Nighttime at the Hakurei Shrine, which is in the care of the most unlikely of people, yet they have earned Reimu's; the shrine's maiden; trust, and for that sole reason they feel all sorts of panic from the predicament they are in.
From outside the shrine's living quarters, just a step away from the front door, the adorable karakasa youkai, Kogasa Tatara, stands with her eggplant colored, one-eyed umbrella held on her hands, contemplating on the decision to whether attempt to knock on the door, or turn around and run away while she still can.
From outside, she can hear furniture cracking, plates breaking, people shouting, little girls crying, old ladies cackling, and she swears she heard an organ playing a moment ago.
Kogasa takes a deep breath, fills herself up with as much courage she can manage, then grabs the door, slides it open, and with her eyes closed, she shouts "excuse me, is Rika here?"
The shrine is now silent, and from inside many eyes are now all aimed at the karakasa youkai.
On the center of the living room, Ail kneels on something gold, and has his left cheek covered by a bandage, and his right eye looks black.
To his left is Marisa, who is holding some rope, is missing her hat, has half of her shirt has been ripped off, showing off her pale belly, and looks as though a hurricane just struck her head.
Suzaku perches on Ail's head, and although she looks fine, her neck is missing a good chunk of feathers, evident when she ruffles and shakes her head.
Mima sits with her legs crossed on the floor on a corner with Budou on her lap, and although both girls look fine, the little bat youkai seems to have been crying for a long time.
Sanae is over at the kitchen, away from all the mess while preparing a meal for everyone, and when Kogasa gets a better look, she notices what, or in this case, who is under Ail and Marisa.
The old partying lady who calls herself Michiko, is now trapped and tied up by her ankles and wrists, but even so, she struggles so strongly, both Ail and Marisa are having a hard time just keeping her in place.
The entire shrine is a mess.
There are clothes scattered everywhere, plates broken on the ground, and one plate is stuck on to wall to the rooms corridor as though it was used as a chakram, there are pieces of what are supposed to be doors and cabinet doors scattered about, and the small table used for dinner looks like it has just been mended, and has a visible crack on the middle.
Kogasa stands dumbstruck under the door's archway as she looks inside, and after deciding to ignore what she has just seen, she asks "um... so, has anybody seen her? I need to tell her something very important."
Michiko wriggles under Marisa and Ail, almost knocking the boy down, then shouts "hey, how about helping this old lady! This is abuse of power I say!"
Marisa looks down and angrily says "quiet you! You're paying for my new shirt, you evil witch!"
The woman raises her left eye, revealing her golden eye as she says in an undertone "watch your tongue missy."
From the kitchen, Sanae sighs, then says "she's at Makai right now, and will be back much later. If you want to wait-"
Kogasa rapidly replies "no, this can't wait! Hijiri said it was very, very important that I delivered this message with haste! Shou then said something about going postal on me if I failed."
Ail raises an eyebrow while staring at Kogasa, who is looking up to the ceiling while saying "and I didn't like the sound of that, but I really don't get what she meant."
Ail smiles, points to the back with his thumb, then says "just head all the way behind the shrine until you reach some mountains, and there you should find the gates to Makai. Once in there, just find the lake, and you'll find the palace of Pandemonium. Rika should be there."
Kogasa smiles, squeals with glee, waves her right hand in the air, then says "thanks. Now please excuse me while I go on my quest to find Rika-sis! See you all later."
After that, Kogasa closes the door, then can be heard as she flies away, and that's when Budou finally sighs and says "really, she could have helped a little."
Without realizing it, Budou is now in the lap of the old Michiko, who smiles as she says "I'll say. She's as cute as you, but lacks your brain sweetheart."
When Budou realizes where she is, she starts screaming and tries to fly away, only to get caught and held by the old lady, while Ail and Marisa gasp with surprised when they realize it is now Mima who is knocked out underneath their knees.
Suzaku squawks angrily, Ail points at Michiko, then Marisa screams "get that west-side witch!"
And so, the loud noises, screams and cries resume while the partying old lady cackles away and says "now THIS is a party!"
Meanwhile, at Makai, inside Pandemonium's beautiful and spacious dining room, Shinki, the Makaians, and Rika, are all bowing down while facing the entrance to the large room, where a rather small figure stands.
The figure is none-other than Shikieiki Yamaxanadu, who has green hair that seems to be tied up, but her blue hat with golden and black ornaments that make it look as though she has horns, hides her hairstyle well, though her hair does seem to be longer on the left side, hinting for a side-ponytail.
She has dark blue eyes and wears a blue shirt that reaches down to her thighs and has long white sleeves and a pair of golden shoulder pads that resemble the Golden Rod of Remorse on her hands, her black skirt is half-covered by her shirt and reaches down to her knees, a pair of white socks, and black shoes that have a red and white ribbon for adornment.
She also adorns her head with a red and white ribbon that has the white side to her right and the red side to her left, and ties a white ribbon around her right arm, and a red one on her left.
The Yama of Paradise looks around and feels a bit embarrassed about the reception, but she accepts it never the less.
Shinki is the first to straighten up, then raises her arms in a welcoming manner while saying "welcome to my palace lady Shiki! Please, come on over and take your seat."
Shikieiki slightly bows, then walks toward Shinki, bows again, then says "thank you for having me. Shall we indulge on this meal?"
Taking the seat to the right of Shinki, Eiki now has Rika right in front, who looks at the Yama with great curiosity.
At first, Shikieiki is sharing some cheerful conversation with Shinki, but quickly notices Rika's unblinking stare.
Curious, Shikieiki turns to look at Rika and asks "miss Rika, what is it?"
Rika stares for a bit longer, then yelps when she realizes what she is doing.
After waving her hands around, Rika calms down, bows her head, then says "I'm sorry, it's just that you seem to be so important, yet I don't... wait..."
Rika raises her head and squints her eyes to get a better look, then says "I have... met you before... during my trip back home, and... and you-"
Shikieiki smiles as she raises her hand to stop Rika from saying more, then says "allow me to introduce myself. I am Shikieiki Yamaxanadu, the Yama who judges the dead here in paradise."
Rika gasps, yelps loudly, and thrashes about as she clumsily gets off her chair, knocking it to the ground while still trying to get on her feet, and when she's finally up, she suddenly drops on her knees, knocks her forehead on the table with a loud bang, making Shinki gasp with surprise and making even Yumeko flinch at the sight, then finally bows so low to the ground her throbbing forehead is touching the carpet.
Even though her head throbs, Rika nervously says "I am so sorry, please forgive this maid's rudeness! I didn't fully understand who you were, lady Shiki!"
As she does this, she thinks "yes, she's the one that gave me Suzaku, the one that made me understand my love for Gensokyo, and now I see why she knows me, and... Oh by the gods, why was I so blind to this? I hope she forgives me."
Shikieiki sighs as she gets off her chair with a tired look on her face, then slowly makes her way to Rika, who is still bowing low to the ground.
She grabs Rika by her right arm, pulls her up on her feet, flinches at the sight of the bump on Rika's head, then says "Rika, we are not in my courtroom, nor are you on trial. Please, treat me as you would a friend, if you'd be so kind."
Rika looks into Shiki's eyes for a moment, nods, then stands up on her own.
Meanwhile Shikieiki thinks "my dear, dear friend. All these hardships you have endured, and all that are yet to come. If it were up to me, I'd stop all of this, but..."
