>>203729
[x] Yukari the Mysterious Lady

Of all of the people Rumia had listed to you, Yukari was one of two she actually knew by name. And also "one of the most important people". You didn't have much to go off of for any of them, but these two facts in and of themselves seemed like strong enough reasons.

"How about asking this Yukari lady for help? If she's so important, she could probably easily get e a place to stay. Hopefully, if she's nice."

Rumia grinned and nodded. "Alright! Yukari lady it is then!" She said, her eyes filled with determination as she let her empty cup fall to the grass.

...

. . .

The wind blew, as her face held onto that determined look. Did she expect you to do something? "So, we..."

"I don't know where the Yukari lady is! No one really knows!"

. . .

"Well then why did you-"

"EXCEPT!" Rumia pointed a finger towards the air, excited to share this news with you! "Except for HER! One of the most powerful girls here, the protector of Gensokyo! She certainly will be able to show you the Yukari! And by me showing you the girl who will show you Yukari, I will have helped you!" Rumia gave a toothy grin full of pride. "The monk lady is going to be so happy with me! She's going to give me a bunch of food tonight!" She held out a finger and pointed to the west, alongside the shore of the lake. Following it, you could see far in the distance what appeared to be a small building tucked away in the mountains. Well, it seemed like a far trip but you had nothing better planned.

"We should get walking before it gets dark then, right?"

"If you want to Mister Human, I like the dark." Despite the change in her demeanor, the fact she specified you as human felt a tad unnerving.

You lead the way going in the general direction she pointed to, following the side of the lake. Rumia hummed as she floated side by side behind you. Her eyes were closed as she remained in her own little world. With her musical accompaniment and the fading sounds of the cicadas, you decided to admire some of the surroundings on your trek. The lake's water was notably pristine, mired not by pollution or murk. Its water was a deep blue. Though you couldn't make out the opposite side of the lake, the shoreline on this side seemed clean, with frogs, reeds, and... ice? Had it snowed here recently? The weather seemed like it was late summer or early autumn, that was way too early for there to be snow or even frost out. Yet, as you traveled further, more signs of Father Frost appeared.

Icicles dripping from spots on a tree. Small icebergs slowly melt in the water. A frog frozen in mid-jump. An entire igloo. You turned back to Rumia, who continued her melody blissfully oblivious. Maybe this was just... normal in this world? You turned back forward and kept walking, now seeing a frozen-

"HEY! Where ya going, Mister Human?"

You turned around to see Rumia floating, arms spread out, in front of the igloo. "She's here! Is your eyesight bad? How did you miss it?" Holding back any rebuttal, you walked back to her. She pointed at the entranceway. It was small. You'd have to crawl. You looked back at Rumia. "Well? Go on in! She's home! I think."

With a held-back sigh, "When in Rome I guess" as you got on your hands and knees, and began to crawl through the igloo's small entrance. "Good luck Mister Human! You're welcome for the heeeeeeeeeeeeeeeelp." Rumia's voice faded out. The minute you have to crawl she decides to bail? She must've thought her job was done the moment she could hand you off to someone else. Oh well, a-hey wait, you didn't even know who you were supposed to be seeing! Second thoughts began to fill your head, but you decided to keep crawling, at least to see if anyone was home.

This tunnel was longer on the inside than it looked from the outside, but you, at last, neared the inside of the igloo. The moment your face popped into the room though, it was greeted with a foot.

The foot came from another girl, one slightly taller than Rumia, but not by much. A blue dress, accompanied by blue hair and a big blue bow adorned this girl. Her face was sneering, like a bully who just saw his favorite target on the playground pull out his game boy. "Well well well. What have we here? What brings a human to Cirno's castle? You're not trying to destroy it are you?"

"NO! No!" You exclaimed, stuck right at the end of the entrance tunnel and thus unable to stand up. "Rumia just told me to come here, she said you can help me!" It was a bit hard to plead your case while a foot was on your face. Some people would pay good money for this experience, but you couldn't see the appeal.

"Ah, did she now?" She held a finger to her head as if to mimic someone deep in thought. "Well of course I can help! I'm Cirno. There's nothing I can't do! I can do anything, freeze anything, and defeat anyone! Gensokyo is my realm! Watch this!" Cirno took her foot off your face. She held out her hand, and several ice spikes appeared out of thin air, before they flung themselves against the icy walls, shattering as they did so. "Cool huh?" Was that a pun? "Oh, watch this!" She held out her hands and glared. Then she stopped. "Now that was cool, right? The coolest!"

"What did you do?"

"I froze time!"

"You... froze time?"

"Yeah! Better than that dumb maid's ability right?"

"Dumb ma-nothing happened though."

"You think nothing happened because I froze time! But then I unfroze it! You just couldn't tell! I can freeze anything." This was starting to look hopeless.

"Look, I just need to see this Lady Yukari lady, do you know here? Can you take me to her?"

Cirno brought her finger to her head again. "Hmmmmm...." She looked at you, her eyes going up and down. "Hmmmm...."

"..."

"Hmmmmmmm..."

"Is that a yes?"

"Hmmmmm... Yes!" Finally, that was- "On one condition!" Dammit. "I need an underling! Have you looked at the other people in Gensokyo?"

"No."

"What's the one thing all the powerful strong people have in common?"

"I don't know, I just got here an hour ago."

This young girl's arrogant-yet-idiotic thoughts were quickly wearing out your previously nervous and cautious attitude and replacing it with a much more curt one. Ability to generate ice out of thin air be damned, you were starting to get the feeling Rumia had misled you about who Cirno was.

"Well, all the strong people have underlings! But not me! And I should have one! I have friends but no underling to boss around! That's just not right! So you can be my underling! Pledge yourself to me and I'll take you to see Yukari!"

"... I'm sorry I can't do that."

Cirno frowned. "Oh, OK. I still need an underling though. I do have some others I'm thinking of making my underling though! I think they'd be all about equal in underlingness, so I'll let you pick the one that'll be my underling!"

She placed three pieces of paper on the ground, each with a crayon drawing. You looked at them, the absurdity of the situation sinking into you more and more. "So you want me to just pick one?"

"You'll also help me make them an underling too! Don't worry, you just need to come with me and tell them how powerful and strong I am and why I should be their underling! I'll even be generous - if we somehow fail, which we won't, I'll take you to Yukari anyways! What do you say?"

You looked down at the three pieces of paper. One had this tall green-haired lady crying and pleading for mercy. "NO CHEERNO U R 2 SRONG DONT HURT ME". Flowers surrounded her. Cirno was freezing some of the flowers.

The second had this huge circular woman inside an ice cube crying while eating cake. Snowflakes were drawn around her, while Cirno was freezing her. "O NO I AM DEFEETD UR FRIZ IS FRIZER THEN MY FRIZ I WANT CAKE".

The last had a girl with black wings, completely frozen over. She cried while Cirno stepped on her. "CHEERNO I WIL NOT WRIT DUM BAD STORES ABOT U NYMOR U R SMART AND COOL".

As dumb as this situation was looking, maybe one of them could actually give you some proper help? Or maybe you could try and actually make them Cirno's underling, though you had doubts that would work out.

[] "Please, mighty Lord Cirno. Mercy upon the flowers!"
[] "Oh indomitable Lord Cirno, don't ruin the slothful one's food stores!"
[] "Will the sovereign Lord Cirno please spare the humble journalist of her crimes?"

>>203737
This meant to be released earlier, but the holiday week distracted me and I lost track of time. My bad.

[X] "Oh indomitable Lord Cirno, don't ruin the slothful one's food stores!"

You didn't know who these people were. You doubted that these artistic representations could be considered accurate. It was almost a complete shot in the dark for you. The first drawing with the flowers, even though it should've come off as silly to you, the green-haired girl in it... She sparked a primal fear in you for some inexplicable reason. If just this crude crayon drawing could do this, you dreaded what the real person could do. Hard no.

The last one, a winged girl? Was she supposed to be an angel or something? With black wings too. Even with the grammatical errors, you could piece together the girl was some kind of writer or journalist. It was too late in the day to be dealing with journalists. Pass.

The middle girl though, the fat one? Well... Fat people aren't too scary, are they? And you wouldn't mind some cake right now. Might as well pick this one. You held up the second picture, to which Cirno eagerly grabbed it. "Alright! Letty Whiterock! Prepare to enter your rightful place as my servant!" She folded the picture and put it in her pocket. She then turned back to you. "Until Letty concedes to being my underling, you are my temp underling. Now, let's go get her! Out! Out!" You grumbled. You had still been on all fours in the entranceway due to Cirno blocking you from fully entering the igloo. The tunnel was too tight to turn around, so you'd have to crawl backwards. What fun.

...

"OK human! Watch this!" An icicle shot from the blue fairy's hand, instantly freezing the mushroom you two passed. You might've been impressed if this weren't the 16th time she had shown you that exact same move. The trek upwards into the mountains was already time-consuming, Cirno stopping every 5 minutes to show you this same freezing trick only prolonged it further. Cirno beamed with pride as you gave a curt "neat". Your 16th "neat".

Thankfully, it was after that 16th frozen mushroom that you saw a rocky path heading up the mountain. And just near the pathway, a doorway alongside the mountainous wall. It seemed like a quant cottage exterior, western in design, built right into the mountain. "That's our stop!" Cirno exclaimed. "You remember what to do right? Just convince her to be my underling! And you better actually try! If you give up and don't try I'll never show you where Yukari is! Got it?" You assured Cirno you would give an honest effort, and approached the cozy cabin door. A "DO NOT DISTURB" sign welcomed you. You took a deep breath and knocked on the door.

Nothing happened. You waited for a few minutes, then turned around to look back at Cirno, several feet away from you. She nudged her head back towards the door, and you decided to knock once more, a bit louder. Finally, you could hear some stirring within the domicile. After some more movement inside, you could make out some slightly slurred and mumbled words. "...adda jiss finally considered my offer Akis?" With that, the door began to open.

Standing in the half-opened doorway was a tall woman with pink hair. Like Cirno's drawing implied, she seemed a bit... rotund, but not anywhere as unflattering as the crayons claimed. The woman, Letty you believe Cirno called her, must've been in deep sleep earlier, judging from her messy hair and disheveled appearance. All she had on was a nightgown and a hastily put-on jacket. Both left little to the imagination. Her tired and glazed eyes finally were able to focus on you, and once they did a frown appeared on her face. When they were able to make out what the light blue smudge behind you was, a grumpy glare appeared. Before you could get a word out, the door slammed shut in front of you.

That probably could've gone better. Knowing what Cirno would want you to do if you turned your head back to ask her, you went ahead and knocked again. "Go away." Grumbled the front door. "It's too early in the year for this. I don't entertain humans and I don't entertain that brat, so beat it unless you want an icier reception!"

===

[] "Please, I really need your help. It's getting late and we need a place to stay for the night."
[] "This ice fairy is harassing me and I need to get rid of her."
[] "If you beg for mercy now and prostrate yourself, Lord Cirno may decide to spare you!"
[] "Pizza time! Free pizzas for you!"
[] This whole situation is becoming too stressful. Just break down and cry right on her front door.

>>203769
[x] "This ice fairy is harassing me and I need to get rid of her."

It was beginning to sink in just how absurd your situation was. Cirno here seemed too caught up in her delusional desires to make a minion, and you doubted just how helpful she could be. She had just met you and was already forcing you to harass some unrelated person for ridiculous reasons. Did Cirno even know where this Yukari was? You decided to cut your losses, going on your own might be safer than sticking with Cirno.

"This ice-" You began to speak but realized Cirno was a bit behind you and could overhear you. Cirno may have acted like an idiot, but you knew the icicles she shot out were no joke. It would probably behoove you to keep a quieter tone. You took a hushed tone and continued. "This ice fairy is harassing me and I need to get rid of her." Silence came from the door, but you didn't hear movement. "Please, any help would be appreciated." More silence. You looked around, desperate to get an idea, something to convince her not to bail on you.

You noticed small winter-themed decorations nearby her home. Cirno's first drawing had mentioned "FRIZ", with snowflakes and ice. Was Letty like... Whatever Cirno was? With ice powers? That would explain the forced ice pun she made trying to get rid of you. They clearly didn't seem too fond of each other. Rivals? Perhaps that could be the route to pursue.

"I know you're better with ice stuff than Cirno, if you could just... demonstrate that and scare her off, I'd be so grateful." Still silence. Had she snuck away quietly when you weren't noticing? "... Please."

Hope seemed dim, and right when you were about to turn in defeat to Cirno, the door burst open with a gust of frosty wind. You stumbled backwards and fell to the ground, as snow flurries twirled around the doorway. "OH HO HO HO HO" A deep hearty laugh bellowed as the flurries cleared, revealing the slightly-less disheveled Letty Whiterock. She floated several feet in the air, imposing and tall in a jacket properly adjusted to herself, and a hat covering the messier parts of her hair. "Cirno, you really are an idiot!"

Cirno's math gaped open. "What! I'm not the idiot, you're the idiot! Fatty!"

Letty did her haughty laugh again, before icicle spears instantaneously shot up from the ground around you, forming a cage. "And yet you have done the most idiotic of ploys! You have delivered the divine chosen human sacrifice to me!"

Cirno paused. "D... D-"

"Divine, it means holy."

"Oh. S-Sacra-Sacri-"

"Sacrifice is something that is to be killed."

"Ah. I knew that!"

"And this human is all of those things! So I shall take him as my own minion instead! This will multiply my own power infinitely!" Snow began surrounding Letty, as small clouds formed in the area. "Face me if you dare, puny ice fairy."

Cirno put a foot forward and took on a determined pose. "I'm more than strong enough to face a fat idiot like you! Just try something!"

"Ah ah ah!" Letty wiggled a finger. "I have one more trick up my sleeve!" Another icicle shot up from the ground below you, this time stopping just shy of your neck. "You try and attack me, I kill the human. That'll not only make me super duper strong, but Hakurei will get angry at you for causing this human to die!" Cirno tensed up hearing that. Yet again you heard about this Hakurei, whoever they were they must've commanded a lot of respect around these parts.

Cirno sweated as she nervously looked around, between you and Letty. This was not how she was expecting this encounter to go. This was supposed to be a simple minion-making plan, but now it involved... Tricks and stuff, Cirno didn't study for this! She wanted to fight Letty right then and there but...

"Human! I'm not abandoning you!" Cirno said as she flew off abandoning you. "I'll be back to save you later! You'll be my minion again soon, I promise!" Gradually, the blue fairy faded into the distance. Letty floated down to the ground, as the icicles trapping you began to melt. You had a feeling it was all a ruse but it made you feel reassured nonetheless.

This feeling of reassurance was squished when Letty collapsed on you, sweaty and exhausted, all the snow and ice in the nearby area reduced to puddles. "Alright human, carry me inside. You better earn your worth from this."

It was difficult dragging this large lady in, though you wisely kept your mouth shut, as she directed you to her couch, where she promptly fell with a "splat". After a few seconds of her face-first on the couch, she began quickly taking her jacket off. You looked at her, slightly taken back. When she noticed your mild shock she stared daggers. "My house my dress code. Get in the kitchen and make me some tea." You nodded and quickly headed into the next room. "AND ICED TEA ONLY, NO HOT TEA."

You took the tea back to see her down to her underwear, splayed on her couch like a cat. The chubby sweaty woman lazily held her hand out as you placed the iced tea into it. She took a drink from the glass while refusing to sit up. Letty seemed determined to stay laying down as long as possible. After both of you had had some sips of your drink, you decided to break the ice. "Thanks for... All of that. It was really impressive, your powers really are incredible."

"That was hell on me you know."

"It was?"

