes. Yui's friends could only receive information on her current condition from Tsumugi, which was quite questionable. They also noticed the change in their keyboardist's usual aura, often silent as if in a state of trance when they were together. Fortunately for Tsumugi, school and their club activities provided to be a great diversion although the latter seemed to have no progress at all since Yui was not around to complete everything.

She was somewhat at lost until Yukari made an unexpected visit in the club room after everyone else went home, bringing with her news about the brunette currently resting in Gensokyo. According to the gap youkai, Yui was already recovering fast. Maybe a week or two for her full recovery. At first, the anxiety that clung her from the day of the accident quickly disappeared but her mood yet again faded when she thought of her dilemma.

Yukari suddenly gave a suggestion to the keyboardist: drop by to Gensokyo, particularly in the so-called eternal mansion to give them a chance to visit Yui. Although the gap youkai willingly offered her help, Tsumugi couldn't help to wonder if it will have a equivalent payment sooner or later. It was clear enough that the keyboardist couldn't wait for another week or more to cope with the pressure she already accumulated from the previous ones. She would do anything to save her friend.

As each passing minute, she thought of every possible thing that might happen today. She was quite nervous but told herself that things would come to normal.

"I assume that you have already reached a conclusion?"

"Yes, thank you for your help. Everything's clear now."

"You did a decent job. Everyone believed that she still lives which is the most important detail to lessen their anxiety, even for a bit," Yukari said as she glanced around her once again. The light, relaxed feeling that she always got when visiting a certain shrine back in Gensokyo was somehow the same in the music room as well, as if embracing everyone who would stay there. "Hm~ I won't get tired of this room anytime soon."

"I'm happy that you like the club room. It's almost like our second home, I think."

"Now that I observed awhile ago, it seems that there are only a handful of students around here now. Did something happen that I'm not aware of?"

"It's only natural. We don't have classes today."

Yukari let out a small cough as she continued. "And you still meet up here? Quite commendable."

"Actually, we don't do anything..."

The two were interrupted as the doors opened. Tsumugi greeted them as she recognized the newcomers. "Good morning, everyone."

"Oh...Mugi-senpai? You're early today," noted Azusa. "Good morning too."

"Mugi, Good Morning," Mio greeted as her eyes landed on the blonde woman. She felt a cold chill on her back as the woman stared back with her golden eyes for a few seconds before resuming on sipping tea.

"W-Who is she, Mugi?" She whispered. "Is she a relative of yours?"

Tsumugi approached the bassist, glancing back to the woman by the table. "Oh, no. She's a friend of mine."

"What's with her outfit?" Ritsu asked as she glanced at the clothes of the gap youkai, visible of elegance and refinement that could only be found to the likes of their keyboardist. "Well, she is a friend of Mugi..."

"Ritsu-senpai, she might hear you!" Azusa whispered with a jab of her elbow to the side of the drummer.

"Now that we're all here, I'll prepare tea first," Tsumugi announced then she approached the cupboard and took a tea set of high value that she brought in the club room. Thankfully, the table was enough to accommodate all of them as they sat together with Yukari.

As the keyboardist prepared tea, Mio couldn't take her eyes off from the refined woman. The mere presence of Yukari made her feel uncomfortable although it was far from any threat. Her chest received a swift jolt when the gap youkai took notice and subsequently smiled at her. In panic, she directed her eyes elsewhere as she tried to calm herself down without attracting the attention of her friends, only to fail when Azusa saw her already losing composure.

"Mio-senpai? What's the matter?" asked a concerned Azusa.

Mio leaned closer to the pigtailed girl beside her. "Do-Don't you feel something...ominous from her? I mean, from Tsumugi's friend?"

"I'm quite nervous too from some reason. Could it be that she is not that friendly compared to Mugi-senpai?"

"Something tells me that she's not just an ordinary person..."

"What do you mean, Mio-chan?"

Mio almost froze on her seat as Tsumugi was already behind her. "Uh...Uhm, nothing at all."

"I see. Here's your tea," Tsumugi said as she gave the tea cup to the bassist who took it with slightly trembling hands.

"A-Ah, thank you."

"Don't be afraid of her, Mio-chan. She's just like that."

As the keyboardist was done in distributing the tea cups, she sat down beside the gap youkai and breathe in deeply as to make herself calm.

"Huh? Did I miss one small detail about what we're going to do today?" Ritsu asked, confused on the air of urgency building up inside the room.

"It's about Yui-chan."

Azusa's eyes were immediately filled with excitement as she finally heard something she was waiting for. "Yui-senpai? R-Really? What is she doing now?"

"Well, that's some good news, isn't it?"

"She's doing well now. It's all thanks to Yakumo-san's assistance," Tsumugi said as she looked at the gap youkai who was enjoying herself with tea.

Yukari spoke as she gestured her hand to the keyboardist, "Pardon me if I haven't introduced myself earlier. My name is Yakumo Yukari. It's a pleasure meeting all of you."

"U-Uhm...uh, nice to meet you too, Y-Yakumo-san," Mio stuttered as nervousness started to bite her again.

"Huh? Why do you need to bring her here, Mugi?" asked Ritsu.

"I guess I should tell what really happened that night then?" said Tsumugi as she looked back at the gap youkai. Yukari nodded in accord as she sipped her own tea in content. "I was the one who planned the sudden disappearance of Yui that night."

"Disappearance? You mean transferred? The doctor said that to us," recalled Mio.

"But that was it. We didn't even know that she was transferred!" added Ritsu. "We were inside the same hospital when that happened!"

Tsumugi inhaled deeply again before she spoke in a soft tone, "T-To tell you the truth...I made the doctor to cooperate with us."

"W-What do you mean 'cooperating'? Don't you mean..."

"Yes. The doctor was an addition to convince you that Yui must be transferred to another hospital elsewhere while Yakumo-san did her part and brought Yui to someone that is capable to mend her," Tsumugi explained. "In fact, Yui is not here in our world anymore, more like in another place or dimension that cannot be accessed by any known conventional means."

The absurd claim of the keyboardist was enough to silence the whole room. Azusa and Mio traded confused looks as Ritsu felt like she was just punched straight on her face, draining her sense of reality in the process.

"Another...dimension?" Mio's face was quickly replaced with confusion. "I'm not sure if I could really follow."

"Mugi-senpai? Is there really someone in that place that could help Yui-senpai.?" asked Azusa, lost in the claim of her blonde senior.

"I don't get much of it but," said Ritsu crossly, "Are you deciding things for her as if she was a close relative of yours? You should have asked everyone, especially Ui, before doing that!"

Azusa placed a hand on Ritsu's shoulder. "R-Ritsu-senpai...that's not going to help."

"Also, what do you mean by this another dimension crap? Do you think anyone sane enough would believe that?"

"Ritsu-senpai..."

This time, Tsumugi replied in a cold voice. "If I 'm not mistaken, aren't we a family from the very start?"

The words of the blonde keyboardist struck Ritsu hard.

Tsumugi was right. Ever since they revived the light music club from being demolish due to the damned minimum requirement of members. To think of it from the very beginning, saving the club wasn't possible without their ditzy, food-loving friend coming herself to join the club despite the unfortunate fact that she didn't know any instrument beside castanets and the sweets they fed to Yui contributed to her decision, even in a small fraction. At first, they were just that desperate because of the given deadline and they were only one member short for being an official club. Also, there was this fact that there might be other better candidates besides her but instead kept Yui or their efforts forming the club would entirely go to waste. They were, more or less, happy that at least one more soul in their school got interested in the club.

Still, they didn't give up on Yui, teaching her the fundamental basics of music and playing the guitar with the occasional complains about practicing too hard or without having her daily dose of tea and snacks; sometimes, even helping her in academics too. One could depict her as a good-for-nothing freeloader but she was really a hard-working person and a faithful companion. The After School Tea Time wouldn't be the same without her and that was a fact they could never erase or disregard. Even other students knew that their bond were quite remarkable which made it hard for a new applicant to join in the club.

Ritsu lowered her head as she was not yet convinced. "Well...that doesn't explain everything!"

"You heard the doctor, right? About her chances of survival?"

"What about that?"

"She could have died there if I didn't do anything. Maybe I should say we didn't do anything. I simply entrusted her to someone capable of helping her. What I did is for her sake. I clearly knew that explaining the process would be difficult to explain and you might disagree with it. The lack of time reached to the extent that I didn't have the chance for everyone's consent which could only take more time. Please reconsider this."

Knowing that the others were listening intently, she spoke again.

"Why not visiting her now?" The question made her smile. Her friends perked up and gave her a mix of curious and eager look as if they were waiting for it since the very start.

Mio gazed straight to the eyes of the club's keyboardist. "You mean...now?"

Tsumugi gave her a nod. "Yes, although I heard it might take a few more weeks for her full recovery."

