- First time posting? Check out our site rules and FAQ.
- Supported file types are: AVIF, GIF, JPG, PNG, WEBM, WEBP.
- Maximum file size allowed is 8192 KB.
- Images greater than 200x200 pixels will be thumbnailed.
- View catalog
THE STORY SO FAR:
The world has ended, but five (well, it’s complicated) humans get a chance to do it over, and make things right. Only problem is, for their second go around, they're not going to be 'human'...
Kosuzu, Reimu, Akyuu and Youmu have all remembered their pasts, and through significant trials and tribulations, begun the path of fighting against the doomed future. Of the five Immaterial Children who were wound back in time together, only one remains - the former magician, Kirisame Marisa.
In this life, she is Houjuu Marisa, raised on the island of Sado in the outside world. Spending her childhood years looking up at the stars, the arrival of the Spiral Comet awoke her inhuman heritage - one she was completely unaware of, and equally unprepared to deal with. Having fled her life on the island, she now searches for a way to get to Gensokyo - ever chased by a mysterious group.
But though she has left her home behind, she is not without allies. She has met up with Goutokuji Mike, a maneki-neko and fellow mystery hunter, and together they’ve decided to search for a path together. A narrow escape from her pursuers has brought them into contact with the gentle Ibaraki Kasen, the divine Tenkyuu Chimata, and the crafty Nippaku Zanmu. With such a trio of powerful figures behind her, Marisa’s fate is set to turn…
Previous Threads:
Redo/Reimu >>205449 >>205720
Again/Akyuu >>206017 >>206302 >>206595 >>206906 >>207202
Yester/Youmu >>207370 >>207705 >>208027 >>208337 >>208664 >>208978
Kaizou/Kosuzu >>209221 >>209492 >>209799 >>210140 >>210522 >>210832 >>211127 >>211466 >>211848 >>212143
Memoria/Marisa >>212437 >>212766 >>213061
Epilogues and Shorts >>/shorts/2804
Or read the story archive on Ao3:
https://archiveofourown.org/series/4062991
Outside/Omakes (Shorts from Other Writers): >>/shorts/2947
Marisa sniffled, trying to recompose herself. “I… I’m useless. I didn’t even realise she’d been replaced.” She grit her teeth. “I-I should have realised something earlier! They’d already got Aunty Zou, and they nearly got me too…”
Kasen hesitantly reached out a hand to the girl. “Marisa…”
Chimata placed her own hand on Marisa’s shoulder. “...It wasn’t your fault. You couldn’t have known.”
“I should have noticed something! I-I should have done something! I’m some kinda powerful thing, aren’t I? I-I could have helped her, if only I’d known she was gone!”
She kicked her chair across the room, knocking it into the cloudy wall with a bang. Kasen and Chimata shared a hesitant glance. Neither seemed to know what to say.
Zanmu, however, seemed to have an idea. “...You know, that’s an interesting point. You do seem like a strong one.”
Kasen’s head whipped up, but Zanmu held her hand out. “Something doesn’t add up, in that case. There’s a couple of issues with your theory.”
Marisa turned to her, as the oni continued. “For starters, your Aunty Zou. She knows your actual youkai parent, right? And I’m guessing she’s pretty smart, too?” After waiting for a response Marisa wasn’t in any state to give, she stood up, explaining as she walked. “No ordinary person would have agreed to raise a changeling unless they were ready to handle the risks.”
The changeling sniffled. “...The risks?”
“You know, the consequences of your youkai transformation. Think an ordinary adopted parent could have handled that?” Zanmu picked up the chair the islander had knocked over, fluffing it like a pillow to restore its shape. “Most likely, your Aunt knows her way around a good fight.”
Marisa tried to recompose herself. “Sh-she did say she used to get in fights when she was young…”
“But I’m sure she kept vague on the details, right?” The oni grinned. “Probably because she didn’t want you getting into scraps with other youkai before your powers kicked in.”
The islander sagged. “But they still took her, didn’t they?”
Zanmu gave a noncommittal grunt as she set the chair right next to Marisa. “Perhaps. But even then, I can’t imagine they’re thrilled about the idea of fighting a young, rampant whatever-you-are.” The oni chuckled as she sat down. “The rarer a species is, the stronger any individual member. Wouldn’t it be great if they could use a hostage to bring you in without a fight?”
Kasen scowled. “You’re saying they captured her Aunt?”
“Something like that. At the very least, Marisa… I’m sure your Aunt’s still out there. Trust an oni to know the wicked, after all.” Zanmu gave the kid’s hat a flick. “Now, how to save her is an entirely different question. And rather out of my field.”
Marisa grabbed at her hat, taking a slow breath to steady herself. “...Right. What should I do?”
Chimata stood up. “Marisa, please, don’t go getting yourself into trouble.”
The changeling spun around. “Well I can’t just do nothing, can I?! Aunty Zou’s caught up in this whole mess!”
Kasen shook her head. “Be that as it may, it’s too dangerous. If these people really do mean you harm, then you can’t go out and fight them! They’d surely capture you!”
“Then maybe we can ambush them! I haven’t tested my limits yet, but if I get the drop on them, I’m sure I can take them out! Or-or I can set a trap, or, or-”
Zanmu sighed. “Being a youkai means you have key weaknesses - some standard ones, and some you likely don’t even know about yet. Trying to blindly outsmart someone who knows exactly what they’re hunting is a recipe for disaster - especially when you don’t know what countermeasures they’ve got.”
Chimata nodded in agreement. “For now, it’s far better to let us adults handle them. A youkai who doesn’t even know her own powers can’t fight off full-grown opponents, no matter how strong she is.”
Marisa growled, gritting her teeth. She tried to think of what she could say… but nothing was coming up.
“Um…”
The maneki-neko stood up. “What… what if we find Marisa’s mother?” The group turned to her. “I mean, if they’re after Marisa, they would have been after her mother too, right? Maybe she left her with her Aunt so she’d be safe from them, even.”
The oni gave a small smile. “Now that’s a thought. There’s a good chance that the older Houjuu dealt with exactly this group.”
Kasen nodded thoughtfully. “Perhaps that was why they targeted ‘Aunty Zou’? To cut off her mother from realising there was a problem until it was too late? Regardless, if we can find her…”
Chimata smiled. “Then we’d have someone who should understand the ins and outs of the situation - and would be very motivated to see Marisa through it. Kasen - you said you were a sage of Gensokyo, correct? Could you take them there?”
The sage hesitated, glancing at the two girls. “I have… some matters to take care of. I need to secure a rather dangerous item.”
The oni turned to Kasen, offering a warm smile. “You know, I could take care of that-”
“Zanmu.” The hermit gave her an icy glare. “Don’t even try. You’re the last person I want to have it.”
“Fair, fair. Never know what an oni could do if they got their hands on an artifact like that, right?” Zanmu let out a sinister chuckle that did nothing to ease Kasen’s staredown.
Marisa turned to the oni. “Can you take us, instead?”
She got a predatory smirk in response. “Oh yeah? You’re asking an oni for a favour? And a big one, at that. You sure you’re ready for a deal with a devil?” Zanmu’s face eased. “Even if I did take you, where I’d be taking you is Hell. You’d be eaten alive, and that’s not even hyperbole. If you want a favour from me, you gotta live long enough to pay me back, y’know?”
Kasen’s bandaged hand came to a rest on Marisa’s shoulder. “Believe me, Marisa. Whoever these pursuers are, they’re nothing compared to trying to make it through Hell. It’d be far better to come to Gensokyo with me.” The hermit sighed, rubbing her forehead as she thought. “...Though I don’t know how long it’ll take before I can go… and it isn’t like I can easily get someone from Gensokyo to escort them either. The path I take isn’t a one-day trip, after all.”
Chimata hummed. “I have obligations here, of course. This market is mine - I can’t abandon it to take the kids there. And I can’t have my servants leave, either - even Nio can’t split so far apart from himself.”
The other two adults seemed to have no issues with that absurd statement. Marisa took a look back at the young man by the entrance… maybe he and the other security-guard type guy were some kinda special youkai twins? The stony horns, and green curly hair… hmmm…
“Are there any other routes?” Marisa blinked, turning back as her friend spoke up. “We came to investigate the market because we wanted to get into Gensokyo. But there’s other places around here that are special, right? Could one of them get us there?”
“...Yeah, actually. That might be it!” Marisa perked up. “Maybe if we follow the other rumours, then we might be able to get to Gensokyo way faster!”
Kasen looked between the two of them. “...Which rumours would these be?”
“Well, aside from the market, the biggest one we thought might actually get us there quickly was the one about a whole shrine going missing at Lake Suwa. Of course, we don’t have evidence, but there’s a big, weird hole there, isn’t there?”
Marisa grinned in agreement. “Yeah, and there’s the rumour about the Scarlet Talent Agency, too! Does that place really employ paranormal employees?”
Kasen seemed nervous. “Are you sure that those places will be safe?”
“Safe enough, as long as they behave.” Chimata smiled, before her face fell. “And assuming those thugs don’t find them.”
“Well, then it seems to me like one of us should talk to them, throw ‘em off the trail.” Zanmu leant back, resting her head on her hands. “Maybe we can tease a little more information if we play our cards right.”
Chimata hummed. “And in the meantime… you two don’t have anywhere to go, right? We should be able to host a couple of kids for a few nights.”
The guard nodded. “I’ll start making arrangements then, Lady Chimata.”
Mike hesitated. “Um… we’re happy to help, if we can!”
“Like I said, at least part of this is my own remittance, so don’t worry about it for now.” The rainbow goddess smiled. “But if your stay ends up being extended, then I’m sure I can find something for a young maneki-neko to do.”
“I-I can help, too!” Marisa stood up as well, before hesitating. “Um… Probably not as properly as a Maneki-neko, though…”
Zanmu sat up. “Actually, about that. I have an idea.” She turned to the market’s goddess. “Lady Chimata, you have a special power, don’t you? Could we perhaps use it to understand Marisa a little better?”
The goddess raised an eyebrow. “...You know about that application?”
