When Yuyuko Saigyouji sent her gardener Youmu Konpaku off to pick up an order she had placed at Kourindou, she had claimed that she would be very busy this evening. However, the extent of how "busy" she actually was could be debatable.
"'It was when I was fifteen when I first learned about the true nature of the land that would soon be my permanent residence'? That's too intangible and ambiguous. Maybe 'what the meaning of death would transform itself into'? No, that wouldn't work at all; this is a compelling story, not an analytical essay. Maybe I'll just skip that sentence for now." Yuyuko sat at her study desk holding a pen, surrounded by disorganized pieces of paper bearing her stationery design on them. The candle she was using as a light source in the dark Hakugyokurou was at a very short height, and it was starting to drip hot wax on the desk it was on. "Yukari never told me that writing a fantasy novel would be so difficult," she pondered. "I suppose that almost anything is hard to do when you're on an empty stomach, though." She gathered all the papers that had been written on and stacked them together, not bothering to make sure it was all organized in the right way. "Does it really take an hour to get to the Forest of Magic and back, especially if you can travel at the speed of 200 Yojana in 1 slash?" Yuyuko smiled distantly. "Youmu's probably off on another one of those pointless adventures of hers." She leisurely walked through the door of the study and down the dark, quiet hallway of the shrine. Taking a brief moment to retrieve the blue hat she had left on her bed, Yuyuko decided to get some fresh air to help inspire her mind by going outside.
Even, or perhaps especially, during the night the Netherworld was an alluring part of Gensokyo with its enchanting and otherworldly beauty. The gentle white glow from the countless spirits who called the Netherworld home softly reflected on the falling cherry blossoms to produce an effect akin to twinkling stars. The blue and violet ghostly butterflies that were beautiful in the daylight were even lovelier in the dark, mixing their colors with the white of the spirits to illuminate the land with multiple natural glows. As she walked out the front door of Hakugyokurou onto the wooden porch, Yuyuko paused for a moment or two to take in the beauty of the Netherworld before she sat down.
Sure enough, at the very edge of the visible horizon, Yuyuko could see the awaited girl accompanied by her marshmallow-shaped phantom making her way up the great flight of stairs that served as the centerpiece of the Netherworld. While Youmu usually greeted Yuyuko with either a polite smile or a neutral expression, she wore a very worried and distressed look on her face as she approached her ghost mistress.
"Ah, Youmu, you're finally here," called Yuyuko with a playful smile when Youmu was only a few meters away. "Did you have fun going off to wherever you went when you got sidetracked from your duties?"
"I did nothing of the sort," replied Youmu coldly as she looked away to avoid eye contact with her mistress. "I simply wanted to stroll instead of sprint and enjoy this fine evening. Is that so terrible?"
"Err, no," murmured a puzzled Yuyuko. "I just would have preferred it if you told me you were going to do this before you left, though. Those papers and the dinner you'll cook are essential parts of the work I'm trying to complete tonight." Youmu wordlessly handed the already-opened package of stationery to Yuyuko, who opened it again and briefly took a quick look at what was inside. "Good, good. These will do just fine."
"Pardon me, Lady Yuyuko… but why do you need so many sheets of stationery, anyway?" asked Youmu tentatively. Yuyuko looked up from flipping through her sheets and smiled.
"I was going keep it a secret," she said, "but I suppose I can tell you, Youmu. See, my good friend Yukari dropped a book from a boundary about a week ago here, and I decided to read it. The book was this intense fantasy novel about a group of adventurers that go off on a journey to destroy a wicked object of pure evil, and it quite amazing indeed. It inspired me to write my own fantasy novel so everyone in Gensokyo will be able to enjoy something like what I read." She held up the package of papers. "In order to write the first draft, I'm going to need lots of paper."
Youmu dubiously raised an eyebrow. "Is that really the case? Well, I don't suppose you'd mind if I took a look at what you've written so far, would you?"
Yuyuko chuckled with amusement. "If you want to take a look at a chaotic group of scribbles of dissatisfaction, be my guest. I'll certainly let you read it when I have something presentable, but it's not even close to that yet." As she was getting up from the porch to walk inside, Yuyuko noticed Youmu staring off into space in a random direction, something the serious and devoted gardener almost never did. "Would you like to share with me what's on your mind, Youmu? It's quite obvious you're bothered by something."
Youmu's eyes lazily drifted towards her mistress, and she began to stare absentmindedly again. "I don't know what you're talking about," she replied quietly.
"Oh, please," laughed Yuyuko. "It doesn't take a magician to know when somebody has started acting vastly different than they were two hours ago. Plus, I've realized over the years that you're always upset whenever that delicious Myon of yours goes limp as it's doing right now. If something is the matter, you can tell me, Youmu; that's what friends do."
Youmu took a moment to ponder what to say next. "Lady Yuyuko, have you read tonight's edition of the Bunbunmau newspaper?"
Yuyuko dismissed that idea with a wave of the hand. "That filthy rag? I prefer to get my news from an accurate and reliable source that doesn't make up lies for everything." She paused. "Has Aya been bullying you by printing propaganda that lays waste to your good name or something?"
