Fuck yes HY!
[X] Don't put the book back yet, go talk to Patchouli.
We gotta befriend Patchy, we need allies for the last part of the story.

[x] Follow the blob to put the book back.
Walking up to Patchouli with this in our hands is a bit of a giveaway if we want to ask her anything involving the letter (though we probably don't). Personally, I'd also want to see Koakuma first. Might be able to get a bit of feedback on Patchy's mood/late night activities before meeting her, or other useful info.

>>7538
Actually, I just realised I'm going on the assumption that the dictionary's too big to fit in our pockets. If it isn't, change my vote to:
[x] Don't put the book back yet, go talk to Patchouli.
Since we probably won't be able to find Koakuma without Patchouli's help.

[X] Don't put the book back yet, go talk to Patchouli.

[ ] Don't put the book back yet, go talk to Patchouli.

>>7539
But wouldn't she already know if the blob is telling us where to return it?

[x] Follow the blob to put the book back.

>Remilia suddenly jumps up and pokes Flandre's head, grinning. Flandre looks shocked for a moment as Remilia runs away, then she shouts with laughter and runs after her sister.

A tiny HNGG!

[X] Follow the blob to put the book back.

We can always return for it. It's not like the library's going anywhere anytime soon...

Not sure what to choose here. You guys decide this one.

Apparently there's one more event if we follow the blob (the option to talk to Patchu involves not putting the book back first), so maybe it's best to talk to Patchouli first.

HY, you evil fuck.
it's 5:52 am.

I NEED TO SLEEP, DAMMIT!

I'll stay awake long enough to see if Patchy scored or not, so... get writan.

Please?

>>7546 here.
Correction:
>>7538
makes a compelling point. We should probably ask Koakuma this instead of Patchy; it seems less nosy, and we can pump her for s-- I mean, information.

>>7548
Er, fuck.
Which is why I'm changing my Patchy vote to:
[x] Follow the blob to put the book back.
in the hopes that we'll meet Koakuma along the way.

>Updates will be few and far between until some time this evening.

FFFFFUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUCCCCCK

All right, fine.

Sleeping, then. But Patchy had better have done that little dollmaker senseless.

[X] Follow the blob to put the book back.

Might as well. It's better than lugging the damn thing around the whole time we're here.

[X] Don't put the book back yet, go talk to Patchouli.

Let's just not ask her to read it this time, yeah?

[x] Don't put the book back yet, go talk to Patchouli.

Let's keep the book on us an an extra alibi in case she decides to vaporize us again.

[X] Follow the blob to put the book back.
[X]Go see Patchouli

[x] Follow the blob to put the book back.

[x] Follow the book to put the blob back.

[X] Follow that blob!

[x] Follow the white rab--err, blob to put the book back.

[x] Follow the white rab--err, blob to put the book back.

[X] Follow the blob to put the book back.

[ ] Look for Koakuma instead.

Make her put it back.

Now Anon don't show the letter to Patchy, but ask her about the Mistress and her sister.
After you get the information, find Koakuma, and ask her for a little help, to learn the truth behind that letter. Of course you must hug her.. But I doubt that she can read that letter. Maybe she just shows us a book, that can be usefull to you.
Or if you find only Alice in the libary, you should ask her for some help.
However Sakuya knows everything, she won't tell you, but if you listen very carefull you might hear something important. Also I still don't know what can bring you and Sakuya closer.

The letter contains orders to kill Patchi and Remi, so showing it to Alice means death. Showing the letter to anyone in the mansion will probably get you killed, as Koakuma would have at least some loyalty to her master. So, if we can catch Marisa, then she might be able to help. That letter is going to create a lot more BAD ENDS, or at least unpleasent situations, if we aren't careful with it.

[X] Show letter to Sakuya, enjoy your gruesome death, be happy that you restored ballance

>>7568
Altruistic end

>>7568

WTF YAF? You can't do that! You'll change history!

>>7567

As loyal as Meiling is, I'm not sure she'd snap your neck with a kick before giving you a chance to explain yourself. That said, she's as useless as us. So I do agree Marisa would be the best choice - like I said, her humanity is a big part.

We don't know if/when she's coming to visit Flan though.

I'm not sure showing the letter is really all that suicidal. Or at least, it won't be if we play our cards right.

Patchy killed us because, despite helping her with Alice and knowing how we've invested ourselves in Remi, that there was too much risk in allowing us to live. But what if there wasn't so much risk?

The trick here is figuring out WHAT exactly is so risky about us, and then how we can get that perceived risk decreased enough that we don't seem to be a danger to anyone.

I think that using our blood pack the way we did might be a step in that direction. We have some definite anti-vampire items in our possession. Items that could likely cause harm to our dear Remi and Flan. Sure, we haven't used them, but that alone is no guarantee that we couldn't, or wouldn't. But what if we did use them, but for another purpose? What if we used them, not to defend against the residents of the mansion, but to protect the residents themselves?
Remi must surely have realized that if we had that blood in our possession since we first arrived, what could have happened to her or her sister at any time. Yet, we used a good portion of it not to harm her, or save ourselves, but to save a mere nameless fairy maid from a horrible end. Perhaps there's something similar we can do to build more trust with Patchy as well.

>>7572

It's been pointed it out previously, but Patchy wasn't "really" reading the letter when we gave it to her. There's reason to suspect that whatever the false message that appears on it is, it can change itself to reflect whatever the reader's perceptions might be. We have no idea what Patch saw when she read it - she may well have seen something entirely different than what we saw, which played on some fear of hers, and thus prompted her to kill us.

That thing is dangerous as hell, and it would be a bad idea to show it to anyone, let alone someone who could kill us.

>>7572
>>You don't know how she would react to being shown the letter, you have a bad feeling about that.
HY's trying to make it blindingly obvious to us here.

>>7573
>>7574

I know. I'm one of the ones arguing against anything dealing with the letter most of the time, and think we'd be better of chucking the damn thing into a fire.

I just like trying to reason things from the other side of things sometimes.

>>7570

My writing is 88 miles per hour!

>>7575
We don't want to get rid of it, we just need to hold onto it until we can discern it's true meaning.
>>Something feels wrong in your head. She's reading but she's not ... reading. What?
>>You feel sick reading this, but there's something wrong here. Something about the words. Despite the concrete clarity of what they say, you feel like you need to tear them off the page, wash them away or make them bleed until they reveal what they're hiding. The compulsion makes no sense.
>>Questioning can't hurt, maybe even getting her to check to see if you've been put under some kind of spell.
Look, enough of this crap about the letter changing to reflect the reader's perceptions or fears or whatever. We've clearly been mindfucked, and we need to un-mindfuck ourselves in order to read what the letter truly says. Reading >>4070 again, there's no reason to think Patchouli saw anything in that letter that we didn't read, so it doesn't seem as if anyone else can discern its true meaning either.

Words must flow! Regular (mostly) updates for a few hours now I have finished today's hell.

=============================

Oh what the hell, you've followed the blob before and it's proved that it works. You head off between the library stacks, following the soft green sphere as it leads you deeper and deeper. You stop a few times when you spot a particularly interesting book and whenever you do the blob stops and waits without complaint.
Eventually it leads you to a large section full of dictionaries and other language related books. You see an entire bookcase devoted to Chinese grammatical rules and another which is stacked with German language textbooks. The blob hovers in front of a space between two books, also French dictionaries, and you slot your book into the gap. As soon as you do, the blob vanishes.

Ah, shit.