Letty glanced you up and down as if trying to study something about you. "I'm a yuki-onna, you ever hear of them?" You nod. "We're youkai of the winter. My ability isn't to create cold, but to manipulate chill. I'm only at my full strength in the winter. Which, unfortunately, it's not that now. If it wasn't for all the power I stored up hiding down here, and the recent cold front, and Cirno being nearby, I couldn't have put up that facade." Letty finished her drink quickly, leaving behind only ice cubes. She decided to place the ice-filled glass against her stomach for a source of chilliness. "That said, when winter comes around? I can really put that brat in her place. That was the only reason I helped you you know, Just for a chance to embarrass her outside of winter."

Letty adjusted her legs slightly. "You're really new here aren't you? You're not going to last long if that's the company you're trying to keep. How did you get caught up with her anyways?"

"She was going to help me find someone to help me. Rumia helped me to-"

"Wait, Rumia? Aren't they supposed to be giving pamphlets to warn you new people away from her?"

You nervously chuckled and ignored the weight of the folded-up pamphlet in your pocket.

"Well in the future be more careful who you stay near. And who you decide to ditch too. It's hazardous to your health."

"You think Cirno would've tried to kill me?"

"I think Cirno doesn't understand the concept of death. It's foreign to her kind, fairies. Fairies always come back when they die." How strange, and unsettling.

Letty gave a sigh as she placed the cup of ice against her forehead, desperate to cool down. Even though you felt comfortable, if a little cool, she was acting like it was the middle of a heat wave with no A/C. "What about you? What's your story? I usually don't get the chance to talk with newcomers. The least you can do is entertain me."

Your backstory? Well, it was still a bit fuzzy to you, but things were beginning to clear up. And your name too was starting to return to you. You could remember...

===

"My name is [write in, random choice]"

[]"I studied like hell in school to try and get into the best university. Long nights I spent trying to do my best, memorize all the facts, forgoing personal relationships... I don't think I'd ever miss it if I was stuck here."
[]"My mom ditched our family while I was young, I mostly had to care for myself and my deadbeat dad. He was never much there, but I always wonder what it'd be like if my mother was there..."
[]"I always wanted an older sister growing up. I had an older brother instead, who was an asshole. Older sisters seem cool, confident, protective, bossy but in a good way..."
[]"I went to the beach, where I met this strange auntie-like lady who was acting like she was 20 years younger than she really was. She forced me to drink wine and tried grabbing me everywhere. I don't want to admit I liked it"
[]"Why would I remember something? It's OK to not remember things."

Pick a simple backstory that may or may not influence their path and eventual relationships.

>>203787
It's been a week, and what a ride. This was far more intense than I expected it to be, right down to just a few hours ago. Dice roll to determine tie-breaker. I appreciate all the votes, and I hope even if your route didn't win you'll still have fun with the story.

===

The fog which had permeated your mind since you woke up here was beginning to recede. Many details still remained fuzzy, specifically HOW you got here, but at least you were beginning to remember enough to not be considered a complete amnesiac.

Your parents had been a young couple when they moved in together. They had yet to marry one another, but planned to "when the time was right". Neither was what could be considered responsible. They partied, went to rock concerts, and were fairly well-liked among their peers. Things looked bright for them despite their carefree lifestyle. The economy was good, they were comfortable, and life and fortune smiled upon them. Then your mother became pregnant with you.

Shortly after you were born, your mother left. Disappeared entirely without a trace. When you were a young boy you imagined that something grand must have happened to her. Maybe she was a secret spy, off in the cold wastes of a northern country putting an end to an evil genius. Maybe she was actually a witch, and when the time came she would visit you and teach you secret powers. There was a hope inside you for the longest time that someday she would return. Someday she would explain where she was, and make things right again. As your childhood innocence receded, so too did this dream, as the uncomfortable reality began to sink in.

In contrast, your father was there, an eternal fixture in your life. Particularly, on his recliner like a statue. Rarely did he leave that spot. He had managed to convince the state he was disabled in some manner, allowing him to stay at home. When you were 7 he gave you money for groceries and told you how to purchase food and what you'd need to tell the cashier kid to get cigarettes and beer. That was the most fatherly advice he'd ever give you.

You heard stories of other kids and their negative relationships with their fathers. You almost wished your old man would strike you with his fist or spit words of venom toward you. He never did though. He never acknowledged your presence unless you were bringing him food or beer. There was no love in his eyes, no life really. His existence was to be in a perpetual state of decay in front of the tube.

Both of your parents had checked themselves out of your life. Circumstance hoisted maturity upon you at a young age, denying you a proper childhood. While your peers were chatting about card games and collectibles, you were thinking of the best way to walk home to avoid the territorial knife-wielders. One incident that always stuck out to you was in middle school when some punk decided that they'd cause trouble by messing with you. You tried to shrug them off first, but they kept insisting, harassing you, grabbing you...

Of course, the moment you threw the first punch was the moment a teacher turned the corner to witness it. Of course, she ignored your side of the story, and only you earned trouble for it.

After this event, the young stressed-out kid you were began to grow more cynical, more bitter, and more stand-offish. The wolves and the snakes out there, if they sought to mess with you they'd best prepare for a fight. And it felt like so many people were just that, predators waiting for the right moment to strike at their prey. The whole city was like that. You had no intention of being anyone's prey.

You formulated a plan to the side, nearing your final months of school. While others were discussing their dreams for college, you were saving up money from odd jobs and what you could sneak from your dad. Was it much? No. Was it enough to get you far from this place? Yes. Your plan was simple; you would buy a cheap used car and get far away from this city, deep into the wilderness, and disappear. You had studied wilderness living and homesteads, you knew you could do it. No more dealing with drug-addled gangbangers harassing you on the street, government bureaucrats with fake smiles pretending to be your friend and care for you only to stab you in the back, and no more coming home every night to see a slowly-dying husk that refuses to acknowledge you as anything more than a seed. These people would forget you, and you could live happily in peace, far from the stresses and nightmares of the city.

And then, here you were. Remembering properly who you were, you cringed at your earlier actions with Rumia and Cirno. Why had you allowed yourself to be pushed around so much by these little girls? Was that just a result of judgment impairment, due to whatever fogged your mind? Or was it a reflection of a different you? The latter though unsettled you deeply.

You looked back at the sweating yuki-onna and told her a more concise version of your story, leaving out many details. She had done you a favor that you appreciated, but you didn't trust her (or anyone really) enough to tell a comprehensive life story. You simply said you had a rough relationship with your parents, and you were saving up to move out into the woods.

"You're going to live all by yourself in the woods?" Letty asked, placing the bag of ice between her chunky thighs.

"It seems like a relaxing life, it always intrigued me."

"Roughing it in the woods isn't easy though."

You raised an eyebrow. "Isn't your house out here in the wilderness?"

"It's different for us youkai. We're strong. And here in Gensokyo, most of us can fly, so distance isn't a big issue. Out there though, I remember the wilderness being huge. A young girl like you with no powers would get devoured out there."

"Girl?" What the hell was this fatty saying? You were pretty obviously a guy. You raised your hand to correct her when your brain set off a big alarm. Your hand looked smaller than normal. Scrawny in fact. The nails were also long. All at once, your mind began to notice things off, things seriously off it hadn't noticed before until now.

"Where's your bathroom?"

"Eh?"

"Bathroom I need it now."

"It's..." Letty stumbled to sit up a bit. "It's down the hall that way on the le-" You darted out towards that direction before she could finish her sentence. "... Psht. Humans are so weird."

You locked the door behind you as you looked into the mirror. The reflection you had known your entire life was completely gone. In its place was someone else, someone you had never seen in your life. Your skin was pale and your entire body felt small and frail. Skinny arms, a stature on the shorter side. Your facial structure was notably feminine and could even be called cute, framed with short messy black hair. You looked down at your wide hips and moved a hand down quickly to confirm the absence of something. You were undeniably, as of this moment, a girl. You resembled what you imagine your sister would've looked like if you ever would've had one.

You sat on the toilet (something you quickly realized you'd be doing a lot more from now on) as your mind raced trying to process this. What the fuck? What the fuck? No seriously, what the fuck? How did this happen? Was it a byproduct of being in this weird wonderland? Was this reversible? It had to be, you just saw two women conjure snow and ice out of nothing while flying, of course some bullshit magic could fix this. It had to.

Another thought came into your mind. ... Were you gay now? You closed your eyes and began to use your imagination. Boobs, boobs, boobs, boobs... OK, you were still straight. Or, does that make you gay because you like girls now? You didn't know, you shouldn't have had to face this dilemma.

After some time to calm down, you stepped out of the bathroom and returned to Letty. "Welcome back, can you-"

"Why am I a girl now?"

"... What?"

"Girl! I'm a girl now! I've got these on my chest and I'm small and weak now, I wasn't like this when I entered here!" You frantically stated, the stress from the entire day pouring out. "What happened?! How did this happen!"

"Relax, relax! I don't know." Letty sat up straight, balancing the bag of ice in her lap. "I don't know much about you newcomers, or what happens to you. Maybe this is just a result of magic, or some other youkai having fun with you. I really don't know! I'm sure you'll figure it out." Letty took a deep breath. "Look, these kinds of strange happenings... happen here in Gensokyo often. It's just how this place is set up to be, with lots of magical beings roaming around. I don't know who did this to you or why, but I can at least explain to you more of the basics about Gensokyo, the places, and how things work. Then you can go out and seek whoever did this to you on your own and fix it. OK?"

You sighed and took a seat in a chair, noting just how big the chair felt compared to you. You closed your eyes and calmed down some. Stressing and panicking wouldn't get you out of this, and unlike the previous idiot you were with, Letty seemed to genuinely know some things, and not act like an egotistical idiot. "Alright, alright, sorry for yelling. Please, tell me about Gensokyo."

"First, get me some more ice bags and tea."

And so, the lightly-dressed fat girl covering herself in ice cubes began giving you the basic information about Gensokyo. What this place was and why it was made, the nature of youkai, the human village, and some of the major players, like Reimu Hakurei, the shrine maiden watching from afar. If you wanted to return to the real world, she was going to be your ticket.

"How are youkai created anyways?" You asked, curious.

"Many youkai and gods are born from belief, but that belief has made them always exist there, even before humans. However, if humans ceased to believe in them entirely, that past would be undone, since the past is always just an illusion. Does that make sense?"

"Not entirely."

Letty chuckled. "It's OK, I don't understand this stuff much either. Only a few of the more educated really seem to. For the rest of us youkai, as long as the system works, we don't really need to know how."

"What about individuals? Like, do you breed, or-"

"Yes, and youkai can breed with other youkai or humans. Or... I guess anything if there was belief imbued in it."

"Anything?"

"Even an umbrella or a drum."

How strange, how could anyone do anything lewd with those kinds of objects?

"Of course, some youkai can transform other humans into youkai, or humans can become them through other means. For example, vampires through bites, or magicians through intensive magic study."

"Really? So I could just become a youkai? Gain magic powers and all?"

Letty's face darkened unexpectedly at this comment. "You're saying something you don't really grasp the full gravity of." She took a sip of her tea. "But yes, you could. If you wanted to do that though, you'd need to do it very soon."

"Why?"

"Hakurei's job is to maintain Gensokyo's balance. The human village is considered a safe haven, a refuge for the humans living in it. The youkai don't attack them in their town limits, and even when they wander off most don't do much but scare them. Many fear the youkai as they rightfully should, and that fear is our most important sustenance, more than anything else. Without that, Gensokyo would crumble.

"Villagers are given these protections, but newcomers like you aren't. You could be killed anytime, anywhere. I could freeze you right now and no one could do anything about it." You shifted in your seat. "For newcomers, you can either visit Hakurei and ask to be sent back or become integrated into the village for those protections I mentioned earlier."

"But what if I became a youkai after that?"

"You would be exterminated by the shrine maiden. And not exterminated where she just beats you up and kicks you out of the village, exterminated as in dead." Letty took another sip. "Villagers cannot under any circumstances become youkai, it is antithetical to their purpose, and even the knowledge of it being possible would jeopardize things. If you want to become a youkai, you had best do so before lingering in the village too long and becoming naturalized to it."

You looked at your drink. "If this is such dangerous knowledge to even have, why tell me?"

"What would you do with this knowledge? Enter the village as a newcomer and tell them they can become youkai? How do you think the villagers would react to that? How would the most powerful deities in Gensokyo react to that? How would the shrine maiden react to that? It's one thing to have knowledge, it's another to be able to do anything with it."

You lingered on that thought as Letty continued talking. The two of you discussed Gensokyo late into the night before finally Letty decided enough was enough. She told you of the guest bedroom down the hall, and quickly fell asleep, still covered in her sweat and ice.

"Oh, by the way, you never told me your name." She called out suddenly, right before you closed the door."

"It's Alex!" You shouted back.

"Alex... Lucky name for you! Gender neutral. Could've been awkward if you had a boy's name!" You grumbled as you closed the door.

You entered the bedroom. You sat on the bed. There was a mirror in the corner but you didn't look towards it. In a sense, you had gotten something along the lines of what you wanted. You were far away from the city, in a strange land isolated from the world. Though you were also isolated in a new body, foreign and strange. And what the hell were you going to do tomorrow?

You could seek out the shrine maiden and ask her to take you home... But why? What was there to even return back out there for? Just to find a different isolated place to stay in? Even if that was what you wanted, you'd still need to fix this... female problem currently plaguing you first. And Letty had no leads for how it even happened to you.

You could decide to enter the village and become a resident there. That would grant you some much-needed protections, as currently, you were purely at the whim of any youkai's mercy. If you become a village resident that could at least make it a political scandal for the youkai that kills you. Hopefully, if you understood it right. Of course, becoming a resident would limit you in other ways. And you'd also be in a village, something which seemed sort of antithetical to what you planned to do with your life.

And, the forbidden fruit, becoming a youkai. You didn't really know how that would work. But becoming a monster... You could be really powerful? You wouldn't need to rely on anyone in that case, no hiding from the likes of Rumia. And with youkai being solitary creatures, you could fulfill your dream of a solitary life alone easily here.

Finally, there was still the Yukari question. Letty had already given you so much information about your predicament, but now you knew just how powerful Yukari was. How Gensokyo seemed to be her playground. You could still seek her out, she might be able to answer many of your questions Letty couldn't answer, or help you in some other way. Letty said that Hakurei could lead you to her if you wanted, though you hoped this wouldn't be another Cirno incident.

You rested your head in your hands as you tried thinking about what you were going to do tomorrow.

===

Pick 1
[] I want to remain a human, I've already changed enough here.
[] I want to become a youkai, I'll need every advantage I can get here.

-

Pick 1
"Letty gave me a lot of information about Gensokyo, I think I'll head out to [write in location]".

Alex here has a basic understanding of Gensokyo now. What do you think our character's goals will be? Any additional comments or thoughts will be considered with your vote. If you want to become a youkai, the location we head to tomorrow will likely play a major role in deciding what species we become. But maybe some will want to remain human. Maybe it's a desire of purity, or you just want to be as weak as possible for your hag. Staying with Letty in her house is an option too.

>>203821
"....ooooohayo gozaimasuuuu..."

The faint cry from somewhere far far away woke you up from your slumber. Rubbing your eyes, you sat up and stretched your arms. You were still wearing your old clothes from yesterday. They clung loosely to your petite body, plainly not designed with someone as small of frame as you in mind. They also were beginning to smell a bit. You wouldn't be able to go anywhere with those. Maybe Letty could help you with that. You also took out what little you had in your pockets. The folded-up "Welcome to Gensokyo!" flyer, and some various trinkets. Coins, a paperclip, mostly worthless stuff anyone would keep in their pockets. It probably wouldn't be much use here.

You entered the hallway to find Letty exactly where you left her last night; out cold (figuratively) on the couch and covered in bags of what once was ice, not now room-temperature water. Hopefully, she'd wake up on her own, as you'd rather not disturb someone in their slumber.

The bathroom tiles felt cool as you stripped your old clothes off. A concious effort was made to avoid looking at your nude body as you slipped into the shower. You knew the cliche of what someone in this situation would do their first time in the shower, you intended to avoid that. Everything still felt... Unreal, foreign, awkward.