"No," replied Youmu with certainty. "Not me. You're probably right about it being a complete lie, but… the front page contained an article about a threatening letter Remilia Scarlet received this evening. Apparently someone in Gensokyo is aiming to murder her before midnight tonight."
"Why, that is terrible!" exclaimed Yuyuko. "Have any clues to finding the identity of this person been found?"
"The article said that no progress has been made yet. However, I found something very strange about the picture of the letter that was printed." Youmu stopped for a moment and took a deep breath. She looked at the concerned face of her mistress and friend Yuyuko whom she had trusted for years, and then at the sheets of paper in her arms that had the incriminating pattern printed on them. The image of the letter on which deadly words were written flashed in her mind. It occurred to her that if Yuyuko really was behind the plot, the ghostly princess may kill her right on the spot for having learned too much.
"Yes?" urged Yuyuko. "What about the picture of the letter?"
"The letter had, well…" Youmu began with uncertainty before shaking her head firmly. "I can't do this."
"You can't do what?" asked Yuyuko. "Youmu, you're making me a bit worried with this incoherent way you're talking."
"I can't stand around here for the rest of the night and do nothing. You are my mistress, and I hold the greatest respect for you, but if Remilia dies because I didn't step in, my conscience won't allow me to live." Youmu unsheathed her two swords and turned to face the edge of the Netherworld. "I have to go warn her. Please don't follow me, Lady Yuyuko."
"Youmu, snap out of it," commanded Yuyuko in a serious tone. "Until you tell me exactly why you're acting so strangely about this, I don't want you going anywhere." These words had no effect on the gardener, however, as Youmu closed her eyes and relaxed her mind. Before Yuyuko could do anything to stop her, she was already sprinting away at a speed to fast to see. Within a few seconds, she had cleared the great barrier in the clouds that served as the entrance to the Netherworld.
Yuyuko dropped the stack of papers she was carrying on the ground and began to pursue her gardener with a speed that, though impressive by human standards, was not even close to Youmu's speed. "I suppose dinner will have to wait for the moment," she murmured to herself. "I hope that this is all just a silly misunderstanding on Youmu's part." Yuyuko's idea of the situation she and Youmu were being thrust into, though hopeful, would soon not be further from the truth.
In the minutes that went by between when Sakuya left the basement of the Scarlet Devil Mansion promising to send Remilia in her place per Flandre's request and when Remilia actually arrived, Flandre had time to sit in the darkness and contemplate what was currently going on. Lying on her back on the small cot in the basement, she stared at the picture that hung on the opposite wall. While it was well over four-hundred years old, the depiction of the Scarlet sisters within it was physical identical to how they appeared now, being immortal vampires. Flandre noted, however, that the way she and Remilia were happily embracing each other with joyous smiles on their faces in the picture would never happen nowadays.
After all, she thought to herself, if Remi still loves me, why am I forced to stay in the basement like a slowly decomposing antique made to be forgotten? I suppose I just don't understand it.
For the next minute or so, Flandre looked up at the dark and filthy ceiling that was covered with cobwebs until a sudden knock on the door brought her back to reality.
"Flan, it's me. May I come in?" called a voice from the other side of the door. Although Flandre knew who the voice belonged to from whom she had asked Sakuya to bring, it sounded foreign and unrecognizable to her.
"Go right ahead, Remi," replied Flandre apathetically. "You're the one who has the key, of course." The response she received was the sound of the lock turning and the great door being thrown open with little effort. Just as with her voice, Flandre recognized Remilia's eternal appearance as she stepped in but found the gaze she was receiving to be completely unfamiliar.
"Sakuya said you wanted to see me," said Remilia. "So, what can I do for you, Flan?"
"Do you happen to know what tomorrow is, Remi?" asked Flandre. It was difficult to see in the darkness of the basement, but a drop of sweat began to form on her forehead as she braced herself for what would be an inevitably unpleasant conversation.
"Of course," replied Remilia casually, walking to the cot to sit down next to her sister. "It's the day that you turn 500. What about it?"
"Sakuya told me you never mentioned it to her before. Is that true?" Sitting up, Flandre's wings twitched slightly from behind her as she made an unspoken vow to try to not get upset with Remilia.
"Yes, that's right," confirmed Remilia. "I was planning on telling her and Patchouli about it tomorrow. Then, the three of us were going to buy or make you a few little presents and Sakuya would bake a cake. It would be a quiet birthday party we could hold right here in the basement. There's nothing wrong with that, is there?" She brought a hand around Flandre's back in a comforting manner, but Flandre simply inched away from her.
"Why can't we hold it upstairs in the main rooms of the mansion?" asked Flandre, struggling to keep her voice steady. "I haven't been there in hundreds of years, and I can't even remember what it looks like. Just one day of being allowed out of the basement wouldn't be so bad, would it?"
Remilia shook her head sadly and placed a hand on her sister's shoulder. "I'm sorry, Flan, but we've been over this many times. I can't let you out of the basement—"
"I know, I know," interrupted Flandre impatiently. "'Flandre, you're too powerful, and you can't control that power properly. If you start exploding everyone you see, you could cause a catastrophe. That's why you need to stay in the basement.' You've said that so many times, but hasn't it ever occurred to you that I might be old enough to have control over my massive destruction?"