Shikieiki blinks and her eyes become distant as she stares at Rika and thinks "but one day... I will have to tell you, explain to you everything, remind you of that horrible past. Life can be so unfair, and yet you smile like you did back then. You truly are worthy of-"
Shiki's thought are brought to a halt when Rika asks "lady Shiki, are you alright?"
Shikieiki shakes her head a little, looks back at Rika, then smiles, pats her head, then says "I'm sorry. Seems I got lost in thought there."
Rika smiles back, that angelical smile of hers, lightly flaps her wings, then says "well, as long as you are well. And thank you, lady Shiki. I would be honored to be your friend."
Shikieiki smiles back, then says "well then, stop calling me 'lady'. I am your friend, so please address me as such."
Rika bows lightly with a smile on her face, then says "alright la- er, I mean, miss Shiki."
Shikieiki sighs and rolls her eyes, knows that's as far as Rika would go when addressing someone, save that celestial friend of hers, then gives Rika a friendly pat on the back, saying "that's more like it."
That moment, Rika's sword takes its colorful shape, and the jewel on the hilt glows an intense pink, and even Rika gets surprised at the sight.
Once the glow dims, and the sword returns to normal, Shiki returns to her seat, takes a silver fork, then says "come. Wasting food is a sin, so let us eat now."
Rika giggles and nods, realizes her chair is back in its place, then sits down and begins to enjoy the meal of vegetables, soups, dumplings, and plenty of sweet meals and treats.
Shinki has a bit of blood dripping from her nose as she stares at Rika, and doesn't notice her hand is in her soup without holding any bread.
Alice giggles at the sight, then helps Shanghai and Hourai cut their servings of meat to a size they can eat by themselves.
Meanwhile, while the meal is being enjoyed by the Makaians and their guests at Pandemonium, over at the gate to Gensokyo, a little karakasa youkai has just entered through said gate and has started moving toward the city, looking for Rika and deliver a message.
It doesn't take Kogasa long to reach the city, but instead of following Ail's instructions, she decides to land right in front of the awful Shinki statue in the center of the city, seeing as her curiosity has taken the best of her.
Gazing upon such glorious monstrosity, Kogasa gasps with admiration and says "wow, that must be miss Shinki. S-she's looks a little more intimidating than I thought."
Just as she says that, the left nostril spews out fire, making her scream and jump back out of fright, tumbling backward and bumping against the back of someone quite large.
The large muscled creature with yellow skin with short red hair, red eyes, and wearing a sleeveless open black vest and jeans, looks back at the nervous karakasa and gruffly says "hey, watch it you... whoever you are."
Kogasa stammers nervously for a bit until she manages to say "um, um, I'm sorry, I was... that statue started spitting fire, and I-", and that's when she notices what the Makaian and a few other of his sibling were doing.
They have a large screen under a small roof, eating cookies and watching the dinner party over at Pandemonium.
The screen shows Shinki most of the time and after looking at her for a bit, Kogasa says "but she doesn't look so scary."
The large being beside her laughs, pats her back so hard, the poor karakasa is bent forward, then happily says "lady Shinki isn't scary at all! Well... at least when she's not mad. We are watching this dinner party of hers because she asked us to, but all we've seen is them eating alongside the evil Rika."
Kogasa gasps and angrily says "hey, Rika isn't evil!"
All the Makaians there, turn their attention to Kogasa, who is hyperventilating while her cheeks turn red with rage and looks around with scowled eyes.
She lays her eyes on one particular blonde demon-girl dressed in red and black; the same one that recognized Rika's white blood the day before, named Lemia; then says "Rika is a very nice and kind person who treats everyone with respect and kindness!"
Lemia looks back at Kogasa with curiosity and asks "wait, you're a youkai and you are defending a white blood? Kid, I hate to brake it to ya' but white blooded beings like her hunt and purify creatures like you and me."
All the Makaians nod and agree, making Kogasa wave her hands around rapidly while shouting "no, no, no, NO! You don't know her! Rika is very nice to all of us youkai, and there is this demon girl that calls her 'onee-chan' too, and, and Rika treats her just like she would treat a human!"
The Makaians don't look too convinced, so Kogasa continues "l-look, she even SAVED a vampire and me from her own blood! She cut her finger once and she didn't let me help cure her because she said I could get hurt."
Kogasa starts pondering for a moment, then says "of course, I didn't understand then, but she was nice enough to explain it to me."
The large yellow-skinned Makaian chuckles, then says "look, don't defend that evil woman with fake stories. She tried to steal our mother, and that's all the proof I need to know that she's evil!"
The Makaians nod and agree, and that's when Kogasa waves both hand and feet and shouts "you are the evil ones that made Rika-sis cry!"
The Makaians look at the karakasa youkai with confusion and curiosity, then Kogasa hands over to them a pack of pictures she pulls out of her left pocket.
The blonde Makaian stares at them, then Kogasa says "look! There is proof! Picture of Rika-sis protecting me from her blood, and hanging out with that demon girl, and giving me food! Look!"
One picture shows Rika desperately holding up her right hand with her index finger held high, trying to keep the blood away from Kogasa, who seems to want to reach it and wrap it in bandages.
Another shows Rika laughing with Koakuma and another one of the shrine maid patting the red haired little demon's head.
Another shows Rika serving meals to Kogasa, as well as other youkai and a pair of vampires that had visited the shrine.
Before turning to the next picture, Kogasa says "you see? I don't know how the heck you got the idea that Rika-sis was stealing your mother, but the truth speaks louder, and Rika-sis would first cut her own wings before stealing anybody's mom!"
The Makaians keep looking at the pictures, and all, even Lemia, seem to be having second thoughts about Rika.
The yellow-skinned Makaian groans softly, then says "but... Yumeko said Rika was evil. That she was putting a spell on mom with these glowing meat buns."
Kogasa makes a rude sound with her lips, spitting out some saliva around, then says "those meat buns? Didn't you try them? They are the BEST! Sis put a spell on them that make them taste like the tastiest thing you very tasted in your life!"
The Makaians look confused at each other, then suddenly, a being that looks like a thin green stick with two blue eyeballs for a head and thin long green fingers points at the television screen and says "hey, look! Lady Shinki's about to speak!"
Lemia, the yellow-skinned being, their other brothers and sisters, and now Kogasa as well, all turn their attention to the screen, where Shinki is standing in front of the table with a stern, yet tired look on her face.
Over at Pandemonium, just outside the dining room, two unlikely intruders, a black haired shrine maiden in red and white, Reimu Hakurei, and a blue haired celestial with a very handy sword, Tenshi Hinanai, are enjoying a bit of the meal they somehow manage to steal from inside.
Floating while holding their bowls and eating their soups, Tenshi nudges Reimu with her left elbow and says "see, I told you this food was good."
As the celestial gulps down the last of her soup, Reimu sighs happily after having finished her own soup and says "I guess I owe you a meal when we get back home. Still, it was my stealth that got us these, so..."
Before Reimu can continue, Tenshi looks back at Reimu as though she's been insulted, then says "well it was my sword that saved you from the trap on the window."
Reimu grunts inward, she knows she can't argue that point, so she skillfully changes the subject by asking "think they'll be mad that we took so many plates?"
Tenshi and Reimu now look at the large stack of empty plates, trays, bowls and mugs neatly placed on the window's arc, while Tenshi says "nah, it's just what... Fifteen, twenty meals the most."