Zanmu just chuckled. “We can talk more about that later, once things are settled. Of course, that might not be necessary if I’ve misinterpreted what I’ve heard.”
“Well, it’s a good idea, regardless. Nio?”
The statuesque man grunted, marching over to a cabinet and reaching in to pull out a stack of blank, black cards. Marisa’s eyes locked on the fluffy tail, the same colour as his hair. It was at the tip of her tongue, he was a, a- she hastily looked away, hopefully before anyone caught her staring at his backside and got the wrong impression.
“Mike, if I could take your hand first?” The changeling straightened up to look at Chimata, trying not to pay attention to the oni’s smirk in her peripheral vision. “We’ll start with a little demonstration, before we try it for Marisa.”
“Um… sure.” The catgirl took the proffered hand, and Chimata closed her eyes. A golden light seemed to form between the two of them, as Mike twitched. “I-it tickles…”
After a few more moments, the market goddess let go, smiling gently as she took a quintet of cards from her servant. She made a show of them being blank on both sides, then spread them out on the table.
Chimata’s finger began to glow, as she tapped on each of the cards. Wherever she touched, the cards seemed to ripple, as their undersides shone from within. The goddess smirked, making a grand flourish as she turned the cards over in one smooth movement.
And what she revealed… was that each card now had a print of a calico cat holding up a coin. Mike’s silhouette could be seen in the background, but Marisa’s eyes were locked on the cat. Wasn’t that the one she’d been chasing around this morning? She’d need to apologise later.
…The rest of her brain caught up on the actual reality of what happened as Chimata picked up the cards. “I have the ability to transfer very, very trace amounts of one’s abilities into cards. They can then be used by anyone. Here, try holding it, Marisa.”
The changeling took the card, staring at it. It didn’t have any writing on it… and yet, the moment she touched it, understanding seemed to come.
Mike Goutokuji's ability to improve product lineups. The next time you go shopping, you will find a wider variety of items.
“So you can help us find more stuff, Mike?” Marisa grinned. “Guess I should have expected no less from a beckoning cat.”
Mike flushed a bit. “Y-you think? It doesn’t seem that impressive to me…”
“It’s a testament to innate good business acumen. The cards often allow you to understand latent power.” Chimata smiled. “You’d do quite well as a marketeer, I expect.”
As the catgirl hid her increasingly-red face behind her hands, the Market Goddess turned to Marisa. The changeling reached out, letting Chimata take her hands. “Now, Marisa… is there any kind of ability in particular you’d like me to try to tease out?”
[ ] There were a few times people had gotten confused around her. Was that one of her abilities? Maybe if she had a card of it, she could understand it?
[ ] Go for a big, powerful attack! Something that’d blow up the bad guys in one shot!
[ ] A bunch of people were flying around in the Lunar Market. Perhaps she had an ability that’d let her join them?
[X] There were a few times people had gotten confused around her. Was that one of her abilities? Maybe if she had a card of it, she could understand it?
[X] There were a few times people had gotten confused around her. Was that one of her abilities? Maybe if she had a card of it, she could understand it?
[X] A bunch of people were flying around in the Lunar Market. Perhaps she had an ability that’d let her join them?
[X] There were a few times people had gotten confused around her. Was that one of her abilities? Maybe if she had a card of it, she could understand it?
[X] Go for a big, powerful attack! Something that’d blow up the bad guys in one shot!
It probably won't be a proper Spark, but overwhelming firepower solves all problems. Need to fly? Gravity will stop complaining if you aim a giant laser at your feet and use it for propulsion. Need to hide? The guards can't raise the alarm if they're busy being piles of ash. Stuck in an awkward social situation with no clear escape avenue? Well, a laser probably doesn't actually help with that but you can use it anyway!
[X] A bunch of people were flying around in the Lunar Market. Perhaps she had an ability that’d let her join them?
I happen to be a Gale Geta enthusiast.
I feel like there’s a decent chance Marisa gets outed as an Immaterial Child here. Possibly depending on what gets chosen.
[X] There were a few times people had gotten confused around her. Was that one of her abilities? Maybe if she had a card of it, she could understand it?
Well, that's confirmation that Marisa saw Mamizou without her disguise and freaked out. At this point she's worked herself up enough that she won't believe it if it's explained, so finding Nue probably is the easiest way of fixing it.
Man, the big attack fits Marisa the most but it really feels like this Marisa wants to understand what hell is going on with her
[X] There were a few times people had gotten confused around her. Was that one of her abilities? Maybe if she had a card of it, she could understand it?
[X] There were a few times people had gotten confused around her. Was that one of her abilities? Maybe if she had a card of it, she could understand it?
I had this one ready and waiting for the new thread.
Sorry I haven't been posting drawings lately, but I promise I've been drawing on the background, mainly character designs. Maybe someday I'll share that.
[X] There were a few times people had gotten confused around her. Was that one of her abilities? Maybe if she had a card of it, she could understand it?
Gotta start cultivating the Nue style of trickery young.
Also, sounds like Kasen is also looking for her severed arm. I thought it was Gensokyo in WaHH? Unless Watanabe no Tsuna passed it down to his descendents or something...
[X] There were a few times people had gotten confused around her. Was that one of her abilities? Maybe if she had a card of it, she could understand it?
[X] There were a few times people had gotten confused around her. Was that one of her abilities? Maybe if she had a card of it, she could understand it?
if chimata sees that marisa has two abilities it might give her a clue that she is an immaterial children.
this is maybe a clue or maybe not...
>>Marisa’s eyes locked on the fluffy tail, the same colour as his hair. It was at the tip of her tongue, he was a, a- she hastily looked away...
[X] There were a few times people had gotten confused around her. Was that one of her abilities? Maybe if she had a card of it, she could understand it?
Well, Marisa-the-human didn't really have any abilities like most Yokai possess, she was just really good at magic. Also, the fact that it's a vote means that there's inherently three 'powers' that Marisa has by virtue of being a Nue.
[X] There were a few times people had gotten confused around her. Was that one of her abilities? Maybe if she had a card of it, she could understand it?
[X] There were a few times people had gotten confused around her. Was that one of her abilities? Maybe if she had a card of it, she could understand it?
You want to hit someone really hard? Just confuse them so badly they think you're on the ceiling and you'll have all the time in the world to deliver a "Blazing Star" football charge to their brittle, brittle bones!
>>213616
in WaHH chapter 50 kasen says that she found her arm in the outside world and brought it back to gensokyo to be sealed again.
[X] There were a few times people had gotten confused around her. Was that one of her abilities? Maybe if she had a card of it, she could understand it?
[X] Go for a big, powerful attack! Something that’d blow up the bad guys in one shot!
Lost Sign: Mystery Spark.
or, wait, no, this is an ability card. can't use my classic template.
Digital Pet
Type: Active Card
An ability card that summons a terrifying digital monster to do its super move. The monster may be fake, but like any good cursed game, it borrows its power from a real one.
...what? It's not like this option's winning anyway. Let me dream.
>>213614
Aw, they're so happy to just be hanging out and investigating mysteries. Onward, to bright horizons!
[x] There were a few times people had gotten confused around her. Was that one of her abilities? Maybe if she had a card of it, she could understand it?
:3
[X] There were a few times people had gotten confused around her. Was that one of her abilities? Maybe if she had a card of it, she could understand it?
Meanwhile in the SDM, a certain magician felt a sudden inexplicable urge to triple the security around her library.
[X] Go for a big, powerful attack! Something that’d blow up the bad guys in one shot!
[X] There were a few times people had gotten confused around her. Was that one of her abilities? Maybe if she had a card of it, she could understand it?
This one feels like it will help us more right now.
[X] Go for a big, powerful attack! Something that’d blow up the bad guys in one shot!
Danmaku's all about firepower!
As much as i'd love to give what is almost certainly a doombeam to a smaller-than-normal Marisa... probably not the best idea.
[X] There were a few times people had gotten confused around her. Was that one of her abilities? Maybe if she had a card of it, she could understand it?
I do want the Doombeam eventually, but let's try and get somewhere less...at risk of collateral than crowded areas.
[X] There were a few times people had gotten confused around her. Was that one of her abilities? Maybe if she had a card of it, she could understand it?
This one probably has the most benefit to it, since A) people in Gensokyo can fly without ability cards, and B) a stronger understanding of her Unknowable powers would probably help our girl figure out a powerful attack on her own.
Counting to >>213638:
Main Choice:
[18] There were a few times people had gotten confused around her. Was that one of her abilities? Maybe if she had a card of it, she could understand it?
[4] Go for a big, powerful attack! Something that’d blow up the bad guys in one shot!
[2] A bunch of people were flying around in the Lunar Market. Perhaps she had an ability that’d let her join them?
>>213614 is really nice, I like it a lot. Thanks for the drawings, Kosu.
:3
It would appear our winner is overwhelming, but nevertheless...
[X] A bunch of people were flying around in the Lunar Market. Perhaps she had an ability that’d let her join them?
We probably shouldn't have let Zanmu in. I don't think she necessarily means ill, but the oni seems to be stirring the pot hard.
[18] There were a few times people had gotten confused around her. Was that one of her abilities? Maybe if she had a card of it, she could understand it?
[4] Go for a big, powerful attack! Something that’d blow up the bad guys in one shot!
[3] A bunch of people were flying around in the Lunar Market. Perhaps she had an ability that’d let her join them?
…One thing did come to mind. Marisa nodded. “Um, there was something that happened earlier today… I’m not really sure what I did, though. Or if I even did something.”
Chimata smiled, her hands starting to glow. “Just think back on it, then. And let me draw out your power…”
The changeling closed her eyes, trying to remember. It had happened twice, right? Once with the note, and when they were running from Kasen. People had gotten weirdly confused about the stuff around her.
…Now that she was thinking about it, both times it had happened - she swore as a spark of static jumped from her to the goddess, shaking her hand from the effect. Chimata’s face made it clear it wasn’t pleasant either, though she did her best to hide any discomfort.
“Mind your tongue, Marisa… feisty magic, this time.” In the grip of Chimata’s fist, the light was a slightly different yellow than Mike’s - but it almost seemed to rattle around, flashing blue, green, and red in her hand. “Let’s find out what it means.”