Remilia looked straight into Flandre's glimmering eyes. "It's occurred to me many times, and I have hoped for it every day. But when I look at you, I still see a young child. You're simply still not old enough to handle the responsibility of living normally."
"Why is it that you're only five years older than me, Remi, and yet you think you're mature enough to handle your powers?" said Flandre, her brow beginning to furrow. "I don't really think that's fair."
"This isn't about me, Flandre. This is about you," said Remilia with a hint of agitation on her voice. "I do possess some powers, but I can't just close my fist and have things explode. Besides, I'm responsible enough to handle my anger, not channel it into destruction if Sakuya happens to overcook my breakfast eggs or something. I'm also responsible enough to keep someone who would do that safely locked away where she can't make anything terrible happen."
"I would not destroy stuff over a spoiled breakfast!" snapped Flandre indignantly. "It's really annoying that you're sticking by a decision you made about five hundred years ago when I'm completely different from how I was back then. You're not even giving me a chance to prove how much I've grown up!"
"Oh? Well, let's say you were given a chance to live like a normal person. What would happen then?" said Remilia with rising anger. "First, you'd act super-happy. You'd go around and start 'playing' with the fairy maids, and then get bored when they all blow to smithereens. It wouldn't be long before others would hear of a mass extermination of fairies in the Scarlet Devil Mansion, and they would get suspicious. Word would get out that the 'dirty little secret' has begun to live outside of the basement. Do you think people would be happy to hear that? Of course not! Reimu Hakurei would likely come here to seal you away again, if she doesn't do the same to me and all the staff here as well! End result: you'd be back in here again, many innocent people would be punished, and the reputation of this house would be in the toilet. How does that sound, Flandre?!"
Flandre opened her mouth to shout an infuriated reply, but suddenly stopped herself as a spiteful smile began to form on her face. "Okay. Now I understand what this is all about."
"You do?" replied Remilia doubtfully. "What are you getting at, Flandre?"
Flandre's smirk remained as she began to explain. "I might have massively destructive powers and a personality that doesn't match them well, but the real reason I'm stuck in here has nothing to do with that. You're just selfish, and you want the mansion and the services provided by the staff all to yourself. You don't want to share them with your younger sister, do you?"
This was able to set Remilia off in the greatest possible way, and her scarlet eyes began to glow like two ignited bonfires as she jumped to her feet. "Excuse me?! How dare you even—"
"Don't try denying it," interrupted Flandre, her mocking grin continuing to grow. "What did you want as a present when you turned 500, Remilia? Oh, yes, that's right: for the freaking sun to stop shining during the day! You made Sakuya cover this entire land in a red mist just so you didn't have to use a damn parasol to walk outside! As for my 500th birthday, you're throwing me the smallest of parties possible in a dingy, old room like this. It sounded like you weren't even going to invite the one who might be my only true friend around here, Hong Meiling! Hmm, does that sound selfish to you?"
"Shut up, Flandre!" screamed Remilia with the loudest voice she could muster. "Just shut up! There's someone who wants me dead tonight, and all you're concerned with is equality among siblings? Why don't you grow up, you little brat!"
"Whatever," chuckled Flandre darkly. "If you're not going to own up to your selfish attitude, we're done here. Get the hell out of my basement."
"That's the first reasonable idea you've said here!" snarled Remilia, who stormed over to the door and slammed it shut behind her as loud as she could. After a second, the door opened a crack and Remilia stuck her head back in. "Oh yeah, I almost forgot," she said sardonically. "Happy birthday, little sister!" The door slammed shut again, and as a result the picture of Flandre and Remilia happily hugging on the wall fell to the ground. Flandre made no attempt to hang it up again. Remilia, in her state of rage, did not remember to lock the door as she stomped up the stairs to the ground floor.
The Bamboo Forest of the Lost, as its name implied, was a place in which it was incredibly easy to lose one's way. Even though Reimu and Marisa had already navigated through it once before, they still found it nearly impossible to explore, especially in the dead of night.
"Is it just me, or have we been walking around in circles, ze?" said Marisa, stopping her walking gait and scratched the top of her head in confusion.
"Don't ask me," replied Reimu, who also stood still and looked all around the dark, dense forest in hopes of finding a landmark. "I get disoriented just trying to find my way across the Misty Lake."
Marisa leaned against one of the bamboo stalks casually. "Maybe we should have asked Mokou for directions before just charging in here, huh?"
Reimu snorted. "I wouldn't be surprised if she's still pissed off at us for trying to kill her last time. Unless you wanted to get your hat incinerated, we're better off this way."
"Figures that the only one who could help us would do that," laughed Marisa ironically. "Well, what are we going to do now?"
As Reimu and Marisa were discussing a way to get to Eientei, a young rabbit with snowy-white fur began to hop their way from behind a few thick bamboo stalks. It settled just a few feet from the girls and wriggled its nose curiously. Neither of them took notice of the rabbit at first, and it kept its gaze remained fixed on the two of them, interested about why two humans would be out here.