Reimu chuckles, then says "I guess you're right."
The girls realize the room inside is suddenly very quiet, and that a small demon maid has come to pick up the plates these two intruders have licked clean, though they all ignore each other, and the maid just goes about her business as usual.
After the little demon is gone, Reimu and Tenshi look inside and see the tables have been cleared of all the plates, cups and utensils, and that Shinki is standing up while looking around.
Curious, Tenshi whispers "what's going on now?"
Reimu shushes her, then whispers "I think she's about to give a speech of sorts."
Inside the room, Shinki waits for all her children to notice her and quiet down.
While she waits, she looks seriously at Shikieiki, who bows her head just slightly, then Shinki nods back in acknowledgment.
After everyone's eyes are on Shinki, she takes a deep breath, looks sternly at her children, then says "my children and honored guests, I hope you have enjoyed this meal. Now, let it be known that this gathering was not for just a simple dinner."
The goddess throws a stern glance at all her children, ending with Yumeko, who twitches in place but growls inward.
Shinki knows her children still do not understand anything, and what's more, none regret what happened the day before, evident when she notices the dirty looks shot at Rika from several of the Makaians.
Shinki sighs, then says "I brought you all here, and asked those that did not wish to come to watch from their homes so that I may tell you something very important... Something you all ought to know."
The goddess of Makai closes her eyes, takes a deep breath, then her face looks as though she is now reminiscing in the past, then loudly says "I am going to tell you all a story, so please listen well..."
"There was once a young girl that lived surrounded by a family who loved her, a family that had selected her as their next leader.
These were people of greatness, and this girl was to lead them with kindness and love.
The girl suffered needlessly during her childhood, and just as she found peace in both soul and body, her parents leave her through an unfortunate accident, trying to save her from sharing their fate.
Yet they failed, and this young girl stood between life and death, but a Yama took notice of her, explored her life, saw all the needless suffering she went through, and this mighty being took sympathy on the girl.
The Yama saw something else, something unexpected; she saw how pure this girl's soul was, how amazingly bright her light was, but also saw chained darkness inside; chained so as not to taint the light of this little one's soul.
Amazed by this pure soul, the Yama though that it would be a waste to let such a being die, to take her away from that corrupt world, to not allow her the chance to shine her light and allow those who seek salvation to escape the darkness from such dark and corrupt world, to make the world itself a brighter place to live in.
This Yama wants to save her life, and so asks the Yama of that world to spare the girl, and explains how this girl could be a great asset in recovering that, and any other world she might end up in.
This other Yama doesn't comply, and the concerned Yama soon learns that the only way this young girl could be spared is that she becomes even more of a holy being.
The Yama had the answer, but not the means to do such a thing, so regret takes the mighty being as it seems this pure soul will be lost, but hope soon fills the Yama as soon as she remembers something.
She knows of a goddess that would be more than willing to assist in saving this girl, especially after considering who this goddess met, and what was promised by her.
The Yama approaches the goddess with her dilemma, and this goddess quickly agrees to help, and by pouring a few drops of her own blood into this girl's very veins, this girl becomes holy and bright enough to take that world's Yama's attention, and so be spared from death.
The goddess was now allowed to visit the girl every year to make sure to make this girl's life is more bearable, but was not allowed to reveal herself to said girl.
The reason for this was so that the girl could grow stronger, so that she could carry on with her life and shine her light, to impact others with her own bright soul and make the world a better place, even if done so in a subtle manner.
After this girl came of age, just as that Yama and the goddess wanted, she was sent to another world, a paradise for the girl, a world where she would experience friendship and love by many, and that she could be appreciated for what she was worth.
This girl, even with the many conflicts and dangers of this paradise, is living in happiness, where she deserves to be; where anyone deserves to be! This girl... who has found her paradise after so many unfair and hard trials, has never been happier."
After finishing her story, Shinki takes a deep breath, and after a long exhale, she opens her eyes to meet a lot of astonished faces, all staring straight at her.
Even over at the city, the Makaians and the little karakasa youkai that accompanies them share the same astonishment.
Over at the dining room, Shinki looks around at all these faces, then notices Shikieiki's face to be the only one filled with nostalgia as though she's reminiscing about the past in her mind.
Shinki sighs, then looks at Rika with a warm motherly face, snapping Rika from her astonishment and making her blush.
Outside the dining room, while Tenshi looks sternly at Shinki, Reimu seems to be lost in thought, apparently trying to connect this story, and when it seems she's got it, she smiles and whispers to herself "oohhh, I see~."
Inside the dining room, while Shinki keeps her eyes locked on Rika's, she takes a deep breath and says "and that girls is sitting right between us, and she happens to be looking back at me with quite an adorable blush on her face."
All the Makaians express their shock as loudly as they can and immediately set their shocked faces at Rika, who doesn't even notice they are looking at her as she keeps her eyes locked straight on Shinki's.
Of all the Makaians, Yumeko seems to have taken this revelation quite hard, her eyes trembling and ready to shed tears as her mouth is kept wide open.
As she stares at Shinki and Rika, she thinks "sh-she has mother's blood? But how; b-but... why didn't I feel this? Why did I... What the hell have I done?"
Yumeko now joins her closest sister in staring at Rika in shock, and although Yuki and Alice don't really seem that surprised, they still can't help but stare at Rika.
Inside her mind, the shrine maid starts piecing together certain events that occurred while she was living in the future world she grew up in.
Still in shock, Rika instinctively pulls out her Saboten Stock from her left pocket, and without even looking at it, she pushes the button and takes out two small golden boxes from inside.
Almost trembling and with glassy eyes, Rika opens one of the boxes, revealing it's a music box that plays a calming song that seems to soothe the spirit, and says "Wh-White Sakura".
She stares at Shinki with a blank face as she raises the open music box to present it to the goddess, and Shinki, retaining her motherly smile, nods in acknowledgement.
Rika trembles a bit as she remembers herself, being younger and in a playground during winter, wearing a thick yellow coat, a red cap with a black puff on the tip, black pants, and thick black cross laced boots, sitting on a cold stone bench all by herself because the other children refuse to play with her.
To her left, several children play on snow-covered swings and teeter-totters, to her right others play a simple game of Duck-Duck-Goose and others slide down the snow-covered slides, and right behind her, a group of girls play with dolls on makeshift houses made of snow, all laughing and giggling amongst themselves.
Rika remembers herself as she was just about to break down to cry out of loneliness, but that's when a figure cloaked in dark red robes approaches her right, gives her the music box, then says "don't give up little girl. Don't let their rejection get to you, as you are the most beautiful flower in this snow.", revealing to be a woman because of her voice.
These words make the little girl smile and giggle.
Little Rika dries up her own tears with her left forearm, and when she opens her eyes to thank the cloaked woman, she realizes the woman is gone, but her memory forever remains.
Returning from her past thoughts, Rika, who is still in a state of shock, closes the first music box, picks up the second one, then opens it up, making it play a beautiful tune filled with hope, peace, and a sense of warmth, and says "Happy Birthday."
A tear trails down Rika's left cheek as she blankly presents it to Shinki, who once again nods with that motherly smile on her face, making Rika smile back and shed a second tear that trails down her right cheek, making a twin for the trail still marked on her left cheek.
Again, Rika's mind drifts to the past, where she remembers being alone inside her room during her birthday.