"Where is she exactly resting now?" Mio asked. "Honestly, what you said earlier is hard to comprehend."

This time, the youkai of boundaries answered as she finished her cup of tea, placing it on top of its respective saucer with a clink . "She's currrently in Eientei, a mansion deep inside a bamboo thicket. To be precise, Hirasawa-san is now in Gensokyo."

"G-Gensokyo? I'm sure it's my first time hearing that place."

Ritsu was getting more confused as she tried to process that information in her head. "Is this some kind of a freaking mind game? No offense, but I find this dimension crap unbelievable."

Yukari dismissed the drummer's claim with a wave of her hand, her expression remained unchanged. "I'm afraid not. I only have a question to ask of you though: Do you want to see your friend or not?"

Ritsu was mildly fazed at the response of the gap youkai. "O-Of course, you don't have to ask..."

"Hm, very well..."

With a snap of her fingers, a large gap opened up in front of the room's blackboard. Everyone except the keyboardist opened their eyes widely in astonishment with a bit of fear.

"W-What is that?" Mio nervously asked as she tried to control her voice. "It looks like some sort of portal."

"I forgot to tell you that Yakumo-san can manipulate boundaries. Thus, she could use her dimensional gaps to transfer things almost anywhere." explained Tsumugi. "It's a very unique ability, don't you think?"

No one responded as the others tried to absorb what they saw just now. Yukari was slightly amused in their reaction. Probably any outsider would be taken aback in such a simple act by the gap youkai.

"I guess that it's not a secret anymore for being a youkai. Not that I intend to hide it but there you have it," said Yukari with a shrug of her shoulders.

"Are you telling us that you're a youkai? Youkai don't even exist!" Ritsu exclaimed as if she just heard the impossible. "This is insane!"

"If they don't exist, then, can you please explain what I did just now?"

An awkward silence filled the room, only to be broken once again by Yukari.

"I'm not here to prove youkai's existence. It's up to you if you would believe or not. It's all the same in the end anyway."

"I guess that's probable...for now," said Ritsu in a low voice.

"So, that hole is actually a portal to the dimension you're referring to?" Azusa asked as she regained her calm. "

"Precisely. That's why I'm here in the first place."

Another person opened the club room's door. From her face alone, they could tell that she spent a lot of sleepless nights. Exhaustion and anxiety emanated from her as if those shackled her for a long time. Tsumugi welcomed her with a sincere smile.

"Did...I make it in time?"

"Yes. We're waiting for you."

"Ui? What are you doing here?" asked Ritsu. "More importantly, are you alright? You looked like you run in a damn marathon or something!"

"I ran all the way here when Tsumugi-senpai called me awhile back." Ui said in between her shallow breaths. "I have to finish the chores and..."

"R-Relax first, Ui. Have a sit," Mio said as she invited Ui to sit to the last empty chair while Azusa quickly stood up and fetched a glass of water for her senpai's sister.

"Tsumugi-senpai...Is it true? We're going to visit my sister?"

Tsumugi confirmed the question with a single nod. "Yes. I'm glad you made it."

Ui's face suddenly brightened with renewed spirit as she was finally given the chance to visit her sister. She hugged the keyboardist warmly as tears rolled down her cheeks in unparalleled happiness.

"T-Thank you, Mugi-senpai. I'm really looking forward for this day..."

"Don't cry now. Yui-chan won't be happy seeing you like that..."

"Here," Azusa handed over the glass of water. "I'm excited to see Yui-senpai too. It seemed like months already passed..."

"Also, Nodoka-senpai can't go with us today," Ui continued, "but she made these for onee-chan." She lifted up a basket containing said snacks.

"While we're at it, how about we tell Sawa-chan too?" Ritsu suggested, crossing her arms. "She needs to know this too."

Tsumugi gave the drummer a small frown. "I've already checked the faculty room earlier, but she's not there. I also sent a text message, but it seems she's quite busy at the moment."

"Eh? Is her work really that important than her students? I hope that we're not just her dress up dolls."

"Of course she does care for us. She might be working on something else." Tsumugi clasped her hands as happiness invaded her once more. "Let's go visit our friend, shall we?"

---

So far, her stay in Eientei wasn't dull despite of nearly experiencing death itself. It had been a week since she was sent to the care of Yagokoro Eirin by the gap youkai herself. It appeared like a month already passed with all of the inexplicable inputs she had received, starting from the day she met Yakumo Yukari. Thankfully, half of the bandages on her body were already removed, thanks to the powerful medicines and special treatment of the Lunarian pharmacist. There were still sharp pains here and there. Her legs mostly received the most punishment from the accident which required more time.

The healing process was unbelievably fast which could easily discourage the outside world's top-notch doctors and technology, as expected for the woman who made the Hourai Elixir. In the process, Eirin had to sacrifice some of her complicated medicines only to be used during emergencies and the like, not to mention that the ingredients of those drugs were very rare. She didn't feel any regret to use them for an outsider. Yukari wanted the girl to live and she did what was told.

Yui was frequently visited by her new friend. A small girl with bunny ears named Inaba Tewi. The youkai rabbit was well-known to bear good fortune when found. Of course, finding her to have a fraction of her luck won't be that easy since she spent most of her time in the bamboo forest surrounding the mansion. Tewi was an earth rabbit but she also lived in the mansion and sometimes helped in the chores and other errands to be done with the other youkai rabbits.

Tewi seemed to be interested on their new patient who was an outsider and a friendly one too. Although, explaining some the basic stuff in Gensokyo to an outsider would be difficult. It couldn't be helped anyway; things in their place worked way too different.

She also learned a few stuff about those strange people she met so far. Yukari was responsible of maintaining the barrier separating Gensokyo to the other. She wondered how would that be possible but she didn't need to bother herself finding a logical explanation about it. After all, she already witnessed the nifty ability of the youkai who could travel almost anywhere and anytime. Ran Yakumo, a fox youkai and Yukari's shikigami visited her and delivered the guitar without any scratches. She was still baffled by the fact that her guitar was safe. Then again, maybe Yukari fixed it for her. All that matters was she could continue playing with her beloved instrument.

Yui also met Reisen Udongein Inaba who assists Eirin in her work. She was the only moon rabbit living in the mansion and an apprentice of Eirin. She also helped the pharmacist in their daily work although sometimes complain about her enormous workload from dawn till dusk but she diligently follows her master's orders. She only wished now that her other rabbit companions would cooperate a bit with her, especially Tewi.

All in all, they were a very weird bunch but unexpectedly kind to others, despite of being youkai themselves.

Outside, some of the youkai rabbits were happily playing with a beach ball, reminding Yui of the upcoming season. She felt that the meal that she had just now was enough to fill her in for about three days or probably more, as if the food had some kind of drug mixed in as well. Truth to be told, she was greatly enjoying the food in the mansion. Most of the time, Reisen was the one making their meals in the mansion, sometimes with the assistance of Tewi or the other rabbits. Eirin would also whip up something new when the opportunity allows her. Tewi once said to her that it won't hurt to check the food twice for any signs of conspiracy if the Brain of the Moon made it herself.

"What are you thinking?" Tewi asked as she tried to read the thoughts of the guitarist with a skeptical look. "Are the rabbits bothering you?"

Yui gently shook her head. "Not really. I just thought that I left a lot of things outside and I need to catch up as soon as I heal."

"Really? You sure have a lot of things to do, huh?"

"Not entirely busy though. We still have time to sit back and drink tea."

Despite of the comforts provided, she wanted to go back to the outside world already. Given her better condition than before, she could be discharged out of Eientei since yesterday. She already missed the Light Music Club and Ui. She already missed going to school and other places they usually hang out together. She already missed having tea time and practicing afterschool. Lastly, she already missed a lot of lessons and other school activities and their exams were just around the corner now.

The last part made her cringe as sweat started to appear on her face. She shook her head and told herself that everything would be fine if Mio would willingly teach her.

"Uhm...are you okay?"

Yui waved her hands as she spoke anxiously. "I...I just remembered something important, that's all."

"How about visit us sometimes if you're free or you just plain like it? Obviously, that applies after you're healed."

"I would. Yukari-chan did gave us this weird portal to here."

Suddenly, Tewi had the urge to slap her face. "Isn't that a bit dangerous?"

"Huh? What do you mean?"

"Humans will end up as youkai food easily unless they have something to defend themselves. There are rumors that Yukari would sometimes put outsiders here in Gensokyo for fun. It would be also dangerous the other side around. If some random youkai could find that gap, it might get in your world and eat every human in its sight! Then the poor guy would blow up due to overeating!"

The guitarist opened her mouth in realization. "That would be a problem then?"

"Of course, haven't you given thought of that?"

"Yakumo-san seemed to be okay with that though."