You turn around a few times, waiting to see if it will reappear, but no luck. You're left standing alone in the depths of Patchouli's library. While not very dangerous (unless you go poking around in the more suspect looking books) it is very big, might take you a while to find a way out. You wander back in the direction you came, or at least what you think is the direction you came. When the wall comes into sight above the tops of the bookcases, you hear a very strange noise, it sounds like somebody sighing. Unable to contain your curiosity you head towards the noise, eventually discovering one of the strangest sights you've seen since arriving in this mansion.

It's Koakuma, lying on the floor with her arms and legs spread out, a blissful smile on her face. It doesn't look like she heard your footsteps. As you stand there watching her in utter confusion she lets out another sigh, wings on her head fluttering.

[ ] Ask her what she's doing.
[ ] Say Hello.
[ ] Surprise her.
[ ] Join her on the floor.

[X] Say Hello.

I have a feeling things between Patchy and Alice went VERY well...

[X] Hug.

[ ] Join her on the floor.

[ ] Join her on the floor.

The temptation to make Library Angels along with her is overwhelming, but:
[x] Say Hello.
[x] Ask her what she's doing.

[X] Say Hello.

[X] Say Hello.

[ ] Say Hello the way they do in Japan.

[ ] Ask her what she's doing.

Excuse me wtf r u doin?

[ ] Surprise her.
If you know what I mean.

[X] Join her on the floor.

[X] Join her on the floor.

I say let's have her talk to us first.

[x] Say Hello.
[x] Ask her what she's doing.
[X] May I help you?" KOAKUMA SEX BAD END!!

[x] Ask her what she's doing.

Uhh, book angels. DURR!

[X] Say Hello.

[X] Say Hello.

[1] Say Hello.
[2] Ask her what she's doing.

HY, I'm fairly certain I've worked out how we can deduce what the letter really says. But I don't want to ruin anything you've got planned, or have us find out its true meaning when we're not ready or anything. Post it or not?

[x] Say Hello.

[x] Say Hello.
[x] Ask her what she's doing.
Let's just play it safe.

Writing now.

>>7598
If you have an idea, post it, but I'm 99% sure it will be wrong.

>>7601
Speculation is always fun indeed. I bet both for you and other readers.

You must feel your e-cock enlarge when we're all so excited about your story that we try hard to guess what happens next and make theories about the mysteries.

Fuck I just realize today is the Champions League final..

>>7603
Champions, what, like the mushrooms?

You cough just enough to announce your presence, not wanting to startle Koakuma. She doesn't respond, just keeps smiling.
"Koakuma? Hello? It's me." You say.
She slowly opens her eyes and looks up, smiling wider when she sees you. She sighs again and her eyes flicker shut for a moment, then back open.
"Are you alright Koakuma?" You ask. She's smiling, but that might be a side effect of something bad, for all you know.
She raises one arm heavily and beckons to you, pointing at her lips and her ear.
"Oh, okay." You say, getting the message. You step over and kneel down so you can hear her voice, putting your head next to hers.
Being this close to her at this angle is more than a little arousing. With her back flat on the floor you can see her ample chest rising and falling with each breath, her soft legs entangled in her skirt and her hair brushing against your hand. You make sure to try and think calm thoughts, not to get too carried away.
"im fine" she whispers into your ear.
"Then uh ... why are you on the floor?"
"because everyone feels good" She makes a little moaning noise and closes her eyes again.
"What?"
"my mistress feels good and the dollmaker feels good and the twinned vampires feel good and i cant get up"
"You can't?" You ask, putting a hand on her shoulder.
"hug me please"
You pause for a second, but there's no aura of lust. Then you lift Koakuma up into a sitting position and cradle her in your arms for a minute. Whatever just happened, it seemed to do the trick, because she gently untangles herself from you and smiles, then a look of concern crosses her face.
"why dont you feel good?" She whispers.

[ ] Lie, tell her you do feel good.
[ ] Tell her you don't want to talk about it.
[ ] Tell her about the letter.
[ ] Tell her about being threatened by Sakuya.
[ ] Tell her about the constant interruptions to your alone-time with Remilia.
[ ] Tell her about what happened with the Fairy Maid and how Remilia won't explain it to you.

[x] Tell her about what happened with the Fairy Maid and how Remilia won't explain it to you.

HELL OF A DRUG MAN

[x] Tell her about what happened with the Fairy Maid and how Remilia won't explain it to you.
She can already sense that we don't feel good, so there's no point lying to her.

[ ] Tell her about the letter.
[ ] Tell her about being threatened by Sakuya.
[ ] Tell her about the constant interruptions to your alone-time with Remilia.
[ ] Tell her about what happened with the Fairy Maid and how Remilia won't explain it to you.

TASUKETE KOAKUMA!

[x] Tell her about the letter.
We can find out more about Sakuya through Patchouli than Koakuma; everything else is fluff.

[ ] Tell her about the letter.
[ ] Tell her about being threatened by Sakuya.
[ ] Tell her about what happened with the Fairy Maid and how Remilia won't explain it to you.

Let's be honest with her!

[ ] Tell her about what happened with the Fairy Maid and how Remilia won't explain it to you.

I guess she feeds off emotions.

[X] Tell her about the letter.
[X] Tell her about the constant interruptions to your alone-time with Remilia.
[X] Tell her about what happened with the Fairy Maid and how Remilia won't explain it to you.
[X]tell her about that you can't see the Champions League..

[X] Tell her about being threatened by Sakuya.
[X] Tell her about the constant interruptions to your alone-time with Remilia.
[X] Tell her about what happened with the Fairy Maid and how Remilia won't explain it to you.

That pretty much covers it, aside from the letter, obviously. But it might not be good to bring that up.

Needless to say, lying about our emotional state is completely pointless with Koakuma.

[x] Tell her about being threatened by Sakuya.
[x] Tell her about what happened with the Fairy Maid and how Remilia won't explain it to you.
[x] Tell her about the letter.

It's just one thing piled on top of another, for poor Belmonymous. First the threats, then the maid fiasco, and now this crazy letter.

[x] Tell her about the letter.
[x] Tell her about being threatened by Sakuya.
[x] Tell her about what happened with the Fairy Maid and how Remilia won't explain it to you.

[x] Tell her about what happened with the Fairy Maid and how Remilia won't explain it to you.
[x] Ask her about the 'other' vampire in the mansion.
She's the only one who's hinted at it before, she's the best person to ask about it.

[X] Tell her about what happened with the Fairy Maid and how Remilia won't explain it to you.
[X] Tell her about the letter.

The trouble of the fairy maid is somewhat worrisome. The letter is weighing on me, as well... maybe we should tell her about it. She might have some knowledge of curses and the like, being a demon.

[ ] Tell her about what happened with the Fairy Maid and how Remilia won't explain it to you.
[ ] Tell her about the letter.
[ ] Tell her about the constant interruptions to your alone-time with Remilia.

Koukamu's high on everyones happiness.
Does this mean everytime someone feels sexual pleasue she feels it too?

[X] Tell her about being threatened by Sakuya.

That letter should be kept a secret for now, but if you really want to risk another bad end...

I wonder if Patchouli can hear what her familiar hears.

It's not likely, but I sure hope not.

Okay guyz!
[X] Just tell her everything!

[x] Tell her about being threatened by Sakuya.
[x] Tell her about what happened with the Fairy Maid and how Remilia won't explain it to you.
[x] Ask her about the 'other' vampire in the mansion.

[X] Tell her about the letter.
[X] Tell her about the constant interruptions to your alone-time with Remilia.
[X] Tell her about what happened with the Fairy Maid and how Remilia won't explain it to you.

>>7573

There's also a chance that, Patchouli being a magician, was able to see the "true" message.

Right then, brace for wall.

[X] Tell her you don't want to talk about it.
[X] Tell her about being threatened by Sakuya.
[X] Tell her about what happened with the Fairy Maid and how Remilia won't explain it to you.