Just then, however, Marisa happened to turn around and spot the rabbit, which froze in place from being seen. "Hey, Reimu, look!" she said. "Maybe if we catch it, it will take us to Tewi!"
"It's worth a try," said Reimu. She bent down to eye level with the rabbit and smiled kindly. "Hi there, little guy. Can you show us where to find Tewi Inaba?" The rabbit remained frozen in place and didn't make any responsive gesture. Reimu extended her hand to the animal to show she meant no harm, but it only caused the rabbit to regain its mobility and quickly flee in the opposite direction.
"Damn it, Reimu!" shouted Marisa, who began to dash after the escaping rabbit. "We can't let it get away!" Instead of pursuing it, Reimu whispered a few words under her breath. Two orbs with yin-yang symbols on them began to materialize on either side of her body. From these, many carefully-aimed red bullets of pure energy were fired at the rabbit. As the bullets hit their target, the rabbit shrieked in shock and stopped where it was. Before it could recover from the surprise of the attack and continue running, Marisa closed in on the rabbit and scooped it up in her arms. "That worked out well," she admitted. "Okay, little fuzzy guy, say the way to Eientei, ze!"
"Whoa, whoa, whoa!" shouted an angry, high-pitched voice that was approaching the two girls. "Just what do ya think you're doing with that poor rabbit, huh?" Out of the darkness of the bamboo forest came a young-looking girl with short, black wavy hair, a plain and pale pink nightgown, a carrot necklace, and white, floppy rabbit ears.
"Apparently doing something right, since it brought us to you, Tewi!" said Marisa proudly.
"I don't really see how shooting at an innocent rabbit would lead you to me," replied Tewi sarcastically. She stepped closer to Marisa and snatched the rabbit out of her grasp.
"Relax," said Reimu. "Those weren't my attack bullets; they just gave a gentle zap to surprise the target, not hurt them." She stood next to Marisa and looked Tewi in the eyes. "Anyway, we've found you, so let's get down to business, shall we?"
"All right, all right," said Tewi. "What do you need from me, you two?" She released the rabbit from her arms, and it scurried away into the dark forest.
"We want to know what you were doing in the Scarlet Devil Mansion this afternoon," said Reimu. "You apparently told Hong Meiling that you had an appointment with Patchouli Knowledge, but she claims she made nothing like that."
Tewi laughed merrily at this question. "Right," she said. "Even though I've been out playing in Mayohiga the entire day, I'm apparently recorded as having been in the Scarlet Devil Mansion? That's a good one!"
Reimu raised an eyebrow. "So you didn't make an appointment with Patchouli, and you weren't in the Scarlet Devil Mansion at all today?"
"Of course not," confirmed Tewi. "Why would I want to see that grumpy witch, anyway? Eirin is much smarter and nicer than she is."
Marisa spoke up. "Let's not forget that you have a history of being a chronic liar, Tewi. Got any proof of what you're saying, ze?"
"Not really," admitted Tewi. "I don't really see why it's such a big deal, though. What is this all about?"
Reimu explained to Tewi about the letter that Remilia Scarlet had received earlier that night. "We've been trying to track down who delivered it to her, and it seems like the evidence currently points to you, Tewi."
"That's ridiculous," scoffed Tewi. "I pull harmless pranks on people, not send them death threats! What kind of rabbit youkai do you think I am?"
"Well, you might be telling the truth, and you might not be," said Marisa. "If you come back with us to the Scarlet Devil Mansion, we can clear up this whole matter."
Tewi yawned and stretched her arms into the air sleepily. "I think I'll pass on that idea. I've had a busy day, and I was just heading back to Eientei to get some rest. How about we get this whole thing settled tomorrow?"
"That's not going to work," said Reimu. "We've only got until midnight to do this, according to the letter, so you have to come back with us now."
"Too bad," said Tewi. "I'm too tired to do anything right now, so I'm not going with you. Good luck on your investigation anyway, though."
As Tewi began to walk through the dark forest of bamboo, Marisa smirked and pulled out a small octagonal block of wood from her dress. "If that's the way it's going to be, then I guess I can say I tried using non-violence on her at first."
Reimu groaned and quickly ducked behind a thick and sturdy bamboo stalk. "You get way too much pleasure out of using that thing, Marisa."
"Love Sign 'Master Spark'!" shouted Marisa, and all hell broke loose at that moment. An incredibly wide and bright laser spanning every color of the rainbow was released from the block she held, and it lit up the night as it charged forward. Some of the bamboo stalks that were in its path burned to ashes, and others were simply uprooted and tossed to the side like weeds. The beam made its way to Tewi in an instant, and she was swept up into the brilliant laser as well. Her cry of shock only lasted for a second, as afterwards she promptly fainted in the face of the blinding laser. Though the Master Spark completed its purpose in a matter of seconds, it still remained bright for a little while longer and continued its deafening roar. Finally, the light and sound faded, and Marisa put the block away again. "As they say, 'If words are useless, just let a huge freaking laser speak for you, ze!'"