The door slid open and revealed the Brain of the Moon herself, carrying bottles that seemed to contain medicine.

"Oh, master. What are you doing here?" Tewi asked in her usual bright face.

Eirin rose an eyebrow. "What kind of question is that? I'm here to check my patient."

"Yes, yes...you don't need to look at me like that..."

The Lunarian examined her patient with a quick glance before smiling. "Anyways. I'd like you to try my new, special medicine I was working on for almost a month..."

"Huh? A new, special medicine? Is that effective?"

"Of course! Eirin's medicines are always effective!" Tewi replied. "Some cases are to be considered also like mutations and other stuff like..."

Eirin continued as if she heard nothing from the youkai rabbit. "Drinking this would greatly boost your body's regenerative ability temporarily, comparable to youkai and other similar creatures." She stared at the bottle's contents closely with a wide grin. "Although, this won't be particularly the one mending your wounds or broken bones and you'll still have to wait until the medicine takes effect and do its job."

"That type of medicine is kinda different from the previous ones. Why do you make them just now?" asked Tewi.

"Well, I'm sure you're aware that most of our customers are from the human village. Making medicines for humans seemed to be the better choice since youkai doesn't need to worry much about their health, given their constitution."

"That's true."

"Is that sweet?" Yui asked as the lunarian raised an eyebrow. She had tasted a couple of medicines for her injuries. She could only remember the medicine, according to the pharmacist, that helps to quickly mend broken bones and tissues which she must take three times a day. As expected for most drugs, she didn't like them. If the medicines were sweet, customers wouldn't have to worry about its taste. In fact, they might find taking medicines enjoyable too.

Tewi shook her head in response as she waved a finger to the brunette. "No, no, Yui. The better question should be: Is that safe, doctor?"

"Well...it's still lacking in the taste department but I added some sweet berries to counteract the bitterness," the lunarian replied in a soft tone. She considered the taste of her medicines once but no one actually complained about it. Maybe her customers thought that medicines were supposed to taste bitter? Or maybe the best medicines were believed to be always bitter?

"Think twice before you drink that shady concoction, Yui!"

After a split-second glare to the youkai rabbit, Eirin said with a tone of confidence, "I assure you that the medicine is safe. Don't mind the rabbit beside you."

Yui looked at the mixture of purple for some seconds before drinking the contents. She couldn't describe what kind of ingredients Eirin added. She didn't like medicines, especially bitter ones but there was no room for being picky in her current state. Now that she thought more about the Lunarian's medicines, they would be considered as a miracle drug or something close to that to the outside world.

After the last swig of the medicine, her face went blank and the other two attentively waited for any reaction from her. "It's plain...but has this slight bitter aftertaste..."

"Hm...I see. Feeling anything different now?" asked Eirin expectantly.

"You should add something sweet in it!"

"E-Eh? What do you mean by that?"

"Like adding sugar and other sugary things in the medicine? That's a good idea!" Tewi said with newfound enthusiasm. "It will raise sales too!"

"To be frank, you're my very first patient who questioned the taste of my medicines. You really are something special..."

Maybe the first who's bold enough to question the taste of your medicine, Tewi thought as she quietly hid her laughter. Imagine that? Hirasawa-san, you're officially good at these!

"Wait," said Yui with a curious stare to the lunarian. "This one is already tested, right?"

"Nope, you're the very first who tested that. For the record, the first human who volunteered to test my new medicine."

She gulped in her sudden tension, hearing those words with a grin from Eirin. "A-Ah...that would be an honor then..."

"You'll feel the effect eventually. I guarantee that most of my medicines have no harmful side-effects."

"Most? Do you mean there are some which are actually harmful?"

Tewi answered with a nod. "She sometimes experiment with things and..."

Eirin coughed once before she continued as Tewi puffed her cheeks in the sudden interruption. "Those aside, it would still take you for almost a week to fully recover with the aid of that medicine. As you know, those injuries that you incurred usually take more than a year or more. There are even times that a person can no longer walk in cases like yours. I'm not scaring you in that but you should be more cautious in things around you, or I'll be seeing you walking towards the Sanzu River someday in the future. Accidents, true, they are somehow unavoidable but it wouldn't hurt to be prepared."

"R-Really? A-Ah...that's fast. Thank you. I will keep that in mind."

Eirin smiled once again. "I'm just doing my job. No need for thanking me."

Tewi suggested, "Ah...so what do we do now? Hey, about play your shiny instrument!"

The youkai rabbit was right. Her guitar became shinier than before as if giving off a faint aura. Did something happen to it while she was unconscious in the past few days? She stroked the guitar's neck with the familiar feeling that she knew for a long time. She embarrassedly looked back at the youkai rabbit.

"'ll try to remember the songs first..."

"No rush. Maybe that accident messed your head that much, huh?"

"Maybe..."

There was a sudden chill before a familiar gap opened up in the far end of the room.

"Ah, it's about time she visits you, Hirasawa-san," said Eirin as if she was already expected what would come to them.

"Good morning, Yagokoro Eirin," Yukari greeted as she emerged from the gap. "Perhaps this would be a pleasant day for a visit, isn't it?"

"I wish you could use the mansion's front door once when you visit," said Eirin. "Aside from that, good morning as well. It's almost noon though."

"I'm sure you don't mind bringing other people here." The gap youkai stepped aside away from the tear in space behind her. "It's not like you have other choices now..."

"Go on. As you can see. I'm not stopping anyone."

"Very well then."

"A-Azu-nyan?" uttered the brunette as she saw the pigtailed girl stepping out of the gap.

"Y-Yui-senpai? Is that you?" asked Azusa, her heart pounded faster as she recognize her senior's voice. "I-It's really you!"

On impulse, Yui attempted to lunge out of her bed to give Azusa's usual dose of hugs but stopped midway as almost all points of her body protested with a surge of pain, reminding her of the fractures she got. Eirin winced a little but not entirely concerned whether the girl broke or dislocated something.

"Oi, are you an idiot? You're still messed up!" Tewi angrily scolded, pulling Yui back against a pillow with more force than necessary.

Azusa quickly rushed to the side of the bed, her face showing genuine concern as she looked at Yui. "Y-Yui-senpai, don't do that again, okay?"

"Geez, if you act like that, you'll be spending an additional week here!" added the youkai rabbit as she crossed her arms. "Help yourself or you'll end up staying here forever."

Not too long after Azusa, Ui and the others followed. "Onee-chan? Y-You're...you're..."

Without second doubts, Ui rushed to her sister to give her a tight hug as if Yui was gone for a whole year or more, tears overflowing on her eyes. She felt that the gods finally answered her prayers. "O-Onee-chan, I...I can't believe this...!".

"U-Ui...I'm glad to see you...!"

"...I'm so worried." Ui sniffled as she embraced her sister, taking away all of her worry. "It has been so long, I...I thought that you're..."

Yui gently wiped the tears of her younger sister as she smiled heartwarmingly. "Don't say that. I won't leave anyone, I promise."

Mio, on the other hand, was very relieved and about to shed a tear. "Thank goodness."

"I guess everything's fine in the end after all," Ritsu whispered to herself. "What am I thinking?"

"Where's Nodoka-chan?"

"She couldn't come for today," Ui said in a disappointed tone. "But she promised that she will be with us next time."

"I smell nice. What's that?" Yui asked as she pointed at the basket.

"Nodoka-senpai made snacks for you. See?"

"Yay! Thank you, Nodoka-chan!"

From the back, Yukari couldn't help to smile to herself at the scene. She was not the type who would help someone on a whim but she felt like accomplishing more than she expected. The sweets of Tsumugi was the main contributor for her enthusiasm though.

"...Is she allowed to go back home now?" asked Ui expectantly.

"As much as you girls wanted her back home, she still needs to stay here for another week or two under my observation. We can never tell what might possibly happen next in the next few days," Eirin informed.

"Yeah, just like what she did earlier," added Tewi. "It's quite a pain watching over this girl."

Ui stared at the lunarian for some seconds before she spoke again, "Are you the one who healed my sister?"

"You should thank Yukari for the convincing part. I only did what I know best," said Eirin bluntly. "Also, it would be a hassle for Yukari to fetch Hirasawa-san if some problems in the future arises. You can leave the caretaking to us, especially Tewi here. I can assure you that."

Ui's enthusiasm fell down as she somehow felt that Yui would finally return to their house. "I see..."

"Well? How about it, Ui? We could wait for another week, right~?" said Yui, still with her customary smile.

"I think it would be best for Yui-senpai to stay here," said the pigtailed girl. "Once she's completely fine, we don't have to worry anymore..."

"Y-Yes. I understand." Ui turned to Eirin and bowed gratefully to the lunarian. "Thank you for helping my sister..."