>>7628

Hi slowpoke.

>>7627
BRACE FOR IMPACT

>>7628
Slowpoke.exe, alive, etc.

>>7630
Better a wall than a lake!

>>7605
>"why dont you feel good?" She whispers.


Sh-pah sh-pa, sh-pa, Feel good!
Sh-pah sh-pa, sh-pa, Feel good!
Sh-pah sh-pa, sh-pa, Feel good!
Sh-pah sh-pa, sh-pa, Feel good!
Sh-pah sh-pa, sh-pa, Feel good!
Sh-pah sh-pa, sh-pa, Feel good!
Sh-pah sh-pa, sh-pa, Feel good!

Windmill, Windmill for the land!
Turn forever hand in hand!
Take it all in on your stride!
It is sinking, falling down!
Love forever love is free!
Let's turn forever you and me!
Windmill, windmill for the land!
Is everybody in?

>>7627

STILL BRACING

And then Koakuma slashed you to death, a'la Flandre in ten thousand claw immolation wall.

"I'm being kept in the dark about something, I don't understand what's going on in this house Koakuma." You say.
Damn, it feels good to unload this on someone.
She nods her head gently and you just feel the words start to pour out. You tell her about finding the injured Fairy maid, about helping her and about how you don't understand why Remilia is keeping something like that from you. Koakuma wraps her arms around you and for some reason you automatically rest your head on her shoulder. It feels like a huge weight has lifted from your shoulders. You can feel Koakuma lightly running her fingers through your hair as you go on to tell her about how Sakuya threatened you, twice. You tell her about how you're not scared enough to just ignore what you feel for Remilia, but you don't want to have Sakuya as an enemy, how you just want her to stop.
Koakuma listens in silence and then gently moves you off her shoulder, so she can speak to you.
"remilia has her own reasons for keeping it from you" Koakuma says into your ear.
"But why?" You ask.
"you are the reason the vampires are happy" She says. "remilia wishes to keep you happy too she does not wish for you to leave"
"I won't leave." You shake your head.
"then show her that she has nothing to fear that you will help her"
"You mean ... she's afraid that if I know too much about this place then I'll leave?"
Koakuma nods.
"Koakuma," You say. "Do you know what attacked that Fairy Maid?"
Koakuma closes her eyes for a moment, looking extremely sad. "i think i do"
"What then?"
"it is not my place to tell you"
"What?" You ask. You want to be angry, indignant, but it's so hard with Koakuma, she's just so serene and calming right now.
"i will not meddle in your relations with remilia" She says, face serious.
You sigh, disappointed. "Very well, Koakuma."
She senses the undertone of anger in your voice and flinches away from you suddenly.
"S-sorry Koakuma." You say. "I didn't mean it like that." The guilt from making her flinch, it's too much, too much right now.
She smiles again and moves back towards you.
"the maid will be more difficult" She says.
"Why?"
"she loves remilia very much"

Ah.

"What do you mean by that?" You ask.
Koakuma giggles and shakes her head. "no no not that"
Oh thank fuck for that.
"i do not know much more about the maid" Koakuma says. "she is closed"
"Closed?"
Koakuma nods. "closed"
You sit in silence for a long moment, just enjoying the warmth of Koakuma's arms. Then you have a thought.

[ ] Tell Koakuma about the letter.
[ ] Don't tell Koakuma about the letter.

Koakuma's an empathic succubus? Is that why she raped us when we had dirty thoughts about her?

[x] Tell Koakuma about the letter.

I'm willing to take this risk. It may even be worth the bad end if we get more hints.

[X] Don't tell Koakuma about the letter.

Not yet

[ ] Tell Koakuma about the letter.
It is damn risky, but worth a try.

[X] Don't tell Koakuma about the letter.
We know what's written in there, we don't care about what's written in there, it's utter nonsense to us now.

Also, Hauu~ next gameplay i'm taking Koakuma home.

[x] Don't tell Koakuma about the letter.

[ ] Don't tell Koakuma about the letter.
Not yet damn it.

[X] Don't tell Koakuma about the letter.

[x] Tell Koakuma about the letter.
[x] Leave out the part about killing patchouli if possible

She doesn't have anything to gain from ratting us out.

[X] Tell Koakuma about the letter.

It looks like a warning if the choice popped up again; but perhaps HY did that precisely because it looks like a warning, just to play mindfuck with us and test our confidence.

I say just tell her.

[x] Don't tell Koakuma about the letter.

[X] Tell Koakuma about the letter.

Well, I think that as long as we don't SHOW it to her...

>"then show her that she has nothing to fear that you will help her"
[x] Tell Koakuma about the letter.
Here goes nothing then.

[ ] Don't tell Koakuma about the letter.

[x] Don't tell Koakuma about the letter.

Remember what HY said about advancing too quickly? This isn't helping.

>>7649
>>7650
Hmmm, tell not show? I guess I can get behind that.
[x] Tell Koakuma about the letter.

Also, it's pretty obvious what we have to do about Sakuya. Koakuma says that Sakuya is closed; when is the one time we saw Sakuya be casual and open before switching back to bitchmode?

Yup that's right; "Mei!". We have to go see the gate guard after this and find out more about her.

>>7655
That is a most brilliant Idea, if we can find out more about Sakuya and convince her that we are no Threat to Remilia or someone else in the Mansion, that would avoid a confrontation with her later on. Which would make things easier with dealing whatever is upstairs if we have her help instead of her beaten down somewhere else. The only one who knows Sakuya more personal is China, she could give us some hints to get closer to her.

Writing now.

[X] Tell Koakuma about the letter.

I want to see another BAD END!

No, no, best not to show Koakuma the letter. It identifies Patchouli as a target as well, you don't know how much loyalty Koakuma has to her Mistress. Then again, you can't imagine Koakuma doing anything to harm you, she's too calming, too comforting.

You end up just sitting on the floor with her for a few more minutes. The silence and the softness are both very relaxing. You wonder what Remilia would do if she saw this.

"you came here to see my mistress" It's not a question.
"Yes, Koakuma, I did."
"then you should probably go before we start lying down together"
You move your head to get a look at Koakuma's features, there's just the hint of a smirk there. Looks like she has a sense of humor too.
"Okay." You say, managing not to say something dirty in response. "I should go."
"come see me again" She says before you get up ad dust yourself off.
"Can you move on your own now?" You ask.
She nods and gets to her feet.
"Er ... Koakuma, how do I get to Pat-" As you speak and form the thought, that green blob comes back again, settling on a direction off to your left. Why didn't it appear before when you wanted to get out of the library?
"Heh, never mind Koakuma. See you later." You say. She smiles and nods at you, turning away and hopping into the air, drifting away slowly.
You follow the blob to Patchouli's desks.

What greets you is quite a sight. The first thing you notice, other than that Patchouli doesn't have her hat, is Shanghai sitting on the table. The doll turns to you as you see her. She bobs over towards you and does a little curtsey in the air before you.
"Er ... thankyou Shanghai." You say. You almost ask her what that was for, before remembering that dolls, even ones that move, cannot talk.
Patchouli lowers her book and looks at you she hears your words. She's dressed the same as always, minus the hat, but she looks vaguely disheveled, like she just got out of bed. Shanghai drifts back to the table and sits down on it again.
"Hello." Patchouli says. "I heard about your exploits with the Maids, well done." She goes back to her book. You notice there are two empty teacups on the table and what looks suspiciously like one of Alice's ribbons draped over a chair. You sit down opposite Patchouli.
She glances up at you.

[ ] Ask about Alice.
[ ] Ask how she knows about what happened with the Maid.
[ ] Tell her about the letter.
[ ] Tell her about Remilia keeping things from you.

