Part 1: >>26223

[-y-] I don't know what I am. Part human. Part bird. Part doll. None of them. All of them. Less yet more. To define myself, to attempt to encapsulate my entire being in such few, superficial words is a fool's venture, for none of us are merely the sum of our parts. If nothing else, then I will accept but this - I know not what I am, save that I am I.

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Taking her words to heed, you glance down at yourself, and the hands that are by your side. One that is still clawed and wicked, glinting in the light that leaks through the trees. The other is wooden and dull, not reflecting any light at all.

One part of it is alien, and one feels natural. Yet, at the same time, both are wrong. They are not your hands. This is not your body. You did not choose this. Instead, this was chosen for you. This is not how you want to be. This is the life you are forced to take and endure.

Then again, how is that any different from what you have always been? Your life before this was dull and dreary. It may have been safe, giving you enough money to keep a roof over your head while saving up for a rainy day and your retirement decades from now, but was it truly a life for you? Were you truly alive back then?

That life was not the one you wanted, either. Idly, you drift back to your own childhood, of what you wanted to be so long ago. What so desperately you wished to be real was not, and so you found yourself drifting on a path to mediocrity. It was not the path that you desired and aspired to, but it was the one you were forced to walk.

And now it comes down to a decision. Two paths that you can walk. You can succumb to the beast that you are now, to the primal urges to rip and tear guts large and small. All the same, you hear the song in your throat telling you that is not the only option. An embrace of the elements could be sought out, if only you so asked them to take you in.

One of the many travails of life is how tedious it is. When one is young, they dream of their future life, and how great it will be. One believes that they will soon reach out and touch the stars, as if they were points of light just inches beyond his grasp. Fantasy is behind every nook and cranny, with legendary creatures hiding just out of sight.

As time begins to take its toll, one starts to realize that reality does not coincide with fantasies. There are no monsters that hide under one's bed. There are no fairies that dance among the trees, giggling as they watch the giant humans that ignore them. Stars are not just beyond one's reach; they are instead untouchable. Even as high as one can jump, he will never lay a finger upon them.

Realizations like that must be accepted, in order to grow. When one becomes a man, they must put away those things that are childish. Dreams and hopes are all well and good, but will dreams end up sustaining one? Will hope keep one's body warm when the shivering cold of the long night approaches? Worst of all, if one does keep those beliefs, one larger question looms.

If those hopes and dreams come true, are they something wonderful? Or are they, instead, just the opposite?

Such is life. Such is the life that everyone must accede to. Such is the life that you have agreed to. Where once you were a vivacious child, jumping and bouncing hither and thither in your joy, you are now just one of many. A face that is hardly different than any other in the crowd.

Where you once had your dreams, you now have tedium. Gray cubicles in a larger gray room are all that you know. Instead of touching stars, you now touch the keys on a board, writing documents that never seem to end. All of it done just so you can make it to the end of another week, and to start all over when you reach the next.

The contact you have with those like you is sparse, merely enough to survive the long days. Even if these are faces that you have seen for years, they are faces that you know no more than the names of. They could potentially become friends, maybe even something closer. However, you fear the chance that they might be

Previous Thread >>23522
Chapter 3

I apologize for the delay as I had to contend with work and a mind that just wouldn't focus.

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[X] I’d be honored to visit soon.
[X] Mother would be happy to hear that.

After thinking about it a little, I figure it’d be an honor. “I would be honored to visit your house, and I believe that my Mother would be happy to hear you’re coming over for dinner.” Happy, however, may be something of an understatement.

Wriggle smiles in response. “Sounds great! Could we head over to your house now? I wanted to look at some books with you while we still had time.” That actually reminds me of the book store in the area, though I don’t go to it much. My family already owns just about everything worth reading, and whenever something new is written Father ends up buying it.

“Sure, though I’m not sure if my parents are home or not at the moment.” Judging from the sun, it’s about the 16th or 17th hour of the day. Still, she takes my hand in hers and practically drags me home.

Previous >>23859
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I poured through a few documents, trying to maybe find anything relevant buried within the text. A surprisingly common cause for any misfortune was the actions of a rogue magician. A witch, in the bad children-eating sense. Hexes and curses and spells with the power of dominion over others were the more common agents. But their elaboration and execution varied as wildly as the types of casters described. Most significantly, Alice did not seem to have any books that actually explained that sort of magic. It was natural, I felt. She had no interest in that sort of magic or doing others harm. At least not in such indirect ways.

A lot of the text was, well, of dubious quality. Some of it read like hearsay and baseless rumor. Particularly any reference to love potions. They always contained either mythical items, required a strangely unsound ritual or simply could not produce the intended effect. From what I could see, of the last category, you were lucky if you ended up only vomiting violently. Death was certain for the drinker for a lot of other formulas. It was so striking that I thought that it was maybe purposefully hazardous. So as to discourage any would-be fool and punish anyone who actually went through with it. Alice did not care about material luxury nor whimsical folly like using magic to alter someone's feelings. If there was anything to the idea, I wasn't going to find it in those books.

The most consistent cause for memory loss was, sadly enough, a curse. That didn't give me much to go on since curses were not 'hard' magic. They often involved spirits and things that went outside the normal scope of energy and powers. There was usually an external force, besides the caster, that kept the effects continuous. That was the distinction between a more direct spell that drained energy and a curse that sapped vitality. Still, it probably wasn't a curse. Usually marks appeared on the victim's body, quite prominently. One text equivalenced that curious side effect to a way for the hexer to brag and show off.