"Uh huh," said Reimu, coming back from behind the bamboo. "Way too much pleasure, Marisa."
The two of them walked forward toward the rabbit who had received the brunt of the attack. She was lying on her back and sleeping peacefully, her chest gently expanding and contracting to allow air to flow in and out. Just as Reimu was about to tell Marisa to pick her up, the two orbs that were still orbiting around her body began to glow violet.
"Yukari to Reimu. Yukari to Reimu. Come in, Reimu," echoed a voice from the orbs. Reimu groaned again as she heard Yukari's annoyingly happy voice talking to her from a mile away.
"Don't tell me you've set up that communication system from when we solved the underground incident last month again, Yukari?" she guessed.
"Precisely," Yukari replied. "However, I didn't just set it up for you. I altered the boundary of truth and lies to make the statement that everyone in Gensokyo has communication devices be true. So…"
The Hakkero block that Marisa had used to power the Master Spark began to glow violet as well.
"Hello there, Marisa!" said Yukari cheerfully, her voice echoing from the Hakkero.
"Oh boy," said Marisa unenthusiastically. "Now you'll be able to watch over everything we do. How great."
"Sarcasm aside, you two seem to have found Tewi, which is good."
"We did," said Reimu. "Marisa conveniently knocked her out with a Master Spark. We're going to bring her back to you now."
"You might want to hold off on that for the moment," replied Yukari. "If Marisa brings Tewi back here, then you can continue towards Eientei to visit Kaguya and Eirin, Reimu. I would be surprised if the two of them have nothing to do with this if Tewi is indeed behind the letter."
"That would be fine, but I have no idea which way Eientei is. So I'll just be coming back too," replied Reimu a little too quickly.
"Sorry, Reimu, but you're not getting off the hook that easily," chuckled Yukari. "Just keep following in the direction that Tewi was going. You'll definitely reach Eientei that way." Reimu silently swore under her breath, but Yukari just continued to laugh. "In case you're wondering why I'm sending you off to do this instead of Marisa, there's really no reason. Well, maybe just the reason that your job as a shrine maiden is to do all the dirty work the rest of us don't want to do. All right, I'll see you back here shortly, Marisa. Good luck on your task, Reimu. Yukari out."
As Yukari finished speaking and let Reimu's yin-yang orbs and Marisa's Hakkero change back to their regular colors, she just managed to hear Reimu say "Damn it, Yukar—" before the ending of the conversation cut her cussing short. The television screen propped up on the table in front of her changed from showing the scene in the Bamboo Forest of the Lost to static.
"So that thing really lets you see stuff from far away, huh? Do we all get one?" asked Alice curiously, who was eagerly looking over Yukari's shoulder at the metal box.
Yukari shrugged and stifled a yawn. "I could give everyone in Gensokyo one… but I don't really feel like it right now. Audio communication devices should be sufficient enough to get through this incident with. Besides, it might be a bit unnerving for some to be using technology that shouldn't be around for another hundred years or so."
"If we've still got about a hundred years before this machine is invented, how did you get one, Yukari?" asked Patchouli, who had briefly looked up from her book at the opposite side of the table to see what the youkai was doing.
Yukari gave a devious smirk and twirled her parasol innocently. "Let's just say… I'm a girl who is always ahead of her time."
"So, in other words, you basically stole one straight out of the hands of someone in the outside world, right?" guessed Patchouli with a deadpan tone.
"Don't put it that way; it makes me sound like quite the villainess when you do," said Yukari with a look of mock scorn on her face. Using the table as leverage, she pushed herself out of the chair and stood up to face Patchouli. "Anyway, there's something we need to get done now, Patchy."
"What's that?" asked Alice and Patchouli simultaneously; each looked at the other with surprised expressions as they heard each other say their same question.
"Just as you asked, I have brought in people you can trust to help solve this incident, Patchouli," said Yukari with a serious and determined look on her face. "Therefore, I think it's only fair if I bring in someone of my own who I can trust to protect me."
"A shikigami?" asked Alice. She set her Shanghai doll on the table and stood up as well to get a good look at what Yukari was going to.
"Not just any old 'shikigami'," scoffed Yukari, who walked forward a few paces to get into the open space in the center of the library. "No, I summon a youkai whose power and abilities far exceed all but my own. One who has lived in this world long enough to be able to do outrageously complex mathematical problems and know all sorts of tricks you wouldn't even imagine. She is the only one that I trust with my life, in fact. I summon… Ran Yakumo!"
A fifteen foot crack tied with two red ribbons formed in the air of the library, and it split open to reveal a dark void full of eyes. Yukari stood and smiled proudly at the gap she had created for several moments. However, nothing came out of it at all, and after a few seconds, she frowned and cleared her throat. "I said, 'I summon a youkai whose powers and abilities', yadda yadda. Ran Yakumo, come on out!" Once again, the portal did not release any creature at all. "What the hell? She always comes right to my side when I call for her."
"Maybe you should try asking for her without making such a brilliant intro for her," suggested Alice sarcastically while sitting back down.