She has a small white-framed bed sitting to the left of the room, with white and pink plaid sheets, a light-yellow pillow, and a single stuffed bear to the right of the pillow.
Although this room is clearly the room of a young girl, with its walls and roof painted in pastel colors, other than the stuffed bear on the bed, there is nothing else, no toys, dolls, nothing other than a chrome desk on the right wall next to the door, and on it is a single potted plant with a blue flower bud that seems just about ready to bloom.
To the left of this plant is a box of coloring pencils and many scattered drawings of flowers, trees, and families living happily in little homes that always seem to have a large flower garden around them.
That day, though being young Rika's birthday, she was all alone as all those that cared for her were busy with their jobs, just like past years, though that year Rika felt alone, and just about ready to break again.
She sits on the side of her bed and looks down to her feet, closes her burning teary eyes, sniffle, and when she opens them again, that same cloaked figure is standing right in front of her, holding out her hand and offering another music box.
As young Rika accepts the box, picking it with her right hand, the figure says "never give up little one. Always follow what you feel is right, and you will be able to reach the sky one day."
The cloaked woman bends down, Rika closes her eyes, the woman kisses little Rika on the forehead, and when Rika opens her eyes again, the woman is gone.
Even though the woman is gone, the memory remains engraved in Rika's mind forever.
Just as Rika returns from her memories, she finds herself back inside the dining room with Alice, Shikieiki, and all the Makaians surrounding her, but more surprisingly, Shinki is now embracing Rika the same way a mother would embrace her child, and combing the shrine maid's hair with her fingers, Shinki feels how Rika trembles and sobs silently on her left shoulder.
Outside the dining room, Reimu and Tenshi both glare at Shinki, Tenshi biting her thumb while growling, and Reimu simply tapping her gohei on her left hand.
Reimu narrows her eyes as she stares at Shinki, then sinisterly says "yeah, that's right. You keep hugging her like that... while you can"
Tenshi growls and adds "that should be me down there."
Reimu turns her eyes to Tenshi, then says "you would try, and I would kill you."
Inside the large room, Rika breaks free from Shinki's hug, making the goddess blush when she realizes she may have overdone it a bit.
With a bright smile on her face, Rika bows to Shinki and says "lady Shinki, I thank you... from the bottom of my heart, thank you for all that you have done for me! I really don't know if I'll ever be able to thank you properly for everything, but... Thank you so very much!"
Unable to contain herself, Shinki throws her left arm around Rika's shoulder, pulls her close and tight, then she raises her right hand in the air as she declares "and so, my jealous little children, let it be known that from this day forth, Rika Onkamikami is welcome in Makai, and she is to be treated as one of our own! She is, in a manner of speaking, your half sister, and so should be treated in kind. And now that you all know the truth, you will accept her as you have accepted Alice! Am I right?"
Shinki winks at her children and the cameras, and can see and feel all of her Makaian children, including Alice, Shanghai and Hourai, swelling up with emotions as they look back at Rika and Shinki with longing eyes.
Rika can feel her own happiness swelling up, and as she bows her head to Shinki, she smiles as she thinks "this is... this is great. I actually have a... a family now. I'm not alone anymore!"
Rika suddenly stops smiling, gently breaks away from thinki, and looks at Shikieiki with wonder, starts walking around the table to reach the Yama, then feels a hand grab on to her wrist and pull her away.
Alice has grabbed Rika's left wrist, and as she pulls Rika away from Shiki and Shinki, she says "come with me for a moment."
Rika looks confused as she follows Alice, then says "but wait, I need to ask something to miss Eiki."
Alice smiles, then says "don't worry, she'll be here for a while. Besides, this is important."
Rika looks at Alice's smile, then looks ahead of them to see that Yumeko, Mai, Luize, Sara, Shanghai, Hourai, Yuki, and all of the Makaians that joined them in the dining room are all standing in a huge bunch, similar to the time when they threatened her, only this time, instead of murderous faces, she sees regretful smiles and frowns.
Once she and Alice are right in front of Yumeko, Alice says "alright Yumeko, go ahead."
Rika looks at Alice while she speaks, then turns to look at Yumeko, who blushes bashfully while fiddling with her fingers and looking around the room, as though looking for somewhere to hide.
The Makaian maid clears her throat, straightens herself up, looks straight at Rika with intensity in her eyes, then calmly says "R-Rika... o-on behalf of my brothers and sisters... and myself, of course... I want to apologize."
After Yumeko says this, her brothers and sisters start nodding in assent, some sniffling, and Mai looking away to try and hide her tears of regret.
Before Rika can speak, Sara says "we should have noticed from the start that you were one of us! We are so ashamed!"
Luize immediately adds "we're so sorry for everything! We just thought you were... um, taking... taking mom away from us, and..."
Shanghai flies to Luize's right, slaps her cheek, then says "that's for being an idiot."
Shanghai turns her head to notice Rika raising her right arm as though asking her to stop, then Rika says "it's alright. Please don't punish them. They were just protecting their mother after all. But it's alright. I forgive you all, and, if you'll accept me, I'd love nothing more than to consider you all as my brothers and sisters too."
Some Makaians gasp in surprise, others lower their heads in shame, and Yumeko, being the strong being that she is, approaches Rika, lifts her right hand to waist-height, then smiles and says "from now and forever, you are our adoptive Makai sister, just like Alice."
Rika smiles, raises her own right arm, then both she and Yumeko grab each other's forearms and tighten their grip, causing the Makaians to cheer "welcome home sis!"
The moment they grip each other, Rika's sword changes to its colorful state, and right after it does, the jewel on the hilt starts glowing an intense pink that rapidly surrounds everyone inside the palace, the light going so far as to escape through all of the dining room's windows.
Over at the city, the large yellow-skinned Makaian has Kogasa in a deathly hug as he cries and says "you were right little youkai! Rika wasn't taking mom, she was just trying to come home!"
Lemia approaches the bulky being, taps his forearm with her finger, then says "you're suffocating her."
The bulky man gasps and says "oh, sorry.", releasing one dizzy karakasa youkai and her one-eyed umbrella, and letting them fall sprawled on the ground, where she breaths some fresh air.
Lemia helps Kogasa up on her feet, dusts her dress, arranges the lose strands of hair on the karakasa's head, then hands her the eggplant-colored umbrella while saying "you are one of the very few youkai we can trust, so know that you are also welcome here in Makai."
Dizzy, Kogasa smiles as she replies "yee-yay. I can... world spins so... happy."
Back at the dining room, Rika is just about to try and reach Shikieiki once again, so she bows to all of the Makaians in front of her and says "please excuse me, but I need to ask something of-"
She stops from finishing her sentence when she notices all the Makaians, and even Alice, Shanghai and Hourai, who sit on Alice's shoulders, are all scowling and frowning at Rika.
Before the nervous Rika can ask what is wrong, Yumeko crosses her arms as she sternly asks "aren't you forgetting something?"
Rika ponders for a moment, holding her chin with her right hand, then suddenly gasps, snaps her fingers, smile, then bows again and says "please excuse me my brothers and sisters, but I need to speak to miss Shiki about something important."
Smiling along with the rest of her brothers and sister, Yumeko bows and looks on as Rika turns around and almost skips merrily toward the Yama.
Alice approaches the Makaian maid and asks "so? How do you feel?"