[X] Ask about Alice.

[ ] Ask about Alice.

[X] Ask how she knows about what happened with the Maid.

[Z] Ask about Alice.
[o_o] Ask how she knows about what happened with the Maid.

[x] Ask about Alice.

[x] Ask about Alice.
[x] Tell her about Remilia keeping things from you.
Pleasure first, then business. While talking to Patchouli about Alice will doubtlessly score us affection points, we musn't forget that we need information from her as well.

[x] Ask about Alice.

[X] Ask about Alice.
[X] Ask how she knows about what happened with the Maid.

HAHA C. RONALDO MISSED THE PENALTY! IT WAS WORTH WATCHING...

[x] Ask about Alice.

>>7546
>Alice in Chains.jpg

I see what you did there.

[ ] Ask about Alice.
[ ] Tell her about Remilia keeping things from you.
[ ] Talk to her about your amnesia.
>>Questioning can't hurt, maybe even getting her to check to see if you've been put under some kind of spell.

>>7661
>It identifies Patchouli as a target as well
I went "lolwut" at first, as I'd assumed "the witch" referred to Sakuya.
I getcha, now.

[ ] Ask about Alice.

[x] Ask about Alice.
[x] Tell her about Remilia keeping things from you.
[x] Talk to her about your amnesia.
God bless anon. Never mind the fact that have a bunch of important questions that need answering, we only want to talk about Patchouli's lesbian exploits last night.

[X]Ask about alice

>>7661
>Patchouli doesn't have her hat

[ ] Ask her if shes alive

[ ] Ask about Alice.
[ ] Ask how she knows about what happened with the Maid.

>>7675
Think of it this way: once we've subtly reminded her that she owes us at least one, we'll be in a much better position to spring our questions on her.

And a massive win by the Alice vote! Writing now.

>>7677
She still has all of her ribbons, they work as life support.

>>7679
Well, as long as we don't show her the letter...

Really, I think the best person to show that to would've been Koakuma, or perhaps later in the story, Remilia.

>>7669
LOL TERRY.

>>7601
Bleh, you're way too confident there for my liking. Well, I'll finish the post anyway so others can read it:

---

Okay, the letter's still pretty prominent in most of the storyline/speculation posts at the moment, so here're my thoughts:

First of all, virtually every time the letter's brought up, someone draws attention to the fact that Patchouli was 'reading... but not reading' it. People assume she was either reading it magically, or having a false message implanted in her mind, or something. But after reading >>4070 (the BAD END) again, I think >>7577 is right, Patchouli really didn't find anything in that letter that we didn't see when we read it.

>>Her expression darkens. She looks back up at you, glancing at the whip on your belt and the pockets of your coat.
She begins reading the execution order, gets to the part about our 'weapons', and checks for verification.

>>"What did you hope to achieve by showing me this?" She asks.
>>She's frowning, but not openly angry. She looks genuinely curious.
She can't understand why the hell we'd show her a letter that implies we're under orders to assassinate her and Remilia. She's not openly angry because the act of showing her the letter suggests we don't intend to carry the orders out.

>>She reaches across the table and touches your forehead. She looks surprised.
>>"No ... you don't have any idea at all. How strange."
Ref. our amnesia/mindfuck. As far as Belmonymous is concerned:
>>"You're no Vampire Hunter, you don't want to be."

>>"There must be a reason. To ignore it would be too much of a risk." She says.
There must be a reason why we have this letter, to ignore it would be too much of a risk.

>>"Thursday today ..." You hear her mumble under her breath.
PAIN.

So, if she read the same thing we did despite 'reading... but not reading' the letter, this is what I think's going on: The true meaning of the letter is concealed, but concealed in a way so that anyone (including us) who tries to read it will find themselves 'reading... but not reading' it. They'll find only the execution order, and nothing more. However, when we read it we experienced some sort of gut reaction that we weren't reading the true message, and I think that we're the ONLY one with the potential to find out what the letter actually says.

Why do I think this, and how do we work it out? Well, starting from the beginning, the fact that we're actually carrying the letter when we supposedly can't discern its true meaning without assistance from an SDM resident (be it Patchouli, Remilia, or whoever) strikes me as a little strange. Why would we be carrying something that requires us befriending the mansion if we originally came here with the sole intention of killing a vampire? If this was supposed to be a basic vampire-slaying job, why are we holding something that we need to spend a considerable amount of time figuring out?

Perhaps this wasn't supposed to be a quick and easy vampire-slaying mission? Perhaps we knew we'd be spending some significant period of time in the mansion with the other residents? But it doesn't make sense that we'd know this, seeing as it's essentially only our unplanned amnesia that's keeping us here. If our memory was restored, there'd be no reason for us to stay; we'd be carrying out the job we originally came here to do right about now.

I'm beginning to suspect that our amnesia was really part of a carefully planned infiltration act. We lose our memory, and with our vampire hunter's past no longer influencing/prejudicing us, we befriend the mansion. Then we solve the letter's secret and regain our identity/purpose, and use our position within the mansion to carry out our mission.

It sounds crazy, I know, but if it truly was the plan, we'd need to be carrying something with us as a kind of 'reactivation key'; something we could use to decipher the letter and reawaken our memory/purpose. Are we carrying anything that fits this description?

First, consider the nature of our reaction to reading the letter:
>>Despite the concrete clarity of what [the words] say, you feel like you need to... wash them away or make them bleed until they reveal what they're hiding
'Wash away' the words? With what? 'Make them bleed?'

>>It ends with no signature, simply the word 'Purification'.
Purification? It's obviously not a name, so is it an instruction? What have we experienced so far in the story with regards to purifying someone?

>>There were a lot of possible uses [for the blood], this was only one of them and this one wasn't even part of the plan at the start.
There're a lot of possible uses for the Belmont blood other than purifying a vampire? Like what? Maybe--

---

I have to stop writing here, because I'm tired. Like I said, if HY's confident there's no truth to this, he's probably right. As with most theories, it began sounding less plausible the more I wrote. Still, it's only speculation, and it's not doing any harm. If you're still reading at this point, congrats.

>>7686

You basically wrote out what we've all been thinking since early on in the story.

Mm, using belmont blood on the letter seems to make sense, though.

As for revealing the letter to others how about we tell Remi we have something important to discuss with her later in her room and have Patchy come along. While sitting with a nice cup of tea we read out the note to them, state that we have no intention to follow the instructions and ask about whatever spell is on it to Patchy. Patchy wouldn't dare kill us in front of Remi right there and there is no way Remi would kill us without giving us a chance to defend ourselves. Verbally that is. Hopefully being forward with this to her will let us sort this mess out without it resulting in our death.

Or maybe we can just take HY's little warning after we read the letter as a warning about the letter, and focus on the rest of the mansion's occupants for now. Maybe check out some other parts of the mansion - and I don't mean that damn staircase, which is likely to get us killed.

>>7687
I dunno, the using the blood on the letter part was pretty good. It's also true that we must've been expecting to have to figure out the letter, since our true purpose here obviously isn't to kill Remi (which is what the fake letter says). When we were in that corridor by the stone staircase, "You feel something go through you, not fear, more like recognition, resolve, purpose." Our true purpose is obviously to kill/purge whatever's up there.

>>7690

What else is there to do though? I think we need to get closer to Meiling and have her help us with Sakuya, but other than that, apart from the letter and the stairs, there's not much to do.

Can anyone paste our inventory here if they remember where it was?