Yukari, however, nodded. "Maybe she is a little self-conscious tonight for some reason," she agreed. "Okay, Ran. Please come out, for I need you around this evening." This time, the portal remained still for a couple of seconds before spitting out a young animal youkai onto the floor. She was a cat with two furry black tails, a simple red dress adorned with a yellow bow, and cat ears, one of which had a gold earring pierced through it. The youkai looked up with a dazed expression that quickly turned eager at the sight of Yukari. She took a moment to straighten the green hat that was lying crooked on her head of messy brown hair and then stood up to face the woman herself.
"Hi there, Mistress Yukari!" she said gleefully. "What's up?" Patchouli and Alice exchanged confused glances, and Yukari showed the same expression to the cat.
"What are you doing here, Chen?" she asked, closing the portal that had formed effortlessly with a single thought process. "I called for Ran."
Chen shrugged innocently. "Well, Ran wasn't home at Mayohiga, so when I saw you calling her through a gap, I thought I'd come instead. Ran always tells me that, as her shikigami, I should take up her duties when she's not around."
Yukari's brow furrowed slightly, and she lightly fanned herself with the paper fan she carried. "Ran isn't home? That's a bit worrying, for she never goes out without first telling me where she's going."
"Well, she was here this afternoon, so she couldn't have gone off too far," said Chen. She gave her left ear a quick scratch before looking around at everything else in the library. "So, what are we doing here in the Scarlet Devil Mansion with Patchouli and Alice, anyway?"
"We're trying to solve the mystery behind a certain incident that has found its way to Miss Remilia," Patchouli answered from her place at the table.
Chen's eyes lit up as she heard this, and she grinned widely. "Really? An incident? Wow, I've never helped solve an incident before! So, what are we gonna do? Beat up some bad guys, and then save Gensokyo?"
"Whoa. Slow down, kitty," said Alice flatly. "We're just trying to find suspects at this point. Until we find any solid evidence pointing to perpetrators, there won't be any beating up."
While Chen lost a bit of the enthusiasm in her eyes, she still looked excited enough. "All right. This is still going to be really fun, though. Right, Mistress Yukari?"
Yukari, whose attention was focused on something other than the cat shikigami, slowly turned back to Chen. "Uh… yeah," she answered absentmindedly. "I just wish I knew where Ran went."
Patchouli coughed quietly to bring the attention back to her. "I suppose if we've got time left over after stopping the author of the letter, we could devote some time into finding Ran."
"That would be excellent," said Yukari, a grateful look in her eyes. "Anyway, Marisa should be coming back here any minute now, so let's go and greet her, Chen." The boundary youkai walked gracefully to the door of the library, with the cat shikigami energetically bouncing behind her.
As Youmu reached the foggy shores of the Misty Lake, she stopped her incredible speed for a moment to peek behind her. While it appeared as though she had lost Yuyuko in the great journey across Gensokyo to reach the Scarlet Devil Mansion, she couldn't be sure. The ghost princess had a habit of hiding herself in the shadows until Youmu would pass by, at which point she would leap out and make the gardener suffer a near-heart attack.
"I guess it doesn't really matter now that I'm here whether she's caught up to me or not," she mused. Even though she was a human with no wings, Youmu had no trouble flying for short distances at an altitude very close to the ground. It contradicted the natural laws of physics, but in a land like Gensokyo, the laws of physics were the unnatural ones. After taking a few steps back to give herself room, Youmu started up another supersonic dash that would allow her to clear the lake and reach the island in the center without even getting her feet wet. Letting only the velocity of the dash carry her, she was able to touch the grass and dirt on the island with her feet in a matter of seconds. Sneaking forward through the relatively empty meadow, Youmu quickly found herself staring right at the imposing mansion itself. At this point, she took another opportunity to observe what lay in front of her: the gatekeeper to the mansion Hong Meiling standing alert at her post, and her mistress's friend Yukari Yakumo nonchalantly sitting on the steps to the front door with her shikigami's shikigami Chen.
"Yukari!" shouted Youmu before she had a chance to stop herself. While it got Yukari's attention, it also made Meiling turn her way and spot her.
"Halt!" boomed Meiling in a loud, intimidating voice. "Identify yourself! If your intention is to invade the mansion and put my mistress's safety in danger, I assure you that it is an impossible and futile objective."
"N-no, that's not why I'm here," mumbled a frightened Youmu who drew back from the gate. "I just wanted to inform Remilia of a possible link I fund to the death threat letter."
Meiling walked right to Youmu and sized her up. "You don't seem to be exhibiting any threat," she declared, "but my statement remains, Miss Youmu. You cannot enter the mansion."
Youmu backed away a couple of paces, but bravely stared up into the eyes of the taller girl. "I must insist on entering. This is critically important. If Remilia doesn't learn of it, it may be her undoing."
Meiling folded her arms and returned the stare. "Sorry, but I must adhere to the orders I've been given. If you truly wish to enter, you can do so by defeating me first. Not that I would let myself lose, of course."
Without blinking, Youmu pulled her two swords out of their sheathes and brandished them rapidly at the gatekeeper. "If battling is the only way you'll let me enter, then I'd be happy to oblige."