Nio quietly laid out another set of cards, with Chimata imbuing the power she’d grabbed on each one. Marisa braced herself, anxiously waiting for the process to finish.
When Chimata flipped the cards over, Marisa craned her neck, anxiously. It appeared to show a small worm, flying through the night sky.
Zanmu was the first to pick up a card, looking it over. “...Interesting. Tell me, everyone; what do you make of this?”
Marisa hesitated, but the others around the table each picked up one of the cards, as Nio returned to the door. Chimata raised an eyebrow. “Oh my. I don’t believe I’ve seen this before.”
“What?” The islander wasn’t liking the concerned look on the other’s faces. “Wh-what’s it say?”
Kasen let out an irritated noise, furrowing her brow. “I can’t understand a single word. All I’m getting is gibberish.”
“I can’t read it either.” Mike’s ears were folded back. “Every time I try, it seems to change on me.”
“I-is it broken, somehow?” Marisa picked up a card, anxiously. “Is that even possible?”
Chimata shook her head, firmly. “No, it shouldn’t be. I’ve done this procedure hundreds of times…” An idea seemed to strike her. “Marisa, what does it say for you? Could you read it aloud?”
The changeling gulped, but took a moment to ‘read’ the card.
“Seed of Unknown Form.
“Houjuu Marisa’s ability to produce a Seed of Unknown Form. The Seed obscures the true nature of objects it possesses, making them more difficult to identify.” Marisa stared at the card. “And… it’s not changing, for me.”
“Huh, now that you’ve said it, it’s starting to… oh, I get it!” Mike smiled, triumphantly. “Does that mean that the card was obscuring itself?”
“It must have been. How fascinating! Most effects don’t touch the cards themselves.” Chimata twirled the card in her hand. “What a curious little power this is.”
Zanmu gave a small smirk. “I see… so that’s the nature of it, hmm?”
“You don’t seem particularly surprised.” Kasen gave the oni a wary look, which the latter waved off.
“When we first met, Marisa spotted me through my illusions. Perhaps she’s tapping into an innate form of true sight.” Zanmu gave the islander a self-satisfied look. After all, what good is an illusionist fooled by their own tricks?”
“So… does that help?” Marisa asked, anxiously. “Could it help me figure out what I am?”
“Nnnn…” Kasen hesitated. “Yes and no. It’s not an ability you’d expect in any ordinary youkai, but at the same time… if you have an innate ability to disguise ‘true forms’, it’s not surprising I’ve never seen wings like yours before. It does probably mean you’re a well-hidden species, rather than just an exotic type of youkai.”
“There’s probably other innate mechanisms your species has, to render yourself undetectable. Perhaps it’s even why your mother took such steps to obscure herself from you.” Chimata nodded, working through her logic. “It might be an instinctual compulsion.”
“Or she was hiding things in plain sight.” Zanmu seemed deep in thought. “Perhaps there were some things obscured throughout your homestead, which would only reveal themselves when your power awoke?” The oni frowned. “But those would have been beacons to your pursuers, if they’re some sort of poacher or the like.”
“Oh!” Mike raised her hand. “Ummm, Marisa. Did Aunty Zou talk about youkai a lot?”
“All the time,” Marisa said flatly, “and whenever I looked them up, she always seemed to be adding a unique spin to the exact events.” Unique spins that Marisa might have been supposed to take seriously. She sighed. “I wish I paid more attention, honestly.”
“Were there any particular stories she liked telling?” Mike leaned in. “Maybe one of them’s about your mom?”
“Hmmm… maybe?” The islander shrugged. “I mean, the stories she liked telling most were all about Tanuki. But I’m pretty sure I’m not one of those.”
And frankly, thank goodness. Marisa still didn’t know what she was, but there was at least one species she was glad she wasn’t. Tanuki were everywhere in Sado - every sign, map, store and restaurant had one of them on it somewhere, every rack of products had one with a raccoon dog, they were simply inescapable. Her school had one as the mascot - at least they’d had the decency not to include a literal nut sack.
Marisa was more than happy to not make a fuss about it in front of her aunt, but growing up on an island full of the things had led to Marisa’s taste in aesthetics going in the opposite direction. Leaving the land of testicle-dog worship was a silver lining she’d turned to more than once on the trip.
“But aside from that…” The islander rubbed her chin, trying to dredge up old memories. “Hmmm… a few things, maybe? I mean, she mentioned a few that could hide their form and stuff, but she likes tanuki, so I just assumed that it was ‘cos they were similar.” She spun her card around. “And I don’t remember any of them mentioning something like this Seed thing.”
“Hmmm…” Kasen sighed. “It seems the true nature of the unknowable youkai will remain hidden for now.”
Marisa sagged, but Chimata gave her a pat on the shoulder. “That seems to be the case, but don’t lose too much heart, Marisa. When you’re being pursued by strange youkai, hiding yourself is exactly what you need. Nio - could you help these two get set up for a longer stay? Maybe see if there’s anything we can do for their clothes and such?”
“Of course, Lady Chimata.” Nio gestured. “Do you need me to bring my other body over?”
Another eyebrow-raising comment. Maybe she’d have to bite the bullet and ask later.
“No, that’s fine.” The market goddess turned to the other two women. “We just need to discuss some things in private. I’ll call you if I need you.”
The statuesque man bowed. “Of course, Lady Chimata. Marisa, Mike - please, follow me.”
Marisa and Mike shared a glance, but didn’t have anything more they could add. With a bow and muttered thanks, they took their cards, and left the room.
“Because that requires very rare materials called Izanagi Objects,” Nio explained. “Nothing else is as good for both holding any innate power and not disintegrating when unleashing it. And those were just test samples, anyways. Sometimes we go through a few batches before we find one worth a full production. It can take a few days, even - Lady Chimata says it’s hard to bring out different powers at the same time. And could be unhealthy, too.”
“Izanagi Objects…” Marisa tried to picture them. The first thing that came to mind were giant, gleaming gemstones. “Man, I wonder what I could make with some of that.”
The young man gave a smirk. “Well, if you do find some but can’t think of anything, just bring it to us. We’ll be sure to find a use for it if we can, and a buyer if we can’t.”
Apparently, the three adults had finished their meeting, and now Marisa and Mike had been called ‘when they were ready’. Marisa was travelling shockingly light for the first time in weeks; all her clothes were either in for a wash, or had been taken by a very small team of tailors to make some adjustments for her wings. They’d left their bags in a small storage area, too, leaving the young youkai free to move about.
Nio the komainu (it had finally hit Marisa when he’d been praising the Market Goddess and she’d seen his tail wagging) was doing his best to welcome the girls and get them comfortable. Thinking of one guy having two bodies was still a bit weird, but knowing one of those bodies was hanging right by the entrance to keep an eye out for trouble made it both more of a theoretical concept and something the islander could deeply appreciate. Marisa once again found herself thankful they hadn’t fallen prey to trying for a five-finger discount before they’d even gotten here.
Their directions lead them out to the foggy mists, surrounding the Lunar Market. Nio had explained that the fog was all connected - leaving one side would result in coming out the opposite. Did that mean the Lunar Market was like a small planetoid? Unfortunately not, it seemed - but it was fun to imagine.
Mike was just a bit hesitant, falling back a bit. “Where are we going, Nio? Is it safe?”
“Yeah, should be just a little farther… ah, here it is.”
Their destination appeared to be an open space, perhaps based on a neighboring park or something like that. Kasen and Zanmu were in the centre, both perched with two seating spots each.
“Marisa, Mike!” The hermit waved them over with a smile. “Would you like to spend some time training?”
“What sort of training?” The catgirl tilted her head. “Like some fancy martial arts or something?”
“Not quite.” Kasen shook her head. “Actually, what I wanted to teach you was some general combat techniques. Some universal magic that should work regardless of species.”
Marisa perked up at the thought. “Actual magic? You can teach us that?”
The hermit gestured to a few targets. “A few simple danmaku that you can customize to suit your personal tastes. Gensokyo’s actually prototyping a new format of duels known as Spell Cards, and these techniques should fit well. Not to mention, they can be as flashy or as discreet as you want, too.” The hermit folded her arm, satisfied. “If you’re still adjusting to being a youkai, why not try magic even humans use? Even if you find your instincts unpalatable, you should be able to make good use of this.”
“Spell Cards…” Marisa murmured. Something about those words struck a chord in her.
Zanmu gave a scoff. “Sure, that’s one way to go about it. But I wanted to offer a different style.” She leant in, with a conspiratorial grin. “Marisa… you haven’t had the chance to really cut loose, have you?”
The changeling blinked. “Cut… loose?”
The oni gave a small chuckle. “You’re afraid of your own strength, right? You don’t really know how strong you are, only that you’ve got to hold yourself back. But while we’re here… you can go as crazy as you can.” She gestured grandly to the space around them. “I mean, this whole space isn’t ‘real’. It doesn’t matter if you knock down a building, even. And you’re certainly not gonna hurt me.”
Marisa hesitated, as Zanmu leant in. “Trust me, kid. You’re a powerful youkai now, and there’s nobody that can really get hurt here. Why not go a little bit berserk, and have some fun with it?”
“Ah-hem.” Kasen grabbed at one of the oni’s horns, pulling her back. “I think a more subtle combat style would be a better fit, here. After all, if they try and do some massive attack, they’ll be exposed.”
“But if they get exposed, isn’t it better to know exactly how hard they can punch? Though, that reminds me.” Zanmu straightened up, turning to the girls. “If you’re being hunted, you should probably start using some fake names. Got any ideas on that front?”
[ ] “Call me… Hakurei Reimu, and her Hieda no Akyuu.”
[ ] “How about… I’m Konpaku Youmu, and she’s Motoori Kosuzu?”
[ ] “Let’s try… calling her Tokiko, and me Satsuki Rin?”
{ } Train with Kasen.
{ } Brawl with Zanmu.
[X] “Let’s try… calling her Tokiko, and me Satsuki Rin?”