Normally you took long hot showers, but that wasn't an option here. In hindsight, it makes sense a yuki-onna wouldn't have hot water. Suppressing a yelp from the initial frigid shock, you stayed in there for only a few minutes, long enough to use soap and deem yourself clean and smelling good.

A towel wrapped around your torso, you peeked a head out. Letty was already beginning to stir. Perfect, the sound of the shower must've gotten her to wake up. "Letty?" You called out.

"... Mmmgrmm" She mumbled.

"Are you awake?"

"Mmmrm..." A beat lingered in the air before she replied proper. "Unfortunately."

"I kind of... Do you have clothes?"

"You didn't... Pack any?"

"I wasn't planning on this trip you know." You said perturbed. "Besides my old ones are too big for me now."

"... Do you need them?"

"Yes! Obviously!"

"Alright, alright! Don't shout, it's just a joke, too early to be shouting... Give me a few minutes."

It took a few minutes, winter wasn't known for being an active season. Once Letty finally got off the couch, she headed to her bedroom and motioned for you. "Well, come on."

"I only have a towel on, just bring me something."

"Oh, don't be such a baby." Letty pushed the bathroom door open and put a hand on your shoulder.

"H-Hey! Don't do that!"

"What, you're a girl now aren't you? What do you think you have I haven't seen before? Come on, you'll need to try stuff."

Letty's clothes were far too big for you, both in height and width. Letty only acknowledged the height part. After rummaging through her closet a bit, she pulled out some old clothes. She said they were intended for Cirno, but just slightly too big for her, and Cirno wouldn't be wearing them anytime soon. You asked her why she had clothes intended for Cirno when they clearly didn't seem to be on good terms, but Letty ignored your question, instead insisting you change already.

"Can't you at least get out of the room!"

"Quit being so frigid, besides it's my bedroom. I also want to make sure you're putting them on right, girl's clothing is different from guy's. You need to..."

After some awkwardness you finally had your new clothes adorned. They were somewhat similar to Cirno's outfit you saw yesterday, yet still distinctly different. A bit more mature, for lack of better words. No ribbon on your head, but a short dark-blue dress. Accents of white and pale blue adorned the sides, giving a vague winter feel to it.

You would've preferred pants for something more gender-neutral, but Letty insisted this was all she had, and you'd have to be a much more fiery person to wear pants in Gensokyo. That comment felt like some inside joke that went over your head.

Letty also insisted that, since she had helped you so much so far, the least you could do was handle making breakfast. You shrugged. This ice lady was pushy, but it seemed fair. Besides, you were used to cooking, you did it all the time at home out of necessity. Looking through her ingredients, you had the perfect idea for a meal.

Cinnamon pancakes with whip cream, with cooked ham on the side. You thought coffee would've gone well with it, but Letty preferred her iced tea so you prepared that. When you brought the food to the table, a smile stretched across her cherubic face. Most of her expressions you had seen were related to grumpiness, tiredness, or cynicism. A grin of genuine happiness was a welcome surprise (though it probably shouldn't have been that much of one considering her figure). When she commented on how tasty the pancakes were, a bit of pride welled up inside you, though you didn't show it. Instead, you thanked her curtly for the compliment.

"So... I've been thinking about everything yesterday... The village seems like the best place to head out."

"Oh?"

"I can look around the stores, see any important figures, I'm sure it can help me figure out better what to do next."

"Hmm... That's understandable. Most newcomers who come here head straight for there. It's an obvious choice, really. Speaking of, you should also look into a place to stay there too."

"Ah... Yeah, I probably should." You hadn't given it any thought, but yeah, a place to actually stay would make sense. And while she was a stranger, and you knew her letting you stay just one night was generous, you couldn't help but feel the sting of being kicked out already.

Letty must've been able to sense what you were thinking. "A human can't really stay here long, I mean, if you stayed around a youkai too long, rumors might spread, and then you might become a youkai for real!" She gave a light chuckle. "Besides, I need to hibernate soon."

"Hibernate? Like, full on?"

"It's not what you think of in elementary school, it's more like a very prolonged period where you drift in and out of sleep. Sometimes you're deep in sleep for a long time, sometimes you're vaguely awake but your eyes closed. Sometimes you're ready to stumble to grab a bite to eat for a few minutes. Still, as a winter spirit, I need to build up my strength. And that stunt with Cirno took up a lot of energy I had built up so far."

She finished her pancakes and patted her belly, content and happy. "Besides, I've done plenty to help you so far! Clothed you, offered you my food, protected you. You should be pretty thankful to have such a great youkai take her time to assist you!" She laughed, her comments coming off as half a joke and half a boast.

>[] Thank Letty for her hospitality and wish her a good hibernation. It's time to head out alone.
>[] Ask Letty to come to the village with you. She's helped you a ton, and you hate being in someone's debt. You can get her something in the village, and have a clear conscious.
>[] "That'll do pig. That'll do."

===

The vote for the previous choice is still ongoing (we can change our mind on the way there). If you haven't voted in the previous one for where to go and if you'd like to become a youkai, feel free to do so. And decide what you'd like to do with Letty.

>>203830
>>203836
"Do you have a hat to go with this outfit?" You weren't sure why, but you had the feeling a hat, or any hair accessory really, would help you out. Something about this world just screamed that if you did not have a decoration on your head, you would die.

Letty examined you up and down. In hindsight, she realized just how much you'd stick out without a hat here. How could she have overlooked this? 'Poor thing,' she thought. 'She might as well have been completely nude.' She slowly got up. "Forgive me, one second." Letty headed to her closet as fast as she could (which wasn't particularly fast) and rummaged around. After a moment, she finally returned.

"Here, this is one of my personal backups, but I can spare you one. It'd look poor if I allowed a guest to leave here in such a state. A yuki-onna like me must be a gracious host." She motioned for you to come over to a mirror in the hallway. Letty was holding an identical copy of her hat, a white cap. It was a bit big, but should still fit you. You placed it on your head.

...

Letty grinned and swiftly hugged you from behind, her large breasts surrounding both sides of your head. "Ahhh! I can't believe it! It's like we're twin sisters! The resemblance is uncanny!" She seemed almost as excited as when you brought food out to her just an hour ago. You had no idea where she got 'twin' from, considering the drastic difference in height and width between the two of you. And the different hair colors.

>[You've obtained; Letty's Cap.]

===

Vote for the previous choices ending soon. Just to clarify, taking Letty with you isn't a hard Letty route lock, just if you want to keep her around. You'll probably know when we're nearing a hard route lock. And don't be afraid to pick "obvious game over" options, since they'll just be one post "what if... now go back and pick a real option". Unlock as many epilogues/"bad ends" as you'd like.

>>203826
>>203842
You packed up the last bit of your belongings into a small bag Letty had loaned you (your dress pocket was a bit small and inconvenient, so you wanted to avoid using it). Taking an assessment of all your belongings, aside from the clothes currently on your back, you had a "Welcome to Gensokyo" Flyer, a Paper Clip, your Outside World Clothes that no longer fit on you, and x5 Outside World Coins that might've still held some value here, but mostly for being unique coins as opposed to backed by a government's debt. You figured you could probably pawn off most of this for stuff here. You'd need food, a place to sleep, various supplies... Your mind started to wonder about how you'd deal with the long term of staying here, but you pushed it out of your mind. Focus on the now, not later.

"Thank you again for your help, is there anything I can-"

"Breakfast was enough, a host can't ask for more from her guest."

Her response bugged you a tad. You didn't care for being in another people's debt. If you could've paid her for lodgings or provided something in return (outside of the breakfast you made), you could've just seen it as just a mutual transaction. Being given something for nothing in return... It felt uncomfortable. If you hadn't been literally thrown into a realm of magic and monsters (and turned into a weak girl on top of that) you might've just roughed it outside.

Still, there was no use dwelling on it. You thanked her once more and began to head out. She waved as she watched you begin your long trek to the human village. "If you're still alive, I hope to see you again this winter!" You couldn't tell if that was an ominous warning or not. You waved back, as she placed a "DO NOT DISTURB UNTIL NOVEMBER" sign on her door and closed it shut.

The walk along the path was long and uneventful. There had been rain in the very early morning, but it had long passed, leaving a fairly cloudy and murky sky, but rays of sunlight bursting through openings from time to time. From what Letty had told you, you had anticipated fairies or other small youkai to pop out and harass you. Instead, there was nothing. Little more than a light breeze to accompany you. This was actually the first real time you had been in any sort of wilderness by yourself. Yes, you had planned to retreat to the wilderness before... all this, but your knowledge about the wilderness was second-hand. What you saw in books and online. Actually being here was much more different than you had imagined. The air was clean, and you didn't hear the sounds of car horns or people shouting. It was just a state of peace. So alluring and captivating...

You were in no state to linger or stray off the main path though. Instead, you continued further for about 2 hours when you came upon some gates. This must've been the village. A living glimpse into Japan's past.

You were surprised at how few glances you seemed to draw. Most of the villagers were clad in mundane clothing that you'd expect from a village like this. Nothing bright, nothing bold. Yet you were dressed up in this blue dress and white cap, you stuck out like a sore thumb, yet everyone just walked past you for the most part. Were they used to this? Was there some other reason they sought to avoid glancing at you? Well, it was probably for the best.

You finally managed to find an area that looked to be a marketplace, with various vendors gathering about. "Lady Akyuu, are you sure you want to be out here?" A servant nearby you asked. "You know we're more than capable of fetching whatever you need."

"It's fine, it's fine, fufufu." You had heard about Lady Akyuu from Letty, an important figure in the village who was allegedly a sickly girl. She didn't seem too bad off though if she was rich enough to have servants, and out here smoking a pipe. "I heard there would be interesting characters out here today, I would like to bare witness to such a thing."

"And if I may be so bold as to request, please let us know beforehand if you desire to travel to the village. I nearly missed you before you headed out, I fear what could happen if a youkai stumbled upon you unaccompanied."

"That is quite the bold request." The purple-haired girl puffed out a cloud of smoke as she continued, her servant unable to plead further.

"Alright, look lively everyone!" A shout came out from the back. "I want this to be our best market yet, we've only got a short while this morning so let's make it count!" These announcements seemed to come from a blue-haired girl in... What kind of gay gaudy outfit was that? It looked to be a bit ratty too. No one seemed to pay her any mind, however, as they continued setting up their stands. "Now let's make sure... You!" The rainbow-clad girl looked straight in your direction and began stomping toward you. What had you done? Who the hell was this? You were thankfully spared as she marched right past you, and approached a cloaked figure. The cloak covered every part of the person, outside of some obviously fake rabbit ears poking out of the front. Letty had told you rabbits were out here in Gensokyo, but... that COULDN'T be one of them, right? Those ears were so obviously fake.

"After all this time, you finally decide to show your face at one of my markets? So NOW I'm good enough for you to spare some time for?!"

"Ah! Um... Well..."

"And where's your merchandise? You think this is funny? Are you just here to mock me!"

"No, no! It's not like that! I, um..."

The two began some unproductive back and forth that would probably go nowhere. This rainbow girl seemed to remind you a bit of Cirno, you could tell she had an ego. Letty had a bit of one too, was everyone in Gensokyo an egomaniac on some level? What a-

"SORRY!"

A blur of green carrying a young girl's voice darted past the corner of your eye as you stumbled back. She had bumped right into your side and continued into the crowd. You instantly suspected that was a pickpocket. However, you had emptied the few pockets in your dress beforehand, and your bag was closed firmly.

This marketplace is bustling and full and life, and there are many things you could do! The Gay CEO said that time was short though, so you'd best make it count! What would you like to do?

>[] Write in

>>203855
[X] If listening in on the complaints to a rabbit is genuinely unproductive, let's browse the market and see what five foreign coins will get us.

Whatever that green blur was, there was nothing it could've taken from you. There was no use getting frantic about what was likely some dumb kid. You decided to browse some of the nearby stalls. Partly to get a feel of the items you could get here, and partly so you could casually overhear the argument nearby. One of the things you learned in the city is that people love to argue, and often they'll say many interesting things.

"Ever since the black markets faded away, it has been my personal duty to ensure Gensokyo regularly holds markets! That no rainbow is unappreciated by the lowly humans!"

This one stall was selling clothes made within the village. Mundane and natural, this Villager Attire would be perfect if you wanted to blend in as a human villager. You didn't seem to need this to participate in the village normally, but perhaps there might be situations where this would prove valuable. The tailor was willing to part with them for 2 coins.

"Marketplaces must be lively and vibrant! It is here where man shows his reverence to objects and to gods! They cannot be permitted to decline! I forbid such irreverence!"

The next stand was run by a bunny girl. Huh, there really were bunnies out and about. Though these ears seemed different from the ones of the hooded figure. The chubby bunny in yellow was willing to give you some "Ringo-branded Dango" for 1 coin. Another bunny butted in and said she'd give you three "Seiran-branded Dango" for 1 coin. You walked away silently as the two bickered among themselves.

"I alone through my wisdom and guidance teach. I alone show humans the path forward, connecting them closer with their tools and with one another. This is my duty as the god of this marketplace!"

A shady figure wearing a cloak urged you a bit to the side to show you what they had. Removing a leaf from a box, it transformed into a strange doll wielding a sword. The figure insisted this doll was not ordinary and had some magic left in it, allowing it to protect the user from any attacker, human or youkai. The seller says he knows you have a problem with humans bullying you, but you have no idea what that comment could mean, so you shrug it off. The magic would only be good enough for one activation though and should be kept hidden otherwise. This Failed Autonomous Doll is 3 coins.

"The tengu promised to be faithful, and the tengu promised to be devout. Yet they only sought to use the market for their own profit. Were it advantageous to them, they would've crucified me upon a cross. However, they cannot fool a god like me! Their deception was not undetected! I didn't need such featherbrains! I'm better than them!"

You passed a trashcan with a short goblin creature digging through it. A Blank Card was wedged in the refuse, but the goblin quickly grabbed it before you can. He'll part with it willingly for all 5 coins.

"After the tengu, like the western figure Judas, cruelly betrayed their divine god, I had to find new worshippers with the wisdom, intelligence, and bravery to follow that which is righteous and just."

A green-haired girl gave you a sympathetic look, the rainbow-clad goddess' rant towards the cloaked figure has been going on for a while now. She's selling these miracle-granting Frog Charms, guaranteed you grant you incredible fortune once when worn. Specifically, they can give you perfect luck once, when a situation is proving too dire. They're worth 3 coins. She also had some of Kanako's Premium Mini-Onbashira. These sticks have condensed onbashira power inside them, making them hit a lot harder than you'd expect. The green-haired girl insisted that these are wildly popular items that all the Kanako fans are jumping to grab, but the box with them appears full. They're 2 coins. Before you checked out the other stalls, the girl says (a bit subdued) that the Moriya Shrine welcomes all the faithful, but youkai are best to come at night.

"While the masses of Gensokyo are currently unenlightened, I will endure! Endure I have a thousand years and endure I will a thousand more! My alliance with the gods on the mountain is going smoothly, and I hold no doubt my face will be etched upon their temple walls soon! The Tenkyuu Shrine!"

A short girl with a green hat and fake mustache mumbled about having lost a bet before showing you her wares. There's a tape recorder she has that she calls "The Ventriloquist Device". It can record and playback any voice that it's asked to record with absolute clarity, and project it from anywhere. However, both its recording and projecting abilities have a 20 ft radius, and it can only hold 3 lines of dialogue at a time. You ask why it's 3 lines of dialogue instead of a length of time, but she shrugs and says that's just how it works. It's worth 3 coins. Another device is the Kappatech Respirator, a device that will let you breathe underwater as long as it's in your mouth. It's only 2 coins. Before you left, the short girl said you need to put more effort into your disguise, since it's very underwhelming. Her mustache almost fell off before she goes back to her post.