Ritsu shrugged as she let out a noticeable sigh. "A-Ah well...sorry about that Mugi. I guess I got carried away there."

Tsumugi smiled in response without any form of contempt. "I'm sorry too. You have the rights to be angry after what happened..."

Tewi was rather amazed and confused at the same time in the surprise visit. For the record, that was one of a few times she saw patients being visited by more than just one individual. "You sure brought a lot of people here, Yukari."

Yukari smirked as she made another gap for her to sit on.

"Now that I looked around here, what is this place exactly? Some kind of a convention or something?" asked Ritsu as she glanced around. The whole of the room was simply decorated yet it will provide the comforts of your home. Furniture were mostly made of wood and appeared to be older than it looks. The traditional style made them feel like they went a couple of decades back. From outside the window, they could see the surrounding greenery, particularly bamboo along with the mist floating about even it was already noon. Even so, they couldn't help to be comfortable in such a bland place.

"Convention? What's that?" Tewi asked as she tilted her head to the side. "It's something good, right?"

"I mean, why are you wearing that?" Ritsu pointed at Tewi's fluffy rabbit ears. "Are you a cosplayer or anything like that?"

"For you to know, these ears are genuinely real! I'm not 'wearing' it! Isn't these already obvious?"

"Heh. Don't play dumb on me," Ritsu said as she stepped closer to Tewi, her hands twitching in curiousity. "Lemme get a closer look on your ears then?"

"W-What are you trying to do? Stay back or you'll spend the rest of your life in bad luck! More rotten and disgusting that you could ever imagine!"

"Oh...her name is Inaba Tewi, the representative of the youkai rabbits living around here," said Yui, introducing her newest friend. "Isn't she cute?"

"A-A youkai rabbit? It's hard to find the likes of you outside of Gensokyo," Tsumugi said with a shaky voice, apparently excited in the revelation.

"Are you telling us that this girl is a youkai?" Ritsu asked. "Don't be ridiculous! There's no such thing like..."

Tewi cut her off as she folded her arms, unimpressed. "Yes. I'm a youkai rabbit. Problem?"

"I don't even...I will not buy that nonsense!"

A swift realization went in Tewi's mind, reaching to a conclusion. "What with that reaction anyway? Are we already extinct outside?"

Tsumugi recalled her encounters with different youkai in the past. "I couldn't say that. This is my first time seeing a humanoid youkai rabbit. Maybe a few of those ordinary ones could be a youkai in disguise. I'm not sure."

"I dunno what to respond to that. There are tons of us here if you might ask."

"Oh, really? Can I take one home?" The keyboardist asked.

"Absolutely not," said Tewi as a glint flickered on her eyes. "You have to pay for them."

"Ah, that's not a problem then." Tsumugi's smile went wider. "How much do they cost?"

Tewi was somewhat stunned in the keyboardist's response. "H-Hey, I'm just kidding."

Another voice echoed clearly as if it was almost heard in the whole mansion, grabbing everyone's attention. "Reisen? Tewi? Where is everyone?"

The faint footsteps in the hallway became audible as it went nearer and stopped as the person already reached the door. "Eirin, Eirin! Are you there?"

"Yes. Come in."

The door slid open and a girl with long black hair greeted as she rubbed her eyes. "Ah, good morning everyone."

"Kaguya, it's already afternoon," reminded Eirin with another sigh.

"R-Really?"

Kaguya gasped as she stared at them, her eyes widened in shock. She was not expecting to see a lot of people gathered in the patient's room. Her face turned crimson, realizing she hasn't changed her night clothes. "Uhm. I see that you got your hands full Eirin. E-Excuse me."

The black-haired girl, still wearing her sleeping garments, quickly slid the door close as everybody exchanged looks. It seemed like it was nothing important to begin with.

I never saw her before. Who is she? thought Yui as she tried to recall the names Tewi mentioned ealier. Oh, I remember now! She's the princess of this mansion!

It looked like the manor's princess was a bit laid-back as well. Maybe it was just an impression Yui got.

"That settles it then?" whispered Yukari, hovering near the keyboardist with a brighter expression than earlier. "Well, about the sweets..."

"Ah, yes. As soon as we go back," replied Tsumugi.

"I guess this is goodbye for now? I'm afraid this would be our only visit until she regained her normal condition," the gap youkai reminded.

"That means you won't give us another trip here?" asked Ritsu.

Yukari paused for some seconds, her fan covering half of her face. "If I feel like it."

"As expected from you, Yukari," remarked Eirin. "Let's have tea before you go back. I presume this would be the last time I'll be seeing you girls."

"Do you despise me or you just simply don't want my presence here?" asked Yukari.

"I'm referring to the girls, Yakumo Yukari."

"I figured that, Yagokoro Eirin. That was just a mere test."

Ritsu pondered the offer for a moment. "I guess it won't hurt, right?"

"Ritsu! We just had tea!" Mio protested as they were about to take another round of tea.

"Just like our usual days. Besides, it's tea from youkai this time."

"Very well. Tewi, could you please?" requested Eirin as she pleadingly patted the head of the rabbit girl. "Tea won't prepare themselves for us."

"...Ugh, If only Reisen was here."

---

The rest of the afternoon was unexpectedly hot with few fluffy clouds floating in the sky. After they parted with the others, Yukari and Tsumugi were now heading to the bakery where she would get the food she needed for the bargain. The eyes of people around followed them, particularly on the gap youkai herself as the two walked through the sidewalk. Of course, wearing something very eye-catching in public would really give off that impression. Yukari would leisurely fan herself as of custom and sometimes twirling her parasol in her other hand. She didn't seem to mind the others looking at them with wonder. Perhaps it was pretty much similar every time that she will use her gaps to go somewhere.

Tsumugi definitely felt lighter, especially after seeing Ui humming to herself happily as she went back home. After Yui's recovery, they finally resume their lives and to play together as a band once again as if nothing happened tragic.

"Today's pleasantly clear. Is it because summer's near?" The blonde keyboardist muttered as she stared at the sky, protecting her eyes with her hand from the sunlight.

"It's a good thing that I always have my parasol with me so that the sun won't harm my skin."

"That's surprisingly odd coming from a youkai like you. But, I'm quite certain that your parasol has more uses other than that."

Tsumugi walked in front of the gap youkai and stare at her clothes curiously. "Yakumo-san, you really like wearing those kind of clothes. Everyone's staring at you."

"Well, something wrong with that? They should mind their own matters. I don't think that this place has any sort of dress code."

"That is true, but you might end up attracting bad people with those extravagant clothes."

She let out a small chuckle as she dismissed the claim of the keyboardist with a gesture of her fan.

It didn't take them much time to reach the bakery and without second thoughts, they immediately went inside as the heat would totally give them a headache. The bakery was a personal favorite of Tsumugi. She was also well-acquainted to the owner of the place who would sometimes treat her when she was just dropping by.

The interior was painted dark red and black with chandeliers hanging on the walls, illuminating the place with a faint glow as if it was already nighttime. White thick curtains covered every window to prevent sunlight's entry. Chairs and tables of lavish detail and quality were neatly arranged. Ornamental plants and flowers also filled the place as a complement. The western ambiance was very comfortable, making their customers to come back as often as possible. It appeared that the bakery turned out to be a café just from the setting inside. The waitresses were scattered around the place, taking orders from their customers and bringing in trays of delectable tea and dessert.

"My, it is sure fancy here. Oh, it's a bit dark too. I get this sudden feeling that a vampire is living here," said Yukari as she looked around while Tsumugi just giggled in the gap youkai's comment.

"Vampires?" asked Tsumugi as she was reminded of another creature she was hoping to meet. "Are there vampires living in Gensokyo?"

"Hmm. Yes, although they're originally outsiders. I advise to bring with you more patience and will to survive when you happen to meet them."

"Is that from your own experience?"

"Feel free to guess but they're not as bad as you might think."

"Ah...Kotobuki-san. Welcome," greeted a man in his late forties lively as his eyes landed on the two, more especially to the eccentric woman wearing an eccentric dress he never saw before. "...I see that you have company. Are you here for your order?"

"Good afternoon," the blonde keyboardist began. "Yes, I could have them delivered to our place but I think she would like to see your place personally." She gestured to the gap youkai beside her, who in turn slightly bowed as courtesy.

"Is that so? Please, have a sit while you wait for the food to be arranged." The man pointed at an unoccupied table near them. The two sat across each other and talked as they waited for the packaging to be finished. After a minute, the same man approached them with two steaming cups of tea on a tray.

"Uhm...I didn't order tea," said Tsumugi, quite embarrassed in the offer. Actually, we already had tea a couple of times today...

The man slowly shook his head in response as he placed the teacups in front of them. "Don't worry...it's a pleasure of mine to serve you."