Alice now notices Yumeko is standing stiff, her arms are trembling, and she seems to be holding herself back from crying.
Sounding stressed, Yumeko replies "how the hell do you think I feel? I attacked her, set our brothers and sisters against her, cornered her, frightened her, and I almost spilled her blood... my own blood... mom's blood."
Yumeko turns her face to Alice, showing a stressful smile as she lets her tears of regret roll down her cheeks, then says "then mom drops this bomb on all of us like that. I... *sniffle* I feel terrible!"
Alice sighs, not used to seeing one of her strongest sisters crying like that, then says "well, I hope you'll listen to me next time."
Yumeko stares daggers at Alice as she asks "wait, you knew about this?"
Alice nervously backs away and says "whoa, whoa, I didn't know. I just usually have a pretty good intuition about things sometimes. Oh?"
Alice notices the rest of the Makaians are either sniffling or letting out their tears, then says "oh, come on! She already forgave you all, so what are you crying about?"
Almost crying, Luize says "well you didn't almost blast her to oblivion, or called her names!"
Alice sighs, thinks what to say next, then says "well, at least she survived, and she's a strong and kind-to-a-fault person. Besides, we now have one more sister, so we should be smiling, rather than crying and regretting what's been done already."
That's when Shanghai suddenly hops on her feet on Alice's left Shoulder and loudly says "yes! Now we are even more of a family! Rika is now our auntie too. So we should all be smiling, and happy and... oh wait, if mama Alice gets a grandma, that means we get a great grandma. Oh, and she should get a brother, so we can call him uncle! Oh, and how about a fa-"
Alice grabs Shanghai, covers her little mouth with her hand, and smiles as a vein pulsates on her forehead and says "stop right there before you make it worse, little lady!"
That's when Hourai stands up on Alice right shoulder, raises her little left arm, open her mouth, then suddenly sweat, gasps, and sits against Alice's neck and sulks.
Mai points at the little girl and asks "what's wrong with her?"
Alice sweats as she smiles nervously, then gently combs Hourai's head with her right hand as she says "she forgot what she was about to say."
Mai, Sara and Yumeko look at each other, then Mai asks "are you sure she's not Yuki's daughter?"
Yuki is completely distracted while looking at the window there Tenshi and Reimu should be hiding, but seeing that, apparently, there is nothing there, Mai shrugs and asks "see what I mean?"
Meanwhile, Rika returns to the table, where Shikieiki and Shinki are having a conversation amongst themselves, and as soon as she approaches them, the goddess and the Yama stop their conversation and look at her curious and determined face.
Rika quickly bows and says "pardon my intrusion, but I want to ask something to miss Shiki, if I may!"
Shiki and Shinki look at each other curiously, and when Shikieiki returns her sight to Rika, Shinki chuckles and says "I'll be talking to my children over there. Call me if you need anything."
After Shinki leaves, Shikieiki sits down on her chair again and asks "what is it, Rika?"
The shrine maid takes a deep breath, thinks hard before speaking, then looks at Shikieiki with a courageous face, then asks "miss Eiki, you are the Yama of this world, right?"
Shikieiki looks a little confused as she nods in assent, then Rika continues "and you are the Yama miss Shinki spoke of in that story, right?"
Again, Shikieiki nods, and as if asking Rika to hurry with her question, she roughly says "that is correct."
Rika takes another deep breath, fills herself up with courage, then asks "then, will all due respect, could you please tell me what is this darkness that lurks inside of me, that refuses to leave me?"
This question hits Shikieiki harder than she ever though it would.
Her face can't hide the fact that she is shocked and saddened by such question as she thinks "of all the questions she can ask, and of all the times to choose. I hoped she never asked about it, but I guess it's just inevitable..."
The Yama recovers herself, stares sternly at Rika, and with authority and kindness in her voice, Shikieiki asks "are you sure you want to know?"
Rika's eyes glisten as she nods rapidly at Shikieiki, so the Yama points at the chair next to herself, signals Rika to sit, and right after Rika sits down, Eiki says "in order for you to understand this, I am going to have to reveal some more of your past. Do you believe yourself ready for this?"
Again, Rika's eyes glistens as she courageously nods, then Shikieiki sighs long and hard, then looks into Rika's eyes.
Shiki takes a deep breath, then looks at Rika and says "listen well to this story, Rika Onkamikami..."
"A long time ago, in the center of a compound belonging to a most heightened clan, a woman was giving birth to the child who would become the clan's next leader.
Many clan members were waiting for her birth, but none were ready for her coming.
The child was born, healthy and strong, and her soul shone brightly, signs of the true leader of the Onkamikami.
However, unlike her mother, her father, her brethren, this child was born without wings.
The clan didn't care, as they could see the purity of this child's soul, but like always, there were those who disagreed.
Though the child was destined to lead the Onkamikami to a prosperous age, because of her lack of wings, she was considered by other clans of the age, a defect, a sign of a curse for the Onkamikami made flesh, they even went as far as to call her a fallen angel.
Those went as far as to suggest the child be sacrificed.
Her parents did not want this for their child, so they decided to move away from their country and hide as a normal human family, so that their child could grow in peace, and then they would return home the day their daughter was old enough to take the role as leader of the Onkamikami.
To their disgrace, the resentful clans chased after them and tried to rid of the girl by themselves.
They would make her life a living hell whenever they had the chance, and her parents feared she would grow to be a hateful being, a ruthless leader, but were surprised when they learned how strong their child really was.
She kept to the family teachings: hatred only breed hatred; anger only leads to the path of sorrow.
By keeping those words in her heart, she was able to keep strong, but unknown to the girl and her parents, all that frustration and rage was being taken into the bottoms of her forgetfulness, but everything has its limits, and energy that dark is hard to contain, let alone get rid of.
Even with that girl's one and only friend, the darkness was swelling.
Just before that darkness inside the girl took control, the family was elevated and sent to Heaven, where they all hoped the hatred and attacks would stop.
The attacks did stop, but the hatred was still there, and even with her friend there, whom elevated just as the Onkamikami did, it was just not enough, and the family, desperate for their daughter's well being, looked for the Yama of that time and begged to be placed somewhere where they could finally be in peace, and the Yama obliged.
They were taken to the far future, where nobody knew of them and treated them as part of the community, just what their daughter needed, but their peace was short lived.
A terrible tragedy befell the family in the form of a war that broke out in a very sudden manner, and the mother and father used all their power to protect their child in hopes that she could live the happy life denied to her in the past, but the price in doing so was steep.
The child lost all memory, as though reborn again, and although she had a much better life in comparison, she still had to endure some hardships, and that darkness in her awoke once more."
After finishing the story, Shikieiki looks at Rika and asks "so... do you understand now?"
Rika's head hangs low, preventing Eiki from looking at her, but when Rika raises her head, the Yama is surprised.
There is sadness in Rika's face, but nothing suggests she's deeply affected by this, and with a sigh of relief, Shikieiki says "oh, I am impressed. And here I was worried that you learning this truth would affect you more, yet you seem to be alright."
Rika places her right hand on her own chest, takes a deep breath, then says "I understand now. This darkness in me is actually keeping me from losing who I am, right miss Shiki?"
Shikieiki nods, then says "but it's still strong, and if you allow it, it can take over your body. It's already happened once, but thanks to the love for your friends and your mistress, you were able to defeat it and push it back once more."
Rika looks away, as though trying hard to think, then asks "so I lost my memories when I was saved?"
