“Ran! RAN! Come in Ran!” A voice calls out desperately from a small radio. “They’ve found Mayohiga! I repeat, they’ve found Mayohiga!”

The busy room, full of kappa and tengu alike, quickly falls silent at the outburst from the radio. Moving quickly to the radio Ran snatches it up.

“What did you say, Nitori?” Ran’s voice wavering slightly.

“They’ve found us Ran! I don’t know how, but they’re here now. They’re pouring in almost faster than we can deal with! This isn’t like any of the times before.”

“Nitori! Fall back. That’s an order! Get yourself and your people out of there!”


“Sorry Ran, Signal’s breaking up. I’ll buy you some time. Get out of there no-” Nitori’s words are lost in a burst of static.

Ran stands there staring dumbly at the device for a moment.

“Nitori! Nitori! Come in Nitori!” Silence is the only reply.

“God DAMN it Nitori! don’t do this to me! Answer me!!” Again, silence is the only constant.

Ran smashes the device, the table sagging and groaning under the force of her actions. Hands now braced on the table, Ran stares down at the ruined machine. All eyes in the room now intently focused on her.

“Well,” Ran’s voice barely more than a growl, “What are you waiting for?!” Ran whips her head up and glares across the room before slamming her fist against the table. “We‘re leaving!!! Grab what you can carry, torch the rest. Pack up now!!!”

No sooner had the words finished leaving her lips than the room burst into a panicked level of activity. Kappa and tengu rushing around trying to grab everything that was necessary and deciding what could be forgotten. Silently, from her position in the front of the room, Ran cursed at herself. Shaking her head she dove into the fray along with the others.

---

“This is Momiji, over. Nothing to report this way, over.” Ran shook her head, all business as always. That was Momiji.

“Kana here~ Nothing over this way, Mistress Ran~” The cheerier of Yukari’s two new crow familiars reported in.

“Hey, hey, hey! Aya Shameimaru, your roving eye in the sky, reporting in! Looks like there’s some enemy forces rolling across the northern half of Gensokyo, 10% chance of encounter today. And now, your five day forecast!”

“Miss Aya!” Kaori, the more serious of Yukari’s crow familiars, admonished into the radio, “Now is not the time for such things!”

Ran gently placed her hand on Kaori’s shoulder and shook her head. “Kaori, calm down. Aya’s simply trying to lighten the mood. We’re all a little on edge here.”

Kaori turned to Ran. “But. . . Mistress Ran! It’s so inappropriate.”

“Just let her have her fun for now. We have more important things to worry about. All the people from Mayohiga are counting on us to get them to the underground safe, ok? So we need to focus on that for now.”

“Alright Mistress Ran.”

“Yeah!” Aya’s voice called forth from the radio. “Anyways, the route to the underground seems clear. I’ll keep scouting around up here though. Aya out~”

--
Meanwhile. . .
--

In a shadowy room, in an undisclosed location, four figures gather around a reflecting pool. The moon shines out from the center of the water, apparently reflected from somewhere else. The sound of a nearby door sliding open causes all four figures to turn towards the door. Into the room strides a rather tall woman with short cut hair. She takes a seat at a chair placed at the head of the pool.

“So good of all of you to tear yourselves away from your busy work on such short notice.” Resting her elbows on the arms of the chair and steepling her fingers in front of her face. “Report.”

“It seems that we’ve finally discovered Mayogia” A tall woman with long hair steps forward, the reflected light playing eerily over her features.

“However, it seems that Ran has managed to slip through our fingers once again. The few kappa that we managed to take alive were of little use to us as well. It’s. . . unfortunate how loyal they were.” A sadistic grin plays over the woman’s face.

Stepping back from the pool, a second woman steps up and adjusts the brim of her hat. Tapping her foot twice on the surface of the water, the image changes from that of the moon to an aerial view of a forested and mountainous area. A purple line surrounds an odd portion of the displayed map. “As far as we can tell, Ran hasn’t left Gensokyo. There’s been no discernable change in the boundary surrounding Gensokyo, and no noticeable breaches.”

The woman in the chair nods to the two. “So then, it would seem that all that remains is to find their little rat’s den and smoke them out. Do so, immediately.” In a single flourish of movement, the woman sweeps up out of the chair and exit’s the room through the same door she entered.

--

“I can’t believe that Parsee!” Kaori fumed as she and her twin Kana walked down the street in the underground city. “She knew it was Mistress Ran, and yet she made the Mistress jump through all those hoops! How unbecoming of her!”

“Oi. Would you cool it already, Kaori? She let us in, didn’t she?” Kana waved a hand in Kaori’s general direction.

Kaori continued to grumble, but said nothing more aloud. Running a few steps ahead Kana, grinning widely, turns back to face Kaori. “Stop being such a grumpy puss! I know what’ll cheer you up!”

Looking sheepishly at her twin, Kaori inquired, “what.”

“Auntie Okuu’s worm pudding! You know you love that stuff!” Kana reached out and grabbed her sister’s hand. “C’mon! If we hurry, maybe she’ll make some for us now!”
Kana gave Kaori’s hand a sharp tug. “Come on!”