"Very well," said Meiling, raising her arms up in an attacking position. "Prepare yourself for the most terrible pain you'll ever experience!"
Before either of them could land a blow, however, they were both distracted by the sound of Yukari chuckling with amusement. "The China gatekeeper Meiling versus the ghostly gardener Youmu in a battle of physical power? I seem to have extraordinary luck in witnessing the most epic battles in Gensokyo!" she proclaimed. "However, I think we're a little pressed for time today, and a fight wouldn't be a very sensible idea." She walked up to Meiling and put a hand on the gatekeeper's shoulder. "I'll vouch for Youmu, all right? Please be a dear and allow her to come inside. If she really has found a new link to the letter, it will be very helpful to us. And, if she's lying, I can just kill her myself." Watching Youmu's mouth fall to the ground, she laughed merrily to herself again. "Only kidding, Youmu. Probably, that is."
Meiling scratched the top of her head in confusion before finally dropping her battle stance. "Oh," she said sheepishly. "Well, if you need her to help you on the investigation, Yukari, I guess she can come in." She turned to Youmu and smiled with a blush. "Heh, sorry for impeding you like that."
Youmu returned her swords to their containers and curtly nodded. "It's fine," she said briskly, before turning back to Yukari. "If you're indeed the main person working on this operation to stop it, Yukari, then you really ought to know about this as soon as possible. After all, I'm pretty sure I was followed by Yuyuko, and she could be hiding around here and listening to us as we speak."
Yukari shot her a questioning glance as she twirled her parasol in two fingers. "Why would that be a bad thing, Youmu?"
"It shouldn't be on a regular occasion," responded the haunting voice of the ghost princess. Yuyuko Saigyouji walked out from behind one of the pillars lining the gate door of the mansion and approached the two. "Long time no see, Yukari," she greeted the youkai with a friendly smile. She then looked at Youmu with a stern expression on her face, something that rarely ever appeared. "Anyway, you were about to explain what link you've found. Go ahead; you've denied me of it long enough."
Knowing that she would not be able to handle two of the strongest girls in Gensokyo fighting her at the same time if she did not answer, Youmu wordlessly pulled out the newspaper article from that evening, a blank sheet of stationery she had kept, and the receipt for the order Rinnosuke had given to her before she left his shop. Looking away, she shoved all three of the items in Yukari's hands.
"Hmm… okay," said Yukari, carefully analyzing each of the pieces of paper she had been given. "It seems pretty obvious that little Youmu here saw the picture of the letter in the article and suspected you, Yuyuko, of being behind it after you purchased a great quantity of stationery with the same pattern as the one in the picture."
"Why, that is absurd!" said Yuyuko, appalled. "I would never try to murder an innocent girl; that's not the type of killing ghost I am. Besides, not only do I use those papers for just writing my story and nothing else, it would be very stupid for me to use my unique stationery to write such an important letter, wouldn't it?"
Youmu looked down at her feet, and Myon hung its tail downward. "I… guess it would be," she admitted with a face as red as a ground cherry. "I just wanted to make sure Remilia would stay safe tonight, and helping out with a possible lead seemed like a way to do my part. I apologize, Lady Yuyuko."
Yuyuko's disconcerted expression changed back into her usual warm smile. "I accept your apology, Youmu." She patted the gardener on the head and lightly ruffled up her hair. "Just don't disobey me again, all right? You can trust me to help you with any problems you might have."
Before Youmu could reply an affirmative answer, she was interrupted by another loud voice. "Hey there, everybody! I brought back a rabbit!" Marisa, who was riding her broom with a groggy Tewi Inaba in the night sky above the mansion, tilted her aim downward to aim towards the courtyard ground. As soon as she her broom become parallel and only a few inches off of the ground, Marisa hopped off, dragging the rabbit behind her by the wrist.
"Hey, Tewi!" said Chen, who was enthusiastically watching what was going on. Tewi, however, only replied with an incomprehensible grunt.
"She saw the power of love in the form of a giant seven-colored laser," explained Marisa after she saw the confusion in Chen's eyes.
"Now that our prime suspect has been delivered here, how about we all head inside for the questioning?" said Yukari. "You too, Yuyuko; the sooner we can officially clear you as innocent, the better." With no objections, the six of them walked up the path into the front door of the mansion. Meiling, who was watching the whole scene with curiosity in her eyes, turned back to the night to look for intruders as she became alone again.
"No 'Hi, Meiling, how are you doing' from any of them?" she said to herself. "Gatekeepers get lonely, too."
The back room of the library was primarily used for storage nowadays, as Koakuma had grown out of it a while ago and now slept in an official bedroom in the Scarlet Devil Mansion. However, its dim light from the single hanging lightbulb and cramped layout gave it the perfect atmosphere for an interrogation room, as its purpose was at the moment.
Tewi Inaba, who had finally gained her senses back, sat on a dusty wooden chair and faced Yukari, Yuyuko, Alice, and Chen (who received the recommendation that she should leave so she doesn't see her friend in this state, but wanted to stay by Yukari's side anyway).