"This market is one such example! They have managed to secure this farmer's market as a place for me to oversee so that I may build up my power. While I prefer far more grand markets, I will not look down upon the underdog markets! Woe be to the one who underestimates those downtrodden! For the downtrodden will grant retribution tenfold!"

A farmer was selling a Quagga and would take 1 coin for it. He doesn't know how he got the quagga, or how he knows what a quagga is. He just knew it appeared on his farm one day and started eating everything, and is too stubborn to go on its own. You yourself just learned today what a quagga is.

"Yes, I have been attacked, beaten down by this cruel world. But do I relent? Do I sit back? Do I accept this fate? No! For it is not my fate! I, the wonderous Chimata reject that fate which was not my fate, and craft a new fate, my true fate! I am a god, and fate is at my mercy, not me at its!"

An unremarkable villager offered you some doohickeys he found while scavenging around. Prime stuff from the outside world, he claimed. There was an MP3 Player with a variety of music on it and a built-in speaker which was 1 coin. There was also a GameBoy Color for 1 coin, but you couldn't see what game was inside it. You could tell it was atomic purple though, the best color it could've been.

"I know of your activities alien! I know you work under the others, and peddle your wares in the village! However, all previous times I've asked you to come to my market, you've declined! You've offered me excuses, but each lesser than the last! Finally, now, you arrive to me!"

You had a grasp of most of the wares in this part of the market, and it looked like the argument between the bunny-eared cloaked figure and the flamboyant seven-colored goddess was drawing to a close.

"Well, um... I had just figured..."

"You figured what!? Had you come here prostrating yourself and willing to show devotion, I would have welcomed you with open arms! Why, had you even simply asked to come here to the market I would have still been merciful! Instead, you come here without wares, without coin, without items to barter! It is an insult! I would be well within my rights to return you to nothing, and I should!"

"It's, it's not that I'm trying to be mean, I'm only here because... Well..."

You've seen enough arguments in the past, you had a good read on when things looked like they were going to escalate. And that was precisely what seemed about to happen here. Chimata looked ready to fight. The cloaked figure, on the other hand... well you couldn't see her face but if you could you would be sure she was about to cry. Meanwhile, in the back, you hear Lady Akyuu laugh at the scene other patrons seem desperate to ignore before she takes another hit of her pipe.

You've had plenty of experience diffusing situations like this before, but did you really want to get involved here?

>[] Intercede on behalf of Chimata by calming both and asking the cloaked figure to leave. She shouted a bunch of nonsense, but she is a goddess, and if she's the god of marketplaces like she claims maybe she can help you get better deals?
>[] Intercede on behalf of the cloaked figure by calming both and asking Chimata to let the cloaked figure stay. You're not sure why she hasn't explained why she's there yet, but still. You can't help but feel bad for whatever this figure is, why not help her?
>[] This is not your fight, continue on with buying items and then afterwards talk with Lady Akyuu.
>[] Write in

What do you plan to buy once this ordeal is over? Will you spend it all at once, or save some, just in case you can spend a coin elsewhere?

>>203866
[X] Intercede on behalf of the cloaked figure by calming both and asking Chimata to let the cloaked figure stay. You're not sure why she hasn't explained why she's there yet, but still. You can't help but feel bad for whatever this figure is, so why not help her?

This Chimata figure was acting boisterous, arrogant, and genuinely unpleasant towards whoever the other poor girl was. You didn't know much about her, and part of you told yourself not to intervene, but hearing her voice falter as she tried and failed to say anything back to the goddess was getting to you. Too meek to stand up and defend themself, it reminded you a bit of...

You decided to try and calm things down. A brawl might cause a commotion anyways, and no one would benefit from that. But how? Your current body was too frail to be physically helpful in any situation, you would need to rely on a silver tongue. This Chimata seemed arrogant and looked to be in charge here. And she was angry over this... was she a merchant? She must be, but she didn't have any wares with her this time. After a few moments, you pieced together in your head what your plan was.

"There you are, I was looking everywhere for you! Sorry for keeping you waiting!" You rushed over, doing your best to put on an oblivious act, as you made your way over to the girls. Both turned to you, with Chimata bearing a puzzled expression. You presumed the cloaked one did too, but it was hard to make out her face. You hadn't noticed it before, but both were a bit taller than you, though you figured they were only about average height. Being this small was going to take a lot of getting used to.

"... And who are you might I ask?"

"Oh, I'm just a patron." You gave a mock laugh as you stood to the left of the hooded figure. Her rabbit ears poked out the top of the hood. You were still taken aback, by their existence. even though you knew the rabbit girls were indeed real here, her's by contrast just looked so strange, so awkward. "I was just, this merchant the other day had some wonderful things, I had stumbled upon her in the street and... I was in a hurry right, I had stuff to do, but I asked if she would meet me here as soon as possible! She said she needed to restock, but I insisted! I didn't want to miss her again after trying to get up with her this whole week! You know how it can be when you have a busy schedule, haha!"

You were hoping your story would sound credible, the hapless consumer innocently causing a bit of trouble. Chimata looked you up and down skeptically. It was against Chimata's nature to argue with a potential customer, it was bad for the market after all.

"What were you wanting to buy from her? From her normal stock?"

Shit. Shit shit shit shit. The cloaked rabbit girl never said what she normally sells. You gave a nervous chuckle and tried to-

"Weight loss pills."

You turned and looked at the cloaked girl, not looking straight ahead at Chimata. You were able to catch just a glimpse of the side of her face, a flash of her red eye. Striking. "Haha, she wanted to keep it secret, but it's weight loss pills. How do you think Letty has managed to become so thin recently?! I wanted to keep it secret too! I guess it happens though! Her embarrassing secret is revealed!" Letty? What? Did she think you were still with Letty, or-

Before you could ponder that more, you noticed Chimata had turned red. "Ah! I-I didn't mean to pry or anything! I'm sorry, I didn't know it was-I mean, you can-the market always welcomes-" Her demeanor flipped to a complete 180. Chimata hadn't expected something like this to occur. Embarrassing a patron of the marketplace? This was worse than any trouble a loiterer could cause. The goddess herself doing something like this...

Chimata sputtered several more broken sentences, before doing a sudden deep bow. "PLEASE FORGIVE ME AND ENJOY THE MARKET MA'AM!" After that shouting, she darted off to some far-off corner of the market, her cape flowing behind her.

An awkward pause followed. You hadn't really planned on what you would do now. The silence was broken with a sigh of relief. "Thanks," The cloaked figure began. "I hadn't... well Chimata had-"

"Don't worry. She seemed to be causing you trouble, I figured I'd try and help."

"I appreciate it!" She said cheerfully. "Though, if you don't mind me saying, I never really took you for the intervening type Letty. I mean, we don't really know each other since I don't really go out during your weather, I do best during the r-"

"Letty? What do you mean by that?"

"... Your name is Letty, right? I know we've only seen each other rarely but-oh and your diet really looks like it went incredible too, very inspiring! You even lost height too! I didn't know diets could do that!"

What on Earth was this cloaked girl talking about? Unless... Oh this would be so fucking dumb if this was the case. You lifted the hat off of your head.

"... Oh, huh. You're not Letty."

Goddamn it.

"Sorry, I'm just borrowing her hat." You put the hat back on. "Anyways, what was the commotion all about anyways? Why come here if you know that goddess was going to be so angry about it?"

The cloaked girl looked down, her rabbit ears pointing downward. "I... I guess I can explain it to you. But first, can you do more one more kindness?"

"What is it?"

"Look into my face, into my eyes. Come close please."

[] Come closer, look into her eyes.
[] Don't look into her eyes.

===

Holy shit rereading I really messed up with the tense in the previous update, I wrote the whole post in present tense until realizing my mistake too late and tried to quickly go back and fix it, but I missed a lot. I'll try to do better next time.

Anyways, for reference, here is the current tally of what our purchase list will look like;

>Failed Doll (2) x3
>Ventril. Device (2) x3
>Frog Charm (1) x3
>Quagga (1) x1

Unless someone notes a specific setup, we'll probably do the shopping list by tallying up the votes, buying the most popular item, and working the way down the list until all 5 coins are spent (unless people want to save). Shopping will probably be in the next update or two, so you can keep planning/discussing/voting for it until then.

>>203875
[X] Come closer, look into her eyes.

It was a strange request, but you didn't think much of it. Did she simply want to look closer at you? Was she uncomfortable not facing someone? It didn't matter. Without hesitation, you took a step to position yourself in front of her, and tilted your head up to get a good look at her face, still covered in shadow, with only the awkward-looking rabbit ears poking out.

The fabric of the hood shifted as its wearer turned her head to face you too. For a moment, you saw a reflection of red shimmer from her left eye.

You focused. Time felt like it slowed down as you did. You know when you focus on something so hard, that everything around you begins to fade into blackness, where you enter a world with only you and the object of your attention? That's what you felt right now. The shadow cast by the hood upon its wearer's face began to recede further, and further.

Then silence.

A heartbeat.

Silence.

"BERO
BERO
BA!"

A blue-haired girl stuck her tongue out as she shouted this phrase, her eyes shining brightly to showcase their heterochromia. She then leaned back a bit. "Fufufu, did I surprise you?"

Were you surprised?

[] You've never been more unphased in your entire life, this level of unphasingness should be illegal.
[] You've never been more surprised in your entire life, this level of surprisedness should be illegal!

===

Shopping count will be wrapped up next update, last chance now if you haven't voted. Current tally appears to be;

>Failed Doll (3) x3
>Ventril. Device (2) x3
>Frog Charm (2) x3
>Quagga (2) x1
>Mini-Onbashira (1) x2
>MP3 Player (1) x1

>>203889
>>203876
>>203868
[Rewinding time back to recollect a moment, please hold~]

You had attempted to ask the goblin if it'd take anything else for it, but the small creature remained firm. If anything, its desire to hold it was only fueled further with your curiosity. It's exceptionally small and weak looking though, and no one around seems to be fond of the trash-digging humanoid. There's nothing stopping you from trying to beat it up if you wanted to, but this thing is alone and doesn't answer to anything, right?

>>203891
[X] You've never been more surprised in your entire life, this level of surprisedness should be illegal!

A heartbeat.

You stumbled backwards a bit. For some reason, the cloaked girl's sudden shout took you completely off-guard! Perhaps, in some alternate universe, you would've been more stable, more relaxed, you could've told her with cynicism in your voice that this attempted jump scare was fruitless.

A heartbeat.

This was not that universe.

Your heart pounded as you fell to the ground. Was this girl really THAT surprising? She looked smug with satisfaction seeing your shock. You couldn't really hear her, or anything at this moment other than the loud slow beats of your heart. Why? Had you really allowed your guard to fall that much? Everything felt... slow. As if time was struggling to keep up with you. The blue-haired girl looked down at you, and her self-satisfaction fell to the wayside. She asked you a question, but you couldn't hear her. Something about this wasn't right. Your brain did a quick check.

Where were you? Currently, on the ground. Were your arms injured? A bruise or two, maybe a cut from falling, but nothing major. What was this girl saying? You couldn't put words to the movements of her mouth. There seemed to be only complete silence for you.

Wait. Complete silence?

Oh, it appeared your heart had stopped.

Following that realization, a sudden wave of pain surged out from within you, and everything faded to black.

.

..

...

..

.

"Saint." This was the very first word that came to mind when you awoke. Why? You didn't know. A foggy mind often threw any thought at the wall to see what stuck.

Were you dead? Was this heaven? Or hell? Or some other third place? You sat up a bit to get a better look. It appeared like you were in... some kind of country hospital. An old traditional room with various medical technology around. The monitor did that beeping thing. It was rhythmic and seemed relaxing to listen to until you realized the beeping was keeping track of you. The beeps hastened a tad in pace. Your first time in a hospital bed, they seemed much bigger than you had pictured in your head. At least, until you remembered you were small now. Right. That still hadn't fully sunk in yet, when you woke up you had a brief moment of ignorance until various senses urgently reminded you that yup, you were indeed a girl now.

You had never been in a hospital before. You didn't have health insurance. Whatever times you were sick your dad just told you to "tough it out". Had you ever gotten seriously sick or injured... in all honesty you had no idea how your dad would've reacted. Take you to the hospital out of necessity? Or just ask you to quietly stay in your room until the inevitable happened? Being young and seeing how others would idolize the profession had caused you to grow bitter over the years. What other industry exists to profit off of the misfortune of others? And what person willingly seeks to have the vulnerable at the mercy of their own hands? A psychopath. Not having been to the doctor before, and not having the option of their assistance had become a badge of honor for you, a great showing of your independence. Was it irrational, driven by sour grapes, or an urge to be contrarian? Maybe, likely, and you could acknowledge that. But if acknowledging your faults was all it took to be free of them, there'd be many more saints in the world. You enjoyed that small source of pride from having never bent the knee to the medical field - trading a bit of rationality for it was plenty worthwhile.

But now it had been stripped from you. Unceremoniously and without your consent. How did you wind up here anyways? You... something with a blue-haired girl shouting at you. Oh, now you remembered. Yeah, she caused you a heart attack. Right after you helped her. That was awfully kind of her. You told yourself that'd be the last time you ever stuck your neck out for someone like that again. Could you get up? You felt like trash, but you've felt like trash many times before, you could probably tough it out and walk out. A few wires were attached to your arm though. Was it safe to take them off? You... weren't sure.

You fell backwards onto your pillow in frustration - an act you quickly came to regret as a bout of pain flashed in your brain. Your head hurt too much for you to be so reckless right now.

"Ahhh, morning morning sleeping beauty."

A voice that sounded both young and old came from the door. A small girl (almost your size, maybe a bit shorter) entered the room, with messy black hair and two round and fluffy rabbit ears. In contrast to the ones you saw the other day on the girl who did this to you, these looked far more natural, softer. The rabbit had on a doctor's cloak a tad too big for her and kept her relaxed eyes and smug smile focused on you as she wrote things onto her clipboard without so much as glancing at it.

"Do you know what adventures await you today?" She paused for you to respond. You didn't at first, out of a combination of annoyance, frustration, and feeling like garbage. A while passed, and you finally thought up of a response.

"I'd like to-"

"The answer is nothing, you're too sickly to have adventures right now. Maybe ever." The rabbit girl looked out the window. "Or maybe not. You could always be lucky." This girl was going to be one of those, huh? "You're lucky in the first place Kogasa found you and brought you here."

"Kogasa?" You asked.

"Blue-haired umbrella girl. Blue and red eyes? Hard to miss."

"Ah." So that was her name. She was an umbrella?

"You've got several visitors, all of them have been waiting for you to wake up. And by visitors, I only mean the Doctor herself and Kogasa. I'm sure you can guess what the Doctor wants to say to you already. I have no idea what Kogasa wants though. Maybe she'll ask you to reward her for saving your life?" Your fist clenched a bit as the rabbit's grin remained unfettered, and eyes half-closed. "Well, it's your life debt to pay off, not my problem. Who should I send in?"

"I don't-"

"If you don't see both of them I'm sure you'll regret it." Even with the subtle threat, her expression stayed like stone.

[] Send in the Doctor, let's get the objective news first.
[] Send in the umbrella, you don't know what she wants but you want to send her off ASAP.

===

Market items vote closed. And don't worry, it wasn't for nothing you will get your items you voted for.

>>203898
[X] Send in the umbrella, you don't know what she wants but you want to send her off ASAP.

After a few moments of deliberation, you leaned towards seeing the umbrella first. The doctor likely just had some mundane general advice for you. And frankly, you weren't too interested in seeing a medical professional. You weren't particularly keen on seeing an umbrella that nearly ended your life either, but at least you could chew her head off with casus belli.

The rabbit girl was seemingly satisfied with your answer and headed out of the room. After a few moments and some shuffling, a head of blue hair nervously poked inside the room and crept in. A nervous look was on her reddened face, like a child who had to tell their mother they broke the vase when they desperately didn't want to. She looked different, not covered in cloaks. She had a blue dress with white sleeves, which looked a bit tight around her body, particularly around her breasts and midsection, giving her the appearance of someone well-fed. Not to the degree of Letty though.