Remember how in her original life, she tried introducing herself as Reimu to Flandre, the vampire called her on that bullcrap, and Marisa thought she that she should’ve introduced herself as a nurse. Let’s learn from that mistake.
{X} Brawl with Zanmu.
As much as I’m loath to turn down a more subtle form of combat… Zanmu isn’t wrong. We saw what happened with the mugger at the start of this. Taking this opportunity to cut loose could help with our control issues down the line, though I won’t hold my breath.
>>213660
>Remember how in her original life, she tried introducing herself as Reimu to Flandre, the vampire called her on that bullcrap, and Marisa thought she that she should’ve introduced herself as a nurse.
Uhh, sorry but when does this happen again? I can't seem to recall it.
This happened in EoSD’s Extra Stage.
[X] “Call me… Hakurei Reimu, and her Hieda no Akyuu.”
{X} Train with Kasen.
Marisa introducing herself as Reimu is hilarious. This probably isn't the best decision, but I'd love to see Kasen's reaction to it.
[X] “Call me… Hakurei Reimu, and her Hieda no Akyuu.
{X} Brawl with Zanmu.
Spirit check?
[X] “Call me… Hakurei Reimu, and her Hieda no Akyuu.
{X} Brawl with Zanmu.
[ ] “Maybe… she's Kyouko Kasodani, and I'm Mystia Lorelei?”
I'm totally not biased at all
[X] “Call me… Hakurei Reimu, and her Hieda no Akyuu.
Marisa calling herself Reimu will never not be hilarious.
{X} Train with Kasen.
Kasen is best mentor, plus I don't trust Zanmu yet.
[X] “Call me… Hakurei Reimu, and her Hieda no Akyuu.
This can only be the worst possible outcome. And this is why we choose it.
{X} Train with Kasen.
[X] “Call me… Hakurei Reimu, and her Hieda no Akyuu.
This is easily one of the funnier options, Kasen is probably gonna have a "bwuh?" moment
{X} Brawl with Zanmu.
Brawling is fun :>
[X]"Let’s try… calling her Tokiko, and me Satsuki Rin?”
{X} Train with Kasen.
The bait is strong here, but as funny as it's be, I can't help but worry about Kasen's reaction.
Konpaku and Kootori might be much safer, although might get her brain niggling...
Eh, tribute to the Nurse! Learn from past errors, even if she hasn't made them!
[X] “Call me… Hakurei Reimu, and her Hieda no Akyuu.”
{X} Train with Kasen.
Probably instinct up?
[X] “Call me… Hakurei Reimu, and her Hieda no Akyuu.”
{X} Train with Kasen.
[X] “Call me… Hakurei Reimu, and her Hieda no Akyuu.
{X} Brawl with Zanmu.
[X] “Call me… Hakurei Reimu, and her Hieda no Akyuu.
this is probably the most direct way we'll get of telling them marisa's an immaterial child. she shouldn't know those names at all. even if the name "hieda no akyuu" could be guessed from the naming schemes of the children of miare, they're not from gensokyo and shouldn't know about the child of miare. "hakurei reimu" is even more of a signal- not only does marisa have no reason to know about the hakurei, there's absolutely no way she should know what the previously-missing heiress is named. which is pretty damning evidence that the she's an immaterial child, which, on one hand, means that kasen will be really intent on making sure we get into gensokyo safe and sound. on the other, she's probably going to try her damn best to get us to go back to the kirisames, which....
...actually, does kasen know that the immaterial children were reborn as youkai? she's only gotten the confirmation that the other sages have found them recently, after all.
anyways, the latter choice feels like an instinct check to me? i feel like going all out with zanmu would increase instinct and make us more liable to break our cover. training spell cards with kasen would probably not just get more control over, y'know, not instinctively stabbing a guy with our tentacles, but also could jog some more memories loose.
{X} Train with Kasen.
[X] “Let’s try… calling her Tokiko, and me Satsuki Rin?”
{X} Brawl with Zanmu.
Finally violence (with adult supervision)
[X]"Let’s try… calling her Tokiko, and me Satsuki Rin?”
{X} Train with Kasen.
SATSUKI RIN SATSUKI RIIIIINNNNN
... And, for the other option, I think it would be nice and bring Marisa closer to her past self (Re/Awakening?). Though Zanmu's option seems to be better for acclimatising to actual battles (Not saying Kasen won't aswell, I just imagine she'd be softer on Marisa to a detriment), I don't trust her and I think the argument for Kasen I gave before outweighs the positives her option brings.
[X] “Let’s try… calling her Tokiko, and me Satsuki Rin?”
{X} Train with Kasen.
Marisa calling herself Reimu is funny, but I don't wanna do that with Zanmu here.
Isn't Satsuki's vanishing from EoSD kind of similar to the Immaterial Children incident?
We already know that there has been more than one loop, what's to say that the Touhou canon was the first one?
To add to this, the names of ICs don't appear to change across loops, and this would be the first case (as far as I can remember) of a canon TH character name repeating - Satsuki and Kaenbyou. I think we should check in with Youmu sometime soon.
While we did pick the ability cards for stealth, knowing the limits of our firepower is likely going to be useful at some point. This should also help Marisa unwind a bit, and getting on Zanmu's good side will be more important than Kasen's.
[X] “Let’s try… calling her Tokiko, and me Satsuki Rin?”
{X} Brawl with Zanmu.
[X] “Call me… Hakurei Reimu, and her Hieda no Akyuu.”
{X} Train with Kasen.
[X] “How about… I’m Konpaku Youmu, and she’s Motoori Kosuzu?”
I'm for the whole "do the funny thing and maybe remember some stuff" deal, but I would prefer to be a bit more subtle to keep things interesting.
Not sure if this is really all that much more subtle, though.
{X} Train with Kasen.
>>213679 double posting like a dumbass
And honestly? I like Zanmu's offer/idea more, but I'm not keen on destroying Chimata's senkai. Even though it's not real, I'm worried about:
1. Making Chimata particularly annoyed with us.
2. Making a ruckus while Chimata may be meeting with the Tanuki from earlier.
3. I know nothing is real as far as the buildings go, but people are real. Most of the youkai here are strong, but I'm worried about collateral.
Learning her strength feels like something better done at another time. Means Marisa would need to be more careful, tho.
[X] “Call me… Hakurei Reimu, and her Hieda no Akyuu.”
This will almost certainly cause Kasen to blue screen, which is why I'm all for it. Aside from the hilarity of it, this might also end up being our ticket into Gensokyo once Kasen finishes putting 2 and 2 together.
{X} Brawl with Zanmu.
Kasen will probably be indisposed for a while as she tries to process our choice of aliases, so Zanmu is the only available option here.
>>213673
I get the impression that Kasen is very much not aware of the Immaterial Children being youkai. I'm looking forward to Kasen lecturing us on why a pair of youkai should not be impersonating such important humans as the Hakurei shrine maiden and the Child of Miare only to later run into the fact that said "humans" are in fact a pair of youkai from the Animal Realm and the Lunar Capital respectively.
Actually, how familiar is Mamizou with Yachie? If Mamizou isn't read in on some crucial context first, she could see Marisa joining up with Reimu as her ward signing on with the heiress of the Kiketsu family who have apparently managed to not only gain a foothold on the surface, but also take over the Hakurei Shrine with the human denizens of the village none the wiser.
[X]"Let’s try… calling her Tokiko, and me Satsuki Rin?”
{X} Train with Kasen.
[X] “Let’s try… calling her Tokiko, and me Satsuki Rin?”
{X} Train with Kasen.
[X] “Call me… Hakurei Reimu, and her Hieda no Akyuu.”
{X} Train with Kasen.
The urge to go with Rin and Tokiko is strong, but I want to see Kasen's face when this apparent outsider knows the names of two of the most important families in Gensokyo
[X] “Let’s try… calling her Tokiko, and me Satsuki Rin?”
{X} Brawl with Zanmu.
Stoning...
[X]"Let’s try… calling her Tokiko, and me Satsuki Rin?”
{X} Train with Kasen.
Normally, I'd vote for Marisa being as subtle as a brick to the face, but she is a Nue, which means she has instincts to obscure, to hide, to prevaricate (okay that last one is just pure Marisa, but...)
[X] “Let’s try… calling her Tokiko, and me Satsuki Rin?”
{X} Brawl with Zanmu.
>>213682
>I'm looking forward to Kasen lecturing us on why a pair of youkai should not be impersonating such important humans as the Hakurei shrine maiden and the Child of Miare
I'm thinking she'd be more surprised that this seemingly-random outsider youkai child with no apparent connection to Gensokyo knows both of the most important immaterial children's names. She might jump to conclusions.
[X] “Call me… Hakurei Reimu, and her Hieda no Akyuu.”
At first I was like "let's not try stealing identities" but then... re-reading the last few sentences made me realize that this could ring a bell into Zanmu and Kasen if Marisa names Reimu and Akyuu.
{X} Brawl with Zanmu.
Totally Marisa's style lol
[X] “Call me… Hakurei Reimu, and her Hieda no Akyuu.”
{X} Train with Kasen.
I think that Marisa "remembering" Reimu's full name before Reimu does despite being the worst off of the IC is too funny to pass up. Marisa teasing Reimu about remembering Hakurei first would also be in character for her.
The website gave me this CAPTCHA for this vote no joke. I think Zanmu is honestly trying to help Marisa here, but we also have Mike here. Mike wouldn't get much out of Marisa fighting Zanmu but likely would out of being trained by Kasen if she joins the training with us. If we fight Zanmu the one who has the biggest chance of getting hurt is Mike.
From >>213362
>>Marisa sighed. “...if you say so… It’s just… a lot to take in, you know.” The… changeling looked up. “I always thought of myself as… an ordinary person, I guess? But that was kinda the point - I wanted to be able to do hard things because I’d worked hard to beat them, not because I was super-powerful by nature. Like I was beating the odds, y’know? Now I’m some kind of monster-”
>>“You’re not a monster, Marisa.” Mike’s voice was firm. “You’re still you, aren’t you? I mean, if you don’t even know how to control your tentacle-thingies yet, then it really hasn’t done much to your mind at all.”