>>7692
>>A black and white photograph of a middle-aged man and a boy in his early teens standing at a train station. On the back there is handwriting which reads 'John and Jonathan - 1925' In the corner 'Thanks for last summer!' is written in smaller and different handwriting.
A photo of John and Jonathan Morris, descendents of the Belmont Clan. Both the date and their ages are in line with Castlevania canon.
>>A page torn from a art gallery catalogue, with a few words of French in the corner which you can't read. It shows an oil painting of a girl who bears a striking resemblance to Remilia, but a little younger.
Since vampires don't age, this would have to be a picture of Remi before she became a vampire. It could also be a picture of 'Remilia Scarlet', Remi's mother and the vampire we originally came here to kill (the one up the stone staircase), but that's another theory for another time.
>>A blood transfusion bag. Full. The label tells you it's type o-neg and it appears to belong to a blood bank in Scotland, extracted 12/5/67. It is warm but not coagulated.
The Belmont blood, with the ability to purify vampires and (possibly) reveal the secret of the letter.
>>Five pens.
Wat.
>>A bunch of keys. 3 keys to be exact.
See previous answer.
>>Two playing cards. One is totally blank. The other is a very ornate ace of spades.
Sakuya uses playing cards to teleport in IaMP, but that's all I'm getting from these.
>>A pair of knuckle dusters, one is bent out of shape.
PUNCH.
>>A flicknife.
STAB.
>>A drinking flask, full. From the smell it must be vodka.
Russian courage.
>>A letter in French. You can't read it.
FUCK YOU, LETTER. SERIOUSLY.

"So where's Alice?" You ask, glancing at Shanghai.
Patchouli looks back down at her book, a slight blush rising from her cheeks.
"I don't know what you're talking about."
You laugh. "Is she still sleeping off last night?" You ask.
"Yes." Patchouli says, turning even redder.
"So it worked!" You say. "You told her?"
Patchouli shakes her head. "She told me."
You lean back, satisfied that your work here is done. "Same result though." You say.
Patchouli doesn't say anything for a long moment.

"Paaaaachy, come back to beeeeeed." The call seems to come from the wall behind Patchouli. It is unmistakably Alice, though her voice is much freer and happier than you've ever heard it before.

Patchouli is still focusing furiously on her book. You're struggling not to laugh.
Then, before you can say anything else, a door opens. You'd never seen it there before, in the wall next to Patchouli's other desk. In fact by the way that the surrounding wall seems to come away with it you guess that it was designed to be camouflaged like that. Standing in the now open doorway is Alice, covered in nothing but a bedsheet. She smiles and waves at you before walking over to Patchouli, bending down to her ear and whispering something. As she does Patchouli freezes and her eyes go wide but before she can do anything else Alice has already slid back through the door and shut it behind her again. You notice Shanghai holding her head in her hands. Patchouli closes her book and places it on the table.

"Unless you have something very pressing to discuss, I have a matter to attend to." She says, completely poker-faced.

[ ] Tell her to go, leave the library.
[ ] Tell her to go, listen through the door.
[ ] Ask her to stay for a bit.

If [ ] Stay then also

[ ] Ask her how she knew about the Maid.
[ ] Tell her about Remilia keeping things from you.
[ ] Tell her she doesn't need to be so embarrassed about being with Alice.
[ ] Tell her about the letter.

The question is, do we WANT to regain our purpose? Because doing so may lead us to wasting Remi, Patchouli, whatever is upstairs, and probably Flandre.

I think we should just put the letter behind us for now and try to score more points with the residents of the mansion.

[ ] Ask her to stay for a bit.
[ ] Tell her she doesn't need to be so embarrassed about being with Alice.
[ ] Ask her how she knew about the Maid.
[ ] Tell her about Remilia keeping things from you.

[X] Ask her to stay for a bit.
[X] Tell her she doesn't need to be so embarrassed about being with Alice.

I was wondering, could we make a small cut on the tip of our finger with that knife, and let a drop fall on the letter?

[ ] Ask her to stay for a bit.
[ ] Tell her about Remilia keeping things from you.
[ ] Ask her about your amnesia.
Great, we lost any real chance to talk with Patchy because Anon just had to ask her about her night of eating Alice's poop. If we can persuade her to stay, let's try and get some actual useful information.

"So where's Alice?" You ask, glancing at Shanghai.
Patchouli looks back down at her book, a slight blush rising from her cheeks.
"I don't know what you're talking about."
You laugh. "Is she still sleeping off last night?" You ask.
"Yes." Patchouli says, turning even redder.
"So it worked!" You say. "You told her?"
Patchouli shakes her head. "She told me."
You lean back, satisfied that your work here is done. "Same result though." You say.
Patchouli doesn't say anything for a long moment.

"Paaaaachy, come back to beeeeeed." The call seems to come from the wall behind Patchouli. It is unmistakably Alice, though her voice is much freer and happier than you've ever heard it before.

Patchouli is still focusing furiously on her book. You're struggling not to laugh.
Then, before you can say anything else, a door opens. You'd never seen it there before, in the wall next to Patchouli's other desk. In fact by the way that the surrounding wall seems to come away with it you guess that it was designed to be camouflaged like that. Standing in the now open doorway is Alice, covered in nothing but a bedsheet. She smiles and waves at you be

[x] Ask her to stay for a bit.
[x] Ask her how she knew about the Maid.
[x] Tell her she doesn't need to be so embarrassed about being with Alice.

>>7700

What?

>>7698
True, we're doubtlessly going to need some blood for the endgame so I wouldn't really want to use any on the letter unless we're DEFINITELY sure it'll work.

[X] Ask her to stay for a bit.
[X] Tell her she doesn't need to be so embarrassed about being with Alice.
[X] Tell her about your amnesia.

Just one quick issue for now, get our foot in the door so to speak, then come back and talk more about it later once the honeymoon's over.

Goddamnit, stop trying to make walls. Patchu has somewhere to be; make it a short question or don't ask at all.

>>7703
Yeah. Making a small cut and letting a drop fall on the letter will do two things:

1.- It won't ruin the letter in case we're not supposed to use the blood there, and;
2.- It won't waste all the blood we have while still seeing if it has any effect.

Alternatively, we could just let a drop from the flask fall. I mean, we know for sure that the blood in the flask is Belmont blood; but are we sure it's ours or that ours works the same way?

>>7697
If we want her to stay, we need to talking about actually PRESSING matters.

[x] Ask her to stay for a bit.
[x] Tell her about Remilia keeping things from you.

>>7700
>Standing in the now open doorway is Alice, covered in nothing but a bedsheet. She smiles and waves at you be

ABDUCTED

>>7706
Again, good point. We can spare just a drop or two from the bag, and if it doesn't work, no harm done. In fact, perhaps it's better not to use our own blood in case we're not a Belmont and it screws the letter up somehow.

[X] Ask her to stay for a bit.
[X] Tell her about your amnesia.

>>7702
>>7708
The boards are failing, I can't even delete that half-post.

Sorry but that's going to have to be it for the night, I have too many things to do before I sleep. Hopefully some more tomorrow evening.

>>7708
TAKEN HOME

[x] Ask her to stay for a bit.
---
[x] Tell her she doesn't need to be so embarrassed about being with Alice.
[x] Ask her how she knew about the Maid.

[X] Tell her to go, leave the library.

You don't keep a lady from her happy time.

Amnesia? When the fuck did we become David?

>>7715
We have all this cool/dangerous swag and abilities to match, but no idea where we got any of them. Sounds like amnesia to me, man.

>>7693
>A pair of knuckle dusters, one is bent out of shape.
How much force would it take to tear up a knuckle duster? I'm assuming they're made of iron... Either way, looks like at one point we went BELNONYMOUS SMASH on someone or something. Perhaps we have a history of destroying chairs as well?