Shikieiki stares at Rika and immediately realizes the shrine maid knows something she isn't saying, and her suspicions are proven correct when Rika asks "are they lost... or sealed?"
Shikieiki nods once, then Rika's face becomes stern and resolute, then asks "if you are willing to, and you can, would you return my memories of me if I asked?"
Shikieiki winces at the request, then immediately replies "yes, I can, but... understand that they were sealed for a reason. Rika, these memories aren't pleasant, not in the slightest! You could lose yourself to them!"
With determination in her eyes, Rika grabs Shikieiki's hands, holds them between her own, then says "please, I-", but before she can say any more, she feels a hand place itself on her right shoulder.
When Rika looks back, she sees Yumeko looking at her with worry as she says "we just found out that you are our sister! Please, don't cast us aside like this!"
Shinki stands next to Yumeko, sharing the same face of concern, and that's when Rika notices all the Makaians are truly concerned for her.
From the window, Reimu whispers "Rika, listen to them. Don't do something foolish now."
Tenshi adds "she has that face. When she has that face, there's just no going back for her. Just like you, she can be so darned stubborn."
Reimu smacks Tenshi on the back of the neck and says "you're right about that, but that's something I don't want to hear from YOU!"
Back inside the dining room, Rika is smiling warmly at the Makaians as she glances at them, then stops when she locks eyes with Shinki and says "I will not change. I will be Rika, as always!"
She turns to face Shikieiki with that determined look on her, then says "please, miss Shiki, I want to remember. I understand your unrest, but I promise you, I will not lose myself."
Shikieiki looks into Rika's eyes, hesitates for a moment, then closes her eyes and says "very well. You have proven yourself so far, so I will unlock those memories. Just know what you are asking may be too much, and quite painful. Still, are you sure about this?"
Rika nods, still holding on to that determination in her eyes, then Shikieiki sighs and nods.
Still hesitating, Shikieiki raises her left hand and aims it at Rika, but nothing happens.
Rika can see the Yama doesn't want to do this, and that she is doing it because the request was strong.
The shrine maid thinks about telling the Yama to stop, but doing that would probably dishonor her brave request, so she decides to stay quiet.
Finally, Shikieiki closes her eyes, her hand glows bright yellow, and for a while, it seems like nothing is happening, though Shinki knows something is, but keeps silent with the hopes that it will not be as bad as she thinks.
Shikieiki focuses, making sure to open the seal slowly, allowing the memories to flow at an even pace, progressing with each passing moment, then opens her eyes to look at Rika.
The shrine maid is smiling, obviously remembering pleasant memories, but that smile slowly turns into a frown and her eyes start filling with sadness.
Shikieiki signals Shinki with her eyes, and the Makai goddess promptly asks "Rika, are you alright?"
Rika doesn't answer, and now her face, from a sad expression, turns to fright, and the shrine maid is now lifting her hands and placing them on the sides of her head.
Shinki reaches for Rika, but jumps back the moment the shrine maid lets out a loud grunt, and very suddenly Rika starts to scream.
Shinki calls for Rika, but the girl is now flapping her wings hard as she screams loud and without stop toward the ceiling, holding her ears with her hands and closing her eyes as though trying to escape from an unseen terror.
Finally, after screaming so much and so loudly, she runs out of breath, but continues to open her mouth as though trying to scream more.
Yumeko, Mai, Luize, Sara and all the Makaians present start shouting at the same time, begging Shikieiki to stop, but their shouts sounds like a joint babble.
Rika drops to her knees as she continues her attempts to scream more, and now her face starts turning blue when her body starts demanding fresh oxygen.
Shinki rushes to the shrine maid and holds her by the shoulders and shouts "Rika! Rika, look at me!"
Shinki turns her head to look at Shikieiki and shouts "Lady Eiki, Stop it! It's too much!"
Shikieiki looks back with a pained and tired face, lowers her hand, and says "it's too late, the seal is broken. There is nothing I can do now!"
Shinki turns back to Rika and calls for her, however useless her attempts are, then turns her attention toward the back of the room when her children gasp in surprise.
Somewhere in a deep and endless darkness, Rika finds herself falling head-first to nowhere, weak and unable to stop herself from continuing her rapid descent.
She opens her eyes and realizes that she has a white glow surrounding her, and seems to be protecting her form the cold embrace of the darkness around her, and with a pitiful smile on her face, Rika says to herself "how stupid. I ended up losing myself after all. And after saying I wouldn't."
Rika continues to fall, and to her, it seems like at least an hour or two have passed, and she just continues to fall into nothingness, but then she suddenly starts remembering something.
In her mind, she can see Reimu, Tenshi, Ail, Kogasa, Koakuma, Hatate, and Youmu.
She smiles as she remembers them and says to herself "ah, my little sisters, my sisterly rival, my big brother... and miss Reimu and Tenshi. Oh, what have I done? I'm so sorry, but it looks like I won't be able to see you again."
Something ticks inside Rika's mind, and she can read the words "worthless quitter", written in bright red right in front of her.
Rika looks around herself, wondering where that came from, and before she asks , the words "pitiful disgrace" write themselves in bright yellow right before her eyes.
Rika scowls and shouts "who the hell do you think you are?"
Rika can now feel her speed decrease, but again, before she can even comment, the words "maybe I'll take over and destroy those you hold dear" write themselves in pastel-yellow in front of Rika's eyes, then Rika shouts "show yourself!"
Her speed decreases again, but Rika is concerned in finding the source of such horrible words to notice, and now, instead of just written words, Rika hears a familiar voice that sends chills down her spine; the raspy and dark voice of a woman she fears.
This woman loudly says "and why not. After all, they are probably pretending to be your friends. Heck, that Ail looks more inclined to get under your skirt than actually care for you."
Out of righteous rage, Rika flips over, slows down to a halt and shouts "you! You leave them alone!"
The voice immediately replies "oh, so you think you can stop me when YOU'RE the one lost in the darkness. How rich."
Rika suddenly feels herself land on something solid, but there is nothing under her feet, but she has no time for that and unsheathes her sword while looking around and shouting "I'll never let you!"
She takes one step forward, and under her feet, a bright light startles Rika with its shine, rapidly consuming the darkness beneath her feet and spreading around at a rapid pace until she finds herself in a world with a black, cloudless sky, and a beautiful garden with a small river flowing right between two beds of red tulips, and beautiful bushy trees all around on the ground.
She looks with amazement at her surroundings, lowering her guard after relaxing herself to such a beautiful sight, and when she looks forward, she scowls, bends her knees, raises her sword, then growls inward.
Several feet ahead of Rika is herself, only this other self has dark skin, black wings, purple glowing eyes, a belt with four swords, two on each side, and a vicious, blood-thirsty smile.
Without raising her guard, dark Rika looks back at Rika and says "you screwed up. Now it's my turn. Drown in the darkness while I take over your life and destroy the illusion you created for yourself!"
Rika wants to reply, but another memory reaches her, making her wince as though in pain, then dark Rika smiles and says "you just saw some more, didn't you? That past that you, yourself, question to this day."
Rika grits her teeth in response, so Dark Rika raises her own sword, but just grins back at Rika.
Dark Rika takes a long and deep breath, then exhales, and with a vile and wide smile on her face, she says "you kept on clinging to those stupid. goody-goody ideals from the very beginning, even though you were spat on, called those hideous names, and even got beaten! FOR WHAT?"