>>Kasen gave a small smile. “She’s right, you know. Realising you’re no longer human… it’s a terrifying feeling, but that doesn’t mean you’ve become something different at heart. And… just because you’re stronger now doesn’t mean you can’t beat the odds.” the hermit gave a reassuring smile. “You just have to set the odds you’re aiming to beat even higher.”
>>“...okay.” Marisa took a deep breath. “I-I’ll try to think of it that way.”
While this wasn't what Kasen was thinking when she said this, let's set some high odds to beat.
-(X) "Kasen said I should set the odds I want to beat high few things are higher than a fight with an oni in Hell." Challenge Zanmu to a future match in Hell when we are strong enough to defend ourselves.
As much as I would like to named her Rin Satsuki for the funnies, Marisa name dropping the missing ninth child of Miare, and the last name of Gensokyo's local miko could probably be beneficial for her
[X] “Call me… Hakurei Reimu, and her Hieda no Akyuu.”
{X} Brawl with Zanmu.
Im finally in on time to vote
[X] “Call me… Hakurei Reimu, and her Hieda no Akyuu.”
I want this running joke to run further
{X} Train with Kasen.
danmaku time
Actually, since Youmu and Kosuzu are still missing at this point wouldn't it be funny if Yukari and Youki caught wind of those two and tried to chase them down
[X] “Let’s try… calling her Tokiko, and me Satsuki Rin?”
{X} Train with Kasen.
I love the idea of Marisa learning to lie better subconsciously (>>213660's idea), even if she may not remember her dialogue with Flandre.
[X] "Let's try... calling her Tokiko, and me Satsuki Rin?"
{X} Brawl with Zanmu
>>213670 here
[UNDO] “Call me… Hakurei Reimu, and her Hieda no Akyuu.”
[X] "Let's try... calling her Tokiko, and me Satsuki Rin?"
[X] “Let’s try… calling her Tokiko, and me Satsuki Rin?”
{X} Train with Kasen.
[X] “Call me… Hakurei Reimu, and her Hieda no Akyuu.”
I do see a couple of ways this could backfire, but the sheer comedy of it means I'm willing to take the risk.
{X} Train with Kasen.
This I don't have too much of an opinion on, so after literally flipping a coin Kasen it is.
[X ] “Let’s try… calling her Tokiko, and me Satsuki Rin
Cause why not
{X} Train with Kasen.
Cause training with kasen would make her very close to being like magician to her previuse life and learning to obscure stuff can greatly benefit in the long run and could become one of her specialty from the other imaterial children
[X] “Call me… Hakurei Reimu, and her Hieda no Akyuu.”
Marisa claiming she's Reimu is a fuckin' classic, and I wanna watch Kasen scramble to make sense of this, ESPECIALLY if she's not in the loop yet about the ICs being youkai now.
{X} Brawl with Zanmu.
Aren't you tired of being nice? Don't you just wanna go apeshit? We went for the powerful youkai option, so let's ACT like a powerful youkai, if only for a moment. Embrace the power in full while there's no (apparent) consequences.
[X] “Let’s try… calling her Tokiko, and me Satsuki Rin?”
{X} Train with Kasen.
While the other options are a lot of fun, this one seems the most appropriate to me.
[X] “Let’s try… calling her Tokiko, and me Satsuki Rin?”
{X} Brawl with Zanmu.
Yeah, it's not often you get the chance to go all out without fear of collateral damage training with an oni.
[X] "Let’s try… calling her Tokiko, and me Satsuki Rin?”
{X} Train with Kasen.
[X] “Call me… Hakurei Reimu, and her Hieda no Akyuu.”
On the one hand, something something it's very nuelike to hide Marisa's nature as an IC. On the other, I really want to give someone a heart attack.
{X} Brawl with Zanmu
I like interacting with newhus. No strong preference.
[X] “How about… I’m Konpaku Youmu, and she’s Motoori Kosuzu?”
{X} Brawl with Zanmu.
[X] “Call me… Hakurei Reimu, and her Hieda no Akyuu.”
{X} Train with Kasen.
Probably would be the most interesting.
[X] “Let’s try… calling her Tokiko, and me Satsuki Rin?”
Could be just complete coincidence but I wonder if some meta knowledge shenanigans happened during the transmigration process, giving her two fanon names at that. Not to mention that while the first two options could be fun, it jumps our reunion progress too much.
{X} Train with Kasen.
While I really want her to control her strength, I want her to double down on subtlety and soft power. Let's see how Marisa dates differently from Kosuzu on this.
Also it would make her true strength remain a wildcard final resort, which would be either be appropriate or problematic depending on the circumstance. Either way that future breakdown could be fun too.
Counting to >>213711:
Main Choice #1:
[20] “Call me… Hakurei Reimu, and her Hieda no Akyuu.”
[2] “How about… I’m Konpaku Youmu, and she’s Motoori Kosuzu?”
[20] “Let’s try… calling her Tokiko, and me Satsuki Rin?”
Main Choice #2:
{25} Train with Kasen.
{17} Brawl with Zanmu.
Potential Additions:
For {x} Train with Kasen:
-(1) "Kasen said that I should set the odds, so... maybe I'll train with Kasen for now & brawl with Zanmu later on. Besides, there are few things that are higher than a fight with an oni from Hell." (>>213690)
I'm pretty sure that this is what you implied, but I had to edit it quite a bit. Please tell me if this is suitable or if you wanted to add/edit something that I potentially missed.
I love ties.
:3
>>213714
Honestly, I think a tie works quite well here. Kasen would almost certainly veto using Reimu and Akyuu as aliases (once her brain finishes rebooting of course), which would force us to come up with a second set of names in response.
[X] “Call me… Hakurei Reimu, and her Hieda no Akyuu.”
{X} Train with Kasen.
[X] “Call me… Hakurei Reimu, and her Hieda no Akyuu.”
{X} Train with Kasen.
[X] “Let’s try… calling her Tokiko, and me Satsuki Rin?”
I kinda don't want to be mega obvious about it, you know? At least immediately.
{25} Train with Kasen.
[X] “Let’s try… calling her Tokiko, and me Satsuki Rin?”
{X} Brawl with Zanmu.
[X] “Let’s try… calling her Tokiko, and me Satsuki Rin?”
{X} Train with Kasen.
X] “Call me… Hakurei Reimu, and her Hieda no Akyuu.”
{X} Train with Kasen.
X] “Let’s try… calling her Tokiko, and me Satsuki Rin?”
{X} Train with Kasen.
[X] “Call me… Hakurei Reimu, and her Hieda no Akyuu.”
{X} Train with Kasen.
While I normally don't vote, this seems like it'd be an entertaining option. So let's make a reference to EoSD.
[X] “Let’s try… calling her Tokiko, and me Satsuki Rin?”
{X} Train with Kasen.
The only reason I want to go with the absolutely non-canon names is because I love these characters, but it's also hard to not just choose the nostalgic "I'm Reimu Hakurei" of Marisa. As for training with Kasen, well, as much as Marisa usually picking the massive blast over a controlled attack, I personally think her Nue nature requires more delicacy to maximize its value.
[X] “Call me… Hakurei Reimu, and her Hieda no Akyuu.”
{X} Train with Kasen.
Considering Marisa herself doesn't seem to have any conscious memories of being an IC, this might be our best chance to signal someone that she is one.
At a sudden 52 votes, the thread has spoken!
And what the thread has said is “I dunno!”
I’m going to sleep now. Voting period ends when I wake up, if it needs a tiebreaker I’ll call for it then.
[X] “Call me… Hakurei Reimu, and her Hieda no Akyuu.”
{X} Train with Kasen.
Too many opportunities for shenanigans
[X] “Call me… Hakurei Reimu, and her Hieda no Akyuu.”
{X} Train with Kasen.
Let's give Kasen a little surprise. Hope she doesn't respond to surprises by punching people in the face.
[X] “Let’s try… calling her Tokiko, and me Satsuki Rin?”
{X} Train with Kasen.
[X] “Let’s try… calling her Tokiko, and me Satsuki Rin?”
{X} Train with Kasen.
(X) "Kasen said that I should set the odds, so... maybe I'll train with Kasen for now & brawl with Zanmu later on. Besides, there are few things that are higher than a fight with an oni from Hell."
Apparently, there are actually two types of votes that can deadlock us. Origin votes AND fake identity votes.
[X ] “Let’s try… calling her Tokiko, and me Satsuki Rin
Let's try not to give Zanmu immediate confirmation Marisa is an Immaterial Child. She's kinda terrifying.
{X} Train with Kasen.
Alright, I was just about to call for a tiebreaker, but >>213741 has called it!
The tiebreaking vote was for the Tokiko and Satsuki Rin option. So that's what we'll be going with.
New epilogue at >>/shorts/3058! This one featuring the sculptor goddess, and a frustrated haniwa.
>Brawl with Zanmu losses
Why do my fellow voters never want violence. When will blood finally spill?
Honestly, I don’t mind that the brawl vote lost. I admitted that I wasn’t too keen on letting Kasen’s training go, so even if I think glorious violence was the better option this time, I’m fine with this.
The big thing I cared about winning was the Rin and Tokiko vote, so I’m glad that crawled its way back eventually. Even if it resulted in the tiebreaker being a bit stressful.
… though I will admit the concept of pitching this to Kasen and having her blue screen would be pretty funny.
It's just not the time or place for it. And it's not like there hasn't been plenty of bloodshed and fighting already.
Honestly i figured Kasens training would be more beneficial for Marisa both currently and when she goes to gensokyo proper and while learning ones limit is great. in my opinion there a lot of ways to circumvent the weakness of not nhowing ones limit making nhowing one limit a moot point for me
Honestly, I'm one of the Yokai instinct voters, and I'm kind of hoping we get an IC who would casually engage in dramatic violence and inhuman behavior.
Not like, in an edgelord way, I just think it would be interesting to have a character that feels more like a Yokai's Yokai.
I'm kind of pinning my hopes on Tenshi whenever that happens
>>213752
We have to wait until we reach Gensokyo for that, otherwise we won't be able to wreck Mystia's cart and Remilia's plans as collateral damage as per tradition.