Yukari didn't seem to mind the number of cups of tea she had since morning as she smiled a thankful smile to the man in suit. "My, thank you."

"You're welcome, madam. It's good to see one of Kotobuki-san's friends. Excuse me for a moment." The man left as he went to accompany other newcomers, leading them to empty tables and latter to be served with a delectable sweets and tea.

"He always works this hard, especially at this hour..."

"I'm certain you claim that this establishment is for making pastries and cakes. It somewhat looks like a café," Yukari inquired as she held her teacup and took a sip of its contents. "My, this tea is good."

"Actually, both. But this place is more of a café, really."

"Is that so? A very convenient place then. Now that I remembered, you and your friends sure enjoy having tea time every day."

"Ahm? How can you tell? Are you spying on us for that long?"

"Not really. You have that cupboard for those expensive tea sets on that room, yes?"

"The sweets that we eat in the club room are usually given by our family's friends. Now that we have tea time on a daily basis, I started to buy more from time to time as well, mostly coming from here."

"Your family is quite important then. If you offered me that many sweets in the first place, so I can safely assume that you are more prosperous than I imagined. Plus, you act refined to be just a random commoner around these parts, or maybe it's just me."

"There's nothing really special about that."

"If your family possess much wealth, why not live like one? From what I see, you seem to live...in a very normal way. We could be riding in a vehicle of yours instead of walking."

"I just want to live my life as everyone does. The simpler, the better. Besides, this place isn't that far from our school."

"Not even a personal assistant? Or someone that will offer you protection?" asked Yukari. "Even I have someone to act as my extra hand."

Tsumugi simply replied, "I told my father to not worry about my personal security but I know that someone always follows me the moment I step out of our house to school or anywhere else that I go. Well, we do have some people that works for us at home but I only ask for their help if I really needed assistance."

"Since you're the master, why not talk to the person following you?"

"They're following my father's orders, not mine. Still, I'm quite thankful that he allowed me to go out the house more often than before."

Somehow, Yukari was taken aback from Tsumugi's answers. She knew well that a person with the same caliber as the blonde keyboardist would always utilize and cling to material wealth and power since birthright, at least on what she know to most outsiders. Similar to Yukari's case; she might wear flashy clothes and brings with her the air of royalty but she was more inclined to live a simple life.

"Maybe you should tell me where your house is, so that I could visit you sometimes. I can't just pop out in the music room everytime, yes?"

Her back stiffened as if she heard something absurd just now. In a stuttering manner, Tsumugi replied, "A-Ah...you can't...see, my house always caters events and other things...in other words, the place is always busy so..."

Nothing was said afterwards. The keyboardist tried to avoid eye contact with the gap youkai, glancing to her side before lowering her head in contempt for what she just said. Yukari didn't need to know further that she mistakenly hit something uncomfortable for Tsumugi. After a few seconds of consideration, she decided not to cross the line this time, for the sake of the girl in front of her.

"I see. I won't force you if you don't want to..."

To the gap youkai's surprise, Tsumugi managed to response, "Besides, you can't go inside even if you didn't ask my permission. You might hurt yourself in trying."

Is that so? You have intrigued me again...

"Oh, Why not?" Yukari asked as if it didn't reach the desired answer. She was expecting that the blonde girl would meekly avoid the question but it was exactly the opposite.

"The whole house is purified and heavily protected against most youkai, especially of your kind. Also, unlike me, most of the people inside are not fond of youkai and will exterminate one on sight."

"Well, why am I not surprised with that? Are you from a line of youkai exterminators?"

"Not exactly. W-We should talk about the sweets instead..."

Dropping the matter too soon? Yukari smiled as she closed her eyes. I'll remember that.

After she has gotten herself comfortable, Tsumugi spoke again, "Well, about our deal, I can't possibly give the whole of those sweets to you for today."

"Ah, you're right. Why didn't I think of that? It will all just go to waste."

"I also considered some other alternatives. Unless you have the power to prevent food spoilage or you would diligently come here on a daily basis to retrieve them, I would rather give you the sweets twice a week instead. It's not that you're in a hurry in finishing all of it in one sitting."

Yukari laughed quietly with a fan on her mouth. "Yes. That would be the optimal choice. Maybe I would ask someone to fetch the food for me instead. Also, I need to ask one last thing..."

"Yes?"

The mistress of boundaries seemed curious to ask this particular question. She was quite reluctant at first for bringing it up to the person who was bringing those high-class sweets but her interest didn't waver up until that moment. She had to ask anyway. To think of it, Tsumugi could also use those previous snack-looting of Yukari against her if anything goes wrong. "Are you still upset about me sneaking some sweets for myself? Your friend seemed to be infuriated in those days."

"Like I said, I already knew you were around from the beginning. Although I'm not quite sure what kind of person was behind all that. More or less, curiosity got me and played along after that. I haven't seen a youkai like you for a long time."

Yukari allowed herself to open up a smile once again. "What is this? Am I a rare species of youkai now?"

"It's rare to see a youkai these days. I'm always intrigued to go and know more about them. You are very different from the ones I met before. Your ability is fearsome to the point that you could easily surpass anyone."

"For your case, you have the power of clairvoyance, if I'm not mistaken. Can you tell me if there are youkai currently inside this fine establishment?"

"Clairvoyance? N-Not really. The reason why I easily recognized your presence because you carry a different aura from the other youkai. I guess everybody else would feel the same, even Yui." Tsumugi closed her eyes in deep focus as she tried to detect any unusual beings around them. Yukari looked at the girl patiently as she sipped tea again.

Some more seconds later, Tsumugi slowly opened her eyes as if she just woke up from a quick nap. "Four...excluding you. I'm not quite accurate and there might be someone else that I missed."

"Interesting. You should develop that ability. It will prove to be useful."

"But it seems that the other two followed us all the way here. I can't pinpoint exactly where they are now but they're around here somewhere."

"Two of them, you say? I wonder..."

The man in suit returned after serving the order of a nearby table. "I assume that they're done by now."

"That was faster than I've expected," remarked Yukari.

"We already prepared most of it before your arrival. Where are we going to deliver those, Kotobuki-san?"

"Ah. I know just the place."

"You do?" Tsumugi asked with a hint of curiosity. She clearly knew that Yukari only lived in Gensokyo, unless she had a vacation house somewhere.

"Please deliver them to a shrine priestess named Hakurei Reimu living not far from here."

The man blinked as he asked the gap youkai. "Particularly?"

"Hakurei Shrine."

"I don't remember a 'Hakurei Shrine' around this parts. Have you mistaken madam?"

Yukari placed her cup on the saucer as another smile formed on her face. "If the preparations are done, I'll show you a shortcut to the shrine. But before that, excuse me for a moment."

Yukari's hand went to a pocket of her dress and revealed an plain-looking cellphone; the layout and design was very similar to the normal ones but not necessarily the same. She pressed some buttons before she placed it next to her ears. The device rang and soon a high-pitched cry of a girl in pain went out of the speakers loud enough to be heard by Tsumugi and other people near them. Yukari retained a straight face in the small turmoil as she waited for a response.

"Sorry, Y-Yukari-sama? Do you need something?"

"Ah...Ran, I hope you're not busy. I'd like you to do something for me, it's not that important though."

"Chen played with some fairies not too long ago but ended up being injured, mostly bruises on her body. Fortunately, it was nothing serious to be concerned about. That aside, what are your orders?"

"I'll be sending the provisions to the Hakurei Shrine, I want you to go there and bring them back to our house. Kotobuki-san would be giving us those every week."

Another squeal followed, again catching attention around them. Yukari seemed not to be bothered by the interruptions as she maintained a straight face.

"C-Chen? Stop...scratching me! I-I'm sorry...Where will you send the items again?"

"Hakurei Shrine."

"W-Why do you need to transfer them to the shrine maiden?"

"I feel like it..."

"Yukari-sama..."

The gap youkai effectively closed every doubt of the shikigami in the firm reply, "The delivery man wouldn't be happy if I will send him to our house instead. I figured that it would be appropriate if a human will receive them."

There was a short pause for the shikigami's part to ponder on what her master said before she spoke again, "U-Understood. You're not coming back yet?

"Ah~ Just a bit more. I won't be long here. Also, remember to share some to Reimu as well."

"Take your time. I'll be going now."

"Don't let your shikigami wander off anywhere again. It will save us from further trouble."

The gap youkai pressed another button to terminate the call and returned it to the same pocket while Tsumugi looked at her skeptically.

"Where did you get a phone like that? It looks like Gensokyo is more advance that I thought."

"Ah, you mean this? A certain someone gave this to me. It's convenient that I could still call my shikigami even from here," explained Yukari. "Now that everything's set, shall we move on?"