Dark Rika takes a step forward, now looking sternly back at Rika as she says "you are a fake, bound by these worthless ideals your entire life. You never fought back, you never defended yourself, but that is because you knew back then, and you still know it! You are a FAKE! That is who you REALLY are! Haven't you realized that yet?"
Rika looks down to the ground in front of her feet with her eyes cast under a dark shadow, starts to shiver, then without warning, she rushes toward her dark self, her eyes filled with righteous fury and shouting "LIAAAAAR~!"
Unfazed, Dark Rika charges forward with her sword on hand, ready to strike her light self into submission, and immediately attacks as soon as she and Rika are next to each other.
Left, right, skyward slashes, downward thrusts, kicks, forward thrusts, the girls match every single move the other makes, and while attacking with passion, Dark Rika asks "are you sure you really want to continue as you are?"
She tries another downward thrust which Rika blocks with ease as she shouts back "I do want to carry on as I am!", then slashes upward with all her might, matching her dark self's attack and shouting "and I will!"
They exchange matched blows again and again, then Dark Rika suddenly says "I thought so...", then swings her sword sideways, matching Rika again, and says "that is the sole reason you keep going, after all!"
After pushing her dark self back with a sudden kick to her abdomen, Rika furiously asks "what did you say?"
Dark Rika smiles again, then quickly rushes forward once again while shouting "you are simply in awe, little girl!"
She suddenly pushes Rika back with a quick sideway swing of her dark sword, then points it at Rika as she says "your ideals came from your ancestors, ideals that left you in awe, inspired of the way they lived back then! You just want to mimic them, to be just like them, but I got news for you, girl..."
Dark Rika rushes forth again, and while attacking Rika as fast a she can, she shouts "YOU ARE NOT THEM! You are a mere SHADOW of their former glory, and you simply borrowed their ideals because you lacked you OWN!"
Rika reacts by moving faster and responding to Dark Rika's attacks, deflecting them as she defiantly shouts back "you are WRONG!"
Dark Rika quickly recovers from the blow and attacks again while shouting "you have been driven by this misguided belief that you should do the best for others, so that they would respond in kind...!"
She assaults Rika relentlessly while continuing "not realizing how FLAWED those ancient beliefs are! You kept running forward without realizing something so damned obvious, getting beaten over and over, and getting NOTHING but pain in return!"
Her attacks intensify as she shouts "that wish for happiness to all... that is just a fairy tale that will never see the light of day!"
Dark Rika's attacks are now so fast, relentless and continuous, Rika can't find an opening for an attack, getting pushed back while Dark Rika furiously shouts "if you can't live on without such ridiculous dreams, then drown with them to your death!"
She continues her attack, pushing Rika back, then suddenly stops and waits for Rika to respond.
Rika kneels on the ground with her sword stabbed in front of her to keep herself from falling, and as she breathes heavily, she thinks "she... she's right. I kept believing in these teachings, I never stood up for myself when I should have, thinking my kindness would somehow rub on to those bullies or their hateful parents, but instead..."
Rika looks toward dark Rika as she thinks "they just kept coming back for more and more, and I just couldn't... I didn't do anything to defend myself! What was I thinking?"
A dark void opens under Rika and begins to consume her while she thinks "she's right. I've been doing everything wrong. I... I don't..."
A familiar voice suddenly echoes through the darkness, and when Rika hears this voice she opens her eyes and looks around, then asks "Ko-Kogasa?"
Kogasa's voice echoes all around Rika as she shouts "Rika-sis, don't give up! Be strong!"
Rika raises her head high, the darkness stops consuming her, then she shouts back "Kogasa, where are you?"
There is a pause for a moment before Kogasa's voice echoes around Rika again, saying "lady Byakuren sent me! She wanted me to tell you that she and all of us, we admire you! That you are so kind and sweet to others, that you are like this really beautiful light inside the darkest abyss, just like your ancestors! Rika-sis, never forget who you are, because you are someone very special, and I think that too! We all think that!"
Rika's mind is suddenly flooded with memories of Gensokyo, of all of those that have considered her as a friend and more.
The Scarlet Devil Mansion, the Myouren Temple, Eintei, The Moriya Shrine, Ail, Budou, Alice, Shanghai, Hourai, the Makaians and Shinki, all of them shine strongly in Rika's heart.
Dark Rika's smiles vanishes when the darkness under Rika becomes a bright light, then gasps with horror when Rika suddenly lunges forward, attacking relentlessly and shouting "I... won't... loose... to YOU!"
Dark Rika gets pushed back as she defends herself from Rika's attack, asking "you're still... what gives you this power?"
Continuing her fast and relentless attacks, Rika says "I don't mind losing to others. Heck, I have learned many things from my loses, but to lose to you, to myself... that is something I cannot allow!"
Dark Rika is surprised at how powerful her other half's attacks have become, and the only thing she can say is a frightened and pitiful "...you..."
With ever sword strike, Rika starts repeating "not wrong... not wrong..." then her voice suddenly rises when she says "I am not wrong!"
Frightened, Dark Rika nervously says "y-you know it won't come true! Stop fighting and give in!"
Hearing those words, Rika shouts back "I AM NOT WRONG!", then sparks start flying from Dark Rika's sword with every one of Rika's strikes.
Frightened, Dark Rika tries to run backward, hoping to escape Rika's attacks before her sword gets destroyed, but Rika isn't giving her the chance to escape and continues to attack, and Dark Rika can barely match Rika's moves and defend herself.
She unsheathes her second sword from her belt right after her first sword shatters, but Rika continues her attack, threatening to destroy the second dark sword, and almost immediately, she has to unsheathe her third sword and use both to defend herself.
Rika starts swinging with more might, carrying her will with every blow, and finally, she twirls in place to get momentum, then swings with such force, she sends dark Rika flying in the air, where both her second and third swords shatter to pieces.
After falling on her back, Dark Rika manages to push herself back up on her feet and keep herself from falling, then unsheathes her last sword and swings with all her might, making a powerful shockwave that causes the trees, flowers and even the little river to rattle when it collides with Rika's own sword.
Barely matching Rika's strikes, Dark Rika angrily says "that's the mistake YOU made!"
Rika swings her sword and almost strikes Dark Rika's face as she shouts "there's no way it's a mistake!"
As she attacks relentlessly once again, she shouts "Marisa, Sakuya, Patchouli, Meiling, Remilia, Byakuren, Kaguya, Keine, Kyo, Momiji, Alice, Yumeko, Shinki, Shikieiki, and so many others! They are my friends and love me for who I am! Koakuma, Kogasa, Youmu, Tenshi, Reimu, Hatate, Ail, everyone! They admire who I am and have constantly reminded me of it! If that is an illusion, then the entire world is as fake as you make it sound!"
Striking harder and pushing Dark Rika's hands around, Rika shouts "you're the only fake one here! Leave me and my friends in peace, you fake self!"
Dark Rika moans as she tries to defend herself from Rika's blows, and after Dark Rika groans and loosens the grip on her sword, Rika finds an opening and thrusts her sword straight into Dark Rika's chest.
Holding her sword while its stabbed through Dark Rika's chest, Rika says "it's my win."
Dark Rika smiles as she weakly replies "y... yeah... So I guess... it's my loss."
Rika now looks into her dark self's eyes, then gasps when she finally sees what she failed to see before.