Kana took off running, dragging her sibling in tow.

“AH! Kana! Slow down! We shouldn’t run down the street! We might run into someone!”

“You’re always such a worry-wart! It’ll be fine~ It’ll be fine!”

Kaori saw the door to the side slide open while Kana was talking. There were a scant few seconds in which Kaori tried to warn Kana as to what was about to happen, but she didn’t make it. The two of them ran smack into the pair of women who were exiting the building. Kaori and Kana fell backwards onto the ground from the force of the collision. The two women, however, managed to stay standing.

“Oh? And who might we have here?” One of the two women that had just been run into began.

Kana looked up at the woman who had just spoken. She was in her late teens, or appeared to be anyways, with light blue hair that cascaded down her back. Perched upon her head was a ruffled light pinkish hat and her dress was dyed a similar hue. Tucked in tightly to her back, and mostly obscured by her hair was a pair of leathery wings.

Kana’s eyes opened wide as she gasped, “REMI!”

In a single fluid motion she pushed herself off of the ground and launched herself at the woman she had just ran into. She threw her arms around the woman’s waist and hugged her tightly. “I missed you! You’ve been gone so long! Didja bring me anything? Where’ve you been?”

Remilia, slightly flustered by the sudden assault from Kana, attempted to answer each question in turn. The woman standing next to Remilia only chuckled to herself. Kana looked around Remilia at the second woman.

The second woman stood at about the same height as Remilia, but looked to be in her mid-twenties. She had long grey hair that covered the open back of her dress, stopping just before the small of her back. On one side of her head was a small braid that was tied off with a green ribbon at the end. The dress wrapped around her neck, and ran down her sides. The skirt was split down the side, following almost the entire length of her legs, with a pair of boots plainly visible beneath the skirt.

“Sakuya!” Kana absolutely beamed at the woman.

Ruffling Kana’s hair, Sakuya greeted the girl. “Hello there again, little one. You and your sister seem to be doing well.”

“Lady Remilia, Lady Sakuya,” Kaori bowed to each of the women in turn, “It is indeed both an honor and a pleasure to be in your presence once again.”

“Ah, dear Kaori, as formal as ever it would seem. Truly, it would do you quite a deal of good to relax on occasion.” Remilia looked at Kaori with a somewhat bemused expression on her face.

“If Remi and Sakuya-san are here. . . AH! Where’s Patchy?!” Kana glanced around rapidly trying to catch a glimpse of the woman.

“Indeed. It would be nice to see Lady Patchouli again.”

Sakuya laughed slightly. “Patchouli isn’t here right now, little one. She had other matters to attend to. Speaking of which, Remilia, we really should be going.”

“I do believe that you are correct, Sakuya. It is not in good manners to keep one’s hosts waiting. I’m sorry girls, but we’ll have to talk another time.”

Disentangling herself from Kana, Remilia bid the twins farewell.

Puffing out her cheeks, Kana stood there pouting. “I wanted to see Remi more!”

“They obviously had things that were more important at the moment. Say,” Kaori said, thinking quickly, “Didn’t you say that Auntie Okuu would make worm pudding for us?”

“AH! Yeah! She said she would last time we were here! But. . . I wanna see Remi too. Mouuu. . . What should we do?”

“Well . . . Let’s--”

-Should Kaori and Kana. . .
[ ] Go see ‘Auntie Okuu.’
[ ] Follow Remilia and Sakuya.

[ ] Follow Remilia and Sakuya.

This is an interesting idea.

Gah! Why must you post right before I go to work!

You better prove yourself with this one, Kira. If you drop this, I will forever use the hide button for your threads.

[x] Follow Remilia and Sakuya.

CAW CAW

[ ] Go see ‘Auntie Okuu.’

[ ] See Auntie Okuu~

PS: Worm Pudding~

>>[ ] Follow Remilia and Sakuya.

Wait, what?

How did the SDM team get here? The Genso-Lunar War happened way before Remilia-- let alone Sakuya-- was born.

>>77199
>Looks like there’s some enemy forces rolling across the northern half of Gensokyo
It also happened before the creation of gensokyo.

This isn't the same war.

>>77201

>>“This,” The girl began, revealing her glowing red eyes, “Is a story from over a thousand years ago. . .”
The Genso-Lunar War happened "over 1000" years ago.

>>“It had been decreed by the great Yukari Yakumo that the moon should be invaded.” The girl spoke once again, now standing next to this smaller stage.
Yukari was the one who originally instigated the Genso-Lunar war.

So yeah, I'm fairly sure this is the same war... but:
>>“This is the story, or perhaps, I should say, that this is a story of what might have been.”
So maybe it's an "alternate universe" telling of the story?

[X] Go see ‘Auntie Okuu.’

>So maybe it's an "alternate universe" telling of the story?
Yeah, right off the bat we have:
>A single strand out of place and it renders the entire pattern unrecognizable.
...and then non-loli Remilai. Fascinating concept, difficult execution. Looking forward to see where this goes.