>>213761
Or blow up the SDM >:D
I will admit, I was honestly considering switching my vote at multiple points, because the draw of making Kasen choke on air at the names was almost too much.
I'm kinda disappointed that the middle route wasn't more popular, at least. I guess it was fully commit to the bit or nothing in a lot of people's minds.
Right? Imagine how pissed Youmu would be if Marisa impersonated her, insult to injury if Marisa is half human too
>>213763
That would presumably derail Remilia's plans, so it is implicitly covered.
Yeah, that probably would have been pretty decent; it's less likely to trivialize the questline than the Reimu option and would still allow us to mess with someone.
Kinda wonder if it'd have won if approval voting was done.
>>213625
I'm glad you liked it! I'm trying to improve the poses of my drawings and I think these were not bad at all. I especially like how Mike's pose turned out, I was scared of screwing it up but it turned out kinda OK.
>>213644
Thanks too! I'm currently working on another drawing right now, albeit slowly. Also, as I said somewhere before, I've been working on "background" stuff so I've been having fun even if progress on these these don't end up being posted in here (someday I will).
>>213688
That title got a smile from me.
>>213761
It's always a pleasure to see Mystia and her cart. Even if they get the short end of the stick lol
[27] “Call me… Hakurei Reimu, and her Hieda no Akyuu.”
[2] “How about… I’m Konpaku Youmu, and she’s Motoori Kosuzu?”
[28] “Let’s try… calling her Tokiko, and me Satsuki Rin?”
{39} Train with Kasen. (+1 T????????)
{18} Brawl with Zanmu. (Spirit to Human-4)
Marisa hemmed and hawed for a moment, trying to choose. “Hmm… let’s try… calling her Tokiko, and me Satsuki Rin?”
Zanmu froze.
Mike turned to Marisa. “So you’re calling yourself Satsuki Rin? Iunno, I can’t quite see it.”
“Oh come on, what would you say if I walked up to you and said ‘I’m Satsuki Rin, a nurse in training?”
The catgirl looked at her flatly. “I would say ‘My name’s Mike, Miss Marisa’. And what’s with the extra backstory? You could never be a nurse.”
Marisa shrugged. “Maybe I shoulda said shrine maiden?”
The oni finally managed to find her voice. “Sa… Satsuki Rin?”
Kasen let out a hum, giving Marisa a contemplative look. “Hmmm… I wonder if that’s alright… I mean, I suppose it’s fitting, in a way.”
Marisa turned to her, raising an eyebrow. “Fitting? How so?”
“How do I put this…” Kasen raised a finger to explain. “Have you heard the term Nanashi no Gonbei?”
Marisa chuckled. “Nameless Gonbei? Yeah, a few times.” Mike stifled a grin. “And his partner John Doe.”
Nanashi no Gonbei was a go-to moniker on the cryptid forums. Whenever someone talking about an occult event didn’t know the identity of a person heavily involved, they’d use a placeholder name to describe them. If they needed multiple names, or if they were a foreigner, then something like John or Jane Doe would be used, but the most common name was the Japanese staple: Nanashi No Gonbei.
Naturally, this resulted in frequent jokes that the most mysterious cryptid on the site was Gonbei himself, acting as the captain of an antique ghost ship one day and keeping pace with a bullet train on foot the next. And there were more than a few authors who had been accused of being Gonbei themselves, when it seemed like they were trying to frame their own humiliating part in events as the actions of another, unidentifiable person.
Kasen raised an eyebrow, but let it slide. “Well, we used to use it in Gensokyo, too, but a certain… ehhh…” Her hand spun, as she tried to pick the right words. “A certain business associate decided that it was long and cumbersome, compared to equivalents abroad. So they wanted a catchier replacement.”
Zanmu sputtered. “A-and they chose Satsuki Rin?”
The hermit shrugged. “I know, I know... Wasn’t my choice, but since when do either of those two listen to me?”
“Huh. Really?” Mike tilted her head. “...That’s kinda fitting, then. But a hell of a guess.”
The sage gave Marisa an appraising look. “Perhaps you have some innate instinct to use obscured identities or the like. It’s far from the least surprising thing I’ve heard a youkai do.”
“I… guess that makes sense.” Marisa hummed. …strangely, that story about Satsuki Rin sounded familiar. Maybe that was some kind of youkai ability? “Do you think those guys wouldn’t know it, then? I have some backup names if I need ‘em.”
“It’s still relatively recent. It won’t work when you get to Gensokyo itself, but by then we’d want your mother to find you anyways.” Kasen gave a reassuring smile. “Though just in case, you really should get some training.”
Marisa nodded. “Yeah. And if we’re trying to lay low, the more generalist magic sounds like a good idea.”
“Can you teach both of us?” Mike looked a bit anxious. “I don’t know much about fighting either, so…”
“It’d be my pleasure.” Kasen turned to the oni beside her. “Zanmu, do you have any objections?”
Zanmu turned to her. “Whuh-ah-um. You- I…”
The sage tilted her head. “...Zanmu?”
“N-nothing. It’s nothing.” The black-haired woman rubbed her forehead. “Don’t worry about it. Uh, what did they decide to-?”
“They’re both training with me. You did hear that, right?”
“...Right. Sorry.” Zanmu straightened up, giving Marisa a curious look. “I-I seem to have lost my train of thought…”
Kasen raised an eyebrow, but shrugged. “Well, all the better for the rest of us, then. Come on, girls, I’ll get you started.”
The changeling ran up alongside her, focusing and preparing to fire her own. These were a slow-moving spread of yellow stars, forming thick and tangled walls. The two girls came to a stop, watching their danmaku fly.
The bullets slammed into the targets at the far end of the field, cracking and obliterating them. The duo let out a cheer, before they bent over, panting with exhaustion.
Marisa’s heart was racing. So this was danmaku? It was really fun. It still felt like she wasn’t quite getting something right… she kept wanting to pull something out and fire off a powerful attack from it. But there was no need to be hasty - there was only so far a single class could take them. These general techniques were simple enough to understand, and knowing she could fight without her tentacles was a relief, too.
Marisa’s Technique is now 1.
Much like Resistance serves to counter the negative aspects of high Instinct, Technique serves to counter the drawbacks of low Instinct. Characters with high Technique supplement intuitive skill with universal magic and an analytical understanding of their powers. Where other characters may be undermined by their youkai nature, Technique users have reliable fallbacks that won’t betray them.
“Well done, well done!” Kasen clapped for them, walking up with a pair of water bottles. “You two learn quickly.”
Marisa gave a small smirk as she and Mike grabbed a bottle each, the catgirl downing it desperately. “Th-think we can take on a serious threat?”
“I think you can at least slow someone who’s chasing you down.” Kasen’s voice was stern, as Marisa started to drink her own. “And that’s the most important thing for you two right now.”
“Puaaahhhh… s-so, we need to put these into super-specific fancy techniques to make Spell Cards? Sounds like fun.” Mike gave her friend a smirk, wiping some water off her face. “We’ll have to have a duel later.”
“Y-yeah, definitely. But…” Marisa looked at her hands. “I-iunno, I feel like I’m missing something.”
Kasen tilted her head. “Missing something?”
“You know, like… wouldn’t it be cool if I could do a big laser, or something like that?” Marisa flailed her hands around. “Is there a way to make like, iunno, a magic staff or something?”
That seemed to click for the hermit. “Ah, I know what you mean. A lot of different forms of magic foci exist. Some people use them to empower their magic, and others use them as a fallback option.”
Marisa turned a pensive look towards the market proper. “Hmmm… do you think there’d be anything I could buy at the market like that?”
Chimata’s voice spoke up. “It’s hard to say. You’re likely to find something, but most of them will be by and for specific people - things like hauchiwa fans for the tengu and so on. Without knowing your species, picking the wrong focus could even be harmful to you.”
Marisa looked up, as the goddess descended to the ground. Zanmu descended with her, as Nio hung just behind them. “Though, regardless of whether there’s anything you could buy, the moment’s passed. The market’s closing up for the day.”
“Which means that the time for meeting those thugs is rapidly approaching.” The oni’s gaze seemed to linger on Marisa for a time, though her actual expression betrayed nothing. “...you’ll want to make yourselves scarce, I’m sure.”
The islander straightened up. “Right. Where are they, anyways?”
Chimata clapped twice. A square block of the floor in front of Marisa and Mike rose, glowing with rainbow light. A miniature of the market’s map formed atop it.
Nio stepped forward, tapping on the map. “So, in the real world, the main entrance is where the stage is. The bigger of the two men has been waiting outside there, alongside an older woman in glasses. She’s holding… some kind of weird camera. It’s on a stick, and it looks like they’re using it to take photos of the market. Probably a tool that they’re using to find you. Maybe it detects youkai energy or something?”
He reached over to the other side. “Now, there's a few back paths, but they all lead out to the same street. The other guy is probably somewhere out here, but we’ve not seen hide nor hair of him. Which, to me, seems to be a sign he’s probably trying to stake out.”
Kasen hummed. “With that said, you do have your little ability cards, don’t you? Maybe those could help hide you?”
Zanmu gave a smirk. “And while we’re talking hiding… there’s another route the kids could take.” She jabbed her finger on to the map, dragging it across one of the buildings on the side.
Chimata shook her head. “There’s no path on that side. That building doesn’t go through-”
“There’s always a path, if you’re agile enough.” Zanmu smirked at the two kids. “Think you two could clamber up?”
Kasen gave them an appraising look. “Well, neither of them have any real experience with flying. And that wasn’t something that I was going to teach them in a single day. But Mike is a kitten, after all, she’ll land on her feet. Marisa?”
“Mmmm…” Marisa let out an uncertain noise. “I mean, I’m pretty good with trees… never climbed a building before, though. How tall is it?”
“Two storeys,” Nio said, “though there is another risk there. If you do climb up, there’s a decent chance you could be spotted.”
Chimata hummed. “If you can get out, then I can give them a tour of the grounds… and then we should be able to get you back safely. So… what do you girls think is best?