Loneliness and sadness that go beyond anything Rika expected to see.
Rika pulls her sword out of Dark Rika's chest, allowing her to fall on her knees, then sighs and says "no matter what may await me in the future, I will not regret it. In fact... if it needs be, I will overcome it!"
Dark Rika continues to smile as she looks up at Rika, then starts disappearing as she says "indeed, or it would be a lie if you didn't."
Dark Rika's smile becomes peaceful, and just before disappearing, she says "come back to me when you do. Only then will I welcome and accept you."
Rika tries to reach for her dark self, to embrace her and give her comfort, but by the time she kneels down, her dark self disappears.
After hearing Dark Rika's last words, Rika looks up to the black sky and says "alright. That is a promise, and don't you forget it."
Back at Makai, inside Pandemonium's dining room, only about five minutes have passed since Rika's face finally relaxed, but remains kneeling on the ground with her head hanging low and her arms dangling in mid-air.
The Makaians surround her, Shinki, Shikieiki, Alice, Kogasa and Yumeko, as they call for Rika, trying to wake her up.
Kogasa looks at Shinki and worriedly asks "do you think she heard me?"
Yumeko glares at the karakas youkai and asks "who are you, and how did you get here again?"
Kogasa clenches her fists and her eyes and shouts "I told you, that big yellow guy threw me over here!", then calms down as she says "he's got pretty good aim. But that's not important now."
Shinki shushes the girls and angrily says "something's happening."
Shikieiki approaches Rika and opens her eyes wide in surprise as she asks "what in the world?"
From inside Rika's head, a concentration of dark energy emerges, and slowly starts taking the shape of a sword.
It takes about seven seconds for it to take solid form; taking the shape of a long Japanese sword the same size as her family sword; then falls to the ground right next to Rika, stabbing itself on the ground.
When this dark blade hits the ground, it vibrates and generates an eerie and sad song, then Shikieiki, staring at this sword, says "I don't know how she did it, but this girl just sealed the rest of her memories into that sword."
Kogasa and Yumeko turn to Shiki and asks in unison "does that mean she's alright?"
Shikieiki nods in assent, then she and all present in the room turn their attention to Rika and Shinki.
The goddess is embracing Rika as the shrine maid moans softly, and with a concerned motherly tone, Shinki says "it's alright, I'm here."
Rika manages to open her eyes just slightly, looks around at her friends, locks her eyes on Shinki, then softly says "thank you... so much.", then finally collapses on Shinki's embrace.
Before even Shikieiki can comment, Shinki carries Rika in her arms and says "I'm taking her to my room. Nobody but Rika's master may disturb us!"
Everyone, save Shikieiki, looks around in confusion, then Shinki rushes to the exit door, and after it opens up on its own, she says "they are hiding by the farthest left window! Treat them as guests!", then rushes right out of the room.
Just outside the window, Tenshi panics and shouts "that witch! She knew we were here the whole time!"
Reimu appears to be completely unfazed, but the bead of sweat rolling next to her sheepish smile reveals her surprise.
Reimu crosses her arms as she chuckles, then places her right hand behind her own head as she says "well, heh-heh, that was to be expected. No wonder we were able to get those plates so easily."
Tenshi, still panicking, shouts "what do we do now?"
Reimu causally flies inside through the window and calmly says "come on, I want to go talk to that goddess. Oh, she better have good answers, or I'm going lunatic on her head."
Tenshi just shrugs and sighs, then flies in after the shrine maiden.
When the Makaians see Reimu, almost half of them start screaming and running away, some going as far as screaming "the assassin maiden! RUUUUUN!"
After the room settles again, only a handful of Makaians remain, including Mai, Yuki, Yumeko, Sara and Luize, and of course, Alice, Shanghai and Hourai, who is still sulking on Alice's shoulder.
Alice is the first to approach Reimu and says "you reputation follows you all the way to Makai. I am very impressed."
Reimu smiles while a vein pulses on her forehead, then chuckles and says "don't push your luck."
Besides Reimu, Tenshi storms toward the Yama and demands "YOU! What the hell did you do to Rika?"
Shikieiki calmly replies "your tone is aggravating, celestial. Address me properly, or I'll have to do something about this. As to what I did to Rika, I simply honored her request. I unlocked her memories; some which she sealed in that sword that sits over there on the ground."
Tenshi rushes over to the sword that sits close to the table where Rika was sitting before almost losing herself to the darkness inside herself.
She reaches for the blade, then Shikieiki sternly says "I wouldn't do that! If you touch that sword, you will experience those memories as though they were your own. And unlike that girl, you'd succumb to them rather quickly."
Before Tenshi can open her mouth, Reimu storms between Tenshi and Shikieiki, then takes a deep breath and calmly asks "are they really that bad?"
Shikieiki lowers her head slightly, looks sternly at the maiden, then says "you have no idea."
Tenshi walks to Reimu's side to try and add something to the conversation, but Shiki raises her hand to stop the celestial and says "what you lived with her all those years ago, when you went by that other name, is only a small fraction of all that there is."
Reimu looks at Tenshi in disbelief and asks "you knew Rika before? B-but how? Ho-how old are you?"
Tenshi laughs to hide her embarrassment, pats Reimu on the back as hard as she can and says "shut up you!", but quickly winds down and sounding a bit sad, she says "but yeah... I knew Rika since a long time ago."
Reimu and the remaining Makaians look at Tenshi and Shikieiki with confusion, and that's when Shiki sighs, looks at Reimu very seriously, and asks "would you like me to show you an example?"
To be continued...
Characters, Spell Cards and Scenarios belong to ZUN -Team Shanghai Alice-
Ail, Budou, Kyo, Michiko, and other extra characters and scenarios were created by Willie G.R.
Rika Onkamikami, Dark Rika and Suzaku were created by Snapshot 2010
Original story by
Snapshot 2010
FEB 21 2011
Written by
Willie G.R.
A/N:
Finally. This chapter really took me a while to write. First of all, I started writing a Touhou/Kingdom Hearts crossover (won't post it until after chapter 3 is completed), and when the first chapter was done, I started working on this. Those of you that are Kingdom Hearts (KH) fans may have noticed I wrote a scene similar to the popular Dive into Heart scenes from KH, and that's because I love and respect those games so much. Originally, the "Dive into Heart" was to be omitted, heck, Snapshot even removed it from the notes, but even so, I saw the chance and wrote it in when I found out that Snap HAD that idea in mind, but scratched it, and he even provided most of the dialogue for it too. Heh, coincidence? I don't believe in that. Still, I am glad I wrote it in, because the moment I started writing it, this chapter's process sped up to the point that I wrote the two paragraphs BEFORE the "Dive", and the entire "Dive" in one night! Yeah, I love KH and Touhou that much. Mixing in the two is an awesome experience for me. Oh, and I was told by my friend that what I wrote in the Dive scene is VERY similar to this new Fate/Stay Night movie, and yet, in all honesty, I've never even seen a single Fate/Stay Night movie. Heck, not even mangas. That similarity was purely coincidental (though I don't believe in coincidences), but whatever. It's there, I loved how it turned out, so I'm not changing it. Oh well, I'm just one step closer to finishing this spin-off, so please wish me luck in finishing this as quickly as possible. Not that I hate it, but I REALLY want to move on to action and whimsical/crazy stuff. Thank you for reading, and I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Until next time.