A word from the author:
A draft for this chapter has been sitting on my laptop hard-drive for several months now, and I have found myself conflicted over how to proceed with the story. Things have been getting consistently darker than even I had thought when I began writing this; but there have been parts that were simply difficult for me to write and I had to go back and change them. Maribel's nightmare in Chapter 3 was originally much more graphic in nature, though I felt it necessary to keep the scene to show how deeply Rumia's attack has scarred her.
And now there's Marisa, who is one of my all-time favorite characters of the series. It was a difficult choice when I decided to make her into an antagonist, but not one I would go back on, but there are some truly unforgivable things she will be doing in this story, I felt the need to to go back and edit some of the more explicit details.
Which brings me to my next point. There have been hints of it in past chapters, but this is the first chapter which contains unambiguously GxG material, and won't be the first. I thought I might as well provide some advance warning for some, and I hope you continue to enjoy my story.
Thank you for your attention.
Chapter 5 – Twisted Love "Stockholm Syndrome"
Thought is after all nothing but a substitute for a hallucinatory wish – Sigmund Freud
After following the road for what felt like hours, Maribel began to notice signs of civilization appear before her eyes. Small thatched-roof farmhouses and irrigated fields rose up around her as she, Mokou, and Reisen walked on, and the people tending the fields and traveling the roads didn't seem to pay them any mind. At one point a group of children even waved in Reisen's direction and rushed over to walk along beside the rabbit girl, tugging at the hem of her skirt and pulling at her cotton-ball tail, much her angst, just as an old woman came up to greet her, and informed her that the ache in her back had returned. While Reisen was otherwise engaged, Mokou skulked away with her hands shoved in her trousers pockets, kicking at rocks on the path. Glancing back at Reisen, who was busy shuffling various through bottles and packages in her rucksack, Maribel made up her mind to follow. She found Mokou pacing back and forth, hands behind her head, looking disgruntled.
"Somthin' the matter?" she asked, seeing Maribel.
"Uh, you seem a little bit, well, distracted," Maribel said after a while, anxiously playing with her hair. Mokou looked back at her with a furrowed brow and kicked a stone so hard that it skipped across the ground five times before vanishing into a bush.
"Right. You probably figured I ain't that much of a people person." The silver-haired girl muttered, picking up another stone, and tested its weight in her hand before letting it fly nearly missing a bird that was perched on the flat roof of a house. "Places like this're too crowded fer me."
"I see. Never would've guessed." Maribel said, trying to cover her smile. Now that she thought about it, she still didn't know exactly what had brought Mokou to live in the middle of that bamboo forest in the first place; after all it wasn't exactly what she would describe as prime real estate. But now that she was thinking about it Kaguya and her retinue also lived there, didn't they? And with that thought Maribel realized she was trying to apply the logic of her own world to this world with its mansions of endless corridors and princesses from the moon, so she shook her head, laughing to herself. "If you think this is crowded, I would love to see your face if you ever got to visit Kyoto, especially during the tourist season. You could probably wait in line for three hours just to get to the Kamigamo Shrine"
"Huh. That sounds just positively thrilling." Mokou looked confused by Maribel's sudden laughter for a moment, but then shrugged dismissively and looked away.
Eventually they arrived at the center of a village square. It reminded her uncannily of a certain class trip she had taken some time ago to a historic village for sightseeing, except this was not just some deserted tourist attraction that a bunch of bored college students wandered around while snapping pictures of each other with their phones while standing in front of huts; this place was alive and kicking.
"Mokou? What brings you here today?" a voice came from the door of one of the many buildings in the village, larger than most, and well built. The owner of the voice was a young woman with straight silvery hair that grew down to her waist, tinted with blue highlights. She wore a blue one-piece dress with white sleeves and a look of confusion as she studied Maribel's face.
"Keine," Mokou turned to the woman, scratching the back of her head uncomfortably, and then patted Maribel roughly on the shoulder. "I'm, uh, just escortin' this one here to the Hakurei maiden, is all. Found her running through the forest like a chicken with its head cut off about to go straight into some youkai's stomach."
"That's terrible!" Keine said, lifting her hand to her mouth with a look of shock. "What on earth were you doing in that forest by yourself?"
It took Maribel a moment to realize that the question had been directed at her. She opened her mouth to answer, but stumbled over the words. The truth was she still had no real idea of how she had come to be in that forest. One moment she was in her own world with Renko, and then the next, those cracks opened up and she was here.
"I don't really know… I just sort of… fell into it." she finally replied with a tone of uncertainty, and when Keine's look of confusion deepened. Mercifully, Mokou stepped in.
"She's from the outside world, Keine."
"I see, so that would explain why I have never seen your face here before." Keine bowed slightly towards Maribel. "Forgive the belated introduction, my name is Keine Kamishirasawa, I teach history to the village children."