>“This,” The girl began, revealing her glowing red eyes, “Is a story from over a thousand years ago. . .”
Either the first post was completely unrelated, or Kira will need to explain how enemy forces are flying over a land with a name it won't have for another ~800 years or so.
Plus the existence of Remilia Scarlet ~500 years before she was born
Aya may be 1000, but is momiji?
And Okuu. I don't think she's supposed to be 1000.
And Nitori. And did they have radios 1000 years ago, even with "kappa SCIENCE"?
Or Ran. Or Parsee.

So, Still think this is taking place 1000 years ago?

War with Luna? No problem;

Unleash the YUUKAs!!!

[x] Follow Remilia and Sakuya.

[X] Go see ‘Auntie Okuu.’

I don't see what's to be confused about. The "story from over a thousand years ago" is clearly what those puppets were acting out, with one scene being Yukari's lunar invasion as it was "supposed" to have happened, and the second, slightly different one which sets the alternate timeline that this story is following.

In other words, the invasion has already long since happened, and however it turned out is behind what's happening now, in what I am assuming is a somewhat more present time period.

tldr; Difference in the invasion = different outcome = different history of Gensokyo = different things happening in the present, hence what we are seeing now.

Wow. What a nice first impression! I really do like your writing so far...

Now I wanna know what else has changed...

[X] Go see ‘Auntie Okuu.’

[ ] Follow Remilia and Sakuya.

[X] See Auntie Okuu~

[x] Follow Remilia and Sakuya.

[X] See Auntie Okuu.

Calling it, since it seems this is all the votes I'm gonna get and this is 1/2 way down the second page.

Multiple posts are preparing now. Please wait warmly
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
“Let’s go see Auntie Okuu. I’m sure that we’ll have plenty of time later to talk to Remilia and Sakuya.” Kaori nodded sagely.

“Well. . . if you say so, Kaori.” Kana sounded doubtful.

“You know you want that warm, ooey-gooey, tasty worm pudding, don’t you?” Kaori shot Kana a knowing look.

“YAH! C’mon! What’re you waiting for?” Kana was already running off before she finished speaking.

“Ah! Wait for me! Kana! Wait up!”

---

After a few minutes trip through the long and winding caves, the pair arrived at the palace of the earth spirits. Kaori stopped before the large cathedral like building that was carved out of the rock of the cave and stared at it in awe. She did so every time that she came to visit, marveling at the craftsmanship and the ornate details on the building. She loved it very much.

Kana, on the other hand, had already reached the door and was now calling for Kaori to hurry up. Kana vanished inside as Kaori headed up to the door. The inside of the Palace was as grand as the outside. Stain glass filled every window, and stretched for as far as the eye could see.

“Hurry, hurry!” Kana called from the entry way to the living quarters.

Kaori shuffled quickly after her sister. Once inside the living quarters, she took a moment to fix her sister’s sandals which had been just cast to the side, and carefully removed her own.

“Oh. . . Uh. . . Hi Rin.” Kana said from the next room.

Kaori tensed up. “Oh no, not Rin” She whispered to herself. Bracing herself for what was to come, she entered the next room and stood next to her sister. “Hello, Miss Rin.”

“Ah. . . Both of you are still alive?” Rin sounded slightly dejected, “I was hoping to finally be able to experiment with your corpses.” Rin sighed. “There’s so many tengu corpses that I’ve had to work with. They’re starting to bore me now. Ah, now I’d really love to get my hands on a familiar’s body. What makes them so different from the tengu, I wonder. . . Ah. . . I guess It’ll just have to wait for another day. . .” Rin trailed off wistfully.

“A-anyways!” Utsuho clapped her hands together loudly, drawing the attention of the twins, “It’s good to see the two of you! It’s been so long since you last visited. You really do need to visit more often. Ah! Rin, Isn’t it good to see them? ALIVE?”

“Hm? Oh, yes, I suppose. . .” Rin waved one of her hands in an offhand manner, “Mn. . . I’ve wasted enough time here with pleasantries. If you really need me, I’ll be in the basement. I have quite a bit of work to do.” With a curt nod to the twins, Rin turned and vanished off down one of the many hallways.

Once Rin was out of earshot Utsuho apologized to the girls. “I’m really sorry about Rin. I’m sure she’s just under a lot of stress is all. Yeah, it’s just stress. I’m sure that’s really all that it is. She does have to help with the defense of the city and the whole underground frequently. That’s it. I’m really sure of -”

“Auntie Okuu. . .? A-are you OK?” Kaori asked worriedly.

“Yeah. . . You’re starting to scare me. . .” Kana added, unhelpfully.

“Eh? Ah. . . I’m sorry. It’s just. . . nothing! Nothing at all!” Utsuho clapped her hands together once again and beamed a bright smile at the twins. “I’m sorry about that! But wait! I know why you’re here! I’m betting that a couple of girls are here looking for a hot, steaming, tasty treat!” Utsuho giggled. “Worm pudding! I started making it as soon as I had heard you’d arrived. I even made the ‘special’ version only the three of us like~. So~ Who want’s some pudding?!”

“ME!” Kaori and Kana called out in unison.