"All right, Tewi," said Yukari. "We've got a little more than three hours before Remilia supposedly shall meet her death. So, we're going to want to get the answers as quickly as possible. As long as you comply, you'll be out of here before you know it if you're innocent. Understand?" Tewi chose not to answer verbally, but nodded her head all the same.
"Good," said Alice. "So, why don't you start by telling us why you were in the Scarlet Devil Mansion this afternoon?"
Tewi snorted. "I don't because I was never in here at all today. Not for a 'special appointment' with Patchouli, and certainly not to drop off a death threat."
Alice pursed her lips at the lack of an answer and pulled out the record sheets for 4:00 PM to 5:00 PM on that afternoon. "These are the official sheets that Hong Meiling uses to record the names of everyone who goes in the mansion and for what purpose. So, why does it list you as having entered the mansion at 4:55 for an appointment?"
Tewi shrugged and rubbed one of her ears between two fingers. "Because it's a piece of crap that someone doctored up to frame me? I don't care what a sheet of paper says about where I've been today; I spent the entire afternoon at Mayohiga playing with Chen."
"She's right! We were both playing at that time, and neither of us went anywhere near here until tonight," confirmed Chen.
"Now, Chen," said Yukari with a slightly condescending tone, "I know Tewi is your friend, but—"
"I'm not just covering for her, Mistress Yukari!" said Chen indignantly. "I'm telling the truth! If Ran comes back tonight, she can verify it."
Alice picked up the very letter Remilia had received earlier that day. "So, what do you know about this document, Tewi?"
"Nothing that you haven't told me, I swear," Tewi replied. She leaned forward in her chair to get a better look at the paper. "Hang on a second…"
"What? Did you see something strange about it?" asked Alice, who held it closer to Tewi so she could see it easier.
"Could it be…" Tewi absentmindedly wondered out loud.
"Yes?" pressed Yukari. "Don't leave us in the dark, Tewi!"
Tewi suddenly looked up with an angry scowl at all the girls who were looking down at her. "If this is your idea of a joke, you people have a sick sense of humor, and I'm not laughing!"
Alice looked questioningly at the rabbit. "Nobody is pulling a joke here. What are you so upset about?"
Instead of answering, Tewi reached into the folds of her dress and produced a small piece of paper. "Read this memo I was given today and see if anything jumps out at you," she said, with a remaining look of disbelief.
Yukari pulled the memo out of the rabbit's hands and read it out loud. "'Tewi – Don't forget to mail the prescriptions Eirin gave to you before you come home tonight. Signed, Reisen'," she said. "Ah, I think I get it now." Taking back the letter from Tewi's hands, she compared the two of them side by side.
"What are you getting at, Yukari?" asked Yuyuko, who was looking over her shoulder with interest.
Yukari pointed at various parts of both of the letters. "Take a look at how the capital Ts and lowercase Ys are written in both of the letters. In the former case, the Ts are drawn with a little bit of a hanging extension off of both edge of the horizontal top. In the latter, every y is written with a bit of a spiral on the tail. It's too much to pass off as just a coincidence. In fact, the overall handwriting appears to be completely identical to that written in the memo."
"So, the author of Remilia's death threat is Reisen Udongein Inaba!" concluded Chen with an excited cry.
"We can't be entirely sure of that, as it's not clear if Tewi is telling the truth or not, but it would seem that way," agreed Alice. "What's more, I'm almost certain that she wrote it out of her own volition."
"H-how can you be so certain of that?" demanded Tewi, her face flushing red as the idea of her fellow rabbit youkai being behind the letter began to sink in.
"If she were forced to write the letter," continued Alice, "she would undoubtedly be nervous, and thus her hands would shake and make the handwriting messy. The letter, however, has some of the neatest handwriting I have ever seen in my life; a hostage would never manage to write that neatly. We must assume that if Reisen is indeed the author of the letter, she either is willingly working with or is the mastermind herself."
[A/N]: Three hours have passed since the beginning of the story, and the action is starting to heat up!
In this story, Chen and Tewi are not technically members of Team ⑨ like they sometimes are in other stories, but they are still good friends and are on generally good terms with Cirno and her friends.
Writing the argument between Flandre and Remilia was quite fun, as it reminds me of the fights that I would sometimes have with my older sister. None of ours ever escalated to the height that theirs' did, but they were still useful for inspiration.
In case Yukari's brief explanation of the communication system she set up seemed a bit confusing, here's the lowdown: everyone in Gensokyo now has a device that they can use to talk to others over long distance like a cell phone; usually, it's featured in their signature item. They can communicate with anyone else they've personally met, but not with those they haven't. Yukari also has the ability to watch what others are doing with her television, just as she did in the events of Subterranean Animism.
So, is Reisen indeed the author of the letter, and can she be stopped before it's too late if she is? Will the family bonds between Flandre and Remilia snap in the heat of the day? Where has Ran disappeared off to? What will Kaguya and Eirin think of two of their rabbits being under suspicion of being behind this plot?
Please review, and look forward to the next chapter of Temporal Quintessence!