"Maribel Hearn." Maribel said, bowing in return. "I'm a university student."
"A pleasure to make your acquaintance." Keine smiled and turned to Mokou. "It is somewhat disconcerting; the number and frequency of people appearing from the other side appears to have been increasing of late."
"All the more reason to send this one back to where they belong," Mokou grumbled. "Not all of them are so lucky as to stumble into someone with nothing better to do than escort them around."
"Miss Fujiwara, do remember we have business to finish here in this village," Reisen added, walking up from behind, shifting the straps of her rucksack back onto her shoulders. "Miss Kamishirasawa, always a please to see you. It is as you've heard, we are on our way to the Hakurei Shrine to return Maribel to her home, but as luck would have it she was with a companion at the time she was drawn into Gensoukyo. Would it be much of an inconvenience if we were to impose on you for accommodation for the night while we attempt to gather information on her friend's whereabouts?"
"I don't see why not," Keine said, crossing her arms. "I wasn't really expecting guests, so I'm afraid I won't be able to offer much in the way of hospitality. Oh, but I do have a couple of spare futons, so you don't have to worry about sleeping on the bare floor."
"You have our most sincere thanks." Reisen inclined her head and turned to Maribel and Mokou. "Now then, I shall be making my rounds around the village for the time being, peddling Master Eirin's medicine. I hope to return in time to join you for dinner. Maribel, it is relatively safe here in the village, but I do recommend not wandering off too far out of sight."
Maribel started to protest against being treated as though she were a child who might get lost in the supermarket, but then slowly nodded, aware that the only reason she had made it to the village unscathed was mostly thanks to the company she was keeping. And thinking about it logically, if there was this many humans gathered in one place, the chances were high that something or someone was protecting them.
"Don't worry about at thing," Keine laughed, waving her hand to the side while giving Maribel a furtive wink. "Go ahead and see to your duties, Miss Udongein, I'll make certain she doesn't get herself into any more trouble. Perhaps she could even help me teach a class, you did say that you were a student at a university, didn't you?"
"Er, yes, but I've never really-"
'It shouldn't prove too difficult," Keine said, putting her hands together. "In fact, it should make things that much easier with two extra pairs of eyes. Oh, speaking of which, Mokou wherever might you be off to?"
Mokou, who had begun to quietly slink off – a task made quite difficult by her very noticeable hair, the red-and-white talismans woven into it drawing the eye – froze in her tracks and lowered her head in defeat, but not before kicking a rock into the side of a house, causing the black cat that had been resting there to jump up and flee, hissing at them indignantly, and somehow Maribel didn't have to ask to know that children where very much not an exception when Mokou said she was not a people person.
She gave an odd combination of sigh of resignation and disgruntled snort, shoving both of her hands in her pockets and shrugged until her shoulders were nearly ever with her ears. "Nowhere," she said. "Nowhere at all..."
"Master Spark!"
The mini-Hakkero in the palm of Marisa's hand sparked and crackled with incandescent flame, heralding the devastating blast of energy that would soon be unleashed. As it came, the entire vicinity around the shrine lit up with an unearthly white light and a cone of pure light exploded from the comparatively tiny hexagonal box with such force that the blonde magician was pushed back a few steps. Reimu responded by spreading out her arms and seemingly floated away, riding the wave of energy until all that was left of her was a her faint outline, and then she was gone. The spell soon subsided and Marisa lowered the Hakkero, staring at the empty space where Reimu had stood in shock. But that shock soon turned to realization, and foreseeing what was to come next, Marisa opened her free hand and snatched up her broom, and shot upward into the air just in time to avoid the incoming dive-kick as Reimu reappeared directly behind her, then parried a savage strike from the shrine maiden's oharai-bou. The air was bursting with the hollow sound of wood knocking against wood for about a minute, though when it became apparent neither side could get a solid hit on the other, they broke away and stood on opposite side of the shrine courtyard.
"Just what do you think you're playing at, Marisa?" Reimu said, keeping her voice calm and even – dangerously so – her face was like an expressionless mask as her reddish brown eyes seemed to evaluate the black-and-white clad magician. It was nothing like the carefree look she had shown her before as a friend; it wasn't even the hard, aggressive look she gave when they sparred from time to time. This was something Marisa hadn't seen in a long time – it was the look of one who had marked you as a potential enemy.
"Aw, well, I was kinda hoping I could take you out all quick-like 'n then work out a plan from there, ya know?" Marisa said with a mockingly innocent tone, stabbing the ground with the end of her broom handle. "Don't have a lotta time to work with, see - on a bit o' a tight schedule."
"Sense," Reimu said, still as calm as a spring breeze. "Start making it…. now."
"Listen, I really, really don't wanna fight ya, Reimu." Marisa said twisting the broom handle in her hand to the point where the bottom of it began digging a hole into the ground.