You tried glaring at her a bit, even though you probably didn't look too intimidating as a small girl in a hospital bed. Since that route to show how upset you were wouldn't work, you opted for the next best thing - a game of chicken. You and Kogasa remained silent, trying to see who would break the ice first. Birds chirped outside the open window, though no one listened to their song. "So, um..." Kogasa would forfeit the unspoken game it seemed. "How was-"

"You nearly killed me."

A shade of regret flashed over her face. Good, you thought. Perhaps you were going to win this-

Before that thought could even be completed, Kogasa did an awkward attempt at a deep bow, before nearly stumbling and grabbing the bed sheets near you. She shouted some words like 'sorry', and 'didn't', but little was legible between her sobs.

In the short time you had to run this scenario over in your head, you hadn't expected this. Usually, in arguments back home with people, they escalated to shouting matches, or denial and brushing the source off. You had wanted to make her feel guilty, not... this. You've never made anyone cry before. "Hey, come on..." You hesitantly reached a hand out to her shoulder. Though the idea of comforting someone who put you in the hospital seemed absurd, the alternative somehow seemed worse. After a few minutes, Kogasa had been able to reduce the sobs to sniffles and become coherent again.

"Now then, what exactly was it you were even trying to do to me in the first place?"

"Well..." Kogasa sniffed and wiped her face with your blanket. A bit gross but whatever, they were someone else's problem. "I... I'm a youkai who-I never introduced myself did I? I'm sorry. I'm Kogasa. I'm a karakasa-obake, we feed on fear and surprising people."

"Surprising people?"

She nodded. "Usually people tell me I'm bad at it, but it's my purpose! What good is a youkai who can't surprise people!"

So all of this... was for a jumpscare prank? Your brows furrowed again. "So is that what you were doing at the market? Just trying to scare people?"

Kogasa nodded yet again. "You see, I-" She paused between sniffles as if trying to choose her next words carefully. When she seemed to have them sorted in her mind, she continued. "I was hanging out alone one night by the Misty Lake when some lady came out from the shadows. She told me she knew I was having trouble with scaring people, so she told me I should mimic the Reisen in the human village."

"Reisen?"

"She's a rabbit girl... She actually works here, in Eientei." Eientei... Memories of some things Letty and even Rumia had said came back to you, as dots connected in your head. Rumia mentioning 'Doctor-nurse lady' who fought with Yukari, and Letty explaining how there were aliens who ran a hospital. Rabbits didn't seem very alien though... were they? "Reisen will usually head in the human village covered in a cloak to disguise rabbity nature and sell medicine to people. Many humans in the village already know me, but if I disguise myself as someone else and they approach me, I could really surprise them."

"So you impersonated someone to take advantage of vulnerable people?"

"Eh?"

"What kind of people do you think are going to approach someone selling medicine?" The girl clearly hadn't thought through the implications of her plan. "Sickly people who need help. And what do you think is going to happen if people think someone who sells medicine is actually some brat trying to scare them?" Venom was seeping back into your voice as the gravity of Kogasa's actions were beginning to sink in.

Kogasa's face grew redder, as tears began growing again. "I-I swear! I didn't mean to hurt anyone! I've never wanted to hurt anyone!"

"Well, a lot of good 'wanting' did, huh?!" You tugged your arm to emphasize the wires attached to them, trying to hide the wince from the pain it caused.

"I'm sorry! I'm really sorry! I just want to scare people, not hurt them! I've never done something like this before! Everything seemed to be fine for a while, but then you happened! I just wanted to scare you a little!"

"You wanted to scare someone who just went out of their way to help you!?"

"It's my nature! I'm sorry! Please! I..." Her head tilted as it rested on your bed, Kogasa too distraught to keep it upright. "I just want to be scary, but I've never scared someone as hard as just before, I've never meant to hurt people! This is... it's scary to me!"

Kogasa was weeping yet again, and though you felt a bit of self-righteousness, it faded as quickly as it arrived. Perhaps you needed more practice keeping a level head, you were back to where you were earlier. A girl weeping by your bedside and you feeling uncomfortable having played a part in it, even if she did deserve it on some level.

Some more time passed before the umbrella could control herself once more. You told yourself mentally to try and stay calm this time, as you asked your next question. "Have you told Reisen and this hospital you've been pretending to be them?"

Kogasa's face had been red from crying, but some color had drained when you mentioned that. "No." She said flatly, standing up and away from the bed.

"You've been hurting their reputation whether you've meant to or not. You need to tell them and apologize."

"No." Kogasa took interest in the floor, keeping her attention fixated upon it. "Doctor Eirin is scary. And they'll all hate me for it. Just like you hate me."

[] Write in

>>203909
A part of you didn't want to say it. After all, she was someone who just put you in the hospital. You were well within your rights to hate her. Hell, to not do so would be illogical, wouldn't it? But as you looked at the girl staring silently down as if she were a child, a feeling of pity spurred your heart to go a different direction.

"Look, I..." You swallowed a bit. "I don't HATE you." The umbrella girl perked up and looked at you. Please don't make this harder than it already is, you prayed silently. "I'm... Have you scared many other people besides me in this disguise?"

"Just... Just a few, and it didn't turn out like this! And it worked just like the one lady said! I scared them, they were startled and ran off, and I could enjoy their surprise! Nothing like this has ever happened!"

"You've caused a lot of damage regardless of if it had ever escalated this far before though, you need to own up and apologize for it. If you're sincere like you were with me I'm sure it'll be fine. I just... You're a mature girl, right? How old are you? 16, 17, 18?"

"I dunno, over 100 at least."

What. "What?"

"Well yes. That's the normal minimum age requirement for an object like me to become a youkai."

"You're that old?"

She shrugged. "I'm pretty sure I'm young. Most other youkai are much older than me by a lot."

Damn, that's hot WEIRD, weird. Why did you think that? Dumb intrusive thoughts. "Well, if you're over 100, you should definitely know better! Take responsibility for your actions. The alternative is probably much worse." Kogasa flinched a bit as she imagined the alternative. You could tell she was at the point where she was leaning towards apologizing but still didn't want to vocalize it.

"Who was this lady who told you to do this anyways? Have you seen her before?"

Kogasa shook her head. "I don't think so. I was just hanging out at night when she came up to me. I remember she said she had an affinity for my kind when she gave me advice though. I never got a good look at her. She seemed friendly to me though.

How strange. Was that a person, or a youkai, or something? Your knowledge of who was who in this world was unfortunately limited. At least in the future, you knew to be cautious around strangers in the shadows trying to give you bad advice.

"If you ever see them again, don't listen to what they say. She seems like someone who just wants to cause trouble."

"'Kay." Kogasa decided to sit at the foot of your bed, kicking her legs up in the air. She had two big wooden sandals, you wondered just how comfortable they were to walk with. "So you forgive me right?"

"I-I didn't say that EXACTLY..." She quickly wore a frown. Damn this umbrella. "... But yes. I forgive you."

Her frown was quickly turned upside-down. "Wonderful! Thank you so much! I promise to make it up to you in the future!"

"Unless you can pay for this hospital room, it should be fine, don't worry about it." You chuckled. Kogasa only looked at you perplexed.

"Pay?"

"You know, for the charge of staying here. These places usually take money."

Kogasa dug into her dress pocket. "I have this." It was a strange tiny looking coin, likely at most an equivalent of 5 yen, and some pocket lint. That was a dead end.

"Don't worry about it, I'm sure I'll be fine."

"Alrighty! Say, I never got your name. Oh! This is just like those stories Sanae told me about from the outside world! You're like that! The girl who lived, nearly killed by a monster but just struggling to survive and rising up as the hero!"

"I already forgave you, don't push it."

"Sorry. But what is your name?"

"I'm Alex. Just Alex." It wasn't like you were attached to your old last name. Nor would it mean anything in this realm.

"Alex, Alex... Is that a foreign name? Oh well, it sounds like a very pretty name for a girl!" You cringed. "I'm Kogasa Tatara, the scariest umbrella in Gensokyo! I'd give you a demonstration, but, you know... Oh! I almost forgot! You know your coins and your bag of stuff you had with you!" Oh yeah, you nearly forgot. "I made sure to grab it! It's all right there, in the corner!" Oh good- "Except your coins!"

"What?"

"You see, right when I was getting help, Chimata ran over! Some villagers were already picking you up, but Chimata stopped me and told me to grab your money!" You stood up a bit in bed, as much as you could without hurting yourself from a quick movement.

"What! Why?! I needed that money!"

"She said not to worry, as the goddess of the marketplace she would ensure that its will be done! I don't know what that means, but I think you can trust her! Chimata takes the marketplace very seriously!"

"I better." You mumble. This umbrella was way too trusting for your tastes. "Wait, did she see you with your disguise off?" You remember the last moments of lucidity, Kogasa had taken her hood off to scare you, but when she fell she didn't put it back on, and the fake elements like the bunny ears fell off. "What did she say?"

"Heheheh..." Kogasa looked shiftily to the left. "Umm... So are you a relative of Letty? You looked so much alike with her-"

A knock came at the door. Kogasa turned around, and her cheerful demeanor changed back to its quiet reserved one. This girl really could go from happy to depressed on a dime, how strange. The source of the knocking was a girl with rabbit ears, taller than the one previously here, with purple hair. You quickly put two and two together and deduced that this was likely Reisen, the girl Kogasa was masquerading as. "Excuse me, are you about wrapped up here? Are you ready to see the Doctor now?"

[] Send Kogasa out while you talk privately with the Doctor first. The apology can wait until after that, maybe the Doctor has important stuff to say right now. And who knows how the news of Kogasa's actions will impact her demeanor?
[] Kogasa should go ahead and apologize to the Doctor and Reisen now, no reason to delay it further. Maybe they'll react favorably to the apology?
[] Kogasa can wait here, but you'd like to talk to the Doctor first. Kogasa probably doesn't want to be alone right now, and you can't help but have sympathy for the girl. Even if she nearly killed you.

The snapping of fingers brought you back.

"Hey! Hey! You alright there?" The purple-haired bunny girl leaned back as your vision came into focus, her brows furrowed in concern. Did you black out there? Bleh, must be this weather. Oh well. You nodded. "Yeah, I think I'm ready to see the Doctor." Reisen reacted in kind and left to fetch her.

"I should probably head out to the waiting room then..." Her voice carried a sad tone as Kogasa prepared to get off the bed. ... God, why was this umbrella sparking so much pity from you?

"Hey, wait." You stopped her just before she slid off. "You don't... The Doctor probably won't say anything too private, you can wait in here if you'd like." Her smile and optimism returned, which urged you to reel back. "Only if you want! B-Besides, she might need you to explain how you scared me! So you need to stay close in case she has any questions about that for you!" You hadn't realized the contradictions you had made in your effort to not look like that much of a pushover, but neither did she. She gave a simple 'kay' and continued to kick her legs happily at the foot of your bed.

Trying to cheer up the girl who had just nearly killed you, was this some reverse Stockholm syndrome or something? Maybe it's another thing the Doctor will explain to you.

Kogasa's humming accompanied the two of you for a while until a knock came at the door. And entered the Doctor.

A doctor in your mental mind was some slick shot from the West Coast consisting of 60% plastic. Either that or some creepy old man in a coat. This woman defied both expectations. One of the first things you took notice of was just how tall she was. Even when you were a man she would've been taller than you. But now, she dwarfed you. Her facial features were sharp, as a long pale-white braid followed behind her. Her loose doctor's coat made it difficult to discern her body's figure, but you could tell she definitely had impressive brea-wait why were you thinking of that? She was probably old as hell, judging from her white hair. Along with a doctor's coat, she had a strange blue and red dress, plus a blue hat featuring a signature cross.

"Alright, you're finally awake?" She hadn't looked up from her clipboard, checking off various things on it. "Well Letty, the first thing I would like to discuss is your bizarre rapid weight loss. It seems-"

You took your hat off. A side glance, followed by a double take came from the tall woman. "... Oh, I see." She crumpled the paper on her clipboard and tossed it into a can in the corner. "Alright, well we can work around that. No worries about-have you already taken that medicine?" She pointed to a tube of pills by your bedside. You shook your head. She walked over and grabbed them. "Good, good, I'll just be taking these then and come back with something else later. This does explain the human smell in hindsight." Had this doctor really not bothered to take your hat off during all the time you were here? Was a simple hat enough to fool multiple people? What a quack, what a strange world you were in.

"Now then, I-" She happened to take notice of Kogasa, despite her eyes passing over her several times when she entered the room. Kogasa had become a bit less cheery in her presence. "Is it alright if she's in here?"

"Yes, I said she could stay."

The Doctor looked for a moment, then nodded. "Well, it's your doctor-patient confidentiality, you can use it as you please." She began writing down on a new piece of paper. "So, you're a human. Then let me... changing and carrying over some things..." A few dashes and calculations on the clipboard happened, their strokes seemed swift even if the results were out of your sight. "Well young lady, then I've got some unfortunate news for you, presuming you haven't heard it before."

"If it's about having a heart attack, I'm well aware of that."

"Good news for you first then, as what you experienced just earlier wasn't a heart attack! The bad news is that instead, it was takotsubo cardiomyopathy."

Your mind took a minute to process that. Takotsubo cardiomyopathy? You hadn't heard that before, though you could surmise that it had something to do with the heart. "That's better than a heart attack, right?" Kogasa asked the question you were wondering yourself.

"From a certain point of view, I would say so. But from another point of view, it could be worse." That was an unhelpful response. "Takotsubo cardiomyopathy differs from a heart attack in the specifics of how it is triggered as well as the results, though both involve a sudden pain of the heart, and those suffering takotsubo cardiomyopathy often believe it to be a heart attack." The Doctor walked up to a conveniently-placed white board and drew some quick diagrams of a heart, and explained the intricacies, though most flew over your head. What didn't was the sense of dread.

"The main cause for concern should be with what could develop afterward. Takotsubo cardiomyopathy is usually a one-time issue, and after a few days of rest, you should be back to normal. Alternatively, we might see multiple possible issues result. Your heart could change its shape, muscles in it could be weakened, you might suffer from arrhythmia..." Her list felt like it went on and on. You stopped paying much attention.

"So... Basically, she has a weak heart?" Kogasa asked during the doctor's sermon.

"Indeed, that is the short of it. It could be back to normal strength in a bit, or it could be weak forever. Additionally, since you're from the outside world, I should warn you to be careful of what you learn about your illness, or what you share of it."

"Eh?" You asked, puzzled (even more from the puzzling medical spiel she had given earlier).

"Here in Gensokyo, illnesses from the outside world behave differently than they would normally. Don't be foolhardy and let rumors of your ailments spread. I'd keep as much of it secret as you can. We follow doctor-patient confidentiality here for your benefit, you should use that to its fullest." You glanced over at Kogasa, smiling and nodding. "Alright, well now then Miss..."

"Alex. Her name is Alex." Kogasa replied. Eirin made a few swift strokes on her clipboard. Eirin's expression remained stern and composed as she did so, barely looking over at you.

"Alex. We'll hand you your pills. You should need to take only two a day. We'll also monitor you for a few days here to make sure your condition doesn't develop into something more serious." Kogasa seemed to beam at these results, to her it seemed like you were going to be just fine. For you though, you felt...

[] Defiant and bitter. You had lasted all this time by yourself without some doctor lording over you, most just wanted to milk you for money or try and get you addicted to whatever snake oil they were selling. You didn't need to take any pills, and you sure as hell didn't want to stay helpless here in this hospital for even longer.
[] Despondent. Your whole time in Gensokyo has just been pitfall after pitfall. First, you become a girl. Then you can't find anyone to help you (aside from Letty). Then you have a heart attack. Then you find out you have a heart condition. Nothing seems to be going well for you, and now you're stuck as a feeble girl.