“Well then! To the kitchen!”

- - -

“Well I don’t see why we have to hide every time one of those damned Youkai search parties just waltzes in like they own the place! Just wipe them out and be done with them!” A voice issued out from the Kitchen as the trio approached it.

“R-Reimu. . . Ju-just calm down. . .” A second voice started.

“Yes, young Hakurei. Whilst eliminating them would solve a good many of our short term problems, that course of action would only serve to exacerbate our current situation. It is only by luck, and continued vigilance that we’ve managed to keep the human population here a secret for this long. I know that you are seething and wanting to take action against those who have wronged you. In time, you will have your chance. But for that to happen, you must first live long enough to exact your revenge. Please, calm yourself, and we will discuss this again once you are more level headed.” The sound of a chair being pushed back along the floor is heard.

“Also, the three of you can stop hiding now. We’ve finished our business in the kitchen.”

Utsuho pushed her way into the kitchen, Kaori and Kana in tow. “Err. . . Sorry to intrude.”

“It is of no consequence. We were just departing. Weren’t we, young Hakurei?” Satori turned to the girl with the short brown hair done up in a pony tail.

“I suppose we were. C’mon Marisa. We’ll leave these Youkai to their mindless nonsense” Reimu’s tone was absolutely venomous. She turned and stormed past Utsuho and the twins.

“Ah. . . AH! Reimu! W-wait for me!” The second girl called, picking her book up off of the table and clutching it to her chest. Her long blonde curly locks, standing out vibrantly against the dark colored outfit which looked much like pajamas, trailed behind her as she dashed out the door.

Satori nodded to Utsuho as she exited the kitchen heading the opposite direction that Reimu had just left by.

“I wonder what that was all about,” Kana speculated aloud.

By this time, Utsuho had placed three steaming bowls on the table in the middle of the room, “I have no idea. What I do know is, I have some worm pudding here, and it’s not going to eat itself~”

The twins cheered in unison before digging into the pudding with Utsuho.

- - -

A short while later, the three birds sat talking to one another, their bellies quite full from the delicious pudding.

“Kaori, Kana, Come in.” The small black rectangular boxes that the twins carried squawked to life.
“Awww. . . Man, It’s Ran.” Kana groaned.

“Oh. . . oh, do you to have to be going right now? So soon? You just got here. . .” Utsuho sounded disheartened.

“We really should answer her. . .” Kaori said reluctantly. “Go ahead mistress.”

Utsuho looked crestfallen.

“I need some help down here, are the two of you free?”

“Ah, Mistress--”

-Should Kaori and Kana answer with. . .
[ ] Yeah, we're free.
[ ] uh... no, we're not at the moment.

[X] Sigh. "Yeah, we're free."
[X] Apologize for having to go.
[X] Ask for some pudding to go.

Something tells me that it's the Lunarians invading Gensokyo. Maybe.

[X] "Yeah, we're free."
[X] Apologize for having to go.
[X] Ask for some pudding to go.

[x] "Yeah, we're free."
[x] Apologize for having to go.
[x] Ask for some pudding to go.

[x] "Yeah, we're free."
[x] Apologize for having to go.
[x] Ask for some pudding to go.

[x] "Yeah, we're free."
[x] Apologize for having to go.
[x] Ask for some pudding to go.

[x] "Yeah, we're free."
[x] Apologize for having to go.
[x] Ask for some pudding to go.
I want to vote for commenting on the delicious flan they'll get to eat later, when Remilia is in earshot, but it's too far a stretch.

[X] Yeah, we're free.

It seems that they are at war, and in wartime, one does not simply disregard one's superior officer.

Calling it.

“Ah. . . yes. We’re free Mistress Ran.” Kaori answered with some reluctance.

“Good. I need the two of you to meet me in the infirmary as soon as possible.”

“Understood, Mistress Ran, We’ll be leaving presently.” Kaori replaced the small black device in its usual spot.

“Oh. . . So you’re leaving. . .” Utsuho looked devastated.

“I’m sorry, Auntie Okuu--” Kana started, only to be cut off by Utsuho.

“No, no, no, no, no! Don’t worry about me! I understand completely.” Utsuho now grinned brightly at the twins, “When your mistress calls, you have to answer! I understand that completely. Really, the two of you should go. I’m fine.”

Standing up, Utsuho cleared the dishes from the table, dropping them quite loudly in the sink. With her back now to the twins, she began cleaning the dishes.

“I-if you’re sure, Auntie Ok--” Kana attempted again.

“No, no! It’s fine! It’s fine! Really! Nothing to worry about here, least of which me. Now go. It isn’t good to keep your mistress waiting! Hurry! Hurry!”

“I’m certain that this will all settle down soon enough, Auntie Okuu. Then we can sit and laugh and have all the pudding we can--” Kaori attempted this time.

Utsuho slammed her hands down on the edge of the sink. “GO!” She all but screamed.

The twins quickly vacated the room. As they were leaving, Kaori thought she heard a slight sobbing coming from the kitchen.

--------------------------

“. . . and that’s exactly as it happened”

The twins entered the infirmary just in time to hear Patchouli finish speaking to Ran.