---

The shrine's yard became a common workplace of the Shrine Maiden of Paradise when she was not out for youkai extermination or anything considered important for her. She usually spent her days in a carefree manner; drinking tea as she contemplate the serene surrounding like she never lived there and sweeping falling leaves from the inconsiderate trees around the shrine's perimeter, repeating the process after some hours have passed as if she was only waiting for the leaves to cover the ground again. From time to time, her friends would visit, intrude, or just to plainly bug her if the mood strikes them. Surprisingly enough, she didn't make much effort to chase them away from her home. In fact, she was quite thankful that someone still visits and kept her out of the monotony if only for just an hour or two.

Today was particularly a bright, hot day. She finally finished piling up all of the leaves she gathered so far. It might be a dull way to kill time but she was already accustomed to it. She hoped that a random person would cause an incident soon or someone would give her a job to exterminate a troublesome youkai. She could use some action now.

I'm quite glad that Suika won't be around for awhile. She nearly drank all of the sake in the storeroom the other night. Now that I think of it...why did she need to drink other's sake if she has that gourd?

...

Nothing to do at the moment.

Hm...maybe a cup of tea would be nice...

She went inside the shrine to brew some fresh tea. During her visit to the antique and second-hand shop, Kourindou, she got several tea leaves in small packets from the shop owner saying that it was given to him by the gap youkai while delivering batteries for his outside world merchandise. Reimu knew that Yukari always bring weird stuff to the shop when she didn't have nothing to do. All she knew that the two have mutual benefit in their somewhat shady collaboration.

The relaxing scent of tea quickly dispersed around her, effectively releasing stress from her shoulders.

Wow. The aroma of this tea is very different compared to my usual tea. Where did Yukari got this anyway?

… … ...

Huh? What's this feeling?

I feel like someone's going to visit me today. I guess making some extra wouldn't hurt...

After preparing her afternoon snack, she went out to the porch again to sit on her usual relaxation spot. She nearly dropped the tray as a truck appeared out of the blue in front of the shrine. A man with a cap went out of the large vehicle as she approached the shrine maiden who just stood there, dumbfounded. She could also tell that the man was confused himself as well, trying his best to remain calm.

"Uhm, delivery for Hakurei Reimu-san..."

"God damn it, Yukari..."

---

After staying in the luxurious café, the two wandered around without any particular destination in mind as requested by the youkai of boundaries before heading back home. Although Yukari sometimes spent some of her time in the outside her world, there were still new things coming in that fascinated her, given the rapid technological advancement of humans.

As they leisurely walked by the rows of shops aligned, Tsumugi was somewhat confused in the directions the gap youkai told the delivery man earlier, knowing that the Hakurei Shrine was situated on the boundary of Gensokyo and the Outside world.

...Turn right to the last street until you reach a tunnel. The shrine is located on the other side if you just followed the path.

Huh? The shrine? What do you mean?

The shrine is the only standing structure in the area, surrounded by large trees. I am sure that you won't miss it.

Oh, the only way back is through the same tunnel. I wish you good luck.

Unless, Yukari would lead the delivery van to an enormous gap of hers...

She could only assume that Yukari was well aware of her actions and let her do what seemed to be appropriate.

"So...where are we going next?" asked Tsumugi as they crossed the street. "I'm quite anxious about the other two following us around."

"If they're planning to threaten us, that will be a serious mistake for their side. On the contrary, I find this quite amusing actually," said Yukari. "Anyways, I have this feeling that they will give their cover soon."

"I hope so..."

"I haven't seen this area. By all means, do you mind if you lead the way?"

"Oh, why not? There's this ice cream parlor we sometimes visit."

"It's been awhile since I had that dessert."

---

The brown-haired girl was getting more and more impatient as she followed the two who were leisurely taking their time walking around. Her friend, Shimizu Kasumi, was just waiting for their next move from behind, scribbling something on a small notebook she always carried around. Whenever an idea comes into her mind, regardless of the place and time, she would just get her notebook and write them down.

Soon, their targets entered a shop which made them hold their position and wait for a golden chance.

"Eh? First, a café. Now, an ice cream parlor?" Amiya Hiromi said as she gritted her teeth, slowly losing her short-fused patience. She was not used to be getting stealthy where she could just charge in any way possible. "Does she really like sweet stuff now?"

"Hey, Hiromi?"

"What now?"

"You're not just giving up that easily, don't you?"

"Of course, I don't want to miss this! What do you expect me to do now?"

"I dunno, find a part-time job or something productive? Seriously, pay your our bills for a change!"

Thinking that the two might spent another hour inside, Hiromi came up with an idea. She slid her goggles onto her eyes and began scanning the parlor's interior using its infrared function. "Ah, I thought that they're the only customers inside."

"What do you expect? That place is quite popular. I tried eating there once and their sundae is quite addicting..."

"Maybe this should do the trick..." said Hiromi as she removed the goggles and focused her vision to the building.

Kasumi blinked for a few times as she saw Hiromi's right eye slowly brighten to deep red, a signal that her friend was up to no good again. She just sighed to herself as she couldn't anything to broke the momentum of the girl. A few more seconds made Kasumi drop a sweat as she thought that it might be more than she assumed.

"O-Oi? Are you trying to blow that place off?"

"Ugh, I can't concentrate. Keep it down!" retorted Hiromi, eyes still concentrated in a specific device in the parlor. "This won't damage anything, I can promise you that."

The plan seemed to work as everyone, including the employees, hurriedly went out of the parlor as the fire alarm broke out. Hiromi held her laughter as Kasumi stared back at her friend in disbelief. "W-What did you just..."

"Geez, I just messed up the shop's thermostat!"

"That same prank again..."

Hiromi pointed at the pair as she saw them walking again. She couldn't allow herself to miss that chance. "Quick, they're going that way. We'll ambush them the other way around!"

"Also, why are we hiding in this bush if we can't be seen in the first place?" asked Kasumi as she tapped a device attached on her arm. "It makes you twice more of an idiot you are now."

"Optical camouflage has its flaws too, not to mention that it's Yukari-chan we're talking about here!"

Kasumi shrugged as her friend had a point. "Just don't wreck more of my stuff. The lack of materials for almost a month now isn't going to help me or you."

---

"And I thought that the store's on fire," said Tsumugi, quite disappointed as they weren't able to buy ice cream. "I have a hunch that it was not just a false alarm."

"Lucky for me to have a parasol for the sprinklers. This happened...for the second time in my case. I must say that it is fascinating for the humans to create such device."

"You seemed like convincing me to have a parasol of my own."

"Oh, but it fits for someone like you. Also, I don't just use my parasol in its conventionally. It does have plenty of uses."

"Speaking from experience, huh? I can only wonder what are the other uses you're referring to."

"Believe me. This parasol served me very well farther than you might think."

"Ha! It's about time you showed up, Yukari-chan!"

Both of them halted as they noticed a girl standing defiantly before them with her hands on her waist. The peculiarity of her clothes was somewhat similar to Yukari but the goggles on her head seemed to ruin the whole of it. On her back what seemed to be a silver steel pole axe with a large puffy ribbon tied just below the blade. Her eyes were full of determination as if she had waited for a very long time for that moment. Yukari and Tsumugi just stood there without uttering a word...

For two seconds... Four seconds... Six seconds... Eight seconds...

W-What's with this awkward silence... Tsumugi thought as she wasn't sure that she met the brown-haired girl somewhere before. The only thing she knew that the girl was one of the presences who trailed them since they got out of the school. She guessed that Yukari recognize the person who was getting impatient as she began to tap the ground with her foot.

Finally, Tsumugi got the urge to ask. "Uhm...Why did we stop, Yakumo-san?"

"I think we finally found the source of your anxiousness, Kotobuki-san. Well, more like they found us first."

The girl's face became red in embarrassment. "You are suppose to say something, Yukari-chan!"

"I'm quite surprised. You didn't attack without prior warning like you usually do."

Tsumugi just tilted her head and looked at the gap youkai with slight interest. "Yakumo-san, do you know her?"

"Yeah, tell her about my awesomeness, Yukari-chan!"

Yukari stared at the bizarre girl then back to the keyboardist who was still waiting for an answer. "She's Amiya Hiromi. A troublesome, good-for-nothing youkai that could manipulate almost anything machine-related. Fortunately, not a very bright one and tends to break things instead. How's that introduction?"

She shot an angry look to Yukari who just smiled in response. "What did you say? That's just mean!"

"That's a very unique ability," remarked Tsumugi as she nodded to herself. "She seemed like a modern youkai then?"

Yukari returned her gaze to the girl in front. "Hiromi? What do you want now? You better have a good reason for wasting our time."

"Well...I just wanted to play, that's all! What you did the last time was outright cheating!" Hiromi replied then her body shook a little as she remembered being thrown to an almost freezing lake by the gap youkai.