That was a longer hiatus than I planned for, my apologies everyone.

.>>204145
[X] Defiant and bitter.

You gritted your teeth. This would be your line in the sand. Your chance to prove, at least to yourself, that you still had some agency left in you!

"I'm fine, thanks."

"Well, that's certainly good to hear." The Doctor's eyes remained locked to her clipboard, her voice making it clear her attention wasn't on you.

"No, I mean I'm fine."

"Yes, I heard you the first time, very good."

"Fine as in 'I'm not taking any pills.'" That got a look from her and Kogasa.

"And I'd like to be leaving here as soon as possible, thank you." With that comment, a certain look befell upon the Doctor's face. It was a look you had known all too well, the look of someone who had dropped their pleasant facade to reveal the agitation within. Her tired and annoyed look contrasted well with Kogasa's puzzled expression. You could swear that you nearly saw a "?" above her head.

Doctor Eirin took a deep breath before finally stating quite curtly; "Are we really going to do this?"

"I don't know what you're referring to." You did in fact know what she was referring to. "I'd simply like to go. I'm not interested in staying here too long." It felt nice to be on this end of the conversation for once, a welcome change of pace from what you've dealt with so far in Gensokyo.

She rubbed her forehand with one hand, pen between fingers, before she placed the pen down on her clipboard. "Listen, I don't save people just so they can swiftly go out to do something stupid."

"I didn't ask for your help."

"Then you'd still be writhing in the dirt, assuming you weren't completely passed out still. Do you know what to do with a passed-out body so there's a quick return to consciousness?" You opened your mouth to an- "Irrelevant, you're passed out, you wouldn't be able to do a thing to help yourself."

"I've been just fine for-" You started your sentence before a fog came to your mind. How old were you exactly? "... many years! If I wanted help on this issue, I'd ask for it. I didn't, therefore I'm fine." You sat up a bit more in bed, ignoring the feeling that the room seemed to be rocking ever so slightly. "Now if you'll be so kind, I'd like to head out."

If you were to look down, you would notice just how uncomfortable Kogasa was, being stuck between two glaring bickering people. "Hey, uh, Alex, Doctor Eirin does know her stuff. Why not just-" Neither you nor the doctor seemed to pay her any mind though.

"You want to be proud?" She walked over to the door and opened it. "Fine. Show me just how much you can help yourself on your own. If you don't need me, walk out the door now and open it. You do that, and you won't have to deal with this sterile cruel place again." Sarcasm covered each syllable of those final words. "If you prove you can't though, I'm taking full medical POA over you, and you'll be staying here a hell of a lot longer than a few days. The Doctor stood right next to the door, an arm stretched out to hold it open just for you, her eyes as sharp as the syringes she undoubtedly used on a daily basis.

[] You weren't going to let this hag call you proud! It's just walking out the door - slide out of bed and one foot in front of the other. You can show her!
[] It might be best to not risk this, it might be some trick anyways. You can defiantly stay here the two or so days

>>204162
[X] You weren't going to let this hag call you proud! It's just walking out the door - slide out of bed and one foot in front of the other. You can show her!

Propping yourself up with a hand, you ignored the small flash of pain. You'd felt worse in the past. Something like that wasn't going to be enough to dissuade you from doing what you wished. Even with the small feeling of vertigo.

Kogasa tried to convince you one last time that you should probably stay in bed, but you didn't listen. This Doctor acting so holier than thou art, calling you proud, you weren't going to stand for that! Or, well, you would. You knew what you meant. Soon you found yourself sitting on the side of the bed. You hadn't even removed the various tube things from the side of your arm yet, you'd do that once you had gotten out of bed.

Alright, no further delays! Here you went! And just like that, you slid out of bed (a bit more than you had hoped, you still weren't used to your smaller stature yet). Feet on the ground, you were doing good! Now just remove the tubes and begin putting one fo-as you were about to begin, you noticed something quite queer - the floor seemed to be tilting and coming quiteclosetoyourfaceand-

. . .

You slowly came to once again. The light was dim in your room, you surmised it was well into the night. What happened? Something about a... Ah, right. You tried to walk. It evidently didn't go well judging from the throbbing pain in your head. Why had you tried to walk again? You turned your head over to the nightstand and noticed two cards. You didn't feel like opening them at the moment, but the first had a crude drawing of a purple umbrella smiling saying "Get well soon!". The second said, "Please enjoy your stay. :)".

That :) shook your sleeping spite back awake. That was why you had wanted to walk. That smug Doctor... At least, you presumed she probably felt smug now at your failure. You never really got a good look at her face earlier when you had tried to walk. Hopefully there was a bit of surprise that you actually tried to take up her challenge.

The room was dark, and you knew you would have to deal with that hag sometime in the morning. Back to sleep for you, as you closed your eyes, and hoped for sleep to come back again.

Your stay seemed uneventful. When Doctor Eirin first visited you, she made absolutely no comment about the previous day. Nor any comment about her winning the challenge and how long she was going to make you stay. Everything was kept purely business. You couldn't tell if that was better or worse than her gloating about it. As much as you'd like to ask her about your stay, you decided against it. If she wasn't going to acknowledge it, neither would you. It'd make you look weak to ask any questions relating to it.

Eirin wasn't the only person to visit you though. Several people (and rabbits) seemed to travel around this hospital, either doing the petty work of the Doctor or seemingly wandering out of curiosity. Some who had decided to make it a habit to visit you often were...

>Pick up to 2:

[] The taller bunny the umbrella had masqueraded as. The assistant and right-hand rabbit of the doctor herself, the girl seemed quite dutiful and straightforward, in contrast to those around her.

[] The enigmatic smaller bunny who spoke in a strange manner. She seemed to always have some scheme on her mind. Was she visiting you out of curiosity or some greater purpose?

[] A strange girl with long black hair, her aura felt alien. Just being in the same room as her felt hard to comprehend, as she spoke of concepts far beyond. Her elegance and mystique were undebatable though, you could imagine many men trying desperately to win her favor.

[] It seemed the umbrella felt quite guilty about her actions and insisted on staying over in your hospital room. You couldn't seem to get her to leave, so you simply had to tolerate her presence.

[] An animated doll that acted like anything but. Filled with venom, you couldn't figure why she visited you occasionally when her disdain for humans was obvious. It was at least nice to see someone you were taller than, even if that person was an actual doll.

"It doesn't make any sense to me." The rabbit Reisen checked the contraption hooked up to your side. It was a regular routine from these past two weeks that barely lasted any time. "Master Eirin knows what she's doing. Why turn down the help of someone trying to keep you healthy? It's insane to me."

"Really?" The illusory princess Kaguya remarked from her perch by the doorway, not entering the room. "I find the act a little fascinating." Reisen had thrown these thoughts at you multiple times during your stay, it was only this time that Kaguya seemed to be nearby to catch them, and throw some back at Reisen.

"Fascinating? What's fascinating about putting yourself in danger for no reason?" The two talked as if you weren't there, and you made no interjection.

"It's romanticism, dear. Sometimes the heart knows a different truth to the mind."

"How is that a truth when it's wrong though?" Reisen jotted down some notes on her clipboard and bowed her head to you indicating her work was wrapped up. "That's the exact opposite!"

The large sleeve from Kaguya's kimono covered her mouth. "Forgive her, patient." The moment was the first time the alien girl had directly acknowledged you. "My Inaba is smart but simple. A rabbit dreams of carrots, not fantasies like we."

Reisen's jaw was opened. "S-simple?!" She stammered in a slight shock as she headed towards the door. "Princess, please! I've worked very hard with..." The rabbit's monologue and the princess' chuckling faded as the two departed down the hallway, leaving you alone once more.

"Blehm."

Almost alone. An amorphous pile of clothes from beneath your bed crawled out. Had you not known of it before, you might've been a bit freaked out. Instead, you ignored it as the bundle stood up, and small hands from underneath tossed the fabrics to the corner. "I was worried that simple rabbit would find me." The amorphous pile showed its true form as a doll-jointed girl, a bit smaller than you. "Maybe she was too distracted?"

"What a shame." You note dryly.

"Yeah, it's a shame you're an idiot."

"You're more than welcome to head out." A part of you wanted to say a shorter two-word sentence to tell her to leave, but her appearance as a younger girl made it feel off. Besides, profanity said from your current body with your current voice wouldn't have sounded very tough.

"Nope. It's not often I get to talk with an idiot like you." From what you had gathered from the doll, Medicine Melancholy, she wasn't allowed to mingle with most of Eientei's patients whenever she visited. The doll provided raw toxins to the Doctor, but her toxic nature (regarding both her powers and personality) made for a bad mix with the recovering. Somehow, you managed to capture her interest and become an exception to the previous rule. Medicine decided to make it a regular event to drop by and visit you, despite having absolutely nothing of value to say. Had you been your normal size and health, you would've loved to pick the small doll up and toss her out the window.

"So aren't you new to Gensokyo?" The doll sat upon a chair in the corner, facing you. "Usually those new people get eaten up by Rumia. She must've decided to develop a sense of taste by the time you arrived." You rolled your eyes. "How did you manage to get past her, and get near-killed by a useless-"

"Boo!" The door slammed open.

"Speak of the devil."

"That's me! I'm a real devil of a youkai!" Kogasa smiled, with something hot, freshly-made, and mouth-watering in her hands. "Don't tell Miss Remilia I'm in the running for the title!" She closed the door with a foot while rushing to place the pizza on a side table. "It's a jungle out there. I had to beat a rowdy kappa with a stick to get this pizza!"

This umbrella may have hospitalized you, but damn did pizza seem welcoming right now. You hadn't even expected pizza to be here in this fantasy land.

"Pizza is junk food you know. You're gonna get fatter eating it."

Kogasa pouted. "You don't have to-"

"I'll have some." Medicine leaned over to grab a slice, while Kogasa plated some for herself and you.

Once your unofficial trio had their slices, the munching began.

"So, you guys like pizza huh?" Kogasa tried starting the conversation. You gave a muffled 'hmm' in acknowledgment, while Medicine ignored the inquiry. "Yeah, I like pizza too. It's really tasty huh? You know those kappa really love it, and that scary turtle lady too. Have you ever met them before?" You shook your head no. Medicine plucked a piece of pineapple off before taking another bite. "Ah, well you see the kappa are very smart, but they can be a bit shy. If you're not an established customer that is. They also make stuff. The scary turtle lady though, I've only seen her in the kappa village to get pizza from one of the places. I don't think she's a kappa, she's taller than all of them." How did Kogasa already finish her slice? She'd been talking the whole time.

"Don't you have something less insipid to talk about?" Medicine finally broke her silence, halfway through her slice.

"Insipid?"

"Insipid, it means worthless."

"That's a fancy word, who taught you that?"

"Eirin did." A tiny slither of pride seemed to leak out from her words as she spoke.

You decided to break your silence too. "Is that how you learned to be so bratty? Just repeat whatever she says like a parrot?"

A harsh glare was fired your way. "This is why no one likes humans. Humans don't want to learn or change. Or maybe they can't? Either way, they think the world revolves around them, and refuse any help." One-third of the way through her slice now. "They're careless with others and careless with themselves. Yet when the world returns in kind, they screech out and wonder how it can be so."

You rolled your eyes. "That's not how any of this works, don't parrot wisdom as if you're some experienced sage."

"I'm NOT parroting."

Kogasa began to look a little panicked. Pizza was supposed to bring people together, yet tensions only seemed to grow. "C-Come on, why don't we try some of these this bread? They're in the other box, and I bet they'll taste great!"

The umbrella hastily opened the smaller box and grabbed some cheese bread, placing it hastily on everyone's plates without even asking. You and Medicine remained unwavering, staring into each other's eyes, trying to measure the other.

Eventually, Medicine made a move by munching on some cheese bread. "If your actions aren't just carelessness, why don't you explain it to me?'

"Come on Medicine, let's just-"

"No, no. It's alright Kogasa." You said. "Let her talk."

Kogasa leaned back a bit, her face showing her unease with the situation, as Medicine leaned in. "Well then, what's the reason? What actual rational reason was there to fight a battle no rational person would have fought?"

You grabbed a piece of cheese bread and found it quite captivating. It was indeed cheesy on top and melty near the edges. It wasn't piping hot, but it was still warm and mouth-watering. Anyone would be lucky to have this cheese bread, wouldn't they? You were thankful Kogasa decided to get them. Your taste buds appreciated it when you took the long-awaited bite, before eventually swallowing it.

"I wanted to. That's my reason."

Kogasa awkwardly took some more bites, the jovial atmosphere she had tried hard to create having been lost amongst the bickering. Medicine locked eyes, and seemed dissatisfied with the answer, but took another bite of cheese bread, unwilling to pursue it further. You decided to focus on your pizza once more. Kogasa had seemed really excited for this "party" of sorts, guilt was already creeping in you for letting Medicine bait you.

Oh well, best not to focus on it, you decided as you took another bite of the pizza. Focus on the reason for the party, Eirin's big news for you tomorrow. Your stay had already been a few weeks, that news surely was going to be your release. Then you could put this place far behind you and... Well you'd get to that part later. But surely, you were ditching this place come tomorrow's sun.

===

"SAKUYA! SAKUYA!"

The door to the bed-chambers opened the instant her name was called the first time. The reason she didn't say anything before the repetition of said name was because it's unbecoming of a servant to interrupt her master. "Yes, m'lady?"

"It's happening again! I can sense it!" The petite girl covered herself in her blankets.

The maid smiled as she approached the bedside. "Don't worry m'lady. You're the only true devil in Gensokyo."

A little devil popped her head through the doorway. "Did someone mentio-" but the door slammed into her face before she could finish her question.

This will be a two-parter, please wait warmly. I apologize for keeping you waiting so long for this, holidays combined with not being too sure how to proceed and trying to aim for perfection delayed everything far too long. Second part should be very soon.

>>204268
"In short patient Alex, I am proud to say that your stay seems to have shown a great recovery for your body. Your heart's rhythm is normal, biometrics all look good, and as long as you make certain to take it easy, everything should be looking up for you." Doctor Eirin explained all these things, but your mind was a bit preoccupied with the scenery outside. The mid-autumn weather had tinted everything red with the exception of the bamboo, staying a light green color. It was a striking appearance, unlike anything you recall ever seeing.

"So, everything is good?" You asked. "Are you satisfied?"

A frown and slight narrowing of the eyes was Eirin's main reply. "It will behoove you to take it easy, I still think your body is too frail to handle extreme situations. However, as you are now, I have little reason to suspect anything harmful will befall you. Yes, I can say that your time here as a patient has ended."

You turned to slide out of the bed. "What a relief-" A hand holding a clipboard blocked you from sliding out entirely.

"And now can begin your work as an employee." You stared up at her, incredulous.

"What?"

"Well, you didn't think it was all free, was it?"

"I knew it." A frown and a glare appeared on your face. "You make me stay for a few weeks to rack up some medical debt that you can slap on me? What a con."

"Don't insult my honor!" Eirin's voice was always stern, but that remark seemed to carry even more ice in it. "I typically don't charge for life-threatening conditions such as yours. The medicine and care we do charge for is priced reasonably and done to maintain expenses. Even this I disdain, as no amount of wealth is equivalent to the care I provide, it's a stain on my honor to imply so. No, you are not being charged for any of your medical care. We're charging you for the other thing."

"What other thing?"

===

"That thing."

Outside and round the back, you and Eirin were looking at Eientei's latest addition (its least extravagant addition) - a roughly made stable, thrown together by some unpaid rabbits with no idea what they were doing. And inside the stable, a familiar face you quite frankly hadn't thought of in forever.

"Where do you even get a quagga?"

"What I'd like to ask is how did it get here? And how is it mine?" You asked, staring as the brown zebra thing munched slowly at some hay. Off a ways back Tewi was dragging a bale of hay over nearly her size.