>five pens
We need to check these out, open them up in the middle to see if they contain anything, could be a note or a letter opener or something.
>three keys
Possessing these keys would mean we are to come across some locks at some point, right? Someone make sure to bring this up whenever we find a locked door.
>ace card and blank card
I have no idea. Maybe we should challenge Sakuya to a game of cards at some point, see if she holds an interest or if the cards are relevant to her.
>flask full of vodka
Is there anything that could be mistaken for vodka?
>French letter
Was there any Belmonts that were exclusively or explicitly stated to be French? Or am I a retard for not realizing the whole damn family is French?

YOUR INVENTORY
I'LL BE STUDYING IT

>>7717
>>three keys
Sakuya is closed, right? We'll use them to help her open up.

>>7718
But isn't Patchouli the Locked Girl?

... I'll get my coat.

They represent the keys to their hearts.

The key to the gate; Meiling's heart. The key to the locked girl's secret roo WHAT ARE THOSE SILVER KNIVES STO

So, if I say Alice, I get ab-

>>7721
Why would Alice hit submi-

>>7721

I don't see how Alice could do something like tha

>>7721 >>7722 >>7723
You guys are ridiculous. Just because I type out Alice's name doesn't mean I'm gonna get abducted or anyth

Dinner tonight...will be great. Don't you think so, Shanghai?

[x] Tell her to go, leave the library.

[x] Tell her she doesn't need to be so embarrassed about being with Alice, while leaving.

Patchy's not really in a state to provide answers right now. We should go visit Meiling under non-lethal circumstances for once, and then meet up with the Scarlets when they're finished playing.

[x] Tell her to go, leave the library.

[x] Tell her she doesn't need to be so embarrassed about being with Alice, while leaving.

>You notice Shanghai holding her head in her hands.

oh ho, an autonomous doll?

[x] Tell her to go, give Shanghai RESPEKT KNUCKLES.

[X] Take Shanghai

>>7725
Oh, hello there Alice.

OH GOD, SHE'S IN MY ROOM. HOW NICE OF HER TO HIT THE SUBMIT BUTTON FOR M

>>7725
Let me join you Alice, I have much I wish to tell yo

[x] Tell her to go, leave the library.

Alice isn't herself, she's been possessed by a spirit and is now killing Anonymous off in order t

>>7728

Wouldn't that be more of single finger knuckles?
She's kinda tiny.

[x] Tell her to go, leave the library.

[x] Tell her she doesn't need to be so embarrassed about being with Alice and tell her you're glad things turned out well for her, while leaving.
write-ins for greatest success!

[x] Tell her to go, leave the library.

No hurry, there's still the fairy maids to talk to and a padded maid to deal with.

>>7735
yeah, I can't see Shanghai as being anything but how she looks in most art; all cute and chibified.

[x] Tell her to go, give her a thumbs-up, leave the library.

are all of the limited adventures threads collected somewhere? I started reading it on bloodyshovel but it leaves off after the first thread, and before the marisa raeping

>>7740
He's been incredibly busy, I just offered to help out so I'm going to work on archiving the limited adventure threads over the next few days. The ones I do will be on a different site temporarily, I'll post the link once I get some material up.

>>7741
I've got up to the end of Thread 21 of SDM archived. 141.5 pages in a Word doc with 12 point font, modest spacing, and notes for when when we had write-ins.

As an aside, what choice(s) actually won before this thread? My recollection seems to be going to see Patchu, but the choice at the beginning of this thread leaves me flummoxed as to what exactly was chosen.

>>7742
Oh wow, nice. I was going to go through and write everything up from scratch as HTML for the bloodyshovel archiver, but if you've already got the text that's quite helpful. If I post my Email would you be willing to send me what you have?

Oh, and I think
[x] Forget about the letter, leave Remilia in peace.
[x] Go see Patchouli, find out about Alice.
was the winner for the last thread.

[x] Tell her to go, leave the library.

[X] Tell her to go, leave the library.
[X] "GJ, Patchy!"

Seriously, though. Let's give her some alone time with her newfound love. Everyone's happy here, and that's always good to know. We can go visit Mei Ling, and see how she's doing.

>>7743
I've uploaded what I have up until the end of this thread to: http://www.mediafire.com/?xssenvgk32u

Make of it what you will.

>Standing in the now open doorway is Alice, covered in nothing but a bedsheet. She smiles and waves at you before walking over to Patchouli, bending down to her ear and whispering something. As she does Patchouli freezes and her eyes go wide but before she can do anything else Alice has already slid back through the door and shut it behind her again.

Oh wow. A happy, confident Alice is an awesome Alice.
And Koakuma was love, as usual, but I suppose that goes without saying.

>>7746
Near the beggining of that archive, around when you first meet koakuma, there is some text missing.

A huge thanks to the people archiving this. I would do it myself but that would mean copy&pasting over 200 individual text files because of the way I like to write.

Also, don't expect that many updates tonight, I'm about to drop. Will write whenever I happen to be awake.

====================================

You can't help but smirk at Patchouli's attempt to seem calm. Her mouth tightens slightly when she sees your expression, but she doesn't say anything.
You shake your head. "No no, go on Patchouli." You say. "You deserve your fun, I can guess you've been waiting long enough for this day to come."
Patchouli frowns at you, exasperated. You get up from the chair.
"You know, you don't need to be embarrassed about this." You say.
"What - what do you mean?" Patchouli asks.
"I mean about being with Alice, there's no shame in intimacy." You say.
Patchouli's expression softens somewhat, closer to its normal passive and vaguely amused state.
"I know that." She says. "Knowing and feeling are two very different things." She gets up from her chair as well, slowly, arching her back as she does.
"Mmmm. But thankyou for the reminder." She says. "Intimacy is ... wonderful, after nearly a century." She considers you for a moment. "After half a millennia it may be genuinely intoxicating."
"Sorry?" You ask.
"Never mind." She shakes her head. "Now, if you don't mind, I'm off to ... er ... yes." She opens the door in the wall.
"See you later Patchouli." You say as you hear Alice say something from inside the room. Patchouli gives you one last glance of farewell before shutting the door behind her.

You head towards the edge of the library again, making your way to the door and stepping outside. The smell of the books is left behind you. You feel better than when you when in, perhaps it's the effect of whatever Koakuma was doing with you, perhaps it's just from seeing two happy girls very much in love and obviously enjoying it. Whatever the cause, you feel full of energy and much refreshed.

[ ] Look, or call, for Sakuya. Time to talk.
[ ] Go outside, see Meiling.
[ ] Go find Remilia and Flandre.
[ ] Find out about that Fairy Maid you saved.
[ ] Spend an hour or so going through the stuff in your pockets carefully.
[ ] Kitchen, need food!

[z] Find out about that Fairy Maid you saved.
I wanna see her again!

[X] Go outside, see Meiling.

Good time to check in with everyone in the mansion, one by one. We ought to save Sakuya for last, though. Probably after we check on the Fairy Maids, even.

[ ] Spend an hour or so going through the stuff in your pockets carefully.
[ ] Kitchen, need food!

Light lunch and detective work.

[X] Find out about that Fairy Maid you saved.

[ ] Go outside, see Meiling.
Stick to the plan, we need to see meiling, she is the only one who knows more about Sakuya, she can give us infos on how to get along with her best.

[x] Go outside, see Meiling.
Got to thank her for last night. Then, detective work.

[x] Go outside, see Meiling.
Better not meet up with Remilia or Flandre yet. First finish the Side quests before we go back to the Main quest.

[x] Go outside, see Meiling.

[x] Go outside, see Meiling.

[x] Find out about that Fairy Maid you saved.

[x] Find out about that Fairy Maid you saved.
Lets see if she has reincarnated yet.

[ ] Find out about that Fairy Maid you saved.