"You came at me first!" Reimu interjected, stabbing an accusing finger in Marisa's direction. "Have you finally lost your mind!?"
"Heh, you hadn't realized that da day we met, eh?" Marisa smirked at the shrine maiden, showing teeth. "Pretty sure I ain't been one-hundred percent for a long time, yo - messin' with magical reagents 'n crap can do some pretty messed up stuff to a gal's brain, right? Look, I sorta told someone that I'd make sure you wouldn't be gett'n in the way cuz I knew if ya found out, you'd be duty-bound to intervene. Couldn't let it come ta that. Had to stop… shit, I just didn't want to see ya… she woulda prolly done…" Marisa bit her bottom lip, and gripped her broom tightly, though it didn't stop her hand from trembling.
"So, basically you're saying something bad is about to happen, and you don't want me to get involved because you think I'll get hurt?" The mask broke and Reimu laughed bitterly. "And the thought hadn't even crossed your mind to talk to me about this before opening fire?"
"I tried ta warn ya, but…" Marisa's voice suddenly trailed off, her eyes becoming distant and out of focus, and her mouth curved into an almost unnaturally wide smile - an unsetting sort smile that sent chills up the spine of even the Hakurei shrine maiden "Heheh, well yeah, of course it would make sense if she got to me first, wouldn't it?"
"Marisa, you're kind of starting to scare me, here." Reimu said, feeling her grip tighten on her oharai-bou. Something was wrong – horribly, massively wrong. The person standing before her wasn't Marisa Kirisame; at least not the Marisa she knew, not even the Marisa she had met years ago who had been apprenticed to an evil spirit. It was no youkai masquerading as her friend, that much at least she was certain of, and neither was Marisa possessed by some evil sprit. Then what was going on?
Reimu could not spare another second to think, because things started happening quickly. Marisa kicked the end of her broom forward and shot up and away from her like a comet. Three fist-sized, glasslike orbs with pentagrams etched within them shot out of Marisa's pockets and began to orbit her like erratic little moons, glowed for the briefest of moments, then shot out a trio of searing white beams of light that arced across the courtyard, scorching everything they touched. Reimu saw the open space between the lasers – plenty of room for her to maneuver through and evade the attack – and saw the trap waiting to ensnare her. She kicked herself off the ground and moved forward as though intending to follow the opening so kindly provided to her, but then froze just before taking the bait and flew backwards just as a hail of prismatic light showered down from Marisa's perch above her.
She still fought like Marisa, thought Reimu as she dodged a number of stray shiny bullets, so the real Marisa was most likely still rattling around somewhere up there and so long as Marisa had range, she would have the advantage with her barrage-focused style. The best way to approach this situation would be to close the distance between them and bring Marisa down to her level.
Reimu leapt upwards, touching the tips of her feet on thin air as though she were jumping on stones crossing a river, then pushed forward, brushing past a laser as it swept toward her and twirling to graze a volley of bullets. Her hand dipped into her sleeve and returned with a handful of talismans held between her fingers, which she threw with a trained arm. The projectiles served their intended purpose, as Marisa threw her hands up to form a barrier in front of her, giving Reimu precious time to skip across the open air toward her, so intent on her goal that she completely overlooked the predatory grin on her opponent's face, or her lips forming the words "Starlight Typhoon" as a card emblazoned with a magic circle and a multitude of stars appeared in her hand and all at once Reimu realized she had fooled herself into thinking she had outsmarted Marisa's trap only to walk straight into the real one. The orbs that had been orbiting Marisa now flew off in opposite directions, firing a constant beam of energy while a stream of star-shaped bullets shot out in their wake.
Gritting her teeth, Reimu altered her course to evade this new threat, while Marisa gathered energy into her hands and flung a shower of bullets at her, one after the other, laughing. It was a ridiculously stupid mistake that Reimu made, a misstep she realized the moment she made it. While dodging one of the volleys that Marisa sent at her, Reimu had backed into the line of fire of one of the orbs as it made its pass in front of her. The laser struck her before she could react, and all that she could recall afterward was falling as searing white pain filled her mind, and then the dull pain of impact.
After what felt like hours Reimu finally opened her eyes and stars filled her vision – not the kind that Marisa favored but the kind that came after hitting one's head against something very solid like the ground. She could have kicked herself if she had the strength to move her limbs. The wards sewn into the fabric of her clothing had absorbed most of the heat from the laser, and the Spellcard System itself had prevented her from sustaining any fatal injuries from the fall, creating a cushion of air over the ground. But it still hurt like hell. Reimu tried moving the fingers on her right hand experimentally, and they responded - a good sign. A shadow loomed over her, and a frowning face framed with golden blonde hair appeared over her – not so good.
"Reimu, I gotta say I'm kinda disappointed." Marisa said, leaning over. "Ya weren't holding back 'cause it was me, was ya? 'Cause if you fought like that against her… heh, she ain't intending to play by your rules, Reimu. Times are gonna change."