"I told you before, Chimata came here with some things that she said were yours from the market, and this thing was amongst them. You clearly couldn't care for it, so we did in the meantime."

Gears turned a bit in your head. "... No you didn't."

"Eh?"

"Tell me I mean, you never told me. At most Kogasa said Chimata bought stuff with my money. 'Its will be done' or whatever. You said nothing about it."

Eirin's mouth stretched into a light frown, a common sight to see. "TEWI!"

"Yes, boss?" The small rabbit returned her master's call from far off, still trying to drag the hay.

"DID YOU TELL THE PATIENT ABOUT HIS QUAGGA?"

"I thought you did boss."

"Ah..." Eirin looked deep in thought as if she was skimming through the books within her mind, trying to remember if she had told you or not. "Well, I guess it doesn't really matter in the end, you know now."

"That does matter though."

"You'll need to work off the debt this creature has incurred. And this thing has not been cheap to maintain." Her voice then raised once more as she called out to Tewi. "YOU'VE KEPT TRACK OF HOW MUCH DEBT THIS ANIMAL HAS RACKED UP CORRECT?"

"Sure thing boss! Construction of the barn, zoning and licenses, feed, insurance for workers, veterinarian insurance, it's a doozy! And still ongoing!"

"Still ongoing." Eirin echoed. "Eientei handles many things, but animals aren't one of them."

You closed your eyes, taking a moment to recollect your thoughts. "So what is your end game here? Do you just want to trap me perpetually here in debt?"

The Doctor's eyes held some complicated emotion behind them, nothing you could make out. "It'd just be for a few months, after which you'll have paid off this creature's care and then some. We can still provide you free room and board during this time. And aren't you new to Gensokyo? Do you already have some alternative out there to this?" The words were true, but the reality of the situation was bitter to accept. Yes, you had wanted to get out of here, but you really hadn't thought of what you would do beyond that. One of your initial goals was visiting Yukari, but with every day that grew into a fainter memory, the purpose for doing so slowly being forgotten. You still hadn't even told Eirin of your whole "gender-bender" problem. Were you going to? Quite frankly, it was an embarrassing situation to admit to.

Eirin took a sigh, seeing you lost in thought. "Look, if you hate this place that much, fine. You don't have to stay here. We'll still expect you to pay us for the quagga's care eventually, but you don't have to stay."

"What is it you even want me to do?"

"Eientei has many operations it undertakes each day, even a little help would be nice for any of them. A merchant to help sell wares," that didn't seem too bad. Why was Tewi smiling a smile you could see even at your distance? "a nurse to help tend to patients," Fuck. "and Princess Kaguya has been asking for a new maid, I think she's grown jealous of that vampire." Fuck.

===

You returned to your room, and sat on the bed, thousands of things racing through your mind. Your current predicament of a newfound debt, and your overarching predicament of being in a fantasy land as a small girl. Your downward spiral just has no breaks!

From your view on the bed, something actually came into view. The small bag Letty had let you borrow (hopefully indefinitely, you weren't sure when you'd ever get the chance to give it back) was tucked in the corner. You opened it to check its contents;

A "Welcome to Gensokyo" Flyer, a Paper Clip, your old Outerside World Clothes, that Frog Charm which could bestow an instance of great luck, and an MP3 Player.

Letty's Cap was on your nightstand.

Your possessions seemed to be in ord-an envelope? When did you get that? It was standard and unremarkable, with no writing upon it. Hopefully it was yours since you were going to open it now. A rip and tear later,

The Halcyon did what he must, he searched his birthplace for it he could trust.
It saw not there, despite his thought, so flew to his deathplace - wisdom was there, but love was not.
The Halcyon looked out to the sun, the celestial beast leaving its palace in the East.
"Old friend, old friend, I cannot dare rest, for I am alone, yet you are accompanied in your palace out West!"
The Sun climbed and he climbed till he was at great level, then he looked down upon the saints and the devils.
He stared down to jungles and brambles through, till he spied the Halcyon, wishing for his lost two.
The Halcyon cried and mourned, his life did bereave, yet he never noticed that he needed to leave.
For the heat did cook him and the heat did boil, and never will he see his true fantasy.

... That was the letter? Some weird morbid poem? What were you supposed to get out of that? Whatever.

You tossed the letter back into the bag at the exact moment your door burst open.

"SURPRISE!" Kogasa stuck out her tongue jumping out.
"Ow." Medicine said, having tripped and fallen on the ground. Kogasa must've jumped and surprised a bit too hard near her. "Congratulations on being healed! What's your next step now that you have freedom?"

"I don't have freedom."

"Oh."

You filled Kogasa in on what had happened (you wouldn't have filled in Medicine, but she wasn't going to leave your room). You weren't sure why you were still confiding with this umbrella, maybe just to vent. It was nice to have someone to talk to. "Well, those don't sound like too bad options. Medicine works here and she seems fine."

"I'm more than fine. Though my position here is more as a commission worker, not a lackey. But I guess that's more fitting of someone like you, right Alex?" You glared at the venomous puppet. Why had fate brought her to you?

"There's gotta be worse places than working in Eientei, right?" You grumbled. "So what are you going to do now?"

"You obviously need to work." Medicine stated. "You're the one who decided to get a quagga."

"I never asked for the quagga!"

"Every irresponsible quagga owner has said that. Some hard labor will do well teaching you resp-"

"MARRY EIRIN!" Kogasa burst out. You and Medicine looked at her. A long silence followed, Kogasa thinking what she had said was so perfect, yet you and Medicine waiting for her to explain what the fuck she was saying.

"I read this in a fairy tale once! A youkai fairy tale!" Kogasa explained. There are youkai fairy tales? "There was once this cruel lady who trapped a boy in debt. It was a deep debt, and there was no way he could pay it off! However, they slowly fell in love together, and they got married! Since his debt was now shared between them, she decided to just forgive the debt because she loved him!"

You and Medicine continued to remain silent, so Kogasa explained further. "If you marry Doctor Eirin, she'll forgive your debt, and you'll be free!"

More silence followed, while Kogasa held her mouth open with a large smile, waiting for everyone to tell her what a genius idea she had.

Finally, you and Medicine broke your silence, filling the room with laughter.

Alright, enough joking, what were you going to do?

[] Meido time!
[] Nurse time!
[] Both of those professions were going to be humiliating for you, obviously the merchant! That one would be the safe bet!
[] There's no opportunity here in Eientei, you were gonna bail.

==

You should probably start thinking about your long-term goals here too. Even if you work at Eientei, it's not like you'll be a slave here. You should have plenty of free time. How do you want to proceed in your search for why you're a girl now? Keep it fairly secret, or be open about it? Any hunches of where you'd like to search? Letty did give you a fairly rudimentary understanding of Gensokyo, after some weeks of resting maybe some ideas have floated in your head.

>>204269
Kogasa frowned at you and Medicine's laughter. "It's a good idea! It could work!"

Medicine's laughter winded down before she replied. "No, it's moronic. Girls can't love girls. And Eirin hasn't shown any interest in dating before. What's a human girl like Alex going to do to sweep her off her feet?"

"That's what the planning is for! And the romancing!"

"This is moronic, you're moronic."

"No, I'm not! Stop being so-"

"ALRIGHT, alright, quit it!" You raised your voice at the two bickering animate objects. "I can't just decide to start hitting on Doctor Eirin, especially to try and get something out of it. That's not how romance works Kogasa."

"But it's not about JUST getting rid of your debt, but that's a nice and important bonus to it!"

"If it's the reason why you think I should try and date Eirin it is-This whole discussion is silly, I'm not going to seduce Eirin!"

"Yeah, she's not going to. Especially with her flat chest." Medicine so helpfully chimed in.

"Some people enjoy flat chests! Eirin's already got a large one, so she would appreciate..." The two continued their moronic argument. It would be best to tune them out and sort through this issue yourself.

===

Doctor Eirin was at her desk, signing off on various papers. You took a deep breath and walked in. Something about her aura gave off so much authority, even now you couldn't help but feel a little intimidated, smothering your will to be defiant ever so slightly. "Alright, I've made my decision." You said, standing in front of her desk.

Eirin looked up, before taking off her reading glasses. Did she need glasses? You knew she ate some immortality medicine that kept her in perfect health, did that not include her eyesight? Or were they for something else? You didn't really know. "Ah, the decision for the..." Her voice paused a bit as if her mind was searching through 50 million things, before making the right connection. "Job! Yes yes, what did you decide."

"I'll take the job. Under one condition."

Eirin's eyebrow raised. "It's bold to demand a condition in your position, but alright. Entertain me."

You held your head up, trying to look as assertive as a small girl could. Yours was a simple condition, but one that would've helped protect your wounded pride. "I want this to officially be the quagga's debt that I'm working off. It's not a debt I ever asked or consented to, and it's the result of the quagga's actions. So, I want it to be recorded that this is the quagga's debt, not my debt."

There was a small lull in Eirin's office, as an autumn breeze blew through.

Then, laughter.

You were actually taken back as Eirin leaned over her desk, tears in the corners of her eyes. Wow, it sucked to be on the receiving end of this, maybe this was karma for how you and Medicine acted towards Kogasa. "I-I'm serious!"

"I know! I know you are! Hahaha!" Eirin's laughter finally slowed down, leaving her with just a wide smile, something you hadn't really seen on Eirin. "I-I, heheh, alright! Alright, that's fine! Don't you worry, I'll-heheh, if there's ever a credit agency in Gensokyo I'll let them know you're clean as a whistle, it's the quagga that's unreliable!" She chuckled more, approaching your side.

"I'm going to walk back on this."

"Sure, sure~" The doctor brushed off your threat, too amused to take anything seriously. "Now, what was the job you were going to take?"

"Merchant, of course, the others are too demeaning."

Eirin raised her eyebrow. "Demeaning? What's wrong with being a nurse or a maid? They seem like perfect jobs for a girl like you." You almost answered truthfully, before you realized; yeah, you were a small girl, and no one really knew you used to be a guy. Without that context, turning down either of those positions looked strange.

"... I'm just a natural people-person. I'm bestselling to people, and I'm too squeamish to be a nurse." You lied. Well, almost lied. You were a little squeamish, but who wasn't?

The answer seemed to satisfy Eirin. "Alright, well let me know if there's anything you will need to assist you. Your job will be simple; we'll have a bunch of medical stuff you'll need to sell."

"What kind of medical stuff?"

"Nothing extreme, just simple over-the-counter stuff. Cough medicine, aspirins, laxatives." Ew.

"So I just sell these down in the human village at their market?" Oh boy, back there again.

"Where you sell it doesn't really matter too much to me. Sell it to the temple, the mansion, as long as you move product." Man, she was making this sound like a drug operation. Well, it kind of was?

"Don't you not charge for medical service though?" The question had been bugging you for a while now. " I've been wondering this... If you don't need money, why even sell this stuff?"

"Oh, that's simple." Eirin stated matter-of-factly. "The money isn't really needed for medical stuff, most of the operations here are done as my personal hobby, and through bunny labor." Bunny labor sounded a bit ominous. "However, what does cost a lot of money is paying off the kappa to smuggle in outside games and movies."

Ah. "... Wait, what? You play video games?" You had played some Donkey Kong and Metroid, but you never heard of someone ol-someone mature playing them.

"I don't, but Lady Kaguya does."

"Really?"

"Yes, immortality has led her to seek out all kinds of entertainment. She's particularly found the games of the outside world fascinating. Of course, those don't really become forgotten easily, so they need to be brought in. And smuggling things into Gensokyo is never easy."

"Smuggling? Are you allowed to do that in Gensokyo?"

"What the shrine maiden doesn't know won't hurt her. Though frankly, if it's for Lady Kaguya, I'd be more than happy to face that shrine maiden a thousand times." Eirin's voice took on such a different tone than what you were used to. Usually, she spoke with a cold authoritative voice, with stern eyes either dismissing your existence or showering you with a freezing gaze. Now, however, her voice took on a warmer tone, her eyes gazing somewhere far off. "Now, we're way off topic." The doctor's mind tried to return to where it was comfortable, but the kindness lingered a bit in her voice. "You can sell the lot to whomever, as long as you get its worth and then some. Now, you are a human, correct?"

"Last I checked yes."

"Alright, then you should take this." Eirin opened her desk and grabbed a small device, gently placing it in your hands. You held it up by its keychain.

"... What is this?"

"It's a Lunarian Emergency Device. I made it out of an old Tomogatchi that Kaguya got bored with. If things get too dicey for you, press that. It'll let me know where you are, and if I can get there in time I will. And I can at least recover your corpse if I'm too late."

"That's reassuring."

"I'm sure you'll be fine. But don't press that for just anything, understand? I have work to do, so big emergencies only. Though, if you do need to call me to ask me something, feel free to."

"Wait, so can I use it whenever to call you or only when I'm in an emergency?"

"Also, you'll need to feed it every so often."

"Feed it?"

"Alright!" Eirin clapped her hands. "I think that covers everything. If there's anything else I can help you with, let me know, and I'll either help you or turn you down. You'll start tomorrow. Oh, and report to Tewi soon, she's in charge of mercantile affairs. Welcome to Eientei Alex."

You began to head out of her office, as Eirin returned to filling out more ambiguous paperwork. It was strange getting to see a more casual side of the aloof doctor. It was something a part of you wanted to see more. Until another part reminded you that this woman did put your quagga into debt. Oh, speaking of! "By the way, can I ride the quagga while I sell stuff?"

"Sure, it's your quagga. Hell, bring whoever you'd like. As long as your wares are sold. Anything else?" A pair of childish voices yelled in your mind to ask her if she preferred large or small breasts, but you ignored them and thanked Eirin for her answer.

===

"Hell no."

This was a mistake. You hated this. What the fuck.

The small (at least by normal standards, she was about your size) rabbit just kept smiling. "It's a fantastic idea. You need to do."

"Fuck off."

"I insist, it'll be great."

"No. Reisen doesn't even wear this."

"Yeah, and her sales aren't as good as they could be. You could easily outsell her. No one turns down a girl wearing this!"

===

You laid down a rough map of Gensokyo on the floor. It was late, and Kogasa had already fallen asleep. You were fully recovered, but she still seemed to linger. Just like Medicine, whom you couldn't shake.

"Most people would just sell at the human village, it's a pretty straightforward thing. What's the issue?" The doll was inquisitive. She couldn't be as venomous if she didn't understand what you were thinking after all.

"I'm an outsider." A fact she no doubt picked up on already. "However... the circumstances of my arrival were a bit strange."

"Howso?"

"Things just didn't add up."

"Stop being vague, it's dumb."

"You know Medicine, maybe people are vague about things for a reason, hmm? You know, maybe there are things people might not want to talk about?" Medicine kept quiet. You rolled your eyes, you couldn't tell if she was actually thinking about anything or just looking for some petty criticism to make. "I want to do some investigating. Figure out what's going on and undo it."

"Undo the thing you won't talk about?"

"Now you're getting it." You looked down at the map, trying to figure out the areas that were the most likely to be of use You thought back over how you first arrived, the youkai you've met so far, everything Letty had said, the events at the market, the letter you received... Medicine also gave some mildly helpful advice, mostly unprompted.

The mysterious Yukari you had heard so much about didn't seem to have any place you could visit to meet her directly. If you really wanted to get up with her, it seemed the best way to do so would be through the Hakurei Shrine. The shrine maiden there you had heard so much about... everyone made her out to be so intimidating, so scary, what could she really be like?

Though your first visit to the Human Village was a bit rough, it still was filled with places to visit and people to see. For what was such a major hub you had no doubt that there were probably plenty of clues to find there.

Youkai Mountain was home to the plotting goddesses and dangerous tengu. Though those characters all seem shady, you didn't have much to connect everything that's transpired to them. It could be an option though.

The Myouren Temple was a sanctuary of youkai, and its monk was said to work hard trying to get youkai and humans to coexist. Even Rumia had mentioned that monk earlier. The monk there probably had tons of connections. She might know just who did.. this to you.