[ ] Go outside, see Meiling.
Let's try and learn more from her than we did from Patchy.

[x] Go outside, see Meiling.

[x] Go outside, see Meiling.

I LOVE YOU MEILING also you need to tell us about Sakuya

[x] Spend an hour or so going through the stuff in your pockets carefully.

Our inventory doesn't have an examine button, so let's take this opportunity.

[X] Go outside, see Meiling.

We have to get Sakuya on our side, or at least LESS against us than she is at the moment. However, between our lack of info on her and her own closed-off emotional state, we probably can't hope to crack her just yet.

Besides, poor Meiling's been pretty much ignored compared to everyone else in this story. It's time to get to know the gate guard a bit better.

[X] Go outside, see Meiling.

>>7767
I swear by my name that her route is next.

[X] Find out about that Fairy Maid you saved.

Let's get a familiar.

[X] Find out about that Fairy Maid you saved.

[x] Find out about that Fairy Maid you saved.

personal meido

[x] Find out about that Fairy Maid you saved.
I wonder if she has revived already?

[x] Find out about that Fairy Maid you saved.

>>7769
You have my sword.

[x] Find out about that Fairy Maid you saved

We need to know what happened.

>>7775

And my cloaca!

[ ] Go outside, see Meiling.

>>7775

I wouldn't mind Koakuma first actually, I'm in love with her too~

Either will do.

[X] Go outside, see Meiling.
Time to see China again.

Meiling won, but interest in the Fairy is noted.

Writing now (slowly).

We kinda wanna see everyone anyway. Meiling, the fairy, inspect our inventory...

Flan and Remi can wait for a bit, we're close enough to them anyway. Sakuya can probably wait until we've heard enough from Mei-chan.

>>7784
The thing Sakuya said here >>7772 is not so stupid. Our own personal Fairy Maid.
We need to see them all anyway, first Meiling then the rest, after we are done with them all, we can continue with Remilia and Flandre.

>>7786
I wonder if we just wasted a golden chance to take a look at our inventory. I'm actually kinda concerned with that. Should the choice pop up again, I say the fairy maid takes a backseat to after that. One hour won't kill her.

>>7789
We can check our inventory as a write-in option pretty much anytime.

>>7790
Technically we can do anything like that.

>>[ ] Spend an hour or so going through the stuff in your pockets carefully.

This says to me that HY wants to tell us something, or maybe he wants us to think that so that we waste some time. Dunno.

Either way we need to take that chance if it pops up again.

[X] Inventory
[X] Examine all, thoroughly

Pause game
[X] Inventory
[X] Examine all, thoroughly

We should just wait until nightfall to examine our inventory. Once it's late and everyone else has gone to bed there's less chance of someone barging in at an inopportune time, or something coming up that will end up dragging us away from our investigation. We can check on the rest of the mansion inhabitants during the day, when they're active: after Mei Ling, all we have are the fairy maids and Sakuya, then we'll have checked on everyone.

Belmonymous needs to go to sleep early so he can go out with Remi tomorrow, remember?

Best to deal with going around and talking to
people while there's still time in the day, and save the inventory examination for when we return to our room to sleep.

You need to talk with Meiling. At the very least you can thank her for helping you last night. At the most? You feel a little bad about this, but she's so good-natured that she might be a safe source of information. On Sakuya at the very least, if not some of the other workings of the Mansion.

Outside you can feel the night all around you. It's late and very dark, or would be if it wasn't for the lighting from the Mansion and the moon above. As you walk over to the gate you wonder if Flandre and Remilia are still outside somewhere. For the sake of politeness you actually give the inside of the gate a little knock so as not to surprise Meiling. It doesn't have the intended effect. You hear a little surprised yelp and then she opens the door with a look of confusion on her face.
"H-hello?" She says. "Oh. Hello!" She smiles at you.
"Evening Meiling. Are you still on duty?" You ask.
"For another twenty minutes, yes." She says.
"Mind if I talk to you for a bit?"
"Yes please! I-I m-mean." She blushes and looks down at her feet. "I m-mean y-yes you c-can."
Poor thing, utterly starved for contact.
Outside of Sakuya anyway, if your suspicions are correct.
You step through the gate and Meiling closes it behind you. There's a few large lights out here, around the gate and another one directly over Meiling's door. As you turn back to her you see her standing, hands folded behind her, facing outwards from the gate.
"Oh ... I can wait until you're off-duty if you want." You say.
She smiles warmly at you. "No it's okay." She says. "I just need to keep watch as always, we can talk at the same time and then carry on inside."

In the extra light out here you notice she has a large purple bruise on the left of her chin.

[ ] Thank her for last night.
[ ] Ask her about her job.
[ ] Ask about the bruise.
[ ] Tell her about Remilia keeping things from you.
[ ] Ask her if she can help you with Sakuya.

[ ] Thank her for last night.
[ ] Ask about the bruise.

We should make her feel comfortable, then get to ask about Sakuya.

[X] Thank her for last night.
[X] Ask about the bruise.
[X] Ask her if she can help you with Sakuya.

Damnit Hungry. Now I want next route to be Meiling.

[A] Thank her for last night.
[B] Ask her about her job.
[C] Ask about the bruise.
[D] Ask her if she can help you with Sakuya.

One thing leads to another. The bruise and Sakuya are clearly not the best things to start off with, as she'll simply clam up outright. Best to get her talking about more pleasant things first, and work our way to the heavier stuff.

[x] Thank her for last night.
[x] Ask her about her job.
[x] Ask about the bruise.
[x] Tell her about Remilia keeping things from you.
[x] Ask her if she can help you with Sakuya.

Go to bed and build me a wall of China for tomorrow.

>>7799
You, mr. cloaca, mr. sword and I, we'll save Meiling!

>>7799

Anon's so easy to manipulate~

[X] Thank her for last night.
[X] Ask about the bruise.

We're not all that close to her, but I suppose it would be good to show some concern for her now that we've gotten to know her a bit better.

Also, hold off on asking about Sakuya. Remember how much it bothered Mei Ling the last time we brought up Sakuya. She was very reluctant to talk about Sakuya, and it wouldn't be right to pressure her.

>>7804
>Mei Ling

ಠ_ಠ

>>7804

What if we get well bye'd! by HY after we talk about the bruise?

As much as I love Meiling, the main reason we came to see her is asking about Sakuya.

>>7806
What I mean is, I'm worried about the conversation ending here.

>>7806
[X]Jump in Lake.
[X]One choice back.

[ ] Thank her for last night.
[ ] Ask her about her job.
[ ] Ask about the bruise.
[ ] Tell her about Remilia keeping things from you.
[ ] Ask her if she can help you with Sakuya.


I see no reason why any of these invalidate one another, although it makes me worry that it will reduce the depth on any one subject so...

[ ] Thank her for last night.
[ ] Ask her about her job.

Let's make small talk before going inside.

>>7804

You don't want to pressure her into talking about Sakuya, but bringing up a bruise she likely received from her is A-OK to talk about right off the bat?

Assuming she even gives a response, it would most likely be along the lines of claiming she had an "accident" while training or something.

>>7805

"I like to play fighting games."

>>7808
Nahh. If we're gonna die better make it good.

[x] Grope Meiling's boobs.
[x] One choice back.

Skull smashed and bad end, but not only we continue the conversation, we have one fucking glorious death.

>>7810

We already know she doesn't like talking about Sakuya directly, so the bruises are a good way to test just how much she's warmed up to us. As long as we don't implicate anyone, and don't pressure her about it, we can avoid making her uncomfortable. Show some concern for her, but be willing to avoid discussing things that make her uneasy.