“Speak of the devil.” Patchouli turned to face the pair who’d just entered. “Glad you two could make it so fast. Haven’t seen the pair of ya in forever!”

“Patchy!” Kana cried out happily as she raced towards Patchouli.

Patchy swept Kana up with her well muscled arms. In one swift movement, she placed the small girl on her shoulder. “Hey there, kiddo.”

Kana giggled from her perch on patchouli’s shoulder. Leaning over, ever so slightly, she ruffled Patchouli’s short hair, being careful to not hit the buns. Patchouli simply laughed.

“Ahem.” Ran cleared her throat, “While I’m glad that you’re having so much fun, this is not what I called you here for. Kaori, Kana, follow me.”

“Alright, Ran, you’re the boss. Jus a sec while I say goodbye to the girls.”

Ran simply turned away and vanished down the hallway.

Lifting Kana off of her shoulder, Patchouli turned to face Kaori. “We’ll catch up later. I’m staying with Remilia and Sakuya for the time being. Swing on by later, and we’ll have plenty of time to catch up.” With a brief wave, Patchouli left the infirmary.

The twins headed off to find Ran. Shortly thereafter they found her standing outside one of the patient rooms. As the two girls drew near, Yamame exited the room.

“I’ve the patient all bandaged up now, Ran, was there anything else that you needed from me?” Yamame fiddled nervously with her nurses’ cap while waiting for Ran’s reply.

“No, that will be all for now, Yamame. Just stay out of trouble. You know how important you are to all of us here.” Ran nodded at the blonde girl.

“A-ah. . . Right. . . Like you say. Excuse me, I have other patients that I need to attend to then.” Just like that, she was gone. Vanishing into another patient room.

“Mistress?” Kaori inquired.

“Hm? Ah. I see that Patchouli was to the point once again. I do believe that I’ll follow her lead. Come.” Ran entered the room that Yamame had emerged from just a few moments prior.

The interior of the room was the same rough hewn stone that all the underground was composed of. The bed, which was the dominating feature of this room, was occupied by a person with short green hair. She seemed to be unconscious.

“Patchouli apparently rescued this youkai while out on patrol. It was being attacked by several other youkai and had taken quite a beating before Patchouli rescued her.”

Ran gazed sternly at the green haired figure for a moment. “While this youkai doesn’t match any known enemy descriptions, we don’t yet know where their allegiance lies. So, to get to the point, when it comes to, I want both of you to keep an eye on it. Understood?”

“Yes, Mistress” The twins answered in unison.

“Good. I’ll leave you to it then. I still have to meet with Satori. Now, don’t forget that you have to keep an eye on her. I’ve told Yamame to contact either one of you or both of you when it comes to.”

“Yes, Mistress.”

Ran nodded and walked wearily out of the room.

“I wonder if we should just stay here and see if she wakes up soon” Kaori proposed.

“I dunno. . .” Kana sounded unsure of the idea.

“Well, what do you think we should do then?”

“We should. . .”

-What should Kaori and Kana do?
[ ] Go spend some time in town.
[ ] Talk to Yamame for a bit.
[ ] Wait for the youkai to wake up

[X] Talk to Yamame for a bit.

see what we can find out here.

>"Patchy swept Kana up with her well muscled arms."

That just ain't right.

[ ] Talk to Yamame for a bit.

WHAT THE FUCK DID YOU DO TO MY PATCHY

[x] Wait for the youkai to wake up

>>78668
[X] Wait for the youkai to wake up

Kana and Kaori are good familiars that will listen to their mistress and won't bother nurses while they take care of people.

[X] Talk to Yamame for a bit.

Does this count as CHO Patchouli?

[X] Wait for the youkai to wake up

in b4 meiling is now a fat slob.

Do you guys dislike this story THAT MUCH?

>>78909
...what?
Are you complaining about a lack of votes or comments like >>78689?

[X] Wait for the youkai to wake up

>>78910
Little of coloumn A, not so much coloumn B, Little of Coloumn c - I can't believe how slow voting is, and a little of coloumn 4: Things people have been saying when I've been complaining about the slow votes/lack of votes. They basically told me that they don't want this, they want MiG or GA:SD. Hence why I'm asking.

>>78912
To be fair, GA:SD was really good and I'd love to see it continue; I'm sure other people do as well. No, I'm not asking you to stop this and restart that. You already said you wouldn't do it... yet at least. Just don't forget about it.

And voting doesn't seem that slow to me. 6 votes in a day; I'm pretty sure that's a hell of a lot more than most people off /th/ get, and they write with that.

[X] Wait for the youkai to wake up

Calling it. I should have it up by tomorrow afternoon/evening. Working during the day.

>>78912
on the slowness : I only come by touhouproject once or twice a day, so if you post an update right after I check, it'll be about a day before I vote, and I don't always decide how I want to vote on the first visit, which would cause it to go even more slowly.