"That is my ability. Then, that will make me a cheater by default, is it not? Why play with a 'cheater' like me if you already know about it?"

"That's the reason why! I will win even if you cheat!"

"Oh, it's that a new toy of yours?" asked the now interested boundary youkai as she finally noticed the brown-haired girl's steel pole axe, somehow shorter than the typical size to match her stature.

"Yep! Kasumi made it for me! Quite cool, isn't it?"

"Now that you mentioned her...where is she?"

"Yakumo-san, she's not alone, right?" asked Tsumugi as she felt another unseen presence nearby. "I mean, it could be..."

"Yes, you're right. Your perception is really outstanding, Kotobuki-san."

"Oh, well...I guess there's no use hiding now."

The two felt movement from under the nearby tree, suggesting that something not visible to the eye was there earlier. The figure had a shadow casted on the ground which was similar of a human as it was standing beside Hiromi. Then, a gray-haired girl appeared with a rather annoyed look on her face, not necessarily because of Yukari. She should be working on something new or continuing a previous project of hers when Hiromi burst into her room saying that the gap youkai appeared again. She sighed nonchalantly before crossing her arms.

"We're not here to play hide and seek, Kasumi."

"I know that."

"It's been awhile, isn't it?" asked Yukari with her enigmatic smile. "A few months back, perhaps? Unfortunately, I lost track."

Kasumi gazed at the eyes of the ancient youkai as she smiled in return. "Yes...quite, don't sweat it. Are you still using the phone that I gave you?"

"It proved to be very useful for me. I am thankful for that."

"I'm quite glad that I could help; just don't charge it with too much magic; it'll explode before you know it. I'm very short on resources now..."

"Is there something amiss?" The youkai of boundaries asked as she felt discontent in the voice of the girl. "I bet she's quite a handful for you. I can only wish good luck for your hard work."

"Well, you could say that again. Beat her up for me, okay? So that she would be incapacitated for a month and she won't bother me much."

Hiromi faced her partner with a disappointed face as if she wasn't expecting it. "What's with that kind of attitude~? You're giving up already?"

"Not really. I want to try the new modification of my rifle as soon as possible," Kasumi said as she grabbed the bizarre silver-colored rifle from her back and rested it on her shoulder. It was almost as large as the girl but appeared to be lighter despite of its massive size. "Unfortunately, you're not kind enough to volunteer for that."

Hiromi closed her eyes as she crossed her arms in contempt. "Because I don't want to be your target practice thingie!"

"You're still lucky that I'm not making you pay for all of the equipments you wreck in my workplace. Not to mention all of the things you destroyed from the start."

Hiromi clasped her hands in amusement as she looked at Yukari in the eye, ignoring her companion. "Good! So, let us begin then? I still can't imagine that plan about disposing your pet actually worked."

Yukari rose an eyebrow to the brown-haired girl then smiled at the claim. "Pet? If you're referring to my shikigami. I will give her the liberty to shred you to pieces so that she could use your remains as fertilizers for her garden."

Although most of those plants are vegetables.

Wait...Disposed? Ran's at home right now and...

Hm, I see...this is interesting for the very least.

"No, not Ran-chan! I mean, that other girl with brown hair too! The one I ran over with...uh...that van," stuttered Hiromi then her eyes went wide. "W-Wait! I wasn't supposed to say that!"

Once again, a grin wider than before formed in Yukari's face as the gray-haired girl covered her face with her hand in shame. "Hmm~ So my guess is right. We finally found the culprit without even trying so, Kotobuki-san."

Tsumugi had her doubts at first as how could Hiromi pull off such trick. She almost forgot that the girl was a youkai to begin with.

"Hey, Kasumi, help me out here!"

Kasumi waved her hands as she deeply sighed. "Yeah, she's a hopeless airhead. I hope you would still spare her."

"You nearly killed my friend for that?" Tsumugi asked, increasing anger was evident on her voice.

"Is that a bad thing?" asked Hiromi. "Wait...nearly? So, she's alive then?"

"You're actually fine with that? What kind of person are you?"

Kasumi cleared her throat before speaking in a somewhat playful tone. "Okay~ The floor is now open to show any form of hostility and violence to this seemingly innocent girl."

"Shut up! You're not helping at all!" retorted Hiromi.

Yukari deeply sighed as she turned her head to Tsumugi, who was now greatly enraged at the moment. "I'll take care of this. This girl's way of thinking is way too different from a sane human, so I hope you understand."

The keyboardist formed a fist as it violently trembled. She wanted to punch the girl in the face so hard to give her a glint of realization to her actions. If that wouldn't work, she could only think of repeatedly punching harder for desired result. The moment her friends were involve in a grave incident, its a whole different story. The previous days were already a pressure for her part for keeping everything in order. Now, she finally found the culprit who started it all, apparently with shallow comprehension of things.

"I'll take care of that girl..."

Yukari looked at Tsumugi expectantly, amazed that the voice came from gentle girl she just knew. "Can you fight, Kotobuki-san?"

"I may not look like it, but I can."

Yukari slowly shook her head as she stepped forward, twirling her parasol. "Oh my...you shouldn't let anger take advantage over your composed demeanor. Let me play with them instead."

Tsumugi remained silent as she casted her glare to Hiromi that could pulverize boulders into fine powder or split gigantic tsunamis in half.

"What happened in the past cannot be undone by beating her to death, Kotobuki-san."

"Yes, you're right," said Tsumugi softly, keeping her rage down. "But I cannot allow her to leave that easily."

"I see your point but you don't need to involve yourself in this. This is quite a pastime for me, actually."

"It's settled then? You go first, Kasumi..." ordered the brown-haired girl with a tap on Kasumi's shoulder. "Make me proud."

"Why me?" Kasumi protested with grimace. "You're the one who thought of this!"

"Because I said so. Do you need more reasons for you to move? Or do I need to poke you with my pole axe?"

"Do I have other choices?" Kasumi reluctantly said as she stepped forward with her oversized rifle. "Okay, but this doesn't mean anything."

"I suggest that we must find a suitable place for this duel, shall we?"

Hiromi tilted her head, somehow lost. "Is this place not fine to you?"

"If you're willing to pay all of the property damage we might incur or possible death of humans around this vicinity; be my guest," said Yukari with a gesture to her right. People inside the coffee shop were attentively watching them with baffled expressions on their faces as they assumed that a cosplay event was being held somewhere.

"I agree. My friend here might cut off the electric supply again. Also, she still owes me a lot of things since last year and I'm afraid she might not pay them all even after a few decades."

"Just wait until I find a decent job! I'll pay you even twice the amount!" retorted Hiromi.

"You won't find one if you keep wrecking stuff, idiot."

---

They were now in the middle of an open field with several trees and lamp posts in random spots where some held their picnics and other outdoor stuff but no person was seen around, which was a perfect opportunity for an apparently pointless duel.

Kasumi tossed her large hat to her friend then she faced Yukari. "Still the same rules, right?

"Rules? What are those rules?" asked Tsumugi.

"Let's just say those rules limits the abilities of the combatants, making them more or less equal in the playing field. Even a human could best a powerful youkai if proper preparations were done. This doesn't mean that every fight is a cakewalk either," explained Yukari. "In other words, the spellcard rules helps to maintain delicate balance in Gensokyo."

Tsumugi was intrigued once more, not aware of the spellcard rules. She could say now that the very few accounts about Gensokyo she read was already outdated. After all, those accounts were made a few decades back and couldn't possibly record such important detail that was recently imposed. Anyways, she won't be needing them anymore as she could now enter the world of youkai conveniently. "I see. "

"Don't worry about the outcome. It's not like we're fighting to the death as bitter enemies. If you're exposed more to Gensokyo, you will know what I mean. For now, enjoy this show."

"I'll leave this now to you, Yakumo-san."

"Beat her up!" Hiromi shouted, thrusting a fist to the sky with unwavering enthusiasm.

From the distance, Tsumugi couldn't help to steal a glance on the brown-haired girl. She somehow reminds me of Yui-chan but my friend wouldn't do such things like that. Maybe I should study youkai's behavior to understand them more.

"Be quiet, I'm not doing this for you."

"Shall we begin? I'll give you the first move."

With that said, the silver-haired girl launched herself with astounding speed towards the gap youkai who just closed her parasol and swung it in a wide curve in the air, releasing bright projectiles of her own. Tsumugi, on the other hand, opened her mouth in amazement.

Not taking any chances to get hit by any of the gap youkai's arsenal, Kasumi kicked the ground in reflex for a sharp turn to her right, avoiding the attack by a mere inch. As she returned to her stance, she glanced around her then back at Yukari before firmly holding her rifle, ready for her next attack.

"Rifle Sign [Bolt Barrage]!"