There was another possi

Thread 2! Hey, I'm alive!
I know a lot of people were ragging on me for dropping my other story, but I came out and said I would. This one went on break because of some personal life problems. I'm still here.
Also I feel like people may have deleted their votes for the last choice or something (besides the votespam) but I'll write with what the votes say now.

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"I don't know." I respond quietly. "This story is so vaguely written. It is more of a legend than a historical account. I can't glean much from it. The people seemed to like him, but it doesn't say what he did. Sure, he killed some youkai, but did he kill ones that were a major threat? Or did he kill them just because he could?"

Keine smiles. "This is a part of interpreting history. Often times people only have a vague story written about them. Sometimes they seem great, other times, not so great. However.." She gives a small smile.

"This is just one account. There are other was to understand something. For example, this story is recent enough that some people may still be telling it and may know something about it. So, for your first assignment in my class, I'd like you to find out as much as you can. You are free to use any resources you can find, and you have until next week to report to me with your new opinion on the hero and his story."

She stands, and bows.

"Class dismissed." Keine gives a cute giggle while looking me in the eye. Class of one dismissed, huh? I suppose it is time to meet up with Marisa..

Well, whatever. What happens in the beast's lair is none of your concern, as long as you and your human are safe. And since his offering seems to have appeased the beast itself, even put the both of you in its favour, you see no reason to go wandering. The sound repeats, slightly louder this time, almost insistent, and you just ignore it. The subsequent silence is almost petulant.

However, it is quickly broken by the return of the red-white. She sets down a small tray and pours tea for the three of you. Taking a place at the other side of the table, she relaxes quickly - or at least appears to. She settles onto one elbow.

"So. What do you want?" She cuts right to the chase. Your human doesn't answer immediately, instead electing to take a drink from his tea. He looks down at it curiously, and speaks.

"You know, if you use the smaller, lighter leaves, you get a much better flavour." He laughs at her expression. "Now, now, don't make that face. I had to make do with weed tea for a few years, myself. It's admittedly a bit of an acquired taste, but you learn a few tricks after a while." Curiously, you pick up your own cup and take a sniff. It's certainly a strong-smelling sort of tea. However, it's all you can do to keep from spitting it out when you taste it. It's really terrible. You make a face, and set the tea down. He continues, "But yes, I did come for more than to just give you money."

"Of course. What's your problem? A particularly troublesome youkai?" She slides her eyes over to you for the barest second. "Or maybe not. So? What is it?" She manages to somehow sound just as impatient as she does laid back. Taking a sip from her own cup, she looks as miraculously unperturbed by the taste as your human. ...Maybe it's just a human thing. Speaking of humans, yours is pulling that rectangle from earlier out. And a little stick. The terrible creature across the table simply looks slightly curious.

"Tell me a story."

“…Excuse me?” She’s surprised. Off balance.

“A story. You resolved all those ‘

This is a thread of what might have been, what may yet be and what never could have been.

Basically some stuff that I've been toying with for a while. Let's see how it turns out.

This is not the Gensokyo you may know in your heart. I, Matsuo Heikichi, am not a hero. I cannot fight the youkai who seek to feast on me and my friends and family. I have no defense. If I run into a youkai outside the village, I am most likely doomed. That is how my mother died, when I was very young.

My hopes and dreams are not all dead, though. I live a happy life in the human village with my father, who is a blacksmith. While I often work with him, I am not being forced to pick up the family trade like most kids here. I'm a bit clumsy compared to him, and while I appreciate his work, I think both of us would rather I do something a bit more...scholarly.

My highest hope, though, is a girl. A personal hero, someone I have admired for a few years now. Marisa Kirisame. Sometimes she flies over the human village, and I am in awe of her speed, and defiance of the laws of nature that bind me. She flies, like a youkai, proving that
humans are not inferior. I hear tales of her defeating youkai in combat with her magic, and I can't help but idolize her. Last year I spent all my year's allowance getting one of the neighboring shops to carve a tiny wooden statue of Marisa flying on her broomstick, smiling and waving. It is my greatest treasure, and I don't regret it at all.

And today? Today is special. I'm going to confess to her. I don't care what she says, but I want to get it all off my chest, to thank her for what she has done for the village and for inspiring me. A man today laughingly told me that she'd be at the Hakurei shrine visiting her
friend, the caretaker.

And here I am, making the climb up the stairs in the summer heat, wishing I could fly more than ever. I hope my sweat doesn't make me unattractive to her, but I'm not the most impressive guy as far as looks anyway. At last, I reach the top of the stairs, and my efforts are rewarded already with the sight of my hero.

Marisa is talking to the shrine maiden, laughing cheerily at her expense as the two drink tea.

"Oh? Looks like you have a pilgrim, Reimu!"

I stood by the doorway, hesitant to commit fully to disturbing her. The memory of the last time I questioned her instruction was still fresh in my mind. I hoped it would not be like that again, “Mistress, a moment of your time if I may?”

“What is it that you want?” She did not look up from her cup of tea, eyes fixed on the hot vapor rising from the beverage.

“I wish to know of your assessment regarding my performance,” I put it directly, “What you believed happened and why it did.”

“Why?” She asked simply.

“To better myself if possible,” I explained.

“Are you incapable of reaching a conclusion yourself?”

“That is not it. I merely thought that your insight might reveal something I overlooked.”

Alice finally raised her gaze, giving me a hard stare. The warm wisps of steam were a sharp contrast to the coldness of her expression. She rebuked me harshly, “I am your instructor, not someone whom must hold your hand every time you waver. Do not waste my time without attempting to even resolve matters yourself. I have given you all the tools you need to learn and grow in skill. The paucity of result should not be my responsibility as it is not my effort that determines the outcome.”

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