As for liking, disliking, and snide comments: I haven't decided whether or not I like or dislike the story yet. It's still pretty young, but the fact that I'm here means I think it has potential.
The snide comments are all meant to be in good humor (I'm >>78683 , btw). I firmly believe that the writers should have the right to reinterpret cannon as they see fit for the purposes of their story (indeed, at this point, it is difficult to create a genuinely interesting story without SOME deviation), and I'll follow this story as long as it interests me.

Apologies for the massive delays. The new meds they have me on are making my head really fuzzy, and it's hard to write. Not that anoyne cares about that. I'm hoping to get what I've been working on finished up in the next few days. Just letting you guys know that I haven't abandoned this.

>>80898
How come you can't get back to 1 or 2 updates a day like a year ago?
At least finish GA:SD

“We should. . .” Kana sighed deeply, “We should probably wait here. As boring as that’s going to be. . . Mistress entrusted us to watch her. . . So, yeah.”

“Ah. Are you sure? A minute ago you thought it was a bad idea.” Kaori sounded concerned, “Are you alright? Do you have a fever? Did you eat something strange?”

Kaori started fussing over Kana only to be swatted off. Unable to keep a straight face any longer, Kaori burst out giggling.

“Ha. Ha. Very funny.” Kana put her hand on her hip and glared daggers at her twin.

The giggling turned to laughter at Kana’s ridiculous pose. “Alright, alright. I’m sorry Kana, I just couldn’t resist. You make it so easy sometimes.”

Kana only sighed in response to her sister’s teasing. Wandering over to a table located on one side of the room she pulled out a deck of cards. Shuffling them she looked over at her sister who was attempting to stifle her laughter.

“Oi. Quit laughing already. You wanna play?” Kana held up the cards.

Kaori shrugged and sat down across from Kana. “Sure. Why not? We’re probably going to be here for a while anyways and it’s not like our friend here is going to be waking up any time soon.”

For the next several hours the twins sat and played cards. Every single card game the pair knew was played multiple times and several new games were invented by the girls as well.

“This. Is. So. BORING!” Kana wailed.

“Keep your voice down.” Kaori chided, “This is an infirmary! Anyways, you’re the one who wanted to stay and wait.”

“I thought it’d wake up quickly.”

“Well, apparently she took quite the beating. She’s obviously going to need some time to heal.”

Kana’s stomach growled loudly. Laying her head down on the table she stared at the face of the unconscious youkai.

“AH!” Kana cried out suddenly, causing Kaori to jump, “I can’t take it anymore! I’m going to get something to eat!”

In a flash Kana flew out the door, leaving her bewildered twin to straighten the cards and chase after her sibling.

“Ah! Kana! Wait for meeeeeee!”

“Ah~ I’m so full~” Kana rubbed her stomach as the pair left the small waiting room. Snacks and some sandwiches were there for people who were visiting the infirmary.

“You should be, considering how much you ate. You’re probably going to put on five pounds from all that.” Kaori poked her twin’s side. “Feels like you’re already starting to put it on~”

Kana flinched. She stared at her sister angrily causing Kaori to giggle.
“How could you say that! You ate just as much as I did!” Kana poked her sister back. “It seems that I’m not the only one here who’s gaining some weight~”

“Erk.”

Kana grinned. The pair continued walking down the hallway back to the room when a noise caught Kana’s attention.

“Do you hear that?” Kana tapped her sisters arm lightly.

Kaori strained her ears listening for a moment. “No, I don’t he--”

“Shhhhh!” Kana put a hand to her lips and grabbed her sister’s hand. The two moved quickly through the maze of corridors. Listening closely, the sounds of a heated discussion could barely be heard. Try as they might, they were unable to make out what was being said.

“We’ll have to get closer if we want to hear what’s being said” Kaori whispered.

Kana nodded in agreement and the twins stalked along until they reached at an intersection at the hallways. Much closer to the noise they could now somewhat hear what was being said.

“. . . I’m afraid that I just can’t agree with that!”

“That voice! It sounds like Yamame. . .” Kana whispered to Kaori.

“I don’t care if you agree, I just need you to do your job!”

Kana gasped at the second voice. “That’s Patchy!”

Yamame began to voice a protest but was quickly shushed by Patchouli.

“There’s someone else here,” Patchouli hissed, “Who’s there?!”

The twins looked at one another in a panic. Thinking quickly they walked around the corner like they’d just been walking down the hall normally.

“You wouldn’t believe the size of that cake! It was. . . Oh! Patchy!” Kana exclaimed, rushing over and acting happy to see Patchouli. “I thought you had to leave earlier?”

Patchouli visibly relaxed, “Ah, I did, but then I remembered that there was something I needed to discuss with miss Yamame here.” Patchouli waved her hand in Yamame’s direction. “And we were just finishing up with that, weren’t we Yamame?”

“Yes. We’re quite done here.” A slight chill accompanies Yamame’s words.

A dark expression, barely noticeable, flitted across Patchouli’s face as she looked at Yamame. “Alright then.” Turning back to the twins, “And now, I really do have to be off. Stop by and visit later.”

With a quick wave, Patchouli dashed down the hallway, vanishing around a corner a second later.

When the twins were quite sure that Patchouli was out of earshot, they turned to Yamame.

