I pointedly ignored the rest of their discussion as we made our way to the abandoned-looking western-style house set back a few dozen meters from the shore, just behind a dense copse of trees.
"This place looks like it's falling apart, does anyone live here?" Sanae asked as she and Renko drew nearer.
"It looks like this normally, but they may actually not be here right now. I don't hear any music from inside, and that's unusual."
Renko made her way onto the warped and creaking boards of the porch and rapped with the heavy iron knocker. Silence was the only reply.
"Well, it seems like we're out of luck. Should we head for the Forest of Magic then?"
"I don't mind going to see Alice, but do you think you could find her home from memory?"
The forest of magic was dense and sprawling, and while it was easier to navigate than the Bamboo Grove of the Lost, it would still be easy to lose your way if you didn't know where you were going. And that was even before you took the drifting clouds of hallucinogenic spores into account.
"I think we can manage with Sanae. I wouldn't know the way on foot, but her house is in a decently-sized clearing. It shouldn't be too hard to find her from the air."
"Alright then, just leave it to me!" Sanae said, offering us each her hand.
And so, before much longer we were once again sailing through the air. By the time we reached the edge of the Forest of Magic on the opposite shore of the Misty Lake, the sun was beginning to descend in the west. The skies, which had been overcast all day, were beginning to darken. Before long a light rain began to fall.
If you've never had to fly in the rain before, it's a uniquely unpleasant experience. The lower temperatures and higher winds at those altitudes make the rain feel miserable, even in the summer, and the speed at which you're travelling ensures you end up totally soaked in even a light shower.
"Marisa mentioned that it's been raining in the Forest of Magic, so I guess we're just going to have to tough this rain out." Renko said, squinting her eyes and holding her hat on with her free hand.
"Is this even rain?" Sanae asked as she blinked to clear her eyes. "It's really cold and it kind of hurts!"
She was right, the weather was growing more inclement by the second. I shielded my face with my free hand, and found small, hard white grains were pelting it as we flew. Hail? In the middle of summer? As we pressed on the temperature was dropping noticeably.
"I don't know if I can fly in this! Sanae shouted. With both of her hands holding ours there was nothing she could do to shield her face from the stinging pellets.
"You won't have to much longer! There it is!" Renko replied, pointing out Alice's homey looking cottage standing starkly in its clearing. It couldn't have been more than a hundred meters away, but was barely visible amidst the hail.
A hailstone struck Sanae in the eye and she stumbled for a moment in the air. For a split-second the feeling of gravity returned in a rush that strained our arms and sent our stomachs lurching as we dropped precipitously.
"Ow! Ow! Hold on, I'm bringing us down!" Sanae cried, wincing as her grip tightened.
"Yeah, I'm not a fan of bungee jumping, especially without the rope. Can you get between those trees? We can walk the rest of the way and hopefully avoid the hail."
"I can't see it! Hold tight!" All at once we were plummeting, careening downward at speed. I was worried we would crash, but as we drew nearer to the ground the buffeting winds pushed back against us, and we found ourselves coming to a halt just a few centimeters above the forest floor when gravity next kicked in. We landed hard, but safely, with Sanae releasing our hands and rubbing her eye as we all scurried towards a nearby tree for protection.
Beneath its branches it was a relief to be on the ground, but it was hard to believe it could be summer. Frozen pellets littered the ground in scattered white drifts and rattled through the leaves overhead.
Once Sanae had recovered enough to see, Renko pointed a little distance ahead, where the line of trees gave way to broad clearing. On one side of the clearing stood the familiar outline of our destination.
"That's a witch's house? It looks so cute."
"I just hope she's home. Come on, lets run, even if she's not it'll be safer there under the eaves than here in the forest."
I nodded, and Renko took off at a sprint, holding the collar of her coat over her head, and crouching over to shield herself as she ran. Having not brought coats of our own, Sanae and I had to make do with covering our heads with our arms as we ran through the dimness toward the glow seeping from the windows of the house. While we panted under the overhang of the roof, Renko reached out and knocked on the door.
"Who's there?" Alice's voice called from within. A moment later the door opened and Alice's face looked over the pitiful sight of the three of us, underdressed, soaked, shivering and disheveled, huddling outside her doorway in the dim.
"What are you two doing this deep in the Forest of Magic at dusk? Oh wait, you three. I've seen you before too, you were at Reimu's on new years. What are you all doing here?"
"Sorry to appear without warning," Renko said, removing her hat and shaking rain and ice from the brim. "We were on our way here to ask you some questions, but got caught in some unexpectedly bad weather."
"Well, if you've already come all this way, come in. No sense in catching your death of cold out there," Alice replied, opening the door wide and gesturing for us to enter.
"Thank you," Renko said with a quick bow. "Sorry to disturb you."
Sanae and I bowed and thanked her as we made our way into the house as well. Inside, the air was much warmer, with the smell of something delicious bubbling away in a cauldron over the hearth. Above it all though the sound of hammering rung out, a repetitive, ringing thump like someone doing some sort of carpentry work was coming from around the corner of the entryway.
"Oh, that would be the dolls, I guess. Are you having them do renovations now?" I asked.
Alice shut the door behind us, then nodded. "Just some preventative maintenance. I'm nailing down some furniture in case of earthquakes."
The three of us looked at eachother upon hearing the unexpected word.
"Earthquakes?"