The Scarlet Devil Mansion was home to its very wealthy mistress. There was no doubt she was a major person of importance, and you could probably easily sell your wares there. However, the whole place was filled with youkai. Dangerous youkai. Vampires, goblins, devils, it probably wouldn't be safe. You also didn't have many clues to connect you to the place, no major leads.

The Garden of the Sun is near where Medicine lives, it was also home to that Yuuka lady Cirno had mentioned earlier. Was there really much to do there though?

Former Hell, would you even want to go there? You could sell stuff there easily, yes, but... It was hell. It probably wasn't the wisest place.

You were determined, somewhere in these places were clues to solving this mystery. Oh, and selling medical stuff, of course. But where?

===

Let's go to... (Pick 1)

[] Hakurei Shrine
[] Human Village
[] Youkai Mountain
[] Myouren Temple
[] Scarlet Devil Mansion
[] Garden of the Sun
[] Former Hell
[] Somewhere else that didn't come to mind?

For what Tewi says...

[] No.
[] HELL NO.
[] Alright, fiiiine.

Any requests for Eirin, or last-minute things to do in Eientei?

[] Write in.

And we should probably name this quagga...

[] Write in.

Alright, no more set-up, let's get this adventure on the road!

>>204313
[XXX] Human Village
[XXXX] Alright, fiiiine.
[XXX] Debt

The human village still seemed extremely promising. Even if your first attempt there was disastrous, that was no reason to just give up searching there. A hub of people and culture (at least in this fantasy land) was bound to have some answers about why you became a girl, why you ended up here, and how to set things right so you could get back home.

"I'm going to head out to the human village tomorrow." You said resolutely. "Promising leads, plenty of people, that's where I'll go."

Medicine grumbled a bit at this announcement. "I can't go into the human village..."

"But I can!" Kogasa beamed. "Don't worry, I can show you around there! I know a lot of people there kind of! Plenty! I can be a massive help there!" Medicine glared.

"Fine, but I get to go with Alex to the next place she sells stuff at."

"That's fair, OK!"

"Wh-wait!" You interjected. "You two don't get to negotiate like I'm a kid you want visitation rights for! Who says I even want anyone coming with me!"

Kogasa tilted her head. "Do you know your way around the human village?"

"No, but I-"

"Alright! Tomorrow we'll go together then!" God, there really was no arguing with this umbrella was there?

===

"And... perfect! You look good I gotta say!" You burned red on the outside. You ultimately accepted the bunny suit, and you could feel your manly pride sapped away as you stood in it. Considering your small frame, you felt it had to lack the raw sex appeal that a tall leggy woman with large breasts would've had while wearing it. But perhaps that was part of the appeal for some. Deviants.

"Hmmm, you know..." Tewi said, looking you up and down. "These fake bunny ears actually fit you really well. You almost look like my twin wearing them." Weird, Letty had said something similar. Tewi pondered, deep in thought for a moment. "Well, maybe just be careful wearing the bunny ears with the full suit in the human village."

"Are the humans in the village scared of rabbit youkai?"

"They're wary of all youkai. But rabbit youkai don't scare them much. Still, a youkai in town openly could cause a stir. So be careful."

"Isn't Kogasa a youkai? Doesn't she go in town a lot?"

"Yeah, but who cares about her?" Tewi tossed that thought aside without a moment's consideration. A pang of pity ran through you.

===

The brisk autumn morning was magnificent. The cries of birds rang through the misted colorful trees. You could smell coals burning in the distance, someone somewhere had a fire going. This atmosphere was far more different than the city. Clean air, mellow soundscape... It was a feeling you wouldn't mind experiencing eternally.

Well, aside from the gust of wind chilling you. This bunny suit wasn't very good at keeping you warm, huh? You had opted out of wearing the ears right now though, just in case they caused a problem in the human village.

You strapped your bags onto your quagga. This fellow was going to help pay off its debt just as much as you were. Saddle, bags, and gear. You wished that you had proper riding attire, but all you had were pants. If you want to gather the rest, you'll probably need to ask around other places. Hopefully riding in a bunny suit wouldn't be too much of an ordeal.

You used a stepping stool to try and climb onto the quagga's back, and after a few attempts, you finally managed to do so. It wasn't particularly tall, it was just that you were so short now. You were about to head out when you saw a tall figure hastily walk towards you.

"Oh, good morning Doctor."

"My goodness, what is wrong with you!?" She had a stern look, and her normally neat braid looked frazzled. She must've had a long night. "Wearing something so ridiculous in this weather, what's gotten into you?!" You looked down at your bunny suit.

While normally you'd agree, that contrarian part inside you now set itself on the defensive for some reason. "This is the outfit Tewi told me to wear for the job, I'm just doing as I'm told."

Eirin looked puzzled for a flash before her face grew stern again. "Goodness, how long has she been trying to do this stuff? Fine, but you're not going down to the village with no protection from the exposure at all."

"It's fine, it'll be warmer during the day."

"But it's not warm now, is it?"

"I can brace myself."

"I swear, humans, acting so damn foolish..." She mumbled to herself before taking off her doctor's coat and wrapping it around you. "I put good work into making sure you were back to good health, and you're going to undo all of that?"

"I'm not even that cold, I'll be fi-" before you could finish that sentence, a dagger was shot from Eirin's eyes. It was an effective method to silence you.

"You're not immortal, don't act like it. Understand?"

You grumbled in agreement, not caring to argue anymore. Eirin walked back to Eientei, mumbling some more things about humans under her breath, as you tightened the oversized coat around you more. The doctor's coat did feel warm, and smelled nice too. And its large size could protect your modesty until you got to the village. You lightly kicked your heels into the quagga's side, and it began moving. Huh. You had seen that in movies, guess it worked in real life.

Immortal... the residents of Eientei were supposed to be immortal, right? That must've been pretty damn nice, getting to live without the fear of death or time. Free from any responsibility, wouldn't it? If you're immortal, you don't need to really fear repercussions and punishments from many things. At least, many human things. What kind of things could these youkai use to punish? Maybe some more sinis-

"Hello! Surprise!" Kogasa jumped out of the bushes. You were anticipating it well enough, given how her purple umbrella stuck out and could be seen a mile away. "Hello! Can I guide you to the village!" You nodded and she began to show you the way.

"So what's with the new get-up? Are you trying to be a sexy doctor?" You explained to her your recent encounter with Eirin and Tewi making you wear the outfit while Kogasa strolled beside your quagga. With Eirin and Kogasa both on your mind, a past memory resurged, reminding you;

"Hey, did you apologize to Eirin and Reisen yet?"

The question caused a sudden shift in Kogasa's demeanor. She fidgeted and words quietly escaped her mouth. "Well... I... and then... so..." Excuses and half-truths.

"Why haven't you yet? You've had all this time being here, just do it."

Kogasa looked down in shame. "I just... It's scary."

"You're a youkai who likes scaring people, aren't you?"

"Yes, but that's a different kind of scary. I want to surprise people, to give them a fun fright! I don't want people to hate me."

"They'll hate you if you keep avoiding this issue."

"... I know. And they might hate me if I admit it. It's like choosing between being hurt now or being hurt later." She kicked a pebble with her sandal. "I just don't want to..." You had this conversation with Kogasa two weeks ago, perhaps not being forceful enough with making her apologize led to this. Oh well, maybe when you got back.

You felt nothing more to really say, so the two of you headed onwards in silence. You would've asked Kogasa if she wanted to hop on the quagga, but the beast wasn't big enough to handle two persons. Besides, Kogasa was leggy enough to match your ride's stride.

Finally, after about 40 minutes of travel, you had arrive. "We're here!" Kogasa beamed, her depression covered with the blanket of her smile.

You disembarked from your quagga, but still guided it by its side as you asked Kogasa about the village.

"There's no market today scheduled, so if you want to sell you can do so on a street corner. Tuesdays like today are usually pretty lazy. Sometimes you might see one of the religious people prostheti-prosper-proba-... telling other people about their religion!"

You saw a girl in fancy robes followed by a servant traveling out of a store, the servant holding a few books in her hand. "Ah, that's Lady Akyuu!" Yes, you remember her from before. Her aura seemed different, but she was there at the market the previous day. You remember her commenting that day was going to be interesting, or something to that effect. ... She had to know a thing or two, you were certain. You almost approached her, before Kogasa yanked your arm.

"Oh! Over there!" You turned to see a different building, with windows wide open. A... schoolhouse? But wait, there was... Rumia!? She was in there talking with another person... Keine? She had been mentioned to you a few times. Jesus her breasts were huge, you could tell that even from the distance you were at. "Keine is the teacher here at the human village, she's really intelligent! If there's anyone who could tell you about what's going on with your problem that I don't know about, it has to be her!"

While you couldn't tell what Rumia and Keine were discussing, it was clear from their body language that Rumia was about to head out.

There were a few leads in front of you. Akyuu was there at the marketplace when you had your heart problem, and with her prominent role around here, she HAD to know something. But she and her servant were heading down the street with haste. Keine was also really smart, you knew she also had a major role around here and connections to both youkai and humans. Even if she didn't know much about your problem, she would certainly know someone who did. And Rumia... Rumia was the one who found you and handed you off to Cirno. She wasn't the sharpest tool in the shed, but you could question her about the day she found you, if she noticed something strange that day.

How do you want to approach this situation?

[] Chase down Akyuu! (Carefully though, heels are difficult to run in!)
[] Catch Rumia after she leaves Keine and question her!
[] Wait for Rumia to head out and ask Keine some questions!
[] Why compromise? It might be awkward, but let's crash in on both Rumia and Keine so we can have both at the same time!

>>204341
Though the thought of trying to catch Akyuu crossed your mind, you decided to save her for later. She was already making haste down the street, the only way you'd be able to catch her would've been to chase her on your steed. And it was only your first day of riding, a chase sequence wasn't what you needed right now.

"Alright, let's head into the school Kogasa." You had heard Keine's name mentioned plenty of times before, and now you were going to finally meet her.

As you both drew closer to the door, Kogasa noticed Rumia in there as well. "Hmm, should we wait? They might not like it if we barge in and interrupt."

"Nah, we'll apologize first and then get permission, but it shouldn't be a big deal anyways. Rumia might be able to help too, she was around when I first arrived in Gensokyo." It was a tad rude, you knew, but you were wanting answers, a guide, anything to work off of. You had been in Gensokyo for weeks stuck as a small girl, and failing to make much progress. You did manage to make debt though (or, more formally, get trapped into paying off the debt of another creature).

Kogasa looked around the area, seeking out nothing in particular, before asking you her question. "So what really is it you want?"

"Answers, of course, I've said that many times."

"I know that, but why?"

You raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean why? I have questions, I want answers."

The nature of Kogasa's question she wasn't conveying well, so she tried to think of a way to elaborate. "Well... You see... Let's say I made a pie."

"Do you bake?"

"I've tried before! My favorite is blueberry!" You liked blueberry too, the umbrella had good taste in sweets. "Anyways, let's say I put this pie on my windowsill to cool. But when I come back later, it was gone. What would you do?"

"I would want to find whoever took it of course." You answered almost reflexively, not needing a second of thought. Kogasa nodded at your response.

"That makes sense, but would it really make you happy?"

"I had a pie stolen, I'm not going to be happy no matter what."

"Exactly." The way Kogasa stated that made it sound like you fell into a trap. "No matter what answer you get, it's not really going to change things, it's not going to make you happy. You could ask what happened to the pie, when it was taken, who took it, and what did they do with the pie, and you could spend days trying to solve that mystery. But in the end, you'll be down one pie forever. It could be easier to just... make a new pie, you know?"

"You might get your pie back. And you could punish whoever took the pie."

"You might, but would you even want the pie back at that point?"

"I think I would want to punish the person who took the pie more than the pie itself at that point."

"What if that person was a friend you really liked? Would you want to stop being friends with them over the pie?"

"They were the ones who valued the pie over me in the first place." Your sense of righteousness proved to be something Kogasa couldn't seem to surpass.

So the umbrella took an interest in her sandals, turning her eyes towards them. "I guess I'm just trying to say that... maybe sometimes it's better to just make a new pie? Maybe searching for the old pie will just make you sad in the long run."

You were a bit puzzled by the umbrella's philosophical debate. A paranoid thought came to mind that she was somehow involved in everything that happened with you, and she was trying to tell you to stop investigating it for that reason. But you dismissed that theory. Unless Kogasa was playing some grand trick on you (doubtful considering how other's viewed her) she was far from sinister or cunning enough to really have done much to you outside of the accidental sheer heart attack she gave you. You could argue that she hid her recent pranks from Eientei and thus could easily be hiding things from you, and while that was true, you struggled to see her doing anything grand beyond what she told you.

"Well, some people may want to surrender their pies. But I don't believe in that. I want my pie back. And if I can't have it back, I want to know who I need to beat up for it." You were going to become a guy again. You were going to get back to the real world. You were going to get that nice ideal place far from the outside world, deep in the wilderness, where you could finally be at peace.

"... I'm kind of hungry now. I could go for a pie."

You chuckled. "Maybe when we get back at Eientei, we could bake a pie for everyone. I don't think they have blueberries right now, but I know I saw cherries and raspberries there."

"Oh, cherry pie sounds really good! I think that's Medicine's favorite actually! Hm... Does she have a favorite? She always just seems to hate everything." It was nice to see Kogasa cheer back up. "Oh, if Keine helps us, do you think we should offer to bring her some pie as well?" Yeah, that made sense. You agreed.

You parked your steed in front of the schoolhouse, tying it to a nearby pole. Doctor's coat tossed on its back as if saving your seat, you were all prepared. Time to meet Gensokyo's resident educator.

===

"Alright Rumia, you've been doing so well recently! If you promise to do your best I'll let you be in charge of it!" Keine patted the head of her recent star pupil. Rumia's eyes beamed, warming Keine's heart. Yes, this was what education was all about. It was more than explaining theorems, reading old books, or dissecting amphibians. It was about making connections with the younger generation, passing on the knowledge and stories of old, and inspiring them to do great things. And of course, that bit of pride in knowing that you helped play a role in that upbringing was intoxicating. Was it selfish to enjoy that aspect of it? Maybe. But it was hopefully a fair trade and a source of righteous pride. And if not, may the yama forgive her.

As Keine ruffled the young youkai's hair, who look up to her mentor with admiration, Keine couldn't help but make a small silent wish. Just to her heart. A wish that this moment here could last fore-

"Hello, excuse us!"

Keine was ejected instantly from her Eden and brought back to reality. Who was it, a parent or a passerby? And interrupting her time with her current good noodle, how rude. "Excuse me, is there-"

The hakutaku was used to seeing oddities in Gensokyo. Less so in her own schoolhouse. And certainly not a young girl who looked like she could've been one of her students dressed in such a lewd and provocative outfit. That umbrella she usually saw around town was behind her too.

"WHAT THE HE-BLAZES!" Keine shouted in surprise, as her hands quickly wrapped themselves around Rumia's innocent eyes. She didn't want those eyes that were once filled with admiration to become tainted by the sight. "Who comes to a school dressed like that!? In front of a student! What are you thinking!?" In Gensokyo, appearances could be deceiving. She couldn't tell if this girl was truly the age of her appearance, and Kogasa had entered an incredibly illicit business, or if the girl was actually much older and such a thing was legal, but still highly questionable. And certainly not acceptable in a schoolhouse.

You looked down at your attire and were reminded of it. Oh, huh. Yeah. Huh.

"It's OK Keine!" Kogasa said from behind smiling. OK, Kogasa knew the people of the village better, she could act as an intermediary and help explain the situ- "If you help us, you can have her cherry pie, no questions asked!"

"WHAT" Oh God fucking dammit this was a disaster. How were you going to recover this?

[] You've got your bag of items, your wits, and an umbrella. Think of something before the situation gets worse! (Write In)