“What was that all about?”

“Nothing important. Look, I have to finish my rounds. Unless you have something pressing, I’ll be on my way.” Glancing back and forth between the twins Yamame waited for a response. Receiving none she turned to leave. “No? Then I’ll be on my way. Good day.”

Yamame vanished into a nearby room leaving the twins behind quite confused about what had just happened.

“What in the hell was that?!” Kana stomped her foot, wondering aloud.

“I. . . Have no idea, really. It might be important though,” Kaori shook her head, “But there’s nothing we can do about it right now, so let’s just get back to the room.

Kana nodded in agreement.

The rest of the trip back to the room was rather uneventful. Upon reaching the room and opening the door, however, the pair was greeted by the sight of an empty bed.

“Where did it go!?” Kana gasped in shock, rushing into the room.

“I’m right here!” From above a figure, clad only in the infirmary’s dressing gown, dropped down onto kana. “I don’t know where you’ve taken me, but you’re not getting the drop on me again!”

Kana squealed as the youkai, now sitting on Kana’s back, pulled on her hair. It only took a second for Kaori to be next to the youkai. Faster than it could react, Kaori brought her hand down on the youkai’s head.

“Get off of her.” Kaori commanded.

Clutching the top of its head, the youkai whined, “Never! I’m not going to let you guys beat me up again!”

Kaori glared at the youkai, moving in very close to its face.

“Get. Off. Her.” Kaori’s eyes faintly glowed red, “NOW.”

Letting out a surprised yelp, the youkai scrambled to get off of Kana. It ran to the far side of the room and huddled there in a corner. Kaori kneeled down next to her sister and helped her up.

“Are you ok?” Kaori asked worriedly.

Kana rubbed the back of her head where the youkai had been pulling on her hair. “Yeah, yeah. . . I think I’m fine. It just surprised me is all.”

“I’m not an it! I’m a girl!”

The twins glanced at one another before staring at the youkai huddling in the corner.

“We need to tell Yamame that the youkai’s awake.” Kana glanced at her twin.

“Well, we certainly can’t leave her here alone. . .” Kaori waved her hand at the girl cowering in the corner. The motion caused the girl to flinch.

“Uuu. . . I don’t know that I want to stay here alone with her. . . “

“She seems to be scared of me though.”

“Mn. . .”

Which of the twins should stay?
[ ] Kaori
[ ] Kana

[ ] Kana

[x] Kana

[z] Kaori
[e] Kana

I'M HELPING

[X] Kana

I doubt wriggle can do too much damage, and I suspect that the twins are of about equal power, meaning that if he did try anything, kana also has enough power to throw him off again. Finally, I doubt that lording over him when he's already afraid would accomplish much, so I think kana would be a better choice.
P.S. Yes, I know I used male form. I caught myself halfway through the post, and went back to change it, but it felt so WRONG that I changed it back.

[X] Kana

writing.

>>81493
hm...it's been a week and a half. Have you decided to discontinue, or is the update just going slowly?

>>83264
Disregard the idiot. It's being worked on at the moment, I just got sidetracked with another project for the upcoming anniversary.

Kana watched the youkai flinch. Sighing inwardly to herself, “I should probably stay. You’ll only scare it further.”

“You sure?” Kaori gave Kana a quizzical look. “You do remember that it just jumped you, right?”

“I know, I know. But I think you traumatized the poor thing with your look of doom. So hurry up. Yamame should still be around where we saw her last, and the sooner that she can check out the girl the better.”

Kaori moved to leave reluctantly. “Well, If you say so. . .” Slipping out the door, she shoots one last glare at the Youkai. “You let me know if she gives you any trouble.” With an audible click the door shuts, signaling Kaori’s departure.

Kana walked slowly towards the youkai. “I’m sorry if my sister scared you earlier, she’s very. . . protective of me. Given what happened to our predecessors, I don’t really blame her. But here I am, getting ahead of myself. Hi!” Kana extended a hand to the youkai. “My name’s Kana, what’s yours?”

The youkai took this opportunity to lunge at Kana. Deftly sidestepping the assault, and using her outstretched arm, Kana flipped the youkai onto it’s back.

“Just because you got the drop on me once doesn’t mean that I’m an easy mark. Ok? Now, c’mon, let me help you up off the floor.” Kana extended her hand to the youkai once again, this time to help it up off of the floor. The youkai stared at it in disgust for a moment before slapping it away.

“I don’t need your pity.” The girl moved into a sitting position.

Kana sat down next to the girl. “It’s not pity. I’m just trying to be nice. I’m not going to let you walk all over me, though. It’s also common practice to help one’s sparring partner up after you throw them to the mat. Patchy taught me that.”

Kana flashed a bright smile to the girl next to her, but was only rewarded by a snort and an upturned nose from her. The snub was ruined by the girl’s stomach. Growling loudly, it made Kana giggle and the girl blush a deep crimson.

