Best enjoyed with the music: /cBKpym0jLc0 (I wonder if these watch codes actually work.)
Chapter 1 - 幽鬱な夢追い人 ～ Melancholic Memory
Sakumo Yoshimi was slow to wake up yet again. Her alarm had already gone off hours earlier, however it was another day with nothing planned. That kind of day had begun to become quite common for her, to the point where even eating was scant for her. Yoshimi did not worry, for she thought that the next time she slept, she would surely return to the place of her most dear childhood memory, that she would return to Gensokyo.
To return to Gensokyo was what Yoshimi wanted most. The time she had spent there was what she thought was the defining adventure of her life. She had been with the youkai and the gods, seen heaven and hell, and even played the game of its people. So much of that young girl's heart was taken by that place, with magic and fantasy, that when she had to leave it had turned her into a gloomy child. Now that that had been so long ago, she began to wonder if she had always been this way.
Yoshimi's thoughts were interrupted by a knock on her door. It was her mother bringing food to her door. She couldn't make out what her mother was saying on the other side, but eventually the words turned to a slight sobbing before she went away. Yoshimi began to wonder when the last time she and her mother had talked face to face. It hadn't been that long, right? But it had been that long; years since she had even seen either of her parents.
Yoshimi ate her food in shame, and her desire to disappear grew. Having realized what a burden she was now, it was clear that sleeping into Gensokyo was not going to work. She would have to set out and find it. Yoshimi rested until night, gathered money and some food for her journey, and set out.
Yoshimi spent a whole month looking for the location of Gensokyo. She narrowed its entrance down to a certain shrine forgotten in a certain wood. She set out from the lonely bus stop into the forest, and hiked deeper and deeper. Eventually she did come to a shrine, but it was long past its prime, with barely a structure standing. What a shame, she thought before she pressed on.
She was barely four steps away before she stopped. Some kind of dread had taken over her, as now she felt she was no longer alone. Turning slowly around she saw the presence she now felt, a hooded figure who sat amongst the ruins as if they were meditating amongst them. The figure stood, and unhooded herself revealing a warm smile.
"Seems I caught someone's eye," she said. "Not often that happens. I wonder, just who are you?"