The girl's weapon started to spew out inconceivable amount of blue bullets as she pulled the trigger. Tsumugi held her breath as the gap youkai gracefully dodge the incoming bullets as if it was an everyday chore. She noticed that the bullets were not conventional ones made by humans. The weapon was amusingly powered by magic and the azure projectiles were all products of magic as well.

Tsumugi had her share of interesting magic since her childhood. She had met people with extraordinary abilities; a few of them are youkai as well. Even some of her friends trained to be able to use magic of different kinds. On her case, she was not much interested in harnessing her own abilities. She only wanted to play the keyboard with her band and live ordinarily like most people, blissfully unaware of the existence of magic and other supernatural elements. Yes, she might deny the fact of magic or youkai's existence, but her own environment, particularly her home, constantly reminds her that those beings were reality and never to be associated with fantasy stories anymore.

She recalled someone saying that the widespread influence of magic in the world was a double-edged blade. Knowing humans of today, she could never tell if magic will be ever used for the benefit of all. Suddenly, an azure bullet heading straight to her reminded her of the fight. With a clumsy swipe of her hand, the projectile shifted course until it hit a tree in the distance with a small explosion afterwards. With the corner of her eye, Yukari was slightly impressed in that moment. Tsumugi truly had capabilities to fight.

Going for the offensive, Yukari countered with her own as she danced in the air, making the crossfire more beautiful and deadly. Bullets flew everywhere without notice, hitting the trees, random posts on the road, and other unfortunate things around them that they didn't bother looking at for a second time. Tsumugi still remained in her place as she watched the two in awe, not concerned of any stray bullet that could probably fry her to crisp. She could just block or swipe them again with relative ease.

"Hmm~ What do you think you're doing?" asked Yukari in the midst of the danmaku exchange. "Activating a spellcard as your opening move is not like you at all."

"Just focus on not getting hit!" Kasumi simply replied. "They still hurt, you know?"

"I do not plan on getting hit anyways."

"Good to know."

Despite that her bullets didn't hit the mark, Kasumi kept her cool and sometimes smile as her opponent dodged every bullet she released. She kept a firm grip on the rifle's handle with her index finger at the trigger, following the movement of her target. She knew very well that she couldn't beat Yukari, even if Hiromi and several random youkai joined in and help her. She was not the type who would quickly accept a challenge; much less in inviting someone for a duel herself unless something worthwhile is at stake. If she willingly allow herself to such, perhaps it is for the sake of productivity and data gathering.

Suddenly, the Kasumi's barrage of magical bullets stopped and her eyes narrowed in frustration. She had problems about her weapon's capabilities, specifically its limits which she wanted to improve on.

"Crap, overheat..."

"I believe it's my turn now?"

From above, Yukari pointed her parasol to the girl as gold-colored light started to gather at its tip; the air around the gap youkai became distorted in the process. It didn't take her much time to unleash a contracted golden laser which was directed towards Kasumi in a considerable speed.

In such simple and direct attack, Kasumi simply hopped backwards to avoid it as if the wind itself was supporting her every move, again unleashing a powerful cannon blast of blue energy of her own.

Almost in a casual manner, Yukari opened her parasol slightly below her, blocking the projectile. Tsumugi was astounded, leaving her mouth slightly open in Yukari's countermeasure. Parasols were really useful - not only they protect you from harmful sun rays, but from magical attacks as well!

Kasumi giggled in content. "Well, that was a bit simple..."

"Really? How about this?"

A bright golden orb formed as soon as another laser fired by the gap youkai reached the ground. Kasumi went nearer as she looked at the floating orb curiously. "That looks pretty."

"Oh...but it hurts badly," replied Yukari with a grin. "...My cute little orb, detonate."

With the command, the orb exploded with potency greater than a hand grenade. Thanking her quick and unnatural reflexes, Kasumi barely got out of the blast zone by a jump backwards as a powerful gust of wind trailed after her although she still felt the strong impact in the process. The gray-haired girl was now floating in the air as she looked at the scar on the ground below then returning them to Yukari, giving off a faint whistle in the display of power. She knew that the gap youkai wasn't even trying to impress.

"You nearly got me there..."

"Knowing what you can do, I presume that you could avoid most of my attacks. You shouldn't worry much."

"You're giving me too much credit."

"Now, for my next..."

"Wait!" shouted Kasumi as she raised both of her hands. This made Yukari raise an eyebrow.

"Hm?"

"So...it took twenty seconds for the internal barrel to overheat. Also, the experiment on recoil reduction helped a lot too," mumbled Kasumi to herself as she took out a small notebook from under her overcoat and wrote her findings. "Thankfully, the reactor seemed to be stable and still functional. Needs improvements on the..."

"Shall we continue?" asked Yukari, seating on her gap comfortably.

Kasumi kept her writing tools as she readied her rifle again. "Ah, yes. I got carried away."

"As usual, you're only fighting me for performance data of your weapon. Typical for you."

"Ah, you knew me well. The battle is not over anyway," said Kasumi sheepishly as she pushed a button on her rifle. "I'm sure you don't mind if I'll switch projectiles? I need your opinion about this one."

A sly grin crossed the face of the gap youkai once again. "Go ahead, show me."

Kasumi aimed her rifle at the still sitting gap youkai and then squeezing the trigger almost instantly. Instead of resorting to block the attack using her parasol, Yukari just closed her eyes and opened a gap behind her, consuming the rather large projectile before it closed as if nothing was there. Another gap appeared, this time, from the rear of the unwary girl and it spewed the same projectile from her rifle. The bullet separated into several smaller ones before contact, also drastically amplified with Yukari's own power which packed enough strength to knock Kasumi to the ground.

The gray-haired girl was still conscious and probably could still continue on but she decided to raise the white flag to save herself from more pain.

Yukari went down and opened her parasol as her feet touched the ground, unscathed. "Looks like I win."

"I had enough anyway..."

"Sorry, but I don't want to be your judge on how painful that attack would get. I guess you have to do on your own."

"Tch...I didn't see that one coming. I almost forgot about that trick..."

"I guess you're not really in the mood for this. I'm terribly sorry for that."

"I just hope I didn't break anything. Hiromi can't pay hospital bills yet..."

Hiromi slowly aprroached her friend with a sullen look. "You're really weak, Kasumi. You disappoint me; that's not worth even called a fight."

"Shut up. There's none in a million chances you could win."

"Err...none in a million? What's that suppose to..." Hiromi's face crossed. "Hey!"

"Could you at least help me stand?"

"It's your own fault for being careless!" said Hiromi. "For now, watch how the strongest of us here do stuff!"

Yukari suddenly perked up in the girl's arrogant claim but frowned nonetheless. "Hmhm...Where did I heared that line again? But really, I need to go now."

"...Going so soon? But my turn just got started! If you will go now," Hiromi puffed her chest before pointing at Tsumugi who clenched her dominant fist at the ready. "I'll just play with your friend instead!"

"You see, my friend can play rough as well. If you don't behave like a good, innocent youkai, she might 'accidentally' exterminate you."

Hiromi glanced at the keyboardist. "I don't feel anything special about her..."

"Also, I guess someone needs to punish you for involving others in your ridiculous whims."

"Heh. The more reason for you to play with me!" said Hiromi as she pulled out her pole axe and readied herself in an odd battle stance. "Get ready, Yukari-chan!"

"There goes her hollow logic again," noted Kasumi as she resisted the urge to slap her face again. "Yukari, go easy on her, okay?"

"As you wish, but I can't make promises."

With another snap from Yukari's fingers, numerous gaps appeared around Hiromi as powerful streams of magic emerged from each of it, immobilizing Hiromi completely before she could make a move.

"No fair! Illegal move!" protested Hiromi as she tried not to make contact with the magic surrounding her. "This is worse than the last time!"

"Well, that's a more better treatment than before," remarked Kasumi.

"Kotobuki-san, I had a great time today," said Yukari as she summoned another gap behind Tsumugi, completely ignoring every complaint of the bounded girl. "That gap will lead you back to your school. I'll give you ample time to make sure this girl here won't follow you."

"What? Why would I waste my time on her? You're really a cheater, Yukari-chan!"

Tsumugi was surprised as Yukari decided to call it a day. She managed to smile once again as the whole day for her was more favorable. "So...you're leaving now too?"

"Yes, once I'm finished here."

"That was a bit sudden, but thanks for everything. You've been a great help, Yakumo-san."

"Cast your worry aside, I will make sure she would learn her lesson."

"Just visit us in the club room if you get bored!"

"Hey! Cheater! Look at me while I'm talking!"

After the gap closed behind the blonde keyboardist, Yukari looked at the brown-haired girl as she displayed her most mischievous grin. Hiromi felt frozen stiff as the gap youkai twirled her parasol playfully in her approach. "Since you insisted to play, I might give you this chance now. I'm sure Ran could wait for a few more minutes..."