[ ] The main entrance. As bold as it was, if Chimata went and distracted them, they’d never think that the kids got past them that easily. It might be the perfect chance to sneak away.
[ ] The back street. If the other guy really was there, they’d just have to make a break for it.
[ ] Hardcore parkour! It’d be the one thing they aren’t prepared for.
{ } Use a Seed of Unknown Form or two.
{ } No, go for a more physical disguise. They might have a countermeasure against Marisa’s abilities, but Marisa had a few other tricks up her sleeve.
{ } No disguises, they’d just slow them down. Just make sure there was a big distraction…
{ } Something else? (Write-in)
Climbing a building in the middle of a day makes it sound like we'll get spotted right away. But then you had to go and make the option worded like that.
[X] Hardcore parkour! It’d be the one thing they aren’t prepared for.
PARKOUR
{X} No disguises, they’d just slow them down. Just make sure there was a big distraction…
Can't Parkour with a disguise
You know, I think this is funnier than what we would’ve gotten by claiming to be Reimu. Purely by the fact that no one expected it.
[X] Hardcore parkour! It’d be the one thing they aren’t prepared for.
Hardcore! Parkour! Honestly, I doubt it'll go all that bad. Marisa's always been decently athletic (for example, vaulting the Hieda Manor walls in Forbidden Scrollery), so I imagine that hasn't changed tooooooo much in this life.
{X} Use a Seed of Unknown Form or two.
I was originally not going to pick this 'cuz it sounds like Mamizou might be out there with the goons, and she'll definitely be able to recognize the seed in play, given that she's old friends with Nue, but if Marisa is far enough away with it active (climbing a building, for instance), then that might not matter.
[X] The main entrance. As bold as it was, if Chimata went and distracted them, they’d never think that the kids got past them that easily. It might be the perfect chance to sneak away.
{X} No, go for a more physical disguise. They might have a countermeasure against Marisa’s abilities, but Marisa had a few other tricks up her sleeve.
- {X} Try your hand at disguising yourself and Mike as a pair of diminutive elderly women, with maybe the help of some magic. You have a perfect trio of tutors/references right in front of you, after all.
Old people climb up and down buildings all the time in Japan, trust me.
[X] The main entrance. As bold as it was, if Chimata went and distracted them, they’d never think that the kids got past them that easily. It might be the perfect chance to sneak away.
{X} No, go for a more physical disguise. They might have a countermeasure against Marisa’s abilities, but Marisa had a few other tricks up her sleeve.
Are you okay there, Zanmu?
[ ] Hardcore parkour! It’d be the one thing they aren’t prepared for.
{ } No, go for a more physical disguise. They might have a countermeasure against Marisa’s abilities, but Marisa had a few other tricks up her sleeve.
[X] The main entrance. As bold as it was, if Chimata went and distracted them, they’d never think that the kids got past them that easily. It might be the perfect chance to sneak away.
{X} Use a Seed of Unknown Form or two.
[X] Hardcore parkour! It’d be the one thing they aren’t prepared for.
{X} No, go for a more physical disguise. They might have a countermeasure against Marisa’s abilities, but Marisa had a few other tricks up her sleeve.
If the current company ain't making a hard No on parkour to this option, that means it's periodically viable right? Now that the Technique path is discovered, of course I would want to see where that goes.
Keep rejecting that instinct and somehow still become a martial arts technician, alien girl. Your guardians can only blame themselves for keeping you away from the supernatural until it hurt you (yeah I'm spiteful for marisa, so what).
[X] The main entrance. As bold as it was, if Chimata went and distracted them, they’d never think that the kids got past them that easily. It might be the perfect chance to sneak away.
{X} No, go for a more physical disguise. They might have a countermeasure against Marisa’s abilities, but Marisa had a few other tricks up her sleeve.
Sometimes the most obvious exit is the least anticipated one.
[X] Hardcore parkour! It’d be the one thing they aren’t prepared for.
{X} No, go for a more physical disguise. They might have a countermeasure against Marisa’s abilities, but Marisa had a few other tricks up her sleeve.
[X] Hardcore parkour! It’d be the one thing they aren’t prepared for.
- {X} Use a Seed of Unknown Form or two.
- (X) If Kasen objects, tell her this could be a part of their training.
I wanted to try and get Marisa and Mike to disguise as some manga characters, but I wasn’t really sure which.
[X] Hardcore parkour! It’d be the one thing they aren’t prepared for.
{X} No, go for a more physical disguise. They might have a countermeasure against Marisa’s abilities, but Marisa had a few other tricks up her sleeve.
Yeah if the camera has some way to bypass the usual yokai trickery it might be safer to go for something non-spiritual/magical.
Wonder why that caught Zanmu of all people so off guard. Ah well. Training with Kasen paid off it seems, hell yeah.
If you're going to label the third option like that, how could I not?
[X] Hardcore parkour! It’d be the one thing they aren’t prepared for.
{X} Use a Seed of Unknown Form or two.
[X] The main entrance. As bold as it was, if Chimata went and distracted them, they’d never think that the kids got past them that easily. It might be the perfect chance to sneak away.
{X} No, go for a more physical disguise. They might have a countermeasure against Marisa’s abilities, but Marisa had a few other tricks up her sleeve.
- (X) "We're just a couple of delinquent schoolgirls, nothing to see here!"
[X] The main entrance. As bold as it was, if Chimata went and distracted them, they’d never think that the kids got past them that easily. It might be the perfect chance to sneak away.
{X} No, go for a more physical disguise. They might have a countermeasure against Marisa’s abilities, but Marisa had a few other tricks up her sleeve.
I'm suspicious that Zanmu, of all people, is so flabbergasted. That's got to be a hint of some kind.
Oh, hey! We *did* verbally slap someone with a fish! Yey!
...Hm. I wonder if Zanmu knows Satsuki Rin, or...if she *was* Satsuki Rin. She used to be human, after all.
[X] Hardcore parkour! It’d be the one thing they aren’t prepared for.
{X} No, go for a more physical disguise. They might have a countermeasure against Marisa’s abilities, but Marisa had a few other tricks up her sleeve.
Aunty Zoe knows her buddy Nue's tricks.
[X] Hardcore parkour! It’d be the one thing they aren’t prepared for.
{X} No, go for a more physical disguise. They might have a countermeasure against Marisa’s abilities, but Marisa had a few other tricks up her sleeve.
physical disguise might work the best here since i'm pretty sure mamizou's prepared for any sort of nue-trickery marisa might pull.
>>213788
{UNDO} No, go for a more physical disguise. They might have a countermeasure against Marisa’s abilities, but Marisa had a few other tricks up her sleeve.
{X} No disguises, they’d just slow them down. Just make sure there was a big distraction…
I suspect this is one of those votes where there's exactly one correct choice for each route. The physical disguise would probably the correct option for the front entrance route, while the seed would be the correct option for the back streets route.
[X] The main entrance. As bold as it was, if Chimata went and distracted them, they’d never think that the kids got past them that easily. It might be the perfect chance to sneak away.
{X} No, go for a more physical disguise. They might have a countermeasure against Marisa’s abilities, but Marisa had a few other tricks up her sleeve.
They could go outside as kappas or something
Zanmu being sus as usual. Is Satsuki another immaterial child from a previous previous timeline,
>>213800
Oh shit, I hadn't considered that. Maybe Satsuki Rin is Tenshi's alias.
>>213797 here, changing my vote
{UNDO} No, go for a more physical disguise. They might have a countermeasure against Marisa’s abilities, but Marisa had a few other tricks up her sleeve.
{X} No disguises, they’d just slow them down. Just make sure there was a big distraction…
yeah, i agree with >>213798. parkour prioritizes mobility above all else.
[X] Hardcore parkour! It’d be the one thing they aren’t prepared for.
{X} No disguises, they’d just slow them down. Just make sure there was a big distraction…
So, camera against nue tricks, I think, physical disguise for that route. As other guy doesn't likely have camera or other spirit detection(i hope), seed probably would be sufficient for backstreets.
But I prefer parkour, and for that disguises are pretty useless, since we would be in the open, so distraction it is.
>>213805 sorry for double post, but here I remembered.
>>Akyuu’s head-shaking went from fierce to grim. “...I wish I could say I could. I can do some mind trickery on individuals, but I’m not good enough at illusions to hide another person, let alone two, and tengu have plenty of information-gathering abilities that circumvent it, regardless. Like spirit photography, or telegnosis, or just good noses.”
Maybe there are other ways to circumvent this?
>>213795 here. Changing my vote.
{UNDO} No, go for a more physical disguise. They might have a countermeasure against Marisa’s abilities, but Marisa had a few other tricks up her sleeve.
{X} No disguises, they’d just slow them down. Just make sure there was a big distraction…
It makes sense. Which, according to Sanae, should be disregarded, but then again she tried taking over Reimu's shrine, soooo...
[X] Hardcore parkour! It’d be the one thing they aren’t prepared for.
{X} No disguises, they’d just slow them down. Just make sure there was a big distraction…
Audacity is a disguise in and of itself, right?
The main entrance. As bold as it was, if Chimata went and distracted them, they’d never think that the kids got past them that easily. It might be the perfect chance to sneak away.
{X} No, go for a more physical disguise. They might have a countermeasure against Marisa’s abilities, but Marisa had a few other tricks up her sleeve.
That one's only for main entrance. Drop it if Parkour wins.0000][/color]
Satsuki Rin is a character who is different for every writer (even moreso than normal).
The main common theme with her is that she does not exist. So in a way, her existence is nothingness.
So yeah, I think Zanmu may know a thing or two about that name, beyond the use as an alias.
I don't think she was her (she's sometimes a Kirin) but she may know of her, if not know her.
[X] The main entrance. As bold as it was, if Chimata went and distracted them, they’d never think that the kids got past them that easily. It might be the perfect chance to sneak away.
{X} No, go for a more physical disguise. They might have a countermeasure against Marisa’s abilities, but Marisa had a few other tricks up her sleeve.
Parkour is wayy too dumb for me
>>213781 Here... Maybe a bit late but i got an idea, changing my answer
{UNDO} No, go for a more physical disguise. They might have a countermeasure against Marisa’s abilities, but Marisa had a few other tricks up her sleeve.
- {UNDO} Try your hand at disguising yourself and Mike as a pair of diminutive elderly women, with maybe the help of some magic. You have a perfect trio of tutors/references right in front of you, after all.
{X} No disguises, they’d just slow them down. Just make sure there was a big distraction…
-{X} Have some seeds of unknown form ready, and tag them onto any 'promising' passerby to put your pursuers off the trail.
Good idea or nah? The seeds seem like more of a big target than an effective disguise with these tanuki. Sticking them on passerby seems like a good idea, given that they run away, and the tanuki don't catch up to them too fast. - because then they'd just give our location away! Since its pretty late I'm sure there's at least a few shady figures hanging around who're reasonably fit and would run when a bunch of goons tried to chase after them.
Oh no, I forgot to count. Ahhhh...
Counting to >>213812:
Main Choice #1:
[8] The main entrance. As bold as it was, if Chimata went and distracted them, they’d never think that the kids got past them that easily. It might be the perfect chance to sneak away.
[0] The back street. If the other guy really was there, they’d just have to make a break for it.
[12] Hardcore parkour! It’d be the one thing they aren’t prepared for.
Main Choice #2:
{4} Use a Seed of Unknown Form or two.
{10 [9?]} No, go for a more physical disguise. They might have a countermeasure against Marisa’s abilities, but Marisa had a few other tricks up her sleeve.
Note that count turns to 9 if the Parkour Option wins due to >>213810.
{7} No disguises, they’d just slow them down. Just make sure there was a big distraction…
{0?} Something else? (Write-in)
Potential Additions:
-------1-------
For [x] Hardcore Parkour:
-(1) If Kasen objects, tell her this could be a part of their training. (>>213789)
-------2-------
For {x} No, go for a more physical disguise:
-(1) "We're just a couple of delinquent schoolgirls, nothing to see here!" (>>213792)
For {x} No disguises:
-(1) Have some seeds of unknown form ready, and tag them onto any 'promising' passerby to put your pursuers off the trail. (>>213812)
Count should be accurate?
:3
Whoops, I got something wrong.
Correction:
[9] The main entrance. As bold as it was, if Chimata went and distracted them, they’d never think that the kids got past them that easily. It might be the perfect chance to sneak away. (>>213810 counts as a vote)
-{X} Have some seeds of unknown form ready, and tag them onto any 'promising' passerby to put your pursuers off the trail.
Adding to >>213808
-{X} Have some seeds of unknown form ready, and tag them onto any 'promising' passerby to put your pursuers off the trail.
We do need a big distraction after all, and this is probably about as good as we can do without resorting to actual property damage.
Adding to >>213805
-{X} Have some seeds of unknown form ready, and tag them onto any 'promising' passerby to put your pursuers off the trail.
Imagine if having the power over nothingness also gives you the seemingly random knowledge that Satsuki Rin, in particular, does not exist.
Adding to >>213792
-{X} Have some seeds of unknown form ready, and tag them onto any 'promising' passerby to put your pursuers off the trail.
--{X} If possible, maybe make the seeds bounce between people, just to make it even more confusing?
{X} No disguises, they’d just slow them down. Just make sure there was a big distraction…
-{X} Have some seeds of unknown form ready, and tag them onto any 'promising' passerby to put your pursuers off the trail.
[X] Hardcore parkour! It’d be the one thing they aren’t prepared for.
{X} No disguises, they’d just slow them down. Just make sure there was a big distraction…
-{X} Have some seeds of unknown form ready, and tag them onto any 'promising' passerby to put your pursuers off the trail.
[X] Hardcore parkour! It'd be the one thing they aren't prepared for.
{X} No disguises, they'd just slow them down. Just make sure there was a big distraction...
-{X} Have some seeds of unknown form ready, and tag them onto any 'promising' passerby to put your pursuers off the trail.
>>213784
{undo} Use a Seed of Unknown Form or two.
{X} No, go for a more physical disguise. They might have a countermeasure against Marisa’s abilities, but Marisa had a few other tricks up her sleeve.
[X] The back street. If the other guy really was there, they’d just have to make a break for it.
{X} Use a Seed of Unknown Form or two.
Probably the wrong option, but I wanna see it used again.
[X] The main entrance. As bold as it was, if Chimata went and distracted them, they’d never think that the kids got past them that easily. It might be the perfect chance to sneak away.
{X} No, go for a more physical disguise. They might have a countermeasure against Marisa’s abilities, but Marisa had a few other tricks up her sleeve.
-{X} Have some seeds of unknown form ready, and tag them onto any 'promising' passerby to put your pursuers off the trail.
If they really can see Marisa's ability, then this is so dumb it might actually work. Just have to get some moustaches or something. The part where we use the seeds on some bystanders is genius btw
[X] Hardcore parkour! It’d be the one thing they aren’t prepared for.
{X} No disguises, they’d just slow them down. Just make sure there was a big distraction…
I don't have anything to add to the current vote discussion other than my vote.
On the results for the previous vote we got interesting results. The fact Zanmu reacted tells me that Zanmu might know Satsuki Rin, Tokiko or both. If so than the Tokiko and Satsuki Rin imforms Zanmu something is weird about Marisa. Keeping this line of though running than the Konpaku Youmu and Motoori Kasuzu would have informed Kasen something was up. And the Hakurei Reimu and Hieda no Akyuu would have informed both Kasen and Zanmu about Marisa. This is just a guess based on how Zanmu reacted and is likely wrong.
I think the +1 T???????? from the train with Kasen is Technique but not sure.
I've dropped a couple of new epilogues over the last couple of days on the shorts thread:
>>/shorts/3064 and >>/shorts/3068
I'll be trying to bang the remaining ones (of which there are somewhere between three and five, depending on how much I can squeeze in) out in short order; my goal is to get them all out by a certain day.
This may mean the main thread's updates slow for a little while. Apologies to everyone in advance.
>>213842
>Apologies to everyone in advance.
Yes, how dare you take time away from writing this excellent story as a hobby in order to... uh... continue to write this excellent story.
In all seriousness, it's been fun getting to catch up on the aftermath of K/K, and having more time to think on votes and do rereads to refresh myself certainly isn't a bad thing. It's crazy to think about how it's almost been a year of this story.
Counting to >>213840:
Main Choice #1:
[10] The main entrance. As bold as it was, if Chimata went and distracted them, they’d never think that the kids got past them that easily. It might be the perfect chance to sneak away.
[1] The back street. If the other guy really was there, they’d just have to make a break for it.
[15] Hardcore parkour! It’d be the one thing they aren’t prepared for.
Main Choice #2:
{4} Use a Seed of Unknown Form or two.
{12 [11]} No, go for a more physical disguise. They might have a countermeasure against Marisa’s abilities, but Marisa had a few other tricks up her sleeve.
Note that count turns to 11 if the Parkour Option wins due to >>213810.
{11} No disguises, they’d just slow them down. Just make sure there was a big distraction…
{0?} Something else? (Write-in)
Potential Additions:
-------1-------
For [x] Hardcore Parkour:
-(1) If Kasen objects, tell her this could be a part of their training. (>>213789)
-------2-------
For {x} No, go for a more physical disguise:
-(1) "We're just a couple of delinquent schoolgirls, nothing to see here!" (>>213792)
Miscellaneous Additions:
-(10) Have some seeds of unknown form ready, and tag them onto any 'promising' passerby to put your pursuers off the trail. (>>213812, >>213816, >>213817, >>213818, >>213819, >>213821, >>213823, >>213827, >>213828, >>213839)
--{1} If possible, maybe make the seeds bounce between people, just to make it even more confusing? (>>213821)
Just counting so that Gooboi doesn't get a headache trying to count on from the last count.
Anyways, a tie is always nice.
:3
Wasn't planning on voting, but just to avoid ties (annoying gremlins that they are)
[X] Hardcore parkour! It’d be the one thing they aren’t prepared for.
Objectively funny. And any good youkai should be able to take refuge in the absurd. Plus, we're a cat and someone with multiple extra limbs, versus some heavy tanuki.
{X} No disguises, they’d just slow them down. Just make sure there was a big distraction…
Risky, but feels more in line with the parkour mindset. Also, for as brash and audacious as Marisa is, she probably does not have the skills to make a nonmagical disguise good enough to fool a group of criminals.
>> “Kids?” The two girls whirled around. Two young men were approaching them, both bearing stern faces framed by curly green hair and stony horns. One of the two had stepped forward to address them directly. “We’re gonna need you to step away from the entrance, so other guests can get in an’ out of here.” His partner - twin? - grunted in agreement.
>> “O-oh, sorry.” Marisa stepped back, away from the moon plate as directed, only releasing Mike’s hand a second later. “U-um… if you don’t mind me asking… where is ‘here’?”
>> The one speaking to them raised an eyebrow. “You mean you don’t know? This is the non-human section of the market. Where you don’t need to hide everything under heavy jackets.” He gave a meaningful look to the girls. “‘Spite the flashy entrance, it’s really just a regular old hermit enclave fit for Lady Tenkyuu’s purposes.”
>> He gestured around. “You explored the regular version yet? Everything’s pretty much the same here in terms of where you’ll find food and goodies. ‘Cept that where the entrance is, you’ll find Lady’s Tenkyuu herself - something about watching both markets at once.”
>> Mike nodded, bowing. “Got it. Thank you, mister - er, I mean misters…”
>> “Mister?” The gatekeeper rolled his eyes. “Just call me Nio, alright? Now come on, off you trot; if it’s your first time here, I’m sure you’ve got a lot to see.”
>> Nio the komainu (it had finally hit Marisa when he’d been praising the Market Goddess and she’d seen his tail wagging) was doing his best to welcome the girls and get them comfortable. Thinking of one guy having two bodies was still a bit weird, but knowing one of those bodies was hanging right by the entrance to keep an eye out for trouble made it both more of a theoretical concept and something the islander could deeply appreciate.
Had fun with this one.