"Just had to come gloat, did you?" Reimu managed to gasp out, biting down hard as she tried moving her legs and felt pain shoot though every inch of her body. "Look, just tell me who's got her hooks in you and we'll go take her out. It's not Mima, is it?"
Marisa threw her head back and laughed. "Mima? Oh, how I wish! Ya really got no clue what's goin' down, do you? And here I thought you was the Hakurei Shrine Maiden or somethin'." A peculiar look flashed in Marisa's eyes as she stared down at the prostrate Hakurei and she knelt closer. "Oh, geez Reimu, ya got no idea how long I been want'n to get you on your back like this, and now here ya are." The magician stroked Reimu's face with the tips of her fingers. "Day after day watch'n you walk around in dat getup, all wrapped up like a present waitin to be opened." She smiled wolfishly as her hand slid down and tugged at the corner of the sarashi that was wrapped around her breasts in lieu of more western smallclothes, exposed by the gap between her kimono and its detached sleeves, and her voice became a low purr. "You're still a virgin, aren't you Reimu? Well, of course you are – you are the Harukei Maiden after all!"
"Marisa, please stop this." Reimu said, pushing herself away, tears welling up unbidden in the corners of her eyes. She turned her face away so the black-and-white magician would not see. This wasn't happening, she told herself, that wasn't Marisa. It couldn't be. "You win, okay? I'll stay out of whatever it is you're doing, just… just don't do this."
"And jus' what do you think I'm going to do, Reimu!?" Marisa shouted, savagely taking hold of the shrine maiden's leg and dragging her back toward her. "Why are you running away from me? I never wanted to hurt you, Reimu! You made me do this! You're leaving me no other choice, don't you get it!?"
"No." That was all Reimu could say, and having no strength left to offer any more resistance, she closed her eyes and let the world drift away as Marisa slowly climbed on top of her, pinning her arms at her side, looking down at the shrine maiden with an inhuman hunger.
And then, less than a second later, Reimu was gone, leaving nothing but empty space under Marisa's body, save for a single playing card – an ace of spades – lying exactly where Reimu had just been not even before Marisa could blink her eyes, and when she did blink, in place of the playing card there was then a narrow clay jar capped with a stopper of cork. Her eyes widened as it began to vibrate and emit an unearthly pale glow, one Marisa know intimately well; Deep Ecological Bomb. "So that's how it's gonna be then, head maid!?" Marisa half-choked, half-laughed, "Is that your game, you little b-!"
Her words were drowned out by the blinding explosion that shook the courtyard and blew the front of the Haukei Shrine into splinters and smoldering bits of timber.
Reimu opened her eyes again, wondering, as though it had happened to someone else, if everything she had just experienced had been nothing more than a horrible nightmare. Then she realized she was not in her bed, but rather was being carried in the arms of a silver-haired girl dressed in a maid uniform.
"I came back when I saw the flash of her Spark," said Sakuya, keeping her eyes fixed ahead as she flew past trees and boulders at blinding speed, touching the ground only momentarily. She was freezing time at regular intervals, perhaps as a measure to throw off pursuers, turning the world around them dark and colorless and void of warmth or sound. It was the first time Reimu had ever seen anything like it. "I should have come sooner. I'm sorry."
"Marisa…" Reimu heard herself groan. "She's not… no…"
"I didn't kill her, if that's what you're thinking." Sakuya said distantly, and as soon she felt it was safe to do so, she came to a stop and gently lowered Reimu, leaning her back against the side of a tree. "Though perhaps that would have been… no, never mind. Are your injuries severe?"
"I'll live," Reimu said with a bitter smile, lifting her arm and flexing her fingers before her eyes. She dropped her arm limply to her side and looked up at the head maid of the Scarlet Mansion. "Sakuya, you're still human, aren't you?"
"Yes, Reimu." The maid frowned. "As human as you are. I don't understand why you're asking."
Reimu laughed a hollow laugh and hugged her legs, ignoring the pain as she pushed them up to her torso, and buried her face between her knees. "Me neither. I suppose you'll be taking me to Remilia, then? She will have expected my response at any rate, might as well give it to her in person. Do you know what she was talking about, the balance of the world and all?"
"I know no more than you do, Reimu. Questions such as that would be better served if posed to Lady Patchouli rather than a mere servant such as myself." Sakuya glanced sideways as Reimu, then reached her hand out to her, hesitated, and quickly withdrew it. "We shall take to the road again as soon as you are ready, but we mustn't tarry for too long… something dark is stirring in Gensokyo, even I can feel as much."
Reimu lifted her head and stared off into nowhere in particular. When she finally spoke, there was barely any life in her voice. "And I suppose I'm going to have to do something about it then, aren't I?"