“Guess you’re hungry, eh? I think I might have that.” Kana rifled through her pockets, and pulled out a small wrapped cake. “AH! It got smashed. . .” Sighing deeply Kana turned to the youkai, offering the piece of cake. “It may be a little smashed, but it’s still-”

Not even getting a chance to finish speaking, the cake was snatched out of Kana’s hand. Moments later it had vanished down the youkai’s gullet. Talking hastily around the cake shoved in her mouth, “Gah ahne moa?”

“Sorry, I only took one from the sweets room.”

The youkai look crestfallen.

“Ah! Ah! But don’t worry! We can get more to eat once you‘re all checked out.”

The youkai eyes Kana warily, as if sizing her up. Suddenly her hand juts towards Kana. “Wriggle.”

“I’m sorry?”

“You asked my name. It’s Wriggle. Wriggle Nightbug. Are you going to shake my hand, or just leave it hanging here all day?”

“Oh! I’m sorry!” Kana’s hand quickly grasps Wriggle’s hand and gives it a good shake. “It’s a pleasure to meet you!”

The two girls chatted happily for a while, ranging over a variety of subjects before Kana got down to business.

“So, what happened to you out there, anyways?” Kana looked quizzically at Wriggle.

“Ah, Well. . . I’d been hiding out for several days, maybe longer, I don’t really remember. I couldn’t really tell either. Hiding underground is so incontinent in that way. . . Anyways, so I’d been hiding for some amount of time because of all of the youkai traipsing around Gensokyo lately. I hadn’t had anything to eat for days, and what little water I had left was quickly running out. . . So I waited for my chance to sneak out and grab food. Some youkai had set up a camp near where I was hiding and I thought I could steal some food for them. Waiting until the dead of night, I crept from my hiding place, ever so slowly, inching towards that camp.” Wriggle scratched the side of her head.

“I don’t think I ever saw the first youkai coming. I was almost into the camp when something struck me broadside. I went flying into the middle of the camp, and was immediately set upon by the group. I had been beaten pretty badly when, out of nowhere, this purple blur streaked into the camp. That was the last thing I remember seeing, just this purple blur beating the crap out of the youkai who’d been antagonizing me.”

Wriggle sighed and sat there silently for a moment. Suddenly, Kana gave Wriggle a tight hug.

“You don’t have to worry any more, you’re safe here. We’ll make sure that nothing like that will ever happen do you again.” Kana squeezed a little bit harder. Wriggle simply sat there, her face reddening slightly.

“Ah. . . Th-thank you. . . But what was that purple blur that saved me?”

Kana leaned back from Wriggle and cocked her head to one side. “Purple blu... OH! That’d be Patchy! She was the one who brought you in.”

“Patchy? What an odd name...”

“Well, her name’s really Patchouli, but I call her Patchy. Patchouli sounds too stuffy. Patchouli Knowledge. Sounds like she should be stuck away in some dusty library somewhere, collecting mold. I’ve known her forever, though, and that’s the furthest from where she belongs. She’s really strong, and cool, and kind, and awesome! She’s the best!”

Wriggle simply sat there, taking in Kana’s glowing endorsement of Patchouli. “I... I’d really like to meet this ‘Patchouli’ person.” Wriggle’s cheeks flushed slightly deeper red.

The pair were startled by the sound of the room’s door being thrown open. Yamame strode into the room like she owned the place, Kaori following along just staring at Yamame.

“Hello, Wriggle. Long time, no see.” Yamame’s voice sounded like a demon calling out from the darkness. Wriggle’s whole body tensed up as she turned, shaking, to face the Nurse striding boldly into the room.

“Y-Yamame... S-so nice to see you again after all this time... You... You aren’t still mad, are you?”

“No, no, of course not. Water under the bridge. Let bygones be bygones, no? Why would I still be mad over such a little thing? Really. I’m not that petty.” However, as she was saying this, Yamame’s face broke into a wide, evil grin, revealing rows of sharp teeth. “Just a quick examination and we can send you on your way~ Now~ Bend over~”

They say that the scream that issued forth from Wriggle was heard throughout the entire underground.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The trio walked along down the main street of the underground town. All around them, youkai and humans bustled around busily, attending to their own business. The three continued along, mostly ignored. Wriggle was still rubbing hr behind despite the fact that they had left the infirmary quite some time ago.

“I don’t see why she had to be so rough...” Wriggle whined.

The twins just looked at one another and sighed.

“Well,” Kana began, “Would you like to go meet Patchy?”

Wriggle lit up. “Yes, Yes I would!” He cheeks began to blush again.

Kaori cleared her throat. “We’ve still to report to the Mistress.”

Kana sighed.

What should the Trio do?
[ ] Go see Patchouli.
[ ] Go report to Ran.
[ ] Wander around the town for a bit.

[ ] Go see Patchouli.

[ ] Go report to Ran.

Duty comes first.

[x] Go report to Ran.

>Sounds like she should be stuck away in some dusty library somewhere, collecting mold. I’ve known her forever, though, and that’s the furthest from where she belongs.

[X] Go see Patchouli.

I suspect that if wriggle really needs to go see ran, patchy will forward us to her.

need a tie breaker, or I'm just gonna write whichever one I feel like.

[x] Go report to Ran.