>>7813
First some causual talk and show her we care for her and are interested in her. We already asked about her job, so then thank her and ask about the bruise, so we can show that we worry about her, then we can ask something else, and then about Sakuya.

Can't manage any more tonight, the haze of sleep deprivation is making it too hard to write.

Bad news, updates will be very sporadic until Monday. If and when I'm at a computer, I will be writing.

Back at full, fist of the north star speed on Monday!

>>7815
That sucks, but well, i will be here on monday. Better be ready to write a wall first thing on monday.

[x] Thank her for last night.
[x] Ask her about her job.

❶ Thank her for last night.
❷ Ask about the bruise.
❸ Ask her if she can help you with Sakuya.

Hmm, second playthrough with lots of sex and library hijinx or abusive relationships and kung fu? I'm honestly torn here.

>[x] Ask her about the bruise.

"Did we have any intruders today Meiling?"

"None? Huh. Well I asked because of that large bruise on your face, but then how did that--?"

"Ah well, that explains it, though I'm quite surprised to hear a graceful thing like you would trip and fall onto your own face."

"Oh, don't be so modest! Of course you are! I see you practicing your Tai Chi from the window. And you know, it's important that you maintain your pride as Head Gate Guard of the Scarlet Devil Mansion."

"Well, no it's not just having someone to 'guard the gate' (as if the mistress wouldn't dispatch any intruder with relish) rather as the most forward element of the mansion, you are its public face, and now that I've gotten to know you a little better, I can see why Remi picked you: a perfect balance of duty, politeness, beauty, and strength. Your very presence certifies that only the hardiest, intelligent, and determined of souls ever step foot beyond these walls. One could go far as to say that you ARE the gate of the Scarlet Devil Mansion."

"Well, yes I went on a bit, but I do have a point I'm getting to. A thing happened recently that made me absolutely certain that I didn't want to be merely a guest of the Scarlet Devil Mansi--"

"Oh no, no, it's nothing to do with the fairy, though that reminds me I should follow up on them later. No, it was seeing the smile on Remilia's face when she hugged her sister for the first time in what could be centuries."

"I know, isn't it? Well that smile, and this place where it happened, is something I want very much to protect. So what I'm saying in this very roundabout way is, if there is anything or anyone that is... interfering with your ability to maintain your presence or is affecting your morale, it is not only your duty but in the interests of the other residents as well to resolve it. So if there is ever anything at all I can help you with, even if it's just to vent or talk or, say, to get past a particularly frustrating world boss, just let me know. Okay?"

"Good. Well, your shift is about over; are you up for playing a little of the ol' vidya?"

"You know what I meant, Hong! Prepare yourself! Oh shit wait until I tell you what I saw in library today!"

>>7819
Your Diplomacy skill has increased by 3.

>>7819
You, sir, are a master of words and should not be trusted around women.

[ ] You gonna get taken home
[ ] Have a heart attack

>>7819

>>Oh shit wait until I tell you what I saw in library today!

>>7819

HONG, HONG!

TASUKETE, MEIRIIIIIIIN

I just thought of something. Everyone was talking about how the Belmont blood was to purify vampires, but when the fairy maid drank it, she turned back from being a vampire, but then went to dieing. Not just from the earlier wounds, drinking the blood was lethal. For a fairy that isn't a problem, because they just reincarnate, but for a human, after losing the vampirism, they would just up and die.

>>7797
[X] Thank her for last night.
[Y] Ask about the bruise.

Oh, just wondering, does anyone know who keeps watch after Meiling calls it a day?

man, and i just realized how much I love meiling, I need to find some good meiling doujins.

>>7827
Eirin said that the fairy would die from blood loss. The fairy had probably already lost a substantial amount of blood due to her earlier injuries. There is no direct evidence that the Belmont blood itself caused lethal damage to the fairy vampire.

>>7829
Belmont is a vampire hunter, this fact makes that blood special, because it's not just Belmont's blood (Belmont is only the donor..) it must have some other ingredients, if you know what I mean..

>>7829
Belmont is a vampire hunter, this fact makes that blood special, because it's not just Belmont's blood (Belmont is only the donor..) it must have some other ingredients, if you know what I mean..

>Patchouli Route: Win her heart by being awesome (somehow) and give her what she needs the most. Slower and more relaxed pace but dangerous in its own way. Spellcaster mode.

>"So it worked!" You say. "You told her?"
>Patchouli shakes her head. "She told me."

So, wait, if we do Patchy route, do we end up in a different reality where Patchy and Alice aren't in love? Or do we have to take Alice's place in her heart and Alice's love goes unrequited?

>"Paaaaachy, come back to beeeeeed." The call seems to come from the wall behind Patchouli. It is unmistakably Alice, though her voice is much freer and happier than you've ever heard it before.
>Patchouli is still focusing furiously on her book. You're struggling not to laugh.
>Then, before you can say anything else, a door opens. You'd never seen it there before, in the wall next to Patchouli's other desk. In fact by the way that the surrounding wall seems to come away with it you guess that it was designed to be camouflaged like that. Standing in the now open doorway is Alice, covered in nothing but a bedsheet. She smiles and waves at you before walking over to Patchouli, bending down to her ear and whispering something. As she does Patchouli freezes and her eyes go wide but before she can do anything else Alice has already slid back through the door and shut it behind her again. You notice Shanghai holding her head in her hands. Patchouli closes her book and places it on the table.
>"Unless you have something very pressing to discuss, I have a matter to attend to." She says, completely poker-faced.

Don't tell me we have to actively prevent this from happening? Crush the bud of this beautiful love, this joy when it's just ready to blossom? I'd sooner demolish the Sistine Chapel.

>>7832
Your case is strong. I could never pursue a Patchy route that destroys the awesomeness that is Alice + Patchy.

>>7832
Alternate play throughs may have variable circumstances.

>dangerous in its own way

Sup Alice.

>>7828
....good question.

>>7832
Each Route is like an alternate Universe.

Just an FYI, archives are up:
http://www.sentrygun.com/touhou/
If you find any problems or have suggestions, please feel free to post them. Thanks!
Now to start on the other Limited Adventures~

>>7828
>Oh, just wondering, does anyone know who keeps watch after Meiling calls it a day?

Nobody. The gate is locked. Visiting hours are over. The vampires are awake by this time, so there's no danger.

>>7832

Heh, I bet if we do Patchy route, Alice will actually be in love with Marisa.

Thanking her and asking her about the bruise has won. At least one update on it's way sometime today.

>>7841

Hey there HY. Don't worry, do your things first, we can wait for you to end them.

>>7842
Right now it's not a matter of doing stuff, it's of having access to a computer. I'm writing when I can. Thanks though.

inb4 BACK TO WORK NIGGER.

>>7843

Ah, yeah, I know how's that. Not having ascess to a computer simply sucks.

>>7841
>>7843
You'd better not end the conversation just after those two options, or you'll face my wrath.

>>7843
HY, we voted for you as the best Writer on this Board. GOD TIER.
But still, no need to go killing yourself for us, just make yourself a nice weekend and come back monday and write the whole fucking day.

>>7845
Listen to this man, it better not end just with those 2.
We should start slow and once we make her feel relaxed, we can ask her more personal questions about Sakuya and other things.

Quit with the cocksuckery, if the fucker wants to kill himself in order to amuse us, let him.

>>7845 >>7846 >>7847
Stop bothering HY, if he can't even get on a computer you're just wasting your time.

>>7848

Just don't go too far and make him stop caring about writing.

>>7849
I didn't say he had to write today, just that we need to talk to Meiling more than just that. But it's probably just me being paranoid since most likely we will.

Of course he can write whenever he wants, this is a hobby for him.

If you write an update today, please make a new Thread when you are at it.

>>7852 That is a good